John 14:15-17: the Promise of the Holy Spirit
“Jesus said, ‘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 forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him because he abides with you, and he will be in you.’”
At the last supper, before his crucifixion, Jesus promised that he would send another advocate after he had gone. The word he used was ‘paraclete’, here translated as ‘advocate’ – a legal term meaning ‘representative at law’, or the person who pleased one’s cause in a trial. It also suggest one who comforts another. As we prepare to celebrate the festival of the Ascension, when Jesus returned to the Father, we also look ahead to Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the ‘other advocate’ whom the Father sends in Jesus’ name.
Prayer
Holy Spirit, sent by the Father,
ignite in us your holy fire;
strengthen your children with the gift of faith,
revive your Church with the breath of love,
and renew the face of the earth,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen