Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Jn 14, 22-26 The holy Spirit will teach you everything

(Jn 14, 22-26) The holy Spirit will teach you everything
[22] Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him, "Master, (then) what happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?" [23] Jesus answered and said to him, "Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. [24] Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me. [25] "I have told you this while I am with you. [26] The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name - he will teach you everything and remind you of all that (I) told you.
(CCC 788) When his visible presence was taken from them, Jesus did not leave his disciples orphans. He promised to remain with them until the end of time; he sent them his Spirit (Cf. Jn 14:18; 20:22; Mt 28:20; Acts 2:33). As a result communion with Jesus has become, in a way, more intense: "By communicating his Spirit, Christ mystically constitutes as his body those brothers of his who are called together from every nation" (LG 7). (CCC 2671) The traditional form of petition to the Holy Spirit is to invoke the Father through Christ our Lord to give us the Consoler Spirit (Cf. Lk 11:13). Jesus insists on this petition to be made in his name at the very moment when he promises the gift of the Spirit of Truth (Cf. Jn 14:17; 15:26; 16:13). But the simplest and most direct prayer is also traditional, "Come, Holy Spirit," and every liturgical tradition has developed it in antiphons and hymns. Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of your love (Roman Missal, Pentecost Sequence). Heavenly King, Consoler Spirit, Spirit of Truth, present everywhere and filling all things, treasure of all good and source of all life, come dwell in us, cleanse and save us, you who are All-Good (Byzantine Liturgy, Pentecost Vespers, Troparion). (CCC 693) Besides the proper name of "Holy Spirit," which is most frequently used in the Acts of the Apostles and in the Epistles, we also find in St. Paul the titles: the Spirit of the promise (Cf. Gal 3:14; Eph 1:13), the Spirit of adoption (Rom 8:15; Gal 4:6), the Spirit of Christ (Rom 8:9), the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor 3:17), and the Spirit of God (Rom 8:9, 14; 15:19; 1 Cor 6:11; 7:40), - and, in St. Peter, the Spirit of glory (1 Pet 4:14).

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