From A Traditional Catholic Perspective

Vatican rejects letter revealing plot to kill Pope within a year

2012-02-11T19:35:00.001Z

From http://www.independent.ie/world-news/europe/vatican-rejects-letter-revealing-plot-to-kill-pope-within-a-year-3016534.html

By Michael Day in Rome

Saturday February 11 2012

Sensational claims of a plot to assassinate Pope Benedict XVI have whipped Italy into a frenzy and focused the world's attention on the poisonous atmosphere seeping through the corridors of the Holy See.
The Italian daily 'Il Fatto Quotidiano' published an unsigned letter, written in German, which speaks of a "mordkomplott" (death plot ) against Pope Benedict and quotes the Archbishop of Palermo, Paolo Romeo, as predicting that the Pontiff would die within 12 months.
The anonymous missive, dated December 30 and marked "strictly confidential for the Holy Father" claims to report comments made by Cardinal Romeo during a trip to Beijing last year.
It was handed over to the Pope's number two, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, last month, by Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos of Colombia. The newspaper does not explain how Cardinal Castrillon came to possess the letter.
But Marco Lillo, the reporter who broke the story, speculated that German was used to convey the information directly to the Pope, who is German, while throwing prying eyes off the scent.
Yesterday Cardinal Romeo denied having made such comments. "It is so outside of reality that it should not be given any consideration," he said.
The Vatican's spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, said the report was "so incredible that we cannot comment on it".
"It seems to me something that is so far from reality that I don't even want to address it," Father Lombardi said. "It seems an incredible story and I don't want to comment."
He did not deny the existence of the document, but added that it was "devoid of reality".
It is a well-known fact that Benedict is unpopular among many Church figures. But experts said yesterday the letter was more likely an indication of a plot to cause political mischief than murder.
Robert Mickens, the Rome correspondent of Catholic newspaper 'The Tablet', who has covered the Vatican for more than two decades, was sceptical.
"I rather suspect it is nonsense, written to create even more rancour," he said. "More than anything it's an indication of the ill-feeling there and of the plotting and power struggles."
He noted the anonymous letter may also have been designed to harm the prospects of Angelo Scola, the Archbishop of Milan, one of the leading candidates to succeed the 85-year-old Pontiff.
Resentment
In naming him as the likely successor should the Pope die this year, the writer is likely to have stoked up resentment and enmity against Cardinal Scola.
Veteran Vatican watcher Valerio Gigante of the the Adista religious news website, said: "It's probably been done to hurt the Pope and his secretary of state (Cardinal Bertone). And maybe to hurt Cardinal Scola, too."
Experts said the release of the document could be part of a power struggle within the Vatican administration to try and force Cardinal Bertone to leave.
Cardinal Romeo said Benedict viewed Cardinal Scola as his ideal successor because they had similar personalities and theological outlooks.
Cardinal Scola was previously the Patriarch of Venice, but was promoted to the archbishopric of Milan by Benedict in June last year. (© Independent News Service)

- Michael Day in Rome

Time To Admit It: The Church Has Always Been Right On Birth Control

2012-02-11T16:08:00.004Z

Secular Business Website posts article supporting Church's Stance

See http://www.businessinsider.com/time-to-admit-it-the-church-has-always-been-right-on-birth-control-2012-2

6 Things All Catholics Should Know About the Rosary

2012-02-09T13:23:00.004Z

See http://www.stpeterslist.com/3112/regina-sanctissimi-rosarii-6-things-all-catholic-should-know-about-the-rosary/

Bishops reject claims made at Rome conference

2012-02-09T13:12:00.000Z

From http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0209/abuse.html

Irish Catholic bishops have accused a member of the Vatican's investigation team here of grossly misrepresenting the Irish Church's ongoing outreach to clerical child sexual abuse survivors.
A statement from the hierarchy last night rejected comments by Baroness Sheila Hollins at an international conference in Rome on the sexual abuse of children within the Catholic Church.
Psychiatrist Baroness Hollins had remarked that "in Ireland it is said that very few victims have had any counselling or therapy".
Ms Hollins is one of four people appointed by Pope Benedict to investigate abuse in the Archdiocese of Armagh, where she has met dozens of survivors.
The Irish bishops said this grossly misrepresents their - and the religious congregations' - ongoing outreach to survivors.
It said it has supported over 5,000 survivors in 250,000 separate confidential sessions with independent and fully-accredited therapists and other professionals.
The bishops also rejected Ms Hollins' comments that few survivors had received an apology or compensation.
They cited the Dublin Archdiocese, which had a €13.5 million compensation bill, and said many apologies had been given by bishops and congregational leaders to individual victims, groups and wider society.

Gilmore's 'not an inch on Vatican' sparks crisis

2012-02-07T22:03:00.002Z

From www.independent.ie/national-news/gilmores-not-an-inch-on-vatican-sparks-crisis-3010353.html

By DANIEL McCONNELL Chief Reporter and jOHN DRENNAN

Sunday February 05 2012

THE Government has been plunged into its first crisis after Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore yesterday categorically rejected Fine Gael calls to reverse the decision to close the Irish embassy to the Vatican.
The astonishing row over the Vatican embassy comes on the heels of a series of spats between the coalition over cuts in the Budget, which have led to a significant deterioration of relations between FG and Labour in recent weeks.
Speaking exclusively to this newspaper, the Labour leader has delivered an unequivocal rejection to his coalition partners, saying "no, the decision will not be reversed. It was a government decision".
"I have set out the position as to why it was necessary to do so. It was one of three embassies we closed. Like everyone else, the Department of Foreign Affairs had to cut its cloth to measure."
Mr Gilmore's rejection of the demands from within Fine Gael puts him at odds with reported commitments from Taoiseach Enda Kenny to review the embassy closure. Junior FG minister Lucinda Creighton yesterday said the embassy could be re-opened within two years.
Discontent about the Vatican embassy closure led to a series of dramatic, and sometimes farcical, clashes at a Fine Gael parliamentary party meeting last week. During the meeting, over half the TDs called for the re-opening of the embassy.
One of the most surreal moments saw TD Peter Mathews brandish a set of rosary beads at the "secularist members of the party". The meeting became so heated that senior ministers Michael Noonan and James Reilly had to intervene to calm the mood.
Mr Noonan stressed "Enda's credentials as a sound Catholic" and at one point claimed that "he is a better Catholic than myself".
Fine Gael figures were united in the demand that the Vatican embassy would be re-opened and soon.
The clash of ideologies between the parties has intensified since Budget day, and with such strong division lines being drawn between the parties on "non-critical" issues like the Vatican embassy, several senior ministers have now begun to question the ability of the Government to last the full term.
Yesterday a senior Fine Gael figure told the Sunday Independent: "I can see us getting one more Budget through, but I can't see us getting a third one through such is the feuding and in-fighting going on at the moment."
Speaking yesterday, Mr Gilmore as Foreign Minister in the eye of the storm made it clear that despite the Fine Gael calls, the decision to close the Vatican embassy is final.
"We have appointed a secretary-general in my department as ambassador as a non-resident. He will service it from Dublin. The decision to close the embassy and not to have an ambassador in residence is not going to be reversed," he added.
And Mr Gilmore is not alone in his opposition to such a review. Labour Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin has this weekend also ruled out any reversal of the decision.
Mr Gilmore denied that the decision to close the embassy was related to his Government's criticism -- a criticism led by Taoiseach Enda Kenny -- of the Vatican's role in the Cloyne Report into child sexual abuse or that it was part of any "anti-Catholic" agenda within his own party.
He also said that if the Vatican relaxed its rules to allow countries to use their embassies to Italy to also facilitate their relations with the Holy See, then the matter could be re-examined.
"The other issue that comes into play here is the refusal of the Vatican to allow countries to use their embassy to Italy as their embassy to the Vatican. So we have had to maintain two residences, two staffs. If the Vatican relaxes its view on that then we can relook at the arrangements then."
In an interview with the Sunday Independent, Mr Howlin also rejected any suggestion of reversing the decision to close the embassy. "It was a government decision, taken by all of Government in the context of the Budget, so it doesn't arise."
The closure of the Vatican embassy, cuts to small rural schools and cuts to various welfare benefits are the central issues in the war between the two coalition partners.
At the heated Fine Gael meeting on Wednesday, Mr Kenny reassured Fine Gael backbenchers that the decision to close down Ireland's Vatican embassy would be reviewed.
Mr Kenny told the meeting of his personal good relations with the Catholic Church.
"The real threat to the Government is that rows between the alternative sets of back-benchers will spark a political crisis that can only be resolved by an election," one minister said of the dispute.
Dublin Labour TD Aodhan O Riordain yesterday apologised for his apparent support of a proposal that senior public servants be screened to ensure they do not show "inappropriate deference to the Catholic Church".
He claimed the proposal came from within his constituency organisation and he did not read it before submitting it for inclusion at the party's upcoming conference. His apparent support for such a proposal drew the ire of party colleagues.

Benedict XVI performed exorcism in St Peter’s Square, claims priest

2012-02-04T22:03:00.000Z

From http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2012/02/03/benedict-xvi-performed-exorcism-in-st-peters-square-claims-priest/

Benedict XVI cured two men of demonic possession when he blessed them in St Peter’s Square, a leading exorcist has claimed.
Fr Gabriele Amorth said that when the Pope blessed the men they “flew three metres backwards” and “howled no longer”.
In extracts from a new book, published yesterday by Panorama magazine in Italy, Fr Amorth explained that incident occurred when the men, known only as Giovanni and Marco, attended a general audience.
When the Pope appeared, Fr Amorth said, according to AFP: “The two possessed men fell to the floor and banged their heads on the ground. The Swiss guards watched but did nothing; perhaps they have seen how the possessed react when faced by the Pope before?
“The Pope began to wave to the crowd and Giovanni and Marco started to howl, drool, shake and fly into a rage.
“The possessed were then hit by a wild jolt, their whole bodies were hit. They flew three metres backwards … and howled no longer.”
Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi denied that the Pope had performed an exorcism.
“Even if the facts are true, it’s not correct to talk about an exorcism by the Pope, who was not warned or aware of their presence,” he said.
Fr Amorth made a similar claim about Blessed Pope John Paul II. In 2000, he said that the late pope performed an impromptu exorcism on a a teenage girl at the end of an audience in St Peter’s Square. The Vatican’s press office declined to comment on the claim at the time.

How to Make a St Brigid's Cross

2012-02-01T16:48:00.002Z

From http://fisheaters.com/stbrigidscross.html

	Get at least 12 pieces of reed or straw (16 is better). Take the shortest one and hold upright.
	Take a second straw and fold it in the middle.
	Wrap the second straw around the first straw at the center so that it opens to your right.
	Pull it tight.
	Rotate the assemblage 90 degrees counter-clockwise, holding it at the center where the straws come together.
	Take a third straw and wrap it around the second straw so that it is opens to your right.
	Pull it tight.
	Rotate the assemblage 90 degrees counter-clockwise, holding it at the center where the straws come together.
	Take a fourth straw and wrap it around the third straw so that it opens to your right.
	Pull it tight.
	Rotate the assemblage 90 degrees counter-clockwise, holding it at the center where the straws come together.
	Take a fifth straw and fold it around the fourth straw so that it opens to your right.
	Pull it tight. Repeat this process until at least 12 straws are used. You will always be adding a straw at the top so it opens to your right, then turning the entire assemblage 90 degrees counter-clockwise, and repeating ("Add to the right, turn to the left"). Secure the ends of the arms of the Cross with twine, elastic, ribbon, etc., and trim the ends of the straws so that they're even.

BISHOP BOYCE COULD FACE CHARGE OVER CONTROVERSIAL KNOCK SERMON

2012-01-30T17:35:00.000Z

From http://www.donegaldaily.com/2012/01/29/revealed-bishop-boyce-could-face-charge-over-controversial-knock-sermon/

The Catholic Bishop of Raphoe Dr Philip Boyce is being investigated by the Director of Public Prosecutions following a formal complaint that a sermon in Knock amounted to 'incitement to hatred', it was revealed today.
Gardai have confirmed to former Fine Gael election candidate John Colgan that they have prepared and forwarded a file to the DPP after he made allegations that the address by Dr Boyce was in breach of the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act, 1989.
The homily, entitled: "To Trust in God" was delivered to worshippers during a Novena in Knock last August where the Bishop referred to the church being under attack by a 'Godless culture.'
Kildare man Mr Colgan, a humanist, made a formal complaint over two passages in the Donegal bishop's sermon.
Dr Boyce had referred to the church being "attacked from outside by the arrows of a secular and godless culture".
A second passage, which was included in the complaint, stated: "For the distinguishing mark of Christian believers is the fact they have a future; it is not that they know all the details that await them, but they know in general terms that their life will not end in emptiness."
Today Mr Colgan told a newspaper: "I believe statements of this kind are an incitement to hatred of dissidents, outsiders, secularists, within the meaning of the [Incitement to Hatred] Act, who are perfectly good citizens within the meaning of the civil law.
"The statements exemplify the chronic antipathy towards secularists, humanists etc, which has manifested itself in the ostracising of otherwise perfectly good Irish citizens, who do not share the aims of the Vatican's Irish Mission Church."
To back up his complaint, Mr Colgan referred to two statistical surveys carried out two decades apart by the Jesuit sociologist and academic Fr Michael MacGreil, entitled: 'Prejudice and Tolerance in Ireland' and 'Prejudice in Ireland Revisited' which Mr Colgan claims showed "marked prejudice by Roman Catholics and other Christian denominations against agnostics and atheists" (humanist was not an option offered to respondents in either survey).
In his complaint, Mr Colgan said he attributed this prejudice to "hostile propaganda disseminated in school and chapel in the main by or for the institutional churches, for there is no rational or temporal reason". In a statement to the Sunday Independent, Martin Long of the Catholic Communications office said: "Bishop Boyce's homily 'To Trust in God' is available for anyone to read at catholicbishops.ie.
"I advise any person to read it and judge it for themselves. It is clearly a reasonable, balanced, honest -- and indeed self-critical from a church perspective -- analysis of the value of the Catholic faith. Bishop Boyce is a good and holy man and much loved by those who know him."
After the homily was delivered late last summer, Mr Colgan wrote personally to the cleric seeking a corrective statement.
Dr Boyce responded saying that in his homily he did "not wish to disparage in any way the sincere efforts of those with no religious beliefs, atheists, humanists etc.
"I have too much respect for each human person, since I believe all are created in the image of God. At Knock I wished to encourage and confirm the hope of believers, even in the present challenging times, since trust in God was the theme I was given."

Doctors save baby born with no blood

2012-01-28T18:46:00.001Z

From http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/01/27/doctors-save-baby-born-with-no-blood/print

Published January 27, 2012

| NewsCore

A British baby was miraculously saved after being born with no blood in his body.
A rare condition drained Oliver Morgan's small frame of almost every drop while he was in the womb.
When he was delivered he looked pale and stillborn -- and doctors were unable to find a heartbeat for an astonishing 25 minutes.
But battling Oliver survived against all odds after being given oxygen, gentle heart massage and a lifesaving blood transfusion. Medics fought back tears when his heart monitor let out the first telltale beep.
Oliver is now a happy, healthy 15-month-old toddler.
His mom, 36-year-old Katy Morgan from Maidstone, southern England, said Thursday, "Oliver's birth was so traumatic that I haven't been able to bring myself to tell his story till now. He was born dead with no blood in his body -- but now he's sitting here smiling at me."
"The doctors literally brought him back to life and I will never be able to thank them enough for this wonderful gift," she added.
Oliver almost bled to death after a rare condition called vasa previa formed an extra vein in his mom's womb. It burst -- and she woke up covered in blood 37.5 weeks into her pregnancy.
She was rushed to the Maidstone General Hospital and was shocked to discover it had all come from her baby.
Oliver was born by emergency C-section weighing six pounds and one ounce (2.8 kilograms) at 5.12am local time. After attempts to resuscitate him, he was given a blood transfusion pumped into the still-attached umbilical cord.
At 5.37am local time the first heartbeat was detected and grew stronger as he was given more blood.
Katy Morgan -- who was anesthetized and unaware of the drama -- said, "Doctors said it was one of the most amazing recoveries they'd ever seen. Oliver had no blood, no heartbeat and looked stillborn -- but somehow they got him back."
Oliver was taken to a special care baby unit where doctors decided to lower his body temperature to save his brain from damage. He was placed inside a tiny coat which chilled him to 91 degrees Fahrenheit (33 degrees Celsius) to make blood flow away from his skin and to his brain and heart so they would heal more efficiently.
After three nail-biting days, consultants slowly began raising his temperature to the normal 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius). And after just 11 days Oliver was well enough to be taken home to start family life.
"It's hard to believe, looking back at what he's been through -- but Ollie's now a bright, happy boy with his whole life ahead of him," his mom said.
Click here to read more from The Sun.

Panicked Catholics flee violence in northern Nigeria

2012-01-26T16:46:00.003Z

Abuja, Nigeria, Jan 26, 2012 (CNA).

As many as 35,000 people have fled their homes in northern Nigeria after continuing attacks from the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram. Their numbers include a large number of Catholics who report that churches have been destroyed.
“There is panic. Many just leave everything behind, and run for safety, because they do not know when violence might flare up again,” a source told Aid to the Church in Need on Jan. 24.
On Jan. 20, Boko Haram killed at least 185 people in attacks that rocked Kano city, located in the state of Borno, the Associated Press reports. The coordinated attacks used cars with heavy explosives and suicide bombers who targeted police stations. Men in security uniforms gunned down government officials.
Churches have also been destroyed in Maidiguri in Borno and the city of Bauchi, in Bauchi state.
“It is the stated goal of Boko Haram to make the whole of the north free of Christians,” one source told Aid to the Church in Need.
At the beginning of January, Boko Haram spokesman Abu Qaqa gave Christians a three-day ultimatum to leave the area.
Refugees are headed to where they believe it is safe, especially the city of Jos.
Boko Haram’s name means “western education is sinful” in Nigeria’s Hausa language. The group has killed at least 935 people since its 2009 uprising, and more than 250 since the beginning of 2012, Human Rights Watch reports.
The Catholic bishops of Nigeria have decried the actions of the group.

Analysts believe the group intends to make the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian, appear unable to control the country.

Ireland: “Catholic pride” deals a blow to the Government

2012-01-26T16:07:00.003Z

From http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/world-news/detail/articolo/irlanda-ireland-chiesa-church-iglesia-11962/

Giacomo Galeazzi Vatican City

A Catholic wave has come crashing down on the Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny. In Dublin, 100,000 postcards were sent to the head of government in protest at the closure of the Irish Embassy to the Holy See. Two months ago, Ireland downgraded its representation in the Holy See from resident to non-resident.

The website of the international movement "We Are Church" reported a statement made by the Jesuit essayist, Fr. Brian Lennon, published in the Italian Jesuit monthly magazine Popoli. Fr. Lennon warned that “the government has got the time frame wrong: it was in 1998 that Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, head of the Congregation for the Clergy, told the Irish bishops that the Vatican’s policy was to protect priests when they were accused.” According to the Government, this occurred within the last three years. “While it is a regrettable inaccuracy in such an important statement by the government, the minister’s words probably reflect the general indignation aroused by the revelations of the Cloyne Report,” Fr. Brian Lennon observed.

“The government’s decision to close its embassy in the Vatican is a symptom of the profound change in relations between Ireland and the Holy See. In the past, the Church had great influence in Irish society. Bishops and priests were treated with respect and could influence legislation on moral issues. Since the publication of the Reports on the abuse, clerical collars are frowned upon by many and wearers are sometimes insulted in the street.”

A problem that has emerged from this crisis is that many priests and religious persons feel guilty for what happened, “even if they are innocent, because they did not abuse anyone and never held positions of authority.” This, according to Fr. Lennon, “raises the question of collegial relationships: to what extent should innocent members of the Church take a share of responsibility for the actions of the organization they belong to? It is a regular matter of civil law and conflict situations: for example, whether or not young Germans born after 1945 should be asked to pay taxes to contribute to compensation for the people of Israel by the German state for the Holocaust, even though they were not born during the Second World War?”

A second issue raised by the crisis regards the structures governing the Church today. “The Bishop of Cloyne had been able to ignore the Framework Document of 1996 because it was a document from the Irish Conference of Bishops,” the Jesuit emphasized. “Individual bishops are not obligated to respond to the bishops’ conferences, nor are they accountable to any layman. They are accountable only to the Pope.

“Thus, the Conference of Bishops could not impose the Framework Document on the individual bishops, and this is a weakness in Church governance. However, it should also be remembered that the situation has improved since 1996: it was the priest in charge of the protection of children, acting for the Irish Conference of Bishops, who alerted the civil authorities so that they could take care of the protection of children in Cloyne. So, even if he did not have direct authority according to ecclesiastical law, he was still able to have a positive influence. It is a ray of light in an ugly situation.”
The decision to close the embassy in the Vatican was announced with a note from the Irish Foreign Ministry to the effect that the reasons were purely economic - so much so that in addition to the embassy at the Holy See, they are also closing embassies in Iran and East Timor. It is as if to say that for the very Catholic Ireland, representatives in Persia and in the former Portuguese colony have the same weight of office as in the capital of Christendom. That choice ended up not too far from the decision of the Holy See to withdraw its ambassador from Ireland after the decisive attack directed at the Vatican by Irish Prime Minister, Enda Kenny (one year after the publication of the Report on sexual abuse in the Church of Ireland) for the “distant, elitist, and narcissistic” management of abuse cases. “Although the Embassy at the Holy See is one of the oldest missions of Ireland,” the statement reads, “it does not produce economic returns.” So, the Irish government believes that “the interests of Ireland with the Holy See are sufficiently represented by a non-resident ambassador.” There was no official controversy, and no reference to paedophilia cases. The Vatican reply follows along the same lines: “The Holy See notes the decision to close the Embassy of Ireland in Rome at the Holy See,” writes Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican Press Office. He continues: “Any State which has diplomatic relations with the Holy See is free to decide, according to its abilities and interests, whether to have an ambassador at the Holy See living in Rome or as a resident of another country.” Thus, they are not questioning “the diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Ireland.”

Nevertheless, Cardinal Sean Brady, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland, has expressed “deep disappointment” at the Irish Government’s decision to close the Dublin embassy to the Holy See. Prior to the closure of the Irish Embassy at the Vatican, the tone was less peaceful. An Irish government commission had published its latest report on sexual abuse by Irish priests in the diocese of Cloyne - a document that has triggered a controversy between the two diplomacies. Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny has bluntly criticized the shortcomings of the Holy See, which have existed, in his opinion, until the recent past.

On 29 October, the Vatican published a clarification note from the Secretary of State. The Irish Government replied, thanking him for the clarification and asking for “full cooperation” in the future, but reiterated the criticisms and spoke of the “anger” of the Irish population. Meanwhile, the Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland, Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza, who was called back to Rome in protest, was then appointed representative of the Holy See in the Czech Republic.

On 3 November, Dublin’s government announced that the headquarters of the ambassador to the Holy See, which had been vacant for months, would be closed. The Pope had intervened directly on the scandal of paedophilia in Ireland, with a letter to the Irish faithful, an apostolic visit, and the resignation of several bishops. Benedict XVI’s “zero tolerance” rule was introduced during a roundtable hosted by the Senate and the Maltese Prelate Charles J. Scicluna, promoter of justice of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith: “The complaint of abuse may be hampered by mistaken considerations and inappropriate loyalty and solidarity.” The Catholic Church, says the Chief Prosecutor of the Holy See, knows that every time one of its ministers (whether it be a bishop, a priest, a deacon, or a lay pastoral agent) sexually abuses a child, a tragic injury is inflicted on the community, subordinated to the indescribably repugnant damage caused to the child.”

Stolen relic returned to abbey

2012-01-19T15:34:00.001Z

From http://www.u.tv/articles/ArticlePrint.aspx?cat=news&guid=c2453098-df23-448b-8fa1-21c97046c412

The silver Holy Cross containing the relic was taken from a display case in Holycross Abbey in Thurles, Co Tipperary in October.
Two masked men armed with an angle grinder, a hammer and a screwdriver took the crucifix, along with a separate 14th-century silver cross containing two crosses and two dark stones in what is understood to have been a planned robbery.
Both have now been returned and neither were seriously damaged.
Father Tom Breen said he had been optimistic that the crosses would find their way back home.
"The finding of the relics is a true answer to the enormous prayerful response to their theft," said Fr Breen.
"The thousands of prayers to the Lord by people all over Ireland and beyond, for their safe return, have been answered. It is brilliant news and once again demonstrates the power of prayer."
The relic had been in the abbey since 1180 and attracts 250,000 visitors each year. It is believed to have been a gift from the King of Munster.
The relic was found in a search of a property in the Midlands area on Monday.
Fr Breen paid tribute to the investigating officers, saying: "Their professionalism was outstanding and they have worked tirelessly to retrieve the Relics. I cannot praise them highly enough."
Security at the abbey is now being revised to protect the relics, owing to what Fr Breen described as their enormous devotional importance.
Archbishop of Cashel and Emly Most Reverend Dermot Clifford also thanked Gardai for the return of the artefacts.
"This is a joyous day and one for which thousands of people had been praying for since the relics were stolen last October," the Archbishop added.
"It is still a mystery to us all as to why the relics were stolen as they had little monetary value.
"However we must now find measures to protect the relics.
"In the meantime the thousands of people who annually travel to Holycross to pray and show their devotion to the Lord Jesus will be very happy and thankful that the Relics are to be returned to their proper home," he added.

Public decries closure of embassy to the Vatican

2012-01-17T13:46:00.002Z

From http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/kfidaumhmhkf/rss2/

By Paul O’Brien, Political Editor

Monday, January 16, 2012

TÁNAISTE Eamon Gilmore’s decision to close the Irish embassy to the Vatican was met with overwhelming opposition from the public with over 93% criticising the move.

It was in stark contrast to the hugely supportive response to Taoiseach Enda Kenny’s blistering speech on the Cloyne Report. It suggests, while the public thought Mr Kenny’s denunciation of the Vatican in that speech was merited, the decision to close the embassy was not.

Writing on the embassy closure, one member of the public claimed Mr Gilmore had a "raw hatred" of the Catholic Church and compared him to Oliver Cromwell.

Another claimed the Government was using the clerical child sexual abuse scandals as "cover" to wage a "vendetta" against the Church.

Several citizens questioned the economic rationale that Mr Gilmore put forward for closing the embassy, and said Ireland’s foreign policy efforts would ultimately suffer.

Mr Gilmore, in his role as foreign affairs minister, announced the decision to close the embassy on November 3 last, citing the need to save money.

He denied the move had anything to do with the fallout from the Cloyne Report in July, during which Mr Kenny had accused the Vatican of downplaying the rape and torture of children to protect its own primacy.

But whereas Mr Kenny received widespread public support following that speech, Mr Gilmore received mostly criticism following the decision to close the embassy.

The Irish Examiner sought to view, under the Freedom of Information Act, all letters and emails received by Mr Gilmore on the subject in the 12 days after the announcement of the decision.

A total of 102 records were released, 95 of which criticised the decision to close the embassy and just seven of which were supportive. In percentage terms, that meant 93.1% of the responses were critical and 6.9% supportive.

That was in contrast to the reaction Mr Kenny received after his July 20 speech, when 94.3% were supportive and just 5.7% were critical.

The monk who was burned by a demon in his sleep

2012-01-17T13:44:00.001Z

From http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/spirituallife/saintoftheweek/2012/01/16/the-monk-who-was-burned-by-a-demon-in-his-sleep/

St Fursey (January 16) helped advance Christianity in East Anglia and northern France

By Spiritual Life on Monday, 16 January 2012

Fursey (died 648) was an Irish monk who helped to advance Christianity in both East Anglia and northern France. Precisely where and when Fursey was born is unknown. According to a seventh-century life, he established a monastery at Louth, some 35 miles north of Dublin.
The Venerable Bede records that Fursey experienced a vision, in which angels carried him out of his body to a great height. Looking down into a gloomy valley, he saw four fires. The first, an angel explained, was Falsehood; the next Covetousness; the third Discord and the last Injustice. Gradually these fires drew together into one mighty conflagration.
Fursey became alarmed. The angel, though, reassured him: “It will not burn you because you did not kindle it; for although it appears as a great and terrible fire, it tests everyone according according to his desert, and will burn away sinful desires.” Fursey did not entirely escape, for one of the demons who tortured fallen spirits in the flames thrust a victim against him, causing him to be burnt on his (presumably ghostly) shoulder and jaw.
Fursey recognised the man, and remembered that he had appropriated some of his clothes after he died. Restored once more to his body, he found that he had a permanent scar on his shoulder and jaw.
Bede heard this story from a monk who had met Fursey. His informant recalled that, although it was a bitterly cold day when he saw the saint, who was but thinly clad, the holy man was sweating profusely – “either”, as Bede suavely observes, “because of the consolation or the terror of his recollections”.
Around 637 Fursey crossed the Irish Sea to begin his life as a missionary. His first field of endeavour was in East Anglia, where King Sigbert wanted to restore Christianity after the depredations of the pagan Redwald.
Inspired by another vision, Fursey built a monastery on some land given him by Sigbert at Cnobheresburg (Burgh Castle in Suffolk). Soon, though, he turned over the administration of the monastery to his brother Fullan, and went to live with another brother, Ultan, who had become a hermit.
After he had spent some 10 years in East Anglia the kingdom was attacked by the paganissimus Penda of Mercia. Fursey fled across the Channel, where he was welcomed by the Frankish King Clovis II.
The King’s wife Balthild was an Anglo-Saxon aristocrat who had been sold into slavery in Gaul. Whether or not through this contact, Fursey was able to found another monastery at Lagnac, near Paris on the River Marne, before dying on a journey in 649.
Disputes over where he should be buried testified to the high regard in which he was held. Finally he was laid to rest in Péronne, where his cult continued to grow.

Titanic Priest, Fr. Browne, was saved by holy obedience

2012-01-12T11:23:00.001Z

From http://www.derryjournal.com/lifestyle/fr_browne_s_titanic_album_released_to_mark_centenary_1_3399063

Published on Monday 9 January 2012 06:26
WHEN Derry priest Fr. Eddie O’Donnell stumbled across over 40,000 negatives belonging to the late Fr. Frank Browne he would not have been able to envisage the significance of what he had just discovered.
Fr. Browne, a Jesuit priest, was widely recognised as a skilled photographer. He boarded the Titanic in Southampton and several days later he was ordered off the boat in Cobh, Co. Cork by his superior.
Fr. O’Donnell was born in Dublin but was reared for the first few years of his life in 106 Bogside (close to where the Little Diamond is now) after the death of his mother. He spent summers visiting aunts, uncles and cousins in Derry before joining the Jesuits.
Fr O’Donnell discovered the invaluable collection of photographs and mementoes in a Dublin basement in 1985. His book ‘Father Browne’s Titanic Album’ has been updated and re-released to mark the 100th anniversary of the boat sinking in 1912.
Fr. O’Donell’s father was from the Bogside and his mother was born in Queen Street. The 71 year-old Jesuit priest now lives in the Gonzaga College, Dublin.
Fr. Browne has been described as a master photographer and as Ireland’s answer to Cartier-Breson. He first started taking photographs in 1897 and did so until his death in 1960.
Many of the photographs in the book have been digitally re-mastered and new photographs have been added for the centenary edition of the book.
“When Father Browne’s superior ordered him off the ship it essentially saved his life because very few men travelling in first class survived the tragedy when the boat sank.
“The book was first released in 1997 but we wanted to do something special for the centenary of the sinking of the ship so we added a chapter. It’s a piece that Fr. Browne wrote the day after he disembarked the ship in April 1912. He wrote many things after the tragedy but this was the only piece that I could find that he wrote before the tragedy.
“As a result of Fr. Browne’s article I was able to ascertain that he had been all over the ship and had even had a swim in the swimming pool. This is the type of new information I was able to find out as a result of the article and I think that it gives a fresh feeling to the book.”
Perhaps the most famous story about Fr. Browne on the Titanic was when an American couple offered to pay his fare to America. Unbeknownst to Fr. Browne, when his superior requested that he return to Dublin, his life was potentially saved.
“While he was having a meal in the first class dining room he got chatting to a wealthy American couple. They liked Fr. Browne and asked him to stay on the Titanic with them until the boat reached New York. The American couple even offered to pay the rest of his fare to New York but Fr. Browne told them that his superior in Dublin would never allow it so he had to get off the ship when it stopped in Cobh.
“The American man said to Fr. Browne, ‘come on down to the Marconi room and we’ll send him [the Jesuit superior] a Marconigram (a message sent via radio) and we’ll tell him that we’ll pay your way to New York’.
“When Fr. Browne went down to the Marconi room he took a picture. It was the only picture to be taken of the room - and any films you’ve ever seen that have had the Marconi room in it based it on Fr. Browne’s photograph.”
The telegram was sent by the wealthy Americans to the Irish superior of the Jesuits but after the Titanic stopped in Queenstown in Cobh, Fr. Browne was instructed to return to Dublin.
“The water near Queenstown in Cobh wasn’t deep enough for the Titanic to dock so the only way it could be reached was by another boat called the Ireland.
“The Ireland set off towards the Titanic with bags of mail and the 123 Irish passengers who boarded the ship. Captain Tobin was in charge of the Ireland and he had a small envelope addressed to Fr. Browne. Inside was a note with five words on it - it read: ‘Get Off That Ship - Provincial’.
“Fr. Browne kept the note in his wallet for the rest of his life and said that it was the only time that holy obedience saved a man’s life,” he laughs.
Fr. Browne used what time he had to photograph the Titanic when it arrived in Cobh. One photograph shows a man climbing one of the ship’s large funnels and at the time it was regarded as a bad omen.
“The superstitious people of Cobh said when they saw it that no good could come out of the ship’s journey and that the man in the picture was not a man at all - they claimed that he was the devil.
“The picture shows a tiny black dot on the fourth of the ship’s funnels and it’s actually been confirmed that the black dot was an Irish stowaway who boarded the ship at Southampton. Apparently he climbed down the funnel into the room where the mail was being kept and his pals put him inside one of the mail bags and he was loaded on to the Ireland and managed to get home to his native Cobh.”
Fr. Browne’s photographs have been used as evidence to support man facts about the Titanic.
One of the most contentious issues which split opinion amongst Titanic experts was whether the ship divided into two after it hit the iceberg on April 15, 1912.
Dr. Robert D Ballard, the former US Navy officer who discovered the wreck of the Titanic in 1985, used Fr. Browne’s photographs to confirm that the boat had in fact split in half.
“When Dr. Ballard discovered the wreck he found that the boat was in two pieces almost half a mile apart.
“Some survivors said that the ship split in two just before it sank whilst others said it went down in one piece. No one knew who to believe.
“When Robert Ballard found the boat it was solved for all time. Ballard used photographs taken by Fr. Browne to explain why the boat split in two. It was because of the grand staircase that the boat split - it was nine stories high and was the weakest part of the ship. If the Titanic was going to split anywhere it was going to be where the grand staircase was.
“The Titanic actually split down the middle of where Fr. Browne’s room was because his bedroom was in one half of the wreckage and his living room was in the other half almost half a mile away.”
Fr. Browne’s documentation of the Titanic was so concise that Oscar winning director James Cameron used his photographs as a reference when designing the ship’s bridge for his 1997 movie ‘Titanic’.
“A friend of mine is the secretary of the Titanic Historical Society and was advisor to James Cameron’s movie about the Titanic. He had all of Fr. Browne’s photographs and told Mr. Cameron that he had forgotten to consult them when designing the set. Mr. Cameron then used Fr. Browne’s photographs to redesign the bridge of the boat.”
He added: “I hope people still enjoy the book. It’s a wonderful documentation of life on the ship before it sank. It’s poignant that we have released it again to mark the 100th anniversary.”
‘Father Browne’s Titanic Album - Centenary Edition’ is available to buy from www.messenger.ie.

“The bishops? They should be vigilant and not seek glory”

2012-01-08T18:02:00.001Z

From http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/the-vatican/detail/articolo/benedetto-xvi-benedict-xvi-benedicto-xvi-11413/

This is what Benedict XVI said at the Mass for the Epiphany. Ratzinger also celebrated two new Episcopal ordinations

GIACOMO GALEAZZI
vatican city The bishops must follow the example of the Magi: be «vigilant and do not to seek worldly glory». We humans are not the only ones who are restless in relation to God. God's heart is restless in relation to man. However, today we try to drug the restlessness of the heart, yet the true supernova that guides us is Christ himself. The magi «were people with a troubled heart», in search of God.

Today very effective “drugs”, are used to try to free man from this concern», preached the Pope during the Mass in St. Peter's for the Epiphany where he celebrated two Episcopal ordinations. Like the Magi, «the bishop too must be a man with a restless heart that is not satisfied of the usual things of this world», with «the courage of humility» and «who does not question himself on what dominant opinion says about him».

In his homily, the Pope also addressed the relationship between faith and reason. «The language of creation is not enough» to find the truth on the existence of man and the world. Scientists can «continue the discussion» on what kind of star had guided the Magi», wondering if the comet resulted from «a conjunction of planets» or rather «a supernova, one of those stars that is initially very weak inside which an explosion can set off an immense splendor for a certain length of time».

For those who have faith, Benedict XVI explains, «the great star, the supernova that guides us is Christ himself: He is the explosion of God's love, which shines the great splendor of his heart over the world». The Magi followed the star. Thus, «through the language of creation they found the God of this story», but they were not the only ones to see that phenomenon in the sky. Why did they understand? «Only the Word of God that we find in Sacred Scripture – responds Joseph Ratzinger - could definitely show them the way». Therefore even today, «Creation and Scripture, reason and faith must stand together to lead us to the living God».

Today the Pope entered St. Peter's Basilica on the now familiar moving platform, at 9.30, to begin the celebration of the Solemnity of the Epiphany. During the Mass, Benedict XVI ordained two bishops, Monsignor Charles John Brown, the new apostolic nuncio in Ireland, and Monsignor Marek Solczynski, new nuncio to Georgia and Armenia. The solemnity of the Epiphany is an ancient feast which originated in the Christian East. «The whole period of Christmas and Epiphany is characterized by the theme of light, also linked to the fact that, in the northern hemisphere, after the winter solstice again the days become longer than the night - said Benedict XVI - But, beyond their geographical location, for all peoples it is the word of Christ that counts: 'I am the light of the world: he that followeth me, walketh not in darkness but have the light of life». «Jesus – said the Pope - is the sun on the horizon of humanity to illuminate the personal life of each one of us and guide us all together toward the goal of our pilgrimage, to the land of freedom and peace, where we will live forever in full communion with God and among ourselves». «The announcement of this mystery of salvation - then observed the Pope - was entrusted by Christ to his Church». Together with Pope Benedict XVI, the mass was concelebrated by the Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, and the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, William Levada. «Full of the courage of humility, without questioning himself on what dominant opinion says about him», a Bishop «must be able to precede and show the way» to the faithful. His heart must therefore be «restless» and «vigilant», able to perceive «the subdued language of God and discern the true from the apparent», Benedict XVI urges pastors to lead the Catholic Church throughout, indicating «God’s truth» as the «unit of measure» and recalls the duty to proclaim and defend it in every circumstance, «opportune and importune».

Joseph Ratzinger uses the Gospel story of the Magi to outline the features that serve the Church today, called, he says, to precede He who has preceded us all, because he is the true Shepherd, the true star of promise: Jesus Christ. Each bishop «must have the humility to bow before that God who has made himself so real and so simple, that our foolish pride is contradicted, not wanting to see God so close and so small. He must live to worship the Son of God who became man, that worship which always shows the way». In the Magi, it is possible to search («despite all the differences in vocations and tasks») guidelines for the mission of bishops. The Magi of the Gospel story «were, we can say, men of science, but not only in the sense that they wanted to know many things: they wanted more. They wanted to understand what counts in being men». Again, «they were people from a troubled heart, who were not satisfied by appearances and normality. They were men in search of the promise, in search of God and they were vigilant men, able to perceive the signs of God, his soft and insistent language. But they were also brave and humble at the same time: we can imagine that they had to endure some ridicule, because they set out for the king of the Jews, and for this they faced great efforts. For them it was not deciding what so and so thought and said of them, even if from intelligent and influential people. For them what counted was truth itself, not the opinion of men»

Thus, «a bishop too must be a man with a restless heart that is not satisfied of the usual things of this world, but who follows the restlessness of the heart that drives him to inwardly approach God more, to seek his face, to know him better, to love ever more. The bishop too must be a man with a watchful heart who perceives God’s subdued language can knows how to discern what is real from the apparent. A bishop too must be filled with the courage of humility, who does not question himself on what dominant opinion says about him, but derives his unit of measure from God’s truth and commits himself to it: “opportune and importune”. He must be able to precede and to show the way».

All the cardinals present today in St. Peter's, among them the dean of the Sacred College Angelo Sodano and the former president of the CEI, Camillo Ruini. «Western civilization seems to have lost its orientation, and is navigating by sight. But the Church, through the Word of God, see through this fog. It does not have technical solutions, but keeps the eyes turned to the goal», the Pontiff added during the Angelus. Stressing the meaning of Epiphany as the feast of light, Benedict XVI recalled that this is «a very ancient feast, which originated in the Christian East and highlights the mystery of the revelation of Jesus Christ to all peoples, represented by the Magi». And affirmed that «the world, with all its resources, is not able to give humanity the light to guide its path. We find this today as well: Western civilization seems to have lost orientation, it is navigating by sight. But the Church, through the Word of God - he added - see through this fog. It does not have technical solutions, but keeps its eyes fixed on the goal, and offers the light of the Gospel to all people of good will, of every nation and culture. And this too - noted the Pope – is the mission of the Papal Representatives to States and international organizations».

Furthermore, at the end of the Angelus for the Epiphany the Pope announced the convocation of a Consistory for February 18^th . The next day, February 19^th , an enthronement Mass will be held. Benedict XVI creates 18 new «voting» cardinals, i.e. under 80 years of age that will enter the conclave for the election of the future Pope after the death of the reigning Pontiff. To these are added four cardinals over eighty. Thus there are 22 new cardinals. Seven of the new cardinals are Italian (Betori, Filoni, Bertello, Versaldi, Calcagno, Coccopalmerio, Vegliò). Twelve Europeans in all, (the Italians plus two and Spaniards and the Archbishops of Utrecht, Berlin and Prague). Ten are leaders of the Roman Curia. Asia has two cardinals (the Indian Alencherry, Major Archbishop of the Syro Malabar and Bishop of Hong Kong John Tong Hon). The Americas four (the Brazilian Braz de Aviz, the Archbishop of New York Dolan, that of Toronto Collins and the Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, the American O'Brien). There are no Africans.

Documents show how Pope tried to end Irish inmates' 1981 hunger strike

2011-12-31T17:47:00.003Z

By Michael Kelly
Catholic News Service

DUBLIN (CNS) -- Declassified British documents reveal the extent to which Pope John Paul II tried unsuccessfully to intervene to end a 1981 hunger strike by Catholic prisoners in a British jail in Northern Ireland.

The documents claim that, after the pope sent a special envoy, the leader of the Provisional Irish Republican Army prisoners, Bobby Sands, was willing to suspend the fast just days before he died.

The offer was conveyed to the British authorities by the pope's secretary, Irish Msgr. John Magee, whom Pope John Paul dispatched to persuade the prisoners to call off the hunger strike.

The state papers, declassified under the 30-year-rule, claim that Sands told Msgr. Magee, who later became the bishop of Cloyne, that he would suspend his strike in return for discussions with a British government official, two priests and three other prisoners as witnesses.

However, the British rejected the offer, claiming it was an attempt to open negotiations. The prisoners, incarcerated for paramilitary activity against British rule in Northern Ireland, had begun their hunger strike in a bid to be reclassified as political prisoners, a move Britain vehemently rejected.

Sands died May 5, 1981, after 66 days on hunger strike; he was buried with a crucifix that Msgr. Magee had given him as a gift from Pope John Paul. Ten prisoners starved themselves to death before a compromise was reached that October.

The hunger strike significantly polarized tensions between the majority-Protestant and minority-Catholic communities in Northern Ireland. More than 100,000 Catholics attended Sands' funeral, and Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, began contesting elections for the first time.

Most Northern Irish Catholics want Britain to cede the region to the Irish Republic to form a single independent Ireland, while most Protestants support the region's continuation in the United Kingdom. A 1998 peace accord committed all sides to pursue their goals by purely peaceful means. As a result, Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom but is governed by a cross-community power-sharing government based in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

The declassified papers also reveal that Irish Prime Minister Garret FitzGerald appealed to Cardinal Tomas O Fiaich in 1981 for a change in the Catholic Church's approach to interchurch marriages.

At the time, children of interchurch marriages were required to be raised Catholic.

But FitzGerald said he believed a change would aid peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland. He wrote the cardinal that the government wanted to "indicate concern" and "raise the possibility" that the Vatican "might not perhaps be disposed to take special account of the Irish situation if invited to do so."

"I trust that Your Eminence will appreciate and understand the motives that have led me to write to you at this time in these terms, in full recognition of the separation of church and state," he added.

Soon after, the Irish bishops decided to postpone publication of a revised directory on mixed marriages. After a meeting with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in November 1981, FitzGerald described the bishops' postponement as "significant."

The new directory issued in November 1983 retained the promise by the Catholic partner to raise the children Catholic, but stressed that parents had joint responsibility for the religious upbringing of their children.

Christian West Bank landowners can't get to their land

2011-12-31T17:46:00.000Z

By Judith Sudilovsky
Catholic News Service

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (CNS) -- Jamal Salman stood on one side of the double chain-link fence, on land belonging to his family. On the other side of the Israeli-erected fences, only a few hundred yards away but beyond his reach, was more family land with a grove of olive trees.

In November, Salman and more than 180 Bethlehem landowners were informed that Israel had placed their olive groves -- more than 1,700 acres of land located beyond the barrier -- under the Guardian of Absentee Property, deeming the owners of these lands as "absentees." This is the last step before formal confiscation.

"I stand here ... and I can look onto my land over the fence as an absentee (property owner)," Salman said, pointing across the fences to the trees. The last time he was permitted through the barrier to work his olive grove was 2009.

The 73-year-old is leading a campaign of mostly Christian landowners in an attempt to prevent yet more of their land from being confiscated. They are considering challenging the absentee decision in the Israeli Supreme Court, he said.

The expropriation of land is not a new story here, said Salman, a Catholic and the former town manager of Bethlehem.

After Israel built the separation barrier in 2002, farmers were not allowed to cross through the fence to the valley to reach their olive groves. Salman was left with only 360 square yards of land, while the other 1,560 square yards of his property was confiscated and now lies on the other side of the barrier, he said.

"These lands used to earn us and our families a lot of money," from the olive oil produced from the olives, he said. "We also got our own olives and olive oil from there. We lost everything."

After the farmers' case was taken to the Supreme Court by Israeli human rights lawyer Danny Seidmann, the court ruled that gates be built into the series of double fences and special permits be issued to the farmers during harvest time so they could to have access to their property.

In addition, said Seidmann, in 2004 he was given a written understanding from government officials that the landowners would be given access to their land. A year later the attorney general's office also ruled it illegal to use the Law of Absentee Property against West Bank residents whose land was located on the Israeli side of the barrier.

But the reality was different. The gates were opened only at specific times, and the farmers were issued permits to access their lands only three times since 2005, said the landowners.

The permits were given only to the person to whom the land is registered, all of whom are now in their 60s, 70s and 80s. No other members of the families were allowed to enter to help with the harvest, said Jallal Hanouna, 61.

Salman said that, since Israel took control of the West Bank from Jordan in 1967, Palestinians have been prevented from transferring ownership of property even to their children, so they were unable to transfer land deeds to younger members of the family.

"It is impossible for us to cultivate the land ourselves," said Salman. "They don't allow any other relatives or members of our family to help us. They didn't give us authority to go to our lands, and now they are saying they consider us absentee from our lands, which we can see with our own eyes. I am not absentee. I am right here."

One year, when the farmers were permitted onto their land, they arrived on their property to discover that all the olives had already been harvested by someone else, said Hanouna.

Seidmann said it was unclear whether the decision to claim the land under the Law of Absentee Property was simply an attempt by the government to try something illegal during a U.S. election year when the attention in the United States is directed elsewhere, or if has become a government policy.

The Israeli Civil Administration responsible for issuing the permits did not respond to requests for comment.

Hanouna said the land not only represents their future in terms of income from the olive harvest, but it also symbolizes their ability to provide a future for their children in Bethlehem. Other property parcels threatened are the last remaining land where the city, and specifically Christian residents, can expand, since Bethlehem is surrounded on all other sides by Israeli settlements, he said.

"We feel abandoned by the whole world. We are all Christians. This is 99 percent Christian land," said Hanouna. "This land was the hope for the Christian people, for our sons to expand. That is all we own."

If there is no room for their children to build their own homes, the exodus of young people from the city will continue and increase as they seek to make lives for themselves somewhere where they do not feel imprisoned, he said.

Full text of Pope Benedict's Urbi et Orbi Christmas Message

2011-12-26T19:18:00.000Z

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Rome and throughout the world! Christ is born for us! Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth to the men and women whom he loves. May all people hear an echo of the message of Bethlehem which the Catholic Church repeats in every continent, beyond the confines of every nation, language and culture. The Son of the Virgin Mary is born for everyone; he is the Saviour of all.
This is how Christ is invoked in an ancient liturgical antiphon: “O Emmanuel, our king and lawgiver, hope and salvation of the peoples: come to save us, O Lord our God”. Veni ad salvandum nos! Come to save us! This is the cry raised by men and women in every age, who sense that by themselves they cannot prevail over difficulties and dangers. They need to put their hands in a greater and stronger hand, a hand which reaches out to them from on high. Dear brothers and sisters, this hand is Christ, born in Bethlehem of the Virgin Mary. He is the hand that God extends to humanity, to draw us out of the mire of sin and to set us firmly on rock, the secure rock of his Truth and his Love (cf. Ps 40:2).
This is the meaning of the Child’s name, the name which, by God’s will, Mary and Joseph gave him: he is named Jesus, which means “Saviour” (cf. Mt 1:21; Lk 1:31). He was sent by God the Father to save us above all from the evil deeply rooted in man and in history: the evil of separation from God, the prideful presumption of being self-sufficient, of trying to compete with God and to take his place, to decide what is good and evil, to be the master of life and death (cf. Gen 3:1-7). This is the great evil, the great sin, from which we human beings cannot save ourselves unless we rely on God’s help, unless we cry out to him: “Veni ad salvandum nos! – Come to save us!”
The very fact that we cry to heaven in this way already sets us aright; it makes us true to ourselves: we are in fact those who cried out to God and were saved (cf. Esth [LXX] 10:3ff.). God is the Saviour; we are those who are in peril. He is the physician; we are the infirm. To realize this is the first step towards salvation, towards emerging from the maze in which we have been locked by our pride. To lift our eyes to heaven, to stretch out our hands and call for help is our means of escape, provided that there is Someone who hears us and can come to our assistance.
Jesus Christ is the proof that God has heard our cry. And not only this! God’s love for us is so strong that he cannot remain aloof; he comes out of himself to enter into our midst and to share fully in our human condition (cf. Ex 3:7-12). The answer to our cry which God gave in Jesus infinitely transcends our expectations, achieving a solidarity which cannot be human alone, but divine. Only the God who is love, and the love which is God, could choose to save us in this way, which is certainly the lengthiest way, yet the way which respects the truth about him and about us: the way of reconciliation, dialogue and cooperation.
Dear brothers and sisters in Rome and throughout the world, on this Christmas 2011, let us then turn to the Child of Bethlehem, to the Son of the Virgin Mary, and say: “Come to save us!” Let us repeat these words in spiritual union with the many people who experience particularly difficult situations; let us speak out for those who have no voice.
Together let us ask God’s help for the peoples of the Horn of Africa, who suffer from hunger and food shortages, aggravated at times by a persistent state of insecurity. May the international community not fail to offer assistance to the many displaced persons coming from that region and whose dignity has been sorely tried.
May the Lord grant comfort to the peoples of South-East Asia, particularly Thailand and the Philippines, who are still enduring grave hardships as a result of the recent floods.
May the Lord come to the aid of our world torn by so many conflicts which even today stain the earth with blood. May the Prince of Peace grant peace and stability to that Land where he chose to come into the world, and encourage the resumption of dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians. May he bring an end to the violence in Syria, where so much blood has already been shed. May he foster full reconciliation and stability in Iraq and Afghanistan. May he grant renewed vigour to all elements of society in the countries of North Africa and the Middle East as they strive to advance the common good.
May the birth of the Saviour support the prospects of dialogue and cooperation in Myanmar, in the pursuit of shared solutions. May the Nativity of the Redeemer ensure political stability to the countries of the Great Lakes Region of Africa, and assist the people of South Sudan in their commitment to safeguarding the rights of all citizens.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, let us turn our gaze anew to the grotto of Bethlehem. The Child whom we contemplate is our salvation! He has brought to the world a universal message of reconciliation and peace. Let us open our hearts to him; let us receive him into our lives. Once more let us say to him, with joy and confidence: “Veni ad salvandum nos!”

India: 50,000 Girls Become Victims of Abortion Monthly

2011-12-21T18:43:00.000Z

From http://www.lifenews.com/2011/12/20/india-50000-girls-become-victims-of-abortion-monthly/

The ABC 20/20 news story is riveting — a revealing look at why there are so many fewer women than men in India.   Reporter Elizabeth Vargas traveled to India to bring this story of what is called “Gendercide” home to a stunned American audience.
Here are the numbers: An astonishing 50,000 girl babies are aborted each month.   One millions girl babies die every year. Over 40 million girls have been killed through sex selection abortions, neglect or outright murder in the past decades.
The main reason for male preference is money.   Indian culture demands that a woman entering a marriage provide a dowry. In order to avoid impoverishing the family, girls are simply eliminated. Sex selective abortions are not used just by poor families, however, as middle and upper class families also seek ultrasound to guarantee the birth of a son.
Vargas explains that India has laws against ultrasounds to determine the sex of the baby, and sex selection abortion itself is illegal. These laws are so poorly enforced that Vargas walked down street after street and saw signs everywhere offering ultrasound services. “There are even technicians who pack portable ultrasounds and travel to villages offering their services.”
Vargas traveled to a village to view the long-term impact firsthand. “Everywhere we looked, we saw boys, young men, old men, but very, very few women. It was unsettling, especially because we knew this was not some freak of nature, but a results of the deliberate extermination of girls.”
Some girls who are “lucky” are born and abandoned, taken in the middle of the night to a “drop box.” Vargas says one drop box “is at a place called the Unique Orphanage in Punjab. We went from the village with no women, to the orphanage with no boys. There are only girls here…60 of them…all cared for by a wonderful woman who will raise each and every one…No one knows their real birth date, so once a year they have one giant birthday party for everyone. As we left the orphanage, I thought back to a temple I visited days earlier where newlyweds make a pilgrimage, to kneel and pray. Not for wealth, or long lives, or success. They pray for a baby boy, and not for a girl. Some of them are willing to kill to make that wish come true.”
A chilling story with enormous moral and demographic consequences that breaks one’s heart.
You can view the ABC News story here.

Our Lady of China

2011-12-21T18:23:00.000Z

From http://www.indefenseofthecross.com/Lady_of_China.htm

Our Lady of China is the name given to an apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Donglu, China, first appearing in 1900.

The mother of Christ appeared in China showing herself as the protector and defender for helpless and the righteous. The significance of this apparition is just being realized now... as China begins to take center stage in the Global World and Economy.

Mary hopes for a China that could become a shiny beacon of light, a nation where the family is valued, where all Life is protected and the Chinese people have the right to freely worship the great God Almighty. China could become the hope of the world.

On the other hand, If China went down a different path - one of darkness and persecution - then God himself would send his army to protect his beloved children.

An officially-sanctioned image of Our Lady of China was blessed, granted and promulgated by Pope Pius XI in 1928, in response to the requests made by the 1924 Shanghai Synod of Bishops in China, the first national conference of bishops in the country. Following the event, Archbishop Celso Costantini, Apostolic Delegate in China, along with all the bishops of China, declared the Chinese people dedicated to Our Lady of China, using the official image. In 1941, Pope Pius XII designated the feast day as an official feast of the Catholic liturgical calendar. In 1973, following the Second Vatican Council, the Chinese Bishops conference, upon approval from the Holy See, placed the feast day on the vigil (day preceding) of Mothers Day (the second Sunday of May).

Christian devotion to Our Lady of China has been popular in Donglu.

Several churches, chapels, and pastoral centers around the world, predominantly those focused on ministry to Chinese-speaking Catholics, have adopted the name, including a mission in Washington, DC. There is a Chapel of Our Lady of China in the National Shrine of the United States in Washington, DC, established and dedicated in 2002 under the Most Rev. Michael J. Bransfield. There has been some controversy because the image used in the Chapel is not the officially approved image of Our Lady of China, but instead a different Chinese image of the Virgin Mary.

The Virgin of Sheshan is another, similar apparition which has attained like acclamation and fame among Chinese Christians.

Our Lady of China appeared near Peiping. It stands in a village named Tong Lu. A Poor Mission was started there by the Vincentian Fathers. It was a poor place, perhaps the poorest in the whole region, formerly called "the place of beggars." In 1900, there were some seven hundred Christians gathered about the little hamlet. Suddenly, the famous Boxer rebellion swept China and grew to such proportions, that even small places like Tong Lu could not escape its fury. In April 1900, a force of ten thousand rioters attacked Tong Lu. The soldiers, in senseless rage, started to shoot into the sky. Then suddenly they fled, frightened, and never came back again. According to the legend, a woman in white appeared above the settlement, and the rioters' bullets were aimed at her. When the apparition did not fade, attackers had not even time to reorganize because a strange horseman put them to flight. Soon after they had disappeared beyond the horizon. Father Wu, a Chinese priest, confessed to his flock that he invoked the help of Mary. A new church was built on the site and Father Wu placed a picture of Our Lady on the main altar. He asked the painter to dress Our Lady in the royal robes of the dowager Empress Tzi-Hsi. The image of the Blessed Virgin in the royal robes of the pagan Empress, with the Christ Child on her knees, is vivid expression of Chinese tradition. It is a shrine of the Mother and her Son. Though her robes be pagan, she belongs to every age, to all people and to every race. As was told and promised in the Old Testament: "I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge and of holy hope."

The Tong Lu church was completely destroyed recently by the Chinese Communists, but the picture of Our Lady of China remains intact because only a copy of the picture was used in the church. The original was hidden in the wall behind the copy, and this was recovered and found intact. It is now in possession of Chinese priests who carry out their activities in disguise. Continued Persecution of the Underground Church in China

Bishop JIA Zhiguo, the underground Roman Catholic bishop of Zhengding, Hebei, was arrested on March 20, 2002. Bishop JIA is 67 years old and was ordained a bishop in 1980. He was previously in jail for approximately 20 years. He was released shortly after our press release and has been under strict surveillance for many years….. Father PANG Yongxing, 30 years of age, was arrested in his home in December 2001. On Easter Sunday, March 31, 2002, Father MA Shunbao, 50 years of age, was arrested while he was offering Holy Mass. Father WANG Limao, 32 years of age, was arrested on Palm Sunday, March 24, 2002, also while offering Holy Mass. All three priests belong to the underground Roman Catholic Church in Baoding, Hebei. On July 7, 2002, they were sentenced to three years of labor camp for “disturbing the peace of society” under the “cult” law….. Six Roman Catholics from Wenzhou, Zhejiang went to DongLu in Baoding, Hebei for a pilgrimage in May 2002 and were arrested by the authorities. They were fined a total of JMP 30,800 (US $ 3,850) for “illegal pilgrimage.” They were released soon after the fine was paid. …..On July 18, 2002, in Dong-An village, Fujian province, 31 underground Roman Catholics, 26 of whom were students under 18 years of age, were arrested during a summer vacation catechism class in a private home. Among the 31 arrested were a Catholic nun, Sister Chen Mei, 27 years of age, and four chaperons. The children and chaperons were released after one day. The situation of Sister Chen Mei is unknown…..Bishop WEI Jingyi, 44 years of age, the underground Roman Catholic Bishop of Qiqihar, Heilongjiang, was arrested Sept 9, 2002. He was too released shortly after our press release.

Annual “Coast to Coast” Masses for the Underground Church in China

The Cardinal Kung Foundation is promoting the celebration of an annual Mass for the persecuted underground Roman Catholic Church in China. The Foundation has chosen, as the annual date for this Mass, the Sunday before October 1, which is the National Day of the founding the People's Republic of China and also the anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s canonization of the 120 blessed martyr saints of China

Padre Pio's Christmas Meditation

2011-12-19T17:29:00.000Z

From http://www.sanpadrepio.com/PadrePioChristmas.htm

Appearing in volume four of theItalian-language edition of Padre Pio's letters, this essay was taken from PadrePio's hand-written notebooks. To the best of my knowledge, it is presented here for thefirst time in English.

Translated by Frank M. Rega, December2005.

"Padre Pio da Pietrelcina:Epistolario IV," Edizioni Padre Pio, San Giovanni Rotondo, 2002, pages 1007-1009.

Far into the night, at the coldest time of the year, in a chilly grotto, more suitable for a flock of beasts than for humans, the promised Messiah – Jesus – the savior of mankind, comes into the world in the fullness of time.

There are none who clamor around him: only an ox and an ass lending their warmth to the newborn infant; with a humble woman, and a poor and tired man, in adoration beside him.
Nothing can be heard except the sobs and whimpers of the infant God. And by means of his crying and weeping he offers to the Divine justice the first ransom for our redemption.
He had been expected for forty centuries; with longing sighs the ancient Fathers had implored his arrival. The sacred scriptures clearly prophesy the time and the place of his birth, and yet the world is silent and no one seems aware of the great event. Only some shepherds, who had been busy watching over their sheep in the meadows, come to visit him. Heavenly visitors had alerted them to the wondrous event, inviting them to approach his cave.

So plentiful, O Christians, are the lessons that shine forth from the grotto of Bethlehem! Oh how our hearts should be on fire with love for the one who with such tenderness was made flesh for our sakes! Oh how we should burn with desire to lead the whole world to this lowly cave, refuge of the King of kings, greater than any worldly palace, because it is the throne and dwelling place of God! Let us ask this Divine child to clothe us with humility, because only by means of this virtue can we taste the fullness of this mystery of Divine tenderness.
Glittering were the palaces of the proud Hebrews. Yet, the light of the world did not appear in one of them. Ostentatious with worldly grandeur, swimming in gold and in delights, were the great ones of the Hebrew nation; filled with vain knowledge and pride were the priests of the sanctuary. In opposition to the true meaning of Divine revelation, they awaited an officious savoir, who would come into the world with human renown and power.
But God, always ready to confound the wisdom of the world, shatters their plans. Contrary to the expectations of those lacking in Divine wisdom, he appears among us in the greatest abjection, renouncing even birth in St. Joseph’s humble home, denying himself a modest abode among relatives and friends in a city of Palestine. Refused lodging among men, he seeks refuge and comfort among mere animals, choosing their habitation as the place of his birth, allowing their breath to give warmth to his tender body. He permits simple and rustic shepherds to be the first to pay their respects to him, after he himself informed them, by means of his angels, of the wonderful mystery.
Oh wisdom and power of God, we are constrained to exclaim – enraptured along with your Apostle – how incomprehensible are your judgments and unsearchable your ways! Poverty, humility, abjection, contempt, all surround the Word made flesh. But we, out of the darkness that envelops the incarnate Word, understand one thing, hear one voice, perceive one sublime truth: you have done everything out of love, you invite us to nothing else but love, speak of nothing except love, give us naught except proofs of love.

The heavenly babe suffers and cries in the crib so that for us suffering would be sweet, meritorious and accepted. He deprives himself of everything, in order that we may learn from him the renunciation of worldly goods and comforts. He is satisfied with humble and poor adorers, to encourage us to love poverty, and to prefer the company of the little and simple rather than the great ones of the world.
This celestial child, all meekness and sweetness, wishes to impress in our hearts by his example these sublime virtues, so that from a world that is torn and devastated an era of peace and love may spring forth. Even from the moment of his birth he reveals to us our mission, which is to scorn that which the world loves and seeks.
Oh let us prostrate ourselves before the manger, and along with the great St. Jerome, who was enflamed with the love of the infant Jesus, let us offer him all our hearts without reserve. Let us promise to follow the precepts which come to us from the grotto of Bethlehem, which teach us that everything here below is vanity of vanities, nothing but vanity.

Biblical proof that Mary (and Joseph) made a vow of virginity

2011-12-19T17:25:00.002Z

From http://newtheologicalmovement.blogspot.com/2011/12/biblical-proof-that-mary-and-joseph.html

4^thSunday of Advent, Luke 1:26-38

ButMary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?”

The Gospel text recounting theAnnunciation of the angel Gabriel to the Blessed Virgin Mary contains thebiblical evidence and proof that she had made a vow of virginity prior to herconception of the Christ Child. Further, as we consider the historicalcircumstances of her betrothal to Joseph, it will become quite clear that healso had vowed perpetual continence as the spouse of our Lady.

Rather than discussing the universaland emphatic teachings of the Fathers of the Church – all of whom assert thatMary had made a vow of virginity – because such texts will often be ignored byProtestants (to their eternal ruin), we will look simply at the Gospel text itselfand shall assert only those things which are affirmed also by the Evangelist.

Theaccount of the Annunciation, the words of Mary

After the archangel Gabrieltells our Lady that she is to be the Mother of the Messiah, she responds with asimple question: How can this be? Wemust not think that Mary doubted the words of the angel or the plan of God –far be it from us to impute sin to our Mother! Rather, it is clear (also fromthe context, since the angel does not rebuke Mary as he had rebuked Zechariahfor his doubt) that the Virgin believes that God’s word will be fulfilled, butsimply does not understand how this will take place – hence, she asks How can this be?

And what is it that confusesMary? She says How can this be? Since Ihave no relations with a man. Mary does not doubt that she will indeed conceiveand bear a son, but what she does not understand is the mode of conception. Wewill consider why she was confused in a moment – first, let us look at thewords of the Gospel.

The New American Bible offers aloose translation of this verse (Luke 1:34) – Since I have no relations with a man. The more literal translationis: Since I do not know man. Theoriginal Greek: ἐπεὶ ἄνδρα οὐ γινώσκω;

Of course, the phrase “do notknow man” refers to sexual relations, as is common throughout the Bible. What Iwant to point out is that Mary does not say, “Since I have not yet known a man”or “Since I have never known man” – i.e. she does not speak in the past tense.Rather, our Lady uses the present indicative: Since I do not know man. She does not merely affirm that she hasbeen a virgin, but implies that in the moment she intends to remain a virgin.

This is what confused our Lady:That she was a virgin, and yet the angel said she would conceive and give birthto a son.

Proofof the vow of virginity

Now, our Lady was alreadybetrothed to St. Joseph (cf. Luke 1:27) – she had not yet come into his home, butshe was soon to do so (cf. Matthew 1:18,24). If the Blessed Virgin Mary hadintended to have sexual relations with Joseph – according to the ordinary modeof married life – how can we think that she would have been confused by thewords of the angel?

Mary did not say simply: “Howcan I bear a son? Since I have not yet known a man but intend to soon enterinto relations with Joseph.” This would not even make any sense! For she would havepresumed then that the child would be the son of Joseph.

The only way we can account forMary’s confusion, and also for her use of the present (rather than past) tenseverb I do not know man, is if weadmit that she had no intention of entering into sexual relations with Josephor with any other man.

Mary could only ask thisquestion of the angel, if she had some good reason for thinking that the childwould not be the son of Joseph. And the only good reason she could have tothink that Jesus would not be the biological son of Joseph is if she had nointention of ever giving up her virginity to Joseph. Hence, it is clear, thatMary must have made a vow of virginity to God.

Joseph’sbetrothal to our Lady

Now, given that we mustconclude that our Lady had no intention of entering into sexual relations withJoseph to whom she was betrothed and whom she would soon marry, how can we failto believe that Joseph must have made the vow of continence together with Mary?

Could we possibly presume thatour Lady would enter into a marriage with St. Joseph without telling him thatshe intended to remain a virgin?! Why, even on a natural level, we know thatthis would never happen! Of all the things which would have to be discussedbefore marriage, certainly a vow of perpetual virginity would have to be at thetop of the list!

But, if Mary had told Joseph ofher vow of virginity (as surely she must have), then we are led to concludethat, since Joseph agreed to marry her, he too must have made a vow ofperpetual continence (i.e. to refrain from all sexual relations even withinmarriage).

We do not say necessarily thatJoseph was a virgin – for it is possible that he had been married before andhad been widowed – but we are sure of this much at least: After his betrothalto the Virgin Mary, he had forsook all sexual relations. Joseph had no intentionof engaging in relations with the Mother of God. Further, we know that this vow must have taken place even before the Annunciation, since our Ladywould have had to discuss the matter with Joseph BEFORE the betrothal – it wouldbe quite a surprise to spring it on him only after they were committed tomarriage!

Thus, from the text ofScripture itself, it is clear that both Mary and Joseph had made a perpetual vowto abstain from all sexual relations – there can be no doubt that the Mother ofGod remained a virgin throughout her entire life.

Repliesto objections

Here we will briefly consideronly the most popular objections to Mary’s perpetual vow of virginity. Theobjections will be written in italics,followed by the answers in normal font.

ButJesus had “brothers and sisters”. This objection is very easyto answer, since it was common to call cousins “brothers and sisters” – indeed,there was no word specific to “cousin” in ancient Aramaic, hence the NewTestament writers felt no need to differentiate between cousins and closerrelatives. This same use of the term “brothers and sisters” referring rather to“cousins” is found in Genesis 13:8, 14:14-16; Leviticus 10:4; 1 Chronicles15:5-10, 23:21-22. If Jesus really had brothers and sisters who were sons anddaughters of Mary, why did he entrust his Mother to John the Beloved at hisdeath? Would she not have been cared for by the other children? [further, it ispossible that these “brothers and sisters” where children of Joseph by aprevious marriage of which he was widowed]

ButMatthew 1:18 says, “BEFORE Joseph and Mary came together, she was found withchild of the Holy Spirit.” And it would not say BEFORE, if they did not haverelations after. The response is simple: We often say thingslike, “I left the city BEFORE I was able to visit my friend” and we by no meansimply that we visited our friend AFTER we left.

ButJesus is called the “first-born son”, which implies that there were others.Rather, the words “first-born” are a title which is applied even if there areno other children. It was of great significance in Jewish culture to be the first-bornson, and this title was given even before any other children were born and wasretained even if no other children were born.

ButMatthew 1:24-25 says, “And [Joseph] took unto him his wife [Mary]; and he knewher not TILL she brought forth her first-born Son.” And Matthew would not havesaid TILL or UNTIL, if Joseph had not had relations with Mary after the birthof the Christ. This is certainly the most complicatedobjection and it requires wisdom to see the truth. St. Jerome explains that, inthe Scriptures, the word “until” is sometimes used to designate a fixed time,but also can designate and indefinite time. Hence, Psalm 122:2 states, “Oureyes are unto the Lord our God, UNTIL he have mercy on us” – but from this weare not to suppose that we turn our eyes away from the Lord after he ismerciful! Rather, our eyes are fixed on the Lord until he shows us his mercyand, after he is merciful to us, our eyes remain fixed upon him all the more!And St. Jerome concluded, “Thus the evangelist says that the Mother of God wasnot known by her husband until she gave birth, that we may be given tounderstand that still less did he know her afterwards.” (Adversus Helvid. v)And this interpretation is required by the other texts of Scripture (namely, herreply at the Annunciation) which indicate that Mary was indeed always a virgin.

Sister Magdalena of the Cross -The devil's saint for 40 years & her escape from an evil pact through extraordinary repentance

2011-12-16T23:01:00.000Z

See http://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2011/12/sister-magdalena-of-cross-nun-who-made.html

"The Shroud is not a fake"

2011-12-16T22:56:00.001Z

See http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/inquiries-and-interviews/detail/articolo/sacra-sindone-holy-shroud-sabana-santa-10738/

Catholic Courses by St Benedict Press

2011-12-10T11:34:00.001Z

See: https://catholiccourses.benedictpress.com/index.php

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December 8th: The Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

2011-12-08T16:46:00.001Z

Taken from Dom Gueranger's The Liturgical Year:

At length, on the distant horizon, rises, with a soft and radiant light, the aurora of the Sun which has been so long desired. The happy Mother of the Messias was to be born before the Messias Himself; and this is the day of the Conception of Mary. The earth already possesses a first pledge of the Divine mercy; the Son of Man is near at hand. Two true Israelites, Joachim and Anne, noble branches of the family of David, find their union, after a long barrenness, made fruitful by the Divine omnipotence. Glory be to God, Who has been mindful of His promises, and Who deigns to announce, from the high heavens, the end of the deluge of iniquity, by sending upon the earth the sweet white dove that bears the tidings of peace!
The feast of the Blessed Virgin's Immaculate Conception is the most solemn of all those which the Church celebrates during the holy time of Advent; and if the first part of the cycle had to offer us the commemoration of some one of the mysteries of Mary, there was none whose object could better harmonize with the spirit of the Church in this mystic season of expectation. Let us, then, celebrate this solemnity with joy; for the Conception of Mary tells us that the Birth of Jesus is not far oft.
The intention of the Church, in this feast, is not only to celebrate the anniversary of the happy moment in which began, in the womb of the pious Anne, the life of the ever-glorious Virgin Mary; but also to honor the sublime privilege, by which Mary was preserved from the original stain, which, by a sovereign and universal decree, is contracted by all the children of Adam the very moment they are conceived in their mother's womb.
The faith of the Catholic Church on the subject of the Conception of Mary is this: that at the very instant when God united the soul of Mary, which He had created, to the body which it was to animate, this ever-blessed soul did not only not contract the stain, which at that same instant defiles every human soul, but was filled with an immeasurable grace which rendered her, from that moment, the mirror of the sanctity of God Himself, as far as this is possible to a creature. The Church with her infallible authority, declared, by the lips of Pius IX, that this article of her faith had been revealed by God Himself. The Definition was received with enthusiasm by the whole of Christendom, and the eighth of December of the year 1854 was thus made one of the most memorable days of the Church's history.
It was due to His own infinite sanctity that God should suspend, in this instance, the law which His Divine justice had passed upon all the children of Adam. The relations which Mary was to bear to the Divinity, could not be reconciled with her undergoing the humiliation of this punishment. She was not only daughter of the eternal Father; she was destined also to become the very Mother of the Son, and the veritable bride of the Holy Ghost. Nothing defiled could be permitted to enter, even for an instant of time, into the creature that was thus predestined to contract such close relations with the adorable Trinity; not a speck could be permitted to tarnish in Mary that perfect purity which the infinitely holy God requires even in those who are one day to be admitted to enjoy the sight of His Divine majesty in Heaven; in a word, as the great Doctor St. Anselm says, "it was just that this holy Virgin should be adorned with the greatest purity which can be conceived after that of God Himself, since God the Father was to give to her, as her Child, that only-begotten Son, whom He loved as Himself, as being begotten to Him from His own bosom; and this in such a manner, that the selfsame Son of God was, by nature, the Son of both God the Father and this blessed Virgin. This same Son chose her to be substantially His Mother; and the Holy Ghost willed that in her womb He would operate the conception and birth of Him from whom He Himself proceeded."
Moreover, the close ties which were to unite the Son of God with Mary, and which would elicit from Him the tenderest love and the most filial reverence for her, had been present to the Divine thought from all eternity: and the conclusion forces itself upon us that therefore the Divine Word had for this His future Mother a love infinitely greater than that which He bore to all His other creatures. Mary's honor was infinitely dear to Him, because she was to be His Mother, chosen to be so by His eternal and merciful decrees. The Son's love protected the Mother. She, indeed, in her sublime humility, willingly submitted to whatever the rest of God's creatures had brought on themselves, and obeyed every tittle of those laws which were never meant for her: but that humiliating barrier, which confronts every child of Adam at the first moment of his existence, and keeps him from light and grace until he shall have been regenerated by a new birth—oh! this could not be permitted to stand in Mary's way, her Son forbade it.
The eternal Father would not do less for the second Eve than He had done for the first, who was created, as was also the first Adam, in the state of original justice, which she afterwards forfeited by Sin. The Son of God would not permit that the woman, from whom He was to take the nature of Man, should be deprived of that gift which He had given even to her who was the mother of sin. The Holy Ghost, who was to overshadow Mary and produce Jesus within her by His Divine operation, would not permit that foul stain, in which we alone are aIl conceived, to rest, even for an instant, on this His Bride. All men were to contract the sin of Adam; the sentence was universal; but God's Own Mother is not included. God who is the author of that law, God who was free to make it as He willed, had power to exclude from it her whom He had predestined to be His own in so many ways; He could exempt her, and it was just that He should exempt her; therefore, He did it.
Was it not this grand exemption which God Himself foretold, when the guilty pair, whose children we all are, appeared before Him in the garden of Eden. In the anathema which fell upon the serpent, there was included a promise of mercy to us. 'I will put enmities,' said the Lord, ' between thee and the Woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head.'
Thus was salvation promised the human race under the form of a victory over Satan; and this victory is to be gained by the Woman, and she will gain it for us also. Even granting, as some read this text, that it is the Son of the Woman that is alone to gain this victory, the enmity between the Woman and the serpent is clearly expressed, and she, the Woman, with her own foot, is to crush the head of the hated serpent. The second Eve is to be worthy of the second Adam, conquering and not to be conquered. The human race is one day to be avenged not only by God, made Man, but also by the Woman miraculously exempted from every stain of sin, in whom the primeval creation, which was in justice and holiness, will thus reappear, just as though the Original Sin had never been committed.
Raise up your heads, then, ye children of Adam, and shake off your chains! This day the humiliation which weighed you down is annihilated. Behold! Mary, who is of the same flesh and blood as yourselves, has seen the torrent of sin, which swept along all the generations of mankind, flow back at her presence and not touch her: the infernal dragon has turned away his head, not daring to breathe his venom upon her; the dignity of your origin is given to her in all its primitive grandeur. This happy day, then, on which the original purity of your race is renewed, must be a feast to you. The second Eve is created; and from her own blood [which, with the exception of the element of sin, is the same as that which makes you to be the children of Adam], she is shortly to give you the God-Man, who proceeds from her according to the flesh, as He proceeds from the Father according to the eternal generation.
And how can we do less than admire and love the incomparable purity of Mary in her Immaculate Conception, when we hear even God, Who thus prepared her to become His Mother, saying to her, in the Divine Canticle, these words of complacent love: 'Thou art all fair, O my love, and there is not a spot in thee!' It is the God of all holiness that here speaks; that eye, which sees all things, finds not a vestige, not a shadow of sin; therefore does He delight in her, and admire in her that gift of His own condescending munificence. We cannot be surprised after this, that Gabriel, when he came down from Heaven to announce the Incarnation to her, should be full of admiration at the sight of that purity, whose beginning was so glorious and whose progress was immeasurable; and that this blessed spirit should bow down profoundly before this young Maid of Nazareth, and salute her with 'Hail, O full of grace!' And who is this Gabriel? An Archangel, that lives amidst the grandest magnificences of God's creation, amidst all the gorgeous riches of Heaven; who is brother to the Cherubim and Seraphim, to the Thrones and Dominations; whose eye is accustomed to gaze on those nine angelic choirs with their dazzling brightness of countless degrees of light and grace; he has found on earth, in a creature of a nature below that of Angels, the fulness of grace, of that grace which had been given to the Angels measuredly. This fulness of grace was in Mary from the very first instant of her existence. She is the future Mother of God, and she was ever holy, ever pure, ever Immaculate.
This truth of Mary's Immaculate Conception—which was revealed to the Apostles by the Divine Son of Mary, inherited by the Church, taught by the holy fathers, believed by each generation of the Christian people with an ever increasing explicitness—was implied in the very notion of a Mother of God. To believe that Mary was Mother of God, was implicitly to believe that she, on whom this sublime dignity was conferred, had never been defiled with the slightest stain of sin, and that God had bestowed upon her an absolute exemption from sin. But now the Immaculate Conception of Mary rests on an explicit definition dictated by the Holy Ghost. Peter has spoken by the mouth of Pius; and when Peter has spoken, every Christian should believe; for the Son of God has said: 'I have prayed for thee, Peter, that thy faith fail not.' And again: 'The Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring all things to your mind, whatsoever I shall have said to you.'
The Symbol of our faith has therefore received not a new truth, but a new light on a truth which was previously the object of the universal belief. On that great day of the definition, the infernal serpent was again crushed beneath the victorious foot of the Virgin-Mother, and the Lord graciously gave us the strongest pledge of His mercy. He still loves this guilty earth, since He has deigned to enlighten it with one of the brightest rays of His Mother's glory. How this earth of ours exulted! The present generation will never forget the enthusiasm with which the entire universe received the tidings of the definition. It was an event of mysterious importance which thus marked this second half of our century ; and we shall look forward to the future with renewed confidence; for if the Holy Ghost bids us tremble for the days when truths are diminished among the children of men, He would, consequently, have us look on those times as blessed by God in which we receive an increase of truth; an increase both in light and authority.
The Church, even before the solemn proclamation of the grand dogma, kept the feast of this eighth day of December; which was, in reality, a profession of her faith. It is true that the feast was not called the Immaculate Conception, but simply the Conception of Mary. But the fact of such a feast being instituted and kept, was an unmistakable expression of the faith of Christendom in that truth.
St. Bernard and the angelical doctor, St. Thomas, both teach that the Church cannot celebrate the feast of what is not holy; the Conception of Mary, therefore, was holy and immaculate, since the Church has, for ages past, honored it with a special feast. The Nativity of the same holy Virgin is kept as a solemnity in the Church, because Mary was born full of grace; therefore, had the first moment of Mary's existence been one of sin, as is that of all the other children of Adam, it never could have been made the subject of the reverence of the Church. Now, there are few feasts so generally and so firmly established in the Church as this which we are keeping today.

The Greek Church, which, more easily than the Latin, could learn what were the pious traditions of the east, kept this feast even in the sixth century, as is evident from the ceremonial or, as it is called, the Type, of St. Sabas. In the west, we find it established in the Gothic Church of Spain as far back as the eighth century. A celebrated calendar which was engraved on marble, in the ninth century, for the use of the Church of Naples, attests that it had already been introduced there. Paul the deacon, secretary to the emperor Charlemagne, and afterwards monk at Monte-Cassino, composed a celebrated hymn on the mystery of the Immaculate Conception; we will insert this piece later on, as it is given in the manuscript copies of Monte-Cassino and Benevento. In 1066, the feast was first established in England, in consequence of the pious Abbot Helsyn's (Some writers call him Elsym, and others Elpyn. See Baronius in his notes on the Roman Martyrology, Dec. 8. [Tr.]) being miraculously preserved from shipwreck; and shortly after that, was made general through the whole island by the zeal of the great St. Anselm, monk of the Order of St. Benedict, and archbishop of Canterbury. From England it passed into Normandy, and took root in France. We find it sanctioned in Germany, in a council held in 1049, at which St. Leo IX. was present; in Navarre, 1090, at the abbey of Irach; in Belgium, at Liege, in 1142. Thus did the Churches of the west testify their faith in this mystery, by accepting its feast, which is the expression of faith.

Lastly, it was adopted by Rome herself, and her doing so rendered the united testimony of her children, the other Churches, more imposing than ever. It was Pope Sixtus IV who, in the year 1476, published the decree of the feast of our Lady's Conception for the city of St. Peter. In the next century. 1568, St. Pius V published the universal edition of the Roman breviary, and in its calendar was inserted this feast as one of those Christian solemnities which the faithful are every year bound to observe. It was not from Rome that the devotion of the Catholic world to this mystery received its first impulse; she sanctioned it by her liturgical authority, just as she has confirmed it by her doctrinal authority in these our own days.

The three great Catholic nations of Europe, Germany, France, and Spain, vied with each other in their devotion to this mystery of Mary's Immaculate Conception. France, by her king Louis XIV, obtained from Clement IX that this feast should be kept with an octave throughout the kingdom; which favour was afterwards extended to the universal Church by Innocent XII. For centuries previous to this, the theological faculty of Paris had always exacted from its professors the oath that they would defend this privilege of Mary; a pious practice which continued as long as the university itself.

As regards Germany, the emperor Ferdinand III, in 1647, ordered a splendid monument to be erected in the great square of Vienna. It is covered with emblems and figures symbolical of Mary's victory over sin, and on the top is the statue of the Immaculate Queen, with this solemn and truly Catholic inscription:

TO GOD, INFINITE IN GOODNESS AND POWER,

KING OF HEAVEN AND EARTH,

BY WHOM KINGS REIGN;

TO THE VIRGIN MOTHER OF GOD

CONCEIVED WITHOUT SIN,

BY WHOM PRINCES COMMAND,

WHOM AUSTRIA, DEVOUTLY LOVING, HOLDS AS HER QUEEN AND PATRON;

FERDINAND III, EMPEROR,

CONFIDES, GIVES, CONSECRATES HIMSELF, CHILDREN, PEOPLE, ARMIES, PROVINCES,

AND ALL THAT IS HIS,

AND ERECTS IN ACCOMPLISHMENT OF A VOW

THIS STATUE,

AS A PERPETUAL MEMORIAL. (D. O. M. supremo cœli terræquæ imperatori, per quem reges regnant; Virgini Deiparæ Immaeulatæ Conceptræ, per quam principes imperant, in peculiarem Dominam, Austriæ Patronam, singulari pietate susceptæ, se, liberos, populos, exercitus, provincias, omnia denique confidit, donat, consecrat, et in perpetuam rei memoriam statuam hanc ex voto ponit Ferdinandus III Augustus.)

But the zeal of Spain for the privilege of the holy Mother of God surpassed that of all other nations. In the year 1398, John I, king of Arragon, issued a chart in which he solemnly places his person and kingdom under the protection of Mary Immaculate. Later on, kings Philip III and Philip IV sent ambassadors to Rome, soliciting, in their names, the solemn definition, which heaven reserved, in its mercy, for our days. King Charles III, in the eighteenth century, obtained permission from Clement XIII, that the Immaculate Conception should be the patronal feast of Spain. The people of Spain, which is so justly called the Catholic kingdom, put over the door, or on the front of their houses, a tablet with the words of Mary's privilege written on it; and when they meet, they greet each other with an expression in honour of the same dear mystery. It was a Spanish nun, Mary of Jesus, abbess of the convent of the Immaculate Conception of Agreda, who wroteGod's Mystic City, which inspired Murillo with his Immaculate Conception, the masterpiece of the Spanish school.

But, whilst thus mentioning the different nations which have been foremost in their zeal for this article of our holy faith, the Immaculate Conception, it were unjust to pass over the immense share which the seraphic Order, the Order of St. Francis of Assisi, has had in the earthly triumph of our blessed Mother, the Queen of heaven and earth. As often as this feast comes round, is it not just that we should think with reverence and gratitude on him, who was the first theologian that showed how closely connected with the divine mystery of the Incarnation is this dogma of the Immaculate Conception? First, then, all honour to the name of the pious and learned John Duns Scotus! And when at length the great day of the definition of the Immaculate Conception came, how justly merited was that grand audience, which the Vicar of Christ granted to the Franciscan Order, and with which closed the pageant of the glorious solemnity! Plus IX received from the hands of the children of St. Francis a tribute of homage and thankfulness, which the Scotist school, after having fought four hundred years in defence of Mary's Immaculate Conception, now presented to the Pontiff.

In the presence of the fifty-four Cardinals, forty-two archbishops, and ninety-two bishops; before an immense concourse of people that filled St. Peter's, and had united in prayer, begging the assistance of the Spirit of truth; the Vicar of Christ had just pronounced the decision which so many ages had hoped to hear. The Pontiff had offered the holy Sacrifice on the Confession of St. Peter. He had crowned the statue of the Immaculate Queen with a splendid diadem. Carried on his lofty throne, and wearing his triple crown, he had reached the portico of the basilica; there he is met by the two representatives of St. Francis: they prostrate before the throne: the triumphal procession halts: and first, the General of the Friars Minor Observantines advances, and presents to the holy Father a branch of silver lilies: he is followed by the General of the Conventual Friars, holding in his hand a branch of silver roses. The Pope graciously accepted both. The lilies and the roses were symbolical of Mary's purity and love; the whiteness of the silver was the emblem of the lovely brightness of that orb, on which is reflected the light of the Sun; for, as the Canticle says of Mary, `she is beautiful as the moon.' (Cant. vi. 9.) The Pontiff was overcome with emotion at these gifts of the family of the seraphic patriarch, to which we might justly apply what was said of the banner of the Maid of Orleans: `It had stood the brunt of the battle; it deserved to share in the glory of the victory.' And thus ended the glories of that grand morning of the eighth of December, eighteen hundred and fifty-four.

It is thus, O thou the humblest of creatures, that thy Immaculate Conception has been glorified on earth! And how could it be other than a great joy to men, that thou art honoured by them, thou the aurora of the Sun of justice? Dost thou not bring them the tidings of their salvation? Art not thou, O Mary, that bright ray of hope, which suddenly bursts forth in the deep abyss of the world's misery? What should we have been without Jesus? And thou art His dearest Mother, the holiest of God's creatures, the purest of virgins, and our own most loving Mother!

How thy gentle light gladdens our wearied eyes, sweet Mother! Generation had followed generation on this earth of ours. Men looked up to heaven through their tears, hoping to see appear on the horizon the star which they had been told should disperse the gloomy horrors of the world's darkness; but death came, and they sank into the tomb, without seeing even the dawn of the light, for which alone they cared to live. It is for us that God had reserved the blessing of seeing thy lovely rising, O thou fair morning star! which sheddest thy blessed rays on the sea, and bringest calm after the long stormy night! Oh! prepare our eyes that they may behold the divine Sun which will soon follow in thy path, and give to the world His reign of light and day. Prepare our hearts, for it is to our hearts that this Jesus of thine wishes to show Himself. To see Him, our hearts must be pure: purify them, O thou Immaculate Mother! The divine wisdom has willed that of the feasts which the Church dedicates to thee, this of thy Immaculate Conception should be celebrated during Advent; that thus the children of the Church, reflecting on the jealous care wherewith God preserved thee from every stain of sin because thou wast to be the Mother of His divine Son, might prepare to receive this same Jesus by the most perfect renunciation of every sin and of every attachment to sin. This great change must be made; and thy prayers, O Mary! will help us to make it. Pray—we ask it of thee by the grace God gave thee in thy Immaculate Conception—that our covetousness may be destroyed, our concupiscence extinguished, and our pride turned into humility. Despise not our prayers, dear Mother of that Jesus who chose thee for His dwelling-place, that He might afterwards find one in each of us.

O Mary! Ark of the covenant, built of an incorruptible wood, and covered over with the purest gold! help us to correspond with those wonderful designs of our God, who, after having found His glory in thine incomparable purity, wills now to seek His glory in our unworthiness, by making us, from being slaves of the devil, His temples and His abode, where He may find His delight. Help us to this, O thou that by the mercy of thy Son hast never known sin! and receive this day our devoutest praise. Thou art the ark of salvation; the one creature unwrecked in the universal deluge; the white fleece filled with the dew of heaven, whilst the earth around is parched; the flame which the many waters could not quench; the lily blooming amidst thorns; the garden shut against the infernal serpent; the fountain sealed, whose limpid water was never ruffled; the house of the Lord, whereon His eyes were ever fixed, and into which nothing defiled could ever enter; the mystic city, of which such glorious things are said. (Ps. lxxxvi. 3.) We delight in telling all thy glorious titles, O Mary! for thou art our Mother, and we love thee, and the Mother's glory is the glory of her children. Cease not to bless and protect all those that honour thy immense privilege, O thou who wert conceived on this day! May this feast fit us for that mystery, for which thy Conception, thy Birth, and thy Annunciation, are all preparations—the Birth of thy Jesus in Bethlehem: yea, dear Mother, we desire thy Jesus, give Him to us and satisfy the longings of our love.

ASTONISHING REVELATION TO FRENCH NUN BORE STUNNING PARALLEL TO FAMOUS APPARITION

2011-12-08T16:42:00.001Z

From http://www.spiritdaily.com/sistermary.htm

An all but unknown 19th-century mystic received dramatic revelations that were stunningly similar to those at the famous apparition in LaSalette, France, but with this twist: her messages came before (as well as during and after) those far better known messages.

The locutions in question -- to an obscure Discalced Carmelite in the French city of Tours named Sister Mary of St. Peter -- were recorded from 1843 to 1847 and -- like LaSalette (exactly) -- focused on the sins of dishonoring the Sabbath and using the Lord's Name in vain.

It was on September 19, 1846, that two children, Mélanie Calvat and Maximim Giraud, tending a cow near the top of a mountain in the French Alps, near Corps, encountered the Blessed Mother. Mary appeared in a globe of light and sat on a rock with her face in her palms, weeping over the sins of mankind.

"I gave you six days to work," the Blessed Mother said, in that Church-approved apparition. "I kept the seventh day for myself, and no one wishes to grant it to me. This is what weighs down the arm of my Son so much. Those who drive carts cannot speak without putting the Name of my Son in the middle."

As a result -- because of this use of Jesus' Name as a swear word, she warned -- the potato crop would be ruined and there would be disease as well as famine.

Precisely this occurred beginning later that very same year as an historic failure of potatoes caused more than a million deaths in northern France and across the English Channel in Ireland (where it was known as the Great Potato Famine).

It was years before, however -- on August 26, 1843 -- that Sister Mary, the mystic in Tours, who had grown up in a devout family, and had early brushes with death, received a similar revelation when there was a "terrible storm during which I felt the Justice of an angry God as I had never before felt it in my life.

"Kneeling, so that my forehead touched the ground, I ceaselessly offered our Savior, Jesus Christ, to His Eternal Father, for the expiation of my sins and for the needs of the Holy Church. I spoke to Him about the incident of the storm. I asked Him to tell me the reason why I felt so strongly on that day the roused anger of His Eternal Father.

"My Name is everywhere blasphemed," Jesus allegedly responded, showing her that such misuse of His Name nullified His redemption and cursed Him to His Face. "There are even children who blaspheme!" the sister heard in locution.

"Our Lord then made me visualize the act of blasphemy as a poisoned arrow continually wounding His Divine Heart," recounted the nun in an autobiography that received the imprimatur of Cardinal Francis Spellman of New York as well as a Nihil Obstat. "After that He revealed to me that He wanted to give me a 'Golden Arrow' which would have the power of wounding Him delightfully, and which would also heal those other wounds inflicted by the malice of sinners."

To repair this outrage, said the religious, the Lord prescribed a prayer of "reparation" that He promised would have special power. On November 10, 1843, Christ also asked for a novena aimed at this same cause.

"Our Lord inspired me at this time to compose certain prayers of reparation in the form of a chaplet, or a small Rosary," she wrote in this fascinating work that has only now come to our attention. "This chaplet is made up of thirty-three small beads, on which is recited thirty-three times the prayer, 'Arise, Oh Lord, and let Your enemies be scattered, and let those that hate You flee before Your Face,' and also six large beads on which are recited the ejaculation, 'My Jesus, mercy,' followed by the doxology, 'Glory be to the Father, etc.'" Sister Mary said Jesus appeared to her in an interior vision and showed precious stones on a fine gold chain as He presented her with a similar chaplet. The devotion brings to mind the Divine Mercy novena devised a century later by Saint Faustina Kowalska in Poland.

But the most electrifying aspect continues to be the warnings on using His Name in vain and violation of the Sabbath.

Two weeks after the aforementioned revelation, Sister Mary said the Lord "seized possession of the powers of my soul" and caused her to hear the following words: "The whole earth is covered with crimes and the violation of the first three of the Ten Commandments of God has aroused the anger of My Father. The crimes that fill up the cup of wickedness are blasphemies against God's Holy Name and the profanation of Sundays. These sins have reached the very Throne of Almighty God, and they have provoked His wrath which is about to strike everywhere unless His Justice be appeased. Never before have these crimes reached such a peak."

That was more than a century and a half ago.

It is daunting to think of how widespread misuse of the Lord's Name has grown in our own time -- amplified by methods of mass communication, including TV, radio, the internet, and at the theatre -- where nearly no modern movie goes by without using the Name of "God" or "Jesus" as a curse word.

"My soul is terrified at what Our Lord has just made me hear during prayer this morning, charging me with the duty of transmitting His message to my superiors without any fear of being deceived," she wrote in her autobiography, The Golden Arrow, which we will be making available. "He said He was incensed with anger against our nation, and that He has sworn in His Wrath to avenge Himself if reparation to the honor of His Divine Father were not made for all the blasphemies of which the people are guilty, making me hear that He could no longer remain among men who, like vipers, were tearing at the entrails of His Mercy."

That was in December of 1843. Sister Mary was 27 at the time. She was later to win the support of her bishop, and died in the odor of sanctity in 1848. Her mission: spreading that remarkable cause of reparation. "Yes, I will grant pardon once more, but mark my word: once!" Jesus responded in regard to her plea to spare France. "And since this crime of blasphemy extends over the whole nation, and since it is public, I demand that Reparation be extended to all the cities of the nation, and that it be public. Woe to those cities that will not make this reparation!"

Woe indeed: other fierce storms were to descend, causing, in one case, an overflowing of the River Loire that the nun described as "so frightful and so unprecedented" that such "had not been seen in centuries."

"The whole city of Tours was in imminent danger as terror and confusion gripped the citizens," she wrote. "Everywhere people acknowledged that an Omnipotent Hand was wielding the elements at will and even those persons who professed hardly any religious belief whatsoever now openly admitted that it was only through a miracle that the whole city of Tours did not perish."

The cause, she said, again: "profanation of Sunday, as Our Lord Himself told me, yet this principal fact was and continues to be ignored" -- again too, as in our time, if not far more so.

Foretelling another disaster that was soon to befall France, the Savior said, "Imagine what will be the state of things in this country when soon My powerful Arm will shake this throne and overthrow him who is now seated thereon." The following week -- December 2, 1847 -- He said, "The executioners crucified Me on Friday but Christians crucify Me on Sundays."

On February 20, 1848, it was made known to Sister Mary that the crisis of which He spoke -- the "rumbling storm" -- was close at hand: that the Lord "has strung His bow and He is about to discharge His arrows," in the words of these locutions, which garnered the support of her bishop.

Almost immediately after this communication came word of a serious revolution in Paris that shook the very foundations of French government and all of Europe, sending King Louis Philippe fleeing with his family into exile (after eighteen years of secure rule). "The Lord told me that in consequence of the initial efforts made to establish somewhat the Work of Reparation, our country which was to be almost entirely destroyed by the darts of His Justice would now only be partly punished by the terrible flames of His Anger," wrote Sister Mary in this revelation that preceded the far better known Divine Mercy ones. "Oh, how I long entreat all the bishops to establish the Work of Reparation in their dioceses."

To console Him, she also was given a devotion to His Holy Face and led to know that daily glorifying the Holy Name of God was crucial.

It was through the Holy Face -- in our time, best represented by the Shroud of Turin, in hers, the "Veil of Veronica" -- that she said His anger is appeased. "You cannot comprehend the malice and abomination of this sin," Jesus had said in 1848, referring to blasphemy. "If My Justice were not restrained by My Mercy, indeed, it would instantly crush the guilty. In fact, all creatures, even those that are inanimate, would avenge this outrage against their Creator's Majesty, but I have eternity in which to punish the guilty."

That uncannily parallels LaSalette, where -- referring to neglect of Sunday and use of profanation -- the Blessed Mother intoned, "These are the two things which weigh down the Arm of my Son so much." And alluding to the potatoes, she said, "They will continue to go bad; at Christmas there will be none left."

[resources: The Golden Arrow]

Twas the Month Before Christmas

2011-12-03T14:09:00.001Z

Twas the month before Christmas When all through our land,
Not a Christian was praying Nor taking a stand.

See the PC Police had taken away
The reason for Christmas - no one could say.

The children were told by their schools not to sing
About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.

It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say
December 25th is just another 'Holiday'.

Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit
Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!

CDs from Madonna, an X-BOX, an I-Pod
Something was changing, something quite odd!

Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa
In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.

As Targets were hanging their trees upside down
At Lowe's the word Christmas - was nowhere to be found.

At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears
You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.

Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty
Are words that were used to intimidate me.

Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen
On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton!

At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter
To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.

And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith
Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace

The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded
The reason for the season, stopped before it started.

So as you celebrate 'Winter Break' under your 'Dream Tree'
Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.

Choose your words carefully, choose what you say
Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS, not Happy Holiday!

Please, all Christians join together and wish
Everyone you meet a MERRY CHRISTMAS

Jesus Christ is The Reason'
For this Christ-mas Season!

Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) Declines the Vatican's Latest Attempt at Reconciliation

2011-12-03T14:06:00.001Z

CNA November 29, 2011:

The Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X says he will inform the Vatican “in the next few days” that they cannot give the doctrinal reassurances required of them to advance reconciliation with the Catholic Church.
“It is true that this Doctrinal Preamble cannot receive our endorsement,” said Bishop Bernard Fellay on the society’s website, Nov. 28.
However, Bishop Fellay said his understanding is that the document is “not a definite text” and that it “can be clarified and modified.” In particular, he would like to discuss what the Vatican means when it says that there is “leeway” for a “legitimate discussion” on the documents and legacy of the Second Vatican Council.
“What is the extent of this leeway? The proposal that I will make in the next few days to the Roman authorities and their response in turn will enable us to evaluate our remaining options,” he said.
The breakaway Society of St. Pius X was presented with the “doctrinal preamble” or statement of principles by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in September.
The document outlined doctrinal points that the Vatican needs clarified before the 23-year rift between the two sides can be healed. The society has been discussing its response for the past two months.
Bishop Fellay said that to give a “flat refusal,” to the Vatican offer would be the “simplest thing, perhaps, but not the most courteous,” and since the note that accompanies it “foresees the possibility of making clarifications,” it seems “necessary to ask for them instead of refusing them a priori.” He added that this “in no way prejudges the response that we will give.”
If the society agrees with the doctrinal preamble, they may be able to enter into the Church as a personal prelature—a jurisdiction without geographical boundaries designed to carry out particular pastoral initiatives.
But Bishop Fellay said that setting aside theological differences “in order to obtain a canonical status” would “expose” the society “to the danger of seeing the same differences crop up inevitably, which would make the canonical status not just precarious but quite simply unliveable.”
The Society of St. Pius X was founded by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1970 as a response to what he described as errors that had crept into the Catholic Church following the 1962-1965 Second Vatican Council.
The society has had a strained relationship with the Vatican since Archbishop Lefebvre consecrated four bishops against the orders of Pope John Paul II in 1988.

BANNEAUX MOURNS AS SEER AT CHURCH-APPROVED APPARITION DIES

2011-12-03T14:03:00.001Z

From http://www.spiritdaily.com/banneuxmourns.htm

by Chris De bodt

Mariette Beco, the girl who had eight apparitions of the Virgin Mary, between January 5th and March 2nd 1933, passed away on December 2nd in the "Home de la Vierge des Pauvres" at Banneux, Belgium. She was ninety years old.

The woman was very famous in the French part of Belgium and many foreigners visited the shrine.

A little time after the apparitions of the Virgin, who presented Herself to Mariette as "The Virgin of the Poor," a chapel was build at the place of the apparitions. On the 22nd of August 1947, Bishop Kerkhofs of Liège fully recognized the authenticity the apparitions. Very soon after his recognition, it became one of the apparitions fully approved by the Vatican in 1952. In 1985 Pope John Paul II went to Banneux and had an audience with her at the sacristy.

Mariette Beco was married and was a mother of three children. It was only a few weeks ago that she went to the home. Today, Banneux Notre Dame is a place of pilgrimage and, as in Lourdes, there is a well of water with
healing power. There is also a relief center poor the sick and their children.

Banneux is situated between Liège and Spa.

Six dioceses audit report on child protection released

2011-12-01T00:59:00.001Z

From http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/1130/dioceses.html

Audits of child protection practices - conducted by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church - have been published by six dioceses.
Much attention is focused on the Diocese of Raphoe, where the board found that there were serious delays in reporting concerns to the civil authorities over a 36-year period.
The report on the Diocese of Derry said allegations were not robustly challenged or adequately managed and problems were often handled by moving priests to postings elsewhere.
Key points:
Raphoe
. 52 allegations reported to gardaí against 14 priests
. Eight out of 14 priests out of ministry, six retired
. Four convicted of an offence against a child
. Significant errors of judgement made by successive bishops
. Too much emphasis on accused priests, not victims
. More attention should have been given to preventative actions
Tuam
. 25 allegations reported to gardaí against 18 priests
. Ten of 18 priests dead, eight out of ministry
. Two priests convicted of an offence against a child
. Safeguarding children plan "did not exist in previous years"
. Past practices were "defensive and internally focused"
. Current Archbishop "showing strong leadership" in dealing with allegations
Kilmore
. Seven allegations reported to gardaí against seven priests
. Three out of seven priests dead, two out of ministry, two retired
. One convicted on an offence against a child
. One priest living in the diocese is known to be the subject of an allegation arising from a past ministry
. Fr Brendan Smyth response was "inadequate"
. No cases of a failure to report and address matters
. Current practices are a "consistently high standard"
Derry
. 31 allegations reported to gardaí against 23 priests
. 16 out of 23 priests dead, four out of ministry, three are retired
. No priests convicted of an offence against a child
. One priest living in the diocese is known to be the subject of an allegation arising from a past ministry
. Allegations not robustly challenged or adequately managed
. Abusive behaviour continued to be exhibited by priests who moved on
Dromore
. 35 allegations of abuse against 10 priests
. Three of 10 priests dead, seven out of ministry
. No priests convicted of an offence against a child
. Not all allegations promptly referred to the statutory agencies
. Bishop McAreavey consulted appropriately to ensure safety of children remained priority
Ardagh & Clonmacnoise
. 14 allegations reported to gardaí against 13 priests
. 12 of 13 priests dead, one out of ministry
. One convicted on an offence against a child
. Two priests who reside in diocese are known to be the subject of an allegation arising from a past ministry
. Good co-operation by Bishop Colm O'Reilly
. 10 recommendations concerning training and administration

What!? Look at plans for compulsory sterilization, abortion

2011-12-01T00:57:00.001Z

From http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.printable&pageId=372681

A stunning Planned Parenthood document that includes radical ideas such as compulsory abortion and sterilization; special "permits" to have children; penalizing parents; and encouraging homosexuality dovetails with some Obamacare mandates, according to a former Planned Parenthood director.
Abby Johnson, who left her position after helping with an abortion and writing about her experience in "unPLANNED," said the document has been around for 40 years but has been virtually ignored.
"When I worked at Planned Parenthood, there was something that we were not allowed to talk about," Johnson said. "If we didn't talk about it, then maybe no one else would either. It was called the Jaffe Memo."
The document is a memorandum about population control to Population Council President Bernard Berelson from Frederick S. Jaffe, vice president of Planned Parenthood.
It suggests fertility control agents in the water supply; applying a "substantial marriage tax" as well as a "child tax"; taxing married couples more than singles; eliminating maternity leaves or benefits; removing child care facilities and then requiring women to work; compulsory abortion and sterilizations; and a "stock certificate type permit for children."
(Story continues below)
Johnson explained that in 1969, the federal government asked Planned Parenthood to offer ideas to address overpopulation."
"They did just that," she said. "What is in the memo as a 'solution' to overpopulation is astonishing. And, I'm sorry to say, it looks like the Jaffe memo is starting to show its face in our culture."
She said she found out something during her current pregnancy that spurred her to try to bring attention to Jaffe's work.
She said she found out that not only did her insurance plan exclude maternity coverage, she could not find any private insurance companies offering such coverage.
Their answers were not only alike but alarming, she said.
After calling 18 insurance companies, each gave her the same reply: "When Obama enacted his 'health care reform,' he mandated that maternity coverage not be available to any private insurance company."
This made Johnson question if Obamacare is part of the agenda to discourage pregnancy, an agenda that her former employer apparently tried to conceal for decades.
The memo includes:

Social Constraints: 1) Restructure Family – postpone or avoid marriage, alter image of ideal family size; 2) Compulsory education of children; 3) Encourage increased homosexuality; 4) Educate for family limitation; 5) Fertility control agents in water supply; 6) Encourage women to work
Economic Deterrents: 1) Modify tax policies – substantial marriage tax, child tax, tax married more than single, remove parents tax exemption, additional taxes on parents with more than 1 or 2 children in school; 2) Reduce/eliminate paid maternity leave or benefits; 3) Reduce/eliminate children's or family allowances; 4) Bonuses for delayed marriage and greater child-spacing; 5) Pensions for women of 45 with less than N children; 6) Eliminate welfare payments after first 2 children; 7) Chronic depression; 8) Require women to work and provide few child care facilities; 9) Limit/eliminate public-financed medical care, scholarships, housing, loans and subsidies to families with more than N children
Social Controls: 1) Compulsory abortion of out-of-wedlock pregnancies; 2) Compulsory sterilization of all who have two children except for a few who would be allowed three; 3) Confine childbearing to only a limited number of adults; 4) Stock certificate type permits for children; 5) Housing policies - discouragement of private home ownership, stop awarding public housing based on family size; 6) Payments to encourage sterilization; 7) Payments to encourage contraception; 8) Payments to encourage abortion; 9) Abortion and sterilization on demand; 10) Allow certain contraceptives to be distributed non-medically; 11) Improve contraceptive technology; 12) Make contraception truly available and accessible to all; 13) Improve maternal health care, with family planning a core element

Four years after the report was published in 1969, abortion was legalized in the U.S. Since then, some 54 million unborn children have been aborted, which averages about 3,000 babies being killed every day.
Also, today there are more women than men in the American workforce. And from the year of the report through this year, the unwed birth rate has increased 300 percent, while the unmarried domestic partnership rate from that time through the turn of the century escalated almost six-fold. Since 1970, marriages have declined 30 percent, while divorce has increased by 40 percent.
Homosexual indoctrination also is becoming prevalent in schools, and many times children are offered free contraception without their parents' knowledge.
"Scary, isn't it?" Johnson asked. "What is scarier is that some of these things are happening … and they have begun to happen under Obama's reign. … 'Reduce/eliminate paid maternity leave or benefits.' Sound familiar?"
Johnson is all too familiar with the so-called "progress" Planned Parenthood has made since its inception nearly a century ago and emphasizes how the abortion provider took in $1 billion in revenues last year alone.
"They are pushing for no restrictions on birth control and abortion," Johnson asserted. "And guess who is right alongside them leading the charge? Our commander in chief, Barack Obama."
And Johnson warns against Planned Parenthood's front as a family friendly "healthcare provider" that claims to look out for the welfare of the nation's women and children.
"Don't be naïve," Johnson urged. "This memo is still Planned Parenthood’s ultimate desire. Abortion and contraceptives on demand … that is their goal. They will do anything to make it happen … including coercion, breaking the law, underhanded deals, and dirty politics."
Johnson's position on abortion took a drastic shift two years ago after seeing an ultrasound of a 13-week-old preborn baby struggling for life inside the mother's womb before being killed. She witnessed the scene as a director at one of Planned Parenthood's facilities in Texas and later turned pro-life. The abortion provider initially got a gag order on her to keep her from disclosing inside information about the questioned organization's practices.
But Johnson is not content to merely point out what Planned Parenthood and the government are doing.
"It is time to fight back," she said. "I do not want to live in a communist country. That, of course, would be no problem for Planned Parenthood. … They would end up on top in a communist regime."
Widespread infanticide currently is taking place in communist China, where mothers are allowed to have only one child. In Russia, 73 percent of all pregnancies end up in abortion.
"Just think of what could happen in the next 50 years if pro-lifers don't stand up against this organization," Johnson said. "Forced abortion … it could happen. Limits on children … another possibility."
Johnson offers ways to battle the abortion industry and save innocent lives:

Spread this message to other people who value life
Show people what Planned Parenthood is really about
Go pray at a clinic
Reach out to abortion clinic workers
Only vote for candidates who clearly state they will remove funding from Planned Parenthood.

"This memo is real … and it is really happening in our country," Johnson emphasized. "This is not just a fight we have on our hands … it is a war. Let's put on our armor. Truth still matters."

Lesser-Known Saints & Martyrs

2011-12-01T00:56:00.001Z

See http://www.angelfire.com/ar/rhop/saints.html

RTE suspends programme which libeled Missionary priest

2011-11-25T21:22:00.001Z

From http://www.irishcentral.com/news/State-broadcaster-RTE-suspends-programme-which-libelled-Missionary-priest-134384973.html

CATHAL DERVAN,

IrishCentral Staff Writer

Irish state broadcaster RTE has admitted that heads may roll after suspending the TV program which libeled a missionary priest to Africa.

RTE’s director general Noel Curran has taken the ‘Prime Time Investigates’ programme off the air in the wake of a massive $1.5million libel payment to Fr Kevin Reynolds.

The priest, now based in Galway, was accused by programme makers of sexually assaulting a teenage girl, making her pregnant and abandoning mother and child when he served in Kenya in the 1980s.

The Irish national broadcaster went ahead with the programme even after Fr Reynolds offered to take a paternity test to prove his innocence.

An internal review is already underway at RTE while the Irish government has ordered a complete investigation into the debacle by its Broadcasting Authority.

Ireland’s press ombudsman, Professor John Horgan, is also examining in the issues raised by the ‘Mission to Prey’ programme aired last May.

Director general Curran, announcing the suspension of the series, admitted to the gravity of the libel and the hurt caused to Fr Reynolds and his family.

“This was one of the gravest editorial mistakes ever made by RTE,” confessed Curran.

“We have a proud record at this station but we must take this move now to restore public faith in RTE as a broadcaster.

“Recommendations as to what we do next will be brought to the RTÉ board after December 15 when Mr Horgan completes his review. I’d like to state clearly, nothing will be ruled out in those recommendations.”

A statement issued later by the station read: “No conclusion has been ruled in or out by RTE in terms of final decisions which might be taken in this matter.”

A government spokesperson confirmed that Communications Minister Pat Rabbitte had ordered an inquiry, the first since 1969, due to ‘general public disquiet over the broadcast’.

The True Presentation of the Virgin Mary (Foretold in the Book of Sirach)

2011-11-21T19:40:00.001Z

From http://cantuar.blogspot.com/2011/11/true-presentation-of-virgin-mary.html

Presentation of Mary at Age Three

November 21 is the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast has always been celebrated as a commemoration of Mary being presented in the Temple at the age of three years by her parents St Joachim and St Anne. Mary lived in the Temple precincts until the age of 14* when she was betrothed to Saint Joseph.

Modern "sophisticated scholars" cast doubt on this tradition as pious legend. However, by the 400s it was universally believed that Mary lived at the Temple from the age of 3 till 14.** Moreover, the Church Fathers and the Doctors of the Church confirm that the Blessed Virgin was in fact consecrated at the Temple to serve therein. Since the Temple is a symbol of the Garden of Eden, Mary's entry reveals that the New Eve has finally arrived and come into the presence of God.

This Patristic tradition reveals how the earthly Temple in Jerusalem would mystically give way to the true New Temple and Ark of the Covenant which is the body of Mary in which the Son of God would be incarnate. In ancient cultures, the age of three was a time of transferal from infancy to childhood since at this time infants were fully weened from their mother's breast and potty trained.

So at that this time, St Joachim and St Anne dedicated the Blessed Virgin at the Temple where she lived till the age of 14. At this age, girls came into their womanhood and were no longer allowed to dwell in the holy place. So Mary was then betrothed to St Joseph. Returning to Nazareth, the angel of the Lord announced unto her the glad tidings of her Messianic Son.

Is there any biblical basis for this tradition? Of course.

Traditionally the Catholic Church reads the Old Testament passage from Sirach 24:14-16 at the Holy Sacrifice for the feast of the Presentation on November 21st. This passage prophesies how the Blessed Mother would dwell in Jerusalem and within the Temple precincts:

In the holy dwelling place I have ministered before him. And so was I established in Sion, and in the holy city likewise I rested, and my power was in Jerusalem. And I took root in an honourable people, and in the portion of my God his inheritance, and my abode is in the full assembly of saints.

The fact that the Church has placed these words into the mouth of Mary in the Sacred Liturgy further reveals that the Church believed that Mary "ministered" before God "in Sion/Holy City/Jerusalem."

This is a good reminder that the liturgy is catechetical - it is fact that great catechetical instrument of Holy Mother Church.

Our Lady Seat of Wisdom, pray for us.

* The Jewish historian Josephus mentions that there were quarters for consecrated women to live in at the Temple.

** St Gregory of Nyssa, in the fourth century, also mentions this feast of the Virgin's Presentation. Saint Helen built a chapel in Jerusalem to commemorate the event.

Christ the King: The Feast's Transfer from October to the Sunday before Advent

2011-11-21T19:38:00.001Z

From http://cantuar.blogspot.com/2011/11/christ-king-feasts-transfer-from.html

Today's feast, that of Christ the King, is one of the most recent solemnities of the Catholic Church.

Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in 1925 as the last Sunday in October. In Pope John XXIII's 1960 revision of the liturgical calendar, the date and title remained the same and, in the new simpler ranking of feasts, it was classified as a feast of the first class.

In his 1969 motu proprio Mysterii Paschalis, Pope Paul VI made three changes. First, he moved the feast to its current place - the Sunday before Advent. Second, he expanded the name to "Dominus Noster Jesus Christus Universorum Rex" {Our Lord Jesus Christ King of the Universes}. Third, he raised the feast to that of a Solemnity.

In the celebration of the Extraordinary Form (the traditional Latin Mass), the feast of Christ the King is still celebrated on the last Sunday in October, however the older propers for the Last Sunday after Pentecost posses eschatological themes.

Christ the King and High Priest, have mercy on us.

Wronged Irish priest says life was horrific after accusation of rape

2011-11-21T19:32:00.001Z

From http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Wronged-Irish-priest-says-life-was-horrific-after-accusation-of-rape-134201363.html

CATHAL DERVAN,

IrishCentral.com Staf Writer

The priest wrongly accused by Irish television of raping a teenager in Kenya and fathering her child has revealed how he was advised not to take on the might of state broadcaster RTE.

Fr Kevin Reynolds has received over $1.5million in libel damages from the Irish station after the false accusation were made earlier this year in the Prime Time Investigates programme ‘Mission to Prey.’

The priest, asked to stand down from his current parish work in Galway while he fought the case, had to take a paternity test which proved negative and take RTE to Dublin’s High Court before the station admitted they were wrong.

Speaking to the Sunday Independent, he said: "I feel very relieved it's all over. It has been an awful and devastating experience. So, so, so distressing -- not only for me but for my family and for my parish.

"I want to say now, I do not have any feelings of revenge or anger. I just want to get over this and on with my life.

"I am not looking for blood. I'm not looking for any revenge. As a priest, of course, whoever wrongs me, I will forgive them and I can say from the bottom of my heart they are forgiven."

Reynolds had offered to take a paternity test to prove he was not the father, but the program went ahead and accused him anyway.: "Of course, it tested my faith. It rattled me in every respect. Not only socially, but also spiritually.

"But I knew from day one I had a clear conscience; I knew it was not true. And my faith remains intact as it was -- as strong as ever.

"The worst day was signing a form to say that I would freely withdraw from all public priestly ministries. That was very difficult.

"But the lowest point of all was driving to Dublin alone on the eve of when the programme was to be aired. Driving out of my priesthood, out of my parish in a complete daze, wondering what on earth had happened. My whole world had collapsed.

"That's an experience I wouldn't like to relive. I didn't sleep that night and there was no sleep for many, many nights after that."

He was seen laughing on the program when he was first accused.

"Mother of God, says I. Is there some truth that this is actually going to air?"

"Kenya is the land of rumours and fabrications and allegations. But not one person I contacted had ever heard that rumour or said there was any truth in it."

"The morning after the programme, I didn't want to be seen. I was afraid in case someone would recognise me and take a pot shot at me. But I got over that pretty fast. After a while I said, 'No, I have to face the world'."

"I must say the second day after the programme was aired, I was in Galway and I met with legal people who recommended that I go for a long holiday and that I would be rather foolish to challenge the might of RTE. That was a pretty low point but there was never a time that I was going to give up.

"I must give it to the Association of Catholic Priests. I got in contact with them and they put me in touch with solicitor Robert Dore. And once he got the legal team moving on it, I became more hopeful."

When the DNA tests confirmed his innocence, Reynolds said: "Everyone was over the moon and congratulations were coming in from all over the place, but it didn't really excite me because I knew I could not have been the father of that child.

"Somebody said to me, 'Now it's time for a mighty party' but I said, 'No. I just want to get all of this cleared up.'"

"There will always be people with lingering suspicions and what can I do? I have to live my life and I know tomorrow morning I will be able to stand outside the door of St Cuan's Church in Ahascragh with confidence and can finally stand tall again, thank God."

Some of the Demands of 'Occupy Wall Street' Protesters, Many of Them are Outrageous

2011-11-19T11:35:00.001Z

Repeal the Taft-Hartley Act. Unionize ALL workers immediately.
Raise the minimum wage immediately to $18/hr. Create a maximum wage of $90/hr to eliminate inequality.
Institute a 6 hour workday, and 6 weeks of paid vacation.
Institute a moratorium on all foreclosures and layoffs immediately.
Repeal racist and xenophobic English-only laws.
Open the borders to all immigrants, legal or illegal. Offer immediate, unconditional amnesty, to all undocumented residents of the US.
Create a single-payer, universal health care system.
Pass stricter campaign finance reform laws. Ban all private donations. All campaigns will receive equal funding, provided by the taxpayers.
Institute a negative income tax, and tax the very rich at rates up to 90%.
Pass far stricter environmental protection and animal rights laws.
Allow workers to elect their supervisors.
Lower the retirement age to 55. Increase Social Security benefits.
Create a 5% annual wealth tax for the very rich.
Ban the private ownership of land.
Make homeschooling illegal. Religious fanatics use it to feed their children propaganda.
Reduce the age of majority to 16.
Abolish the death penalty and life in prison. We call for the immediate release of all death row inmates from death row and transferred to regular prisons.
Release all political prisoners immediately.
Immediate withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Abolish the debt limit.
Ban private gun ownership.
Strengthen the separation of church and state.
Immediate debt forgiveness for all.
End the 'War on Drugs'.

The Heart of O'Connell

2011-11-15T18:33:00.001Z

On a recent trip to Rome, I visited the Irish College, which houses this monument to Daniel O'Connell, the Liberator. Daniel O'Connell secured Catholic Emancipation in 1829. When he died in 1847, in Genoa on a pilgrimage to Rome, he bequeathed his body to Ireland, his heart to Rome and his soul to God. His son brought his heart to Rome, but was unable to get a tomb for it at St Peter's, as only Popes and those of royal blood can be buried there. He left the heart with the Pontifical Irish College. It was placed in an alcove in the wall. When his friend, Charles Bianconi visited Rome some time later, he went to see O'Connell's heart. Finding it without a suitable resting place or acknowledgment, he commissioned a new casket made of precious metals and monument (which is seen in the picture above).
However, in the 1920's, the Irish College was too small for its numbers and a new building was purchased. Everything was to be transferred in the move but whilst the monument was moved, sadly the casket was not. The monument is in place in the current Irish College near St John Lateran Basilica, however, there whereabouts of the casket and the heart it contained are unknown.