Applying the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit to Our Work
The Church teaches us that the Holy Spirit gives us Seven "Gifts." We're going to think about how we might apply these to our work every day. First some background.
These Gifts are the subject of the Novena to the Holy Spirit which we pray during the nine days before Pentecost, beginning the day after Ascension Thursday, ending on the Vigil of Pentecost. According to the EWTN website, this novena "is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Himself when He sent His disciples 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."
We'll consider each gift in order, using the solid foundation of this oldest of novenas to help us understand each gift. Then we'll try to apply our understanding and see how each gift can help guide us each day as we strive to work for the greater glory of God.
"The gift of Fear fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread nothing so much as to offend Him by sin. It is a fear that arises, not from the thought of hell, but from sentiments of reverence and filial submission to our heavenly Father. It is the fear that is the beginning of wisdom, detaching us from worldly pleasures that could in any way separate us from God..."
First, let's note that the concept of Fear or "Holy Fear" is typically much misunderstood. This gift doesn't equate with what most of us think of when we use the word "fear." We'll contrast "Holy Fear" with the way we usually use the word "fear" with a couple of examples from the workplace. These examples derive from my own experience at companies where, for periods of time, fear was in the air. Generally, that fear emanated either from a particular boss, or from circumstances beyond my control. With that in mind, we'll look at the fear engendered by a boss and fear created by a particular circumstance.
First the boss: Years ago I worked at a small company that was under pressure to produce sales by the company's private investors. Our "big boss" (the guy to whom my boss reported) was the guy who did the bidding of the investors. His managerial style was gruff, nasty, obnoxious, and threatening. He held an axe over your head. If things didn't go the way he wanted, you'd be fired. And, indeed, my boss was eventually fired when sales didn't hit the mark that satisfied the investors. This boss instilled fear whenever he ventured out of his office and walked the floor.
Next the circumstance: If you've ever worked at a company that changed management, you'll instantly recognize this. The new management takes over and, more often than not, after a period where everyone is reassured their jobs are safe, wholesale changes begin. Layoffs ensue. Everyone's whispering, even cowering, wondering if they're next. Having been through this, I can attest that a toxic atmosphere permeated with fear, once it gets hold, make daily work miserable.
Now on to the gift of "Holy Fear": The contrast with "regular" fear couldn't be more stark.
The point of Holy Fear is not to be afraid of God. What we fear is sin. We fear sin because we know it offends God. And our desire not to offend does not spring from a fear of Hell, or that we'll be otherwise punished by God. Rather it flows from the natural and rational reverence and submission to His Holy Will that fills our soul when we give God His due as our Creator and as our Father. We have learned to know Him as Creator and Father through our prayer and study of the teachings of our Holy Catholic Church. Our fear of offending Him stirs the first inklings of real wisdom, a wisdom that helps us turn from those worldly pleasures that typically separate us from Him.
If we apply this fledgling wisdom at work, our job becomes not just a pursuit of money and success. We care about the quality of what we produce each day as representative of our desire to work for the greater glory of God, as much as we care about providing a modest security and sufficiency for our family. Our interactions with others demonstrate patience, consideration, cooperation, and a genuine desire to assist those who can use the benefit of our skills and experience to improve their own work.
Keeping our priorities straight by putting love of God and neighbor first doesn't mean we can't push ourselves to work hard to improve our material circumstances. But it will provide a natural balance to those efforts such that they won't minimize or even displace our spiritual lives. We know when to make time for God through prayer, study, and those pious practices that refresh our souls, just as sleep and exercise re-charges our minds and bodies.
Next time we continue our discussion of the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit with the gift of Piety.
Until then, we pray
These Gifts are the subject of the Novena to the Holy Spirit which we pray during the nine days before Pentecost, beginning the day after Ascension Thursday, ending on the Vigil of Pentecost. According to the EWTN website, this novena "is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Himself when He sent His disciples 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."
We'll consider each gift in order, using the solid foundation of this oldest of novenas to help us understand each gift. Then we'll try to apply our understanding and see how each gift can help guide us each day as we strive to work for the greater glory of God.
"The gift of Fear fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread nothing so much as to offend Him by sin. It is a fear that arises, not from the thought of hell, but from sentiments of reverence and filial submission to our heavenly Father. It is the fear that is the beginning of wisdom, detaching us from worldly pleasures that could in any way separate us from God..."
First, let's note that the concept of Fear or "Holy Fear" is typically much misunderstood. This gift doesn't equate with what most of us think of when we use the word "fear." We'll contrast "Holy Fear" with the way we usually use the word "fear" with a couple of examples from the workplace. These examples derive from my own experience at companies where, for periods of time, fear was in the air. Generally, that fear emanated either from a particular boss, or from circumstances beyond my control. With that in mind, we'll look at the fear engendered by a boss and fear created by a particular circumstance.
First the boss: Years ago I worked at a small company that was under pressure to produce sales by the company's private investors. Our "big boss" (the guy to whom my boss reported) was the guy who did the bidding of the investors. His managerial style was gruff, nasty, obnoxious, and threatening. He held an axe over your head. If things didn't go the way he wanted, you'd be fired. And, indeed, my boss was eventually fired when sales didn't hit the mark that satisfied the investors. This boss instilled fear whenever he ventured out of his office and walked the floor.
Next the circumstance: If you've ever worked at a company that changed management, you'll instantly recognize this. The new management takes over and, more often than not, after a period where everyone is reassured their jobs are safe, wholesale changes begin. Layoffs ensue. Everyone's whispering, even cowering, wondering if they're next. Having been through this, I can attest that a toxic atmosphere permeated with fear, once it gets hold, make daily work miserable.
Now on to the gift of "Holy Fear": The contrast with "regular" fear couldn't be more stark.
The point of Holy Fear is not to be afraid of God. What we fear is sin. We fear sin because we know it offends God. And our desire not to offend does not spring from a fear of Hell, or that we'll be otherwise punished by God. Rather it flows from the natural and rational reverence and submission to His Holy Will that fills our soul when we give God His due as our Creator and as our Father. We have learned to know Him as Creator and Father through our prayer and study of the teachings of our Holy Catholic Church. Our fear of offending Him stirs the first inklings of real wisdom, a wisdom that helps us turn from those worldly pleasures that typically separate us from Him.
If we apply this fledgling wisdom at work, our job becomes not just a pursuit of money and success. We care about the quality of what we produce each day as representative of our desire to work for the greater glory of God, as much as we care about providing a modest security and sufficiency for our family. Our interactions with others demonstrate patience, consideration, cooperation, and a genuine desire to assist those who can use the benefit of our skills and experience to improve their own work.
Keeping our priorities straight by putting love of God and neighbor first doesn't mean we can't push ourselves to work hard to improve our material circumstances. But it will provide a natural balance to those efforts such that they won't minimize or even displace our spiritual lives. We know when to make time for God through prayer, study, and those pious practices that refresh our souls, just as sleep and exercise re-charges our minds and bodies.
Next time we continue our discussion of the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit with the gift of Piety.
Until then, we pray
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of thy faithful and enkindle in them the fire of Thy Love.
Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created.
And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
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