5th Week of Easter: Monday, 20th May 2019

“The Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I have said to you” (Jn 14:26). On the basis of this affirmation of Jesus, a spiritual writer has ventured to suggest that the Holy Spirit is the memory of the Church: Every human body has a memory and as the mystical body of Christ the Church is also endowed with the faculty of memory. But the memory of the church is not merely the collective human memory of the Faithful. The Holy Spirit is the Church’s faculty of memory.

This is quite an important insight, We can only truly remember Jesus through the Holy Spirit. “The love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given us” St Paul teaches us (Rom 5:5). We can only truly remember Jesus through love. Our memory of Jesus has to be a loving memory.

We can learn to remember large portions of the Gospels, or so-called “golden” passages but if that memory is not infused with love for the person of Jesus, reciting them is merely a booming gong or a cymbal clashing (cf. 1Cor 13:1)

Lord Jesus, send the Holy Spirit into our hearts to help remember and  love what You have taught us and to love You unfailingly.