Wednesday, March 31, 2010

The Love of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary: "Be Grateful My Child, for the Blessings I Send You" by Rita Ring

July 16, 1994

Be Grateful My Child, for the Blessings I Send You

Messenger: God is giving me everything I need.

Jesus speaks: The very hairs of your head are numbered, I allow all that is happening to you. Do you look for that which you do not have? Look for that which I am giving you. Do you seek love and miss the love that is given? Do you want things given the way you want, or are you accepting the way they are? This is willfulness. You think things should be this way, yet they are that way and you become frustrated. I give you all you need. It is in your acceptance of all things that you grow in your relationship with Me. Do not be willful and expect things the way you think they should be. You are receiving so much love in your life today from others, and you are looking for love the way you want it. I love you and I love you through others. Look at the love I am sending you. Accept all others the way they are. I give to you according to your needs. Do you love Me?

Sagrada Familia Detail II

Image by Mushroom boy via Flickr

    I give you so much love in your world and in all those around you. Take the blinders off of your eyes and see the gifts I am pouring out to you this day. Pray to the Holy Spirit for vision. God loves you so. God is caring for your needs this day. In your willfulness you want things your way. Accept the love I pour out to you. Accept all others as they are. Strive to give love as I give to you. I am your God and I love you with an undying love. You are Mine, child, I love you so.

http://www.sofc.org/

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[MaryVitamin] Wednesday of Holy Week

 
Mary Vitamin for March 31st
 
Topic: The Lance Wound to the Side of Christ
 
Quote:
St. Alphonsus di Liguori
The injury of that stroke was inflicted on Jesus, but Mary suffered its pain.
St. Alphonsus di Liguori, The Glories of Mary, (Tan Books), 452.
 
Meditation
"Christ," says the devout Lanspergius, "shared this wound with His Mother; He received the insult, His Mother endured its agony." The holy fathers maintain that this was literally the sword foretold to the Blessed Virgin by Saint Simeon: a sword, not a material one, but one of grief, which transpierced her blessed soul in the heart of Jesus, where it always dwelt. Thus, amongst others, Saint Bernard says: "The lance which opened His side passed through the soul of the Blessed Virgin, which could never leave her Son's heart."
St. Alphonsus di Liguori, The Glories of Mary, (Tan Books), 452.
 
Resolution:
When I pass the crucifix today, I will think of the wound in the side of Christ as in the shape of an “M” to remind me that  the pain was felt by Mary.
 
Marian Vow:
Fr. Stefano Manelli, FI
If, according to a tradition of spiritual theology, the other three vows of obedience, poverty and chastity in relation to the marks of Christ's Passion are symbolized by the three nails making Jesus "Love crucified", the Marian vow may reasonably be said to be symbolized by the lance which transfixed the Heart of Jesus (cf. Jn 19,34) and pierced the soul of our Lady according to the prophecy of Simeon (cf. Lk 2,35).
Father Stefano Manelli FI,  The Marian Vow Of Unlimited Consecration, (Academy of the Immaculate), 19.
 
I give this resolution  to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
 
Thanks be to God for graces received.
 


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Fr. Fessio: "Pope is being publicly scourged!"

“Being publicly scourged”

Jesuit Fr. Joseph Fessio, a former student of Cardinal Ratzinger, speaks out on ‘modern day passion narrative of the Vicar of Christ’


SAN FRANCISCO, March 30 /Christian Newswire -- As nearly one billion Catholics enter Holy Week, their chief shepherd faces attacks in newspapers, blogs, twitter posts, and television and radio news. Unfortunately, the primary news sources repeatedly fail to report accurate timelines and crucial details. The impression is left that Pope Benedict XVI is part of the problem, rather than leading the way to solving it. Consequently, concerned Catholics and others are agitated and confused.

Pope Benedict's former student speaks out in support of the Pope and responds to the lack of responsible journalism on this story. Benedict the XVI is only infallible as an authoritative teacher of the Faith, not as an administrator,” says Jesuit Father Joseph Fessio. “He certainly may have made some mistakes, even serious ones, in the 33 years since he was first made a bishop. But there is no evidence for the ones he's being blamed for in the media; for those who know the facts, the evidence leads to just the opposite conclusion. Like the Master he serves, he's also, after 33 years, being publicly scourged, this time with words."

Comments from Pope Benedict's media detractors have been severe. Fr. Fessio says he admires how, in the midst of this very public suffering, the Holy Father continues to underscore his firm commitment to address the issue of clergy sexual abuse and the underlying problems that gave rise to it. For example, last weekend, the Holy Father released a pastoral letter to Catholics in Ireland regarding the developments there and the Holy See press office has continued to update the media in this area.

Fr. Fessio is founder and editor of Ignatius Press, which is the primary English-language publisher of Pope Benedict XVI's writings. He is also publisher of Catholic World Report magazine, the leading Catholic news and commentary journal in the U.S. Father Fessio wrote his doctoral dissertation under Pope Benedict (then Professor Joseph Ratzinger).

During Ratzinger's time as Prefect for the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, Fr. Fessio maintained contact with his former teacher, collaborating with him on several important projects, and was a prominent defender of Ratzinger against his critics. Fr. Fessio is a member of the Joseph Ratzinger "student circle," which continues to meet annually with Pope Benedict.

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Holy Week liturgical celebrations by Holy Father available via Internet

Live from St. Peter’s Square

News release from H2onenews


Benedict XVI’s liturgical celebrations of this year’s Holy Week and Easter will be broadcast live on the Internet, brought about by Pope2You (www.pope2you.net) -- a multimedia initiative of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications that was launched in May to bring the Holy Father’s message to young people -- and H2onews (www.h2onews.org), a Catholic multimedia news agency.

Through this combined effort, a result of the collaboration between the Vatican Television Centre, the Holy See’s Internet service and H2onews, users will have access to the videos of the live broadcasts from St. Peter’s Square, pictures and other on-line news reports, and can choose to listen to live audio commentaries in one of 5 languages: English, French, Italian, German and Spanish.

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Defend Pope Benedict: Join the National Prayer Bouquet



Dear Fellow Catholic,

Urgently, we ask you TODAY to join Catholics nationwide in an Easter
Prayer Campaign for Pope Benedict. . . and spread the word!

Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, is suffering "some of the same unjust accusations, shouts of the mob, and scourging at the pillar as did Jesus"!

Those are the words of Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, who on Palm Sunday urged prayers for Pope Benedict as he is viciously and unfairly attacked by the secular media and sadly even many dissident Catholics.

Pope Benedict is being assaulted with “unrelenting insinuations,” said Archbishop Dolan, “. . .as certain sources seem frenzied to implicate the man who, perhaps more than anyone else, has been the leader in purification, reform and renewal that the Church so needs.”

When he was installed as Pope five years ago, the Holy Father himself asked us to help him, saying:

“Pray for me, that I may not flee for fear of the wolves.
Let us pray for one another, that the Lord will carry us and that we will learn to carry one another.”

Pope Benedict has never fled from the wolves, and he remains dedicated to renewing Christ’s Church built on a foundation of strong Catholic identity.  It is by his example that The Cardinal Newman Society and so many others are struggling to renew Catholic life in America.
We are assembling an Eastertide spiritual bouquet for the Holy Father and need your prayers for him today!

Please pledge to pray for the Pope during the 50 days of Eastertide
by joining our spiritual bouquet.

Last year, thanks to your help, we collected more than 722,000 prayers for U.S. bishops, including 146,944 Rosaries and 28,862 days of fasting, as a token of appreciation for their strong stand for Catholic identity at Notre Dame.

But now, “The father of our family, ‘il papa,’ needs our love, support, and prayers,” as Archbishop Dolan has pleaded.

Catholics nationwide are praying for Pope Benedict,
won’t you join us?

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle!  And may God bless you and your family.

Yours in Christ,

The Cardinal Newman Society

Reminder: Divine Mercy Novena Starts Friday


faustina_divine_mercy.jpg

Divine Mercy Novena

Unlike other novenas, where people ask for something from God through the intercession of His Holy Saints, Divine Mercy Novena is intended to be prayed for graces and/or salvation to be given to other people. Jesus asked that this novena be prayed prior to the Feast of Divine Mercy (the Sunday after Easter), beginning on Good Friday. He gave Sr. Faustina an intention to pray for on each day of the Novena, saving for the last day the most difficult intention of all, the lukewarm and indifferent of whom He said: "These souls cause Me more suffering than any others; it was from such souls that My soul felt the most revulsion in the Garden of Olives. It was on their account that I said: 'My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass Me by.' The last hope of salvation for them is to flee to My Mercy." In her diary, Faustina wrote that Jesus told her: "On each day of the novena you will bring to My heart a different group of souls and you will immerse them in this ocean of My mercy ... On each day you will beg My Father, on the strength of My passion, for the graces for these souls."

The different souls prayed for on each day of the novena are:

All mankind, especially sinners; The souls of priests and religious; All devout and faithful souls; Those who do not believe in Jesus and those who do not yet know Him; The souls of separated brethren; The meek and humble souls and the souls of children; The souls who especially venerate and glorify Jesus' mercy; The souls who are detained in purgatory; and The souls who have become lukewarm.

This is prayed along with the Divine Mercy Chaplet.

First Day - Today bring Me all mankind, especially all sinners.

Most Merciful Jesus, whose very nature it is to have compassion on us and to forgive us, do not look upon our sins, but upon our trust which we place in Your infinite goodness. Receive us all into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart, and never let us escape from It. We beg this of You by Your love which unites You to the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon all mankind and especially upon poor sinners, all enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. For the sake of His Sorrowful Passion show us Your mercy, that we may praise the omnipotence of Your mercy for ever and ever. Amen.

Second Day - Today Bring Me the Souls of Priests and Religious.

Most Merciful Jesus, from whom comes all that is good, increase Your grace in us, that we may perform worthy works of mercy, and that all who see us may glorify the Father of Mercy who is in heaven.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the company [of chosen souls] in Your vineyard - upon the souls of priests and religious; and endow them with the strength of Your blessing. For the love of the Heart of Your Son in which they are enfolded, impart to them Your power and light, that they may be able to guide others in the way of salvation, and with one voice sing praise to Your boundless mercy for ages without end. Amen.

Third Day - Today Bring Me All Devout and Faithful Souls.

Most Merciful Jesus, from the treasury of Your mercy, You impart Your graces in the great abundance to each and all. Receive us into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart and never let us escape from It. We beg this of You by that most wondrous love for the heavenly Father with which Your Heart burns so fiercely.

Eternal Father, turn Your Merciful gaze upon faithful souls, as upon the inheritance of Your Son. For the sake of His Sorrowful Passion, grant them Your blessing and surround them with Your constant protection. Thus may they never fail in love or lost the treasure of the holy faith, but rather , with all the hosts of Angels and Saints, may they glorify Your boundless mercy for endless ages. Amen.

Fourth Day - Today Bring Me The Pagans and Those Who Do Not Know Me.

Most Compassionate Jesus, You are the Light of the whole world. Receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls of pagans who as yet do not know You. Let the rays of Your grace enlighten them that they, too, together with us, may extol Your wonderful mercy; and do not let them escape from the abode which is Your Most Compassionate Heart.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the souls of pagans and of those who as yet do not know You, but who are enclosed in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. Draw them to the light of the Gospel. These souls do not know what great happiness it is to love You. Grant that they, too, may extol the generosity of Your mercy for endless ages. Amen.

Fifth Day - Today Bring to Me the Souls of Heretics and Schismatics.

Most Merciful Jesus, Goodness Itself, You do not refuse light to those who seek it of You. Receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls of heretics and schismatics. Draw them by Your light into the unity of the Church, and do not let them escape from the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart; but bring it about that they, too, come to glorify the generosity of Your mercy.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the souls of heretics, and schismatics, who have squandered Your blessings and misused Your graces obstinately persisting in their errors. Do not look upon their errors, but upon the love of Your Own Son and upon His bitter Passion, which He underwent for their sake, since they, too, are enclosed in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. Bring it about that they also may glorify Your great mercy for endless ages. Amen.

Sixth Day - Today Bring Me The Meek and Humble Souls and the Souls of Little Children.

Most Merciful Jesus, You Yourself have said, "Learn from Me for I am meek and humble of heart." Receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart all meek and humble souls and the souls of little children. These souls send all heaven into ecstasy, and they are the heavenly Father's favorites. They are a sweet-smelling bouquet before the throne of God; God Himself takes delight in their fragrance. These souls have a permanent abode in Your Most Compassionate Heart, O Jesus, and they unceasingly sing out a hymn of love and mercy.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon meek and humble souls, and upon the souls of little children, who are enfolded in the abode of the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. These souls bear the closest resemblance to Your Son. Their fragrance rises from the earth and reaches Your very throne. Father of mercy and of all goodness, I beg You by the love You bear these souls and by the delight you take in them: bless the whole world, that all souls together may sing out the praises of Your mercy for endless ages. Amen.

Seventh Day - Today Bring Me The Souls Who Especially Venerate and Glorify My Mercy.

Most Merciful Jesus, whose Heart is Love Itself, receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls of those who particularly extol and venerate the greatness of Your Mercy. These souls are mighty with the very power of God Himself. In the midst of all afflictions and adversities they go forward, confident in Your Mercy. These souls are united to Jesus and carry all mankind on their shoulders. These souls will not be judged severely, but Your mercy will embrace them as they depart from this life.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the souls who glorify and venerate Your greatest attribute, that of Your fathomless mercy, and who are enclosed in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. These souls are a living Gospel; their hands are full of deeds of mercy and their spirit, overflowing with joy, sings a canticle of mercy to You, O Most High! I beg You O God: Show them Your mercy according to the hope and trust they have placed in You. Let there be accomplished in them the promise of Jesus, who said to them, "I Myself will defend as My own glory, during their lifetime, and especially at the hour of their death, those souls who will venerate My fathomless mercy."

Eighth Day - Today Bring Me The Souls Who Are In the Prison Of Purgatory.

Most Merciful Jesus, You Yourself have said that You desire mercy; so I bring into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls in Purgatory, souls who are very dear to You, and yet who must make retribution to Your justice. May the streams of Blood and Water which gushed forth from Your Heart put out the flames of purifying fire, that in that place, too, the power of Your mercy may be praised.

Eternal Father, turn Your most merciful gaze upon the souls suffering in Purgatory, who are enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. I beg You, by the sorrowful Passion of Jesus Your Son, and by all the bitterness with which His most sacred Soul was flooded, manifest Your mercy to the souls who are under Your just scrutiny. Look upon them in no other way than through the Wounds of Jesus, Your dearly beloved Son; for we firmly believe that there is no limit to Your goodness and compassion. Amen.

Ninth Day - Today Bring Me The Souls Who Have Become Lukewarm.

Most Compassionate Jesus, You are Compassion Itself. I bring lukewarm souls into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart. In this fire of Your pure love let these tepid souls, who, like corpses, filled You with such deep loathing, be once again set aflame. O Most Compassionate Jesus, exercise the omnipotence of Your mercy and draw them into the very ardor of Your love; and bestow upon them the gift of holy love, for nothing is beyond Your power.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon lukewarm souls who are nonetheless enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. Father of Mercy, I beg You by the bitter Passion of Your Son and by His three-hour agony on the Cross: let them, too, glorify the abyss of Your mercy. Amen

Jesus, I trust in You.

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Tuesday, March 30, 2010

From Mark Mallett: The Seven Year Trial - Parts IV & V:

Mark

Mark Mallett

—Spiritual Food For Thought—

The Seven Year Trial – Part V


Christ in Gethsemane, by Michael D. O’Brien

 
 

The Israelites did what displeases the Lord; the Lord gave them over for seven years into the hands of Midian. (Judges 6:1)

 

THIS writing examines the transition between the first and second half of the Seven Year Trial.

We have been following Jesus along His Passion, which is a pattern for the Church’s present and coming Great Trial. Furthermore, this series aligns His Passion to the Book of Revelation which is, on one of its many levels of symbolism, a High Mass being offered in Heaven: the representation of Christ’s Passion as both sacrifice and victory.

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Published in: DAILY JOURNAL, SEVEN YEAR TRIAL | on March 30th, 2010

The Seven Year Trial – Part IV

 

 

Seven years shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules over the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. (Dan 4:22)

 

 

During Mass this past Passion Sunday, I sensed the Lord urging me to repost a portion of the Seven Year Trial where it essentially begins with the Passion of the Church. Once again, these meditations are the fruit of prayer in my own attempt to better understand the Church’s teaching that the Body of Christ will follow its Head through its own passion or "final trial," as the Catechism puts it (CCC, 677). Since the book of Revelation deals in part with this final trial, I have explored here a possible interpretation of St. John’s Apocalypse along the pattern of Christ’s Passion. The reader should keep in mind that these are my own personal reflections and not a definitive interpretation of Revelation, which is a book with several meanings and dimensions, not the least, an eschatological one. Many a good soul has fallen on the sharp cliffs of the Apocalypse. Nonetheless, I have felt the Lord compelling me to walk them in faith through this series, drawing together the Church’s teaching with mystical revelation and the authoritative voice of the Holy Fathers. I encourage the reader to exercise their own discernment, enlightened and guided, of course, by the Magisterium.

 

The series is based on the book of Daniel’s prophecy that there will be a "week" long trial for God’s people. The Book of Revelation seems to echo this where an antichrist appears for "three and a half years." Revelation is full of numbers and symbols which most often are symbolic. Seven may indicate perfection, whereas three and a half indicates a shortfall of perfection. It also symbolizes a "short" period of time. So, in reading this series, keep in mind that the numbers and figures used by St. John may only be symbolic. 

 

Rather than send an email to you when the remaining parts of this series are posted, I will just re-post the remaining parts, one per day, for the rest of this week. Simply return to this website each day this week, and watch and pray with me. It seems appropriate that we meditate not only on the Passion of Our Lord, but the coming Passion of His body, which appears to be drawing nearer and nearer…

 

 

 

THIS writing examines the rest of the first half of the Seven Year Trial, which begins at the proximate time of the Illumination.

 

 

FOLLOWING OUR MASTER 

 

Lord Jesus, you foretold that we would share in the persecutions that brought you to a violent death. The Church formed at the cost of your precious blood is even now conformed to your Passion; may it be transformed, now and eternally, by the power of your resurrection. —Psalm-prayer, Liturgy of the Hours, Vol III, p. 1213

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Published in: DAILY JOURNAL, SEVEN YEAR TRIAL | on March 29th, 2010 | No Comments »

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Matt C. Abbott: "'The Fourth Secret of Fatima': Is Pope Benedict's life in danger?"


 
Matt C. Abbott column
'The Fourth Secret of Fatima': Is Pope Benedict's life in danger?


Matt C. Abbott
Matt C. Abbott
March 30, 2010

The following are excerpts from the book The Fourth Secret of Fatima, authored by Italian journalist Antonio Socci. Many thanks to RCS Libri (publisher of the Italian edition) and Doug Bersaw of Loreto Publications (publisher of the English edition) for granting me permission to reprint this material.


Dedication

To His Holiness Benedict XVI.

To Yusriani (15 years old), Theresa (16 years old), and Alvita (19 years old), young Christians, throats slit and decapitated by the blows of a machete because of their faith in Jesus. (On October 29, 2005 in Indonesia these three Christian students were assaulted by a band of fundamentalist Muslims while going to school, a private Catholic school in Poso. The terrorists held them down, cut their throats, and then their heads. The head of one of them was then thrown in front of the Christian church of Kasiguncu.)

To Angela Pia, practically moral co-authoress of the book by her prayers.

It seems to me that this is the first time Heaven has warned the world of its partial destruction since Our Lord predicted at Jerusalem the chastisement that was threatening it. We are perfectly free to disregard this appeal, but if that should happen, then God have mercy on us all!"

    — Hamish Fraser

"The moment will come, the danger will be great, it will be thought that all is lost. Then I will be with you."

    — The Madonna to Saint Catherine Labouré Paris, 1830

"Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings you affirm your power against your enemies."

    — Psalm 8


Read this article here: http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/abbott/100330




Table of Contents

Introduction .......................................................................... 1

Chapter 1: It Happened at Fatima and at Rome...
Chronicle of a unique event ................................................... 7
The shadows of 2000 .............................................................. 15
A very strange encounter ..................................................... 23

Chapter 2: The Life of this Pope is in Danger
Wolves (more or less gray) ................................................... 33
Martyrdom: A program? ...................................................... 35
A prophecy already realized? .............................................. 38
Ratzinger leaves us free ....................................................... 48
Who is the Pope of the Secret? .............................................. 54

Chapter 3: Detective Story in the Vatican
Is there a "secret" not revealed? ........................................... 65
Those mysterious words of the Madonna ....................... 70
Different opinions on the "disasters" ............................... 74
Apocalypse now? ................................................................. 82
That interview of Cardinal Ratzinger... ............................ 89
Thus spoke Sister Lucia ...................................................... 97
A worse patch for the hole ............................................. 105
Whispers and shouts ........................................................ 122

Chapter 4: The Fourth Secret of Fatima
"Precisely so!" ..................................................................... 129
The Vatican mystery of the dates ........................................... 132
An explosive folio ............................................................... 143
Satanic verses? .................................................................... 153

Chapter 5: The "Secret" Meaning of the Events
The "power" of the Pope ..................................................... 169
The power they have renounced ..................................... 177
Mea culpa of a Pope ......................................................... 210
The overthrow of "power" ................................................. 216
Places and circumstances of this book ...................... 223
Appendix .............................................................................. 229



Related links:

The Devil's Final Battle

The Message of Fatima

Fatima: The Apparitions


Matt C. Abbott is a Catholic columnist with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, Media and Theatre from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, and an Associate in Applied Science degree in Business Management from Triton College in River Grove, Ill. He has worked in the right-to-life movement and is a published writer focused on Catholic and social issues. He can be reached at mattcabbott@gmail.com



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[MaryVitamin] Tuesday of Holy Week

 

Mary Vitamin For Tuesday of Holy Week

 

Topic Suffering for Love

 

Quote:

The angels rendered homage to their God; they wished to unbind Him, but to this He would not consent, wishing to suffer still more; but He bade them console His afflicted Mother.

Ven. Mary of AgredaThe Divine Life of the Most Holy Virgin, (Tan Books), 169.

Tan Books

 

Meditation:

During the Passion, Our Lord accepts no consolation. If we imitate the Lord in mortification and humiliations, St. Claude de La Colombiere notices that "we sometimes become depressed and less ready to serve God. This is a temptation which we can conquer by thinking that God only asks these things of us through love." The Spiritual Direction of Saint Claude De La Colombiere, (Ignatius Press), 87.

 

St. Maximilian reminds us  suffering for love nourishes love.

 

Resolution:

When my thoughts turn to myself and I look for consolation and none can be found, I will follow the instructions given by Christ to the angels. I will not think of consolation for myself, rather I will turn my thoughts to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

 

Marian Vow:

St. Maximilian Kolbe

If God visits us with a painful suffering and our soul walks the thorny path, it behooves us to rejoice that God destines us for high perfection.

Aim Higher! (Marytown Press: 2008), 114. 

 

I give this resolution to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

 

Thanks be to God for graces received.

  

Related sites: Castle of the Immaculate & AirMaria


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The Love of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary: "A Song from Jesus" by Rita Ring

HYSTERIA MARKS POPE'S CRITICS

 

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the pope's critics:

 

Seldom have I seen such delirium over an innocent man, namely Pope Benedict XVI. Christopher Hitchens, the rabid atheist, wants to know why the European Union is allowing the pope to travel freely. Perhaps he wants the pope handcuffed at the Vatican and brought to the guillotine. Margery Eagan of the Boston Herald, another big fan of the Catholic Church, says, "The Pope should resign." One looks in vain for a single sentence that implicates his guilt in anything. Then we have the Washington Post indicting priests by painting all of them as child abusers in a cartoon. There are many other examples of this kind of hysteria.

Image representing New York Times as depicted ...

Image via CrunchBase

 

As indicated in our New York Times op-ed page ad today, the pope is innocent. Indeed, he is being framed. No one has any evidence that he even knew of the case of Father Lawrence Murphy. Indeed, his office didn't find out until 1996 and then it did the right thing by summoning an investigation (it could have simply dropped an inquiry given that the statute of limitations had run out). No matter, the pope's harshest critics are blaming him for not defrocking a man whom he may never have heard of, and in any event was entitled to a presumption of innocence. Or was he? There are not just a few who would deny civil liberties protections to priests.

 

It is a sad day when al-Qaeda suspects are afforded more rights than priests. That this kind of intellectual thuggery should emanate from those who fancy themselves tolerant and fair-minded makes the sham all the more despicable.

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Monday, March 29, 2010

Inside The Vatican NewsFlash:

Why These Attacks?
 
The sexual abuse crisis has now led to calls for Pope Benedict to resign the papacy, precisely on the 5th anniversary of John Paul II's death and his own election. The goal, it seems, is to “strike the shepherd.” Why? To silence the Church’s voice

By Robert Moynihan, reporting from Rome

============================== =======

 
Global Plague and the Attack on Pope Benedict

“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd. Strike the Shepherd, that the sheep may be scattered.” —Zechariah (13:7)
 
ROME, Italy, Monday, March 29, 2010 — As I write, it is a cool, clear March evening in Rome, and a luminous full moon shines over the Eternal City at the beginning of Holy Week.
 
But the situation of the world is not holy.
 
In front of St. Peter's this evening, there were no protesters. It was calm and peaceful. People were leaving the piazza after a prayer service in memory of Pope John Paul, who died five years ago on April 2. Some had tears in their eyes.
 
But in the world, there are wars and rumors of wars in various places, wars with much unjust "collateral damage." There are simmering conflicts in places like Chechnya (a bomb went off in a Moscow metro station this morning, killing two dozen innocent people). And the world's economic system remains unbalanced and fragile, and profoundly unjust, massively exposed by the manipulations of financial operators to mountains of debt, and so subject to abrupt disruptions, and possible cardiac arrest.
 
In the midst of all this, Pope Benedict XVI has come under relentless personal attack in the very week of Christ's Passion.
 
The world’s media in recent days has been focusing on Pope Benedict’s role in not doing more to prevent the sexual abuse of minors by priests.
 
There have been calls from Germany, England and Ireland for him to resign. Some are even calling for his arrest.
 
(See: http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/pope-benedict-fired-growing-sex-abuse-cover-ups/story?id=10200682)

Are these calls fair? Or are they part of a frenzied campaign to smear his name with false accusations?

 
Many thoughtful Church observers, including Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster, the leading Catholic bishop of England, think it is the latter. (See: http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100031572/cardinal-ratzinger-acted-powerfully-against-abusers-says-archbishop-vincent-nichols/ and http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article7076344.ece)
 
(For a complete, critical analysis of the charges in the New York Times, and a defense of Benedict's actions in this regard, see: http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=ZDkxYmUzMTQ1YWUyMzRkMzg4Y2RiN2UyOWIzNDVkNDM=)

And the Pope said yesterday, on Palm Sunday, that he would not be intimidated by these attacks.

 
 
========================
 
Global Plague
 
"The sexual and physical abuse of children and young people is a global plague; its manifestations run the gamut from fondling by teachers to rape by uncles," the American Catholic writer George Weigel wrote in a March 29 article in First Things magazine.

In short: we are in a child-abusing world.

This "global plague" is our collective shame as human beings.

It is recorded that Jesus only became really angry on two occasions: when he whipped the money-changers out of the Temple court, because "they have made my Father's house into a den of thieves" and when he denounced the abuse of children, crying out: "Whoever shall offend one of these little ones, it would be better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea."
 
And yet, much of our modern culture tolerates, even condones, the sexual exploitation of children.
 
Perhaps it is time for our culture to have a millstone hung around its neck.
 
Perhaps it is time for a new culture altogether.
 
=====================
 
What Are They After?
 
But is protecting children what the attackers of Benedict are really after?
 
No.
 
The recent attacks on Pope Benedict aim to portray him, and the Catholic Church he leads, as "the epicenter of the sexual abuse of the young."
 
But this is an absurd, false, charge. 
 
It is absurd because Benedict has for decades been in the forefront of proclaiming the need for our modern culture to be less sexually abusive, and he has acted when others did not act, even almost alone, and courageously, against great pressures, in particular in the case of the founder of the Legionaries of Christ.
 
In his address in Subiaco, Italy, on April 1, 2005, the day before Pope John Paul II died, Benedict (then still Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger) spoke, in a way that not a single other leader of the Church has spoken, of the imperative to cleanse the Church of "filth."
 
Benedict is the modern Pope who has sought most energetically to cleanse the Church of corrupt tendencies and practices which, from various sources — some known, some unknown or only partially known — took root within the Church decades ago, under other Popes... under John Paul II, under Paul VI, under, even, Pius XII.
 
And now Benedict is being attacked for not having done enough. 
 
This is a travesty that begs for explanation. Why Benedict? Why now?

===================

 
To Silence an Inconvenient Voice
 
 "The narrative that has been constructed [by the world's media] is often less about the protection of the young (for whom the Catholic Church is, by empirical measure, the safest environment for young people in America today) than it is about taking the Church down — and, eventually, out, both financially and as a credible voice in the public debate over public policy," Weigel argued. "For if the Church is a global criminal conspiracy of sexual abusers and their protectors, then the Catholic Church has no claim to a place at the table of public moral argument.”
 
This seems a possible answer — that an agenda lies behind these attacks against this Pope, and that that agenda is to so shame the Pope in the eyes of the world that his voice, the voice of the Catholic Church, will be eliminated “as a credible voice in the public debate over public policy.”
 
It is a surgical operation.
 
But why is this important precisely at this time? That is the final question.
 
The answer must be in some way connected to our historical situation. It must be that we are at an "inflection point," or soon will be — an historical moment when society will have to grapple with many policy debates on matters that are of fundamental important to very powerful forces in this world.
 
It must be that there are now occurring — or will soon occur — debates in which the voice of the Church, the wisdom of the Christian faith and tradition, could be critical to balancing, even rejecting, an “anti-Christian” vision of the world which seems to be growing stronger day by day, and therefore, that voice must be silenced.
 
The "anti-Christian" vision is one which believes human life is not sacred, and so does not have to be defended in the womb; that marriage is not simply and intrinsically between a man and a woman, and so can be entered into by members of the same sex; that fundamental civil liberties — freedoms — can be sacrificed in dramatic economic times...
 
===========================
 
The Bottom Line
 
Children must be protected, their innocence defended — both from deviant priests, who must be punished, and from myriad deviant forces in modern society, which should be fought and overthrown.
 
The Church, aware of grave flaws in her administrative procedures over the years, must reform those procedures, and, under Benedict XVI, is doing so.
 
But the attempt to ruin the name of this Pope, and so the moral authority of the Church in general, seems to be part of a larger design that, in the name of truth and justice and our human future, also must be fought.
 
It may not be an easy battle.
 
The archbishop of Dublin, Ireland, Diarmuid Martin, gave a homily on Palm Sunday.
 
“I, as Archbishop of Dublin, am committed to working with all of you who wish to renew our Church, to purify our Church from all that has damaged the face of Christ,”?Martin said.
 
“These have not been easy days for me personally. But with the many believers who wish to journey together on the path of renewal, I know that that path will inevitably be a way of the Cross...
 
"The challenge is not to follow the short-cuts of the disciples who found that fleeing was the quick and easy answer...
 
"Our challenge is to be like Jesus who, with all the anguish and fear it entails, does not flinch or waver in remaining faithful to the will of his Father, even at the price of enduring the ignominious death on a criminal’s cross.”
 
======================================== 
 
Resources

(For a series of articles on this crisis, see the following link: http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=5856)

========================================

Special note: Three years ago, we participated in a concert in Rome (on March 29, 2007) in which a Russian choir and orchestra, flying in from Moscow, performed a new version of The Passion According to St. Matthew composed a few months before by the young Russian Orthodox bishop (now archbishop and "foreign minister" of the Russian Orthodox Church, Hilarion Alfeyev).

 
That moving concert, in which one or two of the exhausted women singers fainted on stage and had to be carried off, was broadcast live worldwide via a Vatican Television Center feed by EWTN.
 
No DVD or CD was ever made of that concert — until a few days ago. After nearly three years, we have finally produced the DVD and CD of that historic concert, and they aqre now available for sale.
 
I believe the sound of this music, and the sight of the performance, especially duing Holy Week, when we recall Christ's Passion, will bring tears to your eyes.
 
The DVD and CD of this historic concert are now available on at website at the following link: http://www.insidethevatican.com/products/concerts-dvd-cd.htm
 
========================================
 

“He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God's providence to lead him aright.”Blaise Pascal
(French mathematician, philosopher, physicist and writer, 1623-1662)
=========================================

Further Note: We filled all place for our Easter pilgrimage to Assisi and Rome (March 30-April 8). We are now beginning to take preliminary requests for our Fall 2010 pilgrimage, which will include a visit to Assisi and a discussion of the issues mentioned in this email above. If you would like information about this trip, please email us at: editor@insidethevatican.com.

 
=========================================
 
Other Gift Ideas:

(1) Christmas Oratorio (Russian Concert) on DVD

On December 17, 2007, a leading Russian orchestra performed an exceptional "world premiere" concert of Russian Christmas music at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC. Now you can order your copy of the concert on DVD, which includes English sub-titles.

The music is a completely new composition by a young Russian Orthodox Archbishop, Hilarion Alfeyev, 43. At the time, he was the Russian Orthodox bishop for all of central Europe, based in Vienna, Austria. He is now the head of the External Relations Department of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Makes a wonderful gift. Order one for yourself, one for a loved one and one for a friend... at three copies, the price is less! Click here to order
 
================
 
(2) A Talk by Dr. Robert Moynihan on CD

“The Motu Proprio: Why the Latin Mass? Why Now?”

To understand the motu proprio, one must know the history of the Mass. Dr. Moynihan gives a 2000-year history of the Mass in 60 minutes which is clear and easy to understand. Dr. Moynihan's explanation covers questions like:

— How does the motu proprio overcome some of the confusion since Vatican II?
— Is this the start of the Benedictine Reform?
— The mind of Pope Benedict: How can the Church restore the sense of the presence of God in the liturgy?

 
(3) To subscribe to the print edition of Inside the Vatican, click here:
 
 
 
===============================================

The newsflash is free, but there are costs associated with producing it. To support this writing, you may call our toll-free number in the USA, 1-800-789-9494, or click here:


 
==============================
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[MaryVitamin] Monday of Holy Week

 
Mary Vitamin for March 29th
 
Topic: Monday of Holy Week
 
Quote:
Redeemed souls, and my beloved children, do not pity me only for the hour in which I beheld my dear Jesus expiring before my eyes; for the sword of sorrow predicted by Simeon pierced my soul during the whole of my life.
St. Alphonsus di Liguori, The Glories of Mary


 
Meditation:
Was the horrible sight of the crowning of thorns the first and only time Our Lady saw Jesus crowned in humility? The Lord's whole earthly life, taking on the nature of a human being was a humiliation. Since no man before Christ was born perfect and sinless and the teaching of the Trinity cannot be known through human reason alone, who on earth is able to distinguish the God-Man from sinful humanity? How humble is the Lord! It is similar to entering a penitentiary, wearing prison garb, yet never having committed a crime and being willing to be seen first as a criminal. How many examples must Our Lady have witnessed of this unending display of humility which culminates in the Lord's Crowning with thorns and cruel mockery by the soldiers.
 
Our Blessed Lady herself said to St. Bridget, "I heard some say that my Son was a thief; others, that He was an impostor; others, that no one deserved death more than He did; and every word was a new sword of grief to my heart."
St. Alphonsus di Liguori, The Glories of Mary, 446-7.
 
St. Augustine says:  Man sinned and became guilty; God is born a man to free man from his guilt. Man fell, but God descended; man fell miserably, but God descended mercifully; man fell through pride, God descended with his grace.
St. Augustine
Office of Readings, Saturday from January 2nd to Epiphany
 
Resolution:
Today I will consider the long and bitter sorrow the Blessed Virgin Mary endured because She shared all things with Her Son. I will remember this in the Rosary today.
 
Marian Vow:
Fr. Stefano Manelli, FI
It was the fullness of love which opened the Hearts of Jesus and Mary for a superabundant outpouring of every gift of love. Hence, the fullness of divine love and the outpouring of every gift of divine love are the content of the Marian vow.
Father Stefano Manelli FI,   The Marian Vow of Unlimited Consecration to the Immaculate, (Academy of the Immaculate), 20.
 
I give this resolution to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
 
Thanks be to God for graces received.
 
 

__._,_.___

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Video: Judas Today!

Video: The Possible Creation of a New Diocese for Medjugorje:

The Love of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary: "Mary is Crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth" by Rita Ring

Mary is Crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth


Jesus:  Mary was taken up into heaven and she was crowned the Queen of Heaven. What glory for her and for you to have your mother the Queen of Heaven!

R.  Mary is our heavenly Queen. She reins in such splendor in the courts of heaven. It is through her that we receive such graces from God.

    Hail Mary, full of grace,
        the Lord is with you,
        blessed are you among women
        and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.

Visions from Our Lady:

  A parade of faces, old and young, joyful and sorrowful, always behind her - the cross of Jesus.

  She lived her life, Jesus lived His. The rosary is the many faces from young to old that They wore. She stood by and silently her face showed her life.

  We wear many faces in our journey toward Christ. We are never the same, constantly evolving. Some joy, some sorrow, with the cross of Christ and Him hanging on it, always in the background.

  He is our pillar of strength. He poured out His love for us on the cross. He is our Savior. He is love and He gives us a special sharing in His life through Baptism.

    I saw Mary alive. She wore a parade of faces from young and beautiful to very, very old. I saw her face filled with sorrow and filled with joy. Behind her I saw a cross, it remained there all through the rosary.


http://www.sofc.org/

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Blasphemous "Corpus Christi" Play Canceled at College:

Tarleton State University

Image via Wikipedia


"CORPUS CHRISTI" NIXED AT TARLETON STATE

 Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the cancellation of the gay-Jesus play "Corpus Christi" at Tarleton State University (it was scheduled to be shown on March 27):

 On March 24, we blasted Tarleton State for hosting hate speech against Christians on the eve of Holy Week. Though the play was a class production, and not a University-sponsored performance, the nature of the play, and the timing, were still offensive. "Safety and security concerns" were cited as the reason for its cancellation.

 The Catholic League is pleased that Tarleton State president F. Dominic Dottavio denounced the play as "crude and irreverent." That is exactly right. As I said last week, "It's up to the employees and students at Tarleton State to register a protest. Texas taxpayers, and Texas lawmakers who appropriate funds to the university, also have a right to have their voice heard."

 I would be remiss if I did not add that Christians from all over the U.S. also have a right to protest. That is why I listed the president's e-mail address and asked our supporters to contact him. I am so happy they did. Obviously, anyone who makes threats should suffer the full weight of the law. Even if the play is the height of incivility, the right remedy must always be civil.


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Saturday, March 27, 2010

The Love of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary: "The Assumption" by Rita Ring

The Assumption


Jesus speaks:   

    Mary was taken up into heaven. My beautiful Mother lived many years after My death. She complied, always, willingly to My Father.

    You wander this barren desert in search of water to quench your thirst, but you find none to suffice.

    Your strength is found in the interior union you have with God in your soul.

    You search in vain, you wander. My child, you were created for the love of God and your neighbor.

    You seek, you wander, you roam, but only this interior flame burning within your breast gives you the glow you wear on your face.

    Glory, child, the glory of the God who dwells within your very soul! His fire is a burning ember, burning deeply in your breast. Your union is constant. You never go from the flame. It is the source of His love, deep within your soul.

    Oh, what you feel when you know Our love! It truly is life that radiates from your being, a burning endless flame that goes on despite anything that surrounds you in this world.

    I am the Alpha. I am the Omega. I am your all, My beautiful one. I burn for love of you, in all your precious uniqueness.

    My Mother was taken up to heaven in such happiness. Her days were completed. She lived here to accomplish the work of the Father. Now she lives in your hearts as your beloved Mother.

    She did not leave you, she forever is your loving Mother Mary! Oh, child, if you knew her motherly, undying love for you! You have the ardent love of the sweetest Mother. She is always with you. She was taken into heaven, but remains forever with you as your Mother. Sweet one, you are so loved. One of your greatest glories is the love your great mother has for you. She was assumed into heaven to be with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. What joy for her to see the face of God.

http://www.sofc.org/

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Friday, March 26, 2010

The Love of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary: "Descent of the Holy Spirit" by Rita Ring

Descent of the Holy Spirit
 
 
Jesus:  The descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles and Mary: As I promised, the Holy Spirit came upon them in the form of tongues into the room. They had been so afraid. They became fearless. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and they went into the world to preach My gospel.

    Fear not for I am with you this day. The Spirit dwells within your soul. You have been baptized into new life through the Spirit.

    You will preach My gospel as you allow the Spirit to operate from your soul. I am the Lord, your God, sweet one. You open yourself up to the fire of God's love. Enkindled in your heart will be the fire of the love of God.

    It is in this realization of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you realize the immensity of the love of God. This is what warms the troubled soul. The more you are rooted in all three Persons, the more you are steadfast in the love of God.

    God will never abandon you, though the world is cold. His love is a burning flame that roars in your heart. You are protected from the cold night. The glory is found in this mystery when you realize the fire of God's love. There are many cold hearts in this world. You will experience such warmth in your chest from the fire that burns within you from His love. This flame within you does not flicker, it does not wince about, it burns and protects you from any cold on the outside. It is a roaring furnace, a bright flame and it is alive in you when you are in the state of grace.

    Keep your hearts pure and go often to the sacrament of Penance. Be pure of heart and full of My love. I will light your heart on fire with the love of God and the cold world will not harm you. You will operate from the fire that burns within your chest. My love, the love of God is this burning flame.

    You will not be afraid. You will be fixed so in My love, you will run and not get weary because your God dwells within your soul. I am on fire for love of you. This is your strength. I am your true love.


http://www.sofc.org

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More News of Sexual Abuse


For weeks ZENIT has been reporting intensely on the response of the Holy See and the Pope to the painful scandal of sexual abuse committed by priests in several countries. It is terribly tragic news, which saddens us profoundly as children of the Church. After this news blitz, some readers are weary and, I admit, so are we. It seems to have become the only topic out there.

However, we cannot allow these atrocious crimes to make us forget the hundreds of thousands of men and women, the countless priests, men and women religious -- the great majority -- who day by day give their lives to God and to neighbor in so many hospitals, schools, parishes and missions. Today many of them are associated with the scandals because of superficial reporting. But ZENIT will not abandon them. We will continue to report unwaveringly on the Church's attitude in response to the abuses, but we will not fail in our commitment to give a global and objective picture -- a picture concealed by some media in their reporting on the priesthood.

We believe that our mission at this precise moment is more necessary than ever. We believe it is ever more urgent for lay professionals to continue to give keys to information from an independent news agency, so that the truth is better understood, since only the truth will make us free.

We were profoundly inspired by the prayer Benedict XVI raised before the statue of the Immaculate Conception in the center of Rome on Dec. 8. The Pope prayed thus: "Every day, in fact, in the newspapers, on television and on the radio bad news is broadcast, repeated, amplified, so that we become used to the most terrible things and inured to them, and in a certain way poisoned, since the negative effect is never completely eliminated but accumulates day after day."

The Pope paid homage "to all those who in silence, not with words but with deeds, strive to practice this evangelical law of love that propels the world forward. There are so many of them even here in Rome and they rarely hit the headlines. They are men and women of all ages, who have realized that it is not worth condemning, complaining or accusing; that it is better to respond to evil by doing good. This changes things; or rather it changes people, and hence improves society."

ZENIT wants to continue to report on these men and women so that they will also make the news, but we will not be able to do so without your help.

Greetings from Rome!

Jesús Colina,
Editorial Director


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From Mark Mallett: The Scandal

Mark

Mark Mallett

—Spiritual Food For Thought—

The Scandal

 

FOR decades now, Catholics have had to endure a never-ending stream of news headlines announcing scandal after scandal in the priesthood. "Priest Accused of…", "Cover Up", "Abuser Moved From Parish to Parish…" and on and on. It is heartbreaking, not only to the lay faithful, but to fellow-priests. It is such a profound abuse of power from the man in persona Christi—in the person of Christ—that one is often left in stunned silence, trying to comprehend how this is not just a rare case here and there, but of a much greater frequency than first imagined.

 

FOUNDATIONS LOST

The reasons, I suppose, are many. Fundamentally, it is a breakdown in not only the seminarian admittance process, but in the content of teaching there. The Church has been more busy forming theologians than saints; men who can intellectualize more than pray; leaders who are administrators more than apostles. This is not a judgment, but an objective fact. Several priests have told me that in their seminary formation, there was next to no emphasis on spirituality. But the very foundation of the Christian life is conversion and the process of transformation! While knowledge is necessary to "put on the mind of the Christ" (Phil 2:5), it alone is not enough.

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. (1 Cor 4:20)

The power to set us free from sin; the power to transform our lowly nature; the power to cast out demons; the power to work miracles; the power to change bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ; the power to speak His Word and bring about the conversion of those who hear it. But in many seminaries, priests were taught that the mention of sin is outdated; that transformation is not in personal conversion but theological and liturgical experimentation; that Satan is not an angelic person, but a symbolic concept; that miracles ceased in the New Testament (and maybe weren’t miracles after all); that the Mass is about the people, not the Holy Sacrifice; that homilies should be pleasant treatises rather than calls to conversion… and on and on.

And somewhere in it all, the refusal to adhere to Humanae Vitae, the profound teaching on the role of human sexuality in the modern world, seemed to accompany a floodgate of homosexuality into the priesthood. How? If Catholics were being encouraged to "follow their conscience" on the matter of birth control (see O Canada… Where Are You?), why couldn’t clergy also follow their own conscience regarding their own bodies? Moral relativism has eaten into the very core of the Church… the smoke of Satan billowing into seminaries, parishes, and even the Vatican, so said Paul VI.

 

AN EXCUSE

And so, anti-clericalism is reaching a fevered pitch in our world. Ignoring the fact that sexual abuse is not a Catholic problem, but prevalent throughout the world, many use the relatively small percentage of abusing priests as an excuse to reject the entire Church. Catholics have used the scandals as an excuse to stop attending Mass or to minimize or absolve themselves of Church teachings. Others have used the scandals as a means to paint Catholicism as evil and even attack the Holy Father himself (as if the Pope is responsible for everyone’s personal sins.)

But these are excuses. When each of us stands before the Creator when we have passed from this life, God isn’t going to ask, "So, did you know any pedophile priests?" Rather, He will reveal how you responded to the moments of grace and opportunities for salvation that He provided in the midst of all the tears and joys, trials and triumphs in your lifetime. The sin of another is never an excuse for our own sin, for the actions determined through our own free will.

The fact is that the Church remains as Christ’s mystical body, the visible sacrament of salvation for the world… wounded or not.

 

SCANDAL OF THE CROSS

When Jesus was seized in the garden; when He was stripped and scourged; when He was handed a cross which He carried and then hung upon… He was a scandal to those who followed Him. This is our Messiah? Impossible! Even the Apostle’s faith were rattled. They scattered in the garden, and only one returned to gaze upon the "crucified hope."

So it is today: the body of Christ, His Church, is covered in the scandal of many wounds—of the sins of her individual members. The head is once again covered in the shame of a crown of thorns… a tangled weave of sinful barbs that pierces deeply into the very heart of the priesthood, the very foundations of the "mind of Christ": her teaching authority and credibility. The feet are also pierced through—that is, her holy orders, once beautiful and strong with missionaries, nuns, and priests who were consumed with carrying the Gospel to the nations… have been disabled and dislocated through modernism and apostasy. And the arms and hands—those lay men and women who boldly made Jesus present in their families and in the marketplace… have become drooped and lifeless through materialism and apathy.

The body of Christ as a whole appears as a scandal before a world in desperate need of salvation.

 

WILL YOU?

And so… will you run too? Will you flee the Garden of Sorrow? Will you abandon the Way of of Paradox? Will you reject the Calvary of Contradiction as you gaze upon the body of Christ once again riddled with scandalizing wounds?

…Or will you walk by faith instead of sight? Will you see instead the reality that, beneath this battered body lies a heart: One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. A heart that continues to beat to the rhythm of love and truth; a heart that continues to pump pure Mercy into its members through the Holy Sacraments; a heart that, though small in appearance, is united to an infinite God?

Will you run, or will you join the hand of your Mother in this hour of sorrow and repeat the fiat of your baptism?

Will you remain among the jeers, protestations and mockery heaped upon this body?

Will you stay when they persecute you for your faithfulness to the Cross, which is "folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, the power of God"? (1 Cor 1:18).

Will you stay?

Will you?

 

 Published in: A RESPONSE, DAILY JOURNAL | on March 25th, 2010 | No Comments »

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