But first: Who is the Holy Spirit?
Each week in the creed we profess our belief in the Holy Spirit: “I believe in the Holy Spirit” Who is He? The Holy Spirit one of three Divine Persons of the Blessed Trinity. He is truly God—consubstantial with both the Father and the Son. “Holy Spirit" is the proper name if the Third Divine Person. And we call him the Holy Spirit because Jesus himself called him the Holy Spirit, as we heard in today’s Gospel.
In the Gospel today, the Jesus himself referred to the Holy Spirit as a Teacher. Docébit vos omnem veritátem—he will teach you all truth. The Holy Spirit desires to teach us always what is good, true, and necessary for the Christian life. If we wish to understand the faith, if we wish to live it, if we wish to pass it on, we must allow ourselves to be taught and led by the Holy Spirit.
We heard in the first reading how St. Paul, Barnabas, and the Apostles were gathered by the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem to discuss some matters challenging the early church: did Christians need to be circumcised, could we eat food offered to idols, could we enter into unlawful marriages. And thanks be to God, the early church was open to the guidance of God on these matters, just as the Church of every age always needs to be attentive to the Holy Spirit’s guidance regarding how to live out the Gospel of Christ in the complexities of our current age.
The Holy Spirit is a teacher and guide to the Church as a whole, but also to us individually. St. Paul says in Romans that “God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." Do you love of God and know that God loves you? If so, it’s because the Holy Spirit opened your heart to that possibility. Have you ever repented of sin? If so, it’s because the Holy Spirit has moved you to repentance. Have you experienced love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness. If so, it’s because the Holy Spirit has produced those fruits within you. Do you have a passion for prayer, a love for the Eucharist, a desire to serve the needy, share the Gospel with those who do not know Jesus? It’s because the Holy Spirit has moved you, is moving you to these very very good things.
At World Youth Day in Australia in 2008, Pope Benedict said, “The Holy Spirit has been in some ways the neglected person of the Blessed Trinity,” and confessed that it was only as a young priest teaching theology that he began to recognize the importance of coming to know the Holy Spirit more intimately. He said to all of those young people gathered at World Youth Day that, “It is not enough to know that there is a Holy Spirit; we must welcome Him as the guide of our souls, as the ‘Teacher of the interior life’ who introduces us to the Mystery of the Trinity, because He alone can open us up to faith and allow us to live it each day to the full.”
Pope Benedict calls the Holy Spirit the Teacher of the interior life. For God, the Holy Spirit, is given to us from the Father to be our constant guide and teacher in the spiritual life. St. Paul tells us, “The Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.” I don’t know about you, but the most moving moments of prayer in my life, have been those times when my prayer seemed to bubble up as if from someone other than myself. That was the Holy Spirit leading my soul, guiding my soul in prayer.
The Holy Spirit also helps us identify those attitudes and behaviors and choices which hinder our spiritual growth. He illuminates vices which we’ve turned a blind eye to, he pricks our consciences to get to confession. He inspires us to put our faith into practice.
As we prepare for Pentecost we do well to dispose ourselves to be taught by the Spirit, and I recommend three ways.
First, prayer. Prayerfully ask the Holy Spirit to Help you to be open to the Truth God wants you to know. “Holy Spirit, help me to love you, to be open to your gifts, to be taught to pray. Teach me how to love, teach me the faith. Teach me to forgive. Teach me all things I need to know for my vocation, for the Christian life, for my struggle to overcome sin and develop the virtues and gifts you want for me.” Pray. Allow him to teach you what you need how to grow and make use of his seven-fold gifts of wisdom, knowledge, understanding, counsel, courage, piety, and holy reverence.
Secondly, study the faith. The Holy Spirit is the teacher, and he’s been teaching the Church for 2000 years now. But teachers expect their students to study. Do you study your faith. The Holy Spirit has spoken through the scriptures, he has spoken in the saints. Have you ever read the Church Fathers? Augustine, Athanasius, Aquinas, Cyril of Alexandria, Ignatius of Antioch, Irenenus? The Holy Spirit moved these men, taught the Church through these men. He continues to teach the Church through these men. Read Thomas Aquinas. Read the Church Fathers. Read Pope Benedict. Pope Benedict was one of the clearest teachers of the faith we’ve had in 100 years. And when you’ve done that. When you’ve read these guys. Start over.
Catholics get into big trouble when we think we know it all, we know enough. We are disciples. And disciple means student. We are semper discipulus—always a student.
Thirdly, make devout use of the sacramentals. The sacramentals, holy water, blessed medals, statues, sacred images, crucifixes in our homes. The sacramentals open us, dispose us to the grace of the Holy Spirit. Feel free to fill up a little vial of holy water when you come to church on the weekends. Keep it on your bedstand. Bless yourself when you wake up in the morning as a reminder of your baptism. And teach others about the sacramentals. They can be used by non-Catholics. They are a great introduction to the Catholic faith for some non-believers.
St. Paul in his first letter to Thessalonians said, “Do not put out the fire of the Spirit!,” because in some sense they obviously were limiting his work in them. To the Ephesians he said something even more powerful, imploring them, “Do not grieve the Spirit of God.” How often, we believers, grieve the Holy Spirit by ignoring his inspirations. He inspires to repent, and we put it off. He inspires us to feed the hungry, and we put it off. He inspires us to pray, and we put it off. He inspires us to invite fallen away Catholics back to the Sacraments, and we put it off. How much richer our lives would be, how much effective we would be in our mission, how much stronger our parish would be, if we followed the guidance and inspirations of the Holy Spirit, cultivated daily our love of the Holy Spirit, openness to the Holy Spirit.
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
No comments:
Post a Comment