Day Seven. Reading the lives of visionaries like St Bernadette, Sister Sasagawa and Sister Lucia Dos Santos, there is such intense suffering in their lives. In fact Our Lady actually warned St Bernadette that she could not promise her happiness in this life. Our Lady seems to have taken time, privately to warn them about this . Curiously the greatest slander and persecution seems to come from within the Church itself, very often from very high quarters . 'Your ancestors stoned the prophets '.
Twice you know in recent times the priest in Confession has become very angry at me. The last time he became so angry he refused me absolution. In the Church we're I am now I accused my self of not fasting enough or doing enough penance The priest assured me that penance and fasting was all nonsense, that I was only hurting myself for no good reason. When I reminded him that all the saints fasted and did penance, that such things were very much scriptural and that what he was saying was opposed to the age old teachings if the Church he went into one roared at ne and bang tge confessional hatch got slammed shut . This is the world we are living in at present. I don't mind for myself, I know very, very well what's right and what's wrong But consider all the poor souls , especially children who go to him for advise...
Imho, a good example of why the "new evangelization" is failing and will ultimately fail in the end. Who in their right mind would bring anyone new to the faith to see a poor priest like this? Maybe he is starting to feel some pin pricks in his own conscience about the state of things...
I expect you hit a third rail. Perhaps he doesn't fast or practice mortifications and he is furious because somewhere deep in his conscience he KNOWS. And it terrifies him. Like women who have had abortions exploding at pro life people. They can't acknowledge the horror of what they have done. They can only cover over the festering wound and lash out. It is so tragic.
I find it kind of fascinating how fasting and abstinence is such a controversial subject. Currently the only obligation to fast is on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. I genuinely do not know what it was in times past. But then we have someone like St. Francis who fasted 200 days of the year. Many Saints and mystics were sustained on the Host alone. Science is starting to catch up to the Faith in discovering that fasting is beneficial physically. But it really seems to get a lot of people worked up. We know that fasting and prayer casts out certain kinds of demons, and I can't help but wonder if that is where the resistance comes from. As we know, oppression and obsession is demonic and perhaps this is where the opposition to fasting comes from.
Well it is a blessing to tell the truth, to light a little candle in the dark. Who knows were a tiny little candle may lead,
It may not seem like it at times but we in the West live in a state of luxury far sulerior to that of even recent Kingss and Queens. Far, far superior to the Roman Emperors of old. How many of us have ever known real true hunger? How many of us faced imminent brutal death? Even when I was young thee Church still took penance and fasting seriously We have lost the art the virtues . But they are a great defense against coming trials. When the great trials come I fear most will simply loose the will to live Camping is a great teacher. You learn to fix things and make do .
This is so true. We have become soft and flabby. I know I will not be able to cope with the coming trials unless I am given the grace to do so. I struggle to cope with my little crosses at present so when the real trials arrive I know it will be a real time of testing for me personally.
Bishop Barron was talking recently on how he was trained in the seminary right after VII. He said all old disciplines and prayer practices went out the window. Everything was social justice. He said by God's grace he found his way back but it explains a lot about priests who were " brought up" in those days. So I don't want to be harsh in my comments. He literally may have been taught against mortification and fasting.
.There are signs people are seeing the light. I see many parents are using brick phones for their children and schools and work places are banning smart phones. That is a start. But the best thing is teaching children to pray. How could we survive affliction without prayer? Scripture and the saints teach us not to worry because we concern ourselves with things that have not happened yet . We get the graces of fortitude when we need them
I was praying to Our Lord about crosses recently and said how they hurt do much often. He laughed and said if they didn't hurt they would not be worth very much.
I found when I was in prison beaten, naked and in solitary confinement Jesus and Mary drew very, very close. They were all I had really and because they were all I had I gave myself fully to them The furnace of affliction is just that a furnace. But like Daniel when surrounded by fierce lions and bathed un Flames we can be sure the Lord will rescue us and set us free
The great darkness and confusion in the Church at our present time is that we have two Churches occupying exactly the ssame space One the True Church of Christ . The other the Church created by Satan. Hovering between the two are a great mass of people, clergy and layoeople who are , basically jobsworths. People who want to wrap themselves in a comfort blanket that somehow things are fine It reminds me of the Germans during the Second Wotkd War who had a pretty good idea what the smoke chimneys were all about, but...Well better not to say anything. Better not to make waves. Better not to know
Give me a martyred, imprisoned or tortured pope (God bless and help him) before a Bergoglio, any and every day. My apologies. I was away on holidays and missed this wonderful novena. Thank you all, and God bless ye, for your time, effort and Faith.
I read a book by Bishop Barron from many years ago about St Thomas Aquinas. In fairness, it was theologically sound, but he referred continually to God as a female! Obviously a relic of his 'social justice' training. I think he has 'found his way back'-that's why he remains a mere bishop. I think he'd make a good pope, come to think of it.
