We Lost a Good One Last Night

Posted on by charliej373
Bishop Robert Morlino

By Charlie Johnston

It was with deep sorrow I learned of the passing last night of Madison Bishop Robert Morlino. Bishop Morlino had written the clearest clarion call for reform in the Church after the scandals started breaking of any Bishop in the country. He was truly a sign of hope – and I had hoped he would play a prominent role in the renewal of Our Lord’s Church. I reckon he will – but from the other side of the veil. Reports said that he had had a “cardiac event” mid-week. After some early apparent improvement, he died last night.

Our own Beckita collaborated with Morlino on many things when he was the Bishop of Helena – and he affectionately called her the “Queen of Hearts.” Fr. Richard Heilman, the publisher of Roman Catholic Man and a Priest in Morlino’s Diocese, wrote last night:

“Requiescat in pace, Bishop Morlino

There was a call for all night Adoration at our Diocesan Center for Bishop Morlino. I went to expose the Blessed Sacrament. Two minutes before we entered the sanctuary, a call came that things were not going well with Bishop.

After an hour before the Blessed Sacrament, I wrestled whether to go down to the hospital to pray for him there, even though he was not taking visitors. Ninety minutes later, I couldn’t fight it off any longer, so I rushed down to the hospital. Just as I arrived, Bishop passed. I was there. Isn’t it always the way? When you are close to someone, you know … you just know.

Everyone knows my affection for Bishop. But, I also know that all of the serious Catholics in our diocese adored him. Yes, I do believe we witnessed a saint in our midst; a St. Athanasius against the rampant modernism in our times.

My love and my prayers go out to everyone grieving this great loss. I love you, Bishop. You were more than my Shepherd, you were a dad to me and countless others.

Requiescat in pace, Bishop Morlino”

*******

I have enjoyed a week with family. We all gathered at my nephew’s home in Helena, Alabama. Ah, how glorious it is to enjoy a holiday with a houseful of lively children and family games! We have a long tradition of playing the southern card game Rook (with our own variation of the rules) until all hours of the night. My son, nephew and I also played a little competitive video game golf. I stunk at the golf (baseball is my game in the video world – the only way I will ever hit home runs again in this life), but remain a solid Rook player. My daughter-in-law received her baptism by fire into the world of Rook. I warned her that, after she has really learned the game, it is best that spouses do not choose each other as game partners (in Johnston Rules Rook, there can be a little trash talk between partners). I was cheered yesterday morning when I arrived at the house before my son and his family left. My daughter-in-law was holding my nine-month-old grandson. When I walked in the door, he gave me a hearty wave and a big grin. During the visit, he kept trying to grab my coffee away from me. Love that kid…he knows how to set his priorities.

I had intended to devote yesterday afternoon to finishing the Ballad, but shortly after I got to the hotel, the internet went out – and did not come back on until sometime in the night. I thought it was time for it, but I guess it is not quite soup yet. The next two days are packed. I finally get back home Tuesday afternoon – and will devote the latter part of the week to finishing this long-awaited piece. I know I have completely neglected my work this last week – and am going to do so for a few more days. But after Wednesday, I have no more excuses.

*******

They re-printed my piece from earlier in the week over at Church Militant yesterday. You have already read the piece, but a cool feature they added was to embed video from each of the speakers of the day. Thus, you can live the rally without going through security or enduring the chill winds that blew through – although there is a certain charm in being part of the crowd.

224 thoughts on “We Lost a Good One Last Night”

  1. May he rest in peace; so sad to hear this. Father Z was close to him and will be feeling this pain. God has a purpose in all things, but i agree with Charlie that we hoped this holy bishop would be around to help with the renewal of our Church. May he intercede in a powerful way now.

    Liked by 10 people

  3. Loved Bishop Morlino from the get-go of his episcopacy. He cut his bishop baby teeth in the Diocese of Helena when he was pulled from the world of academia – much to the sorrow of his students – and agreed to answer the call to be bishop.

    I was on staff at a local parish here in MIssoula when Bishop Morlino began his series of deanery meetings which our parish staff hosted. There were many areas of Church life which needed to be set right in the diocese and, without hesitation, he went to work on the most sensitive and flagrant abuse of general absolution being given as standard practice rather than in special emergencies for which this contingency had been designed. His style was one of firmness embedded in magnanimity. He framed the confession problem in a discussion of how it usually takes fifty years after a major Church council for the dust to settle and the people of God to fully understand and implement the documents of a council. He, then, proceeded to catechize his priests privately and his people publicly. Amid belly-aching and resistance, he pressed on with truth.

    Pope St. John Paul II moved him to the Diocese of Madison, in 2003, due to the research happening at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, for Bishop Morlino’s gifts of expertise in the marriage of moral theology and bioethics were needed there.

    This good bishop expressed and acted on Magisterial teaching in the public square in ways that brought him to the limelight via his interviews on EWTN’s The World Over program with Raymond Arroyo. He was a voice crying out in the wilderness of these times.

    I just know BIshop Morlino will remain close to us, interceding as we continue making our way through the challenges of this Storm. And he, with all our heavenly friends, will stick with us through thick and thin… if we but say the word and ask for their help.

    Liked by 15 people

  4. Oh! And, Charlie, *good for you* for taking some down time. To everything there is a season and My Goodness! You have been living a verrrrrrrrrrrry full schedule while away from home for an extended time.

    Liked by 7 people

  5. Glad you got some down time Charlie. I would worry more if you did not take the time off. I am grateful you will be back in action soon.

    Liked by 7 people

  7. It seems so many of the evil people live very long lives while some of the best of the good people have their lives cut short. I was shocked to hear this and saddened that someone so committed to improving the Church is no longer able to do so from this side of the veil. May he do so from the other side – so be it.

    Liked by 16 people

    1. I think you are right Steve, with exceptions of course. When I ponder this, I see the mercy of God as one who has patience and gives time for said people to come to know God’s mercy and repent. The good that live short lives, again, always exceptions to the rule, are ok to leave their lives early here since they may have fulfilled their good purpose or mission. Sad though for us left behind because we will miss them. However, I am grateful for today and trust our merciful God will raise up new leaders and new saints. He is merciful and not done with us yet.

      Liked by 15 people

        1. Thanks Steve. I think God is more in control than we can ever imagine or realize and there is much behind all that takes place. I think our job is to be faithful which is usually very invisible to others. Maybe this explains why God appears invisible. Of course, his beauty is magnified in all of nature. So this aspect is very visible. Thanks for all you do here. It is greatly appreciated.

          Liked by 3 people

    2. Yeah, SteveBC; that was pretty much my initial reaction, too. But God has a plan. May Bishop Morlino rest in peace, and may he pray for all of us as we make our way here below.

      Liked by 3 people

  8. In season and out of season, he always preached the Truth.

    And I love his episcopal motto:

    “The vision will not disappoint”

    It is taken from the Book of the Prophet Habakkuk, 2:3:
    “For the revelation awaits an appointed time;
    it speaks of the end
    and will not prove false.
    Though it linger, wait for it;
    it will certainly come
    and will not delay.”

    (How’s that for a heartening scripture to carry us through the parts of the Storm where it seems evil has won?)

    Liked by 21 people

    1. Much respect for his fortitude: ‘The weekend before Election Day in 2006, he ordered all priests to play, without comment, a recorded message from him at Mass in which he voiced opposition to same-sex marriage, the death penalty and embryonic stem-cell research. Some parishioners walked out or stood with their backs to the altar when the message was played.’
      Doesn’t take long for the msm to find dissenting parishioners…”was kind of old school and going backwards in the direction of the church instead of forward.”
      More examples of ‘mixed feelings’….
      https://madison.com/wsj/news/local/catholics-express-mixed-feelings-at-they-mourn-bishop-robert-morlino/article_23c80540-f136-5615-af99-3faadfe27a09.html?utm_content=buffera6f28&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=LEEDCC#15

      Joseph S. came to Bishop’s defense on his (public) twitter account :

      As both Padre Pio and the Little Flower would say, ‘I will be able to help you more when I am in heaven’. Please, Lord, may it be ever so with your faithful servant Bishop Morlino.

      Liked by 10 people

  10. In May of 2004 I received a promotion at work which meant moving to Madison, WI. I was only there for four years, before the Lord brought me back from where I was originally from. During my time in Madison, and thereafter, I had the highest regard for Bishop Morlino and found him to be the prefect one to stand up the liberals in the diocese, and in the community. He took his role as a teacher very seriously, and I always enjoyed his homilies and articles for the diocesan newspaper. I was saddened to learn of his passing, but am sure he’s interceding for the Church and the struggles she is going through.

    Liked by 12 people

  11. Latest Medjugorje message
    https://www.medjugorje.ws

    Latest Medjugorje Message, November 25, 2018
    “Dear children! This is a time of grace and prayer, a time of waiting and giving. God is giving Himself to you that we may love Him above everything. Therefore, little children, open your hearts and families, so that this waiting may become prayer and love and, especially, giving. I am with you, little children, and encourage you not to give up from what is good, because the fruits are seen and heard of afar. That is why the enemy is angry and uses everything to lead you away from prayer. ImageThank you for having responded to my call. ”

    Liked by 12 people

  12. I lived in Wisconsin most of my life. We just moved to Tennessee last week. I wasn’t in the Diocese of Madison but I knew of this great Bishop and respected him a great deal. It’s interesting how much you can care for someone you have never met. I wonder sometimes about why Wisconsin has been so blessed. We have the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the west, the only US approved Marian apparition site in the east, and we had Bishop Morlino (and Bishop Ricken.) The city we just left has some great priests; I only hope to find their equal in Tennessee.

    Liked by 6 people

  13. I’m so sorry Charlie for your loss…our loss…heaven’s gain it sounds like. Many people die unexpectedly during the holidays from the high salt content in a lot of our holiday food. A nurse told me about this. Especially after eating ham. I felt my BP was skyrocketing thanksgiving day due to all the sausage in our darn good but darn dangerous bread stuffing with sausage meat…aww well…I pray he is with Our Lord & Lady & all the angels & Saints known & unknown. ..God save all here.. tnrs..asoh

    Liked by 4 people

  14. Beckita and Charlie,

    Bishop Morino was the bravest of the brave. A saintly man, an orthodox man, who was trained during the storm that destroyed many Jesuits post 1965. He was a haven for many, such as Father John Zuhlsdorf. He was a father to his seminarians and oversaw their education. He loved and respected the older form of the Roman liturgy. He was a bishop in the truest sense of the word, someone like the great bishops of the patristic era, like Basil and Augustine.

    I will say the Office of the dead for him. Memory Eternal!

    Liked by 9 people

  15. The angst in our Church is clear for all the world to see anddeeply affects the universal Church… From the British paper, The Catholic Herald:

    “To most Catholics, the Pope’s actions and seeming resistance place the ownership of the scandal squarely in his court; he has increasingly become the face of the scandal. This is due to the credible accusations that he knew of former Cardinal McCarrick’s predatory behaviour but even more so to the fact that he has steadfastly refused even to respond to the charges … Instead, the Pope has declared that he will “not say one word on this”. Even worse, he subsequently referred to those who have asked for answers and investigations as “a pack of wild dogs”, “scandal-mongers”, and “those in league with the Great Accuser”. This is no way to treat God’s faithful; it makes him seem more of a besieged and angry potentate than a shepherd who “has the smell of the sheep”.

    Full article: https://catholicherald.co.uk/magazine/playing-politics-with-sex-abuse/

    Liked by 8 people

  16. R.I.P., Bishop Morlino, in God’s loving embrace & may His perpetual light & love forever shine upon you, your family, & loved ones❣❣❣ I did not know Bishop Morlino, & I’m sorry for your loss…he sounds like a wonderful man.

    Liked by 3 people

  17. Charlie, Beckita, Brothers and Sisters,
    The passing of Bishop Morlino is cause for mourning the loss of a great Shepherd. But the rise of a young Bishop W. Shawn “McKnight in shining armor” gives us great joy and hope for the future of our beloved Catholic Church. Bishop McKnight will not sit down and shut up at the Pope’s order to stop the proceedings of the Bishops’ Conference. We may have a Bishop who IS a Priest, Prophet and King! All Praise an Thanksgiving to God!
    http://www.newstribune.com/news/local/story/2018/nov/20/bishop-could-not-keep-silent/753307/

    Liked by 7 people

  18. Charlie and TRNS community. I offer this for your review. Bishop Gracida recommends our discerment…….

    “It is over two hours long but it is worth watch since it is the best summation of the arguments for the continuing validity of the Papacy of Pope Benedict XVI with which I agree.

    At 1:36:40 in the video Ann pays a compliment to me but indicates her disagreement with me about my call for a meeting of twelve valid cardinals to declare the ‘papacy’ of Francis the Merciful invalid along with all of the elevation of all of those whom he has elevated to the College of Cardinals.

    The Bergoglian Anti-Papacy

    Ann disagrees with my call for a meeting of valid cardinals primarily because she argues for the universal recognition that Pope Benedict XVI is the only pope of the Church. While I welcome her support of the continuing validity of the papacy of Pope Benedict, she does not offer a solution to the deepening crises for the Church that will follow the death of Pope Benedict.

    I, on the other hand have offered a plan that calls for a meeting as soon as possible by twelve valid cardinals appointed by Popes Saint John Paul II and Benedict XVI who would declare the See of Peter vacant, thereby ending confusion about the validity of the resignation of Pope Benedict and ending the reign of Francis and his cronies, and paving the way for the calling of a valid conclave which can only be held while the valid cardinals appointed by Popes John Paul and Benedict are still alive. The clock is ticking. If what I propose is not done in the next twelve months, and Pope Benedict and Francis the Merciful die, the next conclave will be compose of a large majority of cardinals created by Francis and only a fool would suppose that they would not elect a clone of Francis as the next Pope.”

    God save the Church!!!

    +Rene Henry Gracida

    Liked by 2 people

    1. SanSan, Bishop Gracida is a friend I cherish – and who has on occasion given me wonderful consoling counsel. But we disagree on this – and I disagree firmly with Ann Barnhardt. I have gone seriously through the arguments and I do not find them persuasive. Moreover, I think the effort to find some technicality, some literal deus ex machina, to get us out of this mess distracts us from the very serious work we have to do – and is an easy out to try to deny our own responsibility for the mess. We ceased to demand sound teaching, sound doctrine. In order to be nice, we did not object when a Priest proclaimed absolute heresy from his pulpit. Over time, our unwillingness to respectfully challenge error turned into a case where, in many Parishes, they will not suffer sound doctrine at all – Parishioners start complaining if the Priest does preach sound doctrine. We occupy a Church now where, if St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Patrick…even Jesus Himself appeared and preached what they had always preached, they would be booed and hissed by many congregants – and perhaps even condemned as being rigid from the hierarchy. Is Pope Francis faithless? I think he is…but I also think he is a validly elected Pope who faithfully reflects our own faithlessness. So jobs one, two and three are to become holy again as our Father in heaven is holy. Seeking creative technicalities that will absolve us of our own history of faithlessness in the pews will only delay that process.

      Liked by 10 people

      1. I heartily agree, Charlie. Your exhortation to holiness is a call resounding, throughout this country, via lay and clerical evangelists. I do hope people in our community take time to listen to the talks from the Church Militant event to which you have linked. I’ve been working my way through listening to them and have one more to go. Well worth the time.

        Liked by 6 people

      2. The cardinals have picked less-than-stellar popes in the past, and they will probably do so in the future. Jesus said, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit…” (Jn 15:16). Jesus personally called all of his apostles, especially Judas Iscariot, to follow him. Mysteriously, Jesus relied on Judas to betray him at the appointed hour. And Judas, because of his selfishness and disbelief, unwittingly fulfilled God’s will. I remind myself of this when looking at the troubles in the Vatican, though I pray that this is not too analogous to Pope Francis’ situation.

        Now, pardon my comical non sequetor to this serious discussion.

        A friend and I invented a device on paper that would assist the home-bound, disabled, or dying to pray. It would be like a digital picture frame that showed beautiful religious artwork while reading prayers. My friend and I thought we were pretty clever calling our Catholic start-up company “Deus ex Machina” (God out of a device). But when we tried to get a web address for it, we came up with:

        http://www.deusexmachina.com 😲

        Whoops, er….well that sure won’t fly! I guess you can see the subtle problem. We picked a different name instead.

        Liked by 4 people

        1. Patrick, I don’t think Jesus relied on Judas’ betrayal at all. God wants the conversion and salvation of each and every one of us and His grace is sufficient for each one IF we cooperate with His grace. There is mystery here, as you say. God always draws good from our errors and missteps. I wonder how His saving grace would have flowed had Judas had a change of heart and repented before betraying his Master.

          Liked by 4 people

          1. Hi Beckita. “Relied” is a grossly wrong word and the sentence is completely flawed. I tried to describe a mysterious situation to make a point about Pope Francis and the Church. Hopefully the spirit of my comment was not lost. It is understood that Judas was called by Jesus to sainthood like the other apostles (Jn 15:16), and not because of his function in the Passion as “the betrayer.” We also know that Jesus needs no one to accomplish his will and the will of the Father — he is capable of anything and everything, including creating an entirely new universe (St Faustina’s Diary). Jesus wants us all to cooperate. I did not mean to suggest otherwise.

            Surely Jesus’ omnipotence enabled him to see all thing and, so, knew of Judas’ future decision. Again, this relationship with Judas is quite a mystery: Judas was bound by space and time and Jesus, though dwelling in space and time, was not. (That’s what I get for trying to describe our indescribable Lord! 🙂)

            What I intended was just as you stated: “God draws good from our errors and missteps.” (Ah, brevity is the soul of wit, Beckita. Thanks for the gentle smack-down!)

            Liked by 5 people

            1. Oh Goodness, Patrick. I didn’t mean my reply as a smack down. I can readily get lost in words when discussions try to encompass and unpack the mysteries of faith. I think I’m especially sensitive in these days when I hear people – not here, but in other settings – ask how God could let these things happen, these sorrowful and terrible things which are all around us. We so do it to ourselves, don’t we? And HE’s the One Who’s actually mitigating what we, collectively and individually, have brought upon ourselves. Let’s keep pondering aloud, Patrick, for we, then, live St. Paul’s admonition:“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things and the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:8)

              Liked by 6 people

              1. Here are my thoughts on this from an excerpt i recently wrote on the topic of communism and why it is evil:

                God has to let Evil exist.  It boils down to love.  To love requires free will.  If we did not have free will, then love could not exist.  We would be pure slaves or mindless robots.  True love is when someone gives themselves to another without any force or coercion against their will. There has to be a choice involved.  The flip side to this is free will cannot exist without good and evil because there would be nothing to choose.  Hence, evil has to exist along with good.  God asks us to choose him and trust him, but will never force us to accept him.  Almost all evils are a reflection man’s choice and we all reap consequences to these choices.  God never abandons us.  We abandon him and he lets us reap the consequences of our choices.  

                Liked by 6 people

                2. Yes Doug, sin gets it power from the law.
                  God’s nature is of a natural and supernatural order or what we call “laws” (The law of nature, etc). When we act contrary to these laws the consequences are disorder or what we call evil but it is just the normal (abnormal) consequences of going against order.
                  The sin is in the choice to go against this nature knowing it is against order but the consequences are just the normal reaction to this disordered action into lawlessness.
                  Satan is the greatest example of this disorder as he was God’s greatest creation before Mary. His break away from order eclipsed him into the greatest evil because of how far he had to fall from such a height of glory and perfection.
                  Spiritually, since we are all part of the body of Christ, these consequences effect everyone. This is why free will *the right choice* can be deemed a form of predestination.
                  No one can be sure of their salvation, but we can receive “signal graces” by following the rubrics set down by the church that “insures” us of our salvation as long as we follow them faithfully. Our free will is that we can follow or not follow them.
                  I like to use the analogy of a train.
                  The train is on a track that goes to a location. If you are on this train who’s “destination” is heaven, unless you get off, you will eventually get there.

                  Liked by 3 people

                  2. Only one problem though. This thread has shifted to the right so far that to go back and read it means I scroll down a column that is about one word wide. Scroll, scroll, scroll…… I wonder if this is an indirect consequence to someone’s sin? Just kidding. 😎

                    Liked by 1 person

                    1. Imagine if we had to communicate by pony express or carrier pigeon. We’d all be six feet under by the time you got that final “bing” in. Cowboy Techi Tip #2 for Engineers: Rotate device 90 degrees.

                      Liked by 3 people

                    3. Yup. It worked. Turned the phone side ways and now i can read it. Absolutely amazing. I did not see the forest through the trees. Simple thing just made my day. Thanks MP.

                      Liked by 2 people

                    4. Hilariously MP – I read your comment as “communicate by phony express” – I bet it only delivers phake news! And I had to put this under Doug’s comment because I couldn’t phind the REPLY under yours – I need a Tech Tip!

                      Liked by 3 people

                    7. Karen, do you know that “Phony Express” (1943) was a Three Stooges movie set in the old West? Not a tech tip, but there’s a little bit of movie trivia for you.

                      Granted, DP and I may sound a bit like Mo and Curly some days. Heck, I actually felt like I was living a Three Stooges movie today.

                      Let me know if you run across a Larry, and we’ll have the whole slapstick team.

                      Liked by 2 people

            2. Hi Patrick, I question whether or not Jesus was omniscient (I think this is the term you meant to use). In the gospels, in Matthew 24:36, he states that only the father knows the end time dates leading one to believe he was not omniscient at least while on earth. In a sense, this would make sense to me given his humanity. I would suspect that things were revealed to him as they were revealed to the saints. He had to trust God just like anyone else and as much as we should trust God in everything without necessarily seeing the whole picture. Any Catholic theology scholars here that can chime in and bring additional clarity to this based on the churches teaching? Blessings!

              Liked by 5 people

                1. What a piece. I was unaware this mystery about Jesus has been such a huge debate among our greatest minds, even up to this day, without a clear resolution. I’m in way over my head as my waffling comments demonstrate. Best stay on the sidelines on this one and stick with what I’m certain about: Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.

                  Liked by 4 people

                    1. Touche, Doug. 🙂You know, all I intended was to post the DEUSEXMACHINA comment to hopefully give people some chuckles. I added the Judas paragraph last second just for some continuity. Sigh. No harm, no foul though.

                      Liked by 3 people

                  2. Pondering is good, Patrick. I just like turning to the erudite and wise ones who have studied such topics from of old. It’s forms a great foundation, then, for further pondering of the mysteries. (Hope your work is going well. You must be looking forward to your break!)

                    Liked by 4 people

                2. Thanks Becks. It seems the church does not necessarily have an official teaching on it. Anyone know? We need our great bishop YD to help us sift through this.

                  Liked by 2 people

                  1. Doug, the conclusion of Jimmy Akins’ piece answers well your question about whether or not there is an official teaching on this topic. There is none, even after some great minds of the Church have wrestled with this question throughout the years.

                    Akins’ conclusion to his article:

                    “The picture that emerges from these data points is of a shift away from the medieval consensus and a return to streams of thought found among the Church Fathers.

                    Our own age is like theirs in that orthodox theologians are split. Some, such as von Balthasar and Ratzinger, have held Christ’s human knowledge was more restricted than the previous consensus did. Others, such as the late Father William Most, defend the more expansive understanding of Christ’s human knowledge.

                    The latter is still a possibility, for the Magisterium has not condemned that view. At the same time, there has been a marked shift in the way the Magisterium treats the subject, as illustrated in the Catechism, the audiences of John Paul II, and the approval of the PBC and ITC documents we’ve reviewed.

                    If advocates of the traditional position are still free to propose their view, they cannot count on the support of the Magisterium in the same way or advance their arguments as if nothing has changed.”

                    Liked by 3 people

                    1. I never made it to the end of the article Becks. Just my laziness, but I did read enough to see there was not an obvious conclusion. It is interesting thought to ponder. I am content to leave it as a mystery and I am not sure I actually want to know the true answer. Maybe because my pea brain mind is happy not knowing and always dreaming and hoping for the future. I think it is a blessing in this respect. MP has it right. In the end, it is love that counts.

                      Liked by 4 people

                    2. Pondering is beautiful, Doug. Perhaps, it’s easy to overlook what true love looks like. Certainly we’ve all heard – most likely frequently – that famous 1 Corinthians 13 passage at weddings. Yet, it’s not just for spouses and it could be pondered every.single.day.

                      If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

                      Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

                      Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

                      And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

                      Liked by 4 people

              2. Doug,
                As you say, “he states that only the father knows the end time dates leading one to believe he was not omniscient at least while on earth. In a sense, this would make sense to me given his humanity.”

                Jesus’ humanity does make sense. How else can it be explained that the humanity of Jesus Christ, Son of God and Man, cried out on the Cross, “My God, my God, why have You abandoned me?” Jesus suffered the Justice of God for the sins of the world in His human nature. A great mystery indeed!

                Liked by 6 people

                2. Doug,
                  Jesus and God are One so the Son always knows what the Father is doing but the authority was the Fathers to initiate not the Son’s and He intimates this by His statement that only God knows. It was a human response so human minds could understand it as needed. Being omnipresent, of course Jesus is present to all times all the time and knows everything all the time for all time- a great mystery even the angels cannot fathom. Jesus always was, always is and always will be and His presence is in every crack and crevis of time forever-past, present and future. He does not included these realities for us to “not” understand but gives us the biblical assurance that “these have been written down” so that we know enough to understand that He is the Christ and be saved.
                  We can peel the layers of Jesus for an eternity and never come close to the reality of His Godhood, but when we die and “see Him as He truly is” enough of Him will be absorbed by us to satiate every desire imaginable and unimaginable.
                  As far as the Judas effect, Jesus is in this to serve His purpose. Nothing can stop Him or change His goal….period. He cannot be anything but Himself and He loved Judas equally as He loves every other human being and desired his salvation. He will never stop loving him or forget him (remember, He is present to us forever). According to the mystics, Jesus and Mary tried to convert Judas the whole time he was with them, even as he kissed Jesus. All the biblical remarks about Judas are for our teaching on how one so close to God can still fall. Jesus will accomplish everything He has set out to do-with or without a Judas.
                  Our free will allows us to join this task or be left behind. We can spend our talents building up our given kingdom along with His or we can let it fall to ruin and be no more.
                  But, dispite everything we do or don’t do, His Kingdom will come.

                  Liked by 5 people

                  1. Very interesting thought Phillip. I hear what you are saying and it makes sense, but I am not yet convinced. Could it possibly be that he was omniscient from the perspective of all knowledge was available to him? Might it be that he “chose” to set aside this in his humanity as he did other things? Hebrews 2:7
                    “You have reduced him to a little less than the Angels. You have crowned him with glory and honor, and you have set him over the works of your hands.” I think we know he is superior to the angels, but in his humanity, God made himself lower than the angels. I am also reminded in Hebrews 2:17 “Therefore, it is fitting for him to be made similar to his brothers in all things, so that he might become a merciful and faithful High Priest before God, in order that he might bring forgiveness to the offenses of the people.”. The exception, of course, is there was no sin in him. I am not sure the answer is that simple (at least for me anyway). I like to think this was set aside because it gives me a better appreciation of his humanity in that just like he was tempted, like us, yet was without sin, he intentionally confined himself in the same way we have to live without a full understanding of everything. It seems to me this has to be set aside or he will not be able to fully experience trust because part of trust is the element of not knowing the outcome. Without setting aside omniscience, everything becomes fatalistic and in many respects, this scares the nuts off of me because there would be no cause for hope or change. Thoughts?

                    Liked by 2 people

                    1. Doug,
                      The struggle is to understand that He became man and took the “form of a slave”. A slave to what?
                      Sin.
                      Jesus took on a body bound by the condition of sin, though sinless, He felt the consequences of the fallen sinful “nature” of man: cold, hungry, tired, lonely, sad, afraid, heartbroken, etc.
                      Jesus body was not “glorified” yet.
                      “Father, glorify Thy Son”. He entered this physical glorification after His resurrection but revealed beforehand His Spiritual Glory in the Tranfiguration where His Godhood shone brightly to the 3 apostles which has been called a brief suspension of the miracle which hid this part of His Godhood from us.
                      By devesting Himself of the “rights and privileges” of His divine nature He only disallowed them from being part of His human nature, His divine nature cannot be removed from His Spiritual nature and this was shown during the Tranfiguration. “One in being with the Father” was never stopped, this is why He always knew what to do, and could show His divinity by His miracles, prophesy, hidden knowledge, etc. By allowing His human nature to grow and mature like a normal man, Jesus “grew in stature, wisdom and favor before men” but He was never separate from His divine nature and this is why He was “true God and true man”. Any time He acted ignorant it was but a teaching moment for us, like a teacher who askes his class a rhetorical question digging them to think of the answer which he already knows.
                      Your fear of Jesus not being like you somehow is not uncommon. We desire a comradery with Him but I think it is misplaced to think somehow we can do what He did.
                      Jesus was like us in all things but sin. I think it is a very distinct reality to have never sinned and to be perfect. Jesus’ very nature cannot sin. This nature we do not possess.
                      Mary never sinned but she could have.
                      Jesus never could.
                      His position in the world is to be the link between God and man raising our dignity up to adopted sons and daughters and giving us a divine inheritance. He did not condecend down to us, He raised us up to Him!
                      He did not become human to show us that we can do it too. “For man it is impossible, but with God, all things are possible” So Jesus became “Emmanuel”- God with us. So now, all things have become possible for us!

                      Liked by 1 person

                    2. Hi Phillip,

                      Yes. I do Get it. Fully human and fully divine and understand that the dignity of man was elevated due to the incarnation.

                      In a sense, there is a conundrum. If God is omniscient and knows who will be saved in the end and who will not, it can easily lead to predestination which in a sense removes the concept of free will. That he knows the results ahead of time, but still goes through the motions of convincing us is a deep mystery. Not knowing always brings hope for me. For example, if one were in prison for a life sentence with no possibility of parole, it would most likely lead to hopelessness and despair, but if there was a possibility of parole or of appealing the conviction, then there is hope even though the outcome is not known. To me, this is the difference between fatalism and non fatalism. With the thought of omniscience, it could be easy to become fatalistic which I do not adhere to.

                      What scares me is that there will ultimately be an end result for each of our salvation and omniscience says God knows the end result. I do not want to necessarily know the end result as I always want to hope as well as for those I love and want to see in heaven. I always want to have hope and do not want to lose it. Maybe my personal fear for myself is unfounded as God often reassures me of salvation, but I am still a frail imperfect human. I am not trying to argue for or against Jesus Omniscience, but I am leaving open that at any given instant, he was focused on something or a person, he was not at that same instant thinking about wild Mustangs in Arizona 2000 years into the furure. Put another way, he had all knowledge, which I agree with, but in his human form, he compartmentalized this knowledge. Maybe this is my own human limitation trying to wrap my arms around this. Compartmentalization is a human trait. So in Jesus human form, did he compartmentalize like this? Again, I am not looking for an answer and not sure I want one at this moment. For me, i am content to leave it as a mystery. I fall back on MP’s response that it is all about love. I love him (Jesus) and he loves me. I am content. Love having you here Phillip because you bring amazing insight.

                      Liked by 1 person

                  2. Yes, you have it simply and precisely, Phil, as Holy Scripture tells us. Jesus, fully God and fully Man, In becoming Man, did not stop being God to the slightest degree in any respect. Better to simply accept what is veiled and contemplate the mystery of Humility there. If one wants to better grasp such an unfathomable mystery.

                    I frequently think of the Apostles who He taught and walked amongst. First hand (to a way of thinking, although I would say we are taught first hand as well, to a certain way of thinking).

                    Compare and contrast Matt 17:1-11 (the Transfiguration) to Luke 23:26-43 (The Crucifixion).

                    Regarding the Transfiguration, what did that experience fully consist of from the perspective of those present? Oh, we don’t know, other than to acknowledge that Jesus was revealing something about God in His Glory. As for Love being revealed on The Cross, Love at the Pinnacle of Redemption, this is a mystery too. However, I find that Love seems more approachable to my limited faculties, more accessible for some obvious and not so obvious reasons.

                    God has never revealed Himself to me in His Glory, but I have no doubt that He approaches me at all times in Love. Himself.

                    Oh, He would fill us up if we simply let Him. Love, where all the restless treks come to an end… maybe better to say a new beginning… ah, useless words. Just Love.

                    Liked by 7 people

              3. Hey, Doug. And blessings to you too! Right: Omniscient was the word….I need to get a decent dictionary.

                Considering Jesus as fully human and fully God. When I look at my feet in the shower, I think of Jesus’ feet getting sore from walking miles during his ministry, or of him getting tired and thirsty and resting by the well. I think of him walking on water, or his brilliant Transfiguration where he let us peek at his power and divinity. The infant Jesus’ skin luminesced according to Ven Mary Agreda. Parts of scripture suggest Jesus didn’t know certain things — as if they were hidden to him, and other parts where he demonstrates knowledge that transcends both human ability and time, as with his precise foretelling of his Passion. When the woman with the hemorrhage touched the fringe of his garment, did he not know who she was? His question doesn’t tell us. But in this precious moment, his question brought her forward into scripture and we learn that she was someone who believed in him, reached out to him, and was healed by him. What more do we need to know about him?

                Just some random thoughts.
                Cheers, Doug!

                Liked by 2 people

                1. Patrick Daniel, Doug, Phillip Frank, others …. I can do no better on this subject (without spoiling it for you by my own flawed interpretation!) than to recommend to you the writings of Luisa Piccarreta. Jesus’ revelation to Luisa regarding His interior life is nothing short of astonishing. These writings to me fulfil Jesus’ words “When I am lifted up, I will draw all men to myself” (or words to that effect – I have not looked them up to give the scriptural reference).

                  Liked by 4 people

        1. SanSan, I particularly liked two pieces of Miss Barnhardt’s video the meditation that she recommended towards the very end, namely, repeating slowly and thoughtfully, “Jesus, I know that You love me” and thinking of the places in my life where I have lacked and still lack confidence in the solid reality of His love. For myself I say, “Jesus, I know that You love me and You will not trick me or deceive me.”

          The other piece that I appreciated from her video can be seen starting at time stamp 2:06:45 until about 2:09. It is what I call the “Red Pill” list which is a short summary of questions that I have wrestled with myself and perhaps others have as well BUT with confidence I now say, “Jesus, I know You love me and You will not trick me or deceive me. You are not cruel.”

          Liked by 1 person

        2. from another holy priest: “Do no get caught up in controversies between the “left” and the “right”, because the transformation of persons and situations comes only through prayer and suffering offered to God, which He makes use of to effect the changes that can only come by the work of his Spirit in the depths of human souls. This is the work He wants me to be engaged in, especially working with Our Lady to offer reparation. This takes a lot of recollection and focused attention, whereas allowing myself to get involved in various issues produces only agitation and dissipation, and the devil uses this to render my prayer fruitless. So I have to be faithful to my particular vocation in the Body of Christ.”

          Liked by 3 people

        3. Something to think about from Servant of God, Cora Evans……
          3. Remember that there is an appropriate place for sorrow and mourning.

          Cora warns us about sharing our sorrows, crosses, and ills. “Sorrow in its place (Eccl 3:1) is a source of grace, but even sorrows should be shared with wise friends.” The point of this warning is not to bottle up suffering in an unhealthy way, but to avoid broadcasting it in a similarly unhealthy way. Cora notes that from time to time “it is necessary for emotional release to seek solace from living friends.” But to those that constantly wear their sorrows, crosses, and ills on their sleeves in a “detailist” way promote vice in themselves and in their friends. “A detailist broadcasting sorrows that should be buried and forgotten is fostering pride. And when we make our friends feed upon this poor diet through hearing, we steal from [their] time, patience, love, and great graces which they could be earning in other ways than listening to the draft of forgotten yesterdays.” With this warning, Cora reminds us of the intricacy of the Body of Christ. Every baptized Christian has a special bond with Christ and with the other members of the Body. With the bonds of unity formed by Jesus, there is no such thing as a private sin. In modern times (Cora wrote the fourth Letter Lesson in 1954), social media presents a vast platform for the airing of grievances, sorrows, and ills. How does your social media usage align with the practice of true humility?

          Liked by 4 people

  19. Bishop Robert Morlino, One of the Best. If I am not mistaken the good Bishop was born and raised in my Part of this country, the Anthracite coal region of Pennsylvania.
    Bishop Morlino you were loved by all who saw your many appearances on EWTN. Well done good and faithful Servant.

    Liked by 5 people

  20. “So jobs one, two and three are to become holy again as our Father in heaven is holy. Seeking creative technicalities that will absolve us of our own history of faithlessness in the pews will only delay that process.”
    This point you make Charlie is a similar theme that I noticed at some of the pro-life meetings I went to.
    They moved alot in the political arena of laws and science but very little on the moral and justice actions of a society that “wanted” abortion on demand based on societies sexual mores and there is very little conversation on this topic which I believe is the main thrust behind it all. The ends are a product of the means and an unjust immoral society will degrade into a society where abortion is expected even if subconsciously by those who think it wrong. And I think this is why it remains in force today because of the now “realization” that it is expected from the people because it is a consequence of the people’s moral decay into a “status quo” normalcy bias.
    The meetings focus on a cure by building a legal damn but not stopping the immoral flood behind it.
    As long as the desire and action to create unwanted children is advocated for, we will demand this way out for the floodwaters.

    Liked by 7 people

    1. Phillip, this exact reason that you note is why I believe God cannot bless the “Life at Conception Act”. It is merely a legal damn. Of course I could be wrong, but because this act clearly states that it does not and will not address contraception for this reason, God cannot bless it.

      The contraceptive mentality–that slippery, slimy, insidious mentality that says I should have the control not God; I have to feed my family, not God; I have to care for all these children, not God; I have to suffer to meet their needs, not God. Or look at all the poor, starving children, surely God doesn’t want that? So it’s better to not allow them the spark of life because then they won’t have to experience suffering and that’s a good thing. And for this supposed good, I deny them the opportunity to have life here and eternal life here after. WHO DO I THINK I AM? God?

      Liked by 4 people

        2. Ha, ha, Judith. You are correct; however, the end results of not addressing the immorality is “damning”. So it could be a legal damn, I suppose. Lol

          Liked by 1 person

  21. Beckita,after looking over the comments here and on other sites, I believe we have a saint and that there is the evidence of the rise of a cultus. St. Robert Morlino, pray for us!

    Liked by 3 people

  22. Whew! Finally made it back in to make comments. Not being a techie it took sometime!
    Sorry to hear about Bishop Morlino. It sounds like he will be sorely missed as one of the
    few who bravely stand up and preach the Truth.

    I have been trying to access your site as I do not do social media and would like to publicly thank St. Jude here. I followed Fr. Richard Heilman’s 54 day Rosary and the recent Novenas he
    put online. I found them to be powerful Novenas and offered them for Canada as well as
    the U.S. We are in dire need of prayer up here also and being part of North “America” I thought it might be a good idea!

    A chuckle for these times… I keep receiving an ad from an insurance company with headline
    “No Squirrels Allowed” I smile and think of Charlie and TNRS family each time. The ad
    includes a picture of a big black dog (not sure what kind) with the caption “We Keep it Friendly,
    Unless You’re a Squirrel”. Then it says “Get to Know Us”. I assume no one in the TNRS family would
    be interested in buying this insurance 😉

    Liked by 6 people

  23. Charlie, my deepest sympathies to you in the loss of your beloved Bishop Morlino. We must believe he will be able to do more to help our cause from the other side of the veil.

    I too am a devoted Rook player although I haven’t played in a long time. My husband passed a year ago but we could play for hours on end with our family. I would be interested in knowing the different variations of the game you mentioned. We played with the “Little Rook” (the red 2) and that really spiced up the game.

    My husband, Paul, followed you for years and chatted with you through messenger on Facebook. We started prepping and accumulated enough to last for awhile in the event the Storm happened in our lifetime. In the beginning I was fearful that it would happen in our lifetime but I have now resigned to the fact that it will more likely occur sooner rather than later with our society so divided and fractured as it is. But I am no longer fearful but resigned that the Storm must come to right the ship. We have gone too far off course for things to turn around on it’s on. Thank you for giving us all hope and for everything you do.

    Liked by 8 people

  25. We can’t afford to lose any Good Guys These-Days ;-( …. ’cause we have all too many “Spiders, Rats & Snakes” of the rabid/poisonous varieties!

    “A Nursery Rhyme Pope Francis Would Do Well to Read” https://www.crisismagazine.com/2018/a-nursery-rhyme-pope-francis-would-do-well-to-read

    “Michael Moore sarcastically slams Christians on Facebook. But reactions are way harsher”
    https://www.theblaze.com/news/2018/11/27/michael-moore-sarcastically-slams-christians-on-facebook-but-reactions-are-way-harsher

    “Suspect Mohammed Mohammed arrested after allegedly trying to run over Jewish pedestrians in LA”
    https://www.theblaze.com/news/2018/11/27/suspect-mohammed-mohammed-arrested-after-allegedly-trying-to-run-over-jewish-pedestrians-in-la

    Asia Bibi and the First Freedom–MATTHEW CONTINETTI
    https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/11/asia-bibi-blaphemy-charges-religious-freedom-asylum/

    GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!

    Liked by 6 people

  26. I can’t explain how much the following has affected me except to say that it has changed what I thought about what the Father did in sending Jesus.

    (Please watch and forgive me for not getting the video to come up)
    Then think: “…I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Mt 16:18
    This has changed my life and given me so much hope.

    Liked by 6 people

  27. May God grant him rest.

    The rest of us still have lots of work to do… Christ didn’t come to bring peace to the world, but came to divide people against each other; this seems to contradict blessed are the peacemakers, but God doesn’t contradict himself, so there’s a finer line/point that Christ is making. My take is, if we accept peace, then we are surrendering to the multiple lies of the devil. We had some recent losses to the anti-God left recently, which should wake us up to the reality that we cannot let our guard down. Our purpose is to hold the line against all evil, and against the “body of evil” (arms, legs, & mouths of the evil spirits) until God decides to intervene.

    Perhaps it’s time we pull out the ultimate weapon, the most powerful force in the universe… “the word of God”. We cannot hand over power to the anti-God left by doing nothing or playing neutral, we need to speak boldly using God’s/Christ’s words even though it may make us look crazy, fanatical, or whatever. If the anti-God left wins a major victory, it could be very bad for us, and the keep repeating the same lies over and over, and some pepper are starting to accept those lies as truth & facts, so let us be alert. There’s no victory that can be won by Christians by playing politician, we have to fight with sword of God’s words if we hope to win…

    That’s my thoughts for the night…

    Liked by 5 people

          1. Ha! When you least expect it, the bing will pop out. Alas, but it is worth to suffer literary humiliation for the sake of poor souls longing to be in the presence of the fathers eternal love. 😎

            Liked by 3 people

            1. Sometimes I’ll look back at an entire post and think: Man, Flan! This is just one big BING. Or more like a GONG. It’s all good, though, helping a score of souls move on to heaven in one swoop!

              Let me add in a prayer here:

              Our Lady, Star of the Sea,
              please bring refreshment
              to the souls in purgatory.
              Amen.

              Liked by 2 people

  29. Voris is correct! Demographics is/will be a critical factor in the USA, Old Christendom and wherever the “Modern Mindset” prevails. I’m sure I have quipped here that “time is short” to right the ship of State/Church. Older generations dying-off and the younger types inculcated with 50 years of Political Correctness/godless Socialism in Academia, Hollywood, Media and …. CHURCH!! …. does not bode well for our future ;-( …….. and with Abortion Legal, Propagated & Glorified by All of the Above … how long will it before us Old Folks are being “helped” into early graves … for the sake of “Society” … See!!??

    10 MILLION GONE – Who’s going to replace them?

    https://www.churchmilitant.com/video/episode/vortex-10-million-gone?mc_cid=555e6153a4&mc_eid=2a0b6c7ef6

    GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!

    Liked by 6 people

    1. Yes, and the education system has been corrupted with nonsense. Forget the math & critical thinking skills girls & boys, because if you can reason that 2+2=4 only and never anything else, then you can reason the type of policies the Liberals push on society simply don’t add up.

      I don’t see how society is going to bounce back to communion with God, it would take a major weeding of the garden (like in the days of Noah). We are all tired of this exhausting drama that devil & his servants are forcing upon the world, many of us are weary of whether we’ll be able to bring our families to to a safe harbour before society corrupts our poor children to become like them.

      Even if God made a personal appearance tomorrow, there would be many who still reject God regardless of the consequences.

      Liked by 6 people

      1. So agree, Al, that we need a Noah-like shaking and Our Lord and Our Lady have been telling us we’ll have one. I say we’re smack dab in the beginning of it and I carry on with a lot of hope amidst the revealing of depravity and, therefore, the revealing of hearts as each one is choosing. While I, too, am tired of the seemingly s-l-o-w-m-o-t-i-o-n movement of God, I remind myself that His Timing and Ways are all together perfect and good. There is great effect in continuing to surrender to the Lord via a morning offering in which we ask for the guidance and grace to do what He wants each of us to do while praying, fasting and offering for those whom Our Lady, from Fatima and many other places, requested our intercession for conversion and salvation.

        I am planning to luxuriate in Advent, a liturgical season brimming with signs of great hope… the readings, the music, the lights in the darkness… And I remember, Jesus is coming, even now, in this sick and weary world and I choose to enter the sacred mysteries with intent to think and act with childlike wonder, honoring THE CHILD. Maranatha!

        Liked by 8 people

        1. Beckita: I agree. I am so waiting for Advent to begin. I purchased a new candleholder for our wreath and for three weeks now it has been siting in the middle of the kitchen table where we usually eat. I am like a little kid waiting to light the first candle Saturday night. (Although custom requires that I let one of our granddaughters who live with us do the actual lighting.)

          Something about the tribulations of this year have made the idea of holy and earnest waiting all the more real.

          Come Lord Jesus. We earnestly await your appearance.

          JT

          Liked by 5 people

    1. Sure is an important statement, Sr. Bear. That said, there is some controversy surrounding Cardinal DiNardo’s handling of priests with sexual abuse problems when he was Bishop of my childhood Diocese of Sioux City. Some support his actions while others question them. Two of the priests were assistant in my parish and one taught at my Catholic high school. Praying for all.

      Liked by 5 people

  32. There is an apostolate which I am joining locally, called the seven sisters.
    Have you heard of it?
    A person devotes a holy Hour to a particular priest and you commit to praying for that priest on a set day each week.
    You pray a holy Hour just for that priest/bishop and you do so in front of the Blessed Sacrament.

    Positive Action! God save all here.

    Liked by 5 people

  33. Here’s what the laity can do to resolve the crisis in the Church…

    By Fr. Gerald E. Murray

    November 20, 2018 (The Catholic Thing) – I have been asked over and over again by lay Catholics: “What can I do to help resolve the crisis in the Church?” My answer is: “Pray and act.” By action, I mean: make known your dissatisfaction to the American bishops, to the Holy See, and to your fellow Catholics.

    Prayer is all-powerful. God wants us to pray to Him for the graces we need to remedy the evils we find in the Church today. Our prayers remind us that we are totally dependent upon God, and that God wants us to exercise our love for Him in the sweet duty of seeking His help.

    We must also act to stir the shepherds of the Church to recognize the serious problems we face and to do whatever is necessary to resolve these problems.

    Discouragement over the long history of sexual crimes and episcopal cover-ups is widespread. This is understandable, but something to resist, because discouragement can become an excuse for inaction.

    Ordinary lay people have great power to influence their shepherds at the present moment. Bishops depend upon the support of their people and on the goodwill of the civil authorities who are sensitive to whether the Catholic people as a whole support their bishops. If those authorities sense that the flock is angry with the shepherds, then they will use their power to hold those shepherds accountable to the law.

    The revelation of the McCarrick scandal and the revelations of episcopal malfeasance regarding criminal priests in Pennsylvania were not the result of bishops on their own coming clean about what was in their files. The revelations were the result of current and prospective legal proceedings that enjoy large public approval.

    In the McCarrick case, the story broke because the Archdiocese of New York decided to offer monetary compensation to victims of clerical sexual abuse in return for an agreement not to sue the Archdiocese in the event (now inevitable, following the recent election of a Democrat majority in the state senate) that the New York State statute of limitations were extended.

    While some see this coming extension as an attack on the Church (since it will almost certainly exempt public school teachers), the extension is also an understandable response to the fact that so many people can credibly claim to have been sexually assaulted by priests when they were youths.

    Those victims deserve compensation for what they suffered at the hands of priests under the watch of bishops who allowed these crimes to happen through negligence in oversight, especially through the callous disregard of previous incidents of sexual crimes committed by priests they knowingly allowed to continue to function in parishes and schools.

    Public pressure in support of legal proceedings to get to the truth is the background to this whole story. If the Boston Globe had not convinced a Massachusetts judge to unseal the records in the case of Fr. John Geoghan, the horrors that occurred in the Boston Archdiocese would have remained unknown. And the predator priests then in parishes and schools would have continued to enjoy episcopal protection from criminal and canonical sanctions.

    The judge’s ruling in favor of the Globe enjoyed broad public support. Cardinal Law felt compelled to resign because he lost the support of the Catholic people of Boston.

    But the justified public outrage in that earlier American case was not understood by Rome. It’s clear that the Holy See failed to deal with the situation in the United States with the requisite seriousness.

    The disorder in the Boston Archdiocese was not an isolated occurrence. The Holy See should have realized that it was absolutely necessary for the pope to send investigators into every diocese in America for the sake of exposing clerical criminal behavior and protecting young people from the same type of criminal priests who had been removed in the Boston Archdiocese. It was not enough to let each diocese, on its own, clean house, as the recent revelations make manifestly clear.

    The failure to act back in 2002 has come back to haunt the Church in 2018. Lay people are truly disgusted by the seemingly daily revelations of sex crimes by priests, and episcopal protection of the predators.

    They do not trust the bishops to police themselves. They cannot understand why the Holy See has not acted more decisively but has instead put up a roadblock to planned reforms formulated by the bishops’ conference designed to root out corruption and restore confidence.

    The role of the laity today is to come to the rescue of our Church by praying and acting. Public pressure upon the hierarchy is not a form of rebellion or disloyalty. It is a form of fraternal correction designed to get the attention of those, including Pope Francis, who need to be spurred to act more quickly and decisively to confront and root out evil in the Church.

    Pope Francis himself did a mea culpa in the case of his previous vehement defense of now-sidelined Bishop Barros in Chile. Without public pressure, it is unlikely that he would have acted as decisively as he did.

    The American situation is critical, not least because what happened here has repercussions elsewhere. Will the Church come clean or not? Will she be purified by her leaders or by the coercive power of the state?

    The pope alone has the power to call the bishops to account and to remove those who are responsible for allowing a culture of immunity to develop that has allowed sexual criminals to flourish behind a screen of payouts and transfers and lies.

    Making all this known to the Holy Father and the Vatican, individually and in common with others, is a powerful way to serve the Lord and advance the true good of the Church.

    Published with permission from The Catholic Thing.
    https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinion/heres-what-the-laity-can-do-to-resolve-the-crisis-in-the-church

    Liked by 7 people

  34. Bishop Robert Morlino

    God have mercy on the soul of this awesome Bishop who has recently died.

    Has anyone noticed how much love holy men of God radiate. It seems like it reaches every corner of the earth. Each time I click in to read this thread and see the picture of this holy Bishop, I am moved to wonder why God took him home when we need holy men more than ever these days.

    Yet, he must have completed the mission Heavenly Father set for him, and so it was time for him to receive his reward.

    Thank You Heavenly Father for allowing us a glimpse of holiness in this beautiful soul. It makes me feel lonesome for Heaven and heavenly things.

    Liked by 6 people

  36. I thought this message sums things up for me, thank God.

    Quote of the day from a Medjugorje message ( November 29, 2018 )
    Our Lady of Medjugorje quotes
    “I wish that each of you decide for a change of life and that each of you works more in the Church not through words and thoughts but through example, so that your life may be a joyful testimony for Jesus. You cannot say that you are converted, because your life must become a daily conversion. In order to understand what you have to do, little children, pray and God will give you what you completely have to do, and where you have to change.”
    ( From message, February 25, 1993 [O] )

    https://www.medjugorje.ws/

    Liked by 4 people

  37. My 17 year old daughter is having major thoracic surgery tomorrow Thursday at noon.
    Please pray for God to guide surgeons hands and healing for my child.

    Thank you all !

    Thank you Beckita ..

    I am kind of scared …

    Liked by 6 people

    3. Joining in prayer for your daughter, Dorothy. You have both been through the ringer in the trials the have beset you. May you be washed in Christ’s Peace and may your dear daughter’s surgery go very well with a speedy recovery. God bless you both!

      Liked by 6 people

        2. I know it was an innocent typo that Dorothy binged your name. Since she has more urgent matters to attend to, we’ll credit it to a third party freudian slip that altered your name to ‘Dough’. Perhaps somebody had a word of knowledge that you love Pillsbury dough cinnamon rolls? They are scrumptious! Maybe it was re pizza dough, or cookie dough. Whatever it is, when we all meet at Mt. Meeker, please bring some of each 🙂

          Liked by 4 people

          1. Ha! No bother for me. The guy, who lead me to the Lord, is an old college buddy. We took solid state electronics together. I was always jealous of him because he would not study, I would tutor him and he would get a better grade on the test than me. This was before I was saved (as most protestants would say). I did not know he would always pray before a test. After I had my conversion experience I started to employ many of his study techniques. I prayed. There was one very distinct Holy Spirit moment where I really did not know the answer on a thermal dynamics test and it quite literally popped into my head as a word of knowledge. I passed, but I felt like I cheated. I absolutely love my field as I marvel at how God created science and engineering. I always think of God when it comes to this and it has inspired my career which has been very successful. I think this is how God has always intended science and engineering to be. My soul magnifies the Lord. Ok. Where am I going with all this. My friend is black and his family traces back to Jamaca. He is brilliant and is now a protestant pastor and helping woman stuck in sex trafficking to get out. He always spells my name D-o-u-g-h to this day. Hmmm. Maybe I should have it legally changed?

            Liked by 3 people

            1. Awesome story, Doug! I will add your friend and his work to my prayer intentions.
              p.s. Thanks for emailing that global warming pdf. Hoping my son, (who works in similar disciplines-west coast fab), will take time to read it when he’s home over Ch. break. Like Fr. Mitch has said, some of these ph’d youngins talk themselves out of believing and it takes the family’s prayers to bring the grace of re-conversion.

              Liked by 3 people

  38. I don’t often dwell in this vein, much less search this stuff out, but I came across an article today that had me squinting through a couple of rereads. Maybe it’s just me, but this article reads like something Charlie’s sidekick could have penned. A slightly younger fella. I picture him wearing a raging bull leather cowboy hat. If Charlie had a slightly younger sidekick who wore a raging bull leather cowboy hat.

    A coupla’ these themes might sound familiar:

    http://www.shtfplan.com/headline-news/a-veritable-feast-of-reality-choice-and-consequences_11282018

    What does a one say after such things?!

    God save all here.

    Liked by 5 people

  40. Beautiful testimony about a Muslim woman who sought and found Jesus. Video runs for 4 minutes;

    Reminds me very much of the words of Jesus as recorded by Matthew, in chapter 7, verses 7 through 11;

    “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

    Dave

    Liked by 9 people

      1. She has such a transparent personality, doesn’t she? The wonder of it all is that we will all, one day, be in heaven together. Our names have been written in the Book of Life; Beckita’s name is already there, so is JLynn’s, Mick’s for sure, this beautiful ex-Muslim doctor’s name is there too. Charlie will be there also, along with all the commenters who add so much to his blog, the believers who love Jesus with all their heart.

        What a wonder that day will be!

        Liked by 8 people

        2. I loved her testimony, the joy in her eyes… love it.

          The latest message from Medjugorje speaks of Mother Mary ‘cheering us on”

          Latest Medjugorje Message, December 2, 2018 – Apparitions to Mirjana
          https://www.medjugorje.ws

          “Dear children! When you come to me, as to a mother, with a pure and open heart, know that I am listening to you, encouraging you, consoling you and, above all, interceding for you with my Son. I know that you desire to have a strong faith and to express it in the right way. What my Son asks of you is to have a sincere, strong and deep faith – then every way in which you express it is proper. Faith is a most wonderful mystery which is kept in the heart. It is between the Heavenly Father and all of His children; it is recognized by the fruits and by the love which one has towards all of God’s creatures.

          Apostles of my love, my children, have trust in my Son. Help all of my children to come to know His love. You are my hope – you who strive to sincerely love my Son. In the name of love, for your salvation, according to the will of the Heavenly Father and through my Son, I am here among you. Apostles of my love, along with prayer and sacrifice, may your hearts be illuminated with the love and the light of my Son. May that light and love illuminate all those whom you meet and bring them back to my Son. I am with you.

          In a special way, I am alongside your shepherds. With my motherly love I illuminate and encourage them that, with the hands blessed by my Son, they may bless the entire world. Thank you. ”

          Liked by 1 person

  41. This statement explains a lot!:

    Venerable Fulton Sheen wrote:

    “It is a characteristic of any decaying civilization that the great masses of the people are unconscious of the tragedy. Humanity in a crisis is generally insensitive to the gravity of the times in which it lives. Men do not want to believe their own times are wicked, partly because it involves too much self-accusation and principally because they have no standards outside of themselves by which to measure their times.”

    Liked by 6 people

    1. It’s amazing Little One just how spot-on Ven Fulton is about these times – people, including bishops and priests, are frequently quoting him now.

      Liked by 2 people

    1. I know, when I first told someone about the tradition of saying it 15 times, they thought it was crazy.
      So I said well, just say it 5 times in the morn, noon and evening.
      Now after watching this video, it makes perfect sense.
      Just as we say the Hail Mary 10 times while meditating on each mystery, it is truly beautiful to
      think about the reality of this, especially with the pictures while praying it 15 times.
      Thank you for sharing this video.

      Liked by 2 people

  44. Off topic post here, but to get to this page I type “Charlie Johnston” into google and this is the very first link. I just did that and the link to this page was nowhere to be seen. SO I went to duck duck go and typed in “Charlie Johnston” and this link was the very first one. I find it odd that it no longer shows up on google. I really need to change my default web searcher to duck duck go. Like, now.

    Liked by 4 people

      1. I almost went into a bit of a panic thinking that somehow, for some reason, this blog was no longer. I don’t post a lot in here, but I do read it all, and I cannot enumerate the myriad ways this community has benefited me in my walk with God. The information and messages here have given me the instructions and map for the remainder of my life, and woke me up to the condition of the world. God always provides, no?

        Liked by 8 people

    2. If you add ‘blog’ after his name, it’s the 2nd result on google when I just tried it, seems there’s another cj. (Computer geek, Kim Komando used to have a post on how you could get your blog up to a higher search result)

      Liked by 3 people

    3. I surely do find it interesting, WPSAHM. I agree you should shift your search engine to Duck Duck Go.

      Also, I recommend that you bookmark the new URL or blog address, asignofhope379.com. We’re not planning to shift the site anywhere else. However, if circumstances dictate such a move, it is likely that finding this blog via search engine will also become more difficult. Saving this new address and coming here by using it will assure that you will automatically move with us on any such shift we might have to make.

      Liked by 2 people

  45. I’m still looking for happy news!!! …. but ….. ;-(

    From MILINET & WWW: – 30 November
    =============================

    Religion and the New Supreme Court–JOHN YOO & JAMES C. PHILLIPS
    https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/11/supreme-court-first-amendment-religious-freedom-special-protection/

    Charles Krauthammer’s final column, posted posthumously: The enduring miracle of the American Constitution

    Charles Krauthammer’s final column, posted posthumously: The enduring miracle of the American Constitution from law

    Atheism as Bad Religion–MADELEINE KEARNS
    https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/11/atheists-liberal-elite-ignore-traditional-religious-belief/

    The below is what happened in Soviet Russia, China, Cambodia, Germany and many other places where Socialist Gubermint and a like minded, controlled, Media held the cards and the mass murder of the “Evil Societal Segments” soon followed ;-( The Big Difference in The USA is …. The Awful-n-Evil Conservative Segments of our Society have most of the $$$$, Education and GUNS with a whole bunch of those God/Gun/Constitution Clingers having Military, Police and/or Hunting/Shooting Sports experience…… and why The Usual Suspects are so keen on Gun Control, Constitution Shredding and the destruction of all USA Traditions including Church!!

    Study shows liberals at UW believe conservatives are ‘evil,’ ‘inhuman’–Rick Moran
    https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2018/11/study_shows_liberals_at_uw_believe_conservatives_are_evil_inhuman.html#ixzz5YKM1vMiP

    Ann Coulter: ‘Trump Will Be The Last Republican President’
    https://www.cnsnews.com/blog/michael-w-chapman/ann-coulter-trump-will-be-last-republican-president

    YUP!! …… being Born White is rapidly becoming a “Hate Crime” too as the Democrat party lurches into Fringe Left Territory with their White Privelege Demonization of, still, the majority of the USA. In the, becoming more likely daily, Civil War II, I wonder who the majority of Asians and Hispanics will side with? I truly hope I’m Long-Gone before my worst fears are realized! Being in or near a large Urban Area is the last place you want to be!

    Will Patriotism Become a Hate Crime?
    https://www.newsmax.com/michaelsavage/patriotism-nadler-nationalism-trump/2018/11/28/id/892357/

    Jesuit university blocks Ben Shapiro event, saying it prompts ‘hateful speech’ from protesters
    https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/419025-jesuit-university-blocks-ben-shapiro-event-citing-hateful

    White farmers’ legal fight against plans to give their land to black South Africans without compensation is thrown out by country’s High Court
    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6446421/White-farmers-legal-fight-stop-land-given-black-South-Africans-without-compensation-thrown-out.html

    GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!

    Liked by 4 people

  46. Charlie, Beckita, SteveBC and everyone here:

    Blessed feast of St. Andrew!

    I am so grateful for you all. Enjoy-and learn from!- the discussions and links and videos.

    Praying for all here daily(at least).

    God bless us all,
    katey in Oregon

    PS: Steve, thanks for not losing me! 😄

    Liked by 6 people

  48. Look at that, matching accessories and all. Happy Friday, Beckita and to all.

    I’m sharing this great free resource from St. Paul Center. I took the course already and loved it. I will gladly participate again! ***You do not need to purchase the accompanying material, however I am glad I did.

    Watch The Bible and the Virgin Mary

    Join us as we again stream for free The Bible and the Virgin Mary. And this year, be one of the first to see a new edition featuring Bible passages read by Scott Hahn.

    Sign up now to prepare for Christmas with Mary. Free streaming begins December 3.

    Have a Marian Advent

    https://stpaulcenter.com/streaming/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=bvm&utm_content=text-bvm_advent

    ❤

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Thanks for the link, Jen. Love the work of Scott Hahn and all at the St. Paul Center. My Bible Evangelista just linked to the newsletter which includes various catechetical opportunities, including her own talk on Bread Box Media concerning the scriptural foundation for the Church’s calendar. Happy Liturgical New Year, Everybody!

      Liked by 4 people

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Published by charliej373

Charlie Johnston is a former newspaper editor, radio talk show host and political consultant. From Feb. 11, 2011 to Aug. 21, 2012, he walked 3,200 miles across the country, sleeping in the woods, meeting people and praying as he went. He writes on cultural, global and political issues from an orthodox Catholic perspective. He emphasizes that we find God most surely through the ordinary, doing the little things we should with faith and fidelity. His constant refrain is that, to live real joy, we must acknowledge God, take the next right step, and be a sign of hope to those around us. He lives in the Archdiocese of Denver in the United States.