Jesus reassures his disciples (and all of us) that the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit, is coming as a guide to all truth (John 16:12-15). The Father, Jesus (the Son), and the Spirit speak with one voice and are one. These few verses unfold the Trinity as one God without the slightest degree of separation between the three Divine Persons. Being touched by one is being touched by all.

The Holy Spirit surely touched Paul of Tarsus, Apostle to the Gentiles. With great courage and rockbound faith, he stands up to speak in one of the town squares of Athens, citadel of Greek culture, religion, and philosophy. Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle had spoken here! Now came Paul, a Jew from a small Mediterranean port in Asia Minor. His listeners were staunch pagans who worshipped a fractious bunch of gods, goddesses, and semi-divine heroes: the Olympians. Over centuries, Eastern deities like Isis and Astarte had crept into this pantheon, and the arrogant Romans had stuck in their own divine emperors. Ever the diplomat, Paul began his oration with compliments on Athenian religiosity: they had built dozens of shrines, altars, and temples to their gods, being ever so careful to include one altar ‘To an Unknown God’.

Now began the sermon! Paul proclaimed this singular ‘Unknown God’ as the only one, true God: “The God who made the world and all that is in it, the Lord of heaven and earth” (Acts 17). The Spirit moved Paul with divine inspiration to proclaim this ‘good news’ with great power. Hearing about the resurrection of the dead, some Athenians scoffed, some wished to hear more, and some became believers. May the touch of the Spirit of Truth also galvanize us: stand up! Proclaim the Good News whenever and wherever you can.

Let us pray:

Dear God, grant us great faith and fortitude in your service! May the Spirit of Truth touch us with your wisdom! Move us to live a Eucharistic life that embodies and proclaims the Good News of salvation! Amen.