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CHRISTMAS AND THE HOLY SPIRIT
In Catholic tradition the Holy Spirit plays a role at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descends upon the apostles. But our Creed also names the Holy Spirit as “the giver of life.” At no place in our faith is this phrase more significant than at the Incarnation. After pinpointing the Old Testament (OT) forerunners of the Holy Spirit, we will look at Christmas through the eyes of the Holy Spirit.
First, we must acknowledge that the Incarnation is not solely a heaven reality. Yes, the Father through the Holy Sprit is, as Thomas Aquinas would say, the efficient cause, but incarnate means enfleshed in history. For this latter reason we must begin with the first manifestations of the spirit in Genesis.
In the first creation narrative we read: “[T]he earth was a formless void, and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters (1:2). The wind in Hebrew is Ruah, the spirit of God creating order out of chaos.
In the Old Testament in any reference to the Spirit of God, the word Spirit is always lower case “c.” For example when Samuel anoints David “…[T]he spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward.” (1Sa 16:13). Similarly, in the Psalms we see the lower-case spirit: “Where can I go from your spirit?” (139:7) The “s” does not mean the power of the Spirit is diminished; the revelation of the Holy Spirit was gradual.
When we come to the major prophets, the revelation is person centered. In Isaiah we read: “I have put my spirit upon him” [the Servant of the Lord] (41:2). Then in the Minor Prophets, we read the power of the Spirit coming upon a person: “I[Yahweh] will pour out my spirit on all flesh” (Joel 2:28).
But the inquisitive reader might ask what do all these references have to do with the Incarnation-with Christmas. The answer is in Luke when the angel announces to Mary: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you” (1:35). All the OT long awaited saviour passages are harbingers peaking with the personhood of the Holy Spirit: “The angel said to her [ Mary [ ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for your have found favour with God. And now you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus’ (Lk. 1: 30). Only God through the Holy Spirit, could effect the virgin birth of Jesus.
The Christian celebration of Christmas then really began with Mary’s fiat. To Gabriel’s annunciation of the long-awaited Messiah to Mary, she gives her fiat:” Here am I, the Servant of the Lord, let it be done to me according to your word” (Lk. 1:3). Mary listened with faith. “The Lord chose her. He chose her before she was born” (Morning Prayer: “The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary).
We too at Christmas believe the Christ-child has come. The celebration of Christmas is a faith event actualized in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Even in the secular celebration belief (implicit faith) plays a role. For example, in the 1947 “Miracle on 34th Street” the young girl, Susan, does not believe in Santa Claus until she and her family see the actual house she has requested from Santa. All events leading to this discovery appear logical, until Fred, boyfriend of Doris (Maureen O’Hara) spots Kris’ umbrella in the corner. Fred (John Payne) begins to believe too.
But reality can qualify our fantasies. I give a personal example. I was flying home from my first year of graduate school. My studies weighed heavily on me plus my relationship with my future wife had hit some challenges. At Mass I was reflecting on a passage from Isaiah with this beginning: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light…[On] them a light has shone.” (9:2). I could feel my worries lifting. Christmas with family and my future wife was peaceful.
But Christmas can be taxing and replete with hardship. I have a friend who got me my teaching position after I got my M. A. His wife just passed away, unknown to my friend who has severe dementia. But two good friends monitor J. This situation can only be in hands of the Holy Spirit.
In sum, Christmas for us (and those who still seek the Christ child) is in the hands of the long-awaited Holy Spirit who in faith incarnates the baby Jesus in our expectant hearts.
Bernard Callaghan
bandscall@eastlink.ca
A blessed Christmas to all!
With a B..A and an M. A, in English, Bernard, a retired teacher has been publishing short stories and religious articles since the early nineties in magazines and online. He favors articles on prayer and scripture.
