The Holy Spirit
Who is the Holy Spirit? The answer is found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, beginning with Article 683: "No one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit." "God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!"'2 This knowledge of faith is possible only in the Holy Spirit: to be in touch with Christ, we must first have been touched by the Holy Spirit. He comes to meet us and kindles faith in us. By virtue of our Baptism, the first sacrament of the faith, the Holy Spirit in the Church communicates to us, intimately and personally, the life that originates in the Father and is offered to us in the Son." The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Holy Trinity, said to be the love expressed between the Father and Son (the first and second person of the Holy Trinity). It is something we Catholic believe by Faith. There is ONE God in THREE persons, and to understand anything about the Faith (because, Faith is a Gift of God) we have to listen to the Holy Spirit.
Article 686: "The Holy Spirit is at work with the Father and the Son from the beginning to the completion of the plan for our salvation. But in these "end times," ushered in by the Son's redeeming Incarnation, the Spirit is revealed and given, recognized and welcomed as a person. Now can this divine plan, accomplished in Christ, the firstborn and head of the new creation, be embodied in mankind by the outpouring of the Spirit: as the Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting."
Pentecost is the Feast of the Holy Spirit, the Birth of the Church. Still there are many people, even Catholics, who do not understand the Holy Spirit's role in our Church. We cannot go to Heaven without the help of the Holy Spirit. "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven." How do we know the Will of the Father. At the moment we need that information, the Holy Spirit will assist us. (Matthew 7:21) Or, in Luke 12:12: "For the holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say." (©NAB). Some translations say "For the Holy Spirit will teach you all things."
From before the Birth of Jesus, the Angel Gabriel told Joseph, and then Mary that [Mary] will conceive by the power of the Holy Spirit. See Mt 1:20-25. And, again, in Mt. 3:11, "I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." There are 90 verses in the New Testament that deal with the words: "Holy Spirit."
It is through the wisdom given us by the Holy Spirit that we know and understand why Jesus called His Father "Abba!" In New Advent website: "Abba is the Aramaic word for "father." The word occurs three times in the New Testament (Mark 14:36; Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6). In each case it has its Greek translation subjoined to it, reading abba ho pater in the Greek text; abba, pater in the Latin Vulgate, and "Abba, Father" in the English version. St. Paul made use of the double expression in imitation of the early Christians, who, in their turn, used it in imitation of the prayer of Christ." ©Kevin Knight (New Advent).
"Abba" is an informal mode of address - it is the way a child would address his father as "Daddy." Didn't our Lord teach us to be as children, without pretense, without agenda? That's how we're supposed to talk with Jesus, without agenda. We do not tell Him what we are going to do and then expect Him to just tag along. No, we suggest what we might do, and let Him whisper His choice for us!
Unfortunately, at some parishes, the general parish population hasn't fully accepted the Charismatic movement in their midst, and that includes the clergy in some cases. Due to the somewhat undisciplined exuberance of the Charismatics themselves, there have been "issues," however, that is not what was intended. When in 1975, Pope Paul VI said, “The Church and the world need more than ever that ‘the miracle of Pentecost should continue in history’ . . . he was referring to the entire Church. And when Pope John Paul II similarly spoke ot the total renewal of the Church, he was referring to the entire Church population. At St. Helen Parish, there is certainly greater interest in the Charismatic movement than there was 10 or 20 years ago, but we cannot say that this interest is parish-wide. You'll wonder why I consider this so important!?
I consider the integration of the Charismatic with the more Traditional form of Catholicism so important because the Church has been through a number of tough battles lately, and it needs a total revitalization from within, also because we are racing to the end times, although no one really know when that will take place. There is room for both, but there should be no tension between the two groups, if you will. We are ALL Catholics, and a divided house will not last, so we need to be strong and pray to the Holy Spirit for guidance and Grace.
In his message to the World's Youth in Australia in 2008, and again, in his more recent visit to the Holy Land, Pope Benedict XVI asked the Holy Spirit, in prayer, to descend on us to enlighten us to what we must do to be saved. So listen to Him, and ask Him what to do. In these very difficult times, times of social unrest and vast moral problems, let us turn to prayer and repent our sins. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we will again become whole.
Fred Schaeffer, SFO
May 30, 2009
Return
Article 686: "The Holy Spirit is at work with the Father and the Son from the beginning to the completion of the plan for our salvation. But in these "end times," ushered in by the Son's redeeming Incarnation, the Spirit is revealed and given, recognized and welcomed as a person. Now can this divine plan, accomplished in Christ, the firstborn and head of the new creation, be embodied in mankind by the outpouring of the Spirit: as the Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting."
Pentecost is the Feast of the Holy Spirit, the Birth of the Church. Still there are many people, even Catholics, who do not understand the Holy Spirit's role in our Church. We cannot go to Heaven without the help of the Holy Spirit. "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven." How do we know the Will of the Father. At the moment we need that information, the Holy Spirit will assist us. (Matthew 7:21) Or, in Luke 12:12: "For the holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say." (©NAB). Some translations say "For the Holy Spirit will teach you all things."
From before the Birth of Jesus, the Angel Gabriel told Joseph, and then Mary that [Mary] will conceive by the power of the Holy Spirit. See Mt 1:20-25. And, again, in Mt. 3:11, "I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." There are 90 verses in the New Testament that deal with the words: "Holy Spirit."
It is through the wisdom given us by the Holy Spirit that we know and understand why Jesus called His Father "Abba!" In New Advent website: "Abba is the Aramaic word for "father." The word occurs three times in the New Testament (Mark 14:36; Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6). In each case it has its Greek translation subjoined to it, reading abba ho pater in the Greek text; abba, pater in the Latin Vulgate, and "Abba, Father" in the English version. St. Paul made use of the double expression in imitation of the early Christians, who, in their turn, used it in imitation of the prayer of Christ." ©Kevin Knight (New Advent).
"Abba" is an informal mode of address - it is the way a child would address his father as "Daddy." Didn't our Lord teach us to be as children, without pretense, without agenda? That's how we're supposed to talk with Jesus, without agenda. We do not tell Him what we are going to do and then expect Him to just tag along. No, we suggest what we might do, and let Him whisper His choice for us!
Unfortunately, at some parishes, the general parish population hasn't fully accepted the Charismatic movement in their midst, and that includes the clergy in some cases. Due to the somewhat undisciplined exuberance of the Charismatics themselves, there have been "issues," however, that is not what was intended. When in 1975, Pope Paul VI said, “The Church and the world need more than ever that ‘the miracle of Pentecost should continue in history’ . . . he was referring to the entire Church. And when Pope John Paul II similarly spoke ot the total renewal of the Church, he was referring to the entire Church population. At St. Helen Parish, there is certainly greater interest in the Charismatic movement than there was 10 or 20 years ago, but we cannot say that this interest is parish-wide. You'll wonder why I consider this so important!?
I consider the integration of the Charismatic with the more Traditional form of Catholicism so important because the Church has been through a number of tough battles lately, and it needs a total revitalization from within, also because we are racing to the end times, although no one really know when that will take place. There is room for both, but there should be no tension between the two groups, if you will. We are ALL Catholics, and a divided house will not last, so we need to be strong and pray to the Holy Spirit for guidance and Grace.
In his message to the World's Youth in Australia in 2008, and again, in his more recent visit to the Holy Land, Pope Benedict XVI asked the Holy Spirit, in prayer, to descend on us to enlighten us to what we must do to be saved. So listen to Him, and ask Him what to do. In these very difficult times, times of social unrest and vast moral problems, let us turn to prayer and repent our sins. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we will again become whole.
Fred Schaeffer, SFO
May 30, 2009
Return
