Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the third person in the Trinity. He proceeds from the Father and the Son, as the Catechism teaches us. He is the spouse of the Virgin Mary, and it is by his power that Jesus Christ was conceived without an earthly father. 1 Cor. 12:3 says that no one can call Jesus Lord except the person is under the influence of the Holy Spirit. Some theologians have said that the Holy Spirit is the symbol of Love existing between the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit also gives us many charismatic gifts so that we can help to build up the Church, which is the Body of Christ. The Holy Spirit “lives to set us free.”

The Holy Spirit was spoken of by Jesus when the Lord told his disciples that he would send them an advocate to enlighten and embolden them. This was when he was leaving them and returning to the Father. He said that the Holy Spirit would teach them all things (John 14:26) and bear lasting witness to Christ in such a fashion that the disciples would not be afraid to bear witness in turn to Christ, before all the world. In other words, the disciples were going to form a two-step evangelism paradigm with the Holy Spirit, on behalf of all the people of God. The Holy Spirit would create the capacity in them to bring this situation about. 

The Holy Spirit comes to us in the sacraments. In Baptism, the Holy Spirit marks us with a sign of faith and places us firmly in the family of the Lord. The Holy Spirit whets our appetite for the food from Heaven, the one that nourishes and strengthens us on our road to God. The Holy Spirit always comes to us in confession to console us in our grief and guilt. Recall in this regard that we have said that guilt is to be eschewed in the concept of genuine sacrifice. God does not want us to bear the negative emotions that his son has already done away with. We are supposed to be vigilant, and to pray repeatedly for the Holy Spirit, so that he can strengthen us all the time. He comes to us as well in Holy Orders.

Holy Orders refer to the making of priests and bishops and deacons. It is by the power of the Holy Spirit, as evidenced in the laying on of hands that ministers of word and sacrament are made and positioned in service of God’s people, in such a fashion as to allow for the continued spread of the Gospel. God the Holy Spirit also comes to people that are married, so as to strengthen them in their marital vows and give them the strength to live lives of fidelity to their spouses and devotion to their children. The Holy Spirit also descends on the sick and lifts them up, when the minister lays hands on the sick in the sacrament of Anointing. It was for example by the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus rose Lazarus, the son of the Widow of Nain, and Jairus’ daughter from the dead in the Bible stories concerning these events. The Holy Spirit in short comes to us in power in all the sacraments instituted by Christ.

The Holy Spirit participates in the work of creation. In the Book of Genesis, theologians believe that God the Father was speaking to his Son and his Spirit when he said, “Let us make man in our image and likeness” (Gen. 1:26). This same God, Elohim, is the Unity of Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit it was that came upon the Apostles in the upper room during Pentecost and gave them the capacity to speak in many tongues. They were able to speak in the language of all the people that were gathered there, who had come from far and wide, and who testified to hearing the apostles speak in diverse languages (Acts Chapter 2). The Holy Spirit descended on them, by the way, in the form of fire.

Finally, the Holy Spirit appears in the forms of dove, water, fire and wind. He also shows up in the forms of cloud, light, finger, hand, and seal. The Holy Spirit is always with us. He lives inside a heart that is committed to God. In this regard our bodies have been called “temples of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 6:19-20). We all are children of God and under the divine protection. By the power of the Holy Spirit, we are ratified in our trust and in our faith. And our hope in the resurrection promise makes us love, by the gift of the Holy Spirit.