Forty is a very special number biblically, so we should expect this year, the 40th anniversary of the CCR to be a special time of grace and blessing from God. There have already been celebrations in Scotland, in the North of England, and there are more to come. About 2000 people are expected at the 5th of May gathering in Westminster Cathedral with papal preacher, Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, Dorothy and Kevin Ranaghan and Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor. If you haven’t got your tickets yet, ring the office immediately. We also will be selling them on the door. The Irish National Conference in Athlone June 22th-24th, also promises to be very anointed with speakers Fr Tom Forrest CSSR, Bishop Martin Drennan and Frances Hogan.

This issue you will notice is brimming with inserts (New Dawn, Northern Catholic Conference, Birmingham Charismatic Conference and Catholic Miracle Rally). We are very careful with inserts and try and restrict them to only 2, maximum three per issue, but this time we felt we had to have them all. Please look at them. If you haven’t been to a charismatic conference before, consider going to one now. They are one of the best places to experience the fullness of what the CCR is about, and I’m sure this year there will be even more graces than usual.

Pentecost this year promises to be special with lots of things going on. In London, Dr Jonathan Oloyede, a visionary black Pentecostal leader, and an ecumenical team including catholics, have organised a magnificent event at West Ham football stadium on Pentecost Sunday. To find out more read our interview with him on page 8. We would encourage you to celebrate the days leading up to Pentecost too. ICCRS, the International Charismatic office is asking the CCR world wide to participate in a network of prayer at this time (see page 30). Kim Kollins tells us about the Burning Bush project and gives some ideas on how we might make Pentecost special. May is the month of Mary and Fr Pat Collins reflects on Mary’s presence at Pentecost and her role then and now in helping us on our spiritual journey. One of the new members to the English NSC, Dominique Ferry, is French and part of Chemin Neuf community. Chemin Neuf is one of the new lay covenant communities to have emerged from the CCR in the last 40 years. To find out more about what they have to offer the Catholic Church in our isles see page 14.

One of the high points of the Newman consultation a couple of years ago, which brought together leaders of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, was a prophetic word given by Fr Pat Collins, calling representatives of the four nations to go on pilgrimage together in 2007 to Assisi. This idea has been picked up by Margaret Thomas and people from Wales, who are inviting others to join them in a pilgrimage to celebrate our 40th anniversary this August. You can find out more about it on page 13.

A theme of this issue is how the Holy Spirit is working among our children. A couple of months ago I was rung up by Fr Pat Deegan from Moss-side. He told me about a recent Life in the Spirit seminars that had been run by a remarkable teacher in their local catholic school for a hundred 7-11 year olds. You can read about it on page 4. We also have the story of Fanning the Flame. This is a ministry started by Sr Maria Natella OP who has been involved in CCR for many years. She tells us how Fanning the Flame started and how the Holy Spirit, to her amazement, bestowed spiritual gifts on the children right from the beginning.

We all need support in the Christian life and in this issue we feature an encouraging ministry called Harvesters. This is a Catholic men’s network that runs annual men’s weekends during the summer. This year as well as the two weekends in England, there is one in Scotland (see coming events). Iain Archibald, explains how beneficial these weekends are to the men who come. In Men Talking Pat keane reflects on a recent stroke he suffered and how he discovered a hidden blessing and John Waddups tells us how he coped when his marriage broke up.

One of the themes that emerged from the prophetic words we received for our anniversary edition was the need for repentance and the call to holiness. Joseph Dasan, a young Indian from Kerala writes about his own personal quest for holiness and the challenge in evangelising people from other faiths. Those who feel called to evangelise but find they don’t have an opening they, now have a chance. The Sion Community, who conduct parish missions round the country are appealing for volunteers to join them on a temporary basis in their evangelistic outreaches (see page 21).

Another simple way to evangelise and spread the word about CCR is simply buying someone a gift subscription of Goodnews. We need your help if we are to spread the good news of what the Lord is doing.
Ring Gabriele at the office 020 7352 5298.

Kristina Cooper