Below, we offer the full text of the catechesis delivered by Pope Francis in the Paul VI Hall of the Vatican on the role of the Holy Spirit in the work of Redemption through the Incarnation of the Word, Jesus Christ.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
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With today’s catechesis we enter the second phase of the history of salvation. After having contemplated the Holy Spirit in the work of Creation, we will contemplate him for a few weeks in the work of Redemption, that is, in Jesus Christ. Let us turn, then, to the New Testament.
Today’s topic is the Holy Spirit in the Incarnation of the Word. In the Gospel of Luke we read: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (1:35). The evangelist Matthew confirms this fundamental fact that concerns Mary and the Holy Spirit, saying that Mary “was found pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit” (1:18).
The Church has collected this revealed data and soon placed it at the heart of its Symbol of Faith. At the Ecumenical Council of Constantinople, in 381 – the one that defined the divinity of the Holy Spirit –, such an article entered the formula of the “Creed”.
It is, therefore, a fact of ecumenical faith, because all Christians together profess that same Symbol of faith. Catholic piety, since time immemorial, has derived one of its daily prayers from this, the Angelus.
This article of faith is the foundation that allows us to speak of Mary as the Bride par excellence, who is a figure of the Church. In fact, Jesus – writes Saint Leo the Great – “just as she was born by the work of the Holy Spirit from a virgin mother, so she makes the Church, her immaculate Bride, fruitful with the vital breath of the same Spirit.” This parallelism is taken up in the dogmatic Constitution The light, which reads like this: «By her faith and obedience, Mary gave birth to the Son of God himself on earth, without contact with a man, but overshadowed (covered by shadow, N. of the R.) by the Holy Spirit. (…) Well, the Church, contemplating the mysterious holiness of the Virgin, imitating her charity and faithfully fulfilling the will of the Father, through the Word of God received with fidelity, also becomes a mother, since with Preaching and baptism generate new and immortal life in children, conceived by the work of the Holy Spirit and born of God” (nn. 63, 64).
We conclude with a practical reflection for our lives, suggested by Scripture’s insistence on the verbs “conceive” and “give birth.” “Behold, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son,” reads the prophecy of Isaiah (7:14); and the Angel says to Mary: “You will conceive a son and give birth to him” (Lk 1:31). Mary first conceived, then gave birth to Jesus: she first welcomed him inside her, in her heart and in the flesh, then she gave birth to him.
This is also the case with the Church: first she welcomes the Word of God, lets it “speak to her heart” (cf. Hos 2:16) and “fill her bowels” (cf. Ezek 3:3), according to two biblical expressions. , and then give birth to it with life and preaching. The second operation is sterile without the first.
Also to the Church, faced with tasks beyond its strength, the same question spontaneously arises: “How is this possible?” How is it possible to announce Jesus Christ and his salvation to a world that seems to seek only well-being? The answer is also the same as then: “You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:8). Without the Holy Spirit the Church cannot move forward, the Church does not grow, the Church cannot preach.
What is said about the Church in general is valid for each baptized person in particular. Each of us sometimes finds ourselves in situations beyond our capabilities and asks ourselves: “How can I face this situation?” It helps, in these cases, to remember and repeat to oneself what the angel said to the Virgin: “Nothing is impossible with God” (Lk 1:37). Brothers and sisters, let us also return, each time, to our path with this comforting certainty in our hearts: “Nothing is impossible for God.”
And if we believe in this, we will perform miracles. Nothing is impossible for God. Thank you.
Nicholas de Cardenas
Born in 1980, I am a Spanish husband and father and journalist with more than 20 years of experience in print and digital media, specializing in sociopolitical and religious information. I have worked for more than 10 years in defense of human rights and have accreditations in Journalism and Comprehensive Communication. Since July 2022, I have been a correspondent for ACI Prensa and EWTN Noticias in Spain, covering international events of the Catholic Church.