Day 149: The Holy Spirit Recalls Christ’s Mystery (1099-1103)

• It’s Day 149!!

• THE HOLY SPIRIT RECALLS THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST

• The Liturgy is the MEMORIAL of the mystery of Salvation

• MEMORIAL doesn’t mean we just remember it like how we remember Memorial Day (in the United States) or Thanksgiving (in the United States)

• The Jewish and Scriptural concept of MEMORIAL is in Paragraph 1103

• It is the Greek word ANAMNESIS

• It is RECALLING

• It is REMEMBRANCE

• It is COMPLETELY UNIQUE

• You are not just simply remembering a past event

• BUT…

• In calling that past event to mind, you are PRESENT TO IT ONCE AGAIN

• That is why THE HOLY SPIRIT RECALLS THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST

• ALL that Jesus has done is brought to us HERE AND NOW

• That is what we are going to talk about today in Scripture and in the Sacraments

• So let’s pray!!

Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven, we trust you. We love you. And we dedicate this day to you. Whether this is the beginning of the day for us, the middle of the day for us, or the very end of the day. This day is yours. And by the Power of your Holy Spirit, we ask that you please help us to remember to never forget all that you have done for us. Not only in the past through your Son, Jesus Christ. But also what you have done for us yesterday in that past, the recent past. What you have done for us at these beats and moments in our own life history, what you are doing for us right now. Help us to never ever forget. Help us to always remember that you are present, that you are here, and that your Holy Spirit makes present and actual what your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, made possible. We make this prayer in the mighty name of that same Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ as we pray. Amen”

• So there we have it!!

• THE HOLY SPIRIT RECALLS THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST

• Tomorrow we will talk about THE HOLY SPIRIT MAKES PRESENT THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST

• This is in a SACRAMENTAL way

• The Sacraments

• The Power of God

• The Action of God

• The reality

• The saving work of God is made present to us and is brought to us here and now

• BUT…

• Today’s section is about the Holy Spirit is the one who inspires the Word of God

• Sacred Scripture is not only PROCLAIMED in the Mass

• It is also EXPLAINED in the Mass

• Paragraph 1099 says, “The Spirit and the Church cooperate to manifest Christ and his work of salvation in the liturgy.” 

• Have you ever thought about this?

• Jesus’ work of salvation comes to us in the Liturgy

• How?

• The Holy Spirit makes PRESENT, ACTIVE, AND ACTUAL what Jesus made POSSIBLE

• The Church cooperates with that

• As often as we celebrate Mass and God’s Word is proclaimed, His works are proclaimed 

• There is this cooperation here where the Holy Spirit recalls ALL that Jesus has done and makes it PRESENT

• His work of salvation is PRESENT TO US and REVEALED TO US in the Liturgy

• Paragraph 1099 continues, “Primarily in the Eucharist, and by analogy in the other sacraments, the liturgy is the memorial of the mystery of salvation.” 

• What do we say at Mass?

• THE MYSTERY OF FAITH!!

• Everyone responds, “We proclaim your death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection until you come again.”

• THAT is the memorial

• THAT is the MYSTERY OF SALVATION

• Paragraph 1099 continues, “The Holy Spirit is the Church’s living memory.”

• Paragraph 1100 says, “The word of God.”

• When we hear the Word of God proclaimed in Scripture and Mass there is the WORKS of God are proclaimed and the WORD of God is proclaimed and we REMEMBER this

• Paragraph 1100 says, “In the celebration of the liturgy, Sacred Scripture is extremely important. From it come the lessons that are read and explained in the homily and the psalms that are sung. It is from the Scriptures that the prayers, collects, and hymns draw their inspiration and their force, and that actions and signs derive their meaning.”

• The Holy Spirit gives us an UNDERSTANDING to God’s Word according to the disposition of our hearts

• The Holy Spirit makes God’s Word PRESENT through the Scriptures being proclaimed 

• The Sacraments are ALWAYS powerful 

• The Sacraments are ALWAYS efficacious

• The Sacraments are ALWAYS present

• The Sacraments are ALWAYS doing something

• BUT…

• Whether or not they do something in OUR HEARTS is based off of the DISPOSITION OF OUR HEARTS

• The same thing is true when it comes to God’s Word being proclaimed

• God’s Word is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword

• WE KNOW THIS!!

• We also know that sometimes we are INDIFFERENT

• Sometimes we don’t have an OPEN DISPOSITION to really hear God’s Word

• Sometimes we are not ACTIVELY LISTENING and we are not receptive to God’s Word

• The Holy Spirit HELPS US

• Because we do not know how to PRAY as we ought to

• Because we do not even know how to HEAR GOD’S WORD as we ought to

• God’s Word is explained in the homily

• We get to receive this and faith gets to be nourished in our hearts

• THIS IS SO IMPORTANT!!

• Paragraph 1102 says, “The proclamation does not stop with a teaching; it elicits the response of faith as consent and commitment, directed at the covenant between God and his people.”

• THIS IS SO VITAL FOR ALL OF US!!

• ESPECIALLY when we are hearing God’s Word at Mass, reading God’s Word, or listening to something like The Bible in a Year

• The Word of God is PROCLAIMED and then it is EXPLAINED

• BUT…

• THAT IS NOT THE END!!

• It is supposed to elicit the RESPONSE OF FAITH AS CONSENT AND COMMITMENT

• What does that mean?

• It means we hear God’s Word and we say YES!!

• It means we hear God’s Word and we are not indifferent

• It means we hear God’s Word and we are not argumentative

• It is ok to wrestle with Faith

• It is ok to wrestle with what God’s Word is saying to us

• BUT…

• We want to arrive at this place of, “Ok Lord, teach me. Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening.”

• Remember what the Prophet Samuel said?

• The voice of God calls to him and Samuel says, “Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening.”

• To have that kind of OPEN DISPOSITION when God’s Word is proclaimed is to receive God’s Word WITH CONSENT

• The next level after that is COMMITMENT

• Sometimes we miss out on this part

• Even if we are attentive and listen to God’s Word with our heart, mind, soul, and strength and we say AMEN

• Sometimes we forget the COMMITMENT

• “God, what are you asking of me? What are you inviting me to do? What kind of commitment can I make as a result of your Word being proclaimed and explained?”

• THIS IS REALLY REALLY CRITICAL FOR ALL OF US!!

• Whenever we approach Scripture, either privately or in the Liturgy, to be able to say “Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening.”

• “Even if I’m wrestling with this, I give my AMEN to this.”

• THEN MAKE A COMMITMENT!!

• “Lord, you have spoken. I was listening. Here is what you are calling me to do. Maybe you are calling me to purify my heart in one way. Maybe you are calling me to stop doing something. Maybe you are calling me to start doing something. Maybe you are calling me to stay the course. Whatever it is, this is my response.”

• RECEPTIVITY - speak, Lord. Your servant is listening

• CONSENT - even if wrestling with it, say AMEN

• COMMITMENT - DO SOMETHING

• Paragraph 1103 says, “Anamnesis. The liturgical celebration always refers to God’s saving interventions in history.”

• Anamnesis brings the events of the past PRESENT to the community as often as those words are PROCLAIMED

• It is a MASSIVELY MYSTERIOUS thing

• Tomorrow we will talk about how God really truly IS PRESENT

• THE EPICLESIS brings down the very presence of God upon the gift of bread and wine and ultimately causes them to become the BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST

• BUT…

• This ANAMNESIS that happens when the Word of God is proclaimed, we are there and we are present to this

• This ANAMNESIS when the Sacrament is lived out and made present to us as well

• We are present to the REALITY 

• We are present to the SAVING ACTION OF JESUS

• Hope this makes sense!! 

• IT IS BEAUTIFUL!!

• IT IS REMARKABLE!!

• IT IS FASCINATING!!

• Fr. Mike is praying FOR YOU!!

• Please pray for Fr. Mike and for each other!!

• I cannot WAIT to see you tomorrow!!