By Deanna Howes Spiro, Director of Communications, AJCU
“So…why the Holy Spirit? At the start of each academic year, why is it the Holy Spirit we call on? Why don’t we celebrate, say, the Mass of St. Ignatius or of Mary or of the Sacred Heart of Jesus?
We invoke the Holy Spirit today because, as Jesus reminds us in the Gospel, the Spirit is the Great Anointer. Jesus tells the people in his hometown: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me. At the beginning of his public ministry, Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit, and today, at the start of this new academic year, we ask for that same powerful anointing.”
Mass of the Holy Spirit at St. John’s Church in Omaha, NE on September 11 (photo courtesy of Creighton University)
These words opened the homily for the annual Mass of the Holy Spirit at The University of Scranton on September 5. Over the next few weeks, many more Masses and celebrations were held on Jesuit college and university campuses across the country, all following one of the great traditions of the Society of Jesus.
According to the office of campus ministry at Creighton University, “The Mass of the Holy Spirit is a tradition among Jesuit academic institutions dating to 1548 in which the community gathers to thank God for the gifts of creation and salvation and to seek the guidance and wisdom of the Holy Spirit in the coming year.”
Traditionally, Masses of the Holy Spirit are held at the beginning of the new school year, and are open to all members of campus communities, including families and friends of new students. Red, a predominant color seen in vestments, banners and artwork, is selected for its liturgical representation of the Holy Spirit. Similar to Pentecost, a variety of cultural traditions and expressions are on display through the selection of hymns and languages spoken during the readings and petitions.
At Georgetown University, Rev. Gerard J. McGlone, S.J. began his homily with a lesson in Hebrew: “Welcome, Breath and Shalom – Each has a context, each word has a place. ‘Welcome’ is in this unique place upon which we sit welcoming new students and faculty and the new academic year. Secondly, ‘Breath,’ the image of God’s spirit hovering over the chaos in Jerusalem in the first Pentecost as God’s breath once hovered over the chaos of creation. And Shalom – the third is this place in the Gospel reading, the Upper Room.”
Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J. distributes communion at the College of the Holy Cross on August 31 (photo courtesy of the College of the HOly Cross)
During this year’s Masses of the Holy Spirit, students heard homilies from presidents, Archbishops, faculty and Jesuits in residence. And in these homilies, they learned lessons. Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J., president of the College of the Holy Cross, said, “Both our reading from Sirach and the Gospel of Luke this afternoon emphasize the importance of humility. While the word ‘humility’ often is described as an awareness of our struggles and weaknesses, that seems insufficient to me. I prefer to think of humility as knowing the truth about ourselves, and that truth includes our gifts and our limitations. While it is important to know what we don’t know and to be realistic about our abilities, we each have been given unique gifts from God which are an important dimension of who we are. False humility diminishes these gifts, while true humility reflects a lifetime of being reflective about our life experience, our capacities and lessons learned.”
Homilists also drew inspiration from Pope Francis. Rev. Paul Rourke, S.J., director of campus ministry at Fairfield University, delivered the homily during Fairfield’s Mass of the Holy Spirit on September 6. He said, “So often, if we think of the Holy Spirit at all, we struggle to arrive at a satisfactory image. Tongues of fire and doves don’t really cut it after a while. It’s not surprising that we should struggle: the Spirit is not corporeal and trying to imagine a physical image runs the risk of idolatry. We know Jesus from the Gospels. We know what a father is, but the Holy Spirit remains elusive. And yet, as Pope Francis told us earlier this year at Pentecost in one of his more beautiful homilies: ‘[The Holy Spirit] far from being an abstract reality [is] the most concrete and close, the one who changes our lives.’ The Spirit is the one who changes our lives.”
The Masses of the Holy Spirit were followed by luncheons and opportunities to engage in fellowship with classmates, colleagues and friends. We invite you to enjoy these video and photo highlights from the 2019 Masses of the Holy Spirit on Jesuit college and university campuses:
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Highlights from the October 3 Mass of the Holy Spirit at Seattle University (Seattle, WA)
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Highlights from the September 5 Mass of the Holy Spirit at Boston College (Chestnut Hill, MA)
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Highlights from the September 10 Mass of the Holy Spirit & Community Social at Xavier University (Cincinnati, OH)
This year’s Mass of the Holy Spirit marked the first time that Archbishop William Lori (leader of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, pictured left) celebrated with the Loyola University Maryland community, led by President Rev. Brian Linnane, S.J., pictured right (photo courtesy of Loyola University Maryland; Mass held on September 15)
Loyola Marymount University’s Mass of the Holy Spirit was held at the Sacred Heart Chapel on September 10, featuring Rev. Allen Figueroa Deck, S.J. as presider. The Mass was followed by a celebratory lunch in LMU’s Sculpture Garden (photo courtesy of Loyola Marymount University)
Students sang and played music during Spring Hill College’s Mass of the Holy Spirit at St. Joseph Chapel on August 27 (photo courtesy of Spring Hill College)
Dr. Michael Lovell, President of Marquette University, distributed communion at the Mass of Holy Spirit at the Church of the Gesu on August 25 (photo courtesy of Marquette University)
Georgetown University hosted the Mass of the Holy Spirit on campus in Gaston Hall on August 27, featuring Rev. Mark Bosco, S.J., Vice President for Mission and Ministry (photo courtesy of Georgetown University)
Musicians at Canisius University’s Mass of the Holy Spirit (held on October 2) included Sydnie Perkins from the office of alumni relations, and local keyboardist Nikali Thomas (photo courtesy of Canisius University)
Rockhurst University hosted the Mass of the Holy Spirit at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church on September 10 (photo courtesy of Rockhurst University)
The University of Detroit Mercy hosted the annual “Celebrate Spirit” Mass and celebration at the Student Fitness Center on September 12 (photo courtesy of the University of Detroit Mercy)
The Saint Peter’s University community gathered at St. Aedan’s Church for the Mass of the Holy Spirit on September 11 (photo courtesy of Saint Peter’s University)
Gonzaga University’s Mass of the Holy Spirit was held at St. Aloysius Catholic Church on September 10, featuring Rev. Bryan Pham, S.J. as homilist (photo courtesy of Gonzaga University)