Touched and led by the Spirit
Archbishop George Niederauer gave this homily at Mass June 12, 2011 at St. Vincent de Paul Church in San Francisco commemorating Father John K. Ring’s 50 years as a priest.
The Irish theologian Michael Paul Gallagher, in the introduction to his recent book, “Faith Maps,” quotes an Irish journalist who told him that you can go into a pub in Ireland and find an argument about God or the church, but you seldom hear an argument about Jesus Christ! That’s an interesting insight, and perhaps it’s true because God without Christ can seem remote and vague, and the church without Christ can disappoint and disillusion us. It’s Jesus who makes God present in his church; it’s Christ who makes Christianity our faith. At any rate Father Gallagher’s point is a good one, especially on the feast of Pentecost, the birthday of the church, and on the 50th anniversary of a man who has lived as a priest of Jesus Christ for 50 years (and two days).
Pentecost is the great feast of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the life and love of the Father and the Son, the Spirit they give to the church so that we can continue the life and ministry of Jesus Christ among his people of every place and every time. On the first Pentecost, which we heard about in our first reading, St. Peter proclaimed the good news, the Gospel, of Jesus Christ to the people for the first time after the death and resurrection of Jesus. Peter, who betrayed Jesus on Holy Thursday evening for fear of the people and their leaders, was now filled with the Holy Spirit, as he fearlessly shouted out: “God has made both Lord and Messiah this Jesus whom you crucified! God raised this Jesus!”
In that first reading, St. Luke begins his story of Pentecost by saying that “they were all in one place together.” We need to note that fact carefully. Being a follower, a believer in Jesus Christ is not a solitary experience. It’s not about individualism. There are some experiences you cannot have alone: you can’t get married alone and you can’t have a friendship alone. That’s also true of following Jesus Christ. He saved us together as a people and he wants us together as church.
Also, note the power of the Holy Spirit. Luke compares the Spirit to wind and fire. Why? Because you can’t control the wind, and fire is nearly untamable too. Moreover, the Holy Spirit can and does overcome the divisions of language as well. As a poet has said, the Tower of Babel crumbles before the Gospel of Jesus Christ. On that very first Pentecost people visiting Jerusalem, speaking different languages, each heard about Jesus Christ in his or her own language. From the first day, there was diversity in the church. After all, the word “catholic” means “universal.” That diversity has continued down to our own time and place. This Sunday in San Francisco Mass is being celebrated in 18 different languages and cultures. Sometimes on television we can watch Mass being celebrated in New York’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral, in an African clearing, or in a slum in Rio de Janeiro, and it is always for us the Mass.
Our Gospel reading for Pentecost is the same passage we heard proclaimed six weeks ago, on the Sunday after Easter. Why? Because the mystery, the reality of the Risen Jesus Christ becomes the mystery, the reality of the church. Jesus, newly risen, appears to those 10 frightened, discouraged apostles and says, “Peace be with you.” The presence, the closeness, the power of Christ’s love brings peace. Then they learn that they are to continue the life and work of Jesus, generation after generation: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” Then he breathed on them. (We need to remember that in the languages of the Bible, the same word is used for breath and for spirit.) Then Jesus said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” After that he sent them forth, in the Spirit, to do something only God can do, for now they act on God’s behalf: “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them.”
In our second reading St. Paul tells us how basic and essential the Holy Spirit is in our life of faith. He tells us: “No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit.” All the gifts we need for the life of the church are given and activated by the Spirit: preachers, teachers, missionaries, administrators, models of prayer and service to others -- the Spirit orchestrates all those unique, individual gifts into the one life of faith that we live together in the church.
Which brings us to Father John K. Ring, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish. (“And not a moment too soon,” some of you may be mumbling.) It is important, though, to remind ourselves why Pentecost is such a perfect day for a priest to celebrate his golden anniversary. Fifty years ago Jesus Christ the High Priest called John Ring to be a priest, to be ordained to open his life to the Holy Spirit as a witness, a leader and a servant of the life of Jesus Christ in his people, the church. Father Ring and I were ordained a year apart, in the days when John Kennedy was president and Blessed John XXIII was pope. The Second Vatican Council began the year after Father Ring’s priestly ordination. That Council, in its document on the Ministry and Life of Priests, taught that priests were to serve the church by being Christ the Priest, Christ the Prophet, and Christ the Shepherd for his people.
As Christ the Priest, a pastor celebrates the Eucharist and the other sacraments, leads the people in prayer, companions them in their joys, their sorrows, their struggles, and their very going home to God. A sinner himself, he does what Jesus told those first apostles to do on God’s behalf, to forgive sins in the power of the Spirit. The pastor cares about the place and the manner of worship, and we recall that Father John Ring helped to make Mater Dolorosa a fitting place of Catholic worship, and here at St. Vincent de Paul, under his stewardship, the church is a beautiful, inviting spiritual home and place of worship for parishioners and visitors as well. That doesn’t just happen; it takes constant devotion and attention.
As Christ the prophet, a pastor feeds his people from the two-fold table of the Word, the Scriptures and the Eucharist. Father John Ring proclaims the Gospel clearly and powerfully, and his careful preparation of his homilies generously nourishes his people, week by week. As a teacher of the faith he has enthusiastically supported and encouraged the work of the Young Adult Ministry in St. Vincent de Paul Parish, guiding them in becoming a model for other parishes. He has worked at adult faith formation here, as well as helping to make St. Vincent de Paul Parish School a place of strong Catholic identity and excellent educational standards.
As Christ the Shepherd, a pastor gathers his community together in service to one another and to the world around them. He can do that only by a ministry of presence, day by day, year by year. Many years ago a famous English Catholic bishop pointed out the close connection between the sacraments of the church and its teaching on social justice. He said that a church that baptizes and confirms its children must care about their physical welfare, their access to a good education, and their growth in their faith; that a church that joins couples in the sacrament of marriage must care about the health of family life, the ability to find work and a decent place to live, and peace and justice as well as human dignity in daily life; that a church that anoints the sick must be devoted to health care that is available to all; that a church that feeds its people with the bread from heaven in the Eucharist must care about all people having enough food to eat; that a church that forgives sins in the power of the Spirit must care about reconciliation and peace between individuals, within families, within communities, and among nations. Father John Ring has preached the full meaning of this gospel throughout his priesthood. Without any fanfare, he has used his own resources and the resources of his parish to assist other parishes and schools in greater need. I cannot help but think that the Good Shepherd sees that kind of shepherding and is pleased indeed.
One retires from being a pastor, but never from being a priest. In the name of the Archdiocese of San Francisco I thank Father John Ring for his years of service to the church here and I assure him of our prayers for him. Ad multos annos -- many more years!
By Archbishop George H. Niederauer
From the June 24, 2011 issue of Catholic San Francisco.
