Yesterday we meditated on God’s wonderful gift of the Holy
Spirit, which has been poured into our hearts. (Romans 5:5). Today I’d like to
consider the process that takes place within us when we forget that we have
access to the Spirit, or when we think or act in ways that are clearly not of
the Holy Spirit.
We mention these things in the Confiteor: “I have gravely
sinned, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have
failed to do.”
Let’s look at a simple example, something which most of us
are prone to do quite regularly. My sin: One of my brother monks irks me, and
whenever I see him, I find something to criticize about him. Stupid things,
petty things, etc. Now actually isn’t HE who irks me, it is I who IRK myself by
my unwillingness to think charitably about him.
Here is an instance where I am not accessing the Holy Spirit
within me. But then, the Holy Spirit takes the initiative, and raises a gentle
suggestion in my mind: “Let’s give him permission to be who he is. Let’s
include all parts of him, and his actions, and his words, and his style, within
this permission. Let’s accept the fact that he is a significant part of our
life, as he is, and that he has the Holy Spirit within him as well. Let’s
expand our world enough to include him. AS.HE.IS.”
And I am at peace. And he begins to look beautiful to me.
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