Dictionary
A modern dictionary of Catholic terms, both common and obscure. Find accurate definitions of words and phrases.
PARACLETE
A title of the Holy Spirit. Christ was and remains the first advocate. When he was to leave earth in visible form, he promised "another Paraclete" so that his followers would not be orphans. That Paraclete came on Pentecost. He is the advocate of the Mystical Body, pleading God's cause for the human family, keeping the Church from error, sanctifying souls through the preaching of God's word and through the sacraments. The Holy Spirit, whose function is to teach, bear witness, and "to convince the world of sin," is the love of God producing the effects of divine grace on earth, and appropriated to the third Person of the Trinity. (Etym. Greek para-,beside + kalein, to call: paraklet_s, advocate.)
All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.
