Called and Gifted Formation and day of prayer – Sat 5th September 2026
On Saturday 5 September, the Call and Gifted team in the Diocese gathered for a day of prayer and formation at St Peter’s Winchester. With so much done online, we really value gathering as a team regularly to pray and grow together. In addition to the Portsmouth team members, we welcomed Clare Simpson and three others from Plymouth Diocese. Clare led Called and Gifted before moving down to Devon and is now planning to set up a Called and Gifted team there and gain a licence from the Catherine of Siena Institute, the authors of C&G.
The day started with Mass in the church before moving into the pastoral centre with its wonderful facilities. Rosanne Walker led us in a time of praise and worship before Gerry led the morning session on best practices in accompanying those discerning charisms, and Geoff facilitating a group discussion about the less common charisms. As always, the sharing of ideas and experience is so valuable.
After a fabulous lunch provided by Sarah Harfield, Rosanne again led us in a time of praise and worship before Gerry led us through a really interesting presentation and discussion on the Thresholds of Conversion which help us recognise where others are on their spiritual journey. This was followed by a group discussion facilitated by the Called and Gifted core team (Gerry, Geoff, Rosanne and Joan) on Bearing Fruit with inspiring examples of how charism discernment has led to both individuals and whole parishes bearing more fruit. The day ended with a time of prayer and reflection on what the Holy Spirit is calling us to next which encouraged us to renew our commitment to supporting both clergy and laity to discern and use their charisms as part of bringing people closer to Jesus Christ through his Church.
If you would like to know more about Called and Gifted and how it can help you and your parish work more fully in the power of the Holy Spirit through the spiritual gifts we have all received through Baptism, please contact us via calledandgifted@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk
Called and Gifted discovering how you can be called by the Lord – by Sr Veronica Brennan of the Dominican Sisters of Joseph’s Order.
Sr Veronica has written a short testimony on how the Dominican Sisters in Sway have used their charisms to proactively move forward with their mission to be Preachers of the Word. This is a wonderful example of the fruits of Called and Gifted, not just for individuals but a whole community. As she says in her conclusion, this is something every parish could benefit from in their discernment of a future vision and vocation. Click on the link below to read her testimony.
Fr Michael’s podcast on “All Kinds of Catholic”
Take a listen to Fr Michael’s podcast and be inspired by his parish and how “alive in the spirit” they are. Take a few tips andlearn how their parish embraced Called and Gifted and how it helped them grow as a parish.
Information Evening Event
We hosted a Called and Gifted Information Evening event on zoom on 7th July 2025. We had many people across the UK joining us to find out more about Called and Gifted and how they could bring it into their parish. It was an inspiring evening with testimonies and Q+A’s. If you are interested and missed out, please do rewatch the video below. For further question please reach out to us at calledandgifted@portsmouthdiocese.org.uk
Catholic Post Article
A parishioner from Blessed Sacrament Parish in Exeter, who went through the C&G discernment process last year, wrote a full page article for the July issue of the Catholic Post newspaper, advertising the Information Evening and sharing her experience of the charism of writing with an example entitled “I saw Christ last night”. See below link for a copy of the article.
The Holy Spirit is our Guide
Watch the inspiring talk that Gerry gave on how the Holy Spirit is our guide and how we can be more attune to the Holy Spirit’s promptings and guidance.
Live Teaching Testimony
Called and Gifted at St Peter’s, Winchester
On Saturday 22 June, Fr Mark Hogan and the parish of St Peter’s and the Winchester Martyrs welcomed the Called and Gifted team to lead a live teaching day on discerning charisms. The day started with a beautiful Mass in St Peter’s then everyone moved over to the Pastoral Centre and a warm welcome from the parish team led by Martha Luker. A wonderful display on the gifts of the Holy Spirit had been created by Liza Nahajski and with the C&G banners, the room had a bright, lively feeling. The C&G team of Anne-Marie Fletcher, Geoff Poulter and Gerry Penfold then led a day of presentations and discussion covering over 20 different charisms ranging from Healing, Prophecy and Wisdom to Hospitality, Leadership and Encouragement.
Right from the start the Holy Spirit was invited to guide and bless the day and the prayers at several points helped everyone to be aware of His presence. In addition, the parish team provided fabulous hospitality throughout the day with homemade cakes and biscuits in the breaks and a superb cooked lunch. Many thanks to Fr Mark and Martha for their leadership and organisation, to Mike Slinn for welcoming, to Sarah Walker and Lisa Justice for the advertising campaign, website and bookings, to Natalia Simmons and Lucy Chilcott for cakes, teas and coffees and to Sarah Harfield and her daughter Ellen for lunch.
A total of 42 people attended the day and this is the third time that the parish has hosted Called and Gifted, the first to do so in our Diocese. The participants are now being accompanied through stage 2 of the C&G discernment process, their personal discernment meetings with a member of the C&G team. This will be followed by stage 3, discernment in small groups. Feedback from the participants has been very positive with Fr Mark commenting:
“This is now the third time that Called and Gifted has taken place in our parish, one of those being before I arrived and the other just before COVID. My experience is that the process gets richer each time. People are hungrier to deepen their faith and their understanding of the gifts given them by the Holy Spirit to serve others.”
Fr Mark Hogan
Arise Sheffield Interview – Anne-Marie Fletcher
Anne-Marie Fletcher gives an interview for “Arise Sheffield” magazine and discusses how we can discern, understand and use our unique gifts in a fruitful way.
A Parish Priest’s experience of Called and Gifted
The Acts of the Apostles: A Guide to the Holy Spirit
Fr Michael Hall shows us how the dynamic work of the Holy Spirit in Acts gives us the motivation, inspiration and guidance that we need in our faith today.
The role of priests in nurturing the charisms of the laity
Fr Michael speaks to the importance of the role of priests in nurturing the charisms of the laity and how their guidance can motivate and inspire.
Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth Reg Charity 1199568