The Future of the United States of America.

Not a problem. Thanks for spreading the word!

 

I just posted my comments to this site, Tina.
Thanks for sharing this information, I wasn't aware. I have forwarded to my hubby and friends.
Some of them have big mailing lists so hopefully the word will get out.

God bless,
~Rae

 

My hat off to you - it is very difficult to be conservative and black and a female in America.
Allen West was a Congressman from South Florida in 2010-2012, but he lost like ~ 1000 votes last year - there were tons of falsifications in his district with dead people voting, illigals voting and votes cast for him not being counted.

 

You and me both, Padraig. I'm totally confused.

 

I think most Americans on this forum would agree with both of you with regards to understanding the current state of this country. I once felt good about being American; I can no longer honestly say that. We were once a Christian nation.

 

Allen West was a Military officer and a US Congressman from Florida and by most black's standard's an "Uncle Tom". He is one of the bright spots in black America, right along with Clearance Thomas in my book.

 

This man tells the truth!

 

Catholics are called to be the 'anima mundi' as the Servant of God, Fr. John Hardon would say. And when they are not, the whole world suffers for it. And for some time Roman Catholics--as a whole--have not been living out their faith. Many are offices and give public scandal. Our Church leaders fail to uphold the truths of the faith and allow the public scandal mongers to continue on with impunity. The pewsitters have gone uncatechized for decades. As a whole, 'we' have failed to live the Gospel.

What do we do? We begin with ourselves to frequent the sacraments, remain always in a state of grace, and to set the example. Peace begins in our own souls and then spreads to others. We evangelize with our lives. Holy people affect everyone around them and counter the growing evil. We pray for we know we are weak but to Jesus through Mary, we are not afraid but are strengthened for the spiritual battle before us.

 

Yon remind me of the old Chinese Missionary prayer, Magdalene,

'Lord let me convert the whole world beginning with myself'

When Our Lady comes from down from heaven these days her call is again and again one to personal conversion. These last few months I have been overwhelmed by a sense of my own sinfulness. Areas of darkness in my life I did not even know existed. A deflating experience.

But I was cheered by the words of Jesus to St Faustina,

'It is those who sin the most that have the greatest claim on my mercy'.

I am also aware that the failure of our times is the failure of myself first and then of my Church. For I and we who were meant to be the light of the world and the salt of the Earth have not been so...may God grant us the grace..and the time..to change.

 

Magdalen,

You are very astute and spiritual for your age. I thank God for the strong Catholic parents who raised you! Such families are a key in the New Evangelization! Alleluia!

Safe in the Flames of the Sacred Heart!

 

Protestant sects are not Churches, but the Orthodox churches are indeed "Churches" because they have preserved the apostolic succession and have valid sacraments.

From the Catechism:

838 Those "who believe in Christ and have been properly baptized are put in a certain, although imperfect, communion with the Catholic Church." With the Orthodox Churches, this communion is so profound "that it lacks little to attain the fullness that would permit a common celebration of the Lord's Eucharist."

 

Has anyone read this book? It looks promising.

American Church: The Remarkable Rise, Meteoric Fall, and Uncertain Future of Catholicism in America

http://www.amazon.com/American-Chur...id=1370578721&sr=1-1&keywords=american+church

 

Phillip,

Sects is correct, but given the evolution of the word's meaning, Pope Benedict XVI also used the term, Christian communities, for Protestant believers.

Safe in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary!

 

Mario,

You're right, communities does sound better. I wasn't trying to be offensive to our Protestant friends. Its kind of like the evolution of the world cult, where cult simply means a form of worship or veneration.

 

There will come a turning point , a parting of the ways in which there will be a great leaving. I believe this will happen after a speech in Congress amid great fury on both sides.

It reminds me of Moses leading his people out of the land of Egypt. I suppose in many ways the Hebrews must have gotten angry in order to take the risk of marching out into the desert too.

The will of God prevails. In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be wrong. God can not be for and against the same thing at the same time.
Abraham Lincoln Meditation on the Divine Will ca. September 2, 1862 (CWAL V:403)

 

Unity is in the Will of God:


Ephesians 2: 14 For he is our peace, who has made us both one, and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by abolishing in his flesh the law of commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to an end.


Eucharistic Prayer II:

Humbly we pray that, partaking of the Body and Blood of Christ, we may be gathered into one by the Holy Spirit.


June 2, 2013:

According to Mirjana, when Our Lady said "I, as a mother, desire my children to be in a community of one single people where the Word of God is listened to and carried out," she was speaking resolutely and with emphasis.


At one time our nation understood that principle:

…One nation, under God, indivisible (Excerpt from the Pledge of Allegiance)

_________________________________________

But times have changed for the worse:

Proverbs 6: 16 There are six things which the Lord hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: 17 Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil, 19 A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers.

I believe the key moment when the USA fell off the precipice occurred in the 1990s:
In December 1998, Clinton's political party, the Democratic Party, was in the minority in both chambers of Congress. Some Democratic members of Congress, and most in the opposition Republican Party, believed that Clinton's giving false testimony and allegedly influencing Lewinsky's testimony were crimes of obstruction of justice and perjury and thus impeachable offenses. The House of Representatives voted to issue Articles of Impeachment against him which was followed by a 21-day trial in the Senate.
All of the Democrats in the Senate voted for acquittal on both the perjury and the obstruction of justice charges. Ten Republicans voted for acquittal for perjury: Chafee (Rhode Island), Collins (Maine), Gorton (Washington), Jeffords (Vermont), Shelby (Alabama), Snowe (Maine), Specter (Pennsylvania), Stevens (Alaska), Thompson (Tennessee), and Warner (Virginia). Five Republicans voted for acquittal for obstruction of justice: Chafee, Collins, Jeffords, Snowe, and Specter.
President Clinton was thereby acquitted of all charges and remained in office. There were attempts to censure the President by the House of Representatives, but those attempts failed. (Wikipedia)

At the start of that 21-day trial, the senators swore, under public oath, to conduct themselves in an unbiased fashion, seeking only justice. I sincerely believe this failed to happen; the charges were clearly justified. The decision within the Senate Chamber represented the will of the People before God, and we spoke clearly. Likewise, in the media, the debate focused on whether or not character mattered. After all, the economy was surging ahead (the tech bubble would not burst for another two years), and any shortcoming of the President obviously mattered little. And so virtue and integrity were dismissed! The Halls of Congress were henceforth filled mostly with politicians; scarcely a statesman to be found.

This brings us to:
THE THIRD ICON (pertaining to the USA)

I see the Houses of Government.

On all sides I see the Representatives filled with a bitter , bitter, bitter, killing fury; they hate and despise each other.. They are very,very bitterly divided, no longer brother and sisters they ARE NO LONGER ONE.

I see them with raised fist , poised to strike.

I see a very special man...i t seems to me a country man....I see him clearly......he leads a very large part out of the halls........many will call it Rebellion.... but he leads them away........the Union is Divided.....brother against brother,, town against town, State against State.


I see many hands raised to the Stars and Stripes, each to claim it as their own, but as they reach out the flag is rent..............

Civil War

How will we reach such a point? Even now the wheels of governance are coming to a grinding halt. Scandals abound. The Senate has not passed a national budget in over five years. The level of debt is beyond comprehension. The debt ceiling has once more been exceeded, with only accounting gimmicks keeping us afloat. Moral decay is rampant and violence grows. These two issues are best reflected in the great divide between pro-lifers and pro-abortionists, same sex union advocates and defenders of marriage, gun control adherents and Second Amendment loyalists.

Consider the situation in Colorado. In the 2012 election, Obama took Colorado with 51% of the vote. The state recently rammed through a highly unpopular gun control law. Anger is so high that it appears a successful recall has taken place against one legislative leader who helped secure passage of the law. In other words, Colorado is a microcosm of the whole divided country. All the hoopla in the media is only going to fracture the nation more and I believe that is the agenda of the powers-that-be.

Yes, the Third Icon is about to take place, but I don’t believe that insurrectionists will be able to wage a meaningful uprising. The surveillance and military capabilities of the Federal government are too great and far-reaching. Martial Law will be enacted and persecution will follow.

I believe this will take place before the curtain closes on 2014. The humble prayers and merit-filled sufferings of
the Church and the decisive move of God is what will save us in the end! O God unite us in Your Mercy and Love!

Safe in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary!

 

Your message is very insightful, Terry and pin points the dilemma facing Catholics right round the world as Governments begin to tumble. What to do? Who to support? Have we a moral right to resort to the use of arms.

I must go away and pray to Our Lady about this, but I feel drawn to a piece of scripture:

2 Corinthians 6:17

Therefore, "Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you."

My own political party here in Ireland have begun supporting abortion. My party , my father's party (he was vice Preident and Editor of their paper at one time) and my grand uncles party before him.

My party no longer. I would rather die than support them.

But it hurts like getting a tooth removed to leave them. Difficult, very difficult times. Much to pray over.

 

[quote="Mario, post: 40575, member: 5
I believe the key moment when the USA fell off the precipice occurred in the 1990s:
In December 1998, Clinton's political party, the Democratic Party, was in the minority in both chambers of Congress. Some Democratic members of Congress, and most in the opposition Republican Party, believed that Clinton's giving false testimony and allegedly influencing Lewinsky's testimony were crimes of obstruction of justice and perjury and thus impeachable offenses. The House of Representatives voted to issue Articles of Impeachment against him which was followed by a 21-day trial in the Senate.
All of the Democrats in the Senate voted for acquittal on both the perjury and the obstruction of justice charges. Ten Republicans voted for acquittal for perjury: Chafee (Rhode Island), Collins (Maine), Gorton (Washington), Jeffords (Vermont), Shelby (Alabama), Snowe (Maine), Specter (Pennsylvania), Stevens (Alaska), Thompson (Tennessee), and Warner (Virginia). Five Republicans voted for acquittal for obstruction of justice: Chafee, Collins, Jeffords, Snowe, and Specter.
President Clinton was thereby acquitted of all charges and remained in office. There were attempts to censure the President by the House of Representatives, but those attempts failed. (Wikipedia)

I had pushed this to the back of mind, but you are right! That was the turning point. During the scandal, his approval numbers went UP, with many Americans happy to see a leader who sinned as they did. And an entire generation of children were robbed of their innocence, hearing the details of the president's sins.