1. The revelation
of the Holy Spirit as a person distinct from the Father and the Son,
foreshadowed in the Old Testament, becomes clear and explicit in the
New.
It is true that the New Testament writings do not offer us
systematic teaching on the Holy Spirit. However, by gathering the
many statements found in the writings of Luke, Paul and John, it is
possible to perceive the convergence of these three great currents
of New Testament revelation concerning the Holy Spirit.
2. Compared to the other two Synoptic Gospels, the Evangelist Luke
offers us a far more developed pneumatology.
In the Gospel he intends to show us that Jesus alone possesses the
fullness of the Holy Spirit. Of course, the Spirit also comes upon
Elizabeth, Zechariah, John the Baptist and especially Mary herself,
but it is only Jesus, throughout his earthly life, who fully
possesses God’s Spirit. He is conceived by the work of the Holy
Spirit (cf. Lk 1:35). The Baptist will say of him: “I baptize you
with water; but he who is mightier than I is coming ... he will
baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire” (Lk 3:16).
Before being baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire, Jesus was
baptized in the Jordan and “the Holy Spirit descended upon him in
bodily form, as a dove” (Lk 3:22). Luke stresses that Jesus not only
goes into the wilderness “led by the Spirit”, but that he goes there
“full of the Holy Spirit” (Lk 4:1) and is victorious there over the
tempter. He undertakes his mission “in the power of the Spirit” (Lk
4:14). In the synagogue at Nazareth, when he officially begins his
mission, Jesus applies to himself the prophecy of the book of Isaiah
(cf. 61:1-2): “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has
anointed me to preach good news to the poor” (Lk 4:18). All of
Jesus’ evangelizing activity is thus guided by the Spirit.
This same Spirit will sustain the Church’s evangelizing mission, as
the Risen One had promised his disciples: “Behold, I send the
promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city, until you are
clothed with power from on high” (Lk 24:49). According to the book
of Acts, the promise is fulfilled on the day of Pentecost: “And they
were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other
tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4). Joel’s
prophecy is thus realized: “In the last days it shall be, God
declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your
sons and your daughters shall prophesy” (Acts 2:17). Luke sees the
Apostles as representing the People of God of the last days and
rightly emphasizes that this Spirit of prophecy involves the whole
People of God.
3. St Paul in turn highlights the aspect of renewal and the
eschatological dimension of the Spirit’s work: the Spirit is seen as
the source of the new and eternal life that Jesus communicates to
his Church.
In the First Letter to the Corinthians we read that Christ, the new
Adam, by virtue of the Resurrection, became “a life-giving spirit”
(1 Cor 15:45): he was transformed by the vital power of God’s Spirit
so as to become, in turn, a principle of new life for believers.
Christ communicates this life precisely through the outpouring of
the Holy Spirit.
Believers no longer live as slaves under the law, but as sons,
because in their hearts they have received the Spirit of the Son and
can cry out: “Abba, Father!” (cf. Gal 4:5-7; Rom 8:14-16). It is a
life “in Christ”, that is, a life of belonging exclusively to him
and of incorporation into the Church: “For by one Spirit we were all
baptized into one body” (cf. 1 Cor 12:13). The Holy Spirit gives
rise to faith (1 Cor 12:3), pours love into our hearts (cf. Rom 5:5)
and guides the prayer of Christians (cf. Rom 8:26).
As the principle of a new existence, the Holy Spirit also produces a
new and active dynamism in the believer: “If we live by the Spirit,
let us also walk by the Spirit” (Gal 5:25). This new life is opposed
to that of the “flesh”, whose desires displease God and enclose the
person in the suffocating prison of an ego turned in on itself (cf.
Rom 8:5-9). Instead, by opening himself to the Holy Spirit, the
Christian can taste the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, etc. (cf. Gal 5:16-24).
According to Paul, however, what we now possess is only a “down
payment” or the first fruits of the Spirit (cf. Rom 8:23; cf. also 2
Cor 5:5). In the final resurrection, the Spirit will complete his
masterpiece by bringing about, for believers, the full
“spiritualization” of their bodies (cf. 1 Cor 15:43-44) and in some
way involving the whole universe in salvation as well (cf. Rom
8:20-22).
4. In the Johannine perspective, the Holy Spirit is above all the
Spirit of truth, the Paraclete.
Jesus announces the gift of the Spirit as he completes his earthly
work: “When the Paraclete comes, the Spirit of truth who comes from
the Father — and whom I myself will send from the Father — he will
bear witness on my behalf. You must bear witness as well, for you
have been with me from the beginning” (Jn 15:26ff.). In further
explaining the Spirit’s role, Jesus adds: “He will guide you into
all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but
whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the
things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what
is mine and declare it to you” (Jn 16:13-14). Thus, the Spirit will
not bring a new revelation, but will guide the faithful to an
interiorization and deeper penetration of the truth revealed by
Jesus.
What does it mean to call the Spirit of truth the Paraclete? Bearing
in mind the Johannine perspective which views Jesus’ trial as one
that continues in the disciples who will be persecuted because of
his name, the Paraclete is the one who defends the cause of Jesus,
convincing the world “of sin, of righteousness and of judgement” (Jn
16:7f.). The fundamental sin which the Paraclete will make known is
not to have believed in Christ. The justice he indicates is that
which the Father gave his crucified Son by glorifying him in the
Resurrection and Ascension into heaven. The judgement, in this
context, consists in revealing the sin of those who, dominated by
Satan, the prince of this world (cf. Jn 16:11), rejected Christ (cf.
Dominum et Vivificantem, n. 27). With his inner assistance, the Holy
Spirit is therefore the defender and supporter of Christ’s cause,
the One who leads the minds and hearts of disciples to full
acceptance of the “truth” of Jesus.
To the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors the Holy Father said:
I warmly welcome the group Up With People, and I encourage you in
your efforts to promote greater co-operation and understanding among
peoples through your art and community service. I extend a special
greeting to the Buddhist group from Chiang Mai in Thailand. Upon all
the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors, especially those from
England, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Australia, Indonesia, Singapore,
Thailand, Canada and the United States of America, I invoke the
abundant blessings of almighty God.
Return to General Audiences on
the Holy Spirit...
