January 26, 2025, 12:00 PM

Several images of the Holy Spirit give us insight into this amazing Third Person of the Trinity who lives in us. The Spirit is gentle, like a dove. The Spirit is strong, like a driving wind. The Spirit is transforming, like fire. The Spirit is cleansing, life-giving water, the Living Water. The Spirit is the Breath of God. I was happy when the Church changed “Holy Ghost” to “Holy Spirit.” As a child Holy Ghost scared me. I never wanted to meet a ghost, not even a Holy one! The Council of Chalcedon, 381 A.D., defined the Divinity of the Holy Spirit, a doctrine we profess in the Creed, “I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life.” The Holy Spirit truly is the Giver of both spiritual and physical Life. In Genesis, God’s Spirit hovered over the water, bringing order into creation (cf. Gn 1:2). Wisdom tells us the Spirit of the Lord fills the whole world, holds all things together, knows every word that is spoken (cf. Wis 1:7). In Revelation, the angel carries John away in the Spirit saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb” (Rev 21:9). So, from the beginning to the end of the Bible, the Holy Spirit brings about order and inspires us through the ups and downs of life. St. Augustine said the Holy Spirit is “love in person,” the Love of the Father for the Son and the Love of the Son for the Father, a Love so great that it’s not just an emotion or an experience, but a Person. Have we noticed that the Holy Spirit nudges us toward God throughout our lives? I hope so. Now you know!