I know that one of the hymns for Pentecost uses the noun finger, but my adventures surrounding this word today have had nothing to do with that.
 
As I left chapel and made my way to the front desk for my shift, one of my morning duties was turning on the music in the lobby, where I also opened the shades and windows, to let in sunshine and fresh air. 
 
One of the windows, however, did not stay open; instead it fell shut, with great force, on my right index finger.  Ouch!
 
I danced around a bit, and went on with my morning, practicing some for the vocal music I would need to help lead at Mass. 
 
Sr. Elaine and I had decided to play together for today’s great feast, and had even practiced last evening.  We have two keyboards in our chapel, and years ago, we used to do this for great feasts.  It was nice to revive that custom.
 
When I got back to chapel, though, right before Mass, the finger injury represented itself as a hindrance.  Successfully striking a match is not so easy with an injured finger.  I soon learned that playing organ/keyboard is also a bit more challenging under such circumstances. 
 
I made it through pretty well, though, using other fingers in the injured finger’s stead and occasionally even using the poor index finger. 
 
The music went alright, except for the fact that by the time I was finished singing the sequence, I didn’t have much air left and had to read rather than sing the gospel verse. 
 
At the end of Mass, after the closing song, a few of us chanted the Veni Creator Spritus, which we’ve been planning and practicing for a number of weeks. 
 
As this day and week goes on, I need to continue my prayers for the Holy Spirit’s guidance in my life as well as in my workplace and world. 
 
I’d better stop typing now, though, because my finger is starting to throb. 
 
Happy Pentecost!

In praying with this morning’s readings, a couple of points in the passage from Acts stood out to me.  The letter and exhortation from the first council of the Church, that of Jerusalem, among other things instructed the gentile Christians to abstain from the meat of strangled animals.  I couldn’t help but wonder why this was considered important. 
 
There are some different explanations offered for this, but I guess, of greater importance is the other point that really struck me. 
 
According to the comments of “the apostles and presbyters” in this important gathering, the reason for this session was to restore the peace of mind of the gentile believers who had been upset by other teaching and whose peace had been disturbed. 
 
The Council met to determine what should be required of these converts, and they settled on some minimal requirements. 
 
I found it interesting that this Church directive (if you follow my logic here) was given to restore peace.  Wouldn’t it be great if more people today saw Church teachings as instruments of peace, as given for our welfare, rather than seeing them as restrictive or in a negative light? 
 
During these days as we prepare for Pentecost, might one of our prayers be that the Holy Spirit would enlighten more hearts with an appreciation for the Church’s motherly guidance for our lives?
 
Another prayer might be that each of us, by our gentleness and kindness, as friends of Christ, might be instruments of His peace to hearts that are troubled.