12 fruits of the Holy Spirit

In the last post, we listed the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit.  These gifts are dispositions that make men and women docile to receive inspirations from God. The 12 fruits are the effects of those 7 gifts.  As the Catechism says in paragraph 1832, the fruits of the Spirit are "perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the first fruits of eternal glory."   The list is based on Paul's letter to the Galatians, specifically 5:22-23.

Here they are:

1) Charity  Performing our works out of love of God
2) Joy  Being aware of God's infinite goodness
3) Peace  Result of joy, makes us tranquil
4) Patience Ability to endure the disagreeable
5) Kindness Acting for the good of people no matter what they do, treating others like we want to be treated
6) Goodness  Inclines us to wish to do good to everyone without distinction, and avoid evil, produces kindness and generosity
7) Generosity  Goodness in words and actions, giving without expectation of anything in return, sharing our gifts and resources
8) Gentleness  Power and strength under control, a calm temperament; practicing forgiveness and understanding, instead of doing things that could lead to anger and resentment
9) Faihfulness   Loyal to the good, above all to God, the Faith, and the Church, but also to our spouses, loved ones, and other noble goods

10) Modesty  Moderation in external actions, refusing to unveil things that should remain hidden

11) Self control  Directing thoughts and actions so that they correspond with God's will, right reason and the common good

12) Chastity  Moderation and control of the sexual appetite

The Catechism does list the 12 gifts, as I stated above, but does not offer explanations of each of them in that aforementioned paragraph.  I pulled the above explanations from different sources (including other places in the Catechism for a few of them).  Some of them you can see are very close to each other, and in fact, some traditions only list 9 fruits.  However, one of the beauties of Catholic teaching, in my opinion, which sets her apart from other Christian denominations, is the details and distinctions that have been produced in Her development of Her theology over her 2000 years.  In my opinion, the more detailed Her theology is, the more revealing of its Truth it is.

When we think of Saint Joseph, can we not see a man whose life bore all these fruits? 

Can we see those fruits in our lives?  There should at least be a desire to experience these fruits, even if we may not be at the current moment.  If we have no desire for them, we are spiritually dead, and need to pray for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Can we see them in others?  People who do are the kind of people we should want to grow in friendship with, or establish a working relationship with, or at least develop some sort of connection with.  If a person whom we are considering developing any sort of relationship with (friendship, marriage, work)  does not bear these fruits, we should be cautious before proceeding too far into that relationship. 

Let us continue to pray for the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so we may experience all these wonderful fruits!

Joseph, most chaste and most faithful, pray for us.