Scripture ~ “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.” Romans 8:26
Spiritual Focus ~ “When, by meditation, we withdraw restless thoughts from the lake of the mind, we behold our soul, a perfect reflection of Spirit.” Paramahansa Yogananda, an Indian Hindu Monk who taught kriya yoga to U.S. Americans and was the first Indian Hindu to be invited to the White House by President Calvin Coolidge
Breath Prayer ~ Inhale, Holy Spirit, Exhale, Holy Ghost
Devotion ~ Halloween has become the second most favorite and commercial holiday in the USA with Americans spending 10.14 billion dollars on candy, costumes, and decorations. Halloween began as an ancient Celtic fall festival called Samhain. Celts believed that on October 31st, the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. It was an ancient custom to celebrate on All Hallows Eve with bonfires, mask wearing, and a community meal. In the 8th century Pope Gregory III declared November 1st as All Saints Day to honor all saints and those who have died and gone before us, thus further intermingling the living and the dead in the spiritual world.
The church has not always been in accord with Halloween, but over the years, it has found a way to tolerate, perhaps even embrace it. Churches now have “trunk or treat” parties inviting young people to dress in costume and collect candy from open trunks in the church parking lot. Some churches host spooky organ concerts, an interesting way to highlight a prominent feature in the sanctuary. While for most families Halloween is about candy, costumes and community gathering, there is still an essence of other worldliness, a spiritual world that blends the living and the dead.
Christians believe the third person in the Trinity is the Holy Spirit of God, not long ago called the Holy Ghost. Paramahansa Yogananda states that the Holy Ghost and Holy Spirit are synonymous and translate the same in Hebrew and Greek as spirit, wind, or breath. He describes the Holy Spirit/Ghost as the vibratory essence of God, a vehicle of God’s perfect universal reflection and Christ Consciousness. Of the many gifts of the Holy Spirit, our scripture verse points to a word that encompasses them all: intercedes. The Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf, with sighs too deep for words, in all things sacred and secular. At times we may feel the intimacy, the closeness of this intercession as immediate as our next breath. Through the gifts of meditation and prayer we catch a glimpse of our soul, a reflection of Spirit, as we experience God’s presence.
