Since listening more to Catholic radio and following more Catholic media and social media, I’ve learned quite a lot that I had no idea about growing up as a “Cradle Catholic” in the 80s and 90s. This morning was no different. It has been one of those days where I heard something new, and then to make sure that the point was really hammered home, it has been coming up all morning. What I heard about today was the Pentecost Novena, or the Novena to the Holy Spirit for the Seven Gifts.
As I really think about it, the thought was really planted a few months ago when my church offered a Life In The Spirit Seminar which (from what I had heard) is from the Charismatic Movement in the Catholic Church. It definitely peaked my interest, but with a growing family and the seminar requiring a night out per week for several weeks in a row, I decided that it wasn’t the right time.
Shortly after Easter I started listening to Raymond Arroyo’s audiobook Mother Angelica: The Remarkable Story of a Nun, Her Nerve, and a Network of Miracles and heard that she was quite sceptical of the movement in her early experiences with it. That is until The Spirit took over. That story made me wish even more that I had gone through the seminar.
Then last week at Mass I heard that the seminar was starting up again this weekend, so after some discussions with my wife I decided that it might be the time for me to attend. I still hadn’t (and as a matter of fact haven’t) officially signed up for it yet, but this morning before Adoration I was going through some of my daily emails and one of them mentioned that I should start the Pentecost Novena today. I really didn’t think much of it at the time, but reading something like that before my Holy Hour, you know that wasn’t the only time the thought came up.
While driving to work I was listening to EWTN (as I’ve been doing a lot of since getting our new van with a satellite radio free trial) and the fact that the Novena starts today came up again. It still hadn’t really caught my attention until while at work I was listening to the Daily Mass on EWTN and Fr. Joseph Mary of the Franciscan Missionaries of the Eternal Word was talking in his homily about the Novena as well. He mentioned that it was the oldest recorded Novena and is mentioned in the first chapter of Acts (Acts 1:4,8,13-14) where Jesus tells the apostles that “before many days [they] shall be Baptised by the Holy Spirit, that they “shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon [them]” and then following the ascension they pray for the nine days before Pentecost. He mentioned that the Apostles were baptised in the Holy Spirit and we all know what happened on Pentecost. Fr. Joseph Mary then directed those listening to the EWTN website where there is a link to the Novena and he concluded with the Prayer to the Holy Spirit.
I went to the website and printed out the Novena to do with my family (or at least with my wife as the children are still quite young) and invite you to do the same. Our country and our world is in great need of help from the Holy Spirit, and He needs us so that He can work through us.
Peace and Prayers,
Catholic Daddy
Catholic Daddy 