On Pentecost Sunday, the Church celebrates not only the descent of the Holy Spirit but also the birth of the Church as a sent community. The passage from the Gospel of John 20:19–23 captures a moment of profound transition – between the resurrection and the mission of the Church. It is Jesus’ first appearance to the disciples after his resurrection, and what he says and does in these verses shapes the identity and vocation of the Christian community. In three movements—peace, mission, and Spirit—Jesus reconstitutes his fearful followers into sent ones. Three profound words of Jesus to the disciples constitute the Pentecost event: speaking peace unto them, breathing into them the very life of God, and speaking words that shape the identity and mission of the Church for all time.
Peace Be with You
“Peace be with you!” These are the first words of the risen Christ to his frightened disciples. This is more than a greeting; it is a gift of reconciliation. The peace of Christ is the fruit of his Passion and Resurrection—God’s definitive “no” to death and sin, and God’s eternal “yes” to mercy, communion, and life. Peace be with you! This echoes the peace that angels proclaimed at Jesus’ birth and the peace Jesus promised his disciples before his death: “My peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.” (John 14:27). In the context of trauma, fear, and failure this peace is not a reward but a gift. It is reconciliation from the Risen One himself, a healing presence that does not accuse but restores. Jesus does not come back to shame the disciples; he comes to send them.
As the Father Has Sent Me, So I send You
And yet, Jesus does not send the disciples in their own strength. “He breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” This is a direct echo of Genesis 2:7, where God breathes life into the nostrils of the first human. Just as creation begins with the breath of God, the new creation begins with this Spirit-breath from the risen Christ. The Church is born of divine breath, and divine life. The Spirit is the enabling power of this mission. The disciples receive not only peace and a task—they receive God’s very presence, enabling them to live and serve in Christ’s name. The Church is not a self-initiated movement but one rooted in divine mission. Jesus, the one sent by the Father, now extends his mission by sending his disciples. This statement grounds Christian identity in the dynamic of being sent: to embody, proclaim, and enact the message of God’s love and reconciliation. The mission is not theirs; it is God’s mission that they are drawn into. They are to continue what Jesus began—not simply teaching doctrines but living out God’s reconciling love in the world.
If You Forgive Any Sins, They Are Forgiven
“If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain them, they are retained.” Here, Jesus entrusts his followers with a share in his ministry of reconciliation. This is not about arbitrary judgment or power, but a participation in God’s mercy. The forgiveness of sins is central to the Gospel—restoring broken relationships with God, others, and oneself. Through the Spirit, the each of us becomes a sacrament of God’s forgiveness, called to mediate healing and liberation. At the same time, the authority to retain sins reminds us of the weight of responsibility.
Today’s feast invites every Christian to ask: How am I living as one who is sent? Am I bearing peace or fear? Do I carry the breath of the Spirit? In these questions, the risen Jesus speaks again: “Peace be with you.” Not as a conclusion, but as a beginning—a sending.
