Keep
your eyes open!...
September 30, 2020
(2Ch 7:14) If my people who are called by my name humble themselves,
and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will
hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
CATHOLIC WORLD REPORT: How to vote according to our Catholic faith
FLORIDA CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS: Presidential Candidate Comparison
THE BIDEN REPORT: A Comprehensive Look at Joe Biden — For Catholics
AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE: Why Trump Is The Catholic Choice For 2020
OPINION: Who sees President Trump?
You see Trump’s arrogance, I see Trump’s confidence.
You see Trump’s nationalism, I see Trump’s patriotism.
You hear Trump’s unsophisticated words, I hear Trump’s honesty.
You see Trump’s racism, I see Trump’s words being misconstrued and twisted by the media daily to fit their narrative.
You see Trump as a Republican, I see Trump as a Patriot.
You see Trump as a dictator, I see Trump as a leader.
You see Trump as an Authoritarian, I see Trump as the only one willing to fight for our freedoms.
You see Trump as childish, I see Trump as a fighter, unwilling to cave in to the lies.
You see Trump as an unpolished politician, I see Trump as a breath of fresh air.
You see Trump as homophobic, I see Trump as the first President who has ever entered office supporting gay marriage.
You think Trump hates immigrants, I know Trump is married to an immigrant.
You see Trump putting an end to immigration in America, I see Trump welcoming immigrants to America LEGALLY.
You see Trump’s cages at the border, I see Obama’s cages at the border.
You see Trump with a struggling economy, I see Trump with an amazing economy until the Democrats shut it down.
You see the violence in the streets and call it “Trump’s America”, I
see the violence in the streets of Democratic run cities who are
refusing Trump’s help and call it “Liberal America.”
You want someone more Presidential, I’m happy we have someone who
finally doesn’t just talk the talk but actually walks the walk.
You and I? We see things very differently.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
33. Experience of the Lord's gift engenders hope;
he who is without experience remains in doubt.
September 28, 2020
(Mat 19:13-14) Then were little children presented to him, that he
should impose hands upon them and pray. And the disciples rebuked them.
But Jesus said to them: Suffer the little children, and forbid them not
to come to me: for the kingdom of heaven is for such.
THE SHIELD OF FAITH: St. Pionius, martyr, burned alive in 250 AD.
As he was led to the executioner, St.
Pionius was taunted and urged to worship the pagan gods by the
idolators. They tempted him by mentioning the many compromised
Catholics had given in to the Roman threats of torture, or were unable
to withstand the torture itself. The saint replied: “Each one is master
of his own will.” Among these fallen Christians was the Roman Catholic
Bishop Eudĉmon, Bishop of Smyrna, who had apostatized from the Faith
and offered sacrifice to the false gods, to obey the edict of the
Emperor. What is the analogy to today's Church almost 2000 years later,
when we are not ordered to sacrifice to pagan gods? I think it would be
the apostasy of bishops and clerics who falsely proclaim that Catholics
may vote in good conscience for those who promote the heartless
destruction and sacrifice of human babies during all nine months and
even after birth, as long as that is not the reason they are voting for
them!
NCR: Cardinal Müller Looks at US Politics, the 2020 Election and Catholic Conscience
LIFESITENEWS.COM: US bishops tell Catholic voters abortion is ‘preeminent issue’ in 2020 election
CNA: Trump announces 'Born Alive' executive order for abortion survivors
EDITORIAL: Abortion is far more than a single issue
This past November, the U.S. Catholic bishops again identified the
protection of unborn children as the preeminent moral priority.
Why? 1) Abortion attacks the most
vulnerable and innocent; 2) abortion occurs within the family,
destroying the most precious of human bonds pitting mother versus child
or mother versus father; and 3) the sheer number of human lives
destroyed (nearly one million babies) and damaged (mothers, fathers,
family members) annually from abortion.
The bishops share this to help us
properly form our conscience to the moral principles and priorities of
our faith. This formation is essential when we vote for those who will
represent us in government. As faithful citizens, we must elect
officials who defend innocent life.
Being pro-life is foundational to
our Catholic identity. There should be no confusion or ignorance
surrounding the church’s teaching on the sanctity of human life. Yet,
many justify voting for candidates that support legalized abortion by
saying, “You can’t be a single-issue voter.” Friends, abortion is far
from a single-issue.
Abortion kills an innocent child:
Always. Otherwise, there would be no need for abortion. No other
debated public policy always ends in the death of an innocent person.
This fact alone should be the
game-over decision that disqualifies any candidate supporting legalized
abortion from receiving our vote.
Yet, the ugly tentacles of the abortion industry extend into many other societal evils.
Violence towards women:
Abortion is not health care or empowering. Many women report being
pressured to abort and, as a result, often suffer physically and endure
a lifetime of shame, depression, broken relationships, substance abuse
and suicidal thoughts.
Also, abortion and sex-trafficking
are undeniably linked. The abortion industry is known to turn a blind
eye so they and abusers can continue to profit.
Promotion of youth promiscuity: Planned Parenthood is working hard to partner with public schools to be “the trusted sex education resource” for children.
In California, Planned Parenthood
already runs “well-being centers” inside high schools — a publicly
funded strategy to ensure a never-ending stream of abortion customers.
Loss of parental rights:
Unless Kansas passes the “Value Them Both” constitutional amendment,
the Kansas parental notification law for minors seeking an abortion is
now at risk of being overturned.
Should that happen, parents would
not even know that their 15- year-old daughter had an abortion and
could be suffering from its physical and emotional effects.
Racism:
Planned Parenthood’s founder, Margaret Sanger, was a racist eugenics
advocate. Planned Parenthood continues to carry out her mission.
Seventy-nine percent of Planned Parenthood clinics are placed in
minority communities, resulting in black women being four times as
likely as white women to have an abortion; 360 black babies are aborted
every day.
For more information, visit the
website at: www.archkck.org/prolife and do your own research; be
skeptical of sources that profit from abortion.
On Nov. 3, as people of love and
life, let’s reject candidates who fight for the abortion industry that
inflicts death, pain and widespread evil in our great country.
There is simply too much at stake for its victims — both born and unborn.
POPE FRANCIS:
"It is troubling to see how simple and convenient it has become for
some to deny the existence of a human life as a solution to problems
that can and must be solved for both the mother and her unborn child.
At the origin of this ‘throwaway
culture’ is a gross lack of respect for human dignity, the promotion of
ideologies with reductive understandings of the human person, a denial
of the universality of fundamental human rights, and a craving for
absolute power and control that is widespread in today’s society. Let
us name this for what it is: an attack against humanity itself."
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
32. A monk of good hope is a slayer of despondency;
with this sword he routs it.
September 25, 2020
(2Ti 1:7-8) For God hath not given us the spirit of fear: but of power
and of love and of sobriety. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the
testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but labour with the
gospel, according to the power of God.
COURAGEOUS PRIESTS
YOUTUBE VIDEO (8 minutes): Fr. Jeffrey Kirby, STD homily on the real legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
ZENIT.ORG: Archbishop Cordileone: San Francisco Mass Restrictions ‘Mocking God’
ARCHDIOCESE OF SAN FRANCISCO VIDEO: Free The Mass 09.20.20
Thousands of Catholics marched
through the city with the Blessed Sacrament, gathering in
socially-distanced groups, with masks, on the Plaza of the Cathedral of
St. Mary of the Assumption in San Francisco to protest the restrictions
of only 1 person permitted in a church to pray. The capacity of the
cathedral is 2500. Many of our churches hold hundreds of people,
permitting safer distancing than retail and dining opportunities that
are now allowed. Additionally, churches have a stable set of people
inside for a set period of time, and in the Archdiocese those people
are registered to enable contact tracing. Churches have strict
protocols for cleaning and safety. Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone
urged the city to recognize the natural and 1st Amendment rights to
worship.
FIRST THINGS: God Never Loses by Charles J. Chaput
One of the great legacies of our
cultural history is La Chanson de Roland (The Song of Roland). It was
composed a thousand years ago, in the mid-11th century, and it tells
the story of the Battle of Roncevaux Pass. The battle took place on the
border of Spain and France in A.D. 778, during the reign of
Charlemagne. The story goes like this.
Charlemagne has been fighting in
Spain against that country’s Muslim occupiers. The campaign has been a
success. He now leads his army back to France to rest. But the pass he
must use, Roncevaux Pass, is narrow and treacherous. So he leaves his
favorite captain—Roland, a great Christian knight who’s beloved by his
men—to command the rear guard and secure the entry to the pass. If
there’s trouble, Roland will blow his horn, Oliphant, to signal his
need. So Charlemagne and his army disappear into the pass.
What happens next is this. Roland’s
stepfather betrays him. Roland is ambushed by a much larger Muslim
force seeking to attack Charlemagne from the rear. Roland and his men
fight heroically, and before they’re finally overwhelmed, Roland puts
Oliphant to his lips. The sound of the great horn echoes along the
pass. Charlemagne hears it, turns his army, hurries back, and crushes
the enemy. But of course it’s too late for Roland and his men. They’ve
done their duty and protected their friends, but they’ve given their
lives doing it.
The Song of Roland is part of the
Christian DNA of our civilization, the DNA of who we are as believers.
Obviously we live in a very different place, in very different times.
With Islam, the Church seeks mutual respect, not conflict, wherever
that’s possible. And the poem is a romanticized version of the real
battle. There’s nonetheless a lesson for us in the story of Roland. He
and his men die in the poem because they honor their duty. But no duty
can command a person’s behavior unless it springs from some deeper
covenant. A husband is faithful to his wife because that’s his duty.
His duty, though, is grounded in love, or it has no force. Love—real
love—is never a transaction. It’s always a covenant, a gift of the self
without strings or escape clauses.
Roland and his comrades fought
because that was their duty. But they sacrificed their lives because
their love was greater than their fear—their love of God, of their
king, of their brothers in the pass, and of one another. The root of
that word “sacrifice” is telling. It comes from the Latin words sacrum
facere: to make sacred, to make holy. When we dedicate our lives to
something, we acknowledge and reinforce the truth that it’s higher and
more important than ourselves. We sanctify it—either with our blood, or
with our time and the passion of our hearts.
It’s unlikely that any of us here
today will be asked to die for our faith, or the things we hold dear
because of our faith. But if we take our faith seriously, we all have
the duty to live our faith and fight for the truths it teaches. We need
to do that peacefully, with respect for the dignity of others, even
when they’re bitter and wrong—but we still need to do it, without
embarrassment and without excuses. A good spouse knows an alibi when he
or she hears it. So does God.
We’re honoring Attorney General
Barr today, and I have a word to say about that. It’s “amen.” I heard
him speak at Notre Dame last October, and I was deeply impressed by two
things: the content of his remarks, and the fact that he obviously
meant them. Throughout my life, the men and women I’ve most admired
have all had the same qualities: a thinking Catholic brain, a character
of substance, and a moral spine. General Barr has all three. As an
added bonus, he’s disliked by all the right people. I want to thank the
various and interesting critics of General Barr for confirming me in
that judgment.
When I first arrived in
Philadelphia in 2011, the Church there had some difficulties; a lot of
very good people with very serious problems. A couple of weeks after I
was installed, Benedict XVI, who was then still the pope, gave an
address in Freiburg, Germany. In it he spoke candidly about the decline
of Christianity in the so-called “developed” nations, the falling away
of believers, and the worldliness and mediocrity of the Church. My
first reaction was: Thanks for the pep talk, Holy Father; it’s a big
morale boost.
But as I read and reread the text,
I found myself more and more moved by his words. It’s one of Benedict’s
finest talks in a career of brilliant preaching and teaching. Benedict
simply told the truth, and the truth—for those willing to listen and do
something about it—really does make us free. As Benedict said, “the Son
of God . . . took flesh and became man, not merely to confirm the world
in its worldliness and to be its companion, leaving it to carry on just
as it is, but in order to change it.” There are times, these days, when
each of us can feel a bit like Roland at the mouth of that pass. It’s
an uncomfortable feeling. The Church in our country faces a great many
challenges; both from within, in terms of her purity and simplicity,
and from the culture around us, in terms of her liberty and her
institutional integrity.
But don’t be fooled. God never
loses. And his Church can never lose when we, as her sons and
daughters, remember our history, our Christian identity, and our
mission to speak God’s truth with love. We’re here to change the world
in the name of Jesus Christ. And the people in this room have the
talent and the influence to do it, by helping to shape the course of
the most powerful nation in history. We serve that nation—our nation,
our homeland—best when we serve God first. And we serve God best by
living our faith with the kind of passion and joy that touches the
hearts of others, and through them, reshapes the world.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
31. The failing of hope is the disappearance of
love. Toils are bound by it. Labours depend on it. Mercy encircles it.
September 23, 2020
(Mar 16:17-18) And these signs shall
follow them that believe: In my name they shall cast out devils. They
shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents: and if they
shall drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them. They shall lay
their hand upon the sick: and they shall recover.
DAILY COMPASS: “I’ll tell you about some intimate details” about Karol Wojtyla and Padre Pio
CNA: Beatification cause opened for spiritual son of Padre Pio
ARLINGTON CATHOLIC HERALD: A saint’s work is never done
What would you offer to God in
exchange for the life of your child? This was the question facing Vera
Calandra, mother of five, in Norristown, Pa., April 1966.
Doctors told her that her daughter, Vera Marie, would not make it to
her first birthday due to congenital defects that had already
necessitated the removal of her bladder. They did not count on St. Pio
of Pietrelcina, or Padre Pio. Calandra had recently learned of this
Italian Franciscan and decided to take little Vera Marie with her to
San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy, to ask his intercession.
As the elderly friar blessed her daughter, the mother prayed silently
to God, promising Him that if her daughter was cured, she would spend
her life sharing the greatness of this humble friar and his message
with the entire world. Following the audience, the two returned home
and met with the doctors who were amazed to find a new bladder
miraculously growing in her daughter, who continued to develop
normally. Faithful to her promise, Calandra spent the rest of her life
traveling to speak about Padre Pio, eventually founding, along with her
husband, a shrine and museum dedicated to his life in Barto, Pa.
Fast forward 53 years when a friend
invited me to visit this shrine, and I too reaped the fruits of her
promise. Praying at the shrine and touring the museum, I was struck by
two aspects of Padre Pio’s life: his devotion to the sacrament of
confession and his love for the sick and suffering.
Padre Pio had a great devotion to
confession, spending up to fifteen hours a day in the confessional to
extend God’s healing mercy to others. In Barto, I got a good look at
his confessional, and was struck by how penitential it would have been
be for him to sit on the hard wooden seat in such a small space in an
unheated stone church for hours on end. Yet Padre Pio willingly did so,
and through this sacrament changed many lives. He also received the
sacrament himself frequently, comparing the act of going to confession
to dusting a room, noting that, “Even if a room is sealed off
completely, dust will still accumulate in it.” This devotion to
receiving the sacrament is a wonderful example for anyone who is
striving for holiness, but especially for seminarians and priests.
Padre Pio’s example shows us that those who want to be good confessors
must first be good penitents themselves.
His care for the sick and suffering
was also inspiring. This saint, who himself suffered from poor health
and the effects of the stigmata, spent much of his life seeking to
bring healing to those in need. There are numerous stories of
incredible healings, including Vera Marie Calandra. But his care for
the sick and suffering was not limited to supernatural means; acting in
great faith, Padre Pio founded a hospital in the small town of San
Giovanni Rotondo, where his monastery was located. Today, the hospital
is a successful research and care facility with over one thousand beds.
Padre Pio’s example is a beautiful reminder of Christ’s own love for
the sick and suffering, a love that all Catholics, especially
seminarians and priests, are called to make present in our world.
In the great and storied history of
Catholic saints, it is remarkable to think that this great saint died
only half a century ago. My trip to the shrine was a wonderful
opportunity to learn more about Padre Pio’s life and to be inspired by
his holiness and charity.
MORE: The modern -- and little known -- miracles of Padre Pio
ALETEIA: Singer who was cured by Padre Pio says saint guided him to record this song
Actor turned singer Robert Davi has
teamed with the Saint Pio Foundation to produce a song to raise funds
for the charity. The song and its accompanying music video were
recorded as a message of peace and hope in a time when the world
pandemic has disrupted so many lives, with all proceeds from the song
pledged to the Pio Foundation.
Meraviglioso is a project conceived
by actor and singer Robert Davi to record the song “Meraviglioso.” The
recording creates an atmosphere of all-encompassing love, cherishing
the beauty of the world, and reminding us of the magnificence of God’s
creation, including life itself. This project also serves to promote
and support collaboration and friendship between Italy and the United
States, with Domenico Modugno, well-loved in both countries, serving as
a cultural bridge. To download the MP3 version of the song, available
at $1, visit www.saintpiofoundation.org/meraviglioso. The full proceeds
from each MP3 download will be donated to the Saint Pio Foundation.
YOUTUBE: Meraviglioso by Robert Davi
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
30. Hope is a rest from labours; it is the door
of love; it is the annulment of despair; it is an image of what is absent.
September 21, 2020
(Mat 9:9) And as Jesus passed forth
from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of
custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed
him.
BISHOP BARRON: Daily Gospel Reflection
Friends, today’s Gospel celebrates the call of Matthew. Jesus tells the tax collector, “Follow me.”
The call of Jesus addresses the mind, but it moves through the mind
into the body, and through the body into the whole of one’s life, into
the most practical decisions. “Follow me” has the sense of “apprentice
to me” or “walk as I walk; think as I think; choose as I choose; see as
I see.” Discipleship entails an entire reworking of the self according
to the pattern and manner of Jesus.
Upon hearing the address of the Lord, Matthew “got up and followed
him.” The Greek word behind “got up” is anastas, the same word used to
describe the Resurrection (anastasis) of Jesus from the dead. Following
Jesus is indeed a kind of resurrection from the dead, since it involves
the transition from a lower form of life to a higher.
Those who have undergone a profound conversion tend to speak of their
former life as a kind of illusion, something not entirely real. The
father of the prodigal son can say, “This son of mine was dead, and has
come to life again.” So conversion is an anastasis, a rising from death.
FLOURISH NEWSPAPER: Call in the darkness by Mgr Tom Monaghan
In the 1960’s there was a young seminarian who often looked at the
Tabernacle and asked the Lord, “Who me?” He looked around and
understood why others. There was a student who was extremely clever and
gracious. Another who seemed so gentle and pious. Across the pew, a
fellow who was artistic and musical… This seminarian wasn’t
particularly outstanding at anything….and yet….here I am half a century
on and, because of God’s goodness, still ministering to the flock!
In his painting, The Call of Matthew, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio
who lived as the 16th century turned into the 17th, has the future
Apostle and Evangelist, pointing to himself as if to say, “Who me?” On
the 21st September we celebrate the Feast Day of Saint Matthew who was
a tax collector for the Romans before he was called by Christ. The
painting along with The Inspiration of St Matthew and The Martyrdom of
St Matthew can be seen in the church of St Louis of the French in Rome,
not far from the famous Piazza Navona. A feast of art, indeed.
The titles of the church are so beautiful and sonorous. In Italian, San
Luigi dei Francesi. In French, Saint Louis des Français and in Latin,
S.Ludovici Francorum de Urbe.
At first glance one might wonder if the scene is indoors or outdoors as
we notice the gloom of the canvassed windows which give a shady,
slightly sinister appearance.
The cross in the window in counterpoint to the rich coins on the table.
The beam of light highlights Matthew pointing to himself while the
pointing finger of Christ reminds us, perhaps of the finger of Adam in
the Sistine Chapel by that other famous Michelangelo.
Notice the bare feet and ancient robes of Christ and of St Peter, which
contrast with the foppish 16th century clothes of the crooked
accountants. The vastly different modes of dress point to two worlds
with the miraculous interrupting the daily drudge. The Divine is about
to enter Matthew’s everyday life and bring about a spiritual
awakening. Look carefully at the painting and be inspired.
Contemplation of Matthew’s Call can bring you to God and that, surely, is the point of sacred art.
UNIVERSALIS: A sermon by St Bede the Venerable- Jesus saw him through the eyes of mercy and chose him
Jesus saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax office, and he said
to him: Follow me. Jesus saw Matthew, not merely in the usual sense,
but more significantly with his merciful understanding of men.
He saw the tax collector and, because he saw him through the eyes of
mercy and chose him, he said to him: Follow me. This following meant
imitating the pattern of his life – not just walking after him. St John
tells us: Whoever says he abides in Christ ought to walk in the same
way in which he walked.
And he rose and followed him. There is no reason for surprise that the
tax collector abandoned earthly wealth as soon as the Lord commanded
him. Nor should one be amazed that neglecting his wealth, he joined a
band of men whose leader had, on Matthew’s assessment, no riches at
all. Our Lord summoned Matthew by speaking to him in words. By an
invisible, interior impulse flooding his mind with the light of grace,
he instructed him to walk in his footsteps. In this way Matthew could
understand that Christ, who was summoning him away from earthly
possessions, had incorruptible treasures of heaven in his gift.
As he sat at table in the house, behold many tax collectors and sinners
came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples. This conversion of one
tax collector gave many men, those from his own profession and other
sinners, an example of repentance and pardon. Notice also the happy and
true anticipation of his future status as apostle and teacher of the
nations. No sooner was he converted than Matthew drew after him a whole
crowd of sinners along the same road to salvation. He took up his
appointed duties while still taking his first steps in the faith, and
from that hour he fulfilled his obligation and thus grew in merit. To
see a deeper understanding of the great celebration Matthew held at his
house, we must realise that he not only gave a banquet for the Lord at
his earthly residence, but far more pleasing was the banquet set in his
own heart which he provided through faith and love. Our Saviour attests
to this: Behold I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice
and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with
me.
On hearing Christ’s voice, we open the door to receive him, as it were,
when we freely assent to his promptings and when we give ourselves over
to doing what must be done. Christ, since he dwells in the hearts of
his chosen ones through the grace of his love, enters so that he might
eat with us and we with him. He ever refreshes us by the light of his
presence insofar as we progress in our devotion to and longing for the
things of heaven. He himself is delighted by such a pleasing banquet.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
29. Hope is a wealth of hidden riches. Hope is
a treasure of assurance of the treasure in store for us.
September 18, 2020
(Eph 6:10-12) Finally, brethren, be strengthened in the Lord and in the
might of his power. Put you on the armour of God, that you may be able
to stand against the deceits of the devil. For our wrestling is not
against flesh and blood; but against principalities and powers, against
the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of
wickedness in the high places.
VATICAN NEWS: “Virtual” Mass never substitutes in-person participation
ARCHDIOCESE OF SAN FRANCISCO: "FREE THE MASS" / "QUEREMOS LA MISA" WALK FOR FREEDOM TO WORSHIP
Catholic Demonstrations Planned for Sunday, September 20- In his
September 13 homily on the Cathedral Plaza, Archbishop Cordileone
invited the faithful to participate in a public call for reopening
churches for worship at a level consistent with other activities in San
Francisco and with stringent health and safety protocols in place: "I
invite you all to participate in this public witness of our faith, and
to invite your friends and fellow Catholics to join as well."
CNA: San Francisco Catholics plan Eucharistic processions to ‘Free the Mass’
YOUTUBE: “FREE THE MASS” in San Francisco! - Fr. Mark Goring, CC
PETITION: YES! I stand with Archbishop Cordileone. Yes, I am asking the City of San Francisco to free the Mass!
INTERVIEW WITH ARCHBISHOP CORDILEONE: ‘The Evil One Is at Work Here’
EXCERPT SIGN.ORG: Standing Firm While God Separates the Wheat From the Chaff by Rev. Joseph M. Esper
A careful reading of the signs of
the times give us some important advice on how to stand firm in our
faith during these confusing, frightening, and unsettled times. First
of all, we must avoid the extremes of complacency on the one
hand—thinking everything’s all right, and no major changes or
challenges will occur—and discouragement on the other, convincing
ourselves that everything is hopeless, that nothing can be done, and
that our efforts won’t make any difference. The devil is happy to see
us demonstrate either of these extreme and mistaken attitudes, for
doing so means we aren’t fulfilling our spiritual duties. Instead, we
must ask the Lord to give us wisdom, courage, and strength so as to be
authentic disciples of Jesus in these difficult times.
Second, we must avoid judging
others. We have good reason to be angry at many of the cardinals,
bishops, and priests whose criminal negligence and inexcusable behavior
have terribly harmed innocent victims and gravely damaged the Church’s
influence and reputation—but we must not let righteous anger become
sinful hatred; if that happens, only Satan benefits. When Judas
betrayed Jesus, this most terrible sin in history didn’t lead the other
apostles and disciples to abandon their Lord in anger and disgust.
Because of human sinfulness, at no point in the last 2000 years has the
Church been free of imperfection—but at every single moment of the last
twenty centuries, God’s saving grace has been available through the
Church’s sacraments, despite the failures of her leaders and members.
Anger serves God’s purpose only if we’re willing to leave all judgment
to Him.
Third, it’s important to stand up
for and defend our religious freedom while it still exists. The time of
danger isn’t while President Trump is in office, but when the enemies
of Christianity gain the upper hand—and if we wait until then to speak
out, it will be too late. Embarrassment and anger over the sexual abuse
scandal shouldn’t cause us to remain silent when the Church is under
attack; we must not allow the other side to win by default. If
necessary, we can remind people that there are very few current
allegations against Church leaders and clergy; that the abuse of minors
is just as big a problem in other religions, and a far bigger problem
in the government school system and in society as a whole, than it is
in the Church; and that since 2002 young people are statistically safer
in Catholic parishes and schools than virtually anywhere else. Also, we
must vote for pro-life, pro-religious freedom candidates, for this
fall’s elections may well play a crucial role in determining the course
of our nation’s history over the next few years, especially in terms of
religious liberty.
Fourth, we’re warned not only in
private revelation, but especially in Scripture (cf. Mt. 24:24) that
there will be efforts to deceive the elect—and so we must be on our
guard against being led astray. Holding onto the traditional teachings
of the Church—especially in the areas of personal behavior and
sexuality morality—is more important than ever. Be wary of any bishops,
priests, or parish personnel making light of, or watering down, the
Church’s teaching, especially as expressed in the Catechism of the
Catholic Church; pay attention if anyone tries to introduce liturgical
innovations (such as changing the words of Consecration at Mass) or
downgrades the importance of the Eucharist or the Rosary. As in all
things, we need to be submissive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit; if
something doesn’t seem right, pray for enlightenment, and then ask the
person responsible, in a polite and respectful way, for an explanation.
When it comes to your faith, it’s primarily up to you not only to
understand it and grow in it, but also to protect and preserve it.
Fifth, as Our Lady said in one of
her messages, we must rely upon Scripture and upon the Eucharist.
Regularly reading the Bible will not only enlighten and encourage us;
it will also make it easier to discern the truth and recognize false
teaching. Regularly receiving Holy Communion while in a state of grace
will more closely conform us to Christ and give us the strength to
resist temptation and bear witness to our faith. It’s important to
nourish our souls as we head into spiritual battle. If we rely on our
own wisdom, courage, and strength we will fail; we need God’s Word and
Sacrament if we are to stand firm.
Sixth, we must offer sacrifices for
the conversion of sinners and the salvation of souls—no matter how
small these sacrifices may be; God can use everything we offer, as long
as it’s given with a generous and trusting heart. All of life’s joys
and irritations, blessings and burdens, can—if we choose—serve a higher
spiritual purpose; all our daily experiences—pleasant or difficult,
unique or routine—can become moments of grace that we offer for the
spiritual well-being of others. Our Lady in particular delights in
taking all our simple offerings and, by uniting them with her perfect
and loving submission to God, making them into a holy and loving
sacrifice in her Son’s honor. It takes very little effort on our part
to pray, silently or aloud, “Lord, I offer up this meal, this time of
rest, this headache, this chore, this irritation, this challenge, this
blessing, for Your glory and for the conversion of sinners.” The more
we form the habit of doing this, the sooner we’ll see the Triumph of
the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the coming of God’s Kingdom.
Lastly, we must pray—for our
president, that he will have the wisdom and courage he needs to fulfill
his mission from God; for our nation, that it will repent of its sins
and humble itself before God; for peace in the world through an end to
all hatred and violence; for the purification of the Church and the
rooting out of all spiritual rebellion and corruption; for the Holy
Father and all the members of the hierarchy and clergy, that they may
be good and faithful shepherds; for all our brothers and sisters in
Christ throughout the world who are undergoing any form of persecution;
for the conversion of sinners and the salvation of souls; for all our
loved ones who have fallen away from the True Faith; for our nation’s
safety and its moral and spiritual renewal; and for our own spiritual
growth and fidelity in the face of opposition and danger.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
28. The power of love is hope, because by it we
await the reward of love.
September 16, 2020
(Luk 21:11-12)
And there shall be great earthquakes in divers places and pestilences
and famines and terrors from heaven: and there shall be great signs.
But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and
persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and into prisons,
dragging you before kings and governors, for my name's sake.
HEADLINES
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OPINION: City Safari: The War On Christianity
REPORT: The Persecution Of Christians Is Escalating Dramatically All Over The World
All over the
globe, thousands upon thousands of Christians are being ruthlessly
killed simply because of what they believe. But if you only rely on
corporate-controlled media sources for your news, you literally never
hear about this relentless persecution.
In fact, in this article I don't link to a single mainstream news
source. I had to go to Christian news websites to document what I am
about to share with you, because the mainstream media avoids stories
such as these like the plague. Of course if innocent people were being
systematically butchered for a reason that aligned with the various
agendas that they are constantly pushing, the mainstream media would be
all over this. It greatly upsets me that the deaths of Christians are
treated as if they don't really matter, and we continue to see the
global persecution of Christians escalate year after year.
For example, just take a look at
what is happening in Ethiopia. Extremists have been conducting a
door-to-door campaign as they search for Christians to kill...
At least 500 Christians have been
killed in an ongoing spate of coordinated door-to-door attacks and
thousands of traumatized survivors have fled for their lives over the
last two months in southern Ethiopia's Oromia regional state, including
its capital Addis Ababa, according to reports.
For most of you, this is probably the very first time that you have ever heard about this.
This just shows the power of the
mainstream media. If they don't talk about it, then most of the
population will never even know that it exists.
But we should be talking about it,
because what is taking place is absolutely horrifying. In some
instances, Christian parents are literally being slaughtered in front
of their children...
"The Qeerroo extremists arrived in
cars and, armed with guns, machetes, swords and spears, sought out and
slaughtered Christians. Children were forced to witness their parents
being brutally murdered with machetes," it added.
An Oromo Christian was beheaded
after he refused to tear off the thread around his neck, which is worn
by many Ethiopian Christians as a sign of their baptism. The attackers
told his wife that only those who prostrate before Allah for prayer are
considered part of the Oromo community.
This should be one of the greatest
human rights causes of our day, but the silence coming from the
mainstream media is deafening.
It is almost as if there is a concerted effort not to talk about this.
But I refuse to keep silent. These precious lives matter, and I am going to talk about them.
In South Sudan, 23 Christians were
gunned down at a church gathering on July 27th, and the attackers
apparently decided that was not enough and so they decided to burn down
an entire village...
Meanwhile, in South Sudan, six
children who had been taken hostage were among the 23 people killed
when unidentified gunmen attacked an Anglican church in Jonglei State
on July 27. At least 20 others were wounded.
"After killing people in the
church, the gunmen went to the homestead village and killed people
there," Bishop Moses Anur Ayom told the Episcopal News Service. "The
gunmen burned down the whole village in Makol Chuei."
Once again, I'll bet you never heard about this story until now.
On the other side of the continent, thousands of Christians are being systematically eliminated by extremists in Nigeria...
This year already nearly 2,000
Christians have been mercilessly hacked and shot to death in surprise
raids on their villages. These deadly, senseless attacks are often
portrayed as ongoing clashes between farmers and herders. Those who
follow closely believe they are part of a larger agenda -- seemingly
supported by government officials and security agencies -- to drive
Christians off their lands. Nigerian citizens have been disarmed by the
government, but somehow, the Militant Fulani herdsmen are armed to the
teeth and have no fear of encountering security response or capture.
This is something that has been
going on throughout all of 2020, and this is another story that I'll
bet you have never heard about until this article.
I could keep going through more examples in Africa, but let's switch gears.
In India, religious extremists
regularly kill Christians, but those deaths rarely get much attention.
Here are just a few examples...
A young woman in the Khunti
district of Jharkhand has become the fifth victim in a string of
Christians killed in India because of their faith.
The woman, 25-year-old Suman Munda,
was found dead on July 19 in a deserted place near her home, according
to Vatican News. Just one month earlier, on June 24, another Christian,
27-year-old Ramji Munda, was killed outside a village in the Khunti
district.
Overall, the number of attacks on
Christians in India just seems to keep rising year after year. In 2019,
one group recorded "527 cases of persecution against Christians"...
The killing of Christians in India is on the rise.
In 2019, Persecution Relief, a
group dedicated to helping persecuted Christians in India, recorded 527
cases of persecution against Christians, compared to 447 cases in 2018.
Sadly, the final number for 2020 will probably be the highest that we have seen so far.
But at least things in India are
not as bad as they are in China. As I have discussed previously, the
Chinese government seems to have decided that the elimination of the
Christian faith should be official government policy. Over the past
couple of years, countless churches have been raided, countless pastors
have been imprisoned, and countless Bibles have been burned.
And even hundreds of pro-government
"churches" that do everything that the central government tells them to
do are still having their crosses taken down...
Bitter Winter reported on June 9
that crosses had been removed from over 250 state-run Three-Self
churches in the eastern province of Anhui in the first four months of
the year. According to the newly received information, an additional
656 state-run Protestant venues in the province had lost their crosses
during the first half of this year, the total exceeding 900.
Thankfully, we aren't facing this
level of persecution in the western world yet, but many of our
politicians have used the pandemic that we are experiencing to
implement very strict restrictions on Christian gatherings.
In fact, the city of Seattle
temporarily shut down an entire park the other day in order to prevent
a Christian worship event from taking place. The following comes from
Todd Starnes...
The City of Seattle shut down a local park in advance of a massive gathering of Christian worshippers.
Christians were banned from the park, but not Black Lives Matter or Antifa. Let that sink in, folks.
The organizers could have
completely canceled the event, but instead they decided to take it to
the streets and rebrand it as a "worship protest"...
But instead of canceling the event, the Christians simply relocated the service to the street and called it a "worship protest."
Brilliant!
It was wonderful to see such a diverse group of people all worshipping the Lord together under a beautiful blue sky.
But you can be sure that officials
in Seattle will be brainstorming ways that they can prevent such a
thing from happening again in the future.
Hatred of Christians is rapidly rising all over the globe, and it is going to get a whole lot worse in the years ahead.
Sadly, the corporate-controlled
media will almost certainly continue to ignore the persecution that is
happening because it definitely does not fit any of the agendas that
they are trying to push.
That is extremely unfortunate,
because every one of these lives that is being lost is of immense
value, and their stories deserve to be told.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
27. He who says that he loves the Lord but is angry
with his brother is like a man who dreams that he is running.
September 14, 2020
(1Th 5:20) Despise not prophecies.
FULL LENGTH MOVIE: Garabandal, Unstoppable Waterfall
SIGN.ORG: The Priesthood and Garabandal
CERVANTES: Even seniors are likely to witness the Warning
It is enough for me that St. Padre
Pio, in his earthly sojourn, had confirmed the Marian apparitions in
Garabandal, Spain (1961-65). It is enough for me that in his
pontificate, St. People Paul VI also did, by giving his blessing to
Garabandal visionary Conchita at the Vatican.
Three of the Garabandal visionaries
are married now and have continued to live exemplary Catholic lives.
One of them, Mari Loli, passed away as a "victim soul," also after
having lived a life worthy of emulation.
On these bases, I have always given
credence to the prophecies relayed there to the visionaries by the
Blessed Virgin Mary. In this column, I have frequently cited three of
the prophecies and even capitalized each for their being major events:
the Warning, the Great Miracle and the Chastisement.
These prophecies have also been
cited in other supernatural events of our times, especially the Warning
which was given details by Jesus Christ Himself through St. Faustina
Kowalska of the Divine Mercy.
Jesus Christ and the Blessed
Mother, in their apparitions, have frequently advised us not to focus
too much on speculating when the three events will happen, but rather
on the call for conversion. Yet we are not short of hints of
approximately when at least the first two prophecies will occur.
If you think you will no longer be
around to witness even just the first event because you're in your 60's
or 70's or 80's or, providentially, in your healthy 90's, you just
could be wrong.
Visionary Conchita was assigned by
the Blessed Mother to announce eight days in advance, through a priest
of her choice, the occurrence of the Great Miracle which will happen
WITHIN A YEAR after the Warning.
Now take note of this important
hint: Conchita was born February 7, 1949. She is now 71 years old and
yet remains destined to fulfill her duty of announcing eight days in
advance the Great Miracle. This has a lot to say about the question of
when.
So my advice to fellow seniors: we
have a lot to prepare for and look forward to; we must play our roles
where we are regardless of circumstances in our lives, in accordance
with the requirements of the Blessed Mother in Garabandal as we live in
the most extraordinary of times.
The Blessed Mother appealed to us
from Garabandal thus: "We must make many sacrifices, perform much
penance and visit the Blessed Sacrament frequently. But first we must
lead good lives. If we do not, a chastisement will befall us. The cup
is already filling up and if we do not change, a very great
chastisement will come upon us."
Much has been said in this space about the Warning. What about the Miracle? Let's take it from Conchita herself.
Conchita was allowed to reveal that
the Miracle would take place on a Thursday at 8:30 in the evening
(probably Garabandal time) on the feast of a martyr dedicated to the
Holy Eucharist. It would be visible to everyone in the area of
Garabandal at the time and it could be photographed and televised, but
not touched and that permanent sign of the Miracle would remain at the
site of the first apparitions there in June, 1961.
While much has been written about
the Warning in this column, allow me to repeat what Conchita said about
it: "this experience will involve every person in the world...It will
be like an interior realization of our sins. Believers, as well as
unbelievers, wherever they are at the time, will see and feel it."
She said all would stop: the
internet, even airplanes in mid air and cars at full speed. But they
will go on as usual after the Warning, except that every person would
be affected by the Warning.
If not enough conversion happens
after the Warning and the Great Miracle, the Chastisement would follow.
But there is a lack of hint on the time between the Great Miracle and
the Chastisement.
The Garabandal visionaries,
however, were given a vision of the Chastisement. Before she passed on,
Mari Loli, reacted to the vision thus: "We were absolutely terrified. I
cannot find words to explain it... We saw the rivers turn to blood.
Fire was falling from heaven. And something worse still, which I cannot
reveal at this time."
Meanwhile, last August 25, our Blessed Mother told mystic Gisella Cardia as follows:
"My children, thank you for being
gathered here in prayer. Beloved children, your prayers reach my heart.
Testify with faith, because whoever has an open heart will come even
closer to God and to prayer, yet many of my children will turn away,
because they have sold their souls to Satan. My children, pray for the
world and for the Church, because everything is heading towards
self-destruction. Pray for those who are powerful on earth, who, as
happened in the time of Herod, will strike my innocent children. Pray,
because fiery blazes will invade Italy. Now I bless you in the name of
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen."
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
26. One who loves his neighbour can never tolerate
slanderers, but rather runs from them as from fire.
September 10, 2020
(Mat 10:32-34) Every one therefore that shall confess me before men, I
will also confess him before my Father who is in heaven. But he that
shall deny me before men, I will also deny him before my Father who is
in heaven. Do not think that I came to send peace upon earth: I came
not to send peace, but the sword.
VIDEO LINK: Fr. James Altman: You cannot be Catholic & a Democrat. Period.
Bishop J. Strickland @Bishopoftyler:
As the Bishop of Tyler I endorse Fr Altman’s statement in this video.
My shame is that it has taken me so long. Thank you Fr Altman for your
COURAGE. If you love Jesus & His Church & this nation...please
HEED THIS MESSAGE
THE CATHOLIC THING: Michelangelo and Sister “Dede”
FROM THE MAILBAG: Father Rutler's Weekly Column
The Prince of Lies cannot lie in the presence of Christ: “I know who
you are—the Holy One of God!” (Luke 4:34). And Christ who is the Truth
knows him, too: “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Luke
10:18).
Satan does not want anyone to know him, and yet in the present
discontent that afflicts our culture, many anarchists and Marxists
invoke him. The desecration of churches and statues of saints is
spreading. Twice recently, our own church has been defaced with Satanic
symbols: not just the customary obscenities, but invocations of the
Prince of Lies.
The mystics have known two characteristics of Satan. A Desert Father
around 300 A.D., Abba Apollo, had a vision of him: “The devil has no
knees. He cannot kneel; he cannot adore; he cannot pray; he can only
look down his nose in contempt. Being unwilling to bend the knee at the
name of Jesus is the essence of evil.” (cf. Isaiah 45:23, Romans 14:11)
The other malignant quality of the Liar, as revealed to Saint Martin of
Tours, is that he can look as attractive as Christ, but he has no
wounds. Instead of taking our suffering upon himself, the Anti-Christ
inflicts suffering. That is his infernal nourishment and macabre
ecstasy.
Playing the Devil’s game is dangerous. He has concealed weapons, and
the chief of them is deceit. At one recent political convention, a
Religious sister from a dying community, in secular dress, prayed not
to the Lord, but to “O Divine Spirit” in a way that would have been
unobjectionable to a Hindu or an Aztec. With concomitant vagueness, she
said that an opinion on the killing of unborn life was above her “pay
grade.” At the convention that followed, another Religious in full
habit, who is a surgeon and former Army colonel, Sister Deirdre Byrne,
made clear that naming the lies of Satan was not above her pay grade as
she held her “weapon of choice: the rosary.”
The rosary is the most effective private prayer in defying the Liar.
The greatest public prayer is the Holy Eucharist. Four years ago in
France, two Islamic terrorists sliced the throat of 85-year-old Father
Jacques Hamel at the Altar of Sacrifice. His last words were: “Va-t’en,
Satan!” (Be gone, Satan!) Christ had said the same in the wilderness
and on the way to his crucifixion (Mark 8:33; Matthew 16:23).
Unlike some Catholics, who shy away from mentioning the name of Christ
at public gatherings lest they give offense, the evangelist Franklin
Graham prayed “In the mighty name of your son, my Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ.” Christ himself warned: “Whoever is ashamed of me and my
words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his
glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels” (Luke
9:26).
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
25. He who loves the Lord has first loved his brother,
because the second is a proof of the first.
September 8, 2020
(Gen 3:14-15) And the Lord God said
to the serpent: Because thou hast done this thing, thou art cursed
among all cattle, and beasts of the earth: upon thy breast shalt thou
go, and earth shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. I will put
enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she
shall cursh thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel.
EXCERPT UNIVERSALIS: From a discourse by Saint Andrew of Crete
The present festival, the birth
of the Mother of God, is the prelude, while the final act is the
fore-ordained union of the Word with flesh. Today the Virgin is born,
tended and formed and prepared for her role as Mother of God, who is
the universal King of the ages.
Justly, then, do we celebrate this
mystery since it signifies for us a double grace. We are led towards
the truth, and we are led away from our condition of slavery to the
letter of the law. How can this be? Darkness yields before the coming
of the light, and grace exchanges legalism for freedom. But midway
between the two stands today’s mystery, at the frontier where types and
symbols give way to reality, and the old is replaced by the new.
Therefore, let all creation sing and dance and unite to make worthy
contribution to the celebration of this day. Let there be one common
festival for saints in heaven and men on earth. Let everything, mundane
things and those above, join in festive celebration. Today this created
world is raised to the dignity of a holy place for him who made all
things. The creature is newly prepared to be a divine dwelling place
for the Creator.
UNIVERSITY OF DAYTON REVIEW: Birth of Mary: September 8
EXCERPT MANILLA BULLETIN: Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Roman Catholic Church observes only two birth anniversaries of
saints, that of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ,
and St. John the Baptist, the precursor of Christ, on June 24. The
reason for this is found in the singular mission each had in salvation
history but traditionally also because they were both holy in their
very birth (Mary’s Immaculate Conception while John was sanctified in
Saint Elizabeth’s womb according to the traditional interpretation of
Luke 1:15.
Church leaders said, “The birth of
the Blessed Mother celebrates the dawning of the day of redemption, the
moment when she, who was to be the mother of our Savior, was born. In
celebrating the Nativity of Mary, Christians anticipate the Incarnation
and birth of her Divine Son and give honor to the mother of our Lord.”
The Feast of the Nativity of Mary
or Marymas originated in Jerusalem as early as the 6th century. It was
extended to the Universal Church by Pope Sergius I in the year 687. The
Virgin Mary was born in Nazareth, Galilee to Sts. Joachim and Ann, who
were then both advanced in years. They prayed and fasted for a child
and in answer to their prayers, God granted them a daughter who was to
be the Mother of the Messiah.
A MOMENT WITH MARY: The daughter of infertile parents, she became the fertile virgin
Today, as every year on September 8th, we celebrate the birth of the
Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast starts the liturgical cycle of saints
feast days and is a great day of rejoicing for all of us.
Mary’s birth was a miracle: her parents Joachim and Anne were already
advanced in age, but they hadn’t given up their hope to have a child.
However, God had different plans, and he announced them to Mary’s
parents.
Thus Mary was conceived with the view of being the Mother of God’s Son
who was to redeem the world. Her birth brought consolation and joy to
the world by preparing it for the coming of Christ. That is why we
celebrate it.
Today more than ever, the world needs to find consolation and joy.
"How many miracles converged in this child! How many alliances formed
in her! The daughter of infertile parents, she would become the fertile
virgin. In her will be made the union of divinity and humanity, of
impassibility and suffering, of life and death, so that in everything,
what was evil may be defeated by what is best.” (Homily of St John
Damascene)
SAINT POPE JOHN PAUL II: Mary in God's plan of salvation
The Mother of the Redeemer has a
precise place in the plan of salvation, for "when the time had fully
come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to
redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption
as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son
into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!'" (Gal. 4:4-6)
... For they are words which
celebrate together the love of the Father, the mission of the Son, the
gift of the Spirit, the role of the woman from whom the Redeemer was
born, and our own divine filiation, in the mystery of the "fullness of
time."
This "fullness" indicates the
moment fixed from all eternity when the Father sent his Son "that
whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (Jn.
3:16).
It denotes the blessed moment when
the Word that "was with God... became flesh and dwelt among us" (Jn.
1:1, 14), and made himself our brother.
It marks the moment when the Holy
Spirit, who had already infused the fullness of grace into Mary of
Nazareth, formed in her virginal womb the human nature of Christ.
This "fullness" marks the moment
when, with the entrance of the eternal into time, time itself is
redeemed, and being filled with the mystery of Christ becomes
definitively "salvation time."
Finally, this "fullness" designates
the hidden beginning of the Church's journey. In the liturgy the Church
salutes Mary of Nazareth as the Church's own beginning, for in the
event of the Immaculate Conception the Church sees projected, and
anticipated in her most noble member, the saving grace of Easter. And
above all, in the Incarnation she encounters Christ and Mary
indissolubly joined: he who is the Church's Lord and Head and she who,
uttering the first fiat of the New Covenant, prefigures the Church's
condition as spouse and mother.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
24. Purity makes its disciple a theologian, who
of himself grasps the dogmas of the Trinity.
September 4, 2020
(Psa 46:10) Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
FRANCIS XAVIER NGUYEN VAN THUAN:
"The realization that this life is transient should not cause you to
fall into escapism, pessimism, or neglect of duties. Rather it should
spur you on to compete enthusiastically against time."
ALETEIA: A simple way to achieve stillness in Christian meditation
CATHOLIC WEEKLY: Q&A with Fr John Flader: The Power of Prayer
EXCERPT: Orthodox pastors on how we learn to pray
Prayer is universal, it is for everyone
In the Old
Testament we find these names of God: Jehovah, Adonai, Sabaoth… They
indicate a personal relationship with God—we address Him by His name,
personally. What name was revealed to us in the New Testament? Lord
Jesus Christ. We address Him personally in the Jesus Prayer. Neither is
there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven
given among men, whereby we must be saved (Acts 4:12). Wherefore God
also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every
name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in
heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every
tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father (Phil. 2:9-11). The hesychasts entrusted us with the task of
invoking the name of the Lord, for it is in communion with the Lord
Jesus Christ that man becomes perfect.
What did the hesychasts say?
Everyone begins with prayers written in books. That’s why such books
are called prayer-books. They are like the foundation, where the words
are “carved” and “engraved” by the Fathers and then laid into these
solid and stable constructions. Using this foundation, we understand
dogmatics, liturgics, and Church history more fully; after all, in
earlier times not everybody could attend Sunday schools or theological
courses. These are the rudiments without which we can’t build anything.
After we get accustomed to the
rule, we proceed to the second step of prayer—the invocation of the
name of our Lord. This is already proper prayer. It is called the Jesus
Prayer, after our Savior. According to the Holy Fathers, its first
stage is oral prayer (the prayer of the lips) when we simply repeat it
aloud: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
After we have mastered the prayer of the lips, we proceed to the prayer
of the mind (of the nous, or intellect), when we pray not only by the
tongue but also with the mind. No man can say that Jesus is the Lord,
but by the Holy Ghost (1 Cor. 12:3). You can’t perform mental prayer
unless you have cleansed your mind. If you don’t have the desire to
purify your heart and receive spirit, you’ll get bored with the prayer
quickly and abandon it.
That’s why it is important to be
guided by a spiritual elder in the life of prayer. Your elder helps you
make progress in spiritual life, prays for you and directs you. Of the
thousands of people who have succeeded in purifying their souls, only a
few attain perfection.
If you pray properly, then you
reach the next step when prayer descends from the head to the heart,
and the enlightenment of your heart begins. The oral prayer, the mental
prayer and the prayer of the heart unite, and the Lord begins to
illumine your will. According to the Fathers, with proper spiritual
guidance you can draw close to purity within ten years. Purity is also
called dispassion (apatheia). If you have developed purity of the mind,
feelings, and will, passions will disappear. Without prayer this state
is unattainable.
Dispassion is such a sublime state
that some presume that it is holiness. But it is not yet holiness. It
is purity, and it is attained through Divine grace. Passions disappear;
and it is not until then, when you become more or less free from them
(sometimes God even allows saints to suffer from one or another
passion, as a thorn in the flesh (2 Cor. 12:7), to keep them from
becoming conceited), that you can embark on the path of
self-perfection. Grace for grace (Jn. 1:16), as the Gospel proclaims;
and the Lord testifies: He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath
said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water (Jn. 7:38). In
each ascetic the gifts of the Holy Spirit are revealed
individually—some possess the gift of prophecy, others, healing, yet
others, clairvoyance. In this case it is possible to help others. But
as long as we are wallowing in passions, our good deeds will be “with a
touch of sin”; as a result we are helping neither ourselves nor our
neighbors. Our constant struggle to overcome passions is vital. For the
good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do
(Rom. 7:19).
The next step is contemplative
prayer. The Gospel says of it: The Kingdom of God is within you (Lk.
17:21). There should be no spite, no despair, no love of money in us,
but only Heavenly light. The Lord showed it on Mount Tabor. But how can
you acquire it if you have no one to ask for advice? The Fathers taught
that the power of truth is in purity of spirit. But that’s a high level.
St. Seraphim of Sarov taught us to
practice the virtue that gives us the greatest spiritual profit. He
noted that prayer gives us more of God’s grace than the other virtues.
Moreover, prayer is universal—it is for everyone. Likewise, some
ascetic labors are only for the chosen ones, while some of them can be
practiced by anyone. You have only to say, “Lord!”, and Divine grace
will come. The Lord has already saved us—we only need to accept this
mercy. We just need to realize that our state is disastrous and leads
to perdition and that we need the Savior. We keep sinning all the time,
therefore we must invoke the name of God unceasingly: “Lord Jesus
Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner!” Here is the invisible
thread! The very word “religion” (from Latin “religare”) means to “tie
back”, “bind back”. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved (Rom. 10:13). There will be no fuss in the age to
come—there will only be prayer there; that is all.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
23. The Word of the Lord, which is from God the
Father, is pure and remains so eternally. But he who has not come to know
God merely speculates.
September 2, 2020
(1Ki 19:13-14)
And when Elias heard it, he covered his face with his mantle, and
coming forth, stood in the entering in of the cave, and behold a voice
unto him, saying: What dost thou here, Elias? And he answered: With
zeal have I been zealous for the Lord God of hosts: because the
children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant: they have destroyed thy
altars, they have slain thy prophets with the sword; and I alone am
left, and they seek my life to take it away.
(1Ki 19:18) And I will leave me seven thousand men in Israel, whose
knees have not been bowed before Baal, and every mouth that hath not
worshipped him, kissing the hands.
EXCERPT FR. BENEDICT KIELY:
This age, if faced with courage and discernment and apostolic zeal,
provides the Church with a perfect moment to convince the world that
the Church is the answer to the question “what else is there?” It will
take both courageous and orthodox leadership, vision, and creativity.
Unfortunately, these are things that are not on widespread display at
large gatherings of the Successors of the Apostles.
Yet what better moment is there, with
the world in flux and lacking an answer to the deepest questions of
mortality raised by the pandemic, to proclaim the Gospel of life and
resurrection as well as the hope that the Gospel brings? It is time to
offer the succor and beauty of true worship, and for parishes to be
schools of prayer and, rather than locking them, throw open their doors
to reveal the sacred, with both the dogma and the drama as the
cornerstones for a new society.
CRISIS MAGAZINE: The Promise of a Post-Covid Church
FR. DWIGHT LONGENECKER: Why Bother Going to Mass?
EXCERPT ALETEIA ARCHIVES (2016): When Father Joseph Ratzinger Predicted the Future of the Church
Laying it out in a 1969 broadcast on German radio …
"From the crisis of today the Church of tomorrow will emerge — a Church
that has lost much. She will become small and will have to start afresh
more or less from the beginning. She will no longer be able to inhabit
many of the edifices she built in prosperity. As the number of her
adherents diminishes, so it will lose many of her social privileges. In
contrast to an earlier age, it will be seen much more as a voluntary
society, entered only by free decision. As a small society, it will
make much bigger demands on the initiative of her individual members.
Undoubtedly it will discover new forms of ministry and will ordain to
the priesthood approved Christians who pursue some profession. In many
smaller congregations or in self-contained social groups, pastoral care
will normally be provided in this fashion. Along-side this, the
full-time ministry of the priesthood will be indispensable as formerly.
But in all of the changes at which one might guess, the Church will
find her essence afresh and with full conviction in that which was
always at her center: faith in the triune God, in Jesus Christ, the Son
of God made man, in the presence of the Spirit until the end of the
world. In faith and prayer she will again recognize the sacraments as
the worship of God and not as a subject for liturgical scholarship.
The Church will be a more spiritual Church, not presuming upon a
political mandate, flirting as little with the Left as with the Right.
It will be hard going for the Church, for the process of
crystallization and clarification will cost her much valuable energy.
It will make her poor and cause her to become the Church of the meek.
The process will be all the more arduous, for sectarian
narrow-mindedness as well as pompous self-will will have to be shed.
One may predict that all of this will take time. The process will be
long and wearisome as was the road from the false progressivism on the
eve of the French Revolution — when a bishop might be thought smart if
he made fun of dogmas and even insinuated that the existence of God was
by no means certain — to the renewal of the nineteenth century. But
when the trial of this sifting is past, a great power will flow from a
more spiritualized and simplified Church. Men in a totally planned
world will find themselves unspeakably lonely. If they have completely
lost sight of God, they will feel the whole horror of their poverty.
Then they will discover the little flock of believers as something
wholly new. They will discover it as a hope that is meant for them, an
answer for which they have always been searching in secret.
And so it seems certain to me that the Church is facing very hard
times. The real crisis has scarcely begun. We will have to count on
terrific upheavals. But I am equally certain about what will remain at
the end: not the Church of the political cult, which is dead already,
but the Church of faith. It may well no longer be the dominant social
power to the extent that she was until recently; but it will enjoy a
fresh blossoming and be seen as man’s home, where he will find life and
hope beyond death".
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 30- "Concerning the Supreme Trinity
Among the Virtues"
21. He who has perfectly united his senses to God
is mystically led by Him to an understanding of His words. But without
this union it is difficult to speak about God.
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