Day 1 of Novena to the Holy Spirit

 
Dear Friend,

When you and I give a gift, we do so without expecting anything in return…

Because a gift is not a real gift when it includes the notion of obligation. But still, there is engrained in us a general confidence that the gift will be received with gratitude and even, I might add, that it will be used well.

The same is true for you and me when the Holy Ghost imparts to us His gifts. Without question or agreement, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity generously infuses in us His sublime gifts at our Baptism. It is our Catholic duty to receive them with gratitude and to develop these Heavenly treasures wisely.A soldier is trained to know the instincts of his commander and follow his lead for success in battle. So too, we Soldiers of Christ are given the grace through the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit to recognize the inspirations of the Holy Spirit and follow them to defeat the Devil’s base aspirations for us. Our spiritual lives are gloriously enriched by this outpouring because it is the Holy Spirit who incites every salutary activity in us.

We must be on our guard so we do not fall prey to the subtle whispers of the spirit of the world, which are in stark contrast to the Holy Spirit’s promptings. Into our own homes which should be domiciles of virtue, an influx of temptations to the spirit of the world has arisen. Our hearts and souls become disquieted by rampaging materialism. Before we know it, the media and entertainment of our secular culture sways us to believe that the moral teachings of the Church are flexible, that perhaps Scripture is true, but does not really apply to us in our circumstances.

My friend, we need the spiritual inspirations of the Divine now more than ever. We must deepen our understanding of them. We must advance them in our daily life. We must answer their gentle promptings for sanctity in our lives.

For this reason, I want to invite you to pray with me a Pentecost Novena to the Holy Spirit, asking for each of His Seven Gifts to flourish in our souls, so we can respond generously to His will!

This Novena will begin today, June 1st and end on the Feast of Pentecost, Sunday, June 9th.

Upon Jesus’s command, Our Lady, the Apostles, and disciples said the first novena by praying for nine days in the upper room for the coming of the Holy Spirit.

Please join me in praying this Novena as a reflection of the first of all novenas. When you sign-up, you will continue to receive a reminder e-mail every day with a link to the Novena for the day.

Sign-Up to Pray the Pentecost Novena to the Holy Spirit!

June 1-9, 2019

May God bless you and your loved ones.

Your friend in Jesus and Mary,

Thomas J. McKenna 
Founder and President
Catholic Action                                      
http://www.catholicaction.org/

P.S. - We pray during this Novena for the ordinary gifts which help us fulfill our state in life. Lumen Gentium 12 said of the extraordinary charismatic gifts: ". . . they are not to be rashly sought, nor should one presumptuously expect of them the fruits of the apostolic works; but the judgment as to whether or not they are genuine, and as to their ordered use pertains to those who are in charge in the Church…”