Recommended article by Buchanan, one of my heroes

http://buchanan.org/blog/the-antietam-of-the-culture-war-5074?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PatrickBuchanan+%28Pat+Buchanan+Update%29

A Switch in Attitude

Many prophetic writers, including Christopher Dawson and Hilaire Belloc told us over 80 years ago of the now-obvious trials of Christians in the world. One of the great insights of Belloc was the rise of militant, jihadist Islam. Another prophecy from the 1920s was the spread of socialism interfering with education and the family as the unit of society. Yet another far-reaching view was Robert Hugh Benson's excellent book Lord of the World, mentioned before on this blog and written in, wow, 1907.

Pay attention, as the man or woman who will supposedly bring peace to a world in chaos by himself, on his own, without recourse to Christ and His One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, will be the false prophet. Some will call him one of the many anti-Christs, who is anyone, from Antiochus, to Augustus, to Nero, to Stalin and Mao who have hated the Church and Her Members.

Pay attention to false promises of world order. The Prince of the World is not Christ, but he who said  "I shall not serve". We need a change of attitude.

Now, we must work very hard for political freedom, religious rights, and the freedom of the Church to be in the world as a power, the physical institution created by Christ. As I pointed out this weekend, passivity and quietism of any types are heresies. However, we need a change of attitude.

We need to see ourselves increasingly marginalized and under siege, not in order to become paranoid, but to be "intelligent" and using our brains. Catholics MUST become more techy, using the Internet, twitter, and all the social networking while we can. This is a necessity. Secondly, we must make our local communities strong and loving. This means real community, day to day living with and bearing with our brothers and sisters in Christ, not merely being Sunday Catholics. Sunday Catholics will not survive the onslaught of marginalization and persecution.

Those in America who have said it can't happen here, or Catholics in England, who have forgotten their own Recusant History, need to wake up.

The world, in my lifetime, will never be the same and will never be a haven of peace and goodwill towards religion. The only religion will be the religion which worships the State. We are entering the Age of the Martyrs. We need to be open and prepared to make choices for God and His Church.

A Rose for My Readers

As I am thinking of St. Therese and her family today, praying for their intercession, I thought I would write about my favorite rose. I love the blue rose. Some of you may have noticed this. There is only one natural, albeit, formed by man, blue rose, the Applause, seen here  which was developed in Japan, and finally on sale last November in America. It is really lavender but considered blue. Lavender is the color of romance and love, but the blue rose has many, varied meanings.

I love this rose, and also those which are made to be dark blue. However, the dark blue rose has mysterious origins, as some historians state that there was such a rose in the Medieval Period in the Far East.

I repeat an ancient love tale of a princess who could not decide whom to marry. She decided that whosoever would bring her a blue rose would be her husband. The first man to come was a king, who had a rose made out of sapphire. The young princess saw this as hard and cold, and believed it revealed his cold and hard heart, that he wanted to marry her only for her riches. She said no.

A nobleman came with a rose which has been dyed through its stem, and the young woman saw this as deceitful, like the heart of the man who gave it to her. She said no.

Another prince had a fragile, porcelain bowl made with a rose embellished on the side of it, an intricate blue rose. This was not real, and the princess saw that his love was not real, but that he only wanted power and status, not her love.

Finally, the young gardener of the palace, a young man who had been the friend and confidant of this princess all her life, brought her a white rose. He came into the palace room where the court waited and held the rose up to a blue glass window. The sun's rays made the white rose blue, and the princess discovered her true heart was his heart-simplicity and truth, nature and beauty. She and the gardener were married and lived happily ever after. As there was no blue rose, only those with the eyes of love could find one.

But, now, there is Applause, and those dark blue ones which are made by humans. The blue rose represents mystery, desiring the unattainable, spirituality, adventure, and love at first sight. May St. Therese give you a rose today of any color. St. Therese, pray for us.

For the Intercession of Blessed Louis and Zelie Martin

Some families have been traumatized lately. Some for financial reasons, and some for reasons of the heart, such as grief in deaths, illnesses, or brokenness in marriages. Today, I also think of the many post-abortive women, who have covered up their sin and grief, and pretended all their lives as if nothing has happened when they aborted their babies.

I think that Louis and Zelie Martin would be good patrons for all the families who are experiencing a terrible time. I think of all the babies they lost through illness. Zelie may be a good intercessor for post-abortive women.

Louis and Zelie are two favorite blesseds of mine, and secondary patrons of this blog along with many others, including their great daughter, St. Therese the Little Flower. On October 19th, 2008, the Martins were only the second married couple to be beatified together in the long history of the Church. (Trivia quiz: who were the first?)

Throughout hard times, this married couple not only exhibited heroic virtue, but raised saints, and grew in holiness. I pray for all men and women who want to be saints and for all families today in these hard times. Louis and Zelie Martin, pray for us. Please pray for all women who have had abortions. Pray for our nations, and especially France and England.

Prayer for the Canonisation of Louis and Zélie Martin and to obtain favours through their intercession: 

God Our Father,  thank You for having given us Blessed Louis and Zélie Martin, the parents of St. Therese. United and faithful in marriage, they have left us an example of Christain living and evangelical virtue. In raising a large family through trials, suffering and bereavement, they put their trust in You and always sought Your will.

Deign, Lord, to make known Your will in their regard and grant the favour I ask, in the hope that the father and mother of St. Therese of the Child Jesus of the Holy Face, may soon be canonised and thereby held up to the Universal  Church as  models for the families of our time. Through Christ Our Lord, Amen

(Here  mention your request)