A Gift for All People

It is lamentably common to hear Catholics admit to the undoubted authenticity of the charismatic renewal, but in the same breath attemt to disassociate themselves from it, saying something like, "It may be alright for them (i.e. the hyper-emotive or, worse, the especially holy), but it's just not my cup of tea." So that's it... You do your thing and I'll do mine, summarily dismissing the immense weight of support for the charismatic experience from Scripture, the Church Fathers, Vatican Council II and three modern Popes, not to mention the lived experience of thousands of charismatic Catholics throughout the world.

But let this be absolutely clear: the Catholic charismatic renewal is more than a spirituality; it is the gift of the Holy Spirit for all believers. But you need not take my word for it; Popes Paul VI, John Paul the Great and, most recently, Benedict XVI, have all lent their support for the renewal, even calling it "a chance for the Church." It is the firstfruit of the Council, and the answer to John XXIII's prayer that the Lord "renew [his] wonders in our day as by a new Pentecost."

The renewal is primarily an experience, an encounter with the living God, but it is also a mindset. A friend of mine has been frequenting a Baptist church on Sunday mornings and our Catholic church on Sunday evenings. Naturally, his Baptist friends have questions about his Catholic faith, which are more or less familiar: Do you believe that Jesus is really present in the Eucharist and, come to that, why is it so important anyway? Or, Why is Mary so important in the life of the Church?

The first question is easily answered with a few key scriptures, John 6 among them. Jesus makes it absolutely (and unapologetically) clear that He is "the bread of life," and that His body is "true food" and His blood "true drink" and that "unless you eat of the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you" (35, 53, 55). Period. Many of His hearers find this revelation so offensive that they leave him. And Jesus, who after all is wont to speak in metaphors (parables, to be exact), does not run after them saying, "Wait, come back... you misunderstood me!" He turns to His disciples and asks, "Do you also want to leave?" (67).

Of course, the next logical question is a "what if". What if a remote island tribe has belief in Christ, but no priest to celebrate the Eucharist? Will they be saved? Well, yes. There are precious few things that are neccessary for salvation, baptism and belief in Christ being the only two that come to mind, and even there we admit exceptions. But a far better question is, If the Lord offers us this extraordinary grace (i.e. the Eucharist), as we know He does, and if this grace is His real and substantial presence in the Eucharist, as we know it is, why would we not take it?

We may apply the same question to the issue of Mary. If God offers us this profound gift of His own mother, as we know He does, why would we not take it? God never ceases to bestow gifts upon us in abundance! And to say, "No thank you, Lord, I have enough, I need no more" is at best unwise, at worst simply blasphemous.

Thus so with the charisms. The Scriptures are abundantly clear on this too: "Strive eagerly for the spiritual gifts," says Paul, "especially that you may prophesy" (1 Corinthians 14:1). Paul takes personal prophecy as a given among the Corinthians, along with word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith, healing, discernment of spirits, miracles and even tongues (glossolalia), of which he says, "I would like all of you to speak in tongues" (1 Corinthians 14:5).

Docility, docility, docility! With Mary, Mother of charismatics, let us be docile to the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit, that we may be able to say with her, "May it be done unto me according to your word" (Luke 1:35).



In His peace.