The Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is God and the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. Jesus Christ often spoke of the Holy Spirit. One of the most solemn occasions was when He charged the Apostles: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19).

    On certain occasions, the Holy Spirit appeared in visible form. When Christ was baptized by Saint John the Baptist, the Holy Ghost appeared in the form of a dove. On Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended with a mighty rushing wind, and rested over the Apostles in the form of tongues and fire.

    The signs are symbolic of the action of the Holy Ghost. The form of a dove symbolizes the gentleness with which the Holy Spirit works in our souls. The rush of wind represents the sstrengthening of the will. The fire represents zeal, fervor, and the illumination of the mind.

    The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. This does not mean that the Holy Spirit began to exist later in time than the Father and the Son. He proceeded from them from all eternity; He is to them as warmth is to fire, existing and proceeding at the same time. There can be no fire without warmth; if there were an eternal fire, there would be an eternal warmth. So since there are the eternal Father and Son, there is the eternal Holy Spirit. The Holy Ghost is the eternal, mutual love that the Father and Son bear each other; but instead of being mere feeling, He is a Person, a Being, God.

    The Holy Spirit is equal to the Father and the Son, because He is God. True, God as the Father and the Son are, the Holy Ghost is eternal, all-knowing, almighty. The Third Person is called Holy Spirit, from the Latin word spiritus, a breath. He was breaathed forth by the Father and the Son. Other names used to refer to the Holy Ghost are: Advocate, Paraclete, Consoler, Comforter, Substantial Love, Spirit of Truth, and Sanctifier,etc.

    The Holy Ghost dwells in the Church as the source of its life, and sanctifies souls through the gift of grace. Although all Divine works depend on all Three Persons, we attribute the work of santification to God the Holy Ghost, because He is the oneness of love of the Father and the Son, and the sanctification of man by grace reveals that boundless love. "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" (1 Corinthians 3:16).

    After Baptism, we have the Holy Spirit in our hearts and He remains with us as long as we have no mortal sin on our souls. This is the gift of "sanctifying grace." Then we say that the Spirit of God dwells in us. We should therefore treat our body with great reverence, for it is the temple of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Ghost is given in a very special manner in the sacraments of Confirmation and Holy Orders.

Tuesday: The Holy Spirit part two

• 1180 A.D.
• Queen Isabella of Hainaut weds the King of France Philip II who would organize the 3rd Crusade with Richard the Lion-Heart.

• 1220 A.D.
• The cornerstone is laid for the Cathedral of Salisbury in England.

• 1282 A.D.
• The papal troops of Pope Martin IV are defeated as the Sicilian garrisons reach Romagna.

• 1462 A.D.
• A papal bull which guaranteed protection of the old Roman ruins is issued by Pope Pius II, 210th successor of Peter.

• 1442 A.D.
• Birth of Edward IV to the Tutor King Henry VI and his wife Margaret of Anjou. Edward would go on to rule as King of England from 1461 until his death in 1483.

• 1521 A.D.
• The Spanish Conqueror Hernando Cortez captures the Aztec city of Tenochtitian.

Historical Events in Church Annals for April 29:

• 998 A.D.
• Otto III, the Holy Roman Emperor who had been coronated by the Pope, turns on the Holy See and invades Rome, capturing the palace Castel Sant'Angelo outside the gates of the Vatican. Otto had proclaimed the antipope John XVI as pope because Pope Gregory V would not adhere to Otto's demands.

• 1109 A.D.
• Death of Saint Hugh from Cluny, an abbot and close friend of fellow monk Hildebrand who became the great Pope Saint Gregory VII. Along with the latter, Hugh was a great reformer of the Church and, during his life, served nine pontiffs faithfully before dying on this date in his beloved Cluny.

• 1111 A.D.
• Death of Saint Robert of Molesmes, one of the founding fathers of the Cistercians along with Saint Alberic and Saint Stephen Harding.

• 1380 A.D.
• Death of Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church. It was through the dauntless efforts of this staunch defender of the faith and traditions that the papacy was returned to Rome after seventy years of exile in Avignon, France. See DAILY LITURGY

• 1429 A.D.
• The teen-aged Saint Joan of Arc enters the beseiged city of Orleans, France to lead her country in victory over the English in the 100 year war and preserve the faith of Holy Mother Church in France.

• 1535 A.D.
• Like Saint Thomas More, the Prior Father John Houghton is executed by King Henry VIII for refusing to pledge loyalty to the king, remaining ever faithful to the Roman Catholic Church.

• 1624 A.D.
• The controversial Cardinal Armand Jean du Plessis Richelieu is appointed chief minister of the Royal Council of France. He would alienate many Catholic countries with his liberalism toward Protestants, often being called the "Cardinal of the Hugenots."

• 1965 A.D.
• Pope Paul VI releases his second encyclical Mense maio on the emphasis of prayers for peace during the month of May.

• 1990 A.D.
• Pope John Paul II, in confirming a decree of April 9th, beatifies Juan Diego, visionary of Guadalupe whose canonization is imminent.

Historical Events in Church Annals for April 30:

• 311 A.D.
• Roman Emperor Galerius issues the first edict of toleration for Christianity ending three centuries of terrible persecutions.

• 1250 A.D.
• Saint Louis IX, King of France, ransoms his crusaders and himself in a deal with the Saracens at Daimetta, allowing the freed troops to go to the Holy Land.

• 1492 A.D.
• Christopher Columbus receives his commission for exploration of the New World from Queen Isabella of Spain.

• 1623 A.D.
• Birth of Franaois de Montmorency Laval who would go on to become the first Bishop of Canada.

• 1774 A.D.
• Pope Clement XIV issues his fourth and final encyclical proclaiming the universal jubilee for 1775 in his Salutis nostra. He would not live to see the Jubilee year, being poisoned in September of 1774.

• 1841 A.D.
• The encyclical Quas vestro is published by Pope Gregory XVI on this date. It was aimed at the bishops of Hungary regarding mixed marriages.

• 1902 A.D.
• Pope Leo XIII releases his 80th of 84 encyclicals during his long reign, Quod votis addressed to the bishops of Austria on the proposed Catholic University there.

• 1921 A.D.
• Nineteen years to the date, Pope Benedict XV issues a similar encyclical In praeclara summorum aimed at professors and students of fine arts in Catholic institutions of learning. It focused on Dante and his works.

• 1926 A.D.
• Benedict's successor Pope Pius XI released his eighth encyclical called Rite expiatis which dealt with Saint Francis of Assis.

Historical Events in Church Annals for May 1:

• 1169 A.D.
• The first Normans land on Irish soil, beginning an emigration that would civilize the country and from it the Irish would evolve.

• 1229 A.D.
• The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II Hohenstaufen leaves the Holy Land though Pope Gregory IX had wanted him to stay to secure everything. His disobedience prompted the Holy Father to excommunicate the German king.

• 1308 A.D.
• Death of King Albert I of Habsburg of Germany, murdered by his disinherited nephew Charles of Valois.

• 1316 A.D.
• Coronation of King Edward Bruce coronated as King of Ireland.

• 1308 A.D.
• Death of Saint Peregrine Laziosi, a Servite priest and healer of cancer to which he is the patron saint of cancer victims.

• 1572 A.D.
• Death of Pope Saint Pius V, 225th successor of Peter and one of the great pontiffs in Church annals. Pius carried out the decrees of the Council of Trent and decreed the use of the Roman Missal. For more see WEEKEND LITURGY