Working During The Days Before Pentecost

Now for something for all of us guys working during these days before Pentecost.

Pentecost? Is it really coming up this Sunday? If you've been typically busy with work and domestic matters - the usual stuff - you may find yourself wondering how the Easter Season passed by so quickly. I know I did.

But before we find ourselves in the days after Pentecost, let's see if these few days before hold anything special for us Catholic men at work.

One thing, of course, might be that we've decided to pray the Novena to the Holy Spirit. We've mentioned this in the past. It's the oldest known Novena in our Catholic religion. (If you haven't started the Novena yet, you can find it HERE. You may be a bit late in starting, but better late than never.)

So let's say we began our day praying the Novena this morning. That's good on its own. But what about the rest of the work day? Remember how we strive to gather ourselves from time to time and acknowledge God's Presence during even our busiest days? Well, let's see if we can do that with some sort of Pentecost "wrapping." 

What might that be? How about we start with recalling the event itself.

Our Lord has ascended into Heaven. His disciples are gathered in a room, presumably in prayer. It's likely they were a bit rattled after the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus. Despite His remaining with them for Forty Days after His Resurrection, He now was irrevocably gone - at least the physical/spiritual Presence of His Glorious Body. What now? Pentecost would provide the answer.

Indeed, in the Gospels, Our Lord had already told them He had to leave them before He would send the Paraclete (John 14; 16, 26). The reference of this word "Paraclete" is apparently to the Holy Spirit as advocate and counselor. 

Recall as well that Our Lord's disciples were for the most part ordinary working men, without what we would consider formal education. Were they religious Jews, they would know the Old Testament from their attendance at synagogue. But would that have equipped them with the skills to formulate their plan to spread the Good News of the Gospel, as Our Lord had directed them?

In any case, Pentecost would not only give them a good idea of what to do next, but would also inject a good dose of fortitude to pursue their mission - compliments of the Holy Spirit. (Read the accounting of the Holy Spirit descending upon the disciples in Acts of the Apostles. It's quite dramatic.)

So here's a first stab at a Pentecost "wrapping" for our work today.

Think about tackling a particularly difficult assignment at work. Even better, one that flummoxes us because we have neither the experience nor the skills to know where to begin. We might even recall that in the Rule of St. Benedict, there's a passage directed at a monk who is given an assignment that he feels he is simply not equipped to perform.

What to do? Having been in this situation more than once, we attack it with both practical and spiritual means. 

First the spiritual (always first!): 

On Pentecost, the disciples had been gathered in prayer - the spiritual. They didn't know what would come of it, just like we never know what might come of any of our prayers of petition. Whatever they may have anticipated - if anything - I doubt it was what actually did happen that day.

For us at work dealing with our particularly difficult assignment, pray fervently for the help we need. There are so many ways to go here: directly to God, through Our Blessed Mother, St. Joseph, the patron saints of our business, our Guardian Angel. Personally, I'd go for all of the above: the power of numbers!

Then, the practical: 

After some reflection, we figure out what we need: knowledge - study/research; consulting with someone we know who can help, etc. Maybe we draw up a list of resources and either prioritize or just pick one and get the ball rolling.

Referencing the Rule of St. Benedict (see above), when the monk tells his superior his assigned task is "impossible" and his superior tells him to do it anyway, that's just what our poor monk has to do.

In current parlance, he and we simply have to "figure it out."

And, let's face it, no matter how difficult or impossible our assignment may be, it can't hold a candle to what Our Lord's disciples faced on Pentecost.

So with the intercession of His Apostles, we can surely tap into some Pentecost confidence, laced with hope and fortitude, next time we're in a such a bind.

One connection with Pentecost down, another to go - next time.

Happy Easter!