Sounding the Seventh Trumpet – Short Takes

Posted on by charliej373

The-Seven-Trumpets-of-Jericho

By Charlie Johnston

As I write this, all tell me that Carolyn Jones, the Texas woman we’ve been writing about, is doing well. Once again, thank you for stepping up to the plate on this one. You were God’s hands and feet – and saved a life. The inside story of what was happening is uglier than we could report or, for that matter, can report now. Kassi Marks has reported a little about it in her latest post. Astonishingly, what Kassi calls the “usual suspects” are doubling down on their opposition to the bill that would extend the time frame to 45 from 10 days to get a new facility.

I know it troubled many of you – as it troubles me – that the Texas Conference of Catholic Bishops (TCCB) have taken the side of involuntary euthanasia rather than that of life. Now all those “usual suspects” are furious and embarrassed that Mrs. Jones didn’t die like she was supposed to. They are trying to make sure this never happens again – not by fixing this unjust law, but by trying to make sure no one ever escapes the clutches of these death panels again. You may think this is unprecedented, but it is not. During the run-up to the Civil War, both evangelical Protestants and orthodox Catholics worked hard for abolition, including with the underground railroads that were the means of escape for many slaves. One of the most humiliating episodes was when the Catholic Bishop of Baltimore lobbied the Vatican to lay off of slavery in America, because it was somehow “different.” The Church has firmly fought slavery since the Papal Bull, Sublimis Deus, was issued by Pope Paul III in 1537, making it a matter of automatic excommunication for anyone who held another in slavery. (Some anti-Catholic bigots have tried to tarnish the Church by equating its approval of forced labor as a punishment for crimes with slavery. The refuge of bigots.)

When clerical authorities start thinking they are called to primarily be politicians or influence-peddlers rather than Apostles of the Living Christ, they lose their way. When that happens, it is the duty of all faithful Catholics to live their faith with even greater fidelity. This, too, shall pass.

*******

If you look at the top right of this page, you will see a “Menu” button. Click on that, and a whole host of extra options pop up. Fourth from the top of the menu that pops up you will find, “Travels With Charlie.” This frequently updated Page lists the sites of upcoming visits along with local contact information to get an invitation. If you want to host a visit, check with my assistant, Mary Lapchak, at lapchakma@gmail.com.

I was a little tickled at the name Mary chose for the page because, in high school, I was a fan of John Steinbeck’s book, “Travels With Charley.” It chronicles a 1960 road-trip he took with his dog, Charley. Unfortunately, Charley was a French Poodle…while I prefer to think of myself as a Sherpa Shepherd (don’t know if there actually is such a breed, but if there isn’t, there should be.)

*******

It was in late 1980, after the election, while Ronald Reagan was president-elect that I first sensed the magnitude of the man. He was about to board a helicopter when a reporter called out to him to ask if he thought the Ayatollah was afraid of him, as many people were saying. (Fifty-two Americans were still being held hostage by Iran after its revolution. They were finally released about a minute after Reagan took the oath of office.) “Well,” Reagan said with a cheery grin, “I don’t know why he should be. I’m not afraid of him.” With that he sprinted off to his helicopter. I remember thinking, “Wow, Iranian leaders must be soiling their pants right now.”

When U.S. Atty. Gen. William Barr cheerily asked Speaker Nancy Pelosi if she had brought her handcuffs at a recent event it flashed me back to that moment. The Russian Collusion Hoax has collapsed, yet Democrats are still shouting and screaming, hoping (with the sustained help of the establishment media) that they can still pull off their attempted coup. It is all “sound and fury, signifying nothing” as William Shakespeare, that old, dead white man would recognize immediately. At best, they are trying to leverage influence to bargain away punishment for having made the attempt. Barr was letting Pelosi and her caucus know that, no, there is not going to be a stand-down to the investigation of official misconduct at the highest levels of the executive branch of the previous administration. Right now, coup conspirators are dividing their time denouncing Trump and turning on each other. The evidence is already overwhelming and irrefutable. The Democrats are now reduced to attacking with squirt guns as the investigations on this coup roll inexorably forward. Barr is not the sort of cat to be diverted by getting wet.

The fraud perpetrated by the FBI, the Intelligence Community, the State Dept, and heaven knows who else in the Obama Administration is visibly and quickly disintegrating. All the screaming and posturing by the co-conspirators can’t hold it together any more. The walls are about to fall – and all will be revealed.

*******

I am delighted that Alabama, the state of my family’s deepest roots, has functionally outlawed abortion. I am bemused that my adopted state, Colorado, has partially banned state-funded travel to Alabama in protest. The coastal lefties, particularly in Hollywood, are frothing at the mouth that Alabama has taken such a strong stand against killing babies. Alabama’s action has taken a lot of the heat from the left off of Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi and Ohio which have passed heartbeat bills (bills which ban abortion after a fetal heartbeat begins). Louisiana and Missouri also have heartbeat bills pending. My old home state of Illinois is trying to outdo New York and Virginia in abortion extremism.

After taking the House in last year’s election, the triumphal left thought it was going to show us pro-life deplorables by functionally legalizing infanticide in New York – and trying their darnedest in Virginia. They did not expect eight states to respond by putting significant new restrictions on – and perhaps even boldly challenging the Roe v Wade decision that started this strife. That is how it works, though, when a society has been polarized – and when arrogant institutions try to impose new law on a self-governing people, as the Supreme Court did with Roe v Wade back in 1973. They imperiously thought to tell all the folksies what we must do – and have been surprised ever since that the folksies in this country don’t like imperial commands from above.

When divisions are fundamental, The most energized advocates on either side up the ante whenever they sense advantage. This actually helps clarify things. You see, most people try very hard not to think too much about the most controversial and divisive of issues. If they did, it would force them to choose, to choose which side they are on – and most folks would rather split the difference. They are not crusaders; they just don’t want any trouble. The impassioned advocacy of each side forces them to confront the issue – and ultimately to choose.

Unfortunately for the most impassioned advocates, they are rarely the most objective judges of how their passion will play out. They just want to prevail – and keep pressing the issue regardless of how weak or strong they really are. In the run-up to the American Civil War, southerners had honestly convinced themselves that one southerner could whip 10 Yankees. It was necessary to convince themselves of that, for the north had the overwhelming advantage in fighting age population and almost all of the industrial capacity. The only way the south could win is if it could spook the north into letting go or wear Yankees down into withdrawing from the fight. Any objective assessment would have shown the south could not win unless the north could be prodded to quit. However necessary it was to convince the south to fight, their passion was ultimately fatal to their cause.

When abortion advocates openly cheered at the legalization of quasi-infanticide in New York, it stunned a lot of people who had been trying very hard for a very long time not to think too hard about the issue. That very radicalism triggered enough of an “enough is enough” resolve in many that it paved the way for the heartbeat bills in the eight states I mentioned. It also proved a powerful motivator to get people soft on the issue to take a hard look at the movie, “Unplanned,” particularly when the establishment media was trying so hard to suppress news of it. That movie further fueled a growing resolve in many people who had not previously thought much about abortion. When the position you are passionate about offends the moral sensibility of ordinary people, the less you say the better; force people to start paying serious attention and you start losing. Pro-life advocates owe New York, Hollywood, and Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam a debt of gratitude. It was their shrill zealotry that forced many more people to think seriously about the issue – and those people did not like what they saw.

Things are about to get a lot worse for abortion advocates. I have now confirmed with multiple credible sources (more than three) that live-infant vivisection has been going on with some babies who survived abortion attempts. It is the dissection process, itself, which kills them. Abortion advocates will scream it is not true when told this. That is how they always start. Unfortunately for them, I know that both the Justice Dept. and Congressional investigators already have the evidence. It is not an allegation that needs to be investigated; it is the evidence already unearthed by federal investigators. It will ultimately surface with the force of a full inner tube suppressed beneath concealing waters breaking free. When it does, abortion advocates will switch gears to explain that this is the “right” thing to do, that it provides the freshest organs, and that the babies aren’t really living at all. Ordinary people will be starkly horrified as they realize the truth of the industry, wondering how depraved someone must be to see a living, born baby – and calmly choose to cut it up rather than embrace it. These same ordinary people will wonder how they could have sat silent about this, turning their heads away for so long, rather than investigating. In the end, the ordinary people will soothe their consciences by telling themselves they didn’t know – and then make up for what they failed to do by zealously turning to a culture of life. Before the year is out, you will know that I have told you true on all this – and the abortion industry will be in deep, crisis. It is their own zealotry that will, ultimately, do them in.

The walls are about to fall – and all will be revealed.

*******

When partisans start trying to rig the rules of play to determine outcomes rather than to ensure fair play for all, anarchy and nihilism soon follow. Instead of a smoothly functioning society, you get a rapidly degenerating street brawl – a war of all against all in a manic quest for power. This is why I often emphasize the need for clear, understandable rules which should only be amended to ensure fair play, not to determine outcomes. The machinery of process must not be brought to bear to determine winners and losers. Yet we are descending into an ever more rapidly swirling maelstrom of the perversion of that machinery. The left has so successfully advocated that process should be used to ensure preferred outcomes, that many otherwise honorable and decent folks on the right and in Christian communities have bought into the same thinking.

I am an admirer of Fr. Dwight Longenecker and his usually deeply insightful writing. He just published a piece in thanksgiving for the Alabama vote to deeply restrict abortion. He goes on to speak of some other things we should do to build a true culture of life. Most of it is very good. All of the goals he cites are good. But he wants government to be the instrument which forces those goals to become reality. Instead of empowering abortionists, he wants government to do the job the Churches and voluntary organizations should do. In short, he wants the government to guarantee the outcome he prefers rather than the outcome abortionists prefer, not coming to grips with the reality that if the government is rapacious and powerful enough to guarantee the outcome for anyone, it will always ultimately use that power to oppress them. The task before us is not to re-direct the coercive power of the federal government, but to de-fang the beast. That means the Churches would have to persuade people to hearken to the better angels of their nature, to put their money where their mouth is, to DO the good works the Lord commands rather than merely lobby government to force everyone to do it.

If the plan is merely to replace their thugs and bums with our thugs and bums, count me out. We must reform the system to offer a fair field of play for all – and then do the hard work of persuading all that our cause is just and true. Anything else is just a variation on dysfunction.

*******

Most social media sites have ramped up their censorship and suppression of Christian and conservative speech, labeling such talk as “hate speech.” I have always loathed the idea of hate crimes and hate speech. I always knew it was the first few steps of Orwellian thought crimes – the tool authoritarian governments always use to control their people. Turns out that authoritarian mega-businesses are no more just or prudent than authoritarian governments.

The most basic reason for freedom of speech is for the stability it provides. Turns out that when people’s honest political and philosophical speech is suppressed, they resent it. Over time, that resentment grows until it erupts in violent revolt. Entities that suppress speech find themselves racked with instability, plagued with violence, riots, insurrections, assassinations and civil war. The truth is that suppressing speech is not a demonstration of power: it is a confession of intellectual impotence. It is also a harbinger of ultimate doom for the oppressors. There is no longer much doubt that Facebook, et al, are trying to shut down the most persuasive conservative voices in hopes of winning back power for the anti-God left at the next election. They get more obvious about it with each passing day. But the walls are falling – and all is being revealed. I am in contemplation about abandoning Facebook altogether. It has become a question of patronizing an entity that is actively subverting freedom.

Here’s the thing…the left’s playbook has lost its punch. They try to bolster it by becoming ever more shrill and violent, but each new offense reveals that modern neo-socialism is not an ideology at all, just an unvarnished quest for raw power. Now the very tactics they used to gain that power are backfiring on them, laying bare their actual motives. When all is revealed, the only hope the anti-God left has to take and retain power is violent insurrection. The question is will they stand down or resort to that in order to take power? Reading the news, I get the sense that a lot of folks on the left are busy convincing themselves that one Antifa member can whip 10 Christians. Calculations like that will guarantee a lengthy period of violent strife, even as they guarantee the ultimate destruction of the neo-socialists.

We have a lot of wood to chop before us. The Seventh Trumpet is sounding and the walls are falling before us. Let us not presume that God is on our side. Rather, let us take rigorous resolve to be on His side.

139 thoughts on “Sounding the Seventh Trumpet – Short Takes”

  1. Amen, Charlie. I love the short takes because of the SO many cultural issues which continue to rage while the depth of the rot comes to light and I appreciate the historical connections you make as well as your insights. In a word, this process – in which it is easy to become impatient for we wish the evil to cease N.O.W. – accomplishes God’s purposes. In particular, no one but no one will be able to blame another for this mess. We all either already do or will surely know – even if we hide from ourselves at times – our sins of omission and commission which have contributed to what we now live.

    In the Church’s mystical literature there are passages which reveal the understanding given to a mystic that each one, at personal judgement, KNOWS where s/he belongs. Those in purgatory are grateful for the opportunity to be purified. They have, after all, met the Lord with full knowledge of the state of one’s soul and those souls deeply desire to be properly prepared to fully engage in the Beatific Vision. While knowing that purgatory will involve great suffering, not one has an iota of a desire to return to earth. This knowledge brings me to gratitude for and willingness to embrace the Storm… nothing sadistic to it… there’s just no way to the full Triumph without it and, I pray, the suffering of those already converting will become the seed of conversion for the too many not yet on the path back to the Lord.

    It continues to remain an awesome balancing of realities… each one walking with the Lord can say: My sins HAVE contributed to this mess and by God’s grace I continue to convert… Still, unrepentant sinners abound and some have wreaked the most grievous evils – My God, My God, have mercy on those who request, actually perform and “enjoy” financial gain from live -infant vivisection… and have mercy on those involved in every other evil, embedded in the culture of death, which inevitably emerges from the pit of hell, for when we cave in one area of deadly sin, we open wide the door to be fiercely tempted to cave to every kind of depravity. Those who have perpetrated these crimes, and the crimes of those who lied, murdered, and worked in every nefarious way they could to succeed in the ongoing coup, must be held to account in a just way. Yet again, we are faced with that mirror adage: do we become as crazed as the rabid left when we hold these criminals to account? Or can we move forth with temperance, true justice and wisdom?

    This IS a lot to consider as we chop the lot of wood before us.

    Liked by 16 people

    1. Hi everyone, I have a couple of thoughts tonight. First, I wanted to share a wonderful joy of this morning. St. Thomas More Church in Paradise had the first Mass since the Camp Fire on Nov 8, 2018. At 8 AM our Bishop and former Pastor concelebrated. The Mass had 200-300 people attending. After the consecration and the bells ringing, I thought, “He’s here.” We have not had the Blessed Sacrament here since Nov. Everyone was going to Chico 45-50 minute drive away. So, Jesus is in the Tabernacle. The Sanctuary Lamp is lit. We have another Mass scheduled at STM at the end of June, but in the meantime, Jesus is back! Praise God and Alleluia!

      Second thing is I gave up my Facebook account back around Dec 2015. I occasionally miss wishing someone a Happy Birthday, but otherwise, I don’t miss the time wasting and the polarization of family and friends. If you are having meaningful conversations or supporting others, great. However, as it gets closer to the election, as it was in 2015/2016, I found the rancor kept increasing. If you spoke with honesty and truth of the faith, you were a hater. Sticks and stones … I can handle a little name calling, but there was not meaningful discussion or debate. I think handling the tricky issues is frequently best in person. Just my two cents. It was hard to see Catholic family and friends with pix of the White House with the rainbow colors after the Supreme Court decision on Same Sex Marriage. I decided it was best for me to pray for them, but we weren’t going to have a meaningful conversation in this public square. God’s blessings to all of you as you discern the best path.

      It is good to have a community to share the faith with. A blessing indeed!

      Liked by 6 people

      2. So glad to hear the great news, Deon. And I agree with you about Facebook. I have never had an account, and I’m so glad.

        Liked by 2 people

  2. Lord have mercy.
    My body went cold and I felt like throwing up when I read the section about the live baby dissection. Lord have mercy. I have friends who believe abortion is just fine and dandy and I want to scream at them. But, like you said, Beckita, it is how we respond…like them, flaming…or measured.

    Liked by 10 people

    1. HANDTOTHEPLOW,
      “I have friends who believe abortion is just fine and dandy and I want to scream at them.”

      Reminds me when a relative called from Florida and said Joe Biden just visited her church at Sunday Mass and got a standing ovation, I let out a scream of outrage calling him all kinds of names, baby murderer, hypocrite, sacrilegious SOB, on and on. Finally, I calmed down and began to think of where I HAD COME FROM and, as Beckita says above, ” My sins HAVE contributed to this mess and by God’s grace I continue to convert…” by God’s incomprehensible, extraordinary Mercy in forgiveness of my sins AFTER receiving so many extraordinary gifts, graces and blessings. We cannot possibly comprehend the unique beauty and dignity of EVERY HUMAN BEING created by Divine Love in HIS image and likeness. Jesus Christ, the Author of Life, laid down His life in an horrific crucifixion, abandonment and death on the cross, for the salvation of EVERY human being and, I must remember what St. Francis of Assisi said of a sinner, There but for the grace of God am I. I must remind myself, Joe, keep your head down low to the ground in repentance and thanksgiving, as the Lord Jesus Christ has Mercy on you, so you must have mercy on others,.

      Liked by 11 people

      1. Last night a very simple comment sent me into an interior rage. The good in this is, I recognized my unwarranted anger as an attack from the satan. Today during Consecration at Mass, I prayed for the grace to fight and overcome the triggers that bring on these anger attacks. I expected to have an easy day. Instead, occasion after occasion presented itself for me to practice fighting the attacks. Thank God, His Grace was there. I now see this as a practice run for so much of what is to come. As Beckita asks, …”can we move forth with temperance, true justice and wisdom”? We must. We must fight with grace, not anger.

        Liked by 6 people

  3. Charlie, as you know, you and I share a personal history of political activism – including political campaigning from the lowest to the highest offices in the land of the U.S.A.

    Early in your article here, I encountered your following observations:

    ” You see, most people try very hard not to think too much about the most controversial and divisive of issues. If they did, it would force them to choose, to choose which side they are on – and most folks would rather split the difference. They are not crusaders; they just don’t want any trouble. The impassioned advocacy of each side forces them to confront the issue – and ultimately to choose.”

    This immediately leads to the following perennial debate – where can I compromise? How does this apply to the above quote?

    It comes from this central point. The Church has always counseled compromise — WHEN PRINCIPLE IS NOT ON THE LINE. When serious [let alone gravely serious] principles are on the line … when there are moral absolutes involved … it is a grave sin to compromise:

    [If the compromiser is on a point involving denial of a moral absolute … if he is aware of its gravity, and he has had sufficient time for reflection, and if he is not under dire personal threat on the issue = if it is voluntary, then the gravity advances to the level of mortal sin. WHEN SOMEONE’S VERY LIFE IS ON THE LINE … AND THE ABOVE CONDITIONS ARE MET … THE SIN BECOME MORTAL, ONE WHICH CAN SEND YOU TO HELL IF NOT REPENTED OF.

    In my years in politics, I most often ran into people referring to waffling on grave matters, AS PART OF THE PRACTICE OF COMPROMISE, and “isn’t that what reasonable people do in such cases.”

    The response … not just for a Catholic … but for anyone with any moral sense at all is this: THERE CAN BE NO COMPROMISE ON GRAVE MATTERS OF PRINCIPLE.

    Good article, Charlie.

    All my love in Christ

    Desmond

    Liked by 14 people

    2. Well said, Desmond. If we are talking about tax policy or a water delivery system, let’s go to it and compromise away. But when the question is whether a black person or a baby is a person at all, my feet are set in stone. (Fortunately, it has been 160 years since there was heavy debate on the humanity of black folks in this country, though modern leftists deny all minorities any moral agency at all). That we should be debating the humanity of babies – and that so many of even supposed Christians can think there is anything serious to debate there, much less that the “moral” position is to kill them at will, is a hideous stain on America.

      Liked by 8 people

      1. Charlie, how long do you estimate it will take for this awful but important need-to-know news to come out?

        Liked by 1 person

          1. It is amazing that anyone would have to insist on the revelation of such a horrific thing. In addition to murder, this is child abuse and torture. We have our choice of laws that have been broken. Just imagining the possibilities brings me to tears. And I am sure that I am not the only one on this board.

            Liked by 1 person

    3. Desmond, if my memory serves me well, am I correct that I too will be held to account if I don’t warn others of the mortal danger they are in?

      Liked by 1 person

    4. “There can be no compromise on grave matters of principle.” Thank you, Desmond, for putting into words something that I have long believed but did not know how to express well. I have tried to explain this concept to my kids, but I’m sure I muddled it. They seemed to get the basic drift, but I’m now going to tell them using YOUR formulation.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Well, I can’t say it is mine, Mick. It is one of the basic rules of Catholic Ethics, Catholic Moral Theology. In my opinion, the very best commentary on this comes from St. Alphonsus Ligouri, named a Doctor of the Church due to his teachings in that area. As our Profs used to tell us about such inquiries, “We stand on the shoulders of giants.”

        Liked by 2 people

    2. Me too SteveBc sort of funny…Our beautiful Fr Uri at Mass this morning at Sorrowful mother Shrine spoke about how beautiful this day was (or at least it was then) & we could all be doing what the world would call “better things than confession n Mass” but then he started preaching on the importance of perseverance in these times….I too SteveBc, like the sound of the 7th Trumpet…praying I’m on the right side too….we can never know for sure.

      Liked by 6 people

    4. I agree Steve. It’s interesting how the individual states are lining up on opposing sides of the abortion issue. I clearly don’t want to live in one of the pro-abortion states. Woes are coming…

      Liked by 3 people

  5. I was afraid of a barbaric procedures revelation such as ‘infant vivisection’. “Abortion advocates will scream it is not true when told this.” Fittingly, Dr. B. Nathansan narrated a 2nd abortion video titled the ‘Silent Scream’ referring to the unborn’s reaction during an abortion.
    Re POTUS’ recent statement opining abortion laws should allow exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother. This is an endearing true story of a college student dealing with one of those scenarios…http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/rape-and-adoption-one-womans-story

    Liked by 8 people

  6. Charile…oh my gosh..just sent a note to Mick to by God’s grace get to see you in Jackson Mi on June 9th… by bp is gonna kill me on this..lol…soooo excited

    Liked by 3 people

      1. I haven’t had this much joy in a long long time..lol Beckita.. Charlie has helped me soooooo many times through the years with the things that are happening because of my dumbness and other’s dumbness that He has saved my life like a bazillion times my his message of hope. What an honor… no pressure at all, Charlie! hahahaha

        Liked by 3 people

        1. I’ve learned a lot here too, Linda. But I don’t think folks are dumb so much… just lacking depth of knowledge – for several reasons – in the things Charlie addresses and teaches. We are a blessed family of faith, Linda. ☺️

          Liked by 7 people

    2. Linda, I haven’t gotten your note yet; I’m still trying to figure out how to access that e-mail account (Mary Lapchak is going to give me some bonehead-proof instructions later today). Sigh… it’s so hard being a tech numbskull! 🙂

      Anyhow, looking forward to seeing you on June 9th.

      Liked by 1 person

        1. Linda, I sent you an e-mail last night (at least, I tried to. Did it go through?). Please let me know if you got it; because if you didn’t, then I need to figure out where I messed up.

          Anyhow, just bring yourself, your hubbie, and your great sense of humor. 🙂

          Liked by 3 people

  7. It occurred to me that in reference to recent abortion legislation, the situation mirrors that in the mid-1800s, as the US is dividing itself into “slave” and “free” states again. Luckily for us, we know who wins the war.

    Liked by 10 people

  8. Thank you Charlie for another piece of wonderful work. My comments here have been few (with few words). This comment will be slightly different because, after reading about Carolyn Jones, I decided that I need to ask for help.

    My friend Genalyn is a single, 37 year-old mother of 5 in the Philippines with whom I became acquainted via mutual friends 3 years ago. Genalyn was diagnosed last year with cancer, is in extreme pain most of the time and needs radiation therapy to survive. She has not been able to work for more than a year.

    I have sent money for: the tests she needed for diagnoses, medicine (to help her feel not so terrible), fresh fruits & vegetables (for the same reason), rent & other monthly bills and food for her children. I have not worked since Jan 5, 2019 (because of surgery & rehab), but I should be working again July 1. I have, consequentially, no money left to send for her.

    I tried a GoFundMe account 2 or 3 months ago, but I could not get it jump-started after asking several friends, 3 priests and family members to help. I do not have much of a social network, have never been on Facebook or Twitter, and I thought that is where the people I asked will be able to help. Alas . . . no.

    Is it possible I might be able to enslist help for the GoFundMe page (or in any other manner) through my plea on this site? The GoFundMe page is Genalyn Lugas De la Cruz medical expense. I understand if it is not even possible to post this.

    Thank you for your time and consideration.

    Liked by 4 people

    1. Hi Patrick. If you set up a GoFundMe page, you can certainly link to it in the comments. Your request allows me to review a few things that would be useful to all, especially new readers.

      1) I do not put up requests for donations to the main page except for those things where I know, personally, and have direct experience that it is all on the up and up. That keeps a lot of good causes out of the main page, but it assures readers here that their money is going to a cause that is fully vetted – and that their money will do good and be used properly. Because of those insanely tight restrictions – and because my readers know it, on the rare occasions we do put such an appeal on the main page, it usually has a real impact. These are tough standards. People are incredibly generous, but so many institutions have an angle, those generous people are reluctant to give unless they have real confidence things are vetted. That works here.

      2) We welcome regular commenters to put up GoFundMe links in the comments for dire situations that I do not have personal contact or knowledge on everyone involved. But they must provide the links and do all the work involved. This does not apply to those whose first few comments include such an appeal. Those requests would not be cleared. Again, tough, but a few years back, we had a few people trying to make this into a donations site – which would have defeated the purpose entirely. We also had one complete fraud that I know of that tried to play people here. Whoo! Did she have a hissy when I shut that down. A person who tried to help her directly later sent me a quiet note confirming that the woman had turned out to be a scammer.

      3) This is not a donations site. It is a religious and cultural site – but when there is something I can personally vouch for and is dire, I will put up an appeal on the main page if it has the potential to make a real difference. Our regular commenters are welcome to put up a GoFundMe link if they explain what the situation is in some detail, as you have. Then readers of the comments section can make their own assessment. If you can, it is always best to put up a bona fide story from a credible site or other easily verifiable data confirming what you are saying.

      These are very tough standards, but I like to give our readers an opportunity to make a difference when they can without any worry that they are being played. It also keeps the main focus of the site clean.

      Liked by 9 people

      2. Thank you very much, Charlie, for your personal reply. I did not expect your personal reply, although I am not in the least surprised by it (knowing your character as I do via all that I have read of yours). I was expecting that my comment would not be cleared for posting (because of the simple reason that “This is not a donations site”).

        I think I am reading correctly that I may post the link here. My email is available on the gofundme page for anyone who will like to see all her medical documents to verify the legitimacy of this appeal.

        https://www.gofundme.com/genalyn-de-la-cruz-medical-expense&rcid=r01-155830108506-feed90c3fc9a407b&pc=ot_co_campmgmt_w

        P.S. I have not been receiving email notifications for months despite my requests.

        Liked by 5 people

        2. Patrick FGH, if you will click on th Menu button in the upper right corner of each page and look for the “Answers to Techie Questions” article, you can find one or two documents that should help get you settled in.

          Liked by 1 person

          1. Thank you very much stevebc. I followed your advice, the directions and came back alive. I believe the email notices will once again commence.

            Like

              1. Steve . . . If I followed the directions correctly, should I have received a notification of your reply to me which you posted May 22, 2019 at 9:20 pm? (I didn’t receive such.)

                Like

                1. Well, Patrick, I’m not sure. If you’re logged into your WP account, you should see a black ribbon across your browser page when you are on this site. If you go up to thee upper right corner in the black ribbon, you should see your avatar pic just to the left of a bell icon. Click that once, and a window should slide in from the right. Check “My Profile” and “Account Settings” and especially “Notifications” to see what your various settings are for getting emails to your email account. Play around over the next several days until you get a feel for what does what and what satisfies your needs. Let me know if that works for you. Oh, by the way, WP does not send test or verification emails when you change your settings. For example, you have to wait for Charlie to publish his next post before you can see whether WP will actually send you a notification email that he has done so.

                  Like

  9. Love the hope these words give us today, Charlie. One of my frequent prayers when I hear of or see evil is for the Lord to expose it all. That’s always good news when it happens. The horror you describe is difficult to imagine a civilized people carrying out! To see several states passing pro-life laws of varying degrees is exciting. When I saw a headline on Spiritdaily today about that, it brought tears to my eyes and made it all seem real.

    Regarding your comment about Facebook, etc., I find myself, strangely enough, in agreement with a couple of the leading libs in the Dem Pres. field who favor breaking up these giants of FB, Amazon, and others. They wield too much power and FB and other social media platforms are brainwashing young people and even perhaps those not so young.

    Thanks as always, Charlie. Surely the Lord knows we need some rays of sunshine to keep us going. That’s what happens in my own life as the Lord encourages me with uplifting gifts periodically, even when it’s “just” seeing the fabulous colors of all my flowers blooming at this great time of year!
    God bless you all!!!

    Liked by 7 people

  10. Charlie, I am horrified yet sadly not at all surprised about the confirmed and sourced abortion industry news you shared. I am guessing that this must have been one of the offenses you spoke of that recently caused you to have trouble sleeping.

    I do hope and pray that the walls come tumbling down in haste and that we here and throughout the world live up to the clarion call you have put before us in your final remark.

    ❤

    Liked by 7 people

    1. It was indeed. I had bad trouble sleeping for almost three days when it first popped up. I just can’t imagine how someone can look at a living baby and think taking a knife to it is the “right” thing to do. It absolutely horrified me. I know it is not significantly different from what they do in any late-term abortion, but to see the baby there, before your eyes, not hidden and still do it…some of these people are absolute ghouls. Kermit Gosnell’s method was kinder.

      Liked by 7 people

      1. This is indeed disgraceful and evil. I have published the picture on social media formats of the baby photographed by Dr. Gosnell’s employee that ended up being the reason for his conviction. I was prepared to be censored and/or banned and was fine with that if this would convince others of the evil of the Culture of Death. Lifenews link ***Warning graphic and disturbing –

        https://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/23/dropped-gosnell-charge-includes-28-week-old-baby-boy-b-found-in-freezer/

        I had three accounts with FB; personal, business and academic. I deleted them all years ago and have not looked back. I believe the *good* will tip the scales and will win out in social media and I see and appreciate those who stay the course, for the right reasons! ❤

        One of my favorite daily offerings from on ole prayer card that I pray and post daily online is:

        Liked by 5 people

      2. I, too, cannot believe that a human being could do this to a baby. To look into his eyes, to hear his/her screams, to see the horror of this tortuous attack and still do it is beyond any understanding on my part. This is truly evil. Something Adolf Hitler would have done. (Maybe he did)

        Liked by 2 people

  12. Thank you Charlie for your personal reply to my comment about an appeal for Genalyn. Thank you also for allowing me to post the link here.

    https://www.gofundme.com/genalyn-de-la-cruz-medical-expense&rcid=r01-155830108506-feed90c3fc9a407b&pc=ot_co_campmgmt_w

    I know we are surrounded by many generous people, and I think I only need a few to get this started in order to save Genalyn’s life (and quite possibly the lives of her 3 youngest children).

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Honestly, I don’t know what I am doing wrong. My donation attempt did not work for Genalyn nor my previous attempt for Texas Right to Life. I get to the point of confirming it then it disappears. Any suggestions?

      Liked by 1 person

      1. If it did not work for either, Kris, it is almost certainly a security setting on your computer. Have someone you know who REALLY knows computers take a look. I had a similar situation about a year and a half ago. Fortunately, my son was able to take care of it doing some things I would never even have thought of.

        Liked by 1 person

  13. The truth is emerging, thank God. Just wanted to share some good/interesting news. Pardon me if I ramble:

    The priest at mass today (he’s in his early thirties) spoke about the heartbeat laws and how this was a wonderful step forward for protecting the sanctity of life. I was like, “Awesome! Yes! Preach it, Father!”

    I have been a Catholic for a little over 5 years and only heard abortion talked about maybe 5-6 times. This was in Athens, Georgia (bit of a party town, Athens). I should note too that the other priest there, who is in his early fifties, has always delivered rock-solid homilies. These Fathers are like 1-2 punch of orthodoxy. In fact, the older priest a few weeks ago said that the job of parents is not to get their kids into good colleges; the point of parents is to get their kids into heaven.

    This, with UGA right down the street.

    I loved it.

    Anyway, thirty-something priest’s homily was about suffering and how the world (specifically the pro-abortion crowd) thinks the point of life is to avoid it. “Well, the unborn baby will suffer in a poor neighborhood, or an orphanage, without a mom or a dad, or in poverty, or with some disability. Better just kill it so it can avoid suffering and you can too.”

    The priest basically said that suffering is unavoidable, and if we follow Christ’s example, we can transform “pointless” suffering into redemptive suffering, which miraculously eases our suffering and the suffering of others. This is like Catholicisms 101. But man, it was a good homily.

    Also, my twin brother (CHADPRO123) got into a long debate on Facebook with a close friend we used to have (and still kinda do) yesterday. My brother and I have 8, going on 9, children between us. The friend is a bachelor who, to be frank, lives like one. The friend posted a very pro-abortion/anti-Christian message on Facebook, and my brother got a debate going. They were very cordial to one another and, ultimately, my brother presented the simple truth that life begins at conception, that life precedes organ development or autonomy, and that personhood is not subject to organ functionality. The friend was cordial too, even though his arguments were hot garbage.

    What was not discussed was the fundamental disconnect between how “on-the-fence” pro-choice people (like my friend) view abortion vs. how pro-life people view it. The friend we have thinks of a tiny mass of tissue/genetic material the size of a pea that is removed surgically in a matter of minutes, sort of like getting your teeth cleaned. While me (and everyone else who is pro-life) think of a fully-developed baby getting ripped apart. Because we’ve seen the pictures and documentaries and we’ve seen where this “mass of cells” argument leads to: surgery on live infants, organ harvesting, people lobbying for infanticide, etc.

    I hope that this revelation, Charlie, that you’ve shared will open some eyes, minds, and hearts, (especially of my friend). Because if he does convert (and I pray he does) there are a lot people ready to share the truth with them. To teach them about the light of Christ.

    As always, keep doing what you do. And everyone else, keep next-right-steppin. All of your writing and the community here is like a candle in the dark sometimes. No matter how bad things seem, I check-in here and have hope that the tide is turning.

    P.S. one of the things I struggle with is sometimes I feel like I’m bursting at the seams to share the truths of Catholicism with people, to show them step-by-step how the Catholic Church is right about most everything, how to live a spiritual life, a moral life, build a relationship with Christ, etc. But most people find that abrasive. I know I’ve pushed too hard in some instances and should just live my vocation as best I can and wait for them to come to me. Just thought I’d share this. My hope is that, once some things hit the fan, I’ll have the opportunity to share more liberally the fire within.

    P.S.S I do have a nice outlet for getting to talk about The Church and everything else with my Confirmation Classes. The lady who heads the religious education department once said I was “a passionate and engaging teacher.” Which was nice to hear. I was afraid she’d say I need to tone it down some.

    Okay, done now.

    Liked by 11 people

    1. When I was teaching RCIA many years ago, everybody liked me because I am a pretty cheery guy – but everybody also knew that if you pushed the right buttons, I could get very intense (my polite way of saying go off on a rant). It both impressed them and, after anyone got to know me, made them snicker a little. (I don’t know why my friends like to see me go on an occasional rant, but they do). Anyway, one year, a delightful middle-aged woman, near the end of the course, asked me to be her confirmation sponsor. She was very intelligent and quite witty. We had hit it off very well during the year. When I said yes, she chuckled and said the first time she ever saw me, it was when someone had triggered an intense moment from me – and that she turned to her friend and whispered, “Okay, there’s the ‘John 3:16’ guy.” I laughed and said, “Well, I kind of am.” And she said she knew – and who knew a ‘John 3:16’ guy could be so much fun and so funny.

      It’s all good, ChasePro!

      Liked by 5 people

    4. Hi Chase . . . I know very well the feeling and urge to share the truths of our faith and rarely have done so at length (unless invited or encouraged by the listener(s)). I sometimes feel that I am bursting at the seams. I’m not much on sharing or talking about most things other than my faith and conservative views. I am happily encouraged by “Preach your faith unceasingly . . . sometimes, use words.”

      Liked by 4 people

      1. Well if it doesn’t cause us to turn back to God, I am sure the flaming sword will be unleashed. Either way it’s the beginning of the end for them. That is just so so vile…

        Liked by 3 people

    2. I have never had a FB account and so thankful I don’t. A few years ago when my middle son got married they posted some pictures of their wedding on FB. As I rolled the cursor over the various people their names popped up. Nowhere on the post were their names included but FB did facial recognition. Creepy. They didn’t do have my pic so I am unindentified.

      Liked by 1 person

  15. Took my self off of Facebook about two years ago. Spent way too much time on the useless pursuit.
    A diocese of Philadelphia church was attacked over this past weekend. It was defaced with pro choice sentiments. With the attacks on churches all over Europe and Asia and with attacks on synagogues, I was wondering how long it would take for attacks to happen to Catholic churches here. I pray not but I think this incident will embolden other attacks. I hope parishes are thinking about security. Here’s the link http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2019/05/19/notre-dame-de-lourdes-church-abortion-rights-graffiti/
    The church is located in Delaware County, in Swarthmore, PA and is located near the very liberal Swarthmore University.

    Liked by 3 people

  16. A church in Swarthmore, PA, Delaware Co., Archdiocese of Philadelphia was attacked this past weekend. With the attacks on Catholic churches and synagogues in Europe and Asia, I wonder how long before Antifa like attacks would happen here. I hope and pray they do not but I also hope that parishes are thinking about security especially with the election upon us. (There were many political attacks in Bucks County by the left in the last election. The attacks were mostly on Trump signage but still they were vicious including signs on personal property.) I wonder if this one attack will embolden others. I pray not. Here’s the link https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2019/05/19/notre-dame-de-lourdes-church-abortion-rights-graffiti/ This church is located near the very liberal Swarthmore University.

    Like

    1. Didn’t mean to post this twice but my original comment didn’t show up as “awaiting verification”. Word Press somewhat confusing on my end even as I logged in or so I thought. Please forgive. …I dunno know….is it me or the computer??????

      Like

      1. It could be either, Joanne. WordPress has been known to do some unusual things and human error is always a possibility in each of our days. Either way, no worries whatsoever.

        Liked by 2 people

  17. Charlie, I am glad you like the “Travels with Charlie” title for your travels around the country this year …. however, that is the brainchild of Steve BC …

    Liked by 2 people

  18. Hi, I’m Joe. I have been Facebook free for almost 5 years. I came to the conclusion that, for me, it was fostering almost a narcissistic self-focus. I started thinking, why would I think anyone cares what I am “thinking” every second of every day? Who cares what I am eating at this second?

    I couldn’t think of even one benefit for me. I have heard all the reasons that others are on it, but, to me, none of them held water – for me personally.

    The biggest one was “so I can stay in touch with family and friends that I otherwise would not be in contact with.” But that just falls flat for me. If I would not otherwise be in touch with them, then what does it matter? That means they are NOT in my life, and I shouldn’t be spending precious time trying to stay in touch with them, at the expense of those who ARE in my life.

    That is — why is it so important for me to be in touch with an old high school friend who lives half way across the continent, and who I would never otherwise talk to, that I would sit on Facebook messaging away (or worse yet, looking at pictures of what he was eating at that moment), while I neglect those in the same room with me (my immediate family)? The same is true even of my brothers and sisters. Why would I sit on Facebook messaging one of my sisters who has moved away, even while I ignore my spouse and kids who are sitting in the same room with me?

    I understand the occasional desire to check in with those types of people. I told myself, ok, write a letter. If I write one letter to a friend a month, that might take 20 minutes a month. If I am constantly checking FB and messaging that person, that takes WAY more than 20 minutes a month and keeps me almost constantly distracted (from those around me physically) for the entire month.

    I have found that the demands of setting aside 20 minutes even once a month and writing an actual letter, and mailing it, quickly help me set priorities as to who I am going to actually stay in touch with. I am only taking time from my immediate family and from the friends who are actually in my life every day, to communicate with those who are really important to me. And, I am taking MUCH less time to do it.

    None of our kids who are still at home are on it. My wife was on FB a lot, until last Fall when we did Exodus 90. Since then, she has limited her FB to 10 minutes on Sunday. That’s it. She even routinely remarks that she feels sort of yucky after she is finished. She might be dumping it soon as well.

    I look at sites like this one, and perusing the comments here, as being drastically different. While I think people can become too attached to almost anything, this site does not have the self-focus. It does not have the (almost demonic) attraction. It is not socially engineered to foster a constant preoccupation (or addiction). I feel as though I am nurturing my spiritual life here, by occassionally popping on to read a few comments or the new post.

    If you’re on the fence, I would strongly encourage you to dump FB, and Twitter, and Snapchat, and ….whatever…. Give it a try for 90 days. You might experience a new freedom 🙂

    Liked by 6 people

    1. Hey Joe, thanks for the compliments for how we run this site.

      A lot of the stuff you see on Facebook is completely appalling – and with Facebook starting to call anything that is not appalling “hate speech,” it is pretty alienating for ordinary people. The self-focus you mention really is bizarre. I don’t get it. I don’t take selfies, I don’t think it’s anybody’s business what I had for lunch. I originally got on Facebook when I was doing heavy politics – because it was a great way to reach out to college kids (a great source of volunteers). Then, setting up the Abraham’s Journey Page allowed me to let my friends take a virtual pilgrimage as I did the walking. I really loved that – and was surprised at how many people were heartened by that journey. Now, about all I use it for is to copy these posts. I have never paid to boost a post. Cast your bread upon the waters and whoever comes, so be it. Actually, I have never been bothered by Facebook administrators…and I have come to think it is because I have never bought an ad or boosted a post. I suspect they don’t take you seriously unless you do – then love to suspend people who are actually paying for their presence. That is both censorship AND theft. I will probably stay as I do next to nothing to benefit the corrupt administrators of FB, but hijack some of their reach. Also, it has the history of my pilgrimage in the Abraham’s Journey archives – and that is kind of precious to me. I would hate to see it lost.

      I don’t do twitter at all. I briefly had an account because some friends said it would extend my reach. I rarely used it – then my son alerted me that someone had put some weird, creepy pictures on my page (midget sex, some demonic emblems, etc.) I was horrified. So I just deleted the account altogether because I didn’t use it enough to police it. Also, when you look at it, it just seems like Monkey Island at the zoo – with everyone throwing poop at each other and cackling hysterically. Definitely not my thing.

      I think there is an important place for social media…but it is badly misused and has sparked an almost unconscious narcissism as a matter of course. It seems for many people it has a hypnotic effect – creating a virtual life in place of an actual one. I don’t know if that is just hard-wired into the human condition or is a sad reflection of the emptiness of our times. I get a lot of people using Facebook as a gateway to this site. On the one hand, the FB company disgusts me. On the other, it seems counter-productive to remove the sort of meaty content my stuff provides from a site that specializes in aimless frivolity.

      Liked by 5 people

      1. Charlie, am in agreement with you view of FB. I’ve also never tweeted or twittered, moaned or groaned on any other social venue.

        I established and maintain a FB page for only one reason. Many people who otherwise would not hear, read, learn the Church’s teachings on a number of doctrinal, theological, political, or even philosophical subjects of the day are able to do so on that page. I hear about this from such people all the time in private messages and emails – and they state their gratitude that I take the time to do it – which gives them the opportunity to share those postings with a much larger still audience.

        I’ve began tutoring seminarians in other countries via the Internet years ago – and corresponding with foreign missionaries in the same manner.

        CONCLUSION: There is a bright side to the dark side here.

        All my love in Christ

        Desmond

        Liked by 2 people

          1. Thank you, and I’m not the only one. There are a number of faithful priests I know who carry on a quite effective ministry on FB. In a surprisingly high number of cases, they are reaching people over that venue whom they could not reach and teach in any other.

            All my love in Christ

            Desmond

            Liked by 3 people

        2. Ha! Your comment has given me the answer. We are Missionaries to Facebook. Missionaries have always faced rejection, persecution, even martyrdom. But they don’t quit their post. My new goal for the year is not to withdraw from such corrupt platforms – but to drive the snakes out of Facebook. (Anyone have any spare shamrocks laying around?)

          Liked by 3 people

          3. ☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀☘️🍀

            Liked by 2 people

  19. Charlie: “If the plan is merely to replace their thugs and bums with our thugs and bums, count me out. We must reform the system to offer a fair field of play for all – and then do the hard work of persuading all that our cause is just and true. Anything else is just a variation on dysfunction.”

    Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Of course I believe in the principle of persuasion over thuggery and also scrupulosity, but for the life of me I can’t see the relation to it in Fr. Longanekker’s piece.
      Help?

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Leslyek, I didn’t apply the thugs and bums line to Fr. Longenecker at all. I went back to look at it and, frankly, I thought that was pretty clear. I faulted him for, in items 8, 9, and 11 putting his faith in government to do what family, community, and the Church should do. Even though each is a laudable goal. entrusting it to gov’t. is not. #8 uses tax policy to set social policy – for the right reasons, but we should not be taxing for purposes that Churches, voluntary associations, and local communities can be doing. A federal tax break should be largely irrelevant to families because no one is heavily taxed on income in the first place. (We had no income tax at all until 1913. How did we encourage large families before that? Gov’t minded its own business – and once we granted it authority to tax incomes – after being promised that no one would ever be taxed more than a few points – the beast grew by leaps and bounds.) Item 9 once again leaves to gov’t to do the work that families, Churches, and voluntary associations should do. Once we ceded that to gov’t, instead we got a hostile takeover of schools, civil rights groups fining and jailing people for living their religious conscience, and mandatory indoctrination into far-left ideology. Item #11 would entrust marriage education to public schools. How has that worked out for us? It is the job of Churches and families. My point, as stated in that section of the article, is that when you cede that power to gov’t in the first place, you both abdicate your direct social responsibility and CANNOT keep bureaucrats from doing what they want instead of what you direct.

        I suppose since the ‘thugs and bums’ line came in the next paragraph, it is reasonable to have made that leap – but it does not make sense in light of the compliments I gave Fr. Longenecker. On the other hand, when you turn to gov’t to guarantee the outcome you want, you ARE empowering thugs and bums to do the social good that you are called to do personally.

        Liked by 4 people

        1. Thanks you beat me to the keys as I was coming back on to say I knew it wasn’t directly thuggery but yes, the other— of having government do our work.
          Now I must read your response, heh.

          Liked by 2 people

        2. Thank you for verbalizing a reflection on tax use, especially connected to good things. I’d suspected that’s what was meant ( after my rash click). It is a subtle temptation to use government that way.
          Especially when anything seems better than nothing.

          Liked by 2 people

  20. Who familiar with “Maslow’s hierarchy of needs”? Even though God’s words are eternal and never changing, people’s and society’s mindset does change according to society’s current development.

    Matt 7:
    6“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.”
    Expecting our current society to respect & honour Christianity’s high ideas is pointless when most of society isn’t Christian any more…

    Society’s current mindset is like before the Holy Roman Empire & post resurrection, so maybe our current focus should be like theirs.

    Liked by 5 people

  21. I completely get the urge to shut down Facebook. It’s evil, it’s truly evil working through that social media site and others. They’re trying to silence conservatives, fine, let them, it only shows the middle who they truly are. But if we all turn it off and “run away” like the disciples in the garden, we are not shining God’s light to those who need to see it. We are in a battle, and the battle for many poorly catechised and impressionable minds is being fought on social media. Too many are addicted to it for it to fail now, it’s where the cultural battle is being fought.

    I think we all need to stay there, and keep shining our lights in the face of evil. Keep speaking and posting Truth. Keep being signs of hope to others 🙂

    Liked by 5 people

    1. FB is a source of both evil and good. In addition to the serious problems named, It is also loaded with many a pearl of great price, for it is heavily used as an evangelization tool by many.

      Liked by 4 people

    2. The current social media trends (like Facebook) is to sensor conservative & Christian opinions as liberals are calling everything that doesn’t match their ideology “hate speech” & “election tampering”. How long will the internet be free?

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Al, it’s not free now. The real question is just how unfree will it become until we stand up and demand it be freed?

        Liked by 5 people

        1. Yep… I’ve had a Facebook post blocked by Facebook, and I was just warning people about Liberal corruption.

          We’re already having our 2019 fall election rigged by the Liberals in Canada. How Ironic & hypocritical those claiming election tampering (Liberals) are the one doing the tampering.

          Liked by 5 people

      2. Well, Fox News isn’t perfect by a long stretch. However, I remember how confined to liberal news the media was till Fox came along. Its existence quite literally ended the Leftist monopoly in the media.

        I’m just guessing that someone is going to start a major competitor with FB et. al. Why? Because there would be big money in it.

        Liked by 4 people

        1. I believe that Liberalism & Socialism have a infernal origin of coming from the “Beast spirit” of Revelations, and that only that only God is capable of crushing those perverted & corrupting evils. We as human beings can’t do battle & hope win against that type of evil, if anything all we can do is endure the persecutions & help our brothers & sisters in Christ until God’s appointed time.

          Liked by 1 person

    3. Thank you, Tom. You expressed quite nicely the way my thoughts have been heading as I contemplate this. Man, we’re getting tough choices in even the simplest things, aren’t we?

      Liked by 8 people

  22. That made my stomach hurt. And ironically, a gal in our office posts a “funny saying” everyday on a board. The terrifying and ironical saying today is, “Does it bother anyone else that the guy from the operation game is wide awake?” What in the world are we coming to????????????????

    Liked by 4 people

  23. Prayers needed for John Zimmerman. I’m heading over to visit him in the hospital and praying that somehow help to save his soul with the assistance of the Divine Mercy Chaplet and promises. He is in bad shape and the end looks near.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. thank you so much Mick. means a lot. we waited 45 mins while they cleaned him up, then only spent a minute with him because he became very weepy. left him a special card with prayers and well wishes. will hopefully have another opportunity. it doesn’t look good. he’s a mere skeleton at age 50 and he has uncontrolled diabetes (that he refused to acknowledge 3+ yrs ago) and necrofascitis that had to be cut out between his legs. very bad infection there that has to stay opened and draining. terrible stuff. (btw, this is my daughters brother-in-law.) continued prayers for his lost soul and for the enlightenment of his wife and two grown daughters.

        Liked by 3 people

    1. Littleone, I direct you back to the case against Daleiden made by the Harris County, Texas (Houston) prosecutor’s office three years ago. It tried to use a grand jury convened to investigate Planned Parenthood to railroad David instead. In the course of it all, Daleiden’s lawyers unearthed proof that the prosecutor had illegally conspired with PP to accomplish this. Up until the very end, the D.A.’s office threatened, cajoled, lied and schemed – and then it all came apart as the realization came that these corrupt officials might face prison if they proceeded. All charges were dropped, the prosecutor who coordinated the conspiracy was fired and the D.A. lost her job at the next election.

      To all, do not be surprised when you see these types of headlines. Do you think the insane left is just going to whimper and say, like Emily Litella, “Never Mind,” when their schemes are revealed? The Russian Collusion Hoax has been revealed to be a fraud and an effort at a coup. Even so, the Democrats are still maliciously howling, hoping desperately they can somehow still prevail. The same thing is going on here.

      The preliminary hearing in the criminal case was supposed to begin on April 22. Yet the just-finished depositions were said to be explosive and deadly for PP. Once the preliminary hearing began, those depositions would become public record. So the California Supreme Court halted proceedings to buy all the bad guys some time. Now, presumably, things can go forward again – but first there has to be a status hearing in June, then you probably won’t see a preliminary hearing start until the fall (there are a LOT of witnesses and it is very difficult to coordinate schedules during summer vacation time). Our friends in conservative media mistakenly thought the April halt was a victory for Daleiden. They were wrong – we on the pro-life side who knew what was going on in this very complicated matter wanted the preliminary hearing to go forward. Now, they report that this is a huge setback. No one on our side likes it, but it was not the least unexpected. All the April halt ever was, was an effort to buy some time in a disintegrating case that now imperils not just PP, but some very prominent figures in the California justice system – and may end up torpedoing the dreams of at least one Democratic Presidential hopeful, Sen. Kamala Harris.

      The California establishment is in the position the Harris County establishment was in in the month before their case unraveled – but when everybody who counted knew the truth. In raw panic, trying to figure out how to get out of this without throwing their own head on the block. If you think that malefactors caught are going to act like gentle lambs, you completely misunderstand the behavior of such predators. They will – and should be expected – to act like maddened beasts, cornered. Right now they are in desperate damage control mode. They hope that this keeps up some pressure on David and hopefully, miraculously, he will quit the field, saving their bacon for them. I would not be at all surprised to see the California Atty.Gen.’s (AG) office offer David some innocuous plea agreement that carries no penalty now, in hopes of saving face and getting out of this. On the other hand, maybe not. I did not think Kamala Harris’ successor as AG could possibly be as maliciously dumb as she is. I was wrong. Javier Becerra is even worse. But even if he does not understand what trouble prosecutors are in, some of his deputies do. These clowns have largely bought themselves until the fall to try to figure out how to get out of this. I have written this a little deliberately provocative, for if the AG could be provoked to go full speed ahead right now to prove how tough they are, that would be to Daleiden’s benefit. Frankly, I would like to see PP AND the AG’s office come tumbling down now, rather than give them until the fall to figure out an exit strategy or a way to suppress the taped depositions. At every step they are getting more brazen. But even if the entire California Justice System can be perverted, those perversions would insure the case ultimately landed in a court outside California. Then prison would loom for those who tried to railroad all this. So they desperately want some excuse to dismiss this that does not seem to be their fault AND some plausible way to suppress the depositions. That is what all this is about right now.

      But know this: in all of these situations, right until the moment of final victory, the malefactors will keep waving their arms shouting boogedy-boogedy. I keep saying that we have a long fight ahead of us, even in those areas where the tide has completely turned. So do not be surprised about these things. The only thing that will ever surprise me is if one of the malefactors actually does surrender like a meek, little lamb when he is caught red-handed.

      Liked by 6 people

    1. I am so sorry to hear it, Kassi. The “Republican” House could not be relied upon to stand for the least and most vulnerable. I suppose it is no surprise when the phony pro-life group, Texas Alliance for Life (TAL) and the Texas Conference of Catholic Bishops (TCCB) were giving them cover. I pray that Carolyn Jones will be well enough to stand with her family on-stage at the Texas Right-to-Life Celebration of Life this fall – and then maybe those who want to throw the vulnerable to the wolves will get a whiff of the sulfur they are heaping up for themselves. Would that they would repent.

      Liked by 8 people

  26. I would like to hear more of the inner motivations of the TAL and TCCB to understand how they can support these evils while making a show of being pro life. As for FB I will use it as I will speak while still possible but it would be good to seek more responsible and non censoring sites for public discussion while we can. Pray for us in St Louis. A good friend who is on the pro life front lines just reported on FB of all places of 2 persons being supported in seeking death for their unborns by a previously reliable pro life hospital. Until I know more I am omitting names.

    Liked by 4 people

    3. I would suggest you go to their websites – and then go to Kassi Marks’ website, where for the past six years she has methodically and carefully examined and taken down the arguments. The TCCB constantly tries to suggest it is Catholic Doctrine, while misrepresenting what the Catholic Doctrine is. They inappropriately claim that respecting a doctor’s right of conscience requires giving him unappealable power of life and death over another. They say care cannot be given indefinitely – but they quietly supported killing SB 2089 which would have expanded the 10-Day-Rule to 45 days, giving people a reasonable time to find an alternate facility. What they avoid dealing with like the plague is the idea that “experts” should have unappealable power to remove basic care – completely denying personal autonomy over such decisions, which is completely contrary to Catholic doctrine. It took me a long time and a lot of research to realize that the TCCB was just engaging in dishonest sophistry. No serious Catholic wants to believe that. The fact is that the Texas Medical Assn. (TMA) and the Texas Hospital Assn. (THA) are two gigantic political powerhouses, donors, and influence-peddlers in Texas politics. The TCCB likes to keep strong relations with both.

      Liked by 6 people

    4. Bob,

      The quickest answer to your question about TAL & the TCCB may be found here: https://kassiblog.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-rare-repost-unholy-alliances.html

      I did not write the post I reposted, but I trust Bishop Gracida’s endorsement of it by posting it himself. It jives, if you will, with what I have been told confidentially by those (a significant number of people) I cannot name who are in positions to know firsthand. I am not a journalist by training, but I try to be very careful about what I post. There are many things I’ve not been able to say because I could not name my sources. I’ve been waiting for more to come out all these years that corroborated what I – and so many other pro-lifers – already know.

      If there is a bishop in Texas, other than Bishop Emeritus Gracida, who does not agree with the “official” stance and lobbying of the TCCB, he has not said so publicly. Silence is complicity. Until one or more of them breaks ranks PUBLICLY, the TCCB can continue to go to Austin and claim they support the entire Church.The result is that lives will continue to be lost when good legislation is killed by it and TAL (who the TCCB says speaks for it – https://kassiblog.blogspot.com/2018/03/texas-bishops-backtrack-on-parish.html) and the lay faithful will be further scandalized. Moreover, the laity that does not know the truth is called to advocate for anti-life legislation themselves based on what the TCCB tells them to do. I’ve written about the error of clericalism and the Principle of Subsidiarity but I think those ideas are largely unknown by most Catholics and are certainly not taught.

      The pro-aborts are happy, however. They wanted SB 1033 killed and TAL did their bidding. Not the first time. TAL’s executive director testified basically along side PP against the dismemberment bill last session. (See the same link.)

      We have big problems in Texas. As I keep saying, by their fruits you will know them. All of them. And there is some very bitter fruit in Texas.

      Liked by 4 people

  27. Charlie, if what you say about the abortion stuff is true, while I do not doubt you, I hope it is not, how can the Democrats hope to get elected dog catcher next year?

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Seriously, Matthew? Have you been to San Francisco or Chicago or New York? They will convince themselves that it is righteous and that these living, born children are not really children at all. They will talk about how many lives can be saved by the body parts. They will argue that before there is sentience, there is no humanity. They will push back the boundaries. History shows that even the most depraved evil is never short of advocates they can recruit.

      Liked by 5 people

      1. And, they will not allow themselves to be informed by: accepting the valid Deleiden videos; watching Unplanned; believing the many witnesses.

        Hard hearted blindness.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. The fact is – in those cities, the virtual majority of those who vote – vote for the candidate who promises them the most – but taking it from those who can be most easily gouged. I know personally, supposed ‘good Catholics’ who voted first for Obama and then for Hillary – ‘Catholics’ who claim to be pro-life. Most of them work for Government or are on govt. assistance of some kind – or who have many friends who do or are. IT’S ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT DOLE. IT’S ABOUT GOVERNMENT FLEECING YOU TO PROVIDE AN EASY RIDE FOR GOVT. EMPLOYEES OF ALL KINDS, AND THOSE WHO LIVE MOSTLY ON THE DOLE.

        THESE ARE PEOPLE I KNOW WELL. They know abortion murders babies, and they still vote for the baby killers who promise them the biggest handouts for their votes. Those are the same politicians who essentially are baby killers.

        All I can do is pray for them.

        Desmond

        Liked by 4 people

        1. Well said, Desmond. And, I think, it’s also about letting the government dole out funds to support an unwieldy and often misguided, mismanaged welfare system because it’s, you know, a “social justice” cause. We DO need a safety net for folks at times but, man o man, how to fashion such assistance in ways that promote getting back on your feet has been overlooked, resulting in enabling a way of life that is sustained by government assistance, rather that a way to support progressing from hard times to healthy self-sufficiency.

          I’ll bet each of us in this community is surrounded with “good Catholics and Christians” who voted for O and HRC because, “I’m not a single issue voter,” don’t you know. Have been and will continue to pray that this Storm will rouse those who are spiritually asleep.

          Liked by 3 people

          1. Beckie, I was of voting age when the massive increase was jogged into the Welfare State during the Presidency of Lyndon Baines Johnson – from 1965-1968. It was openly spoken of amongst Uber Leftist political strategistes of the Democrat Party that; the Aid to Dependent Children [ADC] Act – wherein women could be paid $ for babies, $ for having children, enough so the woman would never have to work — that this would accomplish the following for an ultimately all-powerful Socialist Welfare State. I would ultimately produce whole generations of fatherless children [no daddy in the home] – who would grow up thinking it is normal to live off he Government. And eventually there would be enough of them that they could outvote those who actually work for a living.

            What would that accomplish? It would produce a mass of voters who would always vote for the people who paid for their rent, food, transportation, medical care, appliances, Color TV’s, etc.

            It would do to the USA exactly what brought down the Roman Republic – it would generate a large mass of people who didn’t have any idea of how to take care of themselves – even if they wanted to do so.

            Want to see what it produces with lots of time. Visit a large indian reservation – yoiu know – the places where WASPS [While Anglo-Saxon Protestant] dominated America of the 1800’s forced the American Indians out of a self-providing culture into one of slaves to government handouts.

            That’s where the majority of the Democrat Party Strategists with to take Black and Hispanic Americans next.

            THAT IS ONLY POSSIBLE WITH HIGH TAXE BASED GOVERNMENT HANDOUTS.

            [Now if you wish to know what I really think, come and look me and Charlie up at our Parish in Metro Denver.

            All my love in Christ

            Desmond
            p.s. Most of the Democrat poliicians [in my personal experience going back many years]l – they don’t give a good darn about anyone but them and theirs. Everyone else is just a sheep to fleece – and spend the fleeced dollars on those who will vote for them.

            Liked by 3 people

            1. LOL. No doubt it would be a delight to be a fly on the wall, Dez, when you and Charlie go at it in your discussions of myriad topics. My deceased husband was an educator at a school on the Flathead Indian Reservation for nearly 30 years. Curtis Bowers, a former congressman from Idaho, has quite the story to tell about wandering into a communist party meeting on campus during his college years in California. The agenda presented at that meeting sounds very much like what you describe here concerning the Corruptocrats. And the ultimate end of such a Godless agenda looks like what Venezuela is now living. Deliver us, O Lord. (Prayed with the knowledge that we have an active part to play in being delivered.)

              Liked by 2 people

            2. Dez, medical care. I hate Medicare and all government control over healthcare. We needed a Bill of Rights that was 12 rights long, not 10. One that absolutely bars the Feds (and the States and localities, too) from having anything to do with a person’s education and another one for healthcare.

              The triumvirate of control over food, education and healthcare makes a government virtually invincible against freedom. You stand on your own in these areas, or (eventually) you lose your life.

              Liked by 1 person

          2. I even showed these people the instructions from Pope Benedict that the ‘Life Isues’ preenpt all others for Catholic voters. They still voted for the baby killers. That kind are not even remotely Catholic in their thinking. They are wanna-be’s – and not the real deal.They’ll let othes kill babies and the elderly – just so long as you give them a handout – previously taken by force of law from someone who works hard for a living. In the final analysis, they are not just accomplices in murder, they are also thieves.

            Liked by 3 people

            1. And, sadly, their numbers are too, too, too, too many. We had a pair of local priests who attended the first inauguration of BO and came home to brag about it.

              Liked by 1 person

  28. Charlie:
    You wrote . “These same ordinary people will wonder how they could have sat silent about this, turning their heads away for so long, rather than investigating. In the end, the ordinary people will soothe their consciences by telling themselves they didn’t know – and then make up for what they failed to do by zealously turning to a culture of life”
    What is going to happen to the 60 million ordinary woman ( really a number less since some are repeat abortions) who are being swept along in this pro-life tide? Do they crash and burn when they realize what they have done? They will be waking up just like the same “ordinary people” who sat silent.
    Patricia

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Patricia, the growth of groups such as Rachel’s Vineyard over the last few decades speak to that. The pro-life groups I work with emphasize the healing needed for the women who were victimized by the abortion culture. Your question really boils down to, once they realize what they have done, will these women go into despair like Judas, or repent like Peter? That is up to each of them – and to all of us who are Christian to assure them of the redeeming power of Christ through their repentance and His forgiveness. You know well that I would never outline a crash and burn stratagem. So, we work to rebuild a culture of life, notwithstanding that some people will be devastated by what they have killed, while working equally hard to reclaim those who wake from their daze. Some will crash and burn. As long as we don’t neglect the outreach to the women who are living survivors of abortion, I would not sacrifice a single child to Molech in order to soothe anyone’s conscience.

      Liked by 9 people

  30. I absolutely do not think you would outline a crash and burn. My question is really what to do. The church does not address this issue day in and day out. So many woman, who did not know what they were truly doing, are going to be devastated. It will not be the same but will be somewhat similar to the future devastation the masses will suffer when awaken to the treason and satanic practices of the elite. Really God help us all because so much is going to be exposed.

    Liked by 5 people

    1. I know, Pat, I was teasing you a bit. It is, of course, a very serious question – and why I emphasize so often that we must be resolutely solid but not vengeful. I have sometimes used the imagery of assembling the ambulances. I asked often beginning long ago why show me all these things if I cannot stop them. Sometimes it has been like being forced to watch an oncoming train wreck from a great distance. Finally I realized that I could assemble the ambulances. In the aftermath, there is going to be a world of brokenness to be healed.

      Liked by 6 people

      1. What tremendous opportunities await us all to bring Christ’s Light and Love to the massive numbers of deeply wounded. How often Charlie has remarked that God does not leave us bereft. St. Paul reminds us in Romans: “Where sin abounds, grace abounds the more.” That’s not simply a truth; it’s a promise.

        In Corinthians, Paul counsels us to seek after love and eagerly desire the gifts of the Spirit. He doesn’t advise to say/think: “Oh if God wants to give me the gifts of this and that, it would be nice.” Rather, we can prepare right now in our daily prayer by eagerly asking for every gift needed to equip us to BE the ambulances. WHATEVER we ask the Father in Jesus’ Name – if it’s good for us and others – will be given to us. If we want to be somebody who’s special and elite, well, it’s just plain foolish to ask, for what good is that? If we sincerely wish to help those around us, why not ask? And eagerly so.

        There is many an apostolate at work, right now, preparing and nurturing people to tend to this already bleeding, broken world. And I have discovered that even with spiritual gifts, honing and maturing them is a wise way to use them.

        Liked by 2 people

  32. i wrote to the president and asked he have no compromise on the abortion issue. This only leaves residual crud and we need to have faith God will make the correction. He replied he got my message. I also support the Texas Right to Life group. They fight soooo very hard! And the shock is the TCBC supports the Texas Alliance group who is a front for the abortion industry and various other organizations determined to destroy life in our state. While I have not become impervious to the issue, as to jump on anyone or everyone, it is because when I start, I feel I will not be able to stop. Lost a neighbor in 2016 to the issue, and she nearly shocked my socks off. Only to reach a tragic standoff in the middle of the street with voices raging and could have been ‘guns blazing’. HAHA… So I have tucked my feathers beneath me, and listen – then speak, but it is pure sadness that brings me to this spot. I recently responded a comment to a ‘townhall mtg’ with Buttleig (the mayor) — what a sham and front! Expressing his questionable moral character and his ‘right to say women are the only ones who have the right to say abortion is ok”. I actually stopped to listen, as this is the first time I have heard him and listened. Actually, I did hear something about him…and saw a picture of him with his __mate_____…whatever they call this other man. It has come so far, and they are coming apart at the seams, and the fear in their eyes is telling all. I recently listened to TradCatKnight’s podcast with the granddaughter of Maria Julia Jehenna. It was 3 sessions, in French, total 7 hours with a translator in all three. So it was prob equivalent to 4 hours if it was in English with/out the French. What a lovey lady! And the info was mind boggling. I know Charlie has given us at one time a ‘shortened version’ however, she was reading new info from her father’s notes given to him by Marie Julia Jahenny. I went back (sucker for punishment) and sat again through the 7 hours, and took notes. And my grandkids sat with me after awhile, they could not believe what they heard. They are all teens. A good time to ponder their future and the love of God for his family. Take care good people, be alert and be safe!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Robill, regarding Marie Julie Jahenny: I know nothing about TradCatKnight or his/her podcasts; but I do know quite a lot about Marie Julie Jahenny. I have read a great deal about her and have also read books and pamphlets which purport to contain her actual words. And one thing I know about her is that she does not have a granddaughter. Marie Julie never married or had children, so anyone claiming to be her granddaughter is not telling the truth. Another thing that I know is that the organization which for decades has been promulgating information about Marie Julie was taken over by a sedevacantist lady a number of years ago (perhaps 9 or 10 years ago). So I don’t know if the person who runs that organization now is the sedevacantist who took it over some time ago; but if it were me, I’d seriously consider steering clear of TradCatKnight podcast with Marie Julie’s “granddaughter” and of any claims made therein. Just my two cents.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Thank you, Mick. This is more than just your two cents of an opinion. You’re sharing facts. I’ve heard frequent references to this mystic but have never felt an interior tug to dig deeply into her stuff. Perhaps most of us have found ourselves, at one time or another, unknowingly reading or listening to incorrect info posted on the internet. The kind of background information you have shared about Marie Julie Jahenny and the ways her mystical info has been distributed/shared is important for us to know so our discernment is based on truth. God bless us all, robill and Mick.

        Liked by 1 person

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Published by charliej373

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