Novena Holy Spirit

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On the original Ascension Thursday, Jesus instructed his followers to collect and to wait upon the Gift from On High to descend upon them. After the watching prayer, the Great Event of Pentecost came to them, as the Holy Spirit was given for all believers to live the life of Christ and become one body in Him. Acts chapters 1 and 2 describe this experience. John chapter 16 explains much about what Jesus taught of it. Joel chapter 3 and Isaiah chapter 11 describes how the Spirit in the Messiah was prophetically expected. Hebrews 4 helps us see how we are in that One Liturgy of God, with the saints above and our present Church being offered up together in Christ Jesus by The Spirit. Thus, WE PRAY in this week that leads up to PENTECOST*, just as the first Christians did, and we anticipate the Lord’s response to us. We celebrate the Birth of the Church* by asking for the 7-fold gifts of the Holy Spirit to be stirred up in us, and demonstrate our openness to His outpouring.

Come Holy Spirit, Come! Invigorate me! Please direct and counsel and empower me to imitate Jesus. Help me to become the Christian I am meant to be. Help me to live the Christian life, so to bless the Church and fulfill my part in the Body of Christ of witness of His Life to the world. I am sorry for any sins I have committed and for any way I have failed to live Christ or to avoid my responsibilities to Him. I want to do the Divine will. I want to be fully Yours, O God: sweet Spirit, come to me.”

“I bow before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, who are surrendered to Your will, and I offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Your purity, the unerring keenness of Your justice, and the might of Your love. You are the Strength and Light to my soul. In You I live and move and have my being. I desire not to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace, and I cry for when I have sinned, and I pray to be kept even from the smallest sins against You. O, my will, my tested will! My weak flesh! My divided mind! Mercifully help me to see how wonderfully desirable You are, O God, that my free will is Yours! In my weakness in the flesh, I plead Thee to watch over me and pray in me Thy holiness! O Spirit of God, guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light, and listen from the heart, and to follow Your gracious inspirations! I cling to the Son Who Is been given for my salvation, and I ask Your help that I glorify Him by my words and actions.

Adorable Spirit, Helper, Paraclete, Counselor, Burning Love, Strength and Confidence of the believer, and First Gift—I welcome Thee! Alleluia.

O Lord Jesus Christ, before Your ascending into heaven, You did promise to send the Holy Spirit to finish Your work in the souls of Your apostles and disciples.¹ Therefore, please grant the same Holy Spirit to be alive in me and work to perfect my soul. You are exalted on High, O Jesus, and I ask for the Divine assistance to work in me, since You said: Apart from Me, one can do nothing ² and You encouraged us to: Ask, and you shall receive.³ So, may I live fully into maturity, in what you have first offered to me in my baptism, that I might walk firmly in Your ways, and come into conforming with You, my Jesus. O Jesus—let me live in Your Spirit, even as St. Paul exhorted Corinth, to “be filled with the Spirit!” ⁴

Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and aspire only after the things that are eternal, the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of Your divine truth, the Spirit of Counsel that I may ever rightly judge and choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining heaven, the Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with You and that I may overcome with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation, the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know God and know myself and grow perfect in the science of the Saints, the Spirit of Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable, and the Spirit of Awe and Wonder that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God and may dread, in any way, to displease Thee—of ever just living my life as if I am not immersed in the sacred realm.⁵Mark me, dear Lord, with the sign of being Your true disciple, and animate me in all things with Your Spirit. Amen. [Bible Refs John 14:16,26. 15:26 2=John 15:5 2=In Matt 7 & 21 3=In Eph 5 4=Isaiah 11:1-11]

THE DAILY MEDITATION AND THREE CLOSING PRAYERS For Nine Days, you have a different prayer below to pray, as you make it along to Pentecost. Day 1 may be prayed on the calendar day of Ascension --which is the Thursday of two Sundays before Pentecost (May 27, 2012). Day 2 would be Friday. Day 3--Saturday. Day 4-Sunday and so on. Finally, you close with 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, and 1 Glory Be.

The Holy Spirit Novena can be started at any time. The best time is from Ascension Thursday to Pentecost Sunday, as it was prayed originally, and done by Mary and the Apostles of Jesus and other close disciples of Jesus.

Bend the stubborn heart and will, melt the frozen, warm the chill. Guide the steps that go astray!

Embodying all the other gifts, as charity embraces all the other virtues, Wisdom is the most perfect of the gifts. Of wisdom it is written "all good things came to me with her, and innumerable riches through her hands." It is the gift of Wisdom that strengthens our faith, fortifies hope, perfects charity, and promotes the practice of virtue in the highest degree. Wisdom enlightens the mind to discern and relish things divine, in the appreciation of which earthly joys lose their savor, whilst the Cross of Christ yields a divine sweetness according to the words of the Savior: "Take up thy cross and follow me, for my yoke is sweet and my burden light."

Prayer: Come, O Spirit of Wisdom, and reveal to my soul the mysteries of heavenly things, their exceeding greatness, power and beauty. Teach me to love them above and beyond all the passing joys and satisfactions of earth. Help me to attain them and possess them for ever. Amen.

Come, Father of the poor; Come, treasures which endure; Come, Light of all that live!

The gift of Fear fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread nothing so much as to offend Him by sin. It is a fear that arises, not from the thought of hell, but from sentiments of reverence and filial submission to our heavenly Father. It is the fear that is the beginning of wisdom, detaching us from worldly pleasures that could in any way separate us from God. "They that fear the Lord will prepare their hearts, and in His sight will sanctify their souls."

Prayer: Come, O blessed Spirit of Awe and Wonder, penetrate my inmost heart in the good Holy Fear of Who God Is The Holy Trinity, that I may set You, my Lord and God, before my face forever! Help me to shun all things that can offend You, and make me worthy to appear before the pure eyes of Your Divine Majesty in heaven, where You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

Thou, of all consolers best, Visiting the troubled breast, Dost refreshing peace bestow.

The gift of Piety begets in our hearts a filial affection for God as our most loving Father. It inspires us to love and respect for His sake persons and things consecrated to Him, as well as those who are vested with His authority, His Blessed Mother and the Saints, the Church and its visible Head, our parents and superiors, our country and its rulers. He who is filled with the gift of Piety finds the practice of his religion, not a burdensome duty, but a delightful service. Where there is love, there is no labor.

Prayer: Come, O Blessed Spirit of Piety, possess my heart. Enkindle therein such a love for God, that I may find satisfaction only in His service, and for His sake lovingly submit to all legitimate authority. Amen.

Thou in toil art comfort sweet, Pleasant coolness in the heat, solace in the midst of woe.

By the gift of Fortitude the soul is strengthened against natural fear, and supported to the end in the performance of duty. Fortitude imparts to the will an impulse and energy which move it to undertake without hesitancy the most arduous tasks, to face dangers, to trample under foot human respect, and to endure without complaint the slow martyrdom of even lifelong tribulation. "He that shall persevere unto the end, he shall be saved."

Prayer: Come, O Blessed Spirit of Fortitude, uphold my soul in time of trouble and adversity, sustain my efforts after holiness, strengthen my weakness, give me courage against all the assaults of my enemies, that I may never be overcome and separated from you, my God and greatest good. Amen. Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.

Light immortal! Light Divine! Visit Thou these hearts of Thine, And our inmost being fill!

The gift of Knowledge enables the soul to evaluate created things at their true worth -- in their relation to God. Knowledge unmasks the pretense of creatures, reveals their emptiness, and points out their only true purpose as instruments in the service of God. It shows us the loving care of God even in adversity, and directs us to glorify Him in every circumstance of life. Guided by its light, we put first things first, and prize the friendship of God beyond all else. "Knowledge is a fountain of life to him that possesses it."

Prayer: Come, O Blessed Spirit of Knowledge, and grant that I may perceive the will of the Father; show me the nothingness of earthly things, that I may realize their vanity and use them only for your glory and my own salvation, looking ever beyond them to You, and Thy eternal rewards. Amen. Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.

If Thou take Thy grace away, nothing pure in man will stay, All his good is turned to ill.

Understanding, as a gift of the Holy Spirit, helps us to grasp the meaning of the truths of our holy religion. By faith we know them, but by Understanding we learn to appreciate and relish them.. It enables us to penetrate the inner meaning of revealed truths and through them to be quickened to newness of life. Our faith ceases to be sterile and inactive, but inspires a mode of life that bears eloquent testimony to the faith that is in us; we begin to "walk worthy of God in all things pleasing, and increasing in the knowledge of God."

Prayer: Come, O Spirit of Understanding, and enlighten our minds, that we may know and believe all the mysteries of salvation; and may merit at last to see the eternal light in Thy Light; and in the light of glory to have a clear vision of Thee and the Father and the Son. Amen.

Heal our wounds, our strength renew; On our dryness pour Thy dew, Wash the stains of guilt away. Meditation on The Gift of Counsel The gift of Counsel endows the soul with supernatural prudence, enabling it to judge promptly and rightly what must be done, especially in difficult circumstances. Counsel applies the principles furnished by Knowledge and Understanding to the innumerable concrete cases that confront us in the course of our daily duties as parents, teachers, public servants, and Christian citizens. Counsel is supernatural common sense, a priceless treasure in the quest of salvation. "Above all these things, pray to the Most High, that He may direct your way in truth." Prayer: Come, O Spirit of Counsel, help and guide me in all my ways, that I may always do Thy holy will. Incline my heart to that which is good; turn it away from all that is evil, and direct me by the straight path of Thy commandments to that goal of eternal life for which I long. Amen. Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.

An EIGHTH DAY Meditation on the Supernatural Virtues. St. Paul spoke that there is “faith, hope, and love…. And the greatest of these is love.” Prayer: Lord, as a disciple once prayed before you in walk on earth: Help my unbelief (to change to faith). Lord, as Pope Benedict XVI has urged us all, let hope abound in me and Your Church. And, Lord, let Your love flow through me, that kind of love which is patient, kind, generous, trusting, unforced and unfailing. Amen.

A NINTH DAY Meditation on The Fruits of the Holy Spirit The putting into practice of the Christian life results in good fruits. (Gal. 5.) Lord, am I exhibiting the good fruit that you want?

Prayer: Do you see the fruit of Your kind of charity in me, and the joy and peace of being a child of God? Do I bear patience, kindness, and Your holy goodness, O Christ? Is faith growing on ‘my tree,’ along with mildness, and temperance? Am I enthused by Your Spirit, to not grow weary about Your service? I pray not—but if so, change my heart, O God! Amen.

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Our Father ,Who art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name Thy kingdom come, Thy Will be done On Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive Those who trespass against us, and lead us Not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,

Hail Mary, full of grace, The Lord is with thee Blessed art thou among women And blessed is the Fruit of thy womb Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death,

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit! As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever,

AMEN