From the Principal

‘COME, HOLY SPIRIT, FILL THE HEARTS OF YOUR FAITHFUL……

…

… and kindle in us the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and we shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth.’ Amen.

This is the prayer of the Holy Spirit, third godly Personhood of the Holy Trinity. At this time of Pentecost, we centre our prayers and thoughts on the coming of the Holy Spirit to the apostles fifty days after the Resurrection. Initially it was the hearts of the Twelve that were kindled.

Pentecost is a Christian holiday and commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove leaving tongues of spiritual flames on the heads of the frightened apostles. Mary, mother of Jesus, was present too. Equally, it is a feast in the Eastern Orthodox churches, Lutheran, Amish, Anglican and Oriental Orthodox churches.

In Acts Chapter 2 the narrative of Pentecost is outlined. There was a mighty wind, the tongues of fire appeared, the apostles were ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’, and they began to speak in other languages unbeknown to them prior. This year in the Catholic Church, the Feast of Pentecost is Sunday, 8 June.

How do we know when the Holy Spirit enters our life in today’s world? Of course, the

 sacraments are the gifts of the Spirit bestowed upon us through Baptism and later Confirmation. This blessing is our gateway to a spiritual way of living and interacting with our God.

We are taught from a young age that we are blest by seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit to strengthen and affirm us in our journey of life. These Gifts are: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. Let us be open to these wondrous gifts which we ought to nurture, use and practise often.

Once called the ‘Holy Ghost’, we now call the third person of the Trinity, ‘Holy Spirit’. Remembrance of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost draws us to the lessons of 1 Corinthians where we read,’ There is one body, but it has many parts. But all its parts make up one body. It is the same with Christ. We were all baptised by one Holy Spirit.’ Thus, all are the people of God, no distinction, no preference, no sense of hierarchy. We are all parts of the body created by Jesus Christ.

At times we may find ourselves miserable, lacking faith , deprived of positive thoughts, down in the dumps. Life is not always easy or how we would prefer it to be. From negative feelings can emerge loneliness, despair, depression and isolation. A prayer (such as how I introduced this piece) to the Holy Spirit does ‘kindle within us the fire of your love.’

The Holy Spirit, third person of the Holy Trinity alongside God the Father and Jesus, Son of God, is a personal, divine presence, considered fully to be God. Pentecost is living evidence that God travels with His people, accompanies us in good times and bad, walks with us on our journeys, and as is so relevant for Monicans in 2025, God reveals to us countless ‘Moments of Discovery’ of what makes life good and why each of us is unique and special in the eyes of God.

Brian E. Hanley OAM

Principal