Walking on the way to Reconciliation and Peace with the Holy Spirit he importance of the Holy Spirit in with Israel at Sinai, the mount reconciliation and peace is evident as Paul where Israel was called to be God's Tsays "our power comes from God, who gave own people. After Sinai, in Biblical us power to become ministers of a new covenant, not of the language, the other nations were letter but of the Spirit, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives considered to be 'no people', non- life" (II Cor. 3:5-6). John in the fourth Gospel portrays the entities. In Acts 2:9-11, we read of Holy Spirit as the interpreter, paraclete, the one who helps a broad sweep of extremities of the to make the words of Jesus (Gospel) understandable, the Roman empire (the then entire one who helps us to discern the ways of God, the one who inhabited world) from the leads us to all truth (Jn. 14:26, 16:13). A noted early church Parthians, Medes and Elamites to leader remarked "without the Holy Spirit, God is far away, the residents of Mesopotamia, Christ remains in the past, the Gospel becomes a dead Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus letter". and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Editor’s Desk Egypt and the parts of Libya Thus the "Paraclete", the advocate, the helper, is belonging to Cyrene, and visitors for the community as though he were another Jesus. He is from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs. the presence of God when Jesus is absent, the At Sinai, those who heard the invitation to be God's own eschatological continuum of God's salvific purpose and accepted it became known as the Israelites the chosen revealed in Jesus. The Paraclete is God's comforting sign of ones; at Pentecost those who observed and heard what was nearness, fellowship, presence and indwelling. As offered and effected by the Holy Spirit were reconciled to sustainer and strength of the community, he is also God's God and became God's own people. The Holy Spirit brings challenge to the community to be the visible sign of the the chosen ones and the others; the diversity is brought invisible God. He is the master teacher, expositor and together in a rainbow in an act of reconciliation. prophetic interpreter of the Jesus tradition. He is the source of creativity in the community. In authenticating the However, 'bringing together' does not erase the community's theology through reminding the community particular identities of the constituents - "are not those who of Jesus, he helps it to re-interpret, contextualise, re-live are speaking Galileans?" (Acts 2:7). The people were and re-enact the Christ event. amazed and perplexed to recognize the Galilean dialect. Thus, the language of the Spirit is not being communicated Paraclete is a witness to God, an enabler in the with a perfect heavenly diction that is free from the human community, the power of proclamation which strengthens marks of identity; rather the Spirit speaks through the and awakens faith and creates an alternate community in particular identity and specific idiom of the people. In doing the world. His witness is not a self-defence, but a call to so, the Holy Spirit reconciles identities, not merely by embrace God. He creates in the community a mirror-model merging and erasing, but by enabling the 'specific' to enrich of God's world and places before it a choice, a decision and a the diversity. possibility of knowing what sin, righteousness and judgement are. The Paraclete will lead the community In this act of reconciliation, the Holy Spirit enabled beyond what is understood through the historical the marginalized voices to be heard, creating not only theophany of God in Jesus, unfolding new dimensions. He amazement for the wisdom it contained, but acceptance by will indigenise, contextualise and inculturise the making it part of the societal discourse (Acts 2:11-12). Of revelation. The revelation of God that was historicized in course, some do ridicule the event of reconciliation that Jesus will now continue in the community, and the they too were part of it (Acts 2:13), without comprehending Paraclete will be the authentic channel. its significance and meaning. The Spirit of reconciliation makes 'koinonia' possible, a koinonia where communities It is not simply a matter of believing or not believing with different regional identities grow into a healing and in the Spirit, not even a matter of 'hearing the Holy Spirit' reconciling community, that shares each other's joys and and deciding to obey the Holy Spirit. It is distinguishing the sorrows, and is urged to reach out, to those in need of 'voice' of the Holy Spirit from the 'voice' of modernity, post- forgiveness, healing and reconciliation. modernity, power, prestige as informed by the spirit of competition and the economy of the free market. The Bible However, the reconciling community does not teaches us to 'hear' the voice of the Holy Spirit in the voice of gloss over the forces of division, decay and death 'the Holy the poor and the oppressed. The Bible shows how the Spirit Spirit will enlighten, teach and convince the community of God was moving in the acts of liberation; the Biblical with regard to sin, justice and judgement' (John 16:8; Acts narratives of liberation exhorts us to hear and identify the 2:37). The Holy Spirit exhorts them to ask "what shall we Spirit in the written Word and in the world of the living do?" (Acts 2:37) and encourages them to initiate and carry today. out acts of reconciliation. The long road to reconciliation is a process of education and discernment whereby the Holy We need to 'hear' the voice of the Holy Spirit also in Spirit empowers and energises communities. It is an the 'groaning' of creation, in the cry of creation which is now invitation for a journey with God in a ministry of threatened, suffering agony and in bondage. The Holy reconciliation (II Cor 3:8) as God's workers of peace and Spirit calls us not only to be attentive to the written Word reconciliation. but also to the movements of liberation and solidarity. Such movements are the 'space' where the Spirit moves to build May the Holy Spirit guide us in this Pentecost consciousness for the fundamental option for life. Within Season to imbibe the Biblical vision of reconciliation where these historical movements and this new consciousness on "steadfast love and truthfulness meet, where justice and behalf of life, faith is alive, discerning the experience of the peace kiss each other, where truth springs up from the Spirit in the liberation movements. earth, and justice and peace look down from heaven". In Acts 2:1-13, Luke dramatically narrates the role Rev. Dr. D. Rathnakara Sadananda of the Holy Spirit in reconciliation at Pentecost. Pentecost General Secretary, CSI was a commemoration of God's act of making a covenant 3 ! CSI Life May 2015 WALKING IN CHRIST'S WAY TOWARDS THE REIGN OF GOD The Most Rev. Dr. G. Dyvasirvadam, Moderator, CSI & Bishop Krishna-Godavari Diocese t was in 1986, I attended the Synod at beginning evolutionary journey of Trivandrum and I was fortunate to listen Word of God culminated in the Ito Bishop Lesslie Newbigin, one of the manifestation of God in this world, saintly leaders of yester years of CSI who was invited Skenosis-God intervening in the to bring a meditation on “Mission in Christ's Way”. history of humanity. The loaded spiritual meditation comes from his rich experience at grass root level culture in the rural Jesus, as the human face of context of Tamil Nadu wherein he was encountered God, came into Galilee preaching, by potters, weavers and all other sections on the base proclaiming about the fulfilment of the rural context. Therefore, his articulation of and the Kingdom of God coming faith was generated from different experiences, with a message repent and believe in that Gospel. He contexts, seen from different eyes, with which never invited the listeners to believe in him. background he already gave us his expressions in the publications, ‘The other Side of CSI’, ‘The Unfinished Jesus went about in Galilee teaching in Agenda’ and the like. His depiction of Christology Synagogues, preaching the Gospel of Kingdom and comes out on lines that of like Bishop J.A.T. healing every disease and infirmity among the people. Robinson's - ‘The human face of God or Truth is two In preaching the good news coupled with the acts of Eyed’. The beautiful expressions from these great healing he always brought in the message of the leaders of the Church, take the believers to Kingdom. At occasions, it gives us an understanding understand Jesus very closely and humanly. In the that the Kingdom is where the infirmities are cured or light of the above, I was also privileged to go through diseases are healed and the lives made whole and the search of yet another pietistic sage in person of holy. Evangeleon, the ‘gospel’ that was understood pope Benedict XVI, through his book 'Jesus of as Kingdom of God. However, there is yet another Nazareth'. I made an effort to study the contrasting Greek word Evanglium that was used in Roman contexts of great personalities like Bishop Leslie context as the message of assurance and protection Newbigin to that of the larger context of Pope extended by the Roman lords, the saviours, kings and Benedict XVI in their search for the ‘Face of the Lord’ emperor.