"...wanting to tame the Holy Spirit...

 ...this is called becoming fools and slow of heart." --Pope Francis


"At the heart of a world imbued with a rationalistic skepticism, a new experience of the Holy Spirit suddenly burst forth. And, since then, that experience has assumed a breadth of a worldwide Renewal movement. What the New Testament tells us about the charisms - which were seen as visible signs of the coming of the Spirit - is not just ancient history, over and done with, for it is once again becoming extremely topical." --Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Emeritus



“The period following the Second Vatican Council scarcely seemed to live up to the hopes of Pope John XXIII, who looked for a ‘new Pentecost’. But his prayer did not go unheard. In the heart of a world desiccated by rationalistic skepticism a new experience of the Holy Spirit has come about, amounting to a worldwide renewal movement. What the New Testament describes, with reference to the charisms, as visible signs of the coming of the Spirit is no longer merely ancient, past history – this history is becoming reality today.” --Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Emeritus



"...apostolic movements appear in ever new forms in history necessarily so, because they are the Holy Spirit's answer to the ever changing situations in which the Church lives...the Holy Spirit is quite plainly at work in the Church and is lavishing new gifts on her in our time.” --Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger now Pope Emeritus



“Only when the person is struck and opened up by Christ in his inmost depth can the other also be inwardly touched, can there be reconciliation in the Holy Spirit, can true community grow.” --Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger now Pope Emeritus



“Pentecost is not only the origin of the Church and thus in a special way her feast; Pentecost is also a feast of creation. The world does not exist by itself; it is brought into being by the creative Spirit of God, by the creative Word of God...The pasture where the sources of life flow is the Word of God as we find it in Scripture, in the faith of the Church. The pasture is God himself, whom we learn to recognize in the communion of faith through the power of the Holy Spirit. Dear Friends, the movements were born precisely of the thirst for true life; they are Movements of life in every sense.” --Pope Benedict XVI now Pope Emeritus



“After the Council, the Holy Spirit endowed us with the "movements". They sometimes appear to be rather strange to the parish priest or Bishop but are places of faith where young people and adults try out a model of life in faith as an opportunity for life today. I therefore ask you to approach movements very lovingly. Here and there, they must be corrected or integrated into the overall context of the parish or Diocese. Yet, we must respect the specific character of their charism and rejoice in the birth of communitarian forms of faith in which the Word of God becomes life.” --Pope Benedict XVI now Pope Emeritus



“The Ecclesial Movements and New Communities are one of the most important innovations inspired by the Holy Spirit in the Church for the implementation of the Second Vatican Council...Paul VI and John Paul II were able to welcome and discern, to encourage and promote the unexpected explosion of the new lay realities which in various and surprising forms have restored vitality, faith and hope to the whole Church...To meet the needs of the Movements and New Communities very lovingly, impels us to know their situation well, without superficial impressions or belittling judgments. It also helps us to understand that the Ecclesial Movements and New Communities are not an additional problem or risk that comes to top our already difficult task. No! They are a gift of the Lord, a valuable resource for enriching the entire Christian Community with their charisms. Consequently, trusting acceptance that makes room for them and appreciates their contributions to the life of the local Churches must not be absent...The authenticity of new charisms is guaranteed by their readiness to submit to the discernment of the Ecclesiastical Authority. Already numerous Ecclesial Movements and New Communities have been recognized by the Holy See and therefore should certainly be considered a gift of God for the whole Church.” --Pope Benedict XVI now Pope Emeritus



“...the Ecclesial Movements and New Communities which blossomed after the Second Vatican Council, constitute a unique gift of the Lord and a precious resource for the life of the Church. They should be accepted with trust and valued for the various contributions they place at the service of the common benefit in an ordered and fruitful way...one of the positive elements and aspects of the Community of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal is precisely their emphasis on the charisms or gifts of the Holy Spirit and their merit lies in having recalled their topicality in the Church...The Movements and New Communities are like an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the Church and in contemporary society...I sincerely hope that dialogue between Pastors and Ecclesial Movements intensifies at all levels...your Catholic Fraternity of Charismatic Covenant Communities and Fellowships...carries out a specific mission in the heart of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal...to safeguard the Catholic identity of Charismatic Communities.” --Pope Benedict XVI now Pope Emeritus



“Especially characteristic of your pastoral involvement is and remains your commitment to the "movements": the charismatic movement, Communion and Liberation and the Neocatecumenal Way...you immediately sensed the life that burst forth from them--the power of the Holy Spirit that gives new paths and in unpredictable ways keeps the Church young. You recognized the pentecostal character of these movements...they brought new and unforeseen elements that could not always be integrated easily into the existing organizational structures...they...are gifts to be grateful for. It is no longer possible to think of the life of the Church of our time without including these gifts of God within it.” --Pope Benedict XVI now Pope Emeritus in a letter to Cardinal Paul Josef Cordes