The Gifts and Charisms of the Holy Spirit
 
Fr Paul Mundolickal

 
The best known prophecy about all men receiving the Holy Spirit is the one from the book of Joel. That word of God which Peter quoted on the first Pentecost runs thus: "In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams..." (Joel 2:28-29;Acts 2:17). There are indications in this prophecy about the various gifts that are the result of the presence of the Holy Spirit. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are signs of God's power. "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
 
Nowadays several people receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It is necessary, therefore, that proper instruction about them is made available. Gifts help to build up the Church and to spread the Gospel. It is in the first epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, chapters 12,13&14 that we get a detailed discussion about gifts. Paul reminds us at the very outset, "Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed" (1 Cor 12:1). In these chapters he explains the various gifts given to those who have entered the charismatic renewal and those who have not.
 
 
All the gifts are from the same Spirit
 
Paul has explained chiefly the gifts that enable a person to serve society. The meaning of the Greek word "charis" is mercy or gift. It is from this word that the plural "charismata" (Greek) is derived. It means gift. St Paul describes nine "special graces" that we can receive. They are all different expressions of the same Spirit. "To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spiirt the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit. 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"(1 Cor 12:8-10). We shall now explain briefly the nine gifts pertaining to the first part. They can be divided into three categories:
   
Word gifts
 
The gift of tongues, the gift of interpretation and of prophecy are the word gifts. There are two types of the gift of tongues. The prayer of the gift of tongues and the message of the gift of tongues. Our words are often unsuitable for prayer. "...the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words" (Rom8:26). The gift of tongues is a gift of the Spirit that enables us to pray in various languages and various manner without the use of logical words. The majority of people who make a retreat receive this gift. It has no interpretation. "For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unproductive" (1 Cor 14:14).
 
However, giving God's message in a language unknown to the speaker is the message given through the gift of tongues. This has to be interpreted. Ordinarily, when in a group a message is given through the gift of tongues, someone in the group gets the interpretation of that message. At times the same individual has both the gifts. If he does not have it, he should pray for it advises St Paul. "Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to interpret"(1 Cor 14:13). This sign leads those who have no faith into faith (1 Cor 14:22). St Paul speaks more highly of the gift of prophecy than of any other gift. "Pursue love and strive for the spiritual gifts, and especially that you may prophesy" (1 Cor 14:1)
 
Through this gift an individual is more of an instrument to reveal the message God wants to give to this group here and now, than a medium to foretell the future. It is done generally in a known language. "For those who speak in a tongue do not speak to other people but to God; for nobody understands them, since they are speaking mysteries in the Spirit" (1 Cor 14:2-3). Those who have a deep prayer-experience and foster an intimate relationship with God are more likely to receive this gift.
 
 
Revelational gifts
 
Revelational gifts are mostly seen in the realm of the intellect. The word of knowledge, the gift of wisdom and the gift of discernment belong to this category.
 
The word of knowledge is a gift that reveals a small portion of God's knowledge to a person. This is often beneficial in counselling. It is useful to lead people to repentance or inner healing . A good example is the conversion that took place in the Samaritan woman when Jesus revealed the secrets of her heart while talking to her (cf Jn 4:16-19). It is a gift that has to be used with much discretion. This gift may be expressed at times as the revelation of events as they were, or as symbols, as convictions or as personal experiences.
 
The word of wisdom enables a person to take decisive resolutions. In the book of Kings, we see this gift manifested when Solomon takes a decision regarding a complex problem (cf 1 Kings 3:16-28). Likewise, in the manner Jesus gave an answer to the question, "Must we give tax to Caesar?" we see the gift of wisdom being revealed (cf Mt 23:17-22). In counselling where the gifts are put to use, the gift of wisdom enables the counsellor to give proper directives to help the counsellee. Besides, this gift is beneficial to understand the word of God correctly .
 
The gift of discernment is helpful to know which spirit motivates an act or an impulse. In every individual three spirits are at work- God's Spirit, man's spirit and the evil spirit. At times what some people claim to be a gift might arise from mere human thinking or a particular mental state.
 
 
Sign gifts
 
Sign gifts are sublime manifestations of divine power that lead people to a faith-experience. The gift of faith, the gift to work miracles and the gift of healing fall into this category.
 
The gift of faith is an expression of extraordinary faith. This is what Jesus says about it. "If you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and if you do not doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done for you"(Mk 11:13).
 
In the Old Testament there is an instance when the gift of faith was expressly revealed in the life of Elijah the prophet (cf 1 Kings 18:20-40). When his opponents surrounded him, Eljah did not waver but gave witness to his faith in the true God.
 
When the power of God flows in an extraordinary manner through a person, he can perform miracles. Peter, who in a moment healed a man crippled form birth (cf Acts 3:4-10), had this gift. Peter raising the woman Tabitha to life was also a great miracle (Acts 9:36-42).
 
The gift of healing means the gift of the Holy Spirit to heal a person physically, mentally or spiritually. Some may get healed in all these three aspects simultaneously. When a person who possesses this gift prays for others, they may receive inner healing. This inner healing helps the recipient to suffer sickness and pain without difficulty. Physical healing does not necessarily bring about conversion of heart. A person should at first receive a healing in the realm of the spirit. That is why Jesus said to the paralytic brought to him, "Your sins are forgiven"(Lk 5:20), with the result that his sense of guilt was healed. He received mental and psychological healing. The effect of all this was seen in his body. His paralysis was healed. Nowadays even ordinary people receive this gift.
 
When a person with the gift of healing prays, it is not necessary that all the ailments of the sick person are healed. Healing will be received according to God's will and the person's faith.
 
Sometimes it can be seen that refusal to give up some evil habits and to forgive others, become obstacles to healing.
 
All the above-mentioned gifts can be received by us. It is according to God's will rather than our desire, that the Holy Spirit bestows these gifts on each of us (cf 1 Cor 12:11). However, we have the right to pray for these gifts in order to build up the Church (cf Lk 11:13).
 
Moreover, there are references in the Old Testament to the gifts that transform a person's character and foster the growth of his relationship with God. They speak of the manifestations of the Spirit in the person of the Messiah to come: "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"(Is 11:2).
 
It is based on these gifts that we traditionally understand the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. They contribute chiefly towards the spiritual growth of the individual.