By Adolphus Ofoegbulem
Very Rev. Fr. Anthony Anyanwu, Parish Priest of Holy Ghost Parish, Uvuru, has reminded the faithful that the Holy Spirit opens doors, divinely empowers, and guides the church in its mission.
He remarked in his homily on Sunday, 24 May 2026, the Feast of Pentecost, traditionally celebrated as the seventh Sunday of Easter or 50 days after the Resurrection of the Lord and often described as the birthday of the Church, commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and the Blessed Virgin Mary in Jerusalem.
Preaching on the theme, “As the Father sent me, so am I sending you; receive the Holy Spirit,” the homilist noted that the missionary activity of the Church flows from God the Father, who sent His only begotten Son to save humanity from sin, and from Christ, who now sends His disciples through the gift of the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity and principal agent of evangelization.
He further stated, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish but may have eternal life” (Jn 3:16). He described this as the movement of the human person towards what is loved and ultimately towards God Himself, a movement made possible only through the life-giving Spirit. “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God” (Rom. 8:14), he added, noting Christ’s words: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever” (Jn 14:15–16).
Fr Anyanwu described the Holy Spirit as Advocate, Paraclete, and Consoler and explained that the Pentecost event, occurring 50 days after Passover, also called the Feast of Weeks (Lev 23:15ff; Deut 16:16), holds both agricultural and covenantal significance, attracting multitudes to Jerusalem.
He noted that the theophanic experience of Exodus is re-enacted in the New Covenant, no longer on stone tablets but on human hearts, and no longer with tongues of fire on a mountain but upon the Apostles, so that the whole person, head, heart, hands, and tongue, is illuminated for the mission of evangelization. The Apostles, he said, spoke in tongues (glossolalia) understood by all, signifying unity and transformation, while the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit (Is. 11:2) became manifest.
He further emphasized that in the one Spirit, all are baptized into one Body (1 Cor. 12:13), a communion of believers marked by unity rather than division and rancor.
Concluding his homily, Fr Anyanwu described the Holy Spirit as life-giving and sustaining, renewing the face of the earth and restoring relationships through love and forgiveness. “This is our call and mission as believers, to be filled with the Holy Spirit, to bear witness to the Gospel in words, thoughts, and deeds, and thus transform our environment,” he said.
