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 Honoring our mothers with the Spirit of God

May 9, 2008

 Dear Sisters and brothers,

 I have been struggling the whole week thinking on what would be the main theme for my letter to the churches for this coming Sunday. On May 11 we will celebrate Mother’s Day and Pentecost at the same time. This is a unique opportunity because these two celebrations will not coincide again until 2035. I don’t know if I will be alive that year and if I will be in good intellectual or physical shape to write anything, so this is the time to do something.  In the middle of this dilemma I received the last issue of Presbyterians Today (May 2008) where appears an article of Kristine A. Haig with the title “Spirit of Mother’s Day” that gave me the idea about the theme of my letter to the churches. I recommend all of you to read that article. It is a good mix of history and theology.

 I am sure most of our churches in the Presbytery are preparing something special for this Sunday: Maybe a special worship service and a banquet, honoring our mothers; maybe a worship service combining both things. Most important is not the type of celebration you are preparing but the meaning of what you are doing.

 When I was teen-ager in Sunday School, I heard the parable of the angel who was sent by God to the earth to find the most valuable present among humans to praise Him. The angel tried everything but nothing was really valuable until he saw a mother breastfeeding her child, the angel perceived the profound love and tender of that image and presented that image to God. The parable finished saying that the Lord was pleased and praised the wisdom of the angel.

 But I always had in mind a counter-parable to that one that I heard in Sunday School. What would happen if we have the opportunity to search in Heaven for a present to our mothers? I doubt that I would find anything better than God, and the eternal presence of God among us is The Holy Spirit. What a wonderful gift! Our mothers gave us the life and in return we offer them the Spirit of the eternal life!

 But maybe some of you are thinking: We are not God, so we cannot offer the Holy Spirit to anyone. That’s theologically correct but we may challenge our mothers to open the door of their hearts to receive the Holy Spirit.

 The only sermon my mother heard from me I was 13 years-old. That was the first Sunday after a Youth Camp where I received the call of God to be a pastor. My pastor invited the youth group to lead the service and present a report of the Youth Camp and I was selected the preacher. I was surprise when I saw my mother coming in to the church and sitting on the back pew. In the middle of my sermon I said: My mother is here and she will be surprised with the news I am going to announce. I decided to be a pastor, I will dedicate my life to serve others and I will go Seminary to prepare myself for this responsibility. Mother you gave me life but the Lord gave me a reason to live. I hope someday you may have the same experience I had and the Lord who gave you my life will give you a new reason to live.

 I didn’t know at that time, but now I know I was inviting my mother to open the door of her heart to the Holy Spirit. Only three years later, my mother came to Miami to live with my sisters and I stayed in Cuba alone but with a new reason to live.

 What is your reason to live? This is big question. This coming Sunday is Pentecost Day, the feast of the Holy Spirit, the birth of the Christian Church, the beginning of a new era of intercession between God and humankind. The Spirit of God is available to every human being, is at our hand. Mothers, God sent The Spirit for all of you. Receive The Spirit!

 May God bless all our churches and our mothers on this special day!

Jose Luis Casal

General Missioner

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