Saturday, March 28, 2009

Father Cantalamessa on the Holy Spirit

The preacher to the papal household, Father Cantalamessa, offered a profound meditation on the relationship between the Holy Spirit, the individual, and the Church during his third Lenton sermon of 2009.

The entire homily can be read at:

http://www.zenit.org/article-25499?l=english


Especially interesting from an apologetics perspective is the fourth section, where Father addresses the necessity of the Spirit's guidance of the visible Catholic Church as well as the danger of individuals relying only on this guidance without the interior docility to the Holy Spirit.

This article is especially useful for Protestants to read, since many harbor a fear that obedience to the church will somehow stifle the interior movement of the Holy Spirit in their lives. I know of few writings that address this concern so succinctly, directly, and movingly as this homily. The fact that the homily was addressed to the papal household should reassure Protestants that the Catholic Church from the top down appreciates the interior movement of the Holy Spirit in the individual as much as it recognizes the importance of the guidance of the church that the Spirit provides.

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