“Fifty days after his Resurrection, the Lord sent the Holy Spirit down from Heaven upon his disciples. The age of Church began! On Pentecost the Holy Spirit transformed fearful apostles into courageous witnesses to Christ. In a very short time, thousands had themselves baptised; it was the birthday of the Church…To this day the Holy Spirit is the ‘soul’ of the Church, the essential principle of her life.” (YouCat, 118)
The mission of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost was to light up the darkness of the disciples’ hearts, to open their eyes to recognise the Risen Jesus, to strengthen their hope once again, and to transform their sorrow into a lasting joy. The disciples after Pentecost are changed men, they are men on fire with the Holy Spirit, they are men with a mission who have been empowered by the Spirit with all the gifts they will need as they go forth with courage to preach the Gospel of the Risen Jesus to all the nations.
In Baptism we are each given the gift of the Holy Spirit. We become children of God, made in his image and likeness. The Spirit dwells in us from that moment and is reinforced by our Confirmation which strengthens our commitment to Christ and the Church. We are invited to welcome the Holy Spirit into our hearts for it is truly the Spirit which gives life. The Spirit is the strength which dwells in each of us. The Spirit comes to help us when we are weak or don’t have the words to pray and intercedes for us to the Father. The Spirit is the eternal love of the Father, the very life of God within us.
”The Holy Spirit teaches us to look with the eyes of Christ, to live life as Christ lived, to understand life as Christ did. That’s why the living water that is the Holy Spirit quenches our lives because it tells us that we are loved by God as His children, that we can love God as his children, and that by his grace we can live as children of God, as did Jesus. And us? Do we listen to the Holy Spirit who tells us: God loves you? Do we really love God and others as Jesus did?”
(Pope Francis, 8 May 2013)
