On the first day of the General Assembly, Paulist President Fr. René Constanza celebrated an Opening Mass of the Holy Spirit. The Mass included a blessing of Fr. René for his re-election as President for the next four years as well as a blessing of the newly elected General Council. In his homily Fr. René shared:
The first reading from Acts reminds us that when the Spirit descended at Pentecost, people from many nations heard the Gospel in their own language. Diversity was not erased; it was transformed into communion. The miracle of Pentecost is not uniformity. It is unity in mission.
As Paulists, we know that evangelization requires precisely this openness. Our founder, Isaac Thomas Hecker, believed deeply that the Holy Spirit is active in the hearts of people and continually calling the Church forward in fidelity to Christ. That same Spirit is present among us now.
So as we begin this Assembly, perhaps the most important disposition we can bring is neither certainty nor strategy, but openness to the Holy Spirit.
May the Spirit free us from fear and defensiveness. May the Spirit grant us wisdom, courage, humility, and charity. May the Spirit help us speak honestly, listen generously, and discern faithfully. And may the peace that Christ breathed upon his disciples become the peace that guides our deliberations—not a peace that avoids conflict, but a peace that leads through it toward deeper communion and renewed mission.
“Peace be with you. Receive the Holy Spirit.”
May that be both the gift we receive and the mission we embrace in these days ahead. Amen.
