Benny Nalkara, CMI

The parallels and contrasts between the story of the Tower of Babel and the Pentecost event are quite striking. The Narrative in Acts on Pentecost (2:1-21) seems to be a reversal of the Tower of Babel Story in the book of Genesis. If the Tower of Babel is depicted as the place where God scattered the people, the place of Pentecost is pictured as the place where God gathered them together- “they were all in one place together” (Acts 2:1). Babel was the place of chaos, confusion and division and on the other hand, the place of Pentecost turned to be a place of union of hearts and minds. The story of Babel tells about the premeditated human action; the Pentecost is about the surprise gift of God- the Holy Spirit.
The author of Acts deliberately wanted to contrast the “work of the Spirit with the work of the flesh” and to present the Pentecost as the undoing and reversal of the Tower of Babel where confusion and division reigned. By making use of two imageries- wind and fire, the author tried to present the Holy Spirit as a creative and invigorating agent. Luke, here, has combined the elemental spirits of air and fire to illustrate the essential role of the Holy Spirit as the agent of unity. Reading or listening to Acts 2 it’s interesting to note the unity that runs throughout the day of Pentecost. The word “together” appears at least five times in the first two chapters in Acts (1:14, 2:1, 2:44, and twice in 2:46) underscoring that a genuine work of the Holy Spirit brings people together in acts of reconciliation, worship, love, hospitality and affirmation of Jesus as Lord.
Pentecost is the event in which the new community was created. It highlights the enabling power of the Spirit and the astounding effect has on those who have gathered. It was a bewildering experience for those who gathered. In Babel, they experienced the difference of language and failure in communication. But in Pentecost, they have perfect communication, among people of different language and background. “And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?” (Act 2:5-7). The word this new community heard was the gospel that transcends all barriers of communication. The Holy Spirit brought about the unity of minds and heart, not a uniformity of one language, but a community that could understand, respect each other and respect one another. The Spirit created a unity of mutual respect and enabled them to retain one’s own identity. Thus Pentecost is the gathering into one people of different tongues.
What the Spirit created that day was a dynamic, diverse community known in the New Testament as “The Way.” The Spirit promotes unity by preserving diversity, producing a community of growth, excitement and creativity. “There are variates of gifts, but the same Spirit, and there are different ministries but the same Lord; there are different activities, but the same God who produces all of them in every one. (1Cor. 12:4-6). It reminds us that the differing traditions are united as believers with Christ in the Holy Spirit. It’s a communion of faith, hope and love. What we do seek is to be able to recognize all that is good in the differing expressions of Christian tradition. The gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost shows us that God loves us and wants us united to Him as family. He wants us to be in communion with Him and His Body, the Church. Our communion with God is never as individuals. The gift of the Holy Spirit, communion with God, is given to us as a family, the Church. The Spirit does not reveal uniformity; the miracle is one of unity in diversity and understanding.
Several approaches underscore this sense of unity: Understanding one another beyond the challenge of language, working together as a body does with its many parts, becoming spiritually fruitful, forgiveness with one another etc. are the hallmarks of unity strengthened by the Holy Spirit who reverse the Babel experience. We long for the day when we are able to share full Eucharistic Communion and rejoice in essential unity of the living and preaching of the Gospel, and this must be full and visible.