Pope Francis on listening to the Holy Spirit

Beloved:
He saved us and called us to a holy life,
not according to our works but according to his own design
and the grace bestowed on us in Christ Jesus before time began,
but now made manifest through the appearance of our savior Christ Jesus,
who destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
                       1 Timothy 1:9-10

Happy Second Week in Lent!

In his February 22 weekly general audience, Pope Francis shared his thoughts on the role of the Spirit in evangelization. This is a summary from usccb.org by Cindy Wooden on the Catholic News Service. The Pope’s entire talk is on video at usccb.org. "It is very sad to see the church as if it were a parliament," which is what happens when Catholics rely more on their personal opinions than on the Holy Spirit,” Pope Francis said. "The church is something else; it is a community of men and women who believe in and proclaim Jesus Christ, moved by the Holy Spirit and not by their own ideas."

The Acts of the Apostles recounts how the disciples were divided over the question of whether pagans who came to Christianity were required to follow Jewish law. "They could have sought a good compromise between tradition and innovation: some rules are observed, others are left out. Yet the apostles do not follow this human wisdom, but adapt themselves to the work of the Spirit, who had anticipated them by descending upon the pagans just as on them. . . Despite having different sensitivities and opinions, they listen to the Spirit," he said. The Spirit taught the disciples something, "which is also valid today: every religious tradition is useful if it facilitates the encounter with Jesus."

Without listening together to the Spirit, he said, the church runs the risk of falling prey to ideological divisions. "But where is the Holy Spirit? Watch out, the Gospel is not an idea or an ideology, it is a proclamation that touches and changes your heart. But if you hide in an idea, you are making the Gospel a political party, an ideology or a social club."

Pope Francis asked, "How many of us pray to the Holy Spirit? 'No, father, I pray to Mary, I pray to the saints, I pray to Jesus, sometimes I say the Lord's Prayer so I pray to the Father,'" he imagined some responding. But it is the Holy Spirit "who moves your heart, who carries you forward, gives you consolation and the desire to evangelize and be a missionary."