International Catholic
LEADERSHIP FORMATION
Volume XXXV, Number 2
Charismatic Renewal
The Baptism in the Holy Spirit
Services
Serving
the Charismatic Renewal
is for all the Church
in the Catholic Church
by Cyril John
The necessity of Baptism in the Holy
This Issue Spirit for living lives fully
In his book, The Shape of the Church to
The Baptism in the Holy
Spirit is for all the Church Come, Fr. Karl Rahner, SJ pointed out: “If we
are honest, we must admit that we are, to a
Practising the charism
of prophecy in the
terrifying extent, a spiritually lifeless Church.”
What he meant was that many Christians today
Charismatic Renewal
have not experienced the in–dwelling presence
The use of blessed oil
during prayers
and power of the Holy Spirit in their lives. As
a result of this, we seem to be more like a
Church without Pentecost. We seem to be a
powerless people without the Holy Spirit. The
Church was born in the power of the Holy Spirit
at Pentecost and the Holy Spirit was the sole
motivating agent for the early Church. From the
Acts of the Apostles and the Church history we
realize that the early Church was truly Spirit–
filled and Spirit–led. Healings, miracles, signs
and wonders were an integral part of their life
and fellowship. This leads us to the realization
that all believers, without exception, need the
power of the Spirit to live their lives fully and
fulfill their vocation and mission in the Church.
Cardinal Leon–Joseph Suenens must have been
quite bold when he pointed out that “We are all
average Christians, but that doesn’t mean we are
normal Christians. We are abnormal Christians,
“To interpret the handicapped children of God, because we
Renewal as a have not allowed the Holy Spirit to do His full
‘movement’ among work in us… But if we are to live normal, full
other movements is Christian lives, the power that we have received
to misunderstand at Baptism has to come out of the freezer. We
its nature; it is a need a release of the Spirit within us.” Out of
movement of the Spirit the deep freeze and onto the fire—that’s what
offered to the entire the Baptism in the Holy Spirit (BHS) has done to
Church and destined millions of Catholics all over the world in the past
to rejuvenate every forty two years since the Duquesne weekend.
aspect of the Church’s There is nothing extraordinary about the BHS
life. The soul of the for it is essentially that which happened to the
Renewal—Baptism 120 disciples when the Holy Spirit descended on
in the Spirit—is a them on the day of Pentecost.
grace of Pentecostal
refreshment offered to
Sadly, Baptism in the Holy Spirit is
all Christians.” confined to a section of people only
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal has certainly
succeeded in ushering in a new springtime in the
March – April 2009
Church in the past four decades. From a small
group of people in a classroom in the Duquesne
University in Pittsburg who had the bewildering
experience in February 1967, today it has
grown to be a world–wide movement that has
practically influenced about 125 million people
in 235 countries. However, one needs to bear in
mind that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is “like
yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three
measures of flour until all of it was leavened” (Lk
13:21). We need to constantly ask ourselves: to
what extent has the BHS turned out to be leaven
to the whole Church? The fact remains that ‘a
grace’ that was meant for all Church has been
confined to only about 12% of the faithful. Just
as the first Pentecost was not for any select
group, the New Pentecost is meant for all.
Pope Paul VI famously referred to the Renewal
as “a chance for the Church and for the world”.
In 1996 Cardinal Suenens wrote: “With the
passing of time the phrase of Paul VI on the
Renewal as ‘good fortune for the Church’ still
remains a wish only partially fulfilled, because
this grace was not grasped at every level of
the Church or taken to its heart. To interpret
the Renewal as a ‘movement’ among other
movements is to misunderstand its nature;
it is a movement of the Spirit offered to the
entire Church and destined to rejuvenate
every aspect of the Church’s life. The soul
of the Renewal—Baptism in the Spirit—is a
grace of Pentecostal refreshment offered to
all Christians.” Commenting on this, Fr. R.
Cantalamessa pointed out: “It is with infinite
sadness that I see that the Charismatic
Renewal has ended up confined to one part of
the Church only, and regarded by the rest as
something alien that they feel fully justified in
keeping well clear of it.” The BHS is a grace that
is meant to be transmitted into each and every
sphere and activity of the Church. Praising and
singing in tongues, prophesying and healing
should become part of the day–to–day life in
every parish community and family. Hence, we
should admit in all humility that the Catholic
Charismatic Renewal, in fact, has just begun!
(continued on Page 3)
Page 2 March – April 2009 Leadership Formation

It is destined for the entire Church The Operation Upper Room

“We are being called to
Cardinal Suenens exhorted us: “To my friends in The mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit in
awaken from slumber
the Renewal all over the world I should like to the twentieth century was an outcome of this
and be empowered anew
say that the Renewal is destined for the entire renewed devotion to the Holy Spirit introduced
by the Holy Spirit. Let
Church, and that their constant preoccupation in the Church. Once again in recent years in many
us once again become
should be that the waters of the river flow into countries in Europe, Latin America and Asia,
passionate adorers of
the sea in loyalty to their source.” Pope John National Service Committees and ministries
the Lord and powerful
Paul II told the ICCRS Council when he met have started promoting Pentecost Novena to
instruments of
them in 1979 shortly after becoming Pope: “I am the Holy Spirit. With this objective in view the
intercession for the
convinced that this movement is a very important ICCRS has launched Operation Upper Room:
Church and the world.”
component in the total renewal of the Church”. “Pentecost of the Nations—For a New Culture of
This does not imply that everyone should formally Pentecost” as a priority project. It is an appeal to
enrol themselves as ‘members’ of the Renewal. National Service Committees across the world
It simply means that, like the yeast, the grace to observe 10 days prior to the “Upper Room of
of Baptism in the Holy Spirit should permeate Jerusalem” in one heart and in constant prayer
into the entire Church. Thereby the Catholic (Acts 1:12-14) becoming “burning bushes” in
Charismatic Renewal will lose its separate adoration and intercession.
identity and all the Church will once again
I have been sensing considerable burden that
become ‘a Church with the Pentecost’ re–living
the Holy Spirit is calling the whole Church to
the Acts of the Apostles. It is a grace meant to
return anew to the Upper Room in prayer and
transform existing ecclesiastical structures such
expectation for a new Pentecost! As someone
as parish council, Small Christian Communities,
Catholic Association and other associations and has rightly said, the Baptism in the Holy Spirit
strengthen them in their faith. is “a spiritual shock” for the entire Church that
is meant to transmit an impulse, “a current
Eternal Pentecost needed of grace.” It should produce results that are
Blessed Elena Guerra appealed to Pope Leo XIII, identical to the first Pentecost about 2000
“Holy Father, call the faithful to the Cenacle years ago: “And day by day the Lord added
without delay! Imitating Saint Peter who goes to their number those who were being saved”
ahead to make ready the Upper Room, let us (Acts 2:47). Let us pray and endeavor ceaselessly
all go into the Cenacle! Let us turn to the Holy to restore the Church to her original character.
Spirit so that the Holy Spirit may turn to us.” With our eyes of faith let us look up and see
The Church must continually come back to the “a new heaven and a new earth” (Rev 21:1) the
Cenacle, the Upper Room, to be enlightened Spirit of God is already creating!”
again and become a burning bush, as it was
on the day of Pentecost. For Pentecost is not a
one off event. The Church needs a permanent
Pentecost. More than ever, the Church and
the world need the miracle of Pentecost to
ICCRS wishes...
be continued today. Everywhere the trumpet
is being sounded about the need for the
to all the readers a
people of God to return to the Upper Room in powerful outpouring
intense worship, adoration and intercession.
We are being called to awaken from slumber of the Holy Spirit
and be empowered anew by the Holy Spirit.
Let us once again become passionate adorers
in this Pentecost
of the Lord and powerful instruments of
intercession for the Church and the world. The
season:
Pentecost is an ongoing experience and we
should start praying fervently and look forward
“Come Holy Spirit!”
expectantly for a New Pentecost!
Leadership Formation
Practising the charism of prophecy
in the Charismatic Renewal
by María José Cantos de Ortiz
Prophecy is a message from God, a manifestation
of the Spirit to be used for the general good,
because those who prophesy build up, exhort and
comfort the community (1 Cor. 12:7; 14:3). It can be
expressed through a sentence, a vision or a text
from the Bible.
In the prayer groups in the CCR there are many
interventions that are inspired by the Holy Spirit:
sometimes, some people feel moved by the Spirit to
share an experience, to say a prayer or to read a text
clearly guided by God; other times, an idea, a vision
or an enlightenment received is communicated to
the others. When we speak of “prophecy” we are
referring to communications from the Lord. These
can be expressed in a simple and direct way, for
example: “I am with you, do not be afraid”…, through
a message in tongues and its interpretation, through
a prophetic song or a vision received.
In the reception of the prophecy there are two
aspects involved: feeling moved by God to speak,
and the enlightenment of the mind to express
the message, aspects that can be consecutive or
simultaneous. To feel moved or driven by God to
speak can be manifested in physical signs, like
the increase of the heart beats, a weight that
persists, or like a soft impulse to say something.
In any case, we must always take into account
that no divine impulse is neither disturbing nor
uncontrollable: “the prophetic spirit is to be under
the prophets’ control” (1 Cor. 14:32). In its turn,
the enlightenment of the mind happens through
ideas, words, sentences that arise in the mind,
visions or a sudden inspiration. Sometimes the
person receives a complete message, but it is very
common that the person receives the message as
he/she expresses it. The contents of the prophecy
is a message from God for that moment, and its
purpose is to edify the community, to comfort
giving peace and joy, to encourage, to strengthen,
to correct or to exhort.
Even though the prophecy is a message from
God, this is given through a person who speaks
when moved by the Spirit. For the same reason,
discernment is required to know if it is genuine.
The more the person is surrendered to God, the
purer and more transparent will the message be.
That is why the prophecy must be discerned by the
community: “Let two prophets, or three, speak
while the rest weigh their words” (1 Cor. 14:29).
The criteria for discernment can be grouped
considering that the message from God must have
“the fragrance of Christ..., the smell of life leading
to life” (2 Cor. 2,14‒16). Allan Panozza considers
five criteria for the discernment of a genuine
prophecy: it gives good fruit; it is according to the
March – April 2009 Page 3
Holy Scriptures; it encourages, it edifies, it exhorts,
it brings peace and not fear; it gives glory to God “The contents of
and the prophet is under God’s anointing. the prophecy is a
Through the discernment process may the true message from God for
prophecy, the false prophecy and the pseudo that moment, and its
prophecy be distinguished. The true one has the purpose is to edify the
attributes previously expressed. The false prophecy community, to comfort
does not often appear, it usually contradicts in some giving peace and
of its parts what the Word of God or the teaching
joy, to encourage, to
of the Church express; it is expressed in aggressive
strengthen, to correct
or condemning words; its effects are negative and
its fruit is uneasiness, anguish or anxiety. There or to exhort.”
are situations which favor false prophecy such as:
people who have been in touch with the occult,
divisions in the group, situations of sin or the desire
for extraordinary charisms. Pseudo prophecy
corresponds to a message which comes from the
person, be it from his/her thoughts, feelings or
emotions; without being harmful it lacks the power
and anointing that come from God. Lastly, there
are also messages given as prophecies where what
comes from God and what comes from the person
who says it, is mixed. This usually happens when a
person begins to prophesy. In this case the people
responsible for the group or community must help
so that this gift is purified in the brother or sister
who manifests it.
Prophecy is a gift which is very appreciated by
Saint Paul “Make love your aim; but be eager, too,
for spiritual gifts, and especially for prophesying”
(1 Cor. 14:1). Not to despise it is an insistence which
he makes in his letters (Th. 5: 19‒21), so we must
appreciate it and promote it in the prayer groups
giving appropriate teachings on the subject,
supporting, guiding and helping the brothers and
sisters who manifest to have this gift to grow,
encouraging and teaching the group to welcome
and express the prophecy which usually appears in
moments of recollection, adoration, long silences
or after singing in tongues.
Finally, we must consider that there has to be
some kind of authority to which the prophecy
yields; in the prayer group it is the leaders who
discern it, in other events as retreats or meetings,
the discernment is made by a team.
To sum up, as the prophecy is a message inspired
by the Spirit it is a gift highly esteemed in the
CCR and in the prayer groups, and it should be
conveniently encouraged. When a group prays
and invokes the Spirit, He acts edifying, exhorting
or comforting the community placing prophetic
words in simple people who open themselves to His
action. However, the discernment is essential to
distinguish the real prophecy from other messages
which do not come from God.
Page 4 March – April 2009 Leadership Formation

QUESTIONS TO THE ICCRS DOCTRINAL COMMISSION

ICCRS receives many questions about the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, and we do our best to answer as many as
we can with the help of the ICCRS Doctrinal Commission members who kindly take the time to check their references and credit their
sources. The questions and answers featured in this section of the Leadership Formation each issue are selected for their relevancy
and helpfulness overall for those involved in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. If you have a question about the CCR,
please send it to newsletter@iccrs.org and we will do our best to answer it!

On the use of blessed oil during prayers

The “oil of gladness” is a biblical term that people
ICCRS in the Charismatic Renewal have adopted to
designate the blessed oil used by lay people, as
International distinct from the blessed oil used by priests to
Catholic administer the Sacrament of the Sick.
Charismatic In Scripture, the oil of gladness appears in Psalm
Renewal Services
45:7 (quoted in Hebrews 1:9), where it refers to the
oil with which a king is anointed at his coronation,
Permission is granted to
a sign of joy and honor. It also appears in Isaiah
reprint an article from
61:1‒3, which proclaims that the Messiah, the
the ICCRS Newsletter and
anointed one, will give all God’s people the signs
Formation Leadership as
of the joy of his coming: “a garland instead of
long as ICCRS is quoted as
ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the source.
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit; that
they may be called oaks of righteousness, the
Please keep us updated on
planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified.”
changes to your e-mail and
For the Israelites, anointing oils were a part of
postal address so we may
daily culture and a way of showing honor to guests
continue to bring you the
latest articles and current (see Lk 7:46). They were often scented, and putting
events on the Catholic them on would be a sign of gladness, similar our
Charismatic Movement. use of perfume or cologne (see Ps 133:2). But more
than that, they were a sign of special consecration
by God, either of a king (1 Sam 10:1), a priest
Palazzo San Calisto
00120 Vatican City, Europe (Lev 8:12), or a prophet (1 Kg 19:16).
tel: +39 06 69 88 71 26/27 Regarding the used of blessed oil by the laity today,
fax: +39 06 69 88 71 24 there has been some confusion. On some occasions
http://www.iccrs.org in the CCR or among other groups, the impression
e-mail: has been wrongly given that lay people were
info@iccrs.org administering the Sacrament of the Sick. Partly to
newsletter@iccrs.org
clear up this confusion, in 1997 the Vatican issued
fax prayer line:
an “Instruction on Certain Questions Regarding
+39 06 69 88 72 30
the Collaboration of the Non–ordained Faithful
in the Sacred Ministry of Priests.” This document
states: “In using sacramentals, the non–ordained
faithful should ensure that these are in no way
regarded as sacraments whose administration
is proper and exclusive to the Bishop and to the
priest. Since they are not priests, in no instance
may the non–ordained perform anointings either
with the Oil of the Sick or any other oil” (Art. 9, 1).
After this document was published, the question
arose as to whether it intended to exclude the
laity from any use of blessed oil at all? This would
be contrary to ancient Catholic custom. The 1964
Roman Ritual, in fact, includes a Blessing of Oil,
presumably for use as a sacramental by the laity.
In view of this question, Bishop Sam Jacobs,
former chair of the U.S. Bishops Committee on
the CCR, requested a verbal clarification from
then–Cardinal Ratzinger during an ad limina visit
to Rome. Bishop Jacobs writes:
“The document in question was addressing
the issue of the sacrament of the anointing
of the sick which can be administered only by
an ordained priest. Non–ordained laity are
not allowed to administer this sacrament with
the Oil of the Sick nor to use any blessed oil to
administer this sacrament. When I was in Rome
in March for the Ad Limina visit, I asked Cardinal
Ratzinger about this question. He assured me, in
front of the other bishops from Region V, that the
document was only referring to the sacrament
of the sick and not to the ancient custom of lay
people using blessed oil, even when praying for
the sick, as long as a clear distinction was being
made between the sacrament of the sick and
sacramental use of blessed oil, as is done with
blessed salt, palms, ashes, etc. I asked that a
clarification be made to the effect and he assured
me one would be coming. I think it is necessary
that people don’t extend the understanding
of the authors of the document beyond their
intention, which was limited and focused.” *
Thus blessed oil can be used for informal
anointings by the laity, as long as they are clearly
distinguished from the sacramental anointing that
only a priest can perform. And there is no reason
why this blessed oil used by the laity cannot be
called the “oil of gladness,” adopting the biblical
term. Blessed oil is a sacramental, a sacred sign
that resembles the sacraments and prepares us
to receive the grace of the sacraments. As the
Catechism says (1669), “Sacramentals derive from
the baptismal priesthood: every baptized person
is called to be a ‘blessing,’ and to bless.”
As always, any specific guidelines given by your
local ordinary should be followed.

* printed with permission