Dear Beloved Parishioners,
Here is a quick overview of the prayer resources I will be sending your way these next nine days..
Following the Ascension of Our Lord, tradition says that the disciples gathered in the upper room together with Our Blessed Mother for the novena, nine days of prayer in anticipation of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was given to the disciples to empower them to “be my witnesses…even to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
Today, as disciples of Jesus, we too join together in prayer for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our parish, our faith communities, our families, and in ourselves. We need the power of the Holy Spirit to be effective witnesses of love of God for our world. This novena to the Holy Spirit has been designed for either individual or communal prayer. The spiritual impact of serious prayer and reflection is immeasurable.
The format of the Novena will be:
- Invocation to the Holy Spirit
- A Scripture passage for focus
- An image to focus on and pray with
- A meditation
- Prayer for the day
- Concluding prayer to the Holy Spirit
Note: Meditations for Days 1 through 8 are based on the book Come Creator Spirit, by Rev. A. Biskupek, SVD, now out of print.
DAY ONE
Novena: Day 1 – May 19, 2023
Invocation:
O Holy Spirit, Soul of my soul, I adore you. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I ought to do, and command me to do it. I promise to submit myself to all that You ask of me, and to accept all that You permit to happen to me. Only let me know Your will. Amen.
Scripture
“I will ask the Father and he will give you another Paraclete-Consoler to be with you always.” — John 14:16
Image
Meditation
The Holy Spirit, the Best Consoler in Our Distress
The Holy Spirit is God. Together with the Father and the Son, He has created us. Shall He not then perfectly understand the human heart? The Holy Spirit searches us and knows us through and through. He knows the particular temperament, personality, and character of every individual, as well as the most secret desires and ambitions of the heart. He foresees how we will react to the various influences of life coming from within and without: ideals not realized, hopes disappointed, ambitions shattered, crosses borne, hardships endured.
In these trials of life, the Holy Spirit within us is always there as our best friend, our consoler and Paraclete. The Holy Spirit understands that our human nature has been weakened and wounded by original and personal sin. Knowing that we carry the treasure of the Christ-life in a very fragile vessel, He knows our sinful inclinations and the strength of our temptations. But our divine Consoler- Paraclete also knows the best remedy for all the ills of our souls. He can lay His finger on the sore spot and apply the remedy at once, for He possesses the power of helping us at all times and at all places, in all conditions and circumstances. When we fail or lose courage, He who is almighty can restore what is lost. When we are at a loss as to what God wants of us, He is wise and no situation is too complicated for Him. He is the infinitely tender love of the Father and Son for us, and therefore He is our best consoler.
Although the Holy Spirit may not always remove our cross (for He knows how sanctifying it is), He will illuminate it with heavenly light, and give us a glimpse of the precious fruits that will come from it, filling us with His own comfort and hope. The Holy Spirit’s love is not a weak and sentimental love that yields to our demands and grants us what is not good for us or jeopardizes our eternal welfare. The Holy Spirit yearns and pines over us day and night, “interceding for the saints as God Himself wills.” (Rom 8:27). The consolation of the Holy Spirit brings joy into the gloom of our sorrow, light into our darkness, peace into our heart when tossed by the tempests of life. His consoling grace brings not only contentment in tribulation, but even a love for the cross, and a peaceful and trusting dependence on our Heavenly Father whose providence is at work in our lives.
Finally, it is the work of the Holy Spirit to lift our minds and hearts to heaven, where God will wipe away all our tears, and grant us the blessed reward waiting for those who generously take up their cross on earth, and follow in the footsteps of Jesus.
Prayer of the Day:
“Thou of all consolers best,” come and fill us with trusting abandonment to God in all the sorrows and afflictions of life! Intercede for us as God Himself wills! Help us to embrace All Things New with open hearts that believe that the Holy Spirit has guided us along the way. May the consoler bring comfort to any grief in our heart. Amen.
Concluding Prayer to the Holy Spirit
St. Augustine’s Prayer to the Holy Spirit
Breathe in me O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy. Act in me O Holy Spirit, that my work, too, may be holy. Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I love but what is holy. Strengthen me O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy. Guard me then O Holy Spirit, that I always may be holy.
Pentecost blessings,
Fr. Bill