Are you ready to take the next step in your spiritual journey? Is God calling you to be more yet you're already short on time? The answer might lie in the "Called and Gifted" spiritual gifts discernment process.

Not to worry, the 4 week discernment process is not really about doing more, but rather honing what you’re already doing with God. By discerning your spiritual gifts you will be able to ‘notice’ the people and situations God is already bringing to you. As you create order, bring mercy, or offer encouragement, this process will help you name and claim your gifts so you can live with greater purpose and intention. As you will discover, it is not really about doing, so much as it is about being, an instrument of vision, wisdom and compassion. Join us (see dates below) and find out for yourself how you are called and gifted.

RSVP to the parish office or email Mary Martin for more information.

Upcoming "Called and Gifted" Sessions
Thursdays, May 3, 10, 17, 24 from 7-9pm in Meeting Room 2.

Spiritual Gifts Interviewer Training
For those of you who are part of a pastoral team and would like to bring "Called and Gifted" to your parish, St. Joseph Church is excited to announce that we will be hosting an interviewer training workshop this fall (see details below).

"CALLED AND GIFTED" INTERVIEWER TRAINING
Next session TBD

Cost: $100 per person
Contact: Mary Martin 248-693-0440 ext. 203 or via email


Called and Gifted Session Descriptions
Week One
• What is discernment?
• What are the spiritual gifts?
• Our Identity as Christians
• The Lay Office and the Mission of the Church
• Taking the Spiritual Gifts Inventory

Week Two
• Reviewing the Inventory
• How the Spiritual Gifts manifest in everyday life
• Understanding the Spiritual Gifts
• Discerning one charism this week
• Signing up for personal interview

Week Three
• Each participant will make an appointment for a personal, one hour interview prior to the meeting on the Fourth Week
• Contact Mary Martin 248-693-0440 ext. 203 or mmartin@stjosephlakeorion.org

Week Four
• Reviewing the discernment of the past two weeks
• Small group discussion groups
• Do I have certain charisms or were they just skills?
• What is my next step in the process?

FAQ's
(Taken from the Catholic Spiritual Gifts Inventory, The Siena Institute Press, Colorado Springs CO, 1997 by Sherry Weddell)

What is a charism or spiritual gift?
Charism is simply the Greek word used in the New Testament for ‘favor’ or ‘gratuitous gift’. Charisms, or spiritual gifts, are special abilities given to Christians by the Holy Spirit to enable them to be powerful channels of God’s love and redeeming presence in the world. Whether extraordinary or ordinary, charisms are to be used in charity or service to build up the Church. (CCC, 2003)

Why is discernment important and how is this related to the spiritual charisms?
Discernment is the process of discovering God’s call for one’s life and following it. It is an ongoing unfolding of God’s purpose for each individual. Discernment takes time. It is a way of learning to listen for God’s guidance and responding to it.
Every Christians has a vocation or ‘mission’ in life, a work of love through which each individual was created (Ephesians 4:7-16). This call goes beyond making decisions about our state in life (married, single or religious), but is often related to is. Since we’re all on a mission from God, we all need the power of God to be able to accomplish our mission. Charisms are both tools given to disciples so that they are able to accomplish their mission and important clues as to what their mission in life might be.

Who should come to this program?
Anyone looking to take their relationship with God deeper. Discernment of the spiritual charisms can be particularly meaningful to people making significant transitions in their lives. Any one finding themselves changing careers, retiring from work, becoming an empty nester or even moving to a new city could find the process helpful. Often when we are making life changes, this is a time that God is calling us to something greater, a way to live in a way that reflects our deepening discipleship to the Lord. The spiritual charisms are a strong way that we can begin to answer the call that God has for each one of us, and live our lives more fully. Bring a friend or spouse and begin the journey together!

Are all baptized Christians given charisms?
Yes, according to both the New Testament (Ephesians 4) and the teaching of the Catholic Church (CCC, 951).
In addition to temporary charisms that can be given for a very unique and temporary purpose, all Christians are given one or more ‘long term’ or permanent charisms, empowered ways in which God uses us over and over again throughout life. ‘Long-term’ charisms are the kind of spiritual gift that can be discerned by use of the Catholic Spiritual Gifts Inventory, can be deliberately developed, and should be taken into account when we try to discern our vocation(s) in life.

What is the difference between gifts and skills?
Charisms, or spiritual gifts, differ from natural talents in two important ways. Charisms are not in-born or inherited from our parents, but are given to us by the Holy Spirit, whom we received through the sacraments of initiation—through Baptism and Confirmation. Charisms are also supernaturally empowered. They are focused outward and enable Christians to bear results for the Kingdom of God above and beyond our normal human abilities.
As disciples, we offer our entire selves, including our personalities, natural talents, education, life experience and background to God to be used for his purposes. Our natural talents can be wonderful tools for God’s purposes, and sometimes an already existing natural gift is transformed by the Holy Spirit into a supernaturally empowered charism. But when we serve God we are not limited to just the gifts with which we were born! Some charisms may seem ‘extraordinary’, (such as prophesy, healing or discernment) and others quite ‘ordinary’ (such as administration, service, hospitality or mercy), but all charisms are supernaturally empowered. We use our charisms together with our natural talents and all that we are to serve God and our neighbor.

If I have a spiritual gift or charism, why don’t I know about it?
Permanent or long term charisms need to be discovered and developed, just like natural gifts. The reason most Catholics don’t know about their charisms is because they haven’t been taught about their charisms is because they haven’t been taught about the need to discern and develop them. Since the Second Vatican Council, there has been a greater emphasis in official church teaching on the individual mission or vocation of every baptized Christians and on the role of the Holy Spirit and of charisms enabling Christians to live their vocations effectively. Once we recognize the need to discern and exercise our charisms, this 4 week process can help us make a commitment to a deepening relationship with the Lord.

How many charisms are there?
We don’t know. There are three primary lists of gifts in the New Testament, in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4. We don’t have any reason to believe that these lists are meant to be exhaustive. The Catholic Spiritual Gifts Inventory covers 24 of the most common charisms, including most of those listed in St. Paul’s letters. The Inventory will be a main tool in discerning our gifts over the 4 weeks process.