As he emphasized on the principal role of the Holy Spirit in the Christian faith, Pope Francis said that it should be back at the Church’s center to bring harmony from division and confusion in today’s world.
In his homily at St. Peter’s Basilica for Pentecost Sunday, May 28, the Holy Father stressed that the Holy Spirit, being the “soul of the Church”,makes every Christians connected to the Lord and makes the faith alive.
“If the world is divided, if the Church is polarized, if hearts are broken, let us not waste time in criticizing others and growing angry with one another; instead, let us invoke the Holy Spirit. [Without the Holy Spirit], the Church is lifeless, faith is mere doctrine, morality mere duty, pastoral work mere toil. … With him, on the other hand, faith is life, the love of the Lord conquers us, and hope is reborn,” he said.
“Let us put the Holy Spirit back at the center of the Church; otherwise, our hearts will not be consumed by love for Jesus but by love for ourselves,” he added.
Inviting everyone to seek for the Holy Spirit every day by praying, the Pope also pointed out that it also restores harmony and creates intimacy with God as it heals those who are “wounded by evil, broken by hurts, torn apart by feelings of guilt.”
The Holy Father ended his homily by praying to the Holy Spirit along with thousands in attendance at the Basilica.
“Holy Spirit, Spirit of Jesus and of the Father, inexhaustible wellspring of harmony, to you we entrust the world; to you we consecrate the Church and our hearts. Come, Creator Spirit, harmony of humanity, renew the face of the earth. Come, giver of gifts, harmony of the Church, make us united in you. Come, Spirit of forgiveness, harmony of the heart, transform us as only you can, through the intercession of Mary,” he prayed. (By Lem Leal Santiago/RCAM-AOC | Screenshot from EWTN)
