Sacred Heart of Jesus, You Got Me

Silence

2012-01-06T19:54:00.000-05:00

     Silent. He is remaining silent. Who else do we know of remained silent, and said nothing in response to his accusers? Thank you Fr. Corapi for remaining silent, disappearing off of facebook, and taking down your BSD website. Thank you. Your soul is far more valuable to God, and your vocation is that much more precious to our Lord, than feeding the maelstrom of satanic, media chaos that plagues and darkens the world wide web. The malevolent machination of lucifer personified in the formidable foe of Jezebel. Often operating through women, but sometimes men, Jezebel feeds off of the prophetic pulse and choice blood of the Roman Catholic priesthood. Satan is after our priesthood. "Strike the shepherd, you scatter the flock." "No priest, no eucharist." Thank you for the unpleasant reminders of truth Fr. Corapi.
     Accusation is satan's fundamental nature, while mercy is reserved for Christ, and poured out by the blood of Jesus. Accusation is the deadliest of weapons because it can potentially destroy everything a man or woman has spent a lifetime working toward. Accusation is useful and potent because IT WORKS! The majority of the population is so spiritually blind and disobedient, they will believe anything, and without evidence, substantiation, or the slightest bit of probable credence. Why? It is easier to ingest and digest a lie, because truth in today's times is blatantly unpalatable. We don't want to hear it, and we despise anyone who wants to tell us, much less preaches it boldly and loudly from the rooftops. "People who do not stand for something(or someone), will fall for anything!" Thanks again Fr. Corapi, so terribly true. Accusation seeks, often obtains, and devours vocations for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Accusation is the feast of the diabolical banquet, so it serves the enemy well. Fattens his or her pride. Gloating in spiritual gluttony and nefarious glory.
     If you want to know your value to God, look at the size of the weapon fashioned against you. Look at the size of the weapon fashioned against Fr. Corapi's vocation? Nuclear! What seems like a losing battle is merely a hidden, mystical victory.Who is attacking the 'vocations' of the 'professional' catholics? Who is attacking the likes of Raymond Arroyo and Mark Shea, and a few nameless others? No one! Why? Satan could care less about these 'professional' catholics because they are not a threat to his territory. Spiritually impotent indivduals. They adored Corapi when it elevated their professional status, but ran like scattering cockroaches when his hour of need arose. Fr. Corapi's hour of need was no different than the hour of need of the Lord. All the disciples fled, and a man had to be FORCED to assist Jesus in carrying His cross. That is how much we all love our Lord, if we are honest with ourselves. Run. Deny. Ignore. Accuse and stone the innocent, but don't you dare come to their defense. It is easy to be a coward yet you will never become a saint being spineless.
     So please remain silent Fr. Corapi. For a word from your lips feeds Jezebel's dogs. They love your blood for it is the choice wine of Christ. They have sucked you dry like the vampires they are, and tossed aside your remains. Yet the rejected keystone is the fundamental object that upholds the entire structure It upholds the arch. Without the rejected, the structure collapses like a tottering house of cards. The church militant, spiritually speaking, seems to be on the brink of such a collapse; for the neo-paganists are now running the show. So it would seem. Read Psalm 18, and take hold of your 'bow of bronze'. It is the quality of the catapult. Remember the fate of Jezebel; the dogs lap up her blood. We pray for you always.

Pray for Father Corapi!

2011-11-02T12:59:00.000-04:00

     One of Fr. Corapi's more memorable quotes, for it resounds in my mind often, is that "Talk is cheap!" Yes, talk IS cheap. Writing is cheap. Blogging is cheap. Texting is cheap. Chatting is cheap. All perfectly normal and acceptable human behaviors, but that is the underlying problem, these activities are ordinary, natural, and common. The barrage and never ending deluge of commentary in the blogosphere and particularly on facebook, as it relates to the "Fr. Corapi scandal", is getting old and depleted of interest.
     Christ said, " BEHOLD! I make ALL things new! " We are in a renewal process. Fr. Corapi is being renewed in his spirit and soul, despite the appearance of external crisis, as it relates to the state of his vocation. Most of what we hear is self-centered opinion and discussion of speculative 'facts'. And what are the facts? Well, if your eyes are trained to see and hear, you will emphatically be confident in your spirit that Fr. Corapi has been a victim, is currently a holy and obedient priest, and NONE of the accusations are true. A discerning soul does not need evidence, for we know one of God's own and Mary's chosen.
     We have all the angels and saints in Heaven waiting to answer novenas, to intercede, so let us call upon our triumphant brethren who are staring at the face of the Almighty! We have Our Mother and a rosary that should never cease to be used. Carry one with you everywhere you go, and ask your guardian angel to pray the rosary for you during the times you are unavailable. Instead of spending five hours in front of the computer a day, and eight hours earning money; spend one hour daily or even three times a week in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Invest in Jesus, and be assured He will be sewing His graces in you! If people would show up more often to receive His gifts of grace, we could accomplish so much more in terms of prayer.

Prayer is not complicated. It is not how our mind peruses, or how our intellect produces, or even how our lips move with many words. It is a daily offering of daily duty and vocational obligation. It is a simple surrender and profound submission to the power of the Trinity that resides within. Remember, the SAME power that raised Christ Jesus from the dead, is the SAME power that is inside our mortal tabernacle through baptism. Every time we receive Holy Communion we walk around with the same Jesus that died on the cross, defeating the devil at Calvary, inside our souls. Think about it. There should be no more mourning for Father Corapi, but only rejoicing! Victory IS coming. Vindication is coming! Let us boldly and with much prayer, approach the Throne of Grace, and never look back. Pax Christi.

A letter to John Corapi; priest, brother, and friend.

2011-11-01T13:11:00.000-04:00

Dear Friend,
The good Lord knows of your innocence. We, the faithful people of God, His beloved children, recognize your innocence. You are a victim, following in the footsteps of our Perfect Victim, Jesus. We all feel the sting of your victimization, the violent attack on your vocation, for some us of have suffered such within our own vocation. More significantly, we feel the sting because we live in sacrificial love for you our brother, our father, and our friend.
Your life has been a testimony to the truth of II Corinthians ch. 1, vs. 3-5:

" Blessed be the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and God of all encouragement, who encourages us in our every affliction, so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we ourselves are encouraged by God. For as Christ's sufferings overflow to us, so through Christ does our encouragement also overflow. "

     Christ's sufferings are overflowing onto you Father Corapi, and as a faithful shepherd of the flock, your sufferings overflow onto your brethren; the church militant. Likewise, those graces and brilliant, spiritually fueled encouragements have overflowed onto all of us throughout your many years of blood, sweat and tears of ministry. Now you have the tears. Many tears. For the future is unknown. You have suffered more than mere betrayal of a confidante, of one you pulled out from the trashcan of a life defiled by self-will. Your good name has been profaned seemingly by one whose person hood epitomizes the filth of sin and evil. An agent of satan dancing the solo incantation of a wicked principality we know as Jezebel. Like Mel Gibson once said in reference to his movie, the Passion of the Christ; satan often comes in the form of a woman or a child. A true mockery of the Madonna and her Child.
     The greatest disturbance is how those in a position to remedy this situation, stand by doing nothing, as you are hauled to the slaughter. Bishops, priests, laypeople, and professional catholics so concerned with their own pride of reputation, refuse to get involved and do the right thing. Hell is full of such persons. Do we not ask the Lord to forgive us for the things we have failed to do? This is how we separate the men of God from the boys of the world. This is how we separate the Marian women from the girls of the world. Through your trial God is showing us where the weeds are sown amongst the wheat within the community of believers. Your enemies are God's enemies, and God's enemies are enemies of the Cross, and the cross is the ONLY WAY we enter Heaven.
     Father Corapi, it is a grace that God should think so highly of you, that he desires for you to carry Calvary etched within your soul, and to permeate His fragrance mystically throughout the world. One can only accomplish such intercession by immolation on a thorn in the crown of Christ. So He gives you such a painful thorn which mediates much, but suspends one in the darkness of despair, depression, discouragement, and disillusionment. The suffocating weight of such a mighty, mystical cross blankets the mind with great torment, and the soul sees no hope, for the Lord holds the hope carved within the palm of His hand; knowing one day His mighty hand will raise you up to new heights.
     We love you our friend, John Corapi. We pray for you daily. God has blessed you with a massive army of sheepdogs. Hang in there. You kept us enduring and hanging in there for many years. Now, our souls and the prayers of the heart uphold you. Never cease waiting on God. In His time not ours. Not a single follower of Christ could keep one hour with Him during His agony. Not a single friend helped Him carry His cross to Calvary; a man had to be forced to assist. So we are so blessed to have each other. God bless.

The Black SheepDog

2011-07-02T09:58:00.001-04:00

     I have been away for some time now. The challenges, a polite and diplomatic way of saying, the crosses in our respective lives oftentimes require experiential attention; and what I mean by that is we have to surrender to the experience regardless of how insurmountable, tortuous, and just plain awful such events linger within our daily lives. In the aftermath of Lenten season, I was presented yet with another unanticipated occasion to face my worst fears, so to speak, and as time goes on I realize that despite my lack of cooperation and frequent unwillingness, God is continuously trying to teach me to NOT be afraid, and to trust. Easier said than done. If we never have the invitation to battle the big dragon, and sometimes severely so, we never are graced with the privileged opportunity to know our Lord more intimately, and to ultimately witness His powerful action of deliverance and thus victory.
     In one of Fr. John Corapi's teachings, the priest now known as the Black SheepDog, he makes a subtle reference to healing and deliverance, and that NOT being his charism. I beg to differ. The prophetic words of Black SheepDog exist as a mystical, inaudible voice branded in my conscience; and when trials are on the rise and the warfare escalates, I hear that voice booming in my brain with simple words of wisdom that have carried me miles and for years in my suffering. Corapi's personal testimony alone and sharing of events and interaction with the Blessed Mother, are enough to bring the most stubborn to tears and inundate the soul with great consolation and comfort. To me, that is emphatically and experientially evidence of a charism to heal and deliver, similar to the words of Jesus, breathing the efficacious power of the Holy Spirit and freeing people. Through his gift of apostolic preaching, Fr. Corapi clearly revealed a hidden yet obvious gift of healing and deliverance.
    I feel saddened that Fr. Corapi has chosen to step down from public ministry. I feel grieved that he is violently and publicly being scandalized by His own brethren. I feel angry that once again a wonderful and chosen priest of Jesus Christ is being persecuted by Jezebel, satan's bride. Accusation in today's world, a formidable culture of death, seems to reign over truth each and every time. The power of accusation is that it needs no authentic substantiation, for by mere virtue of its utterance and proliferation, it accomplishes its devastating agenda successfully. More importantly it reveals what we have suspected all along; more of those are blinded by the lie and subject to the influence of the demon, than those few who are aligned with truth and its revealing discernment.
    Those closest to us usually become our greatest spiritual enemies and detractors, and thus enemies of the gospel and of Christ Himself. Psalm 55 is highly apropos in the case of Fr. Corapi. Especially, the verses 13-15, underscore the intimate pain of spiritual betrayal;

     "If an enemy had reviled me, that I could bear. If my foe had viewed me with contempt, from that I could hide. But it was you, my other self, my comrade and friend, You , whose company I enjoyed, at whose side I walked in procession, in the house of God."

     We become one body, mystically unified particularly through the liturgy, culminating with the reception of the Eucharist; and the same members of our common being, walk out the door and sell us for thirty pieces of silver, or less. In a time of prosperity, especially spiritual growth and gain, an enemy will never remain hidden. We come to understand the meaning of, " the heart of man is deceptively wicked."
     I am grateful for the Black Sheepdog. Through trial and persecution, and grave suffering, he has come to understand perhaps that in today's evil times, it is insufficient to guard and to guide the flock, but his lifelong training has prepared him to engage in the greatest warfare yet to unfold; it is now time to fight with the one on one combat, to remove the enemies and invaders of the sheepfold, and to prevent further invasion, entry and contamination. The enemy is not always an obvious and drooling demon licking its chops, but can be a man disguised with a popular clerical reputation or a women disguised by religious knowledge and piety. The enemy has invaded the sheepfold but not as a witch or a warlock, but as a shepherd, a religious, or seemingly saintly lay person.
    God bless the Black Sheepdog.

Found this on facebook. So true.

2011-03-01T04:01:00.000-05:00

The Spirit of God is a spirit of peace. Even in the most serious faults He makes us feel a sorrow that is tranquil, humble, and confident. This is precisely because of His mercy. The spirit of the devil, instead, excites, exasperates, and makes us feel, in that very sorrow, anger against ourselves. We should, on the contrary, be charitable with ourselves first and foremost. Therefore if any thought agitates you, this agitation never comes from God, who gives you peace, being the Spirit of Peace, but from the devil. St. Padre Pio

THE EXPLOSION OF EVIL AND ITS MANIFESTATIONS

2011-02-18T13:03:00.000-05:00

This is an excellent article by Michael H. Brown. He is presenting a facet or view of what too many are experiencing. Interesting

THE EXPLOSION OF EVIL AND ITS MANIFESTATIONS

Are You an Accuser or an Excuser?

2011-02-07T14:01:00.000-05:00

From Spirit Daily
New Page 1

Journey to Therese needs to be closed down.

2011-02-05T12:57:00.000-05:00

Facebook's Adele Darnowski is really trying to make a name for herself. Scandalizing a priest to pursue your own need for attention is NOT the way to do it. In this article, of course, Adele does not give her full name and location. Just as on her Journey to Therese blogspot, the comments are filled with remarks authored by anonymous. Focus on your children, for you have many, and not a priest you claim to have been victimized by. God bless.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/roger-bianchini/controversy-remains-after_b_817613.html

The Truth about Fr. Thomas Euteneuer

2011-02-05T12:32:00.000-05:00

I had to reread and rethink this article. At first, I had reservations but Jenn Giroux has written some exquisite articles, inspired I do believe, about motherhood and pro-life matters. She came to the defense of Mel Gibson during his hour of crisis. She offers the same for Fr. Euteneuer. Worthwhile. I just wish Jenn Giroux would publish her work elsewhere. I post it only because it has merit but I did have to retrieve it off of the rag mag website.
http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/giroux/110128

Renew America has become the 'Catholic Inquirer.'

2011-02-05T12:15:00.000-05:00

I am speechless at the malevolent cruelty of self-proclaimed catholics. Satan can cite scripture better than any of us, and clearly after reading Tom O'Toole's latest round of trash, I have learned that satan is also highly skilled at quoting the catechism. Renew American may offer the disclaimer that it does not endorse its writer's articles necessarily, but like every other rag mag, if you publish opinionated trash, you have offered your seal of approval. So let's see....HLI, removed...Renew America, removed...Journey to Therese by Adele Darnowski, removed....and the list will grow I am certain. I have never understood people who endorse something or someone so highly, and then scandalize the same with such diabolical violence in the next breath. Clearly, people who do not stand for something, fall for EVERYTHING. All three sources of 'fact', will probably be writing articles in the near future that Elvis is alive and well. God bless you all, but time to shake the dust of our sandals, and keep moving toward the Truth.

Join the novena! Pray for our beloved priest Fr. Euteneuer

2011-02-04T19:38:00.000-05:00

http://gerardnadal.com/2011/02/03/join-us-in-the-divine-mercy-novena-for-fr-euteneuer-and-those-affected-by-his-actions/

Fr. Euteneuer's Hour of Agony

2011-02-04T19:19:00.000-05:00

Friends. The ensuing scandal brewing and spewing it ugly, contaminating filth, of course could only be the wicked intoxicant concocted by the spirit of Jezebel. Wicked, vile, principality who attacks the authentic prophets of God. The good news is we ultimately know the final fate of Jezebel, and her recruits. A woman with the blog, Journey to Therese, Adele Darnowski, speaks with an authority on the matter that presents no factual evidence, makes verbal claims unsubstantiated, and supports her attack on Eutenueuer with a litany of 'anonymous' comments. I do believe she lives in Canada. Clearly she was not witness or present at the exorcism she claims involved the violation of a woman. Pure scandal, pure license, pure accusation, purely calumniating gossip. Anyone who believes an iota of her claim, is part of the satanic agenda crucifying the man. I am ashamed to admit I followed her blog and was clearly fooled. Beware of sheep in wolves clothing, and by their fruits you will know them. Adele, you need to read John Paul Jackson's Unmasking the Jezebel Spirit. God bless Fr. Tom, and Lord intercede on behalf of him, in light of all the malevolent accusers.

Fighting Irish Thomas: Will Father Thomas Euteneuer's "Demonic Abortion" ...

2011-01-16T15:44:00.000-05:00

Fighting Irish Thomas: Will Father Thomas Euteneuer's "Demonic Abortion" ...: "Reprinted in Spero News and RenewAmerica. 'It is proper for the noblest hearts to discover the most urgent need of their epoch and to consec..."

A Contemplative Space

2010-12-31T06:00:00.000-05:00

I recommend the website, The Integrated Catholic Life, as a vast resource of inspirations.
A Contemplative Space

From Spirit Daily. Interesting

2010-12-21T16:20:00.000-05:00

What happens at exorcism school?

Discerning the Diabolical Spirit

2010-10-20T22:07:00.000-04:00

Discerning the Diabolical Spirit

Warning signs of a diabolical spirit and how to recognize them

2010-10-20T22:06:00.000-04:00

Warning signs of a diabolical spirit and how to recognize them

A critique of Christopher West

2010-09-20T00:39:00.000-04:00

Dietrich von Hildebrand, Catholic Philosopher, and Christopher West, Modern Enthusiast:Two Very Different Approaches to Love, Marriage and Sex :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Father Leo: Grace Before Meals Recipes The 700 Club | CBN.com

2010-08-07T08:20:00.000-04:00

My favorite was when Father Leo was featured on Bobby Flay's Throwdown on the Food Network. When the judges were deciding the winner, Mr. Flay noticed Fr. holding his Rosary beads. Of course Mary declared her priest son the winner! Oh, the fajitas looked so yummy. Bet he sprinkled some holy water in them.

Father Leo: Grace Before Meals Recipes The 700 Club CBN.com

Lay Catholic Radio

2010-08-07T08:07:00.000-04:00

Friends, I am providing a link for Dennis O'Donovan's Lay Catholic Radio program, originating from South Florida. I am a new fan to Dennis' ministry. He definitely has a calling, charism, and voice within the Church, reaching out into the American culture. I encourage you to listen to his program and to call in. If you can make a donation, please do so. Mother Mary has her hand on this program. Please click on the link below:

Lay Catholic Radio with Dennis O'Donovan

The End of a Road- Archbishop Fulton Sheen

2010-08-06T08:00:00.000-04:00

    "We are at the end of a tradition and a civilization which believes we could preserve Christianity without Christ: religion without a creed, meditation without sacrifice, family life without moral responsibility, sex without purity, and economics without ethics.
     We have completed our experiement of living without God and have proven the fallacy of a system of education which calls itself progressive because it finds new excuses for sins.
    The soul is gone, and what we call change is only decay."

- The Seven Virtues

     "Where there is ignorance of God, crime runs rampant, but peaceful the nation that knows and obeys His laws!" -Proverbs 29:18

Psychology vs. Demonology

2010-08-05T07:44:00.001-04:00

What is the difference between an alcoholic and a drunk? An alcoholic has a disease that needs to be treated, but a drunk has a capital vice that needs to be confessed. One condition relies upon methodology for remedy, and the other relies upon authentic spirituality for deliverance. Most would rather eschew personal self-reproach, and objectify their moral state; hence the need to rename sin with a litany of 'diseases'. With the preference of conjectured scientific theory to justify one's capital sin, man loses his opportunity for true redemption and healing from said condition of soul. Lust has become sex addiction. Gluttony has become food addiction. Pride has become borderline personality disorder, or narcissism. And the list goes on and on. Afterall, procured abortion is just a practice ensuring reproductive health for women. Unfortunately, the flip side of renaming sin as a pseudo-spiritual illness, is that noble 'disorders' such as religiosity and heightened discernment are no longer spiritual gifts but the now famous bipolar disorder. According to DSM's criteria for diagnosing mental disease, the entire Roman Catholic priesthood would be considered bipolar. Speculation is being researched in academic circles that Jesus was bipolar! Insanity. Yet, in the end, we have been forewarned that the lie will become the truth, and the truth will become the lie; and what greater way to accomplish such with the removal of the notion of sin from man's consciousness.

Split Opens in Church Between Believers in Psychology and Those Who See Demon: by Michael H. Brown

From Spirit Daily

2010-08-05T07:40:00.001-04:00

St Gemma Galgani: Satans war against St Gemma and his attempts to so...: "The devils war against St Gemma and his attempt to seperate her from her loved ones. Those who have read some of the life of Saint Gemma k..."

When Evil Attacks Personally, A Shield is Built Through Sacraments and Love

2010-08-04T06:20:00.001-04:00

From the book, Spiritual Dangers of the 21st Century; as posted on Spirit Daily.

When Evil Attacks Personally, A Shield is Built Through Sacraments and Love -Michael Brown

An article by Matt C. Abbott

The Dark Backward: Demons in the Real World by Tom Hoopes

2010-08-03T21:39:00.000-04:00

This article features an interview with a friend of mine, Fr. Herman Jayachandra, in the Denver Archdiocese. He is currently the pastor of St. Martin de Porres parish in Boulder, CO. Outstanding orthodox priest who runs a very tight ship of spirituality in his parish. He has been a priest for over 30 years and has performed exorcisms, under the authority of the bishop, when called to duty. He is a brilliant theologian, devout man of prayer, and an extremely humble soul. He is available to pray for all needs, particularly in the area of healing and deliverance. Apparently, EWTN wanted to have him as a guest on a show, but he refused. When I asked him why? He promptly said, " I do not want to be an EWTN guru! " He loves God more than he wants to invite the attention of catholic celebrity. Fabulous priest! Click on the link below.

The Dark Backward: Demons in the Real World

The Locust Years

2010-08-03T11:37:00.000-04:00

I found this great article on the CBN website. It gave me some food for thought, as I shed a few tears, because I realize God has been by my side every step of the way toward Him. Click on the link at the bottom to read the article. Share your thoughts if you like.

It is a bittersweet mystery, suffering through the 'locust' years, because we never see our personal exodus or the beginning of such until the moment of deliverance arrives. And it will eventually come to pass, but it can takes years of sacrifice, suffering, and many unknown questions and seemingly unanswered prayers, while in the darkened crucible of purification. The Lord has purpose for our lives, a plan indeed, but He must make us fit for the mission. We may think mistakenly, early in our conversion to Him, that we 'got it' already, but in the aftermath of retrospect we realize how our trials and tribulations were necessary for our spiritual formation. He also wants our full recognition that He does the work. We can only cooperate with Grace, and yield ourselves as unworthy vehicles to carry out His plan. God certainly does not need us, but what an honor and a privilege to be used by Him. The abandonment and losses one experiences in the 'locust' years are nothing short of treacherous, but absolutely vital to prepare us for the mature spiritual food; to become the seasoned believer. Oh, when I consider what I decorated my plate of nourishment with from the buffet of life, all in the name of Him. He removed my platter of election from the table, and extended the invitation for Heavenly nourishment from the Divine table of plenty, with choice foods and wines; but oh how the chalice we must imbibe of in order to whet the appetite contains the bitterest of drink, yet it prepares our soul for true Heavenly refreshment, the only endowment to satisfy our mortal hunger for Him. The 'locust years' may devour our lives, loves, friends, family, dreams, possessions,etc.; yet the redeeming years provide so much more ' than we could ever think or imagine to ask of Him.' God only gives His children the best, in due time. Satan may have come to rob, steal, kill, and destroy but Christ came to redeem, and His victory over our lives rains down the greatest of blessings. Praise you Jesus.

Redeeming the Locust-Eaten Years Spiritual Life CBN.com

Prayer For the Abortionists Who Kill the Unborn

2010-07-31T08:58:00.002-04:00

Holy Spirit seal all of us and your lost children in the Blood of Jesus. Holy Spirit our Advocate, we call on your power and intercession, for God alone can change the human heart, and His mercy is particularly close to those furthest away from Him. We ask all the angels and saints in Heaven, who sit and gaze upon the Throne of the Almighty, to petition our Good Lord to assist us in our earthly intercession for the souls of the abortionists. May the Finger of God touch the darkest recesses of their souls with grace, and remove the scales from their spiritual eye, and elevate their intellects to the Truth of Life. Enable those in pure darkness to truly see that all human life, in all forms and at all stages, is preordained and precious to the Creator.We ask that St. Michael the Archangel, emissary of the Heavenly Host, to go before us in battle, for our battle is not against flesh and blood and other people, but against the principalities and malevolent powers of darkness, who seek to ruin all souls, and to devour the lives of the unborn. Deliver the abortionists from the darkness that enslaves their minds. Send your Holy angels to wage war over all of the clinics that destroy life. Give us strength Lord to seek your Divine Intercession in our prayers; empower us, emblazon us, enable us to endure. Take the burning ember of hope sequestered in the deepest darkness of all human hearts, and set it on fire with your Grace, to see You, to seek You, and to desire your Salvation. May every knee bend and tongue confess that Jesus IS Lord. We humbly pray. All glory and honor and praise be to God. We adore you, oh Christ, and we bless You, for by Your Holy Cross, You HAVE redeemed the world. Amen.

It is Him, Not I, They Despise.

2010-07-31T06:55:00.001-04:00

Evil trembles and ultimately must flee in the Presence of Him. As we are temples of the Holy Spirit, we are radiant receptacles of His True Presence; therefore it is highly logical and to be expected those fueled by evil desires and self-will, will mistakenly persecute, attack, scandalize, and calumniate us as well. For they don't fully comprehend and neither do we, it is Him they despise and reject, and the Presence within that is most provocative. For too many years, I could never understand the rejection on the part of my family, and even Catholic 'friends'. It seemed so irrational because in my conversion experience, which continues to unfold, I was steadily climbing toward Him. The graces He fed me as food for my journey were a constant deluge; and the preeminent benevolence and unconditional acceptance given me by the good Lord Himself, were the antithesis of how others in my life treated me. If I could only elaborate for but a minute about the absolute filth of lies, gossip, and downright evil behaviors demonstrated toward my person, by my own family, most would find it hard to believe or at least questionable. However, God sees everything and He has proven Himself to be my only Advocate and Defense Attorney through the nastiest of moments. For those easily fooled and who thus befriend persons who commit such grave evils against their offspring; well such persons are deceived by the glittering allure of falsehood, manipulated by the fallen 'angel of light', just as I was for most of my life. Not today. God's desire is to ultimately bring us into the fullness of His Truth, His reality, and to manifest in our lives the greatest good. It oftentimes can take years to 'see the light.' As long as the blinders are removed and the scales are plucked from our eyes, and there is no hindrances to spying Grace, we can keep moving forward and progress in the spiritual life. Some people though prefer the blindness of deception; it is more comfortable and familiar, and it justifies their core desire to devour others because their own rampant pride balks at self-examination. In the end, our greatest persecutors sling the filth our way, the rotten fruit of their own corruption, and they cannot stand their own miserable condition of soul, so they project it upon the one designed by God's grace to withstand the attack. The weaker would crumble and lay slain under such crucifying attacks, but not God's true children. He allows such unjust heartache to grow us, to reinforce our weaknesses, and to strengthen the muscles of our battle arms. We must also detach ourselves of all that clings to us, and holds us back. Pruning, you could call it. He uses the evil of others to prune us indeed. Always, remember it is Him, and not us, that is under attack, slander, and scandal. His Presence within, emanating from our person, is the revulsion to the wicked.

Comment on: A Personal Interview with Fr. Frank Pavone.

2010-07-29T11:41:00.000-04:00

Dear Friends,
I frequent a website called the Integrated Catholic Life and it has become one of my favorite sources of great articles and topical discussion. I occasionally will comment on some of their featured articles, written by a variety of wonderful catholics. I encourage you to check out this website and to participate by posting your own personal feedback.

July 29, 2010 • 8:27 am .I remember the first time I visited an abortion clinic in Charlotte, NC to assist a fellow catholic with sidewalk counseling. The wave of nausea that overcame me literally and physically upon my arrival at the clinic was only hindered by the tantamount wave of evil that infected my senses. The vast overwhelm of demonic presence was unanticipated, but should have been expected. I supposed this is why I always carry holy water, exorcised salt, and blessed oil on my person. It was a shocking exposure to the reality of the forces of evil behind abortion, that most of us comprehend on an intellectual and theological level, but may not necessarily experience on a sensory and interior level. The gravity of the warfare is that real and that strong. Oh how God will instruct the ignorant, and he did for me that particular day. What surprised me the most, is that it seemed the vast majority of women were there for abortions under coercion, even being held at knifepoint, by family and loved ones; yet these women would cry tears of desperate confusion because they did not want to abort their unborn child, they merely felt they had no other option. Just the simple act of demonstrating concern for them and their unborn child is oftentimes all it takes to get them to leave the property. The problem is not enough people are on the frontlines of the defining point of the battle, to safely lead these women out of the devil's murderous way. Our lives have become too busy with self-determined agenda, and we prefer the multitude of group activities offered in our local parish, and it seems prayer is the least of our priorities these days. The sunday mass obligation has become an opportunity to revisit church friends and to catch up on the latest. The noise level before the priest even leaves the sanctuary at the closing of the mass is painful. The sanctuary has become a residence for checking text messages and voicemail, for I see more cell phones pulled out after mass than rosary beads. The race for the door and the congestion in the parking lot only underscores the lack of interest in prayer. The best moments of spiritual communion to be had are in the quietude of the sacred environment of the sanctuary; after we have received Him in the Sacred Species. Too miss such an opportunity for private contemplation in the aftermath of the sacrifice at Calvary is a tragedy. The vacancy of prayer in the church resembles the emptiness of much needed participation in sidewalk counsel at the abortion clinics. Yet, there is no shortage of attendance at the parish picnic, golf outing, chrisitan coffee house, to name a few events. I have said before that one can assess the spiritual fitness of any given church community by reviewing the contents of the parish bulletin. More often than not it resembles the social agenda of the local country club. Sad but true. We seem to be bringing the world into our church, and not carrying the church into the world. On a positive note, at the largest church in the Carolinas, one women waited out in the narthex when mass was letting out, wearing a sign that proclaimed, 'I regret my abortion.' Talk about humble but Godly boldness! She is an active pro-lifer in the diocese. I have come to realize that Jesus really does spend too many hours alone, hidden in the tabernacle, waiting for souls to visit Him and to ask for graces. He is overloaded with too many graces to number, waiting to unload his Divine burden, upon any soul unpreoccupied enough to pay Him a visit. Such a deluge awaits us all. Unfortunately, the smoke of satan has entered the church, for her members put the welcome mat out for the enemy himself; and one mere but significant fruit of this reality is the number of unborn children dying everyday because we are too busy with ourselves to show up at the clinics, and to assist in rescuing God's most vulnerable and innocent.

And the battle rages on.

2010-07-29T11:04:00.000-04:00

Anne Rice Breaks Up With Christianity via Facebook

Say No To Centering Prayer. It Is Not Catholic.

2010-07-28T10:07:00.000-04:00

The deception of centering prayer.

From The Late Saint John Paul II, The Great.

2010-07-27T20:28:00.000-04:00

Patience

Mel Gibson and the Cleverness of Satan: “It is the Reality” « HLI America

2010-07-27T10:00:00.000-04:00

Mel Gibson and the Cleverness of Satan: “It is the Reality” « HLI America

Vision Quest

2010-07-27T06:44:00.000-04:00

We may have the best of intentions, strive for the loftiest of goals, and desire the noblest of pursuits; such objectives reveal spiritual valiance. However, without the requisite changes in our actions, demonstrated by the daily toil, discipline, sacrifices, successes, failures, and a willingness to surrender to and cooperate with God's grace, all within the confines of our vocation; we will merely vacillate in a self-delusion preoccupied by wishful thinking, maintain a homeostatic condition, and advance to nowhere in this life; and we may never get to the next life. Let the childlike aspirations of our creatureliness be transformed, via simple trust and Divine reliance; from interior daydreaming, into mature testimony to and veritable expression of the Will of our Creator. Such daily election, and consequent action, distinguishes a life misguided by the psyche versus a pilgrimage gloriously engineered by the pneuma. Today, may such Higher purpose be our vision quest alone.

Mystical Rose, pray for us; intercede for us.

-Amy

Demonic possession, free will, and 'Theology of the Body'

2010-07-25T07:05:00.000-04:00

Demonic possession, free will, and 'Theology of the Body'

The Power of Perseverance | The Integrated Catholic Life

2010-07-24T12:37:00.000-04:00

The Power of Perseverance The Integrated Catholic Life#comment-448

New Age Nunsense

2010-07-24T12:25:00.000-04:00

Pray for our religious.
_________________________________________________

Special report:

PERVASIVENESS OF NEW AGE AMONG NUNS MAY LOOM AS SCANDAL ON SCALE RIVALING ABUSE CRISIS AMONG MALE COUNTERPARTS

The infiltration of New Age practices into convents and retreat houses operated by Catholic nuns appears to have reached the level of an epidemic, with so many reports that at times it appears difficult to find one that doesn't allow such spirituality, at least to some degree.

Such may be hyperbole but what is not hyperbole is that esoteric spirituality has spread -- in alarming measure -- through what is left of female American religious in a way that recalls the startling prevalence of sexual abuse among male religious counterparts.

That's not to say that most religious have gone occult. And it is certainly not to cast aspersions. The majority of nuns are in their seventies or eighties -- beyond active involvement in activities such as operating a retreat center. Moreover, those who are linked to these practices often appear to be good, well-meaning women who have simply followed the spirit of our time.

But the question is what that spirit is and the trend -- contravening Vatican teaching -- is as widespread as it is troublesome. One thing is clear: the call of Vatican Two for women to distinguish themselves spiritually has been answered in virtually every part of North America in a totally unexpected way: establishment of mysterious, Eastern-style meditation.

When we ran an article on this several weeks ago, we were deluged by instances -- many dozens -- in which Eastern contemplation, labyrinths, Reiki, or other exotic non-Catholic methods of spiritual development were present at Catholic retreat centers -- almost surely unknown to the Vatican.

The examples seem daunting, and because of their serious nature, we are going to let this report proceed at length.

One example: the Portiuncula Center for Prayer, modeled after St. Francis and run by Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart.

Located less than an hour southwest of downtown Chicago, this Catholic center offers therapeutic massage, Reiki, reflexology, holistic facials, and Zen Shiastsu (which taps into the “energy” points around the body). It also has a “labyrinth” which it describes as “an ancient circular diagram” consisting of a “single concentric circular path with no possibility of going astray. The path winds throughout and becomes a mirror for where we are in our lives; it touches our sorrows and releases our joys. So walk it with an open mind and an open heart.”

Labyrinths are a meditation, relaxation, and spiritual tool that invite a person to walk towards the center with a problem, prayer, or idea.

Once at that center, the person spends some time in quiet thought, then lets go and makes the journey back out of the labyrinth to reengage with the world with a “clearer” heart and mind. While they are even to be found in some churches, the way they are used evokes worry in many circles.

“Like Stonehenge, they are geographic forms that define sacred space,” says website dedicated to the practice -- and referring the famous spot in England where monuments were erected by occult Druids for ancient solstice rituals, among other non-Christian mystical practices.

“The labyrinth is a large, complex spiral circle which is an ancient symbol for the divine mother, the God within, the goddess, the holy in all creation,” quotes a website critical of its use.

When paganism is refined in modern terms, it becomes the “New Age,” a modern amalgam of practices often preaching that each human is “god” and viewing the Creator as a less personal and universal “energy” that is not usually identified as the “Holy Spirit.” It was of course paganism that Christ descended to battle.

Two other remarkably widespread practices are Reiki, which taps into the “energy” around us, and the “enneagram” -- a controversial way of categorizing personalities. The energy of Reiki is the “ki” of Eastern religions, which tends too rapidly toward psychic energies and earth spirits. The symbol of the enneagram was promoted by a famed occultist named Gurdjieff and bears certain resemblances to the way personality types are discerned through a zodiac (though in this case the discernment comes by way of “self evaluation”).

At another Franciscan center in Scottsdale, Arizona, is not only the enneagram but “aqua yoga.” Many Catholic convents, retreat houses, and parishes are embracing this technique of meditation and relaxation -- often as a mere physical tool but nonetheless in contradiction to a Vatican document on the New Age, "Jesus Christ the Bearer of the Water of Life,” that prohibits it.

The argument for it: 16 million Americans now use yoga and find health benefits from what is simply an exercise in breathing. The concern: yoga is from Eastern pagan religions and like Reiki can tend toward a deeper involvement in mysterious energies. In some cases, “mantras” (a word used over and over) are employed and such mantras can be the name of Hindu or other “gods.” The Beatles brought a focus on yoga when they studied it with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in the 1960s. Before that, it was popularized by deep occultists known as Theosophists.

In some cases, centers that hold seminars in Reiki and enneagram are receiving funds through diocesan appeals. Defenders say there is a Christian type of Reiki that is different than the New Age version, and others say that “healing touch” ministries are similar to the laying on of hands common to Christians. Neither, argue others, is there anything wrong with healing oils.

Such is confusing in that in its 2003 document the Vatican explicitly warned that “there is a remarkable variety of approaches for promoting holistic health, some derived from ancient cultural traditions, whether religious or esoteric,” and covering “a wide range of practices” including “kinesiology, homeopathy, iridology, massage, and various kinds of ‘bodywork’ (such as orgonomy, Feldenkrais, reflexology, rolfing, polarity massage, therapeutic touch, etc), meditation, and visualization... The source of healing is said to be within ourselves, something we reach when we are in touch with our inner or cosmic energy.” It also cited the enneagram -- along with more blatant New Age articles such as crystals, strongly warning the faithful away from them.

That document was written by the Pontifical Council for Culture and the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue, which also named the enneagram as a subject of concern.

There are those who take issue with some of what the Vatican cited, especially chiropractic and acupuncture methods. But it is beyond dispute that exotic new spiritual ways have overtaken many nuns (and in some cases priests) -- apparently revealing a yearning for something more than the dry theology that has dominated Western seminaries for more than a half a century.

Dominican sisters in Houston offer tai chi (also involving ‘ki’ energy) along with the labyrinth -- using the occult ying-yang symbol (right) in their literature. Benedictine Sisters of Mount Scholastica in Atchinson, Kansas, meanwhile, have named their retreat area the Sophia Center -- after the feminine form of God.

“Sophia is the name often given to the feminine image of God as portrayed in the wisdom books of the Bible,” said a nun there, Sister Linda Herndon, in response to a query from us.

In Cleveland, a former mother house at a Catholic high school has been converted into a retreat center called “River’s Edge,” offering yoga, quigong, Reiki, and other esoteric “wellness” programs (while ironically, across the way, is the monastery of the Poor Clares [below, left] -- a shining light in the darkness).

“My brother’s dear wife is in the last stages of ovarian cancer and near death,” writes Ruth Stamps of Blue Ridge, Georgia. “She is not Catholic, but a devout Evangelical Christian. At one point, she considered going to River’s Edge for their cancer support group, but found this place’s agenda too weird and New Age! The Cleveland area seems to be eaten up with this stuff, but it does not apparently reflect on the Cleveland Diocese itself.” Enter the center.

“I left a job as a fifth grade teacher at a parochial school after three years because I could no longer tolerate or ignore the watering-down of the faith,” wrote another woman named Coreen Herrick. “My most recent experience with New Age happened this summer at the St. Edmund’s retreat center near Mystic, Connecticut. The ‘nun’ invited retreat members to join her after dinner in the ‘touching of hands’ massage. Of course, it was cloaked in therapeutic terms. But I knew better. This same nun also (even though this was a silent retreat) engaged us in a ‘pagan’ spirit ‘blessing’ before the meal.”

There are sisters who are Reiki “masters.” You can find them in the Midwest. Or in Kentucky. There are monks. “Encountering Divine Goodness in Earth and Cosmos: New Ways of Being in the World,” says an advertisement for a retreat at Loyola House in Guelph, Ontario.

In Ringwood, New Jersey -- where it is once more Franciscan nuns -- the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament is a lonely place (with Host exposed, left), but presumably not so the lessons in Reiki in the same complex. In many cases, questionable spiritual practices are part of the solemnity of Lent.

Nor is it confined to North America. “Another sad example comes from the UK,” notes a viewer named Ken Simpson. “At the shrine of St Jude, Faversham, Kent, the Carmelite priest in his sermon asked people to put feet flat on ground, ‘to feel the earth,’ lay hands open, 'not to hold on to anything, then to breathe out the badness from inside, and then to breathe in God’s goodness.’”

Is that really bad? How far do we go with this? Can we overstate the case? Might not some of it be okay -- just oddly expressed?

In some cases, perhaps. But in others, the psychic is clearly predominant.

There is dream exploration. There is guided imagery. There are non-Christian healing rituals. Once again -- time and again -- there are the enneagram and labyrinth. Or Yoga.

Ask those at the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, Minnesota, or the Holy Spirit Center in Encino, California.

“Out of all of the New Age stuff, the labyrinth is the most pervasive,” notes another viewer. “It seems to pop up everywhere -- we were at St. Anne’s shrine in Sturbridge [Massachusetts] looking around -- thought the place very beautiful and appeared holy -- until we noticed the new meditation labyrinth had been created on the grounds. I think people read about these fads and are duped and they get no direction from priests and pastors.”

In Santa Fe, a practicing shaman is involved in church fund-raising.

In Brooklyn, New York, according to another correspondent, a parish called St. Ephrem has advertised Reiki in its weekly newsletter and “because of this I encouraged my wife to stop attending and to go to another Catholic church. I’m not sure if they still offer this,” says a resident named Gerard Mastrapasqua. The cases go far beyond even those we reported previously.

No doubt, good people get wrapped up in this. Also no doubt: we should be careful not to condemn. When we are on the other side of the veil, there will be surprises. But we are called to obedience and especially to stay away from anything that leads to strange, universal “spirits” or that see God as a cosmic energy.

Examples? The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet have status at the U.N. Check them out. Daring to try new symbols? There are the Sisters of St. Martha of Prince Edward Island. A labyrinth can be found at another beautiful retreat center (in Tony Malibu, alongside grottos devoted to the Blessed Mother). If you’re in Wisconsin and want the enneagram, this is your spot.

One group of Dominican nuns in Grand Rapids calls itself “Sacred Earth and Space Plowshares.”

Maya Abdominal massage or a drum-making workshops or Chinese Essence Qi Gong or “Feng Shui for the Soul”?

Go to the Sisters of Mercy in New Jersey.

Beginners in yoga can find Catholic resources in Arlington, Virginia. (“The priests and nuns there seem like good folks, but the labyrinth seems like a bad idea,” notes a viewer). Integrated energy healing, Reiki, angel healing? Go here.

“In every woman there is a queen, speak to the queen and she will answer!” says another Catholic group (“Called a Circle of Wisdom”).

This is what we really think it is.

Holistic health? Go here; you can “develop your spiritual muscles” and learn yoga by visiting these nuns. “Celebrate the arrival of winter and our turning toward the light during this season of peace, love and joy. Bring bells, drums, rattles to join in the songs and holiday),” they say; massages and labyrinth [as pictured left) here; for Danville, Pennsylvania, you can get a labyrinth retreat here; an especially beautiful labyrinth is available [pictured below, right] at Marie de la Roche Province in Allison Park, Pennsylvania. Reflexology? Our Lady of Grace Retreat Center on Long Island has what you want; get in the “Zen Spirit/Christian Spirit” here; head to Northport for reiki. And so on. While we have to rely on field reports -- and thus can't verify each one -- those we were able to check out have proven to have what was reported.

These are confusing times and while the Vatican document seemed aimed at society at large [a “pastoral" document to warn the faithful, it said], the New Age, it now is clear, had already infiltrated deeply into the Church itself -- to a degree much beyond that raised as a concern in the early Nineties. Such is the perplexity of our times that a Cardinal has said he was fascinated by a Hindu experience.

We are certainly to be open and ecumenical -- full of love, at every turn, finding common ground -- at the same time that we must guard against paganism.

“In St. Peter Hospital in Albany New York, they have a pamphlet for yoga and other connected exercises, with the picture of the Hindu elephant god Ganesh [in an] advertisement on the first page, in the lobby of the hospital,” a medical doctor informs us.

It is one of many Christian hospitals with a New Age slant.

In Austin, Texas, the Seton Family of Hospitals run by the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul has a center called “Seton Cove” that like so many others offers touch massage, a labyrinth walk, and “chair massage” -- a seeming far cry from the prim conservative nature of St. Elizabeth Seton [left], its patron. It doesn’t even help if a hospital is named St. Mary's.

Some of the links to the occult are direct and startling. Noted a writer from the Winnipeg, Canada, of a meeting that was focused on writing for the parish bulletin: “Somehow the conversation turned to ecumenism, and the stewardship coordinator mentioned an article in our local newspaper about ‘the study of wicca and how it is “parallel” to Catholicism.’ Of course I immediately disagreed, but she proceeded to defend the study as being ‘in tune with mother earth.’ I just sat there with my mouth open! Our priest said nothing!"

Wicca is the formal name for witchcraft. “Each year I have purchased a planning calendar from the Sisters of St. Joseph of LaGrange -- Ministry of the Arts. Some major feast days and saints’ days are noted,” writes Barbara Garfield of Ryegate, Montana. “However, as I paid closer attention to the entries this year, I see there are Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, and other feasts listed. That did not bother me as I have tried to become familiar with other religions and their practices. What does bother me are the entries for Samhain (wicca) for October 31 and Samhain (Celtic) for November 1 (as well as All Saints).”

In Seaford, New York, writes another worried viewer, was a visiting woman evangelist who "would come out in a costume that looked just like a priest and pretty much ran the whole retreat while he sat on the side.

“Each night they did a ritual. The first night we all lit candles. We were told to bathe ourselves in the light. No mention of Jesus being the Light. Then they had us march around until we ended up in a big circle around the perimeter of the Church. It looked like a witches' coven.”

Circling it like Joshua circled Jericho -- or something else?

Meanwhile, St. John’s University in New York offers its downtown campus for advanced Reiki courses. The list seems endless.

The Daughters of Wisdom, sponsors of Wisdom House Retreat and Conference Center in Litchfield, Connecticut, originated in Poitiers, France in 1703. Founded by Saint Louis de Montfort and Blessed Marie Louise Trichet, the aim of the congregation is to seek Divine Wisdom.

Now such wisdom -- at that has turned into an interfaith one -- includes the labyrinth.

We are sorry to prolong this. But the extent of such practices is almost certainly unknown by the Vatican.

“I am beginning to become so disenchanted with my parish, St. Matthias in Somerset, New Jersey, that I have chosen so far to split my Sunday giving between my parish and another church 45 minutes away in Newark,” noted one more distressed website viewer. “I have always had concerns about the permanent Reiki section in the Sunday bulletin, but when I also saw that brochures were also prominently displayed at the exits right next to those for ‘spiritual direction’ (both ministries provided by the ‘Reiki master’), I felt really sick. Last year I worked up the nerve to ask a deacon, who directed me to the Pastor. I went to him and he told me it was completely harmless: 'Trust me, I’ve had Reiki therapy and I would tell you if it were harmful.’ He told me not to pay attention to those ‘conservatives.’”

And indeed, we do not want to go overboard with this. Our greatest calling is love for one another in circumstances that are often strenuous. But the occult can have long-term ramifications.

Tai chi is offered at St. Joseph Dwelling Place in Ludlow, Vermont -- tapping once again into that 'chi' or Ki. Is that always bad, especially when associated with martial arts? It is a question. In Ontario, the same. "I also went to a Capuchin Retreat House in Mt. Washington Michigan. They have since started 'massage therapy' and who knows what else," writes another viewer.

The Daughters of Charity in Emmitsburg, Maryland, reportedly have a labyrinth on their property. “I just read the article today on the new age and Catholic retreat houses. I have discovered such practices in the Immaculate Heart of Mary Visitation Spirituality Center here in Monroe, Michigan,” reported yet one more viewer.

“I wrote to you a little over a year age on a group of these nuns in Baltimore,” reported another, part of the mail barrage we received. “I ran a retreat house, and one of the groups turned out to practice Zen Buddhism, after telling me they weren’t Buddhist. They had a statue of Buddha, incense, gong, candle, and flower. This is idolatry.”

Does this not matter to the bishops?

Our Lady of Prompt Succor Church in Alexandria, Louisiana. What is going on there?

“How glad I am to see a place to report rampant New Age practices in Catholic retreat centers,” writes yet one more viewer. “Here are a couple of places I wish to report. The first is the Jesuit Spirituality Center in Grand Coteau, Louisiana. Click on the link, scroll down, and you will find retreats on the labyrinth, Zen, Christian yoga (whatever that is!), Meyers/Briggs personality inventory, Reiki, and special retreat for gays and lesbians.”

“My mother was New Age almost before the New Age got here, and ended up worshiping Satan,” notes a viewer, who like many preferred anonymity. “My twin sister is New Age (deeply) and seemingly can’t be talked or prayed out of it. Since my baptism into the Church 33 years ago, I’ve been warning many people about the occult. Lots of them were nuns -- including a prioress at a convent outside of Boston. Only that prioress seemed to listen. No one else. My sister is a medium and channels spirits who sound so wise, profound, and compassionate that their writings fooled an abbot of a monastery into approval. (Her vocabulary, when she is channeling, is far above her own vocabulary.) I know that lately I’ve been hearing hints from her that she likes the idea of ‘androgyne,’ a combining of male and female in one person to make them ‘complete.’ To me that commits an error so severe that the person has crossed over into Satanism.”

For your discernment.

“It seems to me that the devil made huge inroads into Catholicism by distorting the Vatican II teaching that Catholics should respect whatever of truth lies in other religions,” frets an e-mailer named Trudi Lawrence. “Monks, nuns, and probably priests mistakenly and unguardedly went looking for truths there that they thought Catholicism didn't have."

Maybe all they had to do was look deeper.

'Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer: Spirit & Life - Vampire Logic'

2010-07-24T07:45:00.000-04:00

I remember when I came to Charlotte ten years ago, I soon became aware of the Harry Potter phenomenon proliferating through cultural popularity. It was the latest fascination, the latest trend, and people demonstrated extreme preoccupation with America's latest obsession. The only prior exposure I had to to Harry Potter, was a visit to a store in a local mall. I noticed a tremendous amount of merchandise consuming the shelf space of this particular shop. As I studied the variety of 'stuff', I discovered a name attached to the objects: Harry Potter. What is this? I wondered. Never heard of it and never seen it. One thing became emphatically clear as I continued to peruse the merchandise; this is witchcraft. My immediate and thus only discernment was, this is NOT good at all. The obvious fact to me was Harry Potter was the kids' version, hidden behind the disguise of children's fantasy, of the occult. What I was not prepared for was the popularity of it within the catholic church culture, and the quick spread of the sale of pagan books throughout the catholic schools. As a person who was new to the spiritual battle, I was suffering at the hand of preternatural reality without understanding such; yet I pondered as to why anyone would possess curiosity much less interest in subject matter that was clearly evil. I was trying to avoid the demonic and exercise my faith, and Harry Potter fans, both children and parents, were immersing themselves completely into such clandestine wickedness. People, particularly catholics, just don't get it! I just thank God that I DO through His grace of discernment; and I thank Him for priests like Fr. Tom, who have the courage and chutzpah to expose the absolute danger and wrongfulness of those people who choose to seek the evil we asked to be delivered from. The vampire epidemic saturating America's senses is only distancing the masses from authentic good and God, and it speaks of the condition of collective mankind's soul; and it is full of sin and a propensity toward evil. Mary, Mother of God, pray for us. Click on the link below.

'Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer: Spirit & Life - Vampire Logic'

The Jezebel Spirit

2010-07-23T08:26:00.000-04:00

Learn about the Jezebel spirit, and how to prevent her influence and to combat her victoriously.

Family Healing

2010-07-23T08:05:00.000-04:00

IS YOUR FAMILY 'HAUNTED'?

Be Ready to Sacrifice to Save Souls

2010-07-23T06:45:00.000-04:00

A priest's homily.

Be Ready to Sacrifice to Save Souls

Are We Not All Hypocrites From Time to Time?

2010-07-23T06:00:00.001-04:00

Years ago, while sitting in the breakroom of a workplace, I heard a co-worker make the comment, " I don't go to church because all Christians are hypocrites." I hear that alot. Actually, I have made the statement several times myself. I remember saying to the gentleman at the time, " By noticing and judging another's hypocrisy we are in a sense a hypocrite ourselves. The fact that we sin shows us, if we are willing to look at ourselves honestly rather than fondly, that any of us are subject to our own personal hypocrisy, by virtue of the incapability to be who we say we are, think we are, and wish we were. Especially for any committed and practicing catholic, when we fall we have violated our own creed. Also, being victimized by unjust judgements and criticisms is part of the journey in life; yet are we not guilty at times of making the same, self-righteous observations against others? The deeper and more painful experience of going through the spiritual trial of violent persecution, unchecked slander, and continuous calumniation is the burden of the sanctification process. Look at the example of the saints? I have endured such constantly over the years, and at the hands of a close family member. It is not pleasant to go through, but it can reveal to ourselves the limits to our ability to forgive, and to pray for one's enemy. Pride is always the blinding factor, whether it be the cause of our victimization at the hand of another, or the weapon we use to annilate others under the smug, self-deception of 'righteousness.' Follow the link below. Tell me what you think.

Are we not all hypocrites from time to time?

Put a Gag Order on the Gaga Puhlease.

2010-07-23T05:46:00.000-04:00

Spirit Daily has always been my preferred website. I find many interesting articles and valuable links to other catholic resources. I like reading my 'daily nugget' so to speak. Lately, I have been perusing The Integrated Catholic Life. It is completely different from Spirit Daily, but equally valuable for finding substantial, daily inspiration. I like to comment on some of the articles. So please do share your thoughts.
Put a gag order on the Gaga puhlease.

Considering the Call of Faithfulness

2010-07-22T09:33:00.000-04:00

Considering the Call of Faithfulness

Keeping the Faith

2010-07-20T11:42:00.000-04:00

Keeping the Faith

God’s Power Working Through His Priests | Pro-Life Corner

2010-07-19T11:17:00.000-04:00

God’s Power Working Through His Priests Pro-Life Corner

Facebook | Exorcism and the Church Militant

2010-07-19T08:35:00.001-04:00

Facebook Exorcism and the Church Militant

What Can Catholics Learn from Lady Gaga?

2010-07-18T23:40:00.000-04:00

What Can Catholics Learn from Lady Gaga?

Daily Quote from Dr. Peter Kreeft

2010-07-18T23:37:00.000-04:00

Daily Quote from Dr. Peter Kreeft

What Can Catholics Learn from Lady Gaga?

2010-07-18T11:43:00.000-04:00

What Can Catholics Learn from Lady Gaga?

2010-07-18T10:05:00.000-04:00

I found this link through Jude Thaddeus' facebook page. I found the writer's insights to be worth consideration and careful contemplation. Alleged seers and mystics, in addition to apparitions, have never been a particular interest of mine, yet Maria Esperanza's story and endowed wisdom maintains a character of authenticity and inspiration. Please check it out.

The website is, Mark Mallet, Spiritual Food for Thought:
Esperanza

What God Do You Worship?

2010-07-16T09:10:00.001-04:00

    "The lack of order, organization, and purification within our interior faculties, will lead the human mind down a path of predictable deterioration. The end result will be psychological conditions littered upon a spectrum of insanity. Such soulish chaos compromises the natural cosmos of the human mind, as it separates its intellect from comprehending God's truths.The interior swing of the pendulum between chaos and cosmos defines the bipolar status quo of the culture, so logically such an impairment will proliferate epidemically; for the individual is a segment of the depraved culture. Remember the medical experts consider St. Therese, St. John of the Cross, and St. Francis ALL... to be undiagnosed bipolars; all of whom 'hallucinated' their Divine experiences.
     In contemporary times, bipolarity has become a mandatory qualification for sainthood, because it is the attack of the devil on genuine mysticism. Science has replaced spiritual discernment in the supernatural and spiritual profile of the human soul. Yes, the same science that trains our abortionists has become the preferred authority of the soul and spirit."

-Amy M. Ivsan

2010-07-15T13:17:00.000-04:00

I found this on Catholic Exchange via Spirit Daily website. Found it to be interesting.
Demonic Faith and Angelic Warfare

St. Padre Pio Center for Deliverance Counseling

2010-07-14T01:34:00.000-04:00

I found this website from a person's posting on facebook. I looked over the site briefly and it seemed genuine. I particularly liked the clarity and accuracy in their discernment of new age practices, and the readings and books offered on the subject matter. Check it out.

Seven StepsTo Self-Deliverance

William James (1902)

2010-07-11T08:37:00.003-04:00

William James in delineating the primary characteristics of mystical and conversion experiences, outlines many features that a psycho pathologist would more likely label as bipolar affective illness: hyperacusis, ecstasy, hallucinations(hallucinatory or infused, sense perception phenomena), knowledge " perceived as full of importance and significance," a loss of all worry," a passion of willingness," a sense of well-being, altered perceptions, and " a sense of perceiving truths not known before." James stresses again and again his belief that the ability to experience religions or any other kind of ecstasy is exactly that - an ability, a gift, an aspect of temperament.

Found the above in a book. William James is commonly referenced in much religious and psychological material, particularly at the academic and research level. He wrote a book known as, " The Varieties of Religious Experience." Popular psychiatric, 'expert' opinion considers Roman Catholic sainthood to be the only qualification for this popular bipolar disorder. It is merely an often time attack on authentic mysticism, whether it be Divine or diabolical. The idea of bipolar is a fine distraction and convenient deception on the part of the devil, often, to discredit the reality of mystical experience. It becomes an attack on God ultimately. One of the spiritual works of mercy is to instruct the ignorant. Experience is the greatest teacher.

He Says, " Everything In Life Is Fleeting Daughter, Hang On To Nothing."

2010-07-11T08:13:00.000-04:00

Oh, when will this journey end.
Trudging down a path without end in sight.
Assailed by misery from all sides. They look at this foolish man.
Crowding around Him from all sides.
They go before Him.
Follow closely behind Him.
To His left and right
not an empty place remains.
Who is this despicable fool?
Pathetic man is He.
Carrying a rough, wooden cross.
What a weakling.
He hunches over and struggles,
as He inches along this journey.
Amongst the ridicule,
the mockery,
the jeering,
and immersed in the sheer hatred of humans.
They spit.
They throw things at Him.
They push and trip Him frequently.
During a fortunate moment,
He is clubbed on the head.
And the crown of thorns he wears
oozes blood some more.
What a fool He is
to carry that miserable cross.
Yet He sees none of the circumstances of torture,
only the goal of death.
The prize IS death.
The multitudes that swarm around Him
have no idea of the precious treasure
he tenderly carries upon His brokenness
on this journey.
He knows though.
he loves.
He endures.
He suffers.
He dies.
The cross IS the cross.
We must remember that when we become an enemy of the world,
we are walking with Him.
To be rejected,
despised,
humiliated,
mistreated,
and considered to be despicable;
what remains hidden is
Him behind it all
and we have received a great grace.
It is going to be hard,
but more importantly
it is going to be painful.
Yet He is with you every step of the way.
This is WHO HE IS,
the great I AM WHO AM.
This is how the world treated Him,
and this is the condition
of those who follow after Him.
Persevere in the pain.
Embrace the cross.
Do not allow anyone to take your eyes
off of Him.
The world and the mind of man has
a reason,
a method,
an answer,
and explanation,
for everything.
It never reflects His hidden purpose,
rather it denies Him altogether.
Suffering only lasts for a season.
It will be over soon enough.
And He awaits our homecoming.
Pray without ceasing.
Pray.

He Puts The Armor On You

2010-07-08T17:42:00.001-04:00

" For our struggle in not with the flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens. "

-Ephesians 6:12

Greetings brothers and sister! May the peace of Him reign upon you continuously but only in the moment for our Omnipresent God transcends time, is not subject to chronology, and thankfully He exists in every moment of our being. Saint Paul was a great soldier and waged war efficaciously, a highly successful warrior in the history of Christianity. I borrowed this particular quote out of the book of Ephesians of course, and it is captivating. What did Paul mean in his words on the subject of spiritual battle? Look at the definitive and descriptive terminology, such as struggle, flesh and blood, principalities, powers, world rulers, present darkness, evil spirits in the heavens, and let us begin to dissect each linguistic distinction individually. Yes, I know most of you are familiar with 'putting on the armor of God' so to speak, but I am a big believer in fresh perspective as a reflection upon timeless Truth.

The textbook definition of verbs and nouns provides clarity and specificity when evaluating particular terminology, however the repetitious use and element of personal bias tends to influence acute explanation of accuracy in term annotation, and words become overused, regurgitated, and eventually tossed around ever so casually, and the elementary meaning of definition becomes buried in the babbling brooks of verbal discourse and psychological thought, marked by human prejudice. Having expressed such a mouthful of thought, let us begin with the notion of struggle. What is the definition of struggle. What does Paul's analogical or metaphorical use of the term struggle imply? How do we interpret noetically an existential reality of supernatural nature further obscured by the invisible quality of preternatural activity.

It is safe to assume Paul maintained a personal struggle as every human soul does, in its respective and individual conversion process. An ordinary conflict between his own fallen nature and concupiscence and his desire to seek the Divine, to significantly respond to God's commission of his apostleship, and ultimately to cooperate with the grace God availed him in order to fulfill the will of God. A portion of Paul's struggle gravitated beyond his person and transversed into a wider struggle involving the body of the brethren, revealed by an awareness to be a potential libation due to the sacrificial endeavor demonstrated by the faith of the early Church. Despite the vast substance and work of Paul, he provides great advice, wisdom, and premonition in his teachings. Paul realizes in his very person he bears and thus reveals a bigger struggle taking place in humanity, and essentially in the universe. It has been presupposed and suggested that Saint Paul was the first stigmatic in the history of the Church.

Paul suffered heroically within the confines of tension between cosmos and chaos. The dictionary definition provides valuable clues regarding such cyclothymic tension:

Struggle-

1) to contend with an adversary or an opposing force.
2) to advance with violent effort.
3) to be coping with inability to perform well or to win; contend with difficulty.

Contemplate the above three-pronged definition and the word struggle takes on a vastly different imperative than the typical christian conversation regarding spiritual warfare. The struggle will always involve an adversary and Christian combat names its opponent as satan, for Jesus deemed him so, and Peter underscored our adversary's activity by his comparison to a 'roaring lion, prowling around, looking for someone to devour.' If you cannot recognize the struggle how can you identify your enemy, and if you cannot identify the opponent how can you effectively take him out. A sharp shooter does not aim blanks at an unknown target. He lingers hidden within the landscape of the warzone, periodically dodging bullets and getting grazed with shrapnel, but he never takes his eyes off of the enemy target. A sharp shooter is patient, gets wounded continuously as he labors toward his ultimate goal, but he is vigilant until the moment of opportunity for victory arises.

The battle lines were established in the book of Genesis. The struggle we discuss was clearly defined by God in the beginning, in the garden of Eden:

" I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike at your head while you strike at his heel."

-Genesis 3:15

The victorious fruit of the struggle Paul speaks of consummates in the book of Revelation. The work of the sharp shooter becomes evident for its successful and final defeat of the enemy in the battle:

" Then the dragon became angry with the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring, those who keep God's commandments and bear witness to Jesus."

-Revelation 12:17

Hmmm. So the dragon wages war against 'her' offspring. Who is she and who are her offspring? Obviously she is the Mother of the Living, Blessed Mother, the orignal tabernacle of Eucharistic Presence. Our Lady is the receptacle of the Incarnation, the Word made flesh, One who would make His dwelling amongst us. The offspring suffer the scourge of the dragon's malevolence, permitted as an instructive discipline by the gentle Hand of Heavenly Father, for any good father disciplines his beloved child.

The scourge consists of a personal rejection of this world and its titillating offerings of counterfeit sacrament. The scourge leads to the decay, destruction, and the inevitable dissolution of all family unification and loyalty. Children become despised and categorically rejected by their deceived parents and vice versa. Spouses abandon themselves to lustful adultery, pornography, and a variety of enslaving but compromising behaviors and vices, but lack mutual respect, sacrificial love, and the desire to forgive; and their children become victims left behind inhaling the dust of paternal and maternal sin, as the marital covenant becomes darkened and defiled, and familial sin is passed on to the next generation. The scourge creates dissension in our holy houses and sanctuaries of worship, each participant no longer sacrificially seeking the good of his brother or sister in need, but pursues his own self-propelled agenda. Not only does Lucifer say he is going to attempt a coup d'etat of the Most High's throne, but his offspring winnow violently but clandestinely within parish communities, violently attempt to seek the same goal. The devastating result is that the dragon no longer has to directly attack the offspring of Mary, for the enemy is skilled at manipulating Her children to devour each other. God said love one another but the enemy moves in and says betray one another, detest one another, calumniate one another, avoid one another, and ultimately leads us to use one another for sinful purposes. We have allowed satan to feed our pride and spiritual hunger with counterfeit sacraments, and instead of edifying, elevating, and ennobling the brethren, we self-proclaimed Christians despise and devour one another and we are too blind to see the reality because we do not comprehend spiritual dynamism. Jesus Himself said, " Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do." Do you think that desperate request was for the multitudes of souls in the world outside of the church? No, sorry. Any catholic brother and sister needs to go home and stare squarely in the mirror of the closest bathroom, and look at what reflects right back at you, and that is for whom those words of Christ were spoken. You.

God operates in the spirit while satan is a spirit operating via our flesh. He tempts our flesh, pummels our flesh, takes the flesh of the Body and Blood of Christ on the altar of Holy Sacrifice and mocks it. The mass is the unbloody but re created sacrifice of Calvary. One element of the devil's black mass is the bloody sacrifice of abortion. Contrary to the undercurrent of contemporary fear, a black mass is more than pagan human sacrifice occurring in secrets sects of Luciferian worship. Witchcraft is more than mere blood-letting of sacrificed animals on altars of Mother Nature by wiccan goddesses, and the spell binding uses of potions, amulets, and talismans. If you do not think you have been influenced by paganism or esoteric practices or spiritual witchcraft then let me ask you this. Have you ever been involved in centering prayer, reiki, enneagram methods, or self-help phenomena? Have you visited a psychic, messed with tarot cards, or employed feng-shui?

" Advertising connected with New Age covers a wide range of practices as acupuncture, biofeedback, chiropractic, kinesiology, homeopathy, iridology, massage, various kinds of "bodywork", visualization, meditation....nutritional therapies, psychic healing, various kinds of herbal medicine, healing by crystals, metals, music, or colours, reincarnation therapies and, finally,
twelve- step programmes and self-help groups."

- excerpted from Jesus Christ the Bearer of the Water of Life, a document created by two Pontifical councils

I could go on and on, ad infinitum, in my efforts to communicate the dangers of and correlations between overt satanic worship practices and covert new age procedure, but in the end the movement is the same and the corresponding nucleus of power and spiritual influence is fallen and corrupt and not of God. Honestly, how can one put on the armor of God and simultaneously be tinkering with and playing dress up with satan's costumes? Having defined the struggle, next we have been discussing the flesh and blood definition. What is the flesh and blood Paul refers to?

flesh and blood n.
1. Human nature or physical existence, together with its weaknesses.
2. A person's blood relatives; kin.
3. Substance and depth in artistic portrayal; life likeness: characters lacking in flesh and blood.

Too tired to continue..... so until next time.

Be Not Afraid!

2010-07-08T08:10:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Maria I have the Pope Purse. Now I must thank her once again for the Pope Pin. It hangs on Baby T's bassinet, like a true relic, and his guardian saint keeps all the devils away. More importantly, his intercessory guardian imbues grace, peace, and contentment over Jesus' baby boy. Thank you Maria and thank you JPII. We love you.

The Distancing Of the Dark Side

2010-07-01T08:31:00.002-04:00

I was accustomed to hearing the voice of God; clearly, perceptibly, but inaudibly. His voice is strong, but gentle, quiet; and avails great peace and contentment, with courage and assurance of direction. The gentle voice of the Shepherd awaits us profoundly within the reception of the sacraments, and particularly when time is spent in front of His exposed Eucharistic Presence. The Jesus Jacuzzi, I call it. So this was unusually and extremely unfamiliar territory, due to the gravity of manifestation. Horrible. Tortuous. Encountering the bad guy.

13 August 2009 Thursday

     He came back last night and it was awful. I was at Maria's. The prior evening it came on strong at Melisa's house, and rather than stay and endure, I chose to run from it, which seems to further displace me and frustrate me all the more. It will not vacate.
     As evening comes upon and the sky darkens, the activity of the demonic begins. Just as with events of Jesus, the announcer of the Good News, His angel Gabriel announces His Incarnation, fostering Immaculate Mary's perfect obedience to God. Her fiat. The great counterfeit, the mimic, the enemy of souls, prefers to agitate the soul severely with his predictable announcement of the coming of malevolent activity. Hence, cosmos versus chaos. It is not a calm announcement but a caterwauling, groaning, incessant reverberation of the mind; deluging the imagination with impending fears that become actualized, eclipsing the ordinary sense perception faculties with uncomfortable disturbance in communicated intonation of unfortunate, but clearly fallen spiritual phenomena, cooperating with the natural elements of creation.
     For example, the sound of a train, whether it be infused into the auditory faculty, thus episodically dispersed into the stressed imagination, encapsulates the mind like a 'fallen' mockery of a crown of thorny dread. Usually a black bird appears physically, or a crow, and the bird perches itself nearby. But it caws an unusual and continuous staccato, a repetitive chant of sorts; a lullaby announcing hell's members pending visitation. I see what appears to be a mechanical hawk, I say mechanical because it almost looks like an airplane, but it circles like an eagle targeting it's prey; mocking God's promise of the Spirit, when we are elevated as if on Eagle's wings.
     When I am at Melisa's, she sees the creatures too and hears the unnatural animal moans in the distance. Her boyfriend tends to hear growling coming out of nowhere, but he clearly hears growling, and at times hissing. I do not hear such. Then the sound of pellets or what we seem to be escalated forces of nature begin to pummel the house or given place. Floors vibrate with no constant steadiness of vibration, intermittently you without pattern, but an eerie hidden movement within the floorboards.
     The stalking on the roof reminds me of the time I wrote about 'Fiddler'. This evil presence stomps on the roof literally back and forth, and I am not the only one present to witness the noise of its movement. For the enemy likes to posture his stature when he arrives. And his stomping on the rooftop is frenetic, haphazard, like his rage toward God. Collectively speaking his announcement of his arrival is like a slow, heavy tide that rolls in. It is vacant, filled with a sense of empty nothingness. Everything in the periphery of consciousness becomes extremely heavy, invisibly obscured ,and weighted with a thick fog of confusion. Natural reality becomes simultaneously surreal non reality. The burden of induced mental confusion becomes tremendous.
I go from Keith's, to Melisa's, to Maria's, and onto the next place, and the results are the same, for it follows me. Lights flicker on and off. Televisions go in and out. The weight in the air becomes increasingly heavier and heavier, until I flee. The phone dies repeatedly. Calls do come in , but from places not here, from odd numbers. I tried going to a family member's home. I rang the doorbell and I heard a faint voice asking, " Who is it ?" After I identified myself, the person apparently disappeared within the darkened confines of the house, and was not going to open the door. An unnatural and eerie darkness overshadowed the house, and I could see a similar dimming or fading of the interior lights; and I thought perhaps the person did not realize it was me. My own denial about the disinterest and evil within my immediate family blinds my intellect often, but not anymore. I knocked on the door and rang the bell maybe once or twice, and then promptly left with my friend, for it was pointless as it had always been seeking any charitable concern from my own flesh and blood. Thank God for Jesus and His unconditional love. As my friend and I were leaving the cul-de-sac of the neighborhood, I noticed all of the lights on the entire block of the street had gone out, and the atmosphere was pitch black, and of course their was no storm in sight to justify the power outage. More of the same eerie craziness. So we left.
I ended up at a friend's condo temporarily for the night, for I knew this acquaintance had a degree of understanding and patience regarding this type of spiritual phenomena, but her ability to handle such was limited base upon her physical health and state of mind. She welcomed me in, and the first thing I requested was Holy water. We talked briefly, catching up, but I did not go into deep detail about the events transpiring around my person. How does one explain the gravity of such phenomena? I knew the reality of my situation would freak her out totally, but though her perception is acute her discernment has its limitations. The sounds began to emanate from a hidden place in the night, as soon as I entered the home. She turned on EWTN. Buzz in, buzz out; the television keeps on flickering on and off, and so do the lights periodically. The numbers on the digital stove top take on an agenda of their own, increasing and then decreasing. She looks at me and says, "What is going on?", as she could see something was not right.
On the one hand my friend is a mystically inclined individual and evidences certain saintly qualities. She is a beautiful catholic. However, she also has experienced tremendous wounding and emotional victimization, which renders one vulnerable to the principalities and powers. Her lifestyle despite the fiery Catholicism, has involved new age practices which doesn't help the situation. When I felt the heavy presence roll in, the train motion 'plays' in the background in orchestrated harmony with the plane and various sounds of heightened and distorted auditory perception. Very difficult to describe if you have not experienced such, but the sound has an uncanny ability to incite fear, as if it has a malevolent will of its own. The cold sensation that envelopes the room is like a whispering breeze, and it would seem to radiate from my person, but it wafts throughout the household like floating ribbons in continuous twirling motion, taking up as much empty space as possible. Phones continue to go dead and then spontaneously ring, but no one is on the other end of the line. I could see dark shadows standing tall in my periphery. I also could see through an interior eyesight, shadows of light. The movement of these shadows and auras are demons, I am certain. It was like being rolled in suffocation and floured in fear and defenselessness.
My body temperature started to rise, starting in my hands, and then the heat permeated my entire body, like a fast temperature rising within. The unusual thing about this experience is I can no longer rely upon spiritual gifts for discernment, because I suspect counterfeit gifts may be manifesting, and I do not know how to distinguish between the two. I feel helpless. I have entered a new learning experience in blind, naked trust without the benefit of intellectual reliance and support of reason, for the counterfeit is masquerading, trying to mimic Him, and the enemy of my soul is nestled somewhere within an interior level.
The climax of the evening was my friend fading into deep slumber on the couch, while I remained vigilant on the chair, and then the being manifested and I had an encounter with the devil. It is a witness to a deathly cold and eternal hatred that is truly indescribably. I will not say anymore on that particular meeting, it was that horrific.

.....to be continued.

To be continued

Once In Awhile Write Jesus a Thank You Card.

2010-07-01T07:22:00.001-04:00

Thank you Jesus for the availability of Your True Presence in the Most Holy Sacrament.

Thank you Jesus for the gift of prayer, the ability to pray to Our Father, through the sacrifice of Calvary, endowed by the power of the Holy Spirit, our Comforter.

Thank you Jesus as you capture all of the tears of the sorrowful, the abandoned, the cruelly abused and rejected, and those who suffer dearly in this world, in hope of the promise of eternal life.

Thank you Jesus for the kind, gentle sentiments you whisper to the battered soul and broken human heart.

Thank you Jesus for the invisible and mystical strength to endure all hardships at the hand of a cruel enemy.

Thank you Jesus for your ultimate and consummate defeat of satan; for freedom from slavery and bondage, from all who lord insanity, cruelty and misused authority over us.

Thank you Jesus for the grace to be willing to forgive our enemies and the desire to pray for them.

Thank you Jesus for the gift of discernment, which enables us to reject all that is unholy and profane in your sight, even if only we can reject such evil temporarily in our hearts alone, while our flesh continues to betray our will.

Thank you Jesus for giving us another day of life, sustaining our inability to barely survive at times mentally and spiritually, in a wicked and fallen world.

Thank you Jesus for every occasion of accusation at the hand of a human enemy, every time we are called evil when we are attempting to worship you, to spend time with you, and to receive you body, blood, soul, and divinity, in the gift of the Holy Sacrament.

Thank you Jesus for the times someone spit in my face, uncontrolled by the devil's rage, for it is not my face being spat upon but Yours.

Thank you Jesus for the intervention of the Hand of the Almighty Father and the intercession of the Blessed Mother, for I could not victoriously live another day of suffering without such a grace.

Thank you Jesus for the privilege and opportunity to suffer, to linger at times in a crucible of true misery, for it seems to be the only vehicle that establishes true intimacy with You.

Thank you Jesus for carving my name, the true identity of my soul, on the palms of your bloody hands, nailed to the Cross.

Jesus before me.
Jesus behind me.
Jesus upon me.
Jesus within me.
Jesus without me.

May the sunshine of your sacrifice forever captivate my soul, enslaving my heart toward authentic love.

May my tears always cleanse me of my sin, revealing the grace of contrition; a restoration that was purchased at a painful price for Your children.

Hide my mortal pain in the hidden countenance of mystical radiance, and reveal only the presence of you, Jesus.

Let my hands be Your Hands.
Let my eyes be Your Eyes.
Let my words be Your Word.
Let my touch prayerfully reveal the love of God for the wounded.

Forgive me of my sins dear Lord.

May my sorrows, losses, griefs, pains, and sufferings forever manifest as a gift of True Praise for you alone are Holy indeed.

You've Gotta Be Kidding!

2010-07-01T06:42:00.000-04:00

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:11

     Jesus attended an event, one where I wasn't present, which allowed Him to make such a shocking statement. He was in heaven with His Father when the prophets died. He was there when they arrived and were introduced to the rewards that awaited them. He probably threw the party.
     Because Jesus saw, firsthand, the joy that Isaiah, Jeremiah, and others experienced, he can predict the same for us if we are mistreated. He tells us to rejoice when we face the hardships the prophets faced because He knows that we'll reap a future identical to theirs if we persevere through malignment, false rumors, and gross mis-judgement.
     But excuse me for asking. What's the point of it all? Why is it necessary for us to endure these in the first place? Time wrestling with this text has led me to understand that it is about the cost of speaking on Jesus' behalf. Truth, pared down to its simplest form shakes up the arrogance of self-made religion. It shatters self-righteousness. It confronts pride. It smashes idols. It defies reasonable thinking. Whenever truth is presented, humility and faith are required. Anger is usually the initial response. People are indignant when the light of truth exposes their humanness. Retaliation is taken against the one who bore the message.

Is Jesus familiar with the repercussions of those who strike back? Yes, He personally lived through acts of treachery. Who cold be a more perfect companion when rumors swirl around our heads? He is the only anchor in the fury of such a storm.

You ask me to bear Your message. But oh, the cost. Help me. Amen.

Author- Christine Wyrtzen

Founder and Director

Daughters of Promise

www.daughtersofpromise.org

This was emailed to be by Tracy Wattleworth years ago. I kept it for all this time. Contemplate the message for awhile, it speaks volumes to those who have ears that can hear.

2010-06-28T08:20:00.000-04:00

Fr. Hermanagild Jayachandra, S.T.D.

Pastor

HermJchand@aol.com

Are you afflicted? Fr. Herman is committed to helping those in need of healing and prayer, and those who are oppressed by the world of evil and darkness, and is available to help discern your spiritual needs.

Please call Fr. Herman for an appointment at 303.499.7744

http://stmartindeporreschurch.org/fatherherman.htm

Another article on Fr. Euteneuer and his new book.

2010-06-16T09:29:00.001-04:00

I strongly recommend every practicing catholic and/or christian read this book. The information will be invaluable and educational. It could be considered a reference manual for navigating through the cyclothymic tension and spiritual current of today's world. The author brings experience that may seem rare or uncommon, yet is highly significant and relevant to contemporary culture and the current times. You will not be disappointed.

RenewAmerica.com June 16, 2010 Click here to receive our twice-weekly newsletter

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Matt C. Abbott June 11, 2010

Exclusive excerpt from Father Euteneuer's book on exorcism

By Matt C. Abbott

Below is the Introduction (not currently available on any other website) to Exorcism and the Church Militant, a new book authored by Father Tom Euteneuer, president of Human Life International.

I've quoted the courageous Father Euteneuer several times over the last few years. He was ordained a priest in 1988 for the Diocese of Palm Beach, Fla., and served in parishes in that diocese for 12 years before being given permission by his bishop to work full-time in pro-life ministry with Human Life International, where he has served as president since December 2000.

Father has been performing exorcisms for seven years with approval from numerous dioceses in the United States. His interest in the ministry was a natural outgrowth of his work in the pro-life field, which deals with the organized power of evil on a global scale. Exorcism has allowed him to combine both his years of pastoral experience with his expertise in the pro-life movement; and in the last several years, he has performed dozens of full exorcisms and many dozen deliverances on afflicted persons.

The book — with a foreword by Father John Corapi — is accompanied by two companion editions: Demonic Abortion (due for release on July 7), which explains the demonic nature of abortion and the culture of death from an exorcist's point of view; and Discernment Manual for Exorcists and Pastoral Ministers, which is intended to equip persons engaging in spiritual warfare with all the proper tools of discernment.

Many thanks to Father Euteneuer and Stephen Phelan, communications director for HLI, for allowing me to reprint this Introduction.

Introduction (minus footnotes) to Exorcism and the Church Militant

Draw your strength from the Lord and his mighty power. Put on the armor of God so that you may be able to stand firm against the tactics of the devil. Our battle is not against human forces but against the principalities and powers, the rulers of this world of darkness, the evil spirits in regions above. You must put on the armor of God if you are to resist on the evil day; do all that your duty requires, and hold your ground. (Eph 6:10-13)

Ergo, draco maledicte et omnis legio diabolica, adjuramus te per Deum + vivum, per Deum + verum, per Deum + sanctum... Vade, satana, inventor et magister omnis fallaciæ, hostis humanæ salutis. Da locum Christo, in quo nihil invenisti de operibus tuis; da locum Ecclesiæ uni, sanctæ, catholicæ, et apostolicæ, quam Christus ipse acquisivit sanguine suo.

The One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church has been commissioned by the Lord Jesus Christ to fulfill a most dramatic mission; it is perhaps the most dangerous and exhilarating of missions ever entrusted to men. It is the mission of saving souls.

This mission cannot be accomplished without entering into conflict with "the world, the flesh and the devil." It is not a mission for the fainthearted or for those who wish to take the wide road to heaven. It is the path of warfare, of spiritual battle. And although we know that Our Lord has fought that battle before us, and won, every age of the Church must take up arms anew and fight it until the end of time. Let it be said with certainty that those who embrace wholeheartedly the Church's mission to save souls will live a difficult life, one full of challenges and at times real sorrows, but, at the same time, a life imbued with immense blessings that accrue only to those who risk everything for Christ. It is for those who "fight the good fight" for souls in hand-to-hand combat with the devil that this book is written, to support, encourage and strengthen them in their conflict with the forces of evil arrayed against man's salvation. Theirs is the work of the Church Militant.

The Real Power of Satan

In today's day and age, Satan is growing exponentially more powerful due to the enormity of human sinfulness, and the Church must confront his power either willingly or unwillingly. Satan is normally "hidden in the dark sea of human sin and error," like Leviathan of the Old Testament, but nowadays he is walking tall in powerful structures of sin like abortion, pornography, sex slavery, rapacious greed and terrorism. He flexes his muscles in the massive diffusion of errors and sinful practices like the doctrines of myriad false religions, pernicious ideologies like radical feminism and "pro-choice" extremism, the militant homosexual movement and the aggressive mass media which is the ministry of propaganda for Satan and all his works and all his empty promises.

Never in all of history have we seen evil promoted so effectively and the true good so roundly mocked and rejected as in this age of extreme technological prowess. Although evil has existed since the dawn of time and manifested itself to the world, the difference between the modern world and past generations is that Satan has a greater ability to use groups and institutions for increasing his wicked reach into human life and society. No longer is evil just practiced in the haunts of cemeteries, seedy parlors and hidden covens. Nowadays, objective evil is displayed out in the open air with impunity, celebrated in the public forum and strategized in plush board rooms. Whole industries and power groups are dedicated to its promotion and dissemination, and sometimes the sheer power of these industries of immorality defies imagination. They target the younger generations with an immense seductive force, and the young are almost entirely unequipped to deal with this tyranny of sin due to unparalleled attacks on faith, marriage, family and innocent human life in modern times. Not only do young people not know the truth about their salvation; they don't even know that they don't know it.

The 21st century is a moral and spiritual battlefield of such immense proportions that no era of human history will have ever seen a war like it. Satan is using the cumulative force of this world's sinfulness to re-define life as we know it. Now, this war is not just against trained combatants. It is total war against all that is sacred and natural. It is a war against humanity itself, something unseen before in all of history with the possible exception of atheistic Communism.

The devil now arrogates to himself the right to control the totality of human existence even in so-called free societies: from manipulating the very act of creation (in vitro fertilization, cloning, Human Genome); to the authority over life and death (abortion, embryonic stem cell research, euthanasia); to the definition of human sexuality and marriage (birth control, divorce, homosexual unions); to the very prospect of human annihilation (nuclear war, genocide and the impending New World Order). Nothing escapes the rebellious forces of hedonism and secularism in their violent march through our world. They creep into the fabric of our lives and families like a vapor until they have poisoned the entire environment and make everyone believe that their toxicity is "normal." If the measure of a war's ferociousness is the number of casualties, the modern war to exterminate souls is unprecedented in the history of humanity; it is nothing short of history's worst nuclear holocaust in spiritual terms.

Malachi Martin, in the 1992 preface to his book, Hostage to the Devil, said that "ritualistic Satanism and its inevitable consequence, demonic Possession, are now part and parcel of the atmosphere of life in America....such pervasive cultural desolation is the most fertile ground one could possibly imagine for the causes of Possession to take root and flourish in almost unimpeded freedom." It must be kept in mind that such a frightening observation was made at a time before the advent of the Internet, the massive diffusion of New Age beliefs and the Harry Potter books and movies. Martin's observations suggest that this evil is so all-encompassing that only the authority of God Himself, borne and administered by the Church, is adequate to meet this challenge.

The Authority of the Church Militant

We know from our catechism that the whole Church of Christ is not confined just to this earthly realm. The battle against Satan has already been won in heaven and purgatory, and only in this earthly realm is the devil allowed to work. God, in His Mercy, certainly has not abandoned us to the forces of evil, though. There is one spiritual force on earth that can counter the hubris of Satan and his apostate angels and conquer them. That force is the "One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church," which, in my opinion, has been singularly unprepared for and unengaged in the hard work of spiritual warfare since the Second Vatican Council. By this I mean that if the institutional Church on earth were ever to train its members to be spiritual combatants and aggressively apply its great authority against the power of evil in this world, the evils mentioned above would simply not be able to exist in their potency or scope. As it is, the Church has yet to seriously enter the battle and become what it is called to be, namely, the Church Militant.

The hour is late, Satan's forces are already assembled, and the Church's army and its officers must stir for battle. The trumpet call of Christ our Commander beckons. Souls are at stake, and the devil's only real hope for victory is that the Church will sit this one out. The devil certainly "knows that his time is short" and would be much shorter should the Church of Christ ever take the call to spiritual warfare seriously. When our Lord healed a paralytic by forgiving his sins and restoring him to health, the Gospel said that "a feeling of awe came over the crowd, and they praised God for giving such authority to men." Indeed, that spiritual authority has been given to the men of the Church for the protection, sanctification and saving of souls — it only has to be used.

Goals of this work

First goal: to communicate a proper understanding of exorcism

The transformation of exorcism into a popular cultural phenomenon in recent decades has led to a major distortion of both the Church's mission to expel demons and the power of the devil. A main concern of this present work is the taking back of this important pastoral ministry of the Church from the realm of the internet, movies and tabloids and placing it back in the hands of priests where it belongs — the true officers of the Church Militant.

Exaggerated pop images of exorcism falsely define people's understanding of the Church's ancient ritual that is meant to liberate victims of the devil from these very deceptions. Popular movies like The Exorcist (1973) and The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005), while containing some truthful elements, have done very little to present a correct picture of exorcism itself. These movies and others, for the sake of sensationalizing the power of the devil, present the Church and her priests as being the underdogs in a fight against the devil and oftentimes as weak or reluctant combatants. While there are certainly moments of heroism depicted in these movies, the devil is shown as powerful and tantalizing, sort of like one who always seems to have the upper hand against the Church. Nothing could be farther from the truth! Exorcists are never in a position of subjugation to the evil one during the course of an exorcism, nor is the devil ever entertaining and enthralling like he is portrayed in the movies. He is pure evil, and that is never lost on the one who has to face him down in a possession.

A correct understanding of exorcism can also divest many people of a dangerous fascination with the occult. No sane person who truly understands the nature of demons would be fascinated with them or their works. Due to its mysterious nature, exorcism will never be totally removed from popular distortions or fear, but priests can assure that the Church's rightful patrimony is understood by the faithful and people who need sacramental assistance against demons. The priest's work is to fortify Christians to "reject Satan and all his works and all his empty promises."

The organization of the chapters in this book is meant to introduce people to the diverse dimensions of exorcism. Through a discussion of the nature of Christ's high-priestly ministry of exorcism, the nature of the demonic forces that afflict men and the rightful authority of the Church over evil, readers will understand better the theological and pastoral dimensions of exorcism. Furthermore, I have made every attempt to rely on only the most reputable sources on exorcism from the tradition and modern writings that are tested and orthodox. I pray that this work will become a resource for many in their fight against the forces of evil.

Second goal: to motivate priests

Exorcism is best understood in the context of evangelization and the care of souls, and, as such, is the proper office of ordained Catholic priests. As such, the second purpose of this work is precisely to help Catholic priests recognize that exorcism is a normal and very important form of pastoral ministry in the care of souls. In times to come, priests will be increasingly called upon to expel real demons from truly demonically-afflicted individuals who have, in one way or another, fallen into the seductions and empty promises of the master deceiver.

Occult influences have been unleashed into our modern world like the emptying of a demonic Pandora's Box of unclean spirits. The popularity of the New Age movement, the rise of Satanism as an organized and institutionalized force, the flood of satanic video games and Heavy Metal music, the massive diffusion of occult terminology and images through the immensely-popular Harry Potter series and other youth-targeted entertainments, like the rash of modern vampire movies, assure that Catholic priests will be very busy in the next decade.

To aid priests in a proper understanding of the nature of exorcism, one chapter explains how exorcisms are actually conducted, which may help to take away some of the mysticism or fear related to a ritual that any priest can perform (with the proper authorization). I also attempt to provide some clarity in the nebulous area of differences between the ministries of exorcism, deliverance and healing and some practical rules for discernment of ambiguous cases. Chapter 7 will show priests that exorcism is a truly pastoral ministry, worthy of their engagement, and will give them principles and best practices for helping their parishioners discern the presence and power of evil in their lives. It concludes with some of my personal recommendations for resources on spiritual warfare and discernment which will be helpful to any priest wishing to give people guidance and direction in these matters. The bibliography included at the end of this book will be a resource for information on exorcism and deliverance.

This book is essentially for priests, but it may be read with benefit by any lay person who is interested in spiritual warfare. It offers only one priest's point of view but has been written after fairly extensive consultation with other priests in the ministry and attempts to be as comprehensive as possible on the subject while keeping the text relatively short and readable. I have organized six of the seven chapters in a short question and answer format to facilitate the book's use as an ongoing reference source, and not just something that is read from cover-to-cover. The detailed Index and Table of Contents are given for this same purpose.

As in all things related to faith and morals, I submit my views on these matters to the final judgment of the Church's Magisterium and welcome any feedback and correction from priests, more capable than I, who are involved in this ministry. We can all benefit from further fraternal dialogue on these matters. It is my thesis that the devil's spiritual warfare on our flocks will intensify as the years proceed and that all Christians, but especially priests, will have no choice but to engage more deeply in the spiritual battle for souls. There is no time like the present to begin the training.

A Note on Terminology

A final note on terminology: in this work I use the word "exorcism" to speak about something very particular, albeit complex. Exorcism is often confused in religious and secular parlance with "deliverance" (which is defined more distinctly in Chapter 5), but in this book, the term "exorcism" will always mean what the Church means by it: namely, a rite for expelling demons from persons who are possessed, authorized by a bishop and limited by canon law to the ministry of priests. Solemn exorcism has a long historical development and practice and a theological grounding in the Tradition of the Church. It should also be understood that this work only deals with "exorcism" as it applies to the Roman Catholic Church. There are other expressions and understandings of exorcism in the Eastern Church and Protestant churches which I do not attempt to illuminate in any systematic way in this work.

In this work, I am also very careful about the term possession which often gets used to describe demonic infestations of a lesser severity. Too-liberally labeling demonic activity as "possession" creates the unfortunate impression that the devil has more power over us than he actually has. The term "possession" will apply to those individuals whose bodies and faculties are judged by the Church to be fully or near-fully taken over by demonic forces and who lose most or all of their freedom to fight the evil one on their own. They need the help of the Church, and it is these afflicted individuals who are the proper subjects of the Church's ministry of solemn exorcism.

Finally, according to custom and general usage, I usually refer to the devil and his minions with masculine pronouns rather than to try to encumber the text with neutral pronouns which attempt to describe spiritual beings as genderless. Since Scripture and Tradition generally refer to demons with masculine pronouns, that will be sufficient enough reason to do the same in this work.

St. Michael, Patron of Exorcists

May St. Michael the Archangel, heaven's exorcist angel, defend us in our battles against "the principalities and powers, the rulers of this world of darkness," help us minister to the many souls who are immersed in the devil's darkness, and draw us into the reign of Light of the true Shepherd of our souls, Jesus Christ.

Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer

Human Life International

March 3, 2010

(The book's official website is www.exorcismbook.com.)

© Matt C. Abbott

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The views expressed by RenewAmerica columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of RenewAmerica or its affiliates.

(See RenewAmerica's publishing standards.)

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Matt C. Abbott

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

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Jesus is the Father's Heart

2008-10-17T10:29:00.002-04:00

Hold my hand Blessed Mother, for I need your gentle grip to balance my unsteady footsteps, my countenance ever warmed, reassured by your steadfast gaze. Whisper those incessant prayers of motherly ardor, seeped in the Heavenly fragrance of Eternity, now and at the hour of our death, Amen.
Carry your exhausted child Heavenly Father, a child who has many limitations that are without the firmament of strength possessed by the Author of souls. My small stature requires many footsteps to travel a slight distance, but one tread on Your part travels beyond time and into eternity.
Refresh me for a moment in the recesses of Eternity made to kiss me and console me if only for a fleeting moment. Carry me Paternal One for I am so weary, battle scarred, and laying in the wilderness of frightened helplessness as an abandoned child.
Tell me that this blood that sears through my veins, and drives me to love you like a fool is the fuel that seeks Eternity. My heart would seem to suffer less if only to be lanced by the denial of reality of such pain, but when my heart could not go on or cease to continue to beat so it would seem, it is gripped by something so deep within, and this fierce grip sustains the very beat of my human heart, though there is release of this nakedness of pain that takes my breath away and deadens my senses, for it sings of gentle praise and hidden gratitude for the One who suffered such torment and intimately knows our bleeding brokenness.
My mortal heart should explode from the containment of my chest because the Hand of Love grips it and will not give up on my soul. Such a hold of suffering strength only witnesses and testifies to the freedom of grief, maintaining the staccato lullaby of the Father’s Heartbeat. Heavenly Father as I lay my dazed head upon your chest of Truth I unleash my weary anguish, for I have grown ever so fatigued, yet as You boldly carry me I am comforted only by Your Paternal Heartbeat which is the only familial Love I know. You Begot Him knowing one day we would recognize You in Him, and Him in You. Jesus is the Sacred Heart of the Father’s Love and this is why He could show us the hidden path testifying of Your Way, for He is the Way. Jesus is the Heart of the Father, and all either one could exist to be is the substance of Pure Love.
Chase me light of my eyes. Pursue me love of my soul. Study the pain on my frail countenance and trace with Your delicate, gentle finger what you alone fashioned. For the stroke of your hand prunes, clarifying the image of love you formed. Let the wind of Your Spirit blow away the invaders to such privacy of Love. Let your gentle whisper blow back the veil of my hair, covering the pain my eyes dare not hide in your Presence. In the presence of others I wish to look away because only upon You can I gaze continuously without being ashamed to be seen by You in return. For Your Divine Gaze comforts, yet it never ceases to Love.
I want to love like You, Inferno of Generous Fire but I fail. I want to captivate souls only to draw them to the Father’s love, like You, but the enemy assails me night and day, and pummels my courage and chips away at the resolve of my will, and I get wounded Jesus. And I don't want to vacillate in this battle another day.

We adore you oh Christ,
And we praise you,
For by your Holy Cross,
You have redeemed the world.
Hail Mary full of Grace.

The Dance of the Yellow Butterfly

2008-09-20T23:27:00.008-04:00

At the moment of cognizance at the level of the interior, for one cannot even comprehend what is communicated to the soul at such a moment of deep understanding, yet the darkened gates of the mind are opened and something so Divine floods the senses and takes hold of one's being, and His presence just inundates the room. Time no longer exists for that moment and it is as if a seed of unknowing planted a time ago, explodes exponentially into frustration, and it about takes one's breath away. So the soul begins to weep, and weeps, and simply cannot contain the Presence flooding one's being for such a paused moment.

And to sit still, reposed in a chair as one experiences in the mind all of the torture and grace battling for many years past, and all becomes tranquil. God's love just drowns the being and one does not want to escape a minute of it, and even if one attempted to do so, one would not be able to, for one is utterly immobilized in the sheer, unexpected gift of such a moment. The shower of His Presence smashes the chains of the mind; the poor, tormented, and exhausted mind in bondage to such gripping lies, and light enters in and overcomes such darkness. During such a moment one simply knows more of why that which has transpired for a prior period, why such arduous suffering and insanity has happened, and what one ultimately knows at such a moment can never be put into words, but the Presence of Love is enough to dissolve the entire being.

To stare straight out the window, weeping in the spiritual sea of Love, and the eyes are captured by the fluttering dance of a single, yellow butterfly, and this only magnifies the torrent of tears the soul releases. The little, yellow butterflies have a way of dancing into the scenarios of the greatest periods of trial and testing, and it takes one back to the beginning of it all, to where grace perceptibly and profoundly enters into and becomes active in the dormancy of a soul.

The single, yellow butterfly continues to disappear and reappear, and it mirrors the delight of the heart, for the dance of the yellow butterfly reflects the delicate pattern of the Master's hands as He ever so gently strums the heartstrings of the soul, and it is a unified melody that the soul and God express without words as music of the heart, without even the slightest sound but the sweetest harmony of Love that transcends the natural and rings forth the chimes of Heaven.

One longs to ride on the tender wings of the yellow butterfly and to soar above it all, propelled by the powerful yet gentle flow of the wind's breath, the life giving breath of the God who spoke and breathed souls into being, and poured forth His Spirit into their mortal but Divinely fashioned beings.

Oh how the soul yearns with such thirst for His moments of invitation, entering into the secure and consoling warmth of the enveloping garment of the Divine Shepherd; and such moments arrive at a place and time of least expectation, yet such a pause in mortality imbues a subtle hint of the aroma of Eternity, the scent of the Father, and it always arrives just on time during an unrecognized period of much needed spiritual refreshment.

One could literally float out of the room saturated by such a deep repose when attempting to leave such a quiet place, because all one can sense is Him, and such Peace, the soul is unable to carry or to retain, for such secures the soul within the infinite receptacle of His Eternal Love. His sorrowful love brimming with Heavenly yet the most bittersweet passion of the pure agony of consummate Truth, which authors all pure love for He is Love.

Where does the road we travel lead to? The path we journey conquers an unsteady terrain, yet at times we may tread it barefoot and unprotected. The climb toward heaven hidden in the intricacies of mortal existence is not steady, straight, much less clearly illuminated or defined; and our gait tires for lack of foreseen direction. The road we travel possesses few signposts so it would seem, but occasionally the delight of the wandering butterfly captures the distant and clouded gaze of the human soul. We may desire to leave the miserable pathway to peace once and for all, as if our suffering would instantly cease or abate, and hide behind the aimless wanderings of the little yellow butterfly.

The yellow butterfly delights in her unknown journey, and she is tickled merely to be dancing in flight. The tender creature of gold flutters, hinting of God's merciful luminosity, strums the hidden heartstrings of the powerful wind, the hidden yet efficacious impetus putting her to flight. The yellow butterfly fascinates because she soars effortlessly, as if without any weighted burden of being, and merely soars through the endless freedom of the skies with the transparency of mystical radiance, and she delicately endeavors oblivious to need for fierce direction, yet she soars evermore delighted due to a seeming nothingness of purpose other than to dance, to perform impromptu for the concerned, gentle eyes of Heaven.

Oh sweet precious butterfly of delicate gold, one should be so fascinated by your tender wings alone, paper thin, finely woven with the majesty of gossamer silk, and stroking the whispers of the clouds. The oscillation of the butterfly's tender wings reminds one of the cascading tears of Christ on the Cross, imperceptible perhaps invisible to the naked eye but powerful enough to elevate one to the heights and completion of the beatific vision.

The dance of the little yellow butterfly is the ultimate calling of a soul to God.

We adore you,

oh Christ,

and we praise You,

for by Your Holy Cross,

you have redeemed the world.

Pax Christi.

-Amy

The Diamond of the Interior Castle of a Human Soul are a Girl's Best Friend

2008-07-25T20:22:00.002-04:00

A precious soul sent me the above photograph with the respective quote underneath, and it would seem such a statement conveys a rather provocative yet profound message. The provocation arises from the highly recognizable image of a cultural icon, a unique beauty, an infamous woman who died an even more notorious death. The profundity evolves from the simplicity of paradoxical words that resemble gospel flavor and content, assertions revealed by One even more alluring in His historical popularity and controversial notoriety Most of the orthodox crew would be shocked perhaps scandalized at an attempt to parallel the words of a siren with the words of Our Master Jesus. Yet a siren makes a loud sound, whether it be literally or allegorically, but its goal is to get our attention particularly when danger impends. To be separated from God for eternity would constitute a glaring peril. As long as the message screams loud and clear, is the substance of the messenger even relevant? Fierce courage needs to replace cowardice and boldness of Spirit must precipitate prayer of intercession, for than the cries of God's children penetrate the heavens and His miraculous work begins to be revealed. Quit whining about the sins and evils of the world and do something about it! Peace

Hidden in the Garden

2008-06-11T12:07:00.000-04:00

Gazing into the garden. Glimpsing into surreality of a suffering that very few remotely identify with, much less surrender to the burden of, yet we maintain a supernatural inheritance that rivets the random gaze of a soul. A soul predestined by higher election finds itself preoccupied with a fate that no wise or learned person would ever dare to take on much less have the courage to endeavor. It results simply from a fateful choice, a willingness to embrace the full implication of resignation to the effects of water baptism. A ceremony seeming to be of rite and circumstance alone becomes the gateway from eternal death to eternal life. Confirmation merely seals the deal of what was indelibly etched into the bosom of a lanced Christ expiated and expired on the cross. The markings upon the heart of Christ reveal alone the love of God for man, the mortal soul, wonderfully and fearfully made and fashioned in His image and likeness. No more and no less but a pure immolation of love on the part of He who defines and exists as the true substance of Love.
Look to his Holy countenance as he stares heavenward in the garden of his true agony, and one cannot tell whether His gaze is so firmly fixed upon Him who loves His Son, or perhaps the light is the eye of the Father merely connecting with and adoring His one and only begotten. This homeostatic fixation of adoring love is only overshadowed or obscured by a hidden trust in the midst of unjust and unadulterated suffering, and suffering contracted by God’s precious blood for man’s eternal salvation. To gaze into the garden is to peruse an inexplicable mystery fashioned by Graces’ timeless nature, but only invites more agony into the soul of the human person brave enough to peruse grace hidden by the graphic violent nature we know as sin. Sin is indeed graphic and violent, and should never be underestimated in its eternal damnation that leads many to the pit of nothingness, a vacuum of loveless ness that never ceases in its torment.
To gaze into the garden from the perspective of a creature is poor in contrast to the essence of redemption Himself, revealed weakened, broken, devastated by a bloody deluge, that only He could create.

2008-05-27T23:11:00.001-04:00

I am desperate for You
Oh Most Holy One.
I am desperate for You, Most Adorable Face
of gentleness and compassion.
I am so hungry for You,
for my soul is famished from despair
and it only fires and aggrandizes my appetite
for Heavenly nourishment.
I thirst for You,
for my soul is parched,
dried up in this worldly battlefield
and desert of nothingness.
My spirit is infected throughout
with many abscessed slivers
of sin and suffering impaled within.
And the soul is besides itself,
and no intellectual thought,
mental consolation,
nor emotional delight
serve any affect or purpose of alleviation,
for the spirit collapses under the burden it carries,
and the heaviness within imposes upon the body and the will
seemingly from without.
And what is truly mine Oh Lord?
Am I truly so pathetic, weak willed, and utterly dejected?
Is this the summation and conclusion of my utter corruption?
And what is of the world, which I am to wear as a loose garment,
but attires me with the restraint of a straight jacket.
And the smell of sin's decay and evil's predominance,
in the world I linger in, suffocates my senses to no end
and literally takes the breathe away from the heartbeat of my soul.
I need your Mighty Wind of Spirit to resuscitate my being,
for I feel I could not survive another day.
Whisper into my ear,
Spirit's breathe, and remove my deafness to hope.
Place the butterfly kiss of the Divine Wind's flutter
upon the tear stained cheek of my countenance,
and restore the Heavenly glow that emanates Eternal Witness.
By the Finger of God
remove the scales from my eyes, discolored and cemented shut
by the recognition of a darkened reality,
too painful to observe another moment.
Restore the Heavenly Light of the body
to reveal itself through the lamp of my eye.
Finger of God heal my sight and raise it up
to the Vision of You Alone, to see only with the vision of Faith.
Oh Baptism of Fire,
Baptism of Blood,
eternal life giving flow of Goodness,
stir the rivers within as to flow from the Heartbeat of Jesus,
and with a single moment of God's Breath,
blow the stagnation into a torrential heat as to heal my entire being
by the Power of Your Touch.
Hand of Jesus be forever upon me.
And touch my tongue,
with the power to taste Divine Presence,
through Eucharistic Feast, and
enable me to savor the Heavenly Delights,
sometimes to bitter to ingest but delicate Honeycomb
to the appetite of the soul.
And through this Eucharistic reception,
restore my voice,
giving me a courageous voice,
to proclaim even if without words the gentle communication,
infused by Divine dialogue of faintest whisper,
the truth of Love.
For such Divine Language whispers deep within,
palpitates the heart to no end,
and all one is left to contemplate
is such Heavenly communications,
elevating the depravity within,
carrying our brokenness to the heights
of the Most High,
where only Love can linger
and nothing can trespass.

When Someone Sends You A 'Sting.' Act In God And Don't Let The Venom Penetrate

2007-11-26T14:43:00.000-05:00

Brothers and Sisters, I found this wonderful little but insightful article on http://www.spiritdaily.com/.

Check it out.

How many times in your life has someone stung you? How often have you felt a sting? Do you sting others?
Most importantly: when you're stung, what does it tell you?
All of us struggle in a world of such "bites." These days, it seems like many are on a mission to sting whomever they can! And there's never a good reason to do so. Correct, yes; even rebuke: in many cases, we're call to do that, especially with our children.
But that's not a "sting." A sting has a particular feel to it. There is venom in it. It is a negative comment (or action) without love. Instead, there is some kind of intensely negative emotion behind it -- even dislike, envy, or hatred. Who can stand before jealousy? Venom indicates darkness because it comes from within the spirit.
Ephesians calls them the "fiery darts" (of the enemy). Elsewhere in the Bible, we may see comparison to thorn bushes, or scorpions.
There is that sudden e-mail that sends you reeling -- tipped with poison. There is that phone call, stealth. There is a letter -- a "poison-pen" note -- or a remark to your face that digs quickly and sharply and sometimes in a lasting way into your spirit.
That tells us that we may have put ourselves in a spot that has made us vulnerable. Are there spots in your spirit that are not protected? Are we doing the same to others? Are there places where we need better armor?
They are good questions to ask the Holy Spirit.
Many are those who justify the negativity they lay on others by telling themselves that they are doing so to correct someone.
Forget it.
Venom does not correct. It infects. It poisons. In fact, in the old days, venom was a synonym for poison!
You know how it is: suddenly you hear from someone and it throws you for a loop. It immediately unsettles you. It may even ruin your day. There is a "buzz" of negative energy.
You certainly don't want to do that. What does it tell us about those who do such?
What animals deliver venom?
We think of fire ants. Anyone in the South knows how they feel! A little bite from a tiny creature causes a huge swelling. It burns like a coal from the netherworld. Then there are toads: some of these are poisonous, as are ocean creatures like the jellyfish, which come at us in a way that is nearly invisible, or sting rays that float just below our view.
There are venomous spiders, who catch us in their webs. There are the snakes that lie in wait.
Do we want to associate with any of those animals?
Yet when someone delivers words or actions that sting they are doing just that: imitating a serpent. There are ways of speaking and advising others without delivering venom, and there are also ways of preventing or lessening the bite when the sting is directed at us.
How do we do that?
We have spoken before about the fact that we should not "drink of the poison": The devil is constantly trying to send us venom. He tries to provoke us. He wants us to respond, and especially to respond in kind with our own venom. This is a trap and if we avoid it -- if we don't drink of the venom -- the "sting" loses its effect. It may burn for a while, it may itch in a way that is intense, there may be temporary swelling, but such will not last unless we respond to it, unless we let it engage us, unless we focus on it and let poison build within us.
Another way of saying it: don't breathe in evil. We breathe in evil when we respond in kind.
Doesn't it take inhaling to talk back to someone?
That inhalation is from the air, the atmosphere, of aridity (where scorpions live), of darkness.
Cast it out immediately. "Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you," promises Luke 10:19.
"And you, son of man, neither fear them nor fear their words, though thistles and thorns are with you and you sit on scorpions; neither fear their words nor be dismayed at their presence," added Ezekiel (2:6).
Is there someone in your family who is constantly stinging you? Someone at work? At church?
Let it go. Forgive right away. These are the antidotes: Don't respond to it. Turn the other cheek.
For an arrow without cause is bent like a boomerang. Just duck and it will return to the sender.
When bit by a fire ant, one applies white vinegar, ammonia, and bleach in rapid succession. This can completely neutralize the bite.
But it must be done immediately.
And when we are stung, we must immediately forget about retaliation, immediately put the insult out of our thoughts, and send instead love and forgiveness, totally. Immediately. Do that and the venom won't spread through your body, through your thoughts, through your being.
There you have it: a recipe for never feeling the sting again.
[resources: The God of Miracles]
10/26/07
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An Introduction to Inner Healing by Fr. Robert de Grandis, a dynamic little booklet focused on a long prayer to heal hidden corners of the soul -- a prayer that walks us through the years of our lives of and asks for our deliverance from hurts, anxiety, negativity, confusion, anger pride, and many other things! CLICK HERE

We forge ahead.

2007-09-30T01:02:00.000-04:00

This darkness is different.
Your mind is not thoughtfully racing,
for the intellect prefers no particular nor habitual thought.
Nothing plagues the mind at all.
No dread.
No torment.
No repetitious wandering ever past torments.
Just stillness so to speak.
All one hears is quiet.
The absence of cohesive and directed thought altogether.

What happened to yesterday?
All of the cumulative years of pleasant memories and time's integral lessons
just vanish and disappear by the vehicle of an inaudible whisper.

One feels so bereft.
It is beyond the sensation of personal denial or deprivation.
It is an emptiness that does not despair.
It is a depression that is not sad nor gives up on the notion or virtue of hope.
It is a darkened emptiness one arises to in the renewal of once again another morning.
The dark void is aware of the passage of time and all of the substantially good occasions comprising the mandate of one's existence.
Poof.
It becomes dust in the wind.
Blown away by the unexpected onset of dark emptiness.

No emotional pain exists in this void, for emotion is irrelevant and non existent.

Where did time go?
Where did the jubilation of life disappear to?
When did the vacancy of enlightenment become preferable, comfortable, and ultimately desirable?

Where is HE?
My beloved.
I go to mass because I long for Him.
But I do not find Him perceptibly and intimately.
I know He is there yet He hides from me.

I feel dullness.
Emptiness of what was once a conception of fulfillment and satiation.
Where is the joy?
It is only mysteriously cloaked in this dark nothingness,
the only vehicle that avails true but imperceptible peace.

I feel still.
Quiet.
No fear.
No anxiety.
No panic.
No trepidation.
No palpable pain of woundedness.
No desire for anything that most would embrace as good.

The culture has lost Him.
They have willfully rejected Him.
The majority embrace the lie.
That is how overshadowing and preeminent the deception is.
How sad that so many shall be lost.

What do we do?
Pray.
Thank Him for His benevolence.
His mercy.
His justice.
His love.
His mother.
Our Mary.

We are nothing.
Miserable and impotent creatures.
We are a joke.
For we think ourselves to be wise in our own estimation.
And the devil laughs.
For pride blinds us severely.
We do not even know we are truly blind,
or that pride has us in darkness,
cut off from the light of Him.

Do you have a home?
Do you have gainful employment?
Do you have money in the bank?
Do you drive a car?
Do you have decent clothes to wear?
Do you have your health?
Do you have healthy children?

What is your loss?
A broken friendship?
A beloved spouse abandoned you?
A lonely night awaits you day after day?
You question the loyalty of your friends?
You suspect some hidden but valuable meaning is missing or escapes the grind of your life?

Your right.

Most will never know the true weight of the cross.

What happened to the days when the sky was always blue?
The curls of innocence and youth were always blond and tender with curl.
I remember the day you were born.
Fresh and new and smelling so pure.

You spit Gerber squash in my face.
You had 5 cute little stuffed kitties.
Clifford the big red dog was your favorite.
Chuckie Cheese was the boring but regular hangout.
I remember sweet little tears.
I remember the precious but delicate hugs.
I remember the innocent but golden prayers.

Time stands still but for a moment of painful and appreciative reflection.
I do not always pro actively reminisce over days of yesterday.
But I bear the scars.
The burden of a mother's love.
The only love that heals and gains freedom for the captive.
The original warrior who birthed Christ.
Remember Winnie the Pooh?
The pink fur coat?
The rocking horse?
The sweet lips that kiss and say I love you Mommy.
Mommy loves you.
For I have earned that honor.
For the Son of God gave it to me.

Evil can creep in.
Attempting to sever our eternal bond.
But it will not prevail.
Those who misuse their free will answer for it in the end.
Just as we do.
But He loves us.
And I love you.
Peace.

Charlotte Catholics check this out!

2007-09-28T13:11:00.000-04:00

Greetings friends! Every so often I discover an interesting article online and usually by accident. One of my greatest sources of grief concerning the current climate of the Roman Catholic Church is the presence of any practice that remotely resembles what I term New Age Garbage. New age spirituality and its respective practices is nothing but satanic trash that invites demons into the lives of willful and/or unsuspecting believers. Lack of spiritual discernment and awareness on the part of the clergy and the laity, in addition to a general deficiency in the area of authentic catechesis and adult education, seems to be responsible for the inadequate spiritual condition of the community at large. If we as members of a church community fail to frequent the sacraments and to pray, particularly in the form of Eucharistic adoration and the daily rosary, we make ourselves vulnerable and prey to the deception of the rank fodder constituting demonic spirituality under the guise of new age. Centering prayer? New age. Enneagram method? New age. Twelve step programs? Yes ,believe it or not, new age. Disagree with me all you want, but two pontifical councils in Rome devised a document clearly underscoring and clarifying the substance of new age methodology. Any individual can bury their head in the sand in the name of charismatic manifestation of the Holy Spirit but simultaneously be deceived by the fruits of demonic counterfeits. For example, have you ever met individuals who claim to possess the healing charism but seek certification in the satanic counterfeit of healing arts called reiki? Centering prayer has typically been aligned with contemplative prayer methods, as if the two practices are one and the same, but of course that is a lie and once again you see a demonic alternative paralleled with a Divine gift. No wonder so many persons in modern catholic culture are connoisseurs of prescription meds and modern mental health membership. You conjure up spirits or demons from Lucifer's kingdom via forbidden esoteric and occult practices whether by ignorance or deliberation, and you wonder why your become severely depressed or begin to hear voices. Exposure to the occult whether it be direct or indirect will inevitably lead to mental instability. Let us keep our Bride of Christ, Holy Mother Church, pure and spotless and keeps this counterfeit garbage out of our parishes. Let us band together and tell satan to go home, or go to hell, for that is where he truly belongs.
Peace.

Check out these links.

http://www.vatican.va.roman_curia/pontificalcouncils/interelg/documents/rc_pc_interelg_doc_20030203_new-age_en.html

http://www.dailycatholic.org/issue/2002Apr/apr16btf.htm

http://www.crisismagazine.com/november2003/hoopes.htm

Do we really love Him?

2007-08-14T11:08:00.000-04:00

Greetings in the Lord brothers and sisters! It is amazing to see the summer arrive at its consummation and I have yet to dip my foot into a chlorinated pool much less bathe in the salty warm waters of the Carolina coast. I am going almost two years strong without maintaining the youthful glow of basking in the summer sun, but I experimented with a fake tanning product available by Jergens and by golly it actually masquerades as the real thing sans the cancer potential. Ahhh, and most certainly most parents are ready for a breather as their progeny begin another school year. Keep in mind Christmas is lurking around the corner. Gulp, yes I said the C word. I began a new job at the beginning of summer and like anything else work can become all consuming as time slips by quickly ending another season of weather as a new experience in life begins. I am momentarily resuming a prior occupation, the lingerie business, as I await patiently the inception of a new career hiding for my arrival in an unknown future. I informed the Lord during our last private consultation that if I must do retail, it is mandatory that I only contend with pretty lingerie. I deal with female bodies all day long so it makes my burden bearable. It is simply refreshing to my by the book and controlling personality that during unexpected moments of grace, I can do something so mundane and meaningless such as taking the trash out to fulfill a responsibility while stealing a quiet minute, and BOOM there He is. I dispose of the refuse and perch on the dilapidated wooden bench, just to regroup, and the atmosphere becomes categorically transfigured and elevated. Just like that He arrives unexpectedly and the world as I know it melts away and true spiritual ecstasy ensues. Oh, how I love Him because our God is such a GOOD God. Jesus is simply the most exciting person I have ever known and He indeed makes all things new for His beloved children. The enthralling reality for me is the endless possibilities in the ordinary life when we attempt to live a christocentric existence. Yes folks I am indeed back in the bra and panty business and after it all began once again for me I found time to see Him in adoration. Truthfully all I could do was cry. Whiny me, oh Lord my life is so meaningless, is this what I was created for, women's underwear? Oh the drama of unchecked grief. Yet I had occasion to meet a woman who proclaimed working with foundations is important for after all women are the foundation of creation and thus the world. Her analogy intrigued me and since I have to earn a living anyway, I did appreciate her input for it revealed a Marian perspective. but I have a fabulous job and I structure with my personal input and efforts the foundational existence of humanity. How about that for a calling?
The business of daily life can be extremely distracting and a sufficient preoccupation dimming the light in our spiritual vision, but all the more reason why He is so awesome for His benevolent mindfulness of us never escapes the soul of one betrothed to the Bridegroom of Divinity. So once again the drudgery of ordinary, grinding existence when infused by the Divine Breathe of the Holy Spirit becomes a fascinating journey renewed with eternal possibilities, and only then does the real joy of human existence become compelling and life's simple but practical duties become privileged opportunities to grow in Grace and to serve Him unceasingly. Oh how I used to unknowingly mourn the days when I had the time and ability to attend daily Mass and to pray for hours, and to engage in a variety of seeming holy endeavors, and of course God would just sit back and giggle at my scrupulous but sincere attempts at seeking Him, spending time with Him, and doing for Him. And then the engine of the human psyche, the soul, our creatureliness runs out of gas and we just do not comprehend why the struggle ensues, the darkness envelops, and the proverbial rug of comfort gets violently yanked out from under our tentatively steady feet, and the existence of Job's testimony becomes our own personal hell.

The lesson is this. We serve God out of our comfort zone unknowingly because His zone of discipleship involves the Cross. Fulton Sheen defined a term called staurosphobia, or "fear of the Cross." Honestly I do not think too many of us Catholics fear the Cross, we conveniently want absolutely nothing to do with it whatsoever for it requires the crucible of the humiliation of human pride, particularly spiritual pride under the guise of orthodoxy and hiding one's self in innumerable but honorable spiritual activities, but in the end we truly only seek a Divine or catholic illusion of sanctity but we are absolutely not going to tread beyond that self-defined boundary of comfort. A rationalistic and scientific society requires a method, a guaranteed cause and effect equation that demands a cemented outcome of personal intent, ultimately blinded by the fuel of self-interest, and self concern is an empty resource that will utterly fail to take you the distance leading to God. For instance, have you ever witnessed the poker hand of prayer cards technique for acquiring Divine assistance. Sometimes the poker players linger after mass or set up game in the perpetual adoration chapel. The prayer card deck requisite for spiritual poker involves a minimum of 20 but can include in excess of 50 cards. Invoke your respective saint and just keep going through the hand, one after the other, and watch the methodology unfold as the intense desperation rises. It almost mirrors a gambling addiction. Oh Lord just one more card, just one more card please. Eucharistic Jesus just winks from His hiding place in the monstrance or tabernacle but waits patiently nonetheless. He whispers so quietly and imperceptibly at times one just misses the personal invitation to gaze upon and to elevate one's attention upon Divine substantial presence. It is not about the card game folks.

Consider the charismatic endeavor or attempt, for if you haven't witnessed such a demonstration and your wellspring of joy has run dry or is as arid as baked mud, the clucker venue will titillate you for a least one moment and promises at least one or two outbursts of unrestrained laughter. And what in heaven's name does the word charismatic actually mean to an inquiring or should I say unprepared and unsuspecting mind? In terms of sound definition according the Catholic Encyclopedia:

The Greek term charisma denotes any good gift that flows from God's benevolent love (charis) unto man; any Divine grace or favour, ranging from redemption and life eternal to comfort in communing with brethren in the Faith (Romans 5:15, 16; 6:23; 11:29). The term has, however, a narrower meaning: the spiritual graces and qualifications granted to every Christian to perform his task in the Church: "Every one hath his proper gift [charisma] from God; one after this manner, and another after that" (1 Corinthians 7:7 etc.). Lastly, in its narrowest sense, charisma is the theological term for denoting extraordinary graces given to individual Christians for the good of others. These, or most of these, are enumerated by St. Paul (1 Corinthians 12:4, 9, 28, 30, 31), and form the subject-matter of the present article. They are: "The word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, the grace of healing, the working of miracles, prophecy, the discerning of spirits, diverse kinds of tongues, interpretation of speeches" (1 Corinthians 12:8-10). To these are added the charismata of apostles, prophets, doctors, helps, governments (ibid., 28). "

The aforementioned description is a responsible explanation of what constitutes authentic charismata, however in terms of parish activity and practiced reality a completely different manifestation of commentary typically occurs. The human experience predictably brings God down to our finite scope of supposed spiritual but inherent psychological behavior, and we unwittingly but once again methodologically attempt to conjure up God's holy presence with a maraca. And you are probably wondering or at least curious about the clucker venue I mentioned. Clucker is my personal pet word for any sound or posturing that resembles a chicken. If you have ever visited a barnyard you are reasonably aware that chickens somewhat roam haphazardly, strutting sometimes spasmodically up and down, and squawk or bawk intermittently yet incessantly, and their personal dialogue possesses no cohesive rhyme or reason of understood communication. The charismatic display of what is legitimately coined glossolalia or speaking in tongues, for this is a genuine gift of the Holy Spirit, merely becomes reduced to the appearance of chicken clucking. God forbid I would have ever rolled off my chair of witnessing formulated prayer group experience and dropped my Bible on the tile floor, for only then would a true miracle suffice to stand me up and to deliver me from hidden, unexpressed hysteria. I tell people all the time if you need a good laugh go to church, for the unfolding of the insanity of all human drama marked as spiritual pursuit becomes apparent for all to see if you are just willing to show up and await the entertainment

In all seriousness I absolutely do not go to church to be amused for sanctification is Divine and serious matter, but the fringe benefit of seeking grace is the unanticipated but repeated inevitable exposure to the spiritual and psychological insanity plaguing the human race and the culture at large. Fulton Sheen once remarked, " to conclude that one mass is charismatic while another mass is not, is to say the soul is separate from the body." We human beings are so ridiculous at times in our methodology and attempts at genuine spiritual experience however we are also fortunate to have such an understanding and patient heavenly Father. Yes, I do believe He does indeed smile down upon us everyday at the mortal silliness of it all, and I am emphatically convinced Jesus maintains a profound sense of humor at times. The human being is the most fascinating creature I suppose that Our good Father ever created.
My question for you is this, and it will undoubtedly lead to our next discussion are you "your brother's keeper?" We live our lives thinking we are so darn Holy but are we really willing to step up to the plate? Are you truly willing to lay down your life for a brother or sister? Are you willing to bear the burden of sacrificial love and to give up your delusional version of self holiness but inherently selfish desire in exchange for that greater good, which ultimately benefits the good of your brother? I am ever so tired of putting others first and it has truly cost me everything in the temporal sense. Yet, God has informed me that if I am to be reserved, and set apart for something magnificent, I cannot afford to deny Him His Holy opinion, and thus Divine involvement in my personal agenda. No, we must not deny Him. The Sacred Image of Divine Mercy desires to permeate the human being and endeavor, and we must contend with those Holy Feet and Holy wounds, and He asks each and every one of us, am I enough for you? Do you trust Me? I do not claim to have it all reasoned and figured out, but yes Jesus, I feebly trust in you. The person of Divine Mercy, Jesus Christ, is the reason for our being and one could clearly weep every time when reflecting upon such holy notion, for the soles of those pierced feet speak to the broken soul, for they are the golden feet of intercession. Do you trust in Me? Yes, Lord I do because what choice do I have? I weep every time I look at those feet for they tread upon and serve as a perfect guide on the pathway of the Journey underscoring the grace He has availed those who seek Him, defined by His Cross. The suffering of the Most High God should never be in vain in our eyes.
We all have knowledge of God and can quote Holy Scripture like scientific geniuses, and we join the choir, attend mass, and hang out with all of the Holy correct persons and a engage in all the right activities in the eyes of the parish, but at the end of the day how much have we actually loved and cherished Him? How do we love Him? My consistent experience with Jesus is this, how can I love Him anymore? The ardor that this God avails us can pierce our heart and thus being, and consume the soul, and one literally loses the air of the breath of human inhalation. It does hit that strongly. He loves us that much, but the question is how much do you love HIM? Do not lip service Him and perform upon self-defined Christian, proselytizing platitudes, but just love Him. The nature of the Cross is to appreciate His sacrifice, and to ultimately self deny. Catholics are poor at this commitment to and endeavor of self-denial, because they want to live their lives as is, maintaining an ultimately selfish status quo, surviving by the avoidance of any resemblance of discomfort. Look at the examples of two modern day saints, Mother Angelica and Father John Corapi, and we will clearly see the significance of spiritual success. What is your choice for truth going to be today? Do the right thing and choose Him. Begin with turning off your television, aka the devil's mental rot box, and avoid the computer and cellular phone, and go to perpetual adoration. Do you eat food everyday? Do you spend a few hours gazing upon the television? Feed your soul and thus mind with some holy substance. No excuses suffice in the end for avoiding time with Eucharistic Jesus.
We adore you oh Christ and we praise you, for by Your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. Peace out girls and boys for I will be back.
Love you-
Amy

Mother of God Pray for Us

2007-05-17T02:35:00.000-04:00

Rosary—its power
Ben and his wife had the beautiful custom of praying the Rosary every night before retiring. Not long after she passed away, Ben stopped in to talk to his pastor about marrying again. The pastor suggested, “Aren’t you pretty old, Ben, to be thinking about marrying again?” To which Ben responded, “You are right father, but I need someone to answer the Rosary.” How devoted this couple must have been in their devotion to Mary. Today we celebrate Mother’s Day. May I wish all the mothers here, ‘A Very Happy Mother’s Day’. Also we celebrate today the 90th anniversary of Our Lady’s Apparition in Fatima. Mary was given to us from the cross as our Mother. Let us read John 19:26, 27. Also we find in the book of Isaiah that she has already been foretold. Let us take Is. 7:14.
Our Lady appeared in Fatima 6 times to three children: Jacinta and her two cousins Lucia and Francesco. She appeared beginning 13th May. But in August she appeared on the 19th since the communists put the children in jail. The final appearance was on October 13, which was a tremendous one. Seventy thousand people witnessed one of the greatest miracles of all time: the sun suddenly turned pale, emitted brilliant rays of multicolored light, spun three times on its axis and then, to the horror of the assembled multitude, “power-dived” dizzily towards earth. A terrified cry arose from the crowd as thousands fell to their knees thinking the end of the world was at hand.
You may recall the Apostolic Letter written by our late Holy Father John Paul, on the Rosary. He presents the Rosary, when prayed with meditation on its mysteries, as preparation for a more fruitful celebration and participation in the Sacrifice of the Mass. We have been saying the Rosary in our parish led by me before the Masses for many years. The Rosary prepares us for the celebration of the Holy Mass. It re-echoes the divine mysteries we celebrate at the Holy Mass. What we contemplate in the Mysteries of the Rosary is sacramentally present in the Divine Liturgy. Hence, there is power in praying the Rosary, and the Mysteries of Christ contemplated during the Rosary become ours. This is why the late Pope John Paul said repeatedly, “The Rosary is my favorite prayer.” The Sacrifice of the Mass is the favorite and most powerful prayer of the Parish Family. The Rosary should be the favorite prayer of our individual families—the domestic Church—the Church of the home.
Every time Our Blessed Mother appeared at Fatima she said, “Pray the Rosary.” We call her today on this 90th anniversary, “Our Lady of Fatima”, but that is not the name our Lady gave to herself. In fact, she said, “I am the Lady of the Rosary.” The power of the Rosary is seen in Our Lady’s words at Fatima on May 13, 1917: “Say the Rosary every day in order to obtain peace for the world and the end of the war.” All the apparitions took place on the 13th of every month, except in August when they took place on the 19th, since the children were caught and jailed by the communists.
On July 13, the three children proclaimed to the world, “Continue to say the Rosary every day in honor of Our Lady in order to obtain peace for the world and the end of the war, because only she can obtain it.” Today many Catholics are allergic to the Rosary. Evening time people are drawn to sports, entertainment, movies, gluttony and worldly pleasures and they have no time for the Rosary. This is why we are in big mess because the families today do not pray the Rosary daily. You may recall in the year 1917 World War I was raging. She also said war was a punishment for sins. She requested the children, “Pray, pray very much, and make sacrifices for sinners.” What is she actually saying? When we pray the Rosary and pray it properly we, as it were, empower Mary to have powerful intercession to her Son even unto ending a world war and bringing peace to the world.
The message of Fatima begins with the Holy Eucharist and ends with the Holy Eucharist. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass brings us the Real Presence of the body, the blood, soul and the divinity of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But the Mass is still more than that. This means that when we are at Mass, Jesus offers -- and He perpetuates here and now --the self-same Sacrifice of Himself, which He offered on Mt. Calvary on the first Good Friday. When we are at Mass, we are just as present at Jesus’ infinite act of Sacrifice of the Cross, as we would have been, had we stood with our Blessed Mother and St. John the Apostle at the foot of the Cross on Calvary.
The year before Our Blessed Mother appeared holding the Rosary, the Angel of the Holy Eucharist appeared: that was in1916. The Angel left the chalice and the Host suspended in mid-air and fell down in adoration of God in the Most Blessed Sacrament, with his head to the ground. The three children followed the Angel and did the same. And the Angel taught the three children a beautiful prayer: “My God, I believe, I adore, I hope, and I love You. I beg pardon of You, for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love You!” We too can recite this prayer whenever we pay a visit to the Blessed Sacrament.
At first, the children saw the Angel holding in his hands a chalice surmounted by a Host, from which some drops of blood were falling into the chalice. What does that tell us? The precious Blood of Jesus is in the Host as well as in the Chalice, yes. Jesus is whole and entire, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity under both consecrated forms, yes. But more! Jesus’ body is shedding His precious Blood in the same way as He did on Calvary. We are reminded at Fatima by the Host with its blood falling into the chalice that every Holy Sacrifice of the Mass perpetuates the Sacrifice of the Cross Jesus offered on Calvary. We could ask the question: from where did the Angel get the 3 Hosts? The answer is from the tabernacle of the parish church of St. Michael’s. The priest found three Hosts missing from the ciborium on the following day! Things were kept quite, because the communist government could jail the children. Perhaps most of us do not know that the three children of Fatima were given a vision of hell. And Our Blessed Mother taught them the following prayer which we say between each decade of the Rosary: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those who are most in need of Thy mercy.”
This is a great prayer taught by her. After this the children were always found in the church praying and fasting for the conversion of sinners before the Blessed Sacrament. Maria Rosa, the mother of Lucia, went all over the streets and homes looking for the children. It never came into her mind to suspect they might be in the church. That is where she found them several times. I have visited Fatima three times and said Masses in the apparition site. Once I was literally lifted up while saying mass. Fatima was a tremendous experience for me that recharged the spiritual batteries. It has been a life -changing event for me.
There were three secrets given to the children. One was the fall of Russia, if only the people would pray the Rosary and offer for the conversion of Russia. That happened. The second one was about World War II, which would come upon the world if people did not repent and change their lives. The third one is about the Pope’s tragedy (shot down) and that his life would be spared and also about the fall of the many priests, Bishops, and the faithful, if they did not pray and be faithful to the Catholic Faith. All these have happened and the falling away is still happening. We only know half of the third secret. The other half is not yet revealed by the Pope. The bullet which almost killed Pope John Paul was brought by the Pope to Fatima and he put it on the crown of our Lady of Fatima in gratitude for saving his life from the shot fired at him. May our Lady of Fatima intercede for us and inspire us!

-Homily of Father Hermanigild Jayachandra

6th Sunday of Easter

Jezebel, the Marian Counterfeit.

2007-05-16T03:50:00.000-04:00

Peace of the Lord be upon all brothers and sisters of Him. I am busy working and growing in Him which means blog time must be set aside. The lesson of balancing priorities and discipline can be tough at times and perhaps excruciatingly painful, but we must master our passionate disorders if we are ever to grow and to progress. Sometimes creating written communication can be like giving birth, exhausting and draining, and so we need moments to regroup and gain the stabilizing ground of His comfort. In moments of growth which indeed involves prayer, we are never really far from the cross, if we are genuinely seeking His will. I am currently creating some items concerning Marian intercession because it is good to focus on lighter moments of spiritual reality at times. Yet in my prayer time I will casually pick up a book, flipping through pages dog-eared years ago, and something captivates my attention. So I will not go too deep or intellectual for the moment but underscore certain basic insights provided by others over the years.

Consider this checklist: Red Flags
1) "I just want to be your friend." More than likely, people who say these things will have expectations that you will never be able to meet.

2) " I just want to help you get to where God has called you." In other words, "you cannot get to your destiny without me." Beware!

3) " There are no strings attached to my help. I just want to serve." However, you'll find lots of hidden strings.

4) "You can trust me. I will always support you." Such people will support you as long as you do what they say!

5) "You do not acknowledge my gifting." People like this are asking you for more authority in the church.

I am showing five points worth contemplating when faced with opposition or hardship as we tread down the narrow path, found in a very interesting book I acquired years ago, and this book is not for the fainthearted, arrogantly disbelieving, or self-deceived. If you frequent the confessional I suspect you will see an element of yourself at one time or another in your life, in this particular text. Gut level self-examination is rare and that is why so few ever go to confession because they have deluded themselves into believing a lie. The lie is we are not sinful and ,of course, not in need of reconciliation, yet we will hold our head's up high in the communion line and receive the Lord's body unworthily thinking we can fool Him and perhaps steal a little grace. The exact same posturing individuals will spread other's sins throughout church cliques and parishes. I will give this warning once, if an individual takes it upon himself to accuse a person of sin that is under the seal of confession, you are treading dangerous ground and you are operating in a spirit of Satan. No, you are not momentarily weak or gravely mistaken, temptingly cajoled by an isolated demon, you are in fact under the influence of a powerful, high ranking, but clearly fallen principality. This is a fact.

"Accusation's power is satanic. It sows fear in an individual's heart. It causes people to run. Satan is the accuser of the brethren(Revelation 12:10), as well as the father of lies. A spirit of accusation has no truthful rationale behind it. Therefore, it cannot be reasoned with. It can only be dealt with as the Holy Spirit enlightens those in leadership. As with Korah, there will always be something to camouflage the real issue, which is a spirit of lawlessness. Those who walk in an accusing spirit are actually agreeing with the doctrine of demons. Therefore, God will hold them accountable, no matter what situation they are trying to correct. This is why the apostle James says that wherever you find slander and accusation, there also exists every evil thing (James 3:16).
-Excerpted from the writings of John Paul Jackson

Accusation is closely interwoven with the grave sin of calumny. The lack of appropriate reverence and obedience to authority has manifested in this lawlessness in church communities. I gave up on most group activities years ago because they were dens of gossip and slander. It escalated to a point where I could not even sneak a quiet moment with the Lord during adoration without overhearing someone slandering the local priest. One daily mass frequenter whined in the sacristy for all to hear in passing, complaining that she was sick of hearing the Bishop talk about Mother Teresa all the time. To bemoan the example of a saint makes me wonder what daily mass avails such individuals.
I appreciate that we would all rather bang a tambourine and be entertained with the guise of charismatic praise at Mass. Personally, it is much easier to live in the delusion and listen to mariachi music or catholic rap, and deem it higher worship. I am waiting for the moment they start serving cocktails during sacred liturgy because people cannot seem to function without their flesh being entertained. We want to recreate 'Sister Act' grand standing, drawing attention to ourselves and away from the sacrifice of the Mass. Jesus doesn't need our applause for our feeble praise adds nothing to His glory, but He does desire our reverence, our obedience, and hitting the pavement on our knees in worship. And I believe obedience begins with the submission to authority. Pastoral authority, magisterial authority, doctrinal authority, and Papal authority. Embracing all elements of church teaching is fundamental to being a genuine Catholic and anything less is lack of true communion with Our church. To attack this authority is not to be under the direction of the Holy Spirit. So where is my chatter leading? I could give more examples but I have been around long enough, and seen enough over the years, to experience true exasperation at times but the bottom line is this ,Jezebel.
Her name is Jezebel and think of her as satan's girlfriend. Behind all lawlessness, accusation, calumny, gossip, slander, disobedience to and disrespect for all hierarchy of Church authority, and irreverence and the ultimate division it breeds, there she lurks. Her manifestation which is becoming so active and prevalent is a palpable smoke and bad stink lingering in our sacred places. This is why I revert to Mary, Blessed Mother, for I need her swift kick interceding for me in my journey.

"Individuals with a Jezebel spirit are skilled in getting their way. They may use strategies of flattery, persuasion, sexual seduction, slander, lying, accusation, intimidation, secrecy, persecution, framing another person for a wrong done, or generating emotional and/or spiritual dependency in someone... If a situation is not resolved to their satisfaction, Jezebel will malign, insinuate, badmouth, smear their target and plant libelous doubts in the minds of others. They will coyly violate disciplinary instructions, in an attempt to garner misguided sympathy and support. This tactic seems to satiate Jezebel's false sense of justice."
- Excerpted from the writings of John Paul Jackson

I think what fascinates me about the formation of creation by our Creator is the mere process and consequent offspring of the spoken word. God spoke and all that we see created including ourselves is the result of His Word. The same Word becomes incarnate and Jesus enters humanity. Words are mysteriously powerful for they create life and being. On the other hand, we can literally murder the human heart and contribute to the psychological and spiritual demise of others via the unrestrained utterances falling from a vapid tongue. Filthy and destroying words fall out of our mouths like drool at times, and it really only reveals in the end the disfigured and darkened condition of our soul. Words can kill. The same individuals who stake out holy houses and ingratiate themselves in every group imaginable, defiling one brother or sister after another, under the masquerade of Christian concern yet deeply intent on calumniating every and any unsuspecting victim, are much further away from Christ than the most violent drug addicts and prostitutes roaming the drudgery of the streets. The sad reality is all of the fallen away Catholics I have met over the years, denying themselves the grace of the sacraments, and it always is because some militant tongue spoke poison to them and the wounds were disastrous.

In the end we see the results of a deeply embedded spiritual wound misguiding and ultimately contaminating the healthy psychology of the human soul. These wounds become festering and open doors in our soul, affecting the human mind, and oftentimes avail the opportunity for deeply entrenched strongholds to manifest. And what is a mental stronghold? It is not a chemical reality or psychotic disturbance but a severe spiritual condition that can lead to our own demise and misfortune.

" A stronghold is an area of the mind where darkness reigns. It is a system of logic, rooted in a lie, that an individual has come to accept. This system of thought is formed behind and habitual response, addiction, fixation, compulsion, obsession, and/or inordinate fear. As such, a stronghold is any though pattern alien to the Word of God. it serves as a mental or emotional " command post " to which the enemy has access. This mental or emotional word or thought system is designed to create misinformation and thereby affect and individual's decision-making ability. Consequently, a stronghold keeps a person from embracing true Christ likeness."

-excerpted from the writings of John Paul Jackson

Read the old testament and learn the lessons of the spiritual castration of God's given and appointed authority, ministerial or spiritual or even prophetic, and look at the fate of one who is so arrogant to rise above it. We need prayer, penance, and sacrifice so desperately today. The challenge is to seek the avenues of prayer that avail us so much grace because without such we are impotent and crippled in the warfare raging in our world today. I am so sick and tired of dealing with this one for her infection plagues too many to number, and it is a deadly spiritual poison to be avoided. Commit yourself to avoid those occasions or persons completely who operate in the fallen realm. If you belong to a study or prayer group and more time is wasted gossiping or calumniating, rather than praising the Lord and edifying His brethren, that is the evidence of instruction to evacuate quickly. Disengage from the persons and situations that attack and undermine any structure or assignment of true Church authority. Always pray and intercede but do not fall into the deceptive temptation toward unwarranted mercy for those who proactively reject God's commands and engage in unchecked and continuous evil. Most importantly never trust any person walking in such a spiritual condition lest you be caught in the line of fire.

The book I reference is called 'Unmasking the Jezebel Spirit,' by John Paul Jackson. I learned about such malevolent activity primarily from contending with so many individuals under its influence, but I found direction through a holy lay woman and a wise priest far more learned that anyone I hope to meet again. Pray. Peace of Him.

Has Fiddler been on Your Roof?

2007-04-24T12:35:00.000-04:00

Brothers and Sisters, I have excerpted the notion of 'Fiddler on the Roof' as I labeled it years ago in my journaling toward Him. My goal in my attempts at written communication is to connect with the suffering of the soul of the reader. Too many suffer in silence, in the isolation of experience, too often misunderstood by those who God ultimately ordained to have the resources of adequate and appropriate understanding and insight regarding such affliction, but the influences of the world impair and clog the sensitivities of the majority, and human nature becomes misguided. Remember there is always hope for the healing of the masses, prayerfully, and desolation recedes into the history of memory as consolation replaces the darkness with even greater intimacy with Our Lord. We must be steadfast and hold tightly to what we ultimately know to be true for He is always faithful.

10-March-2004 Thursday

Fiddler is on the roof, back on the roof again. I hear his footsteps more often than not at the end of the apartment by the loft, the highest point of the building. He prefers to posture himself at the highest pinnacle of any territory as if to exalt his stature which already has been ultimately defeated, permanently and forevermore.

I say 'Fiddler on the roof' because he is a musician on the move. He stomps loudly as he stalks and plays the dreary music of the dead. It is not the pleasant sound of harmony but the imperceptible blare of utter disharmonious mayhem. I only heard the macabre music upon one evening and I refer to it as music for I really do not know what else resembles the inaudible sound.

I ventured out into the kitchen to smoke a cigarette and the defiled euphony of the fallen one, travels across the narrow kitchen area, ushering in a dreadful intonation that manifests as tormenting noise of immaterial distraction to the soul. It evidences no acute and naturally perceptive sound but its haunting communication permeates the atmosphere. It possesses a hazy quality in terms of interior visual perception of soul sense experience impairing the lucidity of environment, yet this invisible construct of sound journeys as a smoky pilot conducting confusion and deception. So I left the room and headed toward my bedroom.

It was many successive nights of ongoing agony and mental torment. I finally asked God one evening about the footsteps of the one I deemed Fiddler. I inquired of Him as to whether or not something or someone was actually treading the rooftop spatially, or was the auditory faculty of my constitution being manipulated to impress upon my mind's reason of perception that someone was indeed walking? Evil spirits do not necessarily have to position themselves upon territory despite holding regional assignment, for they can assail and thus influence the receptivity and observation of ordinary human senses, creating an illusion of such commission readily in terms of preternatural depth perception. Rather than the event or manifestation of a deposit of malevolent entities throughout the recesses of the household in order to occasion various bizarre and aggravating phenomena, one fallen incorporeal being alone could conceivably enter or affix itself to the human organism, enabling it to harass its exterior perception creating not only an alteration of material reality, but the higher goal of such nefarious activity is to plague the human soul already weakened by deprivation of consolation with heightened suffering, meddling with the human interior faculties, which ultimately will boomerang or echo through, thus affect, exhibit, and emerge upon the natural five senses creating disturbance upon its intended sphere of influence. Either way the imagination is effected, emotion is affected creating lability with a final objective of flatness of despair, and the substance of the mind is ultimately tortured.

"It merely does not seek to terrify me, but to terrorize me. It has an agenda for my life, but so does He. The agenda of the Lord is what I must abandon myself to and as of right now, He is asking me gently to trust in Him alone."

One could potentially unravel daily in the dark yet drowning substance of immaterial reality but the Gentle Hand of the pruning Master provides the only pillow of calm from disturbance to rest the soul upon, and the intricate web of that which would seem only to ensnare is the temptation of sensory illusion, not hallucination of reality, but a deeper and grave illusion to the lie of mental rumination that God is not there, does not care, and has abandoned the soul. The mission of the adversary of salvation of God's chosen is to drive the person over the edge of indifference, and the exhausting process of critical harassment via ordinary means and natural circumstance, creates an inexhaustible but fierce perseverance of will, ordering desire, and elevating the soul toward Hope's unseen and unrealized promises of Eternity. The edge of reason propelling us toward Truth does not exist within the circumstance of experience alone, but within the orchestra of the realms of the preternatural, natural, and supranatural, but remains hidden within the natural parameters of the material existence of the life of the Divinely fashioned, mortal creature.

The enemy of God's beloved children exists as a pervasive spirit of eternal death for it breathes destruction in order to sustain itself and to foster and to further its hideous purpose. The more he exhales chaos the more he inhales strength. The more he exudes temptation, the more he imbibes the fortifying aroma ubiquitous to the decayed aftermath of mortal sin, inebriating himself with the fruit of his gluttonous malefaction.

"Jesus also calls the demon "murderer from the beginning", "father of lies". He is the sophisticated seducer of man's moral balance. He is the evil and cunning charmer who knows how to infiltrate everyone's individual psychology. He finds the open door and comes in: through our senses our imagination, and our concupiscence- what today we call fomite. Again, through utopian logic, disordered social contacts, bad friends, and bad worldly ideas, [ he slips ] into our actions and introduces deviations that are all the more deadly because they appear to conform to the physical or psychological and instinctive structure of our person: this is why temptation is so seductive. These structures run deep and influence our personality. He takes advantage of our own fabric, our make up, to enter our psychology subtly."

- Fr. Gabriele Amorth, chief exorcist of Rome.

Death stalks humanity but Grace took up the Cross and therein lies the mystery of suffering.

The irony of human logic and quantifying reason is its limited capacity in terms of the notion that a sickened and depraved mind does not respond to reason. The sick mind does not respond to reason. So why do we psychoanalyze, guaranteeing paralysis by analysis sequentially and conclusively, and expect the sick mind to heal, stabilize, and prosper. We analyze but do not listen intently in cooperation with the Spirit of counsel, we persist in the pursuit of discovering yet hidden answers but are blind to the evidence that stares us directly in the eye because we lack the gift of discernment, and most importantly we converse, banter, and postulate but we refuse to pray and to hear the Voice of the One who holds all Wisdom in the infinite confines of mystery.

"So general has the denial of sin been, that it has not been theologians who have resurrected the idea, but psychiatrists. Karl Menninger, of the Menninger Psychiatric Institute of Kansas has published a book entitled Whatever Became of Sin. He shows the slow devolution of the concept of sin. According to him, the moralists stopped preaching about sin because everything was love; then the jurists picked the theme, and sin under the law became crime. Then the psychiatrists took it up from the legalists, and then sin became a symptom or a complex. Some rather tragic effects have resulted from this denial of sin. First of all, we have many complexes that are produced by sin, and we are blind to the true cause, which is guilt."

- The late Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

It needs to be conjectured at least deeply considered that the proliferation of mental disturbance, particularly the epidemic of depression, is a formidable offspring of the denial of sin, whether it be our personal reactive and proactive sin, or the sins committed against us by others, but without confessional reconciliation and absolution, and a spirit disposed to forgive all offenses, where else will one find genuine hope for the cure. Human depression is real and its consequences lead many to death or engineer deadly acts unfortunately and sorrowfully, but a pill to alter the labor of unhappy mood is not the panacea fundamentally, but serves as a means to and end and a momentary alleviation of symptom but is clearly not a cure. The inherent and elementary metaphysical nature of human psychology stands as a frustration to the intellect's prideful and selfish desire to penetrate the substance of Divine and sovereign ownership of enigma. We are called to trust and to love without expectation of the full answer to human suffering. The church militant holds the key intermittently of temporal remedy in Her abidingness, gravitating towards the fulfilment of eternal cure but we fail to use it time and time again. Only sacrificial love and genuine Christ like compassion reveal prayer of intercession and the spiritual work of Divine Mercy.

The catholicon lies in the mystery of the Cross and may only be obtained for some when they finally step beyond the divide between God and mankind, and gain entrance into the beatific vision. In the mean time, for those souls suffering the mental fruits of obscure mystical affliction, the courage of Veronica, the veil of her soul impressed upon by Divine bloody countenance, symbolizes the gauze of grace which sustains us, emblazons us, swaddling us with the Heavenly mantle of the Mystical Rose, securing maternally our brokenness to the breast of her beloved Son. He who is the Heart of the Father. Praise be to Jesus Christ. Pray for the Shepherds of the flock of the brethren, that when God places a tormented soul before their pastoral obligation, that such priestly representatives would listen but not deny, embrace but not turn away, and pray but not put off. So many lives should be saved!

The Ten Commandments for the Scrupulous

2007-04-23T16:52:00.000-04:00

A newly befriended acquaintance sent me this interesting yet thought provoking link. http://mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupulosity.htm It helps to have such insights and guidelines at times when we are examining our own consciences. Remember brothers and sisters we should regularly and often search the recesses of our beings for evidence of an exasperating fallen nature that necessitates frequent use of the sacrament of penance. The Holy Spirit will gently but revealingly guide us delicately but specifically in our own personal examination of self. Keep in mind that only the accuser of the brethren, satan, accuses persons whether it be directly upon the imaginations, and he does this violently at times, or via other persons who act as agents of the adversary and take it upon themselves to accuse others of sin. The effects of unchecked and unconfessed pride obsess and preoccupy our minds, focusing primarily on the sins of others even out of a self-serving, feigned concern that is merely the illusion of charity but false no less. Humility dictates that our personal sin alone is tantamount enough, a major dunghill of disfigurement that needs deconstruction and severe eradication, and therefore we do not have the time to look at others sins but only our own, with any degree of prolonged examination.

Actions speak so loudly that the amplification of such drowns out even the verbosity of inspired and holy yet merely human conversation. Lead by example. If you want to help another human being afflicted by or enslaved in their sin, pray with out ceasing and seek God's ocean of Divine Mercy. Peace out!

The Cyclothymic tension between Heaven and Hell

2007-04-18T13:38:00.000-04:00

Brothers and sisters, I had no real interest in commenting on the recent school shootings at Virginia Tech because in certain respects culture has anesthetized my senses to the legitimate horror of the situation. I clearly remember the Columbine killings years ago so the latest massacre seems a revisitation of the same similar condition reflecting the 'culture of death' on the American home front. The slaughter of innocents will never represent sanity to a morally concerned culture but it seems to be almost politically correct in contemporary times to take a stance of horror and shock when a meaningless tragedy such as the one transpired at Virginia Tech occurs, yet friends I fail to understand why we suffer grief and sadness and bemoan how sad we are over the loss. Truthfully, I am fully prepared for the grand announcement to be broadcast via all media around the nation that the poor, mentally disturbed perpetrator was depressed, bipolar, or schizophrenic. Hmmmmm, how convenient. I can envision the psychological profilers attempting once again to navigate the feeble faculties of human reason employing a finite intellect, utilizing quantifying measures of cause and effect, to form an expository conclusion as to why this individual is merely a murderer.
The killer Cho Seung -Hui unfortunately made a fatal decision and misused his God given free will to put a bloody end to the lives of his innocent victims, and typically the culture at large will have no alleviation to their personal experience with grief over the national tragedy until the 'experts' speak as to his state of mind. Once we are delivered the typical explanation and thus excuse, and my wager is on a bipolar diagnosis, we can all resume our busy but self-serving lives and call it a day and go to the shopping mall to engage in an unhealthy dose of American consumerism, for our flagrant materialism serves our country's citizens readily for then we could put these local happenings out of our minds until the next disaster of human sacrifice surfaces, for it will continue to trend because we simply do not learn.
Remember Andrea Yates? A woman afflicted with some variable schizo-affective disorder, suffering elements of post-partum blues, elects to willfully and deliberately yet methodically drown all five of her young children all in the name of mental illness. I remember watching Andrea in televised proceedings and interviews and she remarked that Satan told her to kill her children in order to save them from hell. Hello! Satan told her to kill her children! Now that is truly the only explanation that suffices to makes sense to an inquiring mind for he was a murderer from the beginning, however modern psychiatric medicine has banished the existential reality of demonic influence from the considerations of most and unfortunately to our own spiritual detriment, many members of the church community follow the trend of the experts in denying the existence of the devil time and time again.
For all of you Charlotte Catholics and denizens let us examine the issue on a local, more personal level. Remember David Crespi from St. Matthew Catholic Church? If you have forgotten already or were never informed, last year he stabbed his five year old twins Samantha and Tessara, and of course he was mentally ill at the time of their murder. David Crespi was a financially prosperous individual with a high powered, lucrative corporate job at Wachovia Bank.
Apparently he had been suffering depression for years but on that fatal day, costing his daughters their lives, his mental state got the best of him and he surrendered to the temptation to kill. Even recently he wrote an article to a columnist at the Charlotte Observer and the discerning intellect would be able to detect the tone of anger in his written words, but the gist of what he had to communicate was basically that all levels of society needed to 'get their heads out of the sand of denial regarding mental illness.' Excuse me?
The world is not fashioned and exists not to serve our self-interest or demands for we were created to serve the world as exemplified in the life of Christ and underscored in the simple prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi, so I am not interested in what he insists upon to justify killing his twins. Oh poor David he was depressed and logically in the aftermath of the killings he is now conveniently diagnosed as bipolar. I am empathetic for the suffering of his lovely and faithful wife and the surviving family members, but he had a choice that day and unfortunately he made the wrong decision. FYI David, many individuals are mentally afflicted and tormented, even severely depressed, but they do not massacre their children in a bloodbath of misused free will. Interestingly enough in David Crespi's own words, he made a similar reference mirroring Andrea Yates insight about taking the lives of some of his family in order for them to merit Heaven and avoid hell, and I cannot help but once again consider what was influencing this man's mind at the time because the chemical snafu excuse is getting increasingly threadbare and worn. Furthermore, no guarantee exists that any combination of therapeutic medicine and respective treatment would have in fact prevented these deadly events.
The bottom line is we want a reasonable explanation for the agent of human evil directing the actions of those individuals who commit such horrific acts by their own God given two hands, and we only seek those answers which readily appeal to our fallen nature of sin and assuage our psychological and natural understanding because the spiritual evidence and consequent solution is foreign and unpalatable to most. We want to indulge licentiously and continuously in sin but we do not want to contend with the ramifications of the misuse of free will. The excuses proliferate in the aftermath of random but regular acts of human violence, whether it be the lack of medication fueled the fury or the side effects of the medication impelled the rage, either way the mystery of evil and sin litter the landscape of humanity but we dare not look because than we are forced to look at ourselves.
Interestingly in light of the 911 debacle and the ongoing warfare with the Islamic groups, they offer no excuse of psychiatric illness as an explanation for their incessant militant actions. Certain Muslims are very outspoken about the imperative to engage in holy war all in the name of serving Allah. Ironically it appears to be more honorable of an explanation because at least it is honest despite being gravely wrong. I am convinced that psychiatric illness has and continues to replace the genuine culpability of sins. Symptomatically mental disturbances do indeed exist and diagnoses are formed based upon behavioral and temperamental manifestations solely, but in terms of scientific accuracy and conclusivity there in fact is no known cause or clear origin as to why these conditions exist. Read the disclaimers on psychotropic drug prescriptions, for example, we don't know what in fact cause depression but we think it may be the result of a chemical imbalance. Even the medical profession is not convinced nor claiming such themselves and continues its research and practices based upon theory alone, so then why are we always deferring to science to explain away sinful acts and malevolent behavior?
Furthermore, we must consider and evaluate the fact that the psychotropic drug industry, and I say industry because it is a profitable and increasingly viable economical pursuit, acts as a corporate machine generating billions of dollars annually to the benefit of pharmaceutical companies but ultimately at the expense and ongoing necessity of human suffering. Doctors need patients and drug companies need doctors, so without a continuous influx of the lowest common denominator, the suffering patient, no profits will be obtained. Corporate prosperity in this particular industry is vitally dependent upon the variable of people being ill, remaining ill and on an ongoing basis. The victims of true mental affliction exist as the innocent commodity.
I remember years ago when I was enrolled in religious studies at UNC Charlotte, an obvious secular institute, in one of my classroom experiences the discussion travelled and examined the cultural historicity of Jesus. During one class the professor, and without mentioning his name for this academician is a genius, a nationally known author, and the current department head, he made a remark about historians currently researching the psychology of Jesus. My interest piqued and I was dumbfounded in responding, "really?" He mentioned that the floating and speculative theory being entertained was that Jesus was bipolar. Yes my friends that is where the current trends and pursuits of the greatest scholarly minds in the United States are leaning toward, the bipolarity of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Dismiss it as irrelevant to your personal beliefs and as silly nonsense characterized by the secular psychological and social scientists, but unfortunately this maligned method of thinking and proposal of truth is what has infected our intellects and continues to metastasize in the consciences of mainstream American society, including the Christian community.
Furthermore, one of the leading experts on the bipolar disorder in the U. S. is Kaye Redfield Jamison who has authored many books on this mysterious 'illness' and is even conditioned with it herself. More recently Dr. Jamison has co-authored a massive text accompanied by Frederick K. Goodwin, M.D. coined Manic-Depressive illness, and although I cannot at this time cite the exact page number, a statement is made in reference to the greatest Roman Catholic Saints in the history of the Church. To paraphrase the book's reference, "St. John of the Cross, St. Francis of Assisi, and St. Therese of Lisieux were all merely undiagnosed bipolars who probably hallucinated their religious and mystical experiences." Human thinking has been deeply entrenched with and thus misguided by the idol of psychiatric science and erected it as a false God upon the altar of Divine Truth. Consider what I am speaking of in all seriousness, St. Therese of Lisieux, favorite canonized Saint of Holy Mother Church, one of the only three female doctors of the church alongside St. Teresa of Avila and St. Catherine of Sienna, hallucinated her holiness, imagined the sanctity Our dear Lord endowed her with, deluded by hysterical graces she penned 'The Story of A Soul'? You have got to be kidding me!
In one of Father John Corapi's teachings and I do believe it is the lesson on humility, he indicates that we can only straddle and sit on the fence for so long, and that one day God will come along and shake that fence and we will fall one way or the other, but where do we ultimately want to land. Do we want to be in the enemy's camp and on the side of the lie, for our adversary is the Father of lies and was a liar from the beginning according to Our Lord, or do we want to be on the side of the Truth as defined by Sacred Tradition, Sacred Scripture, and Magisterial Authority, enfolded within the immaculate garment of Holy Mother Church? We must be yanked by the neck out of hiding our weak minds in the proverbial sand of insane thinking and theories that blanket our world today. Furthermore, look at the fruit of all of the highly degreed scientific genius and its substance of hypotheses on the human condition. It is slowly but severely stripping the collective conscience of mankind of the culpability and reality of sin.
Abort the infant, contracept versus concept and bar the inception of life at its earliest moment, euthanize the elderly and mentally indigent, choose the right to die via physician-assisted suicide, destroy viable embryos all in the name of stem cell research, clone human cells with animals, all of the aforementioned engineered and accomplished my medical doctors in the name of science. A doctor is requisite in order to impale and thus collapse the brain of an infant in utero, before a diabolical vacuum sucks the remnants of humanity from the mother's womb. A doctor was present and requisite to yank the feeding tube from the life of Terry Schiavo. Even taking many of the psychiatric drugs require the concurrent use of birth control because the drugs are harmful to an unborn child. Wake up America and look at what the medical community has to offer us so much of the time?
From the catechism of the Roman Catholic Church:
"407 The doctrine of original sin, closely connected with that of redemption by Christ, provides lucid discernment of man's situation and activity in the world. By our first parents' sin, the devil has acquired a certain domination over man, even though man remains free. Original sin entails "captivity under the power of him who thenceforth had the power of death, that is, the devil".298 Ignorance of the fact that man has a wounded nature inclined to evil gives rise to serious errors in the areas of education, politics, social action299 and morals."
If you do not yet know who is behind this smoking inferno of what is known as the culture of death than I pray for you before it is to late to figure it out. Abortion, contraception, fornication and adultery, divorce, homosexuality, bestiality, child prostitution and trafficking, pornography, satanism, occultism, new age divination, materialism and consumerism, corporate greed, drunkenness, drug use, prescription pill addiction, murder, and a global pride of arrogance that says I get to decide who is God. I get to decide what is right and wrong. What I believe and consequently how I act is for me to decide. Me, myself , and I. Memory escapes me a the moment, but who was it that said he would exalt his throne above that of the Most High?

Merriam-Webster's online dictionary:
bipolar-
1: having or marked by two mutually repellent forces or diametrically opposed natures or views.

In the letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians:
"For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers in this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens."
-Ephesians 6:12

I would say that is it reasonable and safe to assume that God and Satan possess 'diametrically opposed natures or views.' The dynamics of the supernatural warfare that wages unceasingly over the battle of souls, created by and so deeply loved by God but clearly detested and hated by Satan, by its activity alone is inherently bipolar. Batteries are bipolar, plus and minus. Light switches are bipolar, on and off. The pinnacles of the opposite hemispheres of the earth are bipolar, north and south. Mysticism is notoriously and characteristically bipolar, high and low, ecstatic highs and dark night of the soul lows. Weather is bipolar, warm days of sunshine and stillness of atmosphere, and cold nights of treacherous, howling winds and torrential rains. Considering all of these elements of creation one could conclude that God' nature is terribly bipolar. Jesus' paradoxical use of parable is inherently bipolar.
Eve made a bipolar choice in the garden of Eden when she ate of the forbidden fruit, from the tree of bipolar Knowledge of Good and Evil, and so the fall of man from his prior innocence and intimate walk with God in paradise came to be.

"I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring
and hers;
He will strike at your head,
while you strike at his heel."

-Genesis 3:15

A simplified but accurate definition of enmity is positive hatred. Positive hatred is a bipolar term, for positive implies something uplifting and good whereas hatred indicates something negative and bad. In summary, I guess bipolarity established itself in the garden and at the end of times, Our Blessed Mother will commit the finishing bipolar act of crushing the damned serpent's proud head once and for all, the wicked contamination of humanity authoring death, will be defeated by the unadulterated purity of the one who was immaculately conceived. Hail Mary full of Grace.
Please pray for all of the souls of the families I have discussed in this article, for God has mercy on the souls of those who do commit grave acts of mortal sin which includes ourselves at times. Saint Faustina was given the revelation of Divine Mercy by Jesus Christ to prepare the world for His second coming, and the hour of mercy is truly at hand and upon us now. Seek the available graces and never tire of petitioning Him, Our Blessed Mother, and the angels and saints in Heaven. The Adorable Face of our Risen Lord shines down on us with a heart brimming over with mercy, but when He does return it will only be as the just Judge, so make the most of the moment and continue to grow in Him by answering the universal call to holiness. Make the cyclothymic choice today.

Imago Dei

2007-04-17T17:37:00.000-04:00

Years ago I was napping one lazy afternoon and arose from my slumber in a state of exquisite peace, and only one word echoed in my mind, and that term is imago. Imago. Imago. Imago, over and over again nagged my thought life and resounded in my mind for I did not know what the word meant. So I researched the word imago in the dictionary.

Webster's definition:

imago

1) An insect in the adult stage.

Then I researched the Internet, and it comes from the Latin for 'image.' I further found reference to metamorphosis which means transformation, and in terms of earthly creatures, imago is the final stage of metamorphosis before a winged creature breaks free of its cocoon of prior incubation and thus take flight.

I thought to myself oh Lord, am I finally free to leave the cocoon of the crucible for now, and to take flight as a result of a season of spiritual preparation and maturation?

"They that hope in the LORD

will renew their strength,

they will soar as with eagle's wings."

-Isaiah 40:31

Upon further research, I found the term Imago Dei , image of God, and reflected upon the idea of the purpose of spiritual metamorphosis to ultimately refine one by the Holy fire into the image and likeness of a living God? As we were fashioned with purity in our mother's womb we inherited the effects of original sin, and the purity of innocence becomes disfigured through sin, and only He can restore us to a new creation in Christ Jesus.

The second definition of imago in the dictionary is:

2) An idealized concept of a parent, formed in childhood and retained within the adult conscious mind(psyche hence soul.)

If the mind is a faculty of the human soul, and therefore a limb or extension of a substantially spiritual entity, then such a seed planted at the moment of human conception, specifically when God breathes his divine breathe of life into a mere mortal, must possess the idea and desire for Abba Father. Is the Father not truly the only genuine concept of an ideal parent, alongside the holiness of our Blessed Mother?

Logically such a concept would indelibly linger in the adult mind, though the conscience may be darkened by sin and thus improperly ordered, such a concept perseveres to resound the insatiable desire to seek out our Heavenly Father. He stamps us with His Divine paternal image, branding our consciences forever, and until we draw our last expiring breath we will never cease seeking the Adoring Face of our royal inheritance and our eternal parentage.

Contemplating and considering this deep yet mysterious notion of truth, all I could do was weep because something so deep penetrated my interior, and the absolute awareness of the deep paternal love the Father has for His little children, a covenant purchased by Christ's blood, the Divine substance of consummate suffering, that is the only stain of love bold enough to write our names in Heaven.

" See upon the palms of my hands

I have written your name;

your walls are ever before me."

-Isaiah 49:16

The bloody palm bearing the mark of our name reached out from the cross of the dying Christ, and at the moment He grieved, "Father, why have you forsaken me?," in the emptiness of expiration and bankruptcy of the sense of the Father's presence, Heaven opened up and the Father's Hand grabbed the bloody palm of the Son, and our names were Divinely transmitted during that eternal moment of Perfect Sacrifice, and written by the Blood of Jesus sealing our adoption through his redemption. " It is finished!"

We adore you oh Christ, and we bless You, for by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.

The razor's edge leads toward Heaven

2007-04-17T05:00:00.000-04:00

" As far as I know, God is beautiful, is beauty itself. Beauty in being. Being that is beauty. And God's will is in full possession of that beauty, that being.
In human love, woman loving is that being's echo; and man desiring is that will's parallel. In their love, will is locked with being."
- Excerpted from the writings of the late Malachi Martin

In reference to the above, femininity corresponds with God's being and masculinity corresponds to God's will. It speaks of the true nature and supernatural effect of conjugal love within the holy confines of the sacrament of marriage. Sexuality is not defined or segmented by gender. Gender can and does reveal God's being and will, but God is without gender assignment altogether. In the mystery of human love between a man and a woman gender maintains perfect purpose and this reveals itself in the act of conjugal love sexually experienced, and the Divine act penetrates the intimate walls of the soul marked by many different rooms designed to receive grace but more importantly designed to reveal God, whether via His ecstatic effect soulfully or His procreative plan reproductively.
I refer to heightened ecstatic experience separate of conjugal union but prayerfully manifested as walking the razor's edge, and such a delicate rim is painfully sharp to tread upon for it draws blood as one journeys, but it divides sanity from insanity, life from death, and darkness from light, and true love from lovelessness. Notice how I do not oppose love with hate? Hate is a passion that requires as much effort and interest as love, so it is not opposite of love so much as it is the corruption and contamination of love. The razor's painful edge divides between love and lovelessness, because you either have love or you do not, and if you must ponder or wonder if you even possess love than you certainly do not, and so I wonder why people settle for mere lovelessness in the name of love, calling it love, but it is not love.
The razor's edge as you continue to tread the delicate divide of love and lovelessness, is the most painful path toward Truth, I believe Christ deemed it Calvary, via dolorosa, and most people will not endure the longevity of the journey and fall into the pit of temptation of lovelessness. However, for those who tarry along, persisting in the journey for God indeed guides their footsteps and lights the unstable, unknown pathway, if such individuals face their worst fears and walk through the dark valley of the razor's bloody edge for it bears the crimson stain of sainthood, eventually such souls will come out of the valley of death and enter into the warmth of the sunlight.
Delightful sunshine of the Father's love grazes the cheek of the wounded soldier and you can smell this Heavenly sunshine, welcome it, and embrace it. I remember when all my sunny days were colored black and sunlight was simply to painful and agonizing to endure. The skies of my mind were darkened by a pain that did not cease, yet I kept the pain of the sunlight eclipsed by a torrent of tears, and such tears would not abate, not cease, and would not dissolve the pain, for walking the razor's edge is painful.
So many tremendous, significant, yet humanly traumatic events occured in my spiritual life during my journey along the razor's edge of Truth, it knocked me off of my feet because I could not endure so I felt, but instead of falling into the demonic pit of lovelessness, I fell the other direction and drowned in a sea of love, but I did not know it for one cannot see anything in the mystical cloud of unknowing. A tiny seed germinates in darkness, buried in the grave of the earth, but grows into towering majesty over hidden time.
The true self become buried, worldly human identity annihilated, for we can no longer remain as we were prior to grace, for the innocence of that indentity and person will disappear, and the intellect will at times fail to discern what is real and what is not real, and the human mind will questions itself incessantly, but we do find the reality and the freedom from the fear and pain of it all but only in Christ.
The dark valley of the razor's edge is frightening and involves degradation, humiliation, violation, persecution, and many unspoken threats of harm and abandonment, and even your will no longer seems free and is encroached upon by an exacting, nefarious agent, and in this pitch black nothingness we must make a choice. The decision we face is do we live or do we die. Do we choose Him? Death is a tempting escape from the agony of the crucible but the human will's capacity and design to survive and conquer defeat, and to ultimately rise up and to walk is our most noble and extraordinary quality.
All events and circumstances aside and all pain included, do we choose life or do we choose death. If we choose life and endure the malaise of survival, to ultimately live in pursuit of the Highest and only good which is God, assured we will emphatically and continuously suffer for that choice. It is the sacrifice of Higher election. At that critical moment of decision we will never remotely anticipate just how much we may indeed have to suffer.
The silver lining in this particular lesson teaches pain is the only element of our lives and in the innermost recesses of our beings that we truly possess as an offering to God at times, yet it merits the highest degree of intimacy within the confines of the mysterious sting of love, which mandates a sacrificial nature in order to be genuine.

E=mc2

2007-04-17T04:36:00.000-04:00

Fellow brothers and sister in Christ my poor mind is worn out and I am seriously sleep deprived thanks to my dear and beloved friend Maria who started this blog. Thank God for noon Mass! I want to introduce a nugget of what I intend to further share on a future posting. I call it E=mc2(squared).

"I want to know God's thoughts, the rest are mere details."
-Albert Einstein

E=mc2

Energy= matter multiplied by the speed of light squared

When matter moves at light speed squared, the matter transforms into pure energy creating atomic fusion. Clearly one could take this mere physical law and parallel and/or contrast it with supernatural laws or dynamics. And if the frame of reference is spiritual one can then begin to study and research human experience within this frame of reference but on a more personal, localized, and familiar level.
If matter can become pure energy with an atomic volatility, a human soul subject to the Spirit of God, in union with Him, perhaps can become a vessel of life giving Love with magnanimous and equal atomic volatility, but with purpose, intent, and a goal that edifies and does not reap unchecked and mass destruction, but ponders the unlimits of the Infinite, more importantly enters into the unlimits experientially via prayer of the Infinite One, the Divine One, the Eternal One, the I AM WHO AM.
And if mere human beings became willing to probe or explore this seeming esoteric and palpably imperceptible mystery, and further became willing to enter into this affectionate mystery which consummates the fullness of Truth, for Truth authored such fullness Himself, and He lacks nothing for He is everything.
What happens if we invite this same Truth, this Perfect Love into our ordinary existence, into our imperfect lives? If the energy is love as God prefigured it and ordained it and we invite this profound but Perfect spiritual essence into the fabric of the matter of our lives, one could speculate that transformation potentially can and will take place. Rather than the fusion that splits an atom wreaking mass annihilation upon humanity and leads to death, the supernatural fusion rather than divide and conquer leads to transformation of all ordinary, natural circumstances but such fusion creates order, love, serves purposes of nobility, and prepares the way for the Eternal. It actually leads to edification and quality of life, but more significantly it harmonizes souls and leads to more perfect unions and purified intimacies in all relationships.
.....to be continued.

The prelude of the humming of quiet to sacrificial love

2007-04-17T03:34:00.000-04:00

The humming of quiet. The reverberating melody of the Presence of His Peace that fan the fires of the soul, and the effects of this imperceptible song without words, or are they unspoken words carrying an inaudible interpretation. The movement of the hum and the consequent flame it stirs depends upon the degree of yieldings in one's disposition. What I mean is that the Breathe of Life, the blowing of the Spirit is always the same or constant, but the receptacle of our soul is positioned differently from time to time, or perhaps it is like a sponge dependent upon its state of saturation, the size of the porous surface, and the condition of the pores themselves, and what it already retains or is capable of absorbing at any given moment.
Think of a hummingbird as its wings flutter rapidly, so quickly is the oscillation that one cannot visibly see each wing's individual stroke of the air, nor can we see how many strokes occur per minute, but the swiftness of the hummingbird's flutter is indeed in motion. Such motion enables it to remain airborne in addition to propelling its journey through the emptiness of the sky. So similar is the infusion of stillness that hums the human soul and such action of the Spirit possesses motion, but the movement is undetectable to the senses yet the senses perceive the effects of such Divine fluttering of the wings of God's dispersion of Breathe.
The breathe of life is indeed life giving and despite the quiet immobility of the soul housed within the human body, such a Divine Whisper puts the soul into an interior motion that seems to travel no distance in terms of spatial endeavor, yet the soul does soar and rise up spiritually into a greater fullness of Him, so it accomplishes much unknown to itself as its progress harmonizes with the impetus of the wind of the Spirit.
It reminds me of the sensation of slow burning or simmering, but at times without the quality of heat. A cauterizing smolder that at first captures the wounds of the heart and takes full possession of the injuries, so they are incapable of experiencing the sensation of pain for that moment, yet something so much deeper and completely unknown to the natural man and his method of logic, reason, and deduction of cause and effect, all of this becomes apparent for the material or finite ability such exists as, and the activity of the slow burn of the Spirit penetrates what the mind cannot comprehend or even perceive much less what is housed within the human heart.
This mystical burn attempts to lay bare the wounds of the soul, perhaps disfigured by sin alone, and at any given moment either the Spirit wants to remove and heal such thorns of suffering or perhaps He permeates the natural senses of the soul to redirect or to utilize such suffering, not by conduit of the soul's own pious desires, but under the direction of the Divine One not merely for His purposes, but such suffering enters into the consummation and substance of Divine Endeavor Himself.
Our suffering will ebb and flow within the tide of life giving motion of the sea of Triune Love, the Trinity Himself, perhaps within the spiritual wave of love of the third person who proceeds from the Father and the Son, and all three are of this substance of Pure Love. Yet the tidal flow of the Holy Spirit reflects the character of the breathe of life of the Father as He whispers, and the suffering of the Son that leads to the bloody flow of sacrificial love, this Divine blood issuing forth from the Heart of Jesus, exposes through material substance emanating from His perfect wounds that a mere human eye can see, but the material of His blood disguises a higher nature of His substance that the human eye cannot see, and this I suppose could be referred to as the life giving, eternal flow of Pure Love of the Spirit, evidenced by or perhaps to reveal a mote of the Divine Being, and I say a mote or a speck because the human intellect will never comprehend the Trinity.
The sheer suffering of sacrificial Love cannot remain encapsulated within the interior of any man, but especially of the God Man, because such agony that ultimately authors life, particularly a share in Divine life, must be procreatively expressed, yet its hidden expression appears as pure, inexplicable agony to the mortal understanding because Divine Life and Divine Love evolve out of a sacrificial mystery, a seeming permanent and final loss that acquires the completion of Love, exists as the fullness of Love, is Consummate Love Himself, and such human expiration and expiation which surrenders and consequently loses it all, in effect is the singular vehicle for gaining the eternal All, for all of mankind.
The pure, bittersweet love contained within the Sacred Heart of Jesus, lingering as sorrow unto death, such a torrent of Divine Love could not be dammed up within His soul but had a vital demand for expression, so inevitably He sweated blood in the Garden only as a foreshadow to a beginning, for He yielded to the scourging and the crucifixion to permit the human agent of unchecked hate, propelled by the malevolence of the devil, to pierce the exterior only to reveal the interior.
Jesus' body and its own efforts at human perspiration of the Divine blood of Love was insufficient to lance all that was to be exhausted and released upon the cross. Only the piercing of the five primary and Holy wounds of His innocent flesh could ultimately provide the exterior conduits for the deeper interior expression of sacrifice, and the five Divine wounds resurrected would intimate or whisper of the five elements of spiritual armor that the children of His bloody bequest would one day bear as armor through baptism in Him. Just as the stomata of a plant respires the life of a mere plant, the stigmata of Christ perspires the essence of the eternal life of God.
Oh how grateful I am that He breathed His last so we could one day breathe our first!

Calculate the Cost

2007-04-17T02:58:00.000-04:00

Luke 14:28
"Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion?"

Calculating the cost to one's self needs to be considered when we truly offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to Christ, particularly when he places upon our feet the sandals of the Gospel of Peace which are also the golden shoes of intercession. Such Divine shodding of one's feet will ultimately lead us down paths most are too afraid to tread upon, to stand in the gap and to act as a bridge for others to transverse, in order to reach the ultimate goal of Heaven; and no reward exists in the world when we walk through mortality with such Heavenly shoes because our final reward awaits us in Eternity if we ever make it there ourselves.
The 'tower' we wish to construct is the living imitation of Christ and to desire such can be precipitated by grace alone, as we hear the 'call of the Father that draws us to the Son.' We may initially calculate the cost with a simple spiritual formula and as we progress the equations become more complicated and must be reworked, reconsidered, and recomputed. Despite our best efforts and attempts innocently enough we possess limited experience and understanding, and grace may enlighten the mind at the beginning as a means to communicate the requirement of the sacrifice of one's self. Yet, until the slow construction begins and the tower rises in height, the pull of spiritual gravity only seems to make the intense work more laborious, tedious, and completely unsatisfying.
Finally after calculating the cost we look to 'see' if there exists adequate resources for the completion of the tower. The only method that will consummately guarantee structural completion of the tower of the human soul requires the fixation of our gaze upon Him alone, because such finishing work and all of its respective designs are at the disposal of His handiwork. The only sufficient 'enough' that exists it to surrender it all and to give up everything just as He did.
Consider the accomplishment of the Cross, bearing the body of Christ crucified. He defeated everything yet merited it all. He overcame all disease and infirmity, sin, evil, death itself. Likewise, if we are to become living Christs and His Spirit is to become boldly manifest and incarnate within our mortality and bodily temples, than it follows our sufferings will mirror His and such Divine purpose and imperative is to claim His Resurrected victory for others as He did for love us all.