A POWERFUL NOVENA TO THE HOLY SPIRIT: DAY 6 – THE GIFT OF UNDERSTANDING

(IT CAN BE PRAYED ANYTIME IN THE DAY)

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Hymn

Chorus: Send forth your Spirit O Lord, that the face of the earth be renewed.

1. O my soul, arise and bless the Lord God,
Say to Him my God how great you are,
You are clothed with majesty and splendour,
And light is the garment you wear. Chorus

2. While I live, I sing the praise of God.
I will thank the author of those marvels
Praise to God the Father, Son and Spirit;
Both now and forever, Amen. Chorus

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT

On my knees, I before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Your purity, the unerring keenness of Your justice, and the might of Your love. You are the Strength and Light of my soul. In You, I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against You. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light, and listen to Your voice and follow Your gracious inspirations. I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You, by Your 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 You, Adorable Spirit, Helper of my infirmity, to keep me in Your grace that I may never sin against You. Give me grace O Holy Spirit, Spirit of the Father and the Son to say to You always and everywhere, “Speak, Lord, for Your servant heareth.” Amen.

SCRIPTURAL READING: Luke 24:45-46 

The gospel of the Lord…

MEDITATION

Having pondered the gift of knowledge, we proceed to the gift of understanding. Understanding is the second gift of the Holy Spirit. It differs from wisdom in that wisdom is the desire to contemplate the things of God, while Understanding allows us to “penetrate to the very core of revealed truths.” This doesn’t mean that we can come to understand, say, the Trinity the way that we might a mathematical equation, but that we become certain of the truth of the doctrine of the Trinity. Such certitude moves beyond faith, which “merely assents to what God has revealed.”

Understanding is a gift “to give a deeper insight and penetration of divine truths held by faith, not as a transitory enlightenment but as a permanent intuition.” Illuminating the mind to truth, the Holy Spirit aids a person to grasp the truths of faith easily and to penetrate the depths of those truths. Such illumination, grasping, and penetration allows one to enter a divine intimacy with the Lord. The essential quality of this gift is a “penetrating intuition” — in a sense, the moving beyond the surface. This gift operates in several ways: first, disclosing the hidden meaning of sacred Scripture, as Our Lord did with the disciples (as we read in today’s scriptural text) on the way to Emmaus.

The gift of understanding works in multiple ways. First, it helps us to be convinced of the truths of our faith. Second, it also assists us in drawing conclusions based upon our relationship to God, his role in the world and our call to share in his mission. As this gift grows in us, we order the actions of our lives toward our final end, which is God. We see the world and our life within it in the larger context of God’s plan. This impacts how we see God but also one another — beyond the surface as brothers and sisters in Christ.

Pause for a moment and reflect…

DAY 6 PRAYER

O Father in Heaven, I beg You to send the Holy Spirit. May Your Holy Spirit remind me when I am apt to forget Your law, Your love, Your promises, etc. May Your Holy Spirit strengthen my memory to recall frequently Your sanctity, omniscience, wisdom, and goodness, faithfulness, and love. May Your Holy Spirit encourage me when I am slothful; strengthen me when I am weak; enlighten me when I no longer can help myself. Breathe into me, O Holy Spirit, that I may do what is holy. Stir me, that I may love what is holy. Strengthen me, that I may preserve what is holy. Protect me, Holy Spirit, that I may never lose what is holy and grant me the favour I so earnestly seek in this novena… (State your request here…) if it be in accordance with Your Holy Will. Amen.

PRAYER FOR THE SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

O Lord Jesus Christ Who, before ascending into heaven did promise to send the Holy Spirit to finish Your work in the souls of Your Apostles and Disciples, deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me that He may perfect in my soul, the work of Your grace and Your 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 Your 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 You 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, and the Spirit of Fear that I may be filled with a loving reverence toward God and may dread in any way to displease Him. Mark me, dear Lord, with the sign of Your true disciples, and animate me in all things with Your Spirit. Amen.

Our Father… Hail Mary…. (Glory be….X7)

LITANY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Lord, have mercy on us.

Christ, have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us.

God the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us.

God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have mercy on us.

God the Holy Spirit, Have mercy on us.

Holy Trinity, One God, Have mercy on us.

Divine Essence, one true God, Have mercy on us

Spirit of truth and wisdom, Have mercy on us

Spirit of holiness and justice, Have mercy on us

Spirit of understanding and counsel, Have mercy on us

Spirit of love and joy, Have mercy on us

Spirit of peace and patience, Have mercy on us

Spirit of longanimity and meekness, Have mercy on us

Spirit of benignity and goodness, Have mercy on us

Love substantial of the Father and the Son, Have mercy on us

Love and life of saintly souls, Have mercy on us

Fire ever burning, Have mercy on us

Living water to quench the thirst of hearts, Have mercy on us

From all evil, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all impurity of soul and body, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all gluttony and sensuality, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all attachments to the things of the earth, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all hypocrisy and pretence, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all imperfections and deliberate faults, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From our own will, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From slander, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From deceiving our neighbours, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From our passions and disorderly appetites, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From our inattentiveness to Thy holy inspirations, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From despising little things, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From debauchery and malice, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From the love of comfort and luxury, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From wishing to seek or desire anything other than Thee, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From everything that displeases Thee, Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

Most loving Father, forgive us.

Divine Word, have pity on us.

Holy and divine Spirit, leave us not until we are in possession of the Divine Essence, Heaven of heavens.

Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, Send us the divine Consoler.

Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, Fill us with the gifts of Thy Spirit.

Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, Make the fruits of the Holy Spirit increase within us.

V. Come, O Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful,

R. And enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.

V. Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created,

R. And Thou shall renew the face of the earth.

Let Us Pray

God, Who by the light of the Holy Spirit did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Spirit we may be truly wise and ever to rejoice in His consolation. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord, Amen.

Concluding Meditation/Prayer

Understanding, as a gift of the Holy Spirit, helps us to grasp the meaning of the truths of our holy religion. By faith, we know them, but by Understanding, we learn to appreciate and relish them. It enables us to penetrate the inner meaning of revealed truths and through them to be quickened to newness of life. Our faith ceases to be sterile and inactive, but inspires a mode of life that bears eloquent testimony to the faith that is in us; we begin to walk worthy of God in all things pleasing, and increasing in the knowledge of God.

Come, O Spirit of Understanding, and enlighten our minds, that we may know and believe all the mysteries of salvation; and may merit at last to see the eternal light in Thy Light, and in the light of glory to have a clear vision of Thee and the Father and the Son.  Amen

Come Spirit of Understanding! Visit our minds and heart, dispel the vacuum of our ignorance and grant peaceful rest to our bodies tonight, so that we may rise with joy to sing your praise. Amen.

Blessing+

The Lord bless us, protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life. Amen.

Great job praying Day 6! Click here for Day 7 Prayers

Shalom!
Written and Compiled by Fr. Chinaka Justin Mbaeri, OSJ
Paroquia Nossa Senhora de Fatima, Vila Sabrina, São Paulo, Brazil
nozickcjoe@gmail.com / fadacjay@gmail.com
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PS: Have you prayed your Rosary today?