The Driving Force Behind ACE

By Ann Berends

In the Celtic Church, Rev. Jim Wallis tells us, the symbol for the Holy Spirit is a wild goose — wild, free, and untamed. If you’ve spent any amount of time with ACE folks, you’ll hear us call what we’re doing “a movement of the Holy Spirit. ” Why? Why is it necessary to refer to the third person of the Trinity, this "wild, free, untamed" Being, when we’re talking about school and student advocacy?

It's worth reflecting a bit on this as we celebrate Pentecost Sunday—marking the dramatic gift of the Holy Spirit to God’s people--this month. It’s worth considering why recognizing the Spirit as our Source is essential to our understanding of and work toward strengthening and supporting Catholic schools.

Simply put, this movement begins and ends in God. God is its focus, force, and fulcrum. God’s Spirit initiates our concern for Catholic schools and moves our hands and feet to service. God’s Spirit drives our successes and redeems our failures. God’s Spirit paints all of our efforts in other-worldly colors.

This frees us up in some key ways. First, it frees us to give God the reins. The rise and fall and rise again of Catholic schools do not ultimately depend upon us. Second, it frees us to serve with hope-filled abandon. Just imagine where the Wild Goose, Creator of the Universe, is taking us! Finally, it frees us to rely less on ourselves and more on God. The One whose other name is Love is in control.

To realize that God cares for Catholic schools and the children they serve even more than we do, to understand that God gave ACE its start and invites us into its work—it’s enough to leave us breathless with trust and anticipation. Let us begin each day looking to God as our guide, grateful for the wild, free, and untamed Spirit who will provide all we need in this movement to make God known, loved, and served.