The Holy Spirit

WE need to be more aware of the Holy Spirit, and also of why we need him, and how we can get in touch with him. 

                Right now, we still seem to repeat that scene of St. Paul with the Ephesians when at one point the Apostle asked some disciples: “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” And they answered, “We have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” (Acts 19,2)

                Sad to say, this is a common phenomenon. Even among those so-called fervent Catholics who are active in the parishes and involved in many religious activities, this ignorance of the Holy Spirit is palpable.

                The Holy Spirit appears to be too abstract a reality that the common tao cannot figure him out. But it’s clear that Christ gave us the Holy Spirit. The solemnity of Pentecost precisely celebrates that event when the Holy Spirit came down and transformed the apostles from fearful men to bold ministers of Christ.

                The effect of that coming was immediate and tremendous. The apostles all of a sudden spoke in tongues and could speak to the different people in the city in these people’s own languages, and a lot of people were converted and baptized.

                The Holy Spirit perpetuates the presence and redemptive action of Christ all throughout time, with all the drama, vagaries, ups and downs that we men make in our history.

                This is because the life and redemptive work of Christ, who is both God and man, just cannot be swallowed up in the past and confined to a certain space and a particular culture or set of circumstances.

                Christ’s work has a universal and perpetual scope. It affects all of us, and it affects us not only in some physical or material way, but in a very intimate, personal way, with him, through the Holy Spirit, entering into our lives.

                It has been prophesied that God will pour out his Spirit upon all men. The Holy Spirit is intended for all of us. We are all meant to be filled with the Holy Spirit. But this divine will obviously has to contend with the way we receive and do things, and that is, that we take to this reality in stages involving a whole range of human means of teaching, evangelizing, etc.

                We need the Holy Spirit because only in him can we truly recognize Christ. Only in him will we be able to have Christ in our life, to remember all his words and even to develop them to attune them to current needs and situations.

                Only in him can we see things properly. Especially these days when truth, justice and charity have become very slippery, and people are left confounded and vulnerable to fall into skepticism and cynicism, we need to be in the Holy Spirit to be able to sort things out and stay away from the mess.

                I was amused to note that in today’s political debates in the US as in everywhere else, a growing awareness is felt by more and more people that myths and lies, with shreds of truths and facts cleverly inserted, are exchanged. They talk about a collision of myths. It’s not anymore about what the truth is. It’s more about who is followed more.

                This is what happens when we are not in the Holy Spirit and we rely only on our human resources that sooner or later will be twisted and exploited to suit personal or partisan interests, and not anymore the common good.

                We need the Holy Spirit to be able to read the signs of the times properly. The world is getting very complicated, and we definitely need to the Holy Spirit to guide us. We cannot rely anymore on our politicians and other leaders. We, including politicians and especially them, actually always need the Holy Spirit.

                The Holy Spirit acts on each one of us in different ways but always for the common good. St. Cyril has this to say about how the Holy Spirit comes to us:

                “The Spirit comes gently and makes himself known by his fragrance. He is not felt as a burden, for he is light, very light. Rays of light and knowledge stream before him as he approaches.

                “The Spirit comes with the tenderness of a true friend and protector to save, to heal, to teach, to counsel, to strengthen, to console. The Spirit comes to enlighten the mind first of the one who receives him, and then, through him, the minds of others as well.”