Joy is a sign of the holy Spirit!
Confirmation in the Church of Our Lady in Amsterdam
What are the greatest gifts of the holy Spirit? Maybe these are what you need most: love and joy. We meditated upon this during a celebration on sundayevening of the 7th sunday of Easter. I was in the Church of Our Lady at Keizersgracht to spend holy confirmation to young people of the English speaking community. The candidates however were from many different countries, like Brasil, Italy, Spain and other countries.
Canon Fr. Rafael Ojeda, rector of the Church, commemorated last week that it was 50 years that he joined Opus Dei. We congratulate him wholeheartedly with this special jubilee! May the Lord keep an guide him and continue to give him good health!
Joy is a sign of the holy Spirit!
HOLY CONFIRMATION O.L. Vrouwe kerk Amsterdam
Cheerless?
Dear candidates, brothers and sisters,
I think we all experience
that sometimes we are not very joyful,
but a little cheerless, sad and down.
If things are dark,
we can’t see light
we are not able to judge well.
In fact if we are cheerless,
if we don’t like what we are doing,
if we are not in a positive mood,
we are not in a good position
to take new steps and new decisions,
but joy, real joy is much better for that:
if you are joyful, cheerful, grateful
and you get a new idea,
pray about it, it might be a good idea,
just ask the Lord:
What do you want me to do?
If you are in a positive mood,
then the moment might have come
to make up your mind
and take a new step.
Joy is a sign of the holy Spirit!
Therefore, it is a joy for me
to administer to you
the sacrament of confirmation
and to give you the holy Spirit.
The joy of Jesus
We heard about this joy in today’s gospel:
Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying:
“I speak this in the world
so that they may share my joy completely”.
So the Lord Jesus wants you to be full of joy.
But how can you be full of joy,
not sad, not cheerless?
Does that happen
when you get everything you want
or when you only get nice things coming your way
and no pain or sorrow?
But we all face things we don't like from time to time,
and if you always get everything you want,
you don't become
a more pleasant and better person.
Real joy, lasting joy you will have
if you are strong and in peace
when things, when life gets hard,
if you have trust in God.
Trust in God and peace you will have
if the holy Spirit dwells in your heart,
if your heart is open to receive God’s gifts.
He is coming!
The Lord, the Holy Spirit,
is coming today to all of you,
dear candidates for confirmation.
And He is coming to all of us
in the holy Eucharist
and in His word that we proclaim.
The holy Spirit is coming today to you,
dear candidates,
to strengthen and enlighten you.
The holy Spirit will be
the Lord of your house,
the Lord of your lives,
if you will let Him in.
He will dwell in your heart
and inspire you with good thoughts
and good actions
and He will give you peace
and He will help you to know
what to do,
if you just let Him do so.
Let Him in!
Just keep praying:
Holy Spirit, dwell in my heart!
How to,live your lives?
Every moment of our lives
is a surprise, is a gift.
We do not know how long we will live,
we do not know what this day
or the next day will bring us,
every beautiful moment is a gift,
every difficult day is a test.
And therefore Jesus tells us:
Live your lives
with gratefulness in your hearts,
for the beautiful days
be joyful and give thanks to God
and - at the same time -
trust that the Lord through his Spirit
will give you strength
and help you to survive in difficult times.
Uncle Pete
Uncle Pete (that's what everyone called him)
was an old man
and because his health was not good
he lived in a care home.
One day the sister comes in his room
and sees all the expensive gifts around him:
a laptop, expensive cufflinks, a beautiful watch and more.
"Yes, it's my birthday "said Uncle Pete.
"But Uncle Pete," said the sister,
"Why don't you look happy, don't you like the presents?"
"Well, I got those from my daughter," said Uncle Pete,
"but there is no love in them.
She is rich, but she did not come herself".
Love and Joy
Dear candidates and you all,
what is important?
Love is most important,
the love of God and love of other people,
giving love and receiving love...
The Holy Spirit inspires that love and gives us joy.
Love and joy are gifts of the holy Spirit.
He will be with you!
I will put my hands on your head
as a sign that the good Lord will protect you,
He will be always at your side;
and I will anoint your forehead
with holy chrism,
by which gesture and anointment
the holy Spirit is given to you.
In this life on earth you can’t see God,
the holy Spirit is invisible for your eyes.
But He is there, you can sense Him, feel His presence,
for instance when you feel this joy in your heart,
when you feel He is there,
when you see the beauty of nature,
when you are praying with your heart;
just be aware that He is there;
have trust in Him.
He will be with you!
