Faith in God and Feng Shui?

Mother of God

PRAISED BE JESUS, MARY, AND JOSEPH!

Feng Shui masters are the stars of the moment. I have always said that New Year’s Eve is perhaps the most superstitious night of the year because people are so obsessed with appropriating for themselves the power that does not belong to them, that is, the power to influence the elements of nature to their own advantage. But be careful of harnessing these so-called “powers” for these are not simple energies. Rather, they are what St. Paul calls the “principalities and powers, rulers of the world of this darkness, the spirits of wickedness in high places.” (Eph. 6:12) In other words, these are demons who will do all they can to deceive you into believing that they can assure you of a good future only if you do their bidding. Remember that our Lord himself was promised by Satan all the kingdoms of the earth if only he bows down to worship the devil. Many say that there is no harm in trying what to them seem to be innocent rituals. “Wala namang mawawala,” we always say. But we are wrong. Mayroong mawawala at iyan ay ang pananampalataya natin at pagtitiwala sa Diyos.

In fact, superstition steals away freedom and joy. Underneath the noise and merry making is fear and slavery. We are enslaved to the performance of these rituals because failure to do them might cause bad luck in the coming year. We are not conscious of it but we are actually compelled to have the 12 fruits on the table, to light firecrackers, to wear polkadots…all by the fear of ill luck. Father, you might says, hindi totoo yan…hindi kami napipilitan ng takot. Talaga? Sige nga, hinahamon ko kayo, kung talagang hindi kayo takot, pagsapit ng hatinggabi, huwag ninyo gawin ang lahat ng iyan at maglakas loob lang kayo na magtiwala sa Diyos. Magagawa ninyo? I challenge you to be truly Catholic tonight…to put your faith in action…to trust God’s love for you.

I found these tips for feng shui in the home and honestly, I think they are all a load of crap. But I will share them with you to point out what is the more Catholic way of doing it.

Clean it up!

Instead of just cleaning your house, why don’t you come clean before the Lord? Confess your sins and reconcile with your enemies. Start the year with a clean slate.

Be colorful!

I do not see how Red brings power, and green brings in wealth. Ano naman ang kinalaman ng kulay sa kapalaran? Instead of putting your trust in colors that have no powers at all to bring in fortune, why don’t you just allow God, family, and friends to put color into your life? Allow their friendship to bring meaning to your life.

Serve a spread!

How will a media noche feast, composed of meat, fish, and vegetable dishes and different types of fruits and cakes on the dining table, bring in prosperity and good luck? How can making sure that having leftovers of each will assure you will not run out of food the rest of the year? Go instead to Mass and receive Communion worthily. The Body of Christ is the Feast that God prepares for his people.

Go fruity!

At ano naman talaga ang kinalaman ng 12 different fruits: Pineapples, oranges, apples, grapes, bananas, mangoes, lemons, watermelons, papaya, lychees, avocadoes, and pomelosa kapalaran? How will the combination of these fruits bring about good fortune, harmony, happiness, prosperity, happiness, good fortune, and good health? Instead of being preoccupied with these 12 fruits, why not be preoccupied with bearing the 12 fruits of the Holy Spirit: charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, chastity. These are permanent dispositions which make man docile in obeying the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

Check it!

Leaky faucets will not bring about leaks in your finances; nor will burned out bulbs bring poor “chi” flow. There is simply no relationship between them. Instead, engage in an examination of conscience tonight. Measure your life

against the 10 commandments and the 8 beatitudes. Examine the leakages in your relationship with God, meaning, those graces which you did not put into use for your salvation and those of others.

See red!

How can giving ampao, those red envelopes with gold Chinese characters, with some money inside bring protection and good luck? Instead, give to the poor. Donate to charities. Instead, think of those who are hungry tonight. Think of those who have suffered because of the storm. Share your food with the hungry. Charity covers a multitude of sins.

Make noise!

Blowing on your torotot and whistles, banging on those pot covers will not drive away evil spirits. Believe me, it does not work this way. I know what I am talking about. Evil spirits are driven away by prayer and fasting. That is why, tonight, it is better to pray. Sing hymns and canticles to God. Make joyful noise unto the Lord.

In the end will always be a disclaimer: kailangang samahan ito ng panalangin, pananampalataya, sipag at tiyaga in order to give a senseless report on geomancy some credibility to modern observers. I always say: if there is faith, effort, and patience, what do you need geomancy for? Feng shui compromises faith. It is an expression of lack of trust in the providence of God.

Tonight, let us imitate the Blessed Virgin Mary who kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart. New Year’s Eve need not be expensive and dangerous. Libre at ligtas ang manalangin. Ang pagkakawanggawa ay nagdudulot ng kapatawaran ng kasalanan. Ang Panginoon lang ang nagdudulot ng kaligtasan.

Jesus, I trust in you. O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

Terrible as an army set in battle array (On the Birth of the Virgin)

PRAISED BE JESUS, MARY, AND JOSEPH!

Who is she that comes forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army in battle array?

This verse coming from the canticles is recited everyday by the members of the Legion of Mary as part of what they call the “Catena Legionis”. It speaks of the coming forth of the Blessed Virgin as compared to the dawn which breaks the darkness of the night. The birth of the Blessed Virgin is like the dawn of a new creation. New because the old creation was destroyed by sin and death on account of the disobedience of our first parents: by the disobedience of one man, sin entered into the world and together with sin entered death. What was supposed to be an imperishable creation was destroyed by the envy of the devil. But “behold, I make all things new,” says the Lord. He, who is about to create a new heaven and a new earth, created this wonderful child, like a new garden which the serpent was not allowed to enter. “Truly a better paradise than the first is given us at this hour. Eden, fear no more that man will endeavor to enter thee; thy Cherubim may leave the gates and return to heaven. What are thy beautiful fruits to us, since we cannot touch these without dying? Death is now for those who will not eat of the fruit so soon to appear amid the flowers of the virgin earth to which our God has led us.” (Abb. Gueranger, The Liturgical Year, Sept. 8.) Adam and Eve were prohibited from eating the death-giving fruit of the garden of Eden. But you and I are told to eat the fruit of the womb of Mary so that we may have life: “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man, you cannot have life in you.”

The saints were not lacking in words in praising this day of the birth of the Virgin Mary. “St. Andrew of Crete calls this day a solemnity of entrance, a feast of beginning, whose end is the union of the Word with our flesh; a virginal feast full of joy and confident for all…’It is the beginning of salvation, the origin of every feast,’ says St. Peter Damian, ‘for behold! The Mother of the Bridegroom is born. With good reason does the whole world rejoice today; and the Church, beside herself, bids her choirs sing wedding songs.’” (Gueranger) Indeed, what a beautiful child is born for us today! “Mother of God, Queen of heaven, Sovereign of the world, all generations call you blessed, for you have brought forth life and glory for all. In you, the angels ever find their joy, the just find grace, sinners pardon; in you, and by you, and from you, the merciful hand of the Almighty has reformed the first creation!” (St. Bernard of Clairvaux) But while we admire the beauty of this little child, let us not forget that she is like an army arrayed for battle. St. Louie de Montfort said: “It is by Mary that the salvation of the world has begun, and it is by Mary that it must be consummated. Being the way by which Jesus Christ came to us the first time, she will also be the way by which He will come the second time, though not in the same manner. Mary must shine forth more than ever in mercy, in might, and in grace in these latter times: in mercy, to bring back and lovingly receive the poor strayed sinners who shall be converted and shall return to the Catholic Church; in might, against the enemies of God, idolaters, schismatics, Mahometans, Jews, and souls hardened in impiety, who shall rise in terrible revolt against God, to seduce all those who shall be contrary to them, and make them fall by promises and threats; and finally, she must shine forth in grace, in order to animate and sustain the valiant soldiers and faithful servants of Jesus Christ, who shall do battle for his interests. Mary must be terrible as an army ranged in battle, principally in these latter times. It is principally of these last and cruel persecutions of the devil, which shall go on increasing daily till the reign of the Antichrist, that we ought to understand that first and celebrated prediction and curse of God, pronounced in the terrestrial paradise against the serpent; ‘I will put enmities between you and the woman, and your seed and her seed.’

“God has never made or formed but one enmity; but it is an irreconcilable one: it is between Mary, his worthy Mother, and the devil; between the children and the servants of the Blessed Virgin and the children and the instruments of Lucifer. Satan fears Mary not only more than all the angels and men, but in some sense, more than God himself. It is not that the anger, the hatred, and the power of God are not infinitely greater than those of the blessed Virgin, for the perfections of Mary are limited; but it is because Satan, being proud, suffers infinitely more from being beaten and punished by a little and humble handmaid of God, and her humility humbles him more than the Divine power. The devils fear one of her sighs for a soul more than all the prayers of all the saints, and one of her menaces against them more than all other torments.” (True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin)

As we find ourselves in the middle of this raging battle between the Woman and the serpent, as the violence against the Christians in the Middle East escalates, as the threat of the Islamic Caliphate becomes more disturbing everyday, let us run to Mary and beg her to crush the head of the Serpent. “Together with the Church, let us ask, as the fruit of this feast, for that peace which seems to flee ever farther and farther from our unhappy times.” (Gueranger) “(May) the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin…bring deeper peace to those for whom the birth of her Son was the dawning of salvation.”

Jesus, I trust in you! O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

DEMONIC EXPRESSIONS

Be careful with words because they are not as innocent as they seem to be. A friend sent me a book entitled A Message of Hope: Confessions of an Ex-Satanist: How to Protect Yourself from Evil written by Deborah Lipsky who, for many years, lived as a prisoner of a satanic cult. Browsing through the pages, I came across this part which spoke of expressions that are not meaningless but actually attract demons from hell. I would like to share this part for our guidance: 

TOP 5 EXPRESSIONS THAT ACT LIKE A DOG WHISTLE 

SUMMONING THE HOUNDS OF HELL

1. "GOD DAMN IT"

In this phrase you are directly asking that the Creator of the universe to curse someone or something into hell for eve. It is said in an atmosphere of anger where no love is present, only hate. If you derive some sort of satisfaction from using this expression, that satisfaction means you are under the influence of demonic thought tampering. If saying it gives you a sense of power, you are trapped into the mindset of demons. To a demon, this selfish unholy request means that you have the audacity to ask God to commit an evil act on your command. In essence you are ordering God to do your dirty work!

2. "WHY DON'T YOU JUST DROP DEAD?"

By saying this you are actually pronouncing a form of a curse on someone else because you are wishing for them to die. When I was in school, I was constantly bullied. There was always a group of girls who would publicly humiliate me and then tell me to drop dead. As I tried to walk away, I would either trip in my nervousness or drop my books. That made them cackle in delight and hurl even more insult my way such as "loser" or "moron". To actually feel delight in someone else's pain is a "character trait" of demons. To laugh at someone else's misfortune after telling them to drop dead is an obvious tell-tale sign that they are under the influence of a cluster of demons.  Having "friends" or people support or encourage such behavior means there is a cluster of demons at work within that group.

3. "I SWEAR TO GOD"

This expression means that you are making an unbreakable vow in front of God regarding your innocence. Jesus himself warned against swearing to God in Matthew 5:33-37, "Again you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, do not break your oath, but keep oaths you have made to the Lord. But I tell you, do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your 'yes' be 'yes' and your 'no' be 'no'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one."

To use this expression to hide behind a false innocence is disgusting. Not only are you lying but you are manipulating the other person's trust by getting them to believe that God is vouching for your innocence. This expression is a favorite of demons everywhere.

4. "HOCUS POCUS"

Mainly this phrase is used in magic tricks but every now and then I hear it when someone says something to the effect, "There is a lot of 'hocus pocus' going on there." No Catholic should ever use this phrase as it is a derogatory corruption referring to the Eucharist: "Hoc est Corpus" or "This is my Body". Protestants back in the Middle Ages used this corrupted term to mock the Holy Eucharist...They would hurl this insult not only at clergy but also Catholic lay people on their way to Mass.

5. "KISS MY ASS"

I saved this expression last because it is especially vulgar. Sadly it is such a common expression in our society today spoken to show defiance. It is better known to Satanists elsewhere as the "oscularum infame" or "Kiss of Shame". During the traditional black mass this was considered a symbolic requisite towards earthly success. Participants would literally kiss the bare behind of the devil (usually the high priest
conducting the mass). Nothing gets a cluster of demons charging headlong towards somebody faster than using excerpts from the satanic mass.

(Deborah Lipsky, A Message of Hope: Confessions of an Ex-Satanist: How to Protect Yourself from Evil, Phoenix: Tau Publishing, 2012, 175-176.)

To a newly ordained priest

Praised be Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!

The season of Lent always opens with the Gospel on the Temptation of the Lord in the desert on account of the fact that this season is a 40 day fast in imitation of the 40 day fast of the Lord Jesus in the desert. “He fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, and afterwards he was hungry.” It was then that the tempter approached the Lord. Why tempt Jesus? It is because Jesus is the Son of God. He comes from God. He belongs to God. This fact made Jesus more desirable to the devil. He wanted to get Jesus because Jesus does not belong to him. The devil’s hatred for God moves him to steal what belongs to God in order to destroy its beauty and integrity. The devil works this way even until now. He loves to disturb seminaries and monasteries precisely for the same reason: he wants to destroy what belongs to God.

When the bishop laid his hands on you and prayed the prayer of ordination, Fr. Arvie, you were changed in a very special way. Not only were you given special powers, you were given a new identity…you became a priest, configured in the likeness of Christ who is the High Priest of the New Covenant. In a way, the identity of Jesus becomes yours. This is what it means when we say that the priest is Alter Christus. Yes, you are another Christ through whom the Lord Jesus will continue to perform his saving mission for the life of the world. By the Sacrament of Holy Orders, Jesus draws you close to him. You are consecrated to him. You belong to Jesus.

Thus, Fr. Arvie, you become a more attractive prey for the devil. He will want you because your hands are anointed. He will want you because you are anointed. He wants you for the simple reason that you belong to the Lord whom the devil hates so much. The devil will constantly tempt you through your hunger. He will tempt you to turn stones into bread, to take advantage of your priesthood for monetary purposes. There will always be something you need to have, something you need to buy. And I will tell you…it is really very easy for a priest to fall for this temptation as we all know that religion can easily be turned into a lucrative business. Fr. Arvie, do not set your heart to the love of money. Always set your heart on higher things for man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.

The devil will constantly seduce you through your need for affirmation. He will tempt you to make a spectacle of yourself. There will always be applause and recognition which will make you want for more.  And I tell you, it is really easy for a priest to fall for this temptation as we all know that admirers will easily be organized into fans’ club and make you a celebrity. Fr. Arvie, do not perform your religious office for other people to see. Even in the performance of your priestly office, always learn to enter into the inner room of your heart. You do not need the adulation and approval of admirers. You are not a celebrity but a priest. The only one thing you need is the approval of the Father who sees everything in secret.

The devil will constantly seduce you to seek kingdoms, to seek positions of power and prestige. Ikaw pa, Fr. Arvie, you have what it takes to pursue a career in the Church. I tell you, with your intellectual capabilities, you can easily seek promotions in the curia. Fr. Arvie, always keep in mind that the priesthood is not a career. It is a vocation, a way of life that is closely associated with the Sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. Your life as a priest is not a pursuit of promotions. Rather, it is one of self-abnegation. The priesthood is an unending sacrifice. It is an experience of one self-denial after another in imitation of Jesus who emptied himself and took the form of a human slave and humiliated himself even further by obediently accepting even death, death on a Cross. Imitate Christ the Obedient One. His obedience made many righteous. Be obedient to the Bishop. Allow him to break your will if necessary. Obey without question. Obey without complaint. Give up the right to choose your career path. Let it be the bishop’s problem to determine the path your priestly life will take. Remember that the voice of the bishop is the voice of God. Christ’s sacrifice is pleasing on account of his unconditional obedience. Make your offering pleasing also through your unconditional obedience.

Fr. Arvie, keep in mind what the priesthood is…it is the service of God. You were chosen by him. You belong to him. Always serve the Lord single-heartedly. Serve the Lord for his sake. Prefer nothing to the love of Christ. Love the Lord with all your soul, with all your mind, with all your heart, and with all your strength. The Lord your God shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.

Jesus, I trust in you. O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

Rejecting Satan

Praised be Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!

Most of us associate Lent with penance and mortification and very few give due regard to the baptismal character of the season. Lent is a period of preparation for catechumens who will be baptized on Easter vigil. It is also a period of preparation for us, the baptized, to renew our baptismal vows on the same Easter feast. The series of Lenten readings for this year will help us contemplate on this great sacrament of Baptism.

We begin by looking at the real abasement of the human being. Last Ash Wednesday, the ashes imposed on our foreheads reminded us of our mortality: Remember, man, that you are dust and to dust you shall return. Death, which is the way of all flesh, was inflicted to us on account of our slavery to sin. St. Paul reminds us: “Through one man, sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus, death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned.” Sin entered the world because our first parents were deceived by the Serpent who was the most cunning of all the animals. They believed the serpent who told them: “You certainly will not die!” They believed the serpent’s word over God’s word which allowed them to eat the fruit of any tree except that of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The devil indeed is the father of lies. His assurance that they would not die was all a lie. They were fooled by appearances: the woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom. Taking the forbidden fruit, they caused death on all humanity.

The Lord Jesus, the Son of God, came to earth to destroy the works of the devil. Physically weakened by fasting, the Lord confronted the devil who came to tempt him. The devil came with his attractions and his empty promises: food that does not satisfy, fame that is not lasting, and kingdoms that he could not give. Son of God that he is, the Lord Jesus reveals that only the Word of God gives life and satisfies the hunger of the soul. He also reveals that the Father’s love is sure and needs not to be tested. Lastly, he need not bow in worship of the devil because all authority in heaven and earth are bestowed on him by the Father in heaven. It is only to the Father that he bows in filial obedience. And it is his filial obedience to the Father that brings “acquittal and life to all.” “Through the obedience of one, the many will be made righteous.”

As we prepare to renew our baptismal vows, let us be resolute in our rejection of Satan, his works and his pomps. Satan cannot deliver anything he promises, no matter how pleasing and appealing it may be. The only thing he gives us is death. Satan loves no one but himself. He hates us for being the image and likeness of God. He looks at us and he sees the God whom he hates. Only in Christ can we find life and salvation. God, in Christ, loves us all very dearly. With the assurance of God’s love for us, let us cast away Satan: Get away Satan! The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve!

Jesus, I trust in you! O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

      

The Indwelling of the Holy Spirit vs. Demonic Possession

As we are in the Octave of Pentecost, it is good to continue meditating on the Indwelling of the Holy

Spirit. We said that God could not have made another way to be closer to us than what he does in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. He does not come to stand above or below us. Nor does he stand before nor behind us nor beside us. he dwells in us.

As we talk about the Holy Spirit, we have to clarify what we mean by "spirit". Ordinarily, people associate "spirit" with ghosts. And we can partly agree with this for in former times, we used to refer to the 3rd Person of the Trinity as "Holy Ghost." But on account of the fact that English is a living language, the nuance of "ghost" has changed for the frightening. And so we now say "Holy Spirit".

But what do we mean by "spirit"?  A spirit is a disembodied being that knows and wills. Angels and demons are spirits. The Holy Spirit is obviously a spirit. The difference between them is that angels and demons are created spirits (they are creatures) while the Holy Spirit is uncreated (He is God). The difference between angels and demons is that the angelic mind is oriented towards the Truth while the demonic mind is oriented towards a Lie. The angelic will is inclined towards the Good while the demonic will is inclined towards evil. Of course, the Holy Spirit's mind is the Truth (He is the Spirit of Truth) and His will is the Good (He is Holy). 

The Holy Spirit dwells in our souls. We received him on the day of our Baptism. He dwells in our souls to transform our minds and orient them to the Truth (who is God). He dwells in our souls to transform our will and orient it to the Good (who is God). 

On the other hand, in a demonic possession, the demon takes over (dwells) in the human body and not in the soul. His objective is very simple...he wants to kill and destroy. The father of the possessed boy said to Jesus: "It has often thrown him into fire and water to kill him." (Mk. 9 - Monday 7th Wk in Ord Time). But of course, while the devil can make the body of the possessed his plaything, he cannot enter the soul where the Holy Spirit dwells unless...the person opens the door of the soul and lets the devil enter. The devil is like a roaring lion in search for someone to devour. But he stays outside the heart until the door is opened from within and he is invited to enter. This happens in the person's willful cooperation with the devil in mortal sin. And when the door of the soul is opened to let the devil in, the person closes his heart to the Holy Spirit and rejects Him. Jesus himself said, "No one can serve two masters. He will love one and despise the other..." In mortal sin, the person loses the indwelling of the Holy Spirit whom he rejects and drives away. Losing the Holy Spirit who is the Giver of Life, the soul dies. Thus, the plan of the devil is accomplished because he came to kill and destroy. This is the reason why mortal sin is called "mortal" - it kills the soul.

The only way to revive the dead soul is by the sacrament of Confession. In the Sacrament of Confession, the Holy Spirit returns to his dwelling in response to the contrition of the penitent. the Holy Spirit brings about the forgiveness of sins and also he infuses the Divine Life into the soul. Thus, He restores what sin has taken away and once again He transform the person's mind and heart unto the mind and heart of Christ.

The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is God's most precious gift to us. Let us take care of this gift. Let us preserve the Divine Life in us through regular confession and frequent communion.

The Weapons Against Evil

Praised be Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!

“Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for 40 days, to be tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry…” It was at the moment when the Lord was hungry due to fasting that the devil decided to approach and tempt him. Perhaps, he thought that the hunger would make the Lord physically weak and so, it would be easier for him to fall into temptation. However, the devil was badly mistaken. He misunderstood the dynamics between flesh and spirit which are opposed to each other. The flesh struggles against the spirit and the spirit struggles against the flesh. That is why, the weaker the flesh is, the stronger the spirit and the stronger the flesh, the weaker the spirit. It was easy to tempt Adam and Eve. After all, they were in the midst of so much comfort in the garden of Eden. Their bodies were pampered. There was so much food to eat. The will of the soul weakens when the body is very comfortable. But the Lord was in the desert and he ate nothing for 40 days. He deliberately ate nothing…is that not training in self-mastery? He could eat but he did not – and the Lord sustained this resolution for 40 days. The devil should have seen it as a sign of a very firm and resolute will. It was a will that would withstand temptations.

It would not come as a surprise that the Lord would triumph. It is not just because he is God, but his human will was firm and resolute to do the Father’s will. He has so decided to be concerned with his Father’s affairs, as he declared in the temple when he was but a boy of 12. The firmness of his will is the manifestation of self-mastery. And means to this were prayer and fasting. “Why is there so much evil in the world today? Because people have thrown away their most reliable weapon, the all-victorious weapon with which every evil, every sin, and every demon are assuredly vanquished on all battlefields. And this weapon is fasting and prayer.” (St. Justin Popovich) The Lord went into the desert to fight the devil. And he came with his weapons: the Holy Spirit, prayer, and fasting. Against such weapons, the devil did not stand a chance.

And true enough, we know why we are constantly defeated in the spiritual warfare: we have been feasting and playing instead of fasting and praying! Feasting and playing around make us vulnerable targets of the devil. He dangles before us bread, power and glory. And we easily fall for these temptations. Not setting our hearts on higher and sublime things, we settle for bread that does not satisfy, power that flees, and glory that fades. We easily forget that we are meant for greater things to which the Holy Spirit dwelling is us testifies.

We should strive to win the spiritual battle for we are soldiers of Christ. And in this struggle against sin, the first battlefield is found in ourselves. We must master ourselves. We must dominate ourselves by learning to say “no” to what we want. And the weapons we need are but within our reach: “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart – that is, the word of faith…” Prayer and fasting are means offered to us. The Holy Spirit dwells in us. Let us arise in battle, for “no one who puts his belief in him will be put to shame.”

Jesus, I trust in you! O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

Falsity is the Sign of the Devil

The Kiss of Judas

In his Angelus Message last Sunday, August 26, 2012, the Holy  Father spoke on the disciples who abandoned the Lord on account of the difficulty of the teachings on the Eucharist. His commentary on Judas Iscariot is worth reflecting on: 

"In the end, Jesus knew that even among the Twelve there was one who did not believe: Judas. Judas too could have left like the other disciples did; perhaps he should have left had he wanted to be honest. Instead he stayed with Jesus. He stayed not because of faith, not because of love, but with the secret plan to get back at the Master. Why? Because Judas felt that Jesus had betrayed him and he decided to betray Jesus in turn. Judas was a zealot and wanted a victorious Messiah who would lead a revolt against the Romans. Jesus frustrated these expectations. The problem is that Judas did not leave and his gravest fault was falsity, which is the sign of the devil. Because of this Jesus said to the Twelve: “One among you is a devil!” (John 6:70). Let us pray to the Virgin Mary, who helps us to believe in Jesus, as St. Peter did, to be ever more sincere with him and with everyone."

I think these are very courageous words. I think dissenters in the Church should not hide their dissent under the guise of Intellectual or Academic Freedom. If you do not believe... by all means, leave! Don't dissent and still call yourself Catholics! Falsity is the sign of the devil.


Read the entire address: ZENIT - On Believing in Jesus, Bread of Life

Satan Hates the Latin Mass

Over at Rorate Caeli is a report about a priest who was beaten up for offering the Mass in the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite.


Priest attacked, guilty of celebrating the Latin Mass
...
Tue, 26/07/2011 - 15:24


"You have been tough, but we will smash your head. Signed, Your friend Satan". That was one of several threatening messages sent to Father Hernán García Pardo, parish priest of San Michele, in Ronta [Mugello region of the Province of Florence, Tuscany]. His fault [was] that of celebrating the Latin Mass, liberalized by Benedict XVI in September 2007.


The warnings, which had been recurrent for some time, had not made the priest, who despite everything has continued to say Mass according to the ancient rite, give up. The last chapter [took place] last Wednesday, when he was beaten up by a 'faithful' in the town's rectory in the presence of his aged mother. The beating led to bruising on his back; having been sent to the emergency room of Borgo San Lorenzo, he was medicated.


The news item was published today in the Giornale della Toscana; the accusations made against Father Hernán are those of scattering the flock; above all, he is not forgiven for distributing communion in the mouth [to the] kneeling [faithful], instead of on the hand, in the same manner as Benedict XVI. For others, the Italian-Argentine priest has only brought back some sacred austerity to the parish, excluding guitars from the functions and bringing back to within the walls of the church the ancient Gregorian chant. ...

Clearly, "Satan loathes the Latin Mass", as one commentator said. Not only is the extraordinary form meeting so much opposition from within the ranks of the Church, it is also being opposed by Satan himself. Most of the priests who offer the Mass in this form suffer so much harrassment which are obviously orchestrated by the Prince of darkness. Let us continue to pray to St. Michael the Archangel and also to Our Lady who is destined to crush the head of the Serpent for the protection of our valiant priests who offer the Mass of all times.

O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!