First Prelude: In spirit enter the Supper Room and see the disciples in company with the Blessed Mother of God preparing for the coming of the Holy Ghost.
Second Prelude: O Holy Spirit, replenish my heart, with an ardent desire for Thy gifts, and give me grace to use well the time of preparation for Thy coming.
FIRST POINT
JESUS COMMANDS THE APOSTLES TO REMAIN IN JERUSALEM
According to the express injunction of their Master, the Apostles were to remain in Jerusalem and there await the coming of the Holy Ghost. If God contemplates especial graces for His own, He usually demands a corresponding preparation. Thus it was with the wonderful rain of Manna, when He said to the people through Moses: “Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow you shall behold the glory of the Lord.” The whole world had to be prepared for the advent of the Messiah for thousands of years, that their waiting might increase their faith and intensify their desire. The Apostles were very much in need of an ardent desire for the gifts of the Holy Ghost, and in order to excite it in their hearts they were to prepare for His coming by fervent prayer. They must, indeed, have been convinced of their great need of divine assistance. How hopeless, seemingly, was the prospect before them, as they slowly came down from Olivet! How cowardly had they been during the passion of Christ, and how must fear have overpowered them now after the death of their Master, since they concealed themselves behind bolted doors! And these Apostles, so intimidated, and in many respects wholly ignorant, should go as lambs among wolves to preach the gospel to the whole world. Must not the utter insufficiency have impelled them to cry to heaven for supernatural courage and strength? Surely, they must now have recalled the words of their Master: “Your Father from heaven will give the good Spirit to them that ask Him” (Luke 11, 13).
We, too, are sorely in need of divine grace, for we lack courage in times of sufferings and temptations, and are so easily repulsed by difficulties met with in the observance of our Holy Rule and in the discharge of our duties. Oh, let us then remain in Jerusalem, that is, in retirement; let us close the doors of our heart, lest our spiritual enemy hinder our preparation for the feast of Pentecost, and full of eager longing let us await the advent of the Holy Ghost.
Am I convinced that graces of Pentecost will be imparted to me in the measure of my generosity in self-surrender and holy recollection?
SECOND POINT
WHAT WE MUST DO TO QUALIFY OURSELVES FOR THE RECEPTION OF THE GRACES OF THE HOLY GHOST
Jesus had promised the Holy Ghost not to the Apostles alone, but to His Church, to every individual member who co-operates with His sacred designs, and submits to His loving inspirations. True, indeed, the Holy Spirit no longer appears visibly as He did on the feast of Pentecost, in the form of fiery tongues, or as at the Jordan, in the form of a dove, but invisibly He daily, even hourly, visits our souls. He comes to convert sinners, to enlighten the just and to urge them with a sweet violence to strive for perfection. The Holy Ghost, in truth, incites souls to extraordinary works of penance and charity. Was it not the Holy Ghost Who taught us to recognize the beauties of religious life, of perpetual virginity? Was it not His grace that drew us irresistibly away from the dangers of the world, into the house of God? At certain times, however, the Church exhorts us to quicken our zeal and reanimate our fervor, that we may draw upon our soul a fuller measure of graces. This is especially true of the days preceding the feast of Pentecost. We will, therefore, prepare ourselves for the marvels of grace which the Holy Ghost even in our day works in countless souls.
We must seek encouragement in the thought that so many children of Mother Church, especially so many religious, unite with us in imploring this best of all gifts. May not our culpable negligence deprive us of the wonderful effects of His bountiful gift.
Which faults must I avoid, which virtues practice that my heart may be worthy to receive the graces of the Holy Ghost?
Affections: O my God, with Thy grace I recognize my utter spiritual misery, as well as my inability to relieve it. Thou alone canst regenerate and transform the barren and unfruitful soil of my heart,—Thou alone canst cause it to yield fruits of perfection. As Thou didst effect such marvels of grace in Thy Apostles only after a careful preparation, so dost Thou demand of me purity of heart, penance, detachment from creatures, before Thou wouldst overwhelm me with Thy bountiful gifts. O Divine Spirit, Who effectest in us both to will and to accomplish good, teach me how to prepare for the blessed days of grace and mercy. Come, Thou Light of hearts, Thou Teacher of the humble, Thou Father of the poor, and manifest Thy love and power in us!
Resolution: I will often implore the Holy Ghost to enlighten me that my preparation for the feast of Pentecost may be most pleasing to Him and most beneficial to me.
Spiritual Bouquet: “Your Father in heaven will give the Good Spirit to those that ask Him for it.”
Prayer: Our Father. . .
No comments:
Post a Comment