Fr. Metoděj Minařík O.Carm.
“Carmel” is “a magazine for spiritual life.” In this year dedicated to the Holy Spirit, we should first fully realize that the Holy Spirit is indeed the creator and leader of the entire spiritual life, that without him, spiritual life is not possible, it is his work. Unfortunately, after two thousand years, many believers have come to live practically without him, being able to say what those twelve men in Ephesus told Saint Paul: “But we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit” (Acts 19:2). Or they do not know what to do with him. The fathers at the last council were aware of this and tried to rectify it.
The Holy Spirit and the Lord Jesus
What relationship did the Lord Jesus as a man have with the Holy Spirit? In the Old Testament, Jesus was foretold and awaited as the Messiah (i.e., in the Greek translation Christ, in Czech the Anointed One). It is a symbolic name. It means: sanctified by the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:18). The Father sent his Son and bestowed the Holy Spirit upon him. This is how he was presented at his baptism when the Holy Spirit descended upon him in the form of a dove (Luke 3:22).
Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit formed him in the womb of the Virgin Mary, as we pray in the litanies: “The Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the virgin mother.” He guided him throughout his life. Immediately after Jesus' conception, he inspired his mother to visit Elizabeth, and she was enlightened to know who had come to her. “Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and cried out with a loud voice...” (Luke 1:41). And after his birth, he enlightened elderly Simeon in Jerusalem: “He was a righteous and devout man, expecting the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah.” And then “moved by the Spirit, he came into the temple” (Luke 2:25-27) and, enlightened by the Holy Spirit, pronounced prophecies about Jesus and Mary.
And so, the life of Jesus continued. He was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1). The Holy Spirit guided him during his public ministry, as St. Peter says at Cornelius' house: “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power; he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him” (Acts 10:38).
Through the Holy Spirit, he endured his suffering. “Through the eternal Spirit, he offered himself without blemish to God” (Hebrews 9:14), and his resurrection also occurred – as our resurrection is to take place – through the Holy Spirit: “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11). And finally, before his ascension, he spoke to the apostles about the Holy Spirit, for he was to guide them as he had guided him.
The Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
The ideal model of spiritual life, after the Lord Jesus, is the Virgin Mary, and this is because her life was from beginning to end completely under the influence of the Holy Spirit. The angel tells her at the Annunciation: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:35). The Holy Spirit did not begin to act in her only at Jesus' conception, but already at her immaculate conception, making her graceful so that she could be the worthy mother of God's Son. And then he accompanied her throughout her life alongside her Son, becoming a companion of the Son in the work of redemption and the Mother of the Church, which he founded. When she was to become the mother of Jesus, the Holy Spirit descended upon her, and when she was to become the Mother of the Church, the Holy Spirit again descended upon her anew, as she remained in prayer with the apostles and others before the sending of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:14).
The Virgin Mary, as the only one among people, like the Lord Jesus, always responded correctly to every inspiration of the Holy Spirit, which is why St. Ephrem called her “the harp of the Holy Spirit.” Mary is the most beautiful fruit of the Holy Spirit, his worthy dwelling, and the Bride.
The Holy Spirit and the Apostles
The Lord Jesus first chose twelve apostles and sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal (Luke 6:13; 9:11). Then he sent another seventy-two disciples. When they returned and joyfully told how even evil spirits were subject to them in his name, he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit (by whose power he had endowed them) and said: “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will” (Luke 10:21-22). And he encouraged them: “When they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say” (Luke 12:11-12).
The Holy Spirit is the most precious gift that Jesus won through his suffering and death and which he promised to the apostles and the entire Church. St. John the Baptist already told of Jesus that he will baptize “with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Luke 3:16). Jesus promised the Spirit as a gift from the Father. “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13). But he spoke especially about him before his suffering when he emotionally took leave of the apostles at the Last Supper. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever: the Spirit of truth” (John 14:15-17). “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (v. 25-26). “I still have 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” (John 16:12-14). About the Holy Spirit as a gift, St. Peter also spoke on the day of Pentecost: “Repent! And let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38; cf. 2:17).
And finally, as the most important, before his ascension, he referred them to the Holy Spirit: “He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). “He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father: ‘For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’ … You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (v. 4-8).
The apostles well memorized this. The Acts of the Apostles and their letters essentially tell only how the Holy Spirit worked through them and through those who believed through them. Again and again, they turn to him, see the Holy Spirit in everything, and rely on him. St. Paul speaks the most about him. For him it applies: “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him” (Romans 8:9). “All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God” (v. 14). “The love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Romans 5:5). “God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Galatians 4:6).
It is interesting to observe what the apostles and the first Christians valued most in a person. For example, when choosing deacons, they said: “Select from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty... They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:3-5). Later they sent Barnabas to Antioch: “For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith” (Acts 11:24).
The Holy Spirit and the Church
The Church is the body of Christ (Colossians 1:18, 24), and the Holy Spirit is the soul of this body. Just as the body without the soul is dead, so the Church would be dead without the Holy Spirit. “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is of no avail. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life” (John 6:63). The Holy Spirit enlivens the Church. He is “the Lord and giver of life” (Creed). What applies to the whole Church also applies to every individual. The main difference between people is whether someone has the Holy Spirit or not; in other words, whether one is in a state of sanctifying grace, whether the three divine Persons dwell in him or not. Otherwise, he is “flesh” before God, dead, “in death.” Only God can know this with absolute certainty. However, the Holy Spirit cares with infinite love for every person, even if he is not in a state of sanctifying grace, bestowing upon him graces for acts of faith, trust, love, repentance, good deeds, etc., drawing him to God, but God does not dwell in him permanently. A person can perform even natural virtues, but there is a great difference between natural virtues and those led by the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit governs the entire Church. There are different gifts, but all come from one Spirit; there is one body, but it has many members, and those members have different tasks, but all distribute their gifts through the Spirit, as St. Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians, granting his graces to all. The main sources of grace are the sacraments established by Jesus Christ, but the Holy Spirit is active in all of them, as seen during their administration.
Regarding baptism, St. John the Baptist said: “He (the Savior) will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). Jesus said: “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). Baptism is a rebirth, “a new creation.” The baptized have two lives: a human life and a participation in divine life. With the grace of rebirth, the Holy Spirit endows with infused virtues, both divine (faith, hope, and love) and moral, and gifts, i.e., the ability for action and reception.
The Holy Spirit is most spoken of in the sacrament of confirmation, as it grants the fullness of the Holy Spirit. It is conferred by anointing with chrism on the forehead along with the laying on of hands and the words: “Receive the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit.” This gift is the Holy Spirit.
When Jesus gave the apostles the power to forgive sins, he breathed on them and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld” (John 20:22-23).
During the Holy Mass, the Church calls upon the Holy Spirit to form the body of Jesus from the body of Mary, so that by his power he may transform the bread and wine into his body and his blood. He also transforms us into Christ during holy communion. “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).
In the sacrament of anointing of the sick, the priest anoints the sick person with blessed oil on the forehead and hands while saying: “Through this holy anointing, may the Lord in his mercy help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit. May he free you from sin, save you, and strengthen you.”
Similarly, the Holy Spirit acts in the sacraments of holy orders and marriage.
The Holy Spirit guides our entire spiritual life. He frees us from the bondage of sin, for sin enslaves a person, as Jesus said to the Jews: “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin” (John 8:34). Whereas the Holy Spirit gives freedom to the children of God. “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17).
The Holy Spirit teaches to pray. He connects with God in love to the highest possible union with God in this life. “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (Romans 8:26). “No one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3). All charismatic gifts come from the Spirit, as St. Paul describes in chapters 11 and 12 of this letter.
Only the Holy Spirit can bring a Christian to perfection and holiness. Also, the consecrated life – vita consecrata – is his work. He guided founders and founders in establishing religious orders. The constitution on the Church states: “The religious state... shows to all people the great power of the reigning Christ and the infinite power of the Holy Spirit, which works wonderfully in the Church” (n. 44).
St. Paul lists the fruits, the gifts of the Holy Spirit: “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, purity” (Galatians 5:22). However, the most beautiful fruits of the Holy Spirit are the saints.
Let us ask the Holy Spirit in this year and in the spiritual confusions of today at the command of Christ the Lord for his light and strength. St. Paul asks: “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30). Let us beware of hardened sins against the Holy Spirit, of which Jesus said that they will not be forgiven (Matthew 12:31). Only the Holy Spirit can protect us from all errors and deceptions (1 John 2:20, 26-28). Only he can “renew the face of the earth.”
