Report
on the New Movements Conference
.
Held in Glasgow, Scotland, June
19-20, 2015
by Michael Jordan
The Community
of the Risen Christ from Glasgow recently
organized and hosted a “New
Movements Conference” for communities,
movements, and groups in Scotland. Over 200
people attended the conference, representing
some 20 groups in Scotland, including Sword of
the Spirit, Focolare, Neocatechuminate Way,
Marriage Encounter, Schoenstatt Family Movement,
and Charismatic Renewal in Scotland.
The conference was designed as a teaching
conference looking at the place of the New
Movements in the Church - but with such a
wide representation of participants it was much
more than that. It was a witness to the
action of the Holy Spirit working in the lives
of individuals and their various groups and
their faithfulness to the call of God.
Bruce Yocum, an international leader in the Sword
of the Spirit, gave the opening address on
God’s call to movements in service to the
church. He summed up this call as a simple
sequence of God's initiative and our response:
God calls us, we respond, then God equips us
with the charism to fulfill that call.
Bruce gave several examples from the Scriptures
- from the call of Abraham, David, Isaiah, and
the call of the Apostle Paul - to
illustrate how God equips people to carry out
the call given to them.
Monsignor Bob Oliver, a member of the
Brotherhood of Hope who works in the
Vatican as Secretary of the Pontifical
Commission for the Protection of Minors,
addressed the role of movements in the church
from an historical perspective. He traced the
action of the Holy Spirit in raising up
movements throughout throughout the life of the
Church.
Drawing from an address from the then Cardinal
Ratzinger in 1998 to a gathering of the leaders
of New Movements in Rome, Oliver described the
waves of the Spirit that came about in response
to the needs of the time. From the time of
Antony and the early desert fathers, through the
time of the monasteries of Cluny, the mendicants
of Francis and Dominic in 12th century and the
missionary expansion of the 18th and 19th
centuries we are now seeing a new age with a new
need.
Oliver quoted from Cardinal Ratzinger who
described the new movements in the church as a
5th wave of the Spirit. Where God is
raising up in our time men and women, Movements
and Communities to respond to the call of God in
response to an age of widespread apostasy.
Oliver posed the question ‘What does the Holy
Spirit want of us?’ In answer he explored
the two terms ‘vita evangelica’ and ‘vita
apostolica’. Our ‘vita evangelica’ is a
new response to the universal call to holiness
in our local groups but also in our personal
lives. Our ‘vita apostolica’ is our active
engagement in mission through building Christian
communities to draw others to Christ in service
to the Church, society and the world - a mission
that Pope John Paul II called a ‘new
evangelisation’ for our time.
In the homily at the final Eucharist, celebrated
with Bishop emeritus Maurice Taylor, and four
other priests, Archbishop Philip Tartaglia gave
a resounding affirmation and encouragement to
all the Movements represented, saying:
A feature of the 2012 Synod of
Bishops in Rome on New Evangelisation was the
great appreciation for the new movements among
the bishops as a really important locus of
evangelising power and energy in the Church.
In fact, I would go as far as to say that the
new movements may well be the single most
important catalyst in the Church for
evangelisation in the future.
Quotes from participants
"The Holy Spirit is at work here. There is a
clear plan of God in the unity of the Movements
and in the witness to the world. Grazie a
Dio.”
Maria Grazia Niola, Focolare
"A fantastic witness of community; seeing the
different works and charisms coming together to
show the beauty, the richness and the fullness
of the Church represented in all ages and gender
and in laity and
religious."
Kate Curran, Catholic Youth
Office
"Exceptional, well organised, uplifting and
joyful experience, bringing us all together and
enhancing the Community
Spirit".
Tom Catterson, Life in the
Eucharist
"The most inspiring and reassuring conference I
have ever attended".
Michael Mitchell, Charismatic
Renewal
“Inspiring and encouraging. I hope this
leads to other fruitful ways to listen and share
with each other”
Tony Coultas, Communityof Our
Holy Redeemer
“It was very interesting - the historical
perspective and the talk of the vita
evangelica and vita apostolica. We
are all in the same way.
Mari Carmen Sanchez,
Neocathechumenate way
"There is nothing so uplifting as being in the
presence of people, especially young people, who
are open to Jesus and to the Church; to be in
company with people whose eyes are fixed on The
Lord. Your freshness, energy, enthusiasm and joy
in Christ Jesus is so good; it is so good to see
you today... The gift of New Movements to the
Church, fixed on Jesus and his Word brings new
faith, hope and energy to the
Church".
Archbishop Philip Tartaglia
(closing homily)
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