Ascensiontide
This Ascension Thursday, May 26th, we celebrated the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. The nine days between Our Lord's Ascension on Ascension Thursday and the Descent of the Holy Ghost on Pentecost Sunday comprise the liturgical season of Ascensiontide.
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The Lord ascended into Heaven to prepare a place for us. His apostles were sent to teach all nations what He had commanded them. We must now cleanse our hearts from sin, which cannot enter Heaven, and store up good deeds, performed in the state of grace. These will speak for us when we appear before God.
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During Ascensiontide, we invite you to pray the Novena to the Holy Ghost, the prototype for all novenas. It commemorates the nine days between the Ascension of Our Lord and the Descent of the Holy Ghost on Pentecost Sunday. During this time, Our Lady and the twelve Apostles prayed in the upper room for the coming of the Paraclete.
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As Our Lady and the Apostles did, we too should pray for the coming of the Holy Ghost in our world which so desperately needs Him.
The Novena to the Holy Ghost
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The novena in honor of the Holy Spirit is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Himself when He sent His apostles back to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Spirit on the first Pentecost. It is still the only novena officially prescribed by the Church. Addressed to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, it is a powerful plea for the light and strength and love so sorely needed by every Christian.
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This Novena begins on the day after the Solemnity of the Ascension, Friday of the 6th Week of Easter, even if the Solemnity of the Ascension is transferred to the 7th Sunday.
