An Explanation of the Veni Sancte Spiritus

It is a common and well grounded lament that in teaching the Word of God, the doctrine concerning the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity is to a large extent sadly neglected. Other spiritual writers are of the same opinion. These considerations justify every effort to further the devotion to the Holy Spirit among the clergy and the laity by a thoroughgoing explanation of the exceedingly meritorious Pentecost Sequence. 

Accordingly, a more than ordinary fervor and zeal in fostering a genuine devotion to the Holy Ghost is as necessary as it is excellent for the priest of God that he may become an ecclesiastic in the truest sense of the word, and carry on his august mission as a genuine priest, that is, so that he may excite in others a tendency toward a deeply spiritual life, and spare no pains to foster and perfect it. A spiritual man, a religious in the true sense of the term (homo spiritualis), is the priest alone who takes a determined stand against the assaults of the fleshly, worldly, and materialistic spirit, that he may at all times and everywhere, live, act, and think in the spirit of Jesus Christ. 

Many saints were distinguished for their ardent devotion to the Holy Ghost. The seraphic virgin Teresa began nearly all her letters with the pious wish and blessing: May the Holy Spirit (or the grace of the Holy Ghost) be with you at all times. 

Cover Photo Credit: The Pentecost (oil on canvas) by Louis Galloche (1670-1761) Musee des Beaux-Arts, Nantes, France The Bridgeman Art Library