Day 105: Christ's Church and its Mission

To believe that the Church is "holy" and "catholic," and that she is "one" and "apostolic" (as the Nicene Creed adds), is inseparable from belief in God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In the Apostles' Creed we profess "one Holy Church" (Credo . . . Ecclesiam), and not to believe in the Church, so as not to confuse God with his works and to attribute clearly to God's goodness all the gifts he has bestowed on his Church. CCC 750

The Catechism speaks more about the Church and the mission it was given by Christ and the Holy Spirit. That is, by "proclaiming his Gospel to every creature." It is important to remember that "the Church has no other light than Christ's" and as the Body of Christ, "is like the moon, all its light reflected from the sun." As Fathers like St. Hippolytus says, the Church is "where the Spirit flourishes." This doesn't mean that each of it's sinful members here on earth, including Christ's vicar, will always do so perfectly. The Catechism Companion, Vol I notes:

Jesus promises to guide the Church into all truth, but we also recognize that, because of the brokenness of humanity, there is going to be darkness in our history The brokenness does not come from God. The Church "belongs to the Lord," and the members of the Church belong to the Lord in a unique, powerful, very real way. (p. 214)

Day 104: The Holy Spirit and the Church

The mission of Christ and the Holy Spirit is brought to completion in the Church, which is the Body of Christ and the Temple of the Holy Spirit. This joint mission henceforth brings Christ's faithful to share in his communion with the Father in the Holy Spirit. the Spirit prepares men and goes out to them with his grace, in order to draw them to Christ. the Spirit manifests the risen Lord to them, recalls his word to them, and opens their minds to the understanding of his Death and Resurrection. He makes present the mystery of Christ, supremely in the Eucharist, in order to reconcile them, to bring them into communion with God, so that they may "bear much fruit." CCC 737

In today's reading, the Catechism speaks of the mission of the Holy Spirit and of Christ that "is brought to completion in the Church." As faithful Catholics, we are called to be His witnesses, to respond to the Spirit, and to spread the Gospel. A beautiful way the Catechism states this is we are to "spread the mystery of the communion of the Holy Trinity" (a bit of theosis perhaps in action?). The Catechism Compendium sums this up:

Christ communicates his Spirit and the grace of God through the sacraments to all the members of the Church, who thus bear the fruits of the new life of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is also the Master of prayer. (#146)

I also rather like how the Catechism Companion, Vol I elaborates on this:

The mission of Christ and work of the Holy Spirit is made effective in the life of the Church... [which] communicates God's grace. The Holy Spirit continues to be the one who reveals Jesus to us. The Church is meant to teach and live the truth and to bring new life to others and bring others to this new life... Jesus did not just teach. Above all, he gave us access to the Father. Since that was his mission, it is our mission too. (p. 212) 

Day 103: The Power of Pentecost

On the day of Pentecost when the seven weeks of Easter had come to an end, Christ's Passover is fulfilled in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, manifested, given, and communicated as a divine person: of his fullness, Christ, the Lord, pours out the Spirit in abundance. CCC 731

In today's reading, the Catechism speaks firstly of the coming of the Holy Spirit and Pentecost. "God is love" (1 Jn 4:8) and it is through His love that we have been gifted the Holy Spirit (Rom 5:5). The Holy Apostles received Him first at Pentecost, which was promised by Christ, and as the Catechism Compendium elaborates:

Fifty days after the Resurrection at Pentecost the glorified Jesus Christ poured out the Spirit in abundance and revealed him as a divine Person so that the Holy Trinity was fully manifest. The mission of Christ and of the Spirit became the mission of the Church which is sent to proclaim and spread the mystery of the communion of the Holy Trinity. (#144)

We have been restored to a correct relationship with God through the Holy Spirit and we are called to respond to the Spirit as Christ's witnesses. The importance of witness cannot be emphasized enough, especially today. As the Catechism Companion, Vol I notes:

Pope Paul VI wrote in 1975 in Evangelii Nuntiandi, "Modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses." We have to not just say what we believe; we have to live what we believe in... We have to pray because we can only live the fruits of the Spirit by the power given by the Holy Spirit. On our own, we cannot do this. But we are not on our own. (p. 210) 

Day 102: The Holy Spirit's Mission

The entire mission of the Son and the Holy Spirit, in the fullness of time, is contained in this: that the Son is the one anointed by the Father's Spirit since his Incarnation - Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. Everything in the second chapter of the Creed is to be read in this light. Christ's whole work is in fact a joint mission of the Son and the Holy Spirit. CCC 727

In today's reading, the Catechism speaks of the mission of the Holy Spirit one that He has jointly with the Son, Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit prepared the way for the Incarnation through Mary. By His grace, she is "the burning bush of the definitive theophany," Theotokos and the Ark of the Bread of Life, the "Seat of Wisdom" as acclaimed in the liturgy, and through "her virginity became uniquely fruitful." As the Catechism Compendium explains:

The Holy Spirit brought to fulfillment in Mary all the waiting and the preparation of the Old Testament for the coming of Christ. In a singular way he filled her with grace and made her virginity fruitful so that she could give birth to the Son of God made flesh. He made her the Mother of the “whole Christ”, that is, of Jesus the Head and of the Church his body. Mary was present with the twelve on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit inaugurated the “last days” with the manifestation of the Church. (#142)

By the grace of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary was "conceived without sin as the most humble of creatures" (CCC 722) and I like how the Catechism Companion, Vol I puts this on humility for us too:

Humility is "not thinking less of ourselves but thinking of ourselves less." The humble person is always rejoicing and giving glory to God because they realize that everything they have comes from the Lord. (p. 208)

All of this was in preparation for the Holy Spirit working with Jesus Christ in fulfillment of the Father's will. As the Catechism Compendium explains:

Beginning with his Incarnation, the Son of God was consecrated in his humanity as the Messiah by means of the anointing of the Spirit. He revealed the Spirit in his teaching, fulfilled the promises made to the Fathers, and bestowed him upon the Church at its birth when he breathed on the apostles after the Resurrection. (#143) 

The Holy Spirit was slowly revealed to the Apostles as our promised Paraclete, to "lead us into all truth" and "glorify Christ" (CCC 729). From the time of Christ's Apostles to us today, "the mission of Christ and the Spirit becomes the mission of the Church: 'As the Father has sent me, even so I send you'" (CCC 730).

Day 101: Expecting the Messiah

"Behold, I am doing a new thing." Two prophetic lines were to develop, one leading to the expectation of the Messiah, the other pointing to the announcement of a new Spirit. They converge in the small Remnant, the people of the poor, who await in hope the "consolation of Israel" and "the redemption of Jerusalem." CCC 711

The Catechism speaks of the expectation of the Messiah in today's reading, but this section limits itself to that "in which the relationship of the Messiah and his Spirit appears more clearly." It takes us through some of that history in the Old Testament, especially that found in Isaiah (cf Isa 11:1-2). As the Catechism Compendium writes:

The term “prophets” means those who were inspired by the Holy Spirit to speak in the name of God. The Spirit brings the prophecies of the Old Testament to their complete fulfillment in Christ whose mystery he reveals in the New Testament. (#140)

Their laying of the proverbial groundwork among the people for the coming of the Messiah was made even clearer by the immediate forerunner John the Baptist. As the Catechism Companion, Vol I notes:

In the Old Testament, the prophet Isaiah plays a significant part in preparing the people for the Messiah, and John the Baptist plays this role at the start of the New Testament, making way for Jesus Christ... The Holy Spirit has not only been acting since Pentecost but also had been acting before that time through the prophets, especially through John the Baptist. The Holy Spirit has operated throughout all human history... (p. 206)

The Holy Spirit began the work of restoring to man "the divine likeness" as "John's baptism was for repentance; baptism in water and the Spirit will be a new birth" (CCC 720).

 

Day 100: God's Word and Spirit

From the beginning until "the fullness of time," The joint mission of the Father's Word and Spirit remains hidden, but it is at work. God's Spirit prepares for the time of the Messiah. Neither is fully revealed but both are already promised, to be watched for and welcomed at their manifestation. So, for this reason, when the Church reads the Old Testament, she searches there for what the Spirit, "who has spoken through the prophets," wants to tell us about Christ. CCC 702

In today's reading, the Catechism speaks of how God revealed himself in the Old Testament. Each time, especially in the various theophanies, we "have hints of the reality, the power, and the working of the Holy Spirit from the very beginning all the way to now" (p. 204). He was there at Creation, for it belongs to Him to "rule, sanctify, and animate creation" and "he preserves creation in the Father through the Son" (CCC 703). God also worked through the prophets in the Old Testament, as the Catechism Compendium notes:

The term “prophets” means those who were inspired by the Holy Spirit to speak in the name of God. The Spirit brings the prophecies of the Old Testament to their complete fulfillment in Christ whose mystery he reveals in the New Testament. (#140)

 Although we became "disfigured in sin and death" after the Fall, we're still made "in the image of God" even though we are deprived of "the glory of God" (CCC 705). It is through the redemptive sacrifice of Christ, and the sacrament of Baptism that we are restored "in the Father's 'likeness' by [His] giving it again his Glory, the Spirit who is 'the giver of life'." It was a long, arduous process, but slowly God revealed more and more to us, fulfilling our hope of salvation. As the Catechism Companion, Vol I notes:

The Holy Spirit works in the midst of a place where there is no hope, and he gives hope. The Law was powerful in its ability to teach, but could not give salvation. We need the Holy Spirit. We are not called to be assimilated into the culture; we are called to live differently. That takes strength Tat takes the Holy Spirit. (p. 204)  

Day 99: Symbols of the Holy Spirit

There are many symbols of the Holy Spirit: living water which springs from the wounded Heart of Christ and which quenches the thirst of the baptized; anointing with oil, which is the sacramental sign of Confirmation; fire which transforms what it touches; the cloud, dark or luminous, in which the divine glory is revealed; the imposition of hands by which the Holy Spirit is given; the dove which descended on Christ at his baptism and remained with him. CC #139

In today's reading, the Catechism lists a bunch of different symbols for the Holy Spirit, drawn from Scripture and in the life of the Church. As this list and the accompanying explanations are a bit lengthy, I thought I'd use the summary from the Catechism Compendium instead to quote above. There is much I could say about each of these symbols, but will really only highlight one:

Water. The symbolism of water signifies the Holy Spirit's action in Baptism, since after the invocation of the Holy Spirit it becomes the efficacious sacramental sign of new birth: just as the gestation of our first birth took place in water, so the water of Baptism truly signifies that our birth into the divine life is given to us in the Holy Spirit. As "by one Spirit we were all baptized," so we are also "made to drink of one Spirit." Thus the Spirit is also personally the living water welling up from Christ crucified as its source and welling up in us to eternal life. CCC 694

It is fitting that water is the symbol of baptism, given that this is the sacrament by which we become a follower of Jesus, the stain of original sin is washed away, and our salvation comes (barring a fall from mortal sin). Through baptism, the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ become real in our lives. 

There is only one other symbol for the Holy Spirit I'd like to mention: the finger in CCC 700. The Catechism here mentions how this is used to drive out demons (Lk 11:20) and that the Law inscribed on stone tablets (Ex 31:18) is now written in the hearts of men (2 Cor 3:3). In the 9th century hymn Veni Creator Spiritus, it is the "Finger of the Hand Divine". I wonder though, is the finger seen by King Belshazzar and his guests writing in Aramaic, "MENE TEKEL PERES" (Dan 5), clearly a divine sign, also that of the Holy Spirit?

Depiction of the Christian Holy Spirit as a dove, by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, in the apse of Saint Peter's Basilica