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In October, our partner parishes gathered at Saint Meinrad for a weekend of prayer, community, and discussions about charisms and the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Our facilitator for the weekend was Jill Simons, the founding director of Many Parts Ministries, based in Tulsa, OK.

Below are some takeaways from the weekend and resources for your own exploration into charisms.

Rooted in Our Deepest Identity

Before discerning our charisms and using them to serve our community, it’s important that we begin with our identity as beloved sons and daughters of God. If we are rooted in this identity – if we believe that this sonship or daughterhood is the truest thing about ourselves – then we can more freely use our charisms in service of the Kingdom without being distracted, discouraged, or disheartened by other identities we might put ahead of our deepest one. We are free to be exactly who God created us to be.

When we are rooted in our baptismal identity and call, we move from being adults of God striving for control to children of God receiving everything from our Father.

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church: What Are Charisms?

CCC 799: 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 800: Charisms are to be accepted with gratitude by the person who receives them and by all members of the Church as well. They are a wonderfully rich grace for the apostolic vitality and for the holiness of the entire Body of Christ, provided they really are genuine gifts of the Holy Spirit and are used in full conformity with authentic promptings of this same Spirit, that is, in keeping with charity, the true measure of all charisms.

CCC 801: It is in this sense that discernment of charisms is always necessary. No charism is exempt from being referred and submitted to the Church's shepherds. "Their office (is) not indeed to extinguish the Spirit, but to test all things and hold fast to what is good," so that all the diverse and complementary charisms work together "for the common good." 

Why Do We Have Charisms and How Do We Use Them?

Like the Catechism explains, charisms are graces – or free, unearned, undeserved gifts – from the Holy Spirit that enable us to cooperate with God in His plan of salvation.

God does not need us to bring about His saving action. Yet, in His goodness, He chooses to involve us in the process. Charisms are one way that God does this – by inviting each of us to build up the Kingdom of God as only we can. Not only does this shape the community around us, but it forms us as well.

None of us is superfluous to the Kingdom. We are all created for “some definite service” (St. John Henry Newman) and endowed with a unique set of gifts. No one has the mission we have, no one loves exactly how we love, and no one mirrors the face of God like we do. This is not a burden but an invitation to discern our charisms.

Many Parts Ministries provides an assessment for discerning your charisms. You can also explore instances of charisms in Scripture, in the lives of the saints, and in your own personal history to aid in your discernment.

Once you are aware of one or more charisms, the responsibility is on you to use them! Remember, charisms are not about us at the end of the day. They are given to each baptized person for the building up of others. The most important thing we can do is to show up and let the Holy Spirit work through us.

A Prayer from Saint John Henry Newman:

"The Mission of My Life”

“God has created me to do Him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next.

I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good; I shall do His work. I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it if I do but keep His commandments.

Therefore, I will trust Him, whatever I am, I can never be thrown away. If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him, in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him. If I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him. He does nothing in vain. He knows what He is about. He may take away my friends. He may throw me among strangers. He may make me feel desolate, make my spirits sink, hide my future from me. Still, He knows what He is about.”