No fears, no hiding places

By Harold Segura

John 20:19-23 (NIV)

On the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were gathered together behind closed doors for fear of the Jews, Jesus came in and stood in the midst of them and said, "Peace be with you," and then he showed them his hands and his side. When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they rejoiced.

-Peace be with you! -Jesus repeated. As the Father has sent me, so I send you. Then he breathed on them and said to them:

-Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive your sins, they will be forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they will not be forgiven".

The coming of the Spirit had been promised by Jesus during the days of his ministry and affirmed after his Resurrection. The truth is that, as it could have happened to us today, the disciples heard him speak of the promise, but they understood little or nothing about its meaning, its place and the circumstances in which it would be fulfilled.

In the Fourth Gospel, for example, the announcement of his coming is made in a context of fear and secrecy. The disciples had taken refuge in a house for fear of the Jews (20:19) and bewildered by the Master's death. Doubt haunted the room and, in the face of this desolate picture, Jesus appeared to offer them peace, consolation and to send them out into the world on a mission of peace and reconciliation (20:22). 

This Gospel prefigures what will be planned for Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). Already, Jesus sets forth, through actions and words, his teaching about the end and purpose of the coming of the Spirit. 

The Spirit is God's answer to our fears; He is, by definition, the Comforting Spirit (14:26). The fears of the disciples are understandable: the Master had died unexpectedly, although many times announced by Himself. Before his death, bewilderment took hold of them and, in the midst of their fears, they fled and took refuge as a group in the place described in this Gospel. 

The consolation of the one who came at Pentecost is as necessary then as it is today. Who is not frightened by the new signs of extreme violence that resurface in our time? The fanaticisms of religious fundamentalism and ideological progressivism are many. Populisms, of the right and of the left, are on the rise. And in the face of what can frighten us, the temptation arises to shut ourselves away under the shelter of the small community of faith. 

Nothing to fear. There is no excuse for reducing the mission to the confines of a tiny community of brothers and sisters. After Pentecost, there is nothing better for our fears than to welcome the consolation of the Spirit and, comforted by Him, to accept the sending of the Father (20:21). Pentecost is the feast that heals our fears and revitalizes the Mission.