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Voice of the Spirit NSW CATHOLIC CHARISMATIC RENEWAL NEWSLETTER
P h o n e 9 8 1 0 2 4 9 9 ♦ 1 9 a Q u i r k S t R o z e l l e 2 0 3 9 ♦ F a x 9 5 5 5 5 9 6 2
♦ E m a i l : e m a i l @ c c r n s w . o r g . a u ♦ W e b s i t e : c c r n s w . o r g . a u
August 2015 Issue 81
O n Sunday 24th May at Our Lady Queen of Peace
Greystanes NSW, an inspiring celebration of the
Feast of Pentecost was enjoyed by the faithful from
many parts of Sydney and beyond. This joyful feast
has been held in this church for many years and is
always a time of grace and renewal.
Following an uplifting session of praise led by The
Servants of Jesus Community music ministry, Mass
was concelebrated by Fr Bony Abraham MGL with
the four other priests.
Fr Abraham gave the homily based on St John’s
Gospel Chapters 14, 15 and 16. To summarise his
homily - Jesus speaks to his disciples about going
away to the Father and he will send them an
Advocate who will be with them on the journey. He
will give them Joy and Peace. For all Christians, if we
want to follow Jesus, we need the Spirit of Truth.
Without the Holy Spirit the Christian journey is
impossible. To love one another we need the Holy
Spirit.
He then spoke of Repentance- “metanoia” which he
translated as “beyond the current mindset.” When
the Holy Spirit comes, he will give you the power to
turn away from the current mindset - which can be a
“big mind”- a proud, arrogant stance -“this is my life”-
a rebellious attitude towards God. Or, we might have
a “little mind”- being a doormat - never believing in
our gifts or what we can contribute to the building up
of our community.
The true mindset is “I am a son or daughter of
God”. Every person is of equal dignity with the
courage to call God our Father. (cont. on page 3)
HOLY SPIRIT COME!HOLY SPIRIT COME!HOLY SPIRIT COME!
From L to R, Fr.Kene Onwukwe, Fr. Yacub Barakat, Fr. John Iacono, Fr. Bony Abraham and Fr. Bill Cunningham
Feast of Pentecost Celebration
Page 2 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
Voice of the
Spirit Official Newsletter
of the NSW Catholic
Charismatic
Renewal
This newsletter is
published quarterly.
Articles, news items
and other
contributions are
welcome and should
be forwarded to:
The Editor
Voice of the Spirit
CCR Centre
19a Quirk Street
Rozelle 2039
Editor:
Sr. Margaret Scully
and Team
Deadline for
November issue:
Friday 9 Oct. 2015
Permission is granted
to reprint any article
from Voice of the
Spirit (VOS) as long
as VOS is quoted as
the source.
Articles in VOS are
the personal views of
the writer and,
unless indicated, do
not necessarily
reflect the view of the
NSW Service Team.
If there is lack of
space, the editor
reserves the right to
edit articles.
CCR Centre
office hours:
9.30 am to 4.00 pm
Monday to Friday.
Phone(02) 9810 2499
Fax (02) 9555 5962
E-mail:
email@ccrnsw.org.au
Web Page:
ccrnsw.org.au
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.
com/ccrnsw
H aving had to take
an enforced “rest”
in recent months there
has been much time and
space for me to think,
pray, reflect, read and
listen. But none of these
can be
compartmentalised, for one surely flows
out of and into the other.
One course of thinking led me to ask,
as do so many of us, why do certain
things, particularly the unexpected and
un-liked, happen to us? The response
could be sequentially logical such as: ‘If I
hadn’t done that then the end result
would have been different’ One or other
may go so far as to say ‘God did it!’ which
I don’t for a minute believe. Certainly,
God allows things to happen and then, as
only God can and does, he offers us the
grace we need at the time.
One day in a reflective moment I
considered Pope
Francis’ love for Jesus
and how he says we
‘lock Jesus into dull
categories’ suggesting
such titles as ‘Saviour’,
‘Redeemer’, ‘Lord of
Lords’ etc., which ‘keep
him at a distance
rather than at the
centre of our lives’.
Jesus breaks through
nonetheless. If we
would just let him into our lives, he will
amaze us and change us for the better.
And so I prayed, “Jesus, may I let you
amaze me this day” And, oh me of little
faith, he did!
Over the weeks I have had more time
to read the newspapers, the contents of
which appal my sense of justice and
morality and all else that is good and
right. I’ve asked myself, “What would
Jesus say and do?” This led me to
recognise more than ever the need for us
who profess to be Christian to stand up
and be counted when it comes to the
diminishment (including by law) of our
Christian values.
It seems to me that our politics have
overtaken our Christian - our Jesus
mindsets. It is only these Christian
values which, if lived faithfully, will
never become outdated, out of fashion.
And as Pope Francis has said, “The
teachings of the Gospel have direct
consequences for our way of thinking,
feeling, living…..”
Now this takes courage. So when I
listened to a 98 years young lady, as she
spoke of the numbers of letters she had
sent to politicians and others protesting
her Catholic Christian values in the light
of projected laws, I shuddered with shame.
Isn’t this what Pope Francis is doing
with his Encyclical “Laudate Si” – on care
for our common home? Not everyone will
agree with him, no doubt, but he is
certainly giving us cause to reflect as to
where justice to the poor, where our sense
of responsibility regarding care of one
another and of the environment etc. etc.
sits with us.
We do need to be stirred – that’s what
Jesus did when he walked this earth; he
stirred people into facing the truth and
it’s what Pope Francis is doing in so many
ways. We are called as
Catholic Christians to
be proactive in
promoting Christian
values which may
require us to stand up
and be counted. First of
all, however, it requires
our lives to match our
words. As Pope Francis
said, “The ideal is not
only to discover God in
the soul, but also to
discover God in all things”. That is a
profound shift.
Did not Pope Benedict say, “The
external deserts in the world are growing
because the internal deserts have become
so vast”? Maybe our prayer could be,
“Jesus may I allow you to amaze me
today!” But even more than that “may I
amaze you today!” Yet even more than
that “Jesus with your help and the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, may I
amaze myself!”
“All powerful God, you are present in the
whole universe and in the smallest of your
creatures …Teach us to discover the worth
of each thing, to be filled with awe and
contemplation …..we thank you for being
with us each day. Encourage us we pray,
in our struggle for justice, love and
peace” (LAUDATE SI’) Praise be the Lord
Jesus for his blessings! ■■
Sr. Margaret Scully rsc
Editorial
Page 3 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
(from Page1)
We need to pray every day for the humility to recognise that without Him we can do nothing. Fr Abraham
concluded with the line from Psalm 81: “Open your mouth, and I will feed you”.
After Mass we enjoyed a barbecue lunch and as usual there was catching up with old friends and members of
other prayer groups and communities. At 2.45pm the hall overflowed with people for prayer and praise led by
the Servants of Jesus. The speaker for the afternoon session was Bruce Downes, “The Catholic Guy”, who has a
ministry of reaching out to people and connecting them to parishes. He opened with a challenge to believe that
God will do miracles - and to expect it. He shared from his own experience of being called by God when he was
a young teenager - with the knowledge that he was to serve the Church in evangelisation. He shared about how
he spent years in preparation with this call on his life. Yet he was not chosen for anything until he was thirty
years old. So his message from this is, “God sees you, don’t give up the dream but pray, God, what should I do
now?” All were encouraged to listen to the Lord - what is he calling you to do? - what is his dream for you?
After his second talk based on the story of King David - his sin and repentance - there was a time of prayer
ministry. The Emmaus Prayer Community was thanked for the preparation and hosting of this annual event.
Gratitude was also expressed to the members of the various prayer groups who contributed in so many ways
and to the Servants of Jesus for leading the people in prayer and praise. ■■
I would like to share with you about a major new
initiative in Evangelisation that made my heart
leap with joy and anticipation. It
commenced with an invitation I received
from the Most Rev. Peter W. Ingham DD,
the Bishop of Wollongong, NSW, to attend
the launch of The Catholic Guy Impact
Centre in Campbelltown on 2 July this
year. As soon as I drove into the car park I
was made welcome by people showing me
where to park. This welcoming continued
when I walked into the hall at Mount
Carmel College and was met by a Catholic Guy team
member. I recognised him immediately, Eddie Ferry,
the former leader of the CCR Macquarie Field Prayer
Group. As the evening progressed I saw Ron and
Desiree Molloy serving refreshments to the invitees
at the launch. Desiree is part of the CCR day Prayer
Group at Greystanes.
The Catholic Guy Ministry is known for both its
Catholic Television programs seen in various places
around the world and in conducting parish missions,
events and other ministry activities across the
country. This is only part of a larger strategy. In his
address to us at the launch Bruce Downes, who is
known as “The Catholic Guy”, reminded us of the
91% of Catholics who are not actively engaged with
the Church. Many of us have friends or family
members who fall into this category. These people
will be the major target of The Catholic Guy Minis-
try.
Each week people who are not actively engaged
with the Church will be invited and encouraged to
come to specifically designed prayer and teaching
services. These are not intended to replace Mass but
be a beginning and nurturing place and a link to
priests, parish and the sacramental life of the
Church. This outreach will be modern in feel, life
application in focus and deeply rooted in the teaching
and tradition of the Church under the direction of the
local Bishop.
There will also be a specifically designed weekly
children’s program conducted at the same time as the
adult service. The largest unchurched group of
Catholics at the moment are children under 12
years of age. Bruce noted that many former
Catholics make up 50% of some other
Christian churches because of the children’s
activities that are offered. A youth program of
activities will also be conducted each week led
by trained youth workers.
This ministry was born out of an initiative
under the direction of Archbishop Barry Hickey, the
former Archbishop of Perth. Cardinal George Pell
invited The Catholic Guy Ministry to the Archdiocese
of Sydney. Twelve people, including Bruce and his wife
Rosemary, relocated from Perth to work in the Sydney
Diocese. Bishop Ingham invited the Catholic Guy
Ministries to open the first Impact Centre in the
Diocese of Wollongong.
I was delighted to see CCR people as part of this
ministry. I encourage you to take a closer look and
perhaps attend one of these services at Campbelltown.
Maybe the Holy Spirit will draw you to be part of it. If
that is the case I encourage you!
Ladies please note that this ministry is conducting a
Women’s Conference, “Heart” ,16-17 October2015. The
Catholic Guy website is www.thecatholicguy.com.
Check it out! May the God of Mercy and Forgiveness
continue to bless each one of us. ■■ Mike Lulan Chairperson NSW CCR Service Team
In an address to 50,000 Catholic Charismatics in
Rome on 1 June 2015 the Pope said “I expect all of you,
charismatics from around the world, to celebrate your
great jubilee with the Pope at Pentecost 2017 in St.
Peter’s Square,” ARE YOU INTERESTED IN COM-
ING TO ROME IN 2017? Details yet to come. Email or
ring CCR Centre to express your interest.
Message from the Chairperson
INVITATION FROM POPE FRANCIS
Page 4 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
2015 International Charismatic Priests’ Retreat
E arly in June over 1,000 priests gathered in Rome
for another extraordinary charismatic retreat. I
was blessed to be present due to the kindness of the
National Service Committee of CCR. I am very
grateful that they made it possible for me to attend.
It was wonderful to be together with such a large
variety of priests from 89 different countries of all
ages and at stages in life. The retreat was organised
by ICCRS together with the Catholic Fraternity of
Communities as part of the common journey towards
the Great Jubilee in 2017.
The theme of the retreat was “Called to Holiness for
a New Evangelisation”. It was broken down into five
themes, one for each day: Gathered, Reconciled,
Transformed, Empowered and Sent. All the sessions
were held in St John Lateran Basilica – the Pope’s
own cathedral. Lunch was served in big tents outside
the Basilica. Buses brought us from our residences in
the morning and back again after the evening
session.
There were so many powerful spiritual moments
during the retreat, and so many moving preachings
and teachings, that it is difficult to summarise the
experience. I was overwhelmed by the quality of the
inputs, and the response of the priests, many of
whom were having their first charismatic experience.
The session when we prayed for the baptism in the
Spirit to transform our personal lives and empower
our ministries was particularly powerful. Patti
Gallagher Mansfield gave a riveting account of the
first outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Dusquene
weekend in 1967. Then together with others she
began to invoke the Holy Spirit. It was an electrifying
moment as 1,000 priests with hands held open and
raised up high yielded together to a new infilling of
the Spirit. The praise was so full and enthusiastic
and went on and on, so much so that the organisers
were becoming concerned since the time to leave the
Basilica was fast approaching. But no one wanted to
finish the time of worship. It was so anointed and
overflowing with grace. No doubt this was an answer
to the fervent prayer of so many many faithful people
around the world interceding for the renewal of their
priests. Thank you so much for your prayers, and
please keep it going.
It was great to sit under the
teaching of Fr Raniero
Cantalamessa, the preacher to
the papal household. After giving
us a biblical and theological
understanding of what it means
to be anointed, he encouraged us
to stay under the anointing of the
Holy Spirit given in the
sacraments and also in charismatic laying on of
hands. There is a sweetness and tenderness to the
anointing, but there is also a power, strength and
authority to the anointing. We are told Jesus was
“anointed by the Holy Spirit and with power”. We
have already received the anointing to become saints,
and this hidden fire needs to burst forth in our
preaching. We are to be more aware of the anointing
of the Lord, and walk under it
always.
I was also touched by the
testimonies of priests such as
Jonas Abib, the founder of a large
community in Brazil. He spoke of
how he first experienced a
personal encounter with Jesus,
which transformed his faith; and
then later experienced the baptism in the Spirit
which empowered him in mission.
Bishop Jose Luiz Azcona also
from Brazil shared about his “first
Pentecost”, when he felt he had
been exposed as a Pharisee, but
now felt the love of God within
him and a new inexpressible joy.
His “second Pentecost” came in
the face of a highly publicised
death threat from those who wanted to eliminate him
because of his public stand against human
trafficking. He was on his knees asking the Lord for
answers; he was feeling the temptation to succumb,
because if he died who would look after the poor
people. He heard the Lord speak to him to be a
pastor; his people were being hurt and sold for
nothing. His “second baptism” was a grace to be
ready to die for his people, invoking Our Lady,
Mother of God, and of priests. With this new
Pentecost he is no longer afraid to die. “By the power
of the Spirit I say to the Lord: ‘If you call me to die
for you, this day will be the happiest day of my
existence. To give my life for these abandoned sheep.
This is my purpose.” He encouraged us not to be
afraid to be martyrs.
Martyrdom was a common theme. Don Olivio
Tachini of Italy challenged us on the cost of
discipleship. Like the early Christians we need to pay
the price of breaking with the world. The baptism in
the Spirit enables us to change our lives and be true
Fr Jonas Abib
Bishop Jose Luiz
Azcona
Fr Raniero
Cantalamessa
Page 5 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
From Fr. Mick Court SDB - Parish Priest, Engadine
T he experience was profound for me ... I thank the CCR profoundly. I gave a talk to our Thursday night
prayer group about it and have talked about it in the parish. Here are a few words - not sure how much you want - I could write pages if I had time!!
Many have asked me about my time away? It was an amazing gift which I pray I continue to unpack at many levels. The time away had at least four types of gifts. 1) Touching the land of Jesus gave me a richer perspective of his environment and the history that has flowed from Jesus walking that land. I smell the country as I read the Scripture now, I have a deep sense of the distances between places, and the countryside being spoken about. It is another dimension/richness to the Scripture.
2) The retreat in Rome was at the John Lateran Church. The first Christian Church and the Church of the early Popes for about 1000 years. I felt the depth of our 2000+ years of Church history within Rome and within that Church. I pray touching those places gives me more perspective and depth.
3) The retreat with 1000 priests from around the world had many gifts. First there were the impressive presentations by major Church teachers, with the
witnesses to Christ without
compromising or being
half- hearted. He urged us to look
to the Book of Revelation as a
manual of resistance to the
world’s agenda; to choose Christ
and not to fall back into our old
ways.
Fr Daniel Ange from France
urged us to be ready to lose
everything rather than lose
Christ. He reminded us of the 21
Orthodox Coptic martyrs
beheaded on a beach by Isis, many
with the name of Jesus on their
lips. We need to be intercessors for
our people, like Moses on the mountain, never giving
up in the battle, but with arms outstretched in
prayer at all times.
By far the greatest highlight was the visit of Pope
Francis on the feast of the
Sacred Heart. He spoke to us
all with a gentle fatherly spirit
and a shepherd’s heart. He
won us by his simplicity,
humility, and sense of humour.
He was calling us to have the
tender, merciful heart of Jesus,
acquired especially through
personal prayer before Jesus in
the Blessed Sacrament. I was
blessed to be in the front only
a few metres away from him as
presentation by Pope Francis being the most powerful. My prayer is that I can take their encouragement and challenge and live it with my people. I could spend many pages talking about those presentations.
4) Finally the most significant gift for me was God touching me through the people I met; the priests from all over the world, but also the everyday travellers that I interacted with. I was always going somewhere or set to do something; however along the way there were amazing people who shared with me aspects of their way of living the gospel. I found it fascinating and inspiring! I could name at least 10 individuals and encounters with them that marked me in terms of my faith. They include a deaf priest from Canada, a young provincial of the Augustinian's from Lima Peru, two Americans, African priests from Uganda and Nigeria, a priest from Sweden, another from Germany, and more. Your group gave me an amazing gift and I pray I can hold it in my heart and let God speak to me through it ... I also pray I can pass it on in many different ways.
Blessings and thanks, Fr Mick Court ■■
( Your donations to the NSW CCR allowed us to send Fr . Mick to this Charismatic Priest’s retreat)
he spoke, and it seemed every
word was for me. After his
spiritual talk a priest from
each of the five continents
had the opportunity to ask
the Pope a question. I was
blessed to be asked to speak
on behalf of Oceania. I asked
the Holy Father what was his
secret in being able to
communicate so well with a
sometimes hostile secularized world, such as we have
in Australia. He answered by reminding us of the
need for personal witness, that love conquers, not
argumentation and disputation. We are to give our
testimony, but in all things to speak with love, and
most of all to live in love, especially for the poor,
marginalised and discarded people. This, he said,
will irresistibly attract people, because the deepest
longing in the heart is for this love. Much to my
surprise at the end of his answer to me I was able to
embrace him personally and present him with a copy
of my book “His Name is Mercy”, while thanking him
for the coming Year of Mercy. After the questions
and the Pope’s answers which went for over an hour,
the Holy Father then celebrated Mass with us. He
had told us before that we should keep our homilies
to seven minutes. Some of the “wags” timed his
homily; it was almost fifteen minutes. No doubt that
is the Pope’s prerogative. Thanks again to all who
made it possible for me and two other MGL priests,
as well as another ten or so priests from Australia to
attend such an enriching retreat experience. ■■
Fr Ken Barker MGL
Don Olivio Tachini
Fr. Daniel Ange
Fr. Ken Barker meeting
the Pope
Fr. Mick Court
I t is disturbing to see many who profess to be Catholic Christians make the effort to practise their faith and
yet seemingly not get everything that it offers. I suspect that a major cause is an inadequate understanding
of salvation. I would like to share some thoughts with you concerning this and offer an understanding of
salvation which might help the perplexed. In the immortal words of Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music:
“Let’s start at the very beginning.”
We develop a secret interiority from very early in life. As young children, the wrath of our parents quickly
teaches us the “horrible criminality” of telling Aunt Agatha that she is fat or the man next door that he is ugly,
even though both may be true. We thus begin the lifelong process of keeping our dark thoughts and emotions to
ourselves. After all, who could possibly love me if they knew what I really thought and felt?
We fare no better in wider society. To promote order, society has put in place systems of law, social
conventions and customs and just plain good manners to govern the ways that we interact with each other. We
are “good” if we conform and “bad” if we don’t. If we don’t conform, we find pressure put on us to use our will
power to change; if we don’t change, we find ourselves outcasts. The emphasis is on outward conformity;
society has no interest in what is in our hearts.
All too often, we “do Church” with these influences hanging heavily over us. We shy away from openly
disclosing our inner selves to God – we carry the haunting fear that even He couldn’t possibly love us as we
are; we must somehow earn His love and approval. We attempt to do this by conforming to Church law and
customs, by ritually participating in the sacraments and even presenting our children for the sacraments of
initiation as customary rites of passage. Yet somehow inside we remain untouched. If we are honest with
ourselves, we find the words of the Lord spoken by the prophet Isaiah echoing down the centuries to confront
and challenge us: “This is a people who worship me with their lips while their hearts are far from me.” (Isaiah
29:13)
Could there possibly be more to faith than what we are experiencing at present? Is there a God to whom we
can disclose the darkness of our inner selves and find that He loves us tenderly, infinitely and unconditionally?
Will He really take away our hearts of stone and replace them with hearts of flesh as promised through His
prophet Ezekiel: “I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh instead”.
(Ezekiel 36:26), thus transforming our relationships with Him, with ourselves and with others. Could right
behaviour be a natural fruit of such a heart of flesh, instead of a gritty conformity that is an act of the will?
The Good News is that the answer is “yes”. All of these things and more are to be found in the full salvation
brought to us by Jesus.
To understand this salvation, we must first consider who
and what we are as human beings – and what has gone
wrong. Scripture tells us that we are body, soul and spirit
“May the God who gives us peace make you holy in every way
and keep your whole being – spirit, soul and body – free from
every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
(1 Thessalonians 5:23). The body relates us to the external
world, with which we connect through our five senses. The
soul is our inner self, our personality; it consists of our minds,
wills and emotions. These three work together something
like this: The mind says: “I don’t think I should do that.”
The will says: “I won’t do that.” The emotions say: “I don’t
feel like doing that.” The spirit is our innermost being,
breathed into us by God at the moment of our conception. It
is through the spirit that we relate to the spiritual realm and
to God. It is often said that, as human beings, we are spirits
having souls that both live in our bodies.
As we know, there is much that can go wrong with us.
First, there is the problem of sin, wrongdoing that
strangles our spirits and blocks our communion with God.
And the problem isn’t just the sins we commit. There is
something deeper within us which alienates us from God,
making sin attractive and inclining us to sin. It is called
iniquity. Sin is the visible fruit and branch; iniquity is the
hidden root. Iniquity affects our very identity - sin is
something that we do; sinful is something we are.
Page 6 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
Salvation? ? ? ?
Our souls can suffer wounded emotions, distorted thinking and weakened wills. Frequently, this will be
caused by the sins of others against us. Because we are hurt, we will strike out and hurt others in return. We
sin because we have been sinned against. The powers of darkness can attack us through our soul wounds and
our sins and sinfulness, while our bodies are subject to disease, disability and death.
The spirit, soul and body can all be affected by a single affliction. For example, our spirits might be dead in
sin. Guilt and depression accompanying this might affect our minds and emotions; it could even overflow to a
psychosomatic illness in the body. Or we might have a physical illness which may lead to depression again
affecting our minds and emotions; There may also be a sinful resentment against God which affects our spirits.
This grim picture of the human condition certainly demonstrates
our need for the full salvation offered by Jesus – salvation of the
whole person, body, soul and spirit. The first hurdle, of course, is
that we think that we must somehow “earn” or “deserve” this
salvation by good works or good deeds. Not so, St Paul tells us. “For
it is by grace you have been saved, through faith…and…not by
works…” (Ephesians 2:8). Saving grace is entirely God’s free gift; it
can never be earned or merited. Christian salvation is a “come as
you are party”; the ticket to the “party” is our acceptance of Jesus
as Lord and Saviour!
Accepting Jesus as Lord of our lives is a big step; we want to be in
control of our lives. However, by recognising him as Lord we are acknowledging that self-trust is a “dead end”.
Being willing to trust him instead is the “essence of faith”.
By accepting Jesus as Saviour, we acknowledge our complete inability to help ourselves. By ourselves, we are
powerless against sin, iniquity, other afflictions and the powers of darkness. The model for laying our sin and
iniquity before the Lord is King David, King of Israel. Scripture tells us of the dramatic encounter between
David and Nathan the prophet, when Nathan confronted David in the
name of the Lord for his adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her
husband, Uriah (2 Samuel 12:1-12). Tradition has it that David, chastened
and repentant, composed the incomparable penitential Psalm 51 in
response to his encounter with Nathan. It includes this heartfelt cry to his
God: “Wash away my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” (Psalm 51:2)
David has no merit to claim of his own and has no way of making
amends. He can only plead to his God for forgiveness, mercy and cleansing.
David’s cry is our cry. We might be somewhat less auspicious sinners than
David, but we are sinners nonetheless. Jesus will hear our cry for
forgiveness, mercy and cleansing. After all, he paid a very great price that
it might be so. Our spirits, weakened through sin and iniquity, will come to
life.
Full salvation in Jesus also includes healing of afflictions and deliverance
from dark powers. Indeed, the original Greek word for “salvation” in the
New Testament, “soteria”, means healing and deliverance from evil as well as saving from sin and its
consequences. Jesus healed people and delivered them from dark powers during his earthly ministry. The Book
of Acts and Church tradition tell us that the early Church did the same in his name. Healing and Deliverance
are still available today, and are ours for the asking.
Salvation is a process. Its centerpiece is an ongoing saving, healing, empowering and transforming
relationship with Jesus. We can live in a personal relationship with him with expectant faith; he is the way to
the Father’s heart. This relationship has many fruits. We can actually experience the love of Jesus and the
Father for us and can abide in this love which is infinite and unconditional. We do not have to do good deeds to
earn it. Rather, we can do good deeds out of gratitude for the love that is already ours. We can take
confidence that our sins are forgiven and that we are strengthened against sinning. We can find healing for our
wounds and deliverance from evil. We can be empowered and transformed to fulfill the great Commandment
to love God with all our heart, all our soul and all our strength and likewise to love our neighbor. (Matthew
22:34-39).
Perhaps, though, the greatest fruit to be experienced this side of death will come on the day we have the
blinding insight, the awesome experience, the assurance beyond doubt, that the Living God of Israel, the Lord
God, Creator of the heavens and the earth, is also Abba, Father…Papa…Daddy….■■
Kerry Guerin (member of NSW CCR Service Team)
Page 7 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
News from Around and About
Page 8 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
W hat a blessing to have attended the
Formation Day on Saturday the 25 July 2015
and experience the Presence of our Lord Jesus in a
deeper way through the sharing and testimonies of
Phil and Jennie Ryall. One of the first questions
posed to us on that day was: “Are we hungry sons and
daughters of God and do we want a fresh revelation?”
Phil impressed on us that we are gateway people
but what is holding us
back? We need to throw
away all that is holding us
back, cut it away and have
a child like spirit. We are
meant to rise. We are like
a hot air balloon which is
not being held to the
ground with ropes.
Jennie shared her
testimony of how fear had a grip on her, due to past
hurts and strained relationships in her family when
growing up. She came to a point in her life where she
cried out to God in
desperation. "God if
you’re real, show yourself
to me”. Through this ex-
perience she encountered
the love and acceptance
of God. She had a
prayerful encounter with
a beautiful Christian. She
said: "I went in an orphan and came out a daughter.”
She spoke about having a orphaned spirit. Ro-
mans 8:15, “For you did not receive a spirit that
makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the
spirit of sonship so that we cry out to God: "Abba, Fa-
ther." This speaks of abundance as our hearts are
desperate for Fatherhood, for Fullness and for Fami-
ly.
The Dance
Phil beautifully explained how we were made to
join in the dance of heaven, by showing us a short
video of ball room dancing to the Blue Danube Waltz.
The Father, Son and Holy Spirit were in this amazing
dance together, and then they invited us to join them
in the dance of heaven, but through the fall we
inherited fear and shame. Our intimacy with our God
was dulled or blocked. Deep down inside we all hun-
ger for this fullness. The rhythm of heaven is like, in
the waltz, where God the Father takes us in His arms
and dances with us. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit
are having a ball and we need to share in this dance.
He urged us to see from heaven’s perspective, to see
the Paul in Saul!
The first mission field is the mission field of our
heart. Jesus became the orphan, by dying for us on
the Cross to bring heaven's abundance to each of us.
“Who is the Father to me now?” Jennie started
the second session with that question. She went on to
say that He is a loving Father; it's not about a
feeling. She knows she is under His wings, on His
lap, pulsing and alive. By the Blood of Jesus and the
power of the Holy Spirit, she can call to Him any
time. Every single bit of trash that was thrown to her
over the years, He has made His treasure. Every
drop of her past suffering, the Lord has changed by
His Grace to be a blessing. She stands under the
daughter-ship of Jesus. She not only waits and rests
in Jesus, but also knocks, seeks and asks. This is not
a feeling but a choice she makes and she dares to do
this, expecting to be loved by God. All God is
concerned with is our relationship with Him.
Also there may be a number of veils over us which
cause darkness. We don’t justify offense when the
veil is over us, for the veil not only dulls our beauty
of God, but also prevents us from seeing our own
beauty. Isaiah 61 speaks about the Lord’s favour,
setting free the captives and releasing the
prisoners. We are imprisoned when we
hold unforgiveness. We may be beautiful hot air
balloons but may be held captive and need to make
the decision to forgive and so set ourselves free. We
could be bound by words put on us by ourselves or
others or by vows we make in our lives.
But Jesus said, "I am the way the truth and the
life”..... and that the Truth will set you free.
Truth is a reality. We are called to live in a heavenly
home and not live in an orphanage!
Phil spoke about a time when he was one day
praying for his son. The words which came to him
was "The Holy Spirit is the answer". As he said
these words out loud, a dove came out towards him
from the darkness of the night. This happened three
times. Often we want the details, but the Holy Spirit
is the answer and we need to pray for the answer
even though we may not see it.
He spoke of the two upper rooms which are
necessary in our lives:
1. The upper room of our secret place where God
can tell us His secrets; and
2. The upper room of the community of Faith.
Dough and Fresh Bread: Early each day as we go
to the secret place (our prayer closet) as sticky,
gooey dough and we spend time in the Lord's
presence, we rise and we come out as "The Baker’s
Delight". When we spend time with the Father in
prayer each day, we rise in His presence and the
fresher we are, the more He can use us.
The Community is the supply house. We need to be
aligned before we are assigned. In the gospel, where
Jesus cursed the fig tree, Jesus had the right to
expect impossible fruit. We need to be people who
walk in the impossible and carry heaven’s
Formation Day - “Releasing Heaven's Abundance For a New Day”
Jennie Ryall
Phil Ryall
News from Around and About (continued)
Page 9 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
perspective into this world. A rising people seeing from heights, like the hot air balloon. Be climate changers,
atmosphere changers and the fruit will overflow. So we must declare His promises and be a gateway people. 2
Cor 1:20 speaks about His promises as “Yes”, in Christ and “Amen”. His grace makes it possible for us on earth
to agree with what is going on in heaven. Jesus always did the will of His Father and not His own will.
The importance of unity in the Church was spoken about and Phil showed a short video of the Pope urging us
Charismatics to pray for unity. We need to strengthen the bonds of brotherhood / sisterhood, for the blood of the
martyrs unites us. We drink your wine and you drink our wine.
Arise and Shine - Isaiah 60
Phil spoke about the new day dawning and the glory of God rising upon us. We are being called like never
before to arise and meet the dawn. The new dawn is about to come and we need a culture of seeing and speaking
life into each other; it is a call for new mercy. New wine skins need to stretch by looking at each other through
God's eyes and not only through our own. ■■ Janis Lisboa
Holy Spirit Prayer Group - Heathcote
I have enjoyed fellowship with the Wednesday Holy Spirit Prayer Group, Heathcote, over the last few months and was pleased to attend the formation day at Rozelle recently with Phil and Jennie sharing their
experiences of the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives. I was impressed by their honesty and openness, of their experiences and their positive assertion of hope they were expressing. Firstly with the illustration of the hot air balloon being released and rising to great heights, I felt God releasing us from unforgiveness and bondages that hold us down, moving us into greater fellowship with our Lord. Another releasing experience was the revelation of God wanting to dance with us, in a harmony of love and praise, giving us a foretaste of heavenly grace. I found a warm welcome to this day and a great prayer blessing at the close. This day left me with a greater desire to worship the Lord with song and dance and a freedom in His presence. ■■
Patricia Honeywell Holy Spirit Prayer Group - Heathcote
F r Hugh Thomas CssR reminded members of St Therese of Lisieux, Lakemba Prayer Group and friends that Pope Francis has called on us to be Spiritual Evangelisers. This set the tone for our annual retreat in July which culminated with Baptism of
the Holy Spirit and a deepening in the Gifts. The Joy of the Gospel fills the heart and lives of all who encounter Jesus. We were blessed to gather and to celebrate Holy Mass on each day of the retreat – God in us – rejoice. We reflected on the endless love God has for each of us. He saved us – we are the sinners who need His Salvation. He brings us to New Life. He promised He would not leave us orphaned, and He sent the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete. The same Spirit which emboldened the Apostles at Pentecost is His gift to us. We were also blessed at Mass on Saturday 11 July, as Fr Hugh shared with us that it was the 50th
Anniversary of his ordination. We thank him that he chose to celebrate this great milestone with us. ■■ John Deacon
Lakemba Prayer Group
Lakemba Prayer Group Annual Retreat
Page 10 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
T he Catholic School of Evangelisation will be conducting the ‘Philip - New Life’ Course at
St Joseph’s Parish Hall, Gordon St. Rozelle, on the weekend of 31 Oct. -1 Nov. 2015. The Course gives participants an opportunity to deepen their re-lationship with God and a desire to share that with others. It is not so much a lecture, but more an experience of the reality of God’s love providing a personal encounter with the risen Jesus and to receive a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Power Point, Scripture based presentations, music, prayer, reflection, sharing and various dynamics will present the basic fundamental content of the Good News. This is the foundation stone on which the rest of our Catholic faith and doctrine rests. ■■
God’s Love
Sin
Salvation in Jesus
Faith & Conversion
Holy Spirit
Community
CONTENT
Bookings essential - See enclosed brochure
For more info contact:
Lucy Grasso: (02) 8840 8213; 0423 931 881
Participant’s comment:
“I knew about the death of Jesus, about salvation, but only now do I grasp how I can experience salvation.”
Catholic School of Evangelisation
This is a seven week seminar consisting of prayer and praise to God followed by a teaching on Thursday
evenings.
Venue: Chapel at the Holy Spirit Church, Cox’s Road, North Ryde
Commencing on Thursday 22 October 2015 and concluding on Thursday 10 December 2015.
Time: 8.00 to 9.30pm
A healing Mass will be celebrated on the evening of Thursday 19 November 2015.
Enquiries: Contact Parish Office: 02 9888 2569
A Life in the Spirit Seminar - North Ryde Thursday night Prayer Group
A day at “DAVID’S PLACE” with Fr. Jack Soulsby 26 September 2015
ARRIVE at 9.30am for 10.00am start and CONCLUDES with Mass at 4.00pm
INCLUDES—Lunch, tea and coffee times, conversation and prayer
RSVP to Jo de Groot– Email: jodegroot15@bigpond.com - Phone:9521 5392
DAVID’S PLACE –17 Little Albion St, Surry Hills
“JESUS IS RIGHT HERE, NOW!”
St Joseph’s Parish Hall, Gordon Street Rozelle:
For information and bookings contact CCR Centre 9810 2499,
Weekends
November 13 – 15
and 21 – 23
ELIJAH HOUSE PRAYER MINISTRY SCHOOL - Level D
NSW NSW -- Upcoming EventsUpcoming Events
Page 11 Voice of the Spirit Issue 81
Sydney Healing MassesSydney Healing Masses
Friday
4 September 2015
8.00pm Mass
HEALING MASS HEALING MASS HEALING MASS --- St Joseph’s Catholic Church St Joseph’s Catholic Church St Joseph’s Catholic Church 126 Liverpool Road, Enfield
7.00pm Rosary / Reconciliation; 7.30pm Prayer and Praise; 8.00pm Mass
For information phone: Rose 9642 2359 / 0412 115 961
3rd Sunday
Each Month 2.00
pm
(except January)
CHARISMATIC HEALING MASS CHARISMATIC HEALING MASS CHARISMATIC HEALING MASS --- Our Lady of the Rosary ChurchOur Lady of the Rosary ChurchOur Lady of the Rosary Church Cnr Mamre Road & Swanston Street, St Marys
Costandi & Barbara (02) 4754 4625 / 0410 475 723 or 0427 327 471
or Christine 0427 327 471. Email: dojbm@bigpond.com
1st & 3rd Tuesday
Each Month
10.30am
YARRA BAY EUCHARISTIC PRAYER COMMUNITY YARRA BAY EUCHARISTIC PRAYER COMMUNITY YARRA BAY EUCHARISTIC PRAYER COMMUNITY --- HEALING MASSES HEALING MASSES HEALING MASSES
St. Mary’s Church, 23 Swanson Street, Erskineville
For more information ring Marika Gubacsi on 9556 2118
Email: marikagubassi@bigpond.com
1st Friday 7.00pm &
Last Saturday
8.30am
Each Month
HEALING MASS (with anointing of the sick) HEALING MASS (with anointing of the sick) HEALING MASS (with anointing of the sick) --- OUR LADY OF THE ROSARYOUR LADY OF THE ROSARYOUR LADY OF THE ROSARY
18 Vine Street, Fairfield
Friday Mass preceded by Holy Hour (in Vietnamese)
For more information phone parish office 9724 5997
3rd Thursday
Each month
8pm
HEALING MASS HEALING MASS HEALING MASS --- HOLY SPIRIT CHURCHHOLY SPIRIT CHURCHHOLY SPIRIT CHURCH 191 Cox’s Road, North Ryde ……… Prayer Ministry available after Healing Mass
For information contact the Parish office: 9888 2569
NSW NSW -- Upcoming EventsUpcoming Events
HEALING MASS HEALING MASS HEALING MASS --- St. MICHAEL’S CHURCHSt. MICHAEL’S CHURCHSt. MICHAEL’S CHURCH Croydon Road, Hurstville For information contact Parish Office 9587 2166
1st Friday
Each Month
March, June, Sept,
Dec at 6.00pm
HEALING MASS, ADORATION, PRAYER MINISTRY HEALING MASS, ADORATION, PRAYER MINISTRY HEALING MASS, ADORATION, PRAYER MINISTRY
With Fr Ken Barker MGL With Fr Ken Barker MGL With Fr Ken Barker MGL --- Bring a plate to share for afternoon teaBring a plate to share for afternoon teaBring a plate to share for afternoon tea
St. Michael’s Parish, 45 Maxim Street, Meadowbank,
For more information and RSVP contact Maureen Richardson 0417 042 790
Saturday
31 October 2015
2.00pm - 5.00pm
1st Friday
Each month
7.30pm
HEALING MASS HEALING MASS HEALING MASS --- St. PATRICK’S CHURCHSt. PATRICK’S CHURCHSt. PATRICK’S CHURCH 294 The River Road, Revesby Heights (Reconciliation at 6.30pm)
For information contact Terry Fernando 9708 1095
CHARISMATIC MASS CHARISMATIC MASS CHARISMATIC MASS --- BREAD OF LIFE CATHOLIC FELLOWSHIPBREAD OF LIFE CATHOLIC FELLOWSHIPBREAD OF LIFE CATHOLIC FELLOWSHIP Servants of Jesus Centre ….. 15 Park Road, Seven Hills
For information contact office: 9624 3322
Each Sunday
9.15am
SHARE THE HOLY SPIRIT CONFERENCE
24 to 28
September
2015
The Servants of Jesus Covenant Community is conducting this annual The Servants of Jesus Covenant Community is conducting this annual The Servants of Jesus Covenant Community is conducting this annual
Conference which is entitledConference which is entitledConference which is entitled
“EQUIPPING THE SAINTS” (Eph. 4:12)“EQUIPPING THE SAINTS” (Eph. 4:12)“EQUIPPING THE SAINTS” (Eph. 4:12)
Full details on their website: <www.servantsofjesus.org> Full details on their website: <www.servantsofjesus.org> Full details on their website: <www.servantsofjesus.org>
Or ring 02 9624 3322Or ring 02 9624 3322Or ring 02 9624 3322
MGL SPIRITUAL ASSOCIATION
Friday 22nd January
to
Sunday 24th January 2016
Jim Murphy is well known as the man who walked with a
2 metre cross across America. Jim has ministered
to the CCR on many occasions and is a
much sought after international speaker.
Fr. Hugh Thomas is a facilitator for priests‘retreats not
only in Australia but also overseas.
He is a great supporter of the Catholic
Charismatic Renewal.
Venue: The very modern
St Joseph’s Spirituality Centre
64 Mackillop Drive,
Baulkham Hills, Sydney
NSW CCR Upcoming Weekend
Retreat with Jim Murphy and
Fr Hugh Thomas CSsR
This is a live-in Retreat with the option of
day attendance.
Cost and registration details will be provided later
Catholic Charismatic Renewal NSW
CCR Centre: phone 02 9810 2499
Email: email@ccrnsw.org.au
Website: www.ccrnsw.org.au
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