The New American Bible defines The Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, in terms of various roles: Teacher, counselor, witness, mediator, and more. Sometimes we are told jokes that begin with an introduction such as, "A lawyer, a doctor and a teacher walk into a bar…" and then there is a punchline, funny or not. But in today’s Gospel, we could almost introduce the Holy Spirit in terms of various  professions—but it wouldn’t be a joke, for the implications are far too serious for our eternal life.

The late Father Raymond Brown, a leading expert on the Gospel of John, tells us that in the Jewish tradition the word "Paraclete" refers to many roles: teacher, lawyer, advocate, witness, spokesman, mediator, encourager and more. For Christ said: "I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you…" In this Gospel of John we learn, as we do in other parts of the New Testament, from Father Raymond Brown, that the Holy Spirit has a special role, to be the personal presence of Jesus Christ in the Christian disciple when Christ is absent. This personal role infuses the Christian disciple with wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude (sometimes called courage), knowledge, piety, and fear (awe or respect) of the Lord (the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit) so that we may grow in the Christian faith and become, as Saint Catherine of Siena said, "…what God meant you to be, and you will set the world ablaze."

Becoming what God meant— designed and created us to be—His likeness and image in the world—will mean that we will bring Christ’s love and light into the world and become the antidote to evil or indifference. How does this happen? How do we fight evil, indifference in the world? Evil, the fullest form of ndifference—simply not caring—shows itself in the horrible ways in our world: from Adolf Hitler or terrorists we now see destroying human life and world peace, to the inaction of feeding homeless human beings, not caring for those who have no bed to lay down on or no roof to shelter them, allowing small children and older adults to suffer illness without medical care to the looking the other way when innocent human children are destroyed or the frail elderly or treated like unwanted animals and put down at the end of life. Is this what God designed for His adopted sons and daughters? Who then become the antidote to this evil, indifference?

Members of this parish who support Pantry Partners, St. Elizabeth House, or Neighbors In Need caring for those who go without food, shelter or dignity; our youth ministry team working in various women’s and men’s shelters, working and caring for U. S. veterans, who feed the homeless not with a meal slammed down in front of the them but with kind words and human companionship; the Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion who visit the sick in hospitals and nursing homes and bring Christ’s Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity to them; the men and women who work on Project Rebuild Hartford and restore dignity through a decent home in which to live and raise a family; in the Prayer Shawls that are knitted and given with love and prayers to those who are sick or lost or grieving— reminding them that God loves them and is with them in their sorrow; in those who teach the faith to others in our religious education program and build links in the chain fence of faith throughout the ages; in those who sing and bring the music at Mass to life to enliven and lift our prayers and praise of our God; and in the hundreds of other ways that our parish lives out the command of Christ: Love One Another!

The realities of our Christian belief of The Second Coming are very much alive and present in today’s Gospel: Judgment by God, the meaning of the relationship that we the adopted sons and daughter of the Father have been given, through Christ; and, the gift offered to each of us of Eternal Life. These are all fulfilled and made real in The Paraclete and its many special roles. Will we listen? Will we learn what the Holy Spirit is saying to us? And then, will we act accordingly so that the promise of Saint Catherine of Siena: "Be who God meant you to be, and you will set the world ablaze" will become our personal reality…for all eternity. As our 2016 Youth Ministry t-shirts proclaim, go be the "spark that sets the world ablaze!"