An Ecumenical Grace

An Ecumenical Grace

Charles Whitehead, respected leader of CCr for many years, reflects on the importance of the ecumenical dimension of the Charismatic Renewal

The pioneers of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR) recognised from the beginning that one of the particular blessings inherent in this amazing outpouring of the Holy Spirit was a special grace for unity in the body of Christ. All over the world, many of the initial Catholic experiences of this grace were inspired, encouraged, or facilitated by contacts with other Charismatic or Pentecostal Christians. So as we celebrate 40 years of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal and look back at the events of those early days, we do well to remind ourselves of the most important things God was saying.

brothers and sisters in christ

The heart of this Renewal is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5) which leads us into a personal, living relationship with Jesus, and into a full life of faith and spiritual growth. This is accompanied by the call to be open to the charismatic gifts (I Corinthians 12), and to use them for others in the building up of the Kingdom of God. So community (“come and see“) where disciples are formed, and evangelisation (“go and tell“) where we engage in the mission of the church and people are called to faith in Jesus Christ, are also essential parts of what the Spirit is highlighting (Matthew 28:19-20). For all this to be really effective, the witness of the lives of the followers of Jesus must be authentic, and this is where the importance of unity comes in (John 17:21). Our lack of unity undermines our message, so the call to recognise other Christians as brothers and sisters in Christ and relate to them accordingly is very much at the heart of the CCR. This is certainly the reason why so much of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal started off ecumenically. It soon became evident, however, that many of our fellow Catholics did not see the enormous importance of this life-changing outpouring of God’s grace and power, and were reluctant to open their lives fully to the person of the Holy Spirit. When it was also presented in an ecumenical context, many people found it just too challenging and backed away, questioning whether it was all really authentically Catholic. So for some of the early leaders, the priority became the need to demonstrate to the whole Church, hierarchy and people, that the CCR was fully Catholic. For this to happen, the ecumenical dimension needed to be played down. This was a decision taken from the best of motives, but was it a mistake? Did we fall short of God’s best?

catholic and ecumenical

I know from my own experience how important it is to be accepted and trusted by the Church hierarchy, and for something as dramatic and amazing as the CCR, this takes time. Whilst my early experience of the Charismatic Renewal was strongly ecumenical and has remained so, my own identity as a post-Vatican II Catholic was confirmed. The Lord took me to the heart of the Church through my years as the President of the Council of the International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services (ICCRS), with an office in Vatican premises in Rome, and regular contact with Pope John Paul II and members of the Curia. I can clearly see the importance of this coming together of my Baptism in the Holy Spirit and my Catholic heritage, and how they have together given me a firm foundation for the ecumenical work I am often doing today. Since the year 2000, I have been able to give more time to the ecumenical part of my calling, and to develop this important dimension of the ministry of the CCR.

united we stand, divided we fall

It is increasingly my conviction that as the western world becomes more and more secular, and we see our Christian values, morals, and ethics steadily contradicted and eroded by our elected or un-elected legislators, we must realise how important it is that we stand together. Our forbears took these Christian foundations of society for granted, but we can no longer do this, so no matter what church denomination or branch of the Christian family we may represent, we need to work together to defend them. To use a well-known old expression - united we stand, divided we fall. Had we persevered with a greater commitment to our ecumenical endeavours, I am sure we would be in a stronger position than we are today. God always moves ahead of us, preparing the way, knowing the challenges that we would face.

So He poured out His Spirit to equip us with His gifts and power, and at the same time showed us that we needed to develop much closer relationships and co-operation with all our brothers and sisters in Christ to deal with what was coming. In the same way, through Vatican II, the Holy Spirit prepared the Church for the new explosion of the charismatic gifts which was to come (Lumen Gentium 12), and also changed our view of other Christians (Unitatis Redintegratio) so that much greater co-operation is now required. So have we missed the moment? Is it now too late?

a dictatorship of relativism

I don’t think so. The God we love and serve is the God of “seven times seven” (Luke 17:4) offering us unlimited opportunities to change -there’s always another chance. We have definitely lost some time and things are urgent - we don‘t have the luxury of sitting back in our own Church, congratulating ourselves that we have the fullness of Divine Revelation, and waiting for others to beat a path to our door. Ecumenism has never been a journey to be undertaken lightly, and it remains difficult - not just for us, but for all other Christians who also believe they have the truth.

But our lack of unity undermines our credibility, and to the average man or woman in the street our theological and doctrinal differences seem of very little importance. What they need to hear is an inspiring defence of the Christian values we hold. But instead of recognising that God pours out His Holy Spirit to equip us to deal with the challenges of the world in which we live, all too often we sit back and enjoy the personal blessing which comes with every outpouring of the Spirit and His gifts, but miss this bigger picture. In the words of Pope Benedict:
“We are moving towards a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognise anything as definitive, and has as its highest value one’s own ego and one’s own desires”. To put it another way, there is no longer any absolute truth, merely your “truth” and my “truth“, and the most usual question on people’s lips is “what’s in it for me?” Our divisions weaken our ability to respond strongly to this “dictatorship of relativism”, making it much easier for the voices of secularism to drown out those of the Christian community. What are we to do?

personal relationships

All ecumenical initiatives begin with personal relationships - when I get to know someone as a person, to hear what they believe and why, to listen to their story, I may still not agree with them but at least I will understand where they are coming from and what makes them tick. About 2 years ago, I briefly met a well-known Swedish international non-denominational leader and his wife for the first time, and we quickly recognised one another as brothers and sisters in Christ with a desire to build unity in the body. We later spent time together in Italy and in Sweden, and last autumn we helped organise a study tour to Rome for a group of their key church leaders. This in turn caused us to invite them to the Celebrate Conference in April this year, and in July we will go to their International Conference in Sweden. Now we are friends as well as brothers and sisters in Christ, we enjoy one another’s company, and we’re building unity in the Body of Christ. People are at first surprised when they see us ministering together - who knows what God has in store for the future? I know He brought us together for a reason - personal ecumenical relationships are very much on His agenda.

an ecumenical grace

My desire is to do God’s will. I often fail, and end up doing what I want, but I always come back to seeking His plan for my life. Charismatic Renewal is an ecumenical grace, and whilst it is absolutely right and proper that we are fully Catholic, and have taken our place at the heart of the Church with the blessing and encouragement of successive Popes, we must also be sure that we remain faithful to this ecumenical dimension of our new life in the Holy Spirit. It’s a key part of God’s purpose for us, and no matter what obstacles may litter the path to formal church unity, our responsibility is to do those things God is asking of us. Building personal relationships and working with other Christians is a key part of our calling as Catholic charismatics. So as we celebrate 40 years of the CCR and rejoice in all the wonderful things God has done, let’s make sure we’re not neglecting one of the very important parts of this grace. Building personal relationships with Christians from other traditions is on God’s agenda - it needs to be on ours too.

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The pioneers of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR) recognised from the beginning that one of the particular blessings inherent in this amazing outpouring of the Holy Spirit was a special grace for unity in the body of Christ. All over the world, many of the initial Catholic experiences of this grace were inspired, encouraged, or facilitated by contacts with other Charismatic or Pentecostal Christians. So as we celebrate 40 years of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal and look back at the events of those early days, we do well to remind ourselves of the most important things God was saying. brothers and sisters in christ The heart of this Renewal is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5) which leads us into a personal, living relationship with Jesus, and into a full life of faith and spiritual growth. This is accompanied by the call to be open to the charismatic gifts (I Corinthians 12), and to use them for others in the building up of the Kingdom of God. So community (“come and see“) where disciples are formed, and evangelisation (“go and tell“) where we engage in the mission of the church and people are called to faith in Jesus Christ, are also essential parts of what the Spirit is highlighting (Matthew 28:19-20). For all this to be really effective, the witness of the lives of the followers of Jesus must be authentic, and this is where the importance of unity comes in (John 17:21). Our lack of unity undermines our message, so the call to recognise other Christians as brothers and sisters in Christ and relate to them accordingly is very much at the heart of the CCR. This is certainly the reason why so much of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal started off ecumenically. It soon became evident, however, that many of our fellow Catholics did not see the enormous importance of this life-changing outpouring of God’s grace and power, and were reluctant to open their lives fully to the person of the Holy Spirit. When it was also presented in an ecumenical context, many people found it just too challenging and backed away, questioning whether it was all really authentically Catholic. So for some of the early leaders, the priority became the need to demonstrate to the whole Church, hierarchy and people, that the CCR was fully Catholic. For this to happen, the ecumenical dimension needed to be played down. This was a decision taken from the best of motives, but was it a mistake? Did we fall short of God’s best? catholic and ecumenical I know from my own experience how important it is to be accepted and trusted by the Church hierarchy, and for something as dramatic and amazing as the CCR, this takes time. Whilst my early experience of the Charismatic Renewal was strongly ecumenical and has remained so, my own identity as a post-Vatican II Catholic was confirmed. The Lord took me to the heart of the Church through my years as the President of the Council of the International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services (ICCRS), with an office in Vatican premises in Rome, and regular contact with Pope John Paul II and members of the Curia. I can clearly see the importance of this coming together of my Baptism in the Holy Spirit and my Catholic heritage, and how they have together given me a firm foundation for the ecumenical work I am often doing today. Since the year 2000, I have been able to give more time to the ecumenical part of my calling, and to develop this important dimension of the ministry of the CCR. united we stand, divided we fall It is increasingly my conviction that as the western world becomes more and more secular, and we see our Christian values, morals, and ethics steadily contradicted and eroded by our elected or un-elected legislators, we must realise how important it is that we stand together. Our forbears took these Christian foundations of society for granted, but we can no longer do this, so no matter what church denomination or branch of the Christian family we may represent, we need to work together to defend them. To use a well-known old expression - united we stand, divided we fall. Had we persevered with a greater commitment to our ecumenical endeavours, I am sure we would be in a stronger position than we are today. God always moves ahead of us, preparing the way, knowing the challenges that we would face. So He poured out His Spirit to equip us with His gifts and power, and at the same time showed us that we needed to develop much closer relationships and co-operation with all our brothers and sisters in Christ to deal with what was coming. In the same way, through Vatican II, the Holy Spirit prepared the Church for the new explosion of the charismatic gifts which was to come (Lumen Gentium 12), and also changed our view of other Christians (Unitatis Redintegratio) so that much greater co-operation is now required. So have we missed the moment? Is it now too late? a dictatorship of relativism I don’t think so. The God we love and serve is the God of “seven times seven” (Luke 17:4) offering us unlimited opportunities to change -there’s always another chance. We have definitely lost some time and things are urgent - we don‘t have the luxury of sitting back in our own Church, congratulating ourselves that we have the fullness of Divine Revelation, and waiting for others to beat a path to our door. Ecumenism has never been a journey to be undertaken lightly, and it remains difficult - not just for us, but for all other Christians who also believe they have the truth. But our lack of unity undermines our credibility, and to the average man or woman in the street our theological and doctrinal differences seem of very little importance. What they need to hear is an inspiring defence of the Christian values we hold. But instead of recognising that God pours out His Holy Spirit to equip us to deal with the challenges of the world in which we live, all too often we sit back and enjoy the personal blessing which comes with every outpouring of the Spirit and His gifts, but miss this bigger picture. In the words of Pope Benedict: “We are moving towards a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognise anything as definitive, and has as its highest value one’s own ego and one’s own desires”. To put it another way, there is no longer any absolute truth, merely your “truth” and my “truth“, and the most usual question on people’s lips is “what’s in it for me?” Our divisions weaken our ability to respond strongly to this “dictatorship of relativism”, making it much easier for the voices of secularism to drown out those of the Christian community. What are we to do? personal relationships All ecumenical initiatives begin with personal relationships - when I get to know someone as a person, to hear what they believe and why, to listen to their story, I may still not agree with them but at least I will understand where they are coming from and what makes them tick. About 2 years ago, I briefly met a well-known Swedish international non-denominational leader and his wife for the first time, and we quickly recognised one another as brothers and sisters in Christ with a desire to build unity in the body. We later spent time together in Italy and in Sweden, and last autumn we helped organise a study tour to Rome for a group of their key church leaders. This in turn caused us to invite them to the Celebrate Conference in April this year, and in July we will go to their International Conference in Sweden. Now we are friends as well as brothers and sisters in Christ, we enjoy one another’s company, and we’re building unity in the Body of Christ. People are at first surprised when they see us ministering together - who knows what God has in store for the future? I know He brought us together for a reason - personal ecumenical relationships are very much on His agenda. an ecumenical grace My desire is to do God’s will. I often fail, and end up doing what I want, but I always come back to seeking His plan for my life. Charismatic Renewal is an ecumenical grace, and whilst it is absolutely right and proper that we are fully Catholic, and have taken our place at the heart of the Church with the blessing and encouragement of successive Popes, we must also be sure that we remain faithful to this ecumenical dimension of our new life in the Holy Spirit. It’s a key part of God’s purpose for us, and no matter what obstacles may litter the path to formal church unity, our responsibility is to do those things God is asking of us. Building personal relationships and working with other Christians is a key part of our calling as Catholic charismatics. So as we celebrate 40 years of the CCR and rejoice in all the wonderful things God has done, let’s make sure we’re not neglecting one of the very important parts of this grace. Building personal relationships with Christians from other traditions is on God’s agenda - it needs to be on ours too. << Top Home >>