Former Abortionist to Be Speaker @ 2013 DCRTL LIFE Dinner

On 26 April 2013, DBQ Co. Right to Life will have its twenty-first annual L.I.F.E. Dinner. The speaker will be Dr. John T. Bruchalski. Dr. Bruchalski is a former abortionist who is a leader in  showing what authentic health care is. Health care that doesn't include abortion but does have a place for Jesus' healing presence.

Dr. Bruchalski was raised a Catholic, but like so many people, he began to drift away from the faith when he left home. The Catholic college he attended, like so many then (& still now) didn't  help to build his faith. Instead, many professors convinced him the Church would change to conform to modern values on abortion, birth control, homosexuality, etc.
In 1983 he entered medical school at the University of Southern Alabama. In order to be what he thought would be the best gynecologist he could be, he learned the different methods there were for abortion, sterilization & artificial reproduction. During his residency he began providing them. He did so because abortion etc seemed to be "the way to promote health and happiness and wholeness in a woman's reproductive life."
But the results seemed to prove just the opposite, so doubts began creeping in.  At the same time, the call to return to his Catholic faith began.
Right before he entered residency he took a trip to Mexico with a friend. At Guadelupe, he says he heard Our Lady of Guadalupe ask him "Why are you hurting me?" Between his 2nd & 3rd years of residency he went with his mother to Medjugorje.* There his conversion was complete. He returned, & although it took a year to completely extricate himself, he did get out of doing the proceedures he was involved with.
At the same time, he began reading the writings of Blessed John Paul, especially his Theology of the Body. He also began learning about natural family planning as well as studying the advances in natural reproductive technology made by Dr. Hilgers, founder of the Pope Paul VI Institute for the Study of Human Reproduction in Omaha.
In 1993 he received board certification. In 1994 he founded the Tepeyac Family Center in Fairfax, VA. You can read more about what he has done since then in two posts I wrote, here & here.
Since I have posted about him before, obviously I am excited that he will be speaking in DBQ later this month. In the past few years we have seen the way health care has embraced the "culture of death" agenda more & more openly, especially under ObamaCare. His story shows us that there is a better way. The way God intends health care to be operating, as a part of a "Culture of Life".
So if you are able to attend the 2013 L.I.F.E. Dinner please do so.
The event begins @ 5:30 pm with a social hour. The complimentary dinner begins @ 6:45 pm. Dr. Bruchalski will speak @ &:45 pm. The dinner is being held at the Grand River Center, 500 Bell ST in DBQ.
Reservations are needed in order for DCRTL to be able to order the proper number of meals. You can contact DCRTL @ 563-556-5960 from 9 am to 4 pm CDT, Monday through Friday. Their e-mail address is dcrtl@dcrtl.org . The date for responding by is 19 April 2013. After that date reservations cannot be guarenteed.
I hope to see you there.

________________________
* The Church has yet to rule on Medjugorje. Until that time I make no judgment either way. All I will say is his conversion is just a small part of the good spiritual fruit born in the lives of many who go there.

Habemus Papam - Francesco

Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum;
habemus Papam:

Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum,
Dominum Georgium Marium
Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem Bergoglio
qui sibi nomen imposuit Franciscum

I won't deny that I was a bit surprized that  Jorge Mario Cardinal Bergoglio SJ,  now Pope Francis was elected the 266th Supreme Pontiff. But I was more surprized that it came as soon as it did. I honestly expected the election to go until Friday. But the Holy Spirit had other plans.

I will also admit that I know very little about Papa Francesco. I do like what I see however. It is clear he is strongly pro-life. In 2007, he presented the final final version of the "Aparecida Document". That document was a joint statement of the bishops of Latin America regarding the situation of the Church in their countries.  It had been approved by Papa Benedetto XVI in July 2007. Paragraph 436 makes it clear that abortion supporters are not to be allowed to receive communion. It said "we should commit ourselves to ‘eucharistic coherence’, that is, we should be conscious that people cannot receive holy communion and at the same time act or speak against the commandments, in particular when abortion, euthanasia, and other serious crimes against life and family are facilitated. This responsibility applies particularly to legislators, governors, and health professionals."

He was very harsh in his criticism of the recent forced abortion done on a mentally retarding woman during the speech at the presentation. He said "in Argentina we have the death penalty. A child conceived by the rape of a mentally ill or retarded woman can be condemned to death." He also pointed out that "the most mentioned word in the Aparecida Document is ‘life’, because the Church is very conscious of the fact that the cheapest thing in Latin America, the thing with the lowest price, is life." 

Additionally, he spoke out against euthenasia. "In Argentina there is clandestine euthanasia. Social services pay up to a certain point; if you pass it, ‘die, you are very old’. Today, elderly people are discarded when, in reality, they are the seat of wisdom of the society," he said, and observed that "the right to life means allowing people to live and not killing, allowing them to grow, to eat, to be educated, to be healed, and to be permitted to die with dignity."

During his time as head of the Buenos Aires Archdiocese, he was outspoken in defending the Church's teachings on marriage. He has called what has been pushed as same-sex marriage "demonic". He has also spoken out against the distribution of free contraception as well as the push for free artificial insemination. He also called adoptions by gays as being wrong, that it discriminates against children.
From this, it is very clear that we can expect some clashes between him & Obama as well as the pro-abort Catolics in his administration.
It is also clear that he has a strong concern for the poor & has been very pastoral in his approach as Archbishop.

He spoke out very loudly about how children are abused & exploited in Argentina.  "Children are mistreated, and are not educated or fed. Many are made into prostitutes and exploited. And this happens here in Buenos Aires, in the great city of the south. Child prostitution is offered in some five star hotels: it is included in the entertainment menu, under the heading ‘Other’."

He also stood up for the children who were born out of wedlock to be baptized. Talking to his priests he said "In our ecclesiastical region there are priests who don't baptize the children of single mothers because they weren't conceived in the sanctity of marriage. These are today's hypocrites. Those who clericalize the Church. Those who separate the people of God from salvation. And this poor girl who, rather than returning the child to sender, had the courage to carry it into the world, must wander from parish to parish so that it's baptized!"
In the days ahead, I suspect you will see the long knives come out because he didn't do all the left thinks he should of done in speaking out against human rights abuses during the time the country was ruled by a dictatorship/junta. But from what it sounds like to me, he did more behind the scenes just as Pope Pius XII did in WW II.

I find his choice of Francis very interesting. I have often wondered why the name wasn't chosen before. After all, there have been several Franciscans elected Pope. I will admit that sometimes in my wildest dreams, I thought I would take the name Francis if elected Pope.

Still, I doubt he chose the name because he sees St. Francis as a tree hugging hippie that the liberal Catholycs paint him as. Instead, like so many others have said, I think he is sending a clear message that, like his namesake, he is being called by God to "rebuild His Church." Francis did that by preaching the Gospel, being faithful to the teachings of the Church, as well as submissive to Church authority, esp the Pope.

I will admit that my only concern is that he was a Jesuit. But after seeing how solid he is, those concerns have faded.

The fact that he is 76, not much younger than Papa Benedetto was when he was elected as well as the fact that he does has some health issues, only 1 long since he had one removed as a teen, tells me that the Cardinals were more concerned with electing the right person than someone who met a specific age or health criteria.

Additionally, the fact that he is of Italiano heritage, his parents immigrated from Italia & that, like both my grandfathers & my maternal Italiano great grandfather, his father was a railway worker gives me some added affection for him.

Add to that the aforementioned devotion I have to St. Francis.

Another interesting thing is that he is ordinary for Eastern Catholics in Argentina who do not have a prelate. That means he has more than a passing knowledge of what Blessed John Paul II called the "other lung of the Church." So, you can be sure he will be pastorally sensative to their needs as well.

Overall, my 1st view is a positive one. I don't expect him to do everything the way I would. But I do believe that God has a purpose in his election far beyond what I can see at this point.

I ask that God bless Papa Francesco in all his efforts. May the Holy Spirit gift him with all he needs to do so. May Mary & Joseph guard & protect him. May his reign truly bring glory to God as he steers the barque of Peter.

________________
Note: (2:33 pm 14 March 2013) I have gone back & edited out the 2 uses of I after Papa Francesco's name as the Vatican has asked that it not be used. Technically they are right. It began with John Paul I using it but even then it shouldn't have been. But with his short pontificate & his successor, Blessed John Paul II, taking the name, the issue was moot.

Who Does Obama Think He Is Fooling?

Did you know today was Religious Freedom Day? No, don't feel bad, until earlier today neither did I. Maybe it is because Obama didn't issue the proclamation until earlier today.

Actually, this day has been around only since 1993 when  President George H.W. Bush issued the 1st proclamation. It was done in response to a joint resolution of the US House of Representatives & Senate.

Today was chosen because it was on this day in 1786 that the Virginia Legislature adopted Thomas Jefferson' Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. The statute is considered the model for the 1st amendment "Freedom of Religion" clause.

After reading the 2013 Proclamation, something tells me that Obama better go back & read what the original statute actually says. 

Obama starts the proclamation out by saying "Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose." (emphasis mine) While that is a part of it, that isn't the main part of the Statute or the 1st Amendment. The main part is freedom to practice your religion in the public square as well as the privacy of your home or church.
For anyone who has paid attention to how Obama has framed the debate over the past few years, that he always says "freedom to worship" when talking about religious rights. It reflects Obama's socialist mindset as it is right out of the Soviet Constitution. & we all know how well they respected even that. Don't ever forget how the Soviet Union took away all the Ukrainian Byzantine Catholic Churches & did all they could to totally shut the Ukrainian Catholic Church. & that is just 1 example.
We are seeing the same thing in the USA. The HHS mandate is basically telling everyone that as long as you stay in Church, & then only with people of your own faith, you can do what you want. But should you open a hospital, feed the poor, teach students or the many other works of mercy done by those in the Church, & you pay people to help you run the program, institution, etc  (& even if you don't in many cases),or run a business, then we can tell you what to do, even to the point of making you pay for abortions, artificial birth control & even support gay marriage.
That Obama is doing all this is what makes the rest of the proclamation a hypocritical joke.
In the same paragraph he says the statute affirmed that "all men shall be free to profess . . . .their opinions in matters of religion." He goes on to admit the statute was the model for the 1st Amendment.
But wait, it gets worse as he goes on to add what else this means. Yet compare what he says here to what he is actually doing. He says that the Constitution guarantees "each of us has the right to practice our faith openly as we choose."
Oh yeah???? Then why is he telling businesses like Tyndale Publishing & Hobby Lobby that they must put their faith in the closet when it comes to paying for types of contraception they don't approve of? Tyndale's primary owner is a non-profit religious organization. But Obama says since the publishing house makes a profit, it has to cover contraception. Never mind that all it publishes are Bibles & other Christian materials.
Hercules Industries, which is owned by a Catholic family recently won a court order against the mandate. Yet, by Obama's standards the court was wrong.
Then there all the Catholic & Protestant Colleges that are non-profit, like Belmont Abbey & Wheaton. Yet Obama wants them to pay for contraceptives & abortifacients. Never mind that it goes against their beliefs.  Because they are open to those outside the faith to attend, then they must offer incense to the god of abortion according to Obama.
In the end, this is a huge part of what it boils down to. The "culture of death" that is behind all this is demonic in origin as I have oft said, along with many others. It's main sacrament is abortion. Although euthanasia is starting to grow in popularity to worship the jealous god it sets up.
That god won't allow any competition. At least from Christianity. So its priests & prophets have set out to destroy it from without & within. With huge blocks of protestantism it has succeeded. look at how most mainline protestant churches accept birth control and abortion. Yet Satan won't rest until he has destroyed the Catholic Church. We all know he never will. God has promised us that. But his pride is such that he will keep trying until Christ returns.
Obama & his supporters in the "culture of death" will use this declaration as a cover saying "see he really is doing all he can to protect religious freedom." Yet, they know his goal is to destroy it, along with the rest of the Constitution.
We must continue to stand up for our rights as Christians, just as the early martyrs did in the Roman Empire. We are not to the point of facing death, yet. We may some day be there, if God allows it.
Our responsibility at this point isn't to worry about what may or may not be. We must pray harder than ever. We must pray for God to change the hearts of those in the "culture of death", to set them free from the bondage they are in. We must also pray for the strength we need, asking God to pour out the gifts of the Spirit we need to face what lies ahead. We must also ask for the courage to take the needed actions to fight in words & deeds. We must keep repenting for the sins of our nation, doing penance for those sins to make reparation to God. If there is a Perpetual adoration Chapel within  reasonable proximity of where you are, like 20-50 miles or less, go & spend time worshiping Jesus hidden under the form of a piece of bread. Pray there as well.
Then whatever happens, we will be ready to respond as God wants us to.

The Real Meaning of Inclusive As Used by Those Claiming to Be Just That

By now I am sure most of you have heard the story about Atlanta Pastor Louie Giglio who was invited to give the benediction at President Obama's 2nd Inaugural ceremony & then was criticized by Obama supporters after a liberal watchdog group for a sermon he once gave on homosexuality. The furor lead him to withdraw from participating.

What did Pastor Giglio say that was so horrible? 20 years ago he preached a sermon saying homosexuality was a sin & that the "only way out of a homosexual lifestyle. . . .  is through the healing power of Jesus." (Note: I am assuming he meant homosexual acts, not simply homosexual orientation per se.) It sounds to me like what he said lines up pretty well with what the Catholic Church teaches (Catechism 2357-59)

After he withdrew Addie Whisenant of the inaugaral committee issued a statement  that was part admission that he had been disinvited, part apology to the ultra-liberal left that Obama represents & part insight into that groups hypocricy when it talks about inclusivity.

The statement said that they were looking for someone who would "reflect this administration's vision of inclusion and acceptance for all Americans." (Emphasis mine)

In other words only those who agree with Obama's agenda for gay marriage, abortion, turning this country into a socialist dictatorship, etc will be included & accepted. The rest of us are persona non gratia.

They are saying it shows an unwillingness to be accepting when you follow the example of Jesus & call sin sin. So we will refuse to include you or accept you until you kowtow to our party line.

Despite what liberals who claim to be Christian say, Jesus did define marriage as only  between a man & woman. In Matthew 19:5 &  Mark 10:7 he says so citing Genesis 2:24 as His basis for this. Paul reiterates this in Ephesians 5:31. Jesus reached out to sinners because they were spiritually ill & needed healing, not having their sins condoned as Obama's gang does. I can guarantee you that Jesus would be no more welcome than Pastor Giglio.

While Pastor Giglio may not agree width all the teachings of the Catholic Church, they do have one thing in common, despite the great work they both do fighting sex trafficking they have both been attacked by the Obama administration. In this case I am specifically referring the how the Catholic Church  was denied a grant by the Obama administration for its work in combating sex trafficking because they wouldn't refer women for abortions. 

While this may not be as big an attack on religious freedom as the HHS mandate is, it does show us that this administration is anything but tolerant towards those who disagree with his building a "culture of death". They practice intolerance in the name of promoting it. Ditto for inclusiveness.

In his piece on how Pastor Giglio is being treated Dr. Albert Mohler Jr., he describes what happened as a "Modern McCarthyism". That is true, as far as it goes. However, there is one huge difference. For all his, alledged, faults in what he did, McCarthy was trying to save the country from being destroyed from within, not destroy it as Obama is.

This is just one more reminder about why we must be praying for this country as well as repenting for the sins of this nation. If we don't, then we will be just as responsible for the judgement this nation will face as those who brought it about by actively rebelling against God.

Hobby Lobby Appreciation Day

Since HHS issued the mandate requiring colleges & businesses to pay for artificial birth control & abortion pills like ella, many of the Catholic, as well as protestant colleges & businesses have gone to court to stop the enforcement of that mandate on 1 January 2013 (or later in some cases). While some have gotten the stay, others haven't.

 

1 of those that didn't get the stay was Hobby Lobby. The owners filed their lawsuit because they were opposed to having to pay for drugs that could cause abortions.* Their request for a stay was denied by the lower court, they made an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court. The justice who was responsible for the appeal was Obama appointee Sonia Sotomayor. She refused to issue an emergeny stay saying that Hobby Lobby did not show it met the legal standard for blocking enforcement on an emergency basis. She did say that the company can continue with its lawsuit in lower court.

Hobby Lobby responded by saying that rather than comply on 1 January 2013 to the mandate, it would refuse & risk the fines of $1.3 million a day.

As a result of their brave stand, Joe Grabowski has organized a Hobby Lobby Appreciation Day inspired by the “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day” promoted this past August by Governor Mike Huckabee.

 

The Facebook page states the plan as follows: "On Saturday, January 5th, all Americans who value freedom of religion and oppose the HHS Mandate's unfair impositions upon religious individuals and corporate entities are called upon to show their support for Hobby Lobby by shopping either at their local retail Hobby Lobby store or online."

It is important that we support businesses like this so they know that they are not alone. It will also make those businesses that are owned by those who claim to be faithful Catholics or Christians of any faith who have not had the courage to stand up know that they are risking alienating their customers. Additionally, it will remind them that their putting profits before God is not the way they are suppoed to live out their faith.

 

__________

* The Greens do not oppose artificial birth control. Sadly they do not understand that the pill & other forms of birth control like the IUD also cause abortions. But the fact that they understand the dangers in drugs like ella that the FDA calls a contraceptive means that they are open to the truth. We need to pray that they come to a fuller understanding of the Christian faith so that they realize that from the start any form of artificial birth control was considered wrong by the Church. In the meantime, we should show our support as I say above in order to witness to them that they are heading in the right direction, even if not totally there yet.

Things That Made Baby Jesus Cry in 2012

It is time for my 3rd Annual look at things that made Baby Jesus cry over the past year. Normally, I have done this on the last day of the year, but didn't get around it until today. As I thought about who to include, I couldn't help but think of the line from Casablanca where  Captain Louis Renault says "Round up the usual suspects!"

 

So that is exactly what I did, round them up.
I am sure that those included will be of no surprize to faithful Catholics who have been scandalized by their actions. & may I remind these dissidents, not that they care, that their scandals are a sin against the 5th Commandmant "Thou shalt not kill."

 

1. Obviously, this has to be the Obama administration's pushing of HHS Mandate attack on the 1st amendment protection of religious liberty. This mandate will force every Catholic institution to provide for artificial birth control coverage as a part of their insurance plans. Many of those types of artificial birth control are abortafaceants as well. In addition, this attack is on those of other faiths as well who will be forced to provide coverage for things that go against their faith (re: Hobby Lobby for example.) 

2. While we are on the subject of the Obama Administration, let us not forget all those Democrats 1st while claiming to be good Catholics in the Administration as well as the US Congress that gave their full support to the mandate, as well as Planned Parenthood & abortion. The list includes VP Joe Biden, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sibelius, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, his wife Christie Vilsack who ran for the House of Representatives for the 4th District in Iowa (Thank God she lost), Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi & way too many others to list.

3. This leads me to the Nuns on the Bus, especially Sr.Simone Campbell. It was bad enough that they went arround the country claiming that they knew better than Bishop Morlino as to what made up authentic application of Catholic Social teaching in Paul Ryan's budget. Bishop Morlino & other Bishops made it clear that his budget met the prudential judgment standard. They tried to make it sound like the USCCB had officially condemned it rather than making it clear that this statement was from 1 of the Bishops as head of his committee, Bishop Blaire.

She failed to point out that the statement was not a magesterial teaching. To do so would show her dissent from authentic teaching as well as that of the other LCWR gang who were involved in the Nuns on the Bus campaign. (Don't worry, more about the LCWR later.) Sr Simone made it clear in June that ObamaCare was pro-life, despite it's promoting of artificial birth control & abortion. She was 1 of the speakers at the 2012 Democratic Convention that had only pro-abortion speakers at the podium. 

4. Next up we have the Leadership Council of Women Religious (LCWR) & their defiance of the Vatican despite the proof found by the Vatican investigation that they are promoting heresy. 1 of the groups they were criticized for supporting was NETWORK. This group claims to be Catholic but supports ObamaCare, including abortion. NETWORK was a sponsor of the Nuns on the Bus. I have put up several posts about the LCWR dissent so no need to go into major detail here. Just repeat that they are blatently undermining the magesterial teachings of the Catholic Church as well as supporting New Age teachings among other things. & to top it off they lied about the process, ignoring their unwillingness to cooperate. They also criticizing the attempt by the Vatican to protect those Nuns who feared retribution becaue they spoke out about their concerns. The LCWR forgot to mention that was what the alledged secrecy was actually about.

5. As long as we are on dissident nuns let us not forget the head of the Catholic Health Association, Sr. Carol Keehan. Last June she applauded the Supreme Court upholding ObamaCare. But that was not surprizing as she supported the passage of it in the 1st place without criticism of its pro- abortion, pro-birth control sections. She took this stand in defiance of the USCCB & enabled those supporting ObamaCare to undermine the USCCB's efforts to protect the religious rights of the Church & individuals.

6. Catholics United, for telling the US Bishops to shut up rather than defending the Catholic Church's teachings from attack by the Obama Administration. They also want the Catholic Church to shut up about abortion being wrong & why it is a sin to vote for candidates that support abortion. Then, lest we forget, they feel the same way when a deacon, priest or Bishop speaks out against gay marriage.

7. National Catholic Reporter, aka the National Catholic Fishwrap, aka the Non-Catholic Reporter (Non-CR), for their innumerable articles, columns etc that attacks the Pope, the authentic teachings of the Catholic Church & promoted dissent & heresy.

8. Melinda Gates makes the list for claiming to be a good Catholic while promoting population control, artificial birth control & abortion through the Gates Foundation she heads with her husband, Bill.

9. Those Catholics who voted for Obama & other Pro-abortion Democrats in the November election.

 

You may have noticed how some names & groups kept popping up throughout the list. This should be no surprize as they are all working toward destroying the Church founded by Jesus Christ. In fact, if I went into more detail, I could make this look like a version of 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon called 6 degrees of Catholic dissent.  In fact, I can do it very simply by pointing out that somewhere in the past years issues of the Non-CR you will find at least 1 article about all of the things I mentioned.
1 other thing I am willing to bet, most of those on the list will do their best to make my 2013 list as well.

"A Christmas Carol" Was Scrooge a Liberal turned Conservative?

 

 

My favorte Christmas movie is, was & likely always will be the 1951 version of A Christmas Carol (aka Scrooge) starring Alastair Sim. I grew up watching it rerun every year on KCRG-TV on the Sunday afternoon before Christmas. There have been many other versions but this remains the definitive version.

I say this because, more than the others it captures the solid Christian message that Dickens includes when he wrote it in 1843. (More on that here)

Unfortunately KCRG no longer has the rights to air it, but thank to DVD I can dig it out any time I want. I will admit I also having & watching several other versions as well. Each has their strengths & weaknesses. But I still enjoy them. (No, the recent Jim Carrey version is not among them. & based on the trailer, not 1 I care to add to the collection.)

So naturally, I have been watching those various versions the past few days, as well as reading the book. This year as I started watching them, I noticed something interesting, how contemporary Scrooge is despite this taking place in 1843.  Scrooge at the start of the book would fit in today among the liberal elites & support their agenda. By the end of the book he would be more like the modern conservative.

Why do I say this? For several reasons.

1st of all, Scrooge hated Christmas. He wanted to stop people from saying "Merry Christmas!" or publicly celebrating it. Remember what he told his nephew Fred " Merry Christmas! Out upon merry Christmas! . . .   If I could work my will, every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!" Don't we see that today with the way saying Merry Christmas is condemned as being insensative as well as all the attempts to keep even schools from celebrating Christmas because it isn't PC to do so?

Next up, let us look at his view on who should be responsible for the poor. We see this it what he said to the 2 gentlemen from a private charity seeking donations to help the poor with their needs, like food & fuel.

"Are there no prisons?" asked Scrooge.

"Plenty of prisons," said the gentleman, laying down the pen again.

"And the Union workhouses?" demanded Scrooge. "Are they still in operation?"

"They are. Still," returned the gentleman, "I wish I could say they were not."

"The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?" said Scrooge.

"Both very busy, sir."

"Oh! I was afraid, from what you said at first, that something had occurred to stop them in their useful course," said Scrooge. "I'm very glad to hear it."

"Under the impression that they scarcely furnish Christian cheer of mind or body to the multitude," returned the gentleman, "a few of us are endeavouring to raise a fund to buy the Poor some meat and drink and means of warmth. We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices. What shall I put you down for?"

"Nothing!" Scrooge replied.

"You wish to be anonymous?"

"I wish to be left alone," said Scrooge. "Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. I don't make merry myself at Christmas and I can't afford to make idle people merry. I help to support the establishments I have mentioned -- they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there." (emphasis mine)

In other words, Scrooge believed that it was the responsibility of government to deal with the poor & their needs.

Next up we have what he said next to the 2 gentlemen about "the surplus population."

"If they would rather die," said Scrooge, "they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population." (emphasis mine)

That quote was  reference to the Malthusian view that we can only sustain a certain number of people on Earth. Thus, there need to be checks on the number of people born. This theory is the basis for the promoters of population control, especially in the 3rd world, that we see today. They use this much discredited idea to justify artificial birth control as well as abortion.

Malthus would also have been at home with Peter Singer's idea that a person has to earn the right to live as well.

It is also clear that Scrooge doesn't believe in God. Or at best, denied the existance of Hell? Remember how, at 1st, he doubted that Marley's ghost was real?

 

 

It wasn't until he admitted that he believed Marley's ghost was real that his conversion could begin.

It is also clear that despite the fact that he was "a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!" he didn't see what he, or Marley did, by not caring for the least of his brethren, was wrong. I'll get back to this later.

But, before I go on, I have to point out 1 other thing Dicken's criticizes, using Scrooge to point it out. In the 3rd Stave Scrooge tells the Spirit of Christmas Present that in his name the liberal elite of thier time were trying to pass laws that would shut down the bakeries where the poor brought their Sunday meat to be roasted as well as put limits on their recreation. These laws, sponsored by Sir Andrew Agnew would have left the elite unaffected.

I can hear some people saying "Wasn't Dickens attacking capitalism?" To that I say "NO!" What he was doing was attacking the abuses done in the name of capitalism. In fact, after his repentance we see Scrooge living out what we find in the Catholic Church's social teachings beginning with those by Pope Leo XIII especiallyRerum Novarum. I am going to make a few references from the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church here, but I recommending reading the complete teaching as found in the Compendium as well as the Catechism. 1st of all, the Catholic Church condemns socialism in all forms (par 89 & 267). It also points out the "value of private property" (par 92) It calls for the right use of private property as well as profit.(Par 330-349) "The social doctrine of the Church recognizes the proper role of profit as the first indicator that a business is functioning well: “when a firm makes a profit, this means that productive factors have been properly employed”. " . . . . "It is essential that within a business the legitimate pursuit of profit should be in harmony with the irrenounceable protection of the dignity of the people who work at different levels in the same company. These two goals are not in the least contrary to one another, since, on the one hand, it would not be realistic to try to guarantee the firm's future without the production of useful goods and services and without making a profit, which is the fruit of the economic activity undertaken. On the other hand, allowing workers to develop themselves fosters increased productivity and efficiency in the very work undertaken. " (par 340)

As an aside I would like to have people look at par 291. It says "The duty of the State does not consist so much in directly guaranteeing the right to work of every citizen, making the whole of economic life very rigid and restricting individual free initiative, as much as (instead it consists) in the duty to “sustain business activities by creating conditions which will ensure job opportunities, by stimulating those activities where they are lacking or by supporting them in moments of crisis”." (emphasis & comment mine) Dicken's clearly opposed government efforts to control everything, just to ensure that workers would be treated fairly & justly, just like the Catholic Church does.

As I pointed out, Scrooge was a sinner. & Marley was allowed to return to Scrooge as the start of bringing about his conversion. In desribing the punishment of Marley & the other sinners of his ilk, we see echoes of Dante's Inferno.

Their punishment is based on their sins. We see that in the chains they wear that they "forged in life." We see that in how Marley's "hair, and skirts, and tassels, were still agitated as by the hot vapour from an oven." & we see it especially in what Scrooge was shown by Marley from his window. "The air was filled with phantoms, wandering hither and thither in restless haste, and moaning as they went. Every one of them wore chains like Marley's Ghost; some few (they might be guilty governments) were linked together; none were free. Many had been personally known to Scrooge in their lives. He had been quite familiar with one old ghost, in a white waistcoat, with a monstrous iron safe attached to its ankle, who cried piteously at being unable to assist a wretched woman with an infant, whom it saw below, upon a door-step. The misery with them all was, clearly, that they sought to interfere, for good, in human matters, and had lost the power for ever."

The change in Scrooge began with Marley's visit. But it should be seen as only the door openning to the working of God's Spirit in his life. God then uses the 3 spirits to show Scrooge the path he took, the wide path to destruction & where it will lead in the end, to hell. These Spirits could be considered 3 angels or messengers from God. They are able to show Scrooge what he needs to know so that God's Spirit will lead him to repentance & conversion. That is what we see happen. We see Scrooge make right the wrongs he did. He reconciles himself to his nephew Fred & Fred's wife as well. We see him help Cratchit by giving him a raise. We see him improve Cratchit's working conditions. Scrooge also provides for Tiny Tim's medical care, without a governement mandate like we see today. IMHO, under what I see of ObamaCare, Tiny Tim would be told he wasn't worth the cost by the death panels. Scrooge makes up for his lack of support of private charity. We see Scrooge going to Church to celebrate Christmas. He now shouts out "Merry Christmas" rather than trying to stop the public expression of the holiday & what it stands for.

The main theme of A Christmas Carol was, & is, that Christmas is the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. It is the constant theme throughout the book. & while most movie versions downplay it, it is especially seen in the 1951 version as well.

I suggest that you read the book to your family & watch the 1951 version of the movie as well.

I conclude with what Dicken's wrote to end the book. This is my wish & prayer as well for all of you. (& is used in the movie as well) that, "it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God Bless Us, Every One!"

Judge Slaps Down Obama Administration Attempts to Stop Archdiocese of New York Lawsuit

 

 

In what is being called a  “landmark ruling against the HHS Mandate,” US District Court Judge Brian Cogan ruled yesterday that the Obama Administration was wrong when it claimed that since the administration may still make adjustments to the mandate that would stop it from having any effect on the Archdiocese of New York that any lawsuit is premature. The administration based this on what it called  a “safe harbor” that would prevent the mandate from applying to certain religious employers until August 2013.

Instead Judge Cogan said  “the First Amendment does not require citizens to accept assurances from the government that, if the government later determines it has made a misstep, it will take ameliorative action.”

He added “There is no, ‘Trust us, changes are coming’ clause in the Constitution. To the contrary, the Bill of Rights itself, and the First Amendment in particular, reflect a degree of skepticism towards governmental self-restraint and self-correction.”

He also said that “ignoring the speeding train that is coming toward plaintiffs in the hope that it will stop might well be inconsistent with the fiduciary duties that plaintiffs’ directors or officers owe to their members.”

He also pointed out that the rule was announced 10 months ago and that “the Departments have had ample opportunity to enact a meaningful change to the Coverage Mandate. The fact that they have not further suggests the likelihood of injuries to plaintiffs.”

Eric Baxter, Senior Counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, who is representing the archdiocese, welcomed the decision. “We are pleased the court recognized the significant harm that the mandate is causing right now.”

It is refreshing to see a judge who is willing to correctly understand the Constitution & the limits it intends to put on government.

I suspect that the Obama Administration had hoped the courts would shut down all lawsuits. & while they have done so in some cases, the have let them go on in others. (See list here) I suspect the reason they wanted the courts to let the mandate go into effect before there were any ruling was so that they could then claim it was too late since they were already (hopefully) all complying. Or at least enough of the "Catholic in Name Only" Hospitals etc were so they could say, why is the Church & others claiming this is a burden or infringement? Clearly it isn't if these "Catholic" employeers are going along.

I also hope that the Catholic dioceses of Pittsburgh and Nashville will again file appeals with this new ruling. Their previous lawsuits were dismissed recently after judges agreed with the Obama administration that the suits were premature. However, the courts did not preclude the possibility that the dioceses could bring forward lawsuits after the mandate takes effect. With the fact that another judge has said they aren't premature could allow them to appeal to the Supreme Court to overrule those rulings forcing them to wait.

The battle is still far from over. & it will end up in the Supreme Court eventually. Hopefully, they will throw the mandate out not only for the Catholic Church but for any Christian business or college, like Hobby Lobby, Tyndale or Wheaton College.

I conclude with what Bill Donohue of the Catholic League had to say about the decision. “Not only did the Obama administration lose, it got a well deserved lecture from the bench: it was taken to task for misrepresenting the current burdens that the HHS mandate has placed on the New York Archdiocese.

The Obama team tried to have it both ways, and it failed. On the one hand, it ordered Catholic entities to get ready to implement the mandate, and on the other hand it said that because some modifications may yet be made, complaints that the mandate has already burdened the archdiocese are baseless. But U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan wasn’t buying it.

Judge Cogan said the Obama administration’s arguments “ring hollow.” He quoted the HHS Interim Final Rules back to the Obama lawyers; they hung themselves with their own wording. The Rules made clear that “these interim final regulations require significant lead time to implement,” emphasizing that “in order to allow plans and health insurance coverage to be designed and implemented on a timely basis, regulations must be published and available to the public well in advance of the effective date of the requirements.”

It is impossible to improve on Judge Cogan’s ruling when he said “the First Amendment does not require citizens to accept assurances from the government that, if the government later determines it has made a misstep, it will take ameliorative action. There is no ‘Trust us, changes are coming’ clause in the Constitution. To the contrary, the Bill of Rights itself, and the First Amendment in particular, reflect a degree of skepticism towards government self-restraint and self-correction.”

The battle over the HHS mandate is not over, but what happened yesterday bodes well for those who believe in religious liberty."

Sources: Court Rules Obama HHS Mandate Doesn’t Protect Religious Liberty

There is no ‘Trust us’ clause in Constitution: NY Archdiocese wins ruling on HHS mandate

Remember to Vote Pro-Life Tommorrow!!!!!*

* Unless you have already voted early, like I did. I had a good reason to, I will be a pollworker at the 17th precinct in DBQ. That means being there from 6 am until everything is wrapped up after the polls close at 9 pm. How long that will be depends on if there are, as I suspect there might, people still in line to vote. 

I have done this before, so I know what to expect, for the most part a busy day. Even with the fact that about 30% of the eligible voters in DBQ have already voted. I say about because as of Saturday, 28.9% of those eligible had voted either absentee or at an early voting site. Early voting continues until 5 pm today & absentee ballots have to be postmarked by today. so the number will probably be 30% or a little higher.

I have little tolerance for those who don't vote, regardless of how, yet complain. It is important we vote & vote with a properly formed conscience that takes an informed look at who the candidates are & what they stand for. But it is more than this, we must also keep holding their feet to the fire after the election as well, making sure they know we will vote them out next time arround if the fail.

& above all, we must PRAY!!!! no matter who is in office.

So why vote Pro-life for the few who are undecided.

Well you can't vote for Obama & most Democrats as they are anything but Pro-life.

The short answer is that we have a moral responsibility to not vote for them. But for those who want a more in depth answer I will give it to you.

To start with, I wrote a letter to the local paper about it last week. But with the huge number, as of today, sent in the don't print them all, it didn't get printed & I doubt it will. So here is what I wrote that explains why:

 

I was always taught that a Catholic had a moral duty to be an active citizen, including voting for those candidates who best reflected the teachings of the Catholic Church. In doing that, you followed the principles this country was founded on.

For faithful Catholics, the difference between the two main parties is clear.

Bishop Paprocki of Springfield said in a pastoral letter to his diocese, the Democratic platform "explicitly endorse intrinsic evils", abortion and same-sex marriage.

He then said "I have read the Republican Party Platform and there is nothing in it that supports or promotes an intrinsic evil or a serious sin."

He added "One might argue for different methods in the platform to address the needs of the poor, to feed the hungry and to solve the challenges of immigration, but these are prudential judgments about the most effective means of achieving morally desirable ends, not intrinsic evils."

Finally, "a vote for a candidate who promotes actions or behaviors that are intrinsically evil and gravely sinful makes you morally complicit and places the eternal salvation of your own soul in serious jeopardy."

Bishop Ricken of Green Bay wrote a similar letter.

So, you can live your faith, voting for those who reject intrinsic evils.

Or you can vote for Democratic candidates who support them and risk hearing Jesus say "Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire," because of what you didn't do, protect the least, the unborn, from abortion.

I'm rejecting those intrinsic evils.

I'm voting Pro-life, pro-traditional marriage.

 

To this I would like to add a link to a homily that was given by Msgr. Daniel J. Deutsch, pastor of Holy Cross Catholic Church in Batavia, IL on Sunday, 28 October 2012.  It was played, with Msgr. Deutsch's permission at the Masses @ St. Mary's Catholic Church in E DBQ.

 

Mnsr. Deutsch

You can listen to it here.

 

Finally, I wish to share with you Top 10 Reasons For Pro-Lifers to Vote for Mitt Romney that was put  out by LifeNews on Sunday:

 

In the election between pro-abortion President Barack Obama and former Governor Mitt Romney, there is a wide chasm between the two when it comes to the concerns pro-life voters have about abortion.

Whereas Obama has crafted a lengthy pro-abortion record, with more than 240 anti-life actions and a zealous effort to keep virtually unlimited abortions in place for another 40 years, Mitt Romney has taken pro-life positions that should earn him the vote of every pro-life voter on election day.

Here are ten reasons why pro-life voters should vote for Mitt Romney for president and why LifeNews is endorsing Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan.

1. Roe v. Wade: Because a federal Human Life Amendment to the Constitution is an extraordinarily difficult long-term prospect, overturning Roe v. Wade is the only real method of achieving legal protection for unborn children any time soon. When it comes to Roe v. Wade, Obama has repeatedly voiced his support for the infamous abortion decision while Romney has repeatedly said he wants it overturned.

2. Supreme Court: To overturn Roe v. Wade, we need more Supreme Court justices in the mold of Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, both of whom have publicly made clear their desire to overturn the decision. President Obama named pro-abortion radicals Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor to the high court in his effort to keep abortions legal another 40 years. On the other hand, Romney assembled a team of pro-life, conservative legal heavyweights to advise him on legal matters — specifically on the right kind of judges he should consider should he become president. The co-chairman of the Romney Justice Advisory Committee is former Appeals Court justice Robert Bork, a prior Supreme Court nominee who is highly-regarded by pro-life and conservative voters for his legal acumen. The second member of the Romney judicial team is Harvard law professor Mary Ann Glendon, a pro-life heroine who is a former ambassador to the Vatican and well-respected by the Catholic community.

3. Obamacare: The Obamacare health care law President Obama signed contains absolutely no limits on abortion funding. Every pro-life group has confirmed that, once it is fully implemented, Obamacare will fund abortions and fund the Planned Parenthood abortion business. Romney has said he would push for repealing Obamacare and do so beginning on the first day in office by removing any funding or implementation he can via executive order that can be done other than its full repeal.

4. Obama’s HHS-Abortion Mandate: The pro-abortion mandate in Obamacare has led to more than 100 lawsuits from Catholic and evangelical groups, colleges, and businesses that would be subjected to millions in fines if they did not pay for abortion-causing drugs and birth control for their employees. Obama’s administration approved the mandate but Romney running mate Paul Ryan has said numerous times he would oppose it and get rid of it.

5. Vice President: Perhaps the most important personnel decision a president can make is naming a Vice President. President Obama chose pro-abortion Vice President Joe Biden, who had a lengthy pro-abortion record, has upset Catholics by saying he is faithful to Church teachings even though he supports abortion, and famously said he wouldn’t second-guess China’s one-child policy. In Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney has selected a potential Vice President with a 100% pro-life voting record and a sterling commitment to protecting unborn children. Ryan will be a key pro-life ally in the White House to ensure the Romney administration puts forth pro-life policies.

6. Planned Parenthood: President Obama has bent over backward to force taxpayers to fund the Planned Parenthood abortion business. He repeatedly refused to sign a bill in Congress to revoke its hundreds of millions in taxpayer funds and, on several occasions, he forced states to fund the abortion giant even after they approved legislation to de-fund it. Romney has repeatedly made it clear he will work to de-fund Planned Parenthood, saying, “I think I’ve said time and again that I’m a pro-life candidate and I’ll be a pro-life president. The actions I’ll take immediately is to remove funding for Planned Parenthood. It will not be part of my budget.”

7. Mexico City Policy: The Mexico City Policy is a less-well-known method of revoking taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood. During his first week in
office, Obama overturned the policy and sent tens of millions in tax money to the International Planned Parenthood organization to promote and perform abortions in other nations. One of the life-saving actions Mitt Romney will take immediately if he becomes president is to reinstate what is called the Mexico City Policy.

8. Pro-Life Bills: The House has approved several different pro-life bills that never made it through the Senate in part because President Obama steadfastly opposed them and lawmakers knew they would be vetoed if they reached the White House. Romney has committed to signing more pro-life bills that limit abortions and protect unborn children. “I will advocate for and support a Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act to protect unborn children who are capable of feeling pain from abortion,” Romney said, for example. Should Romney win and Republicans take the Senate on Tuesday, pro-lifers expect that more federal pro-life laws will be approved.

9. UNFPA, Forced Abortion: In 2009, the Obama administration sent a $50 million check to the United Nations Population Fund. That’s the pro-abortion group that has been accused of supporting and working in concert with Chinese family planning officials pushing women into forced abortions. That will change if Romney is elected. Romney has said he would undo that funding, saying, “I will reinstate the Mexico City Policy to ensure that nongovernmental organizations that receive
funding from America refrain from performing or promoting abortion services, as a method of family planning, in other countries. This includes ending American
funding for any United Nations or other foreign assistance program that promotes or performs abortions on women around the world.”

10. Abstinence, Stem Cell Research, International Abortion Promotion, Etc: If you spend some time looking through Obama’s abortion record, you’ll see the Obama administration promoted abortion and embryonic stem cell research multiple times, de-funded abstinence education and pregnancy centers, and promoted abortion worldwide. There are hundreds of things presidents can do to promote the pro-life agenda that don’t receive considerable attention. On each of these items, pro-life voters can expect President Mitt Romney and important personnel in his administration will be approaching issues from a pro-life perspective.

 

I don't know about you, but when I stand before God, I want to be able to say that I voted for the person most likely to do what can be done to build a "Culture of Life" instead of the current demonic "culture of death" that Obama champions.

This Had to Be Hard for the Des Moines Register Editorial Board to Admit

Yesterday, the Des Moines Register editorial board announced it was endorsing Mitt Romney after endorsing Obama 4 years ago. As a part of the reasons given they said "The president’s best efforts to resuscitate the stumbling economy have fallen short. Nothing indicates it would change with a second term in the White House." It went on to say " His record on the economy the past four years does not suggest he would lead in the direction the nation must go in the next four years."

Ouch!!!!! But very true.

 

Like I said, this had to be very hard for them to admit, given the very liberal slant of the DMRegister these days.

I did have to laugh at 1 line in the explanation of how they reached their decision. "Opinions expressed by this board in no way affect news coverage, except to the extent than an endorsement itself becomes news." Yeah, right!!!!! Like I said, as is true of much of the Main Stream Media, the DM Register is slanted to the left & it's coverage shows it.

Even the way they showed the reasons for supporting Romney revealed that. They only focused in on the economy & ignored all the other things Obama did.

1st & formost they ignored ObamaCare, something the DMRegister supported.

Additionally, they totally ignored national defense & what has been happenning in the Arab world. They also ignored many other issues, including abortion, something the DMRegister is very much in favor of.

By doing so, it made it easier for them to write the endorsement in the way they did, that Obama did a good job, he tried, but now it is time to give someone else a chance. It meant that they could avoid saying that Obama has failed as miserably as he really has. It also gives them cover so they don't have to admit to the lie about Obama in this claim " Both President Barack Obama and Governor Romney are superbly qualified."

They know full well that Obama is anything but qualified. They know, & we have seen over the past 4 years how woefully unqualified Obama really is. He has spent more time rubbing shoulders with celebrities, bowing down to dictators & betraying our allies like Israel, than running the country as it should be run.

I think the DMRegister knew that to endorse Obama would hurt their little credibility left if they did.

Notr that it matters much. The once great DMRegister, "The paper Iowa depends on", is no longer great, or much paid attention to outside of Des Moines. It has all but abandoned most of the state. & Iowans have replied in kind by turning elsewhere.

You can thank Gannett, the owners, for that.

More Light of Truth on Planned Parenthood's Lies

 

1 of the big reasons Planned Parenthood hates groups like Live Action that investigate them is simple. Planned Parenthood is a part of the "demonic "culture of death". As such it doesn't want the light of truth shining on how the really operate, through lies & deceit.

1 of the big lies told to justify taxpayer money going to Planned Parenthood is that they do mammograms. This has been exposed as a lie, yet it continues to be repeated. 1 of the most recent times was by Obama*in the 2nd presidential debate. So late Thursday, 18 October was declared Call Planned Parenthood to Schedule Your Imaginary Mammogram Day.

Here are the unsurprizing results:

 

 

*nce again we see that Planned Parenthood is getting back a huge return on their investment in Obama. Beyond that, we see how he is willing to lie about Planned Parenthood, so why should we trust him to tell the truth about other things?

The October Prayer to San Giuseppe, Terror of Demons - Needed Now More Than Ever

A few years ago I put up a post about the encyclical, Quamquam Pluries, that was written by Pope Leo XIiI encouraging greater devotion to San Giuseppe. It also had attached to it what became known as the October Prayer to St. Joseph. Pope Leo asked that this prayer be said after the Rosary during the month of October, hence the nickname. I also said that "Pope Leo gave a description of the circumstances the Church found herself in that could be said to be similar to today."

4 years later, the need to say this prayer is more urgent than ever. We have seen the attacks on the Catholic Church & what it teaches increase both from without & within. In the USA we have seen president Obama launch a wholescale attack on the Catholic Church's stand on life, abortion & birth control through ObamaCare & the HHS mandate. Catholics, as well as those of other faiths, has seen their Religious liberty being met with an all out assault aimed at taking it away & making us support things like abortion, birth control & gay marriage that the Church teaches are intrinsic evils.

All of those things are a part of the agenda put forward but the "culture of death" that Obama & his supporters are building. As I have pointed out many times, the origin of this culture is demonic.

As I have also regularly pointed out, the prime weapon we have in battling this demonic culture is prayer, esp the Rosary.

I have also mentioned that 1 of the titles given to San Giuseppe is terror of demons & that we need to call on his aide in interceding as well.

So I feel it is appropriate that I reprint that post that ended with the october prayer. I urge everyone to please add this prayer add the end of any Rosary you may pray. & not only for the month of October. The prayer can also be said on its own.

Our actions are important. We must speak out, we must vote for Pro-life candidates & those who will defend the Religious Liberties of the Catholic Church (& all other churches as well). But, as I am won't to say, our efforts MUST begin, end & be undergirded with prayer.

Additionaly, I would recommend you read both the encyclical about San Giuseppe I mention below, Pope Leo's Quamquam Pluries &  the apostolic ehhortation of Pope John Paul, Redemptoris Custos as well. Their teachings are loaded with plenty of wisdom & solid teaching that we can take & apply to our lives. In doing so, we will be better armed to understand spritual battle that we are in at this time as well as how tocombat the enemy as God would have us.

 

San Giuseppe, Terror of Demons, Protector of Holy Church, Pray for Us

 

On 15 August 1889, Pope Leo XIII issued an encyclical, Quamquam Pluries, encouraging a greater devotion to San Giuseppe. In explaining his reasons, Pope Leo gave a description of the circumstances the Church found herself in that could be said to be similar to today.

"During periods of stress and trial - chiefly when every lawlessness of act seems permitted to the powers of darkness - it has been the custom in the Church to plead with special fervour and perseverance to God, her author and protector, by recourse to the intercession of the saints" . . . . "Now, Venerable Brethren, you know the times in which we live; they are scarcely less deplorable for the Christian religion than the worst days, which in time past were most full of misery to the Church. We see faith, the root of all the Christian virtues, lessening in many souls; we see charity growing cold; the young generation daily growing in depravity of morals and views; the Church of Jesus Christ attacked on every side by open force or by craft; a relentless war waged against the Sovereign Pontiff; and the very foundations of religion undermined with a boldness which waxes daily in intensity. These things are, indeed, so much a matter of notoriety that it is needless for Us to expatiate on the depths to which society has sunk in these days, or on the designs which now agitate the minds of men. In circumstances so unhappy and troublous, human remedies are insufficient, and it becomes necessary, as a sole resource, to beg for assistance from the Divine power." Like I said, sound familiar?

Pope Leo goes on to call for greater prayer by the faithful. He also explained the special role that San Giuseppe played as Padrone of the Universal Church. He also called on the faithful to develop a greater devotion to San Giuseppe, esp asking his intercession. He even had a special prayer composed that he sent out with the encyclical. He called on the faithful to use this pray. "We prescribe that during the whole month of October, after the recitation of the Rosary a prayer to St. Joseph be added and that this custom should be repeated every year."

October is still the month of the Rosary. Sadly the prayer to San Giuseppe has fallen mostly (but not completely) into disuse. Given the fact that the circumstances we face are similar, I would suggest that we again regularly say this prayer, not only after the Rosary during the month of October, but year round.

This prayer is esp appropriate for those of us who are on the front lines battling for the "Culture of Life". As Pope Leo said: "It is, then, natural and worthy that as the Blessed Joseph ministered to all the needs of the family at Nazareth and girt it about with his protection, he should now cover with the cloak of his heavenly patronage and defend the Church of Jesus Christ."

On 15 August 1989, Pope John Paul the Great released an Apostolic Exhortation, Redemptoris Custos to commemorate the 100th Anniversay of Pope Leo's encyclical. Towards the end he echoed Pope Leo's call: "Even today we have many reasons to pray in a similar way: "Most beloved father, dispel the evil of falsehood and sin...graciously assist us from heaven in our struggle with the powers of darkness...and just as once you saved the Child Jesus from mortal danger, so now defend God's holy Church from the snares of her enemies and from all adversity." Today we still have good reason to commend everyone to St. Joseph."

Pope John Paul went on to say: "It is my heartfelt wish that these reflections on the person of St. Joseph will renew in us the prayerful devotion which my Predecessor called for a century ago. Our prayers and the very person of Joseph have renewed significance for the Church in our day in light of the Third Christian Millennium."

God gave us the gift of the Saints in Heaven interceding for us. He wants us to call on them, just as He wants us to call on our Christian brothers & sisters here on Earth, to intercede for us. We would be foolish not to take advantage of all the gifts available for us to accomplish the work to which we have been called by Jesus.

 

Prayer of Pope Leo XIII to St. Joseph

To Be Said After the Rosary

To you, O Blessed Joseph, we come in our trials, and having asked the help of your most holy spouse, we confidently ask your patronage also. Through that sacred bond of charity which united you to the Immaculate Virgin Mother of God and through the fatherly love with which you embraced the Child Jesus, we humbly beg you to look graciously upon the beloved inheritance which Jesus Christ purchased by his blood, and to aid us in our necessities with your power and strength.
O most provident guardian of the Holy Family, defend the chosen children of Jesus Christ. Most beloved father, dispel the evil of falsehood and sin. Our most mighty protector, graciously assist us from heaven in our struggle with the powers of darkness. And just as you once saved the Child Jesus from mortal danger, so now defend God's Holy Church from the snares of her enemies and from all adversity. Shield each one of us by your constant protection, so that, supported by your example and your help, we may be able to live a virtuous life, to die a holy death, and to obtain eternal happiness in heaven. Amen.

 

aaaa

The Democratic Party is Now the Democratic Religion . . . .

with Obama as its god & abortion as its sacrament.

This week the 2012 Democratic Convention has been going on in Charlotte NC. & they have finally come out into the open about who they have become, what they believe in & what their demonic "culture of death" agenda is.

I want you to think about how Obama was promoted 4 years ago. He was presented as the Messiah who was going to turn everything arround & make this country heaven on Earth. The Main Stream Media (MSM) & many others fell in line & promoted him in exactly that way, thrills, tingles & all. He could do no wrong then, & in the time since Obama has been in office the MSM has done all they can to promote that image that Obama walks on water, despite him failing at everything he promised. In promoting the cult of Obama, they followed the lead of the Fascists in how they presented Mussolini during their rise to power. & like Mussolini, Obama failed.

But that hasn't stopped the deification of Obama by his followers, in & out of the press. As I pointed out a couple months ago, 1 North Carolina state employee has erected a shrine to him. Now one of his worshipful followers has put out a calendar he is selling at the Dems' convention with the following picture for August:

 

 

Yes, you read that right, the guy is calling Obama the Messiah* sent from heaven to save us all. LarryD has the video promoting this calendar in a post at his blog. If you can make it through to November without, as Larry says, throwing up in your mouth a little, you will see that the picture is supposed to commemorate Shirley Chisholm being the 1st black woman elected to Congress in 1968. Besides mispelling the last name & saying it happenned on the 55th of November, the focus is on Obama, of course. The picture shows Obama with his back to the crowd & people reaching out to touch him, like they did for Jesus. The caption makes it clear that that is a fairly accurate interpretation. It says "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. - Psalm 23:1".

I have to remind folks that the reason they are following Obama is because they expect him to provide all their Earthly needs so they don't have too. When the crowds followed Jesus after he feed the 5000 he said "Amen, amen I say to you, you seek me, not because you have seen miracles, but because you did eat of the loaves, and were filled. Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that which endureth unto life everlasting." (John 6:26-27) Jesus condemned the crowds for doing the very thing that Obama wants the crowds to do.

Meanwhile, the 2012 Democratic platform, has had any reference to God in it removed. But there are plenty of references to Obama (over 100 according to various sources) & abortion in it. (Note: late breaking report says that God was just put back in, to the boos of many of the delegates. I suspect this was because of the public outcry & was meant to give Obama cover. The reaction of the delegates in opposition reveals the truth however.)

On the other hand, there is no opposition (allowed) to the plank supporting taxpayer funded abortions. So, despite promises made by Obama  to Bart Stupak (who has finally admitted he was duped) & the rest of us, it is clear he wants abortion treated the same as birth control under ObamaCare & if re-elected, you can be sure the mandate will be there forcing coverage. & probably with no deductable or co-pay either. The platform has dropped the word "rare" as well, making it clear that they don't want to reduce, but increase the number of abortions done in the USA.

Yesterday, one of the featured speakers was NARAL president Nancy Keenan & tonitw will feature Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards. Both of them have been crowing about their open forums to promote abortion. Keenan did so last night. (As an aside, following her logic about politicians making decisions about health care when it comes to abortion, then there should be NO laws on the books regulating any aspect of healthc care.)

Michelle Obama made it clear as well. Of course, none of them will actually use the word abortion in public, just bury it in the platform, that is what they are pushing, unlimited access to abortion with no regulations like those on any other medical proceedure. They might as well use the word in the speeches, since most people already know that is exactly what they are talking about. It is also interesting that the Dems released the platform in the dead of the night, as if they had something to hide. & the MSM is abetting it by ignoring what it says about abortion after, IMHO, leading the attack on the Republican Party^ for being Pro-life last week. Apparently the Democratic leadership thinks the average independent voter is too stupid to figure out that the heart & soul of what the Democratic Party is about is abortion, not all the other things they claim. They might have gotten away with it if they hadn't put so many abortion industry leaders & promoters in the spotlight.

So now we have the Democratic Party making Obama God & abortion their sacrament, what next?

Simple, since Obama is their god, just like it was in the time of the Roman emperor, they will demand he be worshipped. It will require all of us to acknowledging he is god by paying for birth control & abortion. This is the modern equivalent of the pich of incense that all Christians were expected to offer, or face death.

The HHS mandate forcing everyone to have insurance that covers artifical birth control is the 1st step in the modern version of using the power of state to enforce worship of a false god & destroy freedom of religion. Remember, that the Christians were told they could worship as they wanted, as long as they did the 1 thing against their faith, offer sacrifice (incense) to a false god.

You can be sure, abortion will bne added, should Obama be elected to a 2nd term. We have already seen how Obam has used to power of the state to try & force a Church to hire people who don't agree with their beliefs & we are seeing that in the HHS mandate. If the Christians in 21st century refuse, they are facing the threat of heavy fines that could destroy their business or organization. Arrests could very well follow as well. & what is there to stop us from being martyred down the road as well? Especially since Pro-lifers are already labelled as domestic terrorists & can be arrested under current law & locked away indefinitely, with no one knowing where we are.

I don't say this lightly, things are very similar to what it was like in the Roman Empire when the Catholic Church & its members faced that persecution. The economy was bad, so to divert attention, the government offered bread & circuses. Today the government is pushing more & more people to depend on it for food via food stamps. & look at how big a diversion sports have become. The Roman society was also a culture that promoted immorality, abortion etc, just like today. & if we don't turn back, like it, our civilization will fall.

Another example of what may lie ahead is what happenned with the Jewish nation in the Old Testament. Moses warned the people what would happen if they chose to follow other gods. But they said they would serve the true God. Instead, time after time they turned away. They followed the false gods & practices of the pagans, including offering their children up to those gods by killing them (like abortion today). So they faced threat after threat. & only when they turned back to God did He raise a judge up to save them. This continued throughout the reigns of the kings, despite prophet after prophet warning them. In fact the Northern Kingdom of Israel made it public policy to do so, sort of like what the Dems are doing now for our country. They ignored & killed the prophets. & the few periods of reform in Judah never lasted.  Eventually both kingdoms fell.

In 2008, Cardinal Burke warned us that the Democratic party was heading this way. Like prophets of the past, he was ignored by the very people he was trying to get to repent & change course. Those of us who agree with him, those of us who are faithful to the magesterial teachings of the Catholic Church, must follow his lead. Like the early martyrs & the OT prophets, we are being called to take a prophetic stance, speaking out against as well as fighting the evils of our day. We must refuse to offer incense to the false god Obama & the demonic "culture of death", no matter the cost.

Undergirded by prayer we must call our nation to repentance & conversion. We must be evangelists for the true Gospel. Like Peter, Paul & the others in the early Church, we cannot be silent.

I have no idea if it is too late to stop America from being destroyed. But whether it is or not, we still have to be about our mission. Like the 7000 who didn't bow to Baal (see 1 Kings 19:8) we must not bow our knee to the "culture of death". Instead we are to live out our faith in authentic worship of God as well as action by proclaiming the truth. God expects no less of us.

 

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NOTES:
* I want to make it clear I am not saying Obama is the Antichrist. He may or may not be, I don't know. But it is clear that he is 1 of the many antichrists that John warned us about in 1 John 2:18-19.

^ I also want to make it clear that I am not claiming the Republican party is perfect either. Not everything they stand for perfectly aligns with Catholic teaching. But when it comes to the 5 non-negotiable issues in Catholic teaching, we are left with voting against what the Church requires us to support by voting Democrat, or voting Republican. Sadly, even in the Republican party we see many who want to dump the Pro-life stand of the party & have it support abortion as well. This is just a reminder that our ultimate loyalty isn't to any party but to the truths of God as proclaimed through the Catholic Church.