Deeply disturbing. There has been increased church vandalism in my neck of the woods as well. So sad to see such things.
Now that is a telling picture of a Vatican II church. The lamp and tabernacle off to the side, an elevated throne under the crucifix facing the parishioners.
The tabernacle and lamp seem unscathed. The elevated throne placed directly beneath the Crucifix comes across very like clericalism.
Very encouraging. Dont laugh but this reminds me of the human body when an artery is blocked often the body creates byways to provide blood to the heart. Doctors find this when they go in to do surgery. The Body of Christ is providing byways to the heart until the Divine Physician will ho in and cleanse the artery.
Well, it's no surprise that people don't want to have to suffer having their conscious pricked. Its a pretty big indicator of just how miserable people are in spite of materialism and their mantra of tolerance. Imagine how much the world will hate the two witnesses when they appear and the actual Truth is spoken. This is what happens when our governments and public religious leaders abandon God and the Truth for lies and then use the arm of the government to give people the means not to suffer the truth and punish those who dare to offend them. This is what happens when the man calling himself the pope speaks about the sacred in terms such as "irregular unions" and holds them up as if it they are some kind of unobtainable ideal. These are the times we live in. We were warned.
Southern California earthquake swarm takes an unexpected turn, and that’s reason to worry A flurry of small earthquakes in Fontana is taking an unexpected turn. (Orange dots represent quakes in the past week; yellow dots, quakes Friday.) (U.S. Geological Survey) If you live in Fontana, you wouldn’t be blamed if you felt a case of the jitters. A swarm of earthquakes has shown remarkable staying power in the area around the Southern California city. Caltech seismologist Egill Hauksson said the chance that the series of tremors will turn into a large and destructive quake isn’t particularly high. But that doesn’t mean residents shouldn’t be on their toes. The likelihood of a larger seismic event, given how many quakes that have occurred over such an extended period, is higher than normal, the scientist said. “People ought to be concerned,” said Hauksson. “This is probably the most prolific swarm in that area of the Fontana seismic zone that we’ve seen in the past three decades.” There have been more than 700 earthquakes recorded in the Fontana area since May 25, ranging from magnitude 0.7 to magnitude 3.2, recorded Wednesday at 5:20 p.m., according to Caltech staff seismologist Jen Andrews. Three of the quakes have been of magnitude 3 or greater. The swarm initially moved northward, but something unusual began Friday when the swarm turned around and went south, back toward the middle of the activity and the 60 Freeway. “This is somewhat of an unexpected evolution,” Hauksson said. Furthermore, an analysis of the earthquakes shows that activity is fading pretty slowly — slower than would be expected for a typical sequence of aftershocks following a main shock, he said. “That would suggest it’s going to continue for — I don’t know — at least several weeks,” Hauksson said. “We’re watching what’s happening and trying to track that activity.” Hauksson said that, given all the seismic activity, residents should be ready and make sure to store “plenty of water, make sure there’s nothing that can fall on them.” In any home in seismically risky areas of California, experts recommend removing heavy objects around beds, strapping bookcases and dressers to walls, anchoring flat-screen televisions to walls, installing toddler safety latches on kitchen cabinets, and ensuring picture frames are attached to walls with quake-friendly hooks. The last fatality in a California earthquake was from a blow to the head from an unstrapped television. Homeowners should also make sure their water heaters are properly secured to reduce the chance of a house fire. Homes that sit a few steps off the ground and built before 1979 should be evaluated by a structural engineer to determine whether they need to be braced and bolted to the foundation to prevent them from sliding off when shaken. Apartment owners with carports or garages on the ground floor should also consider having their buildings evaluated to determine if a retrofit is needed. Hauksson said the timing of the earthquakes is worth noting: shaking, followed by a lull and then a spurt of new quakes. The earthquakes have been relatively shallow — beginning just 1 to 2½ miles under the surface. As a result, the shaking has been widely felt, Andrews said. Seismic swarms can be worrisome — especially when they occur near faults that experts know are capable of unleashing huge, catastrophic earthquakes. That was the case almost three years ago. On Sept. 26, 2016, a rapid succession of small earthquakes — three measuring above magnitude 4.0 — began rupturing under the Salton Sea, close to the San Andreas fault, continuing for more than 24 hours. The swarm increased the likelihood of a major quake in Southern California, at least temporarily: Experts said the chance of a 7.0 or greater quake on the mighty fault increased significantly, from 1 in 6,000 in any given week to as much as 1 in 100 during that particular week. No large quake occurred. But the warnings did prompt some residents to prepare. With the latest swarm, there is one silver lining: Two of the most fearsome faults in Southern California — the San Andreas and San Jacinto — are not particularly close. That means the chance of a truly large quake — the kind they make Hollywood movies about — resulting from the long-running cluster of tremors is not especially high. https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-earthquake-swarm-fontana-glen-avon-20190608-story.html
More on this story: The Assault on Religious Freedom Continues: Proposed Bill Would Force Priests to Break Seal of Confession BY STEPHEN KRUISER JUNE 7, 2019 CHAT 86 COMMENTS (Image Credit: Hans via Pixabay) The assault on religious freedom continues in plain sight. A bill in the works in California would create a state law the forces Catholic priests to violate the seal of the confessional, which is the church's version of "physician-patient privilege." From Catholic News Agency: Senate Bill 360 was amended to require the sacramental seal be violated in instances where a presit learns of or suspects abuse while hearing the confession of a fellow priest or colleague. The bill was originally drafted to require priests to violate the seal if they came to suspect abuse following the confession of any penitent whatsoever. The bill passed the California Senate on Thursday by an overwhelming margin, with legislators voting 30-2 in favor of the measure. Bishop Michael Barber of Oakland wrote “Even if this bill passes, no priest may obey it. The protection of your right to confess to God and have your sins forgiven in total privacy must be protected." Church law and civil law have an uneasy relationship at best. The Catholic Church is opposed to abortion and capital punishment, both of which are legal in the United States, obviously. Many devout Catholics are steeling themselves for battles over gay marriage they are convinced are inevitable. The bill's sponsor claims that "clergy-penitent privilege has been abused on a large scale," despite the fact that, according to the article, "no data exists establishing or indicating the use of sacramental confession either to facilitate or perpetuate the sexual abuse of minors." In an increasingly (to the chagrin of many of us) secular society, legislators will no doubt be emboldened to pressure churches to conform. Democratic leaders in the U.S. like Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Gov. Andrew Cuomo openly champion abortion while still claiming to be Roman Catholic. Should this bill become law, priests in California will be in a very difficult position, as violation of the confessional seal for any reason is grounds for excommunication. https://pjmedia.com/faith/proposed-ca-bill-would-force-priests-to-break-seal-of-confession/
The simplest way to begin to counter this is to return to traditional anonymous confessions in dark confession boxes. This would also lesson the risk of abuse in the confession situation. Of course, there is the situation whereby the person confessing seeks to entrap the priest by declaring his/her identity. One would hope that the law would provide safeguards against such set-ups. Otherwise, priests are going to be in an intolerably difficult situation. Not to mention those genuine sinners who merely wish to make an honest confession. I might be wrong, but would a declaration of identity render the confession sacramentally null and void, therefore freeing the priest to witness what has been said? Might it be possible to introduce such a regulation within the laws, if such doesn't already exist? Increased anonymity might even lead to increased attendance. This problem is going to spread and grow exponentially. The Church is going to need to devise a strategy. If the Church caves, and agrees to complete co-operation with the authorities, certain kinds of sinner will find it very risky to confess their sins. If the Church takes the alternative strategy of universal, automatic absolution in the absence of attending confession, this would be even worse and would almost completely erase the sense of sin.
This is good... but I shake my head when the article states “extreme abortion legislation”..... all abortion is extreme!
Open borders.....and so many are immediately sent to places within the U.S. ..... are those places prepared for this? HUNDREDS OF ILLEGALS FROM EBOLA-RIDDEN CONGO DUMPED IN TEXAS, 350 MORE ON THE WAY Major threat ignored by mainstream media Hundreds of illegal aliens from the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa, which is currently experiencing a massive Ebola virus outbreak, have been dropped off in San Antonio, Texas and hundreds more will arrive in the near future. A local news reporter looking for French-speaking volunteers to communicate with the individuals made a request on Twitter. “City confirms hundreds of migrants from the Congo have arrived in SA. The city is in desperate need for French-speaking volunteers,” Jaleesa Irizarry of Kens 5 San Antonio wrote on Thursday. In a local news report, Interim Assistant City Manager Dr. Collen Bridger said, “We didn’t get a heads up.” Bridger said the illegal aliens started to arrive in town on Tuesday and that CBP confirmed “another 200 to 300 from the Congo and Angola will be coming to San Antonio.” “A group of about 350 migrants from the Congo will be arriving in San Antonio in the near future,” a notice from the San Antonio Department of Human Services reads. After being placed in San Antonio, the illegal immigrants are bussed to a destination of their choice by local charities who spend “roughly $14,000 a week on bus tickets.” Last weekend, a group of more than 100 illegals from Angola, Cameroon and Congo were filmed wading through the Rio Grande River and entering the United States. In a statement, CBP said, “Agents have encountered 182 large groups (100+ individuals) across the SW border this fiscal year. This is the first large group apprehended in Del Rio Sector this FY and the first large group apprehended on the SW border this FY consisting entirely of African nationals.” Today, the World Health Organization said one in four Ebola infections in Congo are going undetected and that the country is experiencing the second-worst Ebola epidemic on record. https://www.infowars.com/hundreds-o...en-congo-dumped-in-texas-350-more-on-the-way/
What's the logic of attracting millions of low energy consumers from the developing countries to make high energy consumers out of them in the developed world, thus making it worse for their climate? The elites have a reason for their actions, but they're not the ones they would wish us to believe.
Well, when they're done with this sole target of theirs will the international cartels of human trafficking and pedophilia rings get any notice?.....or would that be getting too close to home? Prosecutors Take Aim As Bishops Convene DETROIT (AP) — Hundreds of boxes. Millions of records. From Michigan to New Mexico this month, attorneys general are sifting through files on clergy sex abuse, seized through search warrants and subpoenas at dozens of archdioceses. They’re looking to prosecute, and not just priests. If the boxes lining the hallways of Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s offices contain enough evidence, she said, she is considering using state racketeering laws usually reserved for organized crime. Prosecutors in Michigan are even volunteering on weekends to get through all the documents as quickly as possible. For decades, leaders of the Roman Catholic Church were largely left to police their own. But now, as American bishops gather for a conference to confront the reignited sex-abuse crisis this week, they’re facing the most scrutiny ever from secular law enforcement. A nationwide Associated Press query of more than 20 state and federal prosecutors last week found they are looking for legal means to hold higher ups in the church accountable for sex abuse. They have raided diocesan offices, subpoenaed files, set up victim tip lines and launched sweeping investigations into decades-old allegations. Thousands of people have called hotlines nationwide, and five priests have recently been arrested. “Some of the things I’ve seen in the files makes your blood boil, to be honest with you,” Nessel said. “When you’re investigating gangs or the Mafia, we would call some of this conduct a criminal enterprise.” If a prosecutor applies racketeering laws, also known as RICO, against church leaders, bishops and other church officials could face criminal consequences for enabling predator priests, experts say. Such a move by Michigan or one of the other law enforcement agencies would mark the first known time that actions by a diocese or church leader were branded a criminal enterprise akin to organized crime. “That would be an important step because it would set the standard for pursuing justice in these cases,” said Marci Hamilton, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and CEO of CHILD USA, a Philadelphia-based think tank that tracks statute of limitations reforms. Monsignor G. Michael Bugarin, who handles sex abuse accusations for the Detroit Archdiocese, said they too are committed to ending abuse and cover-ups. Bugarin said they cooperate with law enforcement, and that won’t change if the attorney general is considering organized crime charges. “The law is the law, so I think we just have to respect what the current law is,” he said. Some defenders of the church bristle at the notion of increased legal action, saying the Catholic institution is being singled out by overzealous prosecutors. A spokesperson for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops did not respond to requests for an interview Monday. The church has said it is already taking steps to address clergy abuse. Seventeen years after U.S. bishops passed a “zero tolerance” policy against sexually abusive priests, they will consider new measures for accountability over abuse at their gathering this week in Baltimore. The meeting follows a global order issued by Pope Francis last month requiring all Catholic priests and nuns around the world to report clergy sexual abuse and cover-ups by their superiors to church authorities. The meeting also follows a grand jury report that documented decades of clergy abuse and cover-ups in Pennsylvania, which thrust the Catholic Church’s sex assault scandal back into the mainstream last fall and spurred prosecutors across the U.S. to launch investigations of their hometown dioceses. Since then, many states have launched telephone hotlines or online questionnaires for confidential complaints including Virginia, Nebraska and California. Pennsylvania has been flooded with calls, some 1,800 from victims and families over the last three years. In Iowa, 11 people who identified themselves as victims and their relatives came forward in the hotline and questionnaire’s first three days. New Jersey and Michigan’s tip lines have received about 500 calls each, while Illinois has received nearly 400 calls and emails, including 160 from survivors. In contrast, Delaware’s attorney general tip line has had four calls since November, 2018, a spokesperson said. Officials in Vermont say they cannot comment because the investigation is ongoing, but that they are aware of dozens of victims of alleged criminal misconduct. While priests have been prosecuted in the past, top law enforcement scrutiny of church authorities has been relatively rare. In 2012, Bishop Robert Finn of the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese in Missouri was the first and only American prelate convicted for his role in aiding a priest, when he was found guilty of failing to report child pornography on a cleric’s laptop to authorities. AP reached out to attorneys general in 18 states, federal prosecutors in three jurisdictions and the U.S. Justice Department to learn more about the new round of investigations. Some of the accused priests in Pennsylvania had ties to other states, prompting those attorneys general, such as New Mexico, for example, to take a fresh look. Before Pennsylvania’s attorney general got involved, cases against predator priests were largely the purview of local police and prosecutors, or private attorneys bringing lawsuits and civil claims. Although Pennsylvania’s attorney general office says prosecutors have spoken with their counterparts from almost every state, most attorneys general in the U.S. have not taken public action. In Kentucky, Attorney General Andy Beshear wanted to investigate but lacked jurisdiction. He worked to change state law, but the bill failed to make it through the legislature. Attorneys general who are investigating are using a range of tools. Michigan executed search warrants, which means police show up and raid the offices. Delaware, West Virginia and Nebraska have issued subpoenas, which is a less assertive approach, making a legal request for the records. New Jersey officials have started to make arrests, while Washington D.C.’s attorney general is weighing civil charges. Asked whether the office would consider charges under Iowa’s far-reaching RICO statute, Attorney General spokesman Lynn Hicks said that nothing is off the table but that it’s premature to say. And in Virginia, spokesman Michael K. Kelly said they are using “every tool, authority, and resource” to investigate not only priests, but also “whether leadership in the dioceses may have covered up or abetted any such crimes.” Iowa’s Attorney General Tom Miller said that he took action late last month after his office met with abuse survivors, including some whose stories have never become public. Tim Lennon, who grew up in Sioux City, Iowa, said he was among the survivors who corresponded with Miller’s office and in recent months sent over new material about priests accused of abuse. “The priest who had raped and abused me when I was 12 had gotten caught at three parishes before they moved him to my parish. The bishop knew and kept moving him along,” said Lennon, the president of the board of directors for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, who now lives in Arizona. Statute of limitation rules differ, and are being tested, in different states. In Michigan, for example, the clock stops if a priest moved out of state for a period. New York, California and Florida refused to comment, citing ongoing investigations. In recent years, civil lawsuits have used racketeering laws leading to large settlements. Delaware-based attorney Stephen Neuberger, who has successfully sued the church on behalf of clergy abuse victims, said questions inevitably arise about church authorities covering up and facilitating for accused priests. He said organized crime statutes seem appropriate. “It’s not piling on,” he said. “In fact I think it’s long overdue.” https://www.apnews.com/a9a988465ae944bd8dbd5094ebd562ad
One would think that wiping out the human race isn't the best strategy for future profit! Top Execs of 180 Companies: Abortion Necessary to Be Successful in Business The top executives of more than 180 companies have signed a letter that says abortion is essential in order for people to be successful in their businesses. “When everyone is empowered to succeed, our companies, our communities and our economy are better for it,” the executives say in the letter posted on a newly launched website titled “Don’t Ban Equality.” “Restricting access to comprehensive reproductive care, including abortion, threatens the health, independence and economic stability of our employees and customers,” they said, adding: Simply put, it goes against our values and is bad for business. It impairs our ability to build diverse and inclusive workforce pipelines, recruit top talent across the states, and protect the well-being of all the people who keep our businesses thriving day in and out. A full list of the companies who signed the letter can be found here. They include: Slack Technologies Bloomberg LP MAC Cosmetics H&M Yelp Square, Inc Ben & Jerry’s Atlantic Records & Warner Music Group POPSUGAR Hint, inc. The Body Shop US Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter, signed the letter for his other company, digital payment platform Square. Ben and Jerry's: Don’t Ban Equality. It’s time for companies to stand up for reproductive health care. We’re joining with 175 other companies to stand against policies that hinder people’s health & ability to fully succeed in the workplace. Join us: http://dontbanequality.com #DontBanEquality The letter appeared as a full-page ad in the New York Times Monday, reported CNN. The abortion lobby, led by Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and the ACLU formed the coalition of business executives as more states are passing restrictions on abortion. Ilyse Hogue, NARAL’s president, said her abortion advocacy group is praising the executives for “taking a stand on behalf of their employees, customers, and communities.” “We encourage the entire business community to join us in protecting access to reproductive health care in the critical months and years to come,” she said. A Marist poll released in January found 76 percent of Americans are in favor of limiting abortion to, at most, the first three months of pregnancy, including 92 percent of Republicans, 78 percent of independents, and 61 percent of Democrats. Additionally, while 51 percent of Americans identify as “pro-choice,” even 60 percent of those agree with substantial restrictions on abortion. The poll also found 60 percent oppose the use of taxpayer dollars to fund abortions. https://www.breitbart.com/politics/...rtion-necessary-to-be-successful-in-business/
