Yes of course it is possible to live out our Christian calling but one cannot avoid seeing the devestation all around us. We turn to God's merciful love.
One thing strikes me with abortion is how often it is women who are at the forefront to push this. It seems unnatural to me because I would have thought it would have been the other way around. That women because they are woman with maternal instincts would be very reluctant to kill babies. But a lot of thinks regarding pro aborts seem spooky, for instance how quickly they fly into a rage or turn violent when disagreed with. Spooky. It has to be said frankly that in Ireland none of this would be possible unless Church going Catholics had supported it and the Catholic Bishops had not remained so silent. They still remain silent. Silence to some extent or other signifies consent.
In mitigation for the bishops, the campaign against Catholicism that has been run in Ireland since the sixties, begun by RTE and the Irish Times and then joined by almost all media, has been relentless. To a degree, Irish Catholic bishops have been cancelled. Nothing that they say publicly will be treated fairly and objectively by the media, only mendaciously controverted into an ‘attack on women’ and some kind of attempt to allegedly use a power which they in no way possess. Their incredibly inept handling of what was really a homosexual abuse crisis, converted into a general ‘paedophile’ one by the media, magnified the damage. To be a Catholic in Ireland means to hardly ever talk about it in public, because few think or talk about it as we do on this forum. When people are not entirely ignorant or wholly uninterested, they are positively hostile, even if being polite about it. I have learned this the hard way.
I may be naive but I think there may be grass shoots of a revival comming.I teach groups of young men early 20 year old one of them said openly in class the last day I can only thank my lord jesus christ for what I achieved so far.They are also sick to their teeth of the liberal codswallop of the last 15 years.one has to have hope.these young men are only 2 generations away from people who carried the flame of the faith .
Sorry. Bishops carry a blame here. They come out against priests who break the silence. I was appalled when Archbisjop Martin came out the day after the referendum on abortion passed to say it was now up to those who opposed the ensure abortion would be rare. Really!! They barely opened their mouths and then make it sound like the lay people who opposed abortion were somehow responsible. The truth must be preached in season and out of season. I do pray for them but they need to wake up. Jesus died for the truth.
It reminds me of the time of the Protestant Reformation in England . In the whole of England and Wales only one single Bishop stood firm, that was Saint John Fisher. Or again at the time of St Athanasius the Great he was the only Catholic Bishop in the entire World who stood firm. Even the Pope went off the rails. It seems to be that keeping silent or toning things down out of cowardice is even worse that openly supporting abortion. It is better to burn hot or cold the lukewarm will be spit out of Christ's mouth. The Bishops were not even risking death, all they risked was being unpopular. They would not even chance that. They still won't chance it even now. If they gave a toss they would have excommunicated the pro abort politicians or at the very least refused them the Sacraments. But no. Safer to stay quiet. Mark 4:17: "And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away." 1
I think there are definite shoots. Nothing works to produce hunger for Jesus like tbe world saturated in evil to the point of absurdity. The heart and mind recoils and then the questions come. Why do they hate God so much. Why do they condemn faith. Why do they lie to us. And then they start seeking the truth. The glorious freedom of the Sons of God. I learned this from reading Alexander Solzhinitsyn and his wife. His wife especially said that in a bleak materialism devoid of God, a movement of the heart toward truth begins. And God comes to find the soul and the soul responds with joy.
"The glorious freedom of the Sons of God. I learned this from reading Alexander Solzhinitsyn and his wife. His wife especially said that in a bleak materialism devoid of God, a movement of the heart toward truth begins. And God comes to find the soul and the soul responds with joy." Thanks Ann...that's beautiful.
Sorry if I sound a bit angry. It's certainly not at you De Gaulle. I'm just totally frustrated at the continued silence even now when we hear of children surviving abortion and being left to die in Irish hospitals. Nurses and doctors in our maternity hospitals are involved in all this. The church says nothing really. They never say anyone who supports abortion should not approach Holy Communion. That's a minimum. Excommunication of politicians and all those actively involved should be mandated. God have mercy on those church leaders.
I hear you! Its a bit like that here too but much longer. Years of this evil here in the US. " Those who should speak will fall silent" said Our Lady in Quito Ecuadore in the 16th century speaking of our time.
RTE Radio news today interviewed Sr. Helen Prejean who has criticised Trump's drive to increase the rate of executions of prisoners on death row in the US. I actually agree with her on that but she gushed about Ireland, how it was such a beacon of light in the world. She had an ideal opportunity to speak out about abortion. For heaven's sake, we even have a ten day cooling off period in law for those who sign an insurance policy. But we voted to kill our children and now we are making it more efficient. Sr. Prejean was all about the social Gospel but there was nothing about the supernatural dimension. She seemed to be fully 'with' the 'RTE program'. Sure even our Holy Father supports his Cardinal giving an award to an American politician who supports abortion and trots out the old seamless garment / consistent pro-life ethic argument. Are we the Irish a beacon of light? Seriously! Why can nobody call a spade a spade! Even David Culinane of SF who brought forward the bill to remove the 3 day waiting period said he did it on 'compassionate grounds'. God forgive us calling evil good and good, evil.
I think the main reason for the Apostasy in Ireland was and is comfort. We just got too comfortable. As is written the Holy Spirit Comforts the afflicted and afflicts the Comfortable.
