The Freedom of Charism, History, and Authenticity: Lonergan, Pope Francis, and a Catholic Ecclesiology in Light of the Catholic Charismatic Covenant Community

The emergence of controversies and cases of sexual or spiritual abuse in Catholic Charismatic residential covenant communities raises critical questions about the freedom accorded to charism in Catholic ecclesiology. To refine the theology of charism, this paper proposes to draw on the resources of historicity and authenticity as they appear in the work of Bernard Lonergan and in the magisterium of Pope Francis. From both Jesuit thinkers, one can derive key criteria for a longitudinal evaluation of charism: first, one must more fully explore the historical conditions of a charism’s emergence with an eye towards distinguishing the perception of the good in a charism’s cultural context. Second, one must make a distinction about how the Holy Spirit works “in the midst of” a phenomenon. As a result, the authenticity of a charism (and the freedom it should enjoy) is co-determined by the church and the world in dialogue.