"There are many different gifts but it is always the same Spirit; there are many different ways of serving but it is always the same Lord.
There are many different forms of activity but in everybody it is the same God who works in them all."
(1 Cor. 12, 4-6)

Charism is a specific gift to a person or a community for the building up and strengthening of the Christian community. The charism of a religious community is received through the founder of the community from the Spirit, to fulfil a particular mission in the church.

The charism is a living gift. The works of the community that flow from the charism change just as the needs of society and the times change. The charism of a religious community can be envisioned as a spiritual energy from which the charismatic mission of the community takes its life.

The Notre Dame Charism