Before he died in 2000, Fr. John Hardon warned, just as Bishop Jenky does, that Catholics will need heroic faith to survive the revolution that is coming as a result of the breakdown of religious life in the Western world. Here's a portion of his prophetic warning made in 1999 at a National Meeting of the Institute on Religious Life:
The Holy See [Pope John Paul II was pope at the time.] seriously wonders how much of the Catholic Church will survive in wealthy prosperous nations of the Western world like our own. What then is the remedy? There is only one way which the revolution can be reversed -- and it had better be reversed. Professed Catholics who call themselves Christians must reexamine their faith. We must be sure we believe that God became man in the Person of Jesus Christ. We must believe that when God became man He instituted the Holy Eucharist. We must believe that the consecrated life -- of consecrated poverty, consecrated chastity, and consecrated obedience is most pleasing to Jesus Christ. When God became man He made sure He lived a life, I repeat, of consecrated chastity, obedience and poverty....Not only religious life, but the Catholic Church will be preserved only where there are -- hear it -- Catholics who are living martyrs....Ordinary Catholics will not survive this revolution. They must be Catholics who are thoroughly convinced that God became Man in the person of Jesus. They must be convinced there is only one supreme authority on earth: the authority of Jesus Christ vested in the Vicar of Christ. What the Church needs, desperately needs, is strong believing Catholics. Otherwise, one nation after another, like our own, will be wiped out as a Christian country.Father ended his talk with a prayer a portion of which read: "Lord Jesus...Help us, we beg You, to become more and more like You -- living examples of what the early Church showed the pagan world: that you are our God and we are Your creatures, born in this wold to convert a pagan world to Christianity."
To tell you the truth, Mary Ann, this has left me a little confused. I know that there is some form of chastisement coming to the world, and I believe what Fr. Hardon says about possible martyrdom, but where is the promise of Our Lady's victory? It's what keeps me going during this dark time we're living in. I almost want the chastisement to happen so we can be free of the evil that is choking us and move into the "Era of Peace" for all of God's children. Am I wrong?
ReplyDeleteI don't think there's any inconsistency, Siobhan. The Bible is clear about the chastisement and that's what I think Fr. Hardon is talking about. Part of it will be, as Jesus said, that the love of many will grow cold. (Matt 24:12) Fr. Hardon is exhorting us how to get through that dark time. Our Lady's period of peace is on the other side of the chastisement which I think we are already in. Matthew talks about the signs of the times and they're all there.
ReplyDeleteWe need to follow Padre Pio's advice: Pray, hope, and don't worry. We need to do what we can to evangelize those around us and live with a spirit of faith, hope, and charity. Some people think that means making every body feel good. But what it really means is always speaking the truth in a spirit of charity. Sometimes the truth makes other gnash their teeth and pick up rocks, like the preaching of John the Baptist, St. Stephen, and St. Paul. There is certainly plenty of teeth gnashing going on these days.
Mary Ann, some have already come after the Orthodox Jews here in California as some have tried to outlaw circumcision for religious reasons, but it went over like a lead balloon as even Catholics who do not require their sons to be circumcised stood up for the parental rights to do so as along as we was done by a qualified person.
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to clear this up. I think I'm just frustrated and yes, afraid. I know I shouldn't be but that's part of the struggle we all face. What concerns me most of all are the members of my family who don't practice the faith and the terrible decisions they may be face with in the near future - decisions that may go into eternity. And the children! Sweet Jesus, spare us!
ReplyDeleteThe last sentence in my post on May 11 at 4:24PM should read "as long as it was done by a qualified person." Sorry for the typos.
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