Kumasi(Ash) The Catholic Charismatic Renewal-Ghana (CCR) one of the Spiritual Movements in the Catholic Church in Ghana was born about 40 years ago and preparations are under way to celebrate the anniversary at grand durbar.
The Renewal is a grace of renewal in the Holy Spirit with a worldwide character and in Ghana is found at the Parish and Diocesan levels. The CCR has helped many Catholics to develop personal relationship with Jesus Christ as well as helping its members to put up a life of emulation.
To have a successful Anniversary the Renewal has planned a lot of activities to be climaxed by National 40th Anniversary Conference at the Great Hall, KNUST, Kumasi. The conference theme ‘Lift Jesus High’ will commence on Thursday, 5 August, 2010 and it will end on the Sunday 8th August, 2010.
Some of the activities which will take place during the National Conference are talks under the themes: Conversion, Repentance and Reconciliation, Community and Missions. There will also be photo and video exhibition to showcase the 40 years of the CCR in Ghana. On Sunday, August 8th there will be a public Thanksgiving and Commissioning Mass in the forecourt of Great Hall. Among the dignitaries to grace the occasion are: Most Rev. Thomas Kwaku Mensah, Archbishop of Kumasi; Most Rev. Peter Kwasi Sarpong, Archbishop Emeritus; Most Rev. Francis Kweku Essien, Bishop of Wiawso, Most Rev. Mathias Nketsiah, Archbishop of Cape Coast; Most Rev. Gabriel Justice Anokye, Bishop of Obuasi; Mr. Brent Heiser, USA; Rev. Fr. Ernst Sievers, Germany and a host of international delegates from Anglophone West Africa, USA and Europe.
Speaking on the background of the Renewal, Mr. Anthony Osei Assibey, Director of the CCR in Ghana, explained that Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR) is a grace of renewal in the Holy Spirit, but it is neither uniform nor unified and does not have a single founder nor a group of founders, and has no membership lists. Rather it is a flow of grace that allows individuals and prayer groups to express themselves in different ways and forms of organisation and activities, often quite independent of one another, in different stages and modes of development, with differing emphases. Nevertheless, they share the same fundamental experience and espouse the same general goals. This pattern of loose-knit relationships is found at the diocesan and national levels as well as at the international level. These relationships are very often characterised by free association, dialogue and collaboration rather than by integration into an ordered structure, he noted. He mentioned that in several realities the CCR organises itself like an Ecclesial Movement, but there are also structures such as Communities, Networks, Schools of Evangelisation, Television Stations, Associations, Religious Institutes and Seminaries, as well as Publishing Houses, Musicians, Missionaries, and Preachers; and said 'All of these, though not formally associated in a specific structure have a “charismatic” profile'. He stated the following as some of the goals of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal-Ghana (CCR):
To foster mature and continuous personal conversion to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. To foster a decisive personal receptivity to the person, presence and the power of the Holy Spirit. These two spiritual graces are often experienced together in what is called in different parts of the world a baptism in the Holy Spirit, or a release of the Holy Spirit, or a renewal of the Holy Spirit. They are most often understood as a personal acceptance of the graces of Christian initiation and as an empowering for personal Christian service in the Church and in the world. To foster the reception and use of the spiritual gifts (charismata) not only in the CCR but also in the broader Church. These gifts, ordinary and extraordinary are abundantly found among laity, religious and clergy. Their proper understanding and use in harmony with other elements of the Church life is a source of strength for Christians on their journey towards holiness and in the carrying out of their mission. To foster the work of evangelization in the power of the Holy Spirit, including the evangelization of the unchurched, the re-evangelization of nominal Christians, the evangelization of culture and social structures. CCR especially promotes sharing in the Church’s mission by proclaiming the Gospel in word and deed, and by bearing witness to Jesus Christ through personal testimony and through those works of faith and justice to which each one is called. To foster the ongoing growth in holiness through the proper integration of these charismatic emphases with the full life of the Church. This is accomplished through participation in a rich sacramental and liturgical life, and appreciation of the tradition of Catholic prayer and spirituality, and ongoing formation in Catholic doctrine. This is guided by the Church’s Magisterium, and participation in the pastoral plan of the Church. Mr. Dominic Osei-Kofi, Head of the Conference Publicity said that the conference will be attended by over two thousand delegates from all over Ghana and some West African countries
