THE SPIRIT OF PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE


SATURDAY, SEVENTH WEEK OF EASTER

Act 28:16-20, 30-31; Ps 11:4-5,7; Jn 21:20-25

The Holy Spirit of Patience and Perseverance

The root of perseverance is patience, for patience in the present suffering or trials gives birth to the virtue of perseverance. Our perseverance bears the fruit of holiness. But both the virtue of patience and perseverance are of the Holy Spirit. Saint Paul puts it this way: “More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.” The presence of the Holy Spirit gives us hope of sharing God’s glory because himself is the glory of God. So, our confession of faith in Jesus Christ brought the Holy Spirit into our hearts, and being the love of the Father and the Son, he kindled our hearts with the flame of his love. His presence will not achieve the glorious effects we have discussed thus far if we do not obey his inspirations daily and commune with him and through him with our Lord Jesus Christ. Following his inspirations and nudges, we develop devotion to the Son of Man.

Subsequently, the faith, the love, and the attendant devotion that the Holy Spirit produces in our hearts facilitate patience and perseverance. Patience in suffering trials comes directly from our faith in the word of God, which contains the promises of the glory to come. At the same time, it is not only the promises that sustain us but that the Holy Spirit makes us experience the glory here now, though in a reduced form. Hence, the Gospel tells us that Peter followed the Lord. But while going, he inquired what would become of John, the beloved apostle. The Lord gave him the following answer. “If I want him to stay behind till I come, what does it matter to you? You are to follow me.” Hence, while our faith and love for Jesus makes us follow him like Peter, his love for us, which the Holy Spirit pours into our hearts, keeps us steady and constant in our trials and difficulties of our pilgrimage here on earth. The same love of Jesus gives us a taste of the heavenly peace, joy, and glory here on earth through the communion of the Holy Spirit. So, while John remained here on earth as our Lord demanded, he was fired by the flames of love from the Holy Spirit and often lifted to the heavenly realm to grasp mystical truths. We understand, therefore, that his love causes our patience to bear fruit in perseverance and holiness of life. “The Lord tests the just and the wicked; the lover of violence he hates. The Lord is just and loves justice; the upright shall see his face.”

The same love of our Lord Jesus Christ we see guiding Saint Paul to face the difficult task of proclaiming the Gospel to the Gentiles, even to Rome, the seat of power in the empire. The same love gave him solace and consolation, which helped him to be patient in his affliction and persevere in his difficult mission. We can only imagine the nature of his difficulty in going to Rome to proclaim the name of Jesus Christ. But the Lord gave him a soft landing and consoled him by the people he met and preached to. “On our arrival in Rome, Paul was allowed to stay in lodgings of his own with the soldier who guarded him.” Barely three days after his arrival, he gathered the leading Jews and started preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ to them. He continued this quiet and consistent proclamation of the Gospel undisturbed for three years. “Paul spent the whole of the two years in his rented lodging. He welcomed all who came to visit him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching the truth about the Lord Jesus Christ with complete freedom and without hindrance from anyone. The Lord keeps us here so that we may patiently grow in his love and the proclamation of the Gospel. We have the same testimony in the case of John the beloved who remained. “This disciple is the one who vouches for these things and has written them down, and we know that his testimony is true.” Let our patience and perseverance bear true testimonies of the Gospel and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Let us pray: Grant, we pray, almighty God, that we, who have celebrated the paschal festivities, may by your gift hold fast to them in the way that we live our lives. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. 

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