Four great graces marked Israel's relationship with God: God chose Israel, made a covenant with them, gave them a law, and promised them a Messiah. These four great graces - Election, Covenant, Law, Promise - were renewed in the mystery of the Incarnation. Under these four concepts, we can also gather together much of our doctrine about Jesus. Choice: it was Jesus who chose us, not we who chose him. The notion of choice appears strongly in many other passages of the New Testament, such as the first chapter of Ephesians. God has confirmed that choice through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. When he ascended to the Father's side, Jesus in union with the Father sent the Holy Spirit. With the Letter to the Ephesians we meditate today on the significance of this gift of the Spirit. We are "sealed" with the Spirit. According to our ordinary Church teaching, this "sealing" takes place in Baptism and Confirmation. We may say that every gift we receive from God is also a promise of even greater gifts. Hence, the Holy Spirit is "the pledge of our inheritance" and so we live with a strong sense of hope, which animates our faith and love.