Pentecost 2010 - Shavu'ot - Haverai, n'varekh.

Pentecost 2010

Jesus was a Jew. Sometimes this can be a shock to many Christians. There is a story about a dear friend who was completely bowled over by this fact - "What do you mean Jesus was a Jew? He was Roman Catholic, wasn't he?" No...Nor was he an Anglican/Episcopalian, though I must admit that in my theocentrism, I would imagine that if Jesus were around today, he would feel very comfortable at St. Mary's Lawrence Park! At least, I would hope that he would be happy with what we're doing.

Jesus and his disciples (who were also Jewish, by the way) celebrated Shavu'ot fifty days after Passover. This celebration, also known as the Festival of Weeks, was a celebration of gifts. Agriculturally, the celebration marked the harvesting of the first fruits and the bringing of them to the Temple. Historically, it also marked the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. On Sunday, May 16, my wife and I were blessed to join with members of the Brith Sholom Congregation and friends from the Erie community to celebrate another gift - the gift of devotion, teaching, and inspiration from Rabbi Leonard Lifshen, who celebrated forty years of rabbinical ministry. We were reminded of the importance of the celebration of Shavu'ot, and the invitation to also share our own gifts to help better our stewardship of God's creation.

In the Christian tradition, Pentecost is the celebration of the gift of the Holy Spirit, one of the first fruits of Christ. Just as the Torah is God's inspiration to live in right relationship with one another and with God, so does the Holy Spirit inspire us to reconcile ourselves with one another and with God. The Spirit inspires, challenges, and facilitates those relationships, and invites us to use the gifts of the Spirit to better our world.

The Holy Spirit works in mysterious ways - leading us, guiding us, helping us. During these first few weeks of the season of Pentecost, may we each find our own ministries empowered by the Spirit. May we each have the strength to respond to the needs of those entrusted to us, as Rabbi Len continues to respond to those entrusted to his care. May we each be thankful for the many promises and invitation to salvation of God, fulfilled in Christ, and extended through us to all.