At the Mass of the Holy Spirit, A Reminder of God’s Place in Our Lives

At noon on September 7, 2023, Boston College students gathered in Conte Forum for the Mass of the Holy Spirit, a longstanding annual tradition of Jesuit colleges and universities that commences the academic year. Due to a heat wave, the Mass was celebrated indoors by Fr. William P. Leahy, S.J., the President of Boston College. The homily was given by Fr. Claudio M. Burgaleta, S.J..

The Mass illustrates the mission of the Holy Spirit, beginning with the first reading from Ezekiel 36, in which God tells us, “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you” (NABRE). The location of this reading within Ezekiel is extremely important. After over thirty chapters describing Israel’s rebellion against God, God’s judgment of the Israelites, and the disastrous siege of Jerusalem, Ezekiel 36 offers hope to a devastated nation. Ezekiel prophesies that God will transform the people of Israel by giving them new hearts, which will be accomplished through His spirit within them. 

This spirit, we are told, will help them keep God’s commandments and save them from their predicament. While this message is directed to the people of Israel at a specific moment in history, it tells us that we, too, will be renewed through the Holy Spirit.

Lest this task seem daunting, in the gospel reading from John 14 Christ explains that the Holy Spirit will “teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you” (NABRE). Christ describes the Spirit almost as a GPS: a set of directions showing us the righteous path.

Christ both recalls the assurances of Ezekiel and deepens their meaning. The Spirit that will renew our hearts is sent “in [Christ’s] name,” making it a corollary of his teaching (NABRE). In other words, receiving the Spirit is like being taught by Christ himself.

For further detail, we need only look to the second reading from chapter 12 of St. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, which tells us of the “spiritual gifts” we will receive. Among these are “the expression of wisdom,” “the expression of knowledge,” “faith,” “gifts of healing,” “mighty deeds,” and many more (NABRE). 

Paul advances two major points with this passage. The first is that we are all members of one body, the Body of Christ, and yet all perform a different function, and therefore receive different gifts from the Holy Spirit. This is a very important message for a university environment featuring a diversity of talents, interests, and fields of study. It reminds us that every one of us has a valuable role to play, and instructs us to recognize both our own unique gifts and skills, as well as those of others, as being equally important.

The second point Paul stresses calls back to Ezekiel’s emphasis on renewal and Christ’s portrayal of the Spirit as a guide or teacher. Paul emphasizes throughout the second reading that all of these gifts come from “one and the same Spirit” (NABRE). It is the entrance of the Holy Spirit into our lives that endows us with this diverse array of gifts. 

We need to remember that our gifts are meaningless if they are not used in accordance with God’s will. Paul makes this point explicitly in the passage when he states that “if one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it” (NABRE). Thus, it is our duty to use the gifts of the Holy Spirit to care for one another, to worship God, and to spread His Word.

This, then, is how we can understand the Mass of the Holy Spirit. To receive the Holy Spirit is not merely to be given a gift such as wisdom; rather, it is to be renewed in Christ and given the power to use the gifts we receive in service of God.