Saturday 14 July 2012

The Prophecy of St. Hildegard on the Great Apostasy


An Illustration from the Liber Scivias depicting St. Hildegard of Bingen receiving a prophetic vision.


I recently had a discussion with regular contributor Jamey Srdarov in the com box on the post The Abomination of Desolation which I thought would be worth posting up on the main part of the blog. As regular readers who take the time to read the com box will know, Jamey is a fervent supporter of Traditional Latin Mass (TLM), and is quite keen for its re-institution as the ordinary form of the liturgy (which I must confess, I would like to see also). During the debate, I was reminded of a prophecy made by St. Hildegard of Bingen concerning the state of the Church at the end-time, which I thought would be appropriate to mention so that everyone can read...
The exchange goes as follows:


Jamey:


Fr Stephen Somerville was a member of the Advisory Board of the International Commission on English Liturgy for translating the new post-Vatican II Latin liturgy into the English language.

http://www.fisheaters.com/frsomerville.html

Fr Somerville using scripture presents another angle linking the abomination of desolation to the end times this time in regard to replacement of the Tridentine Mass with the Novus Ordo Missae of Paul VI [NO].

http://www.traditioninaction.org/HotTopics/f007ht_Abomination_Somerville.htm

Note to readers be wary of some of the other stuff on TIA, at times they unfairly go after recent popes at other points justifiably IMHO, a bit of a mixed bag.


Emmett:


I'm all for a return to the Old Latin Mass, and the re-establishment of the High Altars. I think it would be a great blessing for the Church. But I think it is a step too far to deny the validity of the sacraments in the NO. Not only does it sow the seeds of schism in a direct disregard for the express request of Jesus that "they may all be one" (John 17:20), but it also ignores Christ's promise that the gates of hell would not prevail against the Church (Matt 16:18).
Christ said "behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 28:20) - a promise to be eternally present in the Eucharist until the end of the world.
The use of a different language from Latin doesn't invalidate the eucharist. Less beautiful perhaps, but not invalid. Christ almost certainly would have said the first Mass in Aramaic.
The validity of the Eucharist depends on whether the priest was ordained in apostolic succession, and whether he was using the correct words (the personal holiness of the priest doesn't count, as was determined following the Donatist schism). For an ordained priest to invalidate the Eucharist, different words would have to be used, such as "this is a symbol of my body".
Fr Gobbi depicts such a scenario for the abomination of desolation in relation to the Eucharist. He seems to suggest that the Antichrist will install an anti-pope in Rome, creating a schism, with a large portion of Catholics following the anti-pope. Fr Gobbi appears to predict that the anti-pope will then take away the sacrifice of the Mass by asserting that the Eucharist is merely a symbol of Christ's body and blood. I suppose such a scenario would fit in with Melanie's later unapproved portion of message of La Salette, that Rome would "become the seat of the Antichrist", while the true pope would be forced into exile, as is suggested by other prophecies.
But I don't think that the NO is the abomination of desolation, even though it is an inferior version of the Mass.



Jamey:


Emmett, I don't think the NO is invalid for the reasons you mention. I also don't think Latin is the biggest issue with the changes of the Mass, I think the priest facing the people (back to the tabernacle) hence being man centred, the removal of high altars and the elimination of various prayers, not to mention the stripping off churches the sacred which has led to great irreverance. The loss of the sacred is killing our times.

Although he may gone too hard at times, I thought it interesting Fr Somervilles analysis that a certain abomination occuring in the temple, specifically regarding altars that would herald the end-time. Given the Masonic connections with the NO it is in a way an abomination and I believe has led to desolation, "There we have it: desolation means being desolate, being abandoned by good people, and worse, being abandoned by God and by His grace".

I think many people stay away from the NO because they realise there is something seriously defective with it. When I have been to NO there appear to be few devout people, the main body of people have departed by the time the final hymn is finished. In fact some Masses I have been to I can only describe as abominations with the stuff going on. Lex orandi, lex credendi. I think it takes a special grace to attend the NO and maintain ones faith well, or at the very least a very strong grounding in Catholic beliefs.

It is a sad time when most bishops seem hostile to the TLM. Our new bishop in Perth has pulled the plug on 3 trad vocations. Reading at Rorate people from all over the world commented on their dioceses being generally averse to the old Mass, something which made the Church what she is, the most beautiful thing this side of heaven.


http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=19978542&postID=8924370084366731914


"Pope Pius XII warned about the suicide of altering the faith in the liturgy. Something that is suicidal is neither healthy nor sane. When you consider the Masonic influences on the Novus Ordo Missae you realise the utter madness of continuing with it." Fr Paul Kramer


(Emmett again):


Before we go on to look at the prophecy of St. Hildegard, it should be worth noting that according to traditional Catholic theology, the Church is guided by the Holy Spirit when acting corporately as whole - which is especially so in the case of ecumenical councils held in union with the pope. If Masonic influences were responsible for the changes to the liturgy made in the wake of the Second Vatican Council, then they could only have infiltrated the Church to such an extent with the permission of the Spirit. Perhaps the changes made to the liturgy and the TLM being taken away from the Church was a punishment for the apostasy of the majority of the laity, and a large part of the clergy. As the new Israel, the Church has always been judged as a lump - the sheep together with the goats; just as ancient Israel was judged collectively for its sins with the rods of Assyria and Babylon. Apostasy does not go unpunished, and perhaps the changes to the liturgy reflect the fact that the Church as a whole no longer gives adequate glory to God. The apostate Church may simply not be worthy enough to offer the highest form of praise to Our Lord, and will first have to be cleansed with the fire of the Holy Spirit at the new Pentecost.

In her most renowned work Scivias, St. Hildegard predicted that the Church would be in a terrible state towards the end of the world. The Church is depicted as a battered and bruised figure, and suffering being raped by the Devil, it subsequently gives birth to the Antichrist. But significantly, despite being in such a decrepit state following the assaults of the Devil weakening the faith of her children, thus giving rise to the birth of the Antichrist; the Church remains resolute, and is eventually restored in the Second Pentecost:


The image of the woman before the altar in front of the eyes of God that I saw earlier was now also shown to me again so that I could also see her from the navel down. From the navel to the groin she had various scaly spots. In her [genitalia] there appeared a monstorous and totally black head with fiery eyes, ears like the ears of a donkey, nostrils and mouth like those of a lion, gnashing with vast open mouth and sharpening its horrible iron teeth in a horrid manner.

From that head to the knees the image was white and red, bruised as with many a beating. From the knees to the two white transverse zones which crosswise seemed to touch the bottoms of the feet from above, the image appeared to be bloody. Lo, the monstrous head removed itself from its place with so great a crash that the entire image of the woman was shaken in all its members. Something like a a great mass of much dung was joined to the head; then, lifting itself upon a mountain, it attempted to ascend to the height of heaven. A stroke like thunder came suddenly and the head was repelled with such strength that it both fell from the mountain and gave up the ghost. After this a stinking cloud suddenly enveloped the whole mountain. The head was surrounded with such great filth in the cloud that the people standing by were struck with the greatest terror as the cloud stayed upon the mountain somewhat longer. The people standing there beheld it and struck with much fear said to each other: " Woe! Woe! What is this? What does that seem to be? Who will help us, unfortunate as we are? Who will deliver us? We are ignorant of how we have been deceived. Almighty God, have mercy on us. Let us, oh let us return. Let us prepare the covenant of Christ's Gospel, since we have been bitterly deceived." Behold, the feet of the aforementioned female image appeared to be white, giving out a brightness above that of the sun. I heard a voice from heaven saying to me: "Even though all things on earth are tending toward their end, so hardships and calamities is bowed down to its End, nevertheless, the Spouse of my Son, though much weakened in her children, will never be destroyed either by the heralds of the Son of Perdition or by the Destroyer himself, however much she will be attacked by them. At the End of time she will arise more powerful and more secure; she will appear more beautiful and shining so that she may go forth in this way more sweetly and more agreeably to the embraces of her Beloved. The vision which you saw signifies all this in mystic fashion."
(Scivias 3:11; Translated by B McGinn, Visions of the End, pp101-102)


It is interesting to find language in this prophecy which clearly echoes Cardinal Ratzinger's description of the "filth" within the Church, first made during his now famous Way of the Cross sermon on Good Friday, 2005:


"Should we not also think of how much Christ suffers in his own Church? How often is the holy sacrament of His Presence abused, how often must he enter empty and evil hearts! How often do we celebrate only ourselves, without even realizing that he is there! How often is his Word twisted and misused! What little faith is present behind so many theories, so many empty words!
How much filth there is in the Church, and even among those who, in the Priesthood, ought to belong entirely to him! How much pride, how much self-complacency!"

"Lord, your Church often seems like a boat about to sink, a boat taking in water on every side. In your field we see more weeds than wheat. The soiled garments and face of your Church throw us into confusion. Yet it is we ourselves who have soiled them! It is we who betray you time and time again, after all our lofty words and grand gestures. Have mercy on your Church... You stood up, you arose and you can also raise us up. Save and sanctify your Church. Save and sanctify us all."


The fact that St. Hildegard is one of the most revered saints in Pope Benedict's native Germany, helps to further cement the relationship between the "filth" described by the Holy Father and the "filth" depicted in the vision of the battered Church in Scivias. And it also reflects the Pope's connection of the Third Secret to the "sin" existing within the Church during his pilgrimage to Fatima in 2010:


As for the new things which we can find in this message today, there is also the fact that attacks on the Pope and the Church come not only from without, but the sufferings of the Church come precisely from within the Church, from the sin existing within the Church. This too is something that we have always known, but today we are seeing it in a really terrifying way: that the greatest persecution of the Church comes not from her enemies without, but arises from sin within the Church, and that the Church thus has a deep need to relearn penance, to accept purification, to learn forgiveness on the one hand, but also the need for justice.


The "filth" that now pervades the Church, described by both St. Hildegard and Pope Benedict is a direct consequence of the apostasy we have been enduring for the past 52 years, since the passing of the date of 1960 mentioned by Sr. Lucia as when the contents of the Third Secret would be "better understood". It is from this date which marked the beginning of the sexual revolution, that we have witnessed the greatest decline in the two thousand year history of the Catholic Church, thus firmly establishing the Great Apostasy foretold in the New Testament:


And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.
(Matt 24:10-12)


As St. Paul tells us, the rebellion must come first, before the "man of lawlessness" is revealed, just as St. Hildegard predicted that the battered Church would give birth to the Antichrist.


Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.
(2 Thess 2:3-8)


So it seems that the ultimate fruit of the Great Apostasy we are currently enduring is the revelation of the Antichrist himself. The falling away of the faithful, and the lack of adequate worship being offered to God ultimately leads to the appearance of the Son of Perdition - to whom Satan transfers his great power and authority once he is cast to earth:


And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority.
(Rev 13:1-2)


Yet St. Hildegard foretells that the people will eventually realise the depths of their delusion, and that the Church will be restored to her former glory - preparing herself in virginal linen to meet the bridegroom, who will bring the appearance of the Antichrist to nothing with the sword of his mouth:


“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure”—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints...


...Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.
(Rev 19:6-8, 11-15)









22 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is a bit off topic but what are your feelings toward St.Stanislaus possibly being the eucharistic martyr spoken of in the garabandal miracle prophecy?

Any theories at all?

I appreciate all your work.

Emmett O'Regan said...

There are so many eucharistic martyrs to choose from... I really have no idea. Thanks for drawing my attention to the story of St. Stanislaus - I love hagiographies.

Jamey said...

Combining the topic of holymen and the great apostasy the following documentary is the best I have seen. It is Italian with subtitles in regard to the life of Pope Pius XII. It shows how tumultuous his reign was but scenes depict the power and glory of the Catholic Church before the wrecking ball went through it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbBdeitTkqY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2bdIvWvFp0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHM1Dv3VAOE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKmjSOslWhE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmrzIAPi7jw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiRp5a2emho
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5tPk6wHRTo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3PR1_vb4To

Interesting that he had mystical visions at the end of his life and saw the end coming.

Jamey said...

The Blessed Mother's warning of the suicide of altering the faith in its liturgy, theology and soul have materialised and stats confirm a great apostasy since 1965:

http://www.olrl.org/misc/jones_stats.shtml

Sr Lucia in 1958 also said "punishment from Heaven is imminent". She and others may have expected a physical chastisement but I think the changes to the Mass and what followed from VaticanII are that "imminent" chastisement.

St John Eudes said when God was unhappy with his people he allows them to fall into the hands of corrupt clergy.

Redemptorist Father Benedict D’Orazio explains:

“When God wishes to make known His displeasure toward a disobedient people, He usually rejects the sacred gifts they have presented to Him and sometimes allows even altars and consecrated images to be taken away or destroyed.”

Bishop Sheen said before God chastises the world his hand first comes down on the church. The current stats show that about 10% of Catholics attend weekly Mass, and typically most of those 10% are out the door before Mass even finishes, so the apostasy is huge and has come like a "thief in the night".

joerusso777 said...

Completely agree with you Jamey. It seems even the ones who are faithful, and even pay attention to the prophetc element of our time are overlooking the fact that just because the "stats" say there are billions of Catholics doesn't mean that the church is in a good place. We don't seem to understand the Faith enough to realise that the Great Apostasy HAS begun and has been happening since "at least" the 60's. Just an example, in our parish here we were blessed enough to recieve a Pastor who knows and teaches the Faith no matter what the consequence, and since he arrived our Parish went from being slammed at every mass with barely any standing room, to easily being able to find seats no matter when you show up. The majority of Catholics don't accept the "True Faith" today. May Our Lord grant us the Second Pentecost soon, for if this goes on much longer, the Church would be threatened to be extinguished. Good thing we have the Gaurantee from Jesus that this will not happen. Thanks be to God!

Jamey said...

Hi Joe,

Do you think your priest will last?

It shows the importance of having good bishops who will back priests that have the courage to say what has to be said. We can see with Fr Guarnizo who was placed on "administrative leave" because he refused communion to an openly provocative women who told him before Mass she was a lesbian and living with another woman.

In regard to your comments on the misuse of numbers, Cardinal Pell wrote an article 10 years ago how the church has flourished since Vatican II, I assume the national census forms simply revealed a greater amount of people who call themselves "Catholic".

The churches current situation shows what happens when good men do nothing, now they have pretty much lost all control of the religious and clergy. A friend of mine related some absurd sacrileges taking place in Qld - one priest brought in a python for some reason at a Confirmation Mass, it became agitated and attacked its handler drawing blood. Even the snake probably knew it shouldnt be there.

Anonymous said...

Jamey,
Would you please elaborate on what you wrote about the warning of Our Blessed Mother "of the suicide of altering the faith in its liturgy, theology and soul".

I've never heard of any warning about the liturgy from any Marian vision. And, although I totally agree with the dismal state of the liturgy as you have elaborated on, I would be very much interested in where that warning comes from. Is it approved? Can it be substantiated? The reason I ask is that I've read about the quote of Marie Jahenny about the supposed words of our Lord saying that the new liturgy is (and I'm paraphrasing this) "loathesome to Me" as a proof that God does not approve of the novus ordo mass. However after alot of researching that quote I discovered it was apparently added to later versions of the original quote she received about coming troubles for the Church.

So, personally, I think we have to be careful referencing warnings of Our Lady if they are not substantiated. It get everyone in trouble who in fact agree with your point (as I do) but find out later that some aspect of your proof for it is false or not approved. I'm not accusing you of this. It could be very authentic and I'm just now aware of it. I would just like more info on it. Thank you!
katrina

Jamey said...

Hi Katrina,

You are right we need to be discerning as there seems to be much revisionism when it comes to prohecies the following was taken of poster HMiS from the Catholicfisheaters forum:

"The day the Church abandons her universal tongue [Latin] is the day before she returns to the catacombs." Allocution, Pope Pius XII a few days before his death in 1958.

"I am worried by the Blessed Virgin's messages to Lucy of Fatima. This persistence of Mary about the dangers which menace the Church is a divine warning against the suicide of altering the Faith, in Her liturgy, theology and soul. A day will come when the civilized world will deny its God, when the Church will doubt as Peter doubted. She will be tempted to believe that man has become God. In our churches, Christians will search in vain for the red lamp where God awaits them, like Mary Magdalene weeping before the empty tomb, they will ask, 'Where have they taken Him?' I hear all around me innovators who wish to dismantle the Sacred Chapel, destroy the universal flame of the Church, reject Her ornaments and make Her feel remorse for Her historical past".
-- Pie XII Devant L'Histoire, Msgr. Georges Roche et Philippe Saint Germain, ed. R. Laffont, 1972, p. 52-53. (Msgr. Roche was Pope Pacelli's friend and well known biographer. The quote was written down by Pope Pius XII while he was still Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli, Vatican Secretary of State during the 1930s and not yet Pope.)

Then there was this from the same holy pope: "One would be straying from the straight path were he to wish the altar restored to its primitive tableform; were he to want black excluded as a color for the liturgical vestments; were he to forbid the use of sacred images and statues in Churches; were he to order the crucifix so designed that the divine Redeemer's body shows no trace of His cruel sufferings?" (Encyclical Mediator Dei, #62).

Jamey said...

Just to add according to the same poster, Msgr Roche who apparently wasn't a traditionalist wrote this citation regarding the suicide of altering the faith in its liturgy, theology and soul during Pius XII's pontificate and the first published version of Pie XII Devant L'Histoire in 1959 so before the actual changes took place.

joerusso777 said...

Jamey,

While its tempting given the state of the Church today, I try not to be too cynical about a situation like this. I've been a revert for 11 years now and this is the first time I've ever had the chance to have a Holy Priest as our parish pastor. I think if any of us are blessed enough to have such Priests, it is all the more critical to pray and help them. The good thing is our Bishop at least allows Priests like this. Our archdiocese has a has some Parishes with some great Priests. I've met and talked with a few around my area, and some still remain even after 4-5 years, so I don't expect ours to be much different. Our Bishop assigned 3 Priests to for at least 3 years in our parish specifically because we've had some issues in the past.
Don't get me wrong though, I get where you're coming from though.

Anonymous said...

Jamey,
Thank you so very much for your explanation. It is certainly powerful. This is the kind of authenticated information that I'm glad can now be disseminated to much wider audience due to the internet.

I actually made my first communion in the Latin mass. I just turned 61and I have seen every liturgical abuse known to man I think in my lifetime. I've returned to the latin mass about three years ago and have fallen in love with the liturgy all over again. I occassionaly attend the Byzantine Rite mass which is also beautiful.

There also is a quote from Pope Benedict that I cannot substantiate now,(I don't have the reference handy) that I have used in pleading for a return to reverance in the liturgy and in defense of the latin mass. I don't want to quote it but paraphrased he says: The crisis in the Church is the crisis in the liturgy. Thank goodness for the return of the extraordinary form of the mass with his permission and blessing!
Thanks again Jamey....great work!
Katrina

Jamey said...

Katrina, I believe the truth whilst upsetting in this instance also sets us free, I can understand why most people including myself have at some point apostatised from the church Jesus Christ founded.

Indeed it is a concern when the pope says the ordinary form of the liturgy is a "fabrication, a banal on the spot product" as then Cardinal Ratzinger commented in the 90's

Recently I attend the Ukrainian Catholic Mass when I can and also find it edifying. There is a reason these liturgies have survived the test of time.

After attending the TLM a few times last year I finally realised the gravity of what happened which God permitted to occur.

It is really hard to find trustworthy sources and there is so much wild stuff on the internet but there are a few snippets from reliable sources and some fine analytical minds have pieced together convincing arguments.

Traditionalists will have seen this information before but there is strong evidence that Anabale Bugnini the guy who headed the liturgical changes was a Freemason.

For example Michael Davies who wrote a book about Pope Paul's new Mass had the following to say:

"The reference to Freemasonry is based on the fact that in 1975 Pope Paul VI removed Bugnini, an Archbishop by then, from his position as Secretary of the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, dissolved the entire Congregation, and in 1976 exiled him as Nuncio to Iran. Pope Paul did this because he had been given documentation which convinced him that the Archbishop was a freemason. Bugnini denied that he was a mason, but accepted that he was dismissed because the Pope believed him to be a member of the Brotherhood. All the relevant documentation is contained in Chapter 24 of my book Pope Paul’s New Mass."

Dietrich von Hildebrand a deep thinker and considered a doctor of the church by Pope Pius XII believed Bugnini was a Freemason. This was confirmed by his surviving wife Alice von Hildebrand. Von Hildebrand by all accounts was a holy person and wasn't the type to throw out such accusations lightly.

Bugnini made some alarming comments and whilst things can be taken out of context I think God allows slips of the tongue (or pen) to occur - for example Bugnini said the liturgical changes were a "major conquest of the Catholic Church". Bugnini was also previously fired from his liturgical post under John XXIII's reign but was oddly reinstated by Paul VI.

An article by Michael Davies on Bugnini:
http://www.ad2000.com.au/articles/1989/jun1989p17_640.html

Archbishop Lefebrve the guy most famous for helping the church retain the traditional Mass commented in the mid 70's when he was having problems with Rome that he was trying to build up the church "but around me all I see is a demolition taking place".

And that is in part how we arrive to where we are today but the problems stemmed from way before the council was convened.

joerusso777 said...

Not sure if any of you have seen it but churchmilitant.tv formally realcatholictv.com did 2 or 3 shows on these very things. They are their CIA shows. If I'm not mistaken it was the first ones they made. If you haven't seen these I highly recommend them. They are very in depth and very good.

Jamey said...

x2 Joe, the following is the free link for "Weapons of Mass Destruction" by Mike Voris:

http://www.churchmilitant.tv/cia/03Massdest/

Some more links:

Alice von Hildebrand on the suspect reign of Paul VI, this is about as reliable and inside we will ever get to what transpired:

http://www.latinmassmagazine.com/articles/articles_2001_SU_Hildebran.html

Archbishop Lefebvre to confused Catholics on the problems with the NO and how it undermines the true faith:
http://www.sspxasia.com/Documents/Archbishop-Lefebvre/OpenLetterToConfusedCatholics/Chapter-4.htm

Hopefully B16 can get SSPX completely back in the fold and give them conditions that guarantee protection from the wolves once he passes on.

joerusso777 said...

Thanks Jamey. I couldn't remember what the name of the videos were, and didn't have time to look them up. That's a great interview with Alice v.h. I really hope that soon the NO Will be done away with. It's the mass I attend now for I don't have anywhere close to go for the TLM, but just like any mass we go to the reverance of the Priest is crucial. The thing about the NO is that if the Priest shows little to no reverance it sticks out like a sore thumb. There's much more wrong with it. The main thing for all of us in this time of Spiritual confusion is to embrace and make the Eucharist the very center of everything we do, and if we do that we can be reverant in any mass, as long as its valid of course.Eucharistic Adoration isn't an option for any of us that want to be Holy...its a MUST. Our Holy Father recently even stated this just this past Corpus Christi solemnity.
Knowing and defending the Faith and Liturgy like this is a must, but like Alice V.H. says in this interview, Fanaticism is the temptation that we can fall into. So we have to be on guard.

Jamey said...

Joe, that is all that can be done in cases like yours - find a NO where the priest has great reverence, genuinely believes the faith and novelties are kept to a minimum - occasionally you will find one who practices the NO but ad orientem.

Also worth researching for those struggling is whether there is a Melkite, Byzantine or Ukrainian Catholic church nearby. Often these things arent advertised on the net so it can be worthwhile calling the local diocesan office and asking them for more information. In remote Perth we have 1 x Melkite, 1 x Ukrainian, 1 x fulltime TLM parish and another part-time.

The Von Hildebrands are amongst my favorite Catholic writers with Slawomir Biela and of course Emmett :-) Interesting that Dietrich burst out crying in 65 that Satan had entered the temple.

Concurred it is easy to fall into fanaticism, the right balance must be sought. With the current state of the church there is much suffering to offer up for its redemption.

Anonymous said...

The bloody and bruised woman before the altar who gave birth to the devil in the vision of St. Hildegard isn't The Catholic Church but its devilish counterfeit. Hence she (the counterfeit) was struck by thunder and killed (was decapitated and gave up the ghost).

It is utterly horrific that anyone can write such absurd and disgusting things ('raped', 'gave birth to the devil') about The Spotless Bride of Jesus Christ, The Catholic Church (to not use harsher word instead of absurd and disgusting). This incident speaks volumes about "knowledge" of Catholic faith.

All guilty have to do penance for these blasphemies as soon as possible to not drink of the Divine wrath.

Emmett O'Regan said...

Anon,
I think you're reading the prophecy wrong, and may have misunderstood the intentions behind it. I agree that this imagery is somewhat shocking, but it is in line with the severe language of the prophets in the Old Testament when denouncing the members of Israel who had apostasised. In the Old Testament, the nation of Israel was judged collectively as a whole - both saints and sinners, when vast sections of the people had engaged in apostasy. This did not mean that there were not thousands of devout and truly holy people in Israel (including many of the leaders) who had remained faithful to God, but rather that the nation was being judged as a whole for the apostasy of many of its people. Israel, like the Church, was composed of both sheep and goats, sinners and saints. The Church is composed of every baptised member of the Catholic faith, and it is indisputable that a vast section of these baptised members, who are the majority of the Church, have apostasised. It is this apostate section of the Church (and not the holy people among the heirarchy and laity) which is being condemned by this imagery. It is the Antichrist - the thing to which the woman has given birth, who is struck by thunder and killed (not the woman) - alluding to 2Thes 2:

"And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming."
(2Thes 2:8)

The woman in the vision of St. Hildegard is definitely the Church. St. Hildegard explicitly states that the battered female image represents the Church herself when she speaks of the reversal of the woman's fortunes during the Second Pentecost:

"Behold, the feet of the AFOREMENTIONED FEMALE image appeared to be white, giving out a brightness above that of the sun. I heard a voice from heaven saying to me: "Even though all things on earth are tending toward their end, so hardships and calamities is bowed down to its End, nevertheless, the SPOUSE OF MY SON, THOUGH MUCH WEAKENED IN HER CHILDREN, WILL NEVER BE DESROYED either by the heralds of the Son of Perdition or by the Destroyer himself, however much she will be attacked by them."

What the prophecy is trying to convey is that the fruits of the apostasy of a large number of its members, (which has resulted through the attacks of Satan), is that the restraining force holding back the coming of the Antichrist (mentioned by St. Paul in 2Thes 2:7) will be taken away, paving the way for the coming of the Beast of Revelation. St. Paul also explicitly states that the "rebellion" (i.e. the apostasy of baptised members of the Church) will lead to the coming of the Antichrist:

"Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God."
(2 Thess 2:3-4)

I'm very sorry if any of this (admittedly very strong language) offends you. I am merely repeating the message of St Hildegard, and I don't believe that this prophecy was being used to disparage what is holy and good in the Church, but rather that it is condemning the apostasy of a large portion of the members which make up the Church as a whole - both the sheep and goats.

Unknown said...

One has to be of bad will not to see the corruption in the Church since Vatican II. Bad will pervades our world today though with heresy taking root everywhere, no fear of hell, no real leadership in the "Catholic Church". It comes down to pride and not wanting to admit being in a fruitless Church. The stubborness factor has never been higher and people would rather lose their eternal souls than seek truth and do what is right. Pope Francis is sure to be in place when Christ returns soon. How can God let a world go on where millions of babies are aborted and women have lost all sense of modesty?

Brenda Brinkley said...

As a woman, I want to respond to your comments on abortion. What do you think about these versus in the Bible regarding abortion. 

In Second Kings, Menahem, leader of the Israelites, smote all the people who refused to follow him “and all the women therein that were with child he ripped up” (2 Kings 15:16). Later, in Hosea, we learn that because the land of Samaria rejected God, “ Samaria shall become desolate; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword: their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up” (Hosea 13:16). Hosea decided to carry out God’s vengeance on the people by killing the unborn babies carried by the heathen women. He promised to “slay even the beloved fruit of their womb” (Hosea 9:16).

God also killed all the unborn when He drowned everyone with the Great Flood (Genesis 7:23). And it was God who inflicted abortion on all the pregnant women when he rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah , killing everyone who lived therein (Genesis 19:24-25). And it was God who killed the unborn babies during the countless plagues and pestilence he inflicted on the planet throughout history.

Finally, God also said, “Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones” (Psalms 137:9)? It seems here that post-natal killing options are available. The Bible authorizes us to kill just about any child who becomes burdensome. According to Deuteronomy, if a child is unruly and disobedient, we not only have the option of killing him, but it is mandatory that he be stoned to death (Deuteronomy 21:18-21). The same is true for a child who speaks to us with foul language (Exodus 21:17). Or a child who hits us (Exodus 21:15). 

And then of course, The Jews first instituted abortion when they found a woman to be pregnant out of wedlock, not only did they stone and kill her, but also her unborn child...
 
After reading these verses, it’s obvious that abortion is allowed in the Bible, In fact, it seems that abortion can be performed by armies of men, but women are supposed to have no choice in the matter.  

Brenda Brinkley said...

So  Is the Bible condoning forced abortion but prohibiting voluntary abortion? This certainly seems so.
 
Of course, there would be no abortion if God did not insist on sending babies to teenagers who don’t want them, when there are millions of women who would give their right arm to conceive a child…
Instead of pontificating about what women should and should not do, it would be helpful if the church would begin praying to God to send babies only to the women who actually want children…instead of women who don’t want them…that should be just the right quotient of women to take over all of the unwanted pregnancies…thus, the problem would be solved.

As a school teacher, I see young girls get pregnant every day, against their free will.
They make the mistake of reaching out for love to men (which their bodies and emotions are programmed to do by God) who controls nature)
and then when they conceive, the boy flees in fear and calls her a liar for implicating him...
 Men, by nature are so weak, and yet, God has condemned women to "cleave to them!"

And I also know many women, and mother's who would love to have a child, but cannot.
So my prayer to God is, Please God, stop sending the babies to young girls and children who
do not know how to take care of them, or who throw them in dumpsters, and please, instead,
send babies to the millions of women who really want them.
Please, God, do not use children as a punishment!
Children should all be considered a gift! 
 
Like most Catholics, I’m against abortion…but when reading the Bible, one can’t help but notice that the first abortions took place in the Bible…
It seems to me that God condones abortion, as long as it's carried out by armies of men,
but in the Catholic Church, which I belong to, the men make the decisions for the women and say it's outlawed.
 
Julia Sweeney came out with a famous film: “Letting Go of God.”
In this documentary, which is presently on several Direct TV channels, Julia Sweeny, a born and raised Catholic, asks the hard questions about the contradictions in our faith.
 
The imbalance of power between men and women in the church is addressed along with many other issues Catholic women are forced to deal with.
 
Along the same lines is a book by Sister Karol Jackwowski, called:
"The Silence We Keep."  Sister Jackwowski insists that checks and balances are needed in the church…She asserts that the sex scandals amongst priests could have been avoided if there had been a "balance of power" between the nuns and priests.  That is, if the nuns had not been forced to remained silent about what they knew about the sick priests.
 
The kinds of issues addressed by Sister Jackwowski and Julia Sweeny affect ALL Christians and need to be discussed. 

Blogger said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.