An Open Letter To Orthodox Christians About The Charismatic Renewal
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Maronite icon of Pentecost |
I have never seen priests dancing in a line like chorus girls before, especially in front of the altar. It seems to me that they are new to the charismatic renewal and are indulging in behaviour that they will, one day, regret. I did things after Vatican II that I later regretted. We must be patient. After all, God is patient with us!!
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal
Here are some videos that are very valuable for understanding the Charismatic Renewal.
I came in contact with the Charismatic Renewal in the early seventies when two Belmont monks who were studying in Rome returned for the summer holidays and told us about it. They had become members of a Pentecostal prayer group in the Gregorianum. We formed a prayer group in the monastery and also joined an ecumenical prayer group in Hereford. We were prayed over by Fr Simon Tugwell O.P. who had written a book about it. We also attended national congresses and met Kevin Ranaghan and other American leaders.
I was a theologian and, like many others, filtered the charismatic claims through Catholic teaching. In the very recently published New Mass, we had three new eucharistic prayers with the epiclesis typical of the Eastern rites. It seemed to me that charismatic spirituality and practice which involved calling down the Holy Spirit on people was only an extension of that: charismatics were people of the epiclesis. Obviously, “baptism in the Holy Spirit” is not another sacrament, but simply the subjective experience of receiving the Holy Spirit which begins at our baptism, which is repeated at every Mass and becomes a permanent dimension of out Christian life.
I must admit that, although I shared in charismatic activities, was in theological agreement with the Charismatic Renewal, and could actually see people grow in holiness through it, I never felt at home with their way of prayer. I found that silently praying in tongues was a good way to concentrate on the Lord after communion at Mass, but their communal prayer services were not for me. As a monk with the monastic tradition of prayer – praying the liturgy, practising the ‘Jesus Prayer’ and lectio divina, for example – I just couldn’t settle down to their way of doing things.
For almost seven years, I was parish priest of a Peruvian parish that was really charismatic. I always sang the Mass, even when there were only a few people, singing even the consecration, not a liturgy you normally associate with a charismatic parish, but the people loved it once they were used to it; and they asked my successor if he could do the same, but he said he didn’t know how. When I spoke of the Holy Spirit to them, I took my material from the Fathers of the Church, and it fitted in very well. Some years later, I became “formador” in a seminary for charismatic students. One of them used an image of St Seraphim of Sarov for his ordination card.
In both parish and seminary, I saw genuine spiritual growth. That is why I cannot disagree or attack their way of prayer, even though it isn’t for me. I believe that it is necessary to love people in order to understand them in spiritual things, which is why, in the Byzantine Rite, they put the kiss of peace before the Creed. That is why one of the Fathers said that Orthodoxy without love is the religion of the devil. It is our love, the love that must be continually purified to reflect more and more the presence and our share in the activity of the Holy Spirit, that unites us to one another. When we do not love, we offer space for the devil to divide us from one another.
Just an example of a Charismatic who became Orthodox without rejecting his charismatic past.
An appreciation by Charles Whitehead of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal
One of the greatest pioneers and servants of the Charismatic Renewal died in Cambridge on January 6th 2010 after a short illness.
Michael Harper was ordained a priest of the Church of England in 1956, and experienced the baptism in the Holy Spirit in 1962, speaking in tongues the following year. In 1964 he established The Fountain Trust to further renewal in the power of the Holy Spirit for Christians throughout the body of Christ. He started Renewal Magazine and was a prolific author, as he travelled the world serving renewal within the Anglican Communion and promoting ecumenical relations.
I first met Michael Harper in 1983. We became friends, and from that time on I worked with him in a number of committees and in the organisation of a variety of international ecumenical events. In 1999 he invited me to succeed him as the chairman of ICCOWE, the International Charismatic Consultation on World Evangelisation, today abbreviated to ICC. We remained in regular contact over succeeding years, and at the time of his death he was still a Trustee of ICC and planning to attend our February Executive meeting, where his wisdom and advice would have been as much appreciated as ever. His experience of the worldwide Charismatic renewal was second to none, and he will be hugely missed by many, many people. He was prophetic, visionary, dynamic, challenging, and entertaining, but he always had time for the individual who wanted to seek his advice or receive ministry from him. Underneath the determined exterior and the incisive mind, beat a loving and caring pastoral heart. He never tired of proclaiming the good news of the Gospel wherever he was, and his books on renewal, healing, and growth have affected the lives of countless readers. It is difficult to realise the impact he had without seeing how many remarkable organisations and events he had the vision and courage to start up.
After leaving The Fountain Trust in 1975, Michael Harper became a key leader in the worldwide Charismatic Renewal. He initiated a charismatic conference for Anglicans alongside the Lambeth Conference of July 1978, and in 1981 formed SOMA (Sharing of Ministries Abroad) to share the grace of renewal with the Anglican Church all over the world. His ecumenical work was no less significant, and in the early 1970s he founded the UK Charismatic Leaders’ Conference which brought together leaders from many church traditions and backgrounds, including the new charismatic independent churches. His ecumenical sympathies found further expression through both the European Charismatic Consultation and ICCOWE (later becoming ICC) which he founded with Fr. Tom Forrest and Rev. Larry Christenson in 1989. He had initiated and chaired ACTS 86, the European charismatic conference held in Birmingham, and similar international ecumenical charismatic gatherings in Berne (1990), Brighton (1991), Malaysia (1994 and 2000), and Prague (1997 and 2000).
In March 1995, deeply upset by the ordination of women in the Church of England, he joined the Orthodox Church, and was soon ordained a priest, becoming Dean of the new Antiochian Orthodox Deanery for the United Kingdom and Ireland, which under his loving and dynamic leadership now numbers more than twenty parishes. In all his work he was wonderfully encouraged and supported by his wife Jeanne, who joined him in his pilgrimage to the Orthodox Church.
In a recent interview, Michael stated “I’m as charismatic as ever”, and as we sat in his funeral service at St. George’s Orthodox Cathedral, London, I felt privileged to have been his friend for 27 years, and to have been blessed by his wisdom, insights, and challenges on so many occasions. Certainly Fr. Michael Harper was a giant of the worldwide Charismatic Renewal, and whilst we rejoice in all that he was and did, we are just beginning to realise how much we are going to miss him.
Source: http://fatherdavidbirdosb.blogspot.com/2017/11/an-open-letter-to-orthodox-christians.html
Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.
"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.
Please Help Support BeforeitsNews by trying our Natural Health Products below!
Order by Phone at 888-809-8385 or online at https://mitocopper.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomic.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomics.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Humic & Fulvic Trace Minerals Complex - Nature's most important supplement! Vivid Dreams again!
HNEX HydroNano EXtracellular Water - Improve immune system health and reduce inflammation.
Ultimate Clinical Potency Curcumin - Natural pain relief, reduce inflammation and so much more.
MitoCopper - Bioavailable Copper destroys pathogens and gives you more energy. (See Blood Video)
Oxy Powder - Natural Colon Cleanser! Cleans out toxic buildup with oxygen!
Nascent Iodine - Promotes detoxification, mental focus and thyroid health.
Smart Meter Cover - Reduces Smart Meter radiation by 96%! (See Video).