Posted on 11/07/2016 10:20:38 PM PST by sockmonkey
Recently we’ve been talking about spiritual warfare – the war between satan and Saint Michael, the war between the prince of this world and the Kingdom of God. It becomes even more tangible when you see the occult connection between a party’s platform and their personal life, as we saw in recently released emails regarding “spirit cooking” (if you don’t know what that is, look it up, it’s not just “performance art”).
I think sometimes we hear phrases like “culture of life” and “culture of death” and we can grow deaf to their full meaning. When the Church speaks of the life vs death culture war we are engaged in, this is actually what She is talking about, this battle between the dragon, who wants to devour the Child, and the Woman, who represents both Our Lady and the Church, who gives birth to the King of kings and so defeats the dragon. When you hear the Church say that we must put the life principles above all other issues, and at the top of that is the right to life of the unborn, She knows what She’s talking about. One political party has been called the Party of Death by many Catholics and Christians because of their unwavering commitment to abortion on demand and their alignment with anti-life principles. This naturally moves into attacks on religious liberty, two obvious examples are the court cases filed by EWTN and the Little Sisters of the Poor in response to the HHS Mandate. They, and many, many other Catholic and religious groups, want to continue operating without violating their deeply held religious convictions (convictions which one candidate stated publicly “have to be changed”) by being forced to provide contraceptive coverage to employees.
St. Ignatius urges us to “wake up”, to be aware of evil within and without, in our own hearts and in the world around us. We do ourselves, our country, and countless innocent children, born and unborn, a great disservice if we shut our eyes to the evil which is being revealed. We might feel discouraged, we might feel hopeless but we actually have so many reasons to hope. Jesus Christ is our first hope; He has defeated death and the kingdom of death, and we are united with Him in our baptism, and can be united to Him daily in Holy Communion.
Jesus has given Our Lady to us as a mother and protector, and it’s her job to crush the serpent’s head. She is working, and it may be that her time of triumph is quite close. Remember the vision of Pope Leo XIII? On October 13, 1884, he was standing at the foot of the altar after Mass when he overheard two voices in conversation, that seemed to come from near the tabernacle. A harsh voice said “I can destroy your Church.” A gentle voice replied, “You can? Then go ahead and do so.” The wicked voice said it needed more time, 75-100 years, and more power over those who would give themselves to his service. The gentle voice acceded saying, “You have the time, you have the power. Do with them what you will.” After hearing this conversation the Holy Father immediately went and composed the prayer to St. Michael which he requested be recited after every low Mass. Exactly 33 years later, on October 13, 1917, Our Lady’s final apparition to the three children in Fatima took place and the miracle of the sun was witnessed by tens of thousands of people. Our Lady called for prayer and sacrifice for peace, for the conversion of Russia. She foretold suffering and war if her message was not heeded, but that in the end her Immaculate Heart would triumph.
Perhaps the 100 year reign of satan is in its final stage, and that is why he reveals himself so blatantly now – he knows the end is near and he’s pulling out all the stops. We don’t know what will happen this week, but we can be sure of a few things. Firstly, that we must pray, pray, pray and fast for God’s Will to be done, for hearts to be converted, and for evil to be expelled from our nation. We must vote according to the Church’s teachings on the non-negotiable issues: the dignity of human life from conception to natural death; the dignity of marriage and the family, the building block of every society; and religious freedom, including the rights of parents to educate their children. We must trust in God and speak the Truth – it is a weapon, a sword, Our Lord tells us, and a powerful weapon it is. Truth is not just an opinion or a thought, it’s actually a Person: Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. When we speak in truth we are united to Him. In prayer, especially through meditating on His life in the Rosary, we come to know Him more deeply, and to be conformed more and more into His image. Our Lady can teach us so much about her Son, and we need to stay close to her through the Rosary.
It’s become commonplace in our culture for people to deny God, but also to deny the reality of evil. It’s even tempting for those of us who believe in God to deny evil at times because it is so frightening. But seeing evil so starkly presented can be an occasion for souls to turn to good, to turn to God. Our Lady will triumph, we can be certain of that, and she is already working in the hearts and minds of many who don’t yet know her or her Son. Continue to pray for the protection of all the truth-tellers who are putting their life and work on the line, we are so grateful to God for their courage.
I love listening to the Rosary with Fr. Groeschel which airs on EWTN. In his meditations for the sorrowful mysteries we hear that whenever good confronts evil there is suffering. Right now this confrontation is happening on a grand scale in our country. And there will be suffering. We don’t really know what that might look like, but we must keep in mind that we worship a Crucified Savior. He saved us through the Cross, and we are called to follow in His footsteps. Suffering, even dying, is not the worst thing that can happen to us. Sin and spending eternity without God are what we should fear. Put on the armor of God, pray, support all those who fight with the sword of Truth by your prayers and sacrifices – I’m sure many of them aren’t familiar with spiritual warfare, but they are committed to truth and transparency. We can aid them in the fight by intercessory prayer.
When Our Lady of America spoke to Sr. Mildred Neuzil she said that America was called to be a beacon of purity for the entire world.
“I wish it to be the country dedicated to my purity. The wonders I will work will be the wonders of the soul. They must have faith and believe firmly in my love for them. I desire that they be the children of my Pure Heart. I desire, through my children in America, to further the cause of faith and purity among peoples and nations…I do not promise miracles of the body, but of the soul.” … “Pray and do penance, my sweet child, that this may come to pass.” (Diary, Pgs. 10-15.)
America is consecrated to the Immaculate Conception, she who was conceived free from original sin, the Purissima. May she intercede for our nation and make it pure, God-fearing, and committed to protecting the most vulnerable members of our society. May she build in each of our hearts a culture of life.
Great read. Thank you.
This is very uplifting and encouraging.
Thank you.
Thank you for posting and thanks to all the nuns who are praying.
bttt
Thank you for posting this and thank you for your prayers!
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