Come, Holy Spirit, Come

“I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life”

But, I am not so capable of fully grasping and articulating the ever-present light and grace of the Holy Spirit.  I can only begin with the “Person” of the Holy Spirit that is distinct, but mutually indwelling with the Father and the Son. Whatever you can say about Father and the Son you can say about the Holy Spirit, except that the Spirit is the Father or the Son.  This is the Holy Trinity.

We live in the “in-between” time, between the ascension and the coming again of Our Lord Jesus.  This in between time is the time of the Holy Spirit; it is the time of the Church.  It is our time.

The Holy Spirit was first shared tenderly by Jesus with his disciples,as he breathed on them.  But the Holy Spirit, in boldness, fully came into his own when he was poured out upon them and the world at Pentecost.  

From that day the Spirit continues to flow always and everywhere to fill up all emptiness. The Holy Spirit is remembering all things, teaching all things in truth, bearing witness to Jesus, encouraging communion, fostering love, and comforting all believers.  We do not see the Spirit but we know the work of the Holy Spirit by the good effect it causes.

 The Holy Spirit uniquely dwells within the Church as the source of her sacramental life and at the same time actively sanctifies the souls of the baptized faithful  through the gift of grace. 

This grace the Holy Spirit enlivens and makes present (by its gifts ); wisdom, a detaching from the snares and lies of the world. Understanding which helps us grasp the truths of God. Counsel enables us to see and choose correctly what will give glory of God and be for the good of salvation. Fortitude is the courage to overcome the obstacles and difficulties.Knowledge points out to us the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Piety, inspires us with a tender and trusting confidence in God, and makes us joyfully embrace the love of God and love of neighbor.  Fear of the Lord fills us with awe of the Glory of God and the sovereign lordship over the cosmos of his Son.

Along with the generous gifts of the Spirits are the fruits of life with the Spirit. St Paul describes them

"the fruit of the Spirit is, charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, longanimity, mildness, faith, modesty, continence, chastity."

Our lives could be charged by such grace and light.  We could fully share divine life, but we fail to be open to the Spirit, to feel its gentle nudging or hear its soft murmurs.  

On this Pentecost let’s remember the Holy Spirit as he is - God with us.  Let us live out all of what that means.  Let’s change our lives and wake up each morning ready to live with, and in, the Spirit.  Because the Holy Spirit is God’s Spirit spread throughout the world, as well as, the Spirit who dwells within and because there is nothing anywhere that does not concern him.

“The Holy Ghost, over the bent world, broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings."

                                                                  God’s Grandeur, Gerard Manley Hopkins S.J