About the CCR
About the Renewal
How the Renewal Began in Milwaukee
Following the 1967 Duquesne Weekend in Pittsburgh in which a small group of college students and their professors had a profound experience of the Holy Spirit, prayer groups began to spring up all over the country. Milwaukee was no different. The first prayer groups met at St. Benedict’s Abbey in Benet Lake under the impetus of Fr. Henry Nurre, OSB as well as at Jack and Karen Swanson’s home in Oconomowoc, WI. You can find the listing of other prayer groups here.
What is the Catholic Charismatic Renewal?
As stated above the 1967 retreat was the beginning of the CCR in the U.S. The actual retreat house where this all began is now referred to as the “Home of the Renewal”. When Jesus left this earth, He promised an advocate, a counselor – someone that would enlighten us and give us wisdom. This person is the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Blessed Trinity. Anyone can receive more of the gifts of God through seeking and praying to the Holy Spirit. Tradition has not taught us to “ask” for more graces and more gifts to guide us on our faith journey. But following Vatican II, the windows were open for change. The people were now invited to pray in English and to be active participants in the Liturgy of the Church.
People were hungry for more – an improved prayer life, to understand Sacred Scripture and to experience that in community. Thus came the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. The Lord used key people to pour out Graces not experienced before in our Church. Revival had been happening for years in other denominations – Pentecostals, Assembly of God, the Jesus Movement, etc. The Holy Spirit is associated with the wisdom and light of God as stated in Holy Scripture. Holy men and women have prophesied through the Graces of the Holy Spirit. They have gained faith and understanding of the Word of God and tapped into the life-giving power of our sacramental life. Groups began to form, some as large as 500, to teach and pray in community exercising the charisms of the Holy Spirit.
How is the Renewal rooted in the Bible?
There are numerous passages that link the Renewal to the Bible! Here are only a few.
- “Jesus answered, ‘Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.’” John 3:5
- “I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire.” Matthew 3:11
- “Peter [said] to them, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit.’”Acts 2:38.
- “But you will receive power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8
What does the Church say about the Renewal?
- “Whenever the Spirit intervenes, he leaves people astonished. He bring about events of amazing newness; he radically changes persons and history. This was the unforgettable experience of the Second Vatican Council during which, under the guidance of the same Spirit, the Church rediscovered the charismatic dimension as one of her constitutive elements: ‘It is not only through the sacraments and the ministrations of the Church that the Holy Spirit makes holy the people, leads them and enriches them with his virtues. Allotting his gifts as he wills (cf. 1 Cor 12:11), he also distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank… He makes them fit and ready to undertake various tasks and offices for the renewal and building up of the Church. (Lumen gentium, no.12)
- “The institutional and charismatic aspects are co-essential as it were to the Church’s constitution. They contribute, although differently, to the life, renewal and sanctification of God’s People. It is from this providential rediscovery of the Church’s charismatic dimension that, before and after the Council, a remarkable pattern of growth has been established for ecclesial movements and new communities. […] Today, I would like to cry out to all of you gathered here in St. Peter’s Square and all Christians: Open yourselves docilely to gifts of the Spirit! Accept gracefully and obediently the charisms which the Spirit never ceases to bestow on us! Do not forget that every charism is given for the common good, that is, for the benefit of the whole Church.” St. John Paul II (Meeting with ecclesial movement and new communities, May 30, 1998.