24 May 2026 #pluviophile
Did you know that a lover of rain is called a “pluviophile’? The definition of a pluviophile is a person who loves rain and finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days. Hold tight to that word.
Happy Birthday, Church! Today is the birthday of the Catholic Church, began once those apostles of Jesus received a gift of the Holy Spirit and began converting friends and family alike to this new way of living life. Then those friends and family received their gift from the Holy Spirit and began converting their friends and family alike to participate in a new way of life… and pockets of the world became kinder and gentler places to live, where folks lived Jesus’ message and “loved their neighbors as themselves.” So what exactly are the gifts of the Holy Spirit? Glad you asked.
The gifts of the Holy Spirit and what they enable us to do:
Understanding: Receive insights into the deep Truths of the faith
Knowledge: Discern right-from-wrong through and in faith
Wisdom: Comprehend the heart of God and Truth in everyday life
Counsel: Give the sage advice that God would give
Fortitude: Continuously act with the courage, despite any obstacle or setback
Piety: Live out a deep and abiding love for God and all forms of worship
Fear of the Lord: Own a profound respect for God’s majesty and sincere desire to avoid sin
These small Christian communities mentioned above looked and felt different; each person accepted their gift and used it as God had need. Those gifts bore the fruit of the Holy Spirit too, both internally and externally. So, what are the fruits of the Holy Spirit? Delighted you asked.
Love: Unconditional and selfless acts of service to others.
Joy: A deep sense of happiness and contentment despite any hardships.
Peace: An abiding harmony with God and inner tranquility.
Patience: Enduring difficulties and delays without frustration
Kindness: A disposition to be generous and considerate toward others.
Goodness: A commitment to doing good and acting in a moral manner.
Faithfulness: Loyalty in relationships and commitments to others and God.
Gentleness: A humble and quiet spirit.
Self-control: The ability to control one’s impulses and desires.
Modesty: Moderation in internal and external movements/appearance.
Chastity: Self-control in all things relating to body image, internal and external.
At the sacrament of Baptism we receive gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit and they are abundantly activated at our Confirmation. So why don’t we all act through our gift and fruits in everyday life? Also glad you asked.
A light-hearted umbrella analogy: The Lord showers these beautiful things upon us, but like all of us in a downpour, we tend to put up umbrellas to keep the rain at bay. In this case, our umbrellas are like sin. In the tines of the umbrella are steely sins like disobedience, arrogance, pride, greed, lust, anger, laziness… all those things that block God’s grace and gifts for us. The fabric between the tines – beautiful patterns though they might be – are created by the actions of our free will.
The Holy Spirit rains down these gifts and fruits for us, so that our lives look different than those who do not follow Jesus. The question to be asked is: Where is your umbrella in the Holy Spirit thunderstorm? #pluviophile