By Charlie Johnston
I have been working on an important, but complicated piece. Between wrestling with a virus and an increasingly spotty internet…there you go. The modem started getting hinky last Friday and finally just died. I think it was a Catholic modem. The news of the last week so mortified it, it just gave up the ghost. But I figured a few short takes would be helpful to me and, perhaps, amusing to you.
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Planned Parenthood is a dead man walking. Yes, various states have or are trying to legalize infanticide. This is the frantic death rattle of the abortion industry. Now that they have dropped the mask and gone full Molech, it is not having the triumphal effect they intended. The latest Marist poll on abortion shows people moving dramatically away from the neutral “pro-choice” moniker and to the “pro-life side. Only the abortion crowd could think that unmasking their bloody fangs, claws and malice would cause people to cozy up to them.
Though Congress won’t do anything now (and not while Republicans were in control, either), President Trump has acted. In issuing new Title X rules, the administration is stripping PP of $60 million in federal funding.
In watching the cases in California against David Daleiden over the last few months, (he did the undercover PP videos), I have thought PP’s legal position was collapsing – and in a way that leaves it vulnerable to criminal prosecution. The Justice Dept. HAS been conducting a criminal investigation into selling baby body parts for profit. Shortly after Rod Rosenstein’s final departure from the Justice Dept., you can expect to get news on this.
Meantime, PP thought its relationship to Daleiden was going to be that of a Mack Truck to a possum crossing a super highway. Instead, it has gotten stuck to a tar baby it can’t get loose of – and one which is doing it more damage by the week. In the criminal case, they are in the stage of depositions prior to a preliminary hearing. PP and the California Attorney General (AG) thought they could get the Judge to run most of the trial in secret and severely limit Daleiden’s ability to defend himself. The Judge has not played along. PP thought it would be clever by sending low-level employees to be deposed. But they forgot that those depositions become their official position at trial. At least one of those employees reportedly made several terribly damning admissions. PP is now trying to slow walk the depositions, cancelling one because it claimed the employee had laryngitis. When Daleiden’s team said okay, let’s just re-schedule, PP refused. Perhaps they have done a Gosnell on the employee’s vocal chords and snipped them.
Last night, I found out that PP has dropped four of those it wanted to depose from Daleiden’s team and replaced them with four new ones. Two of those include people with ties to the Trump administration, including Kellyanne Conway, currently counselor to the president and his final campaign manager. Conway ran some focus groups for Daleiden, but has no intimate knowledge of the interior working of the undercover investigation. I laughed out loud when I heard it – and told my friend PP has been routed. They know they have lost the legal case. The longer it goes on the more revelations can come out that will damage its legal defense soon. So they are shifting gears, trying to figure a plausible way to get out of these cases, minimize the damage from depositions in the meantime, and mount a public relations rally of their base by bringing in all the Trump haters. They know darn well that Conway doesn’t have fiduciary information; they just want a headline to ramp up rabid Trump haters. They are fighting to survive.
Sadly, abortion will probably survive the year, but for the first time in my life, I have serious doubts whether Planned Parenthood will. They thought with their mighty power they would crush Daleiden like a roadside possum, but he has turned out to be their Frankenstein possum.
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The Vatican’s Summit on Sexual Abuse is over – and is largely what I expected. They did NOT address the issue of homosexuality in the crisis, with Chicago’s Cdl. Blase Cupich and Malta Abp. Charles Scicluna imperiously announcing there was no need, because homosexuality is not a problem at all, even though 80 percent of the cases are of homosexual abuse. There is no mechanism for holding Bishops to account, save having Metropolitans investigate issues surrounding Bishops under their province. Great! So the chief American cheerleader for homosexual activism and sexual dysfuntion, Cupich, is going to be the boss on this subject of, say, the very orthodox Springfield Bishop Thomas Paprocki. What could possibly go wrong? Cupich, you may recall, accused Fr. Frank Phillips, the Rector of St. John Cantius Parish in Chicago of having a consensual homosexual relationship in order to oust him. When I first heard the charge, my ears went up, for if Phillips had actually been homosexual, I figured Cupich would be running interference for him, not trying to oust him. The problem is that St. John Cantius is a traditionalist parish which features the Latin Mass – both of which Cupich hates with the fire of a thousand suns. An independent investigation was done, which completely cleared Phillips of any wrongdoing. Cupich got rid of him, anyway. The best the Vatican could do was formally announce that they oppose child molestation. Wow…bravely breaking new ground there!
The best short piece on the summit I have yet seen came from a secular reporter John Daniel Davidson of the Federalist. The Vatican thinks it has successfully swept this under the rug. Rather, it has lit the fuse that will ultimately blow the top levels of the hierarchy away.
I want you to know that I am, literally, in communication with over a hundred Priests who are in deep agony over what is happening. Now, more than ever, it is important that you stand with your Parish Priest (provided he is not part of the problem – and the overwhelming majority of them are NOT). Don’t just treat him as a Father. Treat him as a beloved uncle, a true member of the family. It is such as these, in tandem with the faithful laity, who are going to rebuild the Church and make her holy again.
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While we are on the subject of the Church, a lot of people have been asking me what I think about the conviction of Cdl. George Pell in Australia. Well, Cdl. Pell was taking seriously his role of reforming Vatican finances, when these charges arose. George Weigel wrote a summary of how nonsensical, absurd and literally impossible the charges are. Bottom line, when Australia first tried Pell in an open trial where he was able to defend himself, he was acquitted. With that fail, Australia held a secret, closed trial where Pell was severely limited in the evidence he could produce in his own defense. They got their conviction by actually doing to Cdl. Pell what Planned Parenthood and the California AG have tried to do to David Daleiden. It’s hard for me to believe that Australia is already further gone into judicial corruption than we are, but there it is. Now the Vatican is not troubled by a watchdog who is serious about rooting out corruption and another orthodox Bishop is neutralized. For the quasi-criminal enterprise the Vatican has become, that is a double victory.
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Another judicial nominee has been taken down because he is a serious Catholic. Those Senators who have mounted this religious test for holding office are the ones who should be ousted. I would that some organization would sue them for violation of explicit Constitutionally guaranteed civil rights. Instead, several of them are running for president and are taken seriously. Oh dystopia!
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As Victor David Hanson reports, the foreign policy establishment has finally come around to a Trumpian view of China. Obviously, that is a subject near and dear to my heart, for I have been arguing for decades that the government of China is the most sinister and dangerous one on the planet – and will play a big role in attacking the faithful and freedom as the Storm progresses. I would paint the foreign policy establishment’s ignorance and smug conventionality as more evidence of decay, but foreign policy establishments throughout history have largely been smug and ignorant. The tide of foreign affairs is not a static thing, but is constantly shifting into new permutation like a kaleidoscope. Strangely, most foreign affairs professionals are blindered by their conventionality. They almost always do battle with and ridicule even the greatest geniuses who come up with deeply insightful strategies for dealing with shifting challenges. So, while I might be tempted to chalk up foreign policy establishment blinkers to cultural decay, it is just business as usual. In every age, they are so busy congratulating themselves on how brilliant they are, that they completely miss what is completely obvious. Strange stuff.
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It is now proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that vast swaths of the Justice Dept., FBI, and Intelligence Community engaged in a two-year attempted coup. The establishment media acted as eager cheerleaders and consistent purveyors of false information on the plotters’ behalf. This is likely the biggest political scandal in American history. The hysterical voices should be hanging their heads in shame and demanding the heads of those who intentionally misled them. Newsrooms across the country should be purged of social justice worker Trump-haters who have disgraced the profession of journalism. But like Michael Myers, they keep on trying to make their failed coup happen anyway. It is astonishing – and speaks to how far we have fallen.
I won’t argue the point with anyone any more. If they continue to support the coup, they are either intentionally malicious and subversive or too stupid to understand actual facts, evidence and logic. In either case, they are not worth wasting my time on.
I have many serious people asking me if I see any way out of the mess the world has gotten into without significant violence and collapse – because they don’t. Neither do I. The insane left, even confronted with unimpeachable evidence, would rather make war than reconsider their fantasies. I will discuss this more in the big piece I have been working on. But war will come, simply because a huge contingent of disordered people in modern societies will have it rather than recognize and acknowledge facts that contradict their fantasies and prevent them from honestly seizing power.
I won’t kid you. My first memory of seeing this insane world in visitations dates back to the very early 60’s, before I had started school. I remember a very vivid nightmare from those days. My best friend and I had been taken to the Museum of Science and Industry on Chicago’s south side by his mother. At some point, terror erupted and there were screams throughout the museum. His Mom found us and put us into hiding under a large table, telling us to be very quiet, because they were putting children to the knife. I asked her why someone didn’t call the police. She told me the police were helping them kill the children. I woke up in a sweat. It was not one of my visions – and I thought it just a nightmare. Now I am not so sure. It is bizarre to see the unbelievably and hideously dysfunctional world I saw 55 years ago playing out in real time, now. I largely thought that, even if it were all true, it could not happen so fast. But here we are. When will the madness end? Not until it has run its course. We have determined that we are our own gods, that WE are the final arbiters on what good and evil is – and we slip ever more surely into the muck of misery, madness and malice. In a mysterious way, God is letting mankind have its way for a time, to see that its ways lead to death and misery. Ultimately, and also mysteriously in our eyes, this will help to reclaim the world to God.
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Last Sunday, someone pondered how long God will allow this to go on and whether it was really necessary. Several people have suggested I post my reply in the main body of the site. Here, then, is what I say about that:
“…we can trust that God knows what He is doing. How many times have good and worthy men and women TOLD people of the danger we are all in, of the perilous course we are following? If saying were doing we would already be reformed. But we are a stubborn, hard-hearted people, determined to have our own way, to be as gods. So, the consequences the Lord promised for infidelity are upon us…at their beginning. Yet with God, the punishment is not vindictive, but reformative. Since we would not hear Him and those who faithfully call us to Him, we must suffer the consequences of the new Tower of Babel we are intent on building. With this, many will see the folly of their ways and repent. Without it, some would never repent. Even with it some will never repent out of their pride and arrogance. Trust me, the time will come when the most determined reprobates, now knowing that God IS, denounce Him for being racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. – and they will choose their own doom, not because God wills it, but because they do.
I occasionally say that we have entered a great battle – and each soul is the battleground. God knows how long the consequences must extend and how dire they must become in order to rescue every soul that can be reclaimed to Him. I do not pray that it be soon, for many would be lost by not seeing how dire the consequences are for their rebellion. Rather, I pray that I and all here comport ourselves in a manner that is steadfast, patient, active and faithful until all who can be reclaimed ARE reclaimed. God knows the time, duration, and intensity necessary for that; none of us do. When we advise him to make it snappy to reduce our discomfort, we would thoughtlessly condemn many who can be saved to perdition. Let us not urge the Master to take the cake out of the oven when it is only yet half-baked. As servants of the living God, it is not our place to advise Him on how He should conduct this Rescue to best please us, but to acknowledge Him, take the next right step, and be a sign of hope KNOWING that He will accomplish it in the manner which brings the most bountiful catch.
As I have said here several times before, on several occasions when visited by the Lord and instructed in something that seemed off to me, I have told Him, “That is not how I would do it.” And each time, He has grinned and simply said, “I know.” I am thankful for this, for I still sometimes presume to “improve” upon His plan – but I am much better about it than I was. May we all be so.”
A Sign of Hope 
Thank you again Charlie
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Thanks so much, Charlie. I have needed these words to keep me going, especially what you have to say about how long…as long as it takes!
I don’t know why, overtired, perhaps, but I asked God if I would need to keep going, if my time is short. What a foolish question! It makes no difference how much time! One day, one year, another 70 years ~ as it pleases God, that’s how much time.
I pray that we all will acknowledge God, be a sign of hope and take the next right step…and not ask such foolish questions.
I pray for all here daily and I thank you for your prayers for me.
God bless, Katey in Oregon
🙏🏼💕✝️📖⛪️🍞🍷🌹
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Amen.
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Charlie..I just posted your stellar piece with this quote below as the lead… Tears stream down my cheeks currently for that which you wrote is so holy so pure and so beautiful…Thank you for this sign of hope. Still praying for you that you get well soon. Hang in there friend.🤗
“I occasionally say that we have entered a great battle – and each soul is the battleground. God knows how long the consequences must extend and how dire they must become in order to rescue every soul that can be reclaimed to Him. I do not pray that it be soon, for many would be lost by not seeing how dire the consequences are for their rebellion. Rather, I pray that I and all here comport ourselves in a manner that is steadfast, patient, active and faithful until all who can be reclaimed ARE reclaimed. God knows the time, duration, and intensity necessary for that; none of us do. When we advise him to make it snappy to reduce our discomfort, we would thoughtlessly condemn many who can be saved to perdition. Let us not urge the Master to take the cake out of the oven when it is only yet half-baked. As servants of the living God, it is not our place to advise Him on how He should conduct this Rescue to best please us, but to acknowledge Him, take the next right step, and be a sign of hope KNOWING that He will accomplish it in the manner which brings the most bountiful catch.”
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You say ” He grinned” like that is normal behavior to us. I know you know we know it is not and even if we asked years ago what He looks like or what it is like, do you mind repeating it for us. Thank you!! 🙂
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Well, Patricia, nothing can capture the living image of Him or His puckish sense of humor, but this picture is very much how He looks when He appears to me. I first saw it in the office of an executive at EWTN:
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This is fascinating to me Charlie.
Every witness is asked the same questions: ‘What did he/she look like?” “What was it like?” “Can you describe what you saw/heard?”
The job of the witness is to communicate to others the essence of what he observed.
Funny you should seek out art to communicate what you have seen to others. “What did he look like? He looked like this.” Sometimes I do that myself. “She was like Vivien Leigh in Gone With The Wind”.
So correct us, you see Jesus as a 33 year old young man with long, below the shoulder rather stringy brown or black hair. Sporting a full but clipped beard. Thin fu manchu like moustache. Prominent in this rendition is the aquiline nose. It fairly dominates the face. It is an oval face with a pointed chin. Is there a dimple on that chin do you suppose? Light skin and a high forehead. Deep wide eyes. Likely quite penetrating. Long thin fingers on two strong hands. Broad tapering shoulders. Rather muscular arms and chest. A rather tallish man. Muscular, robust, trim and fit. A construction worker. A teckton. A man who performs hard physical labor outdoors. This is not an office worker.
In this image we see Jesus likely in the Garden of Gethsemane in deep internal prayer reflecting some kind of inner turmoil. Eyes closed, head down on his chest, hands clasped, slumped, resigned. Furrowed brow. He seems to be both praying and enduring interior turmoil all at the same time. This is an image of both gentleness and strength and vulnerability all at the same time in the same space.
You have described this man with a puckish grin. Reflecting a puckish personality. A puckish sense of humor.
puckish
adjective
Liking to make jokes about other people
Synonyms
Impish
Mischievous
I’ve seen that puckish grin before. I think we all have. A happy companion. A teammate. Locker room camaraderie. It’s a kind of a silent head tilted back bemused look. “I know something you don’t know … but you’ll find out. Hah!” Conveyed more with the eyes which are merry and a tight closed mouth grin. This type of humor can be expressed gently for those are sensitive or with a wicked kick for those who can take it and expect it and enjoy it. A construction team on the job.
Your description is of a truly animated man. Full of health and heartiness and ….. Life.
Sometimes witnesses are called upon to sit down with a sketch artist and describe the person they saw.
Have you ever thought about doing that Charlie?
BTW. The other being in the picture is interesting as well. The angel consoling out Lord. That would be a Seraphim. See the link below for the function of Seraphim angels.
According to Isaiah they have six wings. Two for flying, two for hiding their faces and two for hiding their feet.
Isaiah had a great vision. He was shown the throne room of God. What was he doing providing that description?
“Isaiah, what did you see? What did it look like? What was it like? Can you draw us a picture?”
He did a pretty good job of it.
Angels are AWESOME entities according to Msg. Charles Pope. Not the effeminate representation we see so often in art such as the one in this picture. Their awesomeness accounts for how they manifest to humans in a way they can handle psychologically accompanied by the words “Be not afraid…” Fear not. Their awesomeness in relation to humans may in some way account for the revolt led by Lucifer.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13725b.htm
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Anne the lay apostle says the same as you, Charlie…He likes to laugh…can’t wait to see Him someday..God willing😅
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Amazing. Thank you for putting this picture of Him in my mind. I love it.
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Well, I kinda feel like I asked about an orange and you gave me an apple but I guess it will have to do. Puckish certainly would not come to mind here.
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Thanks, Charlie, and belated “Happy Birthday.” 🙂
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My dad was so faithful and honest. He truly loved God and the Catholic Church and his family. He was a tough act to follow. That being said, your post reminds me of an afternoon when I was a young girl (back when the Dead Sea was just starting to feel a little nauseous). I was showing my father a holy card with a picture of Jesus on the front and I loved it. But my father was having none of it. As I look back on it now it was a very Americanized, effeminate picture and a bit romanticized. And my sainted father ( God rest his soul) blurted out, “How many fisherman, carpenters, tax men and all around roughnecks would follow a fellow who was light in the loafers?” I never made that mistake again. LOL
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Ha! When I was little, I hated most movies about Jesus. They made Him out to be such a bore. Their image of Him always spoke in a breathy monotone that sounded like He was reading the phone book. I would get so angry and think, holy cow, whatever else you may think, this Guy drew hundreds, thousands to Him in His earthly life and moved the earthiest he-men to become His most devoted disciples. Whatever else He was, He was magnetically charismatic, He literally thrummed with power and vitality that ALL could feel, both those devoted to Him and those who hated Him. And they portrayed Him as a colossal bore who would have a hard time getting a dinner invite, much less thousands to follow Him in changing the world and inspiring new hope in masses in His time and for generations yet to come. I still refuse to watch the “Jesus” movies of the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s that feature this rank impostor. Hideously, I sometimes here this same deadly dull impostor preached in Church. I once angrily asked a pastor, after Mass, “Do you really think the Blood of Christ has gone anemic?” I hear you, Joan, I hear you.
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PLEASE tell me this is not true!!!
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Hi Stattizito, I removed the link to the alleged prophecy. With respect, this prophecy is disturbing on so many levels. For one, no person on earth, not even God’s authentic prophets know exactly what will happen in our purification. For another, who exactly is this so called prophet? To whom is she accountable and who gives guidance and oversight to her lest she be well-meaning but actually fooled and, therefore, a false prophet? And even with the messages from authentic prophets, how are we interpreting those prophecies? We have often discussed here that mystical language has layers of meaning beyond the literal. We, also, have often acknowledged that we are on the verge of the fullness of the Storm breaking through, thus, to be hyper-focused on just what will transpire tempts us to fear and loss of focus. The only surety is that we ARE in a Storm and God DOES have a Plan. Our focus must be on acknowledging Him and taking our next right steps that we may be a sign of hope wherever we may be.
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Love it!
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“Back when the Dead Sea was just starting to feel a little nauseous”: That was really funny! Thanks for the laugh, Stjoanmusings! 🙂
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Amen – thank you. It certainly has been a week of awful news. Sad, disappointing, not good. Mother of Sorrows pray for us and embrace us in your motherly comfort where all will be well. I feel like a small child held by mom and soothed thru an awful thunderstorm – and then asked to sooth the other little ones. It does help to think of the whole plan of God – large, unknowable, but trustworthy.
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Thanks for the interjection of humour into the gloom Charlie. May I add that I think when PP get their vision realigned they will be shocked to discover a Matchbox Truck instead, and that ain’t no m.a.t.c.h. at all even for a tar Frankenstein possum baby! And also, if you have any strings you can pull Charlie perhaps you could point that Judge in this direction – there is an Appeal case down here that is screaming for disassociated thoroughness!
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Thank you Charlie!
Needed to hear a clear, sound, lucid voice in the din.
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No pain, no gain– but it sure is hard to live through.
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Thanks you Charlie for this well written article as usual. Happy belated Birthday and get well soon!
I find it amazing how informed we all are with things playing out in different parts of the world and yes the west in general is severely infected by the craziness of the left.
On the other hand Islamic violence is on the rise now in the Philippines and India.
The Philippine government has choose peace by giving the minority Muslims autonomy but the rebels blame other rebel terrorist factions and stepped up the attacks. They want their independence. Ironically Philippines is stubborn and has refused American aid when they are the only ones who never gave the rebels an inch and were always on the front foot. Its seems with all the beheading of the Philippines armed forces or severe causalities they are on the back foot.
There are only a few pockets remaining like Indian admn Kashmir region. But after ISIS caliphate being almost defeated it must be demoralizing. Waiting to see US sanctions on IRAN see them revolt and choose peace.Not sure what will happen in Europe as prophecies state Europe will have severe problems because of their Governments Islamic refugee policies but looks like they have also moved far too the left.
The battle with the left and the battle against Islamic terrorist and the Church and the fight for babies are all coming to a head.
Somehow I truly believe the prophecy of the great King from the North is actually POTUS Trump who is in charge during the storm and will show the righteous how to win.
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I forgot China but Charlie covered it accurately!
I cant believe US has a President that just doesn’t know how to loose :). He sees things so clearly. I hope he becomes infectious and spreads that fire worldwide. We need Patriots that serve the citizens rather than themselves.
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Mark Mallett’s latest posting is about Red China and how through the internet will gain total control over its own people while ever growing its military and financial power throughout the world and will be instrumental in bringing about the kingdom of the Anti-Christ. Scary but fits right in with what Charlie has been saying.
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After I had posted my recommendation of Mark Mallett’s latest posting, “The Great Corralling,” I realized that I had left out an even more important aspect and that was that our financial activities are more and more accomplished through the internet and that banks have begun to discriminate against groups such as some conservatives in their refusal to service. He postulates that a cashless society will be controlled through the internet and access will be allowed only through the chip or sign of the beast. I highly recommend this posting.
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This actually is an area where Mallett and I are in substantial – and perhaps irreconciliable – disagreement. The advent of the Antichrist and the Beast are events that happen at the actual end, the Major Chastisement preceding the end of time. I insist, as has been emphasized to me from the very beginning, that this is NOT the end, but a renewal…a minor chastisement. Some events may mimic and foreshadow events from the actual end, but this just is not it. As I have sometimes (semi)-jokingly said, had I been called merely to be color commentator for the Apocalypse I would almost certainly have declined the honor.
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Surprised to hear you say that again, because it doesn’t appear you’re actually in disagreement on antichrist. There’s this of course from 1 John:2:18: “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now there are many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.”
The Book of Revelation is a great mystery as you’ve pointed out on some occasions, but don’t the periods seem fairly straightforward from “the beasts” (forerunners of antichrist), culminating in antichrist (beast and false prophet) who are thrown into the lake of fire, then the thousand year reign (period of real peace for the Church), next satan unchained (final and most fearsome manifestation of antichrist) who gets thrown in the fire where the beast and the false prophet already are, then the end? I think Mallet follows along those lines, giving serious consideration to the spirit of antichrist coming upon the scene (maybe in these times) as alluded to in the beast and false prophet. Many antichrists, then a final manifestation. Maybe we could label that one the antichrist, being the worst manifestation.
I could be wrong. Maybe this is one of those instances I should just say that I don’t know. Point being that I don’t think you’re in disagreement, though.
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When I speak of antichrist (small ‘a’), I speak of the spirit of antichrist, which has been with us since at least the resurrection. But the Antichrist (capital ‘A’) is a literal person, a unique personification who only appears at the end. The sequence of the beast and the false prophet belong to that period as well. A commenter earlier touched on my conviction that we are living Revelation 12 – which is rough enough.
You are right that some of the differences are subtle, but two and a half years ago Mallett and I spent much time discussing the differences and the consequences of those differences. They are real. I won’t go into how Mark would style it, as I do not want to speak for him. I appreciate the many good things he writes, but we are very far apart on this. As it turns out, my take on eschatology (specifically, the study of last things) matches up with what that great Doctor of the Church, St. Augustine, posits – which is the formal position of the Church on the matter. (The Church is not definitive on it, except to condemn Millenarianism by whatever name it might be called). While the Lord appears in apparition still, there is no Middle Coming. He comes in the flesh only twice – in His original Incarnation and in glory at the end of time. I would rather keep it rather low key, because I do not want the difference in our takes, which we firmly confirmed, to distract from the good work that either of us do.
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Thanks for the clarification on the matter. I don’t go for Millenarianism either. When I say 1000 years, I’m only repeating the language used in Scripture… venturing only so far as to interpret that as some period of time. I really don’t spend much time contemplating such mysteries.
So much work to do and so much going on. Whose heart and head can contain even just a smidge? How much must God desire for us all to be as one and how quickly we’d have this thing licked if we were.
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Charlie, the problem with positing the idea that the Antichrist is just around the corner is not just an argument unsupported by any global similarity about worldwide events prophesied in both the Old and New Testaments to precede the end. The biggest problem with it is it betrays a gross ignorance about the Church’s Doctrinal teachings on the subject [as readily found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church & the Enchiridion Symbolorum, it flies in the face of the teachings of two magnificent gifts from God to His Church, Pope St. John Paul II & Pope Benedict XVI. As I covered in another comment, both of these men clearly taught that the very end-time events are still far from us.
To be unaware of or to ignore those two aspects of Church teaching on such a vital subject is not the mark of an expert – but rather someone who needs some serious teaching in Catholic Eschatological Doctrine and theology.
Desmond
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Charlie, could I put something else to you on this matter. We can say that Jesus comes in the flesh (body, blood, soul and divinity) at the time of Consecration at Mass. This could be what is sometimes referred to as the middle coming (or the first of two parts of the final coming of Jesus in Glory as I think Mark refers to it) and has as it’s flowering the Eucharistic Reign in the period known as the Era of Peace. We might say that the twinned (Garabandal) events, the Warning/Miracle are the trigger for this Second Pentecost which bring about this long awaited Era – that is, those events are ‘types’ of the Two Witnesses. Another ‘type’ could be the twinned image of St John Bosco’s Dream, the two columns – one Eucharistic and one Marian. It is likely that we are all awaiting the same things but as your image at the top suggests, we are again teetering in the Tower of Babel where confusion reigns for now. Your willingness to co-exist in brotherhood with Mark whilst holding firm to your own understanding is the great example of where our hearts should reside, that is in faithfulness to truth and love – giving hope by trusting in the Lord to move as He Wills.
Oh and by the way, I think that something significant is afoot. Pope Francis is going to present his Apostolic Exhortation following the Synod on Youth at Loreto on the coming Feast of the Annunciation. This announcement was itself ‘overshadowed’ by the recent Vatican Summit and the release of Cardinal Pell’s conviction. The thing that struck me (suddenly and unexpectedly) about the date is that it was March 25 in 1945 that Ida Peerdeman received her first apparition from the Mother of All Peoples (aka Lady of All Nations). A mother is a mother because she has children (Youth).
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Someone wrote: “We can say that Jesus comes in the flesh (body, blood, soul and divinity) at the time of Consecration at Mass. This could be WHAT IS SOMETIMES REFERRED TO AS THE MIDDLE COMING (or the first of two parts of the final coming of Jesus in Glory as I think Mark refers to it.”
That idea was initially promoted some time ago by a man well known in certain circles. He claimed in a book, that he got that idea from St. Bernard of Clairvaux. That was and is patently false – as I demonstrated to him it was wrong – from both the writings of John Paul II and St. Bernard of Clairvaux himself.
This false idea of the Middle Coming has been spreading over the last 20 years plus. I mean no offense, but that is NOT what the Church means when She refers to the ‘Middle Coming’ of Christ – as we will see below from St. Bernard of Clairvaux and Pope St. John Paul II.
Pope John Paul II in his book, ‘Prayers and Devotions from POPE JOHN PAUL II’ [commonly referred to as Pope John Paul II’s Daily Meditation throughout the Liturgical Year], he explains that the ‘Middle Coming’ spoken of in the Church – is the same one spoken of by the early Church Fathers, and later by St Bernard of Clairvaux.
I.e, JP II, St. Bernard, and the Church Fathers say the Middle Coming is the one wherein each day, IN EVERY AGE OF SALVATION HISTORY, Jesus’ “ELECT” see Him dwelling within themselves – and they must daily choose between Him and the world.
AS WE WILL SEE BELOW, THE MIDDLE COMING OF JESUS, FAITHFULLY SPOKEN OF IN THE CHURCH, IS NO SPECIAL TIME WITHIN SALVATION HISTORY. THAT IS A MYTH OR SOMETHING COMING FROM THE IMAGINATION OF SOMEONE IN THE LAST 25 YEARS.
Below are quotes From JP II’s, ‘Prayers and Devotions from Pope John Paul II, pp. 31-32,’ It come from the sections Advent Mediations for Dec. 19th & 20″, &, then from St. Bernard’s Dissertation on this INTERIOR ADVENT, or Interior Spiritual Coming of Christ into the hearts of the faithful – which they can discover inside themselves each day.
It begins with St. John Paul II’s words from his work, Prayers and Devotions from Pope John Paul II:
December 19
The Culmination of Advent
“We are now at the culmination of Advent! During these days of grace, the Church has made us reflect through her liturgy, on the mystery of THE TWOFOLD COMING OF CHRIST: in the lowliness of our human nature and in the final coming of his Paroiusia.
December 20
The Interior Advent
Before the manger at Bethlehem – as later before the cross on Golgotha – mankind makes a basic choice in regard to Golgotha – mankind makes a basic choice in regard to Jesus. In the last analysis, this is the choice which man is called upon to make unavoidably day after day, in regard to God, the Creator and Father. And THIS IS DONE, BEFORE ALL AND ABOVE ALL, WITHIN THE DEPTHS OF THE PERSONAL CONSCIENCE. It is there that the encounter between God and man takes place.
Below JP II continues this commentary,
THIS IS THE THIRD COMING OF WHICH THE FATHERS SPEAK. IT IS THE “INTERIOR ADVENT,” WHICH WAS ANALYZED THEOLOGICALLY AND ASCETICALLY BY ST. BERNARD.
Now JOHN PAUL II quotes St. Bernard of Clairvaux on this phenomenon of the Middle Coming. NOTE WELL that BERNARD SAYS it is a coming of a purely spiritual nature, which occurs in the hearts of “THE ELECT”, WHO SEE HIM “WITHIN THEMSELVES”.
“IN THE FIRST COMING the Word was seen on earth and mingled with mankind when, as He Himself affirmed, they saw Him and hated Him. IN THE LAST COMING every person shall see the salvation of God, and they shall look on him whom they pierced. BUT THE INTERMEDIATE COMING IS OCCULT, IN IT ONLY THE ELECT SEE HIM WITHIN THEMSELVES, and their souls are thereby saved.”
(De Medio Adventu et Triplici Innovationne, Bernardus de Clairvaux).
THIS INTERIOR ADVENT is brought to life through constant meditation on and assimilation of the Word of God. It is rendered fruitful and animated by prayer of adoration and praise of God. It is reinforced by constant reception of the Sacraments, those of Reconciliation and the in particular, for they cleanse and enrich us with the grace of Christ and make us “new” in accordance with Jesus’ pressing call: “Be coverted.” (cf. Mt 3:2; 4:17; Lk 5:32; Mk 1:15).
[Now JP II wraps up this discussion by both himself, and St. Bernard:
IN VIEW OF THIS, EVERY DAY CAN AND OUGHT BECOME ADVENT FOR US CHRISTIANS. It can and ought become Christmas! For, the more we purify our souls, the more shall we make room for God’s love in our hearts, the more Christ will be able to come and be born in us.
All my love in Christ
Desmond
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I’m going to save this – and if my kids ever complain again about how long I keep my Christmas tree Up I will show them that, when properly disposed, every day is Christmas! I always knew it in my heart.
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I decided to hold off on answering to see if Desmond might weigh in, Karen. He is an expert on this subject – and you actually hit the nail right on the head. There is a middle spiritual coming in the Eucharist, but some have errantly made this into an assertion that Jesus comes three times in his full human body. Desmond has, I see, just weighed in…so I will leave it to him on the technical stuff.
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Thanks Charlie and Desmond for your responses. I could use some more help please to nut this out regarding the Intermediate Coming. As children, we Christians are told that God is everywhere – omnipresent, everywhere and for all time. For a Coming to take place there must be a prior absence so the First Coming of Baby Jesus, a one-off event, is easy for us to understand – we can use all of our senses to confirm this coming (those of our brothers and sisters who lived at that time). The Final Coming we profess, and expect to be a powerful and glorious, again one-off, event that everyone will witness. Your quote from St Bernard Desmond says as much. Could it be that the Middle Coming, and yes we all understand that it is not a visible event, both effects and accompanies not just our journey to salvation – but our divinisation as well. Jesus comes to us at each Mass (not spiritually, as He is already there spiritually) but in His Real Presence. This new coming (in that He wasn’t present in this way before Mass) has a dual purpose – first, so that we may re-present His Holy Sacrifice to the Father (as He exhorted us to do in memory of Him through the Apostles at the Last Supper) and second, that we may consume Him, the Bread of Life, to nourish our ‘new-in-baptism’ humanity. This Real Presence only stays with us physically for fifteen or so minutes, and of course in the consecreted Hosts that remain in the tabernacle. What I am asking I guess is, while this Middle Coming is occult and directed towards the individual wherein one day that person might then be so prepared to becoming Living Hosts according to the gift and plan of God – should it carry no less significance than the other Comings? Should we be understanding it better? It is a barrier to unity with other Christians.
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Hi, Karen, Good Question. [Please let me know when you have seen it – as I your post I’m answering here.]
First of all – since there are different understandings by many of us about the ‘Euchristic Presence’ – one thing must be made absolutely clear at this time: THE MIDDLE COMING WHICH BERNARD AND THE CHURCH SPEAK OF IS NOT – NOT – HE EUCHARIST. Nor is the Eucharist a necessary part of it [which will be explained lower down.]
St. Bernard is quite clear about what it is, AND, what it is not. So, let us repeat the quotes from Bernard I gave above – and then continue his text. PLEASE PAY PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO THE SCRIPTURE PASSAGE HE USES TO ADDRESS THIS SUBJECT OF THE ‘MIDDLE COMING’. We’ll begin with the quote already supplied above
“IN THE FIRST COMING the Word was seen on earth and mingled with mankind when, as He Himself affirmed, they saw Him and hated Him. IN THE LAST COMING every person shall see the salvation of God, and they shall look on him whom they pierced. BUT THE INTERMEDIATE COMING IS OCCULT, IN IT ONLY THE ELECT SEE HIM WITHIN THEMSELVES, and their souls are thereby saved.”
[Now we continue Bernard’s teaching on this:]
“In case someone should think that what we say about this middle coming is sheer invention, listen to what our Lord himself says: ‘IF ANYONE LOVES ME, HE WILL KEEP MY WORD, AND MY FATHER WILL LOVE HIM, AND WE WILL COME TO HIM.’ [JN 14:23] There is another passage of Scripture which reads: He who fears God will do good, BUT SOMETHING FURTHER HAS BEEN SAID ABOUT THE ONE WHO LOVES, THAT IS, THAT HE WILL KEEP GOD’S WORD. WHERE IS GOD’S WORD TO BE KEPT? OBVIOUSLY IN THE HEART, as the prophet says: I have hidden your words in my heart, so that I may not sin against you.”
DB: OK, SO WHERE DOES BERNARD LEAD US HERE??? THE MIDDLE COMING WHICH THE CHURCH TEACHES US ABOUT [not some alleged private revelation], IS THE INDWELLING OF JESUS AND THE FATHER [& HOLY SPIRIT] WITHIN THE HEART OF THOSE WHO LOVE HIM — BY KEEPING HIS COMMANDS.
This is VERY basic theology. This is not the theological equivalent of the difficulty of the proverbial brain surgery analogy.
Bernard now concludes:
“Keep God’s word in this way. Let it enter into your very being, let it take possession of your desires and your whole way of life. Feed on goodness, and your soul will delight in its richness. Remember to eat your bread, or your heart will wither away. Fill your soul with richness and strength.”
THAT IS THE END OF BERNARD’S TEXT.
WE MUST REMEMBER THIS VIS A VIS THE EUCHARIST IN RELATION TO THE ‘INDWELLING’ OF THE TRINITY: There were persecuted Christian peoples in Asia who for many centuries had no priests or Eucharist – their priesthood had been mass martyred. [Korea is an excellent example.] But they persisted in the Faith, baptizing their children, and keeping God’s Commandments for centuries without the Eucharist. They most assuredly possessed the Middle Coming of the Trinity in their hearts — without any Eucharist in their entire lives. That doesn’t mean the Eucharist is not important in being able to love Jesus and to Keep His Commandments. It simply means that it is historically proven as possible to do so WITHOUT the Eucharist.
We must remember the theological adage that:” God is the Creator of the Sacraments.” But, He isn’t limited to them for means of grace.
All my love in Christ
Desmond
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Amen, Desmond. Beautiful clarification for all. Thanks for asking, Karen.
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Charlie, Michael Hunt has a Catholic bible study series that he generously posts online for free. Here is the link to Revelation 12 http://www.agapebiblestudy.com/Revelation/Chapter%2012.htm . He does a great job using questions and answers to illustrate the wisdom of the Church’s teachings.
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Interesting thought Charlie. Could the rise of the antichrist and the second coming still not signal this is the end of time? I understand St. Faustina is known to have signaled preparing for Christ’s return. Of course it can be enigmatic is I believe may be short on details.
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Charlie You only see what you look at and I didn’t even consider those aspects. What I saw more was how the internet could be used to almost totally monitor people, punish any deviation from their set program detect, punish and stifle any organized opposition. I had thought years earlier that the Nazi’s could have even been even more evil and effective if they had today’s surveillance capabilities and they have become even more invasive since then. I could see how complete financial control could be done through the internet and totally block people out by limiting access to those who would not accept the sign of the beast. I could see signs we are already moving in that direction. I can see how Red China is increasing in military and world financial power and is indeed the greatest threat we are facing. I guess the aspect I focused on was not so much in knowing the future as in understanding in what direction the world is going and how the details can happen. I am more focused on how we get through this era than any concern for the end of the world since I am more likely to live to see the end of this era than the end of the world. The end of the world becomes more academic from that perspective. I did not see Mark addressing the end of the world aspects in this article. Maybe I need to go back and read it again.
Thank you Charlie for all your insights and guidance in these troubling times.
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The state of today’s tech (specifically IT) the direction it’s headed, the current and potential abuses are indeed alarming. Naturally that makes some folks feel more vulnerable.
Decent, God-fearing folks strive to be vulnerable in the best ways, such as following Our Lord’s example in loving to the extent they are able. Efforts supported in all ways by God.
Wicked folks who want to exploit vulnerabilities (in the worst ways), are always in for a rude awakening, as their pitiful support flees when God says, “Enough.”
I came across a TV series one time (1000 Ways to Die). Apparently it consisted of all sorts of unusual, often frightening ways a person can die, loosely based on real life instances. I guess there’s a lot of entertainment value in that for some, but the fact is, the smallest undetectable microbe could start that process ending in death. And you can be sure they would never air an episode of a saintly grannie peacefully retiring to bed one night and simply never waking up. Such was the case with my wife’s grannie.
Fact is, these new tools are vulnerable. On a large scale, it’s nothing the sun couldn’t wipe out with a bombardment of solar flares. On a small scale, I suspect the smallest undetected virus entering the system could start that ball rolling as well.
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JAS,
It all comes down to the Heartbeat. Does the person managing these programs have a good or bad heart. Are they willing to do nefarious things to promote an agenda they deem fit? Yes, the internet, is susceptible to fraud, manipulation and deceit. The internet was originally designed to share information, particulary among scholars/researchers in their pursuit of the truth.
IPv4 is of this open dialogue while its successor IPv6 is designed with better security.
https://www.pcworld.com/article/257037/ipv6_five_things_you_should_know.html
Anyhow…
The Nazi’s had lists of peoples names detailed for questioning.
The Communists had lists of people with an added dosier of questions to be asked. If a subject answered incorrectly or differently…off to the gulag or Siberia.
Now, we, particulary America list… provide our names and answers via facebook, snapchat, blogs, reviews etc. We already provide the answers and our thoughts in a upfront and candid manner. The Internet is now a treasure trove of information which is collected and collated.
To organize such, one needs a lot of storage, networking and super speed connectivity.
Beyond delving into my suspicions of government entities doing the above, best practices in business, hold the objective of servicing customers and new customers in the most efficient and profitable manner. Case in point, Direct Marketing. The objective is to market direct to your customer. Well, in our Internet age companies pay a lot of money for just that…
Free Email services: hotmail, yahoo, gmail etc. scan the text messages in emails and use your information to better serve you… through selling the data to Marketers. It is one reason, if you are browsing for a product, soon thereafter you receive email solicitations if said product. It is not on its face nefarious, but could be used as such by others with a particular agenda.
I’ve been off the street for a few years and the technology is more robust and interconnected. I punched in my name and interestingly I popped in the first article:)
https://www.happynews.com/news/5102006/nyc-real-time-crime-center-tracks-suspects.htm
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Well, I have my deep cover. If the come looking for me, they might go off on a wild goose chase looking for a long dead “Australian footballer.”Australian footballer.”Australian footballer.” I went, once to one of those sites that will give you all sorts of info about anyone if you just have a name and an SS#. I laughed to discover about 50% of it was completely wrong.
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hahaha
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Here is a timely news article with an interview of the Internet founder… no not Al Gore.
https://news.yahoo.com/turns-30-control-monster-025412959.html
alexa and a parrot
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Hmmm? ” He [Mallett] postulates that a cashless society will be controlled through the internet and access will be allowed only through the chip or sign of the beast. ”
The “sign of the beast” is a future phenomen associated with the reign of the Antichrist. ‘The’ Great Antichrist comes proximate to the end of time, the Final Judgment.
THAT CAN ONLY HAPPEN ‘AFTER’, ‘AFTER’, A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF PUBLICLY PROPHESIED EVENTS HAVE OCCURRED. These include;
A. The Evangelization of the whole world
B. The fullness of the Gentiles.
C The Great Apostasy to follow that “fullness”
D. The time of the Arrival of the foretold Great/Final Antichrist
WHY IS CANNOT HAPPEN NOW!
I. I recommend several recent Papal Documents – including the reading of Pope John Paul II’s Encyclical, ‘Redemptoris Missio’ – promulgated in 1990 – a document written on the current state of the World’s Evangelization.
Therein St. John Paul II states clearly that the Evangelization of the world is NOT complete – even “very far from over”. Listen to his opening paragraph – WHERE HE SPEAKS OF THE CHURCH’S MISSION OF “EVANGELIZATION”:
INTRODUCTION
1. THE MISSION of Christ the Redeemer, which is entrusted to the Church, IS STILL VERY FAR FROM COMPLETION. AS THE SECOND MILLENNIUM AFTER CHRIST’S COMING DRAWS TO AN END, AN OVERALL VIEW OF THE HUMAN RACE SHOWS THAT THIS MISSION IS STILL ONLY BEGINNING and that we must commit ourselves wholeheartedly to its service. It is the Spirit who impels us to proclaim the great works of God: “For if I preach the Gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel!” (1 Cor 9: 16)
II. I recommend the reading of Pope Benedict XVI’s teaching on the NEGATIVE EVENTS requisite prior to the coming of the very end time events – and where he states absolutely the there are entire “REGIONS” of the earth which have not yet received their INITIAL EVENGELIZATION. As Benedict taught on Sunday, 28 June 2010:
“. It was for this reason that John Paul II wrote: “The mission of Christ the Redeemer, which is entrusted to the Church, is still very far from completion”, and he added: “an overall view of the human race shows that this mission is still only beginning and that we must commit ourselves wholeheartedly to its service” (Encyclical Redemptoris Missio, n. 1). There are regions of the world that are still awaiting a first evangelization;
I’ve been teaching eschatology [the study of the last things] for many years. The basics have not changed. As Jesus Himself teaches in the Gospel, the very end time events cannot come until after the whole world has received its Initial Evangelization. As both JP II and Benedict XVI clearly state – THAT HASN’T HAPPENED YET.
THERE IS NOT SHORTAGE OF PEOPLE WHO PRESENT THEMSELVES AS EXPERTS ON THIS SUBJECT – WHO DEMONSTRABLY DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE CHURCH’S TEACHINGS ABOUT IT.
We Catholic receive our understanding of Doctrine and Dogma from the Church – NOT private revelation.
All my love in Christ
Desmond
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Desmond, I very much appreciate your presence here and your learned instruction.
Many years ago, when well-meaning friends first introduced me to the end-is-near “rapture” school of Protestant theology, it just didn’t sit well with me. I was not Catholic at the time. When I was attracted into the Church starting in the early 1980s, one thing that drew me was the Church’s love for the world, as in “God so loved the world . . . .” I sensed then that our call to evangelize is motivated by love, not desperation.
These days, some of the human elements in the Church, including at the highest levels, are making evangelization more difficult for those of us in the trenches. We in the trenches aren’t perfect, either. May the sickness be brought to light, diagnosed, and healed so that we can carry on with renewed vigor.
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Marieursula, You pointed out something quite significant when you wrote, “Many years ago, when well-meaning friends first introduced me to the end-is-near “rapture” school of Protestant theology, it just didn’t sit well with me.”
When I was a boy in the 1940’s and early 1950’s, and then teenager in the balance of the 1950’s, Catholics could not be fooled with warmed over Protestant attempts at real eschatogy. At least once every 3 years, the pastor delivered a sermon centered in the teachings in the Catechism of the Council of Trent ON THE ANTICHRIST PER SE. When we heard some poor misguided individual speaking about the ‘Rapture’, or, a Millennium Pre or Post tribulation – we knew we were dealing with someone infected by the ideas inherent in Protestand Pentacostalism. And those ideas we knew had been invented by them in the 1800’s.
Today you year so many poor misbegotten ‘catholics’ preaching warmed over Protestant Pentacostalism – and trying to tell fellow Catholics that God Himself or Mary revealed it to them. You just have to feel quite sorry for them, pray like crazy for them that they will learn and accept the Eschatological teachings of the Catholic Church – and throw away the other trash.
You also have to try to teach them what the Church teaches. But if they won’t listen, then you just have to ‘shake the dust from your feet’ – and move on. You continue to pray for them. But if through stubbornness or pride they remain locked in their non-Catholic thinking – then St. Paul tells you what kind of relationship you should have [or not have] with them.
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This article is by an Australian who accuses Cardinal Pell of ritualistic satanic abuse. Who can you believe anymore? Sometimes I believe that children are manipulated and brainwashed to accuse people as well. I am not saying I don’t believe her. I am just praying for them.
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Read the evidence. The charges against Cdl. Pell were not just false, but literally impossible. Ritualistic satanic abuse were the common charges in Massachusetts in the 80’s which destroyed many lives before they were all proven to be slanders. Many in the psychiatric profession went along – which completed my contempt for much of the psychiatric community. (Oh, and by the way, I did not delete any article – you simply did not attach any. Must have made some mistake in your posting.)
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Charlie Are you saying that SRA doesn’t exist? It’s unclear whether you are condemning false accusations or psychiatrists who believe their client’s memories of this in their lives.The focus of my therapy has been healing from the lies about Jesus that were implanted by the trauma…not bringing accusations. The tone of your comment felt invalidating towards those who have experienced this type of trauma……hoping thar is not what you meant!
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Welcome here Starlette. I am sorry you have suffered trauma. I obviously don’t know details, but pray for your continued healing. I can speak that I and my wife have been to psychologists and I can speak from experience that one has to be very careful who the psychologist is because many have embraced very counter Christian views and do more harm than good. My wife and I have had not so good experiences with some. I found that one has to ask candid questions to see where the psychologist stands. For example, my wife was seeing one for post partem depression and she was a feminist and was convincing her that I was the problem and the psychologist was driving a wedge between my wife and I. My wife realized what was taking place and had to stop seeing the psychologist. We have been happily married for 34 years now. She will tell you how good it is. She has suffered much trauma in ealry life and is also a 3 time cancer survivor. She has had many surgeries. I like to say she has less body parts, but is more whole than ever. I am traveling on business now and she is visiting our daughter and grand children in CA (we live in NH). She does not know it yet, but I booked my flight to CA at the back end of my trip and I plan to show up and surprise her and the grand kids. She will flip when she sees me. We are so close now. I cannot imagine not being with her. God bless you!
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Thank you for responding to my concern. I. Have been woking with lay Christian counselors who use Theohostic which is very Jesus centered. The minsters have had great integrity and never guide the content of your memories. I have also been blessed with guidance and prayers from a Christian psychologist. So I have had positive experiences.
Thank you so much for sharing. I love to read whenever you share the depth of love you experience in you marriage. May God bless your suprise vsit!
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So encouraging to hear Mary. The guidance of memories could easily lead to confabulations which would muddy the waters.
The surprise visit went well. There were two stone struck adults trying to figure out what just happened, my wife and daughter. Then, there were two joyful, bouncing, energetic little girls (7 and 3) that stayed up well past their bed time. A good time was had by all. For me, I was so grateful to be with a normal family.
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Hardly, but are you saying that the massive numbers of people who had their lives destroyed by false accusations in the 80’s are irrelevant? Are you not disturbed by how many psychiatrists actively implanted false memories in vulnerable people? Does it not badly diminish confidence in the psychiatric profession?
I am against rape. I am also against false accusations of rape – both for the immediate damage it does to individuals and for making it that much harder for actual rape victims to get a fair hearing. I feel the same way about SRA. It is horrifying for anyone to undergo that – but the vast majority of such charges over the last few decades have been fraudulent. That is a fact – and a fact that people should grapple with so as to protect genuine victims and to weed out those who diminish the ugliness of it by making false claims. I am firmly against abuse, but that does not mean I will pick and choose which abusers I wish to enable.
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I find myself taking a deep calming breath each time I read these short takes. It is such a relief to get the truth with such clarity. It’s like putting windshield wipers on in a rain storm. Much appreciated.
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me too Kristenreh Actually, the one that really helped me was the one previous to this piece where Charlie talks about how we are to be patient and endure all for those dear souls who are yet to come to know and love Christ. That really helped me to see the bigger picture and helped me to not be such a woos at my own sufferings in this world which most were my fault anyways! lol
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Light is being shown on the darkness. We the people, of God’s good earth, have been used by virulent people. Their exposed evil actions will, I pray, wake people up. I believe the Infanticide insanity is doing just that. You are astute, as always. The cake is still baking. But woe to those who still wish to follow the ways of Moloch and Baphomet, after the true identities and deeds of the satanic evildoers are finally exposed. Jesus, I humbly ask you give courage to those who are paralyzed with fear, sight to those blinded by wickedness, vanity, lust and greed and Your mercy to us all. Oh, and make Charlie well.
Jesus, I love you, save souls.
God’s Peace to you all.
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Thank you very much, Charlie! Is it possible that there may be a small reprieve in the abortion battle, in order for us to focus on other great battles, such as the LGBTQ battle, which society as well as many churches want to proclaim as a good and a right. I wonder if deep down many in charge of various churches are really not in favor of it at all, but know they will be bullied if they don’t cave to it because of the association with bigotry, etc? All these battles are big battles, but this one seems highly inflamed lately.
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I don’t know, Thankful. Many things are possible, but our duty is to respond with trust and fortitude whatever happens, knowing that the battle is in the hands of the Lord. On a few occasions someone will ask me why I fight so hard on the pro-life front when I know the Lord will sweep this all away. My response is simple…I cannot fully know what the Lord will do, when He will do it, or how He will manifest Himself – but when He does, I want Him to find me hard at work doing what He has charged me with. I am a soldier, not the general. My job is not to guess what the general is going to do or how – but to faithfully do the little part He has given to me. I know I harp on that a lot, but I do because it is too easy to get caught up on speculation on how the Lord will act rather than how we are to act in His service. Duty and fidelity.
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From True Life in God (Vassula Ryden)
November 3, 1990
(Our Holy Mother’s Message.)
peace be with you, little children;
like a mother feeding and consoling her little children, so am I too feeding your souls, by giving you the Word of God; like a mother consoling her children in times of distress, so am I too leaning towards you to console you; I am looking after your soul with My prayers; the Lord is not slow to carry out His promises, but is waiting patiently that everyone will have the grace to see the Light and be converted;
http://www.tlig.org/en/messages/569/
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This is one of my favorite songs. I sang this to myself this day after my morning prayers.
James Kilbane – Here I Am Lord Lyrics | MetroLyrics
I, the Lord of sea and sky,
I have heard My people cry.
All who dwell in dark and sin,
My hand will save.
I who made the stars of night,
I will make their darkness bright.
Who will bear My light to them?
Whom shall I send?
Here I am Lord, Is it I, Lord?
I have heard You calling in the night.
I will go Lord, if You lead me.
I will hold Your people in my heart.
I, the Lord of snow and rain,
I have borne my people’s pain.
I have wept for love of them, They turn away.
I will break their hearts of stone,
Give them hearts for love alone.
I will speak My word to them
Whom shall I send?
Here I am Lord, Is it I, Lord?
I have heard You calling in the night.
I will go Lord, if You lead me.
I will hold Your people in my heart.
I, the Lord of wind and flame
I will tend the poor and lame.
I will set a feast for them,
My hand will save
Finest bread I will provide,
Till their hearts be satisfied.
I will give My life to them,
Whom shall I send?
Here I am Lord, Is it I, Lord?
I have heard You calling in the night.
I will go Lord, if You lead me.
I will hold Your people in my heart.
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Sean, this is one of my favorite too. ❤
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One of my all-time favorites too Sean. I sang it heartily with my fellow mission-team members while sitting on a porch in Uganda, looking up at the milky way sparkling in the night sky…only to be joined by two Ugandan Priests informing us that this was their favorite song too! Oh….the memories. Thank you Lord.
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Diane, we would love to have you on our red wagon trip around the Universe.
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Sounds great Doug! Can we take 40 or 50 super dooper people from here along? Can’t wait!
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Absolutely Diane!
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Ok. Thanks, Charlie .
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It’ll seem counterintuitive to many, but I count your I don’t know(s) among the greatest treasures you share here. Such a simple thing that acknowledges the limits of our knowledge. Lets God be God. Immense, beautiful, indescribable Wonder. Maybe the coolest thing about that is that we can just sit there with God, who is humble, and wonder with Him.
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Ha! It has taken me a lifetime to learn what little I do know. To pretend to know what I don’t would not only be pretentious (and impossible to sustain) but would also block the way forward for those God has chosen to know and disseminate those things. I am glad to be a leader of a great and growing team – but if I should try to be the whole team it would all collapse in a moment. God has given each of us gifts…and part of my job is to encourage all to acknowledge and hone their own gifts in service to the team of all the faithful.
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I’m going to sit in my red wagon and listen. I just bought one for Lambzie too. It’s pretty slick.
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How long Oh Lord, How Long that title just about sums up my feelings today. Such disappointment.
The synod in Rome did not solve the main problem with homosexuality and the Bishops who covered things up, or were also involved.
President Trump had to walk away from the talks in VietNam. I do believe there is a correlation with the Congress holding hearings at the same time, as the Summit and the failure in having any kind of agreement. It is a small world we live in and China and North Korea are well aware of the fact that they want Pres. Trump out of office.
The movie Unplanned exposing Planned Parenthood and there selling body parts of aborted babies.
It has been rated R by the movie industry.
I repeat How Long Oh Lord How Long.
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Trying hard to keep my hand on the rudder,
Christus Vinci
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Hi Charlie.
Victor Davis Hanson knows it is a failed coup too. see https://amgreatness.com/2019/02/17/autopsy-of-a-dead-coup/ . Its the first emotional VDH work I have ever read.
Regarding duration, you wrote, “God knows how long the consequences must extend and how dire they must become in order to rescue every soul that can be reclaimed to Him.”
This perspective is enourmously helpful. The focus is on rescue of the repentant. It gives me a reason to be patient. Thank you for that.
Also, possums are beautiful creatures by moonlight. Have you ever noticed that on your travels?
Grace and Peace
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Hi everyone. Been crazy as of late and not been able to read comments.
Good reminders Charlie.
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Charlie,
We are experiencing Revelations Chapter 12, correct?
Will it take 100 years to rebuild?
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I will worry about that when and if I have to. My job is to hearten people to get through it.
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Can you just imagine the reaction if the Catholic Church were to announce that homosexuality is a crisis within the Church, when the reactionaries would claim it as evolution, progress! I think some of the heiracrhy rightly fears the pink brigade, for they would burn it down from within and without.
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Well, we thrived and grew for several hundred years as Rome sought to burn the Church down from without and within. Such is the cost – and reward – of serious apostleship.
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Many of us in the priesthood would welcome such strong leadership from our bishops, even at the cost of losing our institutions. Personally, I would feel relief and gratitude. No pious exaggeration. 🙂
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It seems we are in a box canyon, Victura, but God has a way forward…and a way that most of us will live to see. Through the apostolate of the laity, with growing inspiration and fortitude among plain Priests, we will cause many mid and low-level Bishops to recollect they are Apostles of the Living Christ and see their way forward. We live now through the disorder that calls it forth, but I tell you we will be witness to the birth of a bumper crop of brave and noble saints – and a hierarchy that is holy and true once more. God will be God, they will be His honest ministers, and we will be His people – and we will all rejoice in reliving the great saga of the renewal of His Holy church and faith.
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I have been praying for a way to give people, including myself, hope. This ties in perfectly with what you wrote, Charlie, and while reading the Bible this morning, this verse struck me: “For thus the Lord said to me, I will be quiet, looking on from where I dwell” (Isaiah 18:4). Isn’t it amazing how God gave us this entire book, yet allows only a few words to touch our very souls?
It made me think, God sees what we see, only from a much, much, much loftier view. There is so much comfort in that knowledge. He knows which states are enacting pro-abortion laws; He sees those who are pushing tiny children into gender dysphoria; He sees every abused child and holds that little soul in His loving arms.
This gives me comfort and hope because He will never abandon those of us who love Him. It doesn’t mean we won’t suffer, but it can give a meaning to our suffering. We can either wail at the injustice we feel is being done in having to deal with these nightmares, or we can embrace the suffering knowing God can, by some gracious miracle, use our suffering to help Him save souls. We don’t have to understand this mystery, just believe in it as the many saints who have gone before us. One more day of suffering could save one soul for God; one more month, 100 souls; one more year, a million souls.
We all know friends and family members who have innocently fallen sway to the ramblings of the madmen (ok, “madpersons”) who reject all things “God.” What if dealing with the filth and debauchery for one more week would save a son or daughter, niece or nephew of ours? Can we offer one more week to save one of our loved ones?
To focus on our perception of the world is disheartening at best, cause for despair at worst. To focus on God’s perception offers hope and comfort. From a practical standpoint, the next time we read a horror story, instead of wallowing in self-pity, which is soooo easy to do, we can think, “one soul read the same story, and was saved by the grace of God.” Imagine, our mercy will be rewarded with His Mercy!
Anyway, just a thought on how we can rise above the fray and cope with all of the evil we have to deal with and all of the offenses to God that tear at our hearts. Not sure if I added anything to the conversation because I may have just repeated what you said, Charlie, but I felt such comfort when I read that little verse from Isaiah, I wanted to share it with someone.
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Lovely, Cindy.
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Cindy, so eloquent! Yes! What you have said helps a great deal. I can certainly suffer these injustices to see our sons brought to repentance; nieces, nephews and our dear grandchildren!
Lord, hear our prayers.
God bless you for this.
katey in OR 🙏🏼✝️💜📖⛪️🍞🍷🎶🌹💕
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Cindy, What a great perspective. You are SPECIAL!
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Hope you had a great birthday and are feeling better, Charlie.
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Back in the late 1970’s, I left full time politics.
Why? Because by then I had run numerous political campaigns for State offices, for the U.S. House of Rep. and Senate – in various States – and served as Press Secretary on the campaign for the U.S. Presidency. I had come to the realization that while those on the side of God and His law must oppose evil in the political arena — there was no hope of truly steady political victory without a morally solid courageous majority within the ranks of the electorate.
i.e., I had come to the unquestionable conclusion that the primary battle was truly on the moral plane. Political battles over basic moral issues was simply a solid bell weather of how you ‘kept score’ on the moral health of an electorate. [You can also use political campaigns as educational tools – just so long as ‘winning’ does not become the major goal – rather than standing for the right at all cost.
While I don’t endorse all of Pres. Abraham Lincoln’s administrative methods [some were blatantly unconstitutional] I do so endorse his understanding of moral imperatives sometimes involved in war.
Towit: I recommend that we all reread – even prayerfully – his Gettysburg Address at the field where tens of thousands of American men died on both sides of that highly decisive battle for today we are engaged in a much greater battle than the one fought at Gettysburg – but ours shares the quality of ‘moral imperative’ Lincoln expressed that day.
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Abraham Lincoln
November 19,
[If you are wondering what the central parallel might be, I would vote for the millions of dead babies sacrificed on the altar of Moloch by Satan’s minion whom he has by the throat. And lets not forget all the elderly and critically ill who are murdered in rest homes and hospitals every day by people who simply know they are qualified to play God.
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I once heard that the three great acts of God are precursored by infanticide:
1. Moses birth; the drowning of the first borns.
2. Jesus birth; The killing of the Holy innocents.
And now;
3. Holy Spirits Reign, modern day abortion, etc.
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Wow, that is a deep insight, I think, Phillip (certainly one I had not had previously).
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Wow, sadly this is worth pondering. ❤
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I didn’t realize the number of abortion facilities in my state; thought others might be interested in their states…https://twitter.com/chris_catholic/status/1089970684544069634
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Love the piece and love the picture of Christ with his angel!
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Thank you again Charlie for your post. It gives me hope for the future especially after this past week’s events.
I do have one question for you. Are you sure that Pope Francis is the Pope of the Rescue? He seems to be so much a part of the effort to destroy the Church by incrementalism. I know nothing is impossible with God, but it appears that it will take a Pauline “Road to Damascus” conversion moment for Francis to change. I pray for that moment to happen every day!
God bless and get well!
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I said quite some time ago that I continue to regard Pope Francis as the Pope of the Storm, but I seriously doubt he is the Pope of Rescue. There are some prophecies of credible mystics of yore that we would be faced with a strikingly bad Pope who would be followed by one of the most holy Popes in history. I don’t know, but I hope that is accurate, for we certainly seem to be fulfilling part one.
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I hope the mystic is right, and Pope Francis will be followed by one of the most Holy Popes in history.
Thank you Lord for the Virtue of Hope.
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Amen and thank you Charlie for all of the “new” information on David Daleiden, PP’s last gasp, President Trump, the threat of China and our next right steps.
This post comes at the best time since beginning on Ash Wednesday we will be outside of PP for the 40 Days for Life prayer Vigil. We expect to have many “crazies” assault our efforts.
The saddest thing to me is how many “Catholics” refuse to stand up against the murder of babies and the elderly here in the Bay Area. I need to fill one of the Vigil days with two people per hour between 7am and 7pm……that’s just 24 faithful souls. Pray that our efforts are fruitful.
Belated Happy Birthday! And thank you for the vision of Jesus’ grinning at you!
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SanSan,
I will add a daily prayer for your safety and effectiveness in your and all the vigils for the 40 Days for Life. 🙏🏼🌹💜 ~katey in OR
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SanSan, Asking Our Lady of Guadalupe to help you find prayer warriors and St. Michael to keep everyone safe.
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NEWS & MILINET: Articles for Christians – 1 March
==========================
St. John Paul II Is More Relevant Than Ever
https://www.crisismagazine.com/2019/st-john-paul-ii-is-more-relevant-than-ever
The Grass Is Not Always Greener in the East
https://www.crisismagazine.com/2019/the-grass-is-not-always-greener-in-the-east
‘Unplanned’ Tells Story of a Woman Who Left the Abortion Industry
https://www.newsmax.com/mariamcfaddenmaffucci/unplanned-abortion-movie/2019/02/27/id/904670/
WATCH: New Video CPAC Video Shows Reagan’s Chilling Warning That Is Now America’s Reality
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/bethbaumann/2019/02/28/watch-new-video-cpac-video-shows-reagans-chilling-warning-that-is-now-americas-reality-n2542385
America’s Second Civil War Has Already Begun–William L. Gensert
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2019/03/americas_second_civil_war_has_already_begun.html
In America, talk turns to something unspoken for 150 years: Civil war
https://www.lmtonline.com/news/article/In-America-talk-turns-to-something-unspoken-for-13654893.php
The fellowing Am Thinker articles demonstarte that we are in Civil War II ;-(
New York abortion law’s ‘health of the mother’ rationale dismantled
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2019/03/new_york_abortion_laws_health_of_the_mother_rationale_dismantled.html
Climate brainwashing in schools and the Democrats’ lurch to the left
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2019/03/climate_brainwashing_in_schools_and_the_democrats_lurch_to_the_left.html
When will congress censure Rep. Ilhan Omar for her blatant anti-Semitism?
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2019/03/when_will_congress_censure_rep_ilhan_omar_for_her_blatant_antisemitism.html
Rep. Tlaib doubles down on calling a black woman working for Republicans a ‘prop’
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2019/03/rep_tlaib_doubles_down_on_calling_a_black_woman_working_for_republicans_a_prop.html
&
Joe Biden takes heat for calling Mike Pence a ‘decent guy’
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/joe-biden-takes-heat-for-calling-mike-pence-a-decent-guy
Protesters Corner Tennessee Republicans in Elevator, Charged With Assault
https://freebeacon.com/issues/protesters-corner-tennessee-republicans-elevator-charged-assault/
Duke University Faces Anti-Semitism Charges for Editorial Smearing AIPAC
https://freebeacon.com/issues/duke-university-faces-anti-semitism-charges-for-editorial-smearing-aipac/
Ocasio-Cortez led closed-door crackdown on moderate House Democrats
https://nypost.com/2019/03/01/ocasio-cortez-led-closed-door-crackdown-on-moderate-house-democrats/
Unhinged Behar Hijacks Segment to Rant About ‘Thug’ Trump: ‘Shameful!’
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/scott-whitlock/2019/02/28/unhinged-behar-hijacks-segment-rant-about-thug-trump-shameful
NYPD: MS-13 Planning To Target Off-Duty Cops At Their Homes
https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2019/02/27/nypd-ms-13-planning-to-target-off-duty-cops-at-their-homes/
The Resistance is Everything They Accuse Trump of Being
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2019/02/the_resistance_is_everything_they_accuse_trump_of_being.html
Kudlow: ‘Convict Socialism’ Before Green New Deal Destroys Economy
https://www.newsmax.com/finance/streettalk/kudlow-socialism-green-new-deal-economy/2019/02/28/id/904917/
Democrats Should Pay Reparations for Slavery and Abuse of Blacks
https://www.newsmax.com/murdock/byrd-dirksen-king-johnson/2019/02/28/id/904870/
Boys Will Be Boys, Except When They Are Girls
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2019/02/boys_will_be_boys_except_when_they_are_girls.html
Media bias? Check out two ‘news’ items in the same subject
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2019/03/media_bias_check_out_two_news_items_in_the_same_subject.html
High School Reportedly Bans MAGA Hat Because It Might Make Kids Feel ‘Unsafe’
https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/02/high-school-maga-hat-ban-free-speech-issue/
Priest under siege in battle over Venezuela’s political soul
https://www.apnews.com/aa4e8b3ae7024a778dcf87a2a694c230
Dems’ Deceit and Moral Bankruptcy on Abortion
https://townhall.com/columnists/davidlimbaugh/2019/03/01/dems-deceit-and-moral-bankruptcy-on-abortion-n2542402
Conservative Institutions Are Failing Jeremiah 29 Conservatives
https://townhall.com/columnists/erickerickson/2019/03/01/conservative-institutions-are-failing-jeremiah-29-conservatives-n2542405
Nancy’s Wrath: Pelosi Threatens Fellow Democrats Over Defections On Procedural Vote In Gun Control Fight
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2019/02/28/nancys-wrath-pelosi-threatens-fellow-democrats-over-defections-on-procedural-vo-n2542403
GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!
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Great post and references CD. Thanks
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Thanks Crewdog for taking the time to assimilate all that is going on in the World. I will be reading all.
Very informative.
I agree, GOD SAVE ALL HERE.
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It’s difficult (sometimes impossible) to evangelize Catholicism when the Church leaders don’t eliminate & repair the abuse problems.
The best I’ve given for apologetics is “The Church’s screening of candidates in the past was poor due to shortage of candidates. The current crisis in the Catholic Church isn’t due to doctotrine but due to incompetence in screening candidates.”, but most of the time I just promote God, Bible, Christianity & Christ in a non-denominational way…
Talk about awkward times… People are so stuck on abuse crimes, that everything Christian (humility, modesty, charity, faith, loves, spiritual development, sacraments, etc…) gets mostly lost & ignored…
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It occurred to me too that because of contraception, maybe even abortion, lower marriage rates, etc., holy men of God were never allowed to be born.
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Yup. Or maybe the person who was to find a cure for cancer may have never been born. Many things….
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I vaguely remember reading in a book about Padre Pio, he told a woman during confession that her aborted baby would have been a pope.
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Strong, powerful words Charlie and thank you for inspiration and the updates and info on the battles we are fighting.
Life vs Death.
Truth vs Lie.
Purity vs Sin.
Freedom (God) vs Communism (Satan)
This war is for souls.
As good soldiers we obey our Almighty Commander.
What happens during battle may not always be pretty but fighting or dying for a just cause has rewards both here and in Heaven.
I have been given the grace to know that the veil between heaven and earth is thin.
If we pray and obey with humility God brings us to this veil’s edge and we are allowed to glimpse beyond it in sweet and subtle ways to fortify us and comfort us.
We are armed with our Rosaries, our prayers, our sufferings, our Mass offerings, our penance, our humility, our forgiveness, our hope, our charity, our love….. and all that is good that emanates from within us through grace. We have unlimited spiritual weapons and endless ammunition…
Chaos and complications are from the enemy.
We need to just be good. Just be perfect as our Father in Heaven is perfect.
We will win.
We have won already in many ways because we are on our way to Heaven.
God has indeed given us a gift to clearly see Heaven and Hell on earth at this time in history.
We picked the right side.
In God’s army all actions are heroic.
God works in mysterious ways…
May we all play a part in those ways!
Humbly yours in God’s service,
Joan Mary
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
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Every moment of everyday has a choice…
Will we be on autopilot and do what society does (be angry & violent), what the entertainment/media brainwashes us to do, maybe it’s just our own sinful bad habits, or maybe we’re agitated/tempted by evil; we can choose to embrace a darker side of self greed & importance or choose to take a deep breath, pause, and take a more patient, charitable, humble, & loving approach…
We have the freedom to choose Christianity over the autopilot God-less programming of our modern culture, the first thing we need to realize is that our freedom to choose was there all along and can be strengthened by prayer, reading good materials (like the Bible & faith/theological materials), the sacraments & the graces the sacraments give.
Just a few thoughts…
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Tolerance of infanticide is overwhelming! Thanks Charlie for giving hope and direction in these times which we so need. Prayers for each of you .
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Thank you, Faudretsch, for your prayers for us all. Praying for you, too! 🙂
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The threads here at ASOH get more fascinating every single day.
Thought provoking.
I offer the following short take thoughts under the heading: “I get the feeling……..”
I get the feeling …… The Storm is a war that rages on both the natural and supernatural planes.
I get the feeling……. The war has raged for a long, long time since before Adam and Eve.
I get the feeling…… Both angels and humans are fighting this war opposing both demons and humans. That is to say the revolt of the angels is ongoing. It has not yet been concluded. That Satan and his demons have for some reason been let loose from the pit of hell and are attacking on both the human and supernatural plane.
I get the feeling ….. Humans act as minions of God or of Satan. They are “good people” or “evil bad people”. All humans see and know both kinds. We get to choose who we will serve as a minion. Thus we are an essential element of the two contending armies. Humanity is fully engaged. A large percentage of humanity is unaware that they are combatants or victims of the most titanic conflict there ever was or ever will be. They are oblivious. What the oblivious have is a vague feeling that something is not quite right. Not right with the Government. Not right with the Economy. Not right with the kids. Not right with the Church. Not right with Society. Not right with the world. They can’t figure out why. They dismiss the fundamental cause of these disruptions.
I get the feeling….. If we think the battle is fierce and appalling and bloody and painful and costly on the human level we ain’t seen nothing compared to what is likely happening on the supernatural level. We are not as tough as the angels and the demons.
I get the feeling ……. The battle is over human souls. The battle is fierce both here and in the heavens.
I get the feeling ….. The driving motivation of the angels efforts is Love for humanity. The driving motivation of the demons is Hate for humanity.
I get the feeling….. The battle lines drift between the natural plane and the supernatural plane. That is outcomes on one side of the barrier between natural and supernatural effects outcomes on the other side.
I get the feeling….. There are casualties. Lots and lots of casualties. It is a war for hearts and minds.
Lots of hearts and minds, unfortunately, are lost.
I get the feeling…. The boundary between the natural plane and the supernatural plane is paper thin. In many places. Some humans are granted the grace to peer into the supernatural. Some angels and demons not only peer into the natural plane but are sent to act in the natural plane. The war rages across lines.
I get the feeing….. This war has something to do with the Job story:
Job 1 6-22
Satan Allowed to Test Job
6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan[a] also came among them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” 8 And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” 9 Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? 10 Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” 12 And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.
Satan Takes Job’s Property and Children
13 Now there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 14 and there came a messenger to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys feeding beside them, 15 and the Sabeans fell upon them and took them and struck down the servants[b] with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 16 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, there came another and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The Chaldeans formed three groups and made a raid on the camels and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 18 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 19 and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to tell you.”
20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. 21 And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”
22 In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.
I get the feeling…. The Storm for each of us is going to look a lot like Job’s plight. At issue is Free Will and the opportunity to choose. We can choose to Hate God or to be like Job and proclaim through it all …. “Blessed be the name of the Lord!”
I get the feeling…… The Storm is a long way from being over.
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Marvelous reflection, Ed…particularly the insightful “I get the feeling” sequence.
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You familiar with mathematics? You can fit infinite number of one dimensional lines on a two dimensional plane, and can fit an infinite number of two dimensional planes in three dimensions. Theoretically an infinite amount of 3 dimensions can fit in 4 dimensions and so on…
It’s been said by people who had near death experiences that their entire lives flashed before their eyes, like they became the sum of their life experiences. If Heaven or “Heaven’s dimension” is higher than our universe, then that makes the time of human history irrelevant, as it’s all present before God as a whole (like a book). By the same reckoning, the angels & fallen angels are in a higher dimension of existence, which is why we can’t see or hear them with our 3 dimensional senses, but our souls which is more than 3 dimensional can be influenced by them. God might even exist in a higher dimension than the angels.
This is about as far as I can take the concept without making anything else a fictional guessing game…
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This article I found on Math being a “language of God” was interesting:
http://www.catholic365.com/article/3970/the-language-of-god-is-math.html
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Good article. Atheism is absolutely depressing thought too.
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Atheism defies statistics making it a mathematical impossibility, that’s why Atheists need long time in billions of years to magically make accidental life believable.
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Exactly!
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Great article, Al; thanks for sharing it. I loved Algebra in high school, and I loved Probability and Statistics in college. English Lit, not so much.
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Me too, Mick! I was a Math major for a while in college–ended up with an accounting degree. Thought about law school, but by then had four children. Never was crazy about English Lit, but I loved grammar.
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Kim, I think you and I must have been separated at birth. I started college intending to go to Business School, but I ended up majoring in Math. I did go to law school (mistake!), and then my hubby ended up slaving away to pay off my law-school debt after we had children. I have always loved grammar (it’s so much like math), but Lit just confuses me.
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If we were separated at birth, it would have been my giving birth to you– I think I’m old enough to be your mom! But our brains seem to run along the same lines. Wonder if we’re long lost relatives!? Soul sisters, at least!
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Ha, Kim! 🙂
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At work, we call this the accumulator mode. We actually designed equipment that takes measurements in real time and adds them up as they are being made. When done, there is the sum. We then divide by the number of samples to get the average. We do this because, in the end, there is only one data point transfer. It saves time which is premium in our business. Anyway, it looks like Jesus is using the accumulator mode during near death experiences and at the end of our life 😎
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Forgiveness & reconciliation helps to change the end result.
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Yes indeed!
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Al,
I found it interesting that most every discipline has math in it. It is one of the universal “tools” used by man to communicate and “standardise” thought, but also cause and effect.
One mystic explains that God is without “measure”. He is so because math was created but He is not. But God used measure (to our way of thinking) to create and so with this He put boundaries and laws to creation.
This is referred to as “order”.
The Bible mentions this order multiple times such as; “set the sea in it’s boundary”, “choose 12 apostles” “Set the number of luminaries”, “in the fullness of time”, etc.
God is Order and His creation was made to be orderly. In a former post we talked about “everything in moderation” or – more appropriately- properly ordered or measured to exact proportions or within the proper “boundary”. To go outside this boundry things become “disordered” as man can go so far as to become “intrinsically disordered” or create an “abomination” or commit a sin, a “transgression of the law” (both natural and supernatural).
God goes beyond creation as the Creator, He sets the Laws but is not bound to them like creation is. Miracles are called an “acceleration of creation” because they bypass created law. God created from “nothing”, which is considered impossible in science where “nothing comes from nothing”. And so it is true-within science. But God exists in an existence outside of creation in a realm where “no eye has seen nore ear has heard”. He does not give His name as no one can explain Him nore capture His nature.
He Is.
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It’s hard to quantity infinity. As we expand our knowledge of math & physics, we also expand our knowledge of God’s language of creation. It’s mind boggling on how such mundane topic, is so closely related to God & creation.
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I came across this article and thought that others might want to check it out. At one time I would have thought that this was unthinkable but not anymore. As some states are looking to tighten their vaccination exemption rules, I find the timing to be very interesting.
https://www.healthnutnews.com/new-fetal-cell-line-from-live-abortion-emerges-for-vaccine-production
Also, because it is cookie season, this article is worth checking out.
https://www.lifenews.com/2018/03/22/say-no-to-girl-scout-cookies-because-of-their-ties-to-planned-parenthood/
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Civil war + world war + turmoil in the Catholic Church + unprecedented natural disasters = STORM
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Very succinct and to the point BD!
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Bingo! We have a winner!
The Storm isn’t on the horizon or simply approaching. The Storm is here and now.
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HeartLight Daily Verse – 2 March
Job 23:10-11
He knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside.
Thoughts on today’s verse
How we long for this to be our true confession. We are not yet gold, but long to be. We are not yet fully following his steps, but are trying. We have tried not to turn aside, but we sometimes falter. Thank God for his grace until our intentions and desires are fulfilled!
Prayer:
Magnificent Creator and Sustainer of the Universe, I confess my sin and my inablitiy to follow your paths. Forgive me. I commit my life to serve you in holiness and joy. Thank you for your grace, which covers my sin, and perfect in me the character of Jesus. Through him I pray. Amen.
Visit heartlight.org for more
NEWS & MILINET: Articles for Christians
=======================
ANGLICAN CONFERENCE TOO GAY FOR TRADITIONAL BISHOPS, NOT LGBT INCLUSIVE ENOUGH FOR LIBERAL BISHOPS
https://dailycaller.com/2019/03/01/anglican-conference-lgbt/
Should the Boston City Council have to let Satanists lead an opening prayer?
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/03/01/satanists-urge-boston-city-council-allow-them-give-invocation/3026358002/
Headlines:
Pope Francis finally called out the evil of clergy sex abuse. It’s an important first step.
Democrats target discrimination in the name of religion
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/congressional-democrats-reintroduce-do-no-harm-act-n978101
Persecutors Pile on Jehovah’s Witnesses, in Russia and Worldwide
https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/03/jehovahs-witnesses-persecuted-russia-worldwide/
Washington Post publishes editor’s note on Covington controversy coverage
https://www.foxnews.com/us/washington-post-publishes-editors-note-on-covington-controversy-coverage
The American Legion v. American Humanist Association
https://www.oyez.org/cases/2018/17-1717?utm_source=arguments-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2019-03-01&utm_content=text-oyez-case-5
At CPAC, Pence Rips Hollywood Libs, ‘Media Elites’ for Making Anti-Religious Bias ‘Fashionable’
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/curtis-houck/2019/03/01/cpac-pence-rips-hollywood-liberals-media-elites-making-anti
Mike Pence: Freedom, Not Socialism, ‘Ended Slavery, Won Two World Wars’
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/03/01/mike-pence-freedom-not-socialism-ended-slavery-won-two-world-wars
HUCKABEE: HERE ARE THE TOP 5 LIES AND DAMNING DISCOVERIES FROM COHEN’S TESTIMONY
https://dailycaller.com/2019/03/01/huckabee-cohen-testimony/
Headlines:
Pope Francis finally called out the evil of clergy sex abuse. It’s an important first step.
Gun Control Bill Would Restrict Vets’ 2nd Amendment Rights, Lawmaker Says
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/03/01/lawmaker-says-house-gun-control-bill-would-restrict-vets-2nd-amendment-rights.html
Clinton-Obama figures exposed as instigators in Trump-Russia probe during Cohen hearing-
Loyalists of Clinton, Obama working behind scenes to remove the president
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/feb/28/michael-cohen-hearing-illustrates-russia-probe-ins/
Washington cranks up Venezuela sanctions as Guaido tours South America
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics/washington-cranks-up-venezuela-sanctions-as-guaido-tours-south-america-idUSKCN1QI53H
United Nations Showcases Giant Portrait of Communist Tyrant Che Guevara
https://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2019/03/01/united-nations-showcases-giant-portrait-communist-tyrant-che-guevara/
The critical yet overlooked part of Trump’s trip to Vietnam was … Vietnam
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/the-critical-yet-overlooked-part-of-trumps-trip-to-vietnam-was-vietnam
Female HS sprinter on transgender dominance: ‘We are not physically able to be competitive against’ biological males
https://www.theblaze.com/news/famale-sprinter-on-transgender-dominance
Canadian doctors tell father they will inject his 14-year-old daughter with male hormones for transition without his permission
https://www.theblaze.com/news/teenage-girl-hormone-treatment-without-permission
Tulsi Gabbard wants Congress to completely lift federal marijuana prohibition
https://www.circa.com/story/2019/03/01/cannabis-country/tulsi-gabbard-wants-congress-to-completely-lift-federal-marijuana-prohibition
CNN, MSNBC Give Liberals Forum to Push Gun Control Myths
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/brad-wilmouth/2019/03/01/cnn-msnbc-gives-liberals-forum-push-gun-control-myths
GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!
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Thanks for this reading and especially for the prayer.
Seems to me this is the prayer of the Via Dolorosa. Our own Via Dolorosa. We all carry some kind of cross. Christ fell three times under the heavy burden of his cross. Needed help carrying it. Thing is he kept getting up. That is the model for all of us. When our burdens smash us down we follow Christ.
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We pray for God’s light of truth will enlighten the world…
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PS:
Looks can be deceiving. This young guy does not look like a Trump Deplorable but …. Let’s Pray that there a tens of thousands out there like him!!
He Speaks Big Truth – “A Message for Hollywood”…
https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2019/03/01/he-speaks-big-truth-a-message-for-hollywood/#more-160690
GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!
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Due to this latest posting by Charlie and his and the inspiring comments from the community, I am led to an awareness, a cognizance of who and what I am. I am a third generation German-American immigrant raised in the German culture by mostly German parents in a small mostly German community in North Dakota until our family moved to Washington state in the summer of 1948. A basic feature of that German culture is a strong sense of devotion to duty, a central element to Catholicism as well and which fits in naturally with Charlie’s call to us to acknowledge God, Take the Next Right step and be prepared to be a sign of hope to those around us in this age when too many people seem not to have a clue and common sense has never been less common. As Charlie has stated before, each of us is called to use the gifts that God has given to each and every one of us to do our part in God’s plan to bring to fruition the ongoing Rescue that is leading us to the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of our Mother Mary. Charlie has also made the important point that we are called to patience because God will bring us to the end when we reach that point where the most souls can be saved in God’s perfect timing.
I have been a follower of Lourdes, Fatima and Garabandal before my early retirement in 1994 after which I became aware of Father Gobi, Medjugorje, and many Marian apparitions. I visited Medjugorje four times over the years (a long story for another time) and was really aware of all that was going on and formed a general sense of how all this fit together along with what turned out to be some unrealistic expectations without even realizing it. When Father Gobi, St. John Paul II, Mother Angelica and other key players died, I realized I had somehow expected that they would be part of the unfolding. When I was blessed with a knowledge of Charlie’s mission, he filling in those missing elements that finally made sense of it all and gives us hope.
Thank you Charlie for your dedication to your calling despite the many obstacles God has allowed the Satan to put in your path. You are a blessing to us all.
May God continue to bless you and all in this community. May the Holy Spirit continue to guide and protect us lead us to all holiness and truth. Watch and pray, pray and watch. TRUST in the Lord.
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Read this folks…so inspiring!
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1321230/Chilean-miners-World-exclusive-interview-Mario-Sepulveda.html
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Charlie is it ok to copy the post [from the fiery furnace] and part of this post to give out at a mens conference this coming Saturday. Copy right laws and all, so I am wondering.
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Anybody here is free to copy and reprint anything here for the purpose of evangelization. I use the copyright primarily to protect against malicious parodies and such.
One of the most touching moments I had came in either Seattle or Portland during a visit. Some relatively young fellow (about 30, maybe) was handing out flyers quite earnestly. He handed one to me and when I looked, it was a reprint of an article I had written. He told me quite earnestly that I needed to read this, that it would change my life if I went to the website printed at the bottom. I thanked him and promised him I would (but did not tell him that I had actually written it.) I love evangelists!
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That’s so funny!
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Don’t miss President Trump’s 2 hr CPAC speech….very entertaining! and hopeful.
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A prayer in Mark Mallett’s recent post:
It is indeed time to fulfil your promise. Your divine commandments are broken, your Gospel is thrown aside, torrents of iniquity flood the whole earth carrying away even your servants. The whole land is desolate, ungodliness reigns supreme, your sanctuary is desecrated and the abomination of desolation has even contaminated the holy place. God of Justice, God of Vengeance, will you let everything, then, go the same way? Will everything come to the same end as Sodom and Gomorrah? Will you never break your silence? Will you tolerate all this for ever? Is it not true that your will must be done on earth as it is in heaven? Is it not true that your kingdom must come? Did you not give to some souls, dear to you, a vision of the future renewal of the Church?… All creatures, even the most insensitive, lie groaning under the burden of Babylon’s countless sins and plead with you to come and renew all things. —St. Louis de Montfort, Prayer for Missionaries, n. 5; http://www.ewtn.com
https://www.markmallett.com/blog/2019/02/26/resurrection-not-reform/
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IMHO : a good summary of Cardinal Pell’s stitch up:
http://m.ncregister.com/daily-news/calling-cardinal-pells-prosecution-what-it-is-religious-persecution
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Good news…stay of execution for David and team.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/04/23/court-halts-criminal-proceedings-against-planned-parenthood-video-journalists/
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Not good news at all, Sean. The last three weeks have involved depositions in this case – and it has been disastrous for Planned Parenthood. All last week David and I spoke of how PP had to desperately be trying to get someone to intervene to give them an out. Had we gone to preliminary hearing, those disastrous taped depositions would have become completely public info…and not only would the case have collapsed, but I think it would have been a devastating, maybe even mortal, blow to PP. We WANTED the preliminary hearing to go forward. In fairness, these cases have been so complicated that even our friends in the media have seldom understood when something is good for us or not. More than a few times we have laughed as the media proclaimed a great victory for our side to be a setback – and been more quietly relieved when they have proclaimed a setback to be a victory.
But this was NOT a stay of execution for David. It is a stay of execution for Planned Parenthood. Their excursion into trying to bully David into submission has left them more legally exposed than they have ever been.
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