As we continue to prepare for Pentecost and a fresh in-filling of the Holy Spirit, we reflect today on the title given to the Holy Spirit in the Nicene Creed. We profess every Sunday our faith when we proclaim: "I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life."
What are we saying? First of all, the title "Lord" acknowledges that the Holy Spirit is God, equal to the Father and Son, whom we also call Lord. Belief in the Trinity is central to our Christian faith. 

In the first part of the Creed we acknowledge the Father as the (Lord) Creator of heaven and earth. Then we proclaim Jesus as Lord and Messiah, who through his death saved us. Finally, We state that the Holy Spirit is the Lord and Giver of all life. 

Both our physical life and our spiritual life come from the Holy Spirit as a gift. It is the Spirit who breathes the living breath in us, which we call the soul, when we come into existence. It is the Spirit who gives us a share in God's divine life, beginning in the waters of baptism. It is the Spirit who sustains us physically and spiritually. It is the Spirit who gives us a deeper in-filling of God's own life, each time we receive the Body and Blood of Jesus, each time we are reconciled in the Sacrament of Penance. Each time we pray, "Come, Holy Spirit, come", we are inviting that gift to be renewed and deepened in us, in anticipation of sharing God's life eternally.