Take time to read the mini-series from last week and other posts. Many things happening, as time and events seem to be speeding up.
Do not lose heart.
Do not be afraid.
Read, pray, reflect, share....writing from the asthma-free zone.
Monday, 20 October 2014
Big Post Month
Because of all the chaos and even some resolution, my list of posts is one of the longest for any month to date.
Take time to read the mini-series from last week and other posts. Many things happening, as time and events seem to be speeding up.
Do not lose heart.
Do not be afraid.
Read, pray, reflect, share....writing from the asthma-free zone.
Take time to read the mini-series from last week and other posts. Many things happening, as time and events seem to be speeding up.
Do not lose heart.
Do not be afraid.
Read, pray, reflect, share....writing from the asthma-free zone.
Hmmmm
All the news in the past week reminds me of the Georgia Guildstones. Just in case you forgot about these: from wiki, as is the photo...Not the Ten Commandments but a naturalistic, human-centered, social engineering monument. YUCKY, as connected also to sun-worship and possibly NWO.
from wiki....
A message consisting of a set of ten guidelines or principles is engraved on the Georgia Guidestones in eight different languages, one language on each face of the four large upright stones. Moving clockwise around the structure from due north, these languages are: English, Spanish, Swahili, Hindi, Hebrew, Arabic, Chinese, and Russian.
- Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.
- Guide reproduction wisely — improving fitness and diversity.
- Unite humanity with a living new language.
- Rule passion — faith — tradition — and all things with tempered reason.
- Protect people and nations with fair laws and just courts.
- Let all nations rule internally resolving external disputes in a world court.
- Avoid petty laws and useless officials.
- Balance personal rights with social duties.
- Prize truth — beauty — love — seeking harmony with the infinite.
- Be not a cancer on the earth — Leave room for nature — Leave room for nature.
Read this, skeptics.
http://www.dcclothesline.com/2014/10/10/details-mandatory-ebola-vaccines-will-soon-reality/
Vaccine cards to me are a no-no.
Vaccine cards to me are a no-no.
Meditating on The Synod
The synod in the past week represented more of a synodia than a synodos. But, are not both definitions true? The Church at large now sees the great divisions many of us have seen locally. Those with a "gay agenda" are trying to steer Holy Mother Church way from the truth concerning marriage and the family.
But, a synodia has to go somewhere, a pilgrimage always has a goal. And, a true pilgrimage must be penitential.
Some leaders want synodia not synodos. Some want constant change and new horizons in doctrine or even pastoral care.
Of course, despite the cries of the travelling caravan, this will not happen-there will be no changes in doctrine, as the Holy Spirit rules the Church, not men. If men do not listen to the Spirit, and follow their own caravan, schism will happen.
What then becomes obvious is the remnant, the recusant Church, led by those who love Christ, His Church, tradition, doctrine.
Christ as a twelve-year-old, knowing fully Whose Son He was and is, left the pilgrim community to join those in the Temple, where the Father dwelt with the Spirit in Shekinah glory.
At some time, mature Catholics must choose to leave the pilgrim community and join those who are settled in truth, in faith.
The existentialist Catholic denies absolute truth.
Pilgrimages by definition are temporary, not permanent, and the relationships within the caravans are not permanent, but temporary. Jesus returned with His Mother and foster father, Joseph, to the place of His growth in wisdom and grace. The Incarnate One, Who knew He was God and Man, stayed as Truth to His call.
Christ firmly established His Church on earth so that each one of us have a place of safety, a place wherein God dwells.
Those who insist on synodia rather than synodos may find themselves constantly moving, thrust to and fro in the waves of worldly opinion.
Let us pray for even the most liberal and deluded of cardinals. As long as there is life, there is a chance for repentance and change, from movement to stability, from liberalism to conservatism, from false hopes to true hope in Christ's Church.
When We Let God Be God
Things do not happen as we plan when we honestly let God into our lives. One of the steps of humility in St. Benedict, on which St. Bernard comments is the leaving of self-determination.
Now, in the West, especially in America, self-determination is seen as a number one virtue.
Relying on Divine Providence cannot be understood by most Westerners.
But, rely on God we must.
God puts us, if we really want to be saints, in situations which are painfully uncomfortable.
Even areas where we thought God might be leading us could be misconstrued, because we have not put on the Mind of Christ.
When we can honestly say, "If God wants me to do this or be with this person or have this, OK, if not, OK" then we have achieved death of self. Over the past eleven days, several things have happened against my desires and my will. These things are out of my control, but I have had to sit down, pray, reflect, and die to self, to my own visions of things, even to needs.
God is in charge of every detail of our lives, even our needs, not merely our wants.
For me to be publicly humiliated in the past eleven days has been a real dying to self. The middle-class continues to judge the poor and needy, assuming fault when there is none. This is part of my humiliation and for those who have experienced this, one knows how this feels.
Job's friends found themselves corrected by God as they continued to blame some secret failing on Job's horrific suffering. Job's wife basically did not support his ''faith journey" as she told him to curse God and die. She lost her faith, but Job did not. He endured until God revealed Who He Is.
God used Job to show us that God is in charge of everything, pain and sorrow, hunger and thirst, plenty and prosperity. But, more than that, God used Job to show how we must endure in the face of complete failure and utter ruin.
Too often we decide every detail of our lives to the point of ignoring those hints from God as to His ways, His plans.
No one can accuse me of not knowing first-hand the sufferings of death of self. What I do with these lessons depends on my gratitude and total reliance on God. What I must do is always conform my mind to the Mind of Christ. He does not care whether I am comfortable or not. He cares that I become holy. The purging of the imagination and memory leads to the purification of the will.
God is in charge. But, often, we must endure inexplicable suffering. Endurance and trust in spite of what things are or look like is another step of humility.
Gratitude creates a generous heart and a generous heart can respond to God quickly, easily.
"They kingdom come, thy will be done" we say daily. For some of us, this is a reality, not merely a prayer.
Some readers did not believe me before....
http://www.secretsofthefed.com/map-of-800-fema-camps-in-the-us/
Yes, Boring to Some/Necessary for Others
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| Thanks to Wiki |
One of my regular readers just said to me recently-"You are writing on false seers again?"
She is sick of reading all the posts with labels or tags "private revelation". I do not blame her. The problem, however, is epidemic.
But, the faithful are being led astray and some of those who are the best Catholics have fallen into nests of lies.
Besides the lure of Gnosticism, one of the sins which lead one into following false seers is that of "curiosity". This may be the primal sin of Eve, who had all the knowledge she needed not to even listen to the snake-satan.
The Holy Spirit has given us the Gospels for our knowledge of Christ. We do not need more. If we crave more, it may mean that God is calling you to a deeper prayer life wherein He will show Himself to you.
Follow the tags and labels on private revelations. heresies, heresy and so on. There are at least 150 posts against false and condemned private revelations.
If you want to be a saint, be obedient
24 Jul 2014
Our lot is a reality, the works of our calling are real, as long as they are done as a service to obedience. Within these bounds there is nothing which does not bear upon Eternity....Obedience to the will of God is work of direct ...
06 Aug 2013
Now, I am not going to refer to members of religious orders, who take vows of obedience, or secular priests, who are to obey their bishops as their direct pastors. I want to discuss our relationship to our bishops and other ...
03 Sep 2012
The first degree of humility is obedience without delay. This becometh those who, on account of the holy subjection which they have promised, or of the fear of hell, or the glory of life everlasting, hold nothing dearer than Christ.
31 Mar 2013
We do not owe obedience in actions of the Pope or cardinals or bishops or priests which are not in keeping with the teaching of the Church. For example, we do not have to agree with Assisi, 1986, nor go to like services.
26 Apr 2012
I am grateful for the book Spiritual Theology, by Fr. Jordan Aumann OP,, who quotes a letter from St. Ignatius of Loyola, on obedience. The letter was written on March 16, 1553 in Rome to the brothers and priests in the Jesuits ...
04 Apr 2013
A few more areas where the laity must be obedient are these: 1) when your confessor gives you absolution, you must obey; 2) if your local diocese or the council of bishops in your country declares a holy day of obligation or ...
24 Jan 2013
Four, obedience leads to a submission to God's Will-if one can give up one's will in small things, God will allow one to learn to give up in large areas for greater sanctification. Five, obedience can lead to a totally Christ-centred ...
02 Aug 2014
Over and over again, the Doctors of the Church insist that obedience is the main route to holiness. Bernard in Sermon 46:5 writes this: "Do not imagine that, out of the love of your own leisure, you have the right to omit an act of ...
03 Sep 2013
This post will help with obedience. This is a continuation of a question and comment begun in comments on the last post on home schooling advice. First of all, this author has done a great job synthesizing Montessori on the ...
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To help a reader...one more false seer
IS "THE POEM OF THE MAN-GOD" SIMPLY A BAD NOVEL? Maria Valtorta's multi-volume life of Jesus flirts with heresy and exhibits bad taste. Its claim to authenticity have been rejected by Rome. by Father Mitch Pacwa, S.J. "The Poem of the Man-God" is a five-volume "narrative" of the life of Jesus written in the 1940s by a sickly Italian woman named Maria Valtorta. "Poem" purports to fill in the details of Jesus' life left blank by the four Gospels. Such narratives have been produced since the second century A.D. Some were written by gnostic heretics. Some by New Agers and occultists. And some were produced by pious Christians who made up stories about Jesus to edify their readers and listeners. The four Gospels do not give a biography of Jesus--or of anyone else in His life. Their purpose is evangelical and theological--to proclaim the Good News that human beings need for their salvation. Thus, for centuries, the "hidden life" of Jesus has been the subject for speculation. "The Poem of the Man-God" is in this tradition of apocryphal literature on New Testament themes. Valtorta claimed that she was the "secretary" of Jesus and Mary, and was setting down the divinely inspired truth about Jesus' life. The Church has rejected this claim. Nevertheless, "Poem" has become quite popular, particularly among Catholics as well. Remarkably, the book has grown in popularity in part because its champions claim that high Church officials--including one Pope--endorsed it. They haven't. In fact, "Poem" was included on the Index of Forbidden books until the abolition of the Index in the 1960s. No less an authority than Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, reiterates the Church's rejection of the claims made for "The Poem of the Man-God." How did "The Poem of the Man-God" come to be, and how has the notion become widely accepted that it contains important religious truth? Maria Valtorta, author of "Poem," was born in 1897 into a sadly dysfunctional family, where she suffered emotional abuse at the hands of a despotic mother. When she was 23, she was attacked and beaten by a mugger. She was never completely well after that. From 1933 on, she was unable to leave her bed. Maria began to receive "dictations" on Good Friday, 1943. In 1947, she handed over 10,000 handwritten pages to her spiritual director, Father Romuald Migliorini, O.S.M. Father Migliorini typed them and Father Corrado Berti, O.S.M. bound them. Fr. Berti, brought them to Father later Cardinal Augustin Bea, S.J., spiritual director to Pope Pius XII. Did Pope Pius read the whole manuscript or parts? If only part, which part? Advertisements by the Canadian Central distributors for Valtorta (CEDIVAL) quote Father Bea: "I have read in typed manuscripts many of the books written by Maria Valtorta . . . As far as exegesis is concerned, I did not find any errors in the parts which I examined." Notice, he read only parts of the books. Which were they? On Feb. 26, 1948, Fathers Migliorini, Berti and A. Cecchin enjoyed a private audience with Pope Pius XII, as listed in L'Osservatore Romano's daily announcement of audiences. Standing in St. Peter's Square after the audience, Father Berti wrote down Pope Pius' words as he remembered them. These words were "not" printed in L'Osservatore Romano, but Father Berti remembered the Pope saying: "Publish this work as it is. There is no need to give an opinion about its origin, whether it be extraordinary or not. Who reads it, will understand. One hears of many visions and revelations. I will not say they are all authentic; but there are some of which it could be said that they are." CEDIVAL calls this a "Supreme Pontifical Imprimatur," where "he took upon himself to pass the first official judgment on these writings." CEDIVAL glues this inside the cover, though the publisher does not print an imprimatur. The reason: it has none! Confident of papal approval, Father Berti brought the books to the Vatican press. However, in 1949, two commissioners of the Holy Office, Msgr. Giovanni Pepe and Father Berruti, O.P., condemned the "Poem," ordering Berti to hand over every copy and sign an agreement not to publish it. Father Berti returned the manuscripts to Valtorta and handed over only his typed versions. Despite his signed promise, in 1952 Father Berti went to publisher Emiliano Pisani. Though aware of the Holy Office's opposition, Pisani printed the first volume in 1956, and a new volume each year through 1959. When volume four appeared, the Holy Office examined the "Poem" and condemned it, recommending that it be placed on the Index of Forbidden Books Dec. 16, 1959. Pope John XXIII signed the decree and ordered it published. L'Osservatore Romano, on Jan. 6, 1960, printed the condemnation with an accompanying front-page article, "A Badly Fictionalized Life of Jesus," to explain it. The article complained that the "Poem" broke Canon Law. "Though they treat exclusively of religious issues, these volumes do not have an "imprimatur," which is required by Canon 1385, sect. 1, n. 2." Second, the long speeches of Jesus and Mary starkly contrast with the evangelists, who portray Jesus as "humble, reserved; His discourses are lean, incisive." Valtorta's fictionalized history makes Jesus sound "like a chatterbox, always ready to proclaim Himself the Messiah and the Son of God," or teach theology in modern terms. The Blessed Mother speaks like a "propagandist" for modern Marian theology. Third, "some passages are rather risque," like the "immodest" dance before Pilate (vol. 5, p. 73). There are "many historical, geographical and other blunders." For instance, Jesus uses screwdrivers (Vol. 1, pp. 195, 223), centuries before screws existed. There are theological errors, as when "Jesus says" (vol. 1, p. 30) that Eve's temptation consisted in arousing her flesh, as the serpent sensuously "caressed" her. While she "began the sin by herself," she "accomplished it with her companion." Sun Myung Moon and Maria Valtorta may claim the first sin was sexual, but Scripture does not. Vol. 1, p. 7, oddly claims, "Mary can be called the 'second-born' of the Father . . ." Her explanation limits the meaning, avoiding evidence of an authentic heresy; but it does not take away the basic impression that she wants to construct a new mariology, which simply goes beyond the limits of propriety." "Another strange and imprecise statement" made of Mary (vol. 4, p. 240) is that she will "be second to Peter with regard to ecclesiastical hierarchy. . . " Our Lady surpasses St. Peter's holiness, but she is not in the hierarchy, let alone second to St. Peter. Further, Valtorta did not claim to write a novel, but called herself a "secretary" of Jesus and Mary, so, "in all parts on reads the words 'Jesus says. . .' or 'Mary says . . .'" The Church takes this claim to revelation very seriously, since it has the God-given duty to discern what is or is not truly from the Holy Spirit. In Valtorta's case, the Church decided against Divine inspiration. Finally, "Poem" is condemned for reasons of disobedience. Competent Church authority had prohibited the printing of Valtorta's work. Pope John's approval of the condemnation of the "Poem of the Man-God" should have ended the issue, but it did not. The publishers printed a second edition of 10 volumes, which the Church condemned in another front-page article in L'Osservatore Romano, Dec. 1, 1961. This second Italian edition was later translated into German, French, Spanish and English. CEDIVAL asserts that a "modernist clan in the Church" . . . "surreptitiously attempted to seize the manuscripts and destroy them," claiming "firsthand documentation on this." These "enemies" included Msgr. Pepe and Father Berruti, the Holy Office censors. I asked the head of CEDIVAL, Prof. Leo Brodeur, for evidence that Msgr. Pepe and Father Berruti held any modernist heresies, but he had none. He assumed they were modernists because the "Poem" claims "to help the Church fight against the terrible heresy of modernism." If the "Poem's enemies are modernists, Msgr. Pepe and Father Berruti must be modernists, too. Such assertions are unacceptable. Accusations of modernism or any other heresy without proof is slander. Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, present head of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (formerly the same office that condemned the "Poem"), informed Cardinal Siri in 1985 of the "Poem's condemnation: After the dissolution of the Index, when some people thought the printing and distribution of the work was permitted, they were reminded again in L'Osservatore Romano (June 15, 1966) that "The Index retains its moral force despite its dissolution." More recently (April 17, 1993, Prot. N. 144/58i), he wrote: "The 'visions' and 'dictations' referred to in the work, "The Poem of the Man-God," are simply the literary forms used by the author to narrate in her own way the life of Jesus. They cannot be considered supernatural in origin." The best that can be said for "The Poem of the Man-God" is that it is a bad novel. This was summed up in the L'Osservatore Romano headline, which called the book "A Badly Fictionalized Life of Jesus." At worst, "Poem's" impact is more serious. Though many people claim that "Poem" helps their faith or their return to reading Scripture, they are still being disobedient to the Church's decisions regarding the reading of "Poem." How can such disregard for Church authority and wisdom be a help in renewing the Church in these difficult times? When Catholics insist on reading "Poem," despite Church condemnation, I make these requests: First, read three hours of Scripture for every one hour spent in the "Poem." The Church guarantees that the Bible is God's Word, inspired by the Holy Spirit. The Church has judged the "Poem" to be a poorly done human work. Second, read solid Catholic theology books in addition to Scripture. G.K. Chesterton, Frank Sheed, Archbishop Sheen's "Life of Christ" and many other works are excellent starts. Third, maintain a strong prayer life, drawing closer to Christ Jesus, Our Lord, at Mass and at eucharistic adoration, and to our Blessed Mother Mary, especially in the Rosary. If sheep insist on bad pasturage, at least let them take antidotes. This article appeared in February 1994 edition of "New Covenant"
Note from Supertradmum
I was given one of the volumes in the early 1980s in America and immediately got that queasy, "This is not good" feeling. I looked briefly at it and decided it was not from God even before I read the condemnation of the books. People, stay close to God and you will have discernment.
Monks at St.Catherine's Persecuted
Prayers needed for these monks in one of the most ancient monasteries in the world.
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2014/10/muslims-raid-demand-jizya-from-ancient-st-catherines-monastery-on-sinai
one point...In his interview with the website, a monk from St. Catherine’s Monastery, Hieromonk Gregory, related a more striking demarche of the “Ikhwan” (“of Muslim brotherhood”) authorities against the monastery and its brothers:
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2014/10/muslims-raid-demand-jizya-from-ancient-st-catherines-monastery-on-sinai
one point...In his interview with the website, a monk from St. Catherine’s Monastery, Hieromonk Gregory, related a more striking demarche of the “Ikhwan” (“of Muslim brotherhood”) authorities against the monastery and its brothers:
“While still under president Morsi, a retired colonel named Ahmad Radjai Atiye brought an action against the monastery. In it he accused us of ‘encroachments on state land’. It was found that we had ‘illegally constructed’ in 2006 many monastery churches, which in reality date to the time of the Holy Emperor Justinian I (527-565)!
“The local government, dependent on “the Muslim Brothers”, issued 71 decrees for the demolition of the fourth-century’s churches, giving Atiye’s action a chance to get ahead; and so already at the highest level the indictment confirmed the claimant’s lie”.
And they are being taxed with the infidel tax
“The only pseudo-juridical instance in the desert is the Arab tribes’ court that has levied a tax of 150,000 Egyptian pounds (about 21,000 USD) on the monks,”
Two important articles including one which is a persecution watch
http://pjmedia.com/blog/5-ways-bill-maher-is-right-and-reza-aslan-wrong-about-islam/
AND persecution in the UK Look at this Telegraph article as well. VIP
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/11173102/Christian-school-downgraded-for-failing-to-invite-an-imam-to-lead-assembly.html
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2014/10/uk-christian-school-downgraded-for-failing-to-invite-an-imam-to-lead-assembly
AND persecution in the UK Look at this Telegraph article as well. VIP
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/11173102/Christian-school-downgraded-for-failing-to-invite-an-imam-to-lead-assembly.html
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2014/10/uk-christian-school-downgraded-for-failing-to-invite-an-imam-to-lead-assembly
A successful Christian school has been warned it is to be downgraded by inspectors and could even face closure after failing to invite a leader from another religion, such as an imam, to lead assemblies, it is claimed.
The small independent school in the Home Counties was told it is in breach of new rules intended to promote “British values” such as individual liberty and tolerance in the wake of the Trojan Horse scandal, involving infiltration by hard-line Muslim groups in Birmingham.
Details of the case are disclosed in a letter to the Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan, from the Christian Institute, which is providing legal support to the school.
The group warned that the new rules intended to combat extremism are already having “disturbing consequences” for religious schools and forcing Ofsted inspectors to act in a way which undermines their ethos.
It follows complaints from orthodox Jewish schools about recent inspections in which girls from strict traditional backgrounds were allegedly asked whether they were being taught enough about lesbianism, whether they had boyfriends and if they knew where babies came from.
Role of religion in schools under pressure after Trojan Horse scandal
14 Aug 2014
14 Aug 2014
In the latest case inspectors are understood to have warned the head that the school, which was previously rated as “good” that it would be downgraded to “adequate” for failing to meet standards requiring it to “actively promote” harmony between different faiths because it had failed to bring in representatives from other religions.
They warned that unless the school could demonstrate how it was going to meet the new requirements there would be a further full inspection which could ultimately lead to it being closed.
A Government consultation paper published in June, explaining the new rules, makes clear that even taking children on trips to different places of worship would not be enough to be judged compliant.
The Institute, which is already planning a legal challenge to the consultation, arguing that it was rushed through during the school holidays, fears that the new guidelines could be used to clamp down on the teaching of anything deemed politically incorrect on issues such as marriage.
“Worryingly, evidence is already emerging of how the new regulations are requiring Ofsted inspection teams to behave in ways which do not respect the religious ethos of faith schools,” Simon Calvert, deputy director of the Christian Institute, told Mrs Morgan.
“The new requirements are infringing the rights of children, parents, teachers and schools to hold and practise their religious beliefs.”
Listing recent cases involving criticism of Anglican, Roman Catholic and Jewish schools by Ofsted, he added: “The Christian Institute is currently working with an independent Christian School which has been marked down by Ofsted for not promoting other faiths.
“Astonishingly it was told it should invite representatives of other faith groups to lead assemblies and lessons, such as an Imam.
“The wording of the regulations inevitably results in these kind of outcomes.
“While we obviously support attempts to address the problem of radicalisation, the current regulations fail to do this.”…
Sigh, need help from watchful readers
In the past year, I posted a video from an American expert on diseases who clearly knew that the Ebola crisis was, at least in part, engineered.
I remember discussing this with one of my friends married to a doctor.
Does anyone recall this post and date? I am missing the tag.
I remember discussing this with one of my friends married to a doctor.
Does anyone recall this post and date? I am missing the tag.
2012 Repost
Sunday, 2 December 2012
Do you want to know what subversion is? This is brilliant.
If you have time, a prophetic video by ex-KGB Yuri Bezmenov. Gramscian....from a friend. American freedom is gone. Here is why. By the way, he states the going back to religion is the only way to change the fast route to tyranny.
Brezmenov states there are three stages to tyranny, which should look all too familiar to us today.
First stage is demoralization. It takes between 15-20 years to do this-one generation of students. There are tendencies in every country against the moral principles of the nation and the infiltrators take advantage of all of these. As to religion, he said ridicule it. Undermine it. The accepted religious dogma is eroded. Listen carefully to what he says. Friendship is replaced by social workers, etc. Fascinating. His take on the media being successful because mediocre is great. There is more, much more on this point. Why did no one pay attention? He states that the action of unions is only for the furtherance of ideology. Yes, I have thought this for a while as well. He said it in 1983. He description of relativism is brilliant.
President Elect Obama stated this after his first election: "We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America."
Second stage is distablization. Here Yuri states that the same functions of society, such as law and order, the economy and the military are involved here. No compromise is possible at this point. This is where America is with abortion, contraception, homosexuality, and even states' rights. This is the radicalization of human relations--student and teachers, husband and wife, employers and employees, police and people, army and civilians and so on. Society becomes more antagonistic and the media takes the side against the society at large. He talks of the sleepers who all of the sudden become leaders--does this sound familiar--a president who came out of nowhere. Here he refers to human rights, civil rights groups involved in crisis. When the legitimate hierarchy cannot function any more, these artificial bodies or groups step in and rule the society-social workers, media, etc. He refers to Iran and the revolutionary committees which toppled the government. The population at large looks for a saviour, a messiah to get out of the crisis. Watch this! VIP.
There are two alternatives: civil war or invasion. He gives Lebanon as an example, if you know your history.
Third Stage is normalization. This is ironic. Yuri refers to the Czech take-over after the Czech Spring by the Soviets and all those who helped with the revolution were killed. No revolution is necessary. This sounds like Egypt today. This is also brilliant. This is KGB teaching. Yuri also refers to Afghanistan and the killing of a series of people who took the country to these stages and then killed and were killed-Marxists killing the leaders. No democracy is possible any more, but tyranny at this point takes over. Remember Grenada, which became a Soviet base? Liberals get upset at these actions. This is coming all too soon, folks. We shall watch this or fight it. For Catholics, there is only evangelizing and now, plus working on our own perfection.
Signs of The Times
Some of us have a "gut reaction" to false seers. Some of us figure out who is false simply by reading statements in light of Church doctrine and comparing falsity with truth.
But, I have one really clear message for those who are susceptible to false prophets, false seers.
Obey the Church.
If the Church has not approved something, do not follow that person or set of events.
Simple.
There are plenty of approved apparitions and private revelations. One does not have to go after what I call "the flavor of the month".
Remember the words of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Matthew 24:24Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
I am concerned about two things regarding false seers.
One, disobedience in one area of one's spiritual life leads to disobedience in other areas. Disobedience is a serious sin.
Two, when the last great deceiving anti-Christ comes, (there have been many), he will be believed by signs and wonders. If a person is inclined to see signs and wonders as always being from God, one will be deceived by the anti-Christ.
Notice that Christ referred to the false Christs in the plural. Too often, it is those who are pious and want to become holy who get caught up in false prophets.
But, I have a theory on this problem of being deceived. I believe those who are susceptible to false seers, false apparitions and false prophets have some hidden sin in their lives which they are not facing which interferes with their gift of discernment from God.
Deceiving one's self about sin leads to more sin. This is one reason we must root out our predominant fault. As long as it is in our soul, mind, imagination, memory and understanding, we are vulnerable to sin.
Christ, Our Lord, warned us. This is the time in history when we see more false prophets and false seers than ever before. Be wise. Ask God to hone your gift of discernment.
My rule of thumb is this: if the Church has not positively approved an apparition, prophet or seer, I do not follow such.
Simple. I wait for the Church to tell me who is from God. In the Church, I am protected.
I have known Catholics who have left the Church following false seers, false messages.
That is the reason why satan raises up those who teach things contrary to the Church's Magisterium.
Do not fall prey to the Deceiver. Remember, he does not care how one goes to hell, just so that a person does go to hell. Remember, satan is the god of this world. And false seers are of this world-seeking power, money, influence, attention, status, praise.
Disobedience makes one an "unbeliever". One cannot believe in false seers and follow the Church's guidelines.
2 Corinthians 4:4Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the likeness of God.
On Merit Again
When someone asks why Catholics ask the intercession of saints, as many of us are by our Protestant friends, one answer may be based on the idea of merit.
See other posts on the definition of merit.
The saints merited graces on earth by their holiness. They are in glory, and can continue to share that merit with the entire Church.
Most of us are not holy enough to gain or use merit, which we should be "working on" in the process of purification. Therefore, it is necessary for us to ask the saints for aid in prayer.
For example, as noted in the past few weeks, one of my personal patrons is Blessed Jacinta of Fatima. Even as a very young child she gained tremendous graces, or merit through suffering intensely. Therefore, when I ask her to join me in prayer for certain persons or situations, I can be assured that her merits help me and those for whom I am praying.
I made a list of patrons years ago and tend to ask the same saints for help. Yesterday, on the day of Blessed Paul VI's canonization, I entreated him to help me with something. I got a little answer, an indication that he listens to prayers from me. His merits have been recognized by the Church and we can ask his intercession.
The saints may be seen like elder brothers and sisters who are wiser, holier, closer to God than we are and who want to help us. We are all part of the Church-we the in the Church Militant and they in the Church Triumphant.
Consider the merits of the saints.
Not sure about this
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/11171567/Season-of-birth-affects-your-mood-later-in-life.html
In my family, four of us have birthdays in January. I am the less irritable and less emotional, but the other three-oh my goodness.
The one born in April is positive, but the one born in May is, well, phlegmatic.
And, the one born in September is one of the three moodiest of all.
There have got to be other factors...
In my family, four of us have birthdays in January. I am the less irritable and less emotional, but the other three-oh my goodness.
The one born in April is positive, but the one born in May is, well, phlegmatic.
And, the one born in September is one of the three moodiest of all.
There have got to be other factors...
Repost, as I am still here
Sometimes, it is difficult to smile at Him
Years ago, the woman who stood up in my wedding as matron of honor told me to “transcend difficulties”. I had to do this, as circumstances forced me to do so. This great lady was almost my mother’s age, but a good friend of mine. She had been raised in India , in the Raj. Her father died early. Then, she and her mother came back to London to live. She had to leave her mom and live on a farm, as she was young enough to be sent out of harm’s way during the Blitz of London. Later, she married a wonderful man, but only had two children.
She and her husband took care of her mother until that old woman died. Her mother never learned to cook, or sew, or clean, as when she grew up, she had seventeen servants and lived in the luxury of the English in India . My friend had to pay for all her mother’s many needs. As a person with many hardships to bear, my friend knew how to “transcend” trials. She was “self-possessed”; that is, she had control over her emotions, mind, soul. She was a peaceful woman. Another friend of mine is the same way. She is in her nineties and had an extremely hard life, living with a husband who was ill all their married life. She, too, was and is, “self-possessed”, able to transcend all types of difficulties.
This type of transcendence and self-control only comes with humility and prayer. There is a reality about people who live transcendently. Garrigou-Lagrange writes that we must become closer to God daily in simplicity of heart, “…without which there can be no contemplation of God and no true love.”
What does he mean by this? The death of the ego is the beginning of this emptying of the heart. Egotism must go, must, as I have written many times on this blog.
If we are “too full of ourselves”, there is no room for God. We must not desire attention, or fame, or status, or riches. We must find contentment in what is given to us. We must transcend the trials put on our paths. We need to meditate, and then, to contemplate.
Contemplation is not meditation, again, as I have noted on this blog. Contemplation, whether active, or passive, demands focusing on God Himself, and not on ourselves.
Do we think of ourselves and our problem before Christ in Adoration, or do we immerse ourselves in Him? Do we come with the proverbial laundry list of prayers, or do we just, like Mary of Bethany, sit in His Presence?
Purity of heart, mind, and soul comes with a combination of prayer and sheer gift. Some great saints have these gifts early. Most of us must walk the road of travail and suffering to get to such purity. We must choose mortification, however, as the given trials may not be enough.
We may not become great saints, few of us will be Padre Pios or Mother Teresas. However, all of us are called to be saints and that means we are all called to purification and perfection.
It is rather ironic that I always think and sometimes write that “this is my last post on perfection” but I can now see that as I learn and grow, taking the long road through suffering and dying to self. May God be patient with me. Let me return to Mother Teresa of Calcutta .
My favorite photo of Mother Teresa is not one of her with her beloved dying, or with St. John Paul II, but one of her alone in prayer. Like all saints, like Christ, she needed to be alone with God. Sister Agnes, her helper, said once,“Every day we have Mass, half an hour of meditation, morning prayer, afternoon prayer, and in the evening we have a full hour of Adoration. It would not be possible to work otherwise. There must be a spiritual motive. You can work only for God. You can never work for any man.”
Mother Teresa said, “That is why we begin and end the day with prayer, because, when we pray, we are touching the body of Christ. You people in the world might not have the time or leisure to pray. It is a beautiful gift of God for us to have that amount of time.”
We must make time. We must.
Mother Teresa also said, “I am not afraid to say I am in love with Jesus because He is everything to me.”
For all Catholics, our work should be for Jesus, and He can be All in All.
Here is the voice of a simple heart. Mother Teresa states that chastity is “undivided love”, that poverty is “freedom”, that total surrender is “obedience”.
“If I belong to God, if I belong to Christ, then He must be able to use me. That is obedience. ….If you really belong to the work that has been entrusted to you, then you must do it with your whole heart. And you can bring salvation only by being honest and by really working with God. It is not how much we are doing, but how much love, how much honesty, how much faith, is put into doing it. It makes no difference what we are doing. What you are doing, I cannot do, and what I am doing, you cannot do. But all of us are doing what God have given us to do. ….”
And, I love Mother Teresa for saying this-as I have experienced the disrespect which comes to the poor, even from priests, sadly.
“The poor are not respected. People do not think that the poor can be treated as people who are lovable, as people like you and I. You know, the young are beginning to understand. They want to serve with their hands. And to love with their hearts. To the full, not superficially.”
I believe this as I believe that in the remnant will be many young people who have sought and found love.
And, Mother Teresa’s comment about doing the work God has called us to do is also a call to humility. Sometimes people want desperately to do something big for God. But, sometimes, we are called to do something small for God.
I blog. I pray. I do dishes, clean, do laundry, make coffee, take walks. Nothing grand in all of this… but more than that, I love. I am learning daily to live in love, to choose love, to walk, clean, make coffee in love. I blog in love, as that is what God wants me to do right now.
There is nothing to do but to love.
Some of us learn this by loving and being loved by another. Some of us learn this directly from Jesus, the Bridegroom. Either way, love hurts.
“True love hurts. It always has to hurt. It must be painful to love someone, painful to leave them, you might have to die for them. ….A young American couple told me once, ‘You know a lot about love; you must be married.’ And I said, Yes, but sometimes I find it difficult to smile at Him.”