Tower of Babel and Pentecost – A Story in Contrast (Genesis 11:1-9; Acts 2:1-11)

(By The Rev. Dr. Fred Vergara, New York City, 5/23/2010)

P ride leads to destruction and prayer leads to transformation. Pride is the story of Babel and prayer is the story of Pentecost. Both stories talk about tongues and languages; both stories talk about human concerns; but both stories ended differently.

The story of Babel is about the tower. Towers are always a symbol of human achievement. I just returned from Seattle for a conference of the Japanese convocation. During the break, I decided to visit the Space needle; it is 65 stories tall and from its pinnacle, you can see the whole of Seattle. A couple of years ago, I was in Taiwan for an Asian convention and visited the Tower of Taipei. It is called Taipei 101 because it is 101-stories high, a typical feng-shui belief to put 1 after a zero. From story 101,  you can see the whole of Taipei. At that time in 2008, it was the tallest building in the world; today, it is overtaken by the Tower in Dubai, the Burj Khallifa, considered to be the tallest, modernistic skyscraper in the whole world.

Editor's Notes: The Rev. Dr. Winfred Vergara is the Director of Ethnic Congregational Development and National Missioner for Asiamerica Ministries of The Episcopal Church, which is headquartered in New York City; he also serves as Supply Clergy for St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, in Seaford, (Long Island), New York and priest at Holy Child-St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Woodside (Queens), New York.

Towers are also symbols of the human desire to control. Because you are on a high place, you can see things from a vantage point of view and you would be able to know what is happening on the ground. Incidentally, the Greek word “episcopus” where the word Episcopal comes from, is a word that means “oversight;” a view from the balcony. A bishop is an episcopus; he has an oversight over a diocese; and therefore can exercise authority and control over clergy and lay of a diocese. The pope is also a symbol of that view from the balcony, that of the Vatican balcony.

Because towers are symbols of pride, it is also an object of envy, a target of destruction. Hit the tower and you hit human hubris. We all know what happened to the twin tower of World Trade Center in New York’s Wall Street.

The tower of Babel was no less different from the Twin Tower, the Space Needle, the Petronas Tower of Malaysia, Taiwan 101 or the Tower of Dubai. The Tower of Babel was a human achievement; but the motivation of the builders was not only to see what is going on below but to reach to God and to be in control of the world and everything in it. And God saw not only what is above the tower of Babel but what is in the hearts of its builders. God confused their language, destroyed the tower and scattered them all over the earth.

Today, we celebrate not the Tower of Babel but Pentecost. Like the gathering at Pentecost Day, the church has many tongues and voices, but there is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all.

In contrast to the Tower of Babel was the “one place” on the Day of Pentecost. The gathering of the disciples was not to build a tower of pride but to pray in humility. They were all gathered in one place as Jesus had told them to do. They were praying, they were waiting, they were expecting—in one accord—with love and concern for each other. Then the Holy Spirit like tongues as of fire, came down and filled the whole house. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in various tongues and languages which the people of the world were able to understand.

Unlike the tower of Babel, these gifts of tongues were not of confusion but of transformation. The Bible says that what happened thereafter was even more miraculous: More-than 3,000 people from different nationalities and ethnic groups repented and turned from their evil ways. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship and breaking of bread and prayers. They met together in homes with glad and generous hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Everyone was filled with awe and many signs and wonders happened.

Today, we celebrate not the Tower of Babel but Pentecost. Like the gathering at Pentecost Day, the church has many tongues and voices, but there is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. May we all remember Pentecost and keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Then shall renewal come like the waters covering the sea. Amen. # # #

Editor’s Note: Please read also a previous article in this section about Pentecost Sunday written by The Rev. Dr. Fred Vergara in 2007: Sermon for Pentecost Sunday