A Time for Repentance

"It was just about this time that some people arrived and told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with that of their sacrifices. At this he said to them, 'Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than any others, that this should have happened to them? They were not, I tell you. No; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did. Or those eighteen on whom the tower at Siloam fell, killing them all? Do you suppose that they were more guilty than all the other people living in Jerusalem? They were not, I tell you. No; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did.' " Luke 13:1-5

& that time is NOW!

Over the last few weeks several of my friends & I have noticed the strong call by God for repentance. It has been showing up in the Scripture Readings at Mass, in the Liturgy of the Hours, messages from people like Fr. Benedict Groeschell CFR, Fr. John Corapi SOLT, magazines like 1Bread, 1 Body, The Word Among Us, Intercessors for America, etc.

Naturally, we have looked at our own lives 1st. But we realize that this call to repentance is not merely for our personal sins, it is for the sinful "culture of death" that our country has so gleefully embraced. Abortion is viewed as a right, not murder, sexual activity that is clearly sinful is not only promoted it is glorified. TV is a cesspool of sin & vice. Gay marriage, birth control, I could go on & on. But I think we are all aware of what things are going on out there. & where they fail to live up to God's standards.

What is needed is a multi-pronged response. We need to start by following the example of Daniel. After having read the prophecy of Jeremiah he did the following: "I set my face to the Lord God, to seek by prayer and petitions, with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. I prayed to Yahweh my God, and made confession, and said, Oh, Lord, the great and dreadful God, who keeps covenant and lovingkindness with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned, and have dealt perversely, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even turning aside from your precepts and from your ordinances; neither have we listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land." Daniel 9:3-6 (emphasis mine) Even though he hadn't participated in the sins of Israel, he knew that as an Israelite he had a share of responsibility for the Nation's sins. His response was repentance & penance.

This call to repentance & penance is also the message of Fatima. In his commentary on The Message of Fatima, then Cardinal Ratzinger (Papa Benedetto) wrote: "“To save souls” has emerged as the key word of the first and second parts of the “secret”, and the key word of this third part is the threefold cry: “Penance, Penance, Penance!” The beginning of the Gospel comes to mind: “Repent and believe the Good News” (Mk 1:15). To understand the signs of the times means to accept the urgency of penance – of conversion – of faith. This is the correct response to this moment of history, characterized by the grave perils outlined in the images that follow. Allow me to add here a personal recollection: in a conversation with me Sister Lucia said that it appeared ever more clearly to her that the purpose of all the apparitions was to help people to grow more and more in faith, hope and love—everything else was intended to lead to this."

God is calling us to read the "signs of the times" & respond. God is calling His people to repent for the sins of the nation. He is calling us to do penance. & He is calling to preach the Gospel, to call those caught up in the "culture of death" to repentance. He wants us to respond. NOW!

& if we don't? Well, I think we have seen the starting signs of the coming chastisement. Things like the fires in California, the recent Earthquake, the floods in Iowa are all warnings.

I know what you are saying, that is why I started this post out, as I did, with the quote from Luke 13. No they are not worse sinners. Jesus makes that clear. Jesus also makes it clear what will happen if we don't repent: "unless you repent you will all perish as they did"! Ouch! Not very comforting, is it? But the words aren't ment to be. they are ment to be a call to action. & a warning of what we face if we fail to head that call.

Many approved Marian apparitions, the message of many mystics, the call by the Pope is to repentance. & what will happen if we fail. The message of Fatima contained a warning of what would happen if we failed to head the message. & as Sr. Lucia said in a letter to Pope John Paul (12 May 1982): "Since we did not heed this appeal of the Message, we see that it has been fulfilled, Russia has invaded the world with her errors. And if we have not yet seen the complete fulfilment of the final part of this prophecy, we are going towards it little by little with great strides. If we do not reject the path of sin, hatred, revenge, injustice, violations of the rights of the human person, immorality and violence, etc."

God doesn't want to chastise us. He wants us to repent. If not we will bear the fruit of our choices. Again from Sr. Lucia's letter: "And let us not say that it is God who is punishing us in this way; on the contrary it is people themselves who are preparing their own punishment. In his kindness God warns us and calls us to the right path, while respecting the freedom he has given us; hence people are responsible”" (Emphasis mine)

Prayer, repentance, evangelization. This is the multi-pronged response God is calling us to. I will not say it will be easy, it won't. When we proclaim God's message we will face scoffing, ridicule, rejection. We may be persecuted. Some of us may even be martyred for proclaiming the truth. That is the price we need to be willing to pay. But you know what, I'd rather pay that price than face chastisement. I'd rather pay the price of my life, if need be, than risk eternity in Hell.

For the record, I have faced the scoffing, the ridicule, the persecution. I don't say it to brag or to look for sympathy, I say it to let you know that I am not merely blowing hot air. I know what I am talking about. I've had to make the decision to pay the price, to be like John the Baptist, a voice crying in the wilderness.

Satan would love for us to give into fear. Then we are silenced. I would rather operate out of another fear, fear of the Lord. That fear leads to respect of God & a desire to obey His commands, including that to be His witnesses.

We need not fear. Time & time again Jesus said He would be with us to strengthen us, to guide us, to give us the words we need. he promised the Holy Spirit to enable us to do what we are called to do.

So, the question is this: What are you going to do?

Are you going to say everything is alright?

Pretend things are just fine?

By doing so, you will help hasten the coming day of Chastisement.

Or you can respond to God's call.

"Now, therefore, reform your ways and your deeds; listen to the voice of the LORD your God, so that the LORD will repent of the evil with which he threatens you." Jeremiah 26:13

PRAY!!!!!

REPENT!!!!!

EVANGELIZE!!!!!

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If you would like to read more about the coming chastisement, what the Church teaches, what the mystics & visionaries have said, then I recomend you read Trial, Tribulation & Triumph: Before, During and After the AntiChrist by Desmond Birch (ISBN-10: 1882972732, ISBN-13: 978-1882972739). The book is published by Queenship Publishing Company. I have read the book. It is an excellent synthesis of the Catholic Church approved sources on this subject.