Manifesto of Faith by Gerhard Cardinal Muller

An Ode to Our New Don John, Alexander Tschugguel (With a Hat Tip to G.K. Chesterton)

A good Catholic prince
and a brave soldier of Christ!
Don John of Austria

Once I got it in my head yesterday to write a poem about Alexander Tschugguel throwing Pachamama in the Tiber based on G.K. Chesterton's Lepanto, I was doomed. I couldn't do anything else until I accomplished my goal. The fact that Alexander is from Austria made the comparison to Don John of Austria and his heroic stand against Ali Pasha and his fleet at Lepanto a compelling one. And so here is my ode to Alexander in thanksgiving for his removing the idols from the Church of Santa Maria in Traspontina. 

But really, read Chesterton's Lepanto, my inspiration. Talk about a master poet. He is unparalleled when it comes to writing ballads about warriors! After you read Lepanto, I recommend The Ballad of the White Horse about England's Christian king, Alfred the Great, another heroic warrior. And DO read the poems out loud. Poetry is meant to be heard!

Need Encouragement and Hope? Watch this! The Catholic Future is in Good Hands!

My friend Janet at Restore D.C. Catholicism posted this video the other day. Thanks so much, Janet. As Catholics, we have great hope! The Lord is raising up warriors among the young. Like Don John of Austria who led the Catholic League at Lepanto (he was only 24), Alexander is in his 20s and filled with the spirit of zeal for God's house. How pleased the Lord must have been when he gathered up the idols from the church and threw them in the river. Watch the video and praise God! Support the front line warriors with your prayers and actions. Why not write a letter to your bishop today asking him to ask all the parishes in the diocese to offer a Mass in reparation for the desecration in Rome! Oh, and by the way, for a rousing poem about battling the enemy read Chesterton's ode to Don John in Lepanto. Everywhere Chesterton uses "Don John" substitute "Alexander Tschugguel." Hmmm...it might be fun to use Chesterton for a model and write a poem about Alexander and Pachamama! I might try it just for fun.

 Our Lady, Scourge of the Demons, pray for us!

Sunday Meditation: "We Are Catholics First!"

This morning we got to Mass early and I had a few minutes to read Anthony Esolen's article in Magnificat on Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, a great Catholic political figure of the mid 20th century. One incident in Adenauer's life occurred in 1933 after he was removed as mayor of Cologne by the Nazis. He applied to an abbey for prayer and rest. Adenauer, a critic of the rising German Reich and Hitler listened to the abbot, a friend, say, "Many of our monks disagree with you about Herr Hitler. German soil, German blood." 

This was not a unique position among German clerics as Dietrich von Hildebrand relates in his great work, My Battle against Hitler. Sadly, many men in roman collars and other German Catholics defended the tyrant long after his evil plan was clear.

Adenauer wasn't one of them. He replied to the abbot, "We are Catholics first, Germans second."

Too Funny not to Share! Six Million Views and Counting! Make America Great Again!

I missed this the first time around and wasn't one of the six million viewers, but, hey, with the election season upon us it's still relevant. So enjoy and share. Donald Trump has a done a lot for the country. Let's show our appreciation. If nothing else, thank him for speaking out so eloquently for the babies waiting to be born. I will be praying for him every day this Advent in thanksgiving for that one big thing (as well as all the smaller things). God bless him!

It's a "Nineveh Moment" -- Pray, Fast, and Do Penance!

You know not the day or the hour, but the signs of the times are serious indeed. The video below can give you plenty of subject matter to take before the Blessed Sacrament in adoration. Let's all commit to prayer, penance, and fasting: for the Holy Father, for all the bishops and clergy of the world, for the laity, especially for parents. Above all, pray for the little ones. I grew up in a time of relative faith, innocence, peace, and prosperity. I remember 40 Hours Devotion, May Crownings, and Corpus Christi processions. I knew nothing about pornography or abortion. Most of the families we knew were intact.

What are we giving the little ones today? Transgender story hours and diversity bookbags, violent video games, ads on TV that deserve an R (or X) rating, not to mention scandalous films by the bucketful. God have mercy on us!

A New Buzz Phrase for the Lexicon of Catholic Liberals: The "Francis Magisterium"

Just tell those recalcitrant bishops in the U.S. it's the "Francis magisterium" and they better obey!

What's a liberal pope and his liberal "magisterium" to do?..

...When his critics question his authority over innovations he's introduced into Holy Mother Church including pagan idols like Pachamama.....

WHAT TO DO?

....When his critics express horror at the company he keeps and question his giving a Vatican voice and platform to those who promote abortion, contraception, homosexuality, population control, eugenics, etc.....

Take Up Your Cross, Draw Your Sword, Raise Your Voice!

 Alexander Tschugguel, known by all for expelling idols from the church in Rome recently.     

Alexander Tschugguel may not yet be a household name, but it will be for all who love the Church.  Admittedly difficult to spell and pronounce, it is synonymous with the expulsion of idols from the church in Rome following the shame of a synod held to advance the Vatican II agenda to transform the Catholic religion into a belief system compatible with all other world religions.    

The "Ghost of Bernardin" Haunts the USCCB

Sixty-nine bishops and four abstainers
don't care much about these little feet!

Ho-hum...another Fall, another meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

What have they accomplished so far? Well, they voted to uphold the sanctity of life as the pre-eminent issue of the U.S. bishops.

Goodness... What a radical idea!

Sixty-nine voted against it and four abstained!

Really?...ONE THIRD of the bishops present voted no or abstained! How silly to make defending life the first order of business for Christians when the planet is so endangered by all those little carbon footprints!