The prayer to the Holy Spirit is also called Come Holy Spirit (or Come Holy Ghost, another name for the Holy Spirit) in some prayer books and websites. Its verse and response lines make this a wonderful addition to any set of group prayers. You can pray it alone as well.

The verse and response lines are taken from Psalm 104:30 (Psalm 103 in some older versions of the Bible) describing God's sending forth His Spirit as He creates all that is seen and unseen, as we pray in the Nicene Creed.

(Keep in mind as always, to avoid confusion, that when we speak of God we are referring to Him in three Divine Persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, acting as one.)

The reference to fire brings to mind the Holy Spirit's essential role in the creation not only of the world, (moving about the face of the waters, from Genesis 1:2) but also of the Church as well! We read in the Acts of the Apostles how the Holy Spirit came as tongues as of fire (Acts 2:3) enlightening the disciples to spread God's Word with power and love.

Fire is a particularly fitting image. Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen once noted that fire has two great qualities: light and heat. Light is the symbol of truth. Heat is the symbol of love.

When you're on fire about something, aren't you passionate about it? We are called to be that way in expressing our love for God's truth in how we live and spread our Faith!

t is not always easy finding the right words to pray. On certain days we may be feeling particularly uninspired and no words come to mind to express ourselves.

When confronted with such a listless spirit, one powerful cure is to pray to the Holy Spirit. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us, [Prayer] is the action of God and of man, springing forth from both the Holy Spirit and ourselves, wholly directed to the Father, in union with the human will of the Son of God made man (CCC 2564).

One beautiful and ancient prayer to the Holy Spirit was composed by St. Augustine, a holy bishop who lived in the 4th century. He had a particular way with words, and his prayer to the Holy Spirit is one that can lift up an uninspired soul to God.