The Spirit & The Church

Kimberly Hiles / Eastertide - Pentecost, 2023, Issue 6

I recently overheard a discussion about “if” and “how” traditional, liturgical church services could be Spirit-empowered. The implication was that liturgical worship leaves little room for the spontaneous freedom of the Spirit to work and move. That got me thinking about the role of the Holy Spirit in the life and worship of the Church.

In the book The Anglican Way, Thomas McKenzie holds that it was the Holy Spirit who formed the liturgy over time through the church. Because the liturgy centers around Christ and is not driven by my personality (or yours), it actually gives more room for the Holy Spirit to work. This means that liturgy offers me a life-giving invitation to experience the power and presence of the Holy Spirit within a form of worship that is ancient and in keeping with the historical Church.

In The Spirit of the Liturgy, Pope Benedict XVI describes liturgy as “a prayer moved and guided by the Holy Spirit himself.” He notes that liturgy has cosmic implications in the sense that those gathered to worship are joining in with angels and saints around the heavenly throne, anticipating the long-awaited union of heaven and earth. As a believer, I am privileged to participate, rather than spectate, in a drama that is both ancient and unfinished, and it is the Holy Spirit who plays the primary role in connecting heaven and earth in my worship.

We are sometimes under the impression that the Holy Spirit made His original grand entrance at Pentecost. And while Pentecost was most certainly grand, it was not the first major moment of the Spirit of God in Scripture. In the first chapter of the book of Genesis, in verse two, “the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” In unity with the divine Trinity, the Holy Spirit is present and actively involved in the work of creation from the beginning. Immediately following our first glimpse of the Spirit, the first divine words of God are spoken: “Let there be light!” We tend to think a gap exists between the Spirit’s hovering and God’s speaking, but the two are intimately connected. Throughout Scripture, the Holy Spirit is associated with enlightenment and illumination. In fact, the early Church referred to those who had been baptized as “enlightened ones” or “illumined ones.”

At the beginning of all things, the Spirit of God is present and active in the work of creation, is intimately connected with water, is associated with illumination, and is active in the things of creation to bring about God’s creative will. He imparts life in all its forms. He illumines our darkness with the light of truth, and then He opens our eyes to understand and submit to these truths. At the end of May, our parish will gather to both remember and celebrate the feast of Pentecost, commonly called Whitsuntide. We will commemorate the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, the impact of which is beautifully described in the Proper Preface for Whitsunday (BCP 78):

“Through Jesus Christ our Lord; according to whose most true promise, the Holy Ghost came down as at this time from heaven, lighting upon the disciples, to teach them, and to lead them into all truth; giving them boldness with fervent zeal constantly to preach the Gospel unto all nations; whereby we have been brought out of darkness and error into the clear light and true knowledge of thee, and of thy Son Jesus Christ.”

Finally, in the Collect(s) appointed for this day, we glimpse the depth of the riches we continue to receive through the outpouring and empowerment from the Holy Spirit:

"O God, who as at this time didst teach the hearts of thy faithful people, by sending to them the light of thy Holy Spirit; Grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort…”

"Almighty and most merciful God, grant, we beseech thee, that by the indwelling of thy Holy Spirit, we may be enlightened and strengthened for thy service…”

Friends, are you in need of enlightenment? Do you need strength for the service to which God has called you? Are you in need of the right judgment and knowledge of the truth? These Beloveds are gifts given from a good God for the people of Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit.

Kimberly Hiles is a healthcare professional and candidate for the office of Deaconess in the Reformed Episcopal Church.