Gift of the

Holy Spirit:

Confirmation

No. 60

• The Holy Spirit In The Gospels

• The Holy Spirit In The Acts And Epistles

• The Holy Spirit In Baptism And

Confirmation

• Administration Of Confirmation

• Witnesses To The Truth

• Charismatic Gifts: Tongues, Healing



Why the knights of Columbus

Advertise Catholic Faith

The reason is simple. We Catho-

lics wantour non-Catholic friends

and neighbors to know us as we

really are and not as we are some

times mistakenly represented.

We are confident that when

our religious Faith is better un-

derstood by those who do not

share it, mutual understanding

will promote the good-will which

is so necessary in a predominant-

ly Christian country whose gov-

ernment is designed to serve all

the people—no matter how much

their religious convictions may

differ.

American Catholics are con-

vinced that as the teachings of

Christ widely and firmly take

hold of the hearts and conduct

of our people, we shall remain

free in the sense that Christ

promised (John VIII, 31-38),

and in the manner planned by

the Founding Fathers of this

republic.

Despite the plainly stated will

of the Good Shepherd that there

be "one fold and one shepherd,”

the differences in the understand-

ing of Christ’s teaching are

plainly evident. It has rightfully

been called "the scandal of a

divided Christianity.”

If there is anything which will

gather together the scattered

flock of Christ, it is the nation-

wide understanding of the

Savior, what He did and how He

intended mankind to benefit by

the Redemption.

To this end, we wish our

fellow-Americans to become ac-

quainted with the teachings of

Christ as the Catholic Church

has faithfully presented them,

since the day the apostles in-

vaded the nations of the world

in willing and courageous obedi-

ence to Christ’s command: "Go,

therefore, and make disciples of

all nations . .
.”

(Matt. XXVIII,

19).

SUPREME COUNCIL

KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS
Religious Information Bureau

4422 LINDELL BLVD. ST. LOUIS 8, MO.

© Knights of Columbus, 1960



THE HOLY SPIRIT

IH THE GOSPELS

Columbus set sail for Amer-

ica in three boats.The flag-

ship was the Santa Maria—

the Saint Mary—called after

her whom the Gospel of

St. John (2:3) names "the

mother of Jesus.”

The Santa Maria opened

up the New World. So did

Mary, the mother of Jesus,

open a new world. Except

for China and Japan, the major

countries of the globe date their

calendars and mark their time ac-

cording to that year of the Lord

when Christ was born.

The new time began when Au-

gustus was Caesar (Luke 2:1) and

the way in which it came to pass is

thus described in ten short verses in

the first chapter of the Gospel of

St. Luke, verses 26 to 35 inclusive.

"Now in the sixth month the

angel Gabriel was sent from God

to a town of Galilee called Naz-

areth, to a virgin betrothed to a

man named Joseph, of the house of

David, and the virgin’s name was

Mary. And when the angel had

come to tier, he said, 'Hail, full of

grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed

art thou among women.’ When she

had heard him she was troubled at

his word, and kept pondering what

manner of greeting this

might be. And the angel said

to her, 'Do not be afraid,

Mary, for thou hast found

grace with God. Behold,

thou shalt conceive in thy

womb and shalt bring forth

a son; and thou shalt call his

name Jesus. He shall be

great, and shall be called the

Son of the Most High; and

the Lord God will give him the

throne of David his father, and he

shall be king over the house of Jacob

forever; and of his kingdom there

shall be no end.’ But Mary said to the

angel, 'How shall this happen, since

I do not know man?’ And the angel

answered and said to her, 'The Holy

Spirit shall come upon thee and the

power of the Most High shall over-

shadow thee; and therefore the

Holy One to be born shall be called

the Son of God.’”

"The Holy Spirit shall come upon

thee” . . . this is the decisive date for

mankind, the daybreak of Chris-

tianity. The method is that of "over-

shadowing,” that is how the Holy

Spirit will work the mystery of the

coming of Christ. Son of God, Son

of Man, Christ is born, St. Paul

reminds us, of a woman yet with-

out a father according to the flesh.

1



The "why” of it is summed up

in these matchless words of John

the Evangelist: "For God so loved

the world that he gave his only-

begotten Son, that those who be-

lieve in him may not perish, but

may have life everlasting” (John

3 : 16).

The first lesson the Gospel
teaches about the Holy Spirit is

that He is God’s love. Father and
Son love the world in the Holy

Spirit.

The overshadowment recalls the

days of the Wanderings of the Jew-

ish people in the wilderness after

they had fled from Egypt and were

in search of the Promised Land.

Moses, their leader, had entrusted

to his charge the Tabernacle of God

—a square box of setim wood that

God had commanded to be made,

so that, within the Tabernacle, He
might abide with His people. Dur-

ing the day a cloud covered God’s

dwelling with its shadow.

Divine Inspirer

Now God has come anew. The
tabernacle in which He dwells is
Mary whom the Holy Spirit has

overshadowed.

This is not the first introduction

of the Holy Spirit in the pages of

the Gospel of St. Luke.

Yet another angelic visitation is

described to the father of John the

Baptist, Zachary, a member of the

Levites, the priests of the Lord,

(Luke 1:11-15). "And there ap-

peared to him an angel of the Lord,

standing at the right of the altar

of incense. And Zachary, seeing

him, was troubled, and fear fell

upon him. But the angel said to

him, 'Do not be afraid, Zachary,

for thy petition has been heard, and

thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee

a son and thou shalt call his name

John. And thou shalt have joy and

gladness, and many will rejoice at

his birth. For he shall be great be-

fore the Lord; he shall drink no

wine or strong drink, and shall be

filled with the Holy Spirit even

from his mother’s womb.’”

"He shall be filled with the Holy

Spirit.” He was the very last of the
Old Testament prophets—"the law

and the prophets were until John,”

said Christ (Luke 16: 16).

When his message began, going
before the face of the Lord to pre-

pare His ways, John the Baptist

appears as one without a home, liv-

ing off the land on locusts and

honey, clothed in camel hair and

totally consumed by the transcend-

ing power of his message. The only

way in which he could be silenced

in the end, was when King Herod

cut off his head.

Just as the Holy Spirit prepared

the way for the Incarnation, so now

through the Baptist He prepares the
way for the public ministry of

Christ. John baptizes, but only with

water. It is Christ alone Who can
give the Holy Spirit—"Unless a man

be born again of water and the Holy

Spirit,” Christ tells Nicodemus, "he

cannot enter into the kingdom of

God” (John 3:5).

But though John cannot give the

Holy Spirit, his works are stamped

with the Holy Spirit. He prophesies.

He urges repentance. Above all,

fortitude flames in John. He lived

and died totally and completely

without any fear of man.

2



So the Holy Spirit is not only

God’s love. He is the Divine In-

spires The Spirit of God speaks

through the prophets. But He posi-

tively thunders through the tongue

of John—"you brood of vipers who

hath warned you to flee from the

wrath to come?” (Luke 3:7).

Holy Trinity

The next mention of the Holy

Spirit throws more light on His

Personality. It is only by degrees

that the Gospels reveal Him in His
full stature.

The mention is in Luke’s Gospel

on the occasion of the meeting be-

tween the Baptist and Christ. This

encounter leads to one of the most

majestic revelations ever made by

God to man about the Divine Life.

Christ goes to the Jordan to re-

ceive the baptism of John. All

four Gospel writers, i.e. evangelists,

agree that this event begins the

public ministry of Christ.

There would be nothing to dis-

tinguish Christ from other men

crowding round the Baptist to hear

his message. He is neither priest,
nor Levite, just a plain Jew, wear-

ing a linen tunic with long sleeves,

a woolen cloak with tassels, one of

the crowd.

Yet when He asks for baptism
it is John who says "I have need to
be baptized of thee,” and Christ an-

swers "Suffer it to be so now”

(Matthew 3:14-15).

John baptized Jesus and these

are his words in testimony of what

happened: "I saw the Spirit com-

ing down as a dove from heaven,

and he remained upon him. And
I knew him not; but he who sent

me to baptize with water, said to

me: ‘He upon whom thou shalt see
the Spirit descending and remain-

ing upon him, he it is that bap-

tizeth with the Holy Spirit.’ And I

saw, and I gave testimony, that this

is the Son of God” (John 1:32-34).

God Himself had promised the

Baptist this revelation. It crowns

the whole ministry of the prophet.

At the same time it was a Divine

warrant on the vocation of Christ.

Still more, it was the first manifes-

tation of the Holy Trinity to the

world.

With the descent of the Spirit

upon Christ came a voice from

heaven—"Thou art my beloved Son,
in thee I am well pleased” (Luke

3 :22 ).

Much later this manifestation of

the Three Persons in one God,

the Trinity, would be affirmed by

Christ in the baptismal formula He
taught His disciples: "Go teach all

nations, baptizing them in the name

of the Father, and of the Son, and

of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).

Relation to the Father

and Son

The Baptism of Jesus merits

more meditation for the light it

casts on the Holy Spirit. As Matt-

hew describes the Baptism, the Holy

Spirit is not a spirit but "the Spirit

of God” (Matthew 3:16). St. Mark

calls Him "the Spirit” (Mark 1:10);
St. Luke "the Holy Spirit” (Luke

3 :22 ).

What is more, John the Evan-

gelist breaks the rules of grammar

just to emphasize this point. He
wrote his Gospel in Greek and he

has the words "The Spirit” rendered

3



by two Greek words TO PNEUMA.
According to grammatical usage the

pronoun should have the same gen-

der as the noun it stands for, and

the gender of PNEUMA is neuter.
John, however, makes his pronoun

masculine to emphasize the per-

sonal character of the Holy Spirit

(John 14:26; 15:26).

The Holy Spirit is a distinct per-

son. In the words of St. Cyril of

Jerusalem, "The Holy Ghost is a

Power most mighty, a Being divine

and unsearchable; for He is living

and intelligent, a sanctifying prin-

ciple of all things made by God

through Christ . . . There is one God

the Father... and one Lord, Jesus

Christ . . . and one Holy Ghost, Who
through the prophets preached of

Christ, and when Christ was come,

descended, and manifested Him”

(Catechetical Discourses, 16,3).

The accounts of the Baptism give

the Holy Spirit His own separate

manifestation. He appears as a

Dove. The Father is heard as a

voice. The Son is seen as a man. It

is the Dove Who brings together
the Father and the Son.

Three Persons

In this text, then, we have set

before us the reality of the distinc-

tion between the three subsisting

individuals, the Father, the Son, and

the Holy Ghost. Here all possibil-

ity of confusing the persons is re-

moved. We see that there are three
divine persons.

The one God of Christianity has

the same essence as the one God

of Judaism. But the one God of

Christianity exists in Three Persons,

the Father, the Son and the Holy

Spirit.

At the beginning of the public

ministry of Christ this fact is re-

vealed. At its end this fact is re-

emphasized . . . "Go, therefore, teach

all nations, baptizing them in the

name of the Father, and of the Son,

and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew

28:19).

To His contemporaries Christ

was defined as the son of His par-

ents. They could not know then

of the miraculous manner of His

conception by the power of the

Holy Spirit. "Is not this,” they

asked, "the son of Joseph?” (Luke

4:22).

Through Mary, Christ possessed

a human nature so like ours that

His contemporaries could not think

of Him as God. But when Christ

defines Himself, it is not only as

Son of Man, as all of us are sons

of men; in addition, it is as Son

of God. On oath before the High

Priest at the time of His trial He

is asked: "I adjure thee by the

living God that thou tell us wheth-

er thou art the Christ, the Son of

God.” Jesus said to him, "Thou hast

said it” (Matthew 26:63-64). Their

response shows how He was under-

stood. "What further need have we

of witnesses?” To them it was blas-

phemy.

When Christ defines Himself as

a person, it is always with reference

to His Heavenly Father.
' All things

are entrusted to me by my Father;

and no one knows the Son but the

Father; neither does any one know

the Father, but the Son and he to

whom the Son wills to reveal him”

(Luke 10:22).

Throughout the whole long

4



Christian tradition these words

Father and Son have retained their

absolute value. Their relationship

to each other has always been un-

derstood as inaccessible to unaided

human reason.

Throughout the rest of the pub-

lic ministry Christ will come back

again and again to this fact. It is

the punch-line of the Gospels, and

on this point that He was what He

said He was—the well-beloved Son

—He died on Golgotha. And to
prove His point He rose from the
dead.

Here is the heart of Christianity

and the whole meaning of the Gos-

pels. "This has been written,” cries

John, "that you might believe that

Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,

and that, believing this, you might

have life in his name” (John 20: 31).

Father and Son are each defined

by their relationship to each other.

As soon as Christ affirms "I am the

Son of God,” the words can bear

no meaning whatsoever unless God

is His Father. What defines the

Holy Spirit?

He is defined as the lovingness
between Father and Son. For us

lovingness is something between

lovers; in God it is Somebody. This

is a mystery and cannot be ex-

plained; here it is simply being

defined.

A mystery of religion is a truth
which we cannot fully understand,

but which we firmly believe be-

cause we have God’s word for it.

There are certain mysteries hidden

in God which we cannot know

without divine revelation, but

which we must believe because God
has revealed them.

In God, infinite and without

shadow of matter, the Spirit is the

uniting love of Father and Son. The

lovingness between devoted hus-

band and wife is certainly some-

thing, but not somebody. When the
love of parents is expressed to the

extent of their producing a child

who loves them and who is loved

in return, we see a faint little echo

of the family of God.

Matters become a little easier

when we seek to recognize the Per-

sons of the Blessed Trinity not so

much in their mysterious relations

to each other but in their very clear

relations to ourselves. Here again

the Gospel must be our teacher.

Family of God

These are the most explicit pas-

sages in the entire New Testament
on the relation of the Holy Spirit

to Father and Son: (John 14:15-19)

"If you love me, keep my com-
mandments. And I will ask the

Father and he will give you another

Advocate to dwell with you for-

ever, the Spirit of truth whom the
world cannot receive, because it

neither sees him nor knows him.

But you shall know him, because

he will dwell with you, and be in

you. I will not leave you orphans;

I will come to you. Yet a little while

and the world no longer sees me.

But you see me, for I live and you

shall live.”

John 14:25-26, "These things I

have spoken to you while yet dwell-

ing with you. But the Advocate, the

Holy Spirit, whom the Father will
send in my name, he will teach you
all things, and bring to your mind

whatever I have said to you.”

5



John 15:26, "But when the Advo-

cate has come, whom I will send
you from the Father, the Spirit of

truth who proceeds from the Father,

he will bear witness concerning me.”

John 16:7-15, "But I speak the

truth to you; it is expedient for

you that I depart. For if I do not

go, the Advocate will not come to

you; but if I go, I will send him

to you. And when he has come he

will convict the world of sin, and

of justice, and of judgment: of sin,

because they do not believe in me;

of justice, because I go to the Father,

and you will see me no more; and

of judgment, because the prince of

this world has already been judged.

Many things yet I have to say to

you, but you cannot bear them now.

But when he, the Spirit of truth, has

come, he will teach you all the

truth. For he will not speak on his

own authority, but whatever he will

hear he will speak, and the things

that are to come he will declare to

you. He will glorify me, because he

will receive of what is mine and

declare it to you. All things that the

Father has are mine. That is why I

have said that he will receive of

what is mine, and will declare it

to you.”

From these passages we can con-

clude that the Holy Spirit person-

ally bears witness concerning the

Son, glorifies Him, teaches all truth,

and dwells with the Apostles and

their successors forever. Christ must

depart and ask the Father so that

the Advocate may come. The Advo-

cate cannot come without the Son

as the Son cannot come without the

Father. "If a man love me, he will

keep my word, and my Father will

love him, and we will come to him

and make our abode with him”

(John 14:23).

See the love of this most Holy

Trinity! "I will not leave you or-

phans says the Beloved Son. "My

Father will love him who keeps my
word,” says the Son again. And, fin-

ally, "The Father will send the Holy

Spirit in my name.”
In all things the three Divine

Persons are equal; yet they are

really distinct from one another.

Each is God, each infinitely perfect.

Yet the Son comes from the Father

and the Holy Spirit from the Father

and the Son. If we think only of the

relationship between them, we can

say of each Person what we cannot

say of either of the other two. Thus

we can say of the Father: "He has

begotten the Son”; of the Son: "He

is begotten of the Father”; and of

the Holy Spirit: "He proceeds from

the Father and the Son.”

The Family of God

Here now is the precious thing.

The Son has told us of the life of

the family of God. And He has

promised this life to us. The glori-

ous outpourings of love, of Three

Divine Persons giving themselves

totally to each other in the oneness

of the Divine Being—this is given

to us by the Passion of the Only

Son made man.

The Christian life for us is tuning

in to the harmony of these three

most blessed Persons. To this end

and for this end the entire work of

the Holy Spirit in the Church is

directed.

The task the Holy Spirit pursues

in the Church that Christ founded

6



is in accordance with what He does
within the Godhead.

The texts above illustrate the

total dependency of the Three Di-

vine Persons on each other, so that

in our regard no one Person acts

in isolation.

It is true that Christ was made

man and died for us. To Him we
attribute the work of our Redemp-

tion. Yet at no time is Christ alone.

When Christ at the start of His
ministry goes into the desert to

pray, He is led by the Spirit (Matt-
hew 4:1). The Spirit inspires His

words (Luke 10:21), and is the

principle of His miracles (Matthew

12:28).

When redemption is accom-
plished upon Calvary then will be

the time when the Spirit will be

given to Christians.

Meantime the whole purpose and

meaning of the Redemption is that

men will acquire a new relationship

to Christ’s Heavenly Father. It is

for the coming of His kingdom that

Christ prays in the Our Father.

Within that kingdom we are His

children, His sons according to the

Divine gift merited and won for us

by Christ on His Cross.

To rise from the level of creature

to that of child is a tremendous rise

in human fortune. Such a rise, ex-

plains Christ to Nicodemus, is not

possible without a spiritual rebirth.

"Unless a man is born again of

water and the Holy Spirit, he can-

not enter the kingdom of heaven”

(John 3:5).

The Baptist had urged repent-

ance and offered baptism. Only

Christ can offer the Holy Spirit.

The Baptism instituted by Christ

remits sin, directly produces grace

and gives the Holy Spirit. The bap-

tism preached by John was intended

to arouse in souls sorrow for sin

and prepare the way for the Bap-

tism of Christ. John himself de-

clares, "I have baptized you with

water, but he shall baptize you with

the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8). St.

Paul at Ephesus realizing the in-

efficacy of John’s baptism gave

Christian Baptism to the Jews who

had been baptized by John (Acts

19:2-5).

Born Again

When the Holy Spirit comes in

the Baptism that Christ will com-

mand for all after His resurrection,

then man will be born again (Matt-

hew 28:19). Being born again will

effect a complete transformation be-

cause Baptism is the sacrament that

gives our souls the new life of sanc-

tifying grace by which we become

children of God and heirs of heaven.

Nicodemus could only understand

this rebirth as a return to the

mother’s womb. "Can he enter a sec-

ond time into his mother’s womb?”

(John 3:4). But this birth is being

born of the womb of the Church.

It is time now to consider how the

Church was formed.

The word church comes from a

Greek word meaning an assembly.

As we know it the word nowadays

stands for a society, an organization

concerned with the spiritual well-

being of its members. Like any so-

ciety the Church has its rules and

its authority, which is of a unique

kind since it proceeds from Christ.

From one point of view all its

members are absolutely equal since

7



each member is a member of the

Church through Baptism which has

an identical effect upon all who

receive it. The same spiritual oppor-

tunities are open to all, but just

here we find differences, for not all

make the same use of the same op-

portunities.

From another angle its members

are not all equal in the sense that

only a few are generals in the Army

though the General and the private

are equally soldiers. In brief we

are discussing a society, spiritual in

origin yet visibly organized so that

its light can be seen by men.

The beginnings of it are to be

found in the Gospel pages. Christ

chooses and trains twelve simple

men. Some are fishermen, one is a

tax collector, all are from Galilee

save one, Judas Iscariot, who finally

betrays Him.

To these men is given the Rev-

elation of the Trinity and of Jesus

Christ, Son of God, and they are

taught that by believing in Him
they will find life in His name.

One apostle, Simon Peter, is chos-

en as leader
—
"Thou art Peter, and

upon this rock I will build my
Church” (Matthew 16:18). Three

times Peter denies his master dur-

ing the Passion and three times

after the Resurrection he is bidden:

"Feed my lambs, feed my sheep”

(John 21:16-17).

All of them are given a mission.

"All power is given unto me in
heaven and in earth,” says the risen

Christ. "Go, therefore, teach all na-

tions, baptizing them in the name

of the Father, and of the Son, and

of the Holy Spirit; teaching them

to observe all that I have command-

ed you; and behold I am with you

always even unto the consummation

of the world” (Matthew 28:18-20).

But before they could discharge

that mission they must first receive

the Holy Spirit. He will teach them

all things and will recall to them

what Christ has taught them (John

14:26). When the Holy Spirit
comes He will be sent by the Father

at the request of the Son—"And I

will pray the Father and he shall

give you another Paraclete, in order

that he may be with you forever”

(John 14:15-16).

LET US PRAY

O God, who hast taught the hearts of thy faithful by the light of

the Holy Ghost: grant that by the gift of the same Spirit, we may

be truly wise, relish what is right and ever rejoice in his holy con-

solations. Through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liv£th and

reigneth with thee in the unity of the same Holy Ghost, world

without end. Amen.

Collect, Votive Mass of the Holy Ghost

8



i

The Holy Spirit In The

Acts And The Epistles

The coming of the Holy \ x\

Spirit upon the Apostles is

described in the Acts of the ^
Apostles, written by Luke, r

author of the third Gospel

and friend of St. Paul.

The first twelve chapters

of Lukes chronicle relate

the Acts of Peter; the re-

maining sixteen relate the

Acts of Paul.

In the very first chapters of this

vital Christian document, the foun-

dation of the Church under the seal

of the Holy Spirit is described.

Christ bids the Apostles tarry at

Jerusalem in order that the promise

of the Father may be fulfilled (Acts

1:4), adding that while John bap-

tized with water they would be

baptized soon with the Holy Spirit

Himself. The result of this baptism

(which is not the same as baptism

of water) will be a strengthening.

You will receive power, Christ says,
(Acts 1:8) when the Holy Spirit

comes upon you, and you will be

my witnesses to the ends of the
earth. These are the last words He
spoke on earth just before His

Ascension into heaven (Acts 1:9).

The gift of the Spirit came to
them on Pentecost day. The com-

munication of the Holy Spirit was

accompanied by signs. There

was first a sound from heav-

en as of a mighty wind

which swept through the

house in which they were

(Acts 2:2). Parted tongues

as of fire rested above the

head of each and they were

filled with the H61y Spirit

(Acts 2:3-4).

As a consequence they re-

ceived the gift of tongues, i.e., of

speech in different languages. At-

tracted by the miraculous sound, a

crowd gathered quickly, composed

of Jews from different parts of Asia

Minor on pilgrimage to the Holy

City. Despite variations in language,

those listening to the Apostles each

heard words in their mother tongue

(Acts 2:8).

Peter preached to the crowd.

Christ Whom they crucified has
risen from the dead, is exalted to

the right hand of the Father Who
has sent the Holy Spirit upon them

(Acts 2:33) Whose effects they

have heard and seen.

He called them to’ repent,” which
meant to change their whole man-

ner of thinking and acting, particu-

larly with regard to Jesus, and to

have sorrow for their sins. To this

was to be added the Baptism of

9



Christ, whereby they would come to

belong to Christ so that not only

would they receive forgiveness of

sins, but the Holy Spirit would come

to dwell in their souls.

At Peter’s urging and exhorta-

tion, three thousand took the tre-

mendous step of accepting Jesus of

Nazareth, the suffering but risen

Messias, and became Christians. The

work of the Holy Spirit is really as

evident here as it was in the gift of

tongues. Just a few hours before, all

these devout pilgrims from all over

the world had been in the Temple

at the hour of sacrifice. They had

had no doubts, no hesitations about

their Jewish religious ideas. But

now, before the morning had

passed, all their outlook had been

changed. Surely, St. Peter was the

instrument for this spiritual miracle

at the hands of God, but the thing

which brought conviction to these

"devout men from every nation”

was the internal illumination of

their minds brought about by the

grace of the Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit in the Church

With the coming of the Holy

Spirit on the men Christ had chosen

and trained and with the reception

of the three thousand first Chris-

tians, the Church had been born.

The rest of the Acts is the history

of how the Church expanded all

over the known world. In less than

three hundred years, Christianity

would be the official religion of

the Roman Empire.

When Peter spoke, the memory
of the Crucifixion would still be

strong in his hearers’ minds. For a

simple man like Peter to present

the Crucified, Risen Christ as on

the right hand of God Who sent
the Holy Spirit, is a challenge to

an audience which contained the

normal number of skeptics. "But

some mocked, saying: They are full

of new wine” (Acts 2:13).

The fact that Peter did present

successfully can only mean that the

Holy Spirit transformed not only

him but the audience as well. In

these first beginnings we do indeed

find signs and wonders which are

lacking to us today. But the first

beginnings of any new society are

always crucial, and in order that the

Church should be securely estab-

lished it was fitting at that time,

and under those circumstances, that

the swirling clouds of spiritual

radioactivity unleashed on Pentecost

day should be given a visible and

tangible form of expression. Thus

Peter could tell his hearers that they

had heard and seen the effects of

the Holy Spirit, and Acts 5:12 re-

cords the many signs and wonders

at the hands of the Apostles among

the people.

But signs only point the way and

their function in those days was to

spotlight the growing Church which

was of "one heart and one soul”

being filled with the Holy Spirit.

In a way less spectacular than of

old the Holy Spirit is still with the

Church. "I will ask the Father,” said

Christ "and he will give you anoth-

er Advocate to dwell with you for-

ever” (John 14:15-16). For each

generation of Christians the role of

the Apostles is carried out by their

successors, the Bishops of the

Church.

Christ gave the power to teach,

10



to sanctify, and to rule the members

of His Church to the Apostles, the

first Bishops of the Church. The

Bishops of the Church today are the

successors of the Apostles because

they have received their power of

orders by valid consecration through

an unbroken line of successors of

the Apostles, and have received

their power of jurisdiction through

their union with the Pope, the suc-

cessor of Saint Peter, and the vis-

ible head of the Church. God the

Father and God the Son sent the

Holy Spirit to dwell in the Church.

"But when the Advocate has come,

whom I will send you from the
Father, the Spirit of truth who pro-

ceeds from the Father, he will bear

witness concerning me” (John
15:26). The indwelling of the Holy

Spirit enables the Bishops of the

Church to teach, to sanctify, and to

rule the faithful in the name of

Christ.

The Church,

A Visible Witness
The descent of the Holy Spirit is

the final triumph of Christ. Christ

triumphed by His unconditional

surrender of Himself on the Cross

for our sins. But since in Him life
was as unconquerable as love, He
arose from the dead. And since He
was God, He returned to the place
whence He came in the Ascension.
He left a world which was not

ready to be united in love with

God. Hence God’s Holy Spirit came

down on the Infant Church in a

fresh outpouring of the Divine Love

—under the sign of the burning fire

of love and under the sign of the

tongues, ten days after the Ascen-

sion. These were the external signs

which manifested the internal

change that had been wrought in

the souls of all, for with the coming

of the Holy Spirit their minds had

been enlightened with His divine

light to see and understand the

truths of God, and their wills had

been strengthened with a super-

natural zeal and courage to profess

their faith openly and to bring it

to all men through their preaching

and example.

But the Spirit came, too, under

the sign of the mighty wind. For

He is the breath of life to the
Church of Christ. He makes the
followers of Christ into one living

whole, of one mind and heart, liv-

ing the life of Christ as a new so-

ciety to the glory and praise of the

Heavenly Father.

"But you are washed, but you are

sanctified, but you are justified in

the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ,

and the Spirit of our God” (Cor-

inthians 6:11).

"The charity of God is poured

forth in our hearts, by the Holy

Spirit, who is given to us” (Rom-

ans 5:5).

Under the seal of the Holy Spirit

the society which is the Church

lives the life Christ won by His
death. It embodies all He lived and
died for—in a sense it is His body,

in the same sense that the United

States embodies the ideas of Wash-

ington and Lincoln. But more so,

for Washington and Lincoln are

dead, but Christ has risen and sent

the Holy Spirit abiding with us

forever.

The Church, under the Holy

Spirit, must be the visible witness

11



of the presence of Christ in the

world, a witness to the point of

blood if that be necessary; a chained

witness in slave camps in the Urals;

a silent witness in the jungles of

Brazil; a frozen witness in Alaska;

a leprous witness like Damien of

Molokai; a witness against a wall

in the dawn like Padre Pro in Mex-

ico; a witness like those unnamed

heroes whom lions tore to pieces in

Roman amphitheatres, until their

blood became the seed of Christians.

In last analysis the function of

the Holy Spirit is the uniting of

men with the Heavenly Father in

Christ. Definition can proceed no

further.

Our union with God the Father

has been made possible by the sac-

rifice of Christ upon the Cross for

our sins. This is what we call our

Redemption. Christ, Son of God,

Son of Man has bought us back,

paying the price of His blood.

Whatever He did as man, Christ

also did as God for He was God

made man, Only begotten of His

Father yet born of Mary in Bethle-

hem. The price He paid was all He

had to give, which was His life.

This is the great act of Christ that

has reconciled men to His Father.

Now Christ chose certain ways
in which His redeeming act for all

men should be available for each

individual. It is as if the great wealth

of sacrifice, all the merit of Christs

death, has been deposited in a bank,

there for us if only we write the

check and draw upon that treasury.

That "bank” is the Church and

the "checks” we draw are signed by

us when we receive the Sacraments.

These Sacraments are material

signs—the bread of the Eucharist,

for example. Material bread nour-

ishes us. This consecrated bread of

the Eucharist gives us the spiritual

nourishment Christ promised: "This

is the bread that cometh down from

heaven; that if any man eat of it

he may not die. I am the living

bread which came down from heav-

en. If any man eat of this bread, he

shall live forever: and the bread

that I will give, is my flesh for the

life of the world” (John 6:50-52).

Christ here chooses that His spir-

itual Divine Action should work on

individuals through a material

thing, bread. He also chose that

through the pouring of water in

Baptism the Divine Action on men

should begin. These Sacraments

then have this in common that a

spiritual Divine Action should be

made available to individuals

through material signs—the bread

of the Eucharist, the water of Bap-

tism, the oil of Confirmation (as

we shall see), the utterance of the

agreement to marry, etc.

We ourselves are a combination
of something material and some-

thing spiritual—a material body and

a spiritual soul. Hence the Sacra-

ments are especially suited for

God’s dealings with us.

Their effect, as we shall see, is

to make us grow in a special way

like to Christ, so similar to Him

that God treats us as adopted sons,

so like Him that God elects in His

Three Persons, to abide in our

being, making of our bodies His

Temple. All this demands a special

Divine Action that is called sancti-

fying grace — literally a gift that
makes us Holy.

12



THE HOLY SPIRIT IN

BAPTISM AND CONFIRMATION

The Holy Spirit pursues His

function as Inspirer of the

Church in a thousand subtle

ways. But His work is not

just external and concerned

with the whole body of the

Church. He continually

works, too, in its individual

members by the whisper of

His gentle inspirations, de-

spite the fact that some of

those members throughout history

have remained unmoved.

There are two main ways in

which Divine Action takes place

on persons. These are by the Sacra-

ments of Baptism and Confirma-

tion.

The great action of Christ was

the reconciliation of men, estranged

by sin, to His Father in heaven.

Since all the time new generations

of men and women are being born,

Christ devised a way for the rec-

onciling of each new generation.

This way is the way of Baptism.

Christ defined this way, as we

have seen, as being born again of

water and the Holy Spirit. He laid

down the form under which this

rite should operate. It would, He

said, have to operate in the name

of the Trinity.

What He did was to designate a

}

i

'

ll
particular material event—

the washing with water—

and to promise that when-

ever that event occurred

according to His intention,

He would attach to that

event a specific Divine Ac-

tion.

This specific Divine Ac-

tion is defined as grace.

Grace means a gift. The par-

ticular gift we receive at Baptism

is God’s own life earned for us by

Christ’s sacrifice upon the Cross.

St. Paul makes this crystal clear:

"Know ye not that all we, who are

baptized in Christ Jesus, are bap-

tized in his death? For we are

buried together with him by bap-

tism unto death; that as Christ is

risen from the dead by the glory

of the Father, so we also may walk

in newness of life” (Romans 6:3-4).

His thought is that when we go

under the baptismal waters we go

with the dead Christ into the tomb.

When He rises, we rise too. We
share with Him a newness of life,

a re-birth by the Holy Spirit.

This newness of life is Christs

own life, the life which He as God

the Son possesses with God the

Father through the bond of the

Holy Spirit. Thus Paul writes in

13



Romans again: "And if the Spirit

of him that raised up Jesus from

the dead, dwell in you, he that

raised up Jesus Christ from the dead

shall quicken also your mortal

bodies, because of his Spirit that

dwelleth in you” (Romans 8:11).

Adopted Sons

The dead Christ lives again

through the action of the Spirit of

God. Christians, too, live their new-

ness of life by the Spirit of Christ.

What precisely is this newness of

life

?

Further pn in the same chap-

ter Paul gives us the answer. "You

have received the spirit of adoption

of sons, whereby we cry Abba,

Father. For the Spirit himself giveth

testimony to our spirit that we are

the sons of God. And if sons, heirs

indeed of God and joint heirs with

Christ” (Romans 8:16-17).

We can recall now the action of
the Holy Spirit on the mother of

Christ. Just as when He overshad-

owed her that by His power she

could conceive Christ, in her womb,

so now at Baptism He overshadows

the font—the womb of the Church—

that Christ should be born again in

a spiritual way in the soul of the

neophyte and in a special way which

defines the baptized as Christians.

Hence indeed the old word for bap-

tism—christening—the putting on

of Christ.

The Divine Action at Baptism,

then, is nothing less than the trans-

formation of God’s creature into

God’s adopted child. This is what

Paul means when he says "adoption

of sons.” Christ is the only-begotten

Son— " the only-begotten of the

Father, full of grace and truth”

(John 1:14), "and of his fullness we

all have received” (John 1:16). "As

many as received him, he gave them

power to be made the sons of God,

to them that believe in his name”

(John 1:12).

That God should adopt any hu-

man being is incredible. It is so

incredible that it is one of the

things that nobody could invent. It

is not surprising there should have

to be a new creation of each of us

at the fantastic moment when the

hand of Christ reaches and finds

the hand of the new Christian, and

both murmur, "Our Father.” This

is Hiroshima in reverse.

Baptism is then a birth. Every

Christian is a new child of God

after Baptism. But children have to

grow up, and that is where the sec-

ond Divine Action comes into play,

during the special rite called Con-

firmation. Once again the agent is

the Holy Spirit, and once again His

function is to deepen and strength-

en Christ in Christians. As always,

the goal of His action is the glory

of the Father in the recognition of

Christ in Christians.

Divine Action

Confirmation, like Baptism, takes

a particular material event, in this

case anointing with oil, and to that

anointing there is attached a Divine

Action. The Holy Spirit gives a

further outpouring of the Divine

life to us. He stands to us in a fresh

relationship akin to that He ac-

quired with the Apostles and

disciples on Pentecost day. Con-

firmation is the subject’s private

Pentecost minus the extraordinary

signs and wonders of that day. By

14



it we move to spiritual maturity.

We shall return to this point when
we have established that the Sacra-

ment has been with the Church

from the beginning.

The Gospels do not record the

actual institution of Confirmation

by Christ. The Acts of the Apostles,

however, indicate that the Church

possessed it from the beginning.

When the Apostles in Jerusalem
heard of baptisms performed by the

deacon Philip in Samaria, "they sent

to them Peter and John. On their

arrival they prayed for them, that

they might receive the Holy Spirit;

for as yet he had not come upon

any of them, but they had only been

baptized in the name of the Lord

Jesus. Then they laid their hands

on them and they received the Holy

Spirit” (Acts 8:14-18).

Paul found believers at Ephesus

and questioned them: "Did you

receive the Holy Spirit when you

became believers?” But they said

to him, "We have not even heard

that there is a Holy Spirit” (Acts

19:2). Paul understood at once that

they could not be baptized since

Baptism is conferred in the name

of the Trinity. He said: "How then

were you baptized?” They said,

"With John’s baptism” (Acts 19:3).

Paul explained the difference be-

tween the baptism of John and the

Baptism of Christ and "they were

baptized in the name of the Lord

Jesus; and when Paul laid his hands

on them, the Holy Spirit came upon

them, and they began to speak in

tongues and to prophesy” (Acts

19:5-6).

From these two texts we can con-

clude that at the dawn of the

Church there was a normal rite for

conferring the Holy Spirit since its

administration is a matter of course

after Baptism, it is a distinct rite

from Baptism, and it is conferred

by an Apostle, i.e., a Bishop, because

Philip is a deacon (Acts 6:5) and

cannot confer it in Samaria. Peter

and John must leave Jerusalem for

Samaria to confirm.

In other places in the Acts (4:31;

6:5) courage in professing the faith

is identified with the gift of the

Holy Spirit.

These considerations indicate that

the gift of the Holy Spirit was

meant to be normal in the Church

and create a reasonable presump-

tion that the gift would be con-

ferred by a Sacrament parallel with

Baptism and the Holy Eucharist

and other gifts promised by Christ.

This presumption is in fact sup-

ported by the earliest writings

among the Fathers and elders of

the Church.

Early Testimonies

Writings from the third century

indicate that Confirmation is a

normal rite and a continuation of an

Apostolic practice whereby the

Holy Spirit is conferred in a man-

ner distinct from that of Baptism.

Tertullian, third century, in his

treatise De Baptismo, cc. 4-8, after

describing how the Baptismal water

derives its sanctifying power from

the Holy Spirit, continues: "Not

that we obtain the Holy Spirit in

the waters: but in the water under

the influence of the angel we are

cleansed and prepared for the Holy

Spirit . . . thereupon the hand is im-

posed in blessing, calling and invit-

15



ing the Holy Spirit
.”

In another passage in his De Res-

urrection Carnis, ch. 8 he writes,

"The flesh is shadowed by the im-

position of hands that the soul may

be illuminated by the Spirit; the

flesh is signed that the soul may

be fortified.”

St. Cyprian Epistola 73, 9 ad

Jubaianum, third century writes:

"Those who are baptized in the

Church are presented to the prelates

of the Church and by means of our

prayers and the imposition of hands

obtain the H6ly Ghost and are per-

fected with the seal of the Lord.”

In the fifth century there is an

anonymous homily recorded en-

titled De Pentecoste and it is to be

found in the Bibliotheca Veterum

Patrum Vol. 6, p. 39. It says "In

Baptism we are regenerated, after

Baptism we are confirmed for bat-

tle; Baptism washes, Confirmation

strengthens ... it arms and instructs

us for the battles of the world . .

.

we are illumined through the Holy

Ghost with spiritual wisdom.”

It is time to examine just what

Confirmation does to those who re-

ceive it. There is first of all a deep-

ening and strengthening of that Di-

vine Life we discussed above. God

pours more of His love into that

depth of man we call his spirit

or soul.

At Baptism the Holy Spirit

comes upon the new child of God

enabling him to put on Christ, so

to speak. The Heavenly Father look-

ing at this adopted son can affirm

what He affirmed of His Only Son

in the waters of Jordan—that this

baptized creature is now His be-

loved son and co-heir with Christ.

But the child has yet to grow in

the likeness of Christ and so to ma-

ture it, make it more like to Christ,

there is this new outpouring of the

Spirit. God in His Trinity moves

closer to us.

At the same time we move closer

to God. Once baptized, a person

acquires a new character, that of

son. Once confirmed he carries an-

other indelible quality—the charac-

ter of soldier. These qualities are as

indelible, once they have been ac-

quired, as the color of a person’s

eyes. For that reason it has never

been the practice of the Christian

Church to repeat a valid Baptism

and a valid Confirmation.

Soldier of Christ

That a person should be given

the power to be a soldier of Christ

does not mean that Christianity is

military, only militant. In our na-

tural lives we have continually to

be on guard against hazards of ill-

ness, of traffic on the highway, of

dishonest men and the like. In our

newness of life there are hazards,

too. We have to fight lest we be
conquered by materialism. We have
to give good example to our neigh-

bors and make ourselves ambas-

sadors of Christ. Confirmation does

not make muscular Christians, it

simply makes them positive and un-

ashamed of putting into living prac-

tice the tenets and precepts of their

Founder.

All of this calls for a special

kind of wisdom and a special kind

of courage and humility. The Holy

Spirit helps us here with what are

called the Seven gifts of the Holy

Spirit. This sevenfold action has its

16



warrant in Isaias where it is proph-

esied of Christ: "The Spirit of the

Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit

of wisdom, and of understanding,

the spirit of counsel, and of forti-

tude, the spirit of knowledge, and

of godliness. And he shall be filled

with the spirit of the fear of the

Lord” (Isaias 11:2-3).

When the Holy Spirit is given to

us in Confirmation these great vir-

tues of Christ are His renewed gifts

to us, gifts that strengthen mind

and heart and make it possible, if

we use them, to walk worthily of

our Christian vocation.

First Martyr

Talking to the newly baptized

Christians St. Peter defines them

"as new-born babes” (1 Peter 2:2).

The babe must grow to stature and

as an example here is the story of

Stephen, first Christian martyr, as

told in Acts 6 and 7. He is defined

as "full of the Holy Spirit and wis-

dom,” and as "full of grace and

fortitude.” He disputed in the syna-

gogues in the early days of the

Church at Jerusalem. His disputa-

tion was that Jesus was the Son of

God. His time came and he was

summoned before the High Priest

and his council. With matchless

oratory he traces the signs of God

throughout the Old Testament from

the day of Abraham to the day of

Solomon, who built the wonderful

Temple of God. But this Temple

itself is now outdated for the Most

High has dwelt among them in the

Temple of the Body of Jesus.

Stephen accused his hearers of

closing their hearts and ears to the

Holy Spirit and with a ringing pro-

fession of faith, he cried: "Behold

I see the heavens opened, and the

Son of Man standing on the right

hand of God” (Acts 7:56).

They seized him and cast him out

of the city and stoned him. And as

the rocks came hurling at him he

said,
"
'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit/

And falling on his knees, he cried

out with a loud voice, saying, 'Lord,

do not lay this sin against them/

And with these words he fell asleep.”

(Acts 7:59-60).

Holding the garments of them

that stoned him was a man called

Saul. Later Saul was to become the

great Apostle Paul. He did not

know it but he would be baptized

through the blood of Stephen. Cour-

age and Love, these are the marks

of the Spirit of God; and we find

them in old Jerusalem where Steph-

en was stoned.

Each A Witness
Not all of us will be summoned

to display the red badge of courage

that was the glory of Stephen. The

martyr, after all, is the supreme

witness to the point of death. But

all Christians of good will are sum-

moned in the circumstances of their

daily life to be witnesses of a sort.

Consider these words of St. Augus-

tine (Tract 8 on the First Epistle

of St. John), "He who gives praise

to God by word of mouth, cannot

be so engaged always: he who ex-

tols Him by deeds of virtue can do

so unceasingly. Works of mercy,

acts of kindness, holy devotedness,

blameless chastity, sober restraint—

these one must practice at all times,

whether we are at home or in the

public places, whether we are in

17



the company of men or in the pri-

vacy of our apartments . .
”

Indeed in public places Christian

virtue can be hard to practice. But

it is the way in which the new-born

spiritual babe grows to the fullness

of stature of the man of Christ.

Confirmation makes it possible. But

in the end it has to be us who are

responsible for responding to the

breath of the Spirit.

Briefly, then, Confirmation re-

inforces the graces of Baptism and

brings us into yet closer contact

with the Holy Spirit. We are called
to struggle for the Christian faith

and to accept the witnessing of

Christ to others by Christian living

as our responsibility. We are
strengthened in mind and heart to

make us worthy of our vocation.

The gifts are there for us to use.

MYSTERIES

A mystery of religion is not a truth about which we can know

nothing; rather, it is a truth about which we cannot know every-

thing. It is not so much an unscalable wall as an endless gallery

into which the mind can progress further and further, without

ever coming to an end. No matter how much the mind concen-

trates on a mystery, there will always remain a mass of truth it

has not made its own.

All true believers in God must be prepared to accept mysteries as

true on His divine authority. That is faith. Reason tells them that

God can and has made revelations to men, and that because He is

God He must be believed.

So faith does not mean intellectual suicide. The object of the

intellect is truth. Sometimes it arrives at truth for itself, and

that is reason. It knows something. But sometimes the intellect

accepts the truth on the authority of another, and that is faith.

It believes something. If the informant is human we have human

faith, if the informant be God, we have divine Faith. But there

can obviously be no real conflict between faith and reason because

both give truth to the intellect.

"This Is The Faith”, Francis J. Ripley

18



Administration Of

Confirmation
iAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAi

Confirmation is that Sacra-

ment in which, by the im-

position of hands, unction

and prayer, a baptized per-

son is filled with the Holy

Spirit for the inner strength-

ening of the spiritual life

and for the courageous out-

ward confession of Faith.

As it was in the begin-

ning of the Church, so now,

too, the ordinary minister of this

Sacrament is the Bishop. No one

below a Bishop can give this Sacra-

ment of Confirmation unless he is

given jurisdiction by the Pope him-

self. The Holy Father does some-

times give this permission to priests

in missionary lands where Bishops

may be few and far between. From

ancient times the Popes also have

given permission to the priests of

the Greek Catholic Church to ad-

minister the Sacrament of Con-

firmation. Pius XII, in 1947, gave

to all pastors, everywhere—when a

Bishop is not available—permission

to administer Confirmation to any

unconfirmed person within their

territory who is in danger of death

from sickness, accident, or old age.

As social conditions change with

the years, the Church adjusts its

own regulations regarding the ad-

ministration and reception

of the Sacraments so that

these channels of God’s

grace might be ever more

easily available to its mem-

bers.

When the actual cere-
mony of Confirmation be-

gins, the Bishop stands fac-

ing those who are to be con-

firmed, with his hands ex-

tended towards them, symbolically

extended over them. With his hands

extended, the Bishop invokes the

Holy Spirit upon the Confirmation

candidates, saying (in Latin) the

following prayer: 'Almighty and

eternal God, Who in Thy kindness
hast given to these Thy servants a

new birth through water and the

Holy Spirit, and granted to them

remission of all their sins: send

forth from heaven upon them Thy

sevenfold Spirit, the Holy Paraclete.

Amen. The Spirit of wisdom and

understanding. Amen. The Spirit

of counsel and fortitude. Amen. The

Spirit of knowledge and piety.

Amen. Mercifully fill them with

the Spirit of Thy fear, and seal them

with the sign of the cross of Christ,

that they may obtain everlasting life.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ . .
”

Then comes the essential part of

19



the ceremony, in which the Bishop

places his hand upon the head of

each individual. For this part some

Bishops sit at the altar and the can-

didates come one by one to kneel

before the Bishop. Other Bishops

prefer to have the candidates kneel

at the altar railing while the Bishop

himself proceeds from one to the

other. In either case, as he places

his hand upon the head of the con-

firmandus (the one to be con-

firmed), the Bishop simultaneously

traces, with his thumb, the sign of

the cross on the person’s forehead-

having first dipped his thumb in

the holy chrism. While doing this

he says (in Latin), "I sign you with

the sign of the Cross and I confirm

you with the Chrism of salvation,

in the name of the Father and of

the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

Chrism is one of the three kinds

of holy oil which a Bishop blesses

each year at his Mass on Holy

Thursday. The other two kinds of

holy oil are the oil of catechumens

(used in Baptism) and the oil of

the sick (used in Extreme Unction).

The holy oils, all of them, are com-

posed of pure olive oil. From an-

cient times, olive oil has been

looked upon as a strengthening sub-

stance; so much so that athletes

were accustomed to bathe in olive

oil before taking part in athletic

contests. The significance of the

holy oils used in the administra-

tion of the Sacraments is then very

evident: the oil represents the

strengthening effect of God’s grace.

In holy chrism, the olive oil signi-

fies the strengthening grace of the

Holy Spirit received in the Sacra-

ment. Besides the distinct and spe-

cial blessing which each holy oil

receives, chrism, has another differ-

ence: balm has been mixed with it.

Balm, sometimes used as a preserva-

tive, is a fragrant substance derived

from the balsam tree. In holy chrism

it signifies the sweetness of virtue

and freedom from the corruption

of sin.

The anointing of the forehead

with chrism in the form of a cross

signifies that the Catholic who is

confirmed, as a soldier of Christ,

must always be ready to profess his

faith openly and to practice it fear-

lessly.

The Bishop then taps the candi-

date’s cheek and concludes with a

prayer that the Holy Spirit may

dwell in the hearts of the con-

firmed. The gentle tap on the cheek

is not an essential part of the cere-

many; in fact it was only in the

twelfth century that it was added

to the rite of Confirmation. It is

probable that this slight "blow on

the cheek” was taken over from

the medieval custom of "dubbing”

knights. The action reminds the

confirmed that he must be ready to

suffer everything, even death, for

the sake of Christ.

An ancient Whitsunday sermon,

delivered by a Bishop of Southern

Gaul in the fifth century (Bib. Max.

SS.PP. vi. p. 649) has this to say:

"The Holy Ghost Who comes down
with a life-giving descent upon the

waters of Baptism, in the font be-

stows beauty unto innocence, in

Confirmation grants an increase

unto grace. Because we have to walk

during our whole life in the midst

of invisible enemies and dangers,

we are in baptism regenerated unto

20



life, after baptism we are confirmed

for the battle; in baptism we are

cleansed, after baptism we are

strengthened . . . confirmation arms

and furnishes weapons to those

who are reserved for the wrestings

and contests of this world.”

Confirmation Name

It is customary in the ceremony

of Confirmation to add a new name

to those already possessed. Through

the choice of a new Christian name,

the candidate is placed under the

protection of an additional patron

saint. One who assumes new respon-

sibilities as a soldier in the army of

Christ, as a witness of everything

Christ represents, will treasure the

prayerful help of a special friend in

heaven. So another saint’s name is

added to those already possessed. It

is by this new name that the Bishop

addresses the candidate as he be-

stows the Sacrament.

For many centuries in both the

Western and Eastern Churches the

Sacrament of Confirmation was ad-

ministered to infants immediately

after their Baptism. This procedure

still obtains in the East and in some

parts of the Western Church, like

Spain and South America. But since

about the thirteenth century the

custom of postponing the adminis-

tration of Confirmation until the

children had attained the use of rea-

son was introduced in the West.

At the present, in the Latin rite of

the Church, the age for Confirma-

tion, in the normal case, is between

seven and ten years. Moreover, it is

the mind of the Church that chil-

dren should receive the Sacrament

of Confirmation before being ad-

mitted to first Holy Communion.

Confirmation is the complement of

Baptism and hence the natural order

of reception is Baptism, Confirma-

tion, the Blessed Eucharist. Customs

to the contrary, in these non-essen-

tial matters, are tolerated by the

Church when serious reasons are

present.

To receive Confirmation proper-

ly it is necessary to be in the state

of sanctifying grace, that is, free

from the guilt of serious sin. In the

ordinary case, the candidate must

know well the chief truths and

duties of the Catholic religion.

Adults who have never been con-

firmed, whether converts or other-

wise, can easily arrange to be con-

firmed by consulting with their

pastor.

Sponsor

Whether child or adult, the can-

didate for Confirmation, in accord-

ance with a very ancient usage of

the Church, should, if possible, have

a sponsor. The sponsor must be of

the same sex as the person for

whom he stands and at least thir-

teen years of age. The sponsor must

be a practicing Catholic who al-

ready has been confirmed — and he
may not be one of the Confirmation

candidate’s baptismal godparents,

unless a serious reason requires.

Like the baptismal godparents, the

Confirmation sponsor has the duty

to do all in his power, especially by

example and encouragement, to

help his spiritual "ward” achieve a

fully Catholic life.

The existence of sponsors is a

reminder that the Holy Spirit in

making one Church of all Chris-

21



tians makes us members one of

another with Christ as our head. In

that body none should be isolated

or alone if ever in spiritual need,

and with such need in mind, spon-

sorship has been devised for Bap-

tism and Confirmation.

Necessity

Christian charity towards oneself

demands that such an important

means of grace, as the Sacrament of

Confirmation, should not be left

unused. Without Baptism one can-

not get to heaven. Without Con-

firmation a person can get to

heaven but the going will be more

difficult. In fact, without Confirma-

tion it would be easy to lose the

way entirely, easy to lose one’s faith.

That is why it is of obligation for

every baptized person to be also

confirmed if he has the opportunity

of receiving the Sacrament of Con-

firmation. Even if there be no

express Divine commandment to

receive Confirmation, the Divine

mandate to receive it may be de-

duced from its institution by Christ.

Jesus instituted each individual

Sacrament because He foresaw, in

His infinite wisdom, that we would

have need of certain special graces

under certain particular circum-

stances.

Christ foresaw, among other

things, the dangers to which each

Christian would be exposed. Some

of the dangers would be from with-

in, as when passion or self-will wars

with belief. Other dangers would be

from without, as when one must

suffer active persecution by im-

prisonment or torture — as so many
Christians in Communist countries.

The dangerous state of those who

live — as in America — in an atmos-
phere of religious indifferentism is

not so obvious an outward danger

but is just as real. The danger of

contagion is always present.

The special sacramental grace of

Confirmation is a strengthening of

one’s faith. On the negative side, a

person’s faith is strengthened

against temptation and persecution;

on the positive side, one’s faith is

strengthened to the end that he may

become an active witness to Christ.

PRAYER FOR CONVERSIONS

O Holy Spirit of Truth, we beseech thee to enlighten the minds

of unbelievers in the midst of us, to incline their hearts to receive

thy word, and to believe the teachings of thy Church; give them

courage to accept the faith and to profess it openly; that they may

come into union with thee and the Father, through Christ our

Lord, who liveth and reigneth forever and ever. Amen.

Holy Ghost Prayerbook, Hoeger

22



Witnesses To The Truth

Authority in the Church of

Christ is of a special nature.

He vested authority in the

men He chose (John 15:16)

and sent them with His au-

thority, "As the Father has

sent me, I also send you"

(John 20:21). The Apostles

were instructed by Christ to

teach—". . . make disciples of

all nations . . . teaching them

to observe all that I have command-

ed you” (Matthew 28:19-20); to

sanctify — not simply to baptize
(Matthew 28:19), but also to for-

give sin "whose sins you shall for-

give, they are forgiven” (John

20:23); and to legislate —"whatever

you bind on earth shall be bound

also in heaven” (Matthew 18:18).

In turn the Apostles ordained

chosen men as Bishops to be their

successors in the task of teaching,

sanctifying and ruling mankind (1

Timothy 4:14; 5:22; Acts 13:3).

Upon the Apostles as upon their

successors came the Holy Spirit to

inspire them and keep their teach-

ing free from basic error (Acts

13:4,52). So too He comes upon

those who receive the Sacrament of

Confirmation that they with their

Bishops may be the body which

lives the life Christ won by His

death, and in turn bear wit-

ness to that truth for which

He was born and came into

the world.

This society which is in

the world but not of the

world has as its major func-

tion to enshrine the pres-

ence of Christ in the world

for all the generations which

Christ came to teach and

save. It has to be the living body

in which men share the life of God,

receive it through the Sacraments,

and offer up their prayers and sacri-

fice to God. They take part, in

their own persons, in those acts in

which the Church makes present

the saving act of Christ. Through

the Church the saving act of Christ

on Calvary is offered to all man-

kind and can only be limited by

those who freely reject the salva-

tion which is offered.

As a body which offers the truth

of Christ to the world it is animated

by the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of

Truth, and by His power it bears

witness in such a way that when

the whole body speaks with all the

Bishops acting in concert, it is pre-

served from error. Individual

Bishops indeed may err, but not

the whole body of the successors of

23



the Apostles, nor that Supreme

Pontiff who in the footsteps of

Peter possesses that special author-

ity given to the rock upon whom

Christ built His Church.

But the Church is not a static

body whose function it is to keep

men from error, it is a dynamic

body whose function and whose

destiny through time is to bear

positive witness to truth. Nor is

the Church just the Bishops any

more than the army is just its gen-

erals. Bishops, pastors and laity are

all involved in some way in wit-

nessing to the truth.

It is just here that Christian lay-

men taught by their Hierarchy (a

group name for Bishops in a coun-

try) can bear witness in their trades,

professions, careers, public and com-

munity service to the transforming

effects of Christs truth and life as

it affects them. But their external

activities to be fruitful and of value

must flow from the charity imbibed

from the Holy Spirit Who dwells
in them.

Living Image of Christ

Just as the Holy Spirit formed

Christ in the womb of His mother

and conceives Christ in our souls

at Baptism, so too by Confirmation

gifts He can help us, if we coop-

erate, in following the example of

Christ more perfectly, as He fosters

the growth of the living image of

Christ in the soul of man.

Christianity, of course, is a fine-

sounding word; but the translation

of it into actual fact demands im-

mense spiritual strength and a heart

saturated with charity. Constant

prayer and regular use of the Sacra-

ments of the Church would seem

to be the shapers of the lay apostle.

"You shall be witnesses unto me”

(Acts 1:8). It is the duty of each

lay apostle, each spiritually mature

and adult member of the Catholic

and apostolic Church to be a wit-

ness. The Church is the authentic

witness to Jesus Christ on earth,

and every responsible citizen of

this City of God shares in that

divinely appointed function of the

Church, according to the place

which he occupies in the organism

of the Mystical Body of Christ.

The Body of Christ

This is surely the deep signific-

ance of that gift of tongues which

in the primitive Church, both on

the day of Pentecost and on other

occasions, gave external proof of

the coming of the Holy Spirit. "The

Holy Ghost descended upon them,

and they spoke with tongues”; as

though to say, they were confirmed

and they bore witness. And not only

did they bear witness, but they bore

witness in the tongues of every

nation under heaven, because they

were members of a Church not only

apostolic but catholic also.

As St. Augustine aptly observes,

in Jerusalem the universal mission

of the Church had already begun,

and the Pentecostal tongues were

but a symbol to foreshadow the real-

ity of a Church which would in

fact, and not merely in figure,

preach the gospel throughout the

world. And if the Mystical Body of

Christ is a witness, he argues, then

every member of it is a witness too.

"I, too,” he exclaims, "I, too, speak

with the tongues of all nations. Am

24



I not in the Body of Christ, am I

not in the Church of Christ? If the

Body of Christ speaks with the

tongues of all nations, then the

tongues of all nations are mine”

(Enarr. in psalm cxlvii 19).

Such is the glorious task to

which Confirmation calls the Chris-

tion lay apostle and for which it

endows him. Already truly a mem-

ber of the Church, he now becomes

a spokesman of the Church, of the

Church which, "like a standard set

up unto the nations, calls to itself

those who have not yet believed,

and at the same time gives assur-

ance to its own children that the

faith which they profess reposes on

the firmest of foundations” (Vati-

can Council, De fid. cath., cap. 3).
Proudly conscious of his citizen-

ship, the lay apostle testifies to the

world that he is indeed a follower

of Christ and an upholder of his

faith, ready if need be to die as a

soldier in its defense. In Baptism

the life of grace appears as a white

garment to be kept pure and un-

spotted from the stains of the

world; in Confirmation the faith

is raised aloft as a flying banner,

under which we march as strong

and perfect Christians and soldiers

of Jesus Christ.

Christianity belongs to the whole

world—that is the message of the

Spirit of Truth — but the whole
world does not belong to Christ—

that is the message of the Iron and

Bamboo Curtains. The final issue

between them could be atomic. But

the Spirit of Jesus burns hotter than

the Bomb and when it burns it

does not consume. Here lies the last

best hope—that instead of holo-

caust we will have Pentecost, in

that men of good will inflamed by

the fire of the Spirit will conquer

not with weapons but with love.

Love can be used either as an essential name of the divine nature

or as a personal name of a divine person—then it is the proper

name of the Holy Ghost, as Word is the proper name of the Son.

St. Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica,

1, 37, 1. (13th cent.)

A gift is freely given, and expects no return. Its reason is love.

What is first given is love; that is the first gift. The Holy Ghost

comes forth as the substance of love, and Gift is His proper name.

St. Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica,

I, 38, 2. (13th cent.)

25



Charismatic Gifts:

Tongues, Healing

The word "charism” used

by Paul sixteen times has

a variety of senses. In the

widest sense, the term

means any good gift that

flows from God’s love to

man. In the strict sense, the

expression "charisms”

means certain gratuitous

supernatural gifts, which

manifest the operation of

the Holy Spirit in the Church by

bestowing upon certain individuals

the faculties to perform various

extraordinary works, primarily for

the good of the entire Church.

These gifts are often mentioned, by

Luke in the Acts (10:44-46; 19:6),

by Peter (1 Peter 4:10 f), and es-

pecially by Paul (Romans 12: 6-8;

1 Corinthians 12 to 14; Galatians

3:5; Ephesians 4:7-12).

These extraordinary gifts are

gratuitous; they are due, not to the

merits or sanctity of those who

possess them, but to the one Holy

Spirit who freely distributes them

to whomever He wishes, according

to the needs of the Church (1 Cor-,

inthians 12:11). The individual

faithful may be blessed with one

or more of these spiritual gifts and

they may be bestowed not only

upon the just but also on sinners

(1 Corinthians 13:1-3;

Matthew 7:22 f).

The primary purpose of

the charisms is the mani-

festation of the Holy Spirit,

who inspires individuals for

the advantage and utility of

the entire Church. The sec-

ondary purpose of the char-

isms was to dispose unbe-

lievers to accept the truths

of the gospel. The exercise of the

charisms may lead unbelievers to

their conversion (Acts 2:12), or may

manifest their infidelity (1 Corin-

thians 14:21-25).

Gift of Tongues

One of the many charisms was

the gift of tongues. The gift of

tongues consisted in an articulate,

intelligible utterance that at times

had to be interpreted ( 1 Corinthians

14:5, 9, 13, 19). The object of this

gift was not for preaching or teach-

ing, but for speaking to God in

prayer, praise or thanksgiving, in a

quasi-ecstatic state, while the speak-

er retained some degree of conscious-

ness. This utterance, which was not

understood by its hearers without

the gift of interpretation, consisted

in the use by a speaker of strange or

foreign languages different from his

26



own and hitherto unknown to him.

The primary purpose of this

charism was the manifestation of

the presence of the Holy Spirit for

the advantage of the Church (1

Corinthians 12:7; 14:12). The edi-

fication of the Church was attained

in so far as this evidence of the

Holy Spirit’s presence among the

faithful was for their consolation,

and, with the addition of the gift

of interpretation, the faithful were

stimulated to praise God and were

enabled to receive new knowledge

concerning things divine. The sec-

ondary purpose of this gift was for

the advantage and edification of

the speaker himself. For the unbe-

lievers, it served as a sign to mani-

fest their infidelity or to lead

ultimately to their conversion.

Besides the promise of Christ in

His farewell instructions to His

Apostles, that His disciples "shall

speak in new tongues” (Mark

16:17), Luke mentions the mani-

festation of this charism at

Jerusalem (Acts 2:4), Caesarea of

Palestine (Acts 10:46),and Ephesus

(Acts 19:6). And this particular

charism "the gift of tongues” con-

tinued in the early Church for a

brief period. As a miraculous gift

of the Holy Spirit it aided the

spread and growth of Christianity

because it proved its divine char-

acter. Once the Church became

established, such an abnormal

phenomena rapidly became a thing

of the past, at least as a regular

feature of Christianity.

The gift of tongues was never

a charism enjoyed by all Christians,

as St. Paul makes clear in 1 Cor-

inthians 12:27-31. If one insists

upon taking the promises of Christ

(Mark 16:17-18) literally as a

guarantee that those signs would

always and everywhere and in each

instance attend those who believe

in Him, then a person should also

be able to drink any deadly thing

without being injured. The Holy

Spirit had no intention of continu-

ing in the Church gifts ordained

only to the pressing needs of initial

stages. When Montanus claimed

to be restoring such gifts in the

middle of the 2nd century, he was

at once branded as an innovator,

an imposter, and a heretic. Periodic

efforts to "revive” and claims to

possess such charismatic gifts are

only a renewal of the ancient heresy

of Montanism.

Gift of Healing

The gift of healing is another

charism that was conferred upon

some Christians to cure miraculous-

ly the sick (1 Corinthians 12:9, 28,

30). A miracle is a divinely per-
formed sensible effect beyond the

common order of nature. A miracle
is performed to remind men of

God’s power over the laws of nature

and to manifest his goodness and

justice.

Christ Himself cured all diseases

with equal facility, instantaneously,

permanently, by a word, a gesture,

and even at a distance. Christ per-

formed miracles to prove His divine

mission, to strengthen the faith of

those who believed in Him, to mani-

fest His love for men, and to raise

men’s thoughts to supernatural

realities. Christ possessed the per-

manent power of performing mir-

acles; the saints and other wonder-

27



workers are granted only a transient

power.

In the New Testament we do
read that frequently, although on

particular occasions only, miracles

of healing were wrought by Christ

and by those in the early Church

who had received the charismatic

gift of healing. But these occasional

miracles were not merely for the

sake of conferring the physical

benefits of health. They were signs

to induce and confirm faith in the

Christian religion. They were that

men might believe "for the works’

sake.” Not for a moment was heal-

ing in such a way intended to be

an essential part of the Christian

religion, or to continue as an ordin-

ary means of the apostolate. The

essential commission of the Church

was to teach all nations the truth,

to preserve order and unity within

itself by legislative authority, and

to labor for the salvation and sancti-

fication of souls.

As with "speaking in tongues”

and other extraordinary phenomena,

so with miracles of healing, such

wonders were wrought in the be-

ginning in order to get the Church

rapidly and safely established. As

soon as this need ceased, the

miraculous gifts were more and

more rarely manifested; although

in no period in the history of the

Church have they been entirely

absent.

Faith healing or spiritual heal-

ing is a form of mental healing

that makes use of suggestion based

upon religious considerations, mo-

tives, and appeal. Because of the

relationship between mind and

body, strong suggestions from one

in whom we have confidence may

be beneficial to health. Mental atti-

tudes can affect the nervous system,

whilst emotion has an effect upon

the glands, accelerating or retarding

even physical processes. Local pain,

which might appear to be the symp-

tom of some deep-seated disease,

can be caused by a state of mind.

Obviously, in such a case, it could

be removed by a change of one’s

mental outlook. Functional dis-

orders, such as immoral habits,

nervous ailments, drunkenness, high

blood pressure, arthritis, rheumat-

ism, migraine, can be sometimes

aided by religious suggestions.

Healing by mental suggestion is

morally lawful, for it is the em-

ploying of a natural medical means.

Two things, however, must here

be noted; the limits of mental heal-

ing, and the dangers attendant upon

it. Faith healing as a form of men-

tal healing is restricted to func-

tional disorders. No efforts of the

imagination, no degree of self-

persuasion, can cure organic diseases.

No mental state can be induced

which will restore life to a dead

optic nerve, or mend broken bones,

or replace a kidney that has been

surgically removed.

The danger is that people may

have a really serious organic disease

yet feel relieved of pain by psycho-

logical exaltation, or transient mass

hypnosis. As a consequence they

may imagine that they are cured

although only symptoms have been

banished from consciousness, the

root cause of the trouble remaining

unaffected. When the inevitable

relapse follows, it may be too late

for successful medical or surgical

28



remedies.

It remains true, however, that

within its own proper sphere nat-

ural mental healing or psychother-

apy, has had notable successes in the

curing of physical ills.

Erroneously, some "faith healers”

claim or cleverly lead persons to

believe that they possess the Bibli-

cal gift of healing similar to the

power of Christ. They speak of

"faith healing” or of "divine heal-

ing” rather than of merely "mental

healing,” making God, and not any

natural factors, responsible for such

results as they claim to obtain.

Results of merely natural psycholo-

gical factors are wrongly regarded

as miracles due to a special inter-

vention on the part of God.

Since God, Who is all-truthful,
is the principal cause of a miracle,

it cannot be worked in support of

a lie. If an individual claims mi-

raculous powers of healing, then

he should be willing to work under

the careful scrutiny of a competent

medical staff. In this manner the

cures of such a faith healer could

be properly authenticated.

The Catholic Church is not in

opposition to the idea of mirac-

ulous healing. Such miracles have

occurred from time to time through

all the centuries; and there still

occur at Lourdes, in France, for

example, instantaneous cures of or-

ganic diseases which no natural

means could effect and which have

been attested to by medical experts

after the severest scientific investi-

gation.

The Church denies that the func-

tion of healing the sick by extra-

ordinary and supernatural means is

a normal part of its mission. It has

never officially engaged in efforts

at such miracle-working. We know
from their biographies that Saints

individually have done the most

remarkable things. Or astonishing

cures have occurred unpredictably

at this shrine or that. But, officially,

the Catholic Church has devoted

itself to the exercising of Christian

charity towards the sick by building

and staffing hospitals throughout

the world for the care of the af-

flicted. The Church never gives its

official sanction to any reported

miraculous cure unless it has re-

ceived the most thorough scientific

examination.

Psychical research workers can do

a useful service to religion by help-

ing to map out the borderlines be-

tween the supernatural, the direct

action of God; the paranormal (be-

yond the normal), which, in spite

of its mysterious appearance, may

arise from natural causes; and the

phony miracles with which our era

abounds. They can help in the

struggle against superstition and

occultism, against the preoccupa-

tion with the marvelous that can

crowd out true religious feeling,

and against the damage done to the

reputation of true miracles by their

ridiculous or illusory imitations.

Men have always needed and will

always need the serious critical

studies of such subjects, eliminating

or at any rate reducing the part

played by the passion for the extra-

ordinary in the religious make-up

of people dominated by sensibility,

imagination, and morbid curiosity.

It is well known that the marvelous,

true or false, has a great attraction

29



for neurotic and unbalanced per-

sons. It is only too easy to see how

much evil is done by lecturers, and

editors of periodicals who are al-

ways on the look-out for strange

manifestations, absurd miracles,

grotesque apparitions, etc., occur-

rences which the Church has never

endorsed and will be very careful

not to endorse, since, as Cardinal

Ottaviani has said, it is "the enemy

of false miracles.”

The Unpardonable Sin

A question which commonly
arises in reference to the Holy

Spirit is based upon a misinterpre-

tation or misunderstanding of Mark

3:28-30:
"
'Amen I say to you, that

all sins shall be forgiven to the sons

of men, and the blasphemies where-

with they may blaspheme; but who-

ever blasphemes against the Holy

Spirit never has forgiveness, but

will be guilty of an everlasting sin.’

For they said, 'He has an unclean

spirit.’
”

Is there then an unforgive-

able sin against the Holy Ghost?

Every passage of Sacred Scripture

must be understood in the light of

its complete context. Christ, the Son

of God, has been performing good

works in accord with the will of

His Father. The Pharisees accuse

Him of possessing an unclean spirit

and working His wonders through

the power of the devil.

Now it is to be noted that Christ
does not say that this sin against

the Holy Spirit (the Third Person

of the Trinity to Whom are attri-
buted the manifestations of God’s

works of holiness) cannot be for-

given, as though God would not

forgive it if a man repented, but

that it will not be forgiven, mean-

ing that by its very nature it rules

out forgiveness.

Christ begins by stating that all

sins may be forgiven, even that

most horrible one of blasphemy;

but what He calls "blasphemy
against the Spirit,” this will not

be forgiven. And why is such a sin

without forgiveness? Because for

the forgiveness of sin a man must

repent and seek pardon whence

only it can come: from the mercy

of God. The Pharisees sinned by

ascribing the works of God (Holy

Spirit) performed through Christ,

to the power of Satan. While re-

jecting God, the Pharisees could

never have forgiveness, because only

God ultimately can forgive sin.

Actually no sin is unpardonable,

absolutely speaking, either by God,

or the Church that forgives in God’s

name. A properly disposed sinner
will always be pardoned. The text

above refers to those sinners who

refuse to repent and therefore can-

not obtain forgiveness because they

do not wish it.

The Feast of Pentecost

Whitsunday (Pentecost), with

Christmas and Easter, ranks among

the great feasts of Christianity. It

commemorates not only the descent

of the Holy Spirit upon the Apos-

tles and Disciples (Acts 2:1-4) but

also the fruits and effects of that

event: the completion of the work

of redemption, the fullness of grace

for the Church and its children,

and the gift of faith for all nations.

The official name of the feast

is "Pentecost.” This word was al-

ready used in the Old Testament.

30



It comes from the Greek pentekoste

(the fiftieth), meaning the fiftieth

day after Easter. On this day the

Jews celebrated a great religious

festival of thanksgiving for the

year’s harvest, the Feast of First-

fruits (Exodus 23:16). The Jews

used the word Pentecost to indicate

not only the feast itself but also

the whole season of fifty days pre-

ceding it. The early Christian

Church accepted the Jewish usage

and called the whole season from

Easter to Whitsunday "Pentecost.”

It was a festive time of religious

joy, no fasts were kept, and the

faithful prayed standing in honor

of Christ’s resurrection.

The feast itself was held annually

from very early times. The famous

writer Tertullian (third century)

mentions it as a well-established

Christian feast and as the second

date for the solemn baptism of cate-

chumens (the first being Easter).

Pentecost is also called "Whitsun-

day” (White Sunday) because of the

fact that the newly baptized ap-

peared in white garments for the

services of the day.

In the Latin rite of the Church,

the color of the liturgical vestments

worn by the priest is red, symboliz-

ing the love of the Holy Spirit

Who descended upon the Apostles
in tongues of fire.

Variety of Names

The Third Person of the Blessed

Trinity is designated by a variety

of names in the New Testament.
He is called the Spirit of God, the

Spirit of the Lord, and the Spirit

of the Father. Also the Holy Spirit

is called the Spirit of Christ, and

the Spirit of Jesus. Very often the

Third Person of the Blessed Trinity

is called Holy Spirit, or simply the

Spirit. By reason of the various

effects conferred upon the soul, the

Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of

truth, the Spirit of life, and the

Spirit of grace. The Holy Spirit is

also called "Paraclete.” Paraclete

means primarily an advocate or de-

fender, and secondly a comforter,

exhorter, or intercessor.

Holy Spirit

The name "Holy Spirit” is used

today in preference to "Holy

Ghost,” though both expressions

as referring to the Third Person of

the Blessed Trinity are still in com-

mon usage. A ghost is associated
with a disembodied spirit of a dead

person, conceived of as appearing

to the living as a pale, shadowy

apparition, and therefore "Holy

Spirit” is a more appropriate trans-

lation and expression for the Third

Person of the Blessed Trinity.

It is essential for Christians to

have the Holy Spirit reside in them

in order to be spiritual "You, how-

ever, are not carnal but spiritual, if

indeed the Spirit of God dwells in

you. But if anyone does not have

the Spirit of Christ, he does not

belong to Christ” (Romans 8:9).

Christians must preserve in the law

of grace begun with the Holy Spirit,

the principle of the new life of

grace (Galatians 3:3). Hence, their

conduct must not be sensual but

spiritual, that is, according to grace

(Romans 8:4; Galatians 5:16).

Christians must avoid sins of im-

purity, because God is the avenger

of them, because He has called

31



Christians to sanctification, and be-

cause He has given them the Holy

Spirit (1 Thessalonians 4:6-8), Who

dwells in them as in His own

temple: "Do you not know that you

are the temple of God and that the

spirit of God dwells in you? If any-

one destroys the temple of God,

him will God destroy; for holy is

the temple of God, and this temple

you are” (1 Corinthians 3:16). They

are to pray at all times in the Spirit,

that is, in a fervor animated and

inspired by the Holy Spirit "With

all prayer and supplication pray at

all times in the Spirit, and therein

be vigilant in all perseverance and

supplication for all the saints—and

for me” (Ephesians 6:18).

Christians are to practice charity

towards their neighbors (Ephesians

4:30-32), to be considerate of them

and to avoid everything which

fosters disunity, because all were

regenerated by means of the same

Baptism, were incorporated into the

one Mystical Body of Christ

through the Holy Spirit, and were

made to drink of one Holy Spirit,

Who poured out His gifts upon
all the faithful, as in the Sacrament

of Confirmation (1 Corinthians

12:13). They must be solicitous to

preserve the unity of the Spirit

(that is, the unity effected by the

Holy Spirit) in the bond of peace

"... careful to preserve the unity of

the Spirit in the bond of peace: one

body and one Spirit, even as you

were called in one hope of your

calling; one Lord, one faith, one

Baptism; One God and Father of

all, Who is above all, and through-
out all, and in us all” (Ephesians

4:3).

The Holy Ghost is not of an inferior nature to the Father and the

Son, but, so to say, consubstantial and coeternal.

St. Augustine: Of the Faith and the Creed. (4th cent.)

Now what the soul is to the body of man, the Holy Spirit is in the

body of Christ, which is the Church. The Holy Spirit does that in

the whole Church, which the soul does in all the members of a

single body.

St. Augustine: Sermon 267, 4, 4. (5th cent.)

As "to be born” is, for the Son, to be from the Father, so, for the

Holy Ghost, "to be the Gift of God” is to proceed from Father

and Son.

St. Augustine: De Trinitate, 4, 20. (5th cent.)

32



KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS - RELIGIOUS INFORMATION BUREAU
4422 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis 8, Missouri

List of pamphlets available at the above address. One title may be requested at a time free

of charge. Several titles, complete sets, and quantities of individual pamphlets may be ordered

at 7$ for each pamphlet, plus postage.

3. The Bible is a Catholic Book

5. Christ’s Seven Sacraments

6. The Holy Sacrifice — the Catholic
Mass

7. Why the Catholic Church says "Inves-
tigate” — Masons, Inquisition, Nuns

8. Speaking of Tolerance — Controver-
sial periods in history

9. These Men They Call "Knights”

10. Why Catholics Believe As They Do
— Existence of God, Immortality

11. A Short Story of the Popes

12. Let’s Stick to Moses — Ten Com-
mandments explained

13. But Can It Be Found in the Bible? —

Bible not sole rule of faith

14. What Happens After Death?

15. Yes ... I Condemned The Catholic

Church

16. What Do You Mean "Only One True
Church”?

17. But How Can Educated People Be
Catholics?

18. No . . . Belief in God is not Enough!

19. The Real Secret of Successful Mar-

riage

20. The Way to Everlasting Life . . . The
Catholic Church

21. Is the Catholic Church a Menace to

Democracy?

22. But Do You Really Understand the
Bible? — Rules for understanding

23. A Letter to Our Non-Catholic Neigh-
bors — Aspects of Catholic faith

24. Yes, the Mother of God Will Help
You!

25. What Makes a Woman Choose Such
a Life? — Life of a Catholic Nun

26. I’ll Tell You Why I Am a Catholic
27. Why So Many Decide to Become

Catholics — Convert stories
28. Let Us Judge Catholics by the Bible

— Prayer to Saints, unmarried priests
29. But Would Christ Call You A Chris-

tian?

30. But Do You Understand What God
Told Us? — Apostles’ Creed

31. Should Children Learn About God-
in School?

32. The Bible Is Not Our Sole Guide

33. This Was the Faith of Our Fathers

34. These Are Our Seven Deadly Enemies
— Seven capital sins explained

35. Let’s Test Catholic Loyalty — A Good
Catholic is a good citizen

36. Remember the Sabbath . . . Keep It
Holy — The "Sabbath Question”

37. I Am a Catholic Priest
38. But Why the Candles, Holy Water

and Beads ? — Sacramentals
39. The Reformation. Was It Reform or

Revolt?

40. Why I Had to Embrace the Catholic
Faith — Convert stories

41. Yes, Miracles Happened at Fatima

42. Does the Bible Contradict Itself? —
Peter the Rock, Faith and/or Works

43. I Was Warned About the Catholic
Church! — Religious Liberty

44. Why a Woman Needs the Catholic
Faith!

45. The Early Years of the Catholic

Church — First three centuries
46. Yes ... A Priest Can Forgive Your

Sins — Sacrament of Penance

47. But Why Don’t You Pray to the
Saints? — Communion of Saints

48. God’s Story of Creation — Genesis

49. Is the Catholic Church Out of Place

Here? — Catholicism and Loyalty

50. This Is the Catholic Church — Creed,
Sacraments, Mass, Commandments

51. Revelation ... A Divine Message of
Hope — Revelations or Apocalypse

52. Does It Pay to be a Catholic? — How
to be a Catholic

53. Think About Death and Start to Live

— Catholic attitude toward death
54. What Do You Find Wrong With

the Catholic Church?

55. His Name Shall Be Called God With
Us — Divinity of Christ

56. The Infallible Church, Truth or Trick-

ery? — Church of the Scriptures

57. Tell Us About God .

.

. Who Is He?
Existence and nature of God

58. The Word Was Made Flesh-
Humanity of Christ

59. Let Us Pray—Prayer

60. Gift of the Holy Spirit—Confirmation



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in the privacy of your home.

Just send us your name and address and advise that

you desire to learn about the Church by mail.

We will send you an interesting course of instruc-
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Imprimatur:

*JOSEPH E. RITTER

Archbishop of St. Louis

St. Louis, December 22, 1960

Published in United States of America

1st Printing, March, 1961