Wednesday, March 29, 2017

CONFUSION IN THE CHURCH

 1. The Church.
      There has been an immense confusion going on now because everybody cannot find the Catholic Church. Although everybody is crying out 'Church, Church......where are you?' No one is answering.
      Everybody is accusing everybody else for being un-Catholic but all accusers themselves cannot prove that they are Catholics. All this. inspite of the fact that the Nicene Creed had described the four visible signs of the True Catholic Church as One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic. 

2. This post had challenged many bishops to prove that their diocese is Catholic but they cannot. The same challenge was made to parishes; but they, too, cannot prove that they are Catholics. We have extended the challenge to Religious orders like the Benedictines, Dominicans, Franciscans and Jesuits and they, too, could not demonstrate that they are Catholics.

 3. Just for fun, we threw the challenge to groups like the Opus Dei,  Couples for Christ, charismatics...etc. Likewise, they could not show they had the four visible signs. 
     Then, we went personal and applied the signs to individuals like Pope Francis, Cardinal Kasper, Archbishop Cupich and even to well known very good cardinals and bishops. We applied the signs to many well known brilliant theological writers but still they do not have the signs. We begun to suspect that, probably,  we were not applying the signs correctly. Then, we saw where we went wrong. You see, there is a difference between the perfect Church of the Apostles and the beginning church of the new converts. There is a difference between the Church of the Romans and the Corinthians.

 4. Described briefly, the Catholic Church may be described as grade I in certain places, grade II in other places. And even grade III and IV in the same place. So they will look different one from the other. All these different grades of Churches will, evidently. look different from a place where there is no church. This complicates the process of analysis. 

     St. Bonaventure described the stages of development of the Catholic Church based on the seven days of Creation. And rightly so, because the churches cannot all be born mature. It must begin as a babe, develop into puberty and then mature. 

5.     All must enter the Church as spiritual babes. But all must be mature before they die to go to heaven. Thus all must enter as spiritual babes but all can grow to maturity depending on each one's generosity to God. So St. Basil wrote that it is possible for any soul who start seeking God at birth to reach maturity at 14- 16 years old. And St. Therese of Lisieux seems to have experienced maturity with a described spiritual phenomenon at 14 which made her decide to enter Carmel at that age. 
     
 6. The apostles became the mature Catholic Church at the beginning of Lent and reached perfection on Pentecost. So, for all Catholics we must reach the spirituality of Lent, the sixth day, before we die. On the sixth day, Catholics can show the four visible signs of the true Church enumerated in the Nicene Creed. So the four visible signs and the signs of the sixth day, Good Friday, must be present in a person, in the parish, in the diocese.....and in the Pope, for them to be truly called Catholic. 

  7. The beginnings of the Church anywhere must be within the mature and perfect Apostolic Church of Pentecost; like a foetus within a mother.  And it must grow to maturity and perfection within that Apostolic Church without being part of that Church because it is not yet mature. But it must grow within that mature Apostolic Church of Pentecost. When that baby Church matures than it is incorporated to the perfect Apostolic Church of Pentecost.  
        Here is where the confusion begins. All Churches that are mere beginners within the perfect mature Church think that they are also mature and perfect Catholics. Yet, not being mature they do not have the four visible signs enumerated in the Nicene Creed. So we are faced with the confusion that Pope Francis and practically almost all cardinals, bishops and priests think they are Catholics though they do not have any of the four visible signs of the true Church since they are not mature Catholics incorporated to the true perfect Church. 
         The truth is that not having reached maturity, not having reached the sixth day which is the spirit of Lent, they, really, are not Catholics because they have not fulfilled the requirements for Catholic maturity. They have not reached the sixth day; maybe, they have not yet begun the first day. In which case they will not have the four visible signs of the true Church of Christ as found in the Nicene Creed. Why? Because they are not truly Catholics. They are mere foetuses in the womb of Mother Church probably ectopic pregnancy, i.e. a dead foetus in the womb. 

 8. What can we do? Return to the roots....return to the original primitive Apostolic community. And follow this tradition from the very first step by 'leaving all things, giving these to the poor and following Christ.' Then follow Him through Lent, Easter and Pentecost. But this will be impossible for all because Pope Francis forbade all of these. He forbade seminarians to return to the old practices. He forbade religious orders to return to their primitive charisma. He forbade Catholics to obey the commands of God describing them who do so as hypocrites. He forbad returning to the primitive way of celebrating the Mass. He forbade the return to the Old religion describing those who do so as useless romantics. 

9. Returning to the question.
    Where is the Catholic Church?  Nowhere for all to see but reserved to contemplatives to behold as their hope for the 'new' Easter in heaven.

Tuesday, March 28, 2017

The 'DUBIA'

 1. The 'DUBIA' on the sixth day.
     Keeping in mind that this era is now the sixth day, let us see if the 'Dubia' is in place. Judas, the betrayer, is an apostle and a bishop who betrays Christ, the Mystical Body. Judas is a pre-figure of an anti-pope who we expect on the sixth day. We are not expecting a bad Pope because Popes are seldom bad. What is expected with he figure of Judas as a bishop that will be an anti-pope. 
     Judas was very mildly corrected by Christ in an effort to correct him. The 'dubia' is, indeed, a mild correction headed by the four cardinal bishops. Will this correction work? Did the correction of Judas work? No. So if we are on target, Pope Francis will not respond to the dubia as Judas did not respond favorably to Christ's correction. 

     Even if the respondent does not react to the 'dubia' the cardinals and bishops who signed it still need to make the correction under pain of mortal sin because the issue is serious. If the cardinals does not proceed with the dubia, they will be guilty as accomplishes to the crime of Pope Francis. 

2. Since Christ's correction of Judas did not stop Judas from his treason, the sixth day tells us that the correction of Pope Francis by the four cardinals will not stop Pope Francis from imposing the erroneous 'Amoris laetitia' on the Catholic world. This will be further proof that we are, indeed, on the sixth day and Pope Francis is the expected anti-pope of the prophecies. Even if the 'dubia' is a correction too little and too late, it must still proceed as an obligation of Charity by the four cardinals to Pope Francis. 

3. On the other hand, any act to enhance the status of one pre-figured by Judas will also be sinful. To praise a criminal is to praise his crime. So, for instance, those who will still go to have an audience with the Pope will be encouraging him  to commit his crime.
    Trump and Putin should not have their planned audiences with the Pope. Trump can get better Catholic advices from Bannon and Kellyanne than from Pope Francis since the two are more Catholic than Pope Francis. And Putin will get better Catholic advises from Kiril who  publicly corrected Pope Francis during their ecumenical meeting. The Orthodox are more Catholic than the Vatican. What can one get from a leftist leaning Pope who, in fact, sided with Clinton and Obama in Philladelphia, personally entertained the leftist Sanders in the Vatican and insulted Trump for his wall in Mexico. With the Bishops of Mexico calling it treason for Mexicans to be employed in building the work, the President will only be unnecessarily humiliated. 
    How can building a wall be an act of treason, I cannot imagine. It is a job that can earn one a living. When the Mexicans need job and the bishops cannot provide jobs, but instead prevent those workers from getting a job on the wall and feed their families, then just like the Pharisees they are condemned by Christ for imposing extra burden on the people already finding life difficult. 


Monday, March 27, 2017

PHARISEES, YOU ARE BLINDd, while the BLIND will SEE.

 1. The separation. 
     The fearful sixth day is a day of separation that is why it was a fearful day for all ancient Catholics. They had no idea if they could withstand that day of wrath. It was for this reason that God made this day known from the Old Testament, through the New Testament and up to this century 2000. 
      All Catholics worthy of the name looked forward to this day with great expectation because, for the good, it was going to be a day wherewith their salvation will be confirmed. We repeat this in a prayer after the 'Our Father,' ...'as we wait in joyful hope.' Of course, the bad cannot say the same. 
      The sixth day was no secret to the Church. But today, it seems all doctrines are unknown to many Catholics. We have seen that this sixth day was the basis for the entire monastic movement. The whole Catholic Church was monastic living the sixth day. Though this is forgotten, today,  by the monastic movement in the west, it is very eminent in the Orthodox and Coptic Church. Go to Mount Athos in Greece and Valaam in Russia and the idea of the sixth day will overwhelm you. It seems that all those monks are thinking of nothing but  the sixth day. The very Rule of St. Benedict, popular in the West, but hardly followed there, writes about the whole monastic life consist in living the sixth day all of one's life. 'One's whole  life is a Lenten observance.'
     But what makes it fearful? The separation of people into two groups. Those who see and those who are blind.....both made so by the work of God. This day, it is nearly impossible for those who see to cure their spiritual blindness; while the spiritual blind will be able to see by a pure act of God. 

2. The Good Friday of Lent. The separation.
    This sixth day is pre-figured by Good Friday, the sixth day of the week. This day had been happening many time through the history of men to give men a dry run for what is coming in the future. It happened during the trial of St. Joan of Arc, the exile of Pope Pius IX and the persecution of Blessed John Newman by Catholic bishops. But it is going on right now in full blast in the entire world. 
    What happened on Good Friday that is happening today? The entire human race is divided into two groups. First, those who think they see and think they know the solution to all the problems including global warming. This is the entire world who think the UN can solve all the world's problems. Second, those who think they are blind and cannot solved any problem thus they need Christ's help. So they pray and wait for Christ's help all their life. 
     St. Thomas of Aquinas wrote; here is the explanation. 'If you were blind' i.e. ignorant of the judgments of God and of the sacraments of the law, 'you would not sin, i.e. so much. As if to say, as if to say if you were sinning out of ignorance, your sin would not be so serious. But now you say, we see, i.e. arrogate to yourselves an understanding of the law and a knowledge of God, and still sin, then your sin remains, i.e. becomes greater; that servant who knew is master's will, but did not make ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating.'

3. Christ was describing Pope Francis and his admirers, cardinals and bishops. They have studied in the seminary. They know their moral and dogmatic theology. When they say something wrong, they know it is wrong. They are, even, further corrected by cardinals with a 'dubia'. But they insist on their proposals, like in 'Amoris Laetitia.' Well, what does Christ say? Their disobedience to Christ's commands is a mortal sin. It remains in their souls and it is a greater sin than mortal sin because they know what the Lord wants.........they will certainly receive a more severe beating, which in Scriptural parlance is no less than hell. 

     On Good Friday, those who claim they can see were the Romans, the Pharisees, and the Jews. They were described by Christ as those who saw Him curing the blind but still did not believe shown by their repeated interrogation. Let us see how God treated this group. Note nobody preached to them to save them. The apostles did not try to save Judas. Neither did Christ, nor Mary try to dissuade Judas. Christ, Himself, did not preach to the Jews on the cross. In short, nobody was teaching the way of salvation that day. Today, the same thing is happening. Nobody is preaching the Word of God in the entire world. 
     Those who were capable of preaching, the apostles,  were  completely silent. The only one's preaching were the charlatans. 
     Note that the only converts on Good Friday was due to pure Divine intervention, Dimas and the centurion. Similarly, today the conversions will be due to direct Divine intervention and not through missionaries of mercies and evangelists. This was the picture of Good Friday; it will be the same today. How was Dimas and Longinus converted? Through the prayers of Mary and the Apostles. Not from preachings from Pope and cardinals. According to the 'new' evangelization of John Paul II and Benedict XVI, conversions will be achieved through the prayers of contemplative evangelists; not through the ordinary students of missiology and catechesis. 
     Were missionaries needed on Good Friday? No. Today, the time is over to train missionaries, evangelist, catechists, etc. In fact, the people whose job is to evangelize becomes unnecessary because as the previous Gospel states, true worshippers will worship in spirit and in truth. There will be no need for churches where priests, bishops and Pope will worship. Well, Christ said so, isn't it. 'It is better to obey God than to obey men.'
    
     The blindness of the Romans and the Jews is the figure of the blindness of Pope Francis, the entire Church and the entire secular world. These are the men who think they can solve the problems of the world and the Church. Proud blind men. 
     Who are the blind whose sight will be cured? Those who believe they can do nothing by themselves. So they study the commands of Christ leisurely in silence, living in rooms clinging on mountain cliffs, in unceasing prayer for the grace of God, as they bow and kiss the brilliant icons painted in their dark walls. 

Sunday, March 26, 2017

4th SUNDAY OF LENT - The BLIND AGE.

 1. The 'days of darkness.'
     The threat of the 'days of darkness' had always hang over our heads. But its threat had been lessen due to the many sources of light the modern age had provided men; from rechargeable batteries to solar panels. 
     But then, these 'days of darkness' might not be referring to illuminations but a darkness of the soul. And this is the better interpretation of these days; a darkened mind and as a consequence, a darkened will. 
     With spiritual blindness no one can find the way to God or the Church. Because of original sin, all men are born blind.
     The Liturgical season of Lent tells us how to cure our spiritual blindness. The Gospel tells us that Christ while passing by on earth found us a man blind from birth. And Christ said; 'I must do the works while it is day; the night comes and no man is able to work.' Meaning to say, Christ can only work the salvation of our souls if by the grace of God, we can see. If we do not have this grace, i.e. if we are blind due to lack of grace, He cannot save us. 

2. Christ cures the blind man.
     He spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle and he spread the clay on his eyes. And said to him; go, wash in the pool of Siloam, which means sent.
     He went therefore and washed, and he came back seeing.
     Christ did several things to the blind before he could see. First, He spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle. St. Augustine gives the mystical and allegorical explanation. The spittle is the saliva that comes from the mouth; this represents the Word of God that comes from the mouth of Christ. This would be the teachings of Christ, especially His commandments as found the New Testament. These commands from the New Testament is the perfection, of course, of the commands of God the Father as found in the Old Testament.
     The spittle is mixed with clay; i.e. the Word of God is taught by God made man.

     Jesus Christ, by becoming man and having revealed His teachings has come down to earth, spat on the soil and mixed some clay. The wet clay is the list of commands Christ had taught and how those commands are to be executed. This is the 'what' and the 'how' of evangelization described in the Apostolic Commission of Christ. The clay is prepared.

     Secondly, Christ 'spread the clay,' made from spittle and soil, 'on the eyes of the blind man.' Notice that up to this point it is Christ who is doing everything. The blind man has done nothing yet.
     Here Christ teaches His Incarnation to the mind and heart of the blind man. This is the initial act of faith. This is still in the natural level and falls under natural theology. It  consists in knowing the human meaning of Christ's commands. There is no supernatural understanding of Christ's commands at this point. 
     Up to this point, the blind man, still,  cannot see. St. Augustine refers to him as a catechumen who is disposed for Faith but is not yet baptized; therefore, he still does not have the supernatural virtue of Faith. The blind man's intellect had perceived the human definition of the Incarnation of Christ and with his free will had loved this natural truth.
     Note that his whole process is part of Repentance, i.e. the Lenten season. 

     Thirdly, Christ sends him to the pool of Siloam to wash. And he received his sight. 
     After seeing that Christ had done the first two steps, now the blind man does his part. It consist  in an act of obedience to Christ's command. Christ did not command him to make clay nor to apply the clay on his eyes. That was Christ's part. The blind man's part was to go to the pool of Siloam and wash. 
     In the work of Salvation we must clearly know what is Christ's part and what is our part. His part was to go to the pool of Siloam; meaning he must obey the commands he had learned from the saliva and soil. 
     The pool of Siloam is the Sacrament of Baptism wherewith he will receive the grace to be able to fully understand and obey the commands of Christ. Grace will help him understand and obey the supernatural commands of Christ; a gift from God because he has learned with his intellect all the commands of Christ and how to obey them. The consequence of this knowledge and obedience is that he was able to see 
     His ability to see made him see that Christ was not only man but God, also. This is Faith that made him prostrate and worship Christ as God. His Faith is perfected by his worship of God. He had attained salvation. 

3. A big problem.
     The state of darkness in the world today, pre-figured by Good Friday, is because the proper procedure was not followed. Most men are baptized, i.e. they have gone to the pool of Siloam without mud made from Christ's saliva and soil being applied to their blind eyes. Christ's part for the curing of their blindness is absent. Everybody from the Pope to the youngest child underwent this defective procedure. So, they remained blind spiritually. Again, the entire Catholic world omitted the first two steps which is Christ's part,  in that all Catholics were baptized without being instructed in the commands of Christ, which is the application of mud in the eyes. The parish priest, parents and good parents were supposed to do that; but all of them failed to do it. So the whole Catholic world is in darkness, is in compete darkness. This was the prophecy of Mary in Quito, Ecuador in the 16th century. 
     There are many ways to correct this defect. One way is to teach the child after Baptism the commands of Christ. But by whom? ..because all the previous generations committed the same mistake and, therefore, are without Faith. Baptize first, then apply the mud on the eye? Yes! That will, also, work. But the problem is; what if the child loses its Baptismal grace before he can learn the commands. With the lost grace he cannot learn and obey Christ's commands. So it is still a problem. Besides, we cannot repeat Baptism if it does not work the first time. 

4. The Ancient solution.
     God, of course, foresaw this problem and supplied the solution even before the problem existed. The solution; monasticism. If the soul missed the correct procedure of applying mud on the eyes and washing in the pool of Siloam, the monastic life is meant to repeat the procedure of applying mud on the eyes by the mastery of the commands of Christ and, because Baptism cannot be repeated, St. John Chrusostom wrote, the monastic life is considered a substitute for Baptism. Monasticism is a substitute for repentance and Baptism; it is the primitive substitute for the application of the mud on the eyes and the washing in the pool of Siloam. So monasticism can make a man who is spiritually blind, see again. Thus attaining of Faith, Hope and Charity, he can attain everlasting life.

6. The New evangelization.
    Pope John Paul II and Benedict XVI realized that this is what happened to the Church that is why she was suddenly in complete darkness. Mary described the darkness and the cause. The cause is the neglect of the Gospel message on 'How Christ cured the blind man.' So John Paul and Benedict initiated the 'new' evangelization which St. Bonaventure and Pope Benedict called the 'new' monasticism. St. John Chrysostom wrote; this is the monasticism that can be lived at home. The proper procedure on how to cure spiritual blindness can be done at home. No one can have an excuse to remain blind.

7. The Pharisees and the blind man.
     Christ describe the two kinds of people during this sixth day, the Lenten season, this era, year 2017. First, those who will not obey God's command 'to wash', even after an entire theological course in the seminary. These are personified by the Pharisees, who saw Christ performed a miracle but still did not believe, and, therefore,were condemned. Second, those who obeyed 'to wash', personified by the blind man who could not even see Christ and yet believed in Him. Strange, it was the Pharisee who claimed they can see. And he who was blind who could not see was the one who was able to see....and was saved. Pope Francis and some cardinals and bishops today are personified by the Pharisee because they think they know so much that they can run the Church by themselves, without God's help....these are the blind, Christ said. And who are those who can really see? The one's who think they cannot run the church. So they will leave it up to God to run it and simply conform themselves to the Divine Will through a life of perfect obedience to God's commands as found in the 'saliva mixed with soil.'
      

Thursday, March 23, 2017

POPE BENEDICT AND THE SIXTH DAY that is LENT.

 1. The monster picture of the two Popes. 
      A picture had been appearing in the news showing the body of Pope Francis with two heads; the head of Francis and the head of Benedict XVI. A monstrosity, indeed, but with a sense of humor. Beside it is the picture of Archbishop Ganswain, secretary of Pope Benedict who introduced the idea of a diarchy, i.e. the idea of two Popes, one a contemplative and the other an active. 
     Under it is an article of an archbishop casting doubt on Benedict's resignation. Everything seems to surround the question on what is going on in the Vatican, specifically, and in the Catholic Church in general.
     On our part we will try to clarify what is going on from the context of LENT, the sixth day, or specifically Good Friday. This is the sixth stage in the history of the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church looks like the early church of the apostles as it looked like on Good Friday.  

  2. Doing the 'Will of God. 
     When God expresses His Will it must be done till death. When God says 'be holy as your heavenly Father is holy,' we have to be holy until we die. We cannot stop in the middle and retire from being Holy. When God wills a person to be a bishop, that is until death. He cannot retire at 75 from doing God's will of being a bishop. Who allowed him to retire from doing God's will at 75? Canon Law? Canon Law has no authority to allow any bishop to retire from doing God's Will at 75 no matter what they say. God had expressed His Will at the consecration of the bishop and the bishop must do God's Will expressed during his consecration  up to the end of his life. God's Will has no retirement provision. 
     Imagine if married couples can retire from their marriage at 50 or religious can retire from their vows at 45. Or when trying to save our souls we can retire at 80. Aren't we sounding ridiculous?
     All the more the Pope. To be a Pope is the Will of God and no Pope can say he may retire from doing God's Will at 75 or 80. Pope Benedict with all his credentials know that very well. And there is the example of all the previous Popes; from Pius XII, John XXIII, John Paul l, Paul VI, and John Paul II.....all of them did the Will of God up to the end. And Pope Benedict who clearly knew this will resign? It is unbelievable! He who does not do the Will of God until death  is not a saint and does not know his theology....which cannot be said of Pope Benedict. 
     Knowing his credentials, it is even impossible to cross the mind of man to think that he would give up doing God's Will by resigning. As the Archbishop in the news hinted; it is because of the gay lobby in the Vatican. The gays are as harmless as the adulterers and divorcees. You convert them; not fear them. 
     Because of the mess in the Vatican bank? Well, just close it down. He has become physically unable to do his job? His job needs acts of the mind, not physical strength. His mind remains very sharp. There is no problem mentioned for the resignation of Benedict that he could not solve with one hand tied behind him. 
All problems attributed to his resignation are so trifle that it appears he is a weakling and a coward, both of which he is not. 
     So we have to look for reasons somewhere else. We have to return to Good Friday....it is his obedience to God's Will. Knowing Benedict, he would never resign. What he did was in obedience to God's Will. But what was that Will specifically.
      Let us look at Pope Benedict's body language when he was reading his announcement. First,  he was very excited to make the announcement; as if he was going to announce a good, happy news. One does not get excited in announcing a retirement. Secondly, he showed urgency in his announcement; as if he could not wait to make the announcement. Thirdly, he did not inform anybody else of his decision. Such a grievous decision as resigning from the papacy needs much consultation which Benedict did not do. He decided on his own alone which is so unlike him since he believed in consultations like with his group the ITC. Fourthly, nobody could stop him though everyone showed dismay at his announcement. 

3. Only one explanation.
     His body language clearly showed that he had received a direct command from God that even surprised Benedict himself. He did not expect it. It was not a vision but probably a revelation.The probability is that he suddenly saw the fulfillment of a prophecy he was awaiting for. 
     He had been studying St. Hildegard of Bingen when suddenly he raised this medieval saint up as a doctor of the Church. He did not say what was special with her. But upon reading her visions, Benedict must have read that an anti-pope would rise in the Catholic Church sometime after an attempt at the life of a pope. It did not say exactly which Pope after the assassination attempt. 
     Benedict begun to study Blessed John Newman where he found John describing the 'future apostasy' coming within the Church. In fact John noticed its beginnings during his lifetime when he saw cardinals and bishops of the Catholic church ganging on him an Anglican convert.
     Putting together all his readings Benedict realized that we have reached the sixth day or Good Friday in the historical stage of the Catholic Church which means that there will be complete darkness of the Faith. Nobody will be able to find the Catholic Church and the true Faith. And the few who can teach are quiet and in hiding. All the priests and bishops are ignorant of the Faith...up to the top, While the rest of the world will be possessed by Lucifer. 
     Benedict saw that that the day had arrived where true worshipper will worship in spirit and in truth. In Good Friday, the visible signs of the true Church will disappear together with the Eucharist and the Mass as prophesied, as the entire world turns against the true religion and Lucifer reigns. Benedict saw that the Vatican and the people around him  are no longer the Church of Christ. So he retreated to St. Bonaventure's sixth day Church, the contemplative community, the new monasticism, with a new evangelization.
       In such a situation, Benedict realized that the Church will be so diabolically corrupt that that corruption had to be exposed so it can be cut of. His first step is to expose that corruption by pretending to resign; he had to pretend to step down and sure enough the stench of corruption exploded in most parishes and dioceses......and up to the highest offices in the Vatican. In such state only prayers to God will spare the predestined souls. Nothing else will work. He knows the diseased limbs cannot be saved. Today, the cutting off of the diseased hands and legs and eyes and ears are going with such speed that it seems that soon no Catholic would be left, unless God does something drastic.  
    

Tuesday, March 21, 2017

ST. BENEDICT AND THE CHURCH on the sixth day.

1. The Lenten Season and the Sixth day.
     We have seen how the Fathers of the Church described the seven days of creation from Genesis as the seven stages in the spiritual development of the Catholic Church from the beginning up to its perfection before the General Judgment by God. 
     We have, also, seen how the Fathers concentrated their writings on describing the sixth day because it explains what a soul must do before he dies or before he faces God in the General Judgment to be able to receive a favorable judgment from God. The sixth day teaches us how to receive the reward of everlasting life from God. 

2. The Sixth day in Christianity.
It is for this reason that the sixth day became of primary importance in theology specially in ascetical theology. The works of St. Alphonsus Liguori and St. Robert Bellarmine on how to prepare for death are two Catholic treatises that supplies, in detail, the need for such a knowledge. 

3. The Sixth day develops into Monasticism.
     This sixth day is so important to Christianity that a whole movement develop to satisfy the need to put it into practice. The very purpose of preaching or evangelization is, precisely, to teach what is needed to be done. But preaching and evangelization is just babbling of words. The words had to be put into practice; thus monasticism begun as early as the birth of Christianity. What was taught by Christ, which essentially was the sixth day, had to be put into practice immediately. The Apostles put it into practice by living as a monastic community. St. John the Evangelist established immediately the first monastic community. Then St. Paul and St. Anthony followed; with hundred others following, like Pachomius and John Climacus.....all early lay Christians trying to live the teachings of Christ as found in Divine Revelation. 
     This is the basis of monasticism; it is based on Divine Revelation and the movement of the Holy Spirit when Christ promised 'He will teach you all things.'

4. The monasticism of St. Benedict. A life of repentance.
     The sixth day is the life of repentance lived perfectly. Perfectly, because otherwise some sins will not be forgiven. And this is not easy. Christ, Himself, showed us by His example, that this life of repentance will ordinarily take an adult 30 years, as He showed in His hidden life. Christ showed us in his hidden life that that is how long it will, ordinarily, take for an adult to repent if the adult is like Christ. If not, it might probably take him most a life time. In which case he might need a more permanent place to stay in like a monastery. Thus the birth of monasticism. 
     Some are great sinners and need St. Climacus' stern monasticism. The ordinary Christian family will not need such sternest due to the different members of their families in which case the monasticism of St. Basil is just right. But in the case that most of the members of the family does not care if they went to hell and there is only one person interested to save his soul, then St. Benedict's monasticism is just right. St. John Chrysostome stated that this monastic life, whether stern or just right, can be lived privately at home. But for most, it will impossible to live this way of life without the many provisions present in a formal monastic life.
     
5. Monasticism started with Christianity; because monasticism is Christianity lived. However,  It deteriorated through the centuries; proof of which are the number of unsuccessful attempts at reforms. As a Benedictine monk, our  Abbot General, a well known Liturgist with several books in his name, threatened to close our monastery for not being Benedictine enough. Fortunately, he died of cancer and the next General forgot the threat. 
     But anyone who takes the Rule of St. Benedict and live in a Benedictine monastery can clearly check the rules it follows and cross the rules it does not follow. There will be more crosses. 

      Monasticism as practiced in early Christianity is meant to return to the Church. St. Bonaventure, in his 'Theology of history' calls it 'new' monasticism; not because it is new but because it is 'new' today but very old in reality. John Paul II and Benedict XVI described inviting souls to the Catholic church or the monastic life as 'new' evangelization. And Benedict adds; 'it is not 'new.' It is the traditional way of entering the monastic life. But he called it 'new' because its image is 'new,' in that it looks like the way Christ described it to the Samaritan Woman, taught to us during Lent because that is the image of the Church in the sixth day, pre-figured by Good Friday. 

     Evangelization in Christianity begins with preaching the monastic life; evangelization is essentially inviting Christians to work out their salvation within monasteries.  By the end of history, the sixth day,  God will show the world that it would had been a better place if it were Catholic or a monastic world. At judgment day God will show that those who did not believe in this will be punish with eternal fire. 
     Can't we attain this same goal within the family? The pagans philosophers whose goal was the attainment of happiness had thought this out thoroughly. Epicurius, specifically, was convinced the family, in itself, cannot attain natural happiness in the natural philosophical level. There are too many factors that militate against it. The family, at least, needs the foundational natural basis of monastic life to be happy.
     But Epicurius never tried it. In truth it would not work because he depended on natural philosophical foundations. The monastic life is essentially supernatural in nature and this is unattainable for Epicurius in his time and place. 
     This is the same defect of Pope Francis. All his  teachings are not only in the natural level. It is not even philosophical, therefore, below the natural level. Note his solutions for the remarried;  annul previous marriage, remarry and then receive Holy Communion. This is not even natural; it is sinful. 

6. The Church is going towards the sixth day. Nobody can stop it. It is part of Divine Providence. John Paul II and Benedict XVI's invitation is for all Catholics to re-evangelize themselves but using the 'new' evangelization, meant to be discussed during the 2012 Bishop's Synod but which they were not able to do because no one knew what the 'new' evangelization was all about. Well, to make it easier, just study the Rule of St. Benedict whose feast we just celebrated; that rule contains all the things we must do to enter the Catholic Church as described by Christ to the Samaritan Woman. Because this day is 'that day' referred to by Christ.

Monday, March 20, 2017

'NEW' Image of the Catholic Church.

 1. 'New' Image of the Catholic Church.
     It is still essentially the same One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ. 
     The Catholic Church was perfect with Christ and the apostles  at Pentecost. At Pentecost,  they  worshipped 'in spirit and in truth.' Afterwards, they begun to preach and attracted new members. With the 'new' members, the Catholic Church begun again as a baby; as when Christ called the first apostles. 
     The 'new' members had to begin, from the beginning,  learning the truths of Christ and gradually grow in spirituality as a child grows slowly towards maturity. During this process, the Church could not look like the apostolic Church at Pentecost. The Church at Pentecost looked mature, grown up and perfect. The Church after Pentecost would looked like a babe, immature and imperfect. 
     When the baby Church matures, it will be absorbed into the Apostolic Church. But if all the members of the Apostolic Church dies when the baby Church has not yet matured, then the Apostolic Church may be said to be gone and the Church had begun with the baby Church.

      This baby Church had to grow up just like the first apostolic Church. But instead of growing up in three years and a half, she will grow up in 2000 years. So when Christ told the Samaritan Woman, 'the day will come' He was referring to the Catholic Church becoming like the Church on Pentecost in the year 2000 A.D.
     In the year 2000 A.D. The Catholic Church will look different from the Church of Constantine the Great, the Church of St. Thomas of Aquinas and the Church of St. Robert Bellarmine, which looks more like a growing baby Church.  The Church at year 2000 will look more like the apostolic Church at Pentecost 'in spirit and in truth.'
     And Holy Mother the Church wants to remind all Catholics of this fact because when this happens, the Church would have reached its perfection and ready for her wedding with Christ. All Catholics worthy of the name know this; from Iraeneus to John Newman. They all wrote about it that's why we know it today. 

  2. Joseph Ratzinger studied this in the Theology of Philosophy according to St. Bonaventure and from the works of St. Augustine where the first Christian community established by St. John the Evangelist was described. That community was like a 'baby' Church unlike the mature apostolic Church on Pentecost. So Ratzinger saw that the Church in her early development looks different from the mature Church. 
      Joseph Ratzinger saw that the Church of pre-Vatican II didn't look like the early Christian community of St. John the Evangelist. It looked more like the church of the Jewish Synagogue; and after Vatican II, it looked more like the Samaritan church in Gerizim. 

  3. Since the pre-Vatican II church was more Jewish and the post-Vatican II was more Samaritan or pagan....he wondered whether the baby Church that begun with St. John the Evangelist, had grown up to maturity 'in spirit and in truth.' Christ, Himself, said that this Church will exist at a time to come, that is in the future. And He adds 'and is already here' referring to the apostolic church. So Ratzinger asked himself, have we reached 'the day will come' when the perfect and mature apostolic church will exist again. 

   4. Well versed in the works of St. John Chrysostom, who described the first Christian community established by St. John the Evangelist and studying the work of St. Bonaventure who described how this apostolic church will look today, the year 2000, Ratzinger asked whether that Church exist today. It should, because Christ prophesied it to the Samaritan Woman. From the description of the first Catholic apostolic Church on Pentecost, Ratzinger knew how the Catholic church should look like today. The Fathers of the Church, especially St. Augustine and St. Bonaventure confirmed it.
     Remember that the Catholic Church today is not a continuation of the Catholic apostolic Church of Pentecost. It is not. The Church today is a continuation of the baby Church born after Pentecost, established by John the Evangelist, which must still grow up to maturity. This baby Church have not yet reached its own Pentecost. It cannot share with the Pentecost of the Apostolic Church. 
     So all this charismatic exhibitionism which is one of Pope Francis favorites is pure Montanism. Montanus was a pagan priest who converted to Catholicism and brought his pagan practices with him into the Catholic Church. His pagan practices within the Church  is what became the Catholic Charismatic Movement; just like Pope Francis who brought his pagan practices from Argentina into the Catholic Church that made him very charismatic to many.

  5. When Pope John Paul and Benedict XVI initiated the 'new' evangelization, they worked on the assumption that the Church had reached its perfection, the sixth day as described by St. Bonaventure and upon which Joseph Ratzinger's thesis was based. 
     This sixth day is Lent, in general, and Good Friday, in particular.
Thus Pope Benedict had declared that the Church today is a contemplative Church like Mary and not an active Church like Martha. We do not preach to contemplatives; they know more than most teachers, thus Christ described them thus; 'and I will teach you all things. There is absolutely no need to teach them or send missionaries to them. Such a church will just be quiet among themselves and directly learn from God, just like the apostles on Good Friday. The Vatican can disband the missionaries of mercy. 

  6. Christ had divided the Church into three; the first is the Samaritan worship that represents paganism. The second is the Jewish worship that represents the Jewish church of the Old Testament and, thirdly,  the Catholic Church which Christ mentioned referring to Himself, the Church worshipping in spirit and in truth.  Pope Francis and most cardinals, bishops and priests are still in the pagan or Jewish era, and definitely non-catholic in that they do not worship in spirit and in truth. They have too many errors; they believe that marriage can be dissolved,  that unbelievers can go to heaven, that Protestants have the Holy Spirit. These are errors that show Pope Francis cannot claim he is worshipping in truth. Without truth, Pope Francis is not using his spirit, the intellect. 
      Nobody can find the Church, today, because it is no longer visible as clearly described by Christ, Himself. 'Spirit' and 'truth'. The spirit is non-visible; the truths of Christ are supernatural and, also, non-visible. 

   7. Immediately after Pentecost, St. John Chrysostom narrated that St. John the Evangelist formed the first laymen's Christian Catholic community. That was a very young Church attached to the Apostolic Church. But when the apostles passed away, John's community was separated from the Apostolic Church, 
     John continued to instruct and lead the Johanine Church. Many eventually left the Church that caused John much tears. Some of his members persevered in the Catholic life but others left the way of life. So where do we belong; with those who are faithful or with those who have left the life? Our Church, where do we belong ; with the faithful who remained or the unfaithful who left. We have to resolve this issue so we can know whether we belong to the Samaritan church, the Jewish Church  or the Vatican Church.
       
    

Sunday, March 19, 2017

SAMARITAN WOMAN is the Catholic Church.

 1. Everything in Scriptures has an eschatological equivalent. Like Lent represents the sixth day of creation. In fact, Lent begins with the narration of the creation. And among the seven  days of creation, most of the Fathers of the Church explained the sixth day. Why? Because the sixth day teaches us how to prepare for death or for the General Judgment. In both cases we have to prepare ourselves in facing the judgment seat of God and we must make sure we receive a favorable judgment from God.
     How can we prepare ourselves in getting a favorable judgment from God? Well, that is precisely the message of the whole Lenten season. And Holy Mother the Church repeats these lessons every Liturgical Year so we don't commit mistakes. . 

 2. The Samaritan Woman.
     Jesus is addressing the Samaritan Woman.  That is exactly the way He is addressing the world, in general; and the Catholic Church in particular. St. Thomas of Aquinas wrote that the Samaritan Woman is a figure of the Catholic Church, then Christ is addressing the Catholic Church today the way He addressed the Samaritan Woman that time. He is, also, addressing all other churches and religions. 
     All Catholics begin their spiritual life as beginners knowing little truth and having much errors, just like the Samaritan woman.  
     The Samaritans worshipped God in Gerizim; while the Jews worshipped God in Jerusalem. Christ goes to this Samaritan Woman and tells her; 'that the day is coming when Samaritans will not have to worship in Gerizim nor the Jews worship in Jerusalem.
Because the day will come when true worshippers will worship in Spirit and in truth. Christ, in fact, is declaring the cessation of all religions.  Let us stop here for a while. What is Christ saying?
     He is saying  that Jews do not have to go to Jerusalem's wailing wall to worship God nor Catholics go to the Vatican to worship at St. Peters; nor any Catholic worship in any parish or diocese. There will be no need for Catholics to be called Catholics nor any other religion to be called so. This goes too with all the pagans; they do not have to go to their places of worship or pilgrimages. 
     Christ gave two reasons. All pagan religions will cease to exist because they 'adore that which  they do not know.' While even for those who adore which they know, like some Catholics,  their present worship will, also, cease.   

3. 'The day is coming.'
       Christ gave this warning that early so everybody can be prepared; the day is coming that all will change and there will only be one true worshipper. This is the reason why today we cannot find the Catholic Church; why the document 'Lumen Gentium' is still incomplete up to now. Because Vatican II does not know how the Catholic Church look like. And that is up to now! From Pope Francis, down to most of the cardinals, bishops and priests......nobody can prove that they are Catholics because they do not know how the Catholic Church look like. 'In spirit and in truth,' Christ said. Nobody knows how that looks like. 
     'The day' had not yet come at the time Jesus was talking to the Samaritan woman. But the description of the Catholic Church as described by Christ to the woman will come in the future. Many Fathers of the Church, like St. Augustine, had tried to find out when this important day would be. St. Bonaventure, also, tried to find out if this day had arrived in his time because the image of the Catholic 
Church during this time is much different from how she looked before. Christ emphasized this difference; 'the day will come.'
     Holy Mother the Church had persistently reminded the Church of 'this day' in her Lenten Liturgy. The Church cannot afford to be ignorant of this fact because 'the day is coming' is what is described during Lent. The early Christians, in fact, prepared themselves for 'this day' through that great movement called 'monasticism.' The monastic movement is preparedness for that coming day. It is a life of repentance wherein monks ' live in spirit and in truth.' Note how many pagan religions have tendencies towards monasticism, but are still unable to attain it because 'the day has not yet come' to them.

4. True Catholics waited for that day.
     True Catholics knew 'that day,' but not when it was coming. They knew 'that day' and how the Catholic Church would look like. It would not be visible as described in the Nicene Creed. It would still have those four visible signs but the signs would no longer be visible. The signs would appear in a spiritual form which make the signs impossible to see. 
       The Fathers of the Church described this Church that would be 'in spirit and in truth' at a time it is accompanied by visible signs. And they still described it when the visible signs are gone as Christ, Himself described it to the Samaritan Woman. St. Thomas of Aquinas described its spiritual reality in his commentary on the Gospel of John but even his description will be very hard to understand.
       It is for this reason that from Pope Francis, down to most of the cardinals, bishops, priests, nuns, laymen members of the well known organizations, etc, ...all of them cannot prove nor show that they are Catholics because, as Christ described the Church 'that day,'  her description had become spiritual. The description of the Catholic Church had become available, only, to those who have the theological virtue of Faith. The word 'Catholic' had ceased to be the description of the true Church today, the sixth day. Christ said so. 'You don't have to go to a Catholic church to worship because true worshippers......'

5. True worshippers are those who worship 'in spirit and in truth.' St. Thomas wrote that that is the 'new' Church of the Gentiles, which is the Catholic Church today. Defined correctly, this Church will exclude most of those who think they are Catholics. Most pagans are like the Samaritan Woman who do not know who they are worshipping. Most Catholics are like the Jews who, also, do not know who they are worshipping. And most Catholics who think they know who they are worshipping are not worshipping 'in spirit and in truth.' That is why, look around, and it is impossible to find the Catholic Church, i.e. 'in spirit and in truth' even within the walls of the Vatican. Maybe in one small nook in the Vatican gardens. 

6. The Samaritan Woman as the Catholic Church.
      The Catholic Church can be recognized through the four visible signs mentioned in the Nicene Creed. These are visible signs everybody can see. In the Gospel for today  Christ said that the Catholic Church, as personalized by the Samaritan Woman can be recognized by two signs only; first, a worshipper in spirit and secondly, a worshipper in  truth. These two signs are identical to the four visible signs. Except that the two Gospel signs are supernatural and not visible. 
       While the four visible signs are visible, the two signs are invisible or spiritual. Whoever has the four visible signs will, also, have the two spiritual signs and vice versa. If we do not have the four visible signs we will not have the two spiritual signs. The two spiritual signs are more perfect than the four visible signs. Having said these, Christ told the Samaritan Woman that 'the day will come and is already here' when the true Church will only be recognized by its members worshipping 'in spirit and in truth.'

7. Worshipping 'in spirit.'
     "Spirit' is another word for soul. The soul of man has two faculties. First, is the intellect; and secondly, the free will. The intellect reasons out; the free will loves. A true worshipper uses these two faculties in worshipping God. The worshipper loves the object(with the free will) he knows (with the intellect). 
        Worshipping 'in truth'
         What materials will the worshipper's mind contain? The materiale of Faith as taught by Jesus Christ. This is found in Divine Revelation. If the worshipper worships God based on the contents of his mind taken from Divine Revelation while loving the contents of his mind......then he is as true worshipper most pleasing to God because he worships according to the very nature of God. The worshipper had become a spiritual being worshipping another spiritual being. This is in brief St. Thomas' explanation of today's Gospel. 

 8. Today's world.
        Today, most parishes and dioceses cannot prove that they have the four visible marks of the Catholic Church. Most cardinals, bishops and priests cannot show that they have the visible signs of the Church. Any third persons can prove the absence or presence of the four visible marks of the True Church using the longer version of the Marks enumerated by St.Robert Bellarmine. This is a double check on persons who are bound to show the Marks of the Church without being asked because that is their job...like the Pope, Pope Francis. He should show his credentials that he is a Catholic by showing that he has the four visible signs of the Church as mentioned in the Nicene Creed.  Just like the 'dubia', there is no response. So the Gospel for today was applied on Pope Francis and down the line of cardinals and bishops, both good and bad. It seems that almost all are not worhippers 'in spirit and in truth.' The Vatican church does not have the characteristic of the Church on the sixth stage of her theology of history mentioned by Christ in today's Gospel, third Sunday of Lent. Anyone who does not have the characteristics of the Church, mentioned by Christ in describing the Church on the sixth day to the Samaritan woman, is not a Catholic.   

Thursday, March 16, 2017

TOTAL DARKNESS = Good Friday

  1. We have read news of impending days of darkness.
      And we were told to prepare some blessed candles and holy water.  This should not worry us because we have generators and rechargeable led flash lights. 
      What really is this total darkness? In the spiritual life, this is the absence of the truth and absence of the good. It is when the mind and the heart are not able to attain its object, the ultimate truth and good which is God. 
       But God, in His Providence, had provided us with all means to know the truth and the good. So why will there be darkness? Because it is a punishment from God; when it is God, Himself, Who causes the darkness because of man's hard heartedness. 
        In the history of men, there had been many eras described as days of darkness. They are even described as 'dark ages.' Hard-heartedness had been a bad habit of the human race. 

     2. Darkness described in Quito, Ecuador.
         A threat of these days of darkness was described in Quito, Ecuador, in the 1500s. It was described by the Blessed Virgin of Good Success to Blessed Mariana de Jesus Torres.  It happened this way. The Blessed Virgin appeared to Mother Mariana one evening and told her to go to the chapel. Imagine a Spanish designed chapel in the 1500. The Church was usually made of thick walls, high windows, lots of shadow and huge thick wooden doors. There was no electricity and only a sanctuary lamp lighted to declare the Presence of God in the tabernacle. 
        And the Blessed Virgin tells this Spanish nun to go inside this chapel in the middle of the night, alone. And shows her the state of the Catholic Church in the 20th century. Then the only light from the sanctuary lamp goes off. And Mary says; 'this will be the state of the church.' It must had been pitch dark. A world where the truth and the good are completely absent is almost unimaginable. St. Augustine would described this as 'total evil.'

     3.Good Friday.
        If we try to imagine a world completely deprived of truth and good, it would be Good Friday. There was a little truth and good left on Good Friday but absolutely nobody noticed it. They even crucified the little truth and good there was. So on Good Friday, with the only Truth and Good crucified, we have the closest picture of a world in total darkness. And the Blessed Virgin said that the 20th century would be exactly like this.  Well, we can check it up since we are here, year 2000. 

     4. Let us describe a day of darkness. 
         Most men will be liars and traitors and we won't know who is what. There is a price for evil. Man will do evil at any price. Judas will be the epitome of darkness. 'And it was night.' What happened? Because the devil have entered into him. 
         The days of darkness is when God allows the devil free hand upon the earth for the testing of man. And confusion is the ambiance for the devil's work. Isn't this the platform of the 'greedy rich' to increase their earnings, to cause confusion around the world? Isn't total confusion the picture of Good Friday? Let us go into more detail. 
         The good will be called bad; and the bad will be called good. The bad will be forced on everyone while the good will be prohibited for everyone. The emphasis will be in the suppression of the good.  Good priest and bishops will be silenced if not rendered neutral against evil. All good works will be demonized; while evil will be divinized world wide. The bad will be prosperous while the good will be in poverty by choice. 
          The lies will be partly in theology because the evil do not know theology.  The natural sciences will be filled with lies. 
The confusion will be instigated by Lucifer so it will be preternatural in nature; sort of magical, therefore, attractive. The State and the Church will join in doing evil, as the Romans and the Pharisees joined in crucifying Christ. 

     5. This attack will be on a population already spiritually weakened and susceptible to evil. With a fallen nature, man had deteriorated with an unthinking mind and a perverted will due to its undisciplined  way of life and life of hedonism. This is not a picture of five foolish virgins with lamps without oil and light. It is a picture of five foolish virgins who have ceased to be virgins. 
          It is, indeed, a huge Spanish thick-wall chapel in the middle of the night, with only one lighted sanctuary lamp that has gone out. Nothing can be seen; not even the tabernacle. A Good Friday, indeed, where the Ark of the Covenant was gone. As prophesied for today,  preached by some Jesuits and a Dominican General crying out that Christ is not in the Eucharist, it must be pitch dark, indeed, because Christ does not seem to be in the Masses and in the tabernacles. 
        Darkness is the absence of God. God withdraws and the devil takes over. The atmosphere is total confusion. 

     6. The days of darkness is a Divine Chastisement when God separates the good from the bad; where the good are perfected by an act of God due to their goodness; their rise to holiness is humanly inexplicable.  While the bad becomes worse by an act of the devil due to their evilness, also, humanly inexplicable.  So evangelization ceases on this day. Praeternatural  forces takes control even over elections, but they don't necessarily win. 
      No one was evangelizing on Good Friday. Today, Lent,  is the sixth day, evangelization ceases, and a 'new' evangelization takes over.  Current missiology and Pope Francis' missionary of Mercy will not work this day.  St. Bonaventure described the 'new' evangelization'  as 'contemplatives' helping good souls towards perfection. How about the bad? 
        During these dark days pagans, cardinals, bishops, priest, nuns and lay eucharistic ministers will be in both sides, good and bad. And probably even Popes, one on one side, and one on the other side.  This is what makes it confusing.

     7. The restraining force.
          It is during these dark days, that had happened many times in the history of man, that God raises chosen laymen to aid the Church in a natural way. We have mentioned this in previous post. It is called the Josiah Phenomenon. They are usually head of nations for them to be more effective to do God's work. In the past we had Constantine, Charlemagne, King Otto the Great. We have mentioned some newly elected heads who we greatly suspect will spark a moral renewal in aid of the hidden Church who will lead the spiritual renewal. Putin seems to lead the pack with his procession of the crosses in St. Petersburg. 
          It will be a renewal in spirit and in truth. It will be an evangelization in spirit and in truth. It will be a Church, not in the Vatican, Rome; not in Westminster, England. Because the true Church will be in spirit and in truth. They are only visible in their bodies. Their spirits and the truths they believe in will not be visible to others. 
           
       8. Who will survive these days of darkness?
               The same ones who survived the first days of darkness. St. Bonaventure in his 'Theology of History' described them as 'those who return to the primitive spirit of Christianity. Their main reason for  believing is 'ex auctoritate,' wrote St. Bonaventure. 
          These are the first Christians who when asked 'why do you believe'  their answers were the same; 'Because Christ said so.' The more sophisticated theologian would answer; 'because it is in Divine Revelation.' That's the same.
                They are in no way like the present day Christians who when asked the same question would answer; Vatican II, Pope Francis, Cardinal Kasper, Bishop Baron, Father Reese said so. Who are they? Members of the Vatican II Church whose bible is the 'open society foundation' handbook. Any similarity with the primitive Catholic Church? Absolutely nothing. 
  
         
         

   

Sunday, March 12, 2017

THE 6TH DAY. on the MOUNT OF TRANSFIGURATION.

 1. 'On the 6th day.'
      Genesis begins with the narration of creation in seven days . These seven days are the seven stages of the Catholic Church beginning  with its birth extending up to it's being mature at the end of the world. The Catholic Church begins like a baby, she grows up to be a young child, an adolescent and ends up as a mature adult on the sixth day. The Church rests on the Sabbath and is brought to heaven on Easter Sunday. 
      The sixth day is the main focus because there the Church  becomes mature and pleasing to God. Thus on the sixth day man was created; he was the superior creation; above all the other creatures. The Church follows that pattern and becomes the mature Church on the sixth day.
      
       These seven days pattern depicting the seven stages of the Church in her history is repeated in the life of Christ; who together with His apostles represents the Catholic Church. We see the beginnings of the Church with the Holy Family. Then she grows with the initial call of the apostles Peter, Andrew, James and John.  The Church grows mature through the Lenten season and is perfected on Easter and Pentecost. In the Liturgy, The Church becomes mature in Lent and perfected in Easter and Pentecost. Being mature in Lent is represented by the sixth day or Good Friday. The whole Lenten Season is described as the sixth day. Thus the Lenten Sundays readings begin with the narration of the sixth day of creation and the Second Sunday of Lent Gospel begins with 'and after six days Jesus went to the Mount of Transfiguration.'

2. Sixth day in the Mount of Transfiguration.
    Jesus went up the Mount with Peter, James and John. The three, together with Elijah and Moses,  made up the Catholic Church in her maturity. And that is how mature we should look like on the sixth day, which according to St. Bonaventure and Pope Benedict XVI is today, year 2000 AD.

     The Catholic Church should look like this; there is Jesus Christ, the three apostles Peter 'who was fervent for Christ,' John 'who was specially loved',  and James 'who was a warrior against adversities of the Faith.'
     Then there was Moses, example of meekness and legislator to show that the Church is not a transgressor of the law. And Elijah who had a zeal for God and who was holier among the prophets showing he does not go contrary to God. These are the reasons given by St. Thomas Aquinas why these personages were present at the Mount of Transfiguration. They represent the Catholic Church in her maturity on the sixth day of creation in Lent. 

3. The testimony of God.
     Then God gave His testimony showing His pleasure with the Church. God said; first, 'This is My beloved Son,' secondly, ' in whom My favor rests,' thirdly, ' listen to Him.'
     First, the Church is not the true natural son of God. But the Church can be the adopted son of God if she obeys the commands of Jesus Christ. At the sixth day, the Church must know all the commands of Christ; know how those commands must be obeyed. And she must have obeyed all the commands of Christ. This is how the members of the Church become the adopted children of God.
     Secondly, how does a person become 'good?' Ordinarily a person loves another person because the other person is good. It is not loving the other that makes the other good. He is already good, that is why we tend to love the other. In God, it is the opposite. When God loves a person, the person becomes good. It is God's love for the person that makes the person good. No human love can make the other person good. Only God's love for the person can make the other person good. 
                       So God's favor will only rest in you if God had loved you, thus making you good. God will love you if you have become His adopted child through obedience to Christ's commands. But wait. God's favor will not right away rest in you when He loves you. There is a difference between God loving you and God resting His favor in you. 
                        When you have obeyed Christ's commands, God will love you as His adopted son. Then He will love you for being His adopted son. When God loves you, His love will make you good. If you use this goodness for good, then and only then will his favor rest in you. If you misuse this good, then His favor will not rest in you. 
     Thirdly. Only when you have become the beloved adopted son of God, only when you have become good because He loved you for being His adopted son, only when you have used the goodness He has given you well.......will God's favor rest in You. 
     All Catholics should be like this in the sixth stage of the history of the Catholic church as portrayed in the seven days of creation. 

4. The Church today is not mature.
     Basing it in the image of the Catholic Church on how she should look like on the sixth day, portrayed by the six personages in the Mount of Transfiguration with their virtues presented by St. Thomas of Aquinas..........the present church of the Vatican with Pope Francis and most of his bishops have absolutely no similarity with the church portrayed in the Transfiguration. Well, you might say 'it is a different church.' You are right. It is a church that is completely different from the Church of Scriptures and the Fathers as portrayed in her theology of history portrayed in the seven days of Creation; and in which is remembered in the Liturgy of the Second Sunday of Lent in the Gospel of the Transfiguration.

     The present Vatican church does not have the fervent spirit of St. Peter in learning and preaching the Commandments of Christ.  It does not look like John's soul that could be specially loved by Christ; neither, at least, by me. Today's church is not, like James, a warrior against adversities of the Faith; in fact, the present church is the adversaries of the true church of the Transfiguration. Todays church is unlike Elijah who did nothing contrary to God. And finally, today's Vatican church is unlike Moses who was zealous in not transgressing the law of God. 

5. The present Vatican church did not grow up to maturity. It is not ready to meet and be judged by Christ the King. It is a church that is going neither to its Easter nor its Pentecost. It is going nowhere except to ............. where is she? The next Lenten Masses will show us. 
     
      

Saturday, March 11, 2017

POLARIZATION

 1. St. Paul's Polarization.
     Lent assumes that we are all at the end of the street of repentance,  because by this time the Gospel had been preached throughout the whole world either by preachers or by mass media. So, Lent describes the whole world as a group that have reached the end of the line, the 6th day. The 6th day, the day before the Sabbath, had been reached; some are in the right street, some are off the street, some are still struggling half-way in the street, others had not yet begun walking through the street.......and a very few have reached the end of the street, have found the Church of the sixth day and have entered it. This last group is described by the Lenten Liturgy and by St. Bonaventure. This is the group Pope Benedict had been looking for whenever there is an 'Ad lumina visits' by bishops in the Vatican. He would ask them; 'have you seen this Church in your diocese?' Most of the bishop's answer is 'No,' which shows the state of the Catholic Church. From their answers She does not exist. 

2. For Christ or against Christ.
     The battle had been for Christ or against Christ. Better still, the battle is between God, the angels and the saints on one side; and the devil on the other side. Of course, there is no contest. God will surely win but God allows this to test man; to see whose side he will take. What preparation did God teach man to overcome the attacks of the devil?
     In the Gospel on the temptations of Jesus, note that Jesus overcame all the three temptations of the devil. These three temptations summarizes in ascending order all the temptations of the devil. To fall into the first temptation of gluttony is the least serious sin. Pride, the next temptation is more serious. Ambition, the third is the most harmful sin. When a soul falls in the first temptation, he becomes open to easily fall into the second temptation, and so on. The idea is not to fall at all. And this is what Christ demonstrated in the Gospel.
     But before Christ faced the devil in combat, he did two things; first, He became the Son of God in baptism. Secondly, he prayed and fasted in the desert. After which the devil tempted Him.
     St. Thomas of Aquinas wrote that we must, also, do these two things before venturing into the world. It is more important for those who will preach in the world, otherwise, we will just constantly fall into sin. And for every sin we side with the devil against Christ.

3. We cannot continue to commit sin by falling into temptations because of the expected polarization that is expected. What happens during the polarization? Let us try to present it graphically to easier understand it. Let us divide the world into two parts; souls that are 51% pro God and the other souls that are 49% pro God. The 51% is above the mid point, while the 49% is below the mid point. During the polarization, the 51% will by the grace of God go higher to 100%; while the 49% will go lower to 0%. This might not illustrate the doctrine but this is the closest I can demonstrate what happens during the polarization. It is based on the teaching of St. Thomas that he who progress will continue to progress while those who regress will continue to regress during this time. This is not what happens all the time. 
      This is noticeable world wide; the terrorist were not as bad as today. While the saints, as prophesied in Scripture, are  holier than before. Some American voters were not described as bad in two previous elections. Some were described as bad in the last election. And they are even worse after the last election. On the other hand, some US voters voted for immoral candidates but chose a moral candidate in the last election.There is a noticeable swing of votes. 
     With mass media, polarization is even more accented. And this is occurring all over the world. It is a replay of Good Friday where Jerusalem was clearly divided into two; those who followed Christ silently and those who shouted 'Crucify Him.' The latter being the bigger crowd. 

4. The Polarization is greater in the spiritual realm considering the many new doctrines flooding the Church. 
     The battle is between those with Faith vs those without Faith. The latter is overwhelmingly the more. And sadly, the news show cardinals, bishops and priests falling like flakes away from God. 
     And daily we read news of bishops siding with God a few weeks ago and are now totally on the other side. I have often questioned my friend bishops how many Catholics are lost to the Protestant sects. They have stopped counting. The polarization happening today is unstoppable. Seeing loved ones going worse every day is distressing; while seeing common people becoming holy is exhilarating. 
     Will the 49% descend hopelessly? No. They will descend automatically but if great effort with the help of grace is applied, they can easily ascend to holiness.  The scenario during the polarization is that we have very little time. On Good Friday, the sixth day, there was little time between shouting 'Crucify Him,' to repentance. In fact, Judas could not make it. 

5. Who make up the allegorical 51%? They make up the Catholic Church on the sixth day. This Church was described by St. Bonaventure and further explained by Pope Benedict. Christ described it as true worshippers who worship in spirit and in truth. The words 'Catholic church' was not used to describe her. When this 51% rise up to 100% pro God then they make up the Catholic Church. 


     

Friday, March 10, 2017

THE FOUR VISIBLE SIGNS OF THE CHURCH AND THE 7 DAYS OF CREATION. - The Lenten Spirit.

 1. The street and the house at the end of the street.
      Let us return to Hilaire Belloc's picture of repentance because it is exact, clear, and complete. There is a street that leads to the house at the end of the street.Walking the full length of the street is the life of repentance, the lesson we learn during the Lenten season. At the end, we must enter the house which is the Catholic Church. 
         Now, let us go into the ascetical, doctrinal and moral details of this image. We must be certain that we have the right moral description of the street; and the right dogmatic description of the Church. Otherwise we will end up somewhere else we do not want to be. 
         First, the street is the life of repentance. This is the way of life explained to us by Holy Mother the Church during her Lenten Liturgy. This way of life is putting into practice what is learned during  evangelization; so in living the life of repentance during Lent, we learn the commandments of Christ and how to do them, as correctly taught by Scriptures and interpreted by the Fathers of the Church.  

          We have mentioned before that we must first learn the commands of Christ like 'Pray unceasingly.' Then we must learn how to obey that command by studying St. Augustine's treatise on the 'Our Father.' or any other treatise on prayer written by the Fathers of the Church. We must consult both Scriptures and Tradition because the 'commands' are found in Scriptures but 'how to put it into practice' can only be read from Tradition. Both are  part of evangelization. Today, the church know neither. 
           We can quantify the commandments of Christ at about 80 in number, from the Gospel of Matthew alone. If we have learned and obeyed a few, like two or three commandments, then we can say that we are partly along  the way on the street towards our goal, the Catholic Church. And if we have learned and obeyed 75 or majority of the commands of Christ, then, we can safely say that we are almost at the house, the Catholic Church. 

2. The temptations along the way. The journey is not easy and smooth.
     Let us return to our journey along the street that lead to the Church. From the beginning, i.e. when we have just learned and obeyed two or three commands of Christ, the devil will sprinkle temptations along that main street in an effort to divert our journey. These temptations may be summarized into three; and they will, always,  be reduced into these three temptations; first, external temptations like food. Secondly, internal temptations like pride. Thirdly, internal temptations like ambition. Of course, this will come from Satan to force us to leave the true Way that leads to the Catholic Church. 

3. The visible appearance of the four visible signs.
     As the soul learns two or three commands, he begins to view from afar and, at the same time, posses one of the visible signs of the Catholic Church enumerated in the Nicene Creed. This is, usually, the fourth sign 'Apostolic' (we begin from the end.) But he is not yet a Catholic because he must have this sign in its fullness together with the other three visible signs; One, Holy and Catholic.  In effect, he still has a long way to go. 
     As the soul learns and obeys the commands of Christ, the visible sign from afar and in him,  Apostolic, becomes clearer, while the third sign, Catholic, begins to appear from afar and in his soul 9the soul notices the visible signs from afar because he sees it first within himself.  When the soul learns and obeys all the 80 commands of Christ, the soul will begin to see the four visible signs in the true Church while seeing them absent in other churches; he will, also, exhibit in himself all the four visible signs of a true  Catholic as enumerated in the Nicene Creed; i.e. One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic. 
      He will only understand this sign through natural theology but not yet through supernatural theology.  He will not fully understand these signs. He will still need the infuse grace from God to fully understand these signs, apply them to himself and  analyze whether this parish, diocese, priest, or bishop have these four signs. 
     Without this infuse grace, we have the present situation where everybody, Pope, cardinals, bishops, priests and laymen cannot prove that they are Catholics.  They cannot equally check if others are Catholics. In short, without infused knowledge, the Catholic Church, for practical purposes,  is non-existent.
      This infused knowledge on the deeper understanding of the four visible signs of the true Church is part of Faith but eventually becomes certain when looking back. St. Catherine of Sienna described it as looking back at the bridge that she had just past through.

4. Natural theology plus infused theology. 
    The four visible signs of the true Church, One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic can be learned by everyone because they are visible signs; meant to be so by God so all men can know which is the true Church......and hopefully enter it. Which, of course, is not always the case. This is natural theology for everybody.
     For the true seeker of the truth, however, one infused knowledge added to the infused knowledge of a deeper understanding of the four signs is still needed; the image of the Church corresponding to the 7 days of creation. This is supernatural theology. 

5.  The Sixth Day of creation read at the beginning of Lent. 
The 7 days of creation is described at the beginning of Genesis precisely as an outline for the trending of the Catholic church in history; to inform Catholics what will happen to the Church from the beginning up to the end of times. So Catholics can make provisions and adapt to her accordingly. This infused knowledge is of utmost importance that it goes with the four visible signs of the true Church. If we know the visible signs, we will know the exact day of creation our era corresponds. If we do not know one, we will not know the other. To be able to enter the Catholic Church we must know both.
      If is for this reason that practically all the Fathers of the Church wrote on the 7 days of creation. The Lenten season is the beginning of the 6th day of creation, which is Friday. The first reading describes the 6th day, i.e. the creation of Adam and Eve. 
     St. Bonaventure was the Seraphic Doctor who tried to find out on what day of creation his era correspond to, using the treatise by St. Augustine.To show that this is infused knowledge, Bonaventure made a mistake thinking that his era corresponded to the sixth day. Knowledge of the day of his era was not yet infused in him by God so he did not know it. It seems that no one today had been given this infused knowledge of either the deeper knowledge of the four signs nor the corresponding day of creation. Absolutely no one, except Pope Benedict XVI. He, alone, gave the right information about the two that could come from infused knowledge directly from God. And he said so; 'it came from a revelation from God.'

6. God, rarely, gives these infused knowledge. One must disposed himself to deserve it. And the description of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church on the 6th day is the proper disposition that will make that Church deserve to receive these infused knowledge. They, alone will know which is the true Catholic Church, who are the true Catholics, who are the fakes AND that it is the 6th day in the history of the Church. And they, alone, know the theology of the history of the Church. 
     The History of the Church had been prophesied in Scriptures. And the Fathers of the Church devised the theology of the History of the Church as laid down in the 7 days of Creation. One of the most extensive theology of the Church was written by St. Bonaventure that nobody seems to be quoting today. In that treatise we can find the description of the sixth day, whose full understanding was not yet infused on him by God. 
     Fortunately, Ratzinger made this treatise his thesis. As Pope, it seems, that God bestowed on him the infused knowledge to understand the 6th day. He announced what he learned on Christmas Day. Then he seems to resign from the Papacy. Nobody understood why; because we need infused knowledge to understand the actions of a man who acts by infused knowledge. 

7. Conclusion.
    The Catholic Church with its four visible signs enumerated in the Nicene Creed and as described corresponding to the sixth day of creation  does not exist in the Vatican church nor in most dioceses, parishes or any lay organization. It does not exist in the persons of Pope Francis or in most of the cardinals, bishops, priests, nuns or laymen. Everyone can check it themselves because the signs should be in each one of us; we are either for Christ or against Christ. 
     The so-called Catholic Church today does not correspond to the image of the Catholic Church described in Scriptures and in the Fathers of the Church. In fact, it is the opposite. 
      Then how can we know and enter the Church?  Still the way Hilaire Belloc described it. But this time the true Church will be as Christ described it to the Samaritan Woman; 'the time will come that true worshippers will worship in spirit and in truth.' It will not be the Church that we knew it and described by the present Pope, cardinals, bishops and priests. It will be a Church 'in spirit and in truth.' What does that mean? St. Thomas of Aquinas had something nice to say about it.