I have been blogging and/or commenting since about 2006. I have had weeks of dormancy commenting, but one can see my name popping up in old archives of blogs. It is interesting how the discussions and the topics, as well as the tone, of comments have changed.
Definitely, absolutely, the content and tone of comments has gone downhill.
In the early days of blogging and commenting, the discussions were simply more cerebral, more academic, written by people with some Catholic background. People were interested in learning.
Next, there was a second wave of commentators and bloggers who were converts, finding both blogging and commenting on blogs part the excitement of becoming a Catholic. Obviously, people learn on blogs about the one, true, holy, universal, and apostolic Church.
Now, there has been over the last nine months or a year, a third wave of commentators who have not learned to argue from a logical, even rational basis and merely want to vent emotions.
How sad. But, this phenomenon shows the lack of educational standards in the West. People simply do not know how to think, either logically or analogically anymore. Apparently, there was an article on the lack of the ability to think analogically. I am trying to find it.
Those of us and our children who have studied logic and the Aristotelian modes of writing approach writing in a completely different manner than the "emos" on line.
A friend of mine got me thinking about devolution, which as one can hear in the post earlier today, in the talk from Fr. Ripperger, is the real issue of genetic entropy.
I saw it happening when I taught college from September, 1979 through December 2010, with a break of some years as a stay-at-home mom and working in another job not teaching. Wow, what changes in the students! The break from September, 1987 through August, 1997, when I finally went back into teaching, witnessed a sea-change in young peoples' ability to think, work, be focused.
The cry of so many teachers who are now retired is that they could not take the change from teaching to "baby-sitting" or worse.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/26/950079/-I-Don-t-Want-to-be-a-Teacher-Any-More#
Of course, the entire problem with education is that it was separated from religion. The soul forms the body. How can one teach the body and not the soul? Impossible, and it is our intellects that we are "like God" and in our free wills.
Sad, but the generations have become slowly but surely "unteachable". This has been manipulated on purpose.
I am so glad I can teach through my blog. It is too bad I do not get paid for it, as I am so poor. It is a ministry, and I am happy to be called to this, until God decides otherwise. I am trying to work in the larger atmosphere of genetic entropy.
But, most of, in fact, the great majority of my readers are sharp intellectually and teachable. I am blessed in my readership. As long as I see that people want to learn, I can continue, if God so desires.
Monday, 11 August 2014
Cardinal Nichols Statement
from http://jerichotree.com/2014/08/08/cardinals-iraq-appeal-help-and-protect-persecuted-communities-facing-a-threat-to-their-very-existence/
“I have followed with deep sadness the unfolding disaster in Mosul, in Sinjar and Qaraqosh, and in other towns and villages across northern Iraq. This is a persecution of immense proportions in which Christian, Yezidi and other communities have been targeted by ISIS and forced to flee their ancestral homes in the Nineveh Plains in search of temporary safety. All they are doing is trying to escape certain death.
“Today, I add my voice to those of the Church leaders in Iraq as well as all the Bishops of Oriental Churches who met in Beirut yesterday alongside the Apostolic Nuncio. Along with Christian and Muslim leaders in Wales and many others we appeal for help and protection for these persecuted communities facing a threat to their very existence in their biblical homelands. It is imperative that the international community ensure the physical protection of all communities in Iraq, their human rights including the right to religious freedom. I urge Her Majesty’s Government to lead the efforts in the face of such a human calamity in order to help restore these shattered communities, provide them with urgent humanitarian aid and work with others to ensure their long term security in the land of their birth.
“I encourage our own Catholic community to continue to give generously to our agencies working to support the people of Iraq. Above all I invite all people of faith to turn to God in prayer this weekend and seek for our world the change of heart and the gift of grace that alone can bring us peace.”
Cardinal Vincent Nichols
President, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales
Archbishop of Westminster
[Source: Westminster Diocese Communications Office]
“I have followed with deep sadness the unfolding disaster in Mosul, in Sinjar and Qaraqosh, and in other towns and villages across northern Iraq. This is a persecution of immense proportions in which Christian, Yezidi and other communities have been targeted by ISIS and forced to flee their ancestral homes in the Nineveh Plains in search of temporary safety. All they are doing is trying to escape certain death.
“Today, I add my voice to those of the Church leaders in Iraq as well as all the Bishops of Oriental Churches who met in Beirut yesterday alongside the Apostolic Nuncio. Along with Christian and Muslim leaders in Wales and many others we appeal for help and protection for these persecuted communities facing a threat to their very existence in their biblical homelands. It is imperative that the international community ensure the physical protection of all communities in Iraq, their human rights including the right to religious freedom. I urge Her Majesty’s Government to lead the efforts in the face of such a human calamity in order to help restore these shattered communities, provide them with urgent humanitarian aid and work with others to ensure their long term security in the land of their birth.
“I encourage our own Catholic community to continue to give generously to our agencies working to support the people of Iraq. Above all I invite all people of faith to turn to God in prayer this weekend and seek for our world the change of heart and the gift of grace that alone can bring us peace.”
Cardinal Vincent Nichols
President, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales
Archbishop of Westminster
[Source: Westminster Diocese Communications Office]
Denial and Reality:Coming Back to God
The Vatican has revealed that Antonio Gramsci, the founder of
Italian Communism and an icon of the Left, reverted to Roman
Catholicism on his deathbed.
Archbishop Luigi De Magistris, former head of the Apostolic Penitentiary of the Holy See, which deals with confessions, indulgences and the forgiveness of sins, said Gramsci had 'died taking the Sacraments.' He had asked the nuns attending him in hospital to let him kiss an image of the infant Jesus, the Archbishop said.
Rumours that Gramsci had converted back to his Roman Catholic faith had never until now been confirmed, and the Italian Left had also remained silent on the issue. 'But that is how it was', Archbishop De Magistris told Vatican Radio in November 2008: 'Gramsci returned to the faith of his infancy.'
http://www.ad2000.com.au/articles/2009/mar2009p8_2987.html
I have done more research on this and it is true. The Left across the world is in denial on this point. That Gramsci converted undoes all his years of hating the Church, religion, and even the culture of the West.
I have come to the conclusion that Gramsci's conversion was real and that the Vatican has proof.
Another great deathbed conversion is Jean-Paul Sartre, and I quote myself on this from another post.
This conversion is not urban myth. When I was at Notre Dame in 1980-81, Father John S. Dunne, a noted writer and teacher, told me personally that a priest friend of his was called to Sartre’s deathbed, where the noted atheist confessed his sins and came into the Church. Father Dunne also claimed that a fiery article by Simone Beauvoir appeared condemning Sartre’s “fall into superstition” at his end. I have to find the article by Beauvoir.
There is more here on this discussion.
http://bridgesandtangents.wordpress.com/2010/07/31/sartres-death-bed-conversion/
There are many people who converted, repented, re-verted back to Catholicism when facing death. I myself consider this grace one of the most wonderful gifts a person can be given.
Daily, in the Hail Mary, we pray for the grace of a happy death. Read my comments in the posts on Providence and Predestination by Garrigou-Lagrange.
Archbishop Luigi De Magistris, former head of the Apostolic Penitentiary of the Holy See, which deals with confessions, indulgences and the forgiveness of sins, said Gramsci had 'died taking the Sacraments.' He had asked the nuns attending him in hospital to let him kiss an image of the infant Jesus, the Archbishop said.
Rumours that Gramsci had converted back to his Roman Catholic faith had never until now been confirmed, and the Italian Left had also remained silent on the issue. 'But that is how it was', Archbishop De Magistris told Vatican Radio in November 2008: 'Gramsci returned to the faith of his infancy.'
http://www.ad2000.com.au/articles/2009/mar2009p8_2987.html
I have done more research on this and it is true. The Left across the world is in denial on this point. That Gramsci converted undoes all his years of hating the Church, religion, and even the culture of the West.
I have come to the conclusion that Gramsci's conversion was real and that the Vatican has proof.
Another great deathbed conversion is Jean-Paul Sartre, and I quote myself on this from another post.
This conversion is not urban myth. When I was at Notre Dame in 1980-81, Father John S. Dunne, a noted writer and teacher, told me personally that a priest friend of his was called to Sartre’s deathbed, where the noted atheist confessed his sins and came into the Church. Father Dunne also claimed that a fiery article by Simone Beauvoir appeared condemning Sartre’s “fall into superstition” at his end. I have to find the article by Beauvoir.
There is more here on this discussion.
http://bridgesandtangents.wordpress.com/2010/07/31/sartres-death-bed-conversion/
There are many people who converted, repented, re-verted back to Catholicism when facing death. I myself consider this grace one of the most wonderful gifts a person can be given.
Daily, in the Hail Mary, we pray for the grace of a happy death. Read my comments in the posts on Providence and Predestination by Garrigou-Lagrange.
Genetic Entropy=Devolution
An old poster helps us understand some things....
Coincidences are not oppression. Accidents are not oppression. Patterns are oppression.
Oppressions can be visible in health issues. Not all.
Genetic entropy is a negation of evolution. We are going down.
These are all thoughts from Father Ripperger.
I highly suggest listening to this part of a larger talk.
http://www.sensustraditionis.org/webaudio/SW/Oppression.mp3
Coincidences are not oppression. Accidents are not oppression. Patterns are oppression.
Oppressions can be visible in health issues. Not all.
Genetic entropy is a negation of evolution. We are going down.
These are all thoughts from Father Ripperger.
I highly suggest listening to this part of a larger talk.
http://www.sensustraditionis.org/webaudio/SW/Oppression.mp3
Souls Being Lost Part Two
Those who seem highly intelligent sometimes are not. One who denies the power of the spiritual world, or who believes in neutral spiritual territory could become prey to evil, caught off guard by pride and unbelief.
The real danger of witchcraft and satanism is the underlying sin of rebellion. It is the primordial sin of pride, of not serving God, of wanting the power (supposedly) that belongs only to the Almighty.
Any adult who is always disobedient and rebellious needs to stop and think that their lifestyle is that of the evil one who refused in an instant to serve God.
When the Pope Emeritus, then Pope Benedict XVI, traveled to Angola in 2009, his remarks on witchcraft were smothered by the media frenzy concerning his remarks against condoms.
Here is one bit of his statement on the occult in Angola:
"In today's Angola, Catholics should offer the message of Christ to the many who live in the fear of spirits, of evil powers by whom they feel threatened, disoriented, even reaching the point of condemning street children and even the most elderly because - they say - they are sorcerers..."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7956460.stm
The Pope was not denying occultic behavior, but the fears which caused people to persecute others in fear. Fear creates panic.
But, ignoring the reality of the occult and sins connected to the occult, is imprudence, willful blindness.
In a family has been oppressed or depressed in some manner, one should not automatically think witchcraft is involved, but one cannot deny it either.
Here is a homily from Fr. Ripperger on this subject.
http://www.sensustraditionis.org/webaudio/Sermons/Disk5/Witchcraft.mp3
Say a decade of the rosary after listening to this homily.
Souls Being Lost Part One
Too many young people, either those who believe in nothing and are surrounded by cynicism and atheism, or those who have sought out anti-Christian cults in rebellion, are in danger of losing their souls.
Parents are not aware enough of the dangers their own children face in satanism and witchcraft.
I want to list some of the New Testament references to witchcraft and a few of the many from the Old Testament. One remembers that King Saul lost his soul, his crown, his dynasty because of hiring the Witch of Endor to call up Saul. This scene in the television series David, is terrifying.
But, witchcraft is also connected to the sins of rebellion, following false religions, and disobedience. Basically, the witch doe not want to put himself under any authority of God.
Herein lies the great sin-desiring power and knowledge without being in and with the Trinitarian God. Any group which is obviously in rebellion to God most likely involves witchcraft.
Souls, especially those of the young, are being lost daily. Too many Catholics are blase about such evils in our would.
Parents must address these horrible, damning sins of sorcery, witchcraft and satanism. To ignore these is to put your children's souls in danger.
Parents are not aware enough of the dangers their own children face in satanism and witchcraft.
I want to list some of the New Testament references to witchcraft and a few of the many from the Old Testament. One remembers that King Saul lost his soul, his crown, his dynasty because of hiring the Witch of Endor to call up Saul. This scene in the television series David, is terrifying.
Acts 19:19
And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silverRevelation 21:8
But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”Galatians 5:20-21
Idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.2 Chronicles 33:6
And he burned his sons as an offering in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and used fortune-telling and omens and sorcery, and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.Isaiah 8:19
And when they say to you, “Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living?2 Kings 21:6
And he burned his son as an offering and used fortune-telling and omens and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.Revelation 22:15
Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.But, witchcraft is also connected to the sins of rebellion, following false religions, and disobedience. Basically, the witch doe not want to put himself under any authority of God.
Herein lies the great sin-desiring power and knowledge without being in and with the Trinitarian God. Any group which is obviously in rebellion to God most likely involves witchcraft.
Souls, especially those of the young, are being lost daily. Too many Catholics are blase about such evils in our would.
Parents must address these horrible, damning sins of sorcery, witchcraft and satanism. To ignore these is to put your children's souls in danger.
Sunday, 10 August 2014
Join in This Prayer Any Time
A letter from Bishop Slattery
Countering with Prayer the proposed Black Mass in Oklahoma City
My Dear People:
As has been widely reported, a Satanic Black Mass has been scheduled for September 21 in Oklahoma City’s
Civic Center. As a part of Satanic worship, a Black Mass attempts to invert the action and meaning of the
Eucharist in order to mock Christ’s sacrifice and worship Satan through an orgiastic ritual of pain and perversion.
It blasphemes everything which we hold as sacred and redemptive; and the spiritual dangers it poses
ought not be dismissed. Since the Civic Center has not responded positively to the pleas of the Archbishop of
Oklahoma City not to host this event in a tax-payer supported public venue, I am asking the faithful Catholics
in the Diocese of Tulsa to fight this blasphemy through prayer and fasting:
1) Please keep the nine days prior to the Feast of the Assumption as an extraordinary
period of prayer and penance. I am asking every Catholic to abstain from all meat and meat
products from August 6 through the 14th. I am also asking that you consecrate your hunger with a
daily recitation of a decade of the rosary and the familiar Prayer to Saint Michael. Printed copies of
these prayers are available in the bulletin and at the entrances of the church. Be strong and encourage your
friends to also be strong.
2) On Assumption Day, August 15th, we will ask Our Lady on her Feast, to intercede for us and
protect us. On that day I in the Cathedral, and every priest in his own parish, will pray a special
prayer written by Pope Leo XIII for the defense of the Church against the attack of the Enemy and
his apostate angels.
3) Should these prayers and this period of fasting not effect the cancellation of this event, then I will
ask every priest in the Diocese to conduct a Eucharistic Holy Hour on September 21 at the same time
(7:00 p.m.) as this profanity is being celebrated in Oklahoma City. Wherever possible, I ask that
Eucharistic Processions - especially outdoor processions - be arranged as part of these holy hours. Let
us give a public witness to our faith in the Eucharist which is being so profoundly mocked and
ridiculed by this event.
From the snares of the devil, deliver us, O Lord!
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Rev. Edward J. Slattery
Bishop of Tulsa
Countering with Prayer the proposed Black Mass in Oklahoma City
My Dear People:
As has been widely reported, a Satanic Black Mass has been scheduled for September 21 in Oklahoma City’s
Civic Center. As a part of Satanic worship, a Black Mass attempts to invert the action and meaning of the
Eucharist in order to mock Christ’s sacrifice and worship Satan through an orgiastic ritual of pain and perversion.
It blasphemes everything which we hold as sacred and redemptive; and the spiritual dangers it poses
ought not be dismissed. Since the Civic Center has not responded positively to the pleas of the Archbishop of
Oklahoma City not to host this event in a tax-payer supported public venue, I am asking the faithful Catholics
in the Diocese of Tulsa to fight this blasphemy through prayer and fasting:
1) Please keep the nine days prior to the Feast of the Assumption as an extraordinary
period of prayer and penance. I am asking every Catholic to abstain from all meat and meat
products from August 6 through the 14th. I am also asking that you consecrate your hunger with a
daily recitation of a decade of the rosary and the familiar Prayer to Saint Michael. Printed copies of
these prayers are available in the bulletin and at the entrances of the church. Be strong and encourage your
friends to also be strong.
2) On Assumption Day, August 15th, we will ask Our Lady on her Feast, to intercede for us and
protect us. On that day I in the Cathedral, and every priest in his own parish, will pray a special
prayer written by Pope Leo XIII for the defense of the Church against the attack of the Enemy and
his apostate angels.
3) Should these prayers and this period of fasting not effect the cancellation of this event, then I will
ask every priest in the Diocese to conduct a Eucharistic Holy Hour on September 21 at the same time
(7:00 p.m.) as this profanity is being celebrated in Oklahoma City. Wherever possible, I ask that
Eucharistic Processions - especially outdoor processions - be arranged as part of these holy hours. Let
us give a public witness to our faith in the Eucharist which is being so profoundly mocked and
ridiculed by this event.
From the snares of the devil, deliver us, O Lord!
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Rev. Edward J. Slattery
Bishop of Tulsa
Someone sent this to me ...can you believe it?
God will not be mocked.
Update: look at links in comments-three are astounding.
Update: look at links in comments-three are astounding.
Coming Soon on The Blog
A brief review on Caritas--in the meantime, re-read my posts on the Pope Benedict's encyclical.
25 Jul 2013
Deus
Caritas Est. Posted by Supertradmum. I have another series from last
year on this fantastic encyclical. But, as it is the week of Valentine's
Day, I want to emphasize real love. We have seen that God's eros for
man is also .
06 May 2012
Continuing
the discussion on Deus Caritas Est, I am reminded that just in the past
few days, the Pope asked for a review of Caritas, the umbrella Catholic
charity, as some of the things being supported are not in keeping
with ...
12 Feb 2013
Deus
Caritas Est. Posted by Supertradmum. I have another series from last
year on this fantastic encyclical. But, as it is the week of Valentine's
Day, I want to emphasize real love. We have seen that God's eros for
man is also ...
03 Dec 2013
Dt
8:3) − a conviction that demeans man and ultimately disregards all that
is specifically human.” (Encyclical Deus Caritas Est, December 25,
2005, n. 28). My mini-series on socialism and Deus Caritas Est may be
found on the ...
29 Jul 2014
Although
the Cardinal concentrates on St. John Paul II's Ecclesia de Eucharistia
and on the Pope Emeritus' Sacramentum Caritatis, he covers other
authors as well. He also examines Deus Caritas Est, mostly likely my
favorite ...
07 May 2012
The
encyclical, Deus Caritas Est, moves one's thoughts from eros, to agape,
to caritas. Now before I continue, I would like to emphasize that all
of this movement is one of the heart. The conversion of a heart to
Christ changes ...
10 Feb 2012
And,
here is the link to Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical, Deus Caritas Est as
a little valentine for all on the blog-a link and some photos of
beautiful English roses. For God so loved the world, as to give his only
begotten Son; that ...
22 Aug 2013
...
Charles I-fascinating and timely. Deus Caritas Est, third time found
here, btw
http://www.catholic.org/clife/publications/b16_encyclical_godislove.pdf.
Paper on Suarez, because I do not have his books with me found here
25 Nov 2012
A
sign of caritas in the soul, mind and heart. Posted by Supertradmum.
Matthew 5:43 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your
neighbour and hate your enemy.' 5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies
and pray ...
Hello to Readers in Andorra
I would love to visit you lovely country someday. Happy Sunday!
 |
| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andorra#mediaviewer/File:Esgl%C3%A9sia_de_Sant_Joan_de_Caselles_-_10.jpg |
A Selection from One Re-Post
For the sake of a reader, I have selected this from one of the posts on entertainment:
I have shared on this blog the great insight of Thomas Merton on the biggest danger of television-that the passivity which one approaches tv is the aspect, the gift of the mind and soul for passive prayer. The television takes over this part of the human soul and mind and perverts the natural course of learning to be passive in the Presence of God.
"I am certainly no judge of television, since I have never watched it. All I know is that there is a sufficiently general agreement, among men whose judgment I respect, that commercial television is degraded, meretricious and absurd. Certainly it would seem that TV could become a kind of unnatural surrogate for contemplation: a completely inert subjection to vulgar images, a descent to a sub-natural passivity rather than an ascent to a supremely active passivity in understanding and love. It would seem that television should be used with extreme care and discrimination by anyone who might hope to take interior life seriously." (86) Seeds of Contemplation
Think of this--that the capacity for contemplation, the capacity which God created in each person for an intimate relationship with Him, has been perverted by television and other passive forms of entertainment.
God created us for Himself, and we must protect our imaginations, minds, souls, bodies from the pollution of false ideals which flood into us through all types of entertainment.
I have shared on this blog the great insight of Thomas Merton on the biggest danger of television-that the passivity which one approaches tv is the aspect, the gift of the mind and soul for passive prayer. The television takes over this part of the human soul and mind and perverts the natural course of learning to be passive in the Presence of God.
"I am certainly no judge of television, since I have never watched it. All I know is that there is a sufficiently general agreement, among men whose judgment I respect, that commercial television is degraded, meretricious and absurd. Certainly it would seem that TV could become a kind of unnatural surrogate for contemplation: a completely inert subjection to vulgar images, a descent to a sub-natural passivity rather than an ascent to a supremely active passivity in understanding and love. It would seem that television should be used with extreme care and discrimination by anyone who might hope to take interior life seriously." (86) Seeds of Contemplation
Think of this--that the capacity for contemplation, the capacity which God created in each person for an intimate relationship with Him, has been perverted by television and other passive forms of entertainment.
God created us for Himself, and we must protect our imaginations, minds, souls, bodies from the pollution of false ideals which flood into us through all types of entertainment.
God makes new doughnuts everyday, continued...
I am slowly changing my online lifestyle.
I am not on facebook and have shut down my twitter account. I shall miss my twitter friends, especially the ones I only meet on twitter. But, move on I must.
Twitter is important for political reasons, but not really for religious reasons. There are some readers overseas who benefit from twitter, but most know how to find this blog, now.
I know the sites as to where to get news.
But, the main reason is that I am going to concentrate on fewer topics on this blog.
Fr. Z, THE blogger, can keep you all updated on the day to day Catholic life in America and even abroad. Rorate Caeli also is good, and there is Zenit, and LifeSiteNews, as well as SPUC. I also recommend The Big Pulpit and The Catholic Herald, from Great Britain.
If you all want real news, go to foreign sources. Use Drudge.
I think that my readers can move around the net as easy as I can and keep up.
My blog has mostly been on spiritual growth, on teaching people the Faith, and how to think like Catholics. Education has always been my calling.
But, like an decent college professor, who is honest, one must concentrate on a few things to be really effective.
And, as the Gates of Mordor are opening and spewing out the armies of evil in so many ways and so many lands, time is even getting shorter. I act while I have the light. But, even the Armies of the Men of the West had to reconsider what to do before the Black Gates.
One must stop and act strategically.
I am not ready to give up the blog, although the time will come when, of course, I shall. I shall know when that is, just as I knew clearly when to start, when to stop, and when to start again. I shall know when to move on, but not yet. Part of doing this blog is that I love the Church so much, and Christ, the Bridegroom, that I want to share the Truth of the majesty of the Church's teaching, and the love of Christ.
I love my readers. I love teaching and sharing the Faith. I am a natural teacher and a writer.
If I could, I would write essays for another site, not my own. But, God has blessed this blog.
So, continue to pray for me to use this platform for the New Evangelization, which I take seriously.
Many of my readers are re-verts and converts. Some are not Catholic, but are interested in the Faith.
St. Paul wrote even under house arrest. And, as you who follow me know, I feel like a "stranger in a strange land." I look to St. Paul for help in my life, as he leads all of us to act as the Church Militant. Remember, the Church Militant includes priests, nuns, monks, sisters, lay persons. St. Paul was a rabbi who became a Catholic priest, spreading the Gospel, founding churches, and finally, dying for the Faith. More than any other apostle, I see him as a model for our mobile times.
Keep praying, please. I still do not think that most Catholics understand how little time we have left for freedom of the press, freedom of speech.
Catholics and The School Year
Parents, review my posts on Common Core. If you are sending your child to a school which has adopted this, you may have to answer to God for putting your children in the big brother data base, condemning them to certain persecution in the future.
Use non-CC schools or home school
You are responsible for the souls of your children.
Use non-CC schools or home school
You are responsible for the souls of your children.
Code-Breakers and Catalysts
If you read the series on code-breakers, some of you will recognize another category, which one of my spiritual directors called that of the "catalyst".
In 1980, I was told by my then spiritual director, a Jesuit, that I was a catalyst. Now, I did not want to be a catalyst, nor do I still want to be a catalyst, but I am.
But, a catalyst "does" very little. This person is a conduit of God's mercy and grace. Why, I do not know. Catalysts make things happen to other things. Now, two points, "a catalyst is not consumed by the reaction" and "they may be inhibited, deactivated, or destroyed by secondary processes". (wiki)
The inhibitors are evil things, like horrible sins, demons, etc.
One just lives and things happen. According to the wiki article, catalysts are noted symbolically by the letter "z". I do not remember my chemistry, taken in a class so long ago, but this is interesting.
In a general sense,[16] anything that increases the rate of a process is a "catalyst", a term derived from Greek καταλύειν, meaning "to annul," or "to untie," or "to pick up."
Spiritually, to untie reminds me of Our Lady the Untier of Knots. And, to annul also means not actively untying but just quietly watching things wash away.
Some people like catalysts and some do not. I shall write more about this later.
In 1980, I was told by my then spiritual director, a Jesuit, that I was a catalyst. Now, I did not want to be a catalyst, nor do I still want to be a catalyst, but I am.
But, a catalyst "does" very little. This person is a conduit of God's mercy and grace. Why, I do not know. Catalysts make things happen to other things. Now, two points, "a catalyst is not consumed by the reaction" and "they may be inhibited, deactivated, or destroyed by secondary processes". (wiki)
The inhibitors are evil things, like horrible sins, demons, etc.
One just lives and things happen. According to the wiki article, catalysts are noted symbolically by the letter "z". I do not remember my chemistry, taken in a class so long ago, but this is interesting.
In a general sense,[16] anything that increases the rate of a process is a "catalyst", a term derived from Greek καταλύειν, meaning "to annul," or "to untie," or "to pick up."
Spiritually, to untie reminds me of Our Lady the Untier of Knots. And, to annul also means not actively untying but just quietly watching things wash away.
Some people like catalysts and some do not. I shall write more about this later.
Still Confusion on Prayer
I have written many times on the confusion in some circles as to the terms "meditation" and
"contemplation". Sadly, even some priests and nuns or sisters, who mean well, and are teaching about prayer, get these types of prayer confused.
I shall outline the differences one more time here. Look at the perfection series and tags marked as below for more posts.
The reason why the distinctions are important is not academic, but rooted in the reality of where a person is in the walk with God.
First of all, meditation is the taking of a Scripture passage and using the active imagination to enter into the Life of Christ. St. Ignatius and other saints taught this method. Meditation for the Catholic must be centered on the Incarnation, and not on anything else, above all, not one's self.
Second, there are two types of contemplation, which can be examined in greater depth through the tags.
The first type is "active contemplation", where one puts one's self in the Presence of God, such as before the Eucharist in the Monstrance and one becomes quiet and focused. In active contemplation, one may contemplate on the Attributes of God, and not on the Scriptures. One is reflecting without the aid of anything else. Again, one can follow the tags to the posts on the Attributes of God.
I do not recommend setting a stage for active contemplation, as one should move beyond the externals.
For example, some teachers insist on active contemplation being done with candles or other symbols.
I strongly recommend only the Crucifix if anything. Why? Because when one practiced active contemplation, one can do it anywhere...in a bus station, or in a train.
One merely needs to go into one's little cell of the mind and heart.
The third type of prayer is "infused contemplation" or "passive contemplation", which is totally a gift from God. One cannot "do" this by will. God comes to the person, either in a very short period of time, or longer times. This is not the same as ecstasy, which is the complete taking over of all the senses and soul in God. Infused contemplation would be happening in the unitive state, or in the later stages of the illuminative state.
I am still concerned, after years of addressing this, that there is confusion. One must follow the stages in the normal course of events. Can God intervene and lead someone directly to infused contemplation? Of course, but that person would be one of extreme purity of heart, mind, and soul.
Do not use these terms in a lax manner. Some priests and nuns or sisters confuse those who come to prayer workshops, or at retreats by mixing up the terms. In the Catholic Church, we have been given a long history of spiritual writings back to the Gospels and Epistles on these types of prayer.
Be careful not to be deceived about these types of prayer. The purity of the pray-er determines the type of prayer. If one is a beginner, meditation grounds one in the Incarnation, which is good.
If one is involved in active contemplation, one has learned how to get rid of extraneous noises and thoughts and focus on Christ and the goodness of God. Contemplation finally leads to the Prayer of Quiet, another misunderstood level, which, if one looks at the posts against Quietism, is not that, but the taking over of the senses and spirit by God, when one is led into the quiet garden of His love.
It is the interior life of the person which determines the level of prayer. In other words, the exterior follows the interior.
Too many people still are confused on the terms, which is why I prefer Garrigou-Lagrange and St. John of the Cross, who are, in my opinion, the clearest on these levels.
In passive contemplation, Christ takes over, even for a few minutes. One knows the difference once one has experienced this.
Some people are brought into passive contemplation when reading, or even listening to music, but it is the Will and action of God, not one's self.
Infused knowledge of the Scriptures can come at all three stages: meditation, active contemplation, and passive contemplation.
Those young saints who were pure of heart, body and soul experienced the higher levels of prayer. Age has nothing to do with it. There are some older people, even elderly, who are still beginners, only saying vocal prayers and not attempting meditation. Sadly, they have been taught, incorrectly, that only nuns, sister, monks and priests do this sort of thing.
So, there are two extremes of faulty teaching: one that the laity should not attempt the levels of prayer, which is against the teaching of the Church; and, two, the sloppiness of definitions which not only confuse people but can lead to deceit.
The devil disguised as an angel of light and watching us daily, carefully, can make one deceived as to the real level of prayer one is attaining. Without the corresponding purification, one is not "otr" to the higher levels or prayer.
And, God wants all to finally come without intermediaries-without other saints or writers, but in the intimate relationship He desires us all to come into through the seeking of perfection.
Saturday, 9 August 2014
Popular Repeat Post 5
Thursday, 5 December 2013
Be watchful, but do not watch Hollywood...
Many social commentators, including Christians, see the 1960s as the turning point in American morals.
I disagree.
Looking at some of the cultural icons in fashion and entertainment from
thirty years earlier, I have discovered several trends which were
already forming the minds of youth as early as the mid-thirties. My
mini-thesis is that what happened in the sixties was already in the
culture, already becoming main-stream.
In the past few weeks, I have been doing a little reflection on this blog on entertainment. I have been introduced to a short history of entertainment in America, and I have been truly shocked at what I have been discovering.
If one actually listens to the words of songs and follows stories, one sees the unraveling of morals much earlier than most people want to admit.
We have an idea of an America which was morally homogeneous before WWII. This is not true.
As earlier as the mid-1930s, loose sexual morality was more than hinted at in famous movies, such as the famous ones of Fred Astaire. I want to list some of the serious anti-Christian points made in movies which were supposed to be entertainment, and not serious drama since about 1935.
The reason why such a reflection is important is that the movies were aimed at taking people out of the sadness of the financial depression and also to prepare them for war, as the war effort in manufacturing began years before America actually came into WWII.
This is happening now, as people are still using movies and television to escape from the reality of the spiritual life and the reality of hardships.
Here are some of the points I have gleaned by examining some of the most popular movies of the 1930s and 1940s.
One, men were already being depicted as weak in sexual matters, and sex before marriage was strongly hinted at, if not portrayed.
Two, men did not want to get married and were frequently tricked into it by the scheming women.
Three, women and men did not reveal respectful relationships, speaking rudely with each other and being sarcastic.
Four,
entertainment was being pushed within entertainment, in obvious
self-promotion. How many movies actually involved stories about plays,
shows, dances, etc., revealing this obsession with promoting Hollywood?
Five, marriage was based on sex and not on homemaking or children.
Six,
lies in relationships were common and accepted as either cute or
necessary. Lying was used to get the girl or get the man and so on.
Seven, selfishness were rewarded in men especially.
Eight, women were portrayed as having to pretend to be stupid in order to "get the guy".
Nine, yelling in movies and even arguing was considered normal in couples who were supposed to be in love.
Ten,
rarely were children discussed as part of the future marriages and, in
fact, many of the couples just went into show-business; see point four.
Eleven, women had to manipulate "to get the guy", either in lying, or in changing their looks or even compromising their ideals.
Twelve, romance never, never included God or a spiritual dimension.
Twelve, romance never, never included God or a spiritual dimension.
All
of these American characteristics show a contempt of most of the
virtues. They relationships between the couples depended on exterior
beauty and sex.
Now, some readers would say these early movies were harmless. I disagree.
The
formation of conscience is a delicate and steady process. The
conscience needs to be cultivated with a long perspective of truth and
prayer.
Sadly,
in the States, billions of dollars has been spent over the last century
on entertainment. Gone by the 1930s were the ideals of family, brought
back briefly after the War, when people were settling down again.
I
challenge readers to really listen to the words of the songs that were
sung, the attitudes in the relationships, and the general atmosphere of
the stories.
A
culture does not suddenly decay. The process is long and complicated. I
would state that several generations, before the wild sixties, engaged
in watching stories which were just as damaging as those thirty years
later.
to be continued....
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