May our Risen Lord give you His peace!
This weekend (June 4-5) the Church celebrates the great Solemnity of Pentecost which brings the Easter Season to a promise-filled close by commemorating the birthday of the Church. We remember how the Holy Spirit, the promised Advocate, came upon our Blessed Mother Mary and the disciples of her Risen and Glorified Son as they were gathered together in prayer in the Upper Room. In this event the Lord’s promise is fulfilled and the Church begins her mission of proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom of God to all the world throughout all of time. 
We are the among the latest – but certainly not the last – generation of believers to inherit this divine mandate. Made members of the Church, Christ’s own Mystical Body, through our Baptism, we are strengthened in our faith by the fresh outpouring of God’s own Spirit which we receive in the Sacrament of Confirmation. 
As we as a parish move toward a deeper and clearer understanding of what it means to live stewardship as the way of a disciple’s life, among the primary gifts we must steward are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, traditionally listed as seven in number. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and descriptions outlined by the medieval Dominican philosopher and theologian St. Thomas Aquinas in his famous Summa Theologica, the seven gifts are as follows:
· Wisdom: We see God at work in our lives and in the world. For the wise, the wonders of nature, historical events, and the ups and downs of life take on deeper meaning. We see God as our Father, appreciate the dignity of others, and find God in all things.
 
· Understanding: In understanding, we comprehend how we need to live as followers of Christ. A person with understanding is not confused by the conflicting messages in our culture about the right way to live. The gift of understanding perfects a person's speculative reason in the apprehension of truth. It is the gift whereby self-evident principles are known, Aquinas writes.
 
· Counsel (Right Judgment): With the gift of counsel/right judgment, we know the difference between right and wrong, and we choose to do what is right. A person with right judgment avoids sin and lives out the values taught by Jesus.
 
· Fortitude (Courage): With the gift of fortitude/courage, we overcome our fear and are willing to take risks as followers of Jesus Christ. A person with courage is willing to stand up for what is right in the sight of God, even if it means accepting rejection, verbal abuse, or physical harm. The gift of courage allows people the firmness of mind that is required both in doing good and in enduring evil.
 
· Knowledge: With the gift of knowledge, we understand the meaning of God. The gift of knowledge is more than an accumulation of facts.
 
· Piety (Reverence): With the gift of reverence, sometimes called piety, we have a deep sense of respect for God and the Church. A person with reverence recognizes our total reliance on God and comes before God with humility, trust, and love. Piety is the gift whereby, at the Holy Spirit's instigation, we pay worship and duty to God as our Father, Aquinas writes.
 
Fear of the Lord (Wonder and Awe): With the gift of fear of the Lord we are aware of the glory and majesty of God. A person with wonder and awe knows that God is the perfection of all we desire: perfect knowledge, perfect goodness, perfect power, and perfect love. This gift is described by Aquinas as a fear of separating oneself from God. He describes the gift as a "filial fear," like a child's fear of offending his father, rather than a "servile fear," that is, a fear of punishment. Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Prov 1:7) because it puts our mindset in correct location with respect to God: we are the finite, dependent creatures, and He is the infinite, all-powerful Creator.

In his instruction to those about to be confirmed, the Bishop charges them: “…You must always bear witness to [the Lord’s] Passion and Resurrection before the world, so that your manner of life, as the Apostle says, may be in every place the pleasing fragrance of Christ. His Mystical Body, which is the Church, the People of God, receives from him diverse graces, which the same Holy Spirit distributes to individuals for the building up of that Body in unity and love. Be living members of this Church, therefore, and, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, seek to serve all people like Christ, who came not to be served but to serve.” 

We need not ask for a fresh outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit this Pentecost, just a renewed awareness of the gifts we have already received from Him, and a renewed determination to place these gifts more fully at the service of others!