From the Friars: Fire and Wind

Today we celebrate the great Solemnity of Pentecost. We remember the miraculous outpouring of the Holy Spirit manifested by the sound of a strong driving wind and the descent of tongues of fire on the Apostles and Our Blessed Mother. The English translation of the Sequence says: “Come, Holy Spirit, come! …Grateful coolness in the heat; … Bend the stubborn heart and will; Melt the frozen, warm the chill…” Here we see the paradox of how the third Person of the Holy Trinity works in our lives.

How can something warm and cool at the same time? The Spirit came as wind, which has a cooling effect, but also as fire which obviously brings heat. If we remember that the Holy Spirit is Divine Love, the Love between the Father and the Son, we can begin to understand. Charity seeks the good of the other.

If a homeless person is on the street on a freezing cold winter night, we should help them to find a warm place to stay. Some one could likewise need shelter from the hot sun or water to drink. Spiritually, someone could be cold and hard hearted, or they might be overzealous and self-righteous. The former is lacking passion, the latter needs to calm their excessive fervor. The Love of God is always a force for the genuine good of all.

To go a bit further with the paradox, fire warms and purifies but it also destroys. It can destroy a rectory, for example. It is similar with the force of wind. How can something so useful and necessary at the same time be so destructive? Here again the key to understanding is the identity of the Holy Spirit. The human heart that receives God’s Love, and responds with a total gift of self, will find peace, joy and fulfillment. For those who choose to reject their Creator’s invitation, His Love becomes a source of pain and resentment. Our rebellion slowly crushes the good in us.

“Come, Holy Spirit, come! …
Bend the stubborn heart and will;
Melt the frozen,
warm the chill…”

Fr. Peter