Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church
In the verses prior to those given in the first reading of today’s Mass, St. John describes the tactics of the anti-Christs, Christ’s adversaries, who are liars, heretics, sources of error. They are defeated by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, that is, the gift, the grace, the indwelling of the Father and the Son in us.
The point is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit dwelling within is both the cause of our coming to know who the Lord now and the cause of our salvation when, at the moment of our death, we are judged.
It is unfortunate that we do not have a greater devotion to the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. He is the teacher of prayer to the Father and the Son, who gives us insight to identify and resist the anti-Christs that tempt us with false promises. I shall pray to the Father in Jesus's name to know the Holy Spirit better.
The Holy Spirit also gives the light that enables me to see Christ in others and in the events that take place in our world today. We live in perilous times, but the Spirit gives hope and confidence in God’s love to know and resist the anti-Christs.
Resolve: I shall ask the Holy Spirit to know him better and to anoint people throughout the world with the wisdom and knowledge that enables them to identify the anti-Christs in their lives and the grace to form a closer union with the Father and the Son so that all might be cooperators in in the work of salvation. Finally, I shall ask the Blessed Virgin, the spouse of the Holy Spirit, to bring my prayer to him.