Charismania

The Truth About the Charismatic Renewal

De: Kennedy Hall

Narrado por: Kennedy Hall

The Charismatic Renewal is an international movement that has made inroads into the Catholic Church and numerous Protestant denominations. The Renewal comes with promises of miracles and spiritual wonders, and participants have long attested to supernatural phenomena taking place as a result of Charismatic practices.

However, there is a dark side to the Renewal, and many of the teachings presented by its defenders are incompatible with historical Christianity.

In this book, we take a journey through the history of the Renewal, starting with its ancient roots.Topics discussed include:- The troubling history of Pentecostalism- The origins of the Renewal in the Catholic Church- Speaking in Tongues- Baptism in the Holy Spirit- Covenant Communities- And moreWhether the reader is a partisan of the Renewal or not, he will undoubtedly be surprised at the information presented in these pages.

©2024 Kennedy Hall (P)2024 Kennedy Hall

Important Book

There are many good people in the Charismatic movement. This book details the history of the movement and the errors of the movement, some of which are very disturbing.

Great content and narration.

It's easy to understand how Kennedy Hall has such a successful YouTube channel.

His delivery and polish were worthy of a full-time narrator.

His content was accurate, compelling, and respectful.

Few outlets will deal with the past and present problems within the "Catholic Charismatic Renewal".

The simple fact that Cardinal Suenens was it's patron should cause concern.

Clear and Concise

I liked the context and the stories provided, the Biblical context and references and it was an interesting read.

Charismania needs some work

Originally borrowed this book from a friend, then purchased the audio version.

Mr. Hall sounds a trifle sarcastic, preachy, and defensive where he need not. This detracts from his message in multiple areas and really comes through in the audio version.

The unmistakable assertion that the SSPX is superior to the rest of the postconciliar Church comes through loud and clear. This led me to look at Mr. Hall’s YouTube channel, not having hard of him before this book. Recently he posted a video saying he’s “glad they hate us.” They being the rest of the Church and us being the SSPX. I don’t understand the persecution complex not being SSPX. Mr Hall mentions Father Chad Ripperger several times and it might be a good idea for him to remember the points that priest made about the pride and arrogance of trads.

The author comes across as a bit too sensitive to critics, despite his protests to the contrary in introductory remarks. It would be better to ignore fools and detractors and just focus on making one’s case. Calling people wackos and making strident insults isn’t particularly helpful either and sounds childish.

These are possibly just matters of style and personal preference. In terms of substance, there is quite a bit to consider from history to Catholic teaching from Aquinas and the catechism. This is very solid up to the point where Mr. Hall declines to address some very obvious issues by his own admission.

This is where the book really needs to be improved upon. Comparing this book to the many Protestant polemics against charismatic practices shows how much this book could benefit from expansion and more relatable details. John Macarthur, anti-Catholic and Calvinist though he is, has been preaching against charismania and using the term since 1978. We need a Catholic polemic that's just as forceful and convincing.

Mr Hall mentions the many who have told him of their negative experiences, and it's important to hear more from them. Disguising identity to preserve privacy, adding more individual experiences would have made this book immensely more valuable.

One chapter on covenant communities is not particularly helpful in my case, nor to any I know who have been wounded by the charismatic movement. We have very different experiences and nothing in that mostly historical chapter reflects that.

Mr Hall makes some sweeping assertions that are suspect. For example, alleging that most members of the charismatic movement are “not all in” is incorrect. As Mr. Hall says, his involvement was quite limited, and I think his perspective needs expansion. Those I knew in the movement were obsessive, not trifling, in their commitment, which added to their persuasion in recruiting people into Emmaus and Cursillo and other charismatic cliques.

Covenant communities sound more like examples of the Protestant shepherding movement (Derek Prince and company), not like anything I ever encountered in local charismatic Catholicism. It appears the movement is quite varied regionally.

Regarding the narration, Mr Hall shouldn’t be rolling his r’s in Latin, which may have slipped in from his familiarity with Italian. That was the only real clanger in a good performance from an author-narrator with an excellent speaking voice.