That Church Is on Fire

The Church is on fire.

Headlines scream it. Critics shout it. Even the faithful in our pews feel scorched by round after round of horrifying news: abuse, scandal, cover-up. Thousands of lives destroyed. How can we stay?

The Church is on fire.

Youth shout and sing it with joy. New priests, ministers, converts, and sisters swell our ranks. In countries and communities around the globe, a fire of fervent, faithful love is renewing the face of the Church. How could we leave?

Today is Pentecost. The powerful feast of the Holy Spirit. Fire and wind roar into the room. The disciples and all who hear them are forever changed. So is the Church.

Today we have become a Church on fire, for better and for worse. What if we could harness the power of both?

Let the fire of destruction cleanse and renew us in a painful, necessary reckoning, like fields and forests that must burn for new life to grow.

Let the fire of fervor convict and convert us, spurring us on to change, gathering us together around the bright warmth of Truth when the world around us is dark and cold.

Pentecost marks the end of the Easter season, but today is only the beginning. We are drawn together, filled with the Spirit’s power. We are sent out into a world that needs our fire. We will learn to speak in new ways, to bring His Truth to all who hunger.

Come, Holy Spirit. Set us on fire. Let us burn for You.

We are drawn together, filled with the Spirit’s power.Click to tweet

This mosaic in the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis is a stunning rendition of Pentecost.

Laura Kelly Fanucci is a mother, writer, and director of a theological project on vocation. She and her husband are raising four sons and wrote a book together on grieving the loss of children, "Grieving Together: A Couple’s Journey through Miscarriage." She is the author of seven books including "Everyday Sacrament: The Messy Grace of Parenting" and "Living Your Discipleship: 7 Ways to Express Your Deepest Calling." You can find out more about her here. She is the author of the Blessed Conversations Mystery: Behold study found here.