1. To merit eternal life we must love God and neighbour.
Love of God and neighbour is called Charity. And to correct your neighbour is an act of Charity. Since Charity is a command of Christ then fraternal correction is, also a command of Christ.
St. James wrote that disobedience to one command of Christ is disobedience to all the commands of Christ. All the more, disobedience to the very foundation of all the commands, Charity, is disobedience to all the commands of God. The man who fails to correct a neighbour's fault, under the given conditions, have no love for God and neighbour; he is not a Catholic.
St. Thomas wrote; 'the correction of the wrongdoer is a remedy which should be employed against a man's sin. A correction of a wrongdoer is directed to the amendment of the sinner. Now, to do away with anyone's evil is the same as to procure his good; and that is Charity.
2. Again, Charity is the foundation of all commandments. Since 'fraternal correction' is an act of Charity which is the foundation of all commands, failure to correct when it must be done is to commit all sin, as St. James notes; 'he who disobeys one command disobeys all commands. Thus St. Augustine added; ' You become worse than the sinner if you fail to correct him.'
While the negative commands of the law, like for example 'Thou shalt not commit adultery,' forbids sinful acts, the positive commands, like for example 'correct your brother,' inculcates a virtue. Virtues must be done with great finesse; thus Scriptures have very strict procedures on how to correct.
3. 'Fraternal correction' cannot be done well without Divine Assistance. But man must do everything in his power to do it well. Since man cannot know who are predestined and who are not, man must do the kindness of correcting his brethren with the hope of God's help, St. Thomas writes.
4. First, the obligation to correct arises when a person knows his dogma and morals; because upon these will the correction be based.
Secondly, the sin of the brethren must clearly be a disobedience of
Christ's command and not merely a difference of opinion. Thirdly, that the disobedience is public knowledge and not sought by stealth or by spying. Fourthly, that the one correcting had come to know personally the publicly known disobedience and not through rumours (consistent publication in the news is sufficient.)
5. The need to explain 'fraternal correction' of the Pope.
Under the mentioned conditions, Charity demands that a Christian must render 'fraternal correction' under pain of being guilty of a sin worse than the sinner. Remaining silent at the face of a needed 'fraternal correction' is considered as agreeing to a sin of scandal.
A 'fraternal correction' in which circumstances force us to correct is based on the fact that the words and actions of Pope Francis is putting him within the realm of being an anti-Pope, a sin that brings certain condemnation.
The facts. First and foremost, he is proposing morals that are against the teachings of Scriptures, the Fathers and of past Popes; he had stated that dogmas are not needed to be saved, that Faith is not needed for salvation, that mere regret can substitute for repentance, that marriage can be dissolved, that there is no Catholic God, that all religions can save, that all religions can unite , that there is no need to enter the Catholic church to be waved, etc....That alone makes him go against past Popes thus making him an anti-Pope.
His more evident fault is that, instead of giving 'fraternal correction,' by telling adulterers to stop their adultery, he is encouraging them to continue in their adultery and even go deeper into a life of sin by sacrilegiously receiving Holy Communion.
His neglect in giving 'fraternal correction,' shows he has no Charity. Without Charity he cannot be a Catholic.
However, no one can declare him to be so except by a group of cardinal, in session, declaring him to be so. A sufficient group of cardinal had already expressed the damage Pope Francis is doing and they had expressed these in writing which is available to all. They just have to take the next step.
6. It is evident that his soul is in grave danger of eternal damnation due to the obvious disobedience to the commands of God. There is the prophecy that God will personally throw to hell an expected anti-pope who will be trying to destroy the Catholic Church in cooperation with an anti-Christ during these times. Both the Book of Revelation and writings of the Saints, like St. Hildegard, mentions this.
Love of God and neighbour obliges any Catholic, in the above position, to render 'fraternal correction.' The first obligation is upon his Jesuit companions. The second obligation falls upon his co-bishops, according to St. Thomas. The third falls upon any faithful in the know.
'Fraternal correction,' therefore must done, first, for the salvation of the one correcting. And, secondly only, for the salvation of the one being corrected. For the one giving 'fraternal correction' it is a sure sign of his love for God and his love for neighbour.
Monday, July 18, 2016
Friday, July 15, 2016
CRITICISM vs CORRECTION.............Part I
1. A misunderstanding.
In today's language criticism and correction are almost synonymous; but there is a world of difference between the two. Criticism is shallow, emotional and often irrational. Correction is deep, very rational and often an act of Christian Charity.
Our radio program had earned a notoriety in that Protestants listened to it and found it unnecessary to attack the Catholic Church because our program was doing a good job doing it. Hold it. We are not attacking the Catholic Church. We are correcting what is perceived as errors in Catholic belief.
For the last 40 years we have published in summary form the writings of the Fathers of the Church's interpretation of Scriptures. And the Bishop's Conference requested that the publication be given to all Diocesan priests. Of course, it spread in Asia and even to far lands. Its aim was the perfection of Catholic knowledge that is already contained in the writings of the Fathers together with Scriptures. The radio program was meant to remind the priests who have already read the teachings of Scriptures and the Fathers that there is disobedience to those fonts of Revelation that endangers one's salvation. Now, that is correction; that can very much sound like criticism to many ears. But those who are truly seeking God can very well see the difference and have shown gratitude for it.
2. A more confusing age.
The year 2016 is an age of total darkness and confusion. It is the proverbial storm at sea in the Gospels. It is totally dark and we are in the midst of howling and mountainous waves. It is akin to the terror experienced by those amidst an 8 magnitude earthquake in the middle of the night. The victims had simply described it as the end of the world. Complete terror; a moving earth, falling debris everywhere and in pitch darkness. Hmmmm? How did they know that? Had any experienced the end of the world?
The Fathers had written that the end of the world will occur at the middle of the night amidst great terror. We are just experiencing a dry run.
In such a situation, a glimpse of light will be welcomed. In such a situation that glimpse of light can only come from what Scriptures described as 'fraternal correction.' That is what we are trying to do, though it could be easily be misunderstood as criticism. The defect would not be in the object perceived but in the mind that is perceiving. We have control on the object but not on the minds of men who are perceiving.
3. Our Aim is 'fraternal correction.' Let us now show the importance of performing this obligation. First and foremost, 'fraternal correction' is an Act of Charity, an act of the love of God and neighbour. It is a sign that one is inside the Catholic Church. Withholding 'correction' is a sin because it is an act of lack of charity which is always a sin.
This is described as an act of Alms deed and doing it well will depend the very salvation of our soul. While mere silence could be the damnation of my soul. The choice is very clear for all souls. The former and still on going newsletter on the writings of the Father we have distributed was the beginning of fraternal instruction. And these posts are just a continuation of it.
Now, that is already a glimpse of light. Let us proceed and increase the wattage of the light. Not everyone can give fraternal connection. Only those who have mastered the commands of Christ and how to put them into practice can correct. Because when one corrects he must state the command of Christ disobeyed and how it was disobeyed. Then he must proceed to teach how the disobeyed command can be correctly obeyed. To accuse someone of having a fault in not enough. How the fault can be corrected is what makes it an act of correction.
An example. In a past post we discussed how Christ taught the apostles. Then we showed how this manner of teaching is disobeyed by all the seminaries. Then we corrected the defect and repeated how instructions should be done. That post was not a criticism; it was a correction, an act of love of God and neighbour, an act of Charity.
4. Criticism vs correction.
What is criticism? It is the expression of disapproval of someone or something based on perceived faults or mistakes. So, it must be a mature human act of judgment where the mind makes a judgment that someone or something deserves disapproval. This judgment is, however, based on a perceived fault or mistake. So on what will the judgment be made? The judgment is defective in that it depends on something merely perceived and, therefore, no certainty. What will be the basis of that perception? Private opinion? Private conscience. Unsound science or philosophy? It must, at least, be Scriptures and Tradition which for Catholics is the only bases for sound judgment. In criticism, everything is relative; everything depends on each one's personal criteria. There can never be agreement here. And so every one's criticism is as good as another. Agreement between the one criticising and the one criticised is impossible.
What is correction? In everyday life, correction is offering a change towards something right, true and accurate. Here the judgment made is human and mature. The bases for judgment are things that are right, true and accurate. That cannot be any science or philosophy. The bases can only be Divine Revelation and the Tradition of the Catholic Church.
5. An example. On Pope Francis.
We have made many analyses on Pope Francis. Note how we go about it. We begin by proposing the Sunday Liturgy of the Mass. We get the first two readings and read the Gospel. Then we explain the interpretation of the Gospel as taken from the Fathers of the Church as compiled by St. Thomas of Aquinas found in his Catena Aurea.
Then we get stories about Pope Francis from the news and analyse his words and deeds based on Divine Revelation and Tradition. If there is a contradiction or discrepancy then we note it down. That is not criticism. That is correction that is extensively discussed in the work of St. Thomas, Question 33, entitled 'On Fraternal Correction.'
Again, 'fraternal correction' is an act of almsgiving, an element of the life of repentance. It is an act of Charity, i.e. an act of love of God and neighbour. It is, also, an act of Justice. To correct is an obligation to God for which we shall be judged on Judgment Day.
Faced with an erring brother, we are obliged under pain of sin, to correct him in Charity that the erring brother may find the way to his eternal goal.
In today's language criticism and correction are almost synonymous; but there is a world of difference between the two. Criticism is shallow, emotional and often irrational. Correction is deep, very rational and often an act of Christian Charity.
Our radio program had earned a notoriety in that Protestants listened to it and found it unnecessary to attack the Catholic Church because our program was doing a good job doing it. Hold it. We are not attacking the Catholic Church. We are correcting what is perceived as errors in Catholic belief.
For the last 40 years we have published in summary form the writings of the Fathers of the Church's interpretation of Scriptures. And the Bishop's Conference requested that the publication be given to all Diocesan priests. Of course, it spread in Asia and even to far lands. Its aim was the perfection of Catholic knowledge that is already contained in the writings of the Fathers together with Scriptures. The radio program was meant to remind the priests who have already read the teachings of Scriptures and the Fathers that there is disobedience to those fonts of Revelation that endangers one's salvation. Now, that is correction; that can very much sound like criticism to many ears. But those who are truly seeking God can very well see the difference and have shown gratitude for it.
2. A more confusing age.
The year 2016 is an age of total darkness and confusion. It is the proverbial storm at sea in the Gospels. It is totally dark and we are in the midst of howling and mountainous waves. It is akin to the terror experienced by those amidst an 8 magnitude earthquake in the middle of the night. The victims had simply described it as the end of the world. Complete terror; a moving earth, falling debris everywhere and in pitch darkness. Hmmmm? How did they know that? Had any experienced the end of the world?
The Fathers had written that the end of the world will occur at the middle of the night amidst great terror. We are just experiencing a dry run.
In such a situation, a glimpse of light will be welcomed. In such a situation that glimpse of light can only come from what Scriptures described as 'fraternal correction.' That is what we are trying to do, though it could be easily be misunderstood as criticism. The defect would not be in the object perceived but in the mind that is perceiving. We have control on the object but not on the minds of men who are perceiving.
3. Our Aim is 'fraternal correction.' Let us now show the importance of performing this obligation. First and foremost, 'fraternal correction' is an Act of Charity, an act of the love of God and neighbour. It is a sign that one is inside the Catholic Church. Withholding 'correction' is a sin because it is an act of lack of charity which is always a sin.
This is described as an act of Alms deed and doing it well will depend the very salvation of our soul. While mere silence could be the damnation of my soul. The choice is very clear for all souls. The former and still on going newsletter on the writings of the Father we have distributed was the beginning of fraternal instruction. And these posts are just a continuation of it.
Now, that is already a glimpse of light. Let us proceed and increase the wattage of the light. Not everyone can give fraternal connection. Only those who have mastered the commands of Christ and how to put them into practice can correct. Because when one corrects he must state the command of Christ disobeyed and how it was disobeyed. Then he must proceed to teach how the disobeyed command can be correctly obeyed. To accuse someone of having a fault in not enough. How the fault can be corrected is what makes it an act of correction.
An example. In a past post we discussed how Christ taught the apostles. Then we showed how this manner of teaching is disobeyed by all the seminaries. Then we corrected the defect and repeated how instructions should be done. That post was not a criticism; it was a correction, an act of love of God and neighbour, an act of Charity.
4. Criticism vs correction.
What is criticism? It is the expression of disapproval of someone or something based on perceived faults or mistakes. So, it must be a mature human act of judgment where the mind makes a judgment that someone or something deserves disapproval. This judgment is, however, based on a perceived fault or mistake. So on what will the judgment be made? The judgment is defective in that it depends on something merely perceived and, therefore, no certainty. What will be the basis of that perception? Private opinion? Private conscience. Unsound science or philosophy? It must, at least, be Scriptures and Tradition which for Catholics is the only bases for sound judgment. In criticism, everything is relative; everything depends on each one's personal criteria. There can never be agreement here. And so every one's criticism is as good as another. Agreement between the one criticising and the one criticised is impossible.
What is correction? In everyday life, correction is offering a change towards something right, true and accurate. Here the judgment made is human and mature. The bases for judgment are things that are right, true and accurate. That cannot be any science or philosophy. The bases can only be Divine Revelation and the Tradition of the Catholic Church.
5. An example. On Pope Francis.
We have made many analyses on Pope Francis. Note how we go about it. We begin by proposing the Sunday Liturgy of the Mass. We get the first two readings and read the Gospel. Then we explain the interpretation of the Gospel as taken from the Fathers of the Church as compiled by St. Thomas of Aquinas found in his Catena Aurea.
Then we get stories about Pope Francis from the news and analyse his words and deeds based on Divine Revelation and Tradition. If there is a contradiction or discrepancy then we note it down. That is not criticism. That is correction that is extensively discussed in the work of St. Thomas, Question 33, entitled 'On Fraternal Correction.'
Again, 'fraternal correction' is an act of almsgiving, an element of the life of repentance. It is an act of Charity, i.e. an act of love of God and neighbour. It is, also, an act of Justice. To correct is an obligation to God for which we shall be judged on Judgment Day.
Faced with an erring brother, we are obliged under pain of sin, to correct him in Charity that the erring brother may find the way to his eternal goal.
Thursday, July 14, 2016
Solemnity of ST. BENEDICT - July 11
1. At the beginning.
The Chosen people begun their training in the desert. St. John the Baptist begun his training in the desert. Christ, Himself, lived a hidden life in imitation of the life in the desert. And the beginnings of the Catholic Church, after Pentecost, the Church developed in the desert with the beginnings of monasticism.
The Church begun as types that can only be understood in the context of the desert. The Catholic Church begun as monasticism in the dessert. St. John the Evangelist established one of the first monastic community.
The Catholic Church begun with the first coming of Christ. It will end with the second coming of Christ. Similarly, as the Church begun with monasticism, it will end as a monastic institution..
The Fathers of the Church knew this well. St. Bonaventure explained it in more detail in his Theology of History. It was this topic that the young Joseph Ratzinger used as his thesis.
The Catholic Church is a prophetic religion; meaning to say, she has the gift of prophecy where she knows all the teachings of Christ and can use that knowledge eschatologically, i.e. how that knowledge is fulfilled in the future.
The Benedictine monasteries were meant to be schools of prophets. They master both the teachings of God and its eschatological significance. Thus St. Benedict being so, was the founder of the beginnings of the Catholic Church in a decaying Rome and was prophesied to establish the Church at the end of the world in preparation to welcoming the Second coming of Christ.
2. Joseph Ratzinger
The young Ratzinger studied well this concept of the Catholic Church's beginning as a monastic movement and ending at the End times as a monastic movement. Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict's 'new' evangelisation is based upon this concept. So the 'new' evangelisation was similarly described by both, using the words of St Bonaventure as the 'new' monasticism.
Every renewal in the history of the Catholic Church always consisted in the renewal of monasticism because the beginnings of the Christian life, which is the life of repentance, was the monastic life. The first step in the spiritual life is the monastic life. Everything else is built on the monastic life.
It will be noticed that all religious orders are essentially monastic. The life in the seminary is an imitation of the monastic life. Even the laymen's spirituality is described by St. John Chrysostom as a 'mystical desert,' refers to the life in the desert.
Joseph Ratzinger went deep into this concept due to his exposure to several Benedictine monasteries in Bavaria. As Pope he dreamt to continue studying this theological concept by furthering his understanding of St Bonaventure's theological concept of history which is the eschatological aspect of monasticism.
3. Pentecost.
At Pentecost, the first members of the Church, the apostles, were perfect. But the church they were starting was imperfect. As they went about to all nations the churches they started were all imperfect. They would rise up to certain degrees of spirituality but they were, always, imperfect.
As the Faith was introduced around the world, to Asia, Oceania, the US, to South America, the Church was always at its beginnings. Developing but always imperfect.
The Catholic Church will, only, become almost perfect at the end of the world; and then it will be perfected in the next life. So there was never a time that the Church was perfect except at its beginnings and at its end.
So as missionaries go to far lands, when Catholic nations undergo renewal.....it was always a beginning. It was never the end or its perfection. Except at the end time, the Church will be nearly perfect. This way God will show the world her perfection and how she could have solved all the problems of the world if only the world followed her teachings. The end time will be the exaltation of the Catholic Church above all nations. The world could have been as glorious as this if only the world used its head and submitted to her.
4. St. Benedict of Nursia.
At the time of St. Benedict, the Church had, already, been started in Jerusalem and its surroundings, by the Apostles. Peter and Paul has gone to Rome and started the Church there. The Church had a beginning in Rome. But at the time of St. Benedict, it had not reached perfection. In fact, it was as it was in the beginning......it was back to paganism.
This is the genesis of the Catholic Church everywhere. Always beginning. Never reaching perfection. But, instead, returning back to paganism. St. Benedict knew that. He knew that it had to start again from the beginning. And the beginnings of the Catholic Church is always with monasticism or the life of repentance. So he left Rome, looked for a cave. And with a few peasants started the Benedictine communities.
Europe was going to be Catholic this way. Whole communities of monks went to evangelise Europe and transformed it into a Christian nation reaching its highest point around the 13th century. That was just mid-way of its spiritual development. Unfortunately, before it could further progress towards perfection, it collapsed with the Reformation. It was back to zero.
St. Benedict knew the possibility of the Faith returning to zero so he saw to it that monasteries were establish everywhere to maintain the momentum of the Faith and lead it to perfection. But everywhere it was the same story. Always back to zero or maybe to 10%...but not good enough.
By the time of Pope Benedict, he knew it would be like this. So at the very beginning of his papacy he tried to begin from the beginning by proclaiming at St. Paul outside the Walls that to save civilisation that have returned back to zero we have to return back to monasticism......to the monasticism of St. Benedict. Europe responded with the establishment of the European Union which was patterned on the Basiliades of St. Basil, a very good model for a monastic nation. They knew something most politicians did not notice. That its emblem was the Apocalyptic 'great sign in the sky.' This was the Blessed Virgin with 12 stars. The emblem of the EU is still the blue flag with the 12 stars.
But even before it could start in the right direction it totally collapse under the weight of secularism and paganism. So back to zero. We cannot alway return to zero and get away with it. God had given man limits.
St. Benedict started the Catholic Church in many places. Still, it can be the starting point for the Church in any place.
One day St. Benedict had a vision that his faithful followers will prepare the world for the second coming of Christ. So St. Benedict's monasticism was the beginnings of the Catholic Church everywhere, it will also be the sign of the perfection and end of the Catholic Church on earth. Thus the monasticism of St. Benedict had always been described as the classical evangelisation. Now it is, also, called the 'new' evangelisation.
Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict described the evangelisation that should be used today in the world as the 'new'
evangelisation or new monasticism. Just as the Catholic Church, at the beginning of Christianity, were souls living in monastic communities in the desert. Today, the Catholic Church will be a new monastic community. The Catholic Church will not be found in cities as many think. As the Apocalypse described it, the Church will be a monastic community in the desert brought there by the 'Great Sign' in heaven
Thus as St. Benedict was starting the Catholic Church in Rome, once again, an angel informed him that his followers will again teach his monasticism at the end time to prepare the world for the Second coming of Christ. Monasticism, it seems, will be the beginning of all the Churches and all Churches will end up in being one monastic community.
What we see today is that there is no new monastic communities. Most monastic communities had become purely worldly communities. But there are a few monastic communities that had progressed towards becoming almost perfect monastic communities.
While there are hardly any beginnings, there are some progressing towards perfection. Let us look for signs showing this directions.
5. Sign of the times.
A beginning is the Papacy of John XXIII. He said that he took the named John in honour of St. John the Baptist who was a voice crying from the wilderness inviting souls to come to the desert to hear the Word of God. That was symbolically a call to the monastic life.
Then the 'Veritatis Splendor' of Pope John Paul II was a call to perfection. Its main theme was the young rich man who was told to go home, sell all his possessions, give it to the poor and follow Christ. That was not living an ordinary Catholic way of life. That was living the perfection of the Catholic way of life. How many can live that way of life? No wonder no one obeyed that encyclical. See what I mean?
Pope Benedict further perfected the direction of the Church by clearly pointing towards the monasticism of St. Benedict to whom the angel prophesied that it is the Church living his Rule that would welcome Christ in his Second Coming. He further perfected the 'veritatis splendor' with his three encyclicals on the three theological virtues. That is, indeed, the perfection of the Catholic way of life of which very few can observe. It is the very narrow road that very few can pass through .
6. Archbishop Ganswain.
Archbishop Ganswain with his constant conversation with Pope Benedict is expressing what we have described above; first, that the Catholic Church begins with the monastic life with the life of repentance; and it ends with the monastic life with the life of perfection.
The Church has many beginnings in every place and in many places. But it will end with one huge monastic community. And the Papacy of Pope Benedict is the beginning of the age of the perfection of the Church.
But how can we say that the Church is approaching perfection when it is in complete disarray and in total confusion? That is not the Church. It is the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church that is approaching perfection. And it is not the one in the largely developed metropolis. It is not the one in the Vatican and the Curial offices. It is not of this world though it is still in the world.
Recently, the good bishop said that Pope Benedict did not really resign. And he described a diarchy, two persons in one Papacy. The Vatican had not raised any objection. That raised a lot of problem because the idea of two person in one Pope or two Popes in one Papacy is not Catholic Doctrine. Even the Bishop's explanation that one of them being a contemplative and the other being active.....which is like Mary and Martha, did not help clarify the situation. Not because the bishop is unclear; but more because most human minds are dull.
It is for this reason that the good bishop had been giving clarifications. And they are indeed clarifications.
The good bishop mentioned, recently, St. Malachi and the saint's prophecy on the Popes. Prophecies can only be understood when they are actually happening. They cannot be interpreted before they are fulfilled. So any earlier comments in favour or against them are out of place.
The Bishop is on schedule because the prophecies of Malachi is supposed to be fulfilled now, today. So it can be interpreted correctly if we are guided by types written in Scriptures.
Here is the Good Friday scenario commented on by St. Bonaventure. The Apostles who made up the near perfect Church were in hiding. While everybody else, the Jews, the Romans, all the priests were not only against Christ but were the ones plotting for the life of Christ. This is the situation described in Malachi as the 'days of tribulation' that is supposed to happen under 'Peter Romanus,' the Pope after Benedict XVI.
Peter Romanus is supposed to be Pope Francis. Though the prophecy had been fulfilled we, still, cannot interpret it correctly. He does not seem to be Peter Romanus no matter how much we try.
What bothers us is from 'Scivia,' a book of visions by St. Hildegard of Bingen, a Benedictine superior, in chapter 10 described an anti-pope during this time. Which explains why things don't fit.
So bishop Ganswain comment that Benedict did not resign when actually he resigned and reappeared as Pope again, could be a fulfilment of what St. Grignon de Montfort wrote, that the Pope today will be appointed by Christ as it was in the beginning; just as God, Himself again, will appoint the apostles of the last days' just as it was in the beginning' thus establishing, again, the perfect Catholic Church that existed as it was in the beginning.
The possibility that Pope Emeritus Benedict is the newly appointed 'Petrus,' and since he is staying in Rome, therefore, 'Romanus.' How did he become 'Petrus?' Because it is Christ who appoints and who gives the name. Christ called him 'Petrus' before, He will surely used the same name as it was in the beginning.
7. The beginnings and the end.
We have seen the Catholic Church beginning in many places; in Jerusalem, in Greece, in Europe and in the US. We have, also, seen the Church disappearing in many places; in Jerusalem, in Rome, in Europe. We have seen the Church resurrecting and beginning again in many places; liked in Japan and Korea.
But now we are seeing the Church being purified, a division is occurring world wide, beginning in the Vatican and extending to the smallest parish. Why is the Church being purified? That the good may form a small nucleus that would make up the small Church near to perfection. Why now? That is what Ganswain is trying to lead to; that the Papacy of Pope Benedict is the beginning of the fulfilment of the vision of St. Benedict. A vision that was confirmed by St. Hildegard of Bingen in her 10th prophetic vision in her work 'Scivia'; a 12th century Benedictine saint, who was raised by Pope Benedict to the honors of being a Doctor of the Church. In that vision she was describing the Papacy after that of Pope Benedict XVI.
In short, this division occurring in the Catholic Church is not man-made. It is the work of angels. And St. Benedict's message is; be sure you are in the side of the true Catholic Church.
The Chosen people begun their training in the desert. St. John the Baptist begun his training in the desert. Christ, Himself, lived a hidden life in imitation of the life in the desert. And the beginnings of the Catholic Church, after Pentecost, the Church developed in the desert with the beginnings of monasticism.
The Church begun as types that can only be understood in the context of the desert. The Catholic Church begun as monasticism in the dessert. St. John the Evangelist established one of the first monastic community.
The Catholic Church begun with the first coming of Christ. It will end with the second coming of Christ. Similarly, as the Church begun with monasticism, it will end as a monastic institution..
The Fathers of the Church knew this well. St. Bonaventure explained it in more detail in his Theology of History. It was this topic that the young Joseph Ratzinger used as his thesis.
The Catholic Church is a prophetic religion; meaning to say, she has the gift of prophecy where she knows all the teachings of Christ and can use that knowledge eschatologically, i.e. how that knowledge is fulfilled in the future.
The Benedictine monasteries were meant to be schools of prophets. They master both the teachings of God and its eschatological significance. Thus St. Benedict being so, was the founder of the beginnings of the Catholic Church in a decaying Rome and was prophesied to establish the Church at the end of the world in preparation to welcoming the Second coming of Christ.
2. Joseph Ratzinger
The young Ratzinger studied well this concept of the Catholic Church's beginning as a monastic movement and ending at the End times as a monastic movement. Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict's 'new' evangelisation is based upon this concept. So the 'new' evangelisation was similarly described by both, using the words of St Bonaventure as the 'new' monasticism.
Every renewal in the history of the Catholic Church always consisted in the renewal of monasticism because the beginnings of the Christian life, which is the life of repentance, was the monastic life. The first step in the spiritual life is the monastic life. Everything else is built on the monastic life.
It will be noticed that all religious orders are essentially monastic. The life in the seminary is an imitation of the monastic life. Even the laymen's spirituality is described by St. John Chrysostom as a 'mystical desert,' refers to the life in the desert.
Joseph Ratzinger went deep into this concept due to his exposure to several Benedictine monasteries in Bavaria. As Pope he dreamt to continue studying this theological concept by furthering his understanding of St Bonaventure's theological concept of history which is the eschatological aspect of monasticism.
3. Pentecost.
At Pentecost, the first members of the Church, the apostles, were perfect. But the church they were starting was imperfect. As they went about to all nations the churches they started were all imperfect. They would rise up to certain degrees of spirituality but they were, always, imperfect.
As the Faith was introduced around the world, to Asia, Oceania, the US, to South America, the Church was always at its beginnings. Developing but always imperfect.
The Catholic Church will, only, become almost perfect at the end of the world; and then it will be perfected in the next life. So there was never a time that the Church was perfect except at its beginnings and at its end.
So as missionaries go to far lands, when Catholic nations undergo renewal.....it was always a beginning. It was never the end or its perfection. Except at the end time, the Church will be nearly perfect. This way God will show the world her perfection and how she could have solved all the problems of the world if only the world followed her teachings. The end time will be the exaltation of the Catholic Church above all nations. The world could have been as glorious as this if only the world used its head and submitted to her.
4. St. Benedict of Nursia.
At the time of St. Benedict, the Church had, already, been started in Jerusalem and its surroundings, by the Apostles. Peter and Paul has gone to Rome and started the Church there. The Church had a beginning in Rome. But at the time of St. Benedict, it had not reached perfection. In fact, it was as it was in the beginning......it was back to paganism.
This is the genesis of the Catholic Church everywhere. Always beginning. Never reaching perfection. But, instead, returning back to paganism. St. Benedict knew that. He knew that it had to start again from the beginning. And the beginnings of the Catholic Church is always with monasticism or the life of repentance. So he left Rome, looked for a cave. And with a few peasants started the Benedictine communities.
Europe was going to be Catholic this way. Whole communities of monks went to evangelise Europe and transformed it into a Christian nation reaching its highest point around the 13th century. That was just mid-way of its spiritual development. Unfortunately, before it could further progress towards perfection, it collapsed with the Reformation. It was back to zero.
St. Benedict knew the possibility of the Faith returning to zero so he saw to it that monasteries were establish everywhere to maintain the momentum of the Faith and lead it to perfection. But everywhere it was the same story. Always back to zero or maybe to 10%...but not good enough.
By the time of Pope Benedict, he knew it would be like this. So at the very beginning of his papacy he tried to begin from the beginning by proclaiming at St. Paul outside the Walls that to save civilisation that have returned back to zero we have to return back to monasticism......to the monasticism of St. Benedict. Europe responded with the establishment of the European Union which was patterned on the Basiliades of St. Basil, a very good model for a monastic nation. They knew something most politicians did not notice. That its emblem was the Apocalyptic 'great sign in the sky.' This was the Blessed Virgin with 12 stars. The emblem of the EU is still the blue flag with the 12 stars.
But even before it could start in the right direction it totally collapse under the weight of secularism and paganism. So back to zero. We cannot alway return to zero and get away with it. God had given man limits.
St. Benedict started the Catholic Church in many places. Still, it can be the starting point for the Church in any place.
One day St. Benedict had a vision that his faithful followers will prepare the world for the second coming of Christ. So St. Benedict's monasticism was the beginnings of the Catholic Church everywhere, it will also be the sign of the perfection and end of the Catholic Church on earth. Thus the monasticism of St. Benedict had always been described as the classical evangelisation. Now it is, also, called the 'new' evangelisation.
Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict described the evangelisation that should be used today in the world as the 'new'
evangelisation or new monasticism. Just as the Catholic Church, at the beginning of Christianity, were souls living in monastic communities in the desert. Today, the Catholic Church will be a new monastic community. The Catholic Church will not be found in cities as many think. As the Apocalypse described it, the Church will be a monastic community in the desert brought there by the 'Great Sign' in heaven
Thus as St. Benedict was starting the Catholic Church in Rome, once again, an angel informed him that his followers will again teach his monasticism at the end time to prepare the world for the Second coming of Christ. Monasticism, it seems, will be the beginning of all the Churches and all Churches will end up in being one monastic community.
What we see today is that there is no new monastic communities. Most monastic communities had become purely worldly communities. But there are a few monastic communities that had progressed towards becoming almost perfect monastic communities.
While there are hardly any beginnings, there are some progressing towards perfection. Let us look for signs showing this directions.
5. Sign of the times.
A beginning is the Papacy of John XXIII. He said that he took the named John in honour of St. John the Baptist who was a voice crying from the wilderness inviting souls to come to the desert to hear the Word of God. That was symbolically a call to the monastic life.
Then the 'Veritatis Splendor' of Pope John Paul II was a call to perfection. Its main theme was the young rich man who was told to go home, sell all his possessions, give it to the poor and follow Christ. That was not living an ordinary Catholic way of life. That was living the perfection of the Catholic way of life. How many can live that way of life? No wonder no one obeyed that encyclical. See what I mean?
Pope Benedict further perfected the direction of the Church by clearly pointing towards the monasticism of St. Benedict to whom the angel prophesied that it is the Church living his Rule that would welcome Christ in his Second Coming. He further perfected the 'veritatis splendor' with his three encyclicals on the three theological virtues. That is, indeed, the perfection of the Catholic way of life of which very few can observe. It is the very narrow road that very few can pass through .
6. Archbishop Ganswain.
Archbishop Ganswain with his constant conversation with Pope Benedict is expressing what we have described above; first, that the Catholic Church begins with the monastic life with the life of repentance; and it ends with the monastic life with the life of perfection.
The Church has many beginnings in every place and in many places. But it will end with one huge monastic community. And the Papacy of Pope Benedict is the beginning of the age of the perfection of the Church.
But how can we say that the Church is approaching perfection when it is in complete disarray and in total confusion? That is not the Church. It is the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church that is approaching perfection. And it is not the one in the largely developed metropolis. It is not the one in the Vatican and the Curial offices. It is not of this world though it is still in the world.
Recently, the good bishop said that Pope Benedict did not really resign. And he described a diarchy, two persons in one Papacy. The Vatican had not raised any objection. That raised a lot of problem because the idea of two person in one Pope or two Popes in one Papacy is not Catholic Doctrine. Even the Bishop's explanation that one of them being a contemplative and the other being active.....which is like Mary and Martha, did not help clarify the situation. Not because the bishop is unclear; but more because most human minds are dull.
It is for this reason that the good bishop had been giving clarifications. And they are indeed clarifications.
The good bishop mentioned, recently, St. Malachi and the saint's prophecy on the Popes. Prophecies can only be understood when they are actually happening. They cannot be interpreted before they are fulfilled. So any earlier comments in favour or against them are out of place.
The Bishop is on schedule because the prophecies of Malachi is supposed to be fulfilled now, today. So it can be interpreted correctly if we are guided by types written in Scriptures.
Here is the Good Friday scenario commented on by St. Bonaventure. The Apostles who made up the near perfect Church were in hiding. While everybody else, the Jews, the Romans, all the priests were not only against Christ but were the ones plotting for the life of Christ. This is the situation described in Malachi as the 'days of tribulation' that is supposed to happen under 'Peter Romanus,' the Pope after Benedict XVI.
Peter Romanus is supposed to be Pope Francis. Though the prophecy had been fulfilled we, still, cannot interpret it correctly. He does not seem to be Peter Romanus no matter how much we try.
What bothers us is from 'Scivia,' a book of visions by St. Hildegard of Bingen, a Benedictine superior, in chapter 10 described an anti-pope during this time. Which explains why things don't fit.
So bishop Ganswain comment that Benedict did not resign when actually he resigned and reappeared as Pope again, could be a fulfilment of what St. Grignon de Montfort wrote, that the Pope today will be appointed by Christ as it was in the beginning; just as God, Himself again, will appoint the apostles of the last days' just as it was in the beginning' thus establishing, again, the perfect Catholic Church that existed as it was in the beginning.
The possibility that Pope Emeritus Benedict is the newly appointed 'Petrus,' and since he is staying in Rome, therefore, 'Romanus.' How did he become 'Petrus?' Because it is Christ who appoints and who gives the name. Christ called him 'Petrus' before, He will surely used the same name as it was in the beginning.
7. The beginnings and the end.
We have seen the Catholic Church beginning in many places; in Jerusalem, in Greece, in Europe and in the US. We have, also, seen the Church disappearing in many places; in Jerusalem, in Rome, in Europe. We have seen the Church resurrecting and beginning again in many places; liked in Japan and Korea.
But now we are seeing the Church being purified, a division is occurring world wide, beginning in the Vatican and extending to the smallest parish. Why is the Church being purified? That the good may form a small nucleus that would make up the small Church near to perfection. Why now? That is what Ganswain is trying to lead to; that the Papacy of Pope Benedict is the beginning of the fulfilment of the vision of St. Benedict. A vision that was confirmed by St. Hildegard of Bingen in her 10th prophetic vision in her work 'Scivia'; a 12th century Benedictine saint, who was raised by Pope Benedict to the honors of being a Doctor of the Church. In that vision she was describing the Papacy after that of Pope Benedict XVI.
In short, this division occurring in the Catholic Church is not man-made. It is the work of angels. And St. Benedict's message is; be sure you are in the side of the true Catholic Church.
Friday, July 08, 2016
PART I - The GOOD SAMARITAN - TRUE Compassion and Mercy.
1. The young rich man in 'Veritatis splendor.'
The parable of the young rich man in the Gospel which was the main theme in Pope John Paul II's encyclical raised the most important and the only reason for man's existence - the attainment of eternal life. All religions aim at some concept of eternal life; most of which are philosophically unsound. The importance of the answer to this universal and eternal question was the main theme of the best encyclical of this century.
The question had been raised many times in Scriptures. Christ gave the same answer. And so for Catholics we should not have any other answer except the same answer Christ gave. But today, as of old, many want to play god and are presenting their private and individual answers. All are free to chose whatever answer they want. But for Catholics of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.....there is only one answer. And this answer was the greatest legacy left for us by Pope John II; and it is contained and explained in his 'Veritatis splendor.'
The encyclical is a summary answer to the question; 'What must I do to have everlasting life?' Pope John Paul II gave the summary answer; love God by obeying His commands in the Old Testament and love your neighbour.
Then John Paul II showed that this command to love God and neighbour is imperfect (since it is Old Testament) and is not sufficient for salvation. Christ said to the young man; 'there is still one thing lacking.' And then He gave the way to perfect the love of God and neighbour. This command is what made the whole world turn away from Christ....as when Christ taught the necessity of eating His Body and Blood. 'And they did not walk with Him anymore.' It is for this reason that many bishops did not read it. And the few who read it did not implement it.
'Go home, sell all your possessions, give it to the poor and come follow Me.' Who in his right mind will do that? No one, except the
insane who is insanely in love with God.
Then Christ said that these things must be done to enable anyone not to conform himself to the world which is a world of sin. Do you mean if I do not go home, sell all my possession, give them to the poor and follow Christ, I will not have everlasting life? If you don't do those things you will live a life in conformity with the world. And since the world has Lucifer as its prince you will be subject to this prince; you will do evil and lose your soul. You will not have everlasting life but everlasting death instead.
Why? Because you do not love God nor your neighbour.
Then 'Veritatis Splendor' proceeded to the second part, how not to conform oneself with the ways off the world. Without which you cannot even begin to love God and neighbour. After all Christ said; 'friendship with the world is enmity with God.'
2. The 15th Sunday in Ordinary time Gospel. The Good Samaritan.
The Gospel of the 15th Sunday speaks about the Good Samaritan. And it begins with the story of a lawyer who goes to Christ and asked exactly the same question as the young rich man; 'teacher, what must I do to inherit everlasting life?'
Christ gives the same answer; 'what is written in the law.' The answer to the lawyer is identical to the young rich man but differently expressed. Instead of enumerating the 10 commandments of God, Christ quotes Deuteronomy; 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Then Christ adds a command from Leviticus; 'and thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself.'
Christ's answer to the young rich man is identical to the lawyer. In both incident both young rich man and lawyer knew that to attain everlasting life they should love God and neighbour. But their love of both was imperfect.
So Christ perfected the knowledge of the young rich man by adding; 'go home, sell all your things, give it to the poor and follow me.' Christ perfected the knowledge of the lawyer by adding; 'and who is your neighbour. And after describing who is one's neighbour and how the neighbour should be treated Christ said; 'then go and do likewise. Christ taught the lawyer how to perfect his love for God and neighbour by showing how he should treat his neighbour.
3. Let us stop here for a while and take note of the command 'love your neighbour.'
First, you must love God by keeping His commands. When you keep God's command you show compassion and mercy on yourself by meriting the salvation of your soul.
Secondly, now that you have known and obeyed all of God's command ...and have showed mercy and compassion on your own soul.....NOW, you can love your neighbour by showing mercy and compassion on your neighbour . This you can do by teaching them what and how to keep the commandments of Christ. Teaching your neighbours what and how to obey the commands of God is the way you show compassion and mercy on hour neighbours. This act is described as love of neighbour.
Notice that you cannot show compassion and mercy on others unless you show compassion and mercy on your own soul FIRST. You cannot love your neighbour unless you FIRST learn how to love yourself in the true Christian way. Thus the command of Christ is to love your neighbour as you love yourself.
Love of God is identical to love of neighbour. In developing this love, Christ wants man to concentrate on his love of neighbour because it is difficult to love God whom he cannot see. It is easier to love his neighbour whom he can see.
Note the difference on how to love God and neighbour. Christ said; love God above all things. When He commanded to love the neighbour Christ said; love your neighbour as yourself. Christ did not say; love God as you love yourself. Neither did he say; to love your neighbour above all things. Thus the command of Christ is; first to love God with all your heart. Then, to love one's neighbour as you love yourself.
St. Thomas of Aquinas wrote; ' how is he merciful in taking compassion upon another who still by unrighteous living is unmerciful to himself?' He, therefore, who has no compassion and mercy on himself by living a life of sin , cannot be compassionate and merciful on his neighbour.
He who disobeys the commands of God is unmerciful upon his own soul. Because he is unmerciful on his own soul, he cannot be merciful and compassionate on another.
4. The compassion and mercy of Pope Francis and many bishops.
Pope Francis' compassion and mercy are contradicting the first part of the message of the parable of the Good Samaritan on 'what must I do to have everlasting life.' First, Pope Francis disobeys the command of God by tolerating adulterers in their adultery. Adultery is a sin against God's command. And he, further, encourages adulterers to commit sacrilege by receiving Holy Communion. Apart from those sins, he allows the adulterous husband to sin against his lawful wife and abandon his real children. In that one decree Pope Francis had committed multiple sins of scandal.
His tolerance makes him an accessory to sin; he commits a sin of scandal. He has not only encouraged one to commit adultery. Through his writings, specially in 'Amoris Laetitia' he had encouraged millions to commit adultery. Imagine the amount of sin he had piled up on his head.
With this sin he showed absolutely no compassion and mercy on his own soul. If so, why will God show him compassion and mercy. Because he has no compassion and mercy on his soul by inviting eternal damnation through his commission of the sin of scandal, he becomes totally incapable of showing compassion and mercy on any of his neighbour. So what is this mercy and compassion that he is talking about? He is not describing compassion and mercy as defined in Scriptures. His compassion and mercy is a continuous encouragement to sin because of his erroneous belief that God is so good that no one goes to hell, as he had often said.
From his own words Pope Francis is showing that based on the story of the young rich man and the story of the lawyer, ....first, he has no love for God by his disobedience to many commands of God...the consequence of which is that he has no compassion and mercy on his own soul. And secondly, he has no love for his neighbour as shown by the fact that he has no compassion and mercy his neighbour. And as we shall see, he will not do what the Good Samaritan did to the wounded man.
Basing it on the Scriptural definition of the terms we used above, we find that NOT ONLY has Pope Francis been unable to perfect his love of God and neighbour; he does not even have imperfect love of God and neighbour. In short, by his own words and actions to prove it....he does not love God nor neighbour at all. Which makes us wonder, what is he doing in that chair of Peter? Is he there to fulfil the prophecy of the Apocalypse?
The parable of the young rich man in the Gospel which was the main theme in Pope John Paul II's encyclical raised the most important and the only reason for man's existence - the attainment of eternal life. All religions aim at some concept of eternal life; most of which are philosophically unsound. The importance of the answer to this universal and eternal question was the main theme of the best encyclical of this century.
The question had been raised many times in Scriptures. Christ gave the same answer. And so for Catholics we should not have any other answer except the same answer Christ gave. But today, as of old, many want to play god and are presenting their private and individual answers. All are free to chose whatever answer they want. But for Catholics of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.....there is only one answer. And this answer was the greatest legacy left for us by Pope John II; and it is contained and explained in his 'Veritatis splendor.'
The encyclical is a summary answer to the question; 'What must I do to have everlasting life?' Pope John Paul II gave the summary answer; love God by obeying His commands in the Old Testament and love your neighbour.
Then John Paul II showed that this command to love God and neighbour is imperfect (since it is Old Testament) and is not sufficient for salvation. Christ said to the young man; 'there is still one thing lacking.' And then He gave the way to perfect the love of God and neighbour. This command is what made the whole world turn away from Christ....as when Christ taught the necessity of eating His Body and Blood. 'And they did not walk with Him anymore.' It is for this reason that many bishops did not read it. And the few who read it did not implement it.
'Go home, sell all your possessions, give it to the poor and come follow Me.' Who in his right mind will do that? No one, except the
insane who is insanely in love with God.
Then Christ said that these things must be done to enable anyone not to conform himself to the world which is a world of sin. Do you mean if I do not go home, sell all my possession, give them to the poor and follow Christ, I will not have everlasting life? If you don't do those things you will live a life in conformity with the world. And since the world has Lucifer as its prince you will be subject to this prince; you will do evil and lose your soul. You will not have everlasting life but everlasting death instead.
Why? Because you do not love God nor your neighbour.
Then 'Veritatis Splendor' proceeded to the second part, how not to conform oneself with the ways off the world. Without which you cannot even begin to love God and neighbour. After all Christ said; 'friendship with the world is enmity with God.'
2. The 15th Sunday in Ordinary time Gospel. The Good Samaritan.
The Gospel of the 15th Sunday speaks about the Good Samaritan. And it begins with the story of a lawyer who goes to Christ and asked exactly the same question as the young rich man; 'teacher, what must I do to inherit everlasting life?'
Christ gives the same answer; 'what is written in the law.' The answer to the lawyer is identical to the young rich man but differently expressed. Instead of enumerating the 10 commandments of God, Christ quotes Deuteronomy; 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Then Christ adds a command from Leviticus; 'and thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself.'
Christ's answer to the young rich man is identical to the lawyer. In both incident both young rich man and lawyer knew that to attain everlasting life they should love God and neighbour. But their love of both was imperfect.
So Christ perfected the knowledge of the young rich man by adding; 'go home, sell all your things, give it to the poor and follow me.' Christ perfected the knowledge of the lawyer by adding; 'and who is your neighbour. And after describing who is one's neighbour and how the neighbour should be treated Christ said; 'then go and do likewise. Christ taught the lawyer how to perfect his love for God and neighbour by showing how he should treat his neighbour.
3. Let us stop here for a while and take note of the command 'love your neighbour.'
First, you must love God by keeping His commands. When you keep God's command you show compassion and mercy on yourself by meriting the salvation of your soul.
Secondly, now that you have known and obeyed all of God's command ...and have showed mercy and compassion on your own soul.....NOW, you can love your neighbour by showing mercy and compassion on your neighbour . This you can do by teaching them what and how to keep the commandments of Christ. Teaching your neighbours what and how to obey the commands of God is the way you show compassion and mercy on hour neighbours. This act is described as love of neighbour.
Notice that you cannot show compassion and mercy on others unless you show compassion and mercy on your own soul FIRST. You cannot love your neighbour unless you FIRST learn how to love yourself in the true Christian way. Thus the command of Christ is to love your neighbour as you love yourself.
Love of God is identical to love of neighbour. In developing this love, Christ wants man to concentrate on his love of neighbour because it is difficult to love God whom he cannot see. It is easier to love his neighbour whom he can see.
Note the difference on how to love God and neighbour. Christ said; love God above all things. When He commanded to love the neighbour Christ said; love your neighbour as yourself. Christ did not say; love God as you love yourself. Neither did he say; to love your neighbour above all things. Thus the command of Christ is; first to love God with all your heart. Then, to love one's neighbour as you love yourself.
St. Thomas of Aquinas wrote; ' how is he merciful in taking compassion upon another who still by unrighteous living is unmerciful to himself?' He, therefore, who has no compassion and mercy on himself by living a life of sin , cannot be compassionate and merciful on his neighbour.
He who disobeys the commands of God is unmerciful upon his own soul. Because he is unmerciful on his own soul, he cannot be merciful and compassionate on another.
4. The compassion and mercy of Pope Francis and many bishops.
Pope Francis' compassion and mercy are contradicting the first part of the message of the parable of the Good Samaritan on 'what must I do to have everlasting life.' First, Pope Francis disobeys the command of God by tolerating adulterers in their adultery. Adultery is a sin against God's command. And he, further, encourages adulterers to commit sacrilege by receiving Holy Communion. Apart from those sins, he allows the adulterous husband to sin against his lawful wife and abandon his real children. In that one decree Pope Francis had committed multiple sins of scandal.
His tolerance makes him an accessory to sin; he commits a sin of scandal. He has not only encouraged one to commit adultery. Through his writings, specially in 'Amoris Laetitia' he had encouraged millions to commit adultery. Imagine the amount of sin he had piled up on his head.
With this sin he showed absolutely no compassion and mercy on his own soul. If so, why will God show him compassion and mercy. Because he has no compassion and mercy on his soul by inviting eternal damnation through his commission of the sin of scandal, he becomes totally incapable of showing compassion and mercy on any of his neighbour. So what is this mercy and compassion that he is talking about? He is not describing compassion and mercy as defined in Scriptures. His compassion and mercy is a continuous encouragement to sin because of his erroneous belief that God is so good that no one goes to hell, as he had often said.
From his own words Pope Francis is showing that based on the story of the young rich man and the story of the lawyer, ....first, he has no love for God by his disobedience to many commands of God...the consequence of which is that he has no compassion and mercy on his own soul. And secondly, he has no love for his neighbour as shown by the fact that he has no compassion and mercy his neighbour. And as we shall see, he will not do what the Good Samaritan did to the wounded man.
Basing it on the Scriptural definition of the terms we used above, we find that NOT ONLY has Pope Francis been unable to perfect his love of God and neighbour; he does not even have imperfect love of God and neighbour. In short, by his own words and actions to prove it....he does not love God nor neighbour at all. Which makes us wonder, what is he doing in that chair of Peter? Is he there to fulfil the prophecy of the Apocalypse?
Tuesday, July 05, 2016
THIS MUST BE RESOLVED ----- For the salvation of our souls.
1. It just keeps on coming back.
Pope Benedict's seeming resignation remains unsettled. It is like a nightmare that forces us to sit down, be fully awake and resolve all the nagging questions.
Well, it is 2:00 am. And I cannot sleep because of all the questions that are being raised with regard to this topic. It all begun with the seeming resignation of Pope Benedict. Knowing that he is a holy man, equipped with a vast knowledge of the Faith, it is impossible for us to believe that he resigned. It could not be. Holy persons with a vast source of knowledge of Divine things does not resign from doing God's Will. What he did was a tactical manoeuvre to deceive that Angelic eternal enemy of the soul, Lucifer. Exactly the same thing that Christ did. Christ did a tactical manoeuvre making Lucifer believe that he had the Christ killed using the Pharisees. When actually Christ, instead, redeemed many sinners from Satan's clutches through this manoeuvre. We should have seen Satan's red face after Easter.
What was Pope Benedict's tactical manoeuvre? Many theories had already been presented. But it must point to the salvation of souls like Christ's.
One.....is that he actually resigned, which is difficult to connect to the salvation of souls. The latest one raised by Archbishop Gawain, assistant to Pope Benedict, is that he really did not resign but merely enlarged the concept of the Papacy; in that there is only one Papacy but there are two ministries. Which connects better for the salvation of souls.
A serious proposition raised is the situation that we are faced with two Popes; only one is the true Pope. The other is an anti-pope. Most Catholics are entertaining this last option but are afraid to say the magic word, anti-pope. But all their descriptions of the present problem besetting the Church is that there is an anti-pope sitting in the seat of Peter.
The discussion is getting hotter. A conference scheduled in Rome plans to demand that Pope Francis withdraw the badly written encyclical 'Amoris Laetitia' from circulation. A TV station had already called for Pope Francis to resign. Some bishops are already shouting 'heresy.'
2. Neither side is giving up.
Pope Francis, who entertained retiring before has just expressed that he will not resign for any reason. He will remain in the seat of Peter. While the written articles voicing public opinion's discouragements with the way Pope Francis is running the Church is increasing, Archbishop Ganswain is providing the theology of the manoeuvre Pope Benedict is employing. With the advantage of having Pope Benedict on his side always, he has given a firm direction towards the right goal; that everything Benedict is doing is directed towards the salvation of the Catholic Church. There is no resignation or excursions going on here.
Pope Benedict had mentioned the work of St. Bonaventure that will give us an idea of his manoeuvre. Bonaventure's 'sixth day move.' This is identical to Christ's sixth day manoeuvre where God created a scenario in the world that would stage the Passion of Christ; the scenario would be directed by God, Himself. It would fool the devil into believing that evil had triumph over Jesus Christ but instead it will save countless souls. Only God can execute a move like that.
3. The sixth day manoeuvre.
On Good Friday, God got all the bad guys; these were almost all the priest; the Pharisees, the Sadducees; all the civil authorities, the Roman governor and soldiers. The Jewish nation who would provide the shouting demonstrators. It was the end of the world scenario. God was so angry at the world that it seems He had decided to end the world. Imagine at this point mankind had killed its God. Not even the pagans would do that. Instead God, for a moment, had mercy on men and used Good Friday to prepare mankind for these days.
Then Ganswain used his intelligent mind again and said precisely that, showing us the direction of that Messianic manoeuvre by saying that Benedict is the second to the last Pope in St. Malachi's list and that we are with the last Pope. As usual things got more confused for those who are not following the trend of eschatology
4. As it was in the beginning.......
Christian eschatology is the progress of history forward.....but towards 'as it was in the beginning.' Scripture has it that the world will return just 'as it was in the beginning.' The Middle East is almost like a desert again. The sea is beginning to claim the lands. And during these times Christ will, again, chose His apostles. Saint Grignon de Montfort wrote much about this last days apostles where Christ, Himself, will personally chose the apostles that will prepare the world for the last judgment. And together with the choosing of the apostles is the choosing of Peter.
It is for this scenario that the last Pope is named Peter Romanus. First, he will be appointed by Christ directly. That takes Pope Francis out of the picture because he was elected by the College of Cardinals. Secondly, Peter Romans will be in his office in Rome; which applies to both of them. Thirdly, it will be a time of total chaos in the Church. Well, Benedict fixed up the Church while Pope Francis is causing the now total chaos by making his whims the dogmas of the Catholic Church.
5. The election of Peter Romanus.
St. Grignon wrote that Christ, Himself, will appoint the last Pope just as He, Himself, appointed St. Peter. He will, also, personally chose the rests of the last days apostles.
Now, if Benedict had resigned and, as Ganswain announced he is still Pope......think of it.....for a moment Benedict was Pope. Then Pope Benedict resigns from an office wherein he was elected by a Conclave. Then now he is Pope again...by whose authority? He is Pope again this second time, not by the election of the Cardinals, but by appointment from God. So what Archbishop Ganswain is saying is this; that Pope Benedict was the second to the last Pope, 'Gloria Olivae' according to St. Malachi. He resigned. Then he had been personally reappointed by Christ. Benedict is, also, Peter Romanus. Now, that is why everybody is wondering why he is still in the Vatican, ROME. And as Archbishop Ganswain wondered; why is he in white and addressed as 'Your Holiness,' even by Pope Francis.
Benedict just did a Christ like manoeuvre......for exactly the same reason. Just like at the beginning.
6. This topic is not mere Byzantine discussion. The resolution of this question is needed for our salvation. We must know who is our leader. Because where he goes there we will go.
Pope Benedict's seeming resignation remains unsettled. It is like a nightmare that forces us to sit down, be fully awake and resolve all the nagging questions.
Well, it is 2:00 am. And I cannot sleep because of all the questions that are being raised with regard to this topic. It all begun with the seeming resignation of Pope Benedict. Knowing that he is a holy man, equipped with a vast knowledge of the Faith, it is impossible for us to believe that he resigned. It could not be. Holy persons with a vast source of knowledge of Divine things does not resign from doing God's Will. What he did was a tactical manoeuvre to deceive that Angelic eternal enemy of the soul, Lucifer. Exactly the same thing that Christ did. Christ did a tactical manoeuvre making Lucifer believe that he had the Christ killed using the Pharisees. When actually Christ, instead, redeemed many sinners from Satan's clutches through this manoeuvre. We should have seen Satan's red face after Easter.
What was Pope Benedict's tactical manoeuvre? Many theories had already been presented. But it must point to the salvation of souls like Christ's.
One.....is that he actually resigned, which is difficult to connect to the salvation of souls. The latest one raised by Archbishop Gawain, assistant to Pope Benedict, is that he really did not resign but merely enlarged the concept of the Papacy; in that there is only one Papacy but there are two ministries. Which connects better for the salvation of souls.
A serious proposition raised is the situation that we are faced with two Popes; only one is the true Pope. The other is an anti-pope. Most Catholics are entertaining this last option but are afraid to say the magic word, anti-pope. But all their descriptions of the present problem besetting the Church is that there is an anti-pope sitting in the seat of Peter.
The discussion is getting hotter. A conference scheduled in Rome plans to demand that Pope Francis withdraw the badly written encyclical 'Amoris Laetitia' from circulation. A TV station had already called for Pope Francis to resign. Some bishops are already shouting 'heresy.'
2. Neither side is giving up.
Pope Francis, who entertained retiring before has just expressed that he will not resign for any reason. He will remain in the seat of Peter. While the written articles voicing public opinion's discouragements with the way Pope Francis is running the Church is increasing, Archbishop Ganswain is providing the theology of the manoeuvre Pope Benedict is employing. With the advantage of having Pope Benedict on his side always, he has given a firm direction towards the right goal; that everything Benedict is doing is directed towards the salvation of the Catholic Church. There is no resignation or excursions going on here.
Pope Benedict had mentioned the work of St. Bonaventure that will give us an idea of his manoeuvre. Bonaventure's 'sixth day move.' This is identical to Christ's sixth day manoeuvre where God created a scenario in the world that would stage the Passion of Christ; the scenario would be directed by God, Himself. It would fool the devil into believing that evil had triumph over Jesus Christ but instead it will save countless souls. Only God can execute a move like that.
3. The sixth day manoeuvre.
On Good Friday, God got all the bad guys; these were almost all the priest; the Pharisees, the Sadducees; all the civil authorities, the Roman governor and soldiers. The Jewish nation who would provide the shouting demonstrators. It was the end of the world scenario. God was so angry at the world that it seems He had decided to end the world. Imagine at this point mankind had killed its God. Not even the pagans would do that. Instead God, for a moment, had mercy on men and used Good Friday to prepare mankind for these days.
Then Ganswain used his intelligent mind again and said precisely that, showing us the direction of that Messianic manoeuvre by saying that Benedict is the second to the last Pope in St. Malachi's list and that we are with the last Pope. As usual things got more confused for those who are not following the trend of eschatology
4. As it was in the beginning.......
Christian eschatology is the progress of history forward.....but towards 'as it was in the beginning.' Scripture has it that the world will return just 'as it was in the beginning.' The Middle East is almost like a desert again. The sea is beginning to claim the lands. And during these times Christ will, again, chose His apostles. Saint Grignon de Montfort wrote much about this last days apostles where Christ, Himself, will personally chose the apostles that will prepare the world for the last judgment. And together with the choosing of the apostles is the choosing of Peter.
It is for this scenario that the last Pope is named Peter Romanus. First, he will be appointed by Christ directly. That takes Pope Francis out of the picture because he was elected by the College of Cardinals. Secondly, Peter Romans will be in his office in Rome; which applies to both of them. Thirdly, it will be a time of total chaos in the Church. Well, Benedict fixed up the Church while Pope Francis is causing the now total chaos by making his whims the dogmas of the Catholic Church.
5. The election of Peter Romanus.
St. Grignon wrote that Christ, Himself, will appoint the last Pope just as He, Himself, appointed St. Peter. He will, also, personally chose the rests of the last days apostles.
Now, if Benedict had resigned and, as Ganswain announced he is still Pope......think of it.....for a moment Benedict was Pope. Then Pope Benedict resigns from an office wherein he was elected by a Conclave. Then now he is Pope again...by whose authority? He is Pope again this second time, not by the election of the Cardinals, but by appointment from God. So what Archbishop Ganswain is saying is this; that Pope Benedict was the second to the last Pope, 'Gloria Olivae' according to St. Malachi. He resigned. Then he had been personally reappointed by Christ. Benedict is, also, Peter Romanus. Now, that is why everybody is wondering why he is still in the Vatican, ROME. And as Archbishop Ganswain wondered; why is he in white and addressed as 'Your Holiness,' even by Pope Francis.
Benedict just did a Christ like manoeuvre......for exactly the same reason. Just like at the beginning.
6. This topic is not mere Byzantine discussion. The resolution of this question is needed for our salvation. We must know who is our leader. Because where he goes there we will go.
Monday, July 04, 2016
HE SENT THEM BY PAIRS - Two by two.
1. Two commands.
The commands of Christ can be summarised into two. Though there are more than 80 commands they can be summarised into, first, Love of God. And secondly, love of neighbour. These two commands are necessary for salvation. We must obey them. In preaching we must preach both commands. What must be preached is clear. We shall discuss how to preach each command.
2. Love of God and neighbour.
To be saved, I must know these two commands of Christ and I must obey them. How do I love God? Christ said; if you love Me keep My commandments. There you have it. To love God is to know His commands and to obey them.
So we must first know His commands, about 80 of them and summarised into 'Love of God.' And before we can obey them we must know how to obey them. We cannot obey those commands in any way we want. We must obey them in exactly the way He wants us to obey them.
The way to obey them is not completely described in the New Testament. Most of how they should be obeyed is found in Tradition. Thus, we have to go to the Fathers of the Church.
After knowing the commands of Christ and after obeying them in the way described by the Fathers of the Church.....then we can say that we love God.
Now, if we examine what those commands of Christ are it will be noticed that they are acts of goodness towards one's neighbour. The only command that pertains to God is to worship him. The other commands are doing good things towards one's neighbour.
So it should be clear that love of God and love of neighbour are identical. Let us take an example. Love of God is obedience to His command, like 'Do not commit adultery.' I obey this command if I love God with all my mind, all my heart and all my strength. See, I show my love for God by loving Him with all my faculties.
Now, how do I love my neighbour? By not leaving my wife and children and looking for another wife and other children. See, how identical love of God is to love of neighbour. In loving God and neighbour I avoid committing adultery.
My love for God is not really visible. But my love for neighbour is visible. Since these are identical as shown above, when I see my neighbour loving his wife and children, then I know that he, also, love God because love of God and neighbour, if both are done properly are identical.
3. How do parents save their children.
Let us briefly see how parents save their children by preaching to them. How? As Christ said; by pairs or two by two. Here is an ideal situation.
A Catholic couple trains their son well. So the boy grows up loving God and loving neighbour. How did that happen? The husband, being head of the family taught the boy the commands of Christ and taught him. also, the correct interpretation of those commands. Then, the husband and the wife loved each other and by their example showed the boy how to love his neighbour.
So the young boy learns how to love God by learning the commands of Christ from the words of the Father. And learns how to love his neighbour from the example of his father's love for his mother.
Remember, the love of God can be taught alone by the father. But the love of neighbour must be taught by the father by showing his love for his mother. So, they are preaching two by two. It is difficult for the father to show his love for God to his son. But it is easy for the him to show his son the love he has for his wife.
Since the expression of love of God and neighbour is identical, when hearers see the preacher loving his parish, the hearers know that the preacher, also, loves God. Thus he learns theory and practice at the same time.
4. The cause of family problem.
If the father and mother love God and each other, St.Augustine wrote, this means that they love God and all men. Men, here, includes the husband and wife, the children, the nephews, the neighbours and their enemies. St. Augustine wrote; if you love one neighbour perfectly, you love all men.
Since the father and mother love God and neighbour, these two commands are easily transferred to the children. The children transfers it to their children, etc. etc. They would be a whole line of saints.
The problem begins when one loves God and neighbour and the other does not. They will not be able to preach to their children because they are no longer pairs or two by two. Its only one parent.
It is worse if both do not love God and each other. The whole line following after would be lacking charity and, therefore, all are in danger of being damned.
5. The role of the sacrament of marriage.
The parents of St.Therese love God and neighbour. Thus they were able to train all their children to love God and neighbour. All the children were virgins in convents and candidates for canonisation. No one needed the aid of Matrimony.
But not everybody have parents who love God and neighbour. So the children are not well trained. The children find it impossible to love God and neighbour. In which case the children are in need of the Sacrament of Matrimony.
Marriage is meant to help a young boy to emotionally love a woman. When they are married both must rise from that emotional love to the higher state of Charity where they love God and neighbour. Marriage is an emotional help to enable the husband to love his wife in the Christian way. Matrimony is the school of true Christian love for neighbour.
Wi the hope that by the time they have children, they already love God and neighbour. So they can preach to their children the right way to love God and neighbour.
Unfortunately most marriages remain in the emotional and romantic level; they are unable to rise up to true Christian love of God and neighbour. This inability is the cause of all family problems.
So what do we do? Back to basics.
6. Not all need marriage.
Marriage are for those who are unable to have true Christian love towards their neighbours. So they need temporarily emotional love as a jumping board towards Christian love. Those who do not need this aid go straight to Christian love of neighbour. Not needing marriage they become good religious or priests.
Again we have this problem. That most, if not all seminarians and religious, due to lack of training, are unable to love their neighbour. In which case they should resort to Marriage lest they turn out to be bad priests or religious. If they do not resort to Matrimony early in their problems they would end up being lesbians and homos. Treated early they merely end up as normal married couples.
7. The Gospel of the 14th Sunday in Ordinary time states that preachers should go in pairs or two by two.
One preacher preaching ALL the commandments of Christ and HOW to obey them. Now, how will the preacher demonstrate the Love of neighbour? He should have companions; 'in pairs, two by two'. In the early Christian times, St. Boniface preached with an entire community. It was in this way that he showed how he loved his community and how his community loved him. All early missionary monks did it this way.
Today, it should be the same way. A parish priest should preach all the commands of Christ and how to observe them. If he does this then his love for his parishioners will show and the love of the parishioner for him will also be evident. That is the proper way of preaching. The same goes with the Bishops.
8. Modern defect.
Most priests and bishop do not preach ALL the commands of Christ. They do not know there are more than 80 commands spread out in the three cycles of the Liturgical Year. And they do not explain how these commands should be practiced due to lack of study of the Fathers of the Church. In effect, they do not love God.
And because they do not Love God which is his pattern of love of neighbour, then he does not love his neighbour either.
A parish priest who does not love God and his neighbour; parishioners who do not love God and neighbour........we have what Christ prophesied 'a parish experiencing the decay of Faith and the waxing cold of Charity.'
The commands of Christ can be summarised into two. Though there are more than 80 commands they can be summarised into, first, Love of God. And secondly, love of neighbour. These two commands are necessary for salvation. We must obey them. In preaching we must preach both commands. What must be preached is clear. We shall discuss how to preach each command.
2. Love of God and neighbour.
To be saved, I must know these two commands of Christ and I must obey them. How do I love God? Christ said; if you love Me keep My commandments. There you have it. To love God is to know His commands and to obey them.
So we must first know His commands, about 80 of them and summarised into 'Love of God.' And before we can obey them we must know how to obey them. We cannot obey those commands in any way we want. We must obey them in exactly the way He wants us to obey them.
The way to obey them is not completely described in the New Testament. Most of how they should be obeyed is found in Tradition. Thus, we have to go to the Fathers of the Church.
After knowing the commands of Christ and after obeying them in the way described by the Fathers of the Church.....then we can say that we love God.
Now, if we examine what those commands of Christ are it will be noticed that they are acts of goodness towards one's neighbour. The only command that pertains to God is to worship him. The other commands are doing good things towards one's neighbour.
So it should be clear that love of God and love of neighbour are identical. Let us take an example. Love of God is obedience to His command, like 'Do not commit adultery.' I obey this command if I love God with all my mind, all my heart and all my strength. See, I show my love for God by loving Him with all my faculties.
Now, how do I love my neighbour? By not leaving my wife and children and looking for another wife and other children. See, how identical love of God is to love of neighbour. In loving God and neighbour I avoid committing adultery.
My love for God is not really visible. But my love for neighbour is visible. Since these are identical as shown above, when I see my neighbour loving his wife and children, then I know that he, also, love God because love of God and neighbour, if both are done properly are identical.
3. How do parents save their children.
Let us briefly see how parents save their children by preaching to them. How? As Christ said; by pairs or two by two. Here is an ideal situation.
A Catholic couple trains their son well. So the boy grows up loving God and loving neighbour. How did that happen? The husband, being head of the family taught the boy the commands of Christ and taught him. also, the correct interpretation of those commands. Then, the husband and the wife loved each other and by their example showed the boy how to love his neighbour.
So the young boy learns how to love God by learning the commands of Christ from the words of the Father. And learns how to love his neighbour from the example of his father's love for his mother.
Remember, the love of God can be taught alone by the father. But the love of neighbour must be taught by the father by showing his love for his mother. So, they are preaching two by two. It is difficult for the father to show his love for God to his son. But it is easy for the him to show his son the love he has for his wife.
Since the expression of love of God and neighbour is identical, when hearers see the preacher loving his parish, the hearers know that the preacher, also, loves God. Thus he learns theory and practice at the same time.
4. The cause of family problem.
If the father and mother love God and each other, St.Augustine wrote, this means that they love God and all men. Men, here, includes the husband and wife, the children, the nephews, the neighbours and their enemies. St. Augustine wrote; if you love one neighbour perfectly, you love all men.
Since the father and mother love God and neighbour, these two commands are easily transferred to the children. The children transfers it to their children, etc. etc. They would be a whole line of saints.
The problem begins when one loves God and neighbour and the other does not. They will not be able to preach to their children because they are no longer pairs or two by two. Its only one parent.
It is worse if both do not love God and each other. The whole line following after would be lacking charity and, therefore, all are in danger of being damned.
5. The role of the sacrament of marriage.
The parents of St.Therese love God and neighbour. Thus they were able to train all their children to love God and neighbour. All the children were virgins in convents and candidates for canonisation. No one needed the aid of Matrimony.
But not everybody have parents who love God and neighbour. So the children are not well trained. The children find it impossible to love God and neighbour. In which case the children are in need of the Sacrament of Matrimony.
Marriage is meant to help a young boy to emotionally love a woman. When they are married both must rise from that emotional love to the higher state of Charity where they love God and neighbour. Marriage is an emotional help to enable the husband to love his wife in the Christian way. Matrimony is the school of true Christian love for neighbour.
Wi the hope that by the time they have children, they already love God and neighbour. So they can preach to their children the right way to love God and neighbour.
Unfortunately most marriages remain in the emotional and romantic level; they are unable to rise up to true Christian love of God and neighbour. This inability is the cause of all family problems.
So what do we do? Back to basics.
6. Not all need marriage.
Marriage are for those who are unable to have true Christian love towards their neighbours. So they need temporarily emotional love as a jumping board towards Christian love. Those who do not need this aid go straight to Christian love of neighbour. Not needing marriage they become good religious or priests.
Again we have this problem. That most, if not all seminarians and religious, due to lack of training, are unable to love their neighbour. In which case they should resort to Marriage lest they turn out to be bad priests or religious. If they do not resort to Matrimony early in their problems they would end up being lesbians and homos. Treated early they merely end up as normal married couples.
7. The Gospel of the 14th Sunday in Ordinary time states that preachers should go in pairs or two by two.
One preacher preaching ALL the commandments of Christ and HOW to obey them. Now, how will the preacher demonstrate the Love of neighbour? He should have companions; 'in pairs, two by two'. In the early Christian times, St. Boniface preached with an entire community. It was in this way that he showed how he loved his community and how his community loved him. All early missionary monks did it this way.
Today, it should be the same way. A parish priest should preach all the commands of Christ and how to observe them. If he does this then his love for his parishioners will show and the love of the parishioner for him will also be evident. That is the proper way of preaching. The same goes with the Bishops.
8. Modern defect.
Most priests and bishop do not preach ALL the commands of Christ. They do not know there are more than 80 commands spread out in the three cycles of the Liturgical Year. And they do not explain how these commands should be practiced due to lack of study of the Fathers of the Church. In effect, they do not love God.
And because they do not Love God which is his pattern of love of neighbour, then he does not love his neighbour either.
A parish priest who does not love God and his neighbour; parishioners who do not love God and neighbour........we have what Christ prophesied 'a parish experiencing the decay of Faith and the waxing cold of Charity.'
Sunday, July 03, 2016
Feast of the PRECIOUS BLOOD of CHRIST.
1. The Feast of the Precious Blood usually goes with the Feast of Corpus Christi.
The Mass speaks about the origin of Passover. It recounts the time the angel of death killed the first born of the Egyptians while sparing the Jews who obeyed God's command to sign their door posts and lintels with the blood of a lamb sacrificed for the purpose. The Jews were also given the added instruction not to leave the house until the danger is over. This latter instruction to stay in the house and not to leave the house will be prophetically repeated later.
The Israelite house is the type of the Catholic Church. The Catholics are those inside protected by the blood of the lamb. And they are not supposed to leave the house until the danger is over. The Gospel of the Mass describes the Last Supper. The instruction is identical. To be in a room; nobody else should be inside except those who were disciples of Christ or those who are members of the Church. And the Holy Eucharist would be confected in this environment.
The scene of Pentecost is identical. They were in a room, waiting for the Spirit. Membership in the room is exclusive. No outsiders were allowed. This shows the exclusiveness of membership inside the Catholic Church. Membership is so strict only God can chose who can enter. Entrance is through grace.
2. I just prepared a number of boys and girls for first Holy Communion. How do you prepare kids for first Holy Communion when Jesuits and Dominicans teach that Christ is not there in the Holy Eucharist. And that the host just signifies Jesus but is not Jesus Christ. Those were the speakers in the last International Eucharistic Congress here in the Philippines. It was fortunate the sound systems were not working well so the people did not hear the heresies preached.
3. The First Communion was being held on the Feast of the Precious Blood. And the readings were on the Paschal meal and the meal at the cenacle room.
Who were allowed inside the room.
We saw that those inside the room at the last supper and on Pentecost day were exclusively the members of the Church. So the goal of First Holy Communion is to be able to enter that room, called the Catholic Church, and be able to stay there permanently.
St. Paul described it and this was the main truth proposed by Pope John Paul II in his 'Veritatis Splendor.' Membership in the Catholic Church is exclusive and the decision to chose who can enter or not is on God alone. In the parable of the banquet we have God the Father, Himself, watching at the door and screening who can remain in the banquet and who are to be cast outside. It is not the priest, nor the bishop nor even the Pope who can decide who can attend the meetings inside the cenacles.
4. The white vest at baptism.
The white vest, the blue for boys, is a symbol off a spiritual reality; a soul without any worldly attachments. This is carried over to the preparation for first Holy Communion where they also wear while. It was adapted for the profession of nuns. Carried over to the while bridal gowns of brides. And finally practiced in the Sunday's best worn for Sunday Mass. The colour is white.
The pure heart is the sixth Beatitude. White is the symbol of a pure heart. The sixth Beatitude is very advanced in the spiritual life considering that the first Beatitude is the first degree of holiness. Imagine the sixth. And that is the ideal state of soul in receiving Holy Communion because the promised in this Beatitude is that 'they shall see the Face of God.
Holy Communion is a face to face encounter with God and the proper disposition for the recipient is to have a pure heart. To reach this level in the spiritual life we have to go through five previous levels of holiness. First, to be poor in spirit. Not necessarily to be a materially poor church that Pope Francis and some bishops who believe in Liberation Theology are propagating. The 'poor' is the spirit, not one's pockets. This is the necessary preparation to be able to 'mourn' for one's sin with sincere contrition. This, in turn, makes us meek removing all tendencies to be angry. This Beatitude, in turn, makes us hunger and thirst for righteousness and not for worldly pleasures. While this prepare us to be merciful. This concept of mercy is very far from Pope Francis' mercy that is mere tolerance for all sins.
Then and only then will the soul be ready to attain a pure heart and see the face of Christ in Holy Communion.
Now, the preparation for all of the Beatitudes before we can even begin with the first Beatitude is what St. Paul exhorted 'not to conform oneself to this world.' This advice made up the entire second part of 'Veritatis splendor.' And can you avoid conforming yourself to the ways of the world? By going home, selling all your things, giving them to the poor. And follow Christ. That first step top the following Christ is the First Beatitude.
5. The first communicants had made their first communion. They have spent sometime avoiding conforming themselves to the ways of the world. They are now on the way to the First Beatitude. When will they reach the sixth Beatitude and see the Face of God? In God's good time. Not very soon but if they follow the route of the Beatitudes they will surely reach there.
6. Preparation.
Preparations, therefore, for baptism, first Holy Communion, for ordination, for Holy Matrimony and Holy Orders is 'Do not be conformed to this world.' This is, also, the preparation for entering the Catholic Church and for entering into eternal life. It is the answer to the question; 'Lord what must I do to attain eternal life?' First, we must not conform our lives to the ways of the world. Then, afterwards, to do good.....which is the life of Beatitudes.
To go home, sell all your things and give it to the poor is the ambiance necessary to live a life free from all worldliness. While on the other hand, to be rich is the occasion to live a life in which we can satisfy all our worldly desires.
It was for this reason that Christ and John the Baptist lived a hidden life and a life in the desert. It was the reason the first monks went to the desert and mountain tops. To run away from the world.
It is for the same reason that Christ and John the Baptist preached in the desert; so the listeners will not be distracted by worldliness.
It is the only reason why we love to live in cities with all its conveniences; that convenience is the worldly life.
7. Reason why Pope Francis is popular.
This is the reason why Pope Francis is the darling of the world. He is the epitome of worldliness. Everything he says and does is of the world. Instead of making the Church 'in the world' but 'not of the world' he has made the Church identical with the world. Of course, with an adviser to his 'Amoris Laetitia' whose expertise is skill in kissing, well what did you expect.
The few attempts of the Pope to be spiritual are pathetic. It is like a dodo trying to fly. He never reached the spiritual or supernatural level. Look at his idea of family life. It is living with a second set of wife and a second set of children. And he complains that Filipino wives are like rabbits.
Well, we have seen that this is not his fault. It had been a defect in the seminary training since the 10th century of which he is just a victim. Even Joseph Ratzinger showed the ill effects of this faulty training in his early priesthood. Fortunately, Ratzinger was able to overcome this defect by his zeal to learn the truth. He must have learned this zeal from one of his favourite author, John Newman, whose zeal for the truth, changed him from being an Anglican to becoming a Catholic cardinal and to top it all a 'Blessed' of the Catholic Church.
Pope Francis is not interested in the truth. He just wants to please every body specially the big sinners. He is popular among the sinners; not among the serious theologians like the Cardinal head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith who hinted that he was a heretic because his main adviser to 'Amoris laetitia' was a heretic.
His neglect of the vow he made in assuming his papal office is criminal and scandalous. His every speech and action go against his papal vow. Whom am I to judge? No one. But the teachings of Jesus Christ is very clear quoted by St. Robert Bellarmine on the Marks of the true Church;.....If you try to destroy the true Church with false teachings, you will be punished with a miserable life before death and eternal perdition after. Don't the Jesuits have a copy of St. Bellarmine's writing? After all he is a Jesuit saint and doctor of the Church.
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