Jn 16:12-15
At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
While still on earth with His disciples, the Lord did not entrust everything to them, knowing that the Holy Spirit had to be sent to them first, both to allow them to understand things and to strengthen them to put them into practice.
This is how the Lord guides His Church through time, enabling it to discern His revelation through the Holy Spirit ever more clearly.
Having spent the last few days reflecting on the theme of the Holy Spirit in preparation for Pentecost, I would like to take this opportunity to share with you a prayer that we have been praying in our community for many years. It is part of what is known as the ‘Hymn of Praise to the Holy Trinity’, which most members of our community pray every early morning
“Praised be You, Holy Spirit, love of the Father and of the Son.
In the beginning You hovered over the waters and transformed chaos into order. And when the time was fulfilled, You descended upon the womb of the most blessed Virgin Mary, from whom Christ the Lord was born to us.
At all times You filled Him with Your Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord, and You remained with Him to share all His labours.
And when Our Lord ascended into heaven, You were sent by the Father and the Son to the disciples and apostles to enlighten and strengthen them. In Your light they were able to recognise the saving works of God and to interpret the Scriptures. In Your power they testified the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, for You Yourself are the witness.
You convict the world of sin and reveal righteousness and judgment.
Poured into our hearts, You cry out: “Abba, beloved Father”, and You pray for us with wordless groans, for You are the Holy One in us sinners, the Light in our darkness, the Truth in our hearts.
You appeared hidden in the messages of the seers; You shone clearly in the testimony of the prophets; but now, at the end of time, You are sent to all men so that they may acknowledge Christ the Lord. In this way You accomplish the work of the Father and of the Son, transforming us into the image of Christ.
This prayer reminds us of the fundamental aspects of the work of the Holy Spirit. As we repeat it daily, these truths of faith, which we might also call “stations of salvation”, are anchored in our souls.
At the same time, this prayer is also a praise to the Holy Spirit, which we conclude with the following words:
How can we ever thank You for Your love and infinite mercy? Therefore we adore You with all the angels and saints, and we glorify Your exalted name with all those who seek You, honour You and listen to You. We pray for our deceased brothers and sisters who are in need of purification, for those who do not know You, who live in confusion and error, and in a special way for those who keep their hearts closed from You. For You are holy!
I invite you to meditate on this prayer, to interiorise it, to draw closer to the Holy Spirit. You can say it out loud or pray it inwardly. It has helped us to know the Holy Spirit better as a person and to be aware of His work in the history of salvation.