In a Confirmation at St Wenceslaus in the early 80’s, the confirmandi stood as Archbishop Roach prayed, invoking the Holy Spirit to come down upon them. As he prayed, what appeared to be a bird soared over the heads of the confirmandi. Upon closer examination, it wasn’t a dove flying over their heads. It was a bat. Apparently, the Archbishop’s prayer awakened a bat up in the choir loft, and the bat decided to check out all the activity below in the church. It was all rather amusing as ushers grabbed the collection baskets and chased the bat up and down the aisles eventually into one of the bell towers.
The most ancient Hebrew symbol of God’s Spirit in Hebrew scriptures is not a dove (nor a bat). It is the breath of God. God breathed upon the waters in Genesis, and life came forth. Ruah, is the Hebrew word for God’s breath. It is the Wind from all 4 directions that restored a valley of bones to life in the book of Ezechial. It is God’s Wind roaring through the streets of Jerusalem that fills the upper room on Pentecost day. The dove as a symbol, heavily influenced by Greek mythology, came much later.
As I finished up my studies to be a spiritual director, I spent five days at a hermitage located on a lake. It was early May, and nature was blossoming everywhere. I spent most of my solitude on the shore of that lake, meditating. I observed how the wind moved the clouds in the sky and the waters on the lake. Remembering how God breathed upon the waters in Genesis, I marveled that the Holy Spirit is God’s life force in the world. It is God’s breath that moves the clouds and causes the waves upon the lake. God’s Spirit is above us, below us, and to the sides of us. As I took a deep breath, I became aware that it is God’s breath that I was breathing. We are never isolated from God’s Holy Spirit. Rather, we move, live, and have our being within the Spirit of God.
God’s Spirit is not trapped in some church building. The Holy Spirit is all around us. On this Pentecost, walk outside. Listen to nature. Feel the breeze on your skin. Take a deep breath and become aware of God’s Spirit around and within you.
