Before ascending to the Father, Jesus gave instructions to the disciples about the coming of the Holy Spirit. He referred to Him as “another advocate.” This is drawn from the image of a defending attorney, who would stand with you when you are on trial, giving you directions, supporting you, guiding you. Jesus is the first advocate, sent by the Father to be with the human race through its trials and struggles. The Holy Spirit is the “other” advocate to be with us throughout the rest of human history. The word that is translated as “advocate” is “paraclete.”
    
Jesus also describes the Spirit as the Spirit of Truth who will lead us into all truth. We see in the Acts of the Apostles how the Holy Spirit guided the early Church at the Council of Jerusalem, helping them to come to know how they were to resolve the Gentile problem. The Spirit also guided their journeys, at times blocking them from going to a place they intended to go, and leading them in a different direction, that they ended up recognizing as the right direction.

Next Sunday, we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost, the day of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles and Mary in the Upper Room.