You Must Be a Subscriber to View This Page
Day of Pentecost • Year C
June 8, 2025
Click on black & white clipart (above left) or color photo-graphic (above) to view and download full resolution graphics for use on bulletin covers. Tutorials available.
Historical Collect
O God, you taught the hearts of your faithful people by sending to them the light of your Holy Spirit. Grant us, by the same Spirit, to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Gregorian Sacramentary, 6th Century)
Thematic Collect
God of life, on this day you poured forth upon your Church your Spirit through whom we are one body, the body of Christ. Unite us at your table that we may be poured forth into the world, bearing witness to your grace and mercy; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever. Amen.
The Common Thread
Where I live, mighty, rushing winds mean one thing: take cover because another hurricane is blowing in off the coast. Nevertheless, hurricanes tend to bring us together, even as awful as they are. We check on each other’s welfare, and help clean up the damage done. Still, there is a mightier wind blowing in the earth, bringing formerly dispersed people together from all over the earth. In these last days, the indwelling Holy Spirit shapes believers into the one holy Church that speaks the common tongue of praise. When smaller winds blow, and the enemy would crush our souls, the Holy Wind of God teaches us about the stilling peace of Christ so that we need not be troubled or afraid.
First Reading • Genesis 11:1-9
We are still building high-rises today. Men are always trying to outdo the next guy for the world’s tallest building. Currently, the 2,722 feet tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, is the tallest and has been since 2010. Soon enough though, it will be a little shorter than some other skyscraper in another country built by people who speak another language.
Psalm • Psalm 143:1-12
“Hear my prayer, O Lord,” the psalmist sings. Though we may not understand other languages, God hears, understands, and answers the prayers of all people. He also speaks the heart language of all people, convicting people of their sin and unrighteousness. Though our sins isolate us from God and one another, the Spirit of God is always calling us home to him. Augustine said, “Our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” We will thirst for him, and our spirits will fail us, until we hear of his steadfast love.
Second Reading • Acts 2:1-21
God once again causes people who knew one language to speak many. Ironically, this multiplicity of languages is not to confuse people but to make them understand. Each person hears the Gospel in his own language so that the one message of Christ is heard in spite of many languages.
Gospel • John 14:23-31
We may be tempted to think we are not good enough to be a Christian. We have failed too many times. We are sinners. At such times, the Spirit of Jesus brings us peace. The Holy Spirit himself bears witness to our spirits that we are children of God (Rom 8:16). It is not human reason that makes us think so. Only God’s Spirit is able to assure that we are loved despite ourselves.
Resources
Links to Worship Resources for this Service
