Sunday, May 15, 2005
Happy Birthday Church!
It's Pentecost today, another great holiday lifted from the Jewish calendar. You should read up on the Holy Spirit today and pray for His gifts since it is, after all, His big day.
So let's learn a smidge about this Fellow.
The doctrine of the Catholic Church concerning the Holy Ghost forms an integral part of her teaching on the mystery of the Holy Trinity, of which St. Augustine (De Trin., I, iii, 5), speaking with diffidence, says: "In no other subject is the danger of erring so great, or the progress so difficult, or the fruit of a careful study so appreciable". The essential points of the dogma may be resumed in the following propositions:
The Holy Ghost is the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity.
Though really distinct, as a Person, from the Father and the Son, He is consubstantial with Them; being God like Them, He possesses with Them one and the same Divine Essence or Nature.
He proceeds, not by way of generation, but by way of spiration, from the Father and the Son together, as from a single principle.
New Advent
Deep stuff, and confusing. Augustine has some excellent works that help illuminate the subject, I think, such as De Trinitate.
What are the gifts that we should be praying for? How about:
Wisdom
Understanding
Counsel
Fortitude
Knowledge
Piety
Fear of the Lord
Not to mention the nine charismata.
The Holy Spirit also leads us to growth in the Virtues, and towards the Gifts. Yes, these are all different things, St. Thomas has a lovely piece entitled Whether the Gifts differ from the virtues?
So let's learn a smidge about this Fellow.
The doctrine of the Catholic Church concerning the Holy Ghost forms an integral part of her teaching on the mystery of the Holy Trinity, of which St. Augustine (De Trin., I, iii, 5), speaking with diffidence, says: "In no other subject is the danger of erring so great, or the progress so difficult, or the fruit of a careful study so appreciable". The essential points of the dogma may be resumed in the following propositions:
The Holy Ghost is the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity.
Though really distinct, as a Person, from the Father and the Son, He is consubstantial with Them; being God like Them, He possesses with Them one and the same Divine Essence or Nature.
He proceeds, not by way of generation, but by way of spiration, from the Father and the Son together, as from a single principle.
New Advent
Deep stuff, and confusing. Augustine has some excellent works that help illuminate the subject, I think, such as De Trinitate.
What are the gifts that we should be praying for? How about:
Wisdom
Understanding
Counsel
Fortitude
Knowledge
Piety
Fear of the Lord
Not to mention the nine charismata.
The Holy Spirit also leads us to growth in the Virtues, and towards the Gifts. Yes, these are all different things, St. Thomas has a lovely piece entitled Whether the Gifts differ from the virtues?
