What Seems....

For those who have read Lord of the World, and I am finishing up my fifth reading at least, the title reveals a problem of today's West--that of the confusion of religion with politics, a theme I have followed on this blog for a long time.

The title itself describes three different persons.

The first is the True Lord of the World, Our Lord Jesus Christ, Saviour, King, Ruler of all.

The second person to which the title refers is the Pope, who is the vicar of Christ on earth and the leader of the institution of the Church, as well as the spiritual head. The main character becomes the pope.

The third is the mock Lord of the World, the AntiChrist, who will attempt to take sovereignty from God and His Pope, in the End Times. In the story, of course, he faces the pope head on. We know who wins, as Christ comes to claim His earth, His people.

I can see from my seat a Catbird, which is calling out. This young bird sounds like a cat, but can mimic the songs and calls of other birds. It imitates a Robin, a Cardinal, a Starling, but remains a Catbird.

The sounds made by the Catbird vary, from songs, to calls, to clicking noises. No matter what sounds the Grey Catbird makes, this creature still remains itself.

So, too, the AntiChrist will come and mock Christ. He will perform miracles in the name of humanity, not God, and will draw men down into deceit and, finally, hell.

The only Lord of the World is Christ, and His representative on earth, the Pope.

Sadly, too many people look to politicians for salvation. Only Christ saves us from ourselves; the world, the flesh and the devil.

The little Catbird has flown away and now a Mourning Dove, on of my favorites, is singing over the loud hum of the cicadas. Summer will end soon, and the birds will fly south, except for the few which winter over in this harsh climate.

Few safe havens will remain in the time of tribulation, which is barely just beginning, but beginning. Our children and chidrens' children will see the worst persecution. I sincerely hope, Dear Readers, you are teaching your children to be saints.

Tough mindedness and discernment need to be priorities in their lives, as in ours.

I am having trouble with the Internet today, so I may not be able to blog much.

Hopefully, bbl.

Meanderings from a conversation....

An interesting discussion with a seminarian led to the idea that most if not all the politicians in the West are speaking out of a philosophical vacuum. Most politicians are not trained or choosing even utilitarianism or communism, much less natural law philosophy, but merely "sensationalism".

Politics has become mere reactions, and the purposeful creation of issues which ignore the really important issues.

Such issues as global warming and even immigration are not, of course, the real issues which governments should be addressing.

Even the dire financial situations in most of the Western nations are not the main issues.

The main issue which politicians must address is simply that of natural law philosophy.

These questions must be addressed.

Who is man? Why does he exist? What is the purpose of human life?

What is the purpose of society? What does society owe the individual? What does the individual owe society?

And so on.

One of the subjects of discussion with this sem surrounded the idea that the theology of the body has twisted the reality of the role of the couple and the family in society.

The Catholic ideal of society never merely included the family as the center of society.

Catholic culture included celibacy from the very beginnings of the Church as one of the two important calls of humans to build the Kingdom of God.

From the Pope, to the bishops, to the priests, and deacons, as well as the religious, including monks, brothers and nuns, celibacy formed just as important a center of society as the family.

It is only after the Protestant Revolt that celibacy was denigrated, no longer seen as essential to the common good.

It is my opinion that the emphasis on the family in the theology of the body puts too much pressure on families, pressure which is unnecessary and simply, not Catholic.

In the coming days of trial, families will need celibates even more, those dedicated to the consecrated life of prayer and penance.

Couples and families need priests and nuns as the praying centers of battle.

Can we move back to the Catholic paradigm of society? Is it too late?

Target Groups....Remember This

This past summer, I was re-learning how to shoot. I miss shooting. My teacher said I was doing fairly well for not having a gun in my hand for decades. My dad taught us to shoot, We belonged to a gun club.

One learns how to read a target, how to stand or lie down. One learns the feel of the gun. One learns to look carefully, be steady, be responsible.

I am quoting an old article on purpose. What is happening in the States is beginning to happen elsewhere. Target groups....some ethnic groups have been targeted for centuries-the Jews, the gypsies, the disabled, even Catholics...Here is a snippet from an article I found by accident. 

Catholics, you will be a target group soon. 

If you think I’m being dramatic, I urge you to remember the name Ezekial Emanuel. He’s the chief architect of Obamacare. He’s also the author of the Complete Lives system. That system is his blueprint for how health care dollars should be allocated to benefit the most productive in a society. He says his program will serve the “greatest good.” Emanuel believes that too much money is spent on the elderly. He also believes that children born with serious disabilities and illnesses siphon off more than their share of collective dollars that could be better spent elsewhere. In short, the Complete Lives system would focus health care expenditures to aid the most productive in society (roughly those between 18 and 50) at the expense of the elderly and the infirm.
When it comes to sick kids and grandparents, sometimes difficult decisions must be made. I think those decisions should be made by families. Obamacare will leave the decision to a panel of bureaucrats.

http://yellowhammernews.com/nationalpolitics/alabama-tea-party-leader-delivers-epic-comparison-obamacare-lord-rings/

This was said almost a year ago. Already targets groups are being hit in the USA. Do not kid yourselves on these points. A good doctor told his best friend that he will refuse to ask the new questions required by doctors-like, do you have guns in your home.

If you have been reading my blog, you know about the fema camps, the homeless already rounded up in SC and the denial of the feeding of the homeless in Florida.

You have been warned. More from the talk...a bit late but we are seeing some of this now. 

As a concept, social justice means that we have an obligation to those less fortunate than us. On the surface, there’s nothing especially new about that. Christians and Jews believe something similar. We know that the poor will always be with us, and it is always our duty to reach out and be charitable.

I urge you not to fall for this. Christianity calls individuals to be generous to the less fortunate.

Christianity is concerned with each individual soul. Though social justice cloaks itself in similar language, it asserts that some debt exists between one citizen and another. This is an enormous difference. 

Who are these people who do these things?

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/society/home-owners-association-tells-family-they-have-take-down-welcome-home-sign-navy-sailor#

Beginning of a one-system in America?

End of the GOP? Start of a one party America?

Let’s Read the Polls About Amnesty  

http://www.eagleforum.org/publications/column/lets-read-polls-amnesty.html

by Phyllis Schlafly

February 12, 2014

http://www.crisismagazine.com/2013/common-core-a-threat-to-catholic-education

The Congressional Budget Office just reported that Obamacare will shrink the U.S. workforce by 2.5 million full-time jobs. That’s stunning confirmation of how Barack Obama’s favorite legislative legacy is (as even Democrats have admitted) a “train wreck.”

The job loss is caused by businesses reducing their employees’ hours in order to avoid paying the employee mandate to buy insurance. Even more striking is the callous way Obama’s friends are trying to put a happy face on this bad news by claiming that Americans who are reduced to part-time jobs by Obamacare will be better off because they are liberated to exercise choice about how they spend their unemployed hours. As the New York Times wrote, it will be “more possible” to leave jobs (or reduce hours for less pay) because “new government subsidies will help pay premiums.”

more on site above....

New Salem, Illinois

Lincoln spent six years of his young life at New Salem, Illinois. My family visited the historical site several times when I was a child and teen. What impressed me the most was the fact that Lincoln, a very tall man, managed to study for his law degree in a very small room, and by candlelight.

I thought, even as a child, that a poor person with discipline, energy and talent could become someone who could do something good for the world. He was the first president to be born in a log cabin, in Kentucky, as well as the first president to be born outside the original thirteen states. These facts impressed me as a child.

Ideals in a child are built upon examples. From a small settlement in Illinois to the White House and into the tragic times of the Civil War, Lincoln remains one of the most fascinating presidents. Whether one agrees with all his decisions or not, one can state that his real stand against slavery marks him as an extraordinary man for his time.

We Americans have lost the ideal of the "self-made-man", an ideal many of my generation valued.

All parents have a duty to introduce their children to the heroes of the times or of history. New Salem, a car drive away, was part of the fabric of my childhood, just as were the lives of the saints.

Are you, parents, showing your children good role models, or are you letting them be sucked down into the sewer of the false gods of entertainment and music?

Today would be a good day to look at Lincoln.

On June 16, 1858 Lincoln accepted the Republican nomination to run against Douglas and delivered his famous "House Divided Speech" in the Illinois state house. "A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved---I do not expect the house to fall---but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other. Either the opponents of slavery, will arrest the further spread of it, and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in course of ultimate extinction; or its advocates will push it forward, till it shall become alike lawful in all the States, old as well as new---North as well as South." http://www.nps.gov/liho/historyculture/life.htm

February 24, 303 XIV

A False Messiah

What most people do not know, because the history of Western Civilization stopped being taught in most high schools in the 1980s, is that Diocletian came into power with an agenda because of the serious economic problems preceding his reign. This man knew who to organize. He knew how to push the envelope in order to save Rome.

He did something which may happen again in the States and in the EU. Because the Romans were no longer taking over new lands and bringing back slaves, there was a shortage of workers. (Does this sound familiar now, with abortion and contraception?)

He made, through law, a serfdom, by taking away the small farmers civil rights and tying them to their land. This created the coloni underclass who farmed the land and paid rent to the owner. This rent was either money, part of the harvest or more labor.

Many people were forced into becoming coloni.  At the same time, the trade of Rome was dropping. If one could compare the times with today, one could say that Wall Street collapsed. The difference was that the emperor sought reforms by taxation and an emphasis on control of personal freedom and rights.

This may happen. This can happen. That the Great Persecution was part of the overall plan of renewal meant that it was accepted both as necessary for the continuance of the empire and the lifestyles of the empire, and as a necessity for the return of the "true Rome."

Inflation caused the Roman currency to drop. Here is a chart of early "quantitative easing".

And here is a detailed description of Diocletian's monetary reforms.

The reforms of Diocletian (284-305 CE) completed the recovery. He again tried to issue a new stable gold and silver coinage but, more importantly, he revised and regularized the tax system with some revolutionary new concepts. First he conducted a census of the Empire and divided everything into two types of tax units based on productive capabilities. These were land units called “iugera” and head count or “capita” (and yes, that’s where our modern term “per capita” comes from).

These were flexible units which took into account the different productive capacities of various types of land and the different productive capabilities of men, women, slaves and children. For instance, adult men were each calculated as one capito or one head count, but it took two women to make up the same amount of head (and I’m going to bite my tongue before I take a straight line like that any further!) and even larger numbers of children.

The greatest innovation was the concept of Capitatio. What this meant was that the state has the right to demand whatever it needs from its citizens in whatever form it wants provided it is done legally and correctly… as follows…

Each year on September 1st, the state’s total requirements were published and taxes would be apportioned to each province according to its assessed resources. In effect, what Diocletian had created was the modern idea of a national budget and tax system. Though the burden was undoubtedly heavy, it was at least equally assessed in all areas.

So efficient was this new system that the money seemed to pour into government coffers like it hadn’t in memory. No longer did the citizenry suffer the regular experience of being treated like conquered territory by armed men who were supposed to be their protectors. People’s iuga and capita were known to them in advance, tax receipts could prove what they had paid, and appeal could be made if collectors tried to abuse them. http://www.accla.org/actaaccla/kramer.html

Diocletian the financial saviour became Diocletian the moral saviour by killing those whose god was not Rome. All we need is one crisis, folks. One.....................

To be continued......

February 24, 201? XII

A Converted British Family Sheltering a Christian Missionary from the Persecution of the Druids

In the last analysis, the Great Persecution of Diocletian was a huge failure. If as many as 20,000 Catholics were killed in the Roman Empire, in all the provinces, the spread of Catholicism outweighed the death of the martyrs.

Christianity spread quickly throughout Europe, Africa, the Middle East.

Further persecutions would continue in all these areas, but the systematic killing of Catholics would only break out again at certain times, such as in the Druids (earlier), the Persian Sassanid Empire, under the Muslim Caliphates and Tamerlane, under the Chinese, Japanese, the English, and other groups or nations.

In every case, Catholics would have needed to help each other, as in Holman Hunt's famous painting here.

To be naive about the future helps no one, especially one's self.

To think that life will go on and on and on as it has in the past fifty years is naive, or purposefully blind.

The next persecution will not destroy Catholicism, but it will create a very small remnant. May we all be ready.

February 24, 303 X

Persecution under Nero

Diocletian retired and left his empire's laws against the Catholics on the books. In fact, after he abdicated on May 1, 305, some of the provinces saw less persecution. However, in the eastern one, under Galerius and Maximian, the horrors of torture and death continued until 313, with some persecutions happening even after the Edit of Milan Edictum Mediolanense. Maximian hated the Catholics particularly.

But, the persecution did end, only to be taken up again later by others. Here is a section of the Edict.

When you see that this has been granted to [Christians] by us, your Worship will know that we have also conceded to other religions the right of open and free observance of their worship for the sake of the peace of our times, that each one may have the free opportunity to worship as he pleases; this regulation is made that we may not seem to detract from any dignity of any religion.

—"Edict of Milan", Lactantius, On the Deaths of the Persecutors (De Mortibus Persecutorum), ch. 48. opera, ed. 0. F. Fritzsche, II, p 288 sq. (Bibl Patr. Ecc. Lat.XI).^[8]

But, for those of us on this side of the persecution, that is, those of us who are watching the ratcheting up of forces being put into place to either make Catholics scapegoats, or merely to constrict them severely, the coming days of fines, imprisonment and even death are yet to come.

We have time to prepare in four areas:

1) Find that truth in ourselves, that cell with God to know what it is he wants you to do and where to go. If you are married with children, this means praying about the entire family.

2) We have time to seek the perfection of the virtues necessary for the evil times. There will be many suicides and apostazsing. We must be in a good place spiritually ourselves not to be tempted to despair and to be able to help others.

3) This is the last call for building communities. Travel will be restricted or very expensive. Movements will not be free.

4) Children must be prepared to be little soldiers for Christ. Parents need to pray how this is to be done.

Notice how I have said nothing about the clergy or the sacraments. The laity need to be prepared not to have either priests or the sacraments. Time to grow up and think and live like Catholics.

February 24, 303 VIII

A reminder in this series that the Great Persecution occurred throughout the entire Roman Empire. Europe, the Middle Eastern provinces, Africa, including Egypt, all saw the imposition of the laws against Catholics.

The great cathedrals were destroyed, such as the one in Nicomedia.

The attitude of the Catholics would have been one of watchfulness and prayer. The maximum number killed as determined by historians is set at 5,000.

One of the most familiar martyrs of this time is St. Agnes.

She was young, very young. So, she was prepared for the trial she had to endure.

Living in a society where one is bound to be persecuted clarifies the mind and intentions.

Moderns think that the Catholics at the time of the Great Persecution were all slaves. Not so, but some were, and some were from all the classes. These included the highly educated and people of the urbs. No one was spared because of position or rank. We know that the Church spread throughout the continents because of the Christian diaspora.

But, what is important for today is to realize that God has a plan. And, Catholics must not be complacent.

They can plan as well. It is important to remember that when one faces death or imprisonment, we are not assured that we shall persevere to the end. We need to pray for final perseverance.

That is my prayer.

And, here is St. Francis Ligouri's prayer for final perseverance.

Eternal Father, I Humbly Adore and Thank You, for having Created me, and for having Redeemed me. I Thank You for having made me a Christian, by giving me the True Faith, and for Adopting me as Your Child in Baptism. I Thank You for having given me Time-to Repent, after my many Sins, and for having Pardoned all my Offenses. I Renew my Sorrow for them, because I have Displeased You. I Thank You also for having Preserved me from Falling-again, as I would have done, if You had not Held me up, and Saved me. But my Enemies, do not cease Fighting-against me, nor will they, until I Die. If You do not Help me Continually, I will Lose Your Grace again. I, therefore, Pray-for Perseverance till Death. Your Son Jesus, has Promised that You will give us whatever we Ask-for in His Name. By the Merits-of Jesus Christ, I beg You, for myself and for all those who are in Your Grace, the Grace-of Never-more being Separated-from Your Love. May we always Love You in this Life, and in the Next.

Mary, Mother of God, Pray to Jesus for me. So I Hope. So may it be.

Amen

To be continued.............

February 24, 303 VII

Diocletian was seen as a "saviour", a reformer of good, old fashioned Roman values. He was successful in targeting a few groups which were increasingly seen as threatening the empire. The empire and the gods were one. The emperors and the gods were one. Security and peace, low inflation and financial progress were the priorities.

The Roman household had a strong identity. They were proudly "Roman". Could one be a Catholic and a Roman?

Sound familiar?

He decided that instead of emperor, he would be called Dominus Noster. One can see immediately that his intent was to consolidate power, even propagandist power, under his rule. Some historians claim that Galerius, one of the four emperors in the Tetrarchy, really pushed for the Great Persecution but the fact is that it started and was overseen by Diocletian.

All rulers want to make a mark on history. That Diocletian reorganize Roman life and finances, even down to creating hereditary jobs, made him popular.

The scene for persecution was set by a determined group who put the Roman Empire before the one, true God. 

The Dominus Noster fought the Domino Dominorum.  Today, we call this impetus narcissism. 

Therefore, in the empire built on law, the Catholics became a group under watch, under suspicion for being
"not quite Roman". (Not quite British, not quite American?). The Romans had a highly successful civilization. They took pride in their history and accomplishments. Would they let a growing group which included foreigners to take over their cultural norms?  They saw themselves as virtous against other barbarians. But, here was a group which refused to buy into the whole deal of complete loyalty to the state in the person of the emperor. Perhaps the Catholics were seen as "racists", as "anti-Roman" by their neighbors.

These attitudes have all been seen before and enshrined in law before.

To have loyalties beyond the empire and emperor at such times became a rallying cry for persecution.

How does a remnant respond? Once the clergy were imprisoned, killed or dispersed, what options would the remnant have?

Few, but some.

The first characteristic of such Catholics who persevered would be the four cardinal virtues of prudence, temperance, justice and courage. In other words, personal holiness kept those in the remnant from compromise.

The second characteristic would have been mutual support in the face of danger. In other words, a quiet, low-key community.

The third characteristic would have been the readiness to face whatever suffering came their way.

Actions and beliefs have consequences beyond the grave, and this the early Catholics knew well.

A mind-set of readiness is essential in persecution.

Watch ye therefore, because ye know not what hour your Lord will come. Matthew 24:42. DR

This readiness would not be confined to adults. The necessity of the times meant that parents had to prepare their children for imprisonment, loss, death.

Too many Catholics want to protect their children from such thoughts. They do so at the peril of their children's lives.

The readiness is all, as Hamlet states.

Not a whit. We defy augury. There’s a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. If it be now, ’tis not to come. If it be not to come, it will be now. If it be not now, yet it will come—the readiness is all. Since no man of aught he leaves knows, what is ’t to leave betimes? Let be. Act V: scene ii.

To be continued....

February 24, 303 V

Diocletian re-introduced the draft, or conscription. The Persians had attacked the empire, but were successfully defeated. However, Diocletian, being an uber-organizer, seized the anxiety of the time to build up the military.

The other thing he did was to divide the army into two parts, the limitanei, which were the legions on the borders, or the frontier troops, and the comitantenses, the inland troops, which could be moved quickly to parts of the empire. One can see this in America with the militarization of the police in some areas, and the use of drones.

Diocletian built up an army of half-a-million troops. He also changed the system of taxation, as he was faced with inflation and the burden of the military. All this information can be found in any history of the time.

His organizational skills and his strong religious ideology proved to be forces against which the Catholics could not stand.

The steps to persecution were incremental. First, all Catholic churches and scrolls were to be destroyed. This was part of the February 24th edict. Note that the Church buildings, some obvious, large and prominent, were targeted by the state. Without gathering places of worship, the people could be weakened.

Then, shortly after this date, other edicts followed. The Catholic clergy were to be rounded up and thrown into prison and only released if they honored the gods of Rome.

Finally, all Catholics were ordered to honor the gods of Rome or be executed.

Clergy first, laity second. This is the way it happened in England under Henry. Carthusians first...and so on...

When the shepherds are taken, the lambs and sheep are scattered.

How will this happen? Same sex marriage is a strong possibility for the line in the sand...the fining of the priests who refuse, the imprisonment if fines are not paid, the confiscation of property as fines are not paid, the imprisonment of the laity when fines are not paid, the taking away of Catholic lay properties if fines are not paid and so on.

Imprisonment will be incremental.

So, how did the Catholics in 303 respond? How did they continue? How did they pass on the Faith?

How did they survive? How will we survive?

To be continued.....

February 24, 303 IV

Anxiety and stress, one terrorist attack of any medium size and a financial downturn could set off persecution.

The Irish classical scholar, E. R. Dodds wrote Pagan and Christian in an Age of Anxiety. Among many points he makes is one which should seem realistic to Catholics today. An agnostic, this scholar notes that in the unsettled economic times of the late 240s, the Church had grown and was beginning to be accepted in some circles as a force in society. But, alongside of that fact, was the hardening of ideas which in Dodd's opinion had been more fluid among the pagan and Christian intellectuals, of the doctrines and intellectuals in the Church. In other words, the pagan intellectuals were turning more and more against the Catholic intellectuals.

For example, Porphyry wrote Against the Christians in 270. Dodd notes in his book that the growing wealth and confidence of the Christians, as well as there many scholars upset the status quo of the pagan elite and the pagan intellectuals.

Does this sound familiar in the fact that so many of our universities in the West are increasingly anti-Catholic, atheistic and on the defensive against religion?

That the establishment of intellectuals would then find support and give support to the political powers seems a natural alliance against Catholicism.

And, Dodds quotes ancient authors in the fact that Catholics were not only "upstarts", a new religion, but "multicultural", that is "an immigrant religion", if I may use that phrase.

How "un-Roman" could a religion which included converted barbarians be?

That the intellectual snobbery and atheistic sophisticated pagans of the ancient world mirror our own is a comparison which is rather obvious.

Ergo, the stage is further set for persecution, as the intelligentsia spurs on the state to eliminate the "undesirables" which threaten the so-called common good.

Dodd himself writes that Christianity was seen as "divisive". And, the Catholic Church IS divisive, now more than ever.

The fact that the Christian God is Incarnated and not merely a spirit is also a problem, but that may be discussed later.

The stage is almost completely set up for persecution. The laws are in place, popular sentiment is growing against Catholics, and the common good will be an excuses for "unity".

The next things to be put into place are already in place in America-the militarization of the police and the use of drones as well as the entire lack of privacy.

But,  how do the Catholics become singled out, rather than, for example, the Tea Party members, or Evangelical pro-lifers?

And, how do the Catholics react as persecution starts in earnest, causing a smaller and smaller remnant?

To be continued........tomorrow.

February 24, 303 III

Moving from the established fact that totalitarian states guard the status quo by eliminating threats, and that such resulting persecutions are legal. one can state that such times of terror are actually popular with the vast majority of people.

One thinks of the crowds at Tyburn who came to watch the death of "traitors". Remember, Diocletian's laws against the Catholics were seen as necessary for the "morality" of the Roman Empire. He had an ideology and he was an authoritarian. Does this sound familiar?

He created his own popularity. He was seen as a "reformer" for the good of the people. Of course, he would make sure his ideas were popular. By definition, popularity is conformist.

Catholics, by design, are non-conformists, a sign of contradiction in the world. So, too, were those in the time of Diocletian.

Popular support of any type of persecution can be outlined.

1) Those who hate the Catholic would be relieved to join in such a persecution, and there are many who hate Catholics.

2) Catholics would be unpopular because their lifestyle makes people uncomfortable, reminding them of natural law and the Ten Commandments.

3) Popular support comes from a mind-set that "peace in our times" is more important than standing up for minorities or religious groups.

4) People thrive on the spoils of war from persecutions. My own family lost land and houses in the Holocaust, for example. Most of the existing aristocracy in Great Britain became wealthy land owners under Henry VIII and Elizabeth I from stolen land and resources taken from the monasteries, churches, and laity.

5) The unseen powers of the air, satan and his minions, hate the Church and use their slaves to bring down the Church. This is one of the goals of demonic activity. People involved in the occult and Masonry know this and cooperate with evil in popular movements.

6) Many people are just plain cowards or apathetic and will go along with the times.

And so on.....

The stage is being set for the out and out persecution of the Catholic Church in the Western World. And, those who want a false peace, to placate their stained consciences, who hate God and His Church, and who live carpe diem, will go along with whatever a state decides.

To be continued....

February 24, 303 II

from  Mosiacarum et Romanarum Legum Collatio 6.4, qtd. and tr. in Clarke, 649; Barnes,Constantine and Eusebius, 19–20.

"the immortal gods themselves will favour and be at peace with the Roman name...if we have seen to it that all subject to our rule entirely lead a pious, religious, peaceable and chaste life in every respect"

The first thing to understand about the Great Persecution is that it was not only legal, but religious. The national religion of the empire was being renewed by Diocletian and co-emperors

Maximian, Galerius and Constantius, for the good of the empire. The financial and military good of the empire meant that the old gods of Olympus had to be appeased. In the face of difficult times, it was necessary for the citizens to worship the "true" gods of the empire. In a sense, Diocletian and his fellow emperors in the Tetrarchy were revitalizing the entire Roman world with a new sense of dedication to the old gods.

So, why would the Catholics be the particular subjects of persecution?  (For the record, the Manicheans were also persecuted.)

The answer is obvious today. Any group of people which shows an allegiance to something other than the totalitarian heads of state form a threat. And, any group of people which holds beliefs contrary to those of the totalitarian state is a threat.

The problem with too many Catholics today, is that they do not see themselves as a threat to the growing totalitarianism of both the EU and America, now both run by anti-Christian principles, and increasingly anti-Catholic values or ideals.

Too many Catholics honestly believe that they can "talk" or have detente with the growing evil of the world.

This prevailing attitude can only lead to an increase in self-deceit and a false hope for change.

Small battles have been won here and there, but the battle for souls is being hindered by communism, socialism, secularism, and neo-paganism. It really does not matter, at this time, what "ism" will push through the draconian laws, as it only takes one.

We have all seen this before under Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, and Mao, among others.

The Catholics are the threat, always, as our kingdom is not of this world.

So, the stage is being set, quickly, very quickly for a new February 24, 303.

To be continued....

New Series This Week-February 24, 303

Well, God answers prayers quickly, I must say. I am going to highlight in the next few days what it means to be a remnant in a totally pagan and hostile world.

In the 1970s, my spiritual leaders taught me that there was nothing neutral in the world-only that which was chosen and created for good, for Christ, and that which was chosen and created only for evil.

Finally, more people are beginning to see this. I repeat, there is NO neutral territory.

This series will be called "February 24, 303."

This was the day which witnessed the largest and worst persecution of Catholics in Rome, called after Diocletian asked the Oracle of Apollo approval for such an empire-wide ruling against the Church.

The Diocletianic Persecution was not the first in Rome. In fact, it was the last. From 303 until 313, in some part of the empire, Catholics were systematically rounded up and killed.

What I want to do is to help readers understand what these ten years meant for those Catholics who had to endure such an organized slaughter. I want to explore both how Catholics maintained their lives, and even helped to spread the Gospel under duress, how they passed the Faith on to their children, and how some survived without compromise. These posts may help us all be prepared both spiritually and mentally for things to come.

Compromise results in eternal death.

Such persecution will be the fate of some reading this post today. 

to be continued..............

A reality check

More than two years ago in Malta, as a foreigner, I could not get cash out of the ATMS twice. Once, when there was a run on the banks in Greece, no one who did not have an account with the local banks could get cash.

Then, weeks later, the same thing happened when there was a crisis in Latvia.

I paid attention to this. Also, many places refused to take English bank credit cards. Period.

Many restaurants refused credit and debit cards.

This passed, but for two weeks, I had to get cash wired to me.

What if the wired money was held up? People were lined up for days outside the money wiring offices.

This is now happening in Europe again, even as I write.

Are you paying attention? Do you understand what this means?

Your money is no longer your own.

One of my degrees is in history. One of my specialties is WWI. EU and America look like the world in the West before that war...I am sorry to say this. But, those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it.

Superb Simple Explanation of Church vs. Obamacare

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2014/01/fr-murray-on-fnc-on-pres-obamas-absurd-war-on-women-and-on-the-church/

Whose Alienation?

Years ago, after Vatican II, a movement to "dialogue" with the world seemed a good thing to many people, including some theologians. The idea was that the Church had become "alienated" with the world and could no longer communicate with those who had been turned off by the traditional religious stance of the Catholic Church.

Now, many of us know this is an incorrect emphasis. But, let me take this thought and turn it on its head.

It is the world which has alienated itself from the Church. Modern culture is doing everything to distance itself from the true teachings of the Catholic Church.

Speaking with someone on Tuesday, I remarked that the Church has not changed its teachings on anything in 2013. The person was surprised and quoted Pope Francis's comment on not judging homosexuals.

I noted that the Pope has not changed the teaching of the Church on the serious sin which homosexual sin is, but that the media has taken the Pope's comments out of context. But, this person went on to say, "But it doesn't matter, because no one believes what the Church teaches anyway."  His comment dismissed the conversation to a matter of opinion, and instead of wanting to pursue a truth, this person alienated himself from the Church, on purpose.

Why should Catholics be beating themselves about this so-called alienation from the world, when it is the world, the flesh, and the devil which insist on separating from Church teaching?

Too many Catholics feel like they have to be on the defensive. Actually, it is the "other side", the side of the atheists and agnostics which must defend their position.

Who has alienated themselves from God?

What is being ignored are the eternal consequences of this alienation.

Some people will lose their souls in all this confusion and relativism.

Read, think, reflect, pray, act....

Big Brother on The Borders

http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/194200-court-upholds-border-laptop-searches