The Holy Spirit marks the life of Jesus and the Church much more profoundly than we might think. The evangelist Luke, who also wrote the Acts of the Apostles, emphasizes the Holy Spirit right at the beginning in the conception of John the Baptist and Jesus. Then, the Spirit is present again at the baptism and after Jesus’ stay in the desert when his mission begins. Luke writes how the fullness of joy in the Spirit overwhelms Jesus when the disciples return from their mission in the Spirit. The active power of God the Father accompanies Jesus throughout his mission.
Jesus gives up his spirit on the cross, and from there the adventure of the newborn Church takes off in a new way. At the Ascension, the temptation is strong to “stay in place” while looking up to heaven. Immediately, the heavenly messenger—an angel, in the language of the New Testament—tells them to stay in Jerusalem to receive “strength from above”. Even today, there is a tendency to seek God “upwards”, to try to reach him up high. But the Holy Spirit sends us in the opposite direction.
In Luke’s writings, the Holy Spirit is the one who propels the Church towards others and becomes a missionary Spirit. Through the Easter mystery, we inherit the mission of Jesus (Acts 2). How do we know that we are acting in the Spirit? By seeing how the life and mission of Jesus unfolds in us. As Saint John says in his letters (1 Jn 4), we know that the Spirit dwells in us when we love as Jesus loved, when we serve our neighbour as Jesus did the will of his Father.
The Easter Triduum, until Pentecost, must not be broken up into different parts. A profound unity exists between Holy Week and Eastertide. The Spirit comes from above and gives rise to the unique mission of Jesus and leads him to the end of his earthly life. But that is not the end of the dynamism he brings. It continues in us.
The Spirit comes from above, but not so that our gaze remains “fixed on heaven”, but so that our hearts share God’s concern for his people and his creation. This is the great lesson of St. Paul’s famous hymn to charity (1 Cor 13). We can do a thousand things, each one more spectacular than the next, but if we do not have love, then we are clanging cymbals. Paul more than anyone else spoke of the role of the Spirit in community life: There is only one Spirit, one people, one God. Instead of separating us from others, instead of keeping us at a distance, the Spirit unifies us and makes us one community. Different, but united in loving-kindness: This is the work of the Spirit.
