Come, Holy Spirit. Come.

A reading from Winnie-the-Pooh[1]

At first as they stumped along the path which edged the Hundred Acre Wood, they didn’t say much to each other; but when they came to the stream, and had helped each other across the stepping stones, and were able to walk side by side again over the heather, they began to talk in a friendly way about this and that, and Piglet said, “If you see what I mean, Pooh,” and Pooh said, “It’s just what I think myself, Piglet,” and Piglet said, “But, on the other hand, Pooh, we must remember,” and Pooh said, “Quite right, Piglet, although I had forgotten it for the moment.” 

This week, as I sat with the lectionary, I was struck by how differently the Gospel of John and the book of Acts tell us about the Holy Spirit.

In the Gospel, Jesus introduced the vocation of the Holy Spirit in the world: to be our Advocate. The Spirit, he said, will guide us into all truth.

Guiding and advocating are verbs that suggest a supporting, nudging influence.

In our tradition, the Holy Spirit is often symbolized by the dove…. birds known for their calm and peaceful temperament. It was John’s text that brought to mind the relationship of Pooh and Piglet…comfortable and caring.

….And then the Holy Spirit enters the scene in the Book of Acts. Wow.

Jesus had told the disciples to expect the Spirit. And they were waiting, together, in a house. I wonder what the disciples thought their encounter with the Holy Spirit would be like? Were they expecting a dove to land on their shoulders, like at Jesus’ baptism? 

Whatever they expected surely paled in comparison to what happened.

From heaven, there came the sound like the rush of a violent wind—like the sound of a tornado. Last year, there were two tornados in my North Richland Hills neighborhood. I remember sitting in my closet…listening to 80 mph wind and the creaking of the house. It was scary.

But the sound the disciples heard wasn’t outside the house—it was inside the house. It filled the house. It was inescapable.

In Celtic Christianity, the symbol for the Holy Spirit is not a dove. Instead, it is wild geese. Geese are noisy, demanding, aggressive birds….they are neither calm nor quiet. The Celtic symbolism seems to really fit that first Pentecost experience.

Immersed in the sound of violent winds, divided tongues, like fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. 

And, again, Wow.

John’s Gospel and the Book of Acts tell us a complex story. On one hand, the Holy Spirit is a peaceful, calming presence and on the other hand, the Spirit is noisy, unexpected, and all about action.

The Holy Spirit entered the disciples and they were changed. They received new abilities—to speak in languages they did not know—and, to be heard in languages they did not know.   The experience of that first Pentecost is incredible and alarming. The Holy Spirit did not come with a big roll of duct tape…restoring the disciples to the way things used to be when Jesus was among them. 

The author said, “All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

And that is the question for us, too.

Like the disciples, we are gathered together on the Day of Pentecost. We’re singing songs like, “Come down, O Love divine” ---and, “Breathe on me, Breath of God”…we are inviting the Holy Spirit to come among us, to change us….to disrupt the status quo…and to guide us toward God’s vision for us.

To extend that invitation means that we are willing to open our hands and our lives to God…and to receive the gifts that God chooses for us.

It is an act of faith to desire and welcome the Holy Spirit into our lives….because the work of the Holy Spirit may not be what we want it to be.  It will always be what we need it to be. The Holy Spirit entered our world to walk with us. At times, honking and demanding like wild geese. At times, calm and peaceful like a dove. 

From the House at Pooh Corner:[2]

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind.

“Pooh!” he whispered.

“Yes, Piglet?”

“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s paw. “I just wanted to be sure of you.”

When I went to bed last night, the sermon ended here.

But early this morning, I was thinking about conversation questions for our adult Sunday School…and the connections between our reading, today’s Scripture, and even the sermon began flooding my mind. 

And so here is an alternative ending:

St. Christopher’s sidled up to the Holy Spirit from behind.

“God!” we whispered.

“Yes, St. Chris?”

“Nothing,” we said, taking the Holy Spirit’s hand. “We just wanted to be sure of you.”

  [1] A.A. Milne; The Pooh Book of Quotations: in which will be found some useful information and sustaining thoughts by Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends.; 1986; p59

[2] ibid p63