John 15:26-27, 16:12-15
In a world filled with lies, we welcome the One who speaks the truth. God the Holy Spirit is the spirit of truth, who leads us to the perfect revelation of who God is.
From Abraham to John the Baptist God spoke through prophets who did their best to interpret what God had to say to us. All through history the prophets messed up. The Law became the central reason for worship. 613 Commandments, many that dealt with guarding against ritual impurity dominated the focus of the Jewish religion. The prophets failed and were unable to live up to the expectations set in the Commandments. People thought that they had to keep God happy because He wasn’t happy with us. So they offered human sacrifice, animal sacrifice the best crops and still people knew, in their gut, that God could not be happy, since over and over we were unable to keep our end of the Covenant. Until a young girl, probably around 16 years old, without fear, no guilt, no sin, was willing to say “Yes” to being the mother of Jesus. Her husband was also courageous—because he found out that his bride was pregnant and he was not the father. Yet, he was willing to do what God wanted, risking his reputation in order to become the husband of an unwed mother. Two unselfish young people paved the way for Jesus to be born into the world. The Holy Spirit spoke to the Blessed Mother through an angel, spoke to St. Joseph in a dream and they both said “Yes.” Nobody had to ask them, “What do you want for Christmas?” They received Jesus Christ—He was all that they needed. Jesus was born into human history to get us back on track—back to the original plan. The Lord could have beamed down, manifested Himself as a ball of fire, or an all powerful king with servants all around. Instead He chose to come through people, simple, unassuming people like Joseph and Mary.
We all know the story. Jesus grew up and He made lots of folks angry because He did not meet their expectations. Jesus associated with undesirables, untouchables, with sinners. One of the most scandalous things that Jesus did was to call God His Daddy. And He said that we could all do the same. “When you pray say, Our Father, Abba”. Mouths were wide open, people walked away, the authorities started to think of ways to kill Him. Given our lowliness, God could not possibly be related to us! None of us could ever be worthy to call God “Our Father.”
Yet, God is related to us. Better said, we are related to God. He made us and does not regret having loved us—because he sent the Holy Spirit. The same Spirit that created the world, breath life into Adam and Eve and came upon the Apostles at Pentecost is the same Spirit present in the Church—that speaks the truth. The same Spirit that makes the Eucharist change from bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. The Spirit is present in all of the Sacraments, when we are Baptized, receive absolution, are anointed when we are sick. The Spirit is alive in the love of husband and wife in marriage and in every act of kindness, especially towards the poor. The Spirit is why we are here, why we woke up today and why we live. Just like the Spirit gave courage to the Apostles who were hiding behind closed doors, He gives us courage to speak about Him, especially to the folks who do not know Him or who are angry with God or have forgotten the importance of coming to Holy Mass every weekend. God continues to use people to proclaim His truth. Not perfect, sinless people, but ordinary folks—just like you, just like me.
The world is hungry for the message of truth. With the Eucharist inside of us, we must never be afraid to speak to others about our best friend, Jesus Christ.
In a world filled with lies, we welcome the One who speaks the truth. God the Holy Spirit is the spirit of truth, who leads us to the perfect revelation of who God is.
From Abraham to John the Baptist God spoke through prophets who did their best to interpret what God had to say to us. All through history the prophets messed up. The Law became the central reason for worship. 613 Commandments, many that dealt with guarding against ritual impurity dominated the focus of the Jewish religion. The prophets failed and were unable to live up to the expectations set in the Commandments. People thought that they had to keep God happy because He wasn’t happy with us. So they offered human sacrifice, animal sacrifice the best crops and still people knew, in their gut, that God could not be happy, since over and over we were unable to keep our end of the Covenant. Until a young girl, probably around 16 years old, without fear, no guilt, no sin, was willing to say “Yes” to being the mother of Jesus. Her husband was also courageous—because he found out that his bride was pregnant and he was not the father. Yet, he was willing to do what God wanted, risking his reputation in order to become the husband of an unwed mother. Two unselfish young people paved the way for Jesus to be born into the world. The Holy Spirit spoke to the Blessed Mother through an angel, spoke to St. Joseph in a dream and they both said “Yes.” Nobody had to ask them, “What do you want for Christmas?” They received Jesus Christ—He was all that they needed. Jesus was born into human history to get us back on track—back to the original plan. The Lord could have beamed down, manifested Himself as a ball of fire, or an all powerful king with servants all around. Instead He chose to come through people, simple, unassuming people like Joseph and Mary.
We all know the story. Jesus grew up and He made lots of folks angry because He did not meet their expectations. Jesus associated with undesirables, untouchables, with sinners. One of the most scandalous things that Jesus did was to call God His Daddy. And He said that we could all do the same. “When you pray say, Our Father, Abba”. Mouths were wide open, people walked away, the authorities started to think of ways to kill Him. Given our lowliness, God could not possibly be related to us! None of us could ever be worthy to call God “Our Father.”
Yet, God is related to us. Better said, we are related to God. He made us and does not regret having loved us—because he sent the Holy Spirit. The same Spirit that created the world, breath life into Adam and Eve and came upon the Apostles at Pentecost is the same Spirit present in the Church—that speaks the truth. The same Spirit that makes the Eucharist change from bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. The Spirit is present in all of the Sacraments, when we are Baptized, receive absolution, are anointed when we are sick. The Spirit is alive in the love of husband and wife in marriage and in every act of kindness, especially towards the poor. The Spirit is why we are here, why we woke up today and why we live. Just like the Spirit gave courage to the Apostles who were hiding behind closed doors, He gives us courage to speak about Him, especially to the folks who do not know Him or who are angry with God or have forgotten the importance of coming to Holy Mass every weekend. God continues to use people to proclaim His truth. Not perfect, sinless people, but ordinary folks—just like you, just like me.
The world is hungry for the message of truth. With the Eucharist inside of us, we must never be afraid to speak to others about our best friend, Jesus Christ.
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