Year A
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Today marks the culminating point of the Easter season, Pentecost, the 50th day after Jesus’ Resurrection. Jesus’ promise to send us another Advocate is fulfilled.
What stands out is this special phrase: "They were all filled with the Holy Spirit”. The Holy Spirit is the Gift of the Father and the Son. Jesus breathed on them and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit.” We can only receive the Holy Spirit as pure gift.
Pentecost marks a special day of transformation in the life of the Church and in the individual lives of the disciples. The disciples move from timidity to courage, from self-preservation to self-gift, from maintenance to mission. Their own hearts were set on fire by the Holy Spirit’s tongues of fire and they carry that burning torch to the ends of the earth.
The Holy Spirit always moves us in two directions – towards love of God and neighbour.
1) The first movement of the Holy Spirit in our lives is to lead us inwardly, to a deep, rich interior life, to an authentic, life-transforming prayer life. He moves us closer to Jesus and to our heavenly Father, to great intimacy with them; towards greater faith, hope and charity; to a relationship of unlimited confidence; to a great docility to the will of God. Ponder these two affirmations of St Paul:
a. “No one can say, “Jesus is Lord”, except by the Holy Spirit.” Jesus Himself said that the Holy Spirit will remind us of all He said and did. The Holy Spirit guides us to all truth. He takes from what belongs to Jesus and declares it to us.
b. “You received a Spirit of adoption, through whom we cry, “Abba, Father”. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” The Holy Spirit always leads us to our true identity – we are God’s beloved sons and daughters.
2) The second movement of the Holy Spirit in our lives is to lead us outwardly – towards humble service, in the Spirit of Christ who came, not to be served, but to serve.
a. For this purpose, the Holy Spirit showers us with spiritual gifts which lead to different forms of service. “To each individual, the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.”
b. The Holy Spirit’s work in our lives is manifest in His visible fruits - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
We are blessed to be in the Year of the Holy Spirit. Only the Holy Spirit can bring about a true renewal of the diocese, of each individual parish and of each individual disciple. Renewal is not merely the fruit of long discussions, sharing of opinions and forging of plans. Renewal is first and foremost the fruit of greater openness to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Interior renewal precedes exterior changes in structure. Before we can transform our parishes and pastoral areas, our own minds and hearts must be transformed. Come, O Holy Spirit!
The mass for Pentecost contains a prayer to the Holy Spirit which is one of the great gems of Christian poetry. This is the Sequence, “Veni Sancte Spiritus” (“Come, Holy Spirit”), and was composed at the beginning of the thirteenth century by Stephen Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury. It teaches us much about the Spirit whose outpouring on the nascent Church we commemorate today.
First of all, we are reminded that the Spirit is personal; although revealed in fire and wind, the Spirit is one of three divine Persons and addressed as “Father of the poor”, “Giver of gifts”, “Guest of the soul”.
With that great truth secured, we are shown the divine, illuminating power of the Spirit, “The most blessed Light” which fills the inmost recesses of the heart, without whose divine power there is nothing in us which is not harmful to us.
But the Spirit is more than light; he is whatever we need; health for the sick, warmth for the cold of heart, moisture for those dried up, a rule for those who stray. And in the final verse we are encouraged to seek the Spirit always; he is the giver of virtue throughout our lives, the giver of a good death at our life's end, and the giver of everlasting joy in the end which has no end. Amen, Come Holy Spirit!
These hymns have been picked and chosen from different sources.
Holy Spirit, Lord of Light (CFE261, L301, LHON341,TCH313)
Veni Sancte Spiritus (chant) (L300, LHON702,TCH312)
Veni Sancte Spiritus (Walker) (CFE759, L307,LHON896)
Breathe on me, Breath of God (CFE98, L302, LHON182,TCH91)
Come Holy Ghost, Creator, come (CFE126, L296,LHON210, TCH93)
She sits like a bird (Enemy of Apathy) (CFE620,L305, LHON613)
Spirit of the living God (CFE666, L306, LHON630)
Key
CFE - Celebration Hymnal for Everyone
L – Laudate
LHON – Liturgical Hymns Old and New (Mayhew, 1999)
TCH – The Catholic Hymnbook (Gracewing)
Do you have questions about the liturgy and how we are called to participate in it? Explore how the Church councils, saints, and popes have answered this key question and many more.
Every movement of the Mass is rich in meaning but we can become over-familiar with it. Rediscover the Mass and explore how it relates to the Exodus story, where many of its rituals come from, and how it makes Jesus present to us today.
