THE ADVOCATE

In the Gospel of John (14:15-21), Jesus said, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always!” The Advocate in Greek is parakletos which means counselor, comforter, consoler, mediator, intercessor, interpreter, aid and helper in times of need, guide and teacher. Jesus is the first Advocate and the Holy Spirit is the second Advocate, the Spirit of truth. The Holy Spirit is the love that connects the Father and the Son. He is the Spirit of the Father and the Son, the principle of life and new creation. He empowers the ministry of Jesus and continues to empower the ministry of the Church. He is the power of God’s love, the only true power. He is the love of God that is poured into our hearts so that we participate in the community of love of the Holy Trinity. The Father is the lover, the Son is the beloved and the Holy Spirit is the shared love. The Holy Spirit is the eternal presence of God among us. He is the in dwelling and abiding presence of God in the community of believers. That is why the Church is the temple of the Holy Spirit, the dwelling place of God. He searches deep things of God. One of the marks of the Holy Spirit in our lives is bold speech and proclamation. It points to our baptism because all baptized Christians are prophets. We are called to speak the Word of God with joy and enthusiasm. We receive the task of prophesy and it is a full time job. This task is challenging today because in our culture, faith and religion become a private hobby. The sense of God is lost in our society. People are offended when we speak about our faith. That is why, we need the Holy Spirit so that we proclaim Christ to others boldly and fearlessly. Another mark of the Holy Spirit is joy because Jesus alone is our peace and joy. It is a joy that the world cannot give. It is one of the fruits of the Holy. Therefore, the Holy Spirit is the power of God’s love and His action is not limited in the Church because God can admit to the kingdom anyone whom He chooses. The Holy Spirit blows where He wills. He is like the wind and we don’t know where it blows and where it comes from. Jesus revealed the tremendous love of God by His total self giving love on the Cross. He did not save us through self assertion but through self offering. The Cross is His supreme act of self giving. It reveals the heart of God open to all, a heart that contains a love beyond all expectation and imagination. God does not dominate from above but bends downward in love. The Church then is a community of love and love gives the Church great power and that power comes from the Holy Spirit, the only true and eternal power of God’s love.