Come Holy Spirit: Diocese hosts All Michigan Catholic Charismatic Conference

The U.P. Catholic

The Terrace Bay Hotel in Gladstone was the place to be in mid-February for all things charismatic. More than 50 people from around the state’s seven dioceses came to the hotel for the All Michigan Catholic Charismatic Conference.

It was a weekend of praise and worship, adoration, healing and intercessory prayer among other things. With the theme of “Surrender to my Love and be Filled,” guest speaker and evangelist Kevin Philip challenged attendees to go deeper in their walk with God.

“As we look at our theme of surrendering to God this weekend,” he said, “let us surrender to the heart of Jesus in a new way—letting go of how God ought to move in our lives.”
Philip is a Canadian evangelist and founder of Boats on Fire Catholic Ministries in Saskatchewan. His mission and ministry is to equip others with the evangelical intelligence they need to proclaim the Gospel.

He gave four talks over the course of the weekend, sharing his own conversion story and drawing upon the lessons learned from his ministry among the poor who live in the dumps of Mexico City, Mexico.

He shared, “In the dumps of Mexico City, I have never met people who were more happy. Nothing there is orderly. Their whole lives could be upended in a minute. However, there is a peace and abandonment in them that I don’t see in other places. They know that everything comes from God; there is a real abandonment there. They are not clinging to anything.”
He continued preaching about the importance of our identity in Christ.

He explained, “Love is our core identity. It is not about what I have done or haven’t done. It is not about my sinning or what I have neglected. Our identity lies in our being beloved sons and daughters of God. You can be the thunder of God by allowing yourself to surrender to his crucible of love.”

Among those who were touched by those words was Elizabeth Van Dyke from Grand Rapids.

“This has been very rejuvenating to hear that message that I am a beloved daughter,” she said. “Sometimes we feel that we are all alone in our gifts and prayer life at home, but this weekend was a great spiritual renewal. To be able to experience healing prayer and praise the Lord in tongues was great. I don’t want to go home.”

Marquette’s Catholic rock band, The Well, provided the music for Mass, adoration and to get the Spirit moving.

“The music has been so healing,” noted Claire Zimmerman of Roscommon, Mich., in the Diocese of Gaylord. “I feel so loved. The Spirit is at work and is very palpable.”

Fr. Christian Flagstadt, who serves as the chaplain for the Charismatic Renewal in the Diocese of Marquette, was a facilitator for the conference. He and other local priests were also available for confession both evenings. Fr. Flagstadt is also the associate pastor of St. John the Evangelist and St. Joseph Parishes in Ishpeming, St. Paul Parish in Negaunee and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Mission in Palmer.

He celebrated Mass on Saturday morning and was the concelebrant for the closing Mass with Bishop John Doerfler on Sunday.

Drawing upon the Gospel reading of the Beatitudes, the Marquette prelate summed it up best in his homily.

He said, “St. Thomas Aquinas called the Beatitudes the fruits of the Holy Spirit in perfection. The more we surrender the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives the more we are configured to Jesus. So as we move forward from this conference, having drunk deeply of the Holy Spirit, so too may we bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit in perfection.”