I liked this homily by the Pope last Tuesday. For
me it is an exam of conscience as well, not just for the Church! If I resist the Holy
Spirit, how can I love my neighbour?
Pope Francis’ homily at the
mass was centred on the theme of the Holy Spirit and our resistance to it. It
took its inspiration from the first reading of the day which was the story of
the martyrdom of St. Stephen who described his accusers as stubborn people who
were always resisting the Holy Spirit.
Put frankly, the Pope
continued, “the Holy Spirit upsets us because it moves us, it makes us walk, it
pushes the Church forward.” He said that we wish “to calm down the Holy Spirit,
we want to tame it and this is wrong.” Pope Francis said “that’s because the
Holy Spirit is the strength of God, it’s what gives us the strength to go
forward” but many find this upsetting and prefer the comfort of the familiar.
Nowadays, he went on,
“everybody seems happy about the presence of the Holy Spirit but it’s not
really the case and there is still that temptation to resist it.” The Pope said
one example of this resistance was the Second Vatican council which he called
“a beautiful work of the Holy Spirit.” But 50 years later, “have we done
everything the Holy Spirit was asking us to do during the Council,” he asked.
The answer is “No,” said Pope Francis. “We celebrate this anniversary, we put
up a monument but we don’t want it to upset us. We don’t want to change and
what’s more there are those who wish to turn the clock back.” This, he went on,
“is called stubbornness and wanting to tame the Holy Spirit.”
The Pope said the same thing
happens in our personal life. “The Spirit pushes us to take a more evangelical
path but we resist this.” He concluded his homily by urging those present not
to resist the pull of the Holy Spirit. “Submit to the Holy Spirit,” he said,
“which comes from within us and makes go forward along the path of holiness.”
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