Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article

To: Dr. Brian Kopp; mckenzie7; francky; The Doctor; router899; Qbert; Diapason; xzins; HushTX; ...
+

Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:

Add me / Remove me

Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of general interest.

29 posted on 10/11/2010 7:21:14 PM PDT by narses ( 'Prefer nothing to the love of Christ.')
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies ]


To: narses; johngrace; Dr. Brian Kopp; OpusatFR

Here is a couple of excerpts on Charismatic errors from the late Fr William Most...

http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/most/getwork.cfm?worknum=41

“Some groups also reject devotion to Our Lady - a sure sign that something is very basically wrong. Others reject things the Church promotes, such as the Miraculous Medal or the Scapular - again, a sign of something very wrong. Still others say they do not need the Church, they have a direct line to the Holy Spirit. This is seriously in error. Some groups have a rigid authoritarian structure - even though no one of them has a valid claim to authority. The authorities are answerable to no one - this is very dangerous.

There is also a danger of excess emotionalism: normally God does give consolations (satisfactions in religion) to those who make the second conversion (begin to get very serious about pleasing God). But this does not normally last indefinitely: St. Francis de Sales warns that if it did, they might love the consolations of God rather than the God of consolations.(Cf. his Introduction to the Devout Life 4.13).”

“Charismatic graces are not aimed at making the recipient holy: they are for some other benefit, usually for the community. There are two groups, ordinary (the gift of being a good parent, good teacher, etc. These are given widely and freely) and extraordinary: the gift of tongues, of healing, of doing other kinds of miracles, etc.

God’s principles are very different in the two categories. In sanctifying graces, He offers all without limit, since in the covenant, He has accepted the infinite price of redemption, and therefore owes it to Himself to give without limit. The only limit is imposed by us, by our lack of receptivity.

But with charismatic graces His principle is: The spirit gives what He wills, when and where He wills. Having these gifts does not even presuppose the state of grace. There is a frightening text in Mt 7:22-23: “Many will says to me on that day: Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out devils in your name, and work many miracles in your name? And then I will confess to them that I never knew you. Depart from me you workers of iniquity.”

So it is clear: there is need of checking in every instance to see if the gift comes from a good or an evil spirit, or just from suggestion. Hence St. Paul in 1 Cor 12 said that when they were pagans, they went to dumb idols whenever they were driven by their leaders. So he needs to tell them: If a person is speaking in the Spirit of God, he will not say “Cursed be Jesus.” Pagans often cursed the god who had gotten inside them. Also, no one can confess that Jesus is the Lord (divine) except by the Holy Spirit.

St. Paul does not mention suggestion, but of course we should. Many charismatics today are reluctant to admit that any checking is needed. They just say: Look it is what St. Paul talked about. But as we saw, Paul warned about the evil spirit. Some years ago I wrote a long series of columns for National Catholic Register, on the movement. Many letters came in. One woman on the west coast told me she had friends who knew several languages. A group of them went to a charismatic meeting, and were able to understand the tongues. They found some were praising God beautifully - but others were cursing Him. This is why St. Paul in 1 Cor 14 insists that at a meeting of the community no more than two should speak in tongues, and then only if there is someone who has the different gift of interpreting the tongues. The reason is clear: they may be cursing God!

Regrettably, many charismatics ignore these rules from St. Paul. They have more than two, they have even hundreds at a time. They try to say it is one thing to speak, another to pray in tongues. But Paul makes no such distinction and with good reason, as the experience just related makes clear.”

“The great St. Teresa of Avila, who had so much experience with extraordinary gifts, would be horrified. In her Interior Castle 6.9 she warns souls that when they learn or hear that God is giving souls extraordinary graces, “you must never ask or desire Him to lead you by that road.” She goes on to explain why: First, it shows a lack of humility; second, one leaves self open to “great danger because the devil needs only to see a door left a bit ajar to enter; third, “when a person has a great desire, he convinces himself he is seeing or hearing what he desires.” She adds that there are many holy people who have never had such things, and others who have them, and are not holy. This of course agrees with the warning of Our Lord Himself in Mt 7:22-23.”


47 posted on 10/11/2010 8:09:40 PM PDT by stfassisi ((The greatest gift God gives us is that of overcoming self"-St Francis Assisi)))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 29 | View Replies ]

Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article


FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson