(To hear this reflection, read by Soren, click below.)
1. Pray “Come, Holy Spirit” This one is easy. Just start praying this prayer together as a family in the evening or at the beginning of the day. You’ll be amazed at how, over time, this ancient prayer opens up your family’s understanding of the Holy Spirit.“Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth. O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, through Christ Our Lord, Amen.”
2. Memorize the 7 Gifts and the 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit
Daily family life without a knowledge of the 7 gifts and 12 fruits is like driving blindfolded. The Holy Spirit—through baptism, confirmation, Eucharist, and our life of prayer—desires to help us, intercede for us, and bless us with His gifts and fruits. Take time as a family to (re)memorize them, study them, and weave them into your conversations. Gifts: fear of the Lord, piety, fortitude, counsel, knowledge, understanding, and wisdom. Fruits: charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity (CCC 1832). To jumpstart this, try this beautiful custom of Catherine Doherty, a Servant of God (1896-1985):Make paper cut-outs of doves or tongues of flame, enough for each family member. On one side, write a gift of the Spirit, and on the other, a fruit of the Spirit. Place them in a basket. Then, during a special family meal, read Acts 2:1-13 together, and then have each family member draw one from the basket. Over dinner, have each person share with the others which gift and fruit they received. Close the dinner by singing a hymn to the Holy Spirit such as “Come, Holy Ghost.”
3. Double your Quality Family Time from 37 to 74 Minutes Per Day
Ha. Got your attention! You may have heard this description of the Holy Trinity before: the Father is the lover, the Son is the beloved, and the Holy Spirit is the love that bonds them and goes forth from them.In the “little Trinity” of your family, the quality time you spend together is when you deepen the bonds of love. One Google search reveals dozens of studies that state the obvious: distracted parents are spending less and less time with their children (an average of 37 minutes per day). Invite the Holy Spirit into this deficit in your family, and you’ll see a change.
4. Break out the Holy Water!
Throughout Scripture, we see that water is a symbol of the Holy Spirit—from the Spirit’s presence when water came from the rock (Ex. 17:6, Dt. 8:15, Wis 11:4), to the baptism of Jesus, and the water that flowed from Jesus’ side. When we enter church, we make the sign of the cross with holy water, and arguably we ought to be doing this in our “domestic church”—our own home, or “Trinity House”—too.If you don’t have one already, consider buying a holy water font to hang near your front door. Also, get out the holy water from time to time and bless your children, their rooms, and your entire home with this effective symbol of the Holy Spirit’s life and power within the four walls of your home. Let’s not allow this Pentecost to pass our busy and often distracted families by. Instead, let’s lift the life of our “little Trinity”—our own families—up to the Holy Spirit, “the artisan of God’s works, the master of prayer,” (CC 741), and invite the Holy Spirit to renew our homes.
> Pope Francis preached this beautiful homily on Pentecost, and we commend it to you. “In the great journey of life,” he said, “the Spirit teaches us where to begin, what paths to take, and how to walk.” He concludes, “Let us invoke him each day, so that he can remind us to make God’s gaze upon us our starting point, to make decisions by listening to his voice, and to journey together as Church, docile to him and open to the world.”
> Today’s Mass readings include the striking story of the widow of Zerephath, who in turn inspired Soren’s grandmother in a difficult chapter of her life. Soren wrote about her in “The Road to Zerephath” (Arlington Catholic Herald).
> This coming Sunday is one of our favorite days on the Church calendar: The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity (readings here). In the lead-up to this Sunday, we invite you to read our “Why Trinity Sunday Should Mean Everything to Your Family” (Aleteia), and pray the prayer at the conclusion of the article together as a family.
> For those in the Diocese of Arlington, there’s still time to sign up for the upcoming 2022 Diocesan Family Festival on Sat. June 11, 4-8:30 PM, in Front Royal. Learn more and sign up here.
> Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 18, at 6:30 pm for our next Heaven in Your Home Gathering at St. John’s in Leesburg, when we’ll welcome special guests Chris and Jodi St. George! Learn more about the Gatherings—a casual evening for the whole family—here, and we hope to see you soon! 
> Congratulations to Fr. Peter St. George (yes, Chris and Jodi’s son), ordained together with seven other men for the Diocese of Arlington last Saturday, June 4th! Following the ordination, we enjoyed celebrating with Fr. Peter, his family, and friends, and giving thanks to God for the gift of his vocation.
“The knowledge and insight we’ve gained through the Heaven in Your Home Workshop and then continual exploration of each level has helped us be aware of His presence, His peace, and His grace in our own Trinity House! We are filled with gratitude for your ministry to our family.”
– Chris and Jodi St. George, Ashburn
