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"Be SEALED with the Gift of the Holy Spirit", are the words the Bishop, or Priest would say when you receive Confirmation.
A SEAL is an embossed emblem, figure, symbol, word, letter, used as attestation or evidence of authenticity. Jesus teaches us what our SEAL means for us as His followers.
"Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me.
“I have told you this while I am with you.
“The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that [I] told you.” John 14:22-26
1. Using the Chrism Oil, the Bishop or Priest makes the Sign of the Cross on your forehead, saying these words, which means that:
a. You have the assurance that God has redeemed you by His Grace through by the death of Christ on the Cross.
b. You are joined to the Suffering, and Passion of Christ, to help you in fighting sin.
c. This SEAL confirms that your soul has been imprinted with His mark as a follower of Christ. We call this an INDELIBLE mark.
2. How do we see this SEAL work in our lives? How do we see God's power manifest in us?
The Making of Captain America - Connects to the the Holy Spirit
makes us different, yet we remain the same person.
To have this SEAL makes us an Authentic Follower of Christ. It confirms we are Children of God, and that nothing, no matter how great it is, can scare us from reaching our potential!
LET US PRAY
Light of the intellect, enlighten me.
Divine Fire of hearts, inflame me.
Fullness of souls, fill me.
Lord of grace and life, vivify me.
In this vale of suffering, guide me.
In my weakness, strengthen me.
From stumbles and falls, deliver me.
With your Divine Gifts, enrich me.
With your presence, console me.
By your Divine operations, sanctify me.
My Jesus, transform me.
that having been faithful upon earth,
I may be eternally happy in heaven,
in the perfect reflection of your love.
Amen
Our Father...
Hail Mary...
Glory Be...
1. What did the Disciples of Jesus debate about at the Council of Jerusalem
2. What was James final judgment about the Gentiles?
3. Who did they send to Antioch with Paul & Barnabas?
4. Why did Paul and Barnabas separate from their journey?
5. Who join Paul in his Journey to Lycaonia? What did the author mention about this persons family background?
6. Why was Paul sent to Prison?
I- Jesus explains.. "What comes from your Heart?"
1. We continue with the Gospel of St Mark 7:16-23, as the author writes the event down, giving us a picture of Jesus’ teaching on “What comes out from a person’s heart?”
When he got home away from the crowd his disciples questioned him about the parable. He said to them, “Are even you likewise without understanding? Do you not realize that everything that goes into a person from outside cannot defile,since it enters not the heart but the stomach and passes out into the latrine?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) But what comes out of a person, that is what defiles. From within people, from their hearts, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile.
2. Here, Jesus explains to His Disciples, and to us that ACTS OF VIRTUE, GOOD WORKS, DESIRES, and SENTIMENTS should come from our Heart. The 13 things Jesus mentions go contrary to the 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit.
3. Like water can turn certain metals into rust, choosing to do wrong things can take us away from our Spiritual Journey from God.
II - The 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit - Valuable to your Spiritual Journey. (Part 2)
a. Long-Suffering - This fruit helps me by strengthening my patience during a long period of trails or suffering. The Holy Spirit gives it to you, even when you find no encouragement from a family member, a mentor, or a friend.
b. Mildness - Helps you to hold your anger. From moving towards an explosive rage.
c. Faith - One becomes faithful when you deal with family, friend, or neighbor.
d. Modesty - One moderates ones actions and attitudes towards others.
e. Continence - Self control when it comes to sexual temptations.
f. Chastity - Helps you to guard senses, so you will not fall into sin. We see the value of the human person as temples of the Holy Spirit.
1. Keep in mind, Jesus has taught us the value of ourselves and the people around us - how we should treat one another.
a. God brings to us the 10 Commandments: (Exodus 20:1-17)
b. God teaches us how our families must show us the value of the Commandments, summing them up into 2 Commandments. (Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Mark 12:29-34)
c. Jesus teaches us the Beatitudes, which focus on the Commandments of God, and how we should be with others. (Matthew 5:3-12; Matthew 5:17-20)
LET US PRAY:
In the Gospel of St. Mark, Jesus teaches us the value of our gifts, and how it comes from our heart. The Author of the Gospel of St. Mark tells us the story from 7:1-15:
‘This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts.’
You disregard God’s commandment but cling to human tradition. He went on to say, “How well you have set aside the commandment of God in order to uphold your tradition! For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and ‘Whoever curses father or mother shall die.’ Yet you say, ‘If a person says to father or mother, “Any support you might have had from me is qorban’ (meaning, dedicated to God), you allow him to do nothing more for his father or mother.You nullify the word of God in favor of your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many such things. He summoned the crowd again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand. Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile."
When it comes to the Fruits of the Holy Spirit, how does this passage connect to our ACTS OF VIRTUE, GOOD WORKS, DESIRES, and SENTIMENTS?
I - How do we use the Fruits of the Holy Spirit in our life.
1. We all carry our Parent's teachings, and will soon pass it on to our children.
a. We also carry on the teachings of our Mentors, Authorities, Teachers, Sponsors, and People we admire. It is a good thing to listen and learn from them, but sooner or later, the teaching has to be revised, or modified to fit the Holy Spirit's Will in our lives.
b. When we are disconnected from God, when we are not speaking to H
im in prayer, when we have not developed a relationship with Him through devotion, and allowing ourselves to be moved by His Grace through the Sacraments we received, we can easily be mislead, trust with uncertainty, abandon even our personal call (Vocation) for the sake of pleasing the people we consider important in our journey.c. We enter into a false journey - one that leads us into different directions, events, or places that we can get lost. Sometimes it takes years for us to find our way out, years for us to forgive ourselves for past choices, or asking forgiveness for our failures, even forgiving those who hurt us badly. We become so lost that our experience misleads us to believe that God is not with me...
2. The Fruits of the Holy Spirit comes from the 7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit (See HIS STRENGTH WILL MAKE YOU DIFFERENT - Part 1 & Part 2)
a. The Fruits of the Holy Spirit encourage our Spiritual Development towards living out the Beatitudes (See Gospel of St. Matthew 5:1-12). It also helps us to avoid being mislead, even to find our way back to God.
b. Through the Sacraments of Baptism, Communion, and most especially Confirmation, you and I are connected to the Holy Spirit who inspires us to be VIRTUOUS, commit ourselves to GOOD WORKS, to live with the DESIRE to be Holy and Great, and that our THOUGHTS be for the good of others - including ourselves.
c. Jesus teaches us in the Gospel of St Mark that what comes out of persons heart can be evil - He is speaking about our choice to GO AGAINST GOD. But the teachings you receive and experience with time, and your relationship with God will help you to understand What enters your life by way of formation, and experiences, God's has given you His Grace to discern what is GOOD or BAD for you.
II - The 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit - Valuable to your Spiritual Journey.
1. Imagine a Tree that matures. This Tree represents the 7 Gift of the Holy Spirit. (See HIS STRENGTH WILL MAKE YOU DIFFERENT - Part 1 & Part 2)
a. When the Tree matures, it has the possibility of creating Seed bearing Fruit. The Fruit can be taken for nourishment, or cultivation to plant more Trees.
b. The Church see this as God's plan for the Church, and lives of the Saints.
2. The 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit are: Charity, Joy, Peace, Patience, Benignity, Goodness, Long Suffering, Mildness, Faith, Modesty, Continence, and Chastity. We will be discussing 6 of the Fruits of the Holy Spirit.
a. Charity - Also known as Love in Action. This Fruit moves us to act in love for God and His People.
b. Joy - Encourages us to be truly happy and always open to God's infinite goodness.
c. Peace - Born from Joy, and keep tranquil during challenges, and times of suffering.
d. Patience - Gives us endurance during difficult times in life and the suffering of death.
e. Benignity - Kindness and tolerance for all. It from the Fruit of Goodness, which encourage to do Good in word and in action.
f. Goodness - Moves us to do the good for all, without distinction.
In the documentary, AN EMPIRE CONQUERED,
you find the story saints who showed examples of the Fruits of he Holy Spirit.
LET US PRAY:
We continue with our class of Lesson 14 - His Strength Will Make You Different (PT1)
1. The Gift of Knowledge - During our spiritual journey in preparation for Confirmation, you have been studying the teachings of the Church, the Sacred Scriptures (most especially the Book of the Acts of the Apostles), the Lives and writings of the Saints (Your Confirmation Patron Saint), while using your daily experiences, God continues to teach you Good from Evil - Right from Wrong. This gift is to help you do the Good & act on what is Right. The pursuit of knowledge, to better ones judgment of an object, a person, an event - anything that you encounter, show a strong connection you have with God.
a. This gift helps us to discern teachings, and teachers if they are telling the truth. It also urges us to search for the truth in order to protect and defend ourselves from false teachings. (Matthew 7:13-23)
b. The lesson of the Rich Young Man calls us to the attention of the use of our Knowledge. If I say, "I love God", then it should mean that you have sacrificed some thing or things to deepen that relationship. If you have not, it will show to those who hear your testimony, because your actions do not show this relationship with God is real. (Luke 18:8-30)
c. When we say, "I love God", it is believed that you follow His Commandments and Teachings, and try to put it into practice. (John 14:22-26)
2. The Gift of Piety - Another word for Reverence, which means to show the value or worth to an object, teaching, person, activity, an event, etc. When it comes to God, and His creations as well as inspirations, we are drawn to God by these. There is nothing wrong in acknowledging their value, since we believe they come from God. Piety is shown or exercised by how we place importance - like on a Sunday, I God to Mass not because I am told, but this urge to be close to God, to learn from God, and to love God. It looks like a PRACTICE, but it turns into a habit, a wanting, an action that comes from my heart and mind. Part of our Piety is connected to how we treat our parents, siblings, our teachers, and mentors, and people.
a. Jesus reminds us in the Prayer of the Our Father: God is First, our Neighbor is Second, we should be last, because we think of the other person who needs us. (Matthew 6:9-15)
3. The Gift of the Fear of the Lord - Also known as the experience of Wonder and Awe, helps me to avoid any chances I may have in offending or displeasing God. This extends to those who are close to us: Family, friends, our neighbors (It includes our enemies - are they really?), even life on this world (the pets in your care, the land, our natural surroundings, etc).
a. The Fear of the Lord helps me to recognize the value of our relationship with God and Neighbor. (Matthew 5:27-30)
b. The woman who lived a sinful life, searches for the Lord in order to change her life. (Luke 7:36-50)
II - Grace and Gifts are needed to know, love, and respond to God.
1. The Grace and Gifts given to us in Confirmation, help us to respond to God, and to His call to service. At the same time, my soul and body are transformed towards Him who saves me. This transformation continues to grow in me by way of my Worship, in other words, you look to Him as worthy for your surrender. I loving surrender, not as a slave who is forced, but one who freely gives God their life.The act of Worship is
a. Our participation and attention to Mass every Sunday, and weekday.
b. When we receive Him in Communion, and visit Him at Church before the Tabernacle or Monstrance at Holy Hour.
c. When we come to Him in the Sacrament of Confession - Monthly.
d. By following a structure of daily prayer: Morning, Afternoon, Evening, Night, a Devotion, etc. We must be consistent in your prayer.
Let us pray:
I - God continues to give us gifts through the Sacraments, most especially the Sacrament of Confirmation. There is a set of gifts that the Spirit of God puts into our soul - they are called the SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety, and Fear of the Lord. In this lesson, we will discuss four of the gifts, followed by the last three gifts. Let's begin!
1. As we mentioned before, the Holy Spirit gives us ACTUAL GRACE (CLICK for the past notes).
a. Along with this Grace, the Holy Spirit gives to you SEVEN powerful GIFTS to help you through the Spiritual Journey.
b. The Gospel of St John teaches us what Jesus intended for these Gifts can, and should do through us. He speaks of it as Love In Action - something we have been craving or wanting to see, to give us reason to believe in Him and what He can do in our lives. Jesus says,
If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you, and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live and you will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him. (John 14: 15-21)
2. How does this look when my life is connected to the Holy Spirit?
Think of it like the Coach in this film. The Holy Spirit is our Coach, using the human coach to motivate us to complete tasks or actions that may seem incredibly hard to accomplish. The spirit of the team has beaten. Listen how the Coach pushes a strong football player to find his strength.
II - The 7 Gifts make us into Saints for many to see and believe in God.
1. The Gift of Wisdom - This Gift helps us to make God the Center of your life. Should we lose our way, should we be distracted with the things in life, or should we be knocked off the Journey, God will make His presence known by urging us to turn to Him in prayer, and to wake us RISE - to get back on that road. Life will trip us up - God knows that, but He's not going to let you stay there. Wisdom will help you to find God, to hear Him even during the painful moments of your life. Like the Coach, He will push you beyond your limits, because God sees your potential when some may not see it. Here, your relationship with God will grow - you will slowly love what He is doing for you, and trust Him.
Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him, “Master, [then] what happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me. I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that [I] told you. (John 14:22-26)
2. The Gift of Understanding - This Gift is given to us so that you can know and love God. He will teach you through faith, so that you can live His teachings and blessing each day. God will strengthen your mind by experience and practice - He will urge you to read and study. This is why you are taking Confirmation Class, not because your parents put you here to receive the Sacrament only, but to understand that God wants a relationship with you. He wants to transform you by this relationship.
a. God wants you to be His Witness - John 15:18-25
b. Our Lord teaches us how the Holy Spirit will Act through you - John 16:5-15
3. The Gift of Counsel - This Gift is given to you for Spiritual Direction, as the Holy Spirit will guide you in all your actions. The Holy Spirit uses this Gift to make sure you know God's will in your life, which is to be HOLY first. This is why you pick a Saint name, so that you stay connected to this person who has lived for God before you. You become an apprentice of the Saint, like an apprentice of the Coach, or a Teacher. He also leads you to people who will mentor you through the Spiritual Journey.
4. The Gift of Fortitude - This Gift strengthens your soul to face tests, or what we call TEMPTATIONS. Remember, we spoke of moments in our lives that can trip us along our Spiritual Journey. It's impossible to avoid these tests, but possible to choose the right over the wrong. This Gift also gives us spiritual confidence in God. If our relationship is strong with God, we can know what God is doing through us. This Gift also helps us to answer for ourselves, whether we have sinned or not. It is very hard to shake a person whose fortitude is strong in God.
