Catholic Charismatic Renewal
Stained-glass window of a dove in Saint Peter's Basilica, symbolizing the Holy Spirit, who is believed by Christians to confer various gifts | |
| Formation | 1967 |
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| Type | Catholic apostolic movement |
| Headquarters | Vatican City |
| Website | www.charis.international www.iccrs.org |
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The Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR) is a movement within the Catholic Church and part of the wider Charismatic movement that spread across various Christian denominations.
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal has been described as a "current of grace". It began in 1967 when Catholics from Duquesne University attended a Protestant worship service and claimed to have been "baptized in the Holy Spirit". It is heavily influenced by American Protestantism, especially Evangelicalism and Pentecostalism, emphasizing a "personal relationship with Jesus", deep emotional experiences, and expressing the "gifts of the Holy Spirit".
Cardinal Leo Joseph Suenens described the Catholic Charismatic Renewal as "not a specific Movement [...] it does not have founders, it is not homogeneous and it includes a great variety of realities; it is a current of grace, a renewing breath of the Spirit for all members of the Church, laity, religious, priests and bishops [...] One does not form part of the Renewal, rather, the Renewal becomes a part of us provided that we accept the grace it offers us.” According to the Preacher of the Papal Household, Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa, "[Jesus Christ] is no longer just a set of theses and dogmas. [...] No longer just an object of worship and of remembrance but a living reality in the Spirit".
Catholics who practice charismatic worship usually hold prayer meetings outside of Mass that feature prophecies, faith healing, and glossolalia. According to Christian theologians Peter Hocken, Tony Richie, and Christopher Stephenson, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal is intrinsically ecumenical and has given rise to covenant communities with members from major Christian denominations who lead a "shared life based on baptism in the Holy Spirit".