In the  first century A.D. St Paul addresses the cream of Athenian cultural life. St Paul's native language must have been Greek maybe it was even the Greek of the educated classes. The listeners were well aware of their own Mathematics, Literature,  Philosophy and History  which were hundreds of years in existence and available for all to read. St Paul too had imbibed some of this amazing knowledge produced by one people without the direct  revelation of  God which had directed the culture of Israel. The result of this address was a lot more favourable than it could have been. Converts are named but there is none of the mass conversions that had taken place in Jerusalem and various  synagogues.

Dear Lord, let the example of St Paul's taking your words of life to the Gentiles inspire the behaviour of your believers in these modern unbelieving times. Let the Holy Spirit fill our being so that our every living moment is praise for  your Glory which comes to us through the resurrection of your Son  

The complete Truth that the Holy Spirit reveals to us is recorded in Scripture and in the teaching of our Holy Church. Our sins and the sins of the world are offences against the Truth. It is them that have had to be atoned for by the Crucifixion. It was for us that Jesus died so that we too can be witnesses to the Truth. Not the truth as revealed in the media and not the secret  truths  as are the sins of clergy covered up by Bishops and yet still revealed. The Truth is that the Creator, our God has made us in his image and likeness so that we can live in this world as he intended for us to and at the end of life come to know him as he really is in the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Dear Lord save us from the deceptions claiming to be "Truth" Most of  our modern culture involves untruth and lies. Let your Holy Spirit be a Spirit of discernment entering our lives so that nothing may separate us from the Love of Christ.

 Another miraculous happening, a freeing from  chains and another complete conversion of a pagan family. The times of the Acts were filled with the presence of the Lord . Instant belief seems to have been the norm. The Apostles must have had a great aura of sanctity that so many people were drawn to believe their message. And what was that teaching ? Nothing more or less than that the Crucified Jesus was raised from the dead to be the Way to a new life for all mankind. Its possible to write the entire teaching of the  Apostles in two or three sentences and yet hundreds of people came to faith in God through these words. What was the other something that was at work in those days?

Dear Lord you inspired so many to believe in your early Church that the mustard seed grew to be a shrub to shelter all the world, please let your Holy Spirit fill our beings so that we to can come to sincere belief in the Father and make  His Church  a witness to His Glory.

There is nothing ambivalent about Jesus' teaching in John's Gospel. It is direct but by no means simple. That I have to leave you will make you despondent.  I am going to the Father who sent me. I will send you an Advocate. Where have we gone wrong? The Advocate will show the world that it was wrong and sinful. Who is taking up that role iin these times? We are a desolate people without the Lord and yet he promised that he would be with us even to the end of time. His presence is certainly not shining out of the heart of His Church as it did in the Gospels and in the Acts.

Lord let us live our lives in your presence secure in the promises you have made and fervent in our commitment to  the guidance of the Holy Spirit who is Your Father's Love for You  and for his creation.

 What we read today is another story of successful evangelisation. Was God closer to humanity in those days or was humanity more in need of finding meaning in life? The conversion of Jews can be understood for they had for centuries been schooled and chastised by God. They had even ben expecting a promised Messiah whom the disciples had identified as Jesus. But the Macedonians had only known the cults and philosophy of the Greeks with the emphasis on human form and deeds , success or fame being the only thing that could quieten their dissatisfaction with transient life. Today our people live lives that are more in line with Ancient Greek culture than with the  Christianity our  fore bearers were converted to.by St Paul.

Dear Lord we are in your hands; we are a sinful people; we are living lives that are completely submerged in man's mastery of your physical universe. Lord send us teachers who can show us the way to a true understanding of your creation and of our place in it  as did your disciples so long ago.

We can begin to understand that the doctrine of the Trinity is not some manmade theory as is the teachings of Ancient Philosophy. It is part of our attempt to be sure that we have understood the revelation of God's own self that is mysteriously contained in the Scriptures. Today we hear that Jesus will return to the Father but he will send another witness who is the Spirit that issues from the Father. So here we have the foundation of endless hours of contemplation, theories and  prayer. Prayerful contemplation goes a long way to fulfilling the command to always pray but it carries with it the potential of becoming attached to the Theology and not to its object. God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit are present in the hearts and minds of millions of us even though we are discouraged by the actions of those who know better..

Dear Lord,  let us always answer your call to do your will by following  the teaching of Jesus as transmitted by a Holy Church and let Your Holy Spirit  so fill us and that Church so that our world become more like your intention for it.

 The Holy Spirit filled the early Church. Even pagans who had not been baptised seem to have been filled with Him. I hate to have to say this but  I have only ever been aware of the Third Person of our Triune God by reflecting on the words of Jesus and the witness in the Acts and letters of Paul. In fact I have always been suspicious of "Charisma" as its signs also seem to be able to be produced at rock concerts. We have always been advised to avoid "enthusiasm". As I write this, however, my past is always present in my mind and although I have had no experience of  "tongues" or "snake bites" in my life, and I have fallen away from the "Way the Truth and the Life" on numerous occasions I have always,( "Deo gratias") been drawn back to the Father through the Son by the still quiet call of the Holy Spirit in my heart.

Dear Lord let my faith be founded on the solid rock of Peter the Fisherman whom the Pagans wanted to stay with them as their experience of the  Holy Spirit had filled their hearts with love for Peter's Crucified Rabbi.

The love that God has shown for his creation Man is beyond understanding but its effects  can be celebrated both positively and negatively. Recently I read on the web an appalling statement. The man writing it claims to be a servant of God and yet he wrote that Homosexual acts were pleasing to God because they are an expression of Love. Many sins are excused as acts of "love" but that is only using the  the disembowelled word "love" and not God's Love for us. He has rescued us from Sin by the Sacrifice and by the presence of the identical Spirit which is the Love of the Father and the Son.

Dear Lord in whose arms of Mercy all can find Love and rest forgive those clergy and ex-clergy who disseminate so much stupidity and falsehood. Let us lose our selves in love of You and our neighbour and let us know that in Jesus' name we find the Father and the Holy Spirit whose gifts I have largely ignored . Forgive me.

 The Acts tell us that although there is a rapid growth in belief as taught by Jesus through the Apostles, growth was not instantaneous . Paul circumcised Timothy. The reason being that the local Jews knew that Timothy's father was a non-believing Greek and Paul did not want to give scandal to weaken the Faith of the newly- converted. It  seems to me that our priests who continue to give communion to those worshippers who are publicly living in a state of mortal sin should pay attention to what they read this morning. "Do what the Pharisees say not what they do". Our  Catholic congregations have enough to put up with from their pastors. This reduction in awareness of the sanctity of the Eucharist is probably the most important reason for the weakening of Faith in the Church and in its Sacraments. ".Be holy as I am holy".

Dear Lord' let the Holy Spirit enter into those ordained by Your Son  and show them that the reality of Jesus' death and resurrection are much more important than remaining "friends" with those who by their way of life show their lack of respect for God, the Priesthood and their fellow worshippers.

We must be in the world for that is the reality God created for humanity to grow in and by the beauty of this reality to be able to know that there is waiting for us a much greater glory in that we will see God as he really is,. It is in the world that we show that we are not part of this world and that we truly know Him and Serve him. This is what is missing in much of our Church  in these desolate times.

Come Holy Spirit renew the face of your Church. Father, let our pastors inspire us into true faith and let them lose the wishy-washiness that comes from putting a worldly self before Christ.

 I don't think that we are told anywhere what those who didn't agree did after the decision to drop dietary restrictions from their faith in the God of the Old Testament. The Law of God's covenant with Israel his favoured nation, was not to be totally ignored however and the 10 commandments delivered to Moses are  still applicable to all humans here on earth. The Pharisees were mentioned as being totally up in arms at the lifting of their restrictions which put them apart from other believers and they still are to this day..

Dear Lord let not my joy in avoiding sin become my main goal .Let me learn to pray as Jesus taught us with a prayer of the heart rather than the superficialities of words. 

He calls us friends and and performs his supreme sacrifice to show us the way to his friendship. John never stops emphasising the supremacy of love. We are all capable of loving; even soulless creatures seem to love. How do we prove our love? Do we have a cross to be nailed to. Jesus went this far in his Divine Love. Millions of us cannot follow him to a personal Calvary ; although a few have achieved martyrdom: Jesus' yoke for us  is light. We need to keep his commandments and  maintain a love of God knowing that the Father has accepted the sacrifice of his Son and together with the Holy Spirit brings us to  full and faultless humanity in the Glory that has no end.

Dear Lord let my soul be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit  and love all that you command and have created out of your infinite uncreated being. Let me and all your children follow Jesus to the centre of your loving heart where our knowledge of you means the end of time.

 The dissension in these first days comes about because the Jews who had lived their lives according to the "Law "couldn't understand how Pagans could be considered worthy to receive the Good News without first  conforming to the Law. This opinion arose very soon after the Resurrection; there were those amongst them who had seen the Risen Lord but their lives were formed by "Law" .and they must have felt that they were entitled to the New Life preached by the Apostles. I am sure that these discussions must have been a complete mess as both sides felt that they were doing  the work of God. Avoid  fornication is one of the rules to be obeyed.

Dear Lord you know that "Fornication" is the main interest of many of your servants. Let your Holy Spirit guide those among your flock who seek to convince themselves by accusing the Father of creating them differently than "Man" and "Woman".

We can remain in Christ by keeping his commandments. No matter how cleverly we argue, there are still basic rules for being human. Manipulating Life by preventing conception, aborting foetuses  or by changing sex is against God's law and a challenge thrown into his face. Man has freedom but a freedom to be exercised only within the Freedom of the Creator who has revealed himself to us by the procreation of his Son and his gift of the Holy Spirit. No matter how wondrous a being is Man we are not free to avoid death.

Dear Lord for us to prosper in our lives we need your support to strengthen our commitment to you. Let your Holy Spirit come again into the Church founded by your Son so that it  become a beacon showing us the Way to your Glory..