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TO BE LOVED AND TO LOVE: UNDERSTANDING THE




          JOSEPHITE-MARELLIAN

          Spiritu alit y                                                             Rev. Fr. Alfie A. Polistico, OSJ






                                                      INTRODUCTION
            n the age of post-truth, one’s attempt to peer through the murky foliage of lies, confusion and manipulation
            to get in touch with the truth has become extremely difficult. This difficulty, which has been embodied by
         Ithe unprecedented rise of all forms of relativism, has significantly overwhelmed institutions. The Catholic
          Church, albeit bruised and scarred, has remained unbowed by relativism’s pressures and horrors. She draws
          her strength from the Truth itself, Jesus. As followers of Christ, we are called to anchor our lives in His Truth.
          As members of Josephite-Marellian Family, we can only anchor in His Truth if our response to the call of God,
          that is, our way of life, is understood well and genuinely embodied. That said, this work has two related aims:
          to examine the nature of charism and of spirituality-apostolate and to show their mutual relationship in view
          of understanding clearly the Josephite-Marellian Spirituality theoretically and practically.

                                                           PART I
                  THE NATURE AND RELATIONSHIP OF CHARISM AND SPIRITUALITY-APOSTOLATE


          What is charism?
          The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines charism as “graces of the Holy Spirit which directly or indirectly
          benefit the Church, ordered as they are to her building up, to the good of men, and to the needs of the world”
          (no. 799). The Catechism clearly states that God is the provenance of these graces. While the communication
          of grace is appropriated to the Holy Spirit, it is nevertheless “effected by the Three Persons in common”
          (Ludwig Ott 1962, 219). These graces or gifts are given to us, either individually or communally, for the benefit
          of the Body of Christ and of the whole world. This benefit is understood as God’s aid for us to grow in holiness
          so that we may become like Christ for the peace of the whole world in general and for the building up of the
          Church in particular.

          In the New Testament, St. Paul enumerates these gifts. In his first letter to the Corinthians, these gifts take the
          form of wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, working of miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, speaking
          in tongues, and interpretation of tongues (see 12:8-10). In his letter to the Romans, these graces take the
          form of prophecy, ministry, teaching, exhortation, generosity, diligence, and cheerfulness (see 12:6-8). His
          enumeration of these gifts is made in the context of a “new life in Christ.” Meaning to say, these gifts are
          received when one is “in Christ.”
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