We speak of Pentecost as God's dramatic reversal of the Babel event.
At Babel, those building the tower thought that they could reach heaven through their own efforts. They thought they could enter heaven without the help of God. But their pride, which inspired them to build their tower, ironically was the root of their downfall. Prideful men refuse to listen, refuse to hear. Prideful men cannot communicate with one another. Prideful men seek power over other men, insisting that they are "better" than others even within their own group. A prideful people cannot remain united for long.
At Pentecost the Holy Spirit achieved something remarkable: He used the very vices that drove the people of Babel apart - their differences of opinion, their inability to listen to one another - and transformed them into a means of forging a new unity. Difference, instead of being divisive, is chastened and sanctified by the Holy Spirit and becomes a path to reconciliation. Diversity is graced, and brings people together.
It is because of the Holy Spirit that we can celebrate diversity as a positive good, that we can find unity among the differences that bind us. Of course, we must choose whether or not we will respond to the Spirit's graced transformation of difference. Difference now has the potential to unite us, but unless we open our hearts to the Spirit's workings our differences will continue to divide us. It is up to us to make the potential of unity-through-difference a concrete reality in the world.
The Second Reading from Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians contains an image of the many diverse gifts given by the Spirit, reflecting the Spirit's opening the doors to unity through diversity. Paul addresses a community whose pride threatened to divide, much like the pride that threatened the people of Babel. The Corinthians were arguing over whose spiritual gifts were the "best," like servants in God's household jockeying for position and squabbling over who was most important. Paul tries to impress upon them the unity that comes from being children of the same Spirit - children as we all are, since Pentecost. We are all different, and we are all essential. Accept humbly the gifts you've been given, and rejoice humbly at the gifts given to others.
This is so very hard to do. It is so easy to be jealous when others seem to have things you want. It's easy to accuse God of injustice when someone else's life is going better than your own. But we know how these prideful jealousies can rip relationships apart. Accepting God's Spirit means accepting each day, for good or bad, as God's gift to you. It means accepting the things that happen to you, good or bad, as an opportunity to grow in grace. It means accepting the path God has given you for your salvation - rather than coveting someone else's path, or trying to create a path of your own.
Pentecost teaches us that by the grace of the Spirit God can transform an ostensibly evil situation into something good. It can be hard to believe that God can do this in our own lives. but this is precisely what Pentecost asks us to believe. When things don't go "your way," when life seems unfair - even and especially when you feel you are trying your best to be "good" and serve God! - you must trust God to bring grace out of change of course that has been thrown before you. Remember that you can serve God in life no matter what path He has given you to follow. After all, serving God the way He asks us to serve Him - which isn't always the way we wish to serve Him - is the goal of our Christian lives.
This is essential not just for our own happiness; it is also essential for the unity of our families, our communities, and our Church. Resentment, jealousy, covetousness, and pride have no place in the Church. Insisting on doing things "our way" instead of truly listening to each other - and to God - will lead only to ruin. We are all different. We have different lives, different opinions, different viewpoints, different experiences, different perspectives. That is not something God has changed or wishes to change. But it is up to us to use our differences wisely, for the good of all. Accept the way in which you are different and celebrate it, without insisting that your way of being different is better or holier than anyone else's, and without being envious of others' gifts. Accept the challenges that you encounter as a result of your differences as part of your journey to God. This is how we can truly live the spirit of Pentecost.
