THE PROMISE OF THE PARACLETE

HOMILY FOR THE 6TH SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR C

Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

As our celebration of the Easter season draws to an end, the liturgy of this Sunday reminds us of the enduring presence of Jesus who gives us the Holy Spirit to teach us everything we need to know, to remind us of all that Jesus taught and to bring us peace. The same Holy Spirit assisted the early Christian community to make decisions as regards the membership of the Gentiles in the Church (the First Reading). The same Holy Spirit reveals to John the hidden mysteries of the kingdom in the Second Reading. The Holy Spirit remains still with us today. He is the Paraclete the Father and the Son gave to us. One could imagine the sorrows that came with the crucifixion; and afterwards followed the joy of the resurrection. And now, the disciples would face another sorrowful challenge -the departure of the risen Christ. And so, noticing their confusion and sense of meaninglessness, Jesus offers his disciples  two basic gifts as if they were the will of a departing man: Peace and The Promise of the Holy Spirit. This peace would remain with them and would be sustained by the Holy Spirit who would be with them as their Paraclete.

The word Paraclete comes from the two Greek words παρα (preposition which can mean by, beside, in) and κλήτος (the called/invited/summoned). The conjunction of both words as παρακλήτος renders the meaning as ‘one called (invited, summoned) in’, most probably for support. We may want to imagine a situation where someone is convicted of a crime in a customary court, but then is unable to afford the assistance of a lawyer. On reaching the court, the plaintiff with his lawyer presents his case against the defendant who has no lawyer to defend him; no one iss there to speak for him. Suddenly, an observer in the court who happens to be a lawyer of great repute rises to the defendant’s rescue with no charge. In this case, the defendant has got an unmerited help that costs him nothing; as he cannot even afford the services of such a great lawyer. The defendant now has a lawyer to himself. In such a situation, the judge is then pleased to permit the volunteer lawyer whom he now “calls in” to speak for the defendant.

For the Greeks, that act of calling the lawyer in to speak for another would make him a παρακλήτος. That lawyer is a paraclete. He supported the accused/defendant. In this sense can we now understand the sense the evangelists would want to make when they used this term to explain the service of the Holy Spirit towards Jesus, as He was called in to support the disciples. And in this sense too can we understand the support the Holy Spirit gives to the Church. Worthy to mention too is the fact that the support the παρακλήτος renders can take the forms of advice and advocacy, counselling and defence, consolation and exhortation, and of guidance and teaching. This explains why various Bible versions favour varied terms -Comforter, Intercessor, Helper, Advocate and Counsellor- as translations of this Greek word, παρακλήτος as some have preferred to retain Paraclete which is, as it were, a direct transliteration. The English Missal would prefer ‘Advocate’. These terms, irrespective of their slight differences portray the same idea.

In the Gospel (John 14:23-29), Jesus identifies the Holy Spirit as the Paraclete: but the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all I have taught you (v.26). The Holy Spirit, then in the understanding of the evangelist was Jesus’ Paraclete. The Holy Spirit would continue to inspire the spreading of the Gospel. He will help people understand the correct meaning of the message of Christ in the midst of changing conditions and circumstances, he will ensure that the Church preaches the same truth she heard from their Master. It is the Father who would ‘call in’ the Holy Spirit to support and maintain the already completed salvific work of Jesus. This term therefore spells out the identity and the activity of the Holy Spirit whose work, according to the passage would be two-fold: Towards the Disciples (i.e, the Church) -he will teach you all things and bring to your rememberance; and Towards Jesus (i.e, the salvific mission) -all that I have taught you.

The Holy Spirit is ‘called in’ by God the Father in the name of Jesus to make the followers of Jesus remember all that Jesus said to them. To Jesus, the Spirit would accomplish in the disciples the work he started in them. The Paraclete is in the continuing life of the apostolic faith (and the Church) what Jesus is in its foundation. Hence, the Paraclete shares his functions with Jesus, not outside of Him. The Paraclete’s teaching revolves around the deeds and teachings of Jesus Christ. He does not bring in any teaching independent of the revelation in Jesus. Therefore, the work of the Holy Spirit is still strongly Christological. The Spirit becomes the power of growth of the Church (cf. Eph. 3:16). He is the vital principle of the body of the Church (cf. Eph. 4:4). He is the agent of holiness, of peace, of love, and of inspiration. Indeed, it was the Holy Spirit that inspired the biblical writers to write about Christ; for all scripture is inspired/God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16).

The Holy Spirit is ‘called in’ by Jesus to teach us (guiding us to the fullness of the truth), to counsel us (advocating and defending us against every danger) and to comfort us (consoling us in all our sufferings).

1. As a Teacher

The Holy Spirit is ‘called in’ by Jesus to teach us about the Truth (Christ) and to lead us into its fullness. He is not a Spirit of mediocrity, but a Spirit of plenitude. He supports us in our mission which lies in proclaiming Christ. He gives us all the necessary knowledge we need about Christ and His kingdom. Christ had told us that the Holy Spirit has the function to teach us what we shall say (cf. Luke 12:12). The Holy Spirit ignites in us a special kind of knowledge and proclamation incomprehensible to any man (cf. Elizabeth in Luke 1:41 and Zechariah in Luke 1:67). He is the spirit of wisdom (cf. Acts 6:3 in the choice of the deacons). It was this same Spirit that taught Peter to see all peoples as clean and worthy of the gospel (Acts 10ff). The Spirit searches and reveals to us the deep things of God (1 Cor 2:10). It is this same Spirit in the Second Reading that led John to the heavenly throne and revealed to him the hidden knowledge about God (cf. Rev. 21:10-14. 22-23). The Spirit teaches us to teach. He teaches us to prophesy (cf. Ezek. 2:2, 3:12). The prophet/teacher is a man of the spirit (Hosea 9:7).

2. As a Counsellor/Advocate

The Holy Spirit is ‘called in’ by Jesus to counsel us. The Holy Spirit is there to support by speaking on our behalf, and in our favour. A Counsellor does two functions: He advices/guides, and he defends. In the legal context, the lawyer counsels and advices the accused on what to do and say, and thereupon defends him/her in front of all. The first function is one of guidance. In the first reading, we meet how the Holy Spirit led/directs the apostles to take appropriate decisions concerning the admission of Gentiles into the Church of Jesus Christ. They said :it has pleased the Holy Spirit and us to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things...(Acts 15:28). This means that the Holy Spirit has the the pride of place in their decision. This guidance extends through the whole of the Acts of the Apostles. The Spirit empowers the apostles to feats of courage and eloquence. He is a Spirit of encouragement (Acts 9:31). He led the Church to making important decisions (Acts 13:2; 20:28). Another function of the Holy Spirit is advocacy. Advocacy implies guidance and defence. He defends us against every evil. He liberated Peter from prison (Acts 12ff), and Paul and Silas too (Acts 16ff). He supports us and leads us towards goodness.

3. As a Comforter/Consoler

The Holy Spirit is ‘called in’ by Jesus to comfort us in our tribulations. He consoles us when we are suffering for the sake of Christ and His Church. He strengthens us (Acts 9:31) in our weakness. He is the Spirit of faith (cf. 2 Col. 4:13). The Spirit consoles us and tells us the manner to conquer all afflictions which is love. Actually, it is He who awakens love in the Christian (Col. 1:8). He is the principle of the mutual love of Christians (cf. Gal 5:13-36, Rom 15:30). The Comforter enables us to pray (Rom 8:15, Gal 4:6). The Spirit makes us to cry Abba father and he rests on all who suffer for Christ (1 Pet 4:14).

As Christians then, we are called to perform the function of the Paraclete, on the one side towards Jesus and on the other side, towards humanity. How do we support the work of Jesus? Or do we prefer to support our selfish interests in the guise of our service to Jesus? Is it not true to state that the various divisions in Christianity might be as a result of the tendency to support our interest rather than the Jesus interest? We need too to extend our service as παρακλήτος (paracletes) to our fellow human beings. We must console them in times of troubles; we need to assist to create more hopes and sense to life in general, and to offer to the depressed a fresh understanding of life filled with great hopes. As counsellors, our service should include welcoming sinners and treating the wounds caused by sin. Most importantly, Christ remains the focus of our advocacy. Our interest is to bring Christ to the people that we serve; and we are assured of the Holy Spirit to lead us through proper service of God and our neighbour. Happy New week. God bless you.