This is an excerpt from Charlie Johnston's 12/16 entry. I've been away overseas so if it is redundant, please forgive my oversight. ... Twenty years ago I began telling my priests about these times. When I began speaking, the economy was strong, the world was as peaceful as it had been in decades – people were talking about how to spend the “peace” dividend, since we would not have to spend so much on defense now that America was the lone superpower and history had reached its logical end. I told my priests that we were about to go into starkly terrible times, about the rise of large-scale institutionalized terror, the collapse of financial stability across the globe, ending in a great Storm, a global civil war – a civil war that was cultural rather than political…that this was not the end, but would seem like it, Rather, It was God renewing the world and reclaiming His people, for more souls have been lost to eternity in the last century than at any time in the history of the world – and we would not turn from our folly. I told them of what was ahead in much detail, often miscalculating by a year to three when certain things would happen. But I did make clear that the only time I had been specifically told in plain language was the season of the rescue, in very late 2017. Far more important than the details of all that was coming was what our response is to be, how we are to co-operate with God in bringing people back to Him, to assure them of His love for them. I have written about it extensively here – and by doing a search of the “Storm” in the search feature near the top right of the site, you can see all articles pertaining to it. I will readily concede that what I have written on this site barely qualifies as the tip of the iceberg – but what is fundamental, what to do whatever happens, I have covered very fully. That is all we need to know, and from that standpoint, you are well informed. Now, I am gratified to see so many behaving like it, discerning what is important from what is mere showy trivia. Over the next weeks, I will speak more about things we all should be focusing on to prepare ourselves for all that is upon us. In some ways, it will be far worse than most imagine. I encourage you to study Our Lady of Kibejo and the sudden terror that erupted in Rwanda. It could happen everywhere. There will be battles, assaults. We will find ourselves in desperate situations, But in the early months of that, panic will be your greatest enemy. Acknowledge God, take the next right step and be a sign of hope to those around you. That will not just save others; it may save your life as it distracts you from the panic that wants to rise in you. You are going to have to make very difficult choices. Many will have to make the choice of whether to kill or be killed – or watch their loved ones be killed. Do not act out of vengeance or panic. Do not fail to act out of prissiness or a formulaic response to strife. We think we know so much. Smug moral vanity has replaced righteous judgment in many who think themselves deep religious thinkers. It has pleased God to cast all our smug assurances to the winds, to make us live what we say we believe – to adjust where we have been merely smug or to die in our errors... It is this idea of suddenness which gives me pause. Sometimes I slip into my radar mentality, scanning the horizon for the latest indication of the rising Storm. Actually this can prove to be a waste of time for in the spiritual realm the greatest defense is a strong offense. So this Christmas I've decided to turn the radar off and focus on the salvation found in Jesus. As Charlie stated: Far more important than the details of all that was coming was what our response is to be, how we are to co-operate with God in bringing people back to Him, to assure them of His love for them. Then when the suddenness of the Storm befalls me, I'll just keep on doing what I've been doing. For even our Lord hints at this when he states in Mark: 13:5 "Therefore, be on the alert—for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 in case he should come suddenly and find you asleep. Mary, help us to be alert and attentive to what God desires in our life today. Glory to God in the highest!
Mario, this struck me as well and a few of us have talked about how we feel we're in "training", mabye that's the purpose of those of us who are awake and aware (I tried to fill in some friends last weekend at a dinner party and from their looks and response, I believe they feel I've lost my mind, but that's ok, I was trying to plant a seed and told them "if something happens, reach out to me": "Far more important than the details of all that was coming was what our response is to be, how we are to co-operate with God in bringing people back to Him, to assure them of His love for them."
This reminds me of a quote from Caryll Houselander, written as she lived through WWII in England (I may have posted this before: I love Caryll Houselander!) "We are in the world now as Christs; in the midst of this storm. We are here to keep Christianity alive, to keep Christianity pure, intact, to ensure by our own lives in Christ that the gates of hell shall not prevail against Christendom. This cannot be done if there is the least compromise with love; if we do noy try to cast out fear by loving acts, if we do not use the energy grief gives us in loving acts, if we do not imitate Christ literally, we shall succumb to hate or to despair. Our war work, then, is difficult. It is just the work that Christ himself feared in Gethsemane, and yet faced and accomplished and will accomplish in each of us. It demands from us wisdom to see clearly and to keep our balance, and to discipline order our lives to that end, but it demands also blind faith. All his "hard sayings" must be accepted literally; we must obey him absolutely, trust him absolutely, and for his sake love absolutely. With this attitude we can work and hope for peace for oneness of all human creatures, for the promised blessedness." I'm thinking it is only in this spirit that we can survive these times, so that even if we are called to actual battle, meeting force with force, it can be done as an act of love, protecting those the Lord has given us. (Perhaps the time of a modern holy crusade is upon us?)
I feel this is true, kathy, and something we will have to stand up and do: "even if we are called to actual battle, meeting force with force, it can be done as an act of love, protecting those the Lord has given us. (Perhaps the time of a modern holy crusade is upon us?)"
FP, that is the hardest thing for me at this time is to see the appathy or indifference of 99% of everyone around me, including some within my own family. It's not that everyone is indifferent to God, they just have NO clue what is about to take place. How does one ingnite in others the love of God, his justice that is about to be exacted on the whole world and the fact that we are living in the most tribulant times in the history of man? If it isn't on their cell phone, TV or Facebook it is not important enough for them to even consider. God knows if they are not going to listen to his own mother then our chances are slim to none at this time to change hearts. Our day is coming, it just hasn't arrived yet.
It's quite incredible, I think most people just think in secular terms and although they claim to have Faith, mabye they don't really believe. But I feel that mabye this is our "job" we are being trained for, that when it does begin in earnest and panic sets in that we can be beacons of light and and the steady ones who keep our heads and help to lead people to safety or at least calm them down and help them to understand that it's a result of us turning our backs on God and He wants to bring all of us back to Him so we need to pray, confess, receive the Sacraments
Absolutely. I've seen this played out hundreds of times on the small stage of individual lives. When confronted with a terminal illness, even "religious" people have to own their faith in a new way. And those who prided themselves on their unbelief cry out to God. It is a great help to them to have someone to lend them the strength of their own faith, hope and love at that moment - to tell them: "It's all true! Every promise is true!"And to gently guide them to their responsibility in the equation - true repentance.
