Hi,
What do you think about being open to the sacraments? What I mean to say is that, is our openness to the sacraments a very important part to them? I have met people who are baptized and confirmed who do not even believe in God. Yet on the other hand, I know many people in the Charismatic Renewal who when prayed with to be renewed (open to their baptisms and confirmations) had an amazing change in their life with regard to their faith.
Do you think that openness to the sacraments makes a difference? How much? Do you know anyone who has been baptized in the Spirit?
Hi there: First of all, the Church teaches the following with regard to the Sacraments and their efficacy:
*The Sacraments have an objective efficacy – i.e. an efficacy independent of the subjective disposition of the person receiving the Sacrament OR of the minister administering the Sacrament.
The Sacraments contain the grace which they signify, and bestow their grace on those who do not hinder it. They (Sacraments) work in a way the Church refers to as “ex opere operator”, which translates, literally, “by work performed”.
It means that the Sacraments work because of the actual activity or work performed in bestowing them – i.e. the Sacramental sign or the actions, etc., that the Church prescribes, liturgically, to be performed by the minister of a given Sacrament. The power of the Sacraments does not depend on any subjective attitude of faith on the part of the person receiving them. The Sacramental grace is not conferred by reason of the subjective activity or situation of the recipient, but is, as mentioned, caused and conferred by the validly performed Sacramental sign.
In the baptism of infants, even faith is not the effective cause of justification in the Sacrament and need not be individually present./The faith, which infants lack, is replaced by the faith of the Church.*
It’s very important, regardless of how deeply you enter into the charismatic experience, to remember that there are no Sacraments that are ‘new’ or that you have received that have not already been completely efficacious. There is only ONE Sacrament of Baptism and baptism of the Spirit is not a separate thing or a ‘more full’ baptism (than that you already received) or anything like that. It’s possible to enter more fully into relationship with the Holy Spirit, depending on the person, but that’s all it is - deepening you relationship with God, the Holy Spirit. There is nothing you can or do receive as part of a charismatic group that you cannot and do not receive in the normal life of the faith / Church.
As another poster said, the Sacraments and faith-life are all about relationship; about love and our relationship with our God. So, obviously, the more ‘engaged’ we are in the relationship, the more we are involved and active in that relationship, the more we will benefit from everything spiritual we encounter, from the Mass and the Sacraments to saying the Rosary to our life of prayer, in general.
If being part of a charismatic group or meeting (as long as the group is in union with the Church) helps you to engage more fully or facilitates things for you, it is fine and poses no harm. We each react differently and each of us is ‘moved’ (and even called by God) through different means. If you are following His call to your heart, you won’t go wrong.
I have friends in the charismatic movement and have, myself, attended not only prayer meetings but also a few Life In The Spirit seminars. So, I am familiar with all this and have a couple cautions…
A lot of the focus of some charismatic groups is on emotions and feelings. Objectively, there is nothing wrong with this - profound experiences of God can be a pretty overwhelming and emotional thing - but it’s always good to be wary and extra vigilant (as all the Saints have encouraged) when such things are involved in our spiritual lives. They are very seductive and can mislead us. We can end up worshiping the gifts of God rather than the Giver of the gifts, Himself.
Some charismatic groups, in my experience, over-emphasize the gift of tongues. It’s a gift of the Spirit, like any other, and it’s wonderful if it’s given to you or anyone, but many times there is a sort of pressure (exerted by the group) to speak in tongues with the unspoken inference being that if you don’t speak in tongues, something is wrong. I hope this is not so in the group you are part of. Also, you almost never hear, in the groups that focus on ‘tongues’, that the teaching of Scripture is that the gift is for communication and not just ‘babbling’ in praise of God in a ‘language only He understands’. That is not what the gift of speaking on tongues, in the New Testament, was all about. I doubt it’s about that now, either.
According to St. Paul, if there are those speaking in tongues, there should also be those who understand what is spoken, and those who interpret what is spoken for those who cannot understand / interpret. My point is that all this can get kind of dicey if you’re not careful or if you’re someone who is not properly educated in the faith or already has a deep and satisfying prayer life.
While the form and method of praying and praising in a charismatic setting can be wonderful and very freeing and joyful (compared to a lot of traditional worship / liturgy), don’t get carried away or seduced by the “party”. It’s always WHAT we are expressing or saying to God that’s most important and not the WAY we say or express it.
If you ever have any doubts, check in here at the fora - there will be someone who can listen and give you feedback. In addition, if, while you are with the group, if you are told anything that contradicts the teaching of the Church, don’t continue there.
Finally, keep reading the saints…their wisdom will keep you on the right road…
