Pentecost

 In the Gospel Jesus tells his disciples: "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth" (Jn 15: 13) and St Paul instructs the Galatians: "If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit." (Gal 5: 25) A guide is someone who helps me to find my destination or to explain the significance of what I am looking at, when I am in a museum or tourist attraction. Called to be missionary disciples we do not presume to have full knowledge. As disciples we are apprentices to the Holy Spirit however, as missionary, we are sent out into a world that is often difficult to navigate. Thus, we need the Holy Spirit to guide us to fulfil our vocation to serve the Lord. Guidance can come in many forms: prayer, Scripture reading, the papal Magisterium, holy parishioners, etc. What is crucial is the openness of the individual to the Holy Spirit and a willingness to discern the spirits. Not all spirits come from God: "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are of God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world." (1 Jn 4: 1) Let us take courage, nevertheless, this Pentecost and open ourselves to the Holy Spirit who bestow on us, as a sign that we are on the right path, those fruits listed by St Paul: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." (Gal 5: 22)