Holy Spirit Encyclical (cont'd) - Part III -Section 5, paragraph 61

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I do not think I ever heard of the concept of the Church as “Sacrament” when I a child or a young adult. I grew up learning about the Seven Sacraments, but the thought of the Church herself being “like a sacrament”, I began to hear from Vatican II. St John Paul II, of course was present, and deeply involved with, the Second Vatican Council and I’m not surprised by his use of this beautiful concept of the Church as “the Sacrament of Intimate Union with God”.

**5. The Church as the Sacrament of Intimate Union with God
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61. As the end of the second Millennium approaches, an event which should recall to everyone and as it were make present anew the coming of the Word in the fullness of time, the Church once more means to ponder the very essence of her divine-human constitution and of that mission which enables her to share in the messianic mission of Christ, according to the teaching and the ever valid plan of the Second Vatican Council. Following this line, we can go back to the Upper Room, where Jesus Christ reveals the Holy Spirit as the Paraclete, the Spirit of truth, and where he speaks of his own “departure” through the Cross as the necessary condition for the Spirit’s “coming”: "It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you."267 We have seen that this prediction first came true the evening of Easter day and then during the celebration of Pentecost in Jerusalem, and we have seen that ever since then it is being fulfilled in human history through the Church.

In the light of that prediction, we also grasp the full meaning of what Jesus says, also at the Last Supper, about his new “coming.” For it is significant that in the same farewell discourse Jesus foretells not only his “departure” but also his new "coming." His exact words are: "I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you."268 And at the moment of his final farewell before he ascends into heaven, he will repeat even more explicitly: “Lo, I am with you,” and this "always, to the close of the age."269 This new “coming” of Christ, this continuous coming of his, in order to be with his Apostles, with the Church, this “I am with you always, to the close of the age,” does not of course change the fact of his “departure.” It follows that departure, after the close of Christ’s messianic activity on earth, and it occurs in the context of the predicted sending of the Holy Spirit and in a certain sense forms part of his own mission. And yet it occurs by the power of the Holy Spirit, who makes it possible for Christ, who has gone away, to come now and for ever in a new way. This new coming of Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit, and his constant presence and action in the spiritual life are accomplished in the sacramental reality. In this reality, Christ, who has gone away in his visible humanity, comes, is present and acts in the Church in such an intimate way as to make it his own Body. As such, the Church lives, works and grows “to the close of the age.” All this happens through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Reflecting on the Church as “the Sacrament of Intimate Union with God”, I cannot help but remember St. Maximilian Kolbe writing that the relationship of Mary to the Holy Spirit was so intimate that “spouse” was too weak a word to use! Mary is the icon of the Church and so this phrase St. John Paul II uses in calling the Church a Sacrament of Intimate Union with God takes on an ever newer and deeper meaning for me. Much to ponder…