INTRODUCTION
The Holy Spirit is the Temple of the Church. He is the soul of the Body of Christ of which Jesus is the Head. The Holy Spirit gives life to the Church so it becomes the living Temple of the living God. (C.C.C. # 797)
The Holy Spirit is involved in every step of the development and growth of the universal Church. He is the saving power that builds up the Church. He is faithfully found in the Word, in Baptism, in the sacraments, in the grace of God, in the gifts and in the virtues. Nothing happens in the Church without the direct involvement of the Holy Spirit. (C.C.C. # 798)
The Holy Spirit directs and supports all the affairs of the Church. He is responsible for inspiring the organization of the clergy according to their rank and authority. He blesses each member of the Church with the necessary charismatic gifts to fulfill his function as he has been called by the grace of God to proclaim and establish the Church, the Kingdom of Christ and of God. (C.C.C. # 768)
Through all these functions, the Holy Spirit sanctifies the Church for the glory of Christ so it may be pleasing to the Heavenly Father. (C.C.C. # 747)
The point is that the Holy Spirit gives us the Church and she, in turn, gives us the sacraments. St. Augustine taught us, "what the soul is to man's body, the Holy Spirit is to the Body of Christ, which is the Church. The Holy Spirit does in the whole Church what the soul does in the members of the one body.
"The Spirit came to finish in us, what Christ had finished in Himself, but left unfinished as regards us. To [the Spirit] it is committed to apply to us severally all that Christ had done for us. As a light placed in a room pours out its rays on all sides, so the presence of the Holy Ghost imbues us with life, strength, holiness, love, acceptableness, righteousness." And yet again, he says that Christ shines through His sacraments, "as through transparent bodies, without impediment, . . . effluences of His grace developing themselves in external forms. . . . Once for all He hung upon the cross, and blood and water issued from His pierced side, but by the Spirit's ministration, the blood and water are ever flowing."
Wind, fire, thunder, and lightning. The Sacred Scriptures are replete with instances of divine Revelation accompanied by these awe-inspiring phenomena in nature. The Book of Genesis tells us that "a mighty wind swept over the waters" (Gen. 1:2) at the dawn of time; in the Book of Exodus, we learn how God gave the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai with thunder and lightning as the communicators of His will and Word (cf. Ex. 19).
But less fearsome signs have also been used by the Almighty as we recall how the gentle breath of God brought Adam to life (cf. Gen. 2:7) and how the breath of Jesus on the apostles gave them the ability to restore to life those who were spiritually dead through sin (cf. Jn. 20:22). All of these events are connected to God's self-manifestation or, even better, His self-communication to the human race and, most especially, to His chosen people.
LET'S LOOK AT HOW THE HOLY SPIRIT ACTS IN EACH OF THE SACRAMENTS
BAPTISM
we receive the Holy Spirit at baptism and are thereby made adopted sons and daughters of God (Catechism 1265). On the day of Pentecost, the birthday of the Church (CCC 1076), St. Peter tells his fellow Jews to “repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). Likewise, Paul says elsewhere that baptism is “the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5
CONFIRMATION
In the Sacrament of Confirmation, the baptized person is"sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit" and is strengthened for service to the Body of Christ.Confirmation deepens our baptismal life that calls us to be missionary witnesses of Jesus Christ in our families, neighborhoods, society, and the world. . . . We receive the message of faith in a deeper and more intensive manner with great emphasis given to the person of Jesus Christ, who asked the Father to give the Holy Spirit to the Church for building up the community in loving service.
PENANCE AND ANOINTING OF THE SICK
In the Sacrament of Reconciliation (or Penance), the connection with the Holy Spirit is established through the power of the word of Christ after His Resurrection." He likewise observes that these same post-resurrectional words "can also refer to the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick."
By God's design, it is the priest's vocation to heal wounds, renew strength, and "wash the stains of guilt away." That almost incredible power was given to the apostles and their successors on Easter night, when Our Blessed Lord linked for all time the possession of genuine peace to the forgiveness of sins. Modern man has lost his sense of sin which, of course, explains why he has also lost the key to full and lasting peace. Priests must remind the world that sin exists, not in the fashion of a dreary and depressing Cassandra, but with an attitude of joy and enthusiasm.
The work of absolution is accomplished in Baptism, Penance, and the Anointing of the Sick. This paves the way for any other sacramental encounters which increase the divine life within. Once the roadblock of sin is removed, then the process of divinization can begin and only then.
MARRIAGE
Regarding Holy Matrimony, Pope John Paul observes:
"This sacrament is the human participation in that divine love which has been 'poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit' (Rom. 5:5). According to St. Augustine, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity in God is the 'consubstantial communion' [communio consubstantialis] of the Father and the Son. Through the Sacrament of Matrimony, the Spirit forms 'communion of persons' between a man and woman."
EUCHARIST
The Pentecost observed by the apostolic community was a major feast of covenant renewal, that act of God which made Israel His chosen people. Each time the Church gathers to celebrate the Eucharistic sacrifice, she engages in a similar ceremony of covenant renewal, and the same Spirit which hovered over the waters of the abyss bringing creation from chaos, the same Spirit which hovered over the Blessed Virgin Mary making her the Mother of the Messiah that same Spirit hovers over the elements of bread and wine, transforming them into the Lord's Body and Blood which saved the world 2000 years ago and makes present that invitation to salvation day in and day out, until He "comes in glory."
Hence, it is possible to say that every time the sacrifice of Calvary is sacramentally renewed, a little Pentecost occurs.
"Christian Tradition is aware of this bond between the Eucharist and the Holy Spirit which was expressed, and still is today, during the Mass when, in the epiclesis the Church requests the sanctification of the gifts offered upon the altar. . . . The Church emphasizes the mysterious power of the Holy Spirit for the completion of the Eucharistic consecration, for the sacramental transformation of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ, and for the communication of grace to those who participate in it and to the entire Christian community
HOLY ODERS
By the plan of Providence, it is the priest who imparts, through Word and Sacrament, this "divine sense of human life." Priests, by the mysterious workings of grace, are called to "shed a ray of light divine." It is particular privilege to be "the Father of the poor," not merely to those economically disadvantaged but even more to those who are spiritually malnourished and who cry out for the food of the truth of Christ.
By standing at the altar and saying the awesome words of Christ at the Last Supper, Priests give the Lord's people access to "sweet refreshment here below," which is a foretaste of the "rest most sweet; grateful coolness in the heat; solace in the midst of woe," all of which anticipates the glory of the liturgy of heaven. It is Priestly responsibility to teach all who would listen that where God's Holy Spirit is not present, "man has nothing good in deed or thought, nothing free from taint of ill."
As we gain a deeper appreciation of the Church's sacramental life, we discover in all these encounters the gentle but powerful presence of the Holy Spirit. Newman had it exactly right when he referred to the sacraments as "the embodied forms of the Spirit of Christ," which "persuade" by their "tenderness and mysteriousness."
CONCLUSION
This is why Pope John Paul can urge what he calls "a sacramental practice which is ever more consciously docile and faithful to the Holy Spirit who, especially through the 'means of salvation instituted by Jesus Christ,' brings to fulfillment the mission entrusted to the Church to work for universal redemption."
St. Basil said it best when he wrote: "Creatures do not have any gift on their own; all good comes from the Holy Spirit."
Permit me to conclude, then, with the beautiful prayer of the Byzantine liturgy of Pentecost which, I believe, sums up the goal of this presentation:
Heavenly King, Consoler, Spirit of Truth, present in all places and filling all things, Treasury of Blessings and Giver of Life: Come and dwell in us, cleanse us of all stain, and save our souls, O Good One! Amen
We have come to the en
d of today's reflection. Good night ❤️
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