Original

333
dwell within their souls, and would send to them the
Holy Ghost to strengthen, console, and fortify them against
all the assaults of the world.
The Introit, taken from the Book of Wisdom, declares
that the Spirit of the Lord fills the whole earth that all
creatures may have voice. The two verses of the Alle
luia suggest to the Christian soul the ardent prayer which
draws down the divine Spirit ; throughout
the Octave,
all kneel during the singing of the second verse. The
Sequence, Veni, Sancte Spiritus, of which neither the au
thor nor the date can be determined with certainty,
expresses in accents of ardent longing the desire of
possessing within oneself the Ho .y Ghost, the Consoler,
who enlightens, purifies and enkindles the soul, and
brings to it true peace. The Offertory, taken from
Psalm LXVII., a song of triumph frequently repeated
during the solemnities of Pentecost, is a prayer in which
we implore of God that He would confirm the work
wrought within us by the Holy Ghost on the day of our
Baptism and of our Confirmation. Finally the Com
munion recalls the passage from the Epistle in which
the effects of the descent of the Holy Ghost upon the
apostles are described.
The Prayers of the Mass are an appeal that God would
grant us to know, to enjoy, and to relish the consolations
of the Holy Ghost (COLLECT) ; an earnest prayer to the God
who illumines souls with the rays of His light, purifies
them from every stain of sin, and by the beneficent dew of
His grace renders them fruitful (SECRET, POSTCOMMUNION).
In the Antiphon of the Magnificat at the second
Vespers, we praise and extol the descent of the Holy
Ghost upon the apostles, the communication to them
of His precious gifts, and the mission confided to them
to preach salvation to all the nations of the earth.
11*