On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Gospel Trivia:
This gospel account for Pentecost Sunday does not jive with what we recall as the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples. It was supposed to have happened fifty days after the Resurrection when the disciples were gathered in the upper room. The latter account is actually this Sunday's SECOND reading (Acts 2:1-11).
Yet, in today's Gospel, Jesus breathes on the disciples and says, "Receive the Holy Spirit" and this took place on the night of Easter Sunday.
Is there a conflict in the recording of the events? Or are these two events: one is the sending of the Holy Spirit right after the Resurrection (according to John's gospel), and another time when the disciples were in the upper room (according to the Acts of the Apostles, written by Luke)?
Biblical scholars interpret these as the same event, but reflect two different theological perspectives of the two authors. (Recall that in last Sunday's gospel, we pointed that Matthew's account of the Ascension does NOT mention anything about Jesus ascending to heaven; and that is because of the different intended message of Matthew's gospel).
What, then, is John's intended message in his gospel account of the sending of the Holy Spirit? There are three:
- The coming of the Holy Spirit marks a new creation. Jesus BREATHES on the disciples as he says, "Receive the Holy Spirit." The word used for "breathes" is reminiscent of the creation of humankind in Genesis: "The Lord God formed man out of the clay of the ground and BLEW into his nostrils the BREATH of life, and so man became a living being." (Genesis 2:7). Soon, Jesus will disappear physically; but his presence remains with the disciples through the Spirit that will guide them in their mission of proclaiming a new way of life and relationship with God.
- The Holy Spirit brings peace. "Peace be with you" is the traditional Jewish greeting. In this account, Jesus says this greeting twice; thus, the close association between the Spirit and the peace that it brings.
- The sending of the Holy Spirit coincides with the sending of the disciples. "As the Father has sent me, so I send you," Jesus says. The disciples' mission is a continuation of Jesus' mission and, and they will be accompanied by Jesus' continuing presence in the Spirit. It will bring them sustenance and peace despite the travails and trials they will face.
Reference:
*Nil Guillemette, SJ, Hungry No More (Manila: St. Paul's Publications, 1989), pp. 255-259.
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