The First Day - Friday after the Ascension
Holy Spirit! Lord of light !
From Thy clear celestial height,
Thy pure beaming radiance give!
Only one thing is important -- eternal salvation. Only one thing, therefore, is
to be feared -- sin. Sin is the result of ignorance, weakness, and
indifference. The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Light, of Strength, and of Love.
With His sevenfold gifts, He enlightens the mind, strengthens the will, and
inflames the heart with love of God. To ensure
our salvation, we ought to invoke the Divine Spirit daily, for "The Spirit
helpeth our infirmity. We know not what we should pray for as we ought. But the
Spirit Himself asketh for us."
Almighty and eternal God, Who hast vouchsafed to regenerate us by water and the
Holy Ghost, and hast given us forgiveness of all our sins, vouchsafe to send
forth from heaven upon us Thy sevenfold Spirit, the Spirit of Wisdom and
Understanding, the Spirit of Counsel and Fortitude, the Spirit of Knowledge and
Piety, and fill us with the Spirit of Holy Fear. Amen.
Act of Consecration to the Holy Ghost (said daily)
On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, I offer myself
soul and body to Thee, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Thy
purity, the unerring keenness of Thy justice, and the might of Thy love. Thou
art the Strength and Light of my soul. In Thee I
live and move and am. I desire never to grieve Thee by unfaithfulness to grace,
and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against Thee.
Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for
Thy light and listen to Thy voice and follow Thy gracious inspirations. I cling
to Thee and give myself to Thee and ask Thee by Thy compassion to watch over me
in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and
looking at His Five Wounds and trusting in His Precious Blood and adoring His
opened Side and stricken Heart, I implore Thee Adorable Spirit, helper of my
infirmity, so to keep me in Thy grace that I may never sin against Thee.
Give me grace O Holy Ghost, Spirit of the Father and the Son, to say to Thee
always and everywhere, "Speak Lord, for Thy servant heareth." Amen.
Prayer for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost (said daily)
O Lord Jesus Christ, Who, before ascending into heaven, didst promise to send
the Holy Ghost to finish Thy work in the souls of Thy Apostles and Disciples,
deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me, that He may perfect in my soul the
work of Thy grace and Thy love. Grant me the
Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and
aspire only after the things that are eternal, the Spirit of Understanding to
enlighten my mind with the light of Thy divine truth, the Spirit of Counsel
that I may ever choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining Heaven, the
Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with Thee, and that I may overcome
with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation, the Spirit of
Knowledge that I may know God and know myself and grow perfect in the science
of the Saints, the Spirit of
Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable, the Spirit of Fear
that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God, and may dread in any
way to displease Him. Mark me, dear Lord, with the sign of Thy true disciples
and animate me in all things with Thy Spirit. Amen
