Is Pope Francis a Charismatic? Yes, But In the Fullest Sense of the Word

A charism is a grace, a gift lavished by God the Father, through the action of the Holy Spirit.

A charism is a grace, a gift lavished by God the Father, through the action of the Holy Spirit. And it is a gift that is given to someone, not because he is better than others or because he merited it: it is a gift that God makes so that, with the same gratuitousness and the same love, he can put it at the service of the whole community, for the good of all. - Pope Francis

VATICAN CITY (Catholic Online) - On Wednesday October 1, 2014, Pope Francis spoke to the thousands who gathered in St Peters Square about the charisms or gifts of the Holy Spirit.

It is clear that this successor of Peter believes that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are meant to be normative in the Church - and are also available to all.

But, because he is such a good pastor, he regularly instructs the faithful on the real purpose of those charisms or gifts of the Holy Spirit. That purpose is the building up of the Body of Christ, the Church, and equipping her for her mission.

These gifts of the Holy Spirit are given for the common good (1 Cor. 12:27) They meant are to equip and empower the Church to participate in the continuing Redemptive mission of the Lord Jesus, the Head of His Body. 

They are received in the Church, discerned by the Church, and are to be used for the Church.

Participants in one of the many ecclesial (of the church) movements, the one called the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, often point to the teaching of Francis on the availability of these charismatic gifts, as well as his history of being a friend of their movement back in Argentina, as making him a "charismatic" Catholic.

Though the effort is usually well intended, it can miss the more important point. Movements come and go, only the Church endures. Movements should not focus on being self perpetuating. Labels for such movements can become an impediment, if they end up dividing people into "camps". 

On Sunday, June 1, 2014, Pope Francis spoke to almost 53,000 people gathered in the Olympic Stadium in Rome for the 37th National Convention for the Renewal in the Spirit conference.

As he did on the evening when he was announced to the world as the successor of Peter, the Holy Father asked the faithful to pray over him. He fell to his knees in humility.
 
Over 50,000 people, mostly lay faithful, prayed for the Holy Spirit to continue to guide Francis in his service of love to the Church. It was a beautiful moment.

Participants in the what is called the Charismatic Renewal are in love with the Lord Jesus Christ and His Church. They not only speak of Jesus as someone who lived over two thousand years ago, they speak of Jesus as someone who is alive today - because He is!

They also affirm that the same charisms, gifts of the Holy Spirit, which empowered the early Church, are still available to every believer.

So does Pope Francis.

On Pentecost Sunday of this past year he spoke to a massive crowd in St Peters square. It included the leaders and representatives of what are now collectively referred to as the ecclesial movements.
 
Pope Francis sees all of these movements as a resource for the Church in her work. That includes what is called the New Evangelization within the Church- as well as her work in the world in what I believe is clearly emerging as a new missionary age of Christianity.

He sees all of these ecclesial movements as assisting the Christian faithful to experience an encounter with the Risen Jesus Christ and open their lives to the work of the Holy Spirit. He wants to direct ALL the movements to serve the one mission of the one Church.

Pope Francis is a good pastor, who wants to ensure that participants in all of these ecclesial movements not fall prey to the danger which enthusiastic movements often face, turning inward or becoming, to use one of his favorite words of warning to the whole Church, self-referential.

Over the last few pontificates, this term - ecclesial movements - has become the term used to refer to the many movements within the Catholic Church which demonstrate that the Spirit of Pentecost is alive and well.

It is used for all of them to make an important point. They are ALL a part of the work of the Holy Spirit, in the Church and for the Church as she proclaims the Gospel to the whole world.

Though each movement may have a unique charism, manner of expression, history, spirituality and even a specific missionary placement, they all invite Christians to experience a personal relationship, an encounter, with the Lord Jesus Christ.

They all proclaim that Jesus Christ is no longer dead. He has been raised from the dead and is still alive in our midst in the Church which He founded.

They all call men and women to encounters with this Risen Jesus Christ, to be freed from sin andd experience ongoing conversion and transformation.

They all invite Christians to awaken to the grace of their Baptism and live it.

They all invite people to experience the Pentecost of the Holy Spirit which the Lord promised, right now.

Then, they enlist those who experience their particular gifts to take their place in the one mission of the whole Church in this urgent hour.

The 2014 conference on the ecclesial movements was massive. Registrations exceeded over 120,000 representatives from over 150 ecclesial movements in attendance.

This reflects their growing diversity and influence in the Church.

The Successor of Peter seeks to unite them in the one mission of the Church.

The ecclesial movements are all a work of the Holy Spirit for our time. They are a sign that the Holy Spirit continues to be poured out upon the Church. They all demonstrate that Pentecost, and the grace which it brings to the whole Church, is still happening.

On that first Pentecost the early followers of Jesus gathered as their Lord commanded them, expecting the fulfillment of the promise he had made. We refer to Pentecost as the birthday of the missionary church.

Their encounter with the Holy Spirit in the Upper Room changed them. They were filled with the same Spirit which raised Jesus from the dead and animated by that Spirit for mission.

The Holy Spirit capacitated them to carry forward in time the ongoing mission of Jesus Christ until he returns to complete the work of redemption. The Holy Spirit capacitates you and me in the same way and for the same task.

This is what Pope Francis is regularly reminding us of. The diversity of the gifts, and the diversity of the ecclesial movements, reflect the goodness of God and the motherly embrace of the Catholic Church.

The ecclesial movements can all find a home within that ecclesial embrace. They also need to be properly pastored, instructed and positioned in the heart of the Church, for her mission to the whole world.  

All of the members of all of the movements, indeed every one of us who bear the name Christian, have been given access to the charisma, the gifts of the Spirit, for the building up of the Body of Christ and the continuation of His redemptive mission. 

It is in that sense that Pope Francis is indeed 'charismatic", as is the whole Church. I offer below his wonderful words from Wednesday, October 1, 2014:

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The Words of Pope Francis on the Gifts of the Holy Spirit

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good Morning,

From the beginning, the Lord filled the Church with the gifts of His Spirit, thus rendering her always alive and fruitful. Distinguished among these gifts are some that are particularly precious for the building and journey of the Christian community: they are the charisms.

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In this catechesis, we want to ask ourselves: what, exactly, is a charism? How can we recognize it and receive it? And, above all, the fact that in the Church there is a diversity and multiplicity of charisms, is this seeing positively, as something good, or rather as a problem?

In ordinary language, when there is talk of a "charism," it is often understood as a talent, as a natural ability. So, in face of a particularly brilliant and moving person, it is usually said: "He is a charismatic person."

In the Christian perspective, however, a charism is something more than a personal quality, a predisposition of which one might be gifted.

A charism is a grace, a gift lavished by God the Father, through the action of the Holy Spirit. And it is a gift that is given to someone, not because he is better than others or because he merited it: it is a gift that God makes so that, with the same gratuitousness and the same love, he can put it at the service of the whole community, for the good of all.

Something important that must be stressed immediately is the fact that one cannot understand on one's own if one has a charism, and which one. It is within the community that the gifts with which the Father fills us flow and flourish; and it is in the heart of the community that one learns to recognize them as a sign of His love for all His children.

So, it is good that each one of us ask himself: "Is there some charism that the Lord has made arise in me, in the grace of His Spirit, and which my brothers in the Christian community have recognized and encouraged?

And how do I conduct myself in regard to this gift: do I live it with generosity, putting at the service of all, or do I neglect it and end up by forgetting it? Perhaps it becomes in me a reason for pride, to the point of always lamenting others and of pretending that things be done my way in the community?"

The most beautiful experience, however, is to discover with how many different charisms and how many gifts of His Spirit the Father fills His Church! This must not be seen as a reason for confusion, for embarrassment: they are all gifts that God makes to the Christian community so that it can grow harmoniously in the faith and in His love, as one body, the Body of Christ.

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In face of this multiplicity of charisms, therefore, our heart must open to joy and we must think: "What a beautiful thing! So many different gifts, because we are all God's children, and all loved in a unique way."

Woe, then, if these gifts become a reason for envy and division! As the Apostle Paul reminds us in his First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter 12, all charisms are important in God's eyes and, at the same time, no one is irreplaceable.

This means that in the Christian community we are in need of one another, and every gift received is acted fully when it is shared with brothers, for the good of all.

This is the Church! And when the Church expresses herself in communion, in the variety of charisms, she cannot err: it is the beauty and the strength of the sensus fidei, of that supernatural sense of the faith, which is given by the Holy Spirit so that, together, we can all enter in the heart of the Gospel and learn to follow Jesus in our life.

Dear friends, see what the Lord asks of us today: to recognize with joy and gratitude the different charisms that He distributes in the community, to put ourselves on the line for one another, according to the ministries and services to which we are called. In this way, the Church grows with the grace of her Lord and becomes in all times and places a credible sign and living testimony of the love of God.

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Deacon Keith Fournier is Founder and Chairman of Common Good Foundation and Common Good Alliance. A married Roman Catholic Deacon of the Diocese of Richmond, Virginia, he and his wife Laurine have five grown children and six grandchildren, He serves as the Director of Adult Faith Formation at St. Stephen, Martyr Parish in Chesapeake, VA. He is also a human rights lawyer and public policy advocate.

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