Seeking Joy and Guidance from the Holy Spirit
My dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
Easter is the season of hope.
As the Letter to the Hebrews assures us, “We have [hope] as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul” (Heb 6:19). We are truly anchored regardless of the storms we encounter every day. For Christians, life’s difficulties are not eliminated. They are endured with confidence and transformed by the joyful hope of the Risen Christ.
We know that we need the help of God’s grace to face the pain and the weariness of daily life. We know that we need the Spirit’s sevenfold gifts (wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord) to sustain us in life’s journey.
That was certainly true for the first disciples of Jesus. Many faced bitter persecution and death as they carried out the Lord’s great commission to go out to the whole world as missionaries and to preach the Gospel and heal the sick in his name. They experienced no end of suffering and disappointment, but they served the Lord joyfully because they were empowered by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and they were burning with the fire of God’s love.
In every generation the whole Church receives gifts from the Holy Spirit. We call these “charisms” from a Greek word that means “favor” or “freely given gift.” The charisms given to the Church by the Holy Spirit reflect the richness and diversity of the Christian life. They help us to experience life in Christ in a variety of ways and in distinct circumstances. As noted in the 2023 Synod Synthesis Report: A Synodal Church in Mission (see below), “The Church has always benefitted from the gift of charisms, be it from the most extraordinary to the simplest. Through them the Holy Spirit rejuvenates and renews the Church with joy and gratitude…. The Church’s charismatic dimension is made manifest in the rich and varied forms of consecrated life. This testimony has contributed to renewing the life of the ecclesial community in every age and provides an antidote to the perennial temptation towards worldliness.”
Continue reading Cardinal Joseph Tobin’s latest newsletter.
