Weekly Homily of Father Mraz

Today we continue with our study of the Mass and our look at the Nicene – Constantinopolitan Creed. Today’s part was formulated at the Council of Constantinople and deals with who the Holy Spirit is, how He relates to the Father and the Son, and what are the works of the Holy Spirit.

We started with a controversy on who God is. Do we believe in one God, 3 Gods, or 2 Gods - an evil God who created matter and a good God who created spirit ? We saw that we believe in One God who in 3 distinct persons cooperates to create all things good, material, and spiritual. The Father creates by speaking the word who is the God the Son, the word of God made flesh, and now the Holy Spirit is the life giving power of that word which causes creation to come into existence. If you look at your card you will see “I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life.” This is the role of the Holy Spirit in creation. He is Lord – He is God – He is the authority who as He speaks - we are to obey and act. Who is the Holy Spirit? Is He a creature God created? Does He just represent the power of God as some say today? No, He proceeds from the Father and the Son. The Son is the only Begotten, but what do we mean when we say He “proceeds”? The Father is the First – He is the Father – the source of the life of the Trinity, The Son is the second as He is the only Begotten Son who receives His very substance – God’s Being from the Father. The Father is “Agape love” - Total, entire, eternal, giving of self for the good of another. The Father is eternally pouring Himself out in love. The Son is begotten of the Father, the Son is the eternal love of God the Father which is eternally being poured out. Thus He is begotten of the Father, consubstantial with the Father – of the same stuff of God which the Father is. But who is the Holy Spirit? As Jesus is also Agape love – love entirely and eternally giving of self for the good of another - the Son returns the love He receives to the Father - and the eternally love shared is the Holy Spirit.

Think in terms of a family as an image: The Husband loves his wife and totally gives himself out of love for her good, the Wife loves the husband and totally gives herself out of love for him. The Love they share is the Child conceived out of love and proceeding from them. The Holy Spirit proceeds from the love of the Father and of the Son and is Himself Agape love – Total Entire giving of self for the good of others - so the Holy Spirit gives life to those created by the love of the Father and of the Son. So too going back to the image of the family: When you have a loving family of the Spouses loving each other and loving the children, the children cannot help but bring that love to the world around them - and bring others to their home so they too can experience that love. So often you will see the most loving families’ yards and homes - full of the neighbor kids and stray animals - whom the child brings home to experience the love of his family. So that is the role of the Holy Spirit - to bring the love and life of God to us - and gather us in - and bring us back home to the family life of the Trinity. To make us adopted children of God and have a place in God’s home in Heaven with God’s family. So “the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son and with the Father and Son is adored and glorified.” As we adore God face to face who is not far from us and glorify God for His goodness as well as His power so the Holy Spirit is equally God who is equally adored and glorified - who is never far from us.

Where do we find the Holy Spirit? In the Old Testament – He has spoken through the prophets. What was the job of the prophets? The job of the child who brings the strays home. The job of the prophet is by his preaching and admonitions to correct sinners and bring them back home to God.

But were do we find the Holy Spirit in the New Testament? The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. As the Father ascribed as creator sends the Son who comes to do the Father’s will as Savior. So the Son – Jesus - promises to send the Holy Spirit to sanctify us in the Church - to give us God’s life of Sanctifying Grace in the Sacraments & to bring us home to God.

So we come to the last part of the Creed, the Church. The Church is the work of the Holy Spirit as Creation was the work of the Father and Salvation by suffering, death and resurrection was the work of the Son. The church is where Jesus promised we would find the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth. So we continue with “I believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.” These are the four marks of the Church. The Church is ONE as the Trinity is ONE. Jesus prayed that the Holy Spirit would keep the Church one. Jesus founded only One church. The Church is “one” in that there is only one set of teachings and doctrines taught throughout the world and throughout all time. There is only one set of 7 Sacraments. NOT one, two, three or none as some propose. The church is Holy because God is Holy. St. Paul experienced the Church as being the very Body of Christ of which we are all parts of that Body when Jesus said “Saul, Saul, Why do you persecute ME? Who are you sir? I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.”

So the Church is Jesus Body, the Temple of the Holy Spirit, God’s presence in the world – thus it is Holy. It has the means of holiness the Mass and the sacraments which makes Jesus and His ministry present today, and if you follow its teachings you will be holy, you will become a Saint. Saint comes from the Latin word “Sanctus” “Holy.” The Church is Catholic – that is Universal. Jesus died for all peoples of all nations, races, languages, times and places. The Apostles were given the commission to go out and preach to the whole world and Baptize them. At Pentecost the coming of the Holy Spirit to form the church there were peoples of all nations outside the door who heard the preaching of Peter and 3000 joined the Church the very first day. The Church is Catholic - Universal, it is NOT a national church for peoples of one nation or one race but for everybody. It is Apostolic. It goes back to the Apostles who were sent out. Who received the presence and power of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost and by the laying on of their hands passed the power and authority of the Holy Spirit on to the Bishops and Priests so Jesus ministry could continue unbroken to this day by Apostolic Succession.

What is the role of the Holy Spirit in the church? “I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.” Confess means that you profess this as your belief that there is only one baptism. All who are baptized are united by the Holy Spirit to the Church. This Baptism forgives sins and ends the separation from God caused by Original Sin - but unites us once again in friendship to the Trinity as we are “Baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Uniting ourselves by means of God’s own life, sanctifying Grace, to the Family life of the Trinity. But it does not just end here with our relationship with God on earth, but goes beyond this life. The Holy Spirit who gives us God’s eternal life in Baptism will raise our bodies from the dead as death was conquered by Jesus. We believe in the Resurrection of the Dead. That is why traditionally Catholics are buried in caskets in cemeteries.

“Cemetery” comes from the word meaning “sleeping place” of which you will awake and arise. The Church now permits cremation which was forbidden for nearly 2000 years, but still discourages it and asks that the funeral take place with the body, that the body be cremated after the funeral and that the ashes be buried in blessed ground in the cemetery – NEVER SCATTERED – so the person can have a bodily resurrection like Jesus and Mary did. We are not Angels who are creatures who are just spirits, we are Men who have bodies through which the soul acts. We are incomplete without our bodies. So our bodies will be resurrected and united with our souls in Heaven or in Hell. Our goal is not just resurrection of uniting the body and soul on earth but life in the world to come. Life in Heaven – God’s home! As we are adopted children of God so we live in God’s Home. Like the child out of love brings the stray children and animals to play in their yard to experience the love of their family, So the Holy Spirit brings us home out of love to experience the Eternal love of God’s family, who is Agape love. Entire giving of self for the good of another - and we are asked to love others in the same way we are loved – Love God with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength and our neighbor as ourselves. AMEN – So it is, So be it, So I personally confess I believe.