NINE DAYS OF PRAYER In preparation for Pentecost
NINE DAYS OF PRAYER
In preparation for Pentecost (Begins Friday, May 11, 2018)
INTRODUCTION
When it comes to your spiritual life, have you ever thought to yourself “There must be more than this”? If so, you can be assured that the longing for “more” is prompted by the Holy Spirit, who always desires to give more. In the first days after the resurrection of Jesus, it was clear that the expectations of his first followers were very limited. Jesus wanted to give them much more than they expected. So he told them, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit…. you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:4
They went back to the Upper Room, and they spent nine days praying and preparing for this gift. On the Feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came to them, and they were never the same. The power of the Holy Spirit that was poured out upon them empowered them to accomplish the mission that Jesus had entrusted to them.
WHAT IS A NOVENA?
That was the very first Novena, which launched the “first evangelization”. (Novena means nine). The practice of the Christian Novena was established by Jesus in preparation for this tremendous grace! We now pray novenas to prepare for solemn feasts, or in petition for some special grace. Jesus commanded this first novena both as a period of preparation (since the feast of Pentecost was approaching) and also as an act of petition (for the Apostles, together with Mary, were looking forward to the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise of the Holy Spirit).
WHY A NOVENA TO PREPARE FOR PENTECOST?
In 1897, Pope Leo XIII asked the whole church to renew its devotion by praying a Novena to the Holy Spirit in the nine days leading up to Pentecost (Divinum Illud Munus). He asked that this novena be done every year in every parish throughout the world.
In our day, we renew this quest in a special way for the sake of the New Evangelization. The Holy Spirit is “the principle agent of evangelization”. When his power is released in us, our lives are refreshed, our sense of purpose is renewed, our parishes are re-vitalized, and our mission is more effective than ever.
In preparation for Pentecost (Begins Friday, May 11, 2018)
When it comes to your spiritual life, have you ever thought to yourself “There must be more than this”? If so, you can be assured that the longing for “more” is prompted by the Holy Spirit, who always desires to give more. In the first days after the resurrection of Jesus, it was clear that the expectations of his first followers were very limited. Jesus wanted to give them much more than they expected. So he told them, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit…. you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:4
They went back to the Upper Room, and they spent nine days praying and preparing for this gift. On the Feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came to them, and they were never the same. The power of the Holy Spirit that was poured out upon them empowered them to accomplish the mission that Jesus had entrusted to them.
WHAT IS A NOVENA?
That was the very first Novena, which launched the “first evangelization”. (Novena means nine). The practice of the Christian Novena was established by Jesus in preparation for this tremendous grace! We now pray novenas to prepare for solemn feasts, or in petition for some special grace. Jesus commanded this first novena both as a period of preparation (since the feast of Pentecost was approaching) and also as an act of petition (for the Apostles, together with Mary, were looking forward to the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise of the Holy Spirit).
WHY A NOVENA TO PREPARE FOR PENTECOST?
In 1897, Pope Leo XIII asked the whole church to renew its devotion by praying a Novena to the Holy Spirit in the nine days leading up to Pentecost (Divinum Illud Munus). He asked that this novena be done every year in every parish throughout the world.
In our day, we renew this quest in a special way for the sake of the New Evangelization. The Holy Spirit is “the principle agent of evangelization”. When his power is released in us, our lives are refreshed, our sense of purpose is renewed, our parishes are re-vitalized, and our mission is more effective than ever.
