In the Pentecost Mass, there is an added prayer between the second reading and the Alleluia called the “sequence.” The Veni Sancte Spiritus (Come Holy Spirit) sequence has uncertain origins, attributed by some to Pope Innocent III and by others to Canterbury Archbishop Stephen Langton. It is also known as the “Golden Sequence” in reference to its beautiful imagery and poetic form. In this prayer, we can find inspiration as the academic year closes and the Easter season draws to an end.
The prayer begins with the invocation of the Holy Spirit as the Father of the poor, the Provider, and Illuminator of the heart: “Veni, pater pauperum / veni, dator munerum / veni lumen cordium.” The Spirit is named a Comforter, Refreshment, and Solace in grief: “Rest art Thou in our toil, most sweet / refreshment in the noonday heat; / and solace in our grief.” In these verses, the nature of the Holy Spirit is described in relationship to our neediness. We stand in need of comfort, in need of illumination, and in need of refreshment, and the Spirit is sent among us to answer these needs in our lives. Our hearts are empty in order to be filled in their “innermost being” with the “blessed light” of the Holy Spirit (“O lux beatissima, / reple cordis intima / tuorum fidelium”). Thinking back to my arrival at BC as a freshman, I remember the novelty and excitement that came with finding my home away from home at Candlelight Mass, the Ignite retreat community, and Gratia Plena. I also remember the struggles that came with adjustment to college life—from general chemistry to homesickness. In hard times, the quiet sacred places of campus—St. Mary’s and St. Joseph’s—have been places of comfort. The promise made good in this prayer, though, is not only about the dwelling of the Spirit in a physical sacred space. It is more so about an intimate indwelling within the inner sanctuary of the soul. Through hard times and transitions, we can and must turn to the Spirit, the best guest of the soul.
The prayer proceeds from this relational description of the Holy Spirit to an elaboration of our radical neediness. Nothing in man is harmless, let alone good, without God’s divine will and Spirit: “Sine tuo numine, / nihil est in homine, / nihil est innoxium.” In light of this neediness, we ask the Spirit to cleanse our dirtiness, moisten our dryness, and heal our woundedness in the prayer. The process that ensues is not inherently a comfortable one: “Bend what is rigid, / Melt what is frozen / Guide what strays.” The apostles, having just watched Jesus ascend into heaven, had reconvened in the Upper Room, but the Upper Room was not where they were to stay. With a loud gust of wind and fire blazing atop their heads, they were propelled by the Spirit out to evangelize the world—a world that would reject and martyr them only a few chapters later in the book of Acts. To be set aflame is not to be cozy and comfortable in the Upper Room; rather, to become the saints whom God created us to be we must pass through trials and challenges, like refining fire that melts away impurities and leaves only precious gold (cf. 1 Peter 1:6-7). In all stages of life, we are subject to this refining fire, and commanded to embrace it as the one way to sanctity. Times of transition—whether it is the transition from Easter to Ordinary Time, spring to summer, or college to post-grad life—are times we become most aware of the ways in which we are melted, bent, and pushed to grow. These are good times to remember that the Holy Spirit’s fire burns for the purpose of washing away our impurities and making us whole.
The prayer concludes by exhorting the Holy Spirit to give the faithful the sevenfold gifts of the Spirit (cf. Isaiah 11:2-4). With confidence, the prayer repeats the imperative “da” (“give”) three times in the final verse to request the reward of virtue, a peaceful death, and eternal joy: “Da virtutis meritum, / da salutis exitum, / da perenne gaudium.” The Spirit did not expel the apostles from the Upper Room unarmed and disoriented; rather, they were equipped with new languages and guided by the Spirit to preach and baptize. With this prayer, we can be confident in approaching the throne as we make our request: give us the same gifts of the Spirit given to our predecessors on Pentecost. In a similar way, we can be confident that through the toil of everyday student life and certainly far beyond graduation, we can turn to the indwelling of the Spirit as not only a source of comfort and refreshment, but also our best strength and shield along the journey.
Featured image is courtesy of Lawrence OP via Flickr
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