FAITH & BELIEF
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The Gifts of the Holy Spirit
A. GIFTS RECEIVED THROUGH BAPTISM SEALED AT CONFIRMATION
Isaiah 11:1-3 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition1 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. 2 The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
3 His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear;
In the Old Testament, the prophet Isaiah prophesied that seven gifts of the Spirit would be given to the ‘shoot of Jessie’ or David’s descendant. That descendant was Jesus, our Lord and Saviour. In Confirmation, we too receive the same gifts. Thus Jesus alone possesses these gifts, but he freely shares them with the members of his mystical body, the Church. Every Christian receives these gifts permanently at baptism and these are sealed in the sacrament of confirmation. These gifts are:
- Wisdom is both the knowledge of and judgment about “divine things” and the ability to judge and direct human affairs according to divine truth.- Understanding is penetrating insight into the very heart of things, especially those higher truths that are necessary for our eternal salvation—in effect, the ability to “see” God.- Counsel (Right Judgement) allows a man to be directed by God in matters necessary for his salvation.- Fortitude (Courage) denotes a firmness of mind in doing good and in avoiding evil, particularly when it is difficult or dangerous to do so, and the confidence to overcome all obstacles, even deadly ones, by virtue of the assurance of everlasting life.- Knowledge is the ability to judge correctly about matters of faith and right action, so as to never wander from the straight path of justice.- Piety is, principally, revering God with filial affection, paying worship and duty to God, paying due duty to all men on account of their relationship to God, and honoring the saints and not contradicting Scripture. The Latin word pietas denotes the reverence that we give to our father and to our country; since God is the Father of all, the worship of God is also called piety.- Fear of God is, in this context, “filial” or chaste fear whereby we revere God and avoid separating ourselves from him—as opposed to “servile” fear, whereby we fear punishment.
These seven gifts are also known as the sanctifying gifts of the Spirit, because enable the recipients to surrender to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in their lives, helping them to grow in holiness and making them fit for heaven.
B. CHARISMATIC GIFTS
The "gifts and fruits of the Holy Ghost", being given for personal sanctification, are not to be numbered among the charismata. St. Thomas (Summa Theol., I-II, Q. cxi, a. 4)Whether extraordinary or simple and humble, charisms are graces of the Holy Spirit which directly or indirectly benefit the Church, ordered as they are to her building up, to the good of men, and to the needs of the world. (CCC 799)
Thus, the gifts we receive through the sacraments and sealed at Confirmation (Isaiah 11:1-3) are not the same as the gifts or charisms spoken about by Paul in 1 Cor 12:7-11Therefore, the purpose of charisms is to serve others and build up the Church. Charisms are not for the personal benefit of the receiver, but for the sake of ministering to others. They are, by definition, gifts to be given away. This accords with the teaching of St. Paul, who wrote, “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Cor 12:7).
These extraordinary gifts were foretold by the Prophet Joel (2:28) and promised to believers by Christ: “And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”(Mark, 16:17-18). Jesus’ promise was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:4) at Jerusalem and is now available to all believers.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
8 To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit,
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit,
10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
11 All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.
There are 9 charismatic gifts :
Gifts of Revelation
1. Word of Wisdom - A solution to a particular problem. Goes beyond "learned' wisdom.2. Word of Knowledge - Knowledge of an unknown or undisclosed fact/event, seeing below the surface.3. Discerning of spirits - The gift of distinguishing between divine. human, and demonic powers. Seeing what's "in step” with the Spirit ' and what is not.
Gifts of speech
4. Prophecy - A spontaneous speaking forth under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit for the encouragement (building up), strengthening and comfort of the hearers. Can be predictive.5. Tongues - A gift for praise, prayer, and sometimes prophecy. A gift to express the inexpressible to God. (1 Cor 14:2; Rom 8:26-28). Sometimes the ability to speak in another language spontaneously.6. Interpretation of tongues - Understanding what is spoken in tongues. Not necessarily a translation
Gifts of Power
7. Faith - The ability to visualize what God wants to do in a situation . . . cannot be seen. but it seems as real as though it is.8. Healing - In conjunction with natural process. Can be immediate or progressive, affect the whole person - spiritual, emotional and physical.9. Working of miracles - Through prayer, God supersedes the process of natural laws. A creative supernatural act.
