Liturgical Commission

"COME, HOLY SPIRIT"

+ Geraldo M. Agnelo

The invocation "Come, Holy Spirit" should resound with great intensity and awareness in the hearts of the faithful in 1998, the second year of the three-year period of immediate preparation for the 2000 Jubilee, which is «dedicated in a particular way to the Holy Spirit and his sanctifying presence within the Community of Christ's disciples» (TMA, n. 44). Hence the intentions of the Liturgical Commission of the Central Committee of the Great Jubilee in preparing this volume is to offer a stimulus to reflection, along with suggestions and schemes of prayer aimed at fostering a pilgrimage in faith towards the new Christian millennium.

The volume is arranged in four parts. The first contains a synthesis regarding the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the Church's liturgy, and speaks of how and why the Holy Spirit is at work in the Sacraments, enlivens the liturgical year, teaches believers to pray, and guides the whole Christian existence of the disciples of Jesus Christ, sustaining the renewal of all creation.

The second part sets out an itinerary through the seasons and moments of the liturgical year, which is the great highway along which, at the prompting of the Holy Paraclete, the pilgrim Church moves through history towards the final encounter with the Lord. References to the Holy Spirit are highlighted, as are others to the virtue of hope, to the Sacrament of Confirmation, to the Virgin Mother of Christ and his Church.

The third part gives a series of texts and formularies for the Prayer of the Faithful, which is a moment in the liturgy that ought to be given its proper importance in the Sunday assembly in such a way that a common prayer ascends to the heavenly Father for the unity of the Church and for peace in the world. Suggestions are given for concluding prayers for Sundays of Advent, of Lent, of Easter and the for the Sundays of the Ordinary Time, while for the Easter season, for the days between the Ascension and Pentecost, for certain Solemnities and for celebration of Confirmation complete formularies are provided.

The fourth part gathers together indications and texts for various different celebrations and prayer gatherings, and also prayers for private and for community devotion. In addition to these texts it seemed appropriate to lay stress upon some elements of ritual gesture.

In the course of the year, when the rubrics permit, and in particular on days of reflection organized for parishes, for religious communities, and for various groups and movements, it is appropriate that use be made of formularies in the Missal which provide suitable expressions in prayer of various particular intensions. For this reasons some suggested choices have been made from among votive Masses, Masses for particular needs, or Masses in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which could promote prayer in harmony with the guidelines given for 1998 in Tertio Millennio Adveniente.

In accordance with the Roman tradition of a vigil for certain solemnities during the year, and in particular for Pentecost, the user will find here outline schemes for the celebration of a vigil of common prayer. The vigils of feasts, or the days which immediately precede feasts, are a suitable occasion for preparing in mind and spirit for a fruitful celebration of the holy mysteries, for bringing out certain themes, for assimilation in meditation and in prolonged prayer of the calls which God never ceases to address to anyone who lends an attentive ear. In a similar fashion, with a view to prayer gatherings of one kind or another, seven celebrations of the Word are arranged around the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Finally, there are also schemes for prayer of adoration before the Blesed Sacrament, around the ancient Byzantine Akathistos hymn in honour of the Mother of God, invocations of the Holy Spirit, and suggestions on how to meditate in praying the rosary upon the presence of the Holy Spirit in the mysteries of the life of Christ, to which his Mother was intimately bound.

This offering of the Liturgical Commission is by no means exhaustive, and is intended only to offer certain pointers. The normal setting for personal and community preparation for a deeper communion with the Lord Jesus Christ, living within us by the work of the Holy Spirit, are the celebrations of the Church throughout the liturgical year, especially the Sunday celebration of the Eucharist. This is the ordinary path by which in particular we are all called to rediscover and to deepen our appreciation of the meaning of the presence and the action of the Holy Spirit. The texts and suggestions given in this volume are simply aids which in their variety of forms may, we hope, serve to reawaken interest and sensitivity towards Christian prayer, under the guidance of that interior Master who is the Holy Spirit.