"The Holy Spirit remarked the Pope during the prayer vigil at Randwick today has been in some ways the neglected person of the Blessed Trinity. A clear understanding of the Spirit almost seems beyond our reach". "As a young priest teaching theology Benedict reminisced I decided to study the outstanding witnesses to the Spirit in the Church’s history". He therefore decided to study St. Augustine. And it is just the teaching of the Bishop of Hippo that inspired the reflection offered by Benedict XVI to the young people today. He noted that Augustine’s investigation of the Triune God "led him to three particular insights about the Holy Spirit". First, the Spirit’s particular quality is unity". "Only in the life of communion is unity sustained and human identity fulfilled explained the pontiff. "The Holy Spirit as abiding love" is "Augustine’s second insight". "By its nature love is enduring. Again, dear friends, we catch a further glimpse of how much the Holy Spirit offers our world: love which dispels uncertainty; love which overcomes the fear of betrayal; love which carries eternity within". Augustine’s "third insight" is "the Holy Spirit as gift", in other words, "God eternally giving himself".
