whitsunday

Every good Catholic knows that there are three persons in one God; the Trinity. This past Sunday was Pentecost, during which we remember Jesus' promise to not leave us alone in this world. He would send us the Holy Spirit to comfort us. Pentecost is also commonly called Whitsunday because, after Easter, it was the Sunday that saw the most baptisms occur, for which the liturgical color is white.

The Trinity is a difficult concept to grasp. 1 + 1 + 1 = 3. Except here, where it equals one. Add to that the mysterious nature of the Holy Spirit, and, for lack of understanding perhaps, He likely gets neglected... forgotten. We often pray to the Father or the Son independently. But I have rarely heard of someone praying to the Holy Spirit.

It is relatively easy for us to picture God the Father; everyone has one. Even if that person is not the idyllic father we've seen on tv or read in books, there are examples of good fathers everywhere. Putting God into that role is not a big stretch. Jesus? Artists throughout the ages have given us millions of images from which we can choose. Again, even if they aren't accurate, we can "see" Him; have a face to meditate on when we pray. The Holy Spirit is much more challenging to envision. Like the wind, it cannot be seen with our eyes. It can be felt by blowing a tuft of hair, moving the leaves on the trees, or carrying a delicate fragrance.

Even though He is invisible, He does so much for us. Guides us. Gives us our faith. Sanctifies our souls. We believe that, at Confirmation, we fully receive all the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We may have had some or all of them before Confirmation, but receipt of this sacrament matures each gift.

• Wisdom. This gift perfects a person's speculative reason in matters of judgement about the truth. In other words, it helps us love more dearly things that are of heaven.
• Knowledge. This perfects a person's practical reason -- using reason to decide how to act and to discover the will of God in all things in our path to heaven.
• Right Judgement (Counsel). This perfects a person's practical reason in apprehension of the truth and allows the person to respond appropriately. It helps us choose things that will glory God and help our own salvation.
• Courage (Fortitude). This gives a person the firmness of mind that is required in both doing good and enduring evil, especially when it is difficult.
• Understanding (Common Sense). Perfects a person's speculative reason whereby self-evident principes become known. I like to think of this one as like a veil being lifted from your eyes, when necessary, to grasp the mysteries of religion.
• Piety. At the Holy Spirit's instigation, we worship and pray to God as our Father and gives us delight in doing so.
• Wonder and Awe in God (Fear of the Lord). This gift is what makes us afraid to be separated from God, like a child not wanting to disappoint his father.

St. Thomas Aquinas taught that the first four gifts direct out intellect, while the last three direct our wills toward God. These gifts are similar to virtues but emanate from different sources; virtues are controlled by the impetus of human reasoning but the gifts are exercised when the Holy Spirit wishes. In a boat, we control the oars, but the Holy Spirit controls the sails. Before the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles, they were too afraid to leave their small room in which they had been hiding for fear of prosecution as followers of Jesus. Afterward, they ventured out into the streets, teaching others about the works of Jesus. They had received the gifts of the Holy Spirit that enabled them to do that.

The one sin that shall not be pardoned, Jesus tells us, is blasphemy agains the Holy Spirit. What is distressing about this is that the Church's doctors have three theories as to what this could be. (I would hope that something so grave would be very clearly spelled out.) At the core of all three possible explanations is the malicious rejection of the impulses and inspirations of the Holy Spirit to turn us away from evil.

The Holy Spirit is also at the center of many classic heresies surrounding the Trinity and the division of the Eastern and Western Churches. There are too many heresies to discuss here, so I'll discuss the filioque... the one word that has kept the Church divided for centuries. The word and its insertion into the Nicene Creed states that the Holy Spirit comes forth from the Father and the Son. Before insertion of this word, it was believed that He came just from the Father. The addition of this word to the Creed occurred outside of a Counsel, where bishops from all over the Church gathered to discuss matters such as these. For this reason, the Eastern Church blames the Western for the insertion and therefore the division of the one true Church.

So it's almost no wonder that the Holy Spirit is neglected by us. Centuries-old difficulties in comprehension of It's true nature, difficulty grasping the gifts He bestows, and the ancient controversial insertion of one word into a Creed regarding His origination makes it easy for us to concentrate on other things. And as the liturgical year goes on, I do. But my sails are righted at least once a year... on Whitsunday.

Comments

[Krystyn]

Ohhhh - Ethan is being baptized on 5/25 and yes, there are TONS of baptisms going on right now.

[Francine]

It's not neglected here... Pentacost is a two day national holiday. Monday was a day off for everyone :-)

[Brian]

Wow, holy Catholic high school flashback!

Next you should go into the one where "for thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory" was added after the Lord's Prayer by a monk in the 900s....

:)