Thanks for the candle Dolours. I am 100% sure of the integrity of AL and the Pope. I understand I am blessed in this. You have to listen to your conscience and are of course free to do so. All the best and thanks again.
+ Mary's Army, U.S. Marines and King David The gift of peace that Fatima urges all to seek is a gift offered to all in Mary's army (Christ's Church which is guided by the Blessed Mother). Some may think that this peace causes one not to care about the daily duty or even worse, is like putting your head in the sand. Some thoughts about this army. My son is a U. S. Marine and last summer (2015) he completed his recruit training (Basic training in other services). The U.S. Marine Corps are pretty good at making soldiers and they make sure that before you get permission to go out on the field and possibly die, you will have to die to yourself first in recruit training. Recruits empty themselves of all they are (they keep their Christian Faith though, that is encouraged), and build a soldier on that foundation of faith. That is one reason that only a handful of Marines makes a fearsome fighting force. Some have talked in this thread of wanting to go into battle for our faith and even become a martyr if necessary. These are lofty goals and good goals but if we really want to be the best at soldiering, we should die to ourself first and let Christ rebuild us into the image and likeness that He created us to be. A trusting friend to all good and a fierce enemy to evil. The Marines have a saying, "NO BETTER FRIEND, NO WORSE ENEMY', They have another that is shared among Deacons, "ALWAYS FAITHFUL". The Army of Mary causes the foe to flee because it knows who crushes the head of the satan, THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY herself. This is not some elite club however. It is open to all who acknowledge that Her Son Jesus is the Son of God and means of Salvation for the world (through the Catholic Church). I pray that I may help Mary in this army that crushes all of the Lambs enemies and I also pray that Christ's Mystical Body has Peace while riding into battle. No heads are in the sand, and in fact, the view doesn't get much better than what the Blessed Mother offers (even with just the approved apparitions). If we want a Saint to model ourselves after, let it be Mary. We may like that another Saint punched a guy who uttered heresy, we may even relate to that situation (I can), but that is not what got that Saint into Heaven. Christ giving that soul the grace to mold itself into His Divine Image is what allowed entrance to Heaven. In decisions we make, the advice of Mary would be the best because it is the same that Jesus would tell us Himself. Some words on King David and how that might apply to Pope Francis's Apostolic Exhortation and how we must die to ourself before we can be a truly great Soldier for Christ and Mary. Before David was King he was a mighty warrior. No one would dare call David a wimp or head in the sand type of guy. The saying of the people was that Saul killed his thousands and David his Tens of Thousands. And yet, when Saul persued David over jeleousy due to that saying, what did David do and how did he act. I want to make perfectly clear that I am not saying Pope Francis is in the wrong like King Saul was. What I am saying is that even if you believe that Francis is in the wrong, David's example should be a worthy one. He never spoke ill of King Saul and never even thought of killing him when God delivered Saul into David's hands in the cave. There are many ways to kill and the physical way is NOT being considered here in the case of the way that some here are treating our Pontiff. The killing of ones reputation or works must, however, be considered fair game. David humbled himself before God's anointed one even though he knew that he himself (David) was annointed. He treated Saul as God's choice, and said nothing against him, until God would take him home (and even then he cried). Those who do not care for our Pontiff would do well to follow this mighty warrior (and Greatest King of Israel's) example. This was credited to David and one reason that God loved him so much. David was a pre-curser not only to Christ but also to show us how to die to ourselves so that we may be a mighty warrior in God's eyes. One last thing. I struggle constantly with the same struggles that I talk about here but I daily have faith that Mary's army has already won the battle and all we have to do is our small part. Many at MOG have a strength and devotion to our God that I can feel (even when I disagree or you are disagreeing with me). I hold no claim to anything to which most of you are not probably better at than I. I do, and will, fiercely defend Mother Mary's way. If we daily offer all of our troubles and blessings through Her to Christ, She will show us tools and methods of fighting (Mass, Eucharist, Holy Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet...) that would put the Marines to shame (and that's not easy). Mary - No better friend, No worse enemy. Peace Brothers and Sisters, Ed +
Dolours, in response to your last few questions I pose the following. Those of us who refuse to criticize Pope Francis and his recent exhortation are not blind to it or to what is going on in the Church. Rather, we will not judge, lest we are judged. We, (I), take to prayer what is evident on the surface, which I cannot always reconcile. On the 'surface' is something we can see and hear, but what we cannot always see clearly is what the Holy Spirit is doing through it all behind the scenes. Pope Francis is the man that has been chosen for our moment. He is the Pope that brings mercy and compassion and simplicity within the faith. I am not willing to enter into accusations that will come back to accuse me at the Warning or on my particular judgement day. We are not blind, but refuse to speak out against what we do not see taking place behind the earthly scenes, veiled for now, which are the workings of the Holy Trinity and our Blessed Mother. I believe it is both biblical and wise to take to prayer what is troubling the heart and through it, let God do what he does. Peace.
"There are many ways to kill and the physical way is NOT being considered here in the case of the way that some here are treating our Pontiff. The killing of ones reputation or works must, however, be considered fair game. David humbled himself before God's anointed one even though he knew that he himself (David) was annointed." These words of yours Ed made me think of the words of Francis below. Vatican City, May 2, 2016 / 09:55 am (CNA/EWTN News).- It is the Holy Spirit who gives Christians the ability to be witnesses of the Gospel in their daily lives, Pope Francis said Monday during Mass at the Santa Marta residence's chapel. However, with that witness comes persecution. “The Christian, with the strength of the Spirit,” the Roman Pontiff said, “gives witness to the living Lord, to the Risen Lord, to the Lord’s presence in our midst, that the Lord celebrates with us His death, His Resurrection, each time we come to the altar.” “The Christian too gives witness, aided by the Spirit, in his daily life, through the way in which he acts. It is the continuous witness of the Christian. But many times this witness provokes attacks, provokes persecution.” During his May 2 homily, Pope Francis spoke of the witness Christ shares through his Spirit, and the witness of the faithful – especially in periods of persecution. Such persecution, he said may take the form of “little persecutions,” such as gossip and criticism, or more serious forms, such as those which “place Christians or make them even give up their lives.” Citing Christ, the Pope said this is price of the Christian's witness: “They will expel you from the synagogues; in fact, the hour is coming when everyone who kills you will think he is offering worship to God.” Pope Francis reflected on the day's first reading from Acts, which recounts God opening the heart of a purple-cloth dealer named Lydia, who had come to listen to St. Paul's preaching. “This woman felt something inside her which made her say ‘this is true! And I agree with what this man says, this man who gives witness to Jesus Christ,’” the Pope said. He asked who it was that “touched the heart of this woman,” and told her to listen to the truth? “It was the Holy Spirit who made this woman feel that Jesus was the Lord,” he said. “It made her know that salvation was in Paul’s words; it made this woman hear witness. The Spirit gives witness to Jesus.” The Roman Pontiff said every time our heart is moved to draw “closer to Jesus, it’s the Spirit which is working inside us.” “The Holy Spirit which introduced us to Jesus,” continued Pope Francis, “is the same one who urges us to make Him known to others, not so much through words, but through living witness.” “It is good to ask the Holy Spirit to come into our heart, to give witness to Jesus; tell Him: Lord, may I not stray from Jesus. Teach me what Jesus taught. Help me remember what Jesus said and did and also, help me to give witness to these things. So that worldliness, the easy things, the things that really come from the father of lies, from the prince of this world, sin, do not lead me away from giving witness.”
+ Thank you Joe. + Thank you Joe. May God Bless you Brother. I saw the statue on Charlie's site. Beautiful. Peace Brother, Ed +
I have just read Mark Mallet's latest and as usual he nails it. It has given me peace on this matter and well worth reading. We are heading into the storm when many will be swept off the barque stick with it, keep to the true teachings of the church, pray constantly for the church and the Pope.
Thank you, Fatima, for this post. I respect anyone who sees good in this document and who admires and sees all good in Pope Francis. I also respect those who have doubts about it and have resorted to pray and trust in God rather than speak against it because they only have doubts. What I find frustrating is the automatic assumption that anyone opposed to it is a bad, disobedient Catholic out to bring down the Pope or even the Papacy. Granted, there may be some people with that agenda but it is unfair to attach the label to everyone who opposes it or who doesn't see Pope Francis as some kind of innocent martyr in all this. Believe it or not, I was a huge fan of Pope Francis in the very early stages of his Pontificate. My disenchantment was gradual. Anyway, he's still the Pope, so I'll try to limit my comments about him in future, and I'll keep on praying for him. We know that the Holy Spirit will protect the Church and that any errors will be fixed eventually. Please God the Church won't suffer too much in the meantime as we wait to see Our Lady crush the serpent's head.
Yea, I learned that the hard way a few years back to trust in God and his plans when things are out of my control. Any concern I have with what Pope Francis has said or written that I cannot concur with is taken to prayer. As a father of 11 children, when he made the comment at one point that we should not have children like rabbits and that he thought 3 children was about right, it hurt. Why did he say this? Its not doctrine, but it is the Churches clear teaching to be open to life and all children are a blessing. So, I take it to prayer and hope that he doesn't really mean what he said. But, I too have put my foot in my mouth many times in the past and I regret it. With what is coming, I am convinced the best course of action is to pray, trust and don't worry; God has a plan.
"Pope Francis has clarified remarks he made on Monday that Catholics didn’t need to breed like rabbits and that large families weren’t a cause of poverty, saying that economic injustices were the main reason for inequality. TagsReligion, Europe, Biology The pope originally made the controversial comments about birth control, while on a plane returning from a trip to Asia on Monday. "Some think, and excuse the term, that to be good Catholics, they must be like rabbits," the Pontiff said. READ MORE: Good Catholics don’t need to breed ‘like rabbits’ – Pope Francis Some commentators on social media said his comments were offensive to people who had or were raised in large families. He has now explained what he meant by his words at his weekly general audience at the Vatican in Rome. "I have heard it said that families with many children and the birth of many children are among the causes of poverty. I think that is a simplistic opinion," he said. The pope explained that the world’s economic system where money is the most important thing and a “throw away culture” were in fact the main causes of poverty. He also said that children are a gift from God. “Healthy families are essential to the life of society. It provides us with consolation and hope to see so many large families who welcome children as a gift from God,” he said. However, he did restate that he supports the Catholic Church’s ban on artificial birth control and insisted that there are “many ways that are allowed” to practice natural birth control. The Catholic Church backs natural birth control such as abstinence, or not having sex during a woman’s fertile period." So the pope did not say "Don't breed like rabbits." How often have you heard the response when someone says they have a large family, "Oh you must be Catholic". He was saying you don't have to have a huge family to be authentically Catholic. He was saying that is not what defines us. He was also saying that society's habit of giving too much importance to money and material goods devalued the true riches given by God which are children. He then went on to emphasize the great graces that large families provide to society and to confirm the truth about artificial birth control - it is banned by the Church.
Yes, I haven't seen a link posted to this latest from Mark Mallet where he comments specifically on Amoris Laetitia. So here is the link: http://www.markmallett.com/blog/the-centre/#more-23915
Hi Ed For some reason the statue went from Auckland to LA then to Phoenix then to Cincinnati before going to Denver. The artist said She must have wanted to visit all those places without being seen. (Incognito) So She got to visit Ohio.
Joe, I think you may like Mark Mallett's latest post. St. Paul wasn't less Catholic for confronting Peter, he in fact strengthened Peter's faith. St. Paul was right, St. Peter was wrong. The Pope (St. Peter) was teaching ERROR. St. Paul was blessed because he defended Truth even to the Pope's face.
The fact that he corrected Peter in person is the crucial point. St. Paul was given this task by the Holy Spirit and he did it face to face.
Has anyone here seen this? https://vericatholici.wordpress.com...tional-conference-to-condemn-amoris-laetitia/
Well it's a new one on me. I was amazed to see a website in 8 languages devoted to: Veri Catholici, an international association of Catholics dedicated to opposing the errors promoted by Cardinal Kasper The good Cardinal has been subject to varying degrees of character assassination on this forum so I'm surprised the site has not been quoted before! But even more intriguing is the paragraph below which seems to rather contradict the above sentence: « Veri Catholici », which in Latin means, “True Catholics”, is the proper name of the International Association of Catholics who have decided to take upthe call of the Most Rev. Athanasius Schneiderto preserve the eternal Faith taught by Our Lord Jesus Christ as it has been handed down in the Catholic Church throughout all the ages. I was wondering who might take up the mantle of 'St Paul' opposing Peter and so maybe it will be Bishop Schneider....
Do you know anything about them? I can't afford another trip to Rome this year. I would be willing to make a donation if I were convinced that they aren't a bunch of fanatics. They have a PayPal link for donations but I cancelled my PayPal account, and I don't do Facebook or Twitter. I wish that people would stop saying that anyone speaking against this is wrong because they aren't saying it to the Pope's face. How on earth will any of us ever get a face to face meeting with the Pope? Even writing him a letter would be pointless because it would be like winning the lotto to have him read it. Any Bishop or priest challenging it is likely to be mercifully marginalised. A petition might be a good idea, although it would most likely be consigned to the waste paper bin. Maybe a large group of people showing up to deliver the petition could save it from the shredder. The sad part of this is that those who have lobbied for the changes will be able to also organise petitions signed by Christmas Catholics. In Europe and most of the countries where these bishops hail from, practising Catholics are in a minority.
It's hard to assassinate someone committing spiritual suicide. Very few on MOG defend his heresy. Why do you insist on doing so?
Nichols on why faithful should read the Amoris Laetitia The Archbishop of Westminster has issued a letter urging faithful to read Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation. “He presents afresh the clear teaching of the Church about marriage and reminds us persistently of the truth of the endless mercy of God for each one of us” The Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols 04/05/2016 MARIA TERESA PONTARA PEDERIVA Like the “Laudato Si’”, the “Amoris Laetitia” is a seminal work on the joy of human love: the widespread consensus over this is leading all those who care about the reality of people’s lives, to rally around the Pope. There have been many attestations of this in recent weeks and now, as was the case with last June’s encyclical, a further endorsement of Bergoglio’s text has now emerged. At the beginning of May, the first pastoral letter on the “Amoris Laetitia” theme was issued by the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, who suggested the letter be read out during the celebrations marking the 6th Sunday of Easter – as is customary in many countries. “The Joy of Love” Cardinal Nichols writes, is “quite remarkable”, illustrating his point with a real life experience, in true Bergoglio style: “I heard from one husband who found his wife in tears. He asked her why. She said she was weeping because the words of Pope Francis touched her so deeply.” “Pope Francis talks to us as if he had his arms around us,” the Bishop underlines. “He speaks of the beauty of love, reflecting on the words of St Paul that love is patient and kind, not jealous or boastful, arrogant or rude, never rejoicing in what is wrong, but hoping and enduring all things. He writes of how this love finds its place in family life and grows through many crises and difficulties. Indeed he speaks of love as a craft, something at which we have to work hard, with care, understanding and perseverance. Love is always a journey, in all true friendship and especially in family life. It was these reflections that brought tears of recognition to the eyes of that good woman.” “Our study of this exhortation will take time and effort,” the cardinal says, but “for all of us it will be a great source of joy and encouragement”. He urged faithful: “Please do read it, at home, together with loved ones. You too may share its beauty in tears of joy.” The cardinal is keen to point out three reasons why this sensitive appreciation of the journey of love is so crucial. “Firstly, he tells us how important it is to prepare for this journey. This begins within a person’s own experience of family life. Then, as young people grow, this preparation continues with clear guidance and a vision of the dignity of love. The Pope reminds us of the importance of ‘positive and prudent’ sex education (280),” leading to “mutual commitment and goals proper to marriage (283)”. No family is born perfect: “At every stage of this journey he asks that we never lose sight of our true goal, and never give up on it. That goal is expressed in the vision of faithful married love, which he describes as a place where God truly dwells and a true and precious pathway to holiness on which we are never without his presence. Family love, he says, is ‘a God enlightened space’ (317) always to be revered and nurtured.” In what Nichols describes as “the most sensitive part of his message,” Pope Francis stresses how important it is to remember that the Church is like a ‘field hospital’, that shows a particular concern for difficult situations: “He presents afresh the clear teaching of the Church about marriage and reminds us persistently of the truth of the endless mercy of God for each one of us.” Nichols urges against any inclination to oversimplify the contents of the Exhortation: “It is so important not to reduce this great exhortation to being simply about whether people who have been divorced and remarried can go forward to receive Holy Communion. The quest is much wider. It is a quest for every person to understand much more deeply their situation before God. When we hide nothing from the Lord, when we reflect carefully in prayer, when we open our hearts to the wonder of God’s plan for our happiness, we begin to sense the call of our conscience, that inner core and sanctuary where God’s voice echoes within us. Here we are led both to a painful admission of our past failings and to a careful consideration of what the next step in our journey might be. Such considerations, which the Holy Father speaks of as discernment, are always best carried out in thoughtful dialogue with an experienced guide, usually a priest.” The archbishop concludes his letter addressed to London’s faithful by expressing his gratitude for the fact that the Exhortation “has come to us during the Year of Mercy when so many people are turning again to Confession, the Sacrament of Reconciliation.” “That is a good place and a good time to start this discernment,” with a careful and reflective reading of the text. Echoing Francis’ words and above all his style, the cardinal recalled that “love in the family is ‘a never-ending vocation’ (325), ‘a shepherding in mercy’ (322), across the generations. Indeed it is the first way in which God’s love is made real in our world and by which the Gospel of Hope is proclaimed in situations that can be demanding and harsh.” http://www.lastampa.it/2016/05/04/v...s-laetitia-aPpO9rrQq5cq7ru4pIH2AK/pagina.html
