The Holy Spirit is the last person of the Holy Trinity to be revealed (this revelation is made through the story of Christ in the New Testament). The Church teaches that people can only draw close to Christ if they have been touched by the Holy Spirit, who gives his grace through the sacrament of Baptism.

The Spirit works invisibly. He inspired the prophets, and now he inspires other aspects of the faith, such as the sacraments, which put the faithful into communion with Christ; prayer, where he intercedes for the faithful; ministries and missions; and the saints, through whom he shows his holiness.

The Holy Spirit has a joint mission with Christ. The world has seen Christ, but it is the Spirit who revealed him. Christ was anointed, but it was the coming upon him of the Spirit that was his anointing. Christ and the Spirit are inseparable. When Christ ascended to Heaven, he sent the Holy Spirit to dwell among mankind to unite all to Christ as adopted children. At Pentecost, the Spirit descended on the apostles, and he has remained with the Church ever since. The Church completes the mission of Christ and the Holy Spirit because in a mysterious way the Church is the Body of Christ as well as the Temple of the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit is at work in several ways:

• It prepares men through grace to draw them to Christ.

• It manifests the Risen Lord to men by spreading his word and helping them to understand the mysteries of the faith.

• It makes Christ present, especially in the Eucharist.

• It brings men into closeness with God.

Thus the Holy Spirit helps the Church carry on the mission of Jesus and the Holy Spirit: to draw all to Christ.

Holy Spirit in the Scriptures

In the Old Testament, there were two streams of prophecy: one for the Messiah and one for the Holy Spirit. The Spirit spoke of himself through the prophets: “But a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and of understanding, A spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD” (Isaiah 11:1–2).

The last prophet through whom the Holy Spirit spoke was John the Baptist. John said of Christ, “On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the holy Spirit” (John 1:33–36). After baptism, Christ entered into his joint mission with the Holy Spirit. He alluded to the Spirit as he preached to the crowds, as he spoke to Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman, and as he talked to his disciples about prayer and their future testament to him.

Names and Images

Titles of the Holy Spirit include Paraclete, which is commonly translated as “consoler,” “advocate,” or “he who is called to one's side.” He is also known as the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of the Promise, the Spirit of Adoption, the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of the Lord, and the Spirit of God.

These are some of the symbols connected to the Holy Spirit:

• Water. Man's birth takes place in water; the water of Baptism signifies rebirth.

• Anointing with oil. This action relates to Jesus's anointing with the Holy Spirit. Jesus was the Anointed One, revealed and anointed with the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.

• Fire. Fire symbolizes the transforming energy of the Holy Spirit, who at Pentecost rested on the heads of the disciples as tongues of fire.

• Cloud and light. In the Old Testament, images of cloud and light depicted the Holy Spirit revealing and obscuring God in his apparitions to Moses.

• The seal. A symbol of the effect of anointing with the Holy Spirit, an indelible character printed on the soul.

• The hand. A reference to the laying on of hands in healing and teaching, where the Holy Spirit is an agent.

• The finger. By the finger of the Holy Spirit, Jesus casts out demons and writes on the human heart.

• The dove. At Jesus' baptism, the Holy Spirit comes over him in the form of a dove.