Holy Spirit Tales

Michelle Moran Holy Spirit Tales
Holy Spirit Tales

Michelle Moran shares how the Holy Spirit called on her to make an unforseen act of repentance and reconciliation, when she was in Argentina at her first council meeting of ICCRS (International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services) earlier this year.

"We are ambassadors for Christ ...and the appeal that we make in Christ's name is: be reconciled to God" (2.Cor 5-20)

At the start of our meeting we had an informal prayer time where we were encouraged to listen to the Lord for a word relating to the countries we represent on the Council. I have the responsibility for the North European countries and the word I received was "be an ambassador of reconciliation". At the time I didn't think too much about it, but obviously the Lord had planted it deep into my heart.

On the final day in Argentina, the whole council was invited to a rally in Buenos Aires. There were about 1500 people gathered at the Catholic University and we were all asked to share a short testimony of encouragement. As I sat on the platform looking out at all the exhuberant people and thinking what I was going to say, I suddenly began to sense the Lord prompting me and reminding me of the word he had spoken to me earlier in the week about reconciliation. My heart began to race and I knew that I was being prompted by the Spirit.

Aware that this might cause some disruption to the programme, I checked with my leaders before sharing. (I was secretly hoping they would say no as I was a bit apprehensive about sharing what I felt the Lord was asking me to). But I was given the green light. So I stood up in front of the crowd. When I told them I was from England I could see that the welcome I received was not quite as warm and loud as that given to the other nations. Although Argentineans on the whole are very open to English people, there is still some deeply rooted resentments with regard to the Falklands.

I then took the plunge and as an English person asked the forgiveness of the Argentinean people for all the acts of aggression and violence which we had perpetrated against them. I publicly repented on behalf of the English and asked them to join with me in a spirit of reconciliation. I also asked that someone would receive my act of repentance. Immediately a woman came forward and embraced me. I could feel a powerful sense of the Holy Spirit moving the audience as she did so, and the whole place was enveloped in a deep spirit of reconciliation. Another lady then came forward and said that she forgave the English on behalf of all the women and mothers in Argentina. I could see that God was at work setting people free and doing a deep healing work of reconciliation which is hard to express in words.

On my way out of the auditorium, I was embraced by many tearful people. One lady came and told me that she had lost her husband on the Belgrano and felt unable to forgive the English because she didn't know whom she was forgiving. However, now that she had met me, she could picture an English person and for the first time she had been able to forgive and begin the healing process.

Whereas it is God who is always the reconciler, he does need our cooperation and I felt privileged and rather awestruck that God should have used me in this way as an instrument of reconciliation between our nations. I felt it was also a reminder from the Lord for me to be prepared to step out more when he gives me a word.

Incidently, a week after I returned I was leading a parish day in Dorset, where I ended up speaking to a lady who had returned to the Church a few years previously as a result of a family bereavement. Apparently she had lost her son in the Falklands War. I didn't say anything to her, but I couldn't help thinking that the Lord was reminding me to continue to be an ambassador of reconciliation.