Deans' Note May 16, 2021

We are in the in-between time. With the recent CDC announcement about an end to mask-wearing for those who are vaccinated, we are in between one way of being and a very real end of our pandemic protocols right on the horizon. In our church year, we are in between the time we celebrate Jesus' ascension and the coming of the promised Holy Spirit.

But this in-between time is not just a marking of a time in the past. Jesus' ascension means that he takes our humanity into the very life of God and forms the connection between we Christians and the ultimate new creation. Humanity is once again united with God. But in this time we remember the apostles praying along with Jesus' Mother Mary, awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit.

While the day of Pentecost saw God's presence coming among us through the Spirit's power, we might invite the Holy Spirit to fall afresh on us. God's Spirit here and now forms that connection between Jesus and us. We received the Holy Spirit when we were baptized and confirmed in a special way, but we may need to fan the flames of that divine life in us. That's why we invite you to pray daily between now and Pentecost using the novena, or nine days of prayer for the coming of the Holy Spirit. Join us in prayer during these in-between days so that as we emerge through the in-between time and re-emerge on the other side of this pandemic, we will be prepared boldly to proclaim the message of God's Kingdom as did those first disciples trusting the Holy Spirit to move us forward into the future.