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The American TFP In Action

itchie

Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira, founder of the first TFP and

inspirer of all the others, once said,"There is no need to tell a son why he should be indignant when his mother is insulted." That explains why so many Catholics, most on very short notice and

many from as far away as Ohio, New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania joined to pray and protest when they learned of Robert Gober's "artwork" depicting the Blessed Mother with a large drain pipe piercing her womb. Continues on page 26

Crusade m

January-February, 1998 ❖ In Brief

❖ Roe vs. Wade - A Quarter-Century of Lies

5 Cover: March for Life

January 22,1998

Prophets, Martyrs^ Saints and Heroes Marizarci of Casicllo: Saint of tlic Uiiwaiucd

Society What Is Deep Ecology?

Education A Catechism in Stone

Catholic Apologetics Figurative... or Literal? The Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist

21 Learning from a

Back to Manners

medieval cathedral

Fake It Till You... Make It

❖ The Lost Archduke

The American TFP in Action Protest Against Blasphemy!

Basic History Course of Western Civilization Saijit Peter and the Beginning of Christianity

Family Series The Best Deed

Fighting against 25 years of lies, murders, and shame

Recipe Corner Kaspherry Blush

Crusade Magazine is a publication of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). Subscriptions in the United States and Canada, $24.00.

Foreign subscriptions, $30.00. List of other TFP publications available upon request. Direct all subscription requests and inquiries to; Crusade Magazine, P.O. Box 1868,York, PA 17405. Tel.: (717) 225-7147, Fax: (717) 225-7382, WWW.TFP.ORG.

"For my father and my mother have left me. but the Lord hath taken me up."

ÂŁ Crusade Magazine

Editor:

C. Preston Noell III

Not Even (iocl Can

Associate Editors:

Earl Appleby Thomas Becket

Sink This Society The current motion picture Titanic has soared to the top of the listings for box-office successes,justifying its distinction as the most expensive movie to date. The film, by James Cameron, is notable for the realism of its special effects, features for which other Cameron endeavors (Aliens, The Abyss, Tenninator II, and True Lies) have drawn attention. While the films ratings do not recommend it for Catholic audiences, we cite it here

Jack Bumham

Eugenia Guzman Gary Isbell Thomas J. McKenna Photographv: Todd F. Kamuf Circulation:

Gregory Escaro Foreign Correspondents:

as but the latest in at least a dozen movies and television dramas on the

AUSTRALIA: John S. Tucker

disaster of April 14, 1912. Why the enduring interest in this ship?

AUSTRIA: Carlos E. Schaffer

Three elements seem to come together to continuously raise the

Titanic in our minds: First, the tragedy of the event itself; second, the gal lantry of those last lights of the Belle Epoqiie high society that held, for the most part, to "women and children first"; third, the irony of the arro gant notion of that era that "not even God can sink this ship." The Titanic's promoters and passengers whole-heartedly believed that the ship, like the new technological society then beginning to dominate

BRAZIL: Jose Carlos Sepulveda FRANCE; Benoit Bemelmans GERMANY: Beno Hofschulle PORTUGAL; Antonio C. de Azeredo ROME: Juan M. Monies SOUTH AFRICA: Richard Urban

SPAIN: Felipe Barandiaran

everywhere, was unsinkable. The American TFP

They were wrong about the ship, obviously, but the mentality outlived them in the belief that whatever happens in the world, whatever moral or religious barriers are laid waste, this modem world is unsinkable. The Titanic tragedy endures as a metaphor for what happens when

Property (TFP) was founded in

men think they have created the ultimate machine. Like the Titanic, mod em society is theoretically unsinkable. Men have established safeguards

sis shaking the modern world. It is

in the economy that will supposedly prevent the mishaps of the past from overtaking us. They have developed medical systems that will sound the alert in time for us to take measures against the spread of disease. In the

geo-political realm, they have established modem communications and global institutions like the United Nations to make large-scale war virtu ally impossible. For those on the Titanic, the belief in the ship's invulnerability caused

them to ignore the warning signals. Captain Smith, the ship's master, had received five iceberg alerts on the day of the disaster. The last one had told him exactly where to expect the iceberg. When the disaster stmck, those on board still refused to acknowledge the gravity of the situation. Accounts of the final moments tell of the ship's designer, Thomas Andrews, sitting in the smoking room motionless, not responding to the supplications of a steward to "have a try for it" and staring blank-faced at a painting titled "The Approach of the New World." Perhaps thoughts of the Titanic keep coming back because of a sub

conscious uneasiness people feel. Just how unsinkable is modem society? When men become so confident as to think God is no longer a factor to be considered, they often find themselves unexpectedly on the Titanic.

The American Society for the

Defense of Tradition, Family and 1973 to confront the profound cri a civic, cultural and nonpariisan organization which, inspired by the traditional teachings of the Supreme Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, works in

a legal and peaceful manner in the

realm ot ideas to defend and pro mote the principles of private own ership, family and perennial Christian values with their twofold function: individual and social. The TFP's words and efforts have

always been faithfully at the ser vice of Christian civilization. The first TFP was founded in

Brazil by the famous intellectual and Catholic leader Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira in 1960. His

work has inspired the formation of other autonomous TFPs in 26

countries across the globe, thus constituting the world's largest anticommunist and antisocialist

network of Catholic inspiration.

CRUSADE

IN BRIEF 0 Let others follow suit

in shape and centered upon the resting place

Complaining that the "political" struc

of Our Lady. The rock itself is above the

ture of the Church is monarchical, authori

level of the floor and surrounded by a wall

0 Cloning: too far along the

tarian, and repressive, Sister Fiedler said that though they "gave it everything they had," the petition drive managed to gamer only 37,000 signatures. They had expected to find at least a million signers among the

same road

55-60 million Catholics in the United

Poland recently adopted a tough antiabortion law, further distancing itself from

one of the more appalling aspects of its

and cleared area, indicating that it was

communist legacy. The law permits abor tion only in cases of irreparable damage to

intended for veneration.

the unborn child, or in cases in which crime

is involved. Doctors performing illegal abortions risk up to two years in jail. Women's rights groups complain that

States.

The Council of Europe has adopted a protocol banning human cloning. Legally

the new law ends the abortion freedom inherited from Poland's communist era. It is

binding and international in application, the

an interesting complaint when we consider

document forbids the creation of a human

that here in the United States, where the

being genetically identical to another, living

abortion holocaust has already taken the

or dead.

lives of over 37 million innocent victims, it

was not the action of a communist regime that gave us this "freedom." If this is the sort of freedom we desire, however, we ought to pay closer attention to where we

With

Several conference attendees who had

helped collect signatures admitted having had better luck with un-churched Catholics and non-Catholics than with active

Catholics. We may well question just how many of these 37,000 signatures truly came

contraception, abortion, and

from Catholics, since a third of those in the

euthanasia as precedents, should anyone be surprised at what is clearly a logical next step? It is to be hoped, but surely too much

audience who had helped collect signatures raised their hands when asked who had

accepted signatures from non-Catholics.

to expect, that the Council, and like entities

Sister Fiedler's speech reflects quite a change from the self-confident and even

this step in the right direction, but may it be

as well, apprehensive about the prospect of cloning, will examine whence we have come and begin to withdraw from the .sor

just the first step - and close to the last - in

did, much-trodden path of playing God

in our November-December 1996 issue.

the absolute abolition of the murder of

with human lives.

are headed in view of this similarity. The Polish are to be congratulated for

This admission of defeat, however,

unborn children under any circumstances, anywhere.

brazen attitude she and others displayed at Call to Action's 1996 conference, reported

We Are Church Referendum:

should not be taken as evidence that those who would have the Church condone

homosexuality, abortion, contraception, and

update on a failure

Where Our Lady rested

other abhorrent deviations are going to give The radical agenda for distorting or

up. Their black standard has been raised.

Archaeologists recently discovered a

eliminating some of the Church's most

rock revered by early Christians as the place

way to Bethlehem. The discovery came about quite by accident during the widening of the Jerusalem-Bethlehem highway.

basic teachings has met with disfavor among Catholics in this land of liberty. Explaining the results of the We Are Church coalition's 18-month petition drive in favor of overturning traditional teachings on the priesthood, morality, and other matters.

Where they want to go is clearly evident. If unable to get there immediately, they will

The Church of the Kathisma, which in

Sr. Maureen Fiedler said, "we overestimated

Greek means "the seat," was constructed

around the rock, like a reliquary for a relic,

Catholic theological maturity and underesti mated the piety of the Catholic laity." She

in the fifth century. Archaeologists say that the church, long since razed, was octagonal

"slow march" tactics of the Revolution, spoken of by Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira in his seminal work. Revolution and

made her report at Call to Action's annual

Counter-Revolution.

conference, held in Detroit last November.

where Our Lady, bearing the Word made Flesh in her virginal womb, rested on her

"The Communist Mentality Is Still There"

When hearing of Russia we often imagine a vast country with very cold climate, dominated by communism for 70 years, and dotted with Orthodox churches. Yet, for many Catholics.

resort to gradualism, working in a less per ceptible manner. By gaining paiiial conces

sions over an extended time, the champions of the progressivist agenda yet hope to suc ceed. Such are the "fast march" and the

Interview with Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, I

Apostolic Administrator of European Russia

in 1962 at the Pedagogical Institute of Grodno until the commu

nist party forced him to leave because he was a practicing Christian. He then studied engineering at the Leningrad (now St.

Russia also evokes the apparitions of Our Lady in Fatima, where she foresaw the spread of communism and promised that, one day, Russia would convert. Did this conversion take place after the collapse of the Soviet empire? Crusade Magazine put this question to a highly qualified person who not only knows what

John Paul II consecrated him titular bishop of Ippona Zarito and

is going on in Russia today, but who also has lived both the

Apostolic Administrator of Min.sk, Belarus, in 1989. In 1991 he

communist and post-communist drama. Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, the son of ethic Poles, was born in

1946 in Odelsk, in Belarus. He studied physics and mathematics

JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 1998

Petersburg) Polytechnic Institute, and between 1970 and 1976

worked as an engineer at a factory in Vilnius. Lithuania. In 1976 he entered the seminaiy in Kaunas, Lithuania, and

was ordained in 1981 as a priest of the Diocese of Vilnius. Pope was named Archbishop and Apostolic Administrator of

European Russia for Latin Catholics. He is the first resident

Latin Rite bishop in Moscow in 55 years. His jurisdiction covers

IN BRIEF

The American TFP In Action

Say But a Word and

a million and a half square miles, and an estimated half-million Catholics liv

Cuba Will Be Saved

ing in Russia. Crusade: In Fatima,

Our Lady promised that

Ihefflanbetec

one day Russia would be converted. Can we

say that after the col lapse of the Soviet

etre-w-Bâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;,

empire Russia has already converted, or if

Fillil Conildarillont of lhÂť American TFP en the Eve ol the Pope'e Vlell to Cuba

Archbishop

not, what is to be accom

Tadeusz Kondrusiewtcz

plished? Archbishop Kondrusiewicz: Well, it's a very

long process. It is very easy to

change the names of the cities, change the names of the squares, or tear down monu ments of communist leaders.

But, it's more difficult to

change the mentality of the people, and especially to change the heart and soul of people. I think that having been in Russia as a bishop for six and a half years, and living in the

Soviet Union all my life, I may say that the process of conversion is going on. People are opening more and more,

opening to the Church's teach ing, to the Gospel, but it takes time.

Crusade: So, even though we have witnessed the collapse of communism as a political system, you would say that there is still a communist mind

set in people?

Archbishop Kondrusiewicz: Yes. Take the past presidential

Say But

Cuba Will Be Saved

Archbishop Kondrusiewicz: As we mentioned previously, conversion is not just bringing

people the Gospel. They have to accept the Gospel, they have to learn how to live according

to principles of the Gospel, Christian principles, to keep the moral laws. In Russia, three

generations had no opportunity to hear the Divine Word, and

they had no opportunity to go to church services and so on.

Published on the eve of the Pope's visit in: The Washington Times. Human Events. Diario Las Americas and The Wanderer

The recent papal visit to Cuba placed two realities in close juxtaposition. On one side. Catholics hoped that the Pope's visit would

That makes our work very diffi cult. On one hand, people like

somehow reinvigorate the beleaguered Church in

to know how to live according

Cuba and that public attention would perhaps

to the Gospel. On the other hand, they are not prepared to accept immediately what is said. They find that it is quite difficult to live according to the requirements of the Gospel. So, it's an immense task for the

wrest a few concessions from the Communist

dictator Castro. On the other side stood a cynical communist regime, making some conciliatory gestures and viewing the Papal visit as a means of bolstering its prestige by gaining legitimacy in

Church to move this process of

the eyes of the world.

conversion, and to put people

Will the long-term effect of the visit support Castro or contribute to the collapse of his

on this way.

Crusade: How is the politi cal situation of Russia today?

Archbishop Kondrusiewicz:

regime? Only time will tell, but it is certain that a

lack of vigilance by advocates of Cuba's freedom

elections, for example. How

Well, on one hand, the process

will favor Castro.

many candidates were former

of democracy is going on. But,

communist leaders? It is not

on the other hand, we still have

possible to change people's

a lot of obstacles to overcome.

On the eve of the visit, the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family, and

minds immediately. Conversion is a long process. For instance,

For instance, the new law on

Property published a full-page statement about it

"religious freedom" is just on

can you say that America is

paper. It has created a lot of

converted, or that Western

problems for Catholics, because there is a fight between two

in several newspapers. "Filial Considerations of the American TFP on the Eve of the Pope's visit to Cuba: Say But a Word and Cuba Will Be Saved" seeks to alert the public to the danger of

Europe is converted? Crusade: Many Catholics in

systems. The communist men

the West think that, after the

tality is still there, although 1

fall of the Berlin Wall, every

think it would be hard for the

thing is fine in Eastern Europe. Do you share this view?

old regime to return.

accepting Fidel Castro's concession at face value. Copies of the statement are available upon request. Call:(717) 225-7147

CRUSADE

March for Life

ROE vs. WADE

A Quarter-Century of Lies by Orlando Lyra

The twenty-fifth anniversary of the Supreme Court's infa

As the master par excellence of the big lie, Adolf Hitler

mous Roe vs. Wade decision legalizing abortion on

wrote in his political treatise Mein Kampf, "the magnitude of

demand calls to mind the biggest pack of lies ever set in

a lie always contains a certain factor of credibility, since the great masses of the people in the very bottom of their hearts tend to be corrupted rather than consciously and purposely evil, and, therefore, in view of the primitive simplicity of their minds, they more easily fall victim to a big lie than a lit tle one, since they themselves lie in little things, but would be ashamed of lies that were too big. Such a falsehood will never enter their head, and they will not be able to believe in the possibility of such monstrous effrontery and infamous mis representation in others."

motion — lies that have cost the lives of more than 37 million

innocent babies cruelly torn from their mothers' wombs. How is

it that such a slaughter, so akin to the sordid past of Hitler's Germany or Stalin's Russia, is found in the scandalous present of the United States of America, a republic purportedly based on

moral values and human rights? Only when the deadly lies behind abortion became the con

ventional wisdom could a free people tolerate this crime against mankind — and mankind's Creator.

The First Lie: "We do not know

when human life begins."

Why? Because we are talking about a fundamental human right — the right to

"The zygote, a cell measuring less than

life. Accordingly, the right to life of the unborn child should take precedence over

a tenth of an inch, surely cannot be consid ered a human being," the abortionists

lesser rights of his mother,just as the right

declare.

to life of a bom child does. A mother is not

This lie can be honestly accepted only by those invincibly ignorant of the develop ment of the human embryo. Only machines

allowed to kill her children because they

inconvenience her, else why did a South Carolina court try and convict Susan Smith

such as clocks and cars come into existence

for murder when she drowned her unwant

part by part. Living beings come into exis

ed children?

tence all at once and gradually unfold their world of innate potential. A living human

begins to exist at the moment of concep tion, even though only as a cell less than a

tenth of an inch. What is important is not the accident of size or weight but the essence — which is fully human. The Second l.ic: "The fetus is

merely a potential person."

25,000 flyers of "4 Quarter of a Century of Lies" were distributed by American TFP volunteers at the March for Life in

Washington, D.C. last January 22nd.

persons accidentally becau.se we arc per,sons essentially. In simple English, some

Even a "potential person" is entitled to

protection, which underscores the evil of abortion's partner in the Culture of Death: contraception. To be sure, at every instant

Believing, as Hitler did, that a big lie often repeated is soon believed, the abor tionists persist: "You "anti-choice zealots' are heartless. Why do you favor the life of

one's acting like a person is a consequence of his already being a person. The unborn child is not a potential person but a person

the unborn child over the life of the bom

with potential.

dren?"

The Third Eic: "The mother's

rights outweigh her baby's —

We respond with the words of His Holiness Pope Pius Xll: "It is a mistake to formulate the question with this alternative:

even its right to life."

either the child's life or the mother's. No;

The anti-lifers repackage their first lie to

claim that personhood develops gradually.

The Fourth Lie: *'Pro-lifers do not cure about the mother."

mother, who may even have other chil

neither the mother's life nor the child's life

may be submitted to an act of direct sup

of our lives we need to develop. (Abortion

"It is you 'fetus-lovers' who lack com passion," the baby-killers retort. "Why

ists, for example, would benefit from moral

should the rights of an undeveloped fetus

requirement can only be this: to make

development and from growth in love and compassion.) However, we act as human

take precedence over the rights of a fully

every effort to save the life of both mother

grown woman?"

and child."

JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 1998

pression. For the one and the other the

Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua (left)and Francis

Cardinal George chat during the March for Life in Washington D.C. last January 22nd.

"One day either the United States will be free of abortion or there won't be a United

From left: Mr. Frederic de Chalabre, Chairman of Drolt de Naitre, France's largest anti-abortion movement, Dr. Bernard Nathanson,and Thomas McKenna from the American TFP.

States! It is a deflning issue, and no country can continue abortion on demand indefinitely.

The Fifth Fie: "Every child a

The Sixth Fie:"Some children

But it took us eighty years to get rid of slav ery... These are issues that take several gener

wanted cliild."

are better off dead."

ations to work themselves out

Francis Cardinal George

Switching gears, the disciples of death mock our concern for the prebom child. "Doesn't every child have the right to be bom wanted?" they ask. Yes, we reply. The real question is

icapped or gravely ill," the able-bodied abortionist protests in his prime.

Christian civilization where every child is

Has the child finally warmed the cold heart of his enemies? No, their "mercy" is Kevorkianesque. They so love people with disabilities and illnesses that they

wanted, or by murdering every "unwant

want to kill them!

how to realize this ideal — by building a

ed" child? And unwanted by whom? The countless couples who pray every night for a baby to welcome into their hearts

Chicago

"It is cmel to let a child be bom hand

But every child is made in the image

"There has been an eHbrt to obscure the truth of what abortion is. The establishment would have one believe that what is at issue

here is the issue of personal choice, the free dom of a woman. But that really is not what is at issue here. What is at issue here is the

of God. In Him — and from Him —

life of a human being, and whether that life

there is no blemish. God's image lies in

should be protected or whether that life

and lives?

man's eternal soul, not in his perishable

should be at risk. I think that there is a tide

"Every child a wanted child... and if not wanted, dead." Change the words but slightly and we have the words of an ear

body, and in his indomitable spirit, as the triumphs of Blessed Margaret of Castello,

going in the opposite direction now,and that

of Baldwin IV the Leper King, of Helen

ple see the illogic of their position, and that

we are going to see that more and more peo

lier Culture of Death that led to the ovens

Keller, and of Beethoven — to name but

we will begin to see the pro-life position

of Auschwitz.

a few prodigies of courage — remind us.

encouraged more fully." Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua Philadelphia

rep for Life, January 22,1998

"This is the problem: lack of understand

ing,lack of questioning,lack of inquiry. The more they inquire and the more they educate themselves, they become increasingly pro -life and further and further away from the prochoice position." John Cardinal O'Connor New York

m rMllCT m kiwi

"In America,the word choice means liberty and freedom. We are raised on that, we all want our free

dom. What people don't understand is that you have a child that is grow ing. That child should have its free dom too. People get confused because

Many thousands of people gathered around the speaker's platform before the March began.

they don't see the baby, and so they think the mother is more important

and daughters more than stocks and bonds. If there is any discrimination here, it is

than the baby, that the mother

But a decision is private insofar as it refers only to the interests of the one who decides. When it involves the rights of oth

should have the choice. We have to

ers, it can no longer be considered private,

ished rich sacrificed on the altars of

educate the people and say that once

and this is precisely the case in abortion.

Mammon.

you have a baby, a human being,

What takes place in the "privacy" of the

there's no more choice. You cannot

aborted womb is the murder of an innocent

The Tenth Lie: "We can work together

have any reason whatsoever to kill the baby."

human being morally entitled to the full and total protection of the law.

to reduce abortions through birth con

against the babies of the morally impover

trol."

Bernard Cardinal Law

"The abortion debate is polarizing the

The Ninth Lie: "Law.s against

Boston

abortion discriminate against the l>oor."

The Seventh Lie: "The law does

not recognize the unborn child''s right to life."

Hearing the abortionists, one would think that abortion is an essential part of

After all, the Supreme Court, the high est court in the land, failed to find any con stitutional protection for the right to life of preborn babies, the pro-aborts remind us.

the "preferential option for the poor." "The rich will always have access to abortion," they prate. Mirroring their self-histories,

country. Let's put aside our differences and work together to make abortion rare" — as

President Clinton has advocated — "by providing free and easy access to family planning to all women of childbearing

age," the pill-pushers cajole. "Family planning" is a rather strange term for providing abort!facients and con traceptives to young unmarried girls so that

of the unborn, such as the right of inheri tance and the right of legal representation.

we must not discriminate against the poor — whose babies they, like Margaret Sanger, seek to slaughter. Yet contrtU7 to Planned Parenthood's

If an unborn child can inherit, be compen

propaganda, the poor are more inclined to

is, after all, the ultimate birth control.

sated for prenatal injuries, and be repre sented by a guardian, then any law that

welcome children and less inclined to prac

And yet our laws recognize other rights

allows the destruction of that innocent child is schizophrenic or, as Saint

they may practice "safe sex," i.e., fornica tion. As for contraception itself, it is the door to abortion — not the btmier. Abortion In the end, there can be no common

tice birth control than the rich. Those whose

ground between the Culture of Life and the

values transcend Wall Street treasure sons

Culture of Death.

Augustine would say, it is no law at

all. So. too, shall find the highest court of any land, that of the Supreme Judge of all.

"We have seen a shift in public opinion of refocusing on the abortion issue. It's clearly

The Kighth Lie: "The right

an issue that the majority of the people don't want to think about. But the partial-birth

to privacy grants a iicen.se

abortion ban debate has refocused the public

t«i abort."

■■Roe vs. Wade's legalization of abortion is based on the constitu

tional "right to privacy." Since the

attention on the abortion issue. In the Senate

we are very close to overriding the

President's veto. We are going to bring it back again this fall and give it another shot!*'

decision to have an abortion is a

Senator Mike DeWine

personal and private matter, like

(R-Ohio)

religion, government should not interfere." says this pro-choice ploy.

JANUARY-FEBRUARY. 1998

■

Prophets, Martyrs, Saints and Heroes

Margaret of Saint of the Unw

taste ted

feUAet cuut mtf tKC.

teUUt^ mc

IN THIS DAY AND AGE WHEN

-pMimSS.ro

we witness the greatest rejection of children of all time, it seemed

fitting to focus on a child who was also brutally rejected by her own parents. She was not rejected before her birth, since at the time

of this story, the late Middle Ages,

n the Apennine range, just southeast of Florence,

recourse to abortion would not

plished what seemed impossible: He re took the fortress by force.

have been considered. Although fallen human nature was as capa ble of untold cruelty then as it is now, nations still acknowledged God as the Supreme Lord of life

and thickly forested and provided much of

now even wealthier than before, settled

and death.

the wood for the Italian trade. Because of

in his new home and brought to it his

this asset and its strategic position. Massa

young bride, Emilia.

Trabaria was much coveted by the powerful

Parisio may have been a good military leader but, unfortunately, he was not exact

Thanks to the influence and

tireless evangelization of the Catholic Church, the former bar

barians of that time had been grad ually converted and had become true, albeit still rough, sons of the Holy Church. Much still had to be

shaped, polished, and civilized, and isolated cases of abuse, cruel

ty, and even crime were still to be found. But as the Faith set deeper

and deeper roots in the lives of the peoples, they as a nation dared not

there was in the thirteenth cen

tury a small papal state of about three hundred square miles called

bestowed the castle with all its lands and

Massa Trabaria. It was mountainous

revenues on their new Captain. Parisio,

neighboring republics, which watched like birds of prey for the first opportunity to seize it.

Crowning one of the mountain tops was hold that stood bold and beautiful against

ings of others. His young wife seems to

the blue Italian sky and commanded much

have been a woman of weak character,

of the region. Nearly inaccessible, it had been taken only once, by the Republic of

totally and abjectly subject to her husband.

Gubbio, and then only through treachery.

Our story opens with the din of men at arms. The Massa Trabarians had gathered in

an attempt to re-take their fortress from the treacherous invaders after some twenty-five

years of occupation. Their captain, a young man of the best nobility in the land named

of their unborn and their unwant

Parisio, had just been elected Captain of the People, the region's second most important

Of course, as we said, instances

of cruelty did occur. This is the story of such a case, but one which

was touched by God and His Church, and a marvel took place.

virtues. He was monstrously proud, unscrupulous, and indifferent to the suffer

heinous crime of ending the lives

XIII, the Gospel ruled society.

ly a good man. In fact, a medieval historian tells us that he was endowed with few

the castle of Metola, an awesome strong

commit before their God the

ed! The Middle Ages was truly an age when, according to Pope Leo

Such was the Joy of the people of Massa Trabaria that they unanimously

position of authority.

He had given immediate proof of mili tary genius: he was not only intelligent, but brave, indeed, practically fearless.

Against most improbable odds, he accom

Towards the end of the first year of their marriage it was no secret that Lady Emilia was soon to give birth. Parisio could hardly contain his excitement. The thought of hav ing a son, an heir to his name, his position, and his lands, was absolutely exhilarating! He wanted such festivities both in the ca.stle and in the town that Massa Trabaria

would never forget the day. Every person of rank in the land was invited: no one was for gotten. At the castle, even the serfs were happy because the birth of an heir meant several days off and an abundance of food.

As they worked in the neighboring fields and forests, their ears strained for the sound

This article is adapted from The Life of Blessed Margaret of Castello: 1287-1320, by Fr. William Bonniwell. O.P.(ÂŠ IDEA, Inc., and TAN Books and Publishers, 1983), with the kind petmis.sion of Fr. Charle.s Fiorc. Photos, copyright TAN Books and Publishers. Introduction, adaptation, and conclusion by Michelle Taylor.

CRUSADE

Prophets, Martyrs, Saints and Heroes of the bells from the castle announcing the birth of the heir to Metola.

But the night the baby was bom, there was no bell, no sound, no festivities. Instead,

Metola was stunned into silence and grief. The child was a girl. And the girl was dreadfully deformed.

not speak like the soldiers' wives. Your voice is like my mother's or Lady Gemma's"

Her very friendliness and bright approach

Just as the lady was about to inquire further, a woman came running up the corri

was to earn her even

quickly snatched Margaret away.

dor, and. panting, excused herself as she What a narrow escape, thought Parisio and Emilia when they heard of the occur

greater suffering.

Margaret

rence. This must never happen again! as the days wore on that she was completely

When parents are confronted with such deformities in their offspring, the very mis

blind.

fortune of the child usually moves them to

from the initial shock, they decided that the

As soon as the parents had recovered

pity, and they tend to lavish even more care

deformity of their child must remain an

on the pitiable child.

They must never run the risk of their secret being discovered at all, ever. But what to do?

The couple talked much and discussed many ideas until Parisio remembered some thing. Out of the recesses of his godless mind he seemed to remember a story about a Saint

Not so with the castellans of Metola. In

absolute secret. Word was spread in town that the baby was sickly and was not likely

their tremendous pride and selfishness,

to live. To the garrison at the castle, it was

Veridiana who had lived all her life as a

Parisio and Emilia were outraged that nature had dared mock them so, the noblest people in Massa Trabaria. Instead of feeling pity for their deformed baby, they determined to

made very clear that total silence concerning the affair was very prudent. There was no

recluse in a small cell by a church.

need to bolster this recommendation, since

would do the same with Margaret! The little

people remembered well the ruthless cruelties

recluse would be able to pray every day and

shun her and disassociate themselves from

that Parisio inflicted on .some of his prisoners.

all day since she was so pious!

her as much as possible.

At the insistence of Father Capellano, chaplain of Metola, the baby was baptized,

From a purely materialistic point of view, the couple almost had an excu.se for their attitude. Nature, as if in a cruel mood,

had piled misfortune upon misfortune on the child. The little girl was far from being beautiful, yet her ugliness was the least of

her handicaps. She was so small that it was obvious that she would never attain

normal height; one leg was much shorter than the other;

she was hunchbacked; and it became plain

but secretly, and

received

the

name

Margaret, chosen by the maid who took her to the baptismal font. The parents had spo ken only to say that the name, whatever it be. not be Emilia.

Capital! Parisio had his solution. He

Emilia was shocked and remonstrated

weakly against the monstrous idea of shut ting in a mere child of six. But her weak,

selfish nature had never been any real obsta cle to any scheme of her overbearing hus band. and no sooner had he thought of the idea than he had it put into practice.

Little Margaret began to grow and devel op within the walls of the fortress. She was a friendly little creature, of a sunny and

bright disposition as she hobbled about everywhere and befriended all the inhabi tants of her great home. She bypassed only her parents' quarters, where she knew she was not welcome and must not visit.

Father Capellano. her protector and great

Pri.son

About a quarter of a mile away from the castle there stood a small church in the for

est called Saint Mary of the Fortress of Metola. There he had a mason build a small,

low-ceilinged room attached to the wall of the church. It was finished in a few days and,

that

without further ceremony, the heartless

Margaret had been gifted with an extraordinary intelligence. She quickly learned all the rudiments of

father thrust his crippled child into it and had the opening walled up!

her Faith and began to show signs of a deep piety. But her very friendliness and bright approach was to earn her

Behind closed doors and in distant corridors

friend,

soon

became

aware

even greater suffering. One day.

Everyone at the castle was horrified. indignation seethed, but no one dared

oppose the tyrannical father. The only one to confront Parisio fearlessly was small, frail

when she was six years old. she

Father Castellano. who had been away on a trip while the cruel project was being

had gone to the chapel to pray

accomplished. He threatened Parisio with

as was her custom. There she

God's wrath and. in turn, was furiously

met a woman visitor who. see

threatened with having his tongue cut out. But it was now little Margaret's turn to

ing the cripple, asked: "Arc you blind, little girl?" "Yes. Your Ladyship." The woman was much

surprised. "If you cannot see. how

astound the world. While angry whispering was going on everywhere, the chaplain had gone to visit the crippled young pristnier in the forest.

He had found her crying piteouslv. He

do you know 1 am a lady?"

solation to the poor little wretch, since this is

"Because you do

all she had to hold on to. He had known

tried to muster some words of spiritual con

I I B

l r'.."

deÂťws tvas rejected by His own peaple^ and Gad is h

same sa that I can fallaw Our dear Mjard mare clo^elg Margaret to be an amazingly precocious

unceasingly that her courage and faith do

child and very prone to piety, but he never expected to hear what he heard that day:

not fail her."

"Father," she said, "when they brought me

Confinement

virtue held and she bore the trial.

here this morning, I did not understand because of my sins - why God let this hap

Margaret spent not one, not two, not just

pen to me. But now He has made it clear.

five years in that prison, but thirteen long

Jesus was rejected even by His own people,

years.

ly. And,oh! Father, I am not good enough to be so near to God!" And she was so over

come by the thought of God's incredible love for her that she could not go on.

She needed all the strength she could muster, for worse was still to come...

and God is letting me be treated the same so that I can follow Our dear Lord more close

This was a great blow to her and she suf fered a real agony. But she endured. Her

And all the while, Margaret grew. She

especially grew spiritually: praying con stantly; meditating on the life of her suffer ing Lord; imposing penances on her frail

Banishment

After many months of warfare, an agree ment was reached between the neighboring invaders and Massa Trabaria.

Parisio returned home and his wife

body as if those with which nature had obliged her were not enough; growing in

informed him about all the small happen

^ that intimate union with her God accessible only to those who have

town of Mercatello. Among her stories was

Margaret was deeply moved at the thought of heing lodged In a

learned to see beyond what this defec

ings and events of her household and the

one of special interest. Just recently four German pilgrims had arrived in town speak

tive life offers. And .she prayed for her

ing of miracles being worked at the tomb of

land, for her people, for her parents. One day, she was alarmed to hear barn as her Savior had been. the sound of the bells resounding from her former home. They were tolling Later, speaking with some friends at the incessantly, much more than usual. Her fine castle, he said: "You know, it is funny how intelligence quickly grasped the meaning: we all call ourselves Christians but really do war. Massa Trabaria was being invaded! not 'live' what we have been taught as And her father was generalissimo! "Sweet

a Friar Giacomo at Castello, a large town beyond the Apennines.

One day. Emilia surprised her husband

with the proposal to take Margaret to Castello. "I've heard that to obtain a miracle

all one needs is much faith. Margaret cer tainly has plenty of faith" said Emilia.

Christians. One of the first clauses in the

God. Lord of Battles,"she prayed,"give him

Parisio paced up and down for a while and then finally said: "Yes, we will make

Catechism teaches us that we were made to

victory, keep him from harm."

the trip. 1 know in fact that this pilgrimage will solve our problem."

love God and by loving Him to find perfect

Parisio expeditiously prepared to meet

and eternal happiness. To do this, we don't

the invader. Just before leaving he had his

Something in the way he spoke the last

need our eyesight, or our legs, or beauty, or freedom. Incredibly, I think our little cripple

wife removed to their castle in the town of

sentence sent a chill through his wife's

Mercatello, which he deemed safer. It was

trame. What had he meant? It certainly was not the faith that moves mountains which had prompted that statement...

mind, a luminous mind, with which she

decided that Margaret would also go, of course, but she would be kept in one of the vaults of the building so that the many visi

comprehends her situation very clearly. It is

tors in town would remain unaware of their

true that the cross laid on her small shoul

crippled daughter's existence.

has understood this better than all of us

together. Margaret has been given a keen

ders is immense, but she has also been given the necessary graces to bear it. If she does

So it was that Margaret exchanged one

the People, his wife, a closely wrapped lit tle girl, and several attendants left through

prison for another. But now she no longer

the southern gate of Mercatello in the direc

had access to the sacraments and was far

tion of the Apennines.

not falter, a glorious triumph will be hers some day. A time will come when she will

from Our Lord in the Eucharist. Moreover,

bless the day she was born blind and

she could no longer count on the assistance.

deformed. Let us, her closest friends, pray

advice, and friendship of Father Capellano.

A few days later, very early in the morn ing, a caravan comprised of the Captain of

Citta di Castello was a historic town dat

ing back to Roman times. After a painful journey up and through the mountain range.

CRUSADE

tng me he treated the

our travelers came upon the ancient city nestled on the east side of the Tiber.

Next morning the nobleman, his wife, and their handicapped daughter made their

beggar women who had particularly be friended her obtained

fortune. She was

permission for them to

way to the church where the holy man was buried. On arriving there, they instructed Margaret to pray with all her .strength for a cure. Margaret knelt on the pavement and, her parents noticed, was soon deep in

at the thought of being lodged in a barn as her Savior had been. Her companion

prayer. They watched for a while, and then,

was astounded.

becoming bored, decided to go for a stroll

Margaret could not believe her

delighted at the thought that she

sleep in a bam. Mar garet was deeply moved

And so, in due time, was the town. At

would no longer be a burden to the poor, depriving them of the food and

space which, for them, were already so scarce. To think that she could work and

serve her God in peace and quiet and feel

around town.

first people were suspicious of this "fine"

that she finally belonged to a home and a

Obedient to her parent's command, Margaret asked eame.stly that .she be made

beggar's sweet, patient, and long-suffering attitude.Was Margaret just very intelligent

family of souls was a real joy. But the saints of God are people who are specially marked by the cross of Christ. Her

whole, but with one condition: that it be

and aware that a good disposition would

God's will. If. in Hi.s inscrutable plans, He

win her the townsfolks' favor? Bui time, the

very fidelity and obedience to the rule she had

saw fit that she remain as she was, she was

greatest tester, proved her true. Poor fami lies began to offer her shelter and to take

embraced was .soon to bring her grief. That particular convent, it so happened,

willing to remain so until her death. After a while, Parisio and Emilia

turns in housing her.

was very lax. The nuns had long ceased to

take their holy rule as seriously as the rule itself required and had become quite world

not stirred. They also noticed something

Then they began to notice something: Every family that helped her found that their fortunes suddenly took a turn for the

else: no cure had occurred.

better. They attributed this to blessings

ing a constant stream of visitors, and

They stood fixed to their spot for a while. Then, plucking at his wife's sleeve,

come upon them through Margaret's prayers

accepting expensive personal gifts. All sorts of infractions were the daily routine.

Parisio said with finality: "Let's go." And .so

taking her in.

returned to the church. They found Margaret still deep in prayer, and they noticed she had

they left, not just back to the inn but to

asking Our Lord to reward these people for vSoon, ladies and people of higher status

ly, breaking the silence at all hours, receiv

Our cripple, in her humble, sweet, and

self-effacing manner, nevertheless obeyed

Mercatello, far away beyond the mountains.

began to talk about this new citizen of

to the letter. She had committed herself to

Yes, they abandoned their crippled,

Castello who spent hours before the Blessed Sacrament praying so intently that she hard

serve God by the rule and her conscience could not be cheated. Without intending it,

see her again. O monstrous deed!

ly noticed what went on around her. On talking to her, they found her conversation

she became a thorn in the con.sciences of

Homeless

winning, interesting, and deeply insightful.

blind daughter in a foreign town, never to

her fellow sisters, who did not take it very kindly. After much back and forth, Margaret was asked to leave.

Abandoned, helpless, and destitute at

In the convent

twenty, Margaret was helped by Castello's

In the street.s once more

beggars. Homeless, she learned to beg and slept in the shelter of doorways or

These people soon decided that Margaret, despite her deformities, had the

overhangs.

makings of a religious. They u.sed their

As she found herself again on the street, the temptation to despair enveloped her. She

The .spiritual life she had developed in

influence with the nuns of a convent near

stood utterly bewildered. Once more her lit

her confinement sustained her. She learned

the southeast gate of the city. After much

tle world came crashing down all around

to see every difficulty as an opportunity to

discussion, the sisters decided to accept her

her. Once more she was rejected by those

follow her suffering Lord. Once, one of the

into their community.

she loved.

JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 1998

Prophets, Martyrs, Saints and Heroes ever in the people's esteem.

Suddenly, the pri.son resounded with all sorts of exclamations: "My God!" "Jesus,

Finally, a family!

have mercy!""Mother of God!" At the cries, ble sight. Margaret, having been standing by

must serve God, do so in moderation, as

When contempt and ridicule for Margaret became nearly universal, she met

him a few moments before, was now motion

other people do. You must compromise,

the Mantellates. These were women who

less about twenty inches above the floor! Her

Margaret, you must compromise!"

desired to lead a more religious life but who for one reason or another could not join a

thrown back as if she were looking at some

A small but insistent voice kept repeat

ing inside her: "Margaret, be reasonable. What have all these years of trying to serve God brought you? Rejection, rejection, and more rejection. Wake up, Margaret! If you

Worse still, the thought began to dawn

Alonzo raised his head to behold an incredi

Order of Penance, which in time became

thing glorious right through the ceiling of the prison. It seemed ages until she began to

today's Dominican Third Order. They wore

descend slowly. As she did, everyone

a white tunic with a leather belt and a black

noticed that her face, normally quite home ly, was radiantly and gloriously beautiful.

upon her that, truly, it was not the nuns who had rejected her but God him.seif. O pain! And the voice: "It is no use, Margaret. It is

convent. Instead, they joined the Dominican

no use to try anymore. God does not want

you. Give up, and you'll be at peace..."

mantel or "mantella," hence their name.

With all her strength she tried to pray,

At the instance

of several of the

At the height of the battle,just as she felt

Mantellates whom Margaret met at the Church of Charity, one of her favorite churches, the Dominican friars decided to

herself close to utter defeat, additional

receive her as a member of their Order. The

but her prayers felt empty and God seemed so remote.

hands remained folded but her head was

divine grace came to her rescue. She

day of her reception was one that always

remembered how, long ago, she had given

remained sacred in the girl's memory. Until her death she felt that she belonged to a true

Slowly, in a low, submissive voice Alonzo turned and said simply: "Little Margaret, pray for me." From that day on he began to recover. Sanctity

do with her what He pleased. Knowing since childhood the supreme value of suf

family of souls.

Margaret's difficult manner of living

While still a small girl, Margaret had set out on a long, arduous journey in search of her God. Her goal was a perfect union with

fering, she had set out on the road to

came to a close on her becoming a Mantellate. Now, a well-to-do family, the

on her were cruel and at times staggering,

herself completely to God and told Him to

Calvary. His lot would be her lot. She remembered her meditations and how many limes, in her mind's eye. she had seen His agonizing face, especially as He hung dying on the cross, abandoned by His closest friends. And it was as if she heard Him say ing, "Margaret, will you also leave Me?"

Offrenduccio. insisted that she make her

but she never wavered in her resolve to fol

home with them.

low Him to the very summit of Calvary.

Later - the Medieval biographer does

Now. unmistakable signs of this deep

not say why - she went to live with the Venturino family. It would be her last home

divine union were inevitably showing. Her

on earth.

carried not only her soul, but also her body

Tending pii.soners

ground, and with her tear-stained face serene once more, she began to tap her way down the narrow street, ready for whatever God might ask of her next. She still wanted God - at any cost, at any price.

prayer was so ardent and exalted that it

ever upward! God apparently wanted to

Instantly the struggle ceased. She picked

up her cane, which had clattered to the

Him and with His divine will. Life's blows

physically show the world how totally He had taken her to Himself. She who hadn't a

hou.se, she began to give assistance to pris

single attachment on earth, was sometimes bodily separated from earth. The incident

oners. She was immensely moved by what she heard of their terrible situation and pri

at the prison was multiplied many times; in fact, it occurred almost every time she vis

Here, in the company of the lady of the

As soon as the report that Margaret had

vations in the prisons of the time. There she

ited those poor wretches in the squalid

been expelled from the convent spread

guided many a prisoner back to his Creator

dungeon.

through town, she was faced with a new ordeal - public derision and contempt. She

before he died.

suffered a real agony, but she bore it well,

Alonzo of San Mario, a man who had been

hosts by simply having her cloak thrown

mindful of how her divine Master had been

wrongly charged with treason. Alonzo had

into the midst of the raging flames. Another time, ironically enough, a

the object of slanderous tongues.

There was particularly the case of

been tortured and permanently crippled by

After several months, the fairer-minded

the mistreatment. He was thrown into

people of the town began to reflect on the

prison, leaving his wife and son destitute.

attitude of the nuns, who by reason of their

When he heard that his little son had died

calling should have kept a charitable the cripple had been advanced while Margaret, who had a natural right to defend

of starvation, the man nearly went insane. From that day on he blasphemed God vehemently and continually. Nothing that anyone did could make him change his

herself, not only refused to comment but

course.

silence. Instead, serious accusations against

even tried to justify the sisters' decision!

One day. Margaret visited him with

Public attention focused on the convent.

Lady Gregoria. her host. While Lady

After .some scrutiny many understood what had happened. The scale of the public's favor and admiration once more tipped towards Margaret, and she rose higher than

Gregoria tended and bathed Alonzo's wounds and he kept his sullen face averted, Margaret joined her hands and was soon deep in prayer.

She also began to work miracles. Once, she put out a terrible fire in the house of her

woman approached her in a great state of anxiety: she was slowly but iiretrievably losing her eyesight and was asking Margaret to obtain her cure from God. It probably never occurred to her that she was

asking tor her sight from one who was blind

all her life. Margaret, who by now had fath omed the deep reasons why God allows some sufferings and knew the great spiritu al advantages it can bring, tried to convince the woman to accept this cross. But the poor patient could not bear the thought of never seeing the faces of her children again. Extending her hand, the saint touched her

CRUSADE

Prophets, Martyrs, Saints and Heroes Heaven

nous. shining, beautiful soul left her tor

eyes, which were immediately restored to perfect health.

Around this time,prompted by obedience,

Margaret had reached her thirty-third

year on earth. Her pilgrimage had been long,

Margaret revealed to her confessor that while

arduous, and most fruitful. Her soul now

at Mass she could see Our Lord in the

longed for her true home, for Him who had

mented, wasted body to meet the One who had been her one, unfailing, and complete

Friend in life and who now had a glorious crown prepared for her for the one eternal life that really matters. She was thirty-three years old.

Blessed Sacrament from the Consecration

been her true father, and for His mother and

until Communion. Being a man experienced in the direction of souls, he questioned her

ours to whom all her life she had been so

thoroughly. He was finally convinced that this was no hoax or imaginary illusion. In some extraordinary way, with other than bodily

child under her maternal protection.

and deformed began to cure many with

As the year 1320 opened, people who knew her well began to notice that

similar ailments. Her fame as a wonder

eyes, Margaret could truly see the very

her small, twisted frame could not han

Person of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the conse

dle the struggle of keeping body and

After a thorough investigation, Margaret was beatified by Paul V on October 19, 1609.

crated host. On asking her to describe Him,

soul together much longer. Theologians teach that when a person's love of God reaches its maximum intensity the physical body can no longer hold the soul chained to it. And so, Margaret's lumi

she answered with feeling: "Oh, Father, you ask the impossible; you are asking me to describe infinite beauty!"

devoted and who had taken the abandoned

/"^^ear reader, at the beginning of this story, you probably _>^felt your heart tighten. Mine did when I first read it.

After her death, she who had been blind

worker spread throughout central Italy.

Her feast day is April 13. Blessed Margaret of Castello, pray for us.

like so many others, and this star of incomparable beauty

would not be shining today in the firmament of the Church

Perhaps the following thought crossed your mind: it would

and showing us and so many physically handicapped people

have been better for this girl never to have been bom.

this magnificent truth - that with God no one is ever

Certainly, neither you nor I ever thought for even a split second of the horrible alternative of today. But, still the thought of: "Why couldn't God have done something to spare

unwanted, no life is ever a waste. With Him even the most

handicapped can make the physically fit look handicapped. With Him life has another dimension, or, rather, this life is

her so much pain, or at least to moderate her deformities to

but a very small part of a much greater dimension, an infi

make life a little more bearable for her? Or, why didn't He

nitely greater life.

cure her at the tomb of Fra Giacomo in Castello?"

She demonstrates, above all, that no one has the right to commit this double crime: to deprive anyone of this life on

Margaret's was the perfect prayer: "Lord, if it be Thy

will..." Yes, God's will is inscrutable and perfect.

Think of it. If He had cured her or lightened .some of her burden, this story would never have been written, Margaret of Castello would have disappeared into the mists of history

earth that is the vehicle to that other life of which the

Apostle says: "That eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man what things God hath prepared for them that love Him"(iCor.2:9).

"Blessed Margaret's incorrupt body, dressed in the black and white habit of the Mantellates, is kept In a glass coffin at the School for the Blind in CItta de Castello.The flesh of her face Is discolored but

intact. Detail of Blessed Margaret's feet, lower left, shows the defor mity of her left foot and the relative shortness of her right leg."

â&#x2013;

Society

What Is Deep Ecology? by Thomas Becket

Johnny's fifth-grade class has spent the day on a field trip to

proposes a means whereby he can solve the main problems of his life. It also inspires its followers to make tremendous sacri

the new nature center.

Since its opening, the center has seen a constant flow of vis

iting school children. The center's staff activists adjust the chil dren's attitudes so that they grow up to be responsible environ mentally friendly adults. Johnny's class now spends two of it recess periods each week "volunteering" to clean up the local

fices and adopt a way of life that demands great hardship. It has insinuated itself into the environmental issue and has

hijacked environmental fears and ridden them right into every one's living room. Like so many other movements, this new reli

gion sneaks right by under the guise of many good causes.

park.

Miss Evera Green, Johnny's teacher, has taught the necessi ty of acting locally and thinking globally. "Man has spent cen

Out of the lunatic fringe

turies trashing the planet," she lamented. "We have to under

In its early days deep ecology seemed part of the lunatic fringe. By the 1990s, however, it attained at least symbolic

stand that we have no right to treat the forests or the animals any

differently then we treat each other. If we keep burning the rain

acceptance by the establishment at the Earth Summit in Rio De

forests, hunting whales and seals, and using aerosol sprays that

Janeiro in 1992. The Summit brought together representatives of

deplete the ozone, in Just a little while the earth will die."

178 countries and was the largest gathering of heads of state in

Nothing seems amiss. What could possibly be wrong with fighting pollution or cleaning up the park? Miss Green doesn't nail spikes into trees to stop logging. She

the history of the world. Leaders played active roles in ceremonies with clear refer

doesn't rant and rave about her environmen

tal concerns. She is a nice person. Teaching environmental awareness is just part of her job, and she just follows the course guide lines she receives.

In fact, she holds the same basic beliefs

that most people hold about the environ

ence in deep ecology. One

Like so many other move ments, this new religion sneaks right by under the guise of many good causes.

ment. She worries about the content of toxic

waste in her drinking water. She believes that oil is a non-renewable resource. She has seen television

such was the arrival of a

Viking boat named Gaia, for

the earth goddess, which car

ried .soil from all the places it had stopped along it.s journey to be placed symbolically in a monument. The

ceremony

brought together the "estab lishment" and the band of

alternative groups that included religious leaders ranging from

documentaries about the burning of the rain forests in Brazil. All

Buddhists and Indian shamans to progressivist Catholics in a rit

these issues are straightforward enough. They spell long-term

ual that had all the undeipinnings of pagan syncretism.

disaster. The specifics of the science that demonstrates all this

The Catholic thinker Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira noted at

or fails to do so do not concern her.

the lime of the Rio Summit that this was a great departure from

Assumptions

the style of such meetings in the past. He contrasted the Earth Summit with the Versailles Peace Conference after the First World War.

many of the environmental slogans is a set of assumptions flow

The political leaders gathered at Versailles in an atmosphere of almost complete secularism. Their approach to government

ing from a new religion. This religion aims to radically under mine Johnny's whole understanding of him.self and his world. This new religion has a name, and it has become increasing ly open about its true identity in the last few years. That name is "deep ecology." Bom in the radical hippie movement of the six

ference. by contrast, religious personalities were prominent. The tone of the religious cult was predominately pagan.

What Johnny and Miss Green don't realize is that behind

and world affairs was humanistic and atheistic. At the Rio con

Characteristics

ties. it was given its name by Norwegian philo.sopher Amie Naess in 1970.

The movement can rightly be called a religion because it has a unique conception of man and his role in the universe, and it

This pagan tone did. however, have discernible lines, and

they were those of the radical environmentalists. They can be summed up as follows:

CRUSADE

Society

For the deep ecologists, Divine Revelation is replaced by a psendomystical experience

The ecologists begin their explanation with the notion that the current rate of economic develop

standing with "a worldview that acknowledges the inherent value of

ment will inevitably end in doom sometime either

non-human

in the first or second half of the next century. This

achieved "a radically new system of ethics emerges." This system is a reli gion.

"doom" scenario gives urgency to their message. They blame Western Civilization and its

life."

When

this

Christian heritage for this predicament. According to them. Western Civilization is both man-cen

From the fringe to

tered and male-dominated. This, they say, has led to the false notion that man has the right to use the earth as he pleases. This mentality must be replaced by recognizing that animals, plants, and even the earth itself have rights that are equal if

the mainstream

From the point of view of the rad ical sixties, it was impossible to make the jump from the fringe to the main

not superior to man's.

stream because the gap between the

The way to accomplish this is to introduce a new belief about our position in the world that

ic establishment was just too great. The

they generally refer to as the "Gaia Hypothesis." Conceived by James Lovelock, this hypothesis states that we as individuals are merely part of a greater living entity, the earth. This entity is an organism and has its own consciousness.

Man has no right, therefore, to "fill the earth and subdue it," or "have dominion over the fish of

radical "Earth-Firstlers" and the scientif

movement needed a method of separating the radial activists from the conventional

"concerned citizen." Otherwi.se. the con

cerned citizen would be frightened by the nuttiness of the radicals, and the dynamism of the radicals would be lost in the medioc

the sea, the birds of the air, the cattle and all the

rity of the concerned citizen. By distin guishing "Deep Ecology" from the conven

animals that crawl on the earth (Gen. 1:28)."

tional anti-pollution conservationist move

Man loses his uniqueness

ment, both elements could be maintained. Conventional environmentalism could move

From this perspective, man loses his unique

ahead with initiatives like the Bio-Diversity Treaty, and Johnny could have his mentality

ness as the synthesis of creation raised above the

adjusted while, at the same lime, the movement

material and animal worlds by his intelligence and

could count on the continued support of radicals

...and Johnny

spiritual nature. Above all, he loses the place

who could only be motivated by a more profound pseudo-religious philosophy.

could have his

given him by grace when he lives according to the Catholic Faith by which he participates in the divine life of God. From the viewpoint of deep ecology, rather than having a supposed right of dominion over the created universe, man is mere ly an insignificant part of the whole universe. For the deep ecologists. Divine Revelation is

The deep ecologists provide direction and new

ideas; the shallow ecologists provide numbers and respectability. Both work hand in hand. Destroy everything

replaced by a pseudo-mystical experience. Fritjof

As the movement matures and the items on its

Capra, Director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in

agenda are achieved, the radical environmentalists

Berkeley, California, says that deep ecology is

seem to be increasingly on top. Their philosophy

"spiritual and religious awareness." It is an expe

envisions a world where man is marginalized and

rience by which the "individual feels a .sense of

civilization no longer exists. Their program is that of Unabomber Theodore Kaszynshi who declares

belonging, of connectedness, to the cosmos as a whole." This new approach brings with it a new set of values that replace a "man-centered" under

JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 1998

mentality adjusted

in his manifesto that his goal is "only to destroy the existing form of society."

â&#x2013;

Commentary

The A/ledieva.1 by Nelson Fragelli, our correspondent in Paris

Gargoyles blindly gaze on the beautiful city of Paris from their lofty perches on the cathedral of Notre Dame. Not mere decoration, as gar goyles tend to be used today, some of these serve a menial service for the edifice, draining its gutters through their mouths. It is, as the Medievals understood, a fitting task for the devils whose images these are. Others represent a specific captital sin or vice such as the one to the right in the above picture, who represents the sin of gluttony.

Silent awe stirs within the soul of the pilgrim who - in his quest for the

other than Almighty God. Who dwells with

Witness to faith, refuge of prayer

Among the maternal considerations that

tinues these lessons, with its sacred images and stained glass windows, but it particular

sacred shrines of Christendom -

spies a magnificent medieval cathedral ris ing on the horizon. Towering above all that surrounds it, the cathedral's imposing pro

The very facade of the cathedral begins to satisfy the Church's first intention instruction - as its stonework recalls the eternal truths of our Faith. The interior con

in its tabernacle.

file permeates the sojourner's spirit, dis

moved Holy Mother Church to create the

ly satisfies the Church's second desire - to

pelling every earthly care and sending it heavenward, just beyond its lofty spires.

cathedrals of the twelfth century, two are

call Her children to prayer. On entering her portals, the cathedral's immense grandeur,

Drawing clo.ser. the pilgrim is moved by the edifice's incomparable grandeur, a mag

teries of the Faith and to receive their

bright colors, and recollected shadows

prayers - joyous or sad - with a mother's

invite one to kneel in prayer in the glow of

preeminent: to teach Her children the mys

nificence that neither oppresses nor humili

heart. The monks who created the cathe

the sanctuary lamp before the tabernacle or

ates those who gaze upon it. Its calm and

drals' Gothic style were as skillful as the

at the feet of the Blessed Mother of the God

majestic lines speak of immense power and

theologians in their mission of drawing peo ple to God. Medieval man gave much cre dence to symbols, and the monks, theolo

Who lives therein.

strength, a force that dominates the sensibil ity. So extraordinary is the impression

evoked by the cathedral that it raises one's

Last ends

considerations above oneself and suggests

gians and builders employed them profuse ly to edify and inspire. Within this sanctu

the idea of the Divine Majesty dwelling

ary, the faithful find a receptive atmosphere

most medieval Gothic cathedrals face west

within its stone walls, awakening the almost

for the expression of all proper feelings to God, Who seems singularly close and inti

ward. that is. toward the sunset.

palpable sense of His august presence. In truth, the cathedral is the home of none

mately approachable in His holy house.

should separate man from sin and lead him

It is not by chance that the facades of

In every possible way. the cathedral

CRUSADE

The square,symbol of material creation

The circle, symbol of the Divinity

Statue of Our Lady with Adam and Eve, respectively, at her right and her left

The facade Is built with three

horizontal and three vertical parts In affirmation of the Trinity

The 28 kings of Juda,the human lin eage of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Scene of the Last Judgement above the main portai which faces westward toward the sunset.

6j \

The entire cathedral is statement of Faith in stone

to eternal salvation. Echoing the words of Sacred Scripture, the Church, admonishes us, "In all thy works remember thy last end, and thou shalt never sin" (EcclusJAO). For this reason the cathe

dral's western face typically features a representation of the Final

Judgment, recalling those four great and final truths - death, judg ment, Heaven or Hell. At day's close, the sun's dying rays fall upon

ascribe symbolic significance to numbers, forms, and figures. For example, the number four and thus the square represent material creation. Are not the fundamental elements of life - earth, water, fire, and air - four? Are there not four points to a compass? Four seasons in a year? Are there not four cardinal virtues - prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude â&#x20AC;&#x201D; that govern human relations?

this awesome end of a life's brief history.

Our Lady, at the center of the Trinity Antidote to heresy

The Albigensian heretics held that since the circle is symbolic of God it could not be placed within a square, the symbol of material creation with its inherent imperfections and limits. Rebutting this false notion, the facade of Notre Dame displays a circle within a square and, in their common center, Mary Most Holy, who by her consent made possible the Incarnation of the God-Man. As a hymn sung at Matins honors her, Quia quern caeli capee non poterat, tuo

heretics abjured the Incarnation of Our Lord Jesus Christ and,

broken.

ly beset by the Albigensians. Among their many errors, these

The circle symbolizes the Divinity. It is a perfect figure formed by a continuous line without beginning or end, and also without angles. An angle, after all, is a broken line, and nothing in God is

when France, the eldest daughter of Holy Mother Church, was sore

The construction of the cathedral of Notre Dame began in 1168,

accordingly, disavowed the existence of the Holy Trinity. To remind the faithful of the Triune God, Notre Dame's facade was construct

ed with three horizontal and three vertical parts. At the intersection of these elements is the cathedral's rose win

dow, a symbol of Our Lady who, as the most faithful Daughter of God the Father, the most holy Mother of God the Son, and the most

chaste Spouse of God the Holy Ghost, is fittingly honored at the

gremio contulisti - for Him Whom the heavens could not contain. Thou didst bear in thy womb.

center of the Holy Trinity. Saint Augustine, Saint Thomas, and other doctors of the Church

Tlie redemptive role of Our Lady is made even more evident by

CRUSADE

Commentary damned are handed over to Lucifer, at Saint

Michael's right, and another demon, to be swiftly carried down to hell. A pious man, hands folded in prayer, stands in Saint Michael's scale for his judgment. A demon at Lucifer's feet, longing to take this

soul to hell, tugs at the scale in an attempt to deceive the Archangel about the weight of the defendant's sins. Saint Michael, however,

is not deceived, and the protective gesture of his right hand shows that he knows how to

defend the just against the intrigues of the father of lies.

Above:Jt\e Last Judgment

Wearing crowns of glory, the Just look heav

Se/ow;The punishments

enward to Christ, their Judge and Redeemer

- enthroned in the tympanum's upper panel - while the reprobate cast their eyes down ward to the lake of eternal fire.

Abominations of the abyss

In the arches framing the tympanum on the

right, five sculpted scenes of suffering give the faithful a glimpse of the horrors of hell. The devils laugh, but their laughter is a despairing one, the gaudhim fantasticum delinquent joy - of which Saint Thomas Aquinas writes. One scene shows a devil with feminine form

seated atop a bishop and a king. This is the

devil that punishes the great people of this world who fail to fulfill their missions.

Having sought luxury and prestige, in hell they receive the scorn of the devil, whose posture suggests that she is casting human waste upon them. It is a disturbing scene, but the medieval Church desired to awaken the

the presence of Adam and Eve on her right and left. As Saint Louis

de Montfort and so many others remind us, Mary is the new Eve called by God to repair through her absolute fidelity the deadly fault

of the first Eve. as the Son She will bear will redeem the Original Sin of our first parents.

hardened heart of the unrepentant sinner by showing him what awaits him if he does not amend his life. Surely, the reality is no less abominable.

The surrounding arches depict angels and saints of the Old and

New Testaments witnessing the sentences being handed down. The

Beneath Our Lady stand the 28 kings of Juda, recalling the human lin eage of Our Lord, as they are her ancestors.

The Koyiil Portal, door to heaven or hell?

Above the Royal Portal, the cathe dral's main entrance, an immense

three-pan tympanum depicts the La.st Judgment. The lowest panel shows the

resurrection of the dead, called by two angels sounding the trumpets of the

Apocalypse. In the middle panel. Saint Michael the Archangel, scale in hand, separates

the just and the damned. The conDepiction of the legend of Theophilus, a monk who sold his soul to the

JANUARY-FEBRUARY. 1998

devil by a written pact, but who, after much prayer and penance, was freed from the pact by the Mother of God herself.

Commentary

I Adjoining panels of carved stone representing virtues and their contrary vices Above:

The Crowned queen sym

Twelve Apostles - six on each side -

bolizes the Church and the new

stand at the bases of these arches. In

A lady whose symbol is a lamb, meek

era of grace established through the death and resurrec

serene majesty, these figures speak to the souls of all who contemplate them.

and humble, is seen in the next scene.

tion of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Below:

Virtue versus vice

The blindfolded queen is the

peculiar to argumentative souls.

Beneath, depicting the contrary vice, a woman strikes with her feet at the tray offered her by a servant. Her hardness and

revolt are two moral errors opposed to the

Temple whose veil was rent as a

The cathedral's architects sought to

meekness of the Iamb.

sign that a new Law and new

spiritualize the stone so that by means of

The role of the Church in uniting all

Church was established.

their rich symbolism the faithful might

social classes is shown in the final two scenes. The submission of inferiors to

receive an influx of virtue. Now, virtue,

the desire of every true Christian, is more

their superiors is portrayed in one, while

clearly understood when it is portrayed alongside its opposite vice. Hence, beneath the feet of the Apostles and at about eye-level for tho.se entering the

the other shows the complementary

cathedral, are two bas-reliefs, the upper

illustrating the virtues, the lower, the con

responsibility of superiors to treat their subordinates well.

Yesterday's cathedrals and today's man

trasting vices.

The first figure, a warrior suited for combat with a lion engraved on his shield, evokes the virtue of courage. Below, cow

ardice is symbolized by a fleeing man who has allowed his sword to fall at his

of a Gothic cathedral, virtues that serve to

form, order, and calm his spirit and. above

owl in its branches suggests that his (light The next figure shows a woman whose escutcheon hears a cow. a symbol of gen

The mysteries of the Faith recalled by the instructive images of the cathedral's facade penetrate the soul, preparing it to contemplate the immense interior spaces

erosity since the cow gives us its milk, its

of the cathedral and to ask the God Who

offspring, and its very flesh. Beneath her,

dwells therein for the strength to avoid sin and practice virtue, and thus avoid

another woman gives an order to an unwilling servant. The servant's right

hand shows vile resistance, with a gesture

desperately needs to be reinvigorated by the virtues that cascade from the heights

feel in fright because a leper has thrown himsell" against his legs. A tree with an takes place in a forest after nightfall.

< i * ^Mi

Contemporary man. gravely wounded by the coarse conditions of modern life,

all. enable him to prepare for eternity.

eternal condemnation and attain eternal bliss.

â&#x2013;

CRUSADE

Catholic Apologetics

9ff

Real Presence

of Jesus in the Eucharist by Raymond de Sauza

My slice of wedding cake and the accompanying glass of cham

pagne to toast the couple's happi ness interested me more than anything else

He took a long sip from his Coke, then asked me rather condescendingly whether I had "shared in the bread and wine service"

after the wedding.

on the otherwise appetizing smorgasbord.

Sipping from my champagne, I replied.

But the only free place I found was at a table next to a gentleman whose company

"Yes, 1 did indeed receive the Holy Eucharist at the Holy Sacrifice of the

caused my plans for a relaxed conversation

Mass."

with other guests to drown in the elegant bubbles of my champagne. Yet, this gave me an opportunity to

zeal that characterizes those of his persua sion. he tried to persuade me that the pres

share my Catholic faith with a separated

ence of Jesus in the Eucharist at the Last

brother. He. alas, seemed determined to

Supper had been symbolic, figurative. It had

ensure that our brotherly separation persist ed for as long as we both lived.

lowers of Roman Catholicism believe in the

Then, in the proselytizing anti-Catholic

not been real and substantial as we poor fol

He called himself a fundameniali.st

obscurantism that has clogged our minds

Christian, and proudly so. For him the Bible â&#x20AC;&#x201D; interpreted by himself of cour.sc â&#x20AC;&#x201D; was

since the Middle Ages. Following is a summary of what 1

the sole rule of faith. He had recently formed his own congregation becau.se of

replied, which centered around the funda mental question of how we can distinguish between Our Lord's literal and figurative

disagreements with his former pa.stor about the interpretation of some Bible verses. Pointing to my TFF lion badge on my lapel, he asked me why I didn't wear a dove

badge instead, since the dove is the symbol the Holy Spirit. I replied that the Lion of Juda was a symbol of Jesus Christ, and as a

meanings. That is, when did Jesus mean His words to be taken literally, and when did He mean them to be taken figuratively? This is a most important point of biblical interpretation. We would be grossly mistak en if we understood Our Lord literally when

to choose which Person of the Trinity I

He spoke figuratively, and vice-versa. Such mistakes would he fraught with serious dan

intended to honor on my lapel.

gers for our growth in knowledge, love, and

free citizen in a free country I was entitled

JANUARY-FEBRUARY. 1998

Catholic Apologetlcs service of God in this life, with unpleasant

will drink no more of the fruit of the vine,

prospects for our life hereafter. Of course, for us orthodox Catholics, the

until the day when I shall drink it new in the

risk of making this type of mistake is quite negligible, since we have the guidance of the Magisterium of the Church. However, when

we talk to someone who does not accept the Magisterium — my table companion, for example — we must present the argument in a clear, courteous way, as Saint Peter tells us (1 Pet. 3:15). Let us consider an example from our

daily life.

Suppose, for instance, that I tell you that while hunting I shot a fox. You will know

that I mean a real fox, from the shiny nose and whiskers to the fluffy tail. I am using the word fox in its natural, or literal, mean ing.

Kingdom of God." But in Saint John 15:1-5 He says, "I am the vine, you are the branches," clearly using vine in its figurative meaning.

they thought that He spoke of the repose of sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly: "Lazarus is dead."

He had used the word sleep figuratively. They misunderstood and took it literally, so Jesus corrected them.

My interlocutor and many fundamental Example 3: Being horn again.

ists — separated brethren unfortunately — are unable to make this distinction. Lacking, as they do, the guidance of the Church's

To Nicodemus, Our Lord declared:

Magisterium, they end up interpreting Scripture as they wish, not as the sacred

"Amen, amen. I say to you. unless a man be bom again, he cannot see the kingdom of

writers intended it to be interpreted. The sad result is the ever-growing multiplicity of

God." Poor Nicodemus got the wrong end of the stick and took the literal meaning. In

separated churches, denominations, sects.

amazement, he asked, "How can a man be

bom when he is old? Can he enter a second

Rule 1: When Jesus spoke figuratively and people took Him literally, it was His custom to correct their mistake immediately.

But if I tell you to beware of Joe Bloggs,

time into his mother's womb, and be bom again?"

Jesus immediately repaired Nicodemus'

mistake: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless

the second-hand car dealer on Shady Street,

a man be bom again of water and the Holy

When Jesus spoke figu ratively and people took him literally, it

Spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God."

was His custom to cor

said. "What is born of flesh is flesh, and

ings. The context sufficed to indicate His

rect their mistake

intended meaning. Let's consider some

immediately.

what is born of the .spirit is spirit." From these three examples we can con firm this basic rule: When Jesus spoke figu

because he is a "fox," 1 am using the word in a figurative way. I am comparing Joe to a fox because he is sly and cunning, not that I mean that he has a sharp nose, whiskers, and a fluffy tail. Our Lord Jesus Christ was wont to use

words in both literal and figurative mean

examples and some rule or guidelines regarding this matter Kxample 1: 'I'he fox.

Jesus used this very word in both ways.

Itlxiiniple 1:

Our Lord warned His apostles. "Beware

nowhere to lay his head." That, in Saint Matthew 8:20, is fox in its literal meaning.

of the leaven of the Pharisees." The Apostles understood Him literally and started to argue

Luke

13:32, some

Rule 2: When Jesus spoke literally and people understood His meaning clearly but refused to accept it. He insisted on the liter

al meaning even more forcibly.

among themselves about bread.

Pharisees had told Our Lord to watch out for

But Jesus corrected them and reiterated

King Herod, who had a mind to kill Him. He

His figurative meaning: "Why do you not understand that it was not concerning bread that I spoke to you?... Then they understood that they should beware not of the leaven of

replied, "Go and tell that fox, behold 1 cast

be any doubt.

The leaven of the Phari.sees.

"The foxes have holes, and the birds of

Saint

ratively but saw that His hearers misunder

stood and look Him literally. His custom was to explain His true meaning, lest there

the air, nests; but the Son of Man has

Now, in

He spoke about a very real thing, a new birth, sacramental Baptism, of water and the Holy Spirit, not of any physical re-birth. He made this distinction crystal clear when He

Example 1:

Your sins are rnrgiven.

In Saint Matthew 9:2-8 we read the story of the man sick of the palsy who was

out devils, and perform cures today and tomorrow...," That's fox in the figurative meaning. In the first case, Jesus u.sed the word fox

bread but of the doctrine of the Phari.sees and Sadducees"(Matt. 16:5-12).

forgiven."

literally. He meant that even the animals, the foxes, have their lairs and homes, but the

He u.sed the leaven figuratively to mean doctrine, not literally to mean the yeast that

His words, rejected them, and accused Him

Son of Man is a pilgrim, without a place of

causes bread to rise.

His own.

brought by friends to Jesus to be cured. Jesus simply told the man that his "sins were

The Scribes showed great di.spleasure at of bla.sphemy. Jesus repeated even more forcibly His claim of having power to for give sins: He worked a miracle right then

In the second case. He uses exactly the same word, but figuratively, knowing very

Kxample 2; Kazarii.s is asleep. In Saint John 8:11-14, Jesus said:

and there in order to prove to the Scribes that

well that Herod was not an irrational animal,

"Lazarus, our friend, is asleep. But 1 go that

a fox. Herod was a human being, but sly and

I may awake him from his sleep." The apos tles took this literally and thought that Jesus meant that Lazarus was only sleeping, per haps a trifle too deeply and in need of some

He had the power to forgive sins. And to make His claim self-explanatory. He argued: "Which is easier to say, your sins are forgiv en. or arise and walk?" Of course everybody agreed that it was easier to say "your sins are forgiven," because nobody can see the for

cunning like a fox. Kxample 2: I'he Vine.

In Saint Mark 14:25, immediately after the institution of the Eucharist, Jesus said,"I

one to go and awaken him.

"But Jesus spoke of Lazarus' death, and

giveness; but to say, "ari.se and walk" is a dif-

CRUSADE

Catholic Apologetics Space permits only the key phrases and

ferent story. We know what happened. The

a minimum of comment here.

man was cured, arose, and walked home.

The point is this: When Jesus spoke

The proclamation:"Amen, amen, I say

literally,("your sins are forgiven"), there were people who understood it right but disagreed with it, because "Only God can forgive sins." But Jesus did not step back, water down

to you. He that believes in Me has life ever lasting. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and have died.... This is the bread that comes down

from heaven, that a man may eat of it. and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If any one eats of this

His words, or try to explain them

away. On the contrary. He argued even more forcibly to con

bread, he will live for ever; and the

bread which I will give is my flesh, for

firm the literal meaning of what He had said. He even per

the life of the world.

formed a miracle to prove it

The audience's first reaction: "The

and confound the Pharisees.

Jews therefore strove among them selves: how can this man give us His flesh to eat?" They had understood Him literally. His forcible explanation: Jesus said to them: "Amen, amen, 1 say to you: unless

Example!: Before Abraham was

made, I am.

In Saint John 8:56-59, Jesus said to

you eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and

the Pharisees, "Abraham your father rejoiced that he might see My day; he

drink His blood, you shall not have life in

saw it, and was glad." The Pharisees said,

blood has everlasting life. And 1 will raise Him up in the last day. Because my flesh is food indeed. He that eats my flesh and

you. He that eats My flesh and drinks My

"Thou art not yet fifty years old, and Thou hast seen Abraham?" They under

drinks my blood abides in me, and 1 in him. As the living Father has sent Me, and

stood Him correctly, but they did not believe in Him.

Jesus reiterated His literal meaning,

I live because of the Father, so he that eats

making it clearer than before: He even

Me, the same also shall live because of

used the solemn formula of one who tells

Me. This is the bread that came down from

the truth in God's presence, and said,

heaven. Not as your fathers ate the manna,

"Amen, amen, I say to you, before

and arc dead. He that eats this bread will

Abraham was made, I am."

live forever." He reiterated the literal

meaning in full. The second reaction: "Many of His disciples, hearing it, said: this saying is hard, and who can hear it?" They had understood Him perfectly, but refused to

The Pharisees could not stand it,

especially when He said, "I am," which is precisely what God had said to Moses on Sinai by way of a name for Himself, Jahweh. The Pharisees under

stood Jesus' claim of divinity so

believe Him.

literally that "They took up

Take It or leave it: "But

stones to cast at Him, but Jesus

Jesus,...knowing that His disciples

hid Himself and went out of the

murmured at this, said to them:

Temple."

Does this .scandalize you?... But

there are some of you who do not

So, when Jesus spoke liter

ally, and people understood

believe. For Jesus knew from the

Him literally but showed dis

beginning, who they were that did

pleasure at His saying. His cus

not believe, and who he was. that

would betray Him."

tom was to repeat even more

Many left: "After this many of His

forcibly the literal meaning so that no doubt might be left in their

disciples went back; and walked no

minds.

People might disagree with Him, hale Him, even try to stone Him. but He would not flinch. He would risk being accused of

more with Him,"

Example 3: The discourse on the Eucharist

(.lohii 6:22-711

The Apostles accepted it on faith:

"Then Jesus said to the twelve: Will you also go away? And Simon Peter answered

blasphemy or being stoned to death, but He

The reader should pick up his Bible and

Him: Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast

would not change His words, explain them

the words of eternal life. And we have

away, or water them down to please the peo

read the di.scourse on the Eucharist to get the full teaching on His literal presence in

ple. His words were spirit and life.

the Eucharist.

Christ, the Son of the living God."

believed and known that Thou art the

continues

JANUARY-FEBRUARY. 1998

Catholic Apologetics

Back to Manners

Please note: 1. Faithful Catholics the world over believe in the Real Presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Eucharist because He

by Pamela Ryan

affirmed it, and He can neither deceive

nor be deceived. To Him we turn and say with Saint Peter, "Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we have believed and

known that Thou art the Christ, the Son

of the living God." 2. The discourse on the Eucharist is

the only episode in the Gospel in which Jesus goes to such lengths to insist so emphatically on a point of doctrine among people who disagreed with Him. 3. It is the first time ever in which

disciples of Christ walked away from

Him because of a point of doctrine.

Some years ago I held a part-time

thank-you notes.

office job. "Good morning, Joe!" was my customary greet ing to my co-worker, a middleaged, good, but incredibly grumpy man. For the first three months of our acquaintance, his invariable reply was, "What's so good about it?"

Believe me. the first time I had

to say "happy birthday" to someone. I didn't feel like say

ing it one bit. Every time I had to stand up and let an old lady sit in my seat, I wished that she hadn't come in at all, and

many a time I felt rather like

The first time he said it, it

sticking my tongue out at some one rather than saying the sweet est possible "Hello, how are you

was like a slap in the face. Something right around the region

4. Jesus did not try to explain away

His teaching, as though it were a figure of speech, in order to get them back. He let them go, and even asked if the twelve

Apostles wanted to go with them. 5. Last but not least: Some non-

Catholics say that the expression "To eat one's flesh and to drink one's blood"

is merely an oriental figure of speech, and therefore, must be taken figurative ly. It would mean, "take My words in

of my heart actually hurt. "How utterly

rude,

ruthless,

Manners

and

faith," or something to that effect. It is indeed an oriental figure of speech, one

Yes, the problem and I had met before.

used by the Arabs and surrounding peo ples even to this day. But it does not

Many a time, I had come across people in the work force who were by no means bad. ruth less, or uncouth, but whose deep-seated phi losophy regarding manners was: "If you don't feel like saying it, you are faking it. Well. I'm not a phony, so I won't say it." Incredibly enough, a large sector of our society today, especially among the young, seems pervaded by this outlook. To be polite, to exercise good manners, to be attentive to others, is deemed prudish, unreal, "out of

mean anything like what non-Catholics and

to drink

someone's

blood

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

according to the orientals â&#x20AC;&#x201D; means to

revile, deride, belittle, degrade, deni grate, insult. It has nothing to do with accepting

one's

words

faith.

Therefore, it would be absurd if Jesus

had said, "unless you revile me and degrade me, you shall not have life in you." It would be utter nonsense, if not complete blasphemy. In conclusion, we must pray for all those who profess to be followers of

Christ but refuse to accept the fullness of the teachings of the same Christ. Let them continue their journey and also accept the fullness of His teachings;

actually a pleasure...and I felt civilized!

One day, reading a story of a lady who. having had a very hard childhood, had devel

oped several problems, I found the formula for the problem. She recounted her turbulent life and then

described how she tried to truly start anew. She only really began to feel that she was

mending when she decided to help others even less fortunate than herself. It was hard

at first, because she simply didn't "feel" like doing it. But she tound that even if she did

not feel like anything, she must at least "fake

it," and then, slowly but surely, she began to

she was "making it." Yes. the fostering of

we said "hello" when we met someone, that

we rose and offered our seal lo elderly ladies

favor, and so on.

Him. which is the pillar and foundation

Later, as we grew a little older, we had to learn to begin and maintain conversations al

came easily. And once if became easy, it was

feel that it was becoming part of her and that

Eucharist, in the Church established by

may have life eternal in heaven.

form. And once the habit was fonned. it

Let's go back to a lime when manners were considered essential for good interac tion with our fellow human beings. From the time we were about five years old. Mother was always there to make sure

their bodies and souls in the Blessed

of the Truth (1 Tim. .3:L'S). so that they

the answer to that question might be

touch." fake.

on the bus. that we said "happy birthday" at a party to the person whose birthday it was, that we said "thank you" when receiving a

let them believe Him and receive Him in

today?" I cenainly didn't care what

uncouth," I thought. Nevertheless, included... either. I resolved to continue trumpeting But 1 had a good, old-fashioned my "Good morning!" every day with the mother, and she kept making me do it and same cheery intonation. correcting me when I failed to do so. And One day I faced him: "Listen, Joe, when you know what happened? After about fif I say 'Good morning,' I mean it, you know. I teen years on this earth, a habit began to truly, really wish you a good morning." He began to mellow after that, and one day, behold! the incredible happened: He actually returned my good wishes.

assume. Rather, to eat someone's flesh

not

the table, to greet people a little more exten sively. to wriie acknowledgemenls and

good manners takes exactly this formula: "fake it till you make it." Once I asked Mother, "Mom. what are

manners, anyway?" I shall never forget her simple, wisdom-filled answer: "Manners is thinking of others." The reality that we are born a little bit on

the barbarian side, far from having inborn good manners, does not justify our ignoring or mistreating any human being. Yes. we must be polite, even at the risk of

"faking it." And politeness must be taught, like mathematics, grammar, or music, from a very early age.

â&#x2013;

CRL'S.ADE

The following vignette is taken from the book of Margaret Cunliff, Martyrdom of an Enjpress,

a biography of Empress Elizabeth of Austria, consort of the Emperor Franz Joseph. The episode, a gem of Christian civilization, involves the Emperor's uncle, Archduke Albrecht.

/f ery fond of hunting and shooting. r, / Archduke Albrecht made a point of

spending a couple of months of every

"This is far too heavy for you, my good girl. Give me that child; I will carry him."

summer in one of the numerous villas

"Much you must know about carrying

which he owned in the Tyrol and Upper

children, you old fool! politely exclaimed

Austria; on these occasions he wore the

the girl. "No, you take the firewood and I

customary yoppe, or hunter's uniform, of gray clothe passepoiled with green, the

will keep the youngster. You may well do that, for had you not met me you'd have

soft felt hat adomed with a chamois-

run a good chance of spending your entire night on the mountains." Hardly able to repress his amazement,

beard, and the tall leathern gaiters of the

ordinary Tyrolese mountaineer. Viennese society still laughs about a

the Archduke undid the scarf, transferred

little adventure which occurred to him

the little urchin to his mother's arms and

when retuning from a hunting expedition in the mountains above Ischl. Through

the ponderous bundle of fagots to his own shoulders, and what with his gun and his gamebag, he was a pretty heavily burdened archduke indeed! To add insult to injury, the girl continued to chaff him unmerciful ly about the comical appearance he presented, and, as he later on

some extraordinary chance the Archduke had wandered from his

party, and losing his way among the narrow wooded paths descending to the valley, he determined to reach the first yager

hut which he could succeed in finding by himself. Quickening his pace, he hurried on in the gathering gloom, until he reached a steep incline covered with slippery grass. A little ahead of him he soon discerned a dark figure seemingly heavily laden. Wishing to inquire his way home, he hailed the unknown in a

stentorian voice, and the figure came to a stop. To his surprise the Archduke found that it was that of a young girl of nineteen or twenty years of age, who, with the usual pluck of the Austrian peasant woman, had burdened herself with a gigantic load of firewood, on top of which was perched a chubby baby about two years old, who maintained his perilous equilibrium by means of a a long scarf tied by his careful mother around his fat little body and her own neck.

"What do you want?" cried the girl, scanning the belated hunter with any

asserted, he soon became a little tired of his bargain.

For a full hour he trudged wearily along, wishing himself any where but among the high mountains with a load of wood on his back; but at last relief arrived in the shape of his party, which came upon the ill-assorted couple at the crossing of two paths. No pen could describe, or pencil portray, the amazement of the hunters at seeing their august master thus accoutred, and their exclamations betrayed the Archduke's identity to

the appalled girl. Falling to her knees, she craved his pardon for the crime of lesemajeste which she had unwittingly com mitted, and tears of shame sprang to her bonny blue eyes as she watched two of the Prince's hunters remove

the fagots from his bruised shoul ders.

thing but a friendly look. "Can you tell me the shortest road down to Ischl?" replied

distressed.

the Archduke.

right, and I am mighty glad to

"I am going there - you can follow me," she retorted, curt

ly-

Accepting this rather ungra

"Don't cry. there's a good girl," pleaded Albrecht. much "You did quite

have met you to show me the

way!" So saying, he lifted the girl from the ground, and pulling a well-filled purse from

cious invitation, the imperial

his pocket, he pressed it into the

sportsman resumed his way

baby's wee hands, adding with a kindly smile: "Here is some thing to buy your mommy a

beside her. but his sense of

courtesy making him feel

annoyed at seeing a woman carrying so exaggerated a weight, he said pleasantly: JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 1998

donkey, for she might not always find old fools to help her carry her firewood!"

â&#x2013;

The American TFP in Action

Catholic, admitted having had "some trou

The blasphemous exhibit

bled nights about using a beloved icon,

putting her on a grate, opening her up,

The desecrated statue of Our Lady is the central point of a room-sized "artwork," all

piercing her with a pipe."

of it objectionable. Promotional literature

The faithful, truly a catholic crowd com

prising a broad range of ages and cultures, prayed the Rosary of reparation with note worthy piety and seriousness. Their shouts of "Whoever confesses Me before men, I

on the exhibit states that "Gober's sterile

Piety and indignation

Virgin Mary stands in stark contrast to the one who has been called 'the aqueduct along which divine grace flows to the earth.'" It also describes the pipe that

In the days before the rally, the exhibit received broad exposure on local radio talkshows. Among these was a one-hour pro

shall confess him before the angels in Heaven!" and "Blasphemy, blasphemy! A sin that cries out to heaven for vengeance!" well expressed their profound indignation. A pilgrim statue of Our Lady of Fatima reigned over the protest from a canopied stand adorned with flowers. TFP vice-pres

pierces Our Lady as a "phallic culvert pipe." The entire work affront many Catholic teachings, but its centerpiece is most offen sively a blasphemy. Blasphemy is any insult against God,

gram sponsored by St. Joseph Catholic Radio of Orange County, which hosted TFP spokesman John Spann for a discussion of

ident Thomas McKenna introduced a num

the blasphemy and a Catholic response to it. Those days were interesting as well for

Sister

whether direct or indirect. Gober's work, on

the storms buffeting the West Coast.

Congressman Robert Doman, well-known

exhibit (by coincidence?) from the eve of

Perhaps too much is popularly attributed to "El Nino" — the [Christ] child — but it may not be inopportune to recall Our Lady's

anti-abortion activist Joseph Sheidler, and

Our Lady's birthday until shortly after the feast of her Immaculate Conception, falls especially into the latter category, for it den igrates the person dearest to God, His own

warning at Fatima in 1917 that she could not restrain the just arm of her Son much

Mother, the Most Blessed Virgin Mary. Blasphemy, since its object is God, is one of

case, those who attended the protest did so

longer in face of the sins of mankind. In any

the worst of sins. Saint Bernard teaches that

despite the impending threat of further

all other sins are caused by human frailty or

storms and flooding. In fact, they gathered

ignorance, but blasphemy comes from the

under overcast skies, but no rain fell until

malice of the human heart. Gober, an ex-

the end of the rally.

ber of speakers, including Good Shepherd Leonella

Lynch.

former-

Gary Stabler, spokesman for the Catholic

League of San Diego.

^ARTBLASPHayt--=-D

Below: Over 1000 people gathered across the street from the museum to protest its outra

geous exhibit against the Blessed Mother. Right: A statue of Our Lady of Fatima, devoutly honored by the public, presided over the rally.

AMEf"" '^CClfTYfGRTIIFDFfFfisr

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or TRADi

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lAwty,---

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The American TFP in Action

At the closing of the rally, while a pro

does not strike with leprosy or death those

cession escorted Our Lady of Fatima's stat

responsible for this most sickening blasphe my of our Holy Mother."

ue away, she was greeted with an outpour

An enthusiastic priest from Texas asked:

to the director of the museum expressing her rejection of the blasphemy, with every

word highlighted: "Quit blaspheming our

ing of devotion. Strains of "Immaculate Mary" broke forth on the lips of all. With

"Doesn't an 'exhibition' of this nature

holy Mother of God! Get rid of that trash at your museum! I protest your horrible art

full lungs, people sang, "Ave, Ave, Ave

almost prove there is a Hell? The multitudi

show!"

Maria!" striving to sing louder in effort to erase the offense committed against the Mother of God. It was truly a memorable

nous sins against nature that are being prac ticed and justified today must be contribut

Columbus wrote: "I am sure Mr. Gober and

ing toward this shameless display. What

moment.

could be more unnatural than blaspheming Our Lady?"

A representative of the Knights of

some of his relatives would angrily protest if a similar contemporary exhibit had been submitted and entitled 'Mr. Robert Gober's Mother.' Is Mr. Gober's mother more

Inspiring letters

revered, popular, and beautiful than Mary, Understandably, there were many -priests, religious, and lay people -- from

the Mother of God? What did Mr. Gober learn when he was a Catholic?"

One of the good sisters from St. Joseph's Seniors' Home organized a campaign of

across the nation who could not attend the

rally. But literally thousands joined in the prayers and protests, writing letters to the

letters among the home's residents to Mr.

museum's directors or to America Needs

Richard Koshalek, the Museum's director.

Falima and the TFP. Many of these beau tiful and ardent letters beg to be printed,

One of the letters is addressed to "Mr.

Koshalek, Chief Enemy, and Enemies of Decent American People," and continues: "The desecrating, blasphemous dis

but space permits only a sampling of them.

William Donohue, President of the

Rights, a leading voice against today's many attacks on Catholicism, expressed

play...deserves your arrest and imprison ment for publicly displaying such porno graphic, mind-poisoning, immoral ["art"]. You definitely must be sick mentally and

his support in the following terms: "The Catholic League proudly stands with the

should be ousted from your position for allowing such a display of your own and

Catholic League for Religious and Civil

American Society for the Defense of

your comrades' anti-Christian attitude.

Tradition, Family and Property in object- I

Your public discrimination, prejudice, and

ing to the blasphemous Gober exhibit at I

anti-religious act is highly punishable.

the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los I

Angeles."

You, as director, owe a public apology for

The Franciscan Brothers of the Sacred

Heart sent their regrets "that we Brothers

cannot physically be present to join you. Nevenheless, we desired to convey to you

Protesters sign a petition demanding removal of the "artwork" and a public apology from the museum.

allowing that infamous structure to be on public display. "We demand that you immediately remove it and not feed our American youth

with poisonous immorality. Anticipating

our strongest support and hope that you will

The Solitary Sisters of the Precious

your cooperation before calling down the

know that we are with you in spirit, offering

Blood wrote: "These are terrible times when

wrath of God upon yourself, your Mayor

up our prayers and sacrifices as well.

we are forced by our own culture to view

and your City, I am...."

Likewise, on that very same day and hour,

blasphemous and insulting 'art,' especially

we Brothers will be hosting our monthly

'art'

Blessed

Fr. Benedict Groeschel sent these lines: "As sincere Christians and devoted children

Secular Franciscans' meeting with a

Immaculate Mother. You can be certain we

of our Blessed Lady, you have made the

Eucharistic Holy Hour in our friary chapel. While we will not be able to be standing in front of the museum, we will be gathered

depicting

Our

Lord's

shall offer many prayers and oblations of

perfect response-prayer and reparation to

reparation in union with all faithful

God."

Catholics who love and honor Jesus' Mother

Fr. Kevin J. Beaton. pa,st America Needs

Fatima director, wrote from Penn.sylvania: "I wish that I could be with you for this

specific intention of joining forces with America Needs Fatima in offering our Holy Hour in reparation for the museum's public act of blasphemy against Our Lady."

and the spiritual mother of us all. Our hearts are pierced with swords of horror and sorrow. May God forgive all of us sinners, for the actions of one soul always reflect upon us all." One lady, expressed her .sorrow in these

The School Sisters of St. Francis wrote

words: "I am in shock. I cannot believe

these fervent words: "How could anyone dare to blaspheme 'our nature's solitary

what I am seeing. My heart aches to think this person could do this to our Mother. I am

to unmask an act of blasphemy."

boast?' She who bore our Savior and God

for nine months in her womb is deserving of the highest praise and homage we poor sin

sorry, I am unable to attend the meeting on Dec. 7. I will be praying for Our Lord to stop this insane act."

to defend her honor as often as necessary and wherever blasphemy rears its ugly

ners can muster. It is a miracle that God

Another lady sent us a copy of her letter

before Our Lord exposed within the mon strance. At that time we will mention the

JANUARY-FEBRUARY. 1998

courageous act of reparation to God and to

our Holy Mother Mary. May Our Lady, Queen of the Angels. Queen of El Camino

Real, smile upon you and all my brothers in

the TFP as well as upon the many dedicated Children of Mary who have joined with you Yes, may Our Lady give us the strength

head.

â&#x2013;

History

Basic Histo

Course

Our Lord Jesus Christ made several appearances to the Apostles and dis ciples after His Resurrection. Among other reasons, He wanted to

prove that He had truly risen from the dead and to complete His earthly mission. As Peter guided his vessel toward land one morning after a night of fruitless fishing, a stranger on shore advised him to throw his net over

the right side. A magnificent catch resulted. Once the tempestuous fisher man identified the helpful adviser as Our Lord, he dove into the water and

Western

swam ashore.

Jesus invited Peter and his companions, who had sailed in after him, to a breakfast He had already prepared. After the meal Our Lord returned again to the impressive allegory of the Good Shepherd.' Three times He asked Peter if he loved Him more than the rest, and each time Peter, with

^01

out his usual rash self-confidence, humbly answered that he did. Following the first two declarations, Jesus said, "Feed my lambs," then "Feed my sheep," in effect telling Peter to lead and direct His Church as its ruler.

by Jeremias Wells

Before Caesarea Philippi, Our Lord had promised the primacy of juris diction; here He conferred the title and authority. Moreover, by reintroduc-

ing the figure of the shepherd. He also confirmed the unity of the Church â&#x20AC;&#x201D; "There shall be one fold and one shepherd" (John 10:16). Jesus then

concluded with one more element in this touching analogy, for the shep herd lays down his life for his sheep. Our Lord predicted that His vicar on this earth would also be martyred.

A few days before His Ascension, while still in Galilee, Our Lord as the sovereign power of creation gave to the Apostles their universal mission by saying, "All power is given to me in heaven and earth. Going therefore, teach ye all nations...." When He added, "behold 1 am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world." He asserted the indefectibility of

the Church; that is, the Church will not only persist until the end of time, but it will never err in defining the truth of revelation. Upon this the Church would be built. Pentecost

However, the Father and the Son gave the Church one more powerful support in the battle against the gates of hell, the indwelling of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of Truth. This would supply the necessary means to accomplish such an arduous mission. The Apostles were, therefore,

ordered to return to Jerusalem and await the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Ten days after Our Lord's Ascension, the Mother of God. the Apostles and other disciples were praying in the Cenacle when a great noise that sounded like a mighty wind filled the whole house and tongues of fire set tled on each one. At that moment the timidity and ignorance that had plagued the Apostles disappeared, and the higher truths and a zeal for Him

Whom they had previously abandoned filled their souls. A large crowd which included visitors to Jerusalem from all over the

empire assembled near the house because of the noise. When the Apostles went outside to speak, all were amazed when each spoke in the language of his listeners.

Peter, to silence some hecklers, addressed the crowd. He stressed the

divine personality and Messianic character of Our Lord Whom they had crucified. His first sermon bore instant fruit, for after being heard and seen the Holy Ghost was certainly still present. Christ's vicar ended by urging them to seek forgiveness for their sins and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Three thousand immediately joined the Church and. many, since they were in town just for the feast of Pentecost, retunied to their provinces to carry the Faith and gifts of the Holy Ghost throughout the Roman world. The small seed had begun to sprout. Within 400 years it would grow into the principal religion of the empire and the lifeblood of Western Civilization.

CRUSADE

History The ongoing persecution of the Church begins

followers despite His execution, the authori

it. Seeing that the Apostles had strong sup

ties had all twelve arrested and thrown into

The abundant gifts showered by the Holy Ghost produced an exceptional season of grace, but as long as a powerful and orga nized group resisted the teaching of Christ

the doors and told them to go into the

port in the Council, the chief priest had them scourged and released. And so Our Lord's prediction that His close followers would

prison. That night an angel came and opened

further conflict was inevitable. Shortly after Pentecost, as Peter and John were entering

the Temple, Saint Peter's eyes rested on the familiar sight of a beggar who had been crip

Temple and preach "all the words of this life." When the people arrived at the Temple

suffer the same insults and tortures that He

did began to unfold.

at the first hour of prayer, there stood the

Apostles, preaching the message of Jesus and the power of His name. At the same hour, the Sanhedrin had

Martyrdom of Saint Stephen Over the centuries the Jews established

thriving colonies in the major cities in the

pled from birth. He leaned over and took

civilized world, either through forced expa

him by the hand. "In the name of Jesus

triation during times of military distur

Christ of Nazareth, walk," he ordered as he

bances or voluntary exile for commercial

raised him up, completely cured (Acts 3:6). Drawn by the excitement, a large crowd con gregated. Peter humbly asked them, "Why do you marvel at this as though by our own

reasons. Since these Jews of the Dispersion

absorbed Greek culture and worshiped in that language, they became known as Hellenists. Once Christianized, these com

power and holiness we made this man

munities became one of the human conduits

walk." He went on to explain that the beggar

through which the message of the Gospel

had been cured by the grace of Our Lord and

spread throughout the Roman Empire Although the atmosphere of generosity

reiterated many of the doctrinal points he

and fervor provided a remarkable bond of unity among the Christians, the division

had covered on Penteco.st.

Certainly, the authorities would not let this continue, especially the affirmation of

between the Hellenists and the Hebrew

the resurrection of Jesus from the dead that

Christians opened up a potential break when

Peter and John had witnessed. Exasperated, the priests and the Sadducees seized them and threw them in prison. The following day

many of the former settled in Jerusalem. The Hellenists complained that they did not receive their fair share of food relief.

they were hauled before the Sanhedrin. Annas, now high priest again, asked the two

harmony, chose seven Christian Hellenists

The Apostles, always anxious to preserve

fishermen and the beggar what must have

to act as deacons in handling administrative

seemed by then a tiresome question, "By

details, especially the allocation of relief.

what authority have you done this?" Peter took full advantage of the truth-

Since they were enrolled in the ecclesiastical

giving Spirit that dwelled within him. No

tles, they assisted in the preaching. Among

hierarchy, although subordinate to the Apos Saint Peter heals the man

more fearful denial for him. The Vicar of

crippled from birth.

Christ stared Our Lord's murderers right in the face and

with

incredible

boldness

assembled for one of those atrocities dis

them was a brilliant and learned speaker named Stephen who, like all Christians at

that time (A.D. 36),^ still worshiped in the synagogue â&#x20AC;&#x201D; in his case one that utilized

Nazareth, Whom you crucified" Peter went

guised as a trial. Annas ordered a guard to bring in the defendants. Minutes later the

on to declare, "For there is no other name

guard rushed back with the startling report

under heaven given to man whereby we may

that the prison was empty. Immediately, another guard ran in, exclaiming that the

the Apostles, brought up in the Law, out

prisoners were back preaching in the

imposed its ritual on all whom they bap tized. But the eloquent Stephen, free from

exclaimed, "...in the name of Jesus Christ of

be saved." Such a profession before the nation's Supreme Council was the Church's

official declaration of autonomy.- Lacking a pretext to proceed any further, the Sanhedrin ordered Peter and John to stop teaching in

Temple.

Greek.

The six-year peace had lasted because

wardly conformed to the Mosaic code and

The threat, of course, had no effect on

Once again the Apostles were rounded up and brought before the Council. Peter began his defense by saying,"We ought to obey God rather than men." With great courage, he told them they had unjustly cru

the Apostles. They, and all the Twelve,

cified Christ, Who was now exalted at the

before the Sanhedrin and delivered a great

returned to the Temple in force to continue their teaching with even greater zeal. Moreover, Peter had acquired a reputation

right hand of God the Father. Consumed by

discourse which he knew would cost him his

rage, the leaders decided to put the Apostles

life. He told the seething audience that his faith sprang from the Hebrew scriptures and

the name of Jesus under the threat of severe

punishment.

for healing the infirm. So great was his fame

to death.

Fortunately, the most esteemed doctor of

the shackles of Pharisaic observances, hint

ed in his rousing speeches that the time had come to free the new Faith from the yoke of the synagogue.

Hatred sprang to life again. Stephen went

that their hostile attitude was a continuation

that the sick were placed on beds in the street .so that when Peter pas.sed by his shad

the Law in Jerusalem, Gamaliel, rose to pro

of the same rejection by their forefathers of

tect the condemned men. He used the argu

God's prophets. In effect, he foretold that

ow might deliver some from their affliction.

ment that if the Christian movement was

Infuriated by the rapid strides of Christ's

from God nothing they could do could stop

the Temple would not last and that the Law of Moses was destined to be replaced."*

JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 1998

When he accused the Sanhedrin

Thunder brought before him,

of not keeping the Law, they

flogged, and beheaded. Earlier

rose up screaming and grinding

Our Lord had asked James, "Can

their teeth. But Stephen oblivi ous to the impending danger lift ed his eyes and saw the heavens open with Christ standing at the right hand of God. Encouraged and full of the Holy Ghost, he

you drink the chalice that I shall drink" (Matt. 20;22), and James had answered in the affirmative. Jesus took him at his word. Herod

then had Peter arrested during the Passover and thrown into prison under extremely tight security,

joyfully exclaimed what he saw. In their uncontrollable fury,

intending to dispose of him later. Once again an angel of the Lord

the members of the Sanhedrin

dragged the soldier of Christ

came, removed his heavy chains

Martyrdom of Saint Stephen

outside the walls and stoned him

to death. Participating prominently, if not indeed leading the atrocity, was a Pharisee, Saul of Tarsus in Cilicia, better known by his Latin name, Paul.

Saul then swung into action and inaugu rated a major persecution of the Hellenist

and led him to safety.

iately enough, Peter, His vicar on earth,

The New Testament offers few details

opened up the avenue to receive pagan con verts directly into the Church. While making a general visitation to the

them with other references, the evidence

about the rest of Peter's life. Combining suggests that he arrived in Rome about

Christian communities along the Mediter

A.D. 42 and left in 49 during the expul

ranean shore in Palestine, the Prince of

sion of the Jews under Claudius. He defi

nitely appeared in Jerusalem the same year and, after passing through Antioch, retumed to Rome where he was martyred during the

Christians. Urged on by a dedication to the

Apostles became rapt in prayer. In a vision

Law and an inner rage, the determined Phari.see went about Jerusalem dragging

he was invited to eat animals that were pro

Christians, both men and women, out of

Lord

their homes and casting them into prison, where in some cases he had them put to

cleansed, do not call impure."^ With these

death. The persecuted fled to the cities and

to his credit, renounced his opinions and

transformed into the Rome of the popes, whose spiritual and moral empire will

towns beyond Jerusalem, which resulted in

prejudices and followed the movements of the Holy Ghost.

lished by Roman arms.

an unintended spread of Christianity throughout Palestine and Syria. Saul, still breathing "threat and slaughter," decided to chase them down, beginning in Damascus.

On the road to the Syrian city there occurred one of the most spectacular of Christ's miracles, not only because of the

hibited. Peter hesitated. Three times Our

commanded, "What

God

hath

words. He abrogated the Mosaic Law. Peter,

persecution of Nero. Over the next few cen turies, the Rome of the Caesars will be

stretch far beyond the boundaries estab ■

At the same time. Cornelius, a God-fear

ing centurion stationed at Caesarea 30 miles up the coast, also received a vision from

Bibliographical note:

heaven advising him to send for Peter.

Chapter 10 was largely compiled

When the saint arrived at the centurion's

from the following titles: Abbe

apparition but also for the almost violent

residence, he immediately recognized a presence of the Holy Ghost similar to that

First Years of Christianity,(N.Y. 1903);

reversal

of the apparition of Pentecost, and he bap

Paul's

attitude

towards

Constant Fouard, Saint Peter and the

Isidore O'Brien, Peter and Paul, Apostles,(Paterson, N.J., 1950); Jules

Christianity, an instantaneous transforma tion accomplished by omnipotent grace. In

tized the entire household.

Although Peter subsequently calmed the

Lebreton and Jacques Zeiller, History

a blinding flash of light — literally blinding

objecting Christian Jews in Jerusalem, the Judaizing element continually challenged the baptism of uncircumcised Gentiles. However, the principle that God wanted to bring the Gentiles into the Church without first going through the doors of the

of the Primitive Church, vol.1,(N.Y.,

— Saul was knocked to the ground. "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?" the heav enly apparition asked. "Who art Thou,

Lord?" "I am Jesus whom thou perse cutest," came the reply. Trembling and astonished, Saul picked himself up and,

Synagogue prevailed and opened the way

since the light had temporarily seared his eyes, allowed his companions to guide him

for the great apostolate of Saint Paul.

into Damascus where he began a seven-year preparation for his great mission.

More persecution

Unless the new Christians liberated

themselves from the yoke of Jewish ritual and its dietary laws, Christianity would be only an extension of Judaism, and that is not

throne fell to a dissolute maniac whom his

tory calls Caligula. Toward the end of his short reign (A.D. 37-41) he restored most of

Herod the Great's lands to his partner in debauchery. Herod Agrippa, who was also the deceased murderer's grandson. True to

what Our Lord died to achieve. He came to

his family's violent reputation, Agrippa covered himself with the blood of Christ's followers. He had James the Son of

Notes p. 27

2. Fr. Vincent McNabb, The New

establish a reign over men's souls and an

institution to teach in His Name. Appropr-

(Milwaukee, 1958).

1. See Crusade, July-August, 1997, Upon the death of Tiberius, the imperial

First gentile convert

1942; Guiseppe Ricciotti, The Acts of the Apostles: Text and Commentary,

Testament Witness to Saint Peter,(N.Y. 1928), p. 72. 3. We have followed, here and in the next chapter, the dating system worked out by Guiseppi Ricciotti, Paul the Apostle,(Milwaukee, 1953), pp. 12425.

4. see Fouard, op. cit. p. 73; Riccioti {Acts) p. 116. 5. Fouard, p. 149.

CRUSADE

Family Selres

As retold by Maria Becker

Catherine thoughtful silch<5>S^ic HTts^trtmmng about what Sister Rose ha^tuid iVe?

me to do!"

derment, her deep blue eyes very big. The man gaped at her. She drew a little nearer, "God is hurt when people curse, didn't you

class that afternoon, and she did not

The poor sinner

know?"

quite know what to do. "Catherine, you are so quiet tonight. Is something wrong?" her mother asked.

ndy. That's certainly the hardest thing for

The man smirked but said nothing. The next morning. Dr. Duffy took

Catherine came up to stand right next to

Catherine to the hospital with him. She loved to accompany him on his sick

him.

plate and settled back in her chair. "I don't

rounds. Saint Mary's Hospital was one of

things like...like that. I wish you wouldn't."

Catherine rested her utensils on her

know what deed could win the statue," she

her favorite places. Sisters of Charity

sighed. "You see, today at Confirmation

worked there, and Catherine thought they

class Sister Rose had something on her

seemed like angels, with their white cor-

desk hidden under a white kerchief. When

nettes and soundless steps. Poor people

she pulled the kerchief away, there stood a

came to Saint Mary's, and the Sisters never

beautiful statue of Our Lady of Graces! Sister said it had come all the way from France and that she would give it to the

turned anyone away.

student in the class who would do the best deed for Our Lord before Confirmation

day. She said we must show Our Lord how much we love Him and find ways to please

This morning. Catherine's father had a

long list of patients to see, so Catherine ran up to visit Sister Gertrude, the superior. Sister Gertrude was just preparing to check her patients in the large sick ward when Catherine skipped into the room and

"You can't go to Heaven if you say

"Achl!" the man said roughly,"God doesn't listen. I always talk like that." Catherine wanted to tell him that lost

souls curse in Hell. too. but she thought she had better not. Instead, she said simply, "You know, I believe God would forgive

you, if you were sorry." The sick man stared at Catherine, and

now his black eyes were very big. "What?!" Oh! Forget it,"he grumbled at

last. "I'm no good." But then seeing the look on her face, he added a little playful

Him. Oh! I want that statue .soooo much,

begged to accompany her. Sister Gertrude

ly, "Well. er,...if you slick around, maybe I

but I can't make up my mind what I should

smiled beautifully and said, "Of course, my dear. Come along!" They walked into the big white room.

won't curse."

do for my best deed!"

Her father smiled, "Well, my girl, why don't you come with me on my rounds in the hospital?"

"I'll visit you tomorrow," she said and

ran off to join Sister Gertmde. who was

There were neat rows of white beds, all

attending patients at the opposite end of

occupied by men of one sort or another.

the ward.

"I would give up candy," her littlest brother chirped in. Little David loved candy! "Why don't you visit Our Lord every

Some looked very ill, others tossed about uncomfortably, yet others just lay there,

The next day Catherine returned to the hospital with her father. She had been intent and silent on the ride over, clutching

day in our church?" suggested her second

haired man in a bed near the comer. He

brother. Benedict. For some time Catherine listened to all

was cursing the sister looking after him, and his eyes looked black and angry. Catherine walked slowly towards the foot of his bed and stood there gazing at him. "You were., cursing," she said in bewil

the suggestions from her family with keen attention.

At last .she .said, "I think I'll give up

JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 1998

quiet and forlorn. Catherine suddenly noticed a dark-

a small wrapped object in her hands. Upon arriving at Saint Mary's. Catherine ran to the sick ward and right up to the patient with the black eyes. When he turned his

head and saw her standing there, he actual ly grinned! "Look what I've brought you!"

Family Series Catherine exclaimed jubilantly. She unwrapped her bundle and held up an

exquisitely carved statue of the Sacred Heart.

fresh...like spring," Sister Gertrude had heard him say. Yet, what the sinner did not know was

that every morning before seeing him

"It's mine, you see," she went on,"but you can keep it here by your bed. When you are angry and feel like cursing, you can look at Him and say,'My Jesus, mercy.'" The sick man was very still. He stared at the little girl, shaken in his soul by the

And Sister's reply had until now been the same:"Not yet."

innocence he found in the depths of hers. Her next question startled him. "Have you been to confession?" "No. I haven't gone to confession

and knelt by a picture of the Child Jesus. She looked at Him steadily for a long time, then she prayed: "Dear Jesus, You love this man, don't You? I am trying to make him

since...well, since my First Communion. That was very long ago." "Oh!"she cried, and to his surprise her blue eyes filled with tears. "How black your soul must be! Oh! Don't you wish your soul were white, lily white all over again? Tell God how sorry you are. He will

see how good You are and how you proved

forgive you! He will! He will!" "No," the man shook his head,"I've

been a lost sheep for a long time... I'm a bad man. God has no need for people like me."

"Oh, but you're wrong! Why, God died on the cross to save poor bad people like you!" Catherine's face lit up with a thought, "Look, tomorrow I'll bring my Station cards to show you, then you'll remember. Would you like that?"

"Yes, you do that." And the sinner smiled at her.

The next day, she sat on his bed and spent a long hour sharing her Station cards with him, explaining to him with touch ing simplicity the story of the Passion. Patients in other beds looked on in

silent interest, partly out of curiosity about the "sinner's" reactions, and

partly because, in that arid and painfilled atmosphere, the .scene unfolding before their eyes held an irresistible qual ity. Their pain forgotten for a time, their souls were stirred, as if by a beautiful play.

Catherine asked Sister Gertrude the same

question: "Did he go to Confession yet?"

One evening, after returning home from

Blessed Mother for him.

That night, Catherine was dusting her

nightstand when her eye fell on a little bot tle of perfume her father had brought her from France. It had been a gift such as little girls treasure, and Catherine was very attached to it. She picked it up, thinking

hard. Then she smiled; a great idea had just come to her!

the hospital, Catherine went up to her room

Catherine's perfume

Your love for us! But he doesn't under

The next morning, Catherine took the perfume bottle to the hospital with her. She ran to the sick ward to visit her patient. He was awake this morning, but his eyes nei

stand. He thinks he's too bad for You to for

ther smiled nor blinked. He looked incredi

give him, but that's not true. I told him so, but he doesn't believe me. Dear Jesus, help

bly sad. Catherine leaned over him and asked, "Don't you want me to send for Father today?"

him to know You as You really are. Please make him believe that You will forgive him if he tries."

When Catherine went back to the hospi tal the next day. Sister Gertrude handed her a Miraculous Medal to give her patient. That day, Catherine noticed a change in

"No," said the sinner,"I have too many sins. God won't forgive what I've done in my life." "Listen," Catherine said, "once there

was a woman who did things like you. She

the sick man. He looked very ill and there

was beautiful, and vain, and lots of other

were dark rings around his eyes. He did not

things. But one day. Our Lord was having

talk to her, but lay there with his eyes closed and his breathing heavy. Catherine pinned the Medal on him. Sister had told her that Our Lady had promised to give

lunch at a friend's house, and this woman burst through the door. She knelt at His feet

great graces to those who wear the Miraculous Medal. Catherine, sitting quiet ly by the sick man's bedside, prayed to the

and cried over them, and they became wet with her tears. Then, she poured a whole bottle of expensive perfume over his feel and dried iheni with her long, beautiful hair. She cried because of her sins, but Our

Lord forgave her. Today, she is a saint." Then Catherine pulled out her little bot tle of perfume. She pulled out the cork and held it up for him to smell. "Do you like it?" "Yes, it has a nice scent." he answered.

Catherine picked up the statue of the Sacred Heart by his bed and held it very close to him.

"Look," she said, coaxing him, "this perfume is a very :

"Did he go to Confession yet?"

good one, My daddy brought it all the way from France.

Now. you lake it and pour it over Our Lord's feet: ask Him

to forgive you." For many days afterwards, Catherine came to see her "sinner"

The patient thought a little. Then he took the little bottle

faithfully. She always brought him

from her and poured it slowly

something, sometimes a sweet her

over the statue's feet.

mother had prepared, sometimes flowers from her garden. Sister Gertrude noticed that the man's

temper visibly improved after the little girl's visits. "She's so

"Catherine." he sighed, "will you do me a favor ?" "Ye.s?'-

"Go call the priest for me." Catherine's face lit up radiantly!

CRUSADE

Family Series

She could hardly contain her joy as she ran out of the ward, crying, "Sister! Sister!"

Not long afterwards, Father came to the sick man's bed side, and the sinner rid his soul at last of its heavy burden. After his confession, Catherine came back and knelt by the sick man's bed. She watched with wide eyes and clasped hands as Father brought Holy Communion to her patient, whose face was now peaceful and relaxed. Father then anointed him with the Holy Oil, administering to the sick man the last sacrament of the living. Extreme Unction. As

Father departed, everyone in the ward remained very quiet. That night, Catherine sat at her little desk and took out

paper and pencil.

Raspberry Blush The beverage we share with you in this issue is here by a special request of my brother, who absolutely loves anything with ice cream in it. The first dme I savored this drink was at my sister-in-law's baby showen since then, I have offered it to my friends and family on many different occasions. Never, has anyone refused seconds. It is simple to make, tastes delightfully fresh, and looks sumptuous! Since it has no name that I know of, we have christened it Raspberry Blush.

"Dear Sister Rose," she wrote. "You asked us to do a

good deed for Our Lord. I decided that I would give up

Serves 10-12, depending on the size of your glass.

candy. I love candy. Sister, but I got really busy this week.

Sister, so I am sorry I did not do very well. I ate some candy. "You see, Daddy took me to the hospital with him every day. I met a very poor, sick man there. I gave him my statue

of Our Lord and the perfume Daddy brought me from France. I tried to help him get to Heaven, and today he went

to Confession! I think Our Lord must be very pleased with him now. Love, Catherine."

Ingredients;

2 liters of raspberry- flavored or plain sparkling Seltzer water, chilled

2 lO-oz. cans of frozen Minute Maid Berry Punch (other flavors such as Watermelon/Strawberry or Peach work as well.), chilled or frozen

Just then, Catherine's mother entered the room. She put her arm around her daughter and said: "Sister Gertrude Just called. She said that your sick man just died. Before he died,

1 half-gallon of vanilla ice cream 1/2 cup of fresh raspberries

he kissed the Medal you gave him and asked Sister to thank

you for being so kind to him. He said he will never forget you."

Catherine sat quietly with her hands folded in her lap for a while. Then she picked up her pen and added a postscript

In a large bowl, mbc the berry punch with 6-7 cans ofseltzer water. Stir in scoops of ice cream until the surface of the punch is covered. Stir the punch until the ice cream melts a little. Taste the punch and add more seltzer water or ice cream according to your own taste. Since seltzer water is

to her letter:

"P.S. Sister just called Mommy. The poor sick man just went to Heaven.

fairly inexpensive, it is a wonderful way to add fizz and volume for a larger party. Serve into fluted glasses or any other you would like to use. Scoop a

Confirmation

leftover raspberries, add them to the punch. According to my brother they

bit of the ice cream on top and float 2-4 berries in each glass. If you have are the best part of the punch. The day for Confirmation came. Catherine was confirmed

We hope you enjoy Raspberry Blush as much as we always have!

by the Bishop with the rest of her class. The next day the students returned to the classroom to

Vfft

await Sister Rose. Ail were curious to discover who had won the statue of the Bles.sed Mother.

Sister Rose looked her class over with a beaming smile on her face.

"Children," she said, "I was very impressed by all your letters. Actually, I am so proud of all of you that I will take

you for a picnic next week! God is so pleased when we think of Him in different ways. He is pleased when we give up sweets, when we go to Church, when we give money to the needy. These are all wonderful deeds. But I was especially touched by one deed that was a bit different from all the rest.

It was about helping a poor sick man save his soul. Helping someone else get to Heaven is the best deed.

"Catherine Duffy, please come up. You are the winner of this statue!"

Catherine stood up silently, her blue eyes wide with astonishment. Sister Rose laid the beautiful statue in her

arms, and the children applauded and cheered her with the

joy only children know how to express. The best deed had won.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

e S/Ic/

^m3SL

Psalm 26:10

The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property-TFP

by Plinio

Revolution and Counter-Kevolution is a pro found and brilliandy argued study of the

revolutionary process that began with

ertarian, and anarchic society^ The author considers this process the Revolution.

Not simply "negative," this study also describes

the decadence of Medieval Christendom in the

and analyzes the aims of the Counter-Revolution

fourteenth century. This process, driven by the dis

and the effective methods for obstructing and finally

orderly human tendencies, especially pride and sen

destroying the revolutionary process. It establishes

suality, leads to the gradual establishment of an

the grounds for certaintyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;not just hopeâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;in the

order of things completely opposed to Christian

victory of the Catholic Church, which is the very

civilizationâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;that is, a secular, wholly egalitarian, lib

soul of the Counter-Revolution.

Hard-cover; 204 pages; $10.

ppd.

Call

The American TFP,RO Box 1868, York, PA

March-April, 1998

❖ In Brief

Cover: The Entertainment

Industry

Culture

500 Years-The Vienna Choir Boys

❖ Our Readers Write

Cover Article

The Frog in American CuUure

Ambiences, Customs and Civilizations Can Only Religious An Be Christian?

❖ Letters from America Needs Fatima friends

Harming children by forgetting about Original Sin

Society Consecrate the World to Christ:

Mission of the Laity in the Fatima Aposiolale

Back to Manners "CARE, and you'll know what to say"

❖ Holy Week 1998-Stabat Mater

Catholic Apologetics Sola Fide. Are we saved by Faith alone?

Pedagogy Our Children-Why Not Always Angels?

23 America: anesthetized, on the way to its self-destruction

Basic History Course of Western Civilization Saint Paul and his Adventurous Missions

Family Series The Giant Who Became a Saint

Forsotten Truths We sliouki never allow kindjK'ss to (.legenerate into weakness . . 33

Crusade Magazine is a publication of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP).

Subscriptions in the United States and Canada, $24.00. Foreign subscriptions, $35.00. List of other TFP publications available upon request. Direct all subscription requests and

Not only chapels are Christian The giant who found Christ

Why is Johnny Wearing "Camies"?

Crusade Magazine Editor:

When I first heard of the Jonesborc

maintaining a child's attention. Video games now involve the player in inter

C. Preston Noell III

killing, my reaction was to file it men tally as just another incident of school yard violence. After all, the Jonesboro shootings are the fourth student shoot ing rampage since February 1997, and the past five years have seen eleven

active sequences that make him a vir

Earl Appleby

tual participant in the acts of carnage they portray. The future will only hold

Thomas Beckel

more of the same-more volume, more

Eugenia Guzman Gary Isbell

multiple killings at American schools.

The first steps are now being taken to

1 caught myself, however, realizing

extend entertainment beyond the audio

accessibility, and more involvement.

Associate Editors:

Jack Bumham

Thomas J. McKenna Photography:

that these events may not be just

and visual media to include the sense

anomalies, but portents of things to

of touch with physically responding joy sticks for some video games. The

Circulation:

moral horrors that the extension of vir

Foreign Correspondents:

come. The human psyche perhaps adjusts too quickly to new realities: What is profoundly disturbing one day

too easily becomes normalized and ignored the next. In some way, the Jonesboro shoot ings did become more of an event than the other shootings. The media have focused on them, and even the political world stopped and took notice.

tual reality to other senses entails defy

the limits of the printable. The killings at Jonesboro have

Todd F. Kamuf

Gregory Escaro AUSTRALIA: John S. Tbcker

AUSTRIA: Carlos E. Schaffer

BRAZIL: Jose Carlos Sepulveda

shocked us. Is there a lesson to be

FRANCE: Benoit Bemelmans

learned here? Is there anything to be

GERMANY: Beno Hofschulte

gained from this collective state of

PORTUGAL: Antonio C. de Azeredo

shock as the country agonizes with the "Why? Why? Why?" of school-yard

SOUTH AFRICA: Richard Urban

Unfortunately, it is almost certain that by the time this editorial is read, the news will have completely faded from

shootings?

SPAIN: Felipe Barandiardn

the media and from the national con

effect of great shocks in the process of

sciousness. Our cover article for this issue of

conversion of an individual or society in his book Revolution and Counter-

The American Society for the

Crusade deals with the ever-degener

Revolution. When sinners are in a

Defen.se of Tradition, Family and

ating entertainment industry, Certainly

process of decadence, God never deprives them of sufficient graces, He

Property (TFP) was founded in

"frequently waits until they have

sis shaking the modern world. It is

reached the very depths of misery, wherein He suddenly brings home to

organization which, inspired by the

the whole blame for the appearance of this new type of crime cannot be laid at this industry's feet, and no one is

attempting that, but very serious ques tions need to be asked. The issue of whether or not TV sex and violence

ROME: Juan M. Monies

The great Catholic thinker. Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira noted the

them the enormity of their errors and sins as if in a fulgurant flash. Only

The American TFP

1973 to confront the profound cri a civic, cultural and nonparti.san traditional teachings of the Supreme Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, works in a legal and peaceful manner in the

influence children's actions and play a

when he had fallen into the state

part in juvenile crime is no longer

where he would fain have filled his

debatable. Study after study shows that

belly with the husks of the swine did

realm of ideas to defend and pro mote the principles of private own

they do. They are not "just entertain

the prodigal son really see himself as he actually was and return to his

ership, family and perennial

father's house."

function: individual and social. The

ment."

This reality is nothing new. How is

Christian values with their twofold

it possible that advertisers are willing

The tragedy at Jonesboro shook

to spend millions of dollars on TV

America, but if the profound reasons

always been faithfully at the ser vice of Christian civilization. The first TFP was founded in

TFP's words and efforts have

slots of thirty seconds or less just to

for what happened are not analyzed,

influence consumers to alter their

studied, and remembered, the lives of

behavior and buy their product if what

the four children and their teacher will

Brazil by the famous intellectual

viewers see on TV does not influence

have been lost entirely in vain. Drew

them? The sexual immorality, deviant

and Mitch are warning symptoms of

and Catholic leader Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira in 1960. His

role models, and violence on TV have

the present's serious illness, not mere freaks of nature. They acted more in

other autonomous TFPs in 26

accord with the messages they receive

countries across the globe, thus constituting the world's largest

a profound influence. The entertainment industry reaches

deeper into the psyche of children today than ever before. New tech niques have made a science out of

from 1990s society than did Shannon

Wright, the heroic teacher who died shielding her students.

work has inspired the formation of

anticommunist and antisocialist

network of Catholic inspiration.

CRUSADE

IN BRIEF ly, the infirm or unemployed, that these

On the occasion of the visit of Pope John

Castro's recent release of 300 political prisoners has drawn widespread acclaim â&#x20AC;&#x201D; including from the Vatican â&#x20AC;&#x201D; yet this is a mere 25% of the political prisoners known to

Paul II to Sudan in 1993, the fundamentalist

languish in Cuban prisons. A sulfering parish

In our rush and fascination for material

Islamic government in Khartoum assured

priest of Havana is quoted as saying: "What is this to Castro, it being that there are hun

progress, our pursuit of perfect well-being,

0 Unique "respect" shown in Sudan

His Holiness that the Sudan is a tolerant

numbers have grown. An ever larger number of victims are comfortable, married with

children, employed, and own their homes.

and our flight from suffering, how many healthy traditions have been abandoned?

dreds more...It is less than if a rich person were to have given a small alms. On the con trary, it helps Castro to wash his image...but for Cuba it means almost nothing." Ricardo Alarcon, President of the Cuban Parliament, said that while the government

soul. It can only lead to frustration and even

tional, a group operating out of Switzerland,

agreed to release some political prisoners, as

tually to death.

has made several trips to Sudan to purchase the freedom of persons attacked, abducted,

the Pope requested, it stands by its decision

country, where everyone's identity is respected. We have written before of this "respect,"

briefly noting the continuing slave trade in that nation (see Crusade, May-June, 1997). Since 1995 Christian Solidarity Interna

and enslaved because they profess Christianity or something other than Islam. John

Eibner, director of Christian

Solidarity, relates that their every mission has been undertaken under threat of immi

nent attack by government troops, for it is soldiers of the Sudanese government who are the agents of this trade. On their latest

trip to Sudan, in December of 1997, the

to forbid the re-opening of Catholic schools.

How many crimes have become "rights"â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and vice versa? Material progress without proper moorings and, above all, without

progress in virtue is like a body without a

0 No laughing matter

"We are not going to abandon a principle of the Revolution.," he stated.

In Miami, 40 organizations of exiled Cubans are spreading a document denounc

ing the action taken by two American con gressmen to mollify the economic embargo of Cuba. Any effort in that direction, they said, will only serve to prolong the commu nist regime.

Our country has never lacked humorous

quips and cartoons about its leading political and other figures, even the head of state. If at

times we go too far and if our leaders per haps provide us too many opportunities for caricature and satire, yet this is a freedom

we take for granted. It is not so in Iraq. Iraq has long been a

organization purchased the freedom of 157

country in which joking about the president

persons. They have rescued 800 since their 0The price of progress

is a crime punishable by death. During his three decades in power,

inception, According to Eibner, it is believed that thousands still languish in this wretched

No one can deny the advances in medi

Saddam Hussein has created a society ruled

cine, communications, and other fields that

by terror and suspicion, a society in which

even he has to hide. He is a man who, upon

on of "human rights" consider brokering

have taken place in our times. Yet, this often astounding material progress has not ush

something there?

ered in an era of complete well-being nor an

while sending 22 of his closest associates

end to human suffering predicted by opti

off to be executed. According to Western intelligence, he has pulled out his pistol

state in the Sudan.

Will Kofi Annan or some other champi

0 Lip service or what? Many were the hopes inspired by Pope

mistic observers. Rather, we are seeing clear signs ofjust the opposite of what was

John Paul's visit to the former Pearl of the

hoped. One symptom of this reversal is the

Antilles. Yet the facts seem to indicate that

increasing number and rate of suicides in

the warden of the Island Prison, Fidel

numerous countries across the globe. In the

assuming power, calmly smoked a cigar

during meetings and shot generals who dis agreed with him, and then continued with the agenda. One day, in July of 1992, he

ordered the execution of 42 shop owners in Baghdad and had their corpses tied to tele

Castro, has done little else than take advan

United States alone we have 31,000 "suc

phone poles outside their shops and neck-

tage of the visit to give his communist

cessful" suicides annually. How many more

regime a fresh coat of whitewash. Four days after the Holy Father's depar ture, thousands of young Cubans took to the

assistance in 100 suicides, has his way?

laced with signs reading "greedy mer chant." Space prohibits us from continuing what is a true litany of horrors. Not surpris

streets of Havana and other cities chanting

themselves in 1996, and another 150,000

such slogans as "socialism or death!" in cel

attempted to do so. France is by no means

ebration of the 145th anniversary of Cuban independence. "Santiago remains Santiago,

the leader in this matter, however. According

men? Well, the fact that he has people taste his

food before he eats it, that he has surgically

the birthplace of the Revolution.," said Raul Castro, Fidel's brother and designated suc

will there be if Kevorkian, now boasting In France, 11,200 people murdered

statistics

from

Lithuania, New

UNICEF, Finland,

altered doubles who make public appearances

for him, that he handles only photocopies of the letters sent him for fear that the originals may have been coated with some poison,

the murals of Marx and Engels during the Pope's visit was gone. One policeman,

January of this year, the number had grown

pointing to a picture of "Che" Guevara, said, "things have returned to the way they

to 32. In Brazil, the suicide rate among

In Havana's Plaza of the Revolution,

where the Pope celebrated Sunday Mass, the large picture of Our Lord that had covered

.should be."

MARCH-APRIL, 1998

topple him from power. What does he expect from his country

Zealand, Russia, and

Slovenia lead the way, with more than 30 suicides for every 100,000 inhabitants between 15 and 24 years old. In Bogota, the capital of Colombia, a sui cide occurs every 25 hours. In January of 1997, there were 29 suicides, while in

cessor.

ingly, there have been 20 attempts so far to

young people grew 26% from 1979 to 1993. It is not only among the young or elder

gives us some idea of his popularity. Granted,

this is not quite the impression one gets when viewing certain photographs taken in Iraq: the omnipresent portraits of the smiling dic tator and pictures of the average person

armed and prepared to resist any military campaign against the country.

Culture

by Charles E. Schaffer our correspondent in Vienna, Austria

This year the Vienna Choir Boys, the world's most famous boys choir, celebrates

orous examination panel. In the early cen turies of the choir's existence, suitable can

its 500th anniversary.

didates were not hard to find as the level of

In 1498, Emperor Maximilian 1 (14591519), "the last of the knights," founded the Hofsdngerknaben, the Choir Boys of the Court, as part of his Hofmusikkapelle. Comprised of twelve vocally gifted young boys, this choir adorned the ceremonies of

culture was high and-like the choir's mem

bership-encompassed all social classes. The pages of the choir's history are

cultural heart-Burgundy and the Low

embellished with many illustrious names. Christoph Willibald Gluck (1714-1787) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) were engaged as composers by the court. Josef Haydn (1732-1809) and his brother Michael (1737-1806), members of the choir

Countries.

of Vienna's Cathedral of Saint Stephen,

From the first, the choir boys were entrusted to the maternal care of Holy

often sang with the Hofsdngerknaben. The young Franz Schubert (1797-1828) sang in

the Austrian court with their artful rendi

tions of the musical treasures of Europe's

Mother Church (for some time under the

the choir, while for a time Anton Bruckner

auspices of the Jesuits) who provided for

(1824-1896) served as the choir's organist

their education and musical development

and a professor in its school. In their annual

and also looked after their material necessi

appearances with the Wiener Staatsoper (the Vienna State Opera), the choir performed

ties. During the anticlerical reign of Joseph U (1741-1790), the embodiment of the spir

under the baton of such celebrated conduc

it of the latter eighteenth-century reforming

tors as Claudio Abbado, Leonard Bernstein,

monarchs and son of the renowned Maria

Nicolaus Harnoncourt. and Herbert von

Theresa (1717-1780), the choir was placed under the direction of the army.

Karajan. For more than 400 years, the Choir's his

Choir members were selected, from

tory was intimately linked with the person

among boys ages 8 to II, with excellence of

and court of their monarchs, the Habsburgs.

voice, a good ear for music, and a love of

Until the fall of the Austrian monarchy in

song as the criteria. Successful candidates had to prove their competence before a rig

form, which included a silver sword. With

1918, the Choir Boys used an Imperial uni

CRUSADE

Culture

whose services are gratuitous.

the end of the monarchy, the Hofsangerknaben (Choir Boys of the Court) became

also conducted at other schools in Vienna.

Since 1948, the Choir Boys' school has

The four choirs that comprise today's

the Wiener Sdngerknaben (the Vienna Choir Boys). In 1924, after the defeat of the

been housed in the sixteenth-century

Vienna Choir Boys boast 25 boys each.

Augarten Palace, which is surrounded by a

Central

magnificent park. New buildings have been

They are named after four distinguished Austrian composers: Haydn, Mozart,

Hungary, Turkey, and Bulgaria) in the First

added, including classrooms, a sports center,

Schubert, and Bruckner. Each choir has

World War, the Choir Boys were subjected to reform by the victorious Allies.

and recreational facilities. The formation of

mastered the same repertoire.

Powers

(Germany, Austria-

In fact, were it not for the dedication and hard work of Fr. Josef Schmitt, who

had served as chaplain to the court, the Vienna Choir Boys might have disappeared altogether. Instead, he initiated a program

a Vienna Choir boy may begin as early as

The choirs tour the world four months

kindergarten, and the school accommodates

out of every year, performing in virtually

20 students of that level. Four years of ele

every European country and the United

mentary schooling follow, accompanied by

States. Every three years, the Vienna Choir

an intense musical, vocal, and instrumental

Boys tour Asia, with Japan providing their longest itinerary. South America, Australia,

formation. Up to 60 students take part in this

of international tours, using the money

regimen, which offers courses in piano, vio

New Zealand, and South Africa are toured

raised to finance the choir's sustenance and

lin, obo, guitar, cello, and flute. There are

every four years.

development. Through their triumphal

also classes in design, painting, sculpture, and photography.. Choir membership begins at the end of

a tradition that has been honored for some

tours, these "singing ambassadors" have helped Austria reconquer her prestige in the world's concert halls. The choir boys' sailor

Should you visit Vienna, you may witness 500 years since the Choir's creation-the High Mass sung in the chapel of the Hofburg, the

uniforms, created in 1964 and bearing the

the fourth grade and continues for three years-until a change is noticed in the boy's

Austrian coat of arms, have become known

voice. One hundred students board at the

the year at 9:00 a.m. At Mass you might say

worldwide.

school during the final three years. To

a prayer that the five centuries of culture rep

Today, the Vienna Choir Boys constitute an association entirely independent of the

compensate for time spent in touring, these

State, receiving no public funding. Their

divided into classes which seldom number

resented by the noble traditions of the Vienna Choir Boys may survive the ravages of our egalitarian age. ■

later studies are intensified, with students

directorate consists of 70 men-all of them

more than six students. The

former members.

fruit

Every year, the school of the Vienna

of such

Imperial Palace, every Sunday throughout

individual

attention is evident in the

Choir Boys organizes activities open to the

scholastic life of those for

public to which interested families bring

tunate enough to have stud

their sons for auditions. Examinations are

ied at the Augarten Palace,

RlghUThe Vienna Choir Boys, dressed In their sailor uniforms assemble in one of the spacious rooms of their residence. Be/otv.'The Augarten Palace, home of the Vienna Choir Boys

II 11 II » II n 11 II .V

■■ «■ 11

IIII I) il 11

A II II fll

■■

!*■

Our Readers Write

Dear Editor, Thank you so much for this excellent

magazine. No other publication inspires me as Crusade magazine does. The articles are clearly written, the doctrine shines through with no fuzziness of thought or

as I am home schooling my children and sometimes I feel as though I'm not "get

ting the message across" to my boys. I would really love to see more articles on how to handle other non-Catholics' ques

Dear Editor,

The popular opinion that Catholics are pro-life is a myth. The following scan dalous examples of Catholics being pro-

tioning of our faith, short of memorizing

abortion are based on selected votes con

the Bible, particularly as I'm surrounded

cerning abortion in Congress during 1997:

position.

■ The four most Catholic states, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New

J.H. — Solon, Ohio

Jersey, and Connecticut, all with Catholic populations exceeding 40 percent, have eight pro-abortion sen ators, including four Catholics.

Dear Editor,

During a Christmas Day family gather ing someone started to speak about the New Age movement. Some of those pre sent were asked what they knew about it, and all of them expressed their complete

■ Ten of the 36 U.S. senators

opposed to the ban on partial-birth abortions are Catholic. They are

ignorance of the subject. There was one

in the world of homeschoolers with other

exception though: a college student who

Christian non-Catholic friends all around

knew about New Age and does not agree

us. Thank you so much, again. B.F. — Kansas City, Missouri

with it at all.

Though 1 knew it is absolutely evil, I

Susan Collins (Maine), Christopher Dodd (Conn.). Richard Durbin (111.),

Tom Harkin (Iowa), Edward Kennedy (Mass.), John Kerry (Mass.), Barbara Mikulski (MD),

Carol Moseley-Braun (III.), Patty Murray (Wash.) and Jack Reed (Rl).

could not give concrete arguments because I did not remember them. So I .searched

through different Crusade magazines,

Dear Crusade,

being sure I had read an article about it. Pretty soon I found, in the

mative and helpful in keeping up with

We love your magazine as it is so infor

•There is a strong negative correla tion between the election of pro-life legislators and the percent of Catholics in a population. For exam

September/October 1996 issue, the cover

news, stories on Saints, and so forth. We

ple, the five most pro-life states

article by Mr. Thomas Becket, "Johnny,

sent copies to some of our children. They

the X-files and the new religious con

also love reading all the articles: with the

sciousness," with the attractive picture and title on the cover:"New Age - Protect your

(Utah, Oklahoma, Idaho, Wyoming, and Kansas) average only 8.2% Catholic, while the five most pro-

to cling to our faith as our pastors have

way the world is going wc need an anchor

wrote a brief summary of its main ideas and objectives to present to those involved

deserted us and so many are falling away it's so evil, all and so many errors have infiltrated the Church. We feel strongly

in that conversation.

that God will rescue our Church in time

Crusade helped me in an important need, to my great satisfaction. Thank you.

when we have offered enough for souls in our sufferings for being so lukewarm in the past. God forgive us and keep us faith

Children from its Influence." 1 read it and

Crusade and Mr. Becket!

E.G. — Miami

ful.

L.O. — Sonoma, California

abortion states (Hawaii. Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vemioni, and Rhode

Island) have a whopping 44.3 aver age Catholic percent.

The main reason for this deplorable sit uation is the failure of the U.S. Catholic

bishop to publicly rebuke Catholic proabortion voters and legislators. Their silence sends the message to Catholics and other Americans of good will that voting for pro-abortion legislators is no big deal,

and that abortion has nothing to do with Dear Crusade Magazine, I absolutely thank you for your Nov/Dec article regarding Repetitive Prayer dialogued in "In the Arena." Too many times we Catholics have been faced with justifying our faith and practices to other non-Catholics, and have been left

feeling stumped due to our lack of Bible knowledge, It is very frustrating to me and

the Fifth Commandment.

Dear Editor,

I have really enjoyed Crusade maga zine, especially the stories. I remember when as a child I used to get a magazine called Mine. It had many stories that I still remembers like the story of Blessed Imelda, Highway to heaven, plus others that I can't remember. Maybe you remem

1 know that many other Catholics feel my

ber that magazine. Thanks for contacting

same frustration and sense of "losing the

me about Crusade, since I don't know of

battle." It was wonderful reading this writer's calm response in the face of being

anyone else receiving it.

L.J. — Abiquiu, New Mexico

Yours truly, R-K. — Putnam, Connecticut

Please send your Letters to the Editor to:

Crusade Magazine P.0.Box 1868, York,PA 17405

condemned.

It was an inspiration to me, especially

or crusade@tfp.org

CRUSADE

Cover Article

The Frog in American Culture The Nation's moral code is being slowly altered. Are you aware of how it happens? by Thomas Becket

Drop a frog into boiling water and it will

a complex network of interconnecting enti

Like all bad habits, television dies hard.

jump right out. Place it in cold water, then turn up the heat, and the frog will stay

ties. Those who don't watch television or

Americans are into it. How much?

put until it is cooked right through. For some this simple scientific fact may

has developed other ways to make its influ

be no more than interesting, but there is a lesson we can learn from it, For, perhaps without realizing it, you and I and the rest of America are now the frog. And the boiling point is just a few degrees

attend movies, the entertainment industry ence felt. Its tendrils wind their way around

every aspect of our lives. If it is not on McDonald cups, then it is in stores in the form of action figures.

Merchandising through video

games, toys, books, and memorabilia dished out by mass-marketing cam

away.

The brackish water of pop-

paigns accompanies near ly every movie.

culture in which we are immersed

is heated largely by the entertain ment industry's inferno of movies. Although the indus

At current rates, the average American

will spend ten years of his life in front of the television. That is ten years, twenty-four hours a day, non-stop. So what do they watch?

On prime-time television a person wit nesses over 14,000 sexual references per year. Depictions or discussions of inter course usually occur one to two times an

hour in shows. To compete for ratings, pro ducers keep moving the line of sexual innu endo by adding more sex, with ever more

consort, the news media,

explicitness, on occasions where it will be seen by greater numbers.

provides ample help with advanced reviews largely promoted by the producers

extra percentage point of audience viewership, wanton violence becomes more grue

of the entertainment."With a

some, more cruel, and more frequent. It even seems that such mayhem is connected intrinsically with sexual immorality. Parox

been gradual. Today, though, by stretching

whole, self-supporting, and self-reinforcing mechanism, they make a captive audience of the public.

the limits of public tolerance, the industry has all but achieved complete license to

America Hooked

try's flame is nearly full blast

today, it has taken a half-centu ry of careful stoking to bring it to its present intensity. The impact of the^ industry's ever-increasing immorality on our sensibilities has

Of course, the industry's

To edge out competition and grab that

ysms of the macabre permeate the whole indu.stry. And all this says nothing of the rise of the occult and para-normal.

decide our morality for us.

Small is "good"; big is "better"

Closer to home is the captive audience Omnipre.sence

One key aspect of influencing the public is the industry's capability of being everpresent. The industry has mutated itself into

of the television. Television is the number-

The small screen at home is a mirror of

one media for video entertainment. If flip ping the switch or throwing it out would end

the big screen down the street. With its own

Hollywood's influence, great. But a reality

religious temple and a mall. In a sense, it is a Mecca of Americana where young and old

check tells us that most people are hooked.

"Flesh Feast," a recent computer game, has this pitch: "puts you right in the middle of all the blood-spurting, head-rolling, corpsehacking action of your worst nightmare." The story line of the game sets the scene with the protagonist waking up from a nightmare

allure, the movie house is a cross between a

off her face, and my half-eaten liver hanging out of her mouth. My head falls back for the last time. I am dead, and this is Hell..." "Flesh Feast" is advertised in main-stream

computer magazines. I found the ad-featuring a flesh-coated chainsaw dripping with

next to Catherine (presumably his wife or

blood-while flipping through a computer maga

girlfriend). "She looks through me, coldly, like so much meat" he recounts. "My world begins to spin as I notice the blood dripping

zine at the dentist's office. Free demos can be easily downloaded from the Internet or ordered by calling an 800 number.

MARCH-APRIL, 1998

Cover Article

TfE:

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1*1 go to witness their god beat the bad guy or win the heart of their dream love. What they

don't realize is that they are also buying into the false doctrines of Hollywood. Like daily TV, there is also the devil of the occult on the big screen. In his book Hollywood vs. America, film critic Michael

w'1 nonpareil Titanic. Industry critics have lav ished the coveted idol of the Oscars upon

this film. Yet. from a cultural revolutionary standpoint, the film is deadly. Though rated "PG," the film has nudity in one scene and overt sexual references in

of our pop-culture boils to know that we need to jump. The problem is that not only

has society's moral sensitivity been dead ened, but also to a large degree its light of rea.son has been dimmed as well. Society should not only feel the problem. More importantly, it should see the problem intel

Medved enumerates the horrors: cannibal

another that clearly push the "R" envelope. But those scenes are just the tip of the ice

ism, incest, interspecies intercourse, rape,

berg, if you will. The hero, DeCaprio, glam

lectually and react on reason. But it does not. So how did we get from Ozzie and

murder, mayhem â&#x20AC;&#x201D; all supplemented with

orized in the movie as a street artist, shows

Harriet in the '50s to Natural Born Killers

outright vulgarity. The movie industry

off his sketches of Parisian prostitutes in the

in the '90s?

almost seems to delight in making movies

nude. Wrapped in an aura of "elegance," these scenes are passed off as "artful" and

Harriet as the quintessential American cou

thus Titanic sails onto the charts as the most

ple is close to being in the Middle Ages.

to gross out the viewers. A//e/i IV: The Resurrection is one such recent movie.

On-screen vomiting and urinating, pre sented

in such

movies as Dumb and

Dumber of nineteen ninety-three seem to have a certain reason for being. Medved notes that "The proclivity to portray vomit and urine on screen reflects the increasing ly influential notion that the most important form of aesthetic expression is that which will shock the public and challenge out moded standards of decency." For what? While shock treatment challenges the public's "outmoded standard" of decency, the more elusive traps lay in the subtleties

of the art form. An ounce of honey catches more flies than a gallon of vinegar, says the proverb. Such is the case of the technically

For us in the '90s, looking at Ozzie and

successful box-office blockbuster ever,

However, this is only by comparison.

swamping even Star Wars in its wake.

Already in that program, the seeds of today's avant-guard immorality were ger

In view of the number of people who are

seeing the movie, these scenes included,

minating.

destroying morality in the moviegoer's sub conscious is easy for the entertainment industry. And thus the water grows warmer

for their time. Albeit elusive to the modem

around the frog. From Ozzie and Harriet to Natural Born Killers

Ozzie and Harriet had bedroom scenes

viewer, the reality is that for viewers then, who still had quite a staunch notion of pub lic decency and private respect, using the bedroom as a setting was unheard of. To preclude viewer's queasiness, separate, twin beds were used.

Deceiving the frog's instincts is a scien

tific phenomenon that is beyond the scope

Another example of gradual migration

of this article. But as rational humans that

was the Ed Sullivan show. Specifically, when allowing Elvis Presley to perform,

we are, we don't have to wait until the water

Sullivan would show his relatively conserv-

CRUSADE

Cover Article

ative audience footage of the musician only from the waist up, since Elvis' crude pelvic gyrations would have caused viewers to react negatively. It is

slow yet progressive phenomena of entropy within the industry. While the big-screen is still the main-stream medium for entertainment, the home

important to emphasize, however, that Elvis was still allowed to perform. A mere "Band-Aid" safeguarded the sensi

computer now is rapidly changing this

bilities of the audience. Instead of view

new kind of home cinema. Streaming

ers boycotting the invasive actions of the then shock-jock, the itch for the novelty

video on the World Wide Web is the

paradigm.

The Internet is now a gateway to a

wave of the future. Though this tech nology is limited by speed constraints

got the better of them and they accom Needless to say, if our 1950 viewers had been presented with the flesh-rip

of telephone wires, resulting in uneven and sluggish images, adult Internet sites already push hard-core porno

ping, blood-spurting, smut-ridden orgies

graphic films as well as live shows

of today's perverted liberal entertain

through this medium. Realizing that

modated their consciences.

ment industry, the reaction would no

there is still some life in public opinion,

doubt have been immediate. But it is

filth entrepreneurs can now pump trash right to the desktop, avoiding protests from Mom and Dad despite ineffective

crucial to note that by accepting even

part of the poison, they had impercepti bly opened up their conscience to accept the rest. They had given in a little. The temperature had already begun to rise.

censorship programs. Under cover of

"free speech," the entertainment people can bring smut to the privacy of the PC. If full-scale marketing for video

For the next generation, the next aberra tion became even easier to accept.

streaming or the even newer Internet

In the 1950s there was actually some sort of reaction. The public's conscience

TV seems a long way off, just remem ber that the Internet phenomena took only a few years to reach the feverish pitch that it enjoys today.

was not entirely deadened. Indeed,

because of this, the industry abided by a number of self-imposed regulations for

As the prices for computers drop and

many years. Reaction and the Church

Pope Pius XII rallied Catholic awareness regarding modem com

munications, motion pictures, radio, and television in his encyclical

Miranda Prorsns promulgated on September 8, 1957. It admonished

the Internet services providers

Just as an addict is led to his or

her own destruction, so now are we witnessing a slow yet progressive phenomena of entropy within the industry

the entertainment industry to main tain standards of morality. Although Pius XI had already spoken directly to the

feeds the industry's bloodlust to do whatev

United Stales on the subject in Vigiloiui

er it wants.

lower rates to vie for customers, the

computer

medium

rapidly

becoming available to everyone. Even those at the lower end of the

social spectrum will be given the "privilege" not to have exercise moral restraint. Necessarily, limits of scandal are pushed back.

In all of this, there may be light

at the end of the tunnel â&#x20AC;&#x201D; or per haps it is only another oncoming

train. Time alone will tell. But the up-side is that as these new systems of Internet inte

Curo (1936), the television and movie

Where, then, are we headed? There is

industry were only turning up the heat by

little doubt that we have not seen the last of

gration come on line, a process of de-massification will occur. The huge networks and

then.

Hollywood's hurrahs. In moral processes,

entertainment companies will lose control.

A recent Los Angeles Times poll indi

unlike physical ones, the effect is always

New technology makes it ever cheaper to

greater than the cause. As taking drugs only

produce and distribute the type of entertain

look back over the last few years, realize

increases the desire of the addict, our soci

ment that a few years ago only gigantic

what is happening. Television is worse now than it was ten years ago, said 65%; 87%

ety is shooting up with the entertainment industry's cultural poison. And the more

media companies could afford.

agree that there is more sex and violence

refined the poison - a so called "better qual-

than there was ten years ago; and 71% say

ity"-ihe more demand it has. So we can still expect the unexpected.

that is about to burst, changing the way we relate to the entertainment industry, pro vides a tremendous opportunity for decent

cates that most Americans, when asked to

that more explicit portrayal of .sex and nudi

ty on TV encourages immorality. Reaction to this reality, however, is much weaker

than in the 1950.S. Like a body taken by can cer. with a weakened immune .system, even if it wants to react, it is feeble. This only

MARCH-APRIL 1998

The bubble of mass communications

people to step onto the stage and fight on The future

more equal ground with the nabobs of the

entertainment industry. Thi.s will be a long Just as an addict is led to his or her own

destruction, so now are we witnessing a

knock-down, drag-out fight, however, and the fight will be in occupied temtory. â&#x2013;

Ambiences, Customs and Civilizations by Plinio Correa de Oliveira n our first picture, abundant

i;but delicate sunlight streams through towering stained-glass windows, reflecting on the wood

en floor, on the polished steel of the weapons and the suits of armor, and on the bronze and crystal of the immense candelabras. Through the crystal, the light echoes softly—albeit with a certain effort—on the ornate paintings of the ceiling. Strong yet delicate columns branch out like immense palm trees whose stone fronds, with clear but smooth lines, protect the room beneath them.

the configuration of its lines, colors, and forms, pil grims, priests, and artists across the centuries have found an archetype of the Christian soul. The room, like the chapel, is Christian, not just

by virtue of the sacred images and symbols one finds there, but because of the impression one per ceives and the mentality it signifies. From this reality, we may deduce a larger truth. Just as a man does not become a monk merely by

donning a religious habit, neither is a work of art Christian solely because it includes sacred symbols of our holy religion. For art to be authentically Christian, the soul

strength. The weapons and trophy deer ennoble the

that gives it life must be truly Catholic. Not only can the Christian character impregnate a sanctuary created for the adoration of God, but also any place whose configuration bears the unmistakable imprint

room with echoes of courtly feats of war and the

of the Catholic soul.

A unique ambience pervades this room, inviting a

repose that is neither indolent nor dissolute, yet it embodies recollection, solemnity, stability, and

■

hunt. With warm delicacy, the decorative wainscoting relieves the somewhat excessive austeri

ty of the stone, while in the background, the statue of a saint atop a small pedestal elevates one's thoughts heavenward. No doubt, this room reflects a cast of mind that some would find

agreeable and others not. but, in

any case, it is conveyed exquisite ly, with a proper balance between form and color. A room for every

day use, it evokes a milieu in which our forefathers would have felt at home.

Our second picture depicts the Sainte Chapelle in Paris, built by King Saint Louis IX in the twelfth century to house thorns from the Crown of Our

Lord Jesus Christ. The chapel

expresses a like mentality—not as a place for everyday life, but as one devoted to prayer. While its note of delicacy soars to the

sublime, its strength, stability, solemnity, and recollection lose not a trace of their plenitude. In the ambience inspired by Sainte Chapelle and in the mode of thought expressed in

CRUSADE

tV--

Wlio am I, tliat tne Lore

ourteen years ago, the American TFP launched its

J. America Needs Fatima Campaign. The TFP's goal

Fatima literature, rosaries and books for adults and children

was and continues to be to take the message of our Blessed

alike, we have also established a system of home visitations of Our Lady's Pilgrim Statue. The home visitation program

Mother of Fatima and spread devotion to the Holy Rosary to

consists of a rosary and an inspiring slide presentation on the

every home in our country. Fourteen years later we are pleased with the tremendous support this campaign has

like to share with you a few of the commentaries we have

received. Besides having established a network to distribute

received about these visits.

Fatima apparitions and message. Crusade Magazine would

Dear America Needs Fatima,

Dear Sir,

The words "Thank You" are so little to

It has Just recently come to my atten

was totaled. The truck had a broken axle,

express my feelings, since you sent Our

tion that the ANF organization is con

three wheels off, three doors out of line

Lady of Fatima to our house. I can say the

stantly getting scrutinized in many differ

Blessed Mother's cousin Elizabeth's words:

ent ways as being a hoax. Never let them

and dented, glass everywhere, the dash half in the back seat; but we walked away

"Who am 1, that the Lord's Mother comes to

get to you or anyone in your organization! I think the devil is using ignorant people

with no broken bones. The police said it was a miracle. We praise God and Our

to demoralize us and deter us from our

Lady for their protection!

me?"

November 10, 1997 remains for us

an unforgettable day. We all felt she was really here among us.

Thank you again, God bless you. M.S., Burbank, Calif.

efforts.

I guess the purpose of this letter is to

On November 16, 1997 I had the

most wonderful experience of my life. My dear Queen Mother the Virgin Mary visit

Please keep in touch. M.L., Cincinnati, Ohio

reinforce you people at ANF. You are so

busy making such huge efforts at helping others, and you have ignorant misguided

Sirs,

were broadsided by a truck, and our car

fools putting you down. As far as I am concerned, you are doing a fantastic job. Anyone who makes an effort to serve the Lord is doing a fantastic job in my opin

Dear Jennifer,

On the 13th, two young men carried the Pilgrim Virgin statue of Our Lady into our house. Charles and I said yes to a young man named Joseph who called.

We just can't explain the peaceful

ion. I am for you all the way.

feeling we had while Holy Mary was

ed my humble home!! 1 will never be able to explain my joy!

You are giving a lot of people so much more hope and comfort than they

come said the same.

Mr.Costa and Mr.Ferrara...well merit

had before they knew of the Blessed

the name of "Custodians." What dedica

tion. devotion, and patience; true Catholic gentlemen. The presentation was impeccable. It was late when they finished, but there was. nevertheless, no trace of tiredness or

impatience. Always smiling, completely

Mother.

Good luck and God bless you all.

changed for the good either in their lives or in the life of someone close to them.

Please keep us in your prayers. You and all there are always in ours. Dear Norman,

Thanks. America Needs Fatima!

Sincerely,

Virgin!

C.A., Miami

Yesterday we had many calls from

people saying how things have suddenly

J.B., Glenshaw. Pennsylvania

What joy it was to receive the photo and remember the special time that we were privileged to "lodge" the Pilgrim

dedicated to Our Mother!

here, and everybody who was able to

The day after our dinner with you, we were involved in an auto accident. We

With the same love of Jesus and

Mary. V.& C., New Iberia, Louisiana

Dear Mr. Robert,

1 am a 78 year old man and retired, but still working as a farm hand. I work

From California to New York, from Texas to Chicago, from S\

s Motlier comes to me?

on the days I have off. I'll do all I can to

Lady's love, I took part in your "Mary in Every Home" Crusade by sending flyers of her picture to relatives and friends, hoping that Her eyes will instill faith, strengthen souls, restore peace and har

help Our Lady of Fatima.

mony to troubled families.

some times 13 hours a day, six to seven

days a week. I'll be a Fatima Proclaimer to help America Needs Fatima. I'll do what I can

Since I have been sending the

S.H., Huntington, California

monthly donation of $30.00 -- since December, 1996 — things have been

El Dear Robert Ritchie,

much better with me in several ways. Thanks to the blessed Lady. J.S., Lettsworth, Louisiana

cause came to my home with that beauti ful statue of Our Lady of Fatima.

1^ Dear Mr. Robert E. Ritchie,

delight, honor...to have her come into our

In response to your letter inviting me to share with you my feelings about the America Needs Fatima campaign, I send you these lines.

home.

Your team of crusaders for Mary's

I was overwhelmed with happiness,

We came to the U.S. in 1992, end

ing an ordeal that lasted 17 years in a

country occupied by communists. After the 1975 collapse of Saigon, my husband was taken to a "Reeducation Camp",

Your team of men did an excellent

job of programming that evening. I could tell by their behavior that they were very close to God.

Please keep this program going... We are very fortunate to have someone such as you to do Mary's work. W.K., St. Louis

leaving behind him a wife and five chil dren aged 9 to new-born with no means of support. 1 worked hard to raise my

El Dear Gentlemen,

kids and to supply food to my husband detained for 10 years.

of the America Needs Fatima. 1 am

Thanks to the American govern ment, we have reached the land of free

dom and opportunities. I just want to let you know that we made it through these ordeals thanks to

I am in dire need to be a member

devoted to Our Lady of Fatima! If there is anything 1 need to do, please advise me and 1 will do what it takes to spread the word of Our Lady of Fatima!

our faith, especially our love of Our

Enclosed please find my request for the inspiring best

Lady. She was constantly by our side, at

seller Fatima: Prophecies of

the most difficult times,

Tragedy or Hope?

in our lives

through the Rosary,

M.L., Bell, California .•»V'

Willing to help people share Our

Louis to Fiorids, the America Needs Fatima teams don't stop

Society

Consecrate the World J^isssiou o£

by Dr. Antonio A. Borelli

he sixteenth-century evangelizalion of Japan by Saint Francis

devastation, pervading virtually every ambi

Sins of nations

ence—even the most Catholic.

JL. Xavier gained countless souls for

An ironic example of this sad state of

Christ. The ensuing persecution claimed the

affairs records that numerous Catholics

When Our Lady warns of chastisements, she speaks not only of the sins of individual

lifeblood of martyrs in Nagasaki, Shima-

from pagan Japan have abandoned the faith

souls but of the sins of nations.

bara, and elsewhere, and culminated in an

of their fathers—and their fathers' fathers—

imperial decree outlawing the practice of

not long after migrating to Catholic Brazil.

Professor Plinio Correa de Oliveira, inspiration of the Societies for the Defense

the Catholic faith in that island nation.

The apostasy of these souls is stark testimo

Two and a half centuries later, Catholic

mercial treaty between Japan and certain

ny to the fact that a faith that has survived centuries among pagans can soon die amidst Christians of tepid faith.

Western nations, cautiously resumed the Church's presence under severe governmen

"Pray for us sinners"

missionaries, taking advantage of a com

diplomatic and commercial missions. '*Our hearts same"

since nations do not exist in heaven or hell,

they receive their rewards and punishments in this world.

tal constraints, with priests restricted to pro viding religious services to foreigners in

of Tradition, Family and Property, often recalled Saint Augustine's teaching that

Anyone who considers the message of

Nations sin in three ways: 1) when they commit a collective sin, such as waging an unjust war;

Fatima seriously cannot help but be struck

2) when the divinely decreed moral

at how .severely and extensively it censures the sorry state of contemporary morals. In her sixth appearance at the Cova da

code, although recognized in civil law, falls into such neglect that most citizens become indifferent to its precepts; and

One morning, Father Bernard Petitjean

Iria, Our Lady warned, "Let them offend

spied a small cluster of men, women, and

Our Lord no more, for He is already much

enshrined in man's "law."

children in front of his church in Nagasaki.

offended." Revealing the horrors of hell to

Suspecting that their interest reflected more than idle curiosity, he unlocked the main

Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta, she showed the children the hordes of hopeless repro

The third way is the most serious sin, as it entails the codification of evil, but it is usually entwined with the second. Trans

door, entered the sanctuary, and knelt in

bates condemned

adoration before the tabernacle. Moments

implored prayers and sacrifices for the con

later, three elderly Japanese ladies were kneeling beside him. One gently placed a

remedy for the evil of our day—true devo

gnarled hand on his chest and confided in

tion to her Immaculate Heart.

its flames, and

version of sinners. She also offered a certain

the charming cadence of the Orient, "Our hearts, your heart, same." Thus, the mis sionary discovered a clandestine Catholic community that had remained faithful to the

Church for 250 years without a priest, with out the Mass, without the Holy Eucharist.

3) when violations of God's law are

gressions become habitual as a consequence of being validated by the law. It has become commonplace to legalize vices simply because "everyone does it," as with fornica

tion, adultery, divorce, contraception, steril ization, and abortion. The same suicidal

Mercy or justice?

principle is at work for euthanasia, assisted suicide, homosexual liaisons, and other

The punishments of which Our Lady

abominations.

warned should we refuse to avail ourselves

of the means of salvation she so generously

Mission of the laity

extends are seldom mentioned from our Ironic but true

More than a century has passed since Fr. Petijean's discovery, and Catholicism has

pulpits. We are told today that preachers of

The laity have a special role to fill in the

the past frightened the faithful with such tales. Besides, the spirit of the time leans

plan of Our Lady of Fatima. They must act in the temporal sphere to ensure that cus

spread slowly in the Land of the Rising Sun.

more to mercy than to justice. We need, of course, to be reminded of

At the same time, the secularization of the

both. A gospel stripped either of God's love or

the Ten Commandments in particular. When the laws of all nations are in complete

West has wrought swift spiritual and social

Hisjustice is a false gospel that cannot save us.

accord with God's and are faithfully and

toms and legislation conform to God's Law,

CRUSADE

ta Christ: St

lovingly obeyed, the chastisements of which we warned by Our Lady at Fatima will no longer apply. The mission of the laity in the Fatima apostolate, therefore, is to consecrate the world to Christ.

"Ah! when will.tlie happy time come when the divine Mary will, be estab lished Mistress and Queen of all

hearts, in order that she may subject them fully to the empire of her great

vocation of the clergy, who have an even

and holy Jesus? When will souls breathe Mary as the body breathes

This mission in no sense diminishes the

higher callingâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;to sanctify the world. But

air? When that time comes...the

the mission of the laity is a sacred one to which Holy Mother Church has called her

Holy Ghost, finding His dear Spouse, as it were, reproduced

sons and daughters from the time of the

in souls, shall come in with

Apostles, with ever more urgent emphasis in

abundance, and fill them to

this century.

overflowing with His gifts,

and particularly with the gift of wisdom, to work

Consecration of the world

miracles of grace.... That In an allocution on October 5, 1957, dur

ing the Second World Congress of the Lay Apostolate, His Holiness Pope Pius XII observed that "the relation.ship between the

Thy Reign may come, let the reign of Mary come." all men

Church and the world demands the interven

tion of lay apostles. The 'consecration of the

world' is essentially the work of the laity." Consecration or sacralization counters

In Quas Primas (December 11, 1925), the encyclical which

secularization of the world, an expression often employed by the Holy See to refer to

established the feast

the

Pope Pius XI

plight

the

modem

world.

Secularization banishes God and proscribes

of Christ the King, declared:

the sacred from the lives of individuals, fam

continues,

ilies, and nations, while sacralization imbues

on next page

life with the principles of the Gospel. Sacra lization of the temporal order implies, in final analysis, the establishment of the Reign of Christ on earth, as promised by Our Lady at Fatima: "Finally,-^my Immaculate Heart will triumph." Reign of Mary, Reign of Christ

Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Mo^tfort

(1673-1716) eloquently describes the fulfi^ ment of that glorious promise in his renowned treatise True Devotion to Mary.

MARCH-APRIL. 1998

Note: This text was taken

from a speech by Dr. Antonio A. Borelli

given at an intemational seminar on Fatima last October in Rome.

Society A call to conversion

Dr. Antonio A. Borelli, a renowned spe cialist on Fatima, writes and speaks

extensively on Our Lady's appearances and message. His book Fatima:

The Holy Father presents himself before Our Lady of Fatima, "restudying, shaking with fear, that motherly call to

Prophecies of Tragedy or Hope? has sold three million copies worldwide.

it with shaking in his heart because he

penance, to conversion.... Yes, he restudies

sees how many men, how many societies,

how many Christians, go in the opposite direction from that indicated by the mes sage of Fatima. Sin has gained such a strong right of citizenship in the world, and the denial of God is so widely dif

"The empire of our Redeemer embraces all men.... Nor is there any difference in this matter between the indi

vidual, the family, or the State; for all men, whether collectively or individually, are

fused in the human ideology, concessions,

under the dominion of Christ."

and programs!"

Pius XI goes on to affirm that if nations are to prosper, their leaders "will not neglect the public duty of reverence and

sion of the laity in the Fatima apostolale do so with the conviction that God, in His own

obedience to the Law of Christ."

good time, will intervene to end the long,

All who dedicate themselves to the mis

Pope John Paul IPs words in this regard

dark night of secularism with a new dawn

deserve the greatest attention. In his homily

of the light of Christ illuminating the holy

for the Mass he celebrated on May 13,

Law of God as the standard by which all

1982, during his first trip to Fatima, the pontiff proclaimed:

nations shall live.

The consecration of the world to Christ

"This message is addressed to all

men.... The object of its urgency is all the

with apostasy, moral degradation. The

men of our times, together with the society,

breakdown of morality brings about the breakdown of society."

nations and people. Society is threatened

in the long-awaited Reign of Mary will be the glorious fulfillment of the magnificent prophecy of Our Lady at Fatima: "Finally, my Immaculate Heart will triumph." â&#x2013;

Three easy ways to Subscribe Callus: (717)225-7147 or Write to: P.O. Box 1868,York,PA 17405 or e-mail us: Crusade@tfp,org

A Catholic

Crusade

for memagazine whole family!

Six times a year, Crusade offers timely articles of lastingnnterest for each and every member of your family -from the history of Christian civilization to current Catholic affairs; from episodes in the lives of the saints to the persecution and martyrdom of Catholics in our own days; from inspirational stories for

children to insightful discussion of child rearing; from apologetics to recipes. Fully illustrated and dynami

cal^presented, Crusade will be a welcome addition to both your coffee table and library. Subscribe now!

Crus.\de, 'â&#x2013; Children in Sudan Ui-.rir tn>Gjuii

iiniii lAiu'irai

lai&nri

Back to Manners

"CARE,and you'll know what to say." gentleman, but, above all, a true Catholic in the

What do I say?

full sense of the word. At a talk about a simi

Who hasn't asked this of himself or herself

lar subject, he touched on this problem. Then he uttered a sentence I will never forget: "Care, and you will know what to say." With that one word everything was clear. From that day forward I made the effort to adopt a new strategy. I'd walk into a room full of people with a totally different attitude

at least several times during their life? I am about to enter a room full of people, many of which I've never met. What do I say? I am thrown together in a business ven

ture with people I don't know. What do I say? I am at work or at school and pass a friend

or an acquaintance, and I notice that he or she is worried and downcast. My first impulse is to help, but what do I say? Of course, we have been taught all sorts of polite formulas of introduction as well as some rules of conver

sation and some caring words for comfort in time of need, but, somehow, these don't always work. These formulas often sound stilted, dry, artificial and, above all, awfully limited. After a few sentences, there you

^ and mindset. Instead of asking myself,"W/inr

will I sayl" I began to ask. What can I make them say? Rather than. What will people think of me? I would ask. What do I think of them? I felt as if I were growing wings. I was no longer afraid of what to say or how to say it. It is simply enchanting. When people sense that your interest is focused

on them, they open up like AH Baba's cave when he utters his magic words. And conversation begins.

to help and...silence: uncomfortable, heavy, awkward

Moreover, caring not only with natural feelings but with supernatural ones, everything begins to happen. When we consider that Our Lord shed every drop of His Divine Blood

silence.

for each and every person on this earth, every contact

There is always a bit of shyness involved. I am of the opinion that perhaps just one half of one percent of us can claim not to have a shy bone in our bodies, as the saying goes. I certainly had and still have my share of shyness. But I also learned to my great relief and comfort (since misery loves company) that I certainly do not have a monopoly on timidity. Actually, I don't think it too rash to affirm that

becomes valuable.

today's society seems to suffer quite generally and acutely

wood's pursuit of happiness has clipped the wings of higher ideals and turned people toward themselves and themselves

are, face to face with someone you've just met or are trying

from this ailment.

I remember watching in disbelief during my first day at college as every single student filed noiselessly in and out of

class without so much as venturing to whisper hello or good bye - let alone a thank-you - to the teacher or any one else! So, between the question "What do I say?" and varying

F"H?

Our society today is shy because we've forgotten the meaning of the word: "caritas" - charity, that greatest of all virtues which Saint Paul praised so highly and which is the true motor of our better nature.

Yes, everything today tends to make us self-centered. For one thing, television has replaced conversation. And Holly

alone. Everything is: my car, my apartment, my money, my stereo, my clothes, my life. Despite its portrayals of selfassured, congenial, and caring heroes on the screen, Hollywood has really created a generation that is not at all confident of itself. And we all suffer from it.

degrees of shyness, our manners often

"Care, and you'll know what to say."

simply surrender before we give them even a try... And people are left think

It is a real gem of a formula. By using it, not only will we improve our manners, we will accomplish our Christian duty.

What do I say?

ing,"How rude!" One day, however, I heard a magic

What do I do?

It really works!

â&#x2013;

word on this matter. I heard it from a

friend of my father's who was a true

How do I do it? MARCH-APRIL. 1998

As Mary stood by the cross k watching her Son of sons die, she watched every pain, every pang, every contortion, every agony. Her soul was steeped in all that is bitter, yet

Holy Week - 1998

she "stood." She did not sit, she

did not faint. She said her "fiat" once again to each of these excruciating sufferings and offered it to the Father for each

of us, her children, the inheri

tance she had just received from Him. Later, after He drew His last breath, she alone believed

without ever a single waver or

Close to Jesus to the last:

O Thou Mother!fount oflove Touch my spiritfrom above. Make my heart with Thine accord.

Through Her heart. His sorrow sharing, All His bitter anguish bearing. Now at length the sword had passed.

Make mefeel as Thou hastfelt: Make my soul to glow and melt With the love of Christ my Lord

At the Cross Her station keeping,

Stood the mournful Mother weeping,

shadow of a doubt that He

would rise again. It can well be said that she alone maintained

the Faith on earth during those three days.

In this Holy Week of 1998,

may she grant us this faith, this hope and this love.

Oh, how sad and sore distressed

Holy Mother!pierce me through

Was that Mother highly blest Of the sole begotten One!

In my heart each wound renew

Oh my Savior crucified: Let me share with Thee His pain. Whofor all my sins was slain. Whofor me in torments died.

Christ above in torment hangs; She beneath beholds the pangs Of Her dying glorious Son.

would not weep

Let me mingle tears with Thee, Mourning Him who mournedfor me

Whelmed in mis

All the days that I may live;

Is there one who

eries so deep Christ dear Mother to behold!

By the cross with Thee to stay, There with Thee to weep and pray Is all Iask of Thee to give.

Can the human

Virgin ofall virgins blest! Listen to myfond request: Let me share Thy grief divine;

heart refrain

From partaking in Her pain. In that Mother's

Let me, to my latest breath In my body bear the death

pain untold! Bruised, derided,

Ofthat dying Son of Thine.

cursed, defiled. Wounded with every wound, Steep my soul till it hath swooned In His very blood away;

She beheld Her tender child

All with bloody scourges rent;

For the sins of His own nation

Be to me, O Virgin, nigh, Lest in flames I burn and die, In His awfuljudgment-day.

Saw Him hang in desolation,

Christ, when Thou shalt call me hence,

Till His spirit forth he sent.

Be Thy Mother my defense, Be Thy cross my victory;

While my body here decays. May my soul Thy goodness praise, Safe in paradise with Thee. Amen.

Catholic Apologetics

Are we saved by Faith alone? by Raymond de Sauza

"We are saved by faith, and by faith alone!" exclaimed the preacher to conclude

his improvised and unsolicited sermon right

support in any theologian prior to 1517, no

even coined a phrase that summarizes it all:

Church Council has ever taught this and, above all, no Father of the Church at any

'pecca fortiler, sed crede fortius' - sin strongly, but believe even more strongly. I won't comment on Luther's peculiar person

in the course of the barbecue. "It was the

point in time has ever suggested that faith

Roman Church that invented the doctrine of

alone would suffice for justification or sal

al life, because that goes beyond the scope

good works and their merit for salvation. But all we've got to do is to accept the Lord Jesus in our heart as our personal Lord and Savior - nothing else. Only Jesus saves."

vation."

of the question. But the historical fact is that

"Why did he come up with this idea, then?" asked his wife, now quite curious

cation to his doctrine, had the nerve to

With that solemn proclamation, redolent

"Martin Luther invented this doctrine in

of ancient Lutheran days, the preacher strode triumphantly towards his place, where his barbecued meat was getting cold. I sighed with relief and gratitude: now my

order to solve some of his personal moral

change the text of the Bible." "You must be joking," said the wife. "How could he change the Bible to fit his

dilemmas, and also to avoid having to

opinions? Shouldn't we change our opinions

belong to the Church of Christ. He made sal vation a purely individual matter, something

to fit in with the Bible?"

wife and I could return to our relaxed con

that takes place between Christ and the per

versation with the friendly couple we had

son, by faith alone, by acceptance of His redemption. It demands no effort to fulfill

the Romans, chapter I verse 17. which

But in fact we couldn't. The preacher

God's commandments, nor any good work

added the word alone at the end. So his new

had made a deep impression on the couple.

of any sort. All you've got to do is to accept

reading is, 'He who is just lives by faith

Like so many of our fellow-Catholics these days, they were not too sure about the role of Faith in the process of salvation. "What on

Him. It was the Catholic Church, Luther asserted, that invented the

earth was he talking about?" asked the hus

ing elements of the ancient

band. I nonchalantly replied that the preach

Mosaic Law into Christianity."

er himself probably did not know for sure,

"Sounds pretty good to me," said the husband, tongue-incheek, as he sipped his beer. "If

met while the meat was still sizzling.

but before I could change the subject, my wife's unblinking look suggested that I

should talk about it. So that quiet barbecue among friendly neighbors turned out to be another occasion to share the Catholic Faith

with other people. Later I thanked my wife

about it.

doctrine of good works by bring

reads, 'He who is just lives by faith,' and he

occasion to share the Catholic Faith

all you've got to do is to believe in Jesus, you can sin away and still keep the faith. Nobody will ever go to hell." "Yes, indeed," I commented in like man

ner. "It sounds appealing at first sight, easy

it had seemed at the time.

and straightforward. But, seriously now, the main problem is that it oversimplifies the process of salvation against the will of our Savior, as it ignores everything else Our

'The doctrine our Baptist friend referred

"Of course," I replied,"but it's a famous incident. Luther took Saint Paul's Epistle to

That q uiet barbecue among friendly neighbors turned out to be another

for that look of encouragement, however icy

A c4imfortable invention

Luther, in order to give some biblical justifi

Lord established - the Church, the sacra

alone,' which of course changes the meaning quite substantially. He even went so far as to remove from the Bible the whole Epistle of Saint James, as well as other books, because

it did not agree with his teaching of salva tion by faith alone. He called it an "epistle of straw,' and removed it from the Bible. After

his death, his followers discreetly - and wisely - put it back."

"So far so good, but... The question is,

to is that only faith is necessary for salva tion. That is, all you've got to do is to accept Jesus Christ in your heart as your personal

ments, the authority of the Pope and bish ops, the individual need to rid oneself of sin

does the Bible teach salvation by faith alone,

and to live virtuously, etc., etc.

good works?" asked the husband,

Lord and Savior, without any need of good works. This proposition was concocted by Martin Luther in the early I500's. It has no

I went on:"And you are quite right when you say that people could sin away in this system of sola fide - faith alone. Luther

had summarized in one sentence the whole

MARCH-APRIL, 1998

or does it teach salvation by faith through

It was a well-formulated question. He problem. As more people gathered around

Catholic Apologetics man says he has faith, but

And behold, a certain man came to

does not have works? Can the

him and said,"Good Master, what good

faith save him? And if a broth

work shall I do to have etemal life?"

er or a sister be naked (that is, insufficiently clad) and in want of daily food, and one of you say to them,'Go in peace, be wanned and filled,' yet you do not give them what is nec essary for the body, what does it profit? So, faith too, unless

"...If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments." He said to him,

"Which?" And Jesus said, "Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adul

tery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt

not bear false witness. Honor thy father and thy mother. And, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." The young man

But someone will say, 'You

said to Him, "All these things I have kept. What is yet wanting to me?" Jesus

have faith, and I have works.'

said to him,"If you will be perfect, go,

Show me your faith without works, and I from my works will show you my faith. You

sell what you have, and give to the poor,

it has works, is dead in itself.

and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."

believe that there is one God. You do well. The devils also

believe, and tremble.

"That's a good one," said the the conversation, I went to ask

the preacher if I could borrow his Bible for a moment. He

agreed, but not without a certain suspicion of this sudden interest in Scripture during a barbecue.

"What will it

profit, my brethren, if a

He remained at a distance, but

husband. "The devils believe

in God, even in the heat - but

My wife seized the moment and quickly added that "Our Lord did not say, 'Accept me in your heart as your Lord and Savior....

and you may keep your money.'" "No, He didn't." I added. "In fact, this

their belief avails them noth

idea of accepting Jesus in your heart, etc., is

ing." "Yes, quite right," I said, and

nowhere to be found in the Bible. It is a

read on;

But there is more. Look at Saint Luke's

But do you want to know,

with eyes intently fixed on us. By now his meat was really

man says he

O senseless man, that faith

cold.

has faith, but

Was not Abraham our father

without works is useless?

Justified by works, when he Good works offered up Isaac his son does not have upon the altar? Do you see that faith worked along with Calling to mind some tapes his works, and by the works on the subject by Scott Hahn works?" the faith was made perfect? and Gerry Matatics, I explained: And the scripture was ful "First of all, we should make a filled which says, "Abraham believed basic distinction here between good works God, and it was reckoned to him as jus

in general, which every Christian is called to

"Now that's good deeds, loud and clear."

tice, and he was called the friend of

man-made doctrine, contrary to the Gospel. Gospel, chapter 6 verse 46 and following, about the conclusion of the Sermon of the Mount:

But why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not practice the things that I say? Everyone who comes to Me and

hears My words and acts upon them, I will show you what he is like: he is like

a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation upon rock. And when a flood came, the stream broke

against that house and could not shake it; because it was founded on rock. But

ed by Moses to the Jews, which are of

manner, was not Rahab the harlot also

he who has heard My words and has not acted upon them is like a man who built his house upon the earth without a foundation; against which the stream

course no longer binding on the people of

justified by works, when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out

great was the wreck of that house.

do, and the works of the law, which are spe

God." You see that by works a man is

cific deeds, rites, and ceremonies command

justified, and not by faith only. In like

God under the New Covenant. So, in the

Bible passages I'll quote, the works referred to are the good works of charity, the com

another way? For just as the body with out the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead.

mandments, and, naturally, the ones Our "Wow!" his wife exclaimed. "Now I

Mount: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. But

understand why Luther threw Saint James

The rich man

Not everyone who says to me. Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heav en; but he who does the will of My Father in heaven shall enter the king dom of heaven. Many will say to Me in that day,"Lord, Lord, did we not proph

of tlie (*o.s|>el

esy in Thy name, and cast out devils in

let us take a look at the New Testament." (I

out of the Bible! Saint James teaches exact

left the Old Testament aside because we are

ly the opposite of his doctrine."

specifically

with

the

New

Covenant.)

"So the question is: Are we saved by

faith alone or by faith through works? Saint James, the anti-Lutheran apostle par excel lence, hits the nail on the head." I opened the Epistle, and read James 2:14-26: What will it profit, my brethren, if a

"Saint Matthew's Gospel (7:21-23) is even more explicit":

Lord commented on in the Sermon of the

dealing

broke and straightway it feel in, and

Thy name, and work many miracles in "Yes," we all agreed. "But all he does is

explain the teaching of Our Lord Himself," 1

said. "Take the Gospel of Saint Matthew, chapter 19, verses 16 to 21 for example":

Thy name?" And then 1 will declare to

them, "I never knew you. Depart from Me, you workers of iniquity!" By this time the preacher could contain himself no longer. He stepped into the con-

CRUSADE

Catholic Apologetics versalion and promptly pontificated: "In the

day of reckoning, Jesus will judge us according to our faith, our belief in His name, not according to our works!" Last Judgement "If that were the case," I replied, "why would He condemn those who call upon His name but do not do the things He com

long as you did not do it for one of these least ones, you did not do it for Me."

7toI0":

And these will go into everlasting pun ishment, but the just into everlasting life. There was a certain silence in the group,

will reap. For he who sows in the flesh, from the flesh also will reap corruption.

winked at my wife and said, quite noncha

But he who sows in the spirit, from the

lantly: "No mention of accepting Him in your heart as your personal Lord and

spirit will reap life everlasting. And in

mands? And, since you speak of the Last

Savior... Belief in Him was not enough to

save the goats, but the works performed

25:32-46? Here He explicitly states that peo

through Faith is what saved the sheep."

ple will be Judged according to how they

"But that's not how Paul interprets the

behave towards their neighbors - and that's

Gospel!" our preacher said, in a somewhat

good works. Let me read it":

nervous tone. "The whole Reformed theolo

gy of the Bible is based on Paul and not..." But when the Son of Man shall

with Him, then He will sit on the throne

of His glory; and before Him will be

gathered all the nations, and He will separate them one from another, as the

shepherd separated the sheep from the goats; and He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goals on the left. Then the King will say to those on

Be not deceived. God is not mocked. For what a man sows, that he

understandably enough. My friend's wife

Judgment, have you ever read Saint Matthew

come in His majesty, and all the angels

"And the next Epistle is Galatians. Listen

to what he says to them in chapter 6, verses

doing good let us not grow tired; for in due time we shall reap if we do not relax. Therefore, while we have time,

let us do good to all men, but especial

ly to those who are of the household of faith.

If it may have sounded like bombs falling on Saddam Hussein's military head

"And not on Jesus?" I asked somewhat

quarters in the Gulf War, the preacher didn't

facetiously. "Do you mean to say that Saint

comment on it, but he surely wasn't too

Paul taught a doctrine so important as salva tion in a way different, or contrary, to what

happy with the turn of events. He asked me, point-blank: "Do you interpret Paul to say

Our Lord Himself taught? Oh, spare us! Let's take a look at Saint Paul, beginning

that man by his own good works can earn

with Romans, the epistle that comes first in the New Testament, chapter 2 verse 6": Saint Paul

his salvation?"

"Of course not," I answered. "It is the

grace of God that gives us the will to do good works and He Who guides the perfor mance of those same good works. Our Faith

His right hand, "Come, blessed of My Father, take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave Me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me to drink; 1 was a stranger and

according to his works. Life eternal

also the work of divine grace in us. Let's lis

indeed He will give to those who by

ten to Saint Paul once more."(At this time I

you took Me in; naked, and you cov

indignation to those who are con

ered Me: sick and you visited Me: 1 was in prison, and you came to Me.' Then the just will answer Him,saying. 'Lord, when did we .see Thee hungry, and feed Thee; or thirsty, and give Thee drink? And when did we see Thee a stranger, and take Thee in; or naked, and clothe Thee? Or when did we see Thee sick, or

in prison, and come to Thee?" And

answering the King will say to them.

[God] will render to every man

patience in good works seek glory and honor and immortality; but wrath and tentious, and who do not submit to the

tmth but assent to iniquity. Tribulation

is a gift from God, and our good works are our Faith put into practice. Good works are

had the distinct impression that our friend the preacher was beginning to take a certain dislike for Saint Paul...) He says to the Philippians in 2:12":

and anguish shall be visited upon the soul of every man who works evil; of Jew first and then of Greek. But glory

and honor and peace shall be awarded

to every one who does good, to Jew first and then to Greek. Because with God

there is no respect of persons.

"Amen I say to you, as long as you did it for one of these, the least of My brethren, you did it for Me."

"As you see. it is self-explanatory. The next Epistle in the Bible is 1 Corinthians.

Then He will say to those on his left hand, "depart from Me, accursed ones, into the everlasting fire which was pre

subjection, lest perhaps after preaching to

Here in chapter 9 verse 27 he says": "I chasti.se my body and bring it into

pared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you did not give Me to eat: I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not

take Me in: naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you

others I myself should be rejected." "Quite clearly. Saint Paul believed that his acceptance of Jesus Christ as his Savior was not enough; he had to subject himself to the law of God. Or here in 2 Corinthians 5:7 and 10. he affirms the

necessity of Faith and works":

did not visit Me." Then they also will

answer and say."Lord, when did we see

We walk by faith and not by sight...

Thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not

For all of us must be made manifest

minister to Thee?" Then He will answer them, saying. Amen 1 say to you, as

MARCH-APRIL 1998

before the tribunal of Christ, so that

each one may receive what he has won through the body, according to his works, whether aood or evil.

Catholic Apologetics Wherefore, my beloved, obedient as

you have always been, not as in my presence only, now much more in my

absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who of his good pleasure works in you both the will and the performance. Do all things without murmuring and without ques

tioning, so as to be blameless and guile less, children of God without blemish

in the midst of a depraved and perverse generation. For among these you shine like stars in the world..

his salt knows it. It is precisely because of

His propitiation that we are able to believe and to imitate Him in good works, especial ly in keeping His Commandments. That's the whole idea of Saint Paul in the passage we read a few minutes ago. But you should read the verses that follow your passage. May I read them for you and the others?" Of course, the poor chap could not say no, so I said,"You wanted me to read verses 1 to 2. Now let's read verses 3 to 6":

Pruycr, fasting and almsgiving

flipping through his Bible, certainly looking for some passage to support his view. Soon,

with a triumphant smile, he presented the book to me, opened to the first Epistle of Saint John, and said: "Would you read it for

And by this we can be sure that we know Him, if we keep His command ments. He who says that he knows Him, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar and the truth is not in him. But

he who keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly perfected; he who says that he abides in Him, ought himself to walk Just as He walked.

us, please? Here, right at the beginning of verse said exactly the opposite of what the

to their places now, with ears wide open

preacher had said.

My dear children, these things I write to you in order that you may not sin. But if anyone sins, we have an

You could have heard a pin drop. The

"But there is more. Sir," I soldiered on.

"A moment ago you belittled the Roman Catholic good works of rosaries, no-meat-

teaches us in the same Epistle you chose to quote from": Beloved, if our heart does not con demn us, we have confidence towards

God, and whatever we ask we shall

receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight, And this believe in the name of His Son Jesus

Christ, and love one another, even as

He commanded us. And he who keeps His commandments abides in God, and God in him. "That's 1 John 3:19-24."

Not waiting for comments, I went on:

"And in very same Epistle, chapter 5 verses In this we know that we love the

children of God, when we love God and do His commandments. For this is the

love of God, that we keep His com mandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

on-Fridays, and money-boxes-in-churches. I

advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ

am sure you do not realize that these are pre

the just; and He is a propitiation for our

cise examples of what Jesus wants us to do

sins, not for ours only, but also for those

in the Sermon of the Mount: prayer (rosaries), fasting (no-meat-on-Fridays) and

of the whole world.

Commandments if we wish to abide in God and God in us. That is what Saint John

2 to 3, he says":

chapter 2." "Yes, of course," I replied. All were back despite due attention to their deserts.

mandment to believe in the Lord Jesus, of

course, but we must also abide by all of His

is His commandment, that we should

Last attempt By now desert was being served. We took a short break and the preacher started

1 went on: "Yes, we must abide by the com

Courteous but firm

I thought it was the time to call it a day.

almsgiving (money-boxes-in-churches). If I

The conclusion was demonstrably self-evi dent: Faith alone is not enough; faith must

The preacher felt like a million dollars:

were in your shoes, I would be a bit more

be lived in good works, that is, God's com

"So, here you can see for yourself that Jesus Christ is the only propitiation for our sins,

careful in my choice of criticism of Roman

mandments.

not your Roman Catholic rosaries, no-meat-

Christ Himself."

Catholicism, else you will criticize Jesus

It was time to go home. I returned the

Bible to the preacher, thanking him for let

on-Fridays, and money-boxes-in-churches.

The preacher looked around to assess the

ting me read from it. Driving home, my wife

Good works avail nothing. We know Jesus by faith and do not have to keep command

situation, and once again pontificated; "The

and I prayed that the preacher, who had accepted Jesus as his personal Lord and

only commandment we have to keep is to

ments or any works of the law to be saved.

believe in the Lord Jesus. The rest is pop

This is the truth. Only faith saves."

ery."

I found it incredible that our preacher could make such a pretense by taking a pas sage out of context in his preferred Olympic sport: verse-slinging. My reply was simple:

"Of course Our Lord is the only propiti ation for our sins, and every Catholic worth

Raymond de Souza is a language consultant with years of experience in Catholic apolo getics. At the Diocesan Catholic Education Office in Christchurch, New Zealand, he ran courses and radio programs on adult educa tion in the Faith. At the same time he served

as Executive Secretary of the Tradition,

"I think that to believe in the Lord Jesus

Savior, would take another step, accepting the fullness of Jesus' teachings, as they are handed on in the Sacred Scriptures,

is also popery," said my wife. "The Popes throughout history have always preached it.

explained by the Apostolic Tradition of the Fathers, and preached in the Church He

Since you believe in the Lord Jesus, you, too, are believing in popery."

established - the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, our Holy Mother. â&#x2013;

Her reply to his remark quite sufficed, so

About the Author Family and Property-New Zealand Bureau. Now living in Western Australia, he current ly produces the weekly radio broadcast

"Sounds Catholic", sponsored by the Archdiocese of Perth answering questions

on Catholic Faith and Morals posed by the listening audience. Together with wife Teresa Anne, he launched Call to Faith, an

apostolate analogous to Mother Angelica's Call to Holiness in the United States, so as

to provide a Catholic response to unCatholic dissent in the Church in Australia.

CRUSADE

Pedagogy

Why Mot Always

By Michelle Taylor

Whether we are parents or grandparents, uncles or aunts, teachers, therapists or babysitters, we constantly con front the dilemma: Are we doing "right" by the children entrusted to our care?

Undoubtedly, this question is faced mostly by parents, who are the ones most intimately concerned and involved with their children and on whose shoulders lies the greatest responsibili

ty of their upbringing. But there are also those of us who, even though not parents, regularly face the ques tion because of all the children who come in and out of our lives and who, wittingly or

not, also expect to receive the best from us.

Invariably, when I think of child

upbringing, I think of one of Norman Rockwell's paintings for the cover of the Saturday Evening Post. It depicts a

young mother sitting up tersely on a chair with an expression that combines indigna tion, concern, and frustration with her small son across her knees. His plump backside

awaits the verdict of the paddle which she holds in suspense in her right hand. In her left hand is an

open book entitled Child Psychology in which she, before applying the paddle, is anxiously trying to find some sure "rule" as to how and how much to apply.

I always smile when I see that painting. Rockwell had an uncanny sense of the psychology of the times. How many limes I have wished and seen others wish for such a book! If there existed a book entitled One Hundred Infallible and Foolproof Rules for Making Your Children Angels, certainly it would not

languish on bookstore shelves. I'm sure it would now be on about its thousandth edition.., 0

MARCH-APRIL, 1998

Pedagogy

Each child is a Since the world began to spin and Adam and

separate universe. I think we may truly apply to each

of women who had also brought their chil

been one exactly like him, and for whatever

dren. They were mothers with the same

number of years until this same earth stops spinning and the Angel of Judgment sounds his trumpet, there won't be another one like

maternal instincts of mothers today, with very much the same concerns and problems for, despite the vast difference in epochs and

him. And when God Our Lord calls him to

the ample difference in culture, the main

judgment no other will answer but he. When my second nephew was bom the difference was enormous! They may be cousins, but each one is completely differ

ent. The two are worlds apart,just as arc my

child that enters into the world the

expression of the

Gospel:"a pearl

That particular day there were a number

Eve were created in Paradise, there hasn't

twin sisters.

1 think we may truly apply to each child that enters into the world the expression of the Gospel: "a pearl of great price." That is exactly what each is. an unmatched pearl with its own unique size, shape, shade, and luster. And every parent, relative, and

teacher has the inherent sense of wanting to help retum that pearl to its Maker at its best, with its "talents" multiplied.

factor is one and the same: human nature.

These mothers were touched by the words of

the Ma.ster who was among them. They understood but, above all, "sensed" through

that uncanny thing called "womanly intu ition" that this Man was someone spe cial and, consequently, they wanted their children to be near Him, to be touched by Him. They approached with their little ones

(who most probably were making some kind

of a racket) and the Gospel seems to imply that there was an attempt on the part of the disciples to stop them.

Jesus saw the mothers coming and understood. He understood because He had

made these mothers and given them every

From what anjÂťle?

motherly instinct. He understood because

of great price."

When asked to write this article, I was

He was the Maker of each of these children

at a loss about how to broach the subject. I

and, like no other, knew each one of them by

tried a dozen different angles. I consulted a number of books written by modern child-

"Suffer the little ones to come to Me."

psychologists, pediatricians, and educa Many, many books have been written on

the subject, yet no one has actually come up with an exact formula. Why? The answer is both simple and complex: Each child is a separate universe. A little more than a year ago, I became an aunt for the first time. Barely two months ago that wonderful thing happened to me for

name. And thus. He bade the apostles, Our Lord Jesus is our Maker. When we

tors. Much of the information was sound

make a cake or anything from scratch we

and objective, even though at certain points there were theories with which I

know all the ingredients contained in the

could not agree, especially when Freud

left out. If the cake rises and tastes delicious,

figured as the mentor. But no matter how much I read, there

made it so.

was always the sensation that something vital was missing. I had the feeling that the

truly knows all it takes to make each child so

recipe. If the cake flops we know what was we know every ingredient and .spice that The same with Him. The only one who

picture presented was only partial, or rather,

unique is He. Again, only He knows all the

the second time.

that the "third dimension" was absent.

ins and outs ot each personality as it is

When my first nephew was bom, some thing incredible and intangible happened

Closing those books and then shutting

formed. Only He can reach to that inmost

my eyes, I mentally opened the book of

region ol the soul where every person is

life-the book of my life experience which, to my great joy and gratitude, has "Catholic"

alone with his Creator.

deep inside of me. Here was a whole new lit

tle being added to the family. Everyone

We parents and teachers at times Find ourselves at real los.scs because we cannot

and pounds later, "those huge feet can only

written on the very first page. One phra.se kept ringing and ringing in my mind with the full, sweet, strong and true

be the grandfather's," of course, or, "that

sound of a great bell: "1 am the Way, the

has all the tools to be effectively applied to

smile is certainly his other grandfather's." As

Truth and the Life."

every problem.

his personality began to take shape, we saw

With the eye of my imagination I saw a touching picture: a town in Israel and a crowd gathered around a man teaching. In that crowd were men and women from all walks of life, from every trade and profession.

I opened my eyes and said to myself: "Here is your fomuila. Here is your third dimension. Here is the Alpha and the Omega; the beginning and the end of the

commented; "He looks like his father" or

again, "like his mother" and, a few inches

a glimpse first of this one, then that one, and then another. But all the time I looked at him and

thought: yes, but. above all, he is him.self.

seem to figure out the motive for a child's

action or inaction. But He knows, and He

human picture."

The depiction of a stained'glass window on the opposite page is reproduced courtesy of Mr. Curtis Powell of Holy

full-color photographs of stained-glass widows. To obtain a copy of the catalog, write or call Holy Faraily Gifts, P.O.

Family Gifts. Their catalog offers a variety of beautiful

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y.I

Pedagogy *'Go ye therefore, and teach all nations'*

Catechism tliat the human race was tainted

That word "guilt" appears quite often, and

with the same first sin of our first parents.

the writers seem to have a hard time either

But Jesus is not personally available to guide us in this most important of all ques

Adam and Eve. Adam and Eve are the "seed" or the "root" of the human race, so

tions concerning our children: how to bring them up in such a way as to make them good

once that seed or root was tainted, the fruit

explaining it or finding a solution for it. Many simply incorporate it into the human picture as something absolutely "normal" to

derived therefrom is also necessarily tainted. The Church then goes on to teach that,

be taken into stride along with all the other

citizens of this world and then of Heaven

according to His will.

with the reception of Holy Baptism, the sin

good feelings.

But He did leave us His Church, His

is wiped away but that its effects remain.

Now, it may be hard for us to look at our little loved ones and ponder that though they

Church which He endowed with His own

wisdom and to which He gave the command

That is, the tendency to wrong remains. Thus, our children, our little angels,

may look like angels and may be so in many ways, they also carry within them a seed of

to teach, govern, and sanctify. Yes, natural psychology can be very effective, but unless it completes the picture

along with the potentiality of great qualities to be developed, will always have a tenden cy to do and think wrong. Once that wrong

evil. But it is harder to ignore this reality, to

with supernatural faith it will always lack

is committed, their very innate innocence

depression, natural and unnatural vices,

the third dimension. It will look for answers

and upriglimess will accuse them of having

theft, murder... and-Oh, how it hurts to say

that are valid but unfinished. It will ignore

done wrong. They will feel guilty.

it-the rising and undeniable statistic of child

certain distressing facts about our human nature and label them wrongly only because

and teenage suicide. In fact, reading through those many Yes, as hard as it may be to face tmth, it books on modem child psychology, f kept ^

it lacks the true interpretation which only

coming across "guilt," "guilt <^mplex,'*_^ problem of guilt^ "how to

religion offers, for only religion considers

call it by other names, and then to have to face it later in the form of dmgs, alcohol,

.accept

made of body and soul, which responds to the natural and the supernatural. We parents and educators must both. Let us then see what our Faith te es about the small souls entrusted to

Original Sin

At the very outset. Mother Chu/ Sin. It is the doctrine slated in

- i

its

own

grounds are

the human being in his totality, as a being

leaches us about the reality of Origii

Pedagogy Divine grounds, their very foundations hav

ing been laid by a Divine hand. And, like a good physician, the Church, given us by the Divine Master Himself to teach and guide

"Don't tell me what to do!" (pride)

If we only truly and effectively believed in this tendency to wrong, we would spare our

"He got a bigger piece of candy!" (cov-

children (and ourselves) much later suffering at

many muted and different forms?

etousness, envy)

the mercy of their vices which were not fought.

Bad words, conversations, looks, and so

Of course, children need praise and

diagnosis so we may apply the proper reme

on lead, especially in boys,to many different

dies.

forms of immodesty,(lust) "Get out of my room! I hate you!" (anger) "Mom, you didn't give me enough ice cream!"(gluttony") "Donna has so many dresses and dolls and everything she wants..."(envy)

encouragement to develop normally. But it must be given in due proportion and when truly needed. Too little water and a plant will

us, gives us the true, simple, and sensible

Thus Pope Pius XII speaks in his allocu tion to newlyweds on September 24, 1941, calling children "virgin soil on which God has sown the seeds of goodness" while affirming that they are weighed down by "the imagination and thought of man's heart,"

"Johnny, when will you do your home work? If I get one more com plaint from your teacher that you are doodling in class, I'll

which "are prone to evil from his youtli"

In their innocence,children know when

they have done wrong,and they also

want to be set on the right path again.

life."

If only we were convinced of the truth of

Original Sin, how much evil could be pre vented in our children, and how much good could be developed! Again, yes, if we can only face this fact and, above all, believe in it, not only theoretically but effectively, "for

Perfection is in the middle.

Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, whose

centennial we celebrated last year, relates in her memoirs how her saintly mother, Madame Martin, always inspected her Sunday attire and that of her four other sisters before they left for Mass. Madame Martin was proud of her five beautiful little girls and wanted to

have to talk to your father!"

make sure they looked their best, but Therese

(sloth, laziness)

Not to speak of lying, blam ing others, petty stealing, etc.,

never heard her say: "Oh, how pretty you look!" A vigilant mother, she truly believed in little girls' natural tendency to vanity and

etc.

did not wish to foster it.

Yes, our children have problems.

through the "concupiscence of the flesh and the concupiscence of the eyes and the pride of

dehydrate; too much and it will drown.

Again, if we believe in Original Sin. we

But the other side of the coin is beautiful. If we

will be our children's great helpers and res

look at the column on the right, we will also

cuers. If we give them all the love, affection,

recognize signs of these virtues in them. But, above all, they must be helped to develop

and attention they expect of us, if we give it to them abundantly, effusively, and warmly,

these.

After Original Sin, all that is good must

we need not be afraid to correct when nec

essary. As long as the child senses that the

be tended, cared for, watched, watered,

parent or teacher is correcting him or her for

defended, developed. The best example of

the sake of a principle and not out of his or her own personal anger or vindictiveness. the child will accept correction. This is a key

real," half of our battle will have been won.

this is a garden. Whether it is for a flower or vegetable garden, the seeds we plant and

wish to grow will need all that care, where

point. Mother always explained to us the

Preventive therapy

as the weeds come uninvited, and with

reason for the correction so that we knew

tremendous vitality. If not uprooted, and preferably when still small, they will smother and overpower our seedlings.

headache and was taking it out on us, but

The first step in solving a problem is rec ognizing it. Even psychologists who do not subscribe to the doctrine of Original Sin say

If we don't bear this truth in mind at all

very well that it was not because she had a

because we had u-ansgressed a principle of right and justice.

that the first step toward a solution is "recog

times, we are bound to harm those we love

nition." The Church does this, though with

they have done wrong, and they also want to

one big difference: that the Church makes

without even realizing it. How many times, absolutely unknowing

this recognition when life begins and, there

ly, we make of the child the ultimate center

fore, is the greatest of "preventive thera

of attention? "Oh, isn't she cute?" or "He is

pists."

so smart!" or "Do you know what Leslie did

many an adult thanking their parents for having prevented them from being engulfed by their bad tendencies and for having made decent persons of them.

In their innocence, children know when

be set on the right path again. I have heard of

In the Catechism we find that there are

today?" followed by a recital of his heroic

seven capital sins to which are opposed

deeds; or "Look at those curls! Isn't Annie

seven capital virtues: Pride-Humility Covetousness-Liberality Lust-Chastity Anger-Meekness Gluttony-Temperance Envy- Brotherly love Sloth-Diligence

beautiful? She'll be so attractive when she

unconditional love, we can correct and cor

grows up!" Everything about them is noted and praised-in front of them. And this is done day in and day out, year in and year out.

rect firmly.

If we take these vices one by one and mentally pass our many "Johnnies" or

As long as they have the assurance of our

Parents have specially received authority from God to do that. Holy Mother Church

Does it ever occur to us that these children

has beautiful things to say about this inher

will inevitably grow prideful, vain, selfish, and self-centered? Why?

ent right of parents-but that would require another article.

There were two seeds there-the seed of

Yes, let us not deny our children this

pride and the seed of humility. The wrong

supportive and constructive correction

one was watered, with the difference that the

and guidance. We will be doing them the

"Katies" through the test, we may be easily convinced of the doctrine of Original Sin. Won't we easily recognize signs of at least

wrong one has the natural strength and vital

greatest favor they could ask for: not

ity of a weed; it grows of its own. And the right one must receive every care and atten

some of these, if not a little bit of each in

tion and be protected against the weed.

only "bringing them to the Master" but making it possible for them to "stay with Him"-a/u'ays. B

IV-

CRUSADE

History

Basic Histmy Course

The amazing spread of Christianity occurred during the most peaceful era that the ancient Mediterranean world ever experienced. However, that is

not to say that local and short-lived violence such as the Fall of Jerusalem in A.D.70 did not erupt. Nor does it suggest that difficult obstacles did not inter fere, for Christianity conflicted with the pagan love of pleasure for its own sake; and the members of many institutions, from governments to other reli

gions which did not accept Christ's loving call, warred against it with an implacable hatred. Nevertheless, historians have always noted' that the Roman Empire in the

first two centuries enjoyed a relative tranquility and a common civilization from the Rhine and Danube rivers to the deserts of Africa and from the

Atlantic to the Euphrates before the explosive upheavals that ravaged Europe ended ancient history. The providential peace greatly assisted the triumph of the Cross, especially the determined wanderings of the great Apostle to the Gentiles, Saint Paul.

When Paul began his apostolic journeys in A.D. 45, Christianity was

largely confined to Palestine and Syria, and all but a handful of the convens came from Judaism. Paul inaugurated the movement which brought the teach

ings of Christ-that is, what we must do and believe to be saved-to all the

major centers of the Empire. Even in his own lifetime, he could declare to the Romans, "Your faith is spoken of in the whole world" (Romans 1:8). And Seneca, minister to the Church's first monstrous antagonist, Nero, stated, "This race of Christians is everywhere."-

The enormity of the success in face of insuperable obstacles and resis tance can only be attributed to the guiding hand of God. Principal among the resisting, entrenched influences were the Jews, the pagan philosophers, and the worship of idols, many of them symbols of immorality and excess. Among the Jews, the Law of Moses was to be replaced by the teachings of Jesus Christ, a man whom the Jewi.sh leaders had recently put to a shameful

death. The self-satisfied pagan philosophers, and to some extent the Judaizing

Christians, in their pride of intellect would not allow any tampering with their cherished ideas and prejudices. The new Church also aimed at destroying

idolatry, with all its shameful and impure rites, which was maintained by all the human power of the Roman Empire.

Few would have predicted that those who intended to impose a holy and virtuous life on a society that voraciously indulged in human passion would have seen victory. And as we shall see, both the Jews and the pagans mount

ed terrible persecutions in order to strangle the nascent religion. Personality of Saint Paul

What manner of man did the Eternal Word choose for this extraordinary

mission? The writings of Saint Luke and his own letters show him to be an enthusiastic, impetuous man of commanding character. All accounts indicate that Paul was not a handsome man. Yet he undoubtedly had the physical

power to attract. By his own admission, he lacked the polished Athenian elo quence. Yet his speech powerfully impressed his listeners. In short, though he would appear inconspicuous in a photograph, he, nevertheless, with a soul aflame with the love of Christ, exercised a profound spiritual force.

Moreover, he was plagued by a mysterious illness that debilitated him when it was active and had the characteristic of being repulsive. Yet he made

at least three arduous journeys throughout the civilized Empire, much of it on foot. In the end, he possessed a moral vigor of exceptional magnitude that allowed him, as Christ's principal missionary to the Gentiles, to bring the seeds of supernatural grace to the pagan world. One feature of Paul's personality revealed itself rather quickly: Those who came into contact with him were rarely indifferent. He invoked a deep and

lasting affection when the generosity of his nature translated itself into a con cern for men's souls, or he incurred a strong dislike that often grew into active hatred because of his vigorous speech.

MARCH-APRIL, 1998

History Early career and embarked on their mission to

conquer the world for Christ.

After his conversion, the

With the exception of a stop on

newest Apostle retired into the

the island of Cyprus, the first mis sionary journey of Saint Paul, last

remoteness of Arabia for quiet reflection where he could listen

ing from A.D. 45-49, consisted in visiting several towns in the high central plateau of Asia Minor. This

to God in solitude. When some

months had expired, he returned to Damascus and began to preach. His polemical training

territory roughly corresponded to

combined with direct revelation

the southern half of the Roman

from his Master proved to so

Province of Galatia, and a more bar

irrefutable that his former associ

ren, desolate terrain cannot be imag ined, full of perils and difficulties. In

ates resolved to silence him. With

guards watching the city day and

fact, at the outset of the adventure,

night, Paul ignominiously hid in a huge basket that was let down by

Saint Paul's third journey and return to Rome

rope over the walls in the middle of the night. He quickly set out for Jerusalem to pay homage to Saint Peter as head of the Church, but ran into a cold reception by a

still-suspicious

Christian

community.

adding to its wealth. The Israelites, always attracted to

important trading centers, established a large Greek-speaking colony there and many among them converted to

Mark abandoned the project and returned to Jerusalem. Between stops the holy vagabonds would walk for days, sleep on the ground, and eat what they brought with them, usually barley bread and dried fish. Over the years Paul would have many companions, but he steadfastly pushed forward, accepting all privations;

Christianity. They in turn spoke to the Gentiles, "preaching the Lord Jesus" to

few in history were so devoted to a cause.

Hellenist convert, recognized Paul's worth and brought him to Peter and James the

them (Acts 9:19-21). When reports of the

His union with Our Lord was so strong that

great success of the Greek apostolate

he could say, "And I live, now not I; but

Less, then Bishop of Jerusalem, who

reached the Church leaders in Jerusalem,

Christ liveth in me"(Gal. 2:20).

accepted him. However, in only a few days

they .sent Barnabas, considered an Apostle and a most esteemed man,to investigate. He

The scenario for each of the stops gener ally repeated itself, although some details

Fortunately, Barnabas, another outstanding

the preaching of the spirited Apostle aroused the unappeasable wrath of the Palestinian Jews who also sought to kill him. His new friends, fearing another wave of bloodshed, brought him to the local sea

immediately saw the fruits of God's grace

would change. On the first sabbath after his

and the immense field that awaited dedicat

arrival, Paul would attend the synagogue

ed missionaries. Without delay he went to

distant Tarsus and persuaded Saint Paul to

where, as a person of distinction, he spoke to the congregation. Stressing continuity of

port and sent him back to Tarsus. In this Our

return to Antioch with him and begin his

God's plan, he gained his listener's attention

Lord concurred, for He also told him a

labors for Christ.

by mentioning Egypt and the deliverance, then the monarchy; he referred to Saint John the Baptist, and described the divine

vision to leave, saying, "Go, for into the Gentiles afar off will 1 send thee" (Acts

the active and mystical life, was granted an

22:21).

ecstasy. He was transported into the third

There Paul, an inspiring example of both

heaven where he heard "secret words" (2 Antioch

Christianity won its victory and became

an autonomous society and the soul of Western Civilization only after a long and

Cor. 12:2-4). In fact, throughout his mis sionary career. Christ, through the Holy Ghost, often guided Paul's activity. It is truly amazing to see historians hostile to the Church, when faced with the prodigious

mission of Our Lord. Paul's forceful pres ence and message generated a popular enthusiasm. Many Jews converted. These, along with pagan recruits, became the first Christian nucleus.

However, the hostility of the leaders of

bitter struggle, first with the nationalistic

achievement of Saint Paul, refuse to give

the Jews would .soon break forth, and their fury turned into violence. In the first towns

instincts of Judaism from which it grew and then with the hostility of the Roman Empire. In order for the primitive Church to

any credit to God. Yet their chief historical

sufficient warning allowed the harried

source says otherwi.se. In his letter to the

Apostle to flee safely. Malcontents among the Jews pursued Paul to the next town

go forward, it had to break with exclusive

Galaiians, Paul stated, "the Gospel which was preached by me is not according to

Judaic nationalism and assume its universal

man...but the revelation of Jesus Christ

mission. The early scenes of that drama played themselves out in Antioch. then the

(1:11-12).

capital of the Roman province of Syria.

The missionary Journeys

where they incited the pagan population to a high pitch of wrath. At Lystra the towns people fell upon Paul, stoned him in the

streets and, believing him dead, dragged the

Today Antioch is an insignificant village

body outside the town. Somehow he recov

ered, miraculously or otherwi.se, and moved

Turkey. In apostolic times, it was an opu

During a liturgical gathering at which Barnabas and Saul were present, the Holy

lent, cultured metropolis, ranking third in

Spirit gave the instruction, "Set apart for

and painful apostolate played itself out amidst fatigue and hunger, stonings and

and

Me Saul and Barnabas unto work to which

beatings, sorrow over his obstinate country

Alexandria. Astride the great crossroads of sea and land travel, it saw immense quanti ties of merchandise pass through its gates,

1 have called them." The two. along with John Mark, the future evangelist of the Second Gospel, went to a nearby .seaport

heaven.

sitting on exquisite ruins in southern

the

whole

Empire

after Rome

on to the next trial. And .so Paul's laborious

men and Joy in suffering for his Master in Using Antioch as a base of operations.

CRUSADE

History Saint Paul embarked on two more lengthy

after his return, some Asiatic Jews who had

sailed into the Aegean Archipelago. Without

journeys. During the second he visited the

previously persecuted the beleaguered preacher recognized him in the Temple. They provoked the fury of the surrounding

any shield from the strong wind, the naviga tor with great difficulty steered towards Crete and the safety of its southern shore.

established churches in Asia Minor, crossed the Dardanelles into Macedonia at the insis

tence of the Holy Ghost, and worked his way down the coast of Greece.

crowd to violence. The enraged mob

The first stop had poor anchorage and

dragged Paul outside and began to pound

At Athens he duelled with some of their

him to death. Aroused by the tumult, a

uncomfortable boarding accommodations. Against the advice of Paul, the captain made

famed philosophers, but they in their haughty pride mocked and dismissed him.

Roman cohort rushed to the scene and

a run for the next Cretan port forty miles

stopped the beating. Paul tried to reason

away. No sooner had he put to sea than a

Paul then closed out the journey by travel

with his fellow countrymen, but only suc

monstrous hurricane gale descended upon

ling to Corinth, a dissolute cosmopolitan

ceeded in agitating them further.

city situated on two seas. With

them, driving the vessel before it through bil lowing waves.The ship, now

the help of superabundant gifts

completely out of control,

of the Holy Ghost, the tireless

preacher performed a remark

was driven by the fury of the elements through pounding

able transformation in the souls

seas

of those he converted, despite

weakness was the power of the

cloud-filled days Unimaginable terror para lyzed all except Paul; he had been comforted by an angel of God who promised that all would survive. Finally

Cross.

the

the city's notorious licentious ness. Later he wrote to the Corinthians that the force that drove him on and redeems all

for

fourteen

shattered

hulk

dark,

ran

aground on a sand bar at a

Saint Paul concerned him

self on his third mission with

harbor in Malta. After win

strengthening and instructing

tering on the island, the for

the communities he had already

tunate survivors continued on with their lives while

established. Paul's active mind

and great love for his frequent

The Tem ple of Jerusalem with Fortress Antonia In the background

ly wayward children prompted him to write powerful letters of exhortation, doctrine, and spiritual advice. These out

Paul was placed under house arrest for another two years.

After being released from his confine ment, Paul went to Spain and then concen

pourings from the suffering, generous soul

He was brought to the barracks at the Fortress Antonia, which was adjacent to the

of a courageous fighter urged all the faithful

Temple, by the Roman Tribune for safety. In

trated his apostolic activities along the Aegean seacoast for the next four years. By

to rely on the faith and grace of Jesus Christ

this highly charged atmosphere, another ter

this time the Roman authorities had begun

in the life-long struggle against evil and wickedness. Fourteen of his Epistles have

rorist plot of murder was uncovered. The

their vicious persecution of the Christians

Tribune immediately organized a large,

that we will discuss in the next two chapters. Paul moved frequently, which allowed him to avoid the imperial police, but they finally caught up with him.

been declared part of the canon of the New

well-armed e.scort of 500 men and had his

Testament.

endangered prisoner quickly moved to the

Strife in Jerusalem

Roman headquarters at Caesarea. After two inconclusive years of mild

Loaded with chains, he was taken to

imprisonment, Paul insisted on his rights as a

Rome, with only the faithful Sitint Luke by

Running contemporaneously with the latter years of Paul's life was the rising influence of a group of fanatical Jewish

Roman citizen and had the case transferred to

his side. He was executed by the sword in the

Rome. His Roman guard, a centurion, took

year 67. Saint Paul died abandoned and in

Paul and his companion. Saint Luke, down to

misery, an apparent failure like the great Saint

nationalists known as Zealots or Sicarii

the docks to seek transportation. With only a

(men of the dagger), Their intense hatred of

few weeks left before adverse conditions

Peter, and probably at the same time. Yet when we think of Christianity, Christ's legacy

the Romans provoked an uprising and war that eventually brought on the destruction of Jerusalem. Since the Zealots considered

closed the sea lanes for the winter, the little

of love and salvation, we always, even two

band found passage on a ship bound for a port near the Dardenelles.

thousand years later, think first of the found

Paul a renegade, Abbot Riccioti^ believes

they were behind the plot to murder Paul as

From the beginning, they encountered head winds from the northwest, and so they

he sailed from Corinth at the end of his third

coasted past Palestine, Syria, and the south

journey. Because of the serious threat, the Apostle was forced to take a circuitous

ern coast of Asia Minor, utilizing favorable water currents. Half-way along that coast,

route around the Aegean on a visit to

they transferred to a larger ship carrying grain

Jerusalem.

for Italy. The clumsy, heavily laden vessel

Many ominous signs warned Paul that

barely crept foiw<ird against the contrary

impending danger awaited him in the Holy City; he pushed on nevertheless. One week

wind, but at least they had the protecting shel

MARCH-APRIL. 1998

ter of the mountainous shoreline until they

ing martyrs.

â&#x2013;

Notes

1. E.g., Chester Starr, History of the Ancient World, p. 575. 2. Quoted in the Rev. W. Devivier,

Christian Apologetics, p. 458. 3. Paul the Apostle, p. 399.

The bibliography for this chapter will be included in Chapter XI.

Family Series

Who Became a

Saint mong the smooth, blue hills of an eastern country lived a simplehearted giant lad named Offero. Though he was four times as high and four times as wide as the

other boys, that did not make him proud in the least. He played with them as good-naturedly as if he had been no bigger than they. Sometimes he would hold

them at arm's length, one in each great hand. Sometimes he would toss them gently into the air. And when he was partic ularly good-humored, he would stand still for hours at a time while they clambered up on his high shoulders. One evening, tired from these boisterous games, they all lay sprawled along the hillside, watching the stars come out and talking about the great men they were going to be. "I shall be a shepherd," cried one,"and roam the hills all day." "And I shall be a barber, like my father," shouted another. "As for me," cried a third, "I shall be a wine merchant, and set at my ease." But Offero never said a word.

"Offero! Offero!" cried the boys, scrambling up and swarming over him. "What are you going to be?" And they tweaked his long hair.

But Offero held his peace. Then suddenly he sprang up, shaking them off like so many puppies. "I shall serve," he thundered,"I shall serve the greatest king in the world!" The boys stared. "But how will you find him?" they cried. "I shall walk till I find him," said Offero,"and I shall know him because he will be afraid of no one."

Next morning at daybreak, Offero set out across the hills to seek his king. For months he walked,from one proud palace

to another, and past the miles of poor men's houses in between. Many a fine, glittering court he saw, and many a king. But none of them was the one for whom he searched. For no matter how broad their kingdoms might be, they were all afraid of some king beyond, who had more men or more ships than they. But Offero kept on, undismayed. And after a year and a day he came to the king whom the others feared. When

Offero saw the mighty look of this king, his heart thumped with joy. "At last," thought he, "1 have found the greatest king of all!" For when the courtiers spoke of war, the king did not cringe as the others had, but raised his head more majestically than before. So Offero went towering down the hall, and bent his huge height before the throne.

"Oh, king," he cried,"behold your servant, Offero!" The king's eyes gleamed. For proud and powerful as he was, with a giant like this his name would be more terrible still.

"Rise, Offero," he said. "The king accepts your service. In battle you will march at our army's head; and in peace you shall stand behind our throne."

But when Offero marched before the king's army, wars ceased. For at the sight of him the enemy scurried away as fast and far as their legs would go. So there was little for him to do but stand behind the king's throne in the palace hall, which

CRUSADE

Family Series at times was rather dull for a great, strapping giant like Offero. "But," he would remind himself,"I am serving the greatest king of

all—the only one who is unafraid." And then he would straighten his big, stiff shoulders, and look as proud and fierce as should the servant of such a king. One stormy night as Offero stood behind the throne, a minstrel

came to play his lute before the king. He sang of war, of dangers and temptations; Offero stood drinking in the music and the story with all

"A handsome recruit!" snarled Satan. "Well, friends, a fellow like

this will be useful on our errand in the world up there." And without a

word to the giant, Satan motioned for him to fall behind. Offero followed sadly while Satan and his entourage sweptjeering up the hill. All along the way people cringed and shook at Satan's coming. Dukes and princes, ladies and laborers, all scurried at his glance. A whole army marching to battle turned in terror at the sight of him. Satan went on, haughty and unconcerned.

of his heart. But the king fidgeted in his great chair, and Offero could

see his gold crown tremble. One hand would grip the carved, gilt lion

by his side, while the other made a nervous sign upon his forehead. Offero watched, troubled. It was when the minstrel sang of Satan that

Little by little, Offero began to forget his cruelty out of admiration

the king shuddered. It was at that name that he made the sign upon his

for his boldness."At last," thought the honest giant, "I have found the greatest king, who is afraid of no one." And he stepped along proud ly, thinking that his search was over.

forehead.

When the minstrel was done, and the courtiers had taken their

leave, Offero knelt before the throne. "Oh, king," he cried, "why did you shake at Satan's name?—you who are afraid of no one!" The king smiled sadly. "Ah, Offero," he said, "the mightiest monarch of the earth must fear Satan. For he is more powerful than any king among us; and only that sign of the cross can save us from him."

The road gave a sudden tum. Over the heads of Satan and his fol lowers Offero could see a rough cross of wood against the sky, and at

its foot, a child placing a handful of wild flowers. The giant's kind heart was troubled. "Such a baby!" he muttered.

"If only Satan would not frighten her!" But even as he spoke, there was a snort of fear. Yet, it was not the

Offero sprang up, his huge shadow darkening the throne. "Then you are not the greatest king!" he thundered."Farewell. 1 go to serve him whom you fear—King Satan!" And like a cyclone Offero was gone through the palace gate.

child who gave it. Satan, cowering, burst through his followers, and

-!>«-:=<+

"The cross!" screamed Satan. "The cross! The cross of Christ, my enemy!" "This Christ," said Offero, "is a greater king than you, or you

All night he strode through a storm; and when day broke, he found

himself on a wide, pleasant road thronged with people all going down a hill.

"Ho, there!" shouted Offero from his height."Can any of you tell me the way to King Satan?" "Follow us," cried the foremost;"we are bound that way." Now,the leaders, who went swiftly ahead, looked mean and crafty, while those who shuffled along behind were pale and wild, with rest less eyes. But Offero, towering so far above, could not see their faces. He was only glad in his great, honest heart to be with .such a large, gay company.

"For," he said to himself,"does it not show that Satan is the great

est king of all when so many people willingly leave other kings to serve him?"

The road went down, steeper and steeper, and the faster it fell, the gayer and more reckless the travelers became. They shouted and danced along so riotously that even Offero's huge .strides hardly kept up with them. Suddenly, there was a shriek. In an instant all the gay cries were changed to rasping screams. Offero stopped in bewilder ment. Directly before him the road was swallowed up in a vast, smok ing cavern. It was into this cavern that his companions had gone. The .shrieks grew fainter, and over them came a hoarse, sneering laugh.

"A cruel king, this Satan!" thought Offero. "But 1 have vowed to serve the greatest, and I must go on." He stepped up to the cavern's mouth. A blast of black smoke

choked him, and as it cleared, he saw coming toward him a haughty figure with a crown of flames. Offero bowed low.

MARCH-APRIL, 1998

back along the road. Offero's great form barred the way. "Let me by!" shiieked Satan."Let me by, I say!" Offero's mighty hand tightened on his shoulder. 'Tell me first," said the giant calmly,"of what you are afraid."

would not fear his cross."

"Let me go!" cried Satan, beating with his fists on Offero's mas sive arm. "Save me!"

Offero loosened his grip. "Go," he said scornfully, and stood aside while Satan and his train rushed by him down the hill. The little girl .stood wondering beneath the cross."Good day," said

Family Series OfTero. "Can you tell me the way to the king called Christ?" "You must ask the hermit," answered the child. "He knows the

way. But the path to his hut is steep and jagged, up a high hill." 'Thank you," said Offero."The path does not matter, if he can tell

A great "bravo!" went up from the watching people, and when Offero came back, they gathered about him, clamoring to be carried. Thus it was that Offero began serving the great King whom he had never seen.

Day and night he kept at it—in the spring when the river was high

me how to find the greatest king."

So the child pointed the way. All day long Offero climbed. The stones were so big and sharp that they cut even his huge, hardy feet;

and surly, in the winter when it was chilling and swift. To be ever within call, he built himself a hut on the bank; and there was no one

and it was sunset before he came to the hut on the mountain top.

who knocked, however haughty or humble, whom Offero did not take

The hermit was beginning his evening meal. "Welcome, friend," he cried."Come in and sup with me."

upon his shoulder and carry safely through the river.

As they ate, Offero told the hermit of his errand. "I would find this king called Christ, for I have vowed to serve the greatest king, who is afraid of no one. My arms are strong. I can fight for him and make him more powerful than before." The hermit smiled.'To find Christ," he said, "you must first serve him. And to serve him you must not kill your fellow men, but help them." "What can I do then?" asked Offero rueful

ly. "I am .strong to fight. How can 1 help?" The hermit looked at him."Good giant," he said,"your shoulders are broad and stur

So every day Offero's great face grew more kindly and his shoulders more patient. But always in his heart there was a kind of longing wonder whether the King would really seek him out, as the hermit had said, and

whether Christ was indeed the greatest king, afraid of no one."If Christ would only come!" he thought. Sometimes in the depths of the night, he would start up and unbar the door, thiitking that he heard the knock of the

King. But it was only the wind, or now and again some belated pilgrim begging

dy. They should be able to carry great weights." "They can indeed," cried Offero hap pily. "It is from them that I have my

to be carried across the river.

One black night when the rain lashed the hut, and the river ran high and

name—Offero—the carrier."

"Then, Offero," said the hermit qui

wild, Offero awoke to a sound that

etly, "why not use your shoulders to serve King Christ? There is a river not

was not the storm. "A knock!" said

far from here, which runs deep and

was it after all a dream? No pilgrim, not even the fearless King would trav

his listening hean. "A knock!" Or

wild, and there are many people who come night and day to cross it over. The

el on a night like this.

Nevertheless, Offero sprang up, lit

strongest and hardiest pass through safely, but the old and weak are often

swept away by the flood."

his great, rude lantern, and threw

Offero's eyes flamed with sudden pride. "1 can cany them all safely across!" he cried, Then his face darkened. "But how 'j' shall I find King Christ?" he asked. The hermit's eyes looked far away."You will not have to search," he said gently. "If you serve Him well. He will come to you."

The next morning, Offero and the hermit set out for the river. Hardly were they down the mountain when every

traveler called out to them to turn back. "The river is in a fury," they

open the door. A drenching blast blew away his breath, but there on the

threshold, in the gusty light was a pil grim indeed—a little child with his cloak dripping with rain.

Offero caught him up with one grasp of his great arm. "Poor little one!" he said. "Come in

f/''' from the storm." "No, no, kind giant." pleaded the child. "1 cannot stay. I must cross the river

tonight. It runs deep and wild for my small strength, and come to ask if you will carry me through."

cried. "No man can reach the other side alive."

The hermit shook his head."Come and see," he said. "For 1 have

a trusty ferry man here who can weather any flood." So Offero and the hermit kept on, and the travelers followed, wondering.

So Offero took up his staff and, settling the child gently on his shoulder, plunged out into the pelting storm.

Above the wind they could hear the river roaring in the dark mess. Offero strode to the edge and stepped in. At the very bank the water was knee-deep, and the waves washed high on his great body.

The river beat against its banks, and the waves rushed white with foam. Offero pulled up a stout green tree to steady himself, and waded

The child clung closer to his neck, and Offero stopped and steadied

in till he could feel the cruel whirlpools sweeping around his ankles. Then lifting the hermit to his broad, firm shoulder, he plunged fear lessly into the raging stream. The water swirled and hissed about him.

himself. The bottom was slippery at best, and tonight, with the waves rushing against him, it was haider than ever to stand upright. At every step the river grew deeper and more savage. The rapids

It rose to his great chest, and wet the edge of the hemiit's robe. But it was of no avail against the giant. He towered through it as solid as a

child, who had been but a featherweight, seemed suddenly to become

cliff, and set the hermit safely on the other side.

heavier than a man. Offero's mighty shoulder bent under the load.

snarled about his neck, and his eyes were blinded with foam. The

CRUSADE

Family Series The waves dashed against his face, choking him. And still the

Offero fell back, dumb with wonder. For before him stood no

longer the child, but a stately figure, serene and tri

child pressed him down. The water was smothering him, and he fell the current sweeping him off his feet. As firmly as he held to his staff, he could not go on. The child was like a mountain, bearing

umphant, with a crowning light about His head.

him down. His limbs were numb and cramped, and all his strength

Christ, the king whom you have served. And because you have borne Me faithfully, you

"For I," said the kind, deep voice, "am

seemed gone. A daze came over him, and the water surged above his

shall be called not Offero, the carrier, but

head.

Christoffero, the Christ-carrier. So all

With one last struggle, he straightened him,self. raising the child

men shall know that you are my brave and loyal servant."

above the foam. Offero gasped, staggered forward, and stopped,

trembling and weak. But he had passed the channel and stepped

into the shallow water on the other side. No matter how heav

The giant dropped to his

knees, but for wonder and joy

ily the child bore upon him now, he could keep his head above the waves. So he stood, bowed and panting, beat

he could not find his voice. He

en by the river and the rain.

could only gaze with grateful eyes. And as he looked, the

Then slowly he felt his way through the blackness out of the torrent and up the muddy bank. Ge

King turned and walked majes

set the child down and stooped beside Him

tically over the hills toward the

"Are you quite safe and well, little one?"

sunrise.

But

asked he.

Christoffero

knelt

â&#x20AC;˘'Quite safe, good Offero," said the

on. lost in ecstasy, for he

child, "thanks to your kind care. For

knew that he had found the

you have served me bravely, carrying

greatest

me and my great burden through the

afraid of nothing, not even

raging river."

king, who

was

the sins and sorrows of the

â&#x20AC;˘*1 saw no burden." said Offero.

whole world.

wondering, "I only felt it." And as he spoke the sky brightened,

the storming of the wind and river So Offero, the good, and

ceased, and the rain fell in gentle, shin

ing drops.

loyal giant, by serving the King

"My burden," said the child gravely, "is the greatest any man has ever borne. For I have taken on my shoulders all the

of Kings, became the giant

sins of the world."

of u-avellers.

Saint Chri.stopher whom we

still invoke today tis the patron

From Friendly Gituiis by Fiinicc Fuller (New York: The Cenliiiy Co.. 1914)

Forgotten Xrutlis We should never allow kindness to

degenerate into weakness. "We should never allow kindness to degenerate into weakness. When we have .scolded some

one with just reason, we must leave the matter there, without allowing ourselves to be touched to

the point of tormenting ourselves for having caused pain or at .seeing one suffer and cry. To run after the afflicted one to console her does more harm than good. Leaving her to herself forces her to have recourse to God in order to see her faults and humble herself. Otherwise, accustomed to

receiving consolation after a merited reprimand, she will always act, in the same circumstances,

like a spoiled child, stamping her feet and crying until her mother comes to dry her tears." St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Her Last Conversations

(Washington, D.C. Institute of Carmelite Studies, 1977)

â&#x2013;

In ouyday,the sword has be n surpas ed as

materials. It may be embellished with gold or sil

a weapon of war by far more potent arms. The modem soldier gives little thought to

ver and even precious gems, but the richest adorn ment to any sword is bestowed by the bearer of

sharpening his sword for battle. Inadequate to defend its bearer against more lethal weaponry, the sword has been virtually eliminat ed from twentieth-century arsenals. Yet, on occasions of great solemnity, officers

favorite saint in its pommel. During the Middle Ages, the sword assumed legendary proportions that it did not possess in

in the armed forces of all civilized nations still

wear their swords. Although no longer used in combat, the sword retains such symbolic value that one cannot imagine an officer at a solemn event without it.

Consider, too, that in those countries with acad

emies of letters that use uniforms, the members

ardent faith who enshrines a sacred relic of a

antiquity. The people of the Middle Ages regarded

the sword with a certain profundity, esteeming it as a symbol of man's God-given nobility. When a king Is crowned, he always wears a sword. In any solemn ceremony that has not been stripped of all elevation and pomp by the levelers of modern egalitarianism, a sword is used. Which would give a son deeper satisfaction: to

wear swords on special occasions. The pen may be

say, "My father left me his Cadillac" or "My

mightier than the sword, but during his initiation into the academy, a distinguished scholar is pre

father bequeathed me his sword?" Inheriting a profitable business may enrich one's purse, but far

sented by his peers not with a magnificent pen but with a maje.stic swordâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the only suitable accessory

father left me the sword with which he defended

for his solemn apparel. As in limes past, some diplomats still use swords on formal occasions.

Why does the sword retain such power as a symbol despite its obsolescence as a weapon?

richer is the soul of the son who can say: "My Christian civilization. He died a hero in battle, leaving me only the sword he wielded for Christ." Such a sword should be kept in a chapel, for that is the home most befittins a relic.

It does so because the sword preserves its

heroic legacy as a badge of chivalry and guardian of human dignity. For this reason, a sword worthy of the name is

not only exquisitely crafted but made with the best

Adopted from remarks addressed to TFP mem bers and supporters by Prof. Plinio CorrSa de Oliveira on May 9, 1969.

The sword illustrated here - a replica of El Cid's "Tizona" - is taken with permission from the cata

log of'The Noble Collection," which offers many finely crafted reproductions of swords, armor, shields, model cannons, and other armaments. A copy of their catalog may be obtained by writing to "The Noble Collection," P.O. Box 1476 Sterling, VA 20167, or by calling 1-800-866-0232.

'XYve20t\v Ctusadet ojA^ve Cctvmn • Life of

YVvmo Cottea

Professor Plinio Correa

de Oliveira by Roberto de Mattel and

Order today

prefaced by

\\\V)lS^< , 380 oo^N

aV\oos

Alfons Maria Cardinal Stickler

"With the integrity of his life as an authentic Catholic, Plinio Correa de Oliveira offers us a confirmation of the Church's fecun

dity," writes Cardinal Stickler in his preface to Prof. Roberto de Mattei's The Crusader of the 20th Century: Plinio Correa de

To oMa'

€opy of Crusader of the

mm G

Plhiio Correa de Oliveir

for only

Ball y-B a! $

from 1908 to 1995. His first and most prixcd title is "Roman

71 225-7147.

Fa:< yoar M'jiest to (717) 225-7382 or 0--^

Oliveira, recently published in Italian and now available in English. The life of Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira spans the century

C). '■(

sade@tfp.org

Catholic," and it was as a man of faith that he confronted the har

rowing events of the twentieth century. On the doctrinal field, in the field of action, and in his person al life he provided the substance for lighting the way ahead in a dark century.

About the author Roberto de Mattei was born in Rome in 1948. He

itself in Italy and Europe by its appeals for doctrinal

graduated with honors in contemporary history

clarification on such issues as the new Concordat

from Rome's La Sapienza University and is now

(in 1985). the Treaty of Maastricht (1992), the

professor of modern history at the University of Cassino. His numerous published works include

Islamic threat (1993), and legislation on homosexu

L'Italia Cattoiica e if Nnova Concordato, 1900-

ciation of the collaboration between Catholics and

2000 (1985), La Constriizione, la Distruzione

neocommunists (1995-1996). Lepanio's most recent initiative, publication of the manifesto "Prodi: The Italian Kerensky?" has caused a great stir as the

(1990), and II Centra che Si Porta a Sinistra [The Center that Carries Us to the Left] (1994). He

founded and oversees the Lepanto Cultural Center, a Catholic lay association that has distinguished

al "marriages" (1994-1995), as well as by its denun

first voice of open opposition to Italy's neocommunist government.

July-August, 1998

Interview

In Brief

AIDS — No end in sight "It's like plastic!"

The Holy Shroud:Authenticity

Verified by Science

Correct or not Circuit overload

Science corroborates religious conviction

Cover:

Communists push "opium" Forgotten Truths

[

True and False Liberty

A Man of Sorrows'

Special Events

Graduation at Saint Louis

of Thought and Speech

de Montfort Academy

"Total liberty" a major error of the 20th

Give them Catholic formation, make men

century

out of them, and they will have all they need to fight the good fight.

In defense of the Flag Society OUR HONOR, OUR FLAG

Population Control

Is Desecrating It One of America's Freedoms?

The threat of overpopulation, abundantly

eLASPHEMY NOW!

propagandized in the mass media, has come

to be generally believed. Close scrutiny

Cover Article

unmasks false and immoral solutions to a

Corpus Christi: A Most Blasphemous Play

specious problem. 10

Basic History Course Bad news and good news! The most atro cious attack on our Divine Savior, and the

The Great Persecutions and

heroic reactions from Catholics across

the Apostolic Fathers

America.

1,400,000 anti-blasphemy 29

flyers distributed

Persecutions; the seed of Christianity.

Catholic Apologetics

Ada Merton — A true story

Is Mary the Mother of God, or

only the "Mother ofJesus?"

Family Series

"Greater love than this no man has, that a

man lay down his life for his friends"(John 15:13).

Education

How to Take Advantage

of Your Studies

Our Honor,

Back to Manners Starting Early

Saint John Bosco offers nine guidelines to help youngsters study, the first being the

but perhaps the solution still lies in our own

fear of God.

hands.

We like to blame the bad times we live in,

Crusade Magazine is a publication of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition. Family and Property (TFP). Subscriptions in the United States and Canada, $24,00. Foreign subscrip tions, $35.00. List of other TFP pubiications available upon request. Direct all subscription requests and inquiries to: Crusade Magazine, P.O. Box 1868, York, PA 17405. or e-mail to: Crusade@tfp.org Tel.: (717) 225-7147, Fax: (717) 225-7382. For more information on the

—

Our Flag

(^'onuen'

Do Not Let the Blasphemers

Crusade Editok:

C. Preston Noell III

Succeed by Default

Associate Editors:

Earl Appleby Thomas Becket Jack Bumham

How many times have we heard it said

Eugenia Guzman Gary Isbell

that protesting blasphemy just gives it

The old dictum "silence gives consent" is the message we impart if we do not protest.

publicity? Attacking it only encourages it, they say, so we should ignore it and it may go away. Unfortunately, this revamping of

What the promoters of blasphemy really want is for us to sit back and go along with it, until we are laughing with them at the

Photography:

the childhood retort "sticks and stones may

most obscene attacks on the sacred person

Circulation:

break my bones but names will never hurt

ages of Our Lord Jesus Christ and our Blessed Lady. For this they have done years

Foreign Correspondents:

me"just doesn't work.

This strategy of silence has been in vogue since the late 1960s, when Catholics began withdrawing from the public debate. Disillusioned with the perceived excesses of the Legion of Decency, a broad-based movement that attempted to set standards of morality for the entertainment industry,

of work to extend the limits of tolerance.

Paradoxically, while creches are banned

from public places and prayers are forbid

Thomas J. McKenna Todd P. Kamuf

Gregory Escaro AUSTRALIA: John S. Tucker

BRAZIL: Jose Carlos Sepulveda FRANCE: Benoit Bemelmans

den in schools, these attacks on Catholic

GERMANY: Beno Hofschulte

beliefs are often made possible by govern ment funding. The National Endowment

PORTUGAL: Antonio de Azeredo

for the Arts approved a grant of $31,000 to

SOUTH AFRICA: Richard Urban

Catholics wanted to avoid a negativistic

the Manhattan Theatre Club specifically

SPAIN: Felipe Barandiaran

image. They thus abandoned their proactive

flow of indecency. Popes Pius XI and Pius

for the production of Terrence McNally's blasphemous play Corpus Chri.sti, for example (although the Club subsequently obtained NEA's permission to use this money for a different play). The Club also

XII gave strong exhortations to the enter

received seven other grants over the past

tainment industry in their respective

five years. It obviously cherishes public

Family and Property (TFP) was

encyclicals Vigilanti Cura and Miranda

funds. If this source, however, were to dry

founded in 1973 to confront the

up as a result of the public outrage of lawabiding Catholics, this club and others might think twice before launching bigoted

profound crisis shaking the

stance.

The Church had previously been

engaged in an all-out attempt to slop the

Prorsus.

In the case of blasphemy, even legal sanction was tried. In 1951, New York's

Francis Cardinal Spellman saw The Miracle, a film that portrayed a simple-

propaganda.

minded peasant woman involved with a

non-confessional, the fiction of separation

tramp she believed to be Saint Joseph.

of Church and State breaks down when the State funds attacks on religious belief. This

Indignant, Cardinal Spellman attempted to

In a country where the state is officially

ROME: Juan M. Monies

The American TFP

The American Society for the Defense of Tradition,

modem world. It is a civic, cul

tural and nonpartisan organiza tion which, inspired by the tra ditional teachings of the Supreme Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, works

in a legal and peaceful manner in the realm of ideas to defend

they went too far they would be stigmatized

has happened principally by default on the part of Catholics. For evil to triumph, it is shown once again, all that is necessary is

and their success would be seriously jeopar

that the good do nothing.

their twofold function: individ

dized since the Catholic public formed a

The complacent attitude in the lace ot blasphemy is beginning to change. Unfortunately, plays like Corpus Chrisli are

and efforts have always been

have it banned. Producers and actors knew then that if

large sector of the population. As the reactions waned around 1971, the

not isolated incidents but part ot an increas

and promote the principles of

private ownership, family and perennial Christian values with ual and social. The TFP's words

faithfully at the service of

entertainment industry gave up certain selfimposed restrictions. In the absence of steadfast Catholic protest, the floodgates

ing trend. The makers of the play may only now be realizing that the reaction is grow

in Brazil by the famous intellec

were eventually flung wide open, unleash

ing. Thousands of messages of protest are flooding their offices daily and they know

tual and Catholic leader Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira in

ing a deluge of indecency.

In a couple of decades, the industry moved from promoting ordinary sexual immorality to the most base and disgusting attacks on what is most sacred. Why?

Christian civilization. The first TFP was founded

that each message represents many more

1960. His work has inspired the

people who would respond if they knew how. They know, too, that if they go further, their pretense at decency will fall forever

formation of other autonomous TFPs in 26 countries across the

Basically because Catholics had withdrawn

and. even today, they may find their sources

from the debate.

of funding drying up.

globe, thus constituting the world's largest anticommunist and antisocialist network of

Catholic inspiration.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; CRUSADE

Interview

The Holy Shroud: Authenticity Verified by Science Dr. Arnaud-Aaron Upinsky, an international authority on the Holy Shroud affirmed:

'Scientifically, we have the certainty that the man who was there was the Man of the Gospels."

On the centenary of the first photograph which the Italian lawyer Secondo Pia

took of the Holy Shroud, and coinciding with the June 4. 1998, opening in Turin of

the international scientific congress con cerning the most venerable Burial Cloth of the Savior, Cru.sade interviewed one of the

Shroud's greatest specialists. Renowned French mathematician, epistemologist,*

philologist, and historian of science Dr. Arnaud-Aaron Upinsky has written a new

book, already a best-seller in France, on the Holy Shroud titled The Enigma of the Holy

Shroud: Prophecyfor the Year 2000. The scope of Dr. Upinsky's research encompasses the power of language, social

mutation, and ways of thinking, and his works .served in guiding the 1985 reform of high school education in the French lan guage. He is known the world over for his

studies of the Shroud in the light of epistemology, and he invented the definitive

Dr. Arnaud-Aaron Upinsky

method for proving the Shroud's authenticity. The results of the Carbon-l4 dating test

the international .scientific congress held in

ticity of the Shroud, shook the international

Paris in September 1989.

scientific community at a lime when it was decidedly inclined to accept the truth about the cloth. Dr. Upinsky's masterly refutation

In 1993, he presided over a symposium in Rome whose proceedings closed the

(*) Episiemology; The study or theory of the ori gin. nature, methods, and limits of knowledge.

fliW-AVi'iST.'-rtSfi

of that test's results caused a sensation at

in 1988, which seemed to deny the authen

question on the Holy Shroud's authenticity. In early April, Dr. Upinsky granted our special correspondent. Mr. Nelson Fragelli, the interview we publish here.

Interview

Crusade: Dr. Upinsky, what is

the origin of your interest in the

"The image...was that of a man who had undergone

Holy Shroud?

Dr. Upinsky: My interest began when the Carbon-14 lest results were

published and was due to their estab lished contradiction with true sci

ence. I was then called upon to make

an epistemological synthesis of the results obtained up to that time by the

atrocious suffering, but who was yet possessed of an imposing majesty." ^ Crusade: Why, in the title of your

diverse branches of science that had ana

latest book, did you use the word

lyzed the Shroud.

enigma in reference to the Shroud of

At that moment, the international scien

Turin?

tific community was put to the test by the C'"* analysis. It was necessary to eliminate the contradiction in response to the funda

Dr. Upinsky: An enigma arose after the

Italian photographer Secondo Pia took the

mental question: did the material of the Holy

first photograph on May 28, 1898. The

Shroud — I refer here to the fabric upon

image which, by means of this photograph,

which the image of the dead individual was

the world then contemplated was that of a man who had undergone atrocious suffering,

left — come from the Middle Ages, accord

but who was yet possessed of an imposing

The question does not solely concern sci

ing to the results of the C'"* tests, or from two thousand years ago, the time of Christ, as the ensemble of results from previous scientific examinations of the highest level affirms? This was the challenge which the C'-" test

majesty.

ence — it has most important religious

The opinions of the scientific world immediately divided: Some, seeing the fig

implications — but the interest of science

ure of Christ, said we were dealing with a

gave us in 1988. As 1 had already conducted various

miracle, while others said it was a counter

Faithful to its ends, science did not ask devotion to such a relic, but an elucidation

feit, because it was too beautiful to be real.

of the mysterious formation of that image.

was impassioned from the beginning.

One swiftly sees that this is the object most laden with scientific significance of all time.

investigations using the epistemological

The enigma, therefore, was this: Where

method, French scientists wanted to know

did this image come from? Who could have

my opinion. The greater part of my inves

made it? Could the dead individual therein seen be in fact Jesus, the Crucified One,

most

whose body had left the Holy Sepulcher, but

Prophecyfor the Year 2000?

tigations was made regarding the questions of authenticity and scientific contradictions. What fascinates me about the epistemologi cal method is the inexorable way it allows that which is hidden to be brought to light.

Crusade: Why did you give your recent

book

the

subtitle

which reappeared in the photo of Secondo Pia, thus enabling it to be contemplated in the terrible majesty of His death?

Dr. Upinsky: Throughout this past cen

tury, the international scientific community has made notable discoveries regarding the Shroud. Even the contradiction by the C'^ test in 1988 gave us the opportunity to make

great strides in the elucidation of the enig ma. To cite but one of the sciences, chem

istry, the experts in this field have already studied the Shroud for more than 150,000

hours.

The Americans were tenaciously

dedicated to this study.

Now, my recent work and many others show that according to the results of the sci entific analysis on how that corpse left its image upon the fabric of the Shroud — by means of its wounds, the blood which flowed from it, and so forth — it corre

sponds in every minute detail to the Man

described in the Gospels and to His passion and death on the cross.

We are therefore dealing with the scien tific confirmation of the fundamental fact of

Christianity: the Passion, Death, and Resurrection (of which I will speak shortly) of Christ.

The Holy Shroud of Turin during the public exposition last June

At the moment in which Christian civi

lization threatens to disappear, attacked by

CRUSADE

"Having total certainty that the Shroud is authentic, international scientists continue to ask ecclesiastical V.

authorities to introduce the official process of its authentication. The elements are abundant."

Middle Ages, is false. What is the

the marks left by the blood and injuries.

principal argument of the interna

How, then, was it unstuck from the cloth,

tional scientific community against

leaving even the smallest fibers of the cloth,

this test?

which had adhered to the wounds, intact and clear? This decisive fact is uncontested

Dr. Upinsky: The C'' test contradicted laicism, atheism, and styles of life incom

every other scientific method used to deter mine the origin of the Shroud. The results

by every science. Only the Resurrection explains it, that is, the "dematerialization" of the wounded

patible with Christianity, this spectacular proof of the foundation of Christianity is given to us through the scientific analysis of

obtained with the other methods converged

body, which, no longer subject to the laws

harmonically, recognizing that the Shroud

imposed by nature, removed itself from that

the Holy Shroud. It is a true film of what

And they also unequivocally recognize

had come from the time of Christ.

wrapping. This fact alone is sufficient to

refute the opinion which holds that the

took place in the passion of Christ, one

one of the greatest marvels of the Shroud:

Shroud came from the thirteen or fourteen

shown by .science to be in entire accord with

centuries, which would be the case if one

the narration of the Gospels. This is what I

the body which was placed in that cloth, in being removed or pulled from that cloth,

call a prophecy, inherent in the Shroud, and

left it intact without altering its fibers in the

which today, on the threshold of the year

least, neither sticking to them nor altering

According to the results of this test, someone forged the image on the Shroud.

2000, is revealed to men.

The scientific and evangelical message

the bloodstains between the body and the fabric. This is impossible with a common

developed methods of modem science it is

of the Shroud cannot leave us indifferent. It

body subject to the common laws of nature.

impossible to reproduce it. The Shroud is

has significance for our lives. It asks that a decision be made: Do I give in to the influ ences which are destroying Christian civi

A body covered with wounds could never have been removed from the cloth

unique in the world; it is impossible to make a replica of it.

which held it without altering this cloth and

Who was this forger that, in the Middle

were to believe the C'"* test.

But how? I ask, for even with the ultra-

lization, or do I draw even closer to Him

who founded Christianity?

Crusade: What method of study have you used in your research?

Dr. Upinsky: At the reque.st of the sci entific community, 1 have introduced the

systematic utilization of epistemology, which is the science of reality, for it estab lishes harmony among the results of all sci ences and is considered the tribunal of the

sciences. This method permits one to arrive at an absolutely certain conclusion.

In brief, the purpose of my study was to

1 '

go from probability to certainty. Presently, one can no longer say that the body of Christ was probably wrapped up in the Shroud of Turin. Scientifically, we have the certainly that the man who was there was

the Man of the Gospels. All sciences agree concerning this certainty. Crusade: You belong to that cur

rent of opinion which believes the C'test, which supposedly indicated that the Shroud was made in the

JULY-august. 1998

The faithful venerate the Holy Shroud during last June's public exposition in Turin.

Forgotten Truths

Interview

Forgotten Truths Ages, achieved results better than those of all the modem sciences?

Another point, frequently forgotten by the critics of the Shroud, is the affirmation

by the very scientists adept to the C'"* test themselves that this method, in the case of

the Shroud of Turin, has only a 5% level of certainty. This affirmation discredits the C'"* method in the face of the other sci ences.

Crusade: Would you have any

thing else to say to our readers about this inestimable relic?

Dr. Upinsky: I lament having found, on the part of the ecclesiastical owners of the Shroud, little appreciation for the results of the scientific studies. I am not

by Pope Leo XIII

saying that all ecclesiastics have behaved

like this, only those who yet doubt Us authenticity. In spite of the conclusion of the numer

Thewithout libertyhindrance of thinkingis notandinpublishing whatsoever each one likes itself an advantage over which soci

ous sciences applied in the study of the Shroud â&#x20AC;&#x201D; that it truly held the crucified

ety can wisely rejoice. On the contrary, it is the fountainhead and

body of Jesus of Nazareth â&#x20AC;&#x201D; certain eccle

Liberty is a power perfecting man, and hence should have truth and goodness for its object. But the character of goodness and truth

siastical authorities still consider it to be

simply an icon and not a relic.

Having total certainty that the Shroud is authentic, international scientists continue to ask ecclesiastical authorities to intro

duce the official process of its authentica tion. The elements are abundant.

It could be that this relic might disap

origin of many evils. cannot be changed at option. These remain ever one and the same, and are no less unchangeable than nature herself. If the mind assents

to false opinions, and the will chooses and follows after what is wronfj, neither can attain its native fullness, but must fall from their native dignity into an abyss of corruption. Whatever therefore is

opposed to virtue and truth may not rightly be brought temptingly

pear. In 1532, in Chambery, France, a fire

before the eye of man, much less sanctioned by the favor and protec

damaged it. Let us consider last year's fire, which came close to consuming it. The

tion of the law. A well-spent life is the only passport to heaven, whither ail are bound, and on this account the state is acting against the laws and dictates of nature whenever it permits the license of

Italian writer Vittorio Messori, biographer

of the current Pope, declared to the maga

opinion and of action to lead minds astray from truth and souls away

zine Oggi on that occasion: "I believe that someone wanted to destroy the Shroud: I do not exclude the possibility of an inter national conspiracy."

from the practice of virtue....

Why not have a definitive pronounce

The Church of Christ is the true and sole teacher of virtue and

guardian of morals. It is She who preserves in their purity the princi ples from which duties flow, and by setting forth most urgent rea sons for virtuous life, bids us not only to turn from wicked deeds,

ment, with all the scientific evidence, of

but even to curb all movements of the mind that are opposed to rea

its veracity and entire congruence with the Gospels? This pronouncement of authen

son, even though they be not canied out in action.

ticity would be an inestimable triumph in the hands of the Church, protecting the Shroud against all accidents or attempts against it. â&#x2013;

Pope Leo XIII. from the Encyclical linmoricile Dei. November I, 1885.

CRUSADE

Our Honor In 1989 the U.S. Supreme Court struck down state

and federal laws prohibiting flag burning, claiming that this desecration of the nation's most revered symbol was

seems about to be spared insults and desecration. An amendment enabling Congress to pass legis

lation protecting Old Glory from being dese

protected by the First Amendment.

crated cleared the House in June of 1997. The

Three years ago, an amendment to protect the flag passed the House of Representatives, but fell three votes

amendment will go into effect if two-thirds of

short in the Senate.

fall and if at least 38 states ratify it. Every state save Vermont has adopted resolutions urging

Now, however, the colors under which thousands of

Americans have served and sacrificed their lives finally

Our imagination goes back to the Pacific Theater ofthe Second World War. In March 1945, after an arduous campaign against the Japanese troops, brave American marines are completing their conquest of Iwo Jima. They are now at the apex of their victory. On the heights of Mount Suribachi, our valiant soldiers raise the national flag with dedication,zeal,

and energy, thus announcing to all that American power has triumphed again.

The scene is both heroic and serene. Our national colors flutter festive

ly yet unpretentiously in the wind. The soldiers, in a united effort which

reveals the camaraderie of hearts beating in unison, express no sign of hatred toward the vanquished. Their only desire is to firmly secure the mast of the flag they admire so much,so that future storms will not strike

it down. They raise the Stars and Stripes high so that it can be seen clearly and with pride, even from afar.

Our Flag radiates the honor and glory of our country To the American people, it is the splendor of our nation's glory. It is undoubtedly an affirmation of our strength â&#x20AC;&#x201D; strength in defense of national honor, security, and sovereignty; a robust strength, springing from our material abundance and from our regard for all nations. We equitably share this abundance with other peoples, even those just defeated and those yet to share the same fate.

In the illustration on this page these sentiments eloquently shine forth. There is a certain spontaneity that is not ostentatious, but rather

displays the radiant beauty of strength, idealism and generosity. Inspired by this event, artist Felix de Weldon crafted the U.S. Marine

Corps War Memorial near Arlington National Cemetery. Showing keen psychological sense, President Bush chose the site of this striking JULY-AUGUST, 1998

the Senate endorses it in a vote this summer or

Congress to approve the amendment.

The Iwo Jima memorial

In Washington, D.C.,

depicting U.S. marines raising the national flag atop Mount Suribachi

In defense of the Flag

sculpture to launch a national campaign to

it can only cause their love, respect, and

defend the flag, shortly after the Supreme

pride in being American, in short, their

Court decision sanctioning the burning of it

patriotism, to diminish.

as a First Amendment "right." Americans, from the Atlantic to the

Pacific, from the Great Lakes to the Rio

nature of its laws than upon the respect,

love, and enthusiasm with which her chil

Excessive justice constitutes a supreme injustice

dren honor her.

What would our Constitution's solidity

Grande, see reflected in this flag their

national pride, together with their own indi vidual identity. For this reason, they love

we are among those who believe the nation's stability rests less upon the unchanging

An immense national clamor is needed

to call the attention of our legislative author

and praise it as one of the highest symbols of ities to the principal aspects of this offensive act against our nation. The general princi Is it reasonable, is it proper that ples of morals and justice are above all writ

the country's moral and cultural values.

and vigor be worth, we ask, in a nation where attacks against the flag and honor multiply? And in a nation where such deplorable acts, becoming ever more fire-

quent and routine due to their very impuni ty, would be viewed with indifference by a

American citizen despise it? Is it legitimate

ten law. Denying this would amount to

population made cynical by the loss of

to insult it? To destroy it?

denying the wise maxim of Roman law —

moral sensibility?

How can the cold heart of such an American desecrate so

lofty a symbol with impunity? Or even bum it? Doesn't this sug

gest that he would like to destroy the country itself?

Have we a right to allow our honor to be trampled upon?

If an individual who possess

es the means to successfully and

courageously defend

himself

were to allow his reputation to be tarnished without protest, we

would say, at the very least, that he lacks moral sensibility. To see

his own dignity trampled on should make him

blush with

shame! In the same vein, should a

Above: American TFP volunteers assemble to pray In front of the Alamo before

collecting signatures in 1989 In defense of the American flag.

nation be defiled by allowing its honor and symbols to be treated with disre

"Summuin jus, summum injuria" — Strict interpretation of the law may be the height what could be called a public and arrogant of injustice (Cicero, De Officiis, I, 10).

spect? Is this strange license to submit to

sacrilege included in the body of American freedoms?

Does the U.S. Constitution

guarantee the desecration of our national symbols?

Just as those brave marines hoisted their

victorious flag atop Mount Suribachi, this

What would happen in those critical

national clamor must take this legal maxim to the summit in defense of the national flag,

hours, which, as history teaches us, not even the most prosperous, generous, or strongest

and to bring about the adoption and ratifica tion of an amendment to the Constitution

nations are spared, if patriotic sentiment should sink so low? What courage would be

which will guarantee, beyond any doubt, the

left to fight, be it in peace or war?

right of the American nation not to be vili Our Supreme Court, to which we refer

here with all due respect, saw fit to rule, in the case of one Gregory Johnson who pub licly burned our glorious American flag in Texas, that the First Amendment granted

fied in its own land!

Thus, the fate of the nation itself calls for

an urgent measure to repair this breach opened by the decision of the Supreme

Amend the Constitution; save the honor of the Flag

Court, which found or supposed it found a basis for its action in the First Amendment to our Constitution.

We recall, in this regard, yet another

him this inconceivable liberty. In so doing, the Court declared this highly insulting act

Amend the Constitution; save the Country

Some might consider it inadvisable to

supreme principle of law which is valid for

amend the Constitution since it is the basic

all peoples, at all times, in all places —

legal monument on whose immutability rests the very stability of the nation itself. We respect the opinion of those who think becomes accustomed to seeing the flag dis respected and burned with such impunity, this way. We promptly add, however, that we

"Saliis populi, suprema lex" — The welfare

against our country to be beyond repri mand.

Once a new generation of Americans

which we do not hesitate to call scandalous.

are not convinced by this argument because

of the people is the supreme law (Cicero, De Legihus. III. 9).

■

✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ -tV CRUSADE

REMEMBERING Immediately following the Supreme Court's decision in 1989 allowing the desecration of the American Flag, The

American Society for the Defense of IVadition, Family and Property(TFP)launched a campaign to defend the honor of our flag. For this purpose, a large caravan of young volun teers crossed the United States from coast to coast to gather signatures requesting a constitutional amendment that would outlaw desecration of the American flag.

In a little less than two months, 135,000 signatures were col lected and presented to the then White House Chief of Staff

John Sununu, as well as to congressional leaders in the

Senate and House of Representatives.

On the go On the sidewalk

yBSSiP^

At work

Former Chief of Staff John Sununu receives the campaign

In the car

signatures in the name of President George Bush.

\ On the road

Rain or shine Former Senator Robert Dole meets with a TFP delegation during its campaign in defense of the flag.

everywhere

Cover Article

A Most Bla Through its America Needs Fatima Campaign, the American TFP is carrying out a massive

nationwide protest against the exceedingly blas phemous play Corpus Christi, which, according to press reports, depicts Our Lord Jesus Christ as a homosexual and mocks His entire life,

from His birth to the Last Supper. Corpus Christi is scheduled for an October opening in New York City at the Manhattan Theatre Club.

by Robert E. Ritchie

There is no need to tell a son why he should be indig nant when his father is insulted, but when the father who

is the object of this attack is the incomparable Father above all comparison â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Our Lord Jesus Christ, the King

of kings and the Lord of lords â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the insult could not be more defamatory or blasphemous.

That is why tens of thousands of Catholics are joining the American TFP's protest against the blasphemous play Corpus Christi by Terrence McNally. According to press reports, McNally's play includes a Christ figure who has homosexual relations with his apostles. This is very prob ably the most vicious public attack ever in America

against the Sacred Person of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Sanitized description of Corpus Christi

We cannot present a detailed account of this vile play

here. Yet, the world in which we live is so polluted by

perversity that if some aspects of the play are not noted, we may be accused of overreacting. Here, then, is an attempt to present what we know of Corpus Christi in the most sanitized fashion possible. From the London newspaper The Guardian we learn

that the play opens in a raunchy place in Texas, where a

degenerate woman, supposedly portraying Our Lady, repeatedly screams out the worst obscenities. The play Scandalized, shocked, horrified at this most abhorrent attack

against the sacred Person of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the

American public is rising mag nificently to the occasion by sending In thousands of post

then attempts to explain Our Lady's virginity in a way too vile to repeat. Episodes of Our Lord's life are ridiculed. His circumcision takes place amidst off-color

jokes. The Christ-figure, called Joshua in the play, attends a prom with his girlfriend, both students of

cards provided by the American TFP In protest of such an abomi

Pontius Pilate High School. On prom night he discovers his homosexuality in circumstances that cannot be

nation.

described here.

CRUSADE

srop

Gospel story mocked

The American Sociely for the Dcfcn.se of Tradilion, Family and Properly - TFP

The play spares nothing that is sacred.

Our Lord's miracles, for example, are replaced with lewd and immoral acts. Judas

is depicted as having a passionate affair with Our Lord. The Last Supper is made to resemble a boisterous food fight that ends in

May 12, 1998

Mr. Terrence McNally do Mr. Gilbert Parker, Agent William Morris Agency 1325 Avenue of the Americas

New York, N.Y, 10019

a scene wherein Joshua reveals his betrayer, saying that Judas is the one who has com

Mr. McNally:

mitted unnatural sin with him. The play

Press reports from the New York Post, Associated Press, and Catholic Wire Ser^â&#x2013; ice. as well as informa

likewise parodies several other Gospel pas

tion received over the phone from the Manhattan Theatre Club, lead us to the painful realization tliat the play you are purportedly writing. Corpus Christi. might be a blasphemous portrayal of the life of

sages. Instead of "Art Thou the King of the Jews?" McNally's Pontius Pilate asks, "Art Thou King of the queers?" "Thou sayest" is Josua's answer.

Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The idea that the Christ figure has sexual relations with His apostles constitutes, in our opinion, a hor rendous blasphemy against the divinity of Jesus and a vicious attack against fundamental teachings of the Catholic faith.

More complete, uncensored reports of the play can be found in Bill Buford's arti cle in The Guardian of June 5 and in Brent Bozell's New York Post article of June 26.

The divinity of Our Lord is a sufficiently proven fact, and, therefore, it is injurious to attribute to Him actions contrary to His divine and human natures. Moreover, the sin of homosexuality is vehemently condemned by the Catholic Church. To affirm or even to insinuate such base and sinful behavior in

Our Lord and the apostles is the ultimate blasphemy. His sublime perfection assures us that He prac

ticed the virtue of chastity in the most absolute way and always maintained that .state of perfect chasti ty that is the very contrary of unnatural vice.

Massive nationwide protest In light of the pre-release publicity your play has received and the apparent absence of a categorical

The American TFP campaign will be multifaceted. Our first move was to write

Terrence McNally a letter expressing our

deep concern and shock over the reported content of the play. A copy of the letter was sent to the Manhattan Theatre Club. Until

now we have not received replies from either the playwright or the theater.

denial on your part as to its alleged contents we have no other option as faithful and practicing Catholics than to .stand up and defend the honor of Our Lord Jesus Christ and our holy faith. If we do not hear from you by fax within a week that your play will not contain the blasphemous material that has been reported, we will have no alternative but to launch a massive public prote.st against it. We urge you to promptly and publicly dLspel any confusion that might exist as to the contents of the play and to confirm that it will not contain anything injurious to the honor and memory of Our Lord Jesus Christ or offensive to the Catholic faith.

We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience. Sincerely,

Millions of Raymond Earl Drake

STOP BLASPHEMY NOW!Hiers

President

While we have not heard from them, they have heard from us. As another, broad er aspect of the campaign, American TFP

style and are divided into three part.s. The

phone, for additional fl iers. The campaign is truly snowballing.

members and supporters, joined by over

fi rst part briefiy explains the blasphemous play Corpus Christi and urges people to

4,000 "Fatima proclaimers" (members of

protest. The second contains two detachable

protest against the production of the blas

our America Needs Fatima network) nation

postcards to be completed and mailed to the

phemous play Corpus Christi, which

wide, have already distributed well over

Manhattan Theatre Club. The fi nal part is a form to notify us that the recipient will mail the postcards and to request more fliers for

includes a Christ-like figure who repoiledly

1,400,000 STOP BLASPHEMY NOW!fliers

for a massive protest by mail. These fliers feature a beautiful full-color

picture of our crucified Lord in Baroque JULY-AUGUST, 1998

The postcard reads; "1 vehemently

family and friends. This endeavor has gen

has sexual relations with his apostles. The Person of Jesus Christ is Sacred and untouchable. To portray Him as a homosex

erated thousands of requests, by mail and

ual, or even to insinuate it, is an unspeakable

Cover Article

blasphemy which I reject with all my soul. If

on and not do anything about it!"

start doing that again."

you proceed with this production, be sure millions of Catholics will oppose it in the

Campaign participants find ingenious ways to spread the protest against Corpus

Jesus Christ 2,000 years ago when she

largest and loudest peaceful and legal protest

Christi. Many write their own letters to the theater. Others mail fliers to everyone in

ever seen."

Our goal is to distribute 10,000,000

their address book. One lady drives around

fliers before the play debuts in October. If

looking for homes with statues of Our Lady in the lawn or garden. When she finds one,

only 10% of those who receive the fliers

As Saint Veronica consoled Our Lord

wiped His bloody face during the Way of the Cross. Today, so modem-day Veronicas are following her example. One lady told us: "I could not sleep last night. I stayed up apologizing to Jesus. I am so anxious to

actually send a postcard, the Manhattan

she knocks on the door and asks the resi

hand out the fliers. How can they do this to

Theatre Club will receive a million mes

Someone we care so much about?" Another

sages of protest. To our knowledge, this will

dent to join the protest. E-mail messages are being sent by the thousands. Pizza par

be the largest anti-blasphemy protest ever

lors, supermarkets, and other stores in

staged in America. Such is the circulation of

Catholic neighborhoods and towns across the nation are making fliers available. One lady who works in a very busy restaurant

Him dirty tool"

asked for 5,000 fliers to distribute to all the

these tme sons and daughters of Jesus and

the fliers that several Fatima proclaimers have told us that upon arriving at a church to hand out fliers, they have often found fliers already there in the church racks. Yes, the Manhattan Theatre Club has heard and will

continue hearing from all of us. Encouraging crusade-like fervor

lady said, "This made me cry so bitterly. They are all dirty, and they want to make The overflowing of healthy Catholic

souls is so well expressed by the words of

customers." I will make this my mission!"

Mary as they see their Father, Lord, and

she affirmed.

Creator insulted by Corpus Christi. "It's

The largest request for fliers so far came

good to see Catholics waking up. I'm

from a good friend who is a Knight of

behind

Columbus. The Knights' Pennsylvania state convention was around the comer and he

Enthusiastic people like this see our volun teers handing out fliers and offer to help

you

100%," said

one

man.

and to participate actively in the campaign.

There are few things more inspiring for

wanted to take 50,000 fliers along with him.

members of the Church Militant than seeing fellow Catholics invigorated with the fervor

He intended to get all the delegates to hand

"How far are they going to go in spitting

fliers out to the members of their local

on Him?" was another ardent comment.

of a real crusade to defend the honor of Our

councils. May God bless his efforts!

"How much do they think He is going to take! I know this is the '90s, or so every

Lord Jesus Christ. That is precisely what we

are finding in this campaign. "We need to

More reactions

stop this!" and "It's about time we Catholics

from the campaign

react to something!" and similar comments have been heard many times over.

Catholics across America are rallying to

body tells me. But God is the same today, yesterday, and tomorrow. I fear for the peo ple who did this play." Another man

expressed similar thoughts: "They are call ing down God's wrath; God help us!"

line with words would fit well on the lips of

defend the Sacred Person of Our Lord Jesus Christ from this horrendous blasphemy.

a crusader of old: "I had heart surgery a

Hundreds of requests arrive daily from peo

month ago, but heart surgery or no heart surgery. I'm getting out of bed to fight this

tribute more fliers. And as we go from city

No stone will be left unturned in this

to city distributing them, we encounter the most interesting reactions. One nun told us:

anti-blasphemy effort. Letters have been sent to major sponsors of the Manhattan

"I am stunned with this blasphemy. Can I

Theatre Club, such as Bell Atlantic and

have 130 fliers for each nun in our house? When I was a novice, we used to make

IBM, stressing the blasphemous character

many small sacrifices. I think it's time we

ters reads: "Media reports as well as infor-

One gentleman called our campaign hot

one!" Another lady showed similar mettle,

asking: "Although I am in a wheelchair, is there any other way that I can help stop this

blasphemy besides handing out fliers and praying?" Another heartfelt comment was; 'This tore me up inside. I cannot see this go

Other efforts

ple asking to join the campaign and to dis

of Corpus Christi. An excerpt from our let

Cover Article

For an update on our efforts to stop the blasphemous play Corpus Christior to request STOP BLASPHEMY NOW!filers, please call (717)450-6500 today.

mation received over the phone from the

Fernanda Eberstadt describes a Renaissance

Manhattan Theatre Club lead us to the

painting of Our Lady by Antonello de

the Word Incarnate, bom of Mary Most Holy, His Immaculate Mother who con

ceived by the Holy Ghost. To attack His

painful realization that this play will be a

Messina: "What we see is a young woman

horrendous blasphemy against the divinity of Jesus and a vicious attack against the fun

in a blue cloak, pretematurally still. The

Person is to attack God, to Whom we owe

woman — too reserved to be called a girl —

our very existence. It is to attack the Holy

damental teachings of the Catholic faith. In

Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church, Christ's Mystical Body. It is an attack against all Catholics.

and the apostles is the ultimate blasphemy." Skirting the issue of this blasphemous

is somewhere between plain and pretty, and is staring deep into herself.... The secret half-smile on her thin curling lips is not at all pious or ethereal; it reminds me of the look of girls at school who had been initiat

our opinion, to affirm or even to insinuate such base and sinful behavior in Our Lord

production, IBM's reply only noted its

ed into sex by their boyfriends a few years

funding for another program of the

before anyone else and who liked what

Manhattan Theatre Club that "teaches

they'd found...." Eberstadt irreverently con

important lessons about tolerance and

tinues: "With such a risky subject as Jesus'

Acts of sexual perversion are sins con demned by the Church and by natural law.

Therefore, to show Jesus or the Pope in such sexually explicit roles, or to insinuate

it in any way, is a blasphemy we Catholics reject with all our souls. Holy indignation

diversity...." Nothing about tolerance for

mother, he [the artist] had the nerve to let

moves us to speak out against these horren

those who uphold the divinity of Our Lord

psychology drive out symbolism, the origi

dous insults to God.

Jesus Christ!

nality to re-imagine what a 14-year-old Judean hillbilly might have felt on learning

Our Lady told Lucia: "My daughter, look at my heart surrounded with thorns

Corpus Christi — a drop

that the worm in her belly was there to save

with which ungrateful men pierce me con

in the bucket

the world."

stantly through blasphemy and ingratitude."

Unfortunately, Corpus Christi is by no

means the only current affront to Our Lord,

Our Lady, or the Holy Catholic Church in general. On the contrary, there seems to be an open season in this regard. Neil Jordan's

Not long ago, the Art/Not Terminal

As blasphemy spreads across America, we

Gallery in downtown Seattle displayed obscene paintings of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the Pope in showcase windows. One,

lift our prayers of reparation to the

called A Sex Act? takes the most sacred

film The Butcher Boy, which has been

objects of the Catholic faith and drags them through the filth of immorality. The other

showing since the beginning of April in the

shows Jesus as the object of oral sex from a

aters across the country, contains an attack

covered figure. We are obliged to abstain from further description of this outrage.

on the honor of Our Blessed Mother. The

Heavenly throne and make the firm resolu tion to oppose it, During the glorious Crusades, our ancestors sacrificed everything to free the Holy Sepulcher of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Now it's our turn to pray and be watchful, ready to act against blasphemy at any time. Two thousand years ago, as Jesus stood

claimers in the Seattle area, this blasphe

before Pilate, the mob screamed: "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!" Not a single voice was

apart a portrait of the Pope during a public

mous display was shut down due to a local

heard in His defense. Moreover, when

performance some years ago), portraying

protest. Of course, the media never men

Pilate offered to free the murderer Barrabas

the Mother of God, uses immoral words and

tioned the protest while giving the indecent

instead of Jesus, the crowd shouted all the

urges a youngster to commit murder.

"art" plenty of publicity.

more for the blood of Christ.

"Look at my heart

by and watch as Jesus is crucified again by .so many sins of blasphemy, we, as members of the Church Militant, have the privilege of defending Jesus' honor by raising our voic es against blasphemy. ■

Irish singer Sinead O'Connor (already infa mous for having contemptuously ripped

Another example of blasphemy came to our knowledge through a letter to the editor sent by one of our members to the magazine Civilization in response to a blasphemous art

Fortunately, according to Fatima pro-

Although many people today may stand surrounded with thorns..."

review in that publication, which is put out

The sacred Person of Our Lord Jesus

by the Library of Congress. Reviewer

Christ is untouchable. He is the God-Man,

Ti-1

Catholic Apologetics

Is Mary the Mother of God...

or only the Mother of Jesus? Responding to a common misconception among separated brethren and ill-informed Catholics by Raymond de Sauza

acidity that prevails in fundamentalist cir

your Roman Catholic radio broadcast

believe in such a preposterous dogma as the Divine Maternity. Mary is the mother of

'Sounds Catholic.' I assure you that I

Christ, not the Mother of God.

believe in freedom of the media, even the

"I am grateful to the great Reformers for having put an end to this unbiblical belief and for bringing out the truth for us

"Sounds Catholic." I replied to the objection

Bible-believing Protestant Christians. "I would appreciate your comments on

since time and again Catholics bump into

thi.s. Yours sincerely,...

people who disagree with Church dogma, especially regarding Our Lady, and often

"Dear Sir: Of late. I have listened to

R.C. media. Yet I also believe that nobody

should be allowed to blaspheme on radio.

"Last week you broadcasted a musical recording of Placido Domingo singing a classical version of the Ave Maria. I real ize that the first part may have been .some what inspired in the Gospel of Luke. The second part, however, is a R.C. invention. I sincerely believe that it is blasphemous

cles today. I did not lose time and, in the following

week, in the "Radio Reply" segment of

put by our non-Catholic listener. I am sure readers will profit from these arguments,

they are Catholic themselves, or call them

This is the text of a letter someone stuck

for you R.C. people to call Mary the

into my pigeonhole at the lOOFM radio sta tion, where my radio program "Sounds

'Mother of God.'" "For Mary to be the Mother of God she

Catholic" is broadcast in Perth, Western Australia. Readers of Cru.sade will agree

selves so.

The context of the argument in three statements of Faith

would have to be God's parent, older than

that it came from a person who is able to

To begin from the beginning, we must

Cod. and just as divine as God himself.

formulate an argument, a thinking person, and this is a human quality in dire short sup

establish the proper context for understand ing the dogma of the Divine Maternity. First

ply these days.

of all, what is the teaching of the Catholic

Now. there are only three and notfour per

sons in the Trinity. So. how could Mary be the Mother of God .since .she is infinitely inferior â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and younger â&#x20AC;&#x201D; than God?

His argument against the title "Mother

Church concerning the Divine Maternity?

of God" follows the basic elements of logic

Here are three statements of faith about

"One thing is to believe in the virgin

and is presented, in the main, in polite

Our Lady as the Mother of God obtained

birth, which I do, hut another thing is to

terms, albeit redolent of the anti-Catholic

from Patrick Madrid, a noted American

CRUSADE

Catholic Apologetics apologist, in the course of a speaking tour of

If you read chapter one of Saint Luke's

Adonai in its stead.

Lord," when she said, "And whence is this

vowel signs of the word Adonai under the

to me that the mother of my Lord should

consonants J H V H, and Christians later

come to me?"(Lukel:43) The Mother of my Lord.... Who is this

fide one of course, was made by a medieval

Statement one: "In this work whereby she made the Mother of God, so many and such good things were given her that no one can grasp them. Not only Mary the mother of Him who is born (in Bethlehem), but of Him who, before the world, tiw eternally born of the Father, from a

the burning bush. They had substituted

Gospel, you'll see that Saint Elizabeth addresses Our Lady as the "Mother of my

his in New Zealand:

To ensure this reading, later Jews put the

misread it as Jehovah. This mistake, a bona monk, Raimundus Martinus. Both Catholics and Protestants have

mother in time and at the same time

always used the word Jehovah until recent

man and God."

scriptural exegesis, in the aftermath of Pope Pius XII's encyclical letter Divino Afflante

Statement two: "It cannot be

denied that God, in choosing and des tining Maty to be the Mother of His

Spiritu, discovered the mistake, and now the

Son, granted her the highest honor....Elizabeth calls Mary the Mother of the Lord, because the unity of the Person in the two italures of

pronunciation to the original.

word Yahweh is used, as being the closest in In

the

Greek

version

of the

Old

Testament, the Septuagint, J H V H is trans lated as Kyrios — Lord — which we use in

Christ vi'fli' such that she could have

said that the mortal man engendered in

the litanies in Latin when we say Kyrie eleison. Lord have mercy. Kyrie means "the

the wotnb ofMaty vv«3' at the same time

Lord" and refers to God our Lord. There is

the eternal God."

no doubt about that.

Statement three: "It vva.9 given to

So, if we could transliterate that word in

her what belongs to no creature, that in

Saint Elizabeth's greeting, it would read,

theflesh she should bringforth the Sun

"And how have I deserved that the Mother

of God."

of Adonai should come to me?"

These three statements summarize

to a great extent what the Catholic

Again, we ask: Who was this Lord, this

Adonai that Saint Elizabeth is talking about?

Church believes about the Divine

It could not be any adult lord of hers, such

Maternity. We take them as the basic

as the High Priest in the Temple or the

framework from which to argue to

Roman Emperor, or even her husband. It was a yet unborn Adonai. an unborn Lord.

defend the title "Mother of God."

And, for any decent Jew at the time, there Who called her the Mother of God?

was only one great Adonai who was going to be born, the expected One of the nations:

the Messias. And Saint Elizabeth, inspired In the second part of the Hail Mary, which

our

non-Catholic

by the Holy Spirit, who is God and cannot

listener

lie. refers to the unborn Messias as Adonai,

objects to so strongly, we say, "Holy

my Lord — therefore. God.

Mary, Mother of God, prayfor us sin ners," and so on.

So, to answer the question, who was the

Saint Elizaoeth welcomes the expectant

Lord of Saint Elizabeth? The answer is quite

Blessed Virgin Mary to her home.

Now, who was the very first person

simple: God is her Lord (and ours too, for

who referred to Mary as Mother of God?

Which medieval Pope or council proclaimed

"Lord"

this dogma for the first time?

Elizabeth? Whom is she talking about?

here, or who is the Lord of

say in the Hail Mary prayer, "Holy Maty,

None. Actually, it was proclaimed about 33 years before the foundation of the

Catholic Church. The Holy Spirit Himself,

that matter). So, if the Catholic Church had chosen to

Mother of my Lord, pray for us sinners." it would mean exactly the same thing as

Who is Saint Elizabeth's "Lord" — the historical context

"Holy Maty, Mother of God."

Right here at the beginning, a little back ground information is necessary: The

No oriental hyperbole, but divine inspiration

through the lips of Saint Elizabeth, the

mother of Saint John the Baptist, pro claimed the divine motherhood.

^^^—Hebrew word for "My Lord" is

"And whence is this to me

Adonai (which literally means my Lords, in the majestic plural). Several

that the mother of my Lord should come to me?"

JULY-AUGUST, 1998

centuries

before

the

Having said that, we must point out that this title "Mother of Adonai" given to Our

Lady was not an exaggeration coming from

Christian era, the Jews, out of rev

a happy old woman who had been barren and

erence, had ceased to pronounce the sacred name of God, which in Hebrew was written like J H V H, a name proclaimed to Moses from

is now with child, and sees goodness every

where, and, in her joy, indulges in over-prais ing her young cousin who is also pregnant. Orientals are very good at hyperbole.

Catholic Apologetics of my soul, because God created my soul,

No, this title "Mother of God" was

inspired by the Holy Spirit Himself! Again,

not you.

let us take a look at the context in Saint

That would be most disrespectful to his mother, and, besides, she did not create his

Luke's Gospel:

"Now, in those days Mary arose and

body either: she conceived his body. God

went with haste into the hill country, to a town of Juda, and she entered the house of

created his soul within his body at concep tion, and she nurtured him. She is the

Zachary and saluted Elizabeth. And, it came to pass, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe in her womb leapt.

mother of the whole person, not only of the constitutive natures of that being, that is,

And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy

This conclusion is most important: She is not only the mother of the child's body,

body and soul.

Spirit and cried out with a loud voice, say ing, 'Blessed art thou among women, and

but of the whole child, the person.

blessed is the fruit of thy womb! And how

Now, with Jesus, God the Father

have I deserved that the Mother of my Lord

replaces the human father: Jesus' mother was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, and

should come to me?"(Luke 1:39-43)

the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, God the Son, descended into her womb and

On the day of the Annunciation and Incarnation, it was the Archangel Saint Gabriel, also inspired by the Holy Spirit,

assumed a human nature from her.

At the very moment of conception, God

who said to her: "Fear not, Mary, for thou

hast found grace with God. Behold thou ^

the

shall conceive in thy womb, and shall bring I

Therefore, His mother bore His body. His

created

His

human

soul.

soul, and His divinity, because He is only

forth a son, and thou shall call his name

Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High.... The Holy One

Father

Saint Cyril of Alexandria spoke for the Council of Ephesus against the heresy of Nestorius.

one Person, a divine Person, whom Isaiah

calls the mighty God, and the Angel calls the Holy One.

who shall be bom of thee shall be called the

Notice how Isaiah links together these

Mary is not, and could not possibly be,

Gabriel was not using the phrase "Son of

words: child — son — mighty God. Notice also that the Angel said to Mary,

the creator of Jesus, since Jesus is eternal. She bore Him in her womb, she nurtured

God" in the sense that every just person is a

"Thou Shalt call His name Jesus," and gives

child of God. No, it was no common son-

ship. It was true and authentic sonship, that is, when a father begets offspring who share

three qualifications: "The Son of the Most High... The Holy One... the Son of God." So, if the child is the mighty God,one in

Him there, and gave birth to Him. Any woman who does these things for another

his own nature. That child was divine, it was

nature with the everlasting Father, who is

a divine person living among us.

the Mother of this divine Child, this divine

Son of God." It should be noted here that Saint

Person?

Prophesied from the Old Testament

That was the prophecy of Isaias coming true: "Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called

Emmanuel." In his Gospel, Saint Matthew

interprets that name Emmanuel, as meaning "God with us"(Matt. 1:23); a divine Person

living with us. And that divine Person, hav ing assumed a human nature from her. Thus

The Divine Maternity

is a dogma explicitly defined and proclaimed in the year 431.

we can say that the flesh of Jesus is only of the flesh of Mary, since He had no human

person is that person's mother. By way of comparison, in our constitu tional monarchy here in Australia, the

Queen Mother in Buckingham Palace is indeed the mother of our Queen — Elizabeth II — yet she did not originate roy alty as such. That would be an absurdity. Likewise, Mary s the Mother of the God-

man Jesus Christ, but did not originate divinity as such. That would be an even greater absurdity.

So, if the child is "the mighty God, the Son of the Most High," Who shares in the

nature of His Father, "the everlasting Father," it does not take much thinking to put two and two together: Since Jesus is God, and Mary is the Mother of Jesus, Mary is therefore the Mother of God.

father.

Can a woman be the

The same Isaiah prophesied that the son of the Virgin would be both man and God (9:6), and this marvelous reality has been

mother of a divine Person?

put to music in the magnificence of

conceives in her womb the body ot her child

Handel's Messias:

and gives birth to that same child. She does

The early Christian writers believed and

not create the soul of the child; God does

defended the same teaching. For example: Saint Ignatius of Antioch, martyr, in a

"For unto us a Child is bom, unto us a Son

You know that a mother is a woman who

The Catholic belief explicitly held and defended by the early Christians

is given, and the government shall be upon

that. But she bears both the body and the

His shoulder. And His name shall be called,

soul of her child in her womb: she bears the

wonderful, counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace."

whole per.wn. No child can say to his moth

letter to the Christians in Ephesus (ca. A.D. 110) states quite clearly that "Our God.

er, you are only the mother of my body, not

Jesus Christ, vtas conceived bv Marv in

CRUSADE

Catholic Apologetics accord with God's plan: of the seed of David,

to be read carefully: "It was not that an ordi

it is true, but also of the Holy Spirit." Saint Irenaeus, the great defender of the

nary man was bom first of the Holy Virgin, on whom afterwards the Word [of God]

Christian Faith against heresies, writing

descended. What we say is that, being united

Fathers speak;

against the Gnostics around A.D. 190, said, "The virgin Mary...being obedient to God's

with the flesh from the womb, [the Word] has undergone birth in the flesh, making the birth in the flesh His own.... Thus, [the Council Fathers] have unhesitatingly called the Holy Virgin 'Mother of God'{theotokos).

Saint Ignatius of Antioch,

word,received from an angel the glad tidings that she should bear God."

Saint Ephrem, who died in the year A.D. 373, wrote beautiful praises of the Virgin Mary, many of which are used in the Syriac

This does not mean that the nature of the

liturgy to this day. One of them reads, "In the

of its existence from the Holy Virgin, but that,

womb of Mary the Infant was formed, Who

since the holy body, animated by the holy

Word or His divinity received the beginning

from eternity is equal to the Father.... And

soul, which the Word united to Himself

the handmaid and work of His wisdom

(according to the hypostasis) was bom from her, the Word was bom according to the

became the Mother of God!'

flesh."

The Councils of

the early Church

The Divine Maternity was a dogma

That's the Council of Ephesus,in the year 431. This teaching was confirmed at the Council of Calcedon in the year 451: "We unanimously teach to confess one

explicitly defined and proclaimed in the year

and the same Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the

431, more than one thousand years before Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli's grandparents

same perfect in humanity, the same truly God

started dating after Sunday school. There was a General Council of the only Christian Church in existence, the Catholic Church,

and truly man composed of rational soul and body, the same one in being {homoousios) with the Father as to the divinity and one in being with us as to the humanity, like unto us

which "Unhesitatingly called the Holy Virgin

all in all things but sin (Heb. 4:15). The same

the Mother of God {theotokos in Greek)." The spokesman for the Council against

as to the divinity and in the latter days for us."

the heresy of Neslorius was Saint Cyril of

Ulrich Zwingli wrote: "It was given to

Alexandria. His letter to Nestorius was offi

cially approved by the Council Fathers as

was begotten from the Father before the ages

her what belongs to no creature, that in the flesh she should bring forth the Son of God."

being in conformity with the Church's ortho

If our non-Catholic listener's understanding

dox faith in the Incarnation of the Word and,

of blasphemy is correct, then some of his

consequently, in Mary's divine motherhood.

own "founding fathers" were also blasphe mers, just like the founding fathers of the

New bottles, old contents

The French have a very interesting saying that goes like this: "Plus fa change, plu.s c'est le meme chose"â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the more it changes, the more it remains the same thing. The idea cited by our non-Catholic listener that Mary

Catholic Church he dislikes so much.

goes against the teachings of the Bible, the

early Christian Fathers, councils, and even the Protestant "reformers" themselves. It is

unfortunate that separated brethren who

ly thereafter, the Patriarch of Constantinople,

thrive in opposing everything Catholic get so carried away that they end up opposing the

Nestorius, conceived the idea that, because Christ is both God and man, there would be two persons in Christ: a Divine one and a

and councils, not to mention their own

human one. Mary would be the mother of the human person, not the Divine Person. That

Bible and the writings of early Christians

Therefore, we Catholics confidently approach the Virgin Mother in prayer and ask her to intercede for us in our needs, as she

did for that family at the Wedding of Cana.

and condemned their heresy at the council

And we say,

JULY-AUGUST. 1998

Ciod's plan: of the seed of David, it is tme, but

also of the Holy Spirit." Saint Irenaeus, "The Virgin Mary...being obedient to God's word, received

from an angel the glad tidings that she should bear God."

Saint Ephrem,

"In the womb ofMary the Infant wasformed, whofrom eternity is equal to the Father....

"founding fathers."

was in the year 428, a long time ago. But the entire Church opposed these two held in Ephesus, the very same city where Our Lady lived her last days. Here is a key paragraph, which deserves

by Mary in accord with

Opposition to the title Mother of God is

unscriptural, illogical, and unhistorical; it

Mother of God is not very original.

In fact, it was first proposed by a once-

"Our God, Jesus Christ, was conceived

Conclusion

would be the Mother of Christ but not the

Catholic priest named Anastasius, and short

The Church

And the handmaid and work of His wisdom

became the Mother of

"Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen."

â&#x2013;

Godr

Education

How to Take

Advantage of Your Studies Saint John Bosco is one of the patrons of Catholic education. Bom in Italy of good, simple. God fearing parents, he was gifted with extraordinary intelligence, physical strength, and charm. Early in his life he was ordained a priest and dedicated much of his life to the true Catholic formation of boys. He founded boarding schools and eventually an order of priests under the patronage of Saint Francis de Sales. What follows are some guidelines for students given by the Saint during a number of Good Nights," brief fatherly remarks he was in the habit of addressing to his boys before they went to bed.

My dear sons. 1 want to suggest a few means

good works, yet abused them later. On the other

for you to triumph in your studies, .so I will

hand, the majority of these people do not possess true

teach them to you one by one each night.

wisdom. Their minds are full of errors that they

fear of God.Inilium sapientiae timor Domini — fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Do you want

spread to others. This is not wisdom. If the Lord has permitted some impious fellow to prosper in knowl edge, although he be His enemy, this will merit him a greater curse and chastisement for his having

to become truly wise and make great achievements in

abused it.

1. The first means for studying well is to have

class? Fear the Lord. Avoid offending Him, because in malevolam animam nan intrabit sapientiam nec

habitabit in corpore subdito peccatis — wisdom will not enter the malevolent soul, nor will it inhabit the

body given over to sin. The wisdom of man springs from the Wisdom of God. What pleasure can one

2. The second means for studying advantageous

ly consists in not losing even a second of time. Time, my most dear sons, is a treasure. Fili, conserva tempus — Sons, use time well. In the time that

you should devote to studies, give yourself entirely.

experience in studies when his heart is agitated by his

Never look for pretexts to escape from class. It is

passions? How does one intend to overcome the dif

painful to see students who contrive pretexts of sick

ficulties he stumbles through in his studies without

ness or forcefully wrest permissions from superiors to avoid fulfilling these duties. During study time or

God's help? Omnis sapientia a Domino Deo esl — All wisdom belongs to God. Just one mortal sin offends God so much that all the angels and men

class time, do not read books that have nothing to do

together cannot make amends. Will God help those

Suppress daydreams. Do you see that student who seems engrossed in his book? Do you think he is studying? Right, right...! His mind is thou

who insult Him so gravely? Truly wise men never offend God. Consider, for example, Saint Thomas or Saint Francis de Sales. Daily experience teaches us that the ones who succeed in studies are those who distance themselves from sin. True, there are some

with the material being covered.

sands and thousands of leagues away.... Look

at him, smiling; he looks like he is in the mid dle of recreation, jumping about. He is think

"Time, my most dear

impious people who shine in their genius and knowl

ing about his victory over a friend. Another

sons, is a treasure.

edge, but perhaps they merited these gifts from the

one thinks about the candy and the drink he has tucked away in a box. Yet another one over

Sons, use time well."

Lord beforehand as a reward for their conduct and

CRUSADE

there harbors the thought, for example, of buying a certain book, ofjoking around, of some buffoonery, of going for a stroll. I

Sometimes the only thing he will get is seri

ous indigestion. Be careful, then, with glut tony!

don't even mention those who are thinking about offending God; I hope there are none of that type in the Oratory. Let's study, then, and not lose time.

3. The third means for success in stud

5. The fifth means for getting ahead in studies is to keep company with studious young men. Use study circles and groups. This is the best way to progress. During the

breaks, stay near the assistants and your

ies consists in getting used to not going on in any subject, be it one grammar rule to

better-instructed companions; ask about geography, about the clas

another or one argument to another, with

out knowing the previous material well.

sics, about grammar or some point of history.

Consequently, memorize what you are studying. Cicero said, very correctly,

selves

Tantum scimus quantum memoria retinernus â&#x20AC;&#x201D; We know as much as we retain in our

memory. Study daily in such wise that the lesson or the section of the classical author

that the teacher pointed out is well engraved in your mind; I say every day because if you are not careful to learn it today, you will have to double your efforts tomorrow to

catch up. Whoever is not diligent for a week will have to make up for his deficiency in five lessons, taking into account that his

daily duties are already more than sufficient to take up the whole day. Due to this lack of diligence, not few have serious gaps in their knowledge; there are many things they have not understood well, and in the last months

of the course they kill themselves studying, perhaps with the fear of being suspended. He who has always been diligent, however, possesses the treasure of his thoughts with certainty, and on the examination day he is not bothered or worried.

4. The fourth means for studying advantageously consists of eating in an

orderly and timely fashion. Gluttony has claimed more victims than the sword. Do

you want advice? Don't live to eat; eat to live. Take little at breakfast and snack.

Don't eat until you are full. If you have a tasty morsel saved in your drawer, don't be lured by gluttony to eat all of it at once; save

Speak among your often

about

things related to your duties â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the lessons, compositions, and

translations. How much fruit you will gain! On trips speak about similar things and don't frequent the company of superficial or

unreflective peers, who will help you lose knowledge rather than

acquire it. Frivolous and useless conversations

are

"Study daily in such wise that the lesson or the sec

tion...that the teacher point ed out is well engraved in your mind."

worthless,

merely distracting the mind and cooling the heart. The wise man says; "Consorting with the wise will make you wise."

exaggeratedly and excessively. There are

some who run to and fro during recreation with such excitement that instead of enter

taining themselves they kill themselves. 6. The sixth means is an orderly recre ation. Use the entire recreation period, because playing will bring new

They collide with their companions and

throw them to the ground, breaking noses, kicking one another, punching another to

strength for studying better dur

kill time. After the recreation they are

ing class time. Do not turn your

perspiring and panting profusely and,

recreation time into study

exhausted, they go to study, but...

time, because when you have

their head is still confused, and they

to study later during the appointed time periods, your mind will be tired and you

over to the game so much that they are thinking about it during class. I am not

will gain little. Also avoid playing

need rest. They've given themselves

even speaking of those who shout so

much that they have a headache all day long,

I also point out those young men who walk about in cliques,

speaking about outings, parties, snacks, festivities, and vacations with such enthusiasm that

some for the next few days, and it will do

during class they can think

you no harm. Don't think I say this out of

of nothing else. For those

personal interest. Not at all, for experience

who have bad conversa

teaches that if you eat one less roll for breakfast, at lunch you will eat three more.

tions during recreation, I will say only that without

Whoever goes to class stuffed with food

soon feels his head overloaded, indisposed,

fear of God it is impossible for them to truly progress.

and wearied. He vainly fights tiredness and loses time miserably, because he under stands little or nothing and cannot fix his

your recreation, be orderly.

Consequently, even in

attention. The more he tries to pay attention,

I am not saying you should not play â&#x20AC;&#x201D;jump,have fun,

the worse it gets. Then he gets a headache. He is unable to do anything for several days.

am free from visits, I also

JULY-AUGUST, 1998

but not excessively. When I

Education

us). She is the Seat of Wisdom. Go also to

than enough to give work to even the very

your teachers and assistants; they will quicken and help you with all the explana tions you need. And I say more; Make the them, because these sharpen the wit and

brightest throughout the course. Tliere are young men who read a lot and are unable to do anything but tangle their brains. There are many who read unassigned poetry, tales, stories, or classical prose — excellent in themselves,if you will, but which

offer sweet satisfaction when you are able to conquer them. What contentment one expe

them from acquiring tme knowledge.

effort and be not only resolute in overcom

ing difficulties, but be happy when you find

distance them from their duties, preventing

learns

"But," you will ask,"what if I have free time after I have finished my work and stud ied my lesson?" Go over it again. Go back to

painstakingly will never obscure the mind

certain rules you have forgotten.... In sum,

again. We should not become discouraged in

don't waste your time reading stories. As I give you these counsels, I do not set aside the importance and advantages of

riences when he understands what seems

difficult! [Amen to this,] and take into account

that

whatsoever

one

encountering difficulties. Saint Jerome

gives an example of perseverance with his studies of Sacred Scripture. Having been

orderly and judicious reading; but it is nec essary that you have present, while reading.

commissioned to translate the Bible

from Hebrew to Latin, he retreated

to a cave. After spending much time dy, Seat of Wisdom

with similar studies, he was unable to resolve numerous difficulties. So

he decided to put the task aside. One fine day, having left the cave, he saw a rock with a small hole in it. He

stopped to consider how the little have recreation. I play with you, I jest, I laugh, but I don't break my head playing games. Therefore, the sixth means for study

hole had been formed, and he con

cluded that the incessant falling of water, drop by drop, in the same spot

ing with profit is in having a well-ordered

over a long period of time had

recreation.

formed the hole. "Who knows," he

said,"if this is not a sign from heav

7. The seventh means for studying prof itably is this; attack and overcome all dif ficulties you encounter in your subjects of

en for me not to become discour

study. \^en you find difficulties, don't

a hole in this rock, cannot I also, with con

panic. What did you come to the Oratory for? To study. Hence, it is only natural that

stancy, finish my job?" So he continued, taking lessons from a learned master and

the following norms: First: Do not read other books until you

you are going to leam what you don't

finished his magnificent task, to the incal culable advantage of all Christendom: Giiita cavat lapidem — the drop of rain

have finished your schoolwork, and Second: Do not read any book without

already know. And to leam what you don't know means you must force your mind, with greater or lesser effort depending on each one's greater or lesser wit. Therefore, take courage! It is necessary never to leave a job

aged and to continue my work? If a drop of water, with time, could drill

carveth the stone.

Saint John Bosco blesses his boys.

having reque,sted advice from your teacher or other persons capable of giving it, so that you avoid the risk of reading useless books,

half-done. Those who evade a difficulty that

ly consists of dedicating yourself exclu

poorly written or reprehensible, that corrupt the mind and heart, insinuating perverse

comes along do not act well if they say, "I

sively to studying the subjects of your

maxims.

don't understand this!" and then go on to

course. Phiribus intentus minor est ad sin-

something else. It is worthwhile to wait until

gula senstis, one does not acquire knowl edge leafing through many books. When

the difficulty has been conquered and over come. To obtain this, first have recourse to

Jesus and Mary, and you will see how the difficulties will disappear. Never forget,

8. The eighth means to study beneficial

Saint Thomas was asked how he had become so learned, he answered, "Reading

9. Continuing the list of means to study with headway, always have recourse to the protection of Mary Most Holy. Mary is the Seat of Wisdom. Thus, before studying your

overcome all difficulties in studies, because

that studies outside of your assigned sub

God is the only Giver and Father of knowl

jects must be postponed. If one is studying

lesson, before beginning the author's expla nation, before doing your composition, don't ever forget to pray an Ave Maria to the Virgin, adding the ejaculation Sedes

edge. He communicates it to whom and as

Latin and at the same time wants to leam

Sapientiae, ora pro nobis.

He wishes. Every day you say to the Most Holy Virgin in the Litany: Sedes Sapientiae, ora pro nobis! (Seat of Wisdom, pray for

English or French, which language will he

Realize, also, that actiones nostras — our

dominate at the end of the course? The Latin

action — is prayer directed to the Holy Ghost.

dearest sons, that this is the best way to

just one book at a time." It is necessary to mark well in your mind

language has such dimensions that it is more CRUSADE

IN BRIEF 0AIDS — No end in sight Contrary to the optimistic expectation that we are perhaps but a step away from curing or controlling AIDS, the number of persons infected with HIV virus strains that resist the known treatments is tending to grow beyond the present 10%. At the international symposium "Aids:

Modern

Diagnostic

and

Therapeutic

Aspects of Infection with HIV," held last

produce flavor and contribute to the charac teristic of cheese. Anyone who has tasted

held in Italy, he continued by stating that those obsessed with TV are completely pas

the real thing as opposed to a pasteurized

sive, whereas the Internet surfer is active.

cheese can well appreciate the ire of the

He is able to change his identity, his person

French in this matter, especially in a day

ality, even his gender.

and age when revolutionary forces strive, in

contrast to the created order of things, to

Those most affected by IAD wind up killing themselves on line. Sadly, at times

eliminate any and every legitimate differ

this suicide is not virtual.

ence and variety.

When the uproar subsided, the French,

May in Sao Paulo, Brazil, David Cooper,

fortunately, still had "permission" to contin

the principal technical and operational executive of Quest Diagnosis, stated that

ue producing the best cheeses in the world.

the virus is becoming more agile in mutat

0 Correct or not

staying ahead of efforts to develop new Having described how the virus works

in the human body and how it would be best to detect the virus before the symptoms of

That Karl Marx referred to religion as the "opium of the people" is well known. Since

ing into forms that resist treatment and is treatments.

0Communists push "opium"

Older readers will quite likely recall that the term correct used to mean "free from

error." With the gradual and virtually unperceived inversion of traditional principles and morals, we now have politically correct and

religion is used by the "oppressor classes" to control the "oppressed," he urged its aboli tion — and the communist world, in its cyn ical efforts to "free" the "oppressed," holds an unparalleled record for brutal oppression of Catholics and other Christians.

The collapse of the Soviet empire gave

AIDS manifest themselves, Mr. Cooper

find the term being applied even to things

rise to the widespread illusion that commu

went on to say that he believes new viruses

that were once criminal, but which now are considered "rights" (a term that is also

claims

similar to HIV will soon appear. Due to

nism had died, yet this failed ideology still numerous

obstinate

adherents.

viruses might lose their natural hosts and

undergoing drastic redefinition in our days). Not to be outdone in the muddling of

laries, their labels, or their masks, yet they

begin to attack men, as did the ebola virus.

terminology, the communist Chinese have

continue toward the same end as such

A United Nations report issued in June

come up with their own use of correct. This past June brought the ninth

unabashed communists as Fidel Castro.

anniversary of the brutal crackdown on the pro-democracy protest in Tiananmen

have never been reluctant to use any means that serve to gain their desired ends. They will even use the "opium of the people"!

environmental factors, these unknown

shows that the number of AIDS-infected

people worldwide — some 30 million —

puts the disease on par with history's worst epidemics. Both the flu epidemic of the

Square in Beijing, in which hundreds if not

Many of these have changed their vocabu

Now, communists, veiled or otherwise,

early twentieth century and the Black Death of the Middle Ages claimed about 20 mil

thousands were killed, and from which,

according to Amnesty International, at least

Vietnam, instructing

lion lives. AIDS takes longer to kill than

250 people are still missing. Regardless of

Party's Commission on Religious Topics,

either of those diseases, however, so it poses an even more ominous threat. More ominous yet is that this disease has

the pleas of dissidents and relatives of those killed during the June 4, 1989, assault, the

for countering the moral plague and decom

Nguyen Tan Dung, Prime Minister of the

Communist

has suggested that religion could be useful

Red Chinese refuse to conduct any inquiry

position that afflicts his country. This

occasioned the overthrow of virtually every restraint in the discussion of sexually trans mitted diseases and of sexuality itself — every restraint, that is, save those against

into the crackdown. Communist Chinese

"opium" employed by the Vietnamese com

1989, China's Communist Party and

administered in doses suitable to their ends

advocating a return to morality as the means

Government have made a correct conclu

and would in no way question the founda

sion. There's no necessity to make a

tions of their revolutionary society, and it

of curbing the spread of this malady.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao

munists would not, of course, be the true

stated, "On the political disturbances in

religion. Rather, it would be a caricature,

reassessment of the issue."

0 *1t's like plastic!"

Indeed, why should they? Regardless of their "correctness" Red China continues to

Early this decade a rumor went about

receive Western money and technology.

that the European Union was going to demand that all cheeses be pasteurized for

would be confined to the temples and pri vate use.

The Vietnamese communists' audacity and hypocrisy should not surprise anyone. In 1980, Friar Betto, the well-known libera

0Circuit overload

health reasons.

tion theologian censored by the Church and

befriended by Castro, suggested three possi

The rumor spread like wildfire through

Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD) is a

France, where such cheeses as Camembert and Chabicou are symbols of cultural identi

syndrome well known in our own country

with the unfortunate Cuban Catholics.

and becoming more widespread in others.

"Help this Church to become integral in the

ty. Cheese makers, chefs, store owners, and

Those who suffer from it think of nothing

construction of a socialist society." Castro

consumers panicked; petitions were circulat

one connoisseur. "It's like plastic."

but the Web, eating and sleeping only in order to survive and continue "surfing." "This syndrome has nothing to do with those intoxicated by television," stated

bility...is this. To insert the Christians, the Church, in the process of the construction of a socialist society."

While pasteurization destroys pathogen ic organisms that may cause health prob

sor at the Pontifical Gregorian University in

that "no one can at the same time be a sin

lems, it also denatures enzymes in milk that

Rome. Speaking at a congress of psychiatry

cere Catholic and a true socialist."

ed; and there was much ado in the media.

"Pasteurized cheese isn't cheese at all," said

Tonino Cantelmi, a psychiatrist and profes

ble options for the Castro regime's dealings

agreed: "You are right, the only real possi

Never mind Pope Pius XI's assertion

JULY-AUGUST. 1998 21

Ry'5x W* 5"i jsa

by Michael GorrCy

'V"l

Class of 1999

Excited but calm, four young men in traditional graduation

caps and gowns proceeded up the center aisle of Transfiguration Catholic Church in Shamokin, Above from left to right:

Pennsylvania, to the ceremonious

The graduates, Mindaugas

sound of Pomp and Circumsiatice. As the music faded away, they removed their mortarboards and The Academy is the ful knelt to salute our Sacramental fillment of a dream of Lord in the tabernacle. The very the late Prof. Pllnlo Correa de Ollveira first commencement exercise of Saint Louis de Montfort Academy had begun.

Penikas, Christopher Toenjes, Gabriel Shibler,

and Benjamin Hiegert, on the steps of Transfiguration Catholic Church In

Shamokin,Penn. Right; The graduates file into church for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the graduation

The Academy is the fulfillment of a dream of the

ceremony.

late Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira, the Brazilian Catholic thinker of world renown, founder of the

Brazilian TFP, and inspirer for all the other TFPs in the world. He had long desired an institution for boys that

Left: Msgr. Michael Fedorovich, pastor of Transfiguration church, delivers his graduation sermon.

would make them dedicated souls in the struggle

against that centuries-old conjunction of anti-Catholic revolutionary influences, tendencies, and forces that he named the Revolution.

The designs of Providence however, are at times Right: Mr. Raymond E. Drake, President of Saint Louis de

Montfort Academy,

presents the diplo mas.

enigmatic; Prof, de Oliveira died one month before the Academy was officially opened. The commencement ceremony, held on Saturday,

June 27, began with the celebration of the Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom by Msgr. Michael Fedorovich, pastor of Transfiguration Church. In his sermon, Msgr. Fedorovich reminded the nearly one

hundred people present that the very first events in the history of both secular and religious entities have great projection. As an example, citing the Book of Numbers (28:26-31) he said, "The Jews believed that the first-

bom of the flocks and fruits gathered at harvest time belonged to God in a special way. They were therefore

dedicated and presented to God on the day of the first fruits as a part of their celebration of Pentecost."

Referring to the young scholars now entering a new phase of their lives, Monsignor stated,"The first gradu Left: One proud

s 22

ates, the first harvest, emerge and we offer them back to

her son as the grad

His Almighty Providence in a special way. We have gathered...in the precincts of the sanctuary so reminis

uates greet family

cent of the Holy of Holies, to express our gratitude to

mother embraces

members and friends after Mass.

God for His gift of these four fine young men." After the Divine Liturgy, the school headmaster.

CRUSADE

Mr. Richard Lyon. introduced the guest speaker, Mr. Mario Navarro da Costa,

director of the Washington Bureau rep resenting the TFPs of the world, who

exhorted the graduates to keep ever in

mind the words of Saint Gregory, "Probatio dilectionis exhibitio est operus" — the proof of love is work. He stated that "Saint Louis de Montfort and Prof. Plinio showed their love for

the Blessed Virgin by working tireless ly for the glory of God.... In face of the great fight, the most noble vocation of your generation, repeat the famous

phrase of Our Savior; ^Domine, nan recuso laboreni" — Lord, I do not refuse the work."

w,—. Above: Directors, staff

Delivering the traditional address,class valedic- tnembers, and students

torian Benjamin Hiegert stated: "In keeping with Sort A°cTdemy. the example of its patron saint, the Academy rein forced in us the good we learned from our families,

especially the beauty of loving God above all things, of putting everything we have...at the service of

God. The Academy also led us to a deeper under

standing of the spirit of chivalry that we already admired as youngsters, and urged us to live by knight's code of honor." In closing, he thanked the faculty and staff of the Academy, the par

Right: Friends and family members con verse outside the

church after the cere mony

ents of the students, and all the Academy's benefactors, beginning with Msgr. Fedorovich, whose daily morning Mass provided the students and staff with the infinite gift of Our Lord Jesus Chri.st. As the graduates filed out of the church, the ceremony closed with the

singing of the school's song, We Want God, a hymn penned by none other than Saint Louis de Montfort himself.

A reception followed at the Academy itself in nearby Herndon. There, beneath

two large, colorful tents, parents, relatives,

friends, and fellow students enjoyed bountiful luncheon as the graduates shared memories and discussed their futures. The

tents, the Academy buildings, and the lawns were alive with animated conversa

tions until late in the evening.

■

View of the reception on the premises of Saint Louis de Montfort Academy

JULY-AUGUST. 1998 23

Society

V by Mary C. Meaney, Ph.D. Mary C. Meaney, of American and French nationality, was bom in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Graduating from Incarnate Word Academy as valedictorian in May of 1989, and becoming a Rhodes and Marshall Scholar, she continued her

studies at Harvard, Princeton, and the

University of Dallas, ultimately obtain ing her doctorate in political science from Oxford in 1996.

Her wide experience in national and international social/political affairs includes working as research assistant to Michael Novak at the American

contained nothing beyond a bottle of peni

ulated" than Bangladesh. In terms of

cillin and 75,000 condoms from USAID

rates of natural increase? In that

(United States Aid for International Development). There were no gloves, no syringes, no vitamins, no basic medical sup plies... but 75,000 condoms from USAID. In a similar vein. I learned recently about the feminists' newest initiative at the United Nations, The radical feminist lobby

in the U.N. is currently pu.shing for desig nation of a new "war crime." What is this new "crime," so abhorrent that it must be

case, pre-Revolutionary America would have been more "overpopulat-

ed" than contemporary Haiti. In terms of the dependency ratio of children and elderly to working pop ulations? That would mean Canada

was more "overpopulated" in 1965

than India is today. If overpopulation

is a problem, it is a problem that has been misidentified and mis-defined.

Enterprise Institute; analyzing European security issues at the Center

enshrined as a crime against all humankind at the International Court of Justice?

The images evoked by the term — hungry children, squalid housing, early death — speak to problems all

for Strategic and International Studies; working on mobile clinics and teaching

"Enforced pregnancy." By that, of course,

too real in the modem world. But

the feminists mean "compulsory pregnan

students in Kenya; and serving as a

cy," or lack of access to abortion on

these are properly described as prob lems of poverty?

delegate at the 1995 UN Conference on Women in Beijing. She is currently

demand.*

employed as Strategy Management Consultant at McKinsey and Company in Washington, D.C.

Overpopulation

And it is by no means clear that poverty

Decision-makers and opinion-shapers

is caused by population, as Hong Kong and so many other densely populated but wealthy countries can attest.

the world over have come to accept "over The facts on population

Afew summers ago, 1 was working on a

population" as a veritable article of faith. Scarcely does a United Nations conference go by without population growth being

mobile clinic in Kenya. Returning

cited as one of the world's most serious

between the late 1960s and the late 1980s,

from one of our many tours, we found a woman lying on the side of the road. Her

problems.' Yet. nowhere does one find a

the average number of births among the

fixed and consistent definition for the term. As Harvard economist Nicholas Eberstadl

that since 1950 even' nation has experi

the nearest government hospital, five hours away. As she was too weak to walk, we car ried her into reception, shoving the cows

remarked to a group of parliamentarians

enced a decline in birth rate.-*

aside. The doctor was in the local bar —

terms of population density? II so.

drunk — so we decided to speak with the

Bermuda would be more "over pop

condition was critical, so we drove her to

pharmaci.st, a kindly man whose pharmacy

24 -

gathered for the World Food Summit:

The most reliable statistics indicate that

world's women dropped by one-third' and

In the developed world, the most press

ing population problem is a dramatic demo How would one define it? In

graphic implosion. In many parts of Europe, birth rales continue to hover well below the

replacement rate of 2.1 children per couple.

CRUSADE

Society Twelve European nations have remained

below replacement continuously since 1965, and only two European countries — Ireland and Malta — are currently replacing their populations.

As for the source of this century's rapid

dropped.^^lo^oy,even advocates of popula tion control recognize that the exhaustion of resources is scarcely credible as a justifica tion for aggressive population control. Instead, population growth and rising living

argument nevertheless highlights some of the major assumptions on which the ideolo gy rests, namely that people are liabilities

rather than assets, and that the very exis tence of other human beings is a serious threat. While each additional person is seen

standards serve to stimulate technical

population growth, the increase in human

progress in searching for, extracting, trans

as a drain, proponents of population control

numbers is a direct consequence of the rev

porting, and marketing those reserves. Unable to support their objectives with

ignore the fact that wealth is created by peo ple, and that each additional person is not only a consumer of resources, but a produc

olution in health conditions. As Eberstadt

remarked, "rapid population growth com ly started breeding like rabbits, but rather

cries of impending famine or depletion of natural resources, the population move ment then turned to an economic argument:

because they finally stopped dying like flies."^ The principal cause of population

Population growth, they claimed, leads to increasing poverty and so poses a signifi

growth...[is a] remarkable decrease in death rates, caused by the tremendous medical

cant threat. Yet, underlying that statement is the false assumption that wealth is finite and that the more people there are among whom to divide wealth, the less will go to each individual. This mentality is best

menced not because human beings sudden

advances of the twentieth century. Over the past fifty years, life expectancy at birth in the world increased by roughly 20 years, while infant mortality fell by two-thirds.®

als produce more than they consume and that (as demonstrated by densely-packed, resource-poor Hong King)there is "'nofi.\ed level of resources, no natural capacity, no predefined limit to what people might do if given the opportunity to exercise the real

factors in development: enterprise, creativi ty, and risk."'-

World population increase should thus be

GDP; gross domestic production goes up each time a pig is bom, but goes down each

notfailure.

time a child is born.

Questionable motives

ing worse even though, by all available objective standards, the world is becoming more secure and more prosperous, and peo

Once again, this claim is simply unsub stantiated by the facts. Beginning in 1967, Nobel Prize winning economist Simon Kuznets published a study comparing popu lation growth rates with economic growth

ple are leading longer and healthier lives."'

rates and found no connection."

ue to claim that the human prospect is grow

ty and initiative. Economists have long rec

ognized that in an open economy individu

exemplified in China's calculation of its

seen and celebrated as a sign of progress, Yet, population-control activists contin

er, a source of wealth and ideas, of creativi

Not only are the statistics and arguments of the population-control lobby highly questionable, so too are their motives. Much

of this lobby is driven by a subtle and odi

ous form of racism. Margaret Sanger, the

The population controllers' economic

founder of International Planned Parenthood,

Inflated statistics

Population activists have repeatedly pro duced inflated statistics with apocalyptic warnings about the impending collap.se of

WFI

the world as we know it. Paul Ehrlich intro

duced his book The Population Bomb with the claim that "the battle to feed all human

ity is over. In the 1970's, the world will undergo famines — hundreds of millions of

people are going to starve to death in spite of any crash program embarked on now." Of

• ■«

★

rik

course, no famine of such massive propor tions ever occurred (and certainly none caused by population growth). The head of the Club of Rome admitted that the Club had lied in its most famous

population study. Limits to Growth.^ In

order to generate sufficient levels of hyste ria, they deliberately inflated their initial

lirr

estimates. Some of the data was wrong by a factor of 900%." To cite but one example, here are the dates for the complete exhaus tion of the following resources as laid out

*•

by the Club of Rome: copper, 1993; gold,

v.---- —

•

1981; lead, 1993; mercury, 1985; natural gas, 1994; petroleum, 1992; silver. 1985.

Availability of raw materials has more

than kept pace with increased consumption,

The United Nations and Chinese flags hang above guests at the welcoming ceremony for for eign delegates at the 1995 UN World Conference on Women In Beijing's Great Hall of the

and commodity prices have not risen, but

People.

JULY-AUGU.ST. 1998 2.^

Society

had nothing but contempt for those she deemed as belonging to "inferior races." In her book Pivot ofCivilizotion, she called for

• promotion and increase

these were mentioned, they were presented

of homosexuality • increase in marriage taxes

cles to women's progress.

the extermination of "weeds...overrunning

• compulsory abortion of

the human garden" and for the sterilization of "genetically inferior races."'^ Perhaps the second driving motivation

out-of-wedlock pregnancies • compulsory sterilization for

is selfishness. Unwilling to let anything get in the way of their unprecedented prosper

• payments to encourage sterilization

ity, population-control advocates feel men

• the distribution of fertility-control

contribute to the discussion while refusing

aced by growing numbers of poor children

substances in drinking water.'^

to grant the floor to Guatemala, the Vatican,

those who have two children

• abortion and sterilization on demand

Displays of blatant and unabashed prej udice by U.N.-appointed chairmen were the rule in Beijing. These allowed certain coun tries the opportunity to speak while com pletely ignoring others. In one working group, the chairman pleaded with Canada to

and Slovakia. The bias was so glaring that at

and are prepared to countenance any

means to ensure that their own way of life

primarily as sources of oppression or obsta

It has likewise stated that its internation

the end of the session, the Slovakian dele

al abortion agenda takes precedence over

gate called out,"Why don't you recognize

Lest anyone believe that the selfish and

local laws or customs and that International

Slovakia? I am in a red dress. 1 am 8-monihs

racist motivations of the population lobby were buried with Margaret Sanger, I would

Planned Parenthood Federation should feel

free to violate national laws whenever it is

pregnant and I have been standing here waving my sign for half an hour. You cannot

have you consider National Security Study

in its interest to do so: "Family planning associations and other non-governmental

is not threatened.

Memorandum 200, which outlines the

pretend not to have seen me." The chairman mumbled something about the room being

Despite having proclaimed in 1948 that the family is the basic unit of society, the U.N. is playing a major role in advancing the population-control and anti-family agenda. "Implications of Worldwide Population

organizations should not use the absence of

large, but the Slovakian delegate was still

Growth for U.S. Security and Overseas

law or the existence of an unfavorable law

not permitted to speak. Instead, the chair

Interests." The memo singled out popula

as an excuse for inaction; action outside the

man declared that consensus had been

tion growth in developing countries as a

law, and even in violation of it is part of the process of stimulating change.'

reached, despite cries by government dele gations in the room that "There is no con

serious threat to American interests and

recommended the spread of populationcontrol initiatives to minimize population growth in these countries and thus delay or eliminate possible shifts in the balance of

power. Yet, eager to avoid being accused of "imperialistic activities whose purpose is racial," the report also advised using inter national agencies, private groups, and

political and religious organizations to advance this agenda. In case of necessity, the report foresaw the use of coercion, such as withholding food aid unless the local government agreed to introduce strict population controls. Questionable tactics

Viewing people as the root of the prob lem, many of the most powerful populationcontrol organizations have admitted their willingness to use virtually any means at their disposal to advance their agenda.

sensus. We do not agree." The United Nations

Manipulation was even more sinister at the level of sub-committee and closed-door

From its initial strong defense of the

family in the 1948 declaration that pro claims the family as the basic unit of soci ety, the U.N. has come to play a major role in advancing the population-control agenda. In recent years, the U.N. has been increasingly hijacked by radical groups interested in advancing controversial agen das behind closed doors. Proposing their most controversial initiatives within inter

national organizations like the U.N. and the European Court of Human Rights, these groups are able to operate with a minimum of public scrutiny or democratic account ability.

The most glaring example of both their

radical agenda and the tactics they are pre

working groups — to which particularly sen sitive topics were generally referred.

Typically, only some governments (usually those of the First World) were fully informed of these delicate closed-door sessions.

Even the sessions that were fairly well publicized were available only in English...leaving many African and Latin American delegations completely power

less. Controversial topics such as abortion and sex education consistently surfaced after all simultaneous translation

had

stopped, usually at the end of a long day of negotiations, often in the early hours of the morning when smaller delegations had suc cumbed to exhaustion. The most controver

sial topic — rights of sexual orientation —

pared to employ comes from the U.N.

was left to the last day of deliberations.

Conference on Women in Beijing. In a pro

Negotiations were initially delayed until

In the early 1970s, for example, Planned

posed program to address issues of concern

7:00 RM., then 11:00 P.M. The session

Parenthood proposed a list of 33 measures to be adopted to reduce the birth rate, including;

to women, there was hardly a word on mar

finally started at 2:00 am."" Manipulation also took the form of overt

riage, motherhood, or family life. When

CRUSADE

Society threats. The

Minister of

tives will not reduce fertility until women

quotas. In many areas, health workers

Foreign Affairs received a letter from the

Guatemalan

want to have fewer children, unless, of course, one is prepared to countenance

receive a bonus for each sterilization proce dure but stand to lose their jobs if they fail

life, pro-family sentiments voiced by the

coercive means to achieve that end. All too

to meet the required number of steriliza

Guatemalan delegate would incur serious financial repercussions against Guatemala

frequently, this is precisely what occurs.

tions, a situation lending itself to every

The population-control programs that have enjoyed the most conspicuous "success" have relied on the compulsory sterilization of large numbers of women. China's brutal

form of abuse. As Steven Mosher wrote in

U.S. ambassador implying that strong pro-

unless the delegate was silenced." Imbalance

the Wall Street Journal, govemment work ers not only "went house-to-house to round

one-child policy is the most notorious

up candidates, but they paid repeated visits to those who refused to comply. As one

powerful, well-financed movement is the

example. Some of the population con trollers in that country openly state that it is

woman in La Quinta remarked. They come day and night...to urge me to undergo the

diversion of millions of dollars for popula

"more humane to kill the children before

operation.'"

tion-control activities that would be far better spent on authentic

they are bom than to bring them into a soci-

One particularly perverse aspect of this

Coercion also comes in the form of food

aid that is made contingent

developments such as guaran

upon submitting to steriliza

teeing clean water, improving

tion. Frequently, the individ

agricultural techniques, and

ual who is in charge of admin

providing basic medical sup

istering food aid is the same person who leads the steril

plies and antibiotics.

The sheer scale of popula

ization campaign, forcing Pe

tion-control funding is breath

ruvian women to make the

taking. Official figures indi cate that USAID has spent roughly $4 billion in the last 20 years for birth control pro

inhuman decision of whether

or not to accept being mutilat ed against their will. Because all too often the sterilization staff are not

grams abroad, and that since

1969, money spent on popula

trained

tion control has exceeded USAID's total worldwide

obstetricians and because the

gynecologists

surgeries are performed very

/leaWi-related expenditures. Over the past 25 years, IPPF alone has spent the

I rapidly in very unhygienic

equivalent of over 2 billion US

permanent injury can be very

dollars (mostly provided by the governments of developed

I conditions, the numbers of

women dying or suffering Delegates listen to speeches during the opening ceremony of the 4th U.N. World Conference on Women held at Beijing International

countries). Imagine what Convention Center. impact that money could have

high.

Sanches

Mrs.

Avelina

Noberto testified

before Congress earlier this year. "After the operation. I was unable to recover. My stomach swelled

had on providing drinking water for Third

ety of too many people. If you consider the

World inhabitants; yet, as we have seen. IPPF's interest in drinking water has cen

serious difficulties overpopulation creates for people living today, the moral problem

tered on the wish to lace it with fertility-

of abortion isn't too .serious."''^

inhibiting drugs. Imagine the advances in health and agriculture that could have been achieved with the billions of dollars show

tion programs is by no means limited to

became very insolent with me." After a

China. Doctors in government hospitals in Mexico are currently under orders to insert

series of operations in Peru to attempt to

ered on the Third World for condoms,

lUDs, and sterilizations. With the money that USAID allocates to contraceptives, we

lUDs in women who have three or more

hospital but do not have the ability to pay them back or continue my treatment

could easily save the 2.1 million children

children, a procedure often done without the knowledge or consent of the women

each year who die from vaccine-preventable

concerned.-" In Brazil. 7.5 million women

Use of coercion and violence in popula

diseases.'"

were sterilized over a period of five years

Coercion

thanks to $32 million in First World aid and despite the fact that sterilization was forbid

People in developing countries have large families because they want large fam ilies. In many parts of the world, large fam ilies make economic and social sense.

den by law at the time.-' In Peru, tens of thousands of Peruvian

women have been sterilized since the pre sent population-control program

was

Given this reality, it becomes apparent that

launched in 1996. The government institut ed quotas for health workers along with

dumping enormous quantities of contracep

incentives for them to meet or exceed those

and I had the sensation that all my intestines were burning.... 1 began to worry because 1 entered the hospital very healthy. When I

went to the obstetrician to complain, she

remedy the damage, she said, "1 owe the

because of the expensive medication need ed. I am desperate." No information

Certainly, reports of women who have

been sterilized against their will are wide

spread. The BBC's recent documentary. The Human Laboratory, catalogued similar

abuses of family planning programs throughout the developing world. The BBC found that countless Third World women

JULY-AUGUST, 1998 27

Hofi (ten) Society

effects of the various contraceptive meth

gandized in the mass media and has come to be generally believed. All this has largely

ods, even though adverse reactions may be

succeeded, but success is not necessarily

much more severe for poor women in devel

truth. Subjected to the test of time and clos er scrutiny, the entire enterprise collapses. But it is not just their statistics and pre

are simply not being told about the side

oping

countries.--

Drugs

such

Quinacrine, which the World Health Organization advises against giving to

SubscrtlbÂŽ bcD)

dictions that are fatally flawed. So too are

humans, have been used in mass steriliza

the philosophical underpinnings of their ide

tion programs involving over 100,000 women. Other experimental contraceptive devices have been implanted in thousands of women, leading one aid worker, Farida Akhter, to remark, "It's cheaper for them to

ology. The racist origins of the movement

Call us at

(717)450-6500

have in part given way to what is no more than a materialistic concern for the prosper

use Third World women than to use an ani mal in a laboratory in the West."

ity of tlie few. The anti-population crusade is fueled by a self-interested belief that "your being inconveniences our well-being" and rests on the philosophical error that humans

Conclusion

that solutions lie in coercion and control

are liabilities rather than assets, and asserts

In order to be sold to the public, the

rather than development and initiative. As we approach this new millennium, we find our

overpopulation message has been skillfully presented by "scientific experts" whose dis interested objectivity, prophetic far-sighted

selves at a crossroads where we can either

or write to

continue our course of selfishness and destruction or reaffirm our commitment to

Crusade Magazine

ness,

respecting the lives and dignity of every human being regardless of how poor,

P.O. 00x1868

social

awareness,

and

moral

respectability have been assumed to be authentic, dependable, and worthy of trust. Their message has been endlessly propa

how defenseless, or how vulnerable they

might be.

York, PA 17405 or e-mail to

Crusade@tfp.org Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan, all of

Notes *

Editor's note: The U.N. Commission on

which have experienced rapid population

Human Rights, recently meeting in Geneva , formally adopted the term "forced pregnancy"

growth and have some of the highest population

in a resolution on violence against women,

noted,"The increase in population and wealth

using it, or "enforced pregnancy," at the insis

have not been merely coincidental. They are

tence of feminists as a euphemism to mask their

causes and effects of each other. Today, with

drive for universal abortion on demand.

few exception, the most densely populated

densities in the world. As Sheldon Richman has

CrvSADE

countries are the richest. Any mystery in the is 1) Catholic World Report, April 93. 2) Speech to parliamentarians. World Food

dispelled by die realization that people are the source of ideas." Mercedes Wilson, 166.

12) William McGum, First Things,

Summit, October 1996. 3) U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF), The

December 1996, pp. 22-25

Slate ofthe World's Children (London: Oxford University Press, 1993), p.77. See also "World

Street Journal, May 5, 1997.

Population Datasheet, 1970-1990" (Washington; Population Reference Bureau).

4) Programme of Action of the Conference,

13) "Woman And the New Race," Wall 14)"U.S. Population Growth and Family Planning: A Review of die Literature, Family Planning Perspective, Special Supplement, vol.

Paragraph 6.1-6.2. For an analysis of how popu

2, no. 4, October 1970.

lation growth could reach zero, see Jacqueline Kasun, Population and Environmeni; Debunking the Myth (Washington: Population Re.search

Report by the Working Group on the Promotion of Family Planning as a Basic Human Right to

Institute. 1991). 5) Nicholas Eberstadt, Keynote address. World Food Summit, November 15, 1996.

6) Programme of Action of die Cairo Conference, Paragraph 8.1. 7) Jacqueline Kasun, The War Against

Population (Ignatius Press, 1988), p. 23. 8) Tone, April 26, 1976, p. 56. 9) A'arure, September 21, 1973. 10) The World Bank's food commodity prices fell by 78% from 1950-1992 in constant 1990 prices. 11) While there appears to be no connection

the Members' Assembly and the Central

Council of the International Planned Parenthood Federation. IPPF, 1984, pp. 28-29. Kasun, p. 188.

16)"Family of the Americas," Letter of

to current Catholic events; from episodes in the lives of the saints to the persecu

18) Baobab Press, newsletter of the Information Project for Africa, October 1993. 19) Xu Fangling, a birth-conU'ol official who helped design a campaign in Dongguan,

own days; from inspirational stories for children to insightful discussion of child rearing; from apologetics to recipes. Fully illustrated and dynamically pre

quoted in The Washington Post, Jan. 7, 1985.

growth, there is a connection between popula

1997.

have come from countries like Taiwan, South

articles of lasting interest for each and every member of your family â&#x20AC;&#x201D; from the history of Christian civilization

tion and martyrdom of Catholics in our

20) Steven Mosher.'Too Many People? Not by a Long Shot," Wall Street Journal, Feb. 10,

greatest economic success .stories since WWII

Six times a year. Crusade offers timely

December 1, 1995, p. 2. 17) Ibid. p. 1.

between population growth and economic

tion density and economic growth. Some of the

15) The Human Right to Family Planning,

21)Jornal de Brasilia, July 15, 1990. 22) BBC Documentary, The Human

sented, Crusade will be a welcome addi

tion to both your coffee table and library. Subscribe now!

Laboratoiy.

A Catholic magazine for the whole family!

History

Basic History Course

Western Civilization by Jeremias Wells

CHAPTER

The Great Persecutions and the

Apostolic Fathers Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and the stoic

philosopher Marcus Aurelius, who as a NTONINUi

HARRIAN

group were polite, able, and hard working, nevertheless allowed much innocent blood to flow. To say that they were better than the rest of the emperors of the first hundred years of

When Domitian was murdered by

the

death

human will. Furthermore, the much-praised Roman tolerance did not extend to any reli gion that repudiated idolatry. Therein lies

The conflict between paganism, better

de.scribed as polytheistic idolatry, and

the irreconcilable opposition between the two parties.

Christianity during two and a half centuries goes to the

Persecution in the second century

Domitian, the Empire faced

had

previously

very root of human exis tence. Adam's sin produced a corruption of worship. Because worship is a neces sity of human nature embod ied in the heart of man by

another precarious situation and impending disaster. The imperial assassins

East, the resulting polytheism opposed

Prime cause of the persecution

Augustus and Vespasian inaugurated a period of some stability after turbulent civil wars. With

When the Romans merged their theolog ical system with that of the more sensual

truth, purity, and any attempt to sanctify the

among the first twelve to die a violent

death. Only Caesar Augustus and his suc cessor Tiberius, and Vespasian and his son Titus died peacefully. Both

did Saint Paul (1 Cor. 10:20) and numerous other authors.

the Empire is dim praise indeed.

members of his own household,

he became the eighth emperor

John went to great lengths in the Apocalypse to show the devil's influence on history, as

selected

Nerva, a moderately success ful senator, to succeed the

At the beginning of the second century, two convergent lines of anti-Christianity were developing: the violent reaction of the

mob and the legal machinery introduced by the emperors through the provincial gover

God, Who gave him that

nors and the local magistrates. Once the

nature, the souls of men

Church was seen as an autonomous society

Holy

because of the unity of its doctrine and its

hierarchical organization, it provoked the

murdered tyrant, but he was

Creator to earthly objects. A desire for material things and

hostility of its neighbors. Moreover, the

incapable of winning the sup

physical pleasure replaced

austere morality of the faithful in their

port of the army and the

the worship of the true God.

daily lives acted by contrast as a condem

Praetorian Guard. To prevent

The corruption of souls in

nation of the immoral distractions of the pagans. As the mob's hatred increased, the vulgar populace invented horrible calum nies and morbid tales to further incite antiChristian prejudice.

more turmoil, Nerva went

turned

^"^P^ror Marcus Aurelius

outside his own family circle

from

their

the course of time continual

ly became worse and pro

and adopted Trajan, the most distinguished

duced a whole pantheon of gods which

soldier of his day, as his son and heir. The

were the creation of man's own lusts.

emperor then died four months later. This

Not only does man worship the creature

.system of adopting the "best man" as heir to

instead of the Creator, but he also pays ser

The urban populace. acciLstomed to the ferocious excitements of the arena and cir

the throne was sufficiently successful to be utilised three more times and gave the

slaughtered by the hundreds and even thou

Empire eighty years (98-180) of political

vice to God's enemies, the fallen angels. When Satan saw the supernatural life of grace and participation in the life of the

order, the last it was ever to .see.

Blessed Trinity expand through the rapidly

sadistic instincts against the

growing Church, he made war upon it. Saint

Christians. Bossuet identifies the key ele-

The so-called "Good Emperors," Trajan,

JULY-AUGUST. 1998

cus where humans and animals were sands, could easily be incited to turn their

hated

History

ment in his usual eloquent lan guage, "The perverse man desires to kill, to stamp out of

the Apostles to the Apostolic

ing mob of sick souls, while enjoying their

Fathers who were taught and

sadistic pleasures in the arena, decided to

trained by them. This deposit

existence everything that restrains his passions. Cain

was passed on to the fathers and doctors of the Church who

prolong the blood lust by calling for the death of the Christian bishop. After his arrest and hasty trial, Polycarp was brought

slays Abel, the Pharisees put

wrote the patristic literature in

before the excited crowd, who actually went

Jesus Christ to death, the

subsequent centuries.

out and collected the fuel for the fire. An

wicked at all times wish to

During the Age of the Apostolic Fathers, the Church

cle of the first order. The fire, "like the sail

destroy the Church, which is the body of Christ."'

saw tremendous growth in

When the cultured and

organization and stability as

moderate Pliny the Younger

The Emperor Trajan

arrived as imperial legate in

well as territorial expansion.

unscathed. The executioner was ordered to

stab him, thereupon "there came forth a quantity of blood so great that it extin

the size of the Christian population. As a conscientious administrator, he wrote to the

himself.

emperor Trajan and complained that

During the reign of Domitian, Pope Saint

Christianity had spread beyond the towns to the countryside and had caused the pagan temples to be deserted. Those brought

Clement of Rome (d. 101 A.D.) wrote to the

before him who admitted they were Christian and refused to recant, Pliny exe cuted for inflexible obstinacy. "Was this a

correct procedure?" he asked the emperor. Trajan gave his answer in the famous rescript of A.D. 112, which basically estab lished the legal procedure for the rest of the century. In a reply both absurd and illogical, Trajan clearly indicates that it was the name of "Christian" alone that was proscribed. However, the Christians must not be sought

out, but punished only when denounced by somebody else. If they denied their religion by adoring the Roman gods, they were to be pardoned. The Christian apologist, Tertul-

Mi k . . 1

order to resolve internal intrigues, he gave

instructions in the tone of a man who expected

v.?

ri^iyVI'.CP./>

to be obeyed. This gives indisputable evidence of the supremacy of the Roman bishop at that early date. Clement, who had associated with the Apostles, also asserted that the hierarchical organization of the Church was established by divine authority. The authentic historical documents we

have conceming the life of Saint Ignatius(d. 116) explain very little about his personal history, but elaborate instead largely on aspects of Catholic doctrine. While being escorted by rough, insensitive Roman sol diers from Antioch to Rome to be devoured

"It forbids the Christians to be sought after

as innocent, and yet it commands them to be

to various churches and one to Saint

punished as guilty."-

Polycarp, then a young bishop of Smyrna. As a most important link between the

From that point on the Christians lived

guished the fire."^

ever-contentious Corinthians a letter of exhor tation that received almost canonical status. In

by wild beasts for the amusement of a depraved crowd, he wrote seven epistles, six

lian, saw and pointed out the illogic of this:

of a vessel filled by the wind, made a wall around the body" of the martyr, leaving it

However, Church doctrine was

received by the Church Fathers in a definite, complete, and dogmatic form without any change from the Apostles, as if from Christ

Bithynia, a province in northern Asia Minor along the Black Sea, he was astonished at

authentic letter of the day describes a mira

I Saint Polycarp, a disciple of Saint John,

proclaims his Faith at his hasty trial. Other early Church Fathers

under a constant threat of death. However,

Apostles and the Fathers of the early

since the brutal but glorious martyrdoms were intermittent and geographically sepa rated, the Church in most areas enjoyed some periods of peace. The systematic

Church, he stressed that the Church was

By mid-second century, the corridor car rying Christ's supernatural revelation to

divinely established as a visible, unified society. Those who separate themselves

Many men of learning and talent â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

from it cut themselves off from God. He fur

professors, philosophers, and lawyers â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

attempt to utterly destroy Chri.stianity lay

ther stressed the doctrine of the Incarnation

embraced Christianity during this period.

over a hundred years in the future.

and the two natures of Christ. The information we have on Saint

They mounted an impassioned but well-rea

Polycarp, who conversed with the Apostles

soned literary attack on the Church's adver

and received his appointment from them,

saries.

Apostolic Fathers

man became wider and more diffusive.

These men did not hide in the catacombs.

Modem critics of the Church like to

notably Saint John, provides a detailed

Among these writers, called apologists

throw up their hands in false despair and

account of his glorious martyrdom. The

because they defended and explained the

admit to a non-existing confusion about the

Apostles saw Christ die at Jerusalem and they in turn sealed their testimony with their

faith. Saint Justin .stands out for his fearless

attitude can easily be dispelled when one understands that a solid line of knowledge,

own blood. The next generation joined a

prosperous pagan family, he spent his early years searching through various philoso

from which we derive the unchanging

ness in Greek) for the truth and laid down

phies for the true meaning of life. When the

their lives for Christ.

itinerant scholar discovered the truth in the

origin and early days of the Church. This

Catholic unity of truth, exists from the teaching of Our Lord Jesus Christ through

succession of witnes.ses (martyr means wit

One day in A.D. 155 in Smyrna, a howl

ness and the vigor of his attack. Born into a

teachings of Christ, he devoted the rest of

CRUSADE

History his life to teaching and writing.

after only 18 months on the throne,

Justin debated and humiliated

having caused very little damage

Crescens, a leading Cynic philoso pher of the day. He addressed the imperial family, denouncing the immorality of pagan worship and

to the overall health of the Church.

In fact, the heroic resistance of its

saints toughened the moral fiber of the Christians.

describing the heathen gods as devils. Soon the philosophic cir cle surrounding Marcus Aurelius,

The Emperor Valerian, of weak character, yielded to the influence of one of his ministers who was

himself a noted philosopher of

also chief of the magicians of

despair, mounted a campaign of vilification in response. Execu

Egypt and renewed the war of

extermination in the year 257.

tions followed. Boldly, Justin pub lished his second Defense of the

Above: Christians are thrown to the lions and burned at the stake

Christians, declaring the execu before bloodthirsty Roman spectators. tions unjust and instigated by the

demons.As he had anticipated, Justin paid for

However, he also came to a swift and violent end. In 260 he was

captured by the Persians and cru

elly put to death. Nevertheless,

it was no longer the Empire of Caesar

torrents of blood flowed, including that of

his courage with his own blood. He was

Augustus. The Roman Senate, the Italian

Saints Cyprian and Lawrence.

scourged and beheaded with six of his disci ples in A.D. 167. As in the active life of Our Lord, the

citizen class, and the provincial city-states had all lost their strength. The aristocracy

— which we shall cover in detail in the next

growing Church experienced few moments

that were free from opposition and agitation. Not only did it suffer from the trials of per secution, but in the second century it saw heresies develop into an insidious poison that attacked Christian doctrine and morali

ty. The most seductive of these errors was Gnosticism, a combination of pagan philos ophy, oriental cults, and superstition. It was the unifying principle of numerous heresies that identified man with God and led to the

and wealthy classes, many of whom were ruined by excessive taxation, grew steadily more unsuitable for military service. The officers and eventually the emperors who graduated from the barracks were

recruited from the peasantry with little or no culture or education. Many possessed mili tary talent but were usually opposed by some other rival general and the treachery of their own troops. Of the 29 emperors from the death of Aurelius to the ascension of

Saint Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons in Gaul and a link through Saint Polycarp to Saint

chapter because of its link with Constantine — was also unproductive in its result.

Despite, or in many cases because of, the heroic martyrdoms, the Church had tri

umphed. This should not be surprising, for Saint John remarked in his first epistle,"For whatsoever is bom of God, overcometh the

world" (5:4). And Our Lord Himself said, "In the world you have distress, but have confidence, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). ■

Diocletian (A.D. 284), 23 were murdered.

ultimate errors of pantheism and naturalism,

a strain that runs through history to this day.

The final persecution under Diocletian

Bibliographical note: The great persecution

With the Empire losing control of its des

Books on the persecution itself include Paul Keresztes, Imperial Rome and the

John the Evangelist, wrote one of the great

tiny from anarchy, barbarian invasions,

Christians, 2 vols. (1989); Patrick J. Healy,

masterpieces of Catholic literature in refuta

famine, disease, and other calamities, some

The Valerian Persecution (Boston, 1905);

tion. This work circulated widely and suc ceeded in eliminating the scourge for a

of the more superstitious emperors and their hostile, pagan ruling circle turned against the Chri.stians with a malicious vengeance. No

while; but it has resurfaced many times

Paul Allard, Ten Lectures on the Martyrs (New York. 1907). Among the many Church histories consulted two stand out: Jules

Lebrelon, S.J., and Jacques Zeillar, The

since in history in a recast form to cause

longer content with isolated executions insti

History of the Primitive Churclr, 2 vols.

incalculable damage.

gated by the petty hatred of the mob, they

(New York, 1942) and Henri Daniel-Rops, The Church of the Apostles and Martyrs

took the initiative and attempted to wipe the The seeds of Rome's decline

During the third century, the balance of

power shifted from the old, decaying Empire to the new vibrant force of Christianity. These resembled two trees in

an arboretum; one rotting from the inside with its branches slowly dying and wither ing away, the other growing rapidly, full of life and vitality. Marcus Aurelius died in 180 on the

Danube frontier while attempting, with no conclusive results, to stem the barbarian tide

with a plague-stricken army. The empire had already reached the height of its territorial expansion and economic development. But

name of Christ from the Empire entirely. The soldier-emperor Decius inaugurated the most systematic and widespread cam

paign ever attempted. All Christians, begin ning with the bishops and priests, were ordered to sacrifice to the pagan gods.

Those who refused were sent to prison where they suffered hunger, thirst, filth, and crushing torture to force them to relent. The

(New York, 1960). For the Apostolic Fathers

see: F. Cayre, A.A.. Manual ofPairologv and History of Theology (Paris. 19.35); and two popular and very readable volumes, William Thomas Walsh. Saints in Action (New York. 1961) and Maisie Ward, Saints Who Made

History (New York, 1959). Valuable insight on the period was gained from; T.W. Allies, The Formation of Christendom, Vol. 11

(London. 1903); and Christopher Dawson, The Making ofEurope (New York, 1945).

idea was not to make martyrs but apostates, and a large number did apostatize. As the Church grew in numbers, many converts remained in contact with the good life of pagan society and lacked the spiritual for

Notes 1. Quoted in Devivier, Christian Apologetics,

Vol. I., p. 479.2. Mourret-Thompson, History of

mation to accept suffering. But the majority the Catholic Church, Vol. I. p. 199.3. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII., p.221,

endured. Decius died on the battlefield

JULY-AUGUST. 1998 31

Family Series

a Merton A true story I have at home a flawless diamond.

And I a jewel that would grace a king. Belter than both, there came a third voice mild. I have at home a sinless little child. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Anon.

Adapted and abridgedfrom the book of Father Francis J. Finn, S.J,

Ada had been accepted to join the First Communion class that term and

could hardly keep from bursting with joy. When she skipped into the elegantly fur nished study where her parents were both reading, they welcomed her with tender affection. Ada's parents doted on her every word and move.

"Oh,I have such great news!" she cried,

then stopped suddenly and glanced shyly over to where her father sat; "but I'm afraid

wait another... er... two or three years?

nacle, the sacred statues, the priest, the altar

You'll understand what you are doing so much more, don't you think, sweetheart?" "Oh, Mama!" cried Ada, with her face

boys. It had all been explained to her, lov ingly, simply, beautifully. It was her mother

and tone so pitiful that her father hid his

and followed her progress, mental and spir

glowering eyebrows behind his paper and

itual, with loving solicitude. In trusting the

her mother drew her quickly to her side. "All right, darling, have it your own

way. If it makes you happy, well, that's that."

For that moment, at least, the

Papa won't like it." "Just imagine I'm downtown." her father replied, burying his face behind his volumi

finality of her lone silenced any further discussion on the subject. Ada looked

nous newspaper.

relieved, but the sparkle in her eyes had dimmed.

Ada's father, John Merton, was a con

fessed atheist. He professed to believe in no

From that day forth.

God, much less in a Church founded by

Ada began to think quite

God, even though he had once been a good

a lot about her parents. She had always

Catholic. Ada's mother had once been a fer

vent Catholic, but she was a worldly woman

as well, and her husband had slowly intro duced her to every worldly circle and. little

by little, had undermined her Faith. At this time she no longer believed, but little Ada did not know this.

"O Mama! Sister Felicitas said 1 could

join the First Communion class!" Ada exclaimed, no longer able to restrain her joy. Mrs. Merton failed to respond to her

known that her father was an atheist, but that

had only assured him of her earnest prayers. But her mother, ah! that was another matter! Since her earliest

years. Ada had been enveloped by Mrs. Merton's maternal

child's enthusiasm, and Ada, watching her

love and incredible

mother's face attentively, felt a chill come

goodness. When

over her happiness.

Ada attended her first Mass, it was

"Humbug... non.sense... superstition... rubbish...," grumbled her father from the depths of his armchair. "This is news indeed!"

Mrs. Merton broke in. "Why, Ada, my

child, you are much too young! Can't we

who had enrolled her in the convent school

her mother who

had pointed out

highlights of the church and the Mass â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the taber

CRUSADE

Family Series sisters with Ada's education, Mrs. Merton

That we are, child."

od he became entangled in some unlucky

had placed her daughter's spiritual progress

"Yes, Maggie, but I've prayed so long to the Heart that is so full of graces, day and night, and yet my prayers seem not to be

ventures. On many evenings his wife would wait for hours beyond his ordinary time of

returning home before he came in.jaded and

heard."

taciturn. More and more often, he ceased to

in their hands as well.

Ada responded like a flower to the sun.

Every petal of her soul absorbed the slight est religious influence. As she grew in love

for her Creator, so did she cling all the clos er to her parents. "In the measure in which we love God, in that measure we shall have

more heartfelt love to all that are about us,"

Cardinal Manning said. And so it was that,

until now, she had been so engrossed in learning and growing that she had not noted the cooling of her mother's faith.

One night, Ada knelt longer than usual at

"Wait a little, darling," Maggie soothed.

"Patience and perseverance will bring a snail to Jerusalem. And I'll pray with you, and we will keep on praying till both your pa and your ma believe in God and all His holy truths, and I'd like to see anybody say they

wouldn't! And now, child, it's way past your

bedtime, and you should have rested your little head long before this. Now go to sleep.

her prie-dieu. On it lay her dearest treasure,

There's a good child." So saying, the old nurse kissed the child

a silver crucifix, which she bent to kiss rev

good night and left the room mumbling

erently from time to time. She was praying for her parents, who, little dreaming of their Ada's vigil, were following their round of pleasure somewhere in the night. Ada prayed her rosary: then, thinking of her Lord

gasped at last, striding into the room to envelop the praying child in her strong arms, "what do you be doing

these things for, child? Do you want to make yourself sick?!"

his breath, and terror filled Mary Merton's heart. Was John, this cultured society man, this noble, high-souled gentleman, this lov ing husband... was he courting the demon of the glass? Was this the end of her happiness? Ada could not fully understand her

mother's anxiety, but her filial heart yearned

under her breath about people "who don't

to alleviate her mother's distress. On one

know which way their head's on," and who

"should know better," and "not deserving

such evening, when the long hours ticked mercilessly away in the study, Ada decided

such an angel," and similar inspired phrases

to help her mother in the only way she knew

of that nature.

how. She ran up to her room and returned

Jesus hanging from the cross, she began to pray with her arms outstretched. She wept The trouble begins silently. She did not hear the footstep out side her room, nor the whisper of the door Mr. Merton's financial alfairs had been being pushed open, as her nanny, Maggie, running smoothly. However, about this peri stood and gaped at the scene before her. "Lordy! Lordy!" the good woman

accompany her to social affairs, absenting himself till late in pursuit of business affairs. Mrs. Merton began to discern a change in the man she loved without question. Then one night he returned home with liquor on

bearing a picture of the Sacred Heart. "Now, Mama," she said, "you mustn't be

so troubled. I'm going to put my picture of the Sacred Heart in your room. When you see it so often in the day, I'm sure you will come to love that Heart that has loved us

so much." With that. Ada reached up to place the picture upon the mantel piece, missing, at that moment, the look of misery that flitted for a moment upon the poor woman's face.

"Oh, Maggie, it's you!" Ada

Mr. Merton came home a little

answered smiling,"why, I was only

earlier that evening. The minute

praying for Papa and Mama." "Now, now, child, why should

he walked in, his wife noticed with distress that he had been

that make you cry, tell me that,"

drinking again. He, in turn, was

Maggie affectionately asked of

irritated by the anguish plainly

the child she had raised from

visible in her features and decided

infancy. "Ah, Maggie, it makes me so sad, thinking that my father

to prove to her that he was quite

doesn't love and doesn't care for the dear Savior who died for

Heart on the mantle. With a snort

of fury, he thrust it from its place,

him; and Mama, too, though she

and strode off to dinner.

believes, doesn't seem to love

God as she used to, and I don't

understand why." And here the child leaned her head upon her old nurse's bosom and sobbed for a few moments.

"Poor, dear, little Ada," mur

master of himself.

Suddenly, he spied the Sacred

Ada met them in the dining room and greeted her father with her cus

tomary serene sweetness. "Papa," she said with a smile, unaware of the

looming storm, "it's only one week." "What's only one week?"

"Before my first communion. Papa."

mured Maggie softly. "It's a shame, but true, my darling, all the truth. But we can pray for them,

in the poor man's soul. He began to

even for the great rebel, your pa, bless his soul, and if we pray enough we're bound to be heard.

to her before, until her eyes filled with tears and amazement. He reproached

This comment broke the dam of wrath speak to Ada in a tone he had never used

her for pursuing an issue that was dis-

JULY-AUGUST. 1998 33

Family Series

tasteful to him, for hurting his feelings, and

horror from his seat as he saw Ada lying

Even Mr. Merton had to admit to his wife

much other nonsense that Ada scarcely

senseless in her mother's arms.

that there was a glow about Ada that could not be attributed to the array of brightly

understood. Concluding his tirade with a

bang of his fist upon the table, he promised to pull her out of the convent school the very next day, as the sisters were definitely a poor source of proper education.

The poor girl was now sobbing bitter

ly. Was this the father who heretofore had never spoken to her but with love and kindness?

Mrs. Merton had tried, unsuccessfully,

burning candles. Little did they know that at

The trial

that moment Ada was offering her dear Ada's world had come crashing down

Savior her very life in exchange for her par

on her head, and her spirits with it. Learning of her mother's apostasy had been a horrible

ent's conversion.

shock and a worse sorrow. Since that awful

prised his family by saying that he was

night at dinner, she had never mentioned the subject again, but in her room she prayed every night for help. Night after night found

going out. He had a business engagement,

Early that afternoon, Mr. Merton sur

he said, noting the uneasiness creeping over his wife's face. Before leaving, he

to stem the angry flow of words, but Mr.

her on her knees before her crucifix, pray

raised his white-dressed child in his arms

Merton had purposely ignored her. When he

ing, praying. After the initial shock passed,

and embraced her with unusual tender

finally made his last declaration, she

Ada thanked her Savior that she too was

ness. "Good-bye, Ada." he said, holding

addressed him with suppressed grief.

suffering something for His sake. How

her closely for several minutes, thinking,

often bitter tears would crowd her eyes to think that her mother was in danger of never

"perhaps I shall never see her again." He felt a strong premonition urging him to stay home, but he crushed the impulse and

"Now, dear John, you know I will not consent to that. You must remember that I too am a Catholic, and I must insist upon

Ada's being educated in a Catholic school." "Mary," he answered, "it's no use

deceiving Ada any longer. To us there is nothing higher, more sacred than truth. A.... "John, John," almost shrieked his wife, "for the sake of all you love, say no more...

You are not yourself!" "I will say more," he answered dogged

ly. "Mary, out with the truth and tell the child that this whole year you have given up belief in God, and that..." He never finished his words. A low, sad

moan froze his very soul, and he started in

seeing the good God! "What can I do?" she thought; "what

went out.

In fact, he was on his way to discover

should I do?"

Meanwhile, Mr. Merton's business

the whereabouts of the cashier who had

affairs began to go from bad to worse. One day, as he opened the paper, his wife heard a snarl of rage. His bank had declared bank ruptcy, so he had lost much of his capital.

day, so much the pistol in his jacket betrayed his intent. He went from tavern to

wronged him. One of them would die that

"That cashier!" he said in terrible tones,

tavern, asking everyone if they had seen the rascal. Here and there, he took a glass of

"only yesterday he took my deposit smil ingly. while all the time he knew this was to

the evening he discovered the inn where the

wine to cool his rising temper. By the end of

happen!"

man would retire that evening and sat at the

Terrified, Mary Merton saw him reach for his pistol above the mantel and stalk out

bar with a bottle of wine to await him. An

of the house.

That same evening he was returned home in his carriage, unconscious. The

hour later, he fell into a deep sleep. The cashier came in, but fled when he recog

nized the slumbering man. Someone shook John to consciousness and informed him.

only sign of a struggle was a minor

He stumbled to his feet. Though quite dizzy

head wound. He had fought with the bank cashier and had been hit on the

and having a strange ringing in his ears, he

head with a cane.

By Ea.ster morning, neverthe less, Mr. Merton was perfectly recovered. This was to be the day of Ada's First Communion. Ada's face seemed to reflect the

got into a buggy and lashed the horse, which reared violently and took off in hot

pursuit, eventually plunging both buggy and driver violently to the ground. Mr. Merton lay senseless, temporarily recov ered consciousness the next day in the inn, then slept again.

pure rays of her innocent soul,

He dreamed that he was pursuing his

and, to borrow from a great

enemy through wild country, Suddenly, the

author, "she looked like a

dream changed. Ada was lost in a trackless desert. He wandered about the blinding

creature fresh from the

single word. Her whole

sand in quest of her, at times catching a glimpse of her white garments. But before he could reach her, a great mountain of sand

being concentrated on the

rose between them. Suddenly he was roused

hands of God." On the way to church she did not utter a

great mystery of the Holy

by the voice he knew so well: "I am not

Eucharist that she was to

pew to receive her Lord

lost. Papa, it is you who are lost. Come home. Papa." The loving little face, sorrow ful but bright with tears, bent down to his

for the first time, her par

and kis.sed his cheek. He awoke and started

ents, subdued and in awe,

up in his bed,

could hardly take their eyes off their little girl.

"I know that I am needed at home! Please,

receive. As she left her

"How long have 1 been here?!" he cried.

CRUSADE

Family Series someone drive me home!" It was Tuesday; he had been gone three days. The afternoon Mr. Merton left his home

up. I will see him some day, please God...

but not here. Mama. Are you listening? Are you near me?"

was a melancholy one. Ada sat with her

"Speak, my angel, I'm here."

head nestled in her mother's bosom, both waiting for Mr. Merton's return. Mrs.

"Then, tell poor Papa that I... leave

him my... dearest love." She spoke

Merton had noticed a tiredness in Ada and

with

a weakness she had not seen before. On

Felicitas would raise the crucifix to the

difficulty. At times, Sister

being questioned, Ada admitted that she

lips of the dying child who, with a look

had felt a little weakness the last three days

of gratitude, would kiss it with inex pressible tenderness. Her mother was

and that there was a persistent pain in her side. "I feel very tired tonight. Mama, I think I will go to bed."

Mrs. Merton tucked her daughter in ten derly and retired herself. The thought of her mother's loneliness haunted Ada; she could

not dismiss it. Finally, putting on the beau

speechless with agony. She stood like a

statue, gazing as one who looks upon all that is precious for the last time. Suddenly,Ada rose half-way in bed,look ing with eager eyes as upon some vision.

tiful garments of the morning,she stole gen

Then turning towards her mother, she smiled sweetly, and said, "Mama, I am

tly out of bed towards her mother's room. Suddenly, the weakness increased, and a

going home.... Jesus! Mary!" At that moment, hurried steps were

cold shiver ran through her body. The pain

heard upon the stairs. When Mr. Merton

in her side became violent, and her head

stepped breathless into the room, he saw

grew dizzy. She staggered into the room. "Mama, help me... I'm sick."

Sister Felicitas upon her knees, Maggie crying bitterly, and his wife gazing

The agonized mother caught the child in

fixedly upon the lifeless body of his

her arms before she fell and sent immediate

darling Ada!

ly for the doctor. He arrived but ten minutes later. After a brief examination he shook his

Aftermath

head. Ada had advanced pneumonia. It was a disease terrible in its ravages that year. May none of us ever see such a look of

despair as settled upon Mrs. Merton's face.

Ada's poor mother could not

bear her loss. She temporarily lost her mind and bitterly and continuou.sly blamed her husband for having

She knelt by her child, clutching and kiss ing the little hands passionately. Ada asked

taken all from her: her God, her Faith, her

for a priest and for her silver crucifix.

daughter, her happiness. Sister Felicitas

"Mama," she murmured, her breathing

understood that her husband's presence only

difficult, "1 am very happy, but I believe I

aggravated the situation. She invited Mrs.

Father Elliot began to visit Mrs. Merton.

am going to die."

Merton to come with her and cared for her

Little by little he gently and convincingly

The priest soon arrived with the Blessed

Sacrament. Turning to her mother, Ada whispered: "Mama, this Communion will be for you and for Papa."

as she had cared for her daughter. Meanwhile. Mr. Menon now felt loneli

guided her back to her God. One beautiful

day light came to her again. She wept tears

er than ever. That first day after Ada's death

ofjoy, repentance, and relief. Above all, the

was a terrible day for him. He swayed

thought that her Ada was not forever lost to

Monday and Tuesday passed slowly; the

between despair and an urge to call upon the

her. that one day she would see her again,

mother never for a moment left the side of

God whom he had denied and offended for

her suffering child, never for a moment

so long. At the very height of the struggle, faithful Maggie came in and left with him

completely restored her mind. The reunion of husband and wife must

relaxed her watchfulness.

was

about

seven

o'clock

Felicitas, and her mother, all three watching

an open book. He began to read; it was the story of the Prodigal Son. As he read, grace poured into his soul as tears of repentance and relief flooded his eyes.

the child's slightest movement. Suddenly,

He stood up and, asking for his carriage,

Wednesday evening. Ada lay in a sort of

slumber. Beside her were Maggie, Sister

Ada's face began to change; first it looked

went to fi nd his old teacher and confessor

sad, then affectionate; finally she opened

"Ada, my darling, are you hurting?" asked her heart-broken mother, resting her

from the university. Father Elliott, who received him with open arms. "I have long been awaiting you, my son," were Father Elliott's welcoming words. After a long, heartfelt confession and

cheek against the face of her child.

then a retreat, John Merton returned to Holy

her eyes, and gazed about her. "Is Papa here?" she asked.

"Very little, Mama. 1 thought Papa was near me. and in trying to touch him I woke

Mother Church and received his Lord in Holy Communion.

have moved the very angels. They hugged and rejoiced in their recovered Faith.

Four years later the same good God who had accepted Ada's offering and granted her

prayer for her parents' conversion, gave these two prodigal children yet another gift: a son whom they named Robert. Robert was all mischief, life, and sun

shine. But he became very serious whenev

er he and his parents visited a small grave fragrant with roses, lilies, and violets. "Poor

sLsser Ada!" he would say. "Bobby's doin to be dood too; so he can do to heaven turn day, an' see his little sisser." â&#x2013;

JLILY-AUGU,ST. 1998 35

Back to Manners

by Michelle Taylor

The next half-hour was a tragic one. The

surprise at hearing my pastor mention the

the chair and their faces with it. why, they are so little! That is what mommies are for,

little boy begged, implored, whimpered, cried, and protested. But the verdict was irrevocable. The only relief was the pillow...

issue of table manners from the pulpit on a

anyhow, to pick up after them, aren't they?

There was much resistance at first, but soon

"table of life." The challenge my pastor

all was quiet again.

Beside the sleeping child stood a mother with a bleeding heart. "But it had to be

"No popsicle tonight, son."

done," she thought.

The infraction had been a perfect mess of a dinner plate. For some time, her two-year old had mastered the spoon and fork well. He ate exceptionally neatly under regular

In my last article, I expounded on my

Sunday morning. He insisted that in the

Should we attempt not only to curb these

way we sit at table, we will also sit at the seemed to launch from the pulpit was that

impulses, but to teach them otherwise? Are they capable of learning at such an early age? A very young child is a much better

not only manners in general, but also table

learner and observer than you or I. dear

manners in particular, are closely linked

reader. Have you ever considered the fact

with virtue and, therefore, with everyone's

that toddlers learn an entire language with

out going to school by merely observing and appreciation, self-control, self-discipline, listening? And that in only two or three gratitude, temperance, and fortitude. We years? Could we do the same? I doubt it. Besides, at this stage in their lives they develop the habit of good conversation,

battle-plan for life. At the table we learn

are "brand new," alert, without wonies, and

supervision, but that day Original Sin, the

smarter than we care to admit. While seated

fountain of all disorder in us, must have struck mischief inside him. One look at the

in a high-chair, they are confined and hun gry, therefore, focused, interested, and eager

high-chair tray and Mother prepared for bat

— the perfect conditions for learning!

tle. There was food scattered everywhere —

When we read stories of mothers of

on the tray, on his lap, on the floor. His face was aglow with anticipation for

saints who showed their child pictures of Jesus and Mary and taught them from

the much-desired popsicle.

babyhood to say their names, we are in

"Son, there will be no popsicle tonight.

awe. We think it a beautiful thing. And it

Mommy does not like food all over like this.

certainly is not only a beautiful attitude but

You know better. When you eat, the food

a sublime one.

stays on your plate. Only chickens eat this way, not little boys." Tears, and bed.

The next day, at lunchtime, one small grain of rice escaped from his plate. The lit

selflessness, and many a good habit. In short, we learn manners, we learn virtue. If this is the case, I asked myself,"Why

not start from the beginning of life? Why

We lend to sec the merit of such an

action because it is directly a religious act. We think,"how beautiful!" We may even try to imitate these saintly parents' example. Yet, it never occurs to us that teaching them

tle one frantically pointed at the escapee and

wait till bad habits are formed to tackle

asked his mother to remove it. After that day,

them and then try to reverse the damage?

appreciation for their food, discipline in

he always ate in perfect order — well, almost perfect. He was master of his plate.

There is an old saying that "the cucumber

their eating, cleanliness and order from the

plant must be straightened at the onset."

start is also a religious act.

Now she was consoled; "1 guess the maxim is true: at times we must be cruel to be kind."

As my friend related this story, I listened open-mouthed yet delighted. It confirmed my plans for this article. I said to myself: "It's not just a theory; it works!"

Isn't that very true?

In my last article I mentioned the bibli

Yet, all of us are subject to the generally

cal example of Gideon and his men (Judges

accepted concept that everything babies do

7:3-7); God had Gideon choose the best of

is cute and should be allowed, especially at

the best among his warriors by the way they

table. So, if they want to grab mushy, drip

drank water!

Our children are no less the image and ping oatmeal with their chubby hands, it is perfectly all right. And if they want to paint likeness of God because they ai'e liny and

CRUSADE

Back to Manners

still ignorant and in need of instruction.

The American TFP A history of saying NO !to

Much to the contrary, they are more pleas ing to God than we are. Being baptized, they are true temples of the Holy Ghost, Who dwells in their sinless souls with

pleasure.

Why allow them a period of barbarism when we can start steering them immedi ately in the direction of cleanliness, order,

and good habits, which will soon begin to lead them along the road to virtue? What better time and place to do this than while

they are sitting in a high-chair? For some reason my friend's story was a real clincher for this particular article. But she is not the only one I have known

to have had great results by developing in her children good eating habits early on. I

1978 - Planned Parenthood In 1978 Planned Parenthood published a booklet with a blasphemous caricature of the Blessed Virgin Mary to promote abortion and contraception.

Members and friends of the TFP, outraged by this vile attack, gathered by the hun dreds in front of Planned Parenthood's national headquarters on Seventh Avenue in New York City to protest and make reparation. The protest yielded immediate results: A representative of Planned Parenthood came down from the building and offered an unconditional apology for what the organization had done.

have witnessed the most encouraging and enduring results. When we become con vinced that we are teaching our children

much more than proper eating habits, it is really a goal worth striving for. True, it takes effort, supervision, con

centration, patience and, above all, perse verance on our part. In our particular sys tem and modern conditions, it is especial ly difficult since mothers have to do everything, and more. The Investment, however, is worth

while. Just think: after a period of this training, we will not have to pick up after

them anymore. Either way is costly. So why not take the preventive option? The other day my sister said to me: "Now that I have a little one, I feel such a

1986 - Hail Mary Jean-Luc Godard's Hail Ma)-y first appeared in France in the spring of 1986. It portrayed the life of the young Blessed Virgin up to the time of the birth of Jesus in the most vulgar, demeaning, immodest, and blasphemous way possible. From beginning to end the film denied all of Mary's exalted attributes: her immaculate conception, her divine maternity, and her perpetual virginity,. When the film was shown at New York's Lincoln Center, the TFP joined thou sands in protesting this brazen insult to Mary, the Mother of God.

The TFP's printed critique of the film was used in protests across the country wherever Hail Maty was shown. Altogether, more than 300,000 copies of the leaflet were distributed during the campaign.

1988 - The Last Temptation of Christ Slightly more than two years after Hail Mary, Universal Studios released The Last

responsibility! I know I have to cooperate

Temptation of Christ. This film portrayed the Sacred Person of Our Lord as a man

with God in directing this child back to

unsure of his mission, a man full of fears and inhibitions, a common sinner who

Him. It's so hard when I'm not even there

was tempted by Mary Magdalen and others. On the morning of the film's premier

myself. How do I do it? How do I begin?" There is no easy answer, but one thing

in New York City, while members and friends of the American TFP demonstrated

is certain: Our children surely take prior

ity, and all we can teach them in the way of good and order is worth the effort. I'm sure that this is exactly one of the

first questions God is going to ask us one day. "What did you do with the children I placed in your care?" Certainly the first questions will not be about how many windows or cars we washed, how many dishes we cleaned, or what clothes we bought for our children.

But it is not difficult to imagine Him ask

in front of the theater, our full-page advertisement was published in the New York Times to protest this outrage.

The film's director, Martin Scorcese, acknowledged in an interview to the Spanish newspaper Ya that the protests against the film were causing people to view it with bias and that he was not achieving the goals he had set for it,

1997- The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles Last fall the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles exhibited a statue of Our Lady of Grace with a drain pipe through her womb and standing on a grate under which were human limbs in offensive positions. Promotional literature on

ing: "Did you begin preparing them for

the exhibit stated that "Robert Gober's sterile Virgin Mary

life as soon as they were capable of learn

stands in stark contrast to the one who has been called 'the

ing? Did you teach them My ways from

aqueduct along which divine grace flows to the earth.'" On learning of this blasphemy, the American TFP launched a

the beginning? Did you teach them table

manners so that later in life, as with Gideon, I might easily recognize a good servant?" â&#x2013;

nationwide campaign, contacting thousands of friends, sup porters. and acquaintances and urging them to write or call in protest and offer prayers in reparation. More than a thousand people gathered for the TFP-organized protest in front of the museum on December 7.

St-i

PmNTHOOD BLftSPMO M BlfSSW |()R[,\l\UKW

THE

TFP VEHEMEHTLY PROIKTS ^H0 OFEERSlft*CTII«MOtl Left: Campaign

against Planned Parenthood's

blasphemous

depiction of the Mother of God

(Details on

previous page.)

"t>Ok

'Vfttl* j

The American TFP A history of saying

""'-£2177fMH4iT-SI "'^-M-miXSCLTSl ^^VUEnATlmrt STOtvtViKjffiva V^'bopI

Left: Campaign against Martin Scorcese's blasphemous film Ttie Last Temptation of Christ

HERO' TERI

1988

Right:Campaign against Jean-Luc Godard's film Hail Mary,a brazen

rSlNBESS

19S

assault against the Blessed Virgin

(Details on previous page.) NIGl

NtIL MARY

ONI

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Above: Protest at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles

against its blasphemous exhibition of a statue of Our Lady with a sewer pipe piercing her womb (Details on previous page.)

4torfr« AtoA mm. PO Bn ttAYWL MIW

Above: Fliers for this year's nationwide campaign against Terrence McNally's play Corpus Christi, which portrays Our Savior as a homosexual (See page 10.)

September-October, 1996 $4.00

irunLlCS

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STOP BLmEMIHC. flUR IQRO ^

special Events

Friends and supporters of the American TFP in the Washington, D.C., area had a rare opportunity recent

ly to attend a reception held in honor of the Head of the Imperial House of Brazil, His Imperial and Royal Highness Prince Luiz of Orleans-Braganza. Having just traveled in Europe, Prince Luiz was en route to Brazil and visited the American TFP's headquar ters in Pennsylvania, as well as the TFP Washington

Bureau in Arlington, Virginia. This was his first visit to the United States.

Dom Luiz, the epitome of a Catholic prince, is a direct descendant in the legitimate male line of Hugh

Capet, who founded the French royal dynasty in 987. He is the great-great-great(20 times) grandson of King Saint Louis IX, also in the direct legitimate male line. His many illustrious ancestors include King Saint Ferdinand III of Castile, Queen Isabella of Spain, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, and Blessed Nuno Alvares Pereira, Lord High Constable of Portugal. His Imperial and Royal Highness has been a dedicat

ed member of the Brazilian Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property for over thirty-five years, together with his brother and heir. Prince Bertrand.

The reception was held on August 14, the eve of the Feast of the Assumption of Our Lady. Among those in

Head of the

Imperial House of Brazil Visits TFP Washington Bureau

attendance were Canon Jose Luiz Villac, of Sao Paulo,

Brazil; Father Daniel Klink; His Majesty King Kigeli V of Rwanda; Duchess Beatrix von Oldenburg of Germany;

Prince Luiz addressed the assembly of some eighty-

General and Mrs. Milnor Roberts; Edward Sheridan, M.D.,

five people on the value of traditional solutions to the

a professor at Georgetown University; Colonel Michael

many problems or our days. (His remarks are presented

Cerreta, USMC, (Ret.); Colonel and Mrs. Samuel T. Dickens, Chairman of the Council for the Defense of

on page 3.) Questions and answers followed, and the

Freedom; Mr. George P. Morse, President of Catholics

guests had multiple opportunity to converse with Dom Luiz, the very embodiment of the virtues of the Christian

Sons of Confederate Veterans, and many other TFP friends

aristocrat, as spoken of .so eloquently by Pope Pius XII in his celebrated allocutions to the Patriciate and Nobility of

and supporters.

Rome.

Committed to Support the Pope; representatives from the

Below: Mr. Mario Navarre da Costa, director of the TFP Washington Bureau,introduces Prince Luiz of Orieans-Braganza.

Front row, left to right: Father Daniel Kiink, King Kigeii V of Rwanda, H.i.R.H. Prince Luiz of Orieans-Braganza, Canon Jose Luiz Viiiac. Standing, left to right: Mr. Kerukeba, Duchess Beatrix of Oldenburg, Fr. Constantine-Paui Michael Beiisarius, Mr. Boniface Benzenge

Contents September-October, 1998

^S?BSTl

Editorial

Surviving the Hurricane

2 Cover:

Special Events Tradition vs. "Whatever"

The Industrial Revolution

Flight from Temperance: Can you spare a cyber-second?

Protest and reparation for blasphemy. New York City, September 26, 1998

Mariology <tlt> ).t.n. ,

The First Marian Shrine

Ambiences, Customs and Civilizations

Pagan Manliness and False Christian Patience

Forgotten Truths

It is displeasing to God to expect His assistance solely through extraordinary means

Cloning

SPHEMI

Re-engineering the Human Species ..12 Cover Story

Cover Story: While some say it is belter not to do anything about blasphemy, others prefer to recall the words of the Gospel: "Everyone therefore that shall confess Me

Protest and Reparation in Manhattan

.14

before men. 1 will also confess him before My Father in Heaven. But he that .shall

deny Me before men. 1 will also deny him before My Father Who is in Heaven. Religion

How a Parish Fought Off an Invasion

.18

Science

Global Warming

Faster and faster all the time, but where

Catholic Apologetics

are we going.

Women Priests? Why Not?

Basic Course of History

Christianity: Its Triumphs and Trials During the Time of Constantine ....26 Back to Manners

Children Are People

Education

Aesthetic Education

to Saint James the Apostle, and to the faithful of Spain

Family Series

Theophilus

Our Lady of the Pillar; a gift of the Mother of God

When sheep have good shepherds.

"Crusade Magazine is a publication of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (IFF). Subscriptions in the United States and Canada, $24.00. Foreign subscriptions, $35.00. List of other TFP publications available upon request. Direct all sub

scription requests and inquiries to: Crusade Magazine, P.O. Box 1868, York, PA 17405 or e-mail to: Crusade@tfp.org Tel.;(717) 2257147, fax:(717) 225-7382. Copyright 1998 by The Foundation for a Christian Civilization, Inc.

Surviving the Hurricane A particularly destructive hurricane in a particularly heavy season has struck the nation, gaining, rather than losing, strength as it spreads inland from the shores of the Potomac. While media

frenzy feeds the storm and White House spin doctors rationalize its ravages, as

Congress weighs its constitutional responsibilities, the American people are left to cope, as best we may, with the

damage in the hurricane's path. For those who can remember

on their children's souls but from the

rately — they have opened the draw

harm it might cause their portfolios.

bridges of their souls to every demon

While the talk on the school play ground is of obscenities that should not affront the ears of children, much less

that wears a dollar sign.

stain their lips, over cocktails the world ly discuss the impact of the President's "indiscretions" on the growing instabili

tion, we would do well to paraphrase the

ty threatening to burst the bubble of an increasingly global market. We hear their drivel at the super market check-out — "Oh,I don't agree

And what have they bought at the price of their souls? To answer this ques words of Winston Churchill to an infa

mous appeaser of the evil of his day — another "leader of the Free world," Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. "You had to choose between a moral

cave-in or financial hardship. You chose

brighter days, rummaging through the debris left in the storm's wake may

with Clinton's personal behavior, but

to cave in, but will have, as a result,

he's sure doing a great job as president!"

evoke bittersweet memories of a half-

— and at the office water cooler —

forgotten past. The pages of a waterstained family album turn in the wind as

"Impeachment is like imposing the death penalty for Jay walking. Perhaps the

financial hardship." Whether it is the next day or the next decade, hardship will follow, for a nation's destiny depends on the moral

it lies in a Peoria front yard where it had

President could manage his personal life

strength of its people, not accounting

been hurled by the whirlwind from

somewhat better, but he's managing the

sleight-of-hand and the herd instincts of

economy awfully well." "We elected a president, not a pope," the modem crowd pointedly

only be restored by a resolute fidelity to

Washington. Now we see a happy couple on their wedding day, the sweet smile of their firstborn, the infectious laugh of a young lad at play, the angelic innocence of a little girl dressed in purest white to receive her First Holy Communion. It all seems so distant now —

almost ancient — in the hurricane's path, but photographs of innocence record his tory as truly as transcripts of the lurid. Looking around at the broken furniture, strewn-about clothes, and shattered glass, the wife gasps,"Lord, what a

mess!" But as he retrieves the precious memories of the bespattered family album from the muck and mire, the hus

band prays, "Lord, give us the strength to survive."

God-fearing Americans, who long for the restoration of the moral order

reminds old-fashioned critics of the

a bull market. America's moral fiber can

Catholic principles. Nothing, on the other hand, better predisposes a nation

that once marked Christian civilization,

chaos unleashed by this moral catastro

— or a people — for defeat than the

are troubled not only by the President's

phe. They act as though a hurricane is

unwillingness to face adversity in the

doings but by their indiscriminate broad

simply an excuse to rearrange one's fur niture — or beliefs, a spring cleaning of

defense of those standards.

casting into America's living rooms by a Congress that should know better than to

the soul — out with the old, in with the

since only individuals are rewarded and

thus contribute to the cultural revolution

new.

Saint Augustine reminds us that

punished in the world to come, nations

in the country. While they know that "God is not mocked," they also know

for either he will hate the one and love

are rewarded in this life for the good they do and punished for the evil they

that "what a mans sows, that he will also

the other; or else he will hold to the one,

practice or condone.

reap"(Gal. 6:7-8).

and despise the other. Ye cannot serve

Others who profess belief in God,

"No servant can serve two masters,

If a man cannot serve two masters,

along with 9 in 10 of their countrymen,

servants of Mammon have made their

neither can a nation. At the dawn of a new millennium, America must choose

worship in truth at the altar of Mammon.

choice: to seek material prosperity at all

the road to its future. The stakes could

Any misgivings they may have regarding the President's "unacceptable behavior" arise not from the damage it could inflict

costs, even etemal prosperity. As a result, their moral barriers have been

not be higher: not simply the survival of a presidency, but the survival of our

laid waste long ago, or — more accu-

country. ■

God and Mammon"(Luke 16:13). The

Special events

Continued from Inside front cover

Crusade ill â&#x2013;

Tradition vs. "Whatever"

Editor:

by Prince Luiz of Orieans-Braganza

C. Preston Noell III Associate Editors:

Earl Appleby Thomas Becket Jack Bumham

In our days, the true solu tions offered us by tradition and

Eugenia Guzman Gary Isbell

our forbears are often scorned.

Thomas J. McKenna

II said in an allocution in 1981:

As His Holiness John Paul

Photography:

Orlando Lyra Circulation:

Gregory Escaro Foreign Correspondents:

AUSTRALIA: Raymond de Souza BRAZIL: Jose Carlos Sepulveda CHILE: Nelson Farias Blanco

"One must be realistic and

acknowledge with a deep and

vigueur de la Jeunesse' [In his youth he had all the prudence of advanced age, and in his advanced age all the vigor of youth]. By virtue of tradition,

youth, enlightened and guided by the experience of elders,

pained sentiment that a great

moves forward with a surer

part of today's Christians feel

step, and old age can confident ly pass on the plow to stronger hands, to

lost, confused, perplexed, and even disillu sioned: ideas contradicting the revealed and

unchanging Truth have been spread far and wide; outright heresies in the dogmatic and

continue the furrow already begun. As the word itself implies, tradition is a gift hand ed down from generation to generation, the torch that at each relay one runner places in

PRANCE: Benoit Bemelmans

moral fields have been disseminated, creat

GERMANY: Beno Hofschulte

ing doubt, confusion, and rebellion; even

and entrusts to the hand of the next, without

PORTUGAL: Antonio de Azeredo

the liturgy has been altered. Immersed in

the race slowing down or coming to a halt.

Tradition and progress complement each other so harmoniously that, just as tradition without progress would be a contradiction

ROME; Juan M. Montes

intellectual and moral "relativism" and

SOUTH AFRICA: Richard Urban

therefore in permissiveness, Christians are

SPAIN: Felipe Barandiardn

tempted by atheism, agnosticism, a vaguely

The American TFP

moralistic illuminism, a sociological Christianity, without defined dogmas and

in terms, so progress without tradition

without objective morality."

into darkness.

As a result, the tendency arises to sim

The American Society for

would be a foolhardy proposition, a leap "The point, then, is not to go against the stream, to backstep toward ways of life

Family and Property (TFP) was

ply respond with a facile "whatever" when difficult moral problems arise. "Do your

founded in 1973 to confront the

own thing" is another version of "whatev

take and follow the best of the past and go

profound crisis shaking the

er."

out to meet the future with the vigor of

the Defense of Tradition,

modem world. It is a civic, cul

What then are we to do? It is rather

tural and nonpartisan organiza

obvious that the answer lies in returning to the tried and true solutions of the past, adapting them as necessary to contempo rary circumstances.

tion which, inspired by the tra ditional teachings of the Supreme Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, works

in a legal and peaceful manner in the realm of ideas to defend

and promote the principles of private ownership, family and

As an example of what ought to be

and activity already eclipsed, but rather to

unfailing youth."

That is why I decided to follow Professor Plinio Correa de Oliveira and the

TFPs, the marvelous organizations he inspired and founded. I do not hesitate to call my total dedication to the.se ideals a

considered, let us refer to a beautiful text

vocation, and I thank Our Lady for having

from Pope Pius XII on tradition:

destined me for it.

"Tradition is something very different

But how will the solutions of Pius XII

from a simple attachment to a vanished

be put into practice? come to the realization that real solutions

and efforts have always been

past; it is the very opposite of a reaction mistrustful of all healthy progress. The word itself is etymologically synonymous

faithfully at the service of

with advancement and forward movement

perennial Christian values with their twofold function: individ

ual and social. The TFP's words

Christian civilization.

The first TFP was founded

in Brazil by the famous intellec

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; synonymous, but not identical. Whereas, in fact, progress means only a forward march, step by step, in search of an uncer

First of all, it is necessary for society to can be found in traditional ways of thinking, acting, and living. That, however will not be enough. It will also be necessary to take the concrete steps in our own lives and in soci

ety as a whole to see to it that perfection is

really sought and not just acknowledged

Plinio Correa de Oliveira in

tain future, tradition also signifies a forward march, but a continuous march as well, a

1960. His work has inspired the

movement equally brisk and tranquil, in

formation of other autonomous

accordance with life's laws, eluding the dis tressing dilemma: 'Si jeunesse savait, si

this to heart, we will have the beginning of a truly Christian civilization in every sense of the word. I am convinced that these princi

tual and Catholic leader Prof.

TFPs in 26 countries across the

intellectually. When society as a whole takes

globe, thus constituting the

vieillesse poiivait!' [If youth but knew, if

ples will be the foundation of the Reign of

world's largest anticommunist

the aged but could]; like that Lord of

Mary, predicted by Saint Louis de Montfort

and antisocialist network of

Turenne of whom it was said: 7/ a eu dans

and promised by the Blessed Virgin in

Catholic inspiration.

sa jeunesse toute la prudence d'un age

Fatima with the words "Finally, My

avancee, et dans un age avancee, toute la

Immaculate Heart will triumph!"

SEPTEMBER-CXTOBER iW8

The Industrial Revolution

Flight from Temperance Can you spare a cyber-second?

When speed became a must in our secular society, God had to be relegated to a second plane

by John Horvat Everywhere we go, something or someone is soliciting our time.

A dream turned sour

lowed. however, was a boom of inventions

and changes that literally transformed the

the latest model car. Mountains of mail

Truly, things used to be calmer and simpler. In the past, many people had stronger preferences for leisure over money. But at a certain point something

crowd our desks. There are shopping trips,

happened.

T)eeliue of Leisure, claims that the

The cellular phone rings in the middle

of a meal. Advertisements beg attention for

world.

Juliet B. Schor. in her book The

Overworki'd American: The Unex). eted

commuting, and trafllc jams. There are the

People entered a freneiic pace of life

Industrial Revolution introduced a pace of

children's activities, sports, and television programs. Before we know it. an innocent

that today is taking its loll on the psyche and health ol'our nation. A process of ever-

lilc that was unknown to prc-imlustrial society. The regular fifty-two week work

surf on the Internet lasts two hours. A ihou-

increasing agitation took hold in modern

.sand interruptions break up the normal day

man and now threatens the country's social

year was essentially a modern in\cntion. The a\'eragc workweek of the

of modern men.

fabric.

For most people, there simply aren't

This process has its origins early in our

medieval peasant, lor example, was between 120 and LSI) ilays per year. There

enough cyber-seconds in the day. And it

history. From the very beginning. America

was time for leisuic. rcneciion. and social

only seems to get worse.

was born in the restless frontier, fostering a

izing. 1 here was also an explosion of Natal

prides itself on its speed and efficiency.

lifestyle unfettered by tradition. Before set tling down and developing new traditions.

ity that led those same men ti> construct medieval castles, cathedrals, and the whole

Everything is supposed to save time. Our

America was taken up in a revolution that

of Christendom.

cars connect us quickly to the most distant

places. We express our mail overnight

was in some ways as important as the War of Independence itself: the Industrial

factories and the time clock, all that

across the country. We microwave meals in

Revolution.

Ironically, we live in a society that

moments. Countless gadgets are pre.sented to us as timesaving devices. Advertisements

promise us things that are ever-bigger, faster, and better. Yet time is more elusive than ever.

CRUSADE

With the introduction of steam-driven

changed. Protcs.sor Schor says men were subjected to a most intense 'life at hard

Hard labor The Industrial Revolution started inno

cently enough. In 1760. Englishman James Watt invented the steam engine. What fol

labor" which was "the most prodigious work effort in the entire history of humankind."

The young United States embraced the

Industrial Revolution with great enthusi

asm. Big cities soon hustled and bustled around factory smoke stacks. Such develop ments were not without benefits. The stan

dard of living rose significantly. But the frenzy of industrial society marked the modem mind.

Each successive dance reached a new height of uninhibited exuberance, reflecting the

mounting mania for speed and excitement. The mania for fast food typifies this culture, boasting of identical assembly-line hamburgers produced and consumed in minutes, if not seconds. Fast food special

ists design their products to produce explo Losing balance Among the most harmful aspects of the

sions of taste and instant sensation with the

Industrial Revolution was the introduction

least effort. They set up sterile and uninvit

of excessive speed in the lives of men. In

ing environments made to discourage lin gering customers. The idea of savoring food

itself, speed is a means toward an end, and

and dining reflectively is cast out.

it is determined by the activity that must be done. The temperate man has a taste for

gy for speeding up life is the computer

velocities that are proportional to his ability to grasp things. There are speeds which man

vel at modems that permit sending two

The latest wonder of modem technolo world, Conservatives and liberals alike mar

can legitimately enjoy and also slow

bibles a second or downloading the contents

leisurely speeds where man can be recol lected. Temperance presupposes a balance

of the whole Library of Congress in eight hours. Every six months, a new computer

between different activities.

product line offers ever-faster processors,

Flight from God

type of adoration or mania for speed. It

ever-larger hard drives, and ever-better per formance. For the cyber-second conscious,

broke the equilibrium by spurring appetites

today's multipurpose computers perform

sidestepped

to desire action for action's sake, sensation

several functions at the same time.

Industrial Revolution created conditions for

for sensation's sake, speed for speed's sake.

Interactive computer games mix speed and violence. The Internet spews forth oceans of information at lightning speed. The culture of speed also invades the

ondary plane. Religion became a kind of psychological oasis for the weak who failed to adjust to the dazzling speed of technolo

ever-quickening pace of life carried with it

world of business. Business writer and guru

a euphoria and enthusiasm. From the Erie

Tom Peters, in his book Liberalion

gy and progress. Moreover, the mania for speed has an

Canal to the transcontinental railroad, the

Management speaks of surviving in the

equally destructive corollary for the

speed of transportation fascinated the mass

nano-second nineties. He maintains that

Church: It created aversion to recollection.

es. The invention of the telegraph removed the dimension of time and space from nor

success in the future will depend upon a

Modern man is horrified with the prospect

company's ability to adju.st to a fast-chang ing world where companies and markets will appear and disappear at unnerving

that regions of his soul will cease to be

The Industrial Revolution introduced a

Means become the end

With every phase of this revolution, the

mal communications. News stories that

once took days to reach distant destinations became available almost instantly. The very concept of time became a

commodity. "Time is money" was the cry that attached a value to getting things done quickly.

Curiously, the inventions that high lighted speed especially captured the twen

tieth-century imagination. Collateral di.scoveries, such as medicines, proved less exciting. It was the automobile, the air

plane, and the Jet, that acquired exaggerated importance and elevated their inventors and

producers into modern heroes. A culture of speed

speeds.

As a tendential revolution that neatly

theological

matters, the

a secular society that relegated God to a sec

solicited by some form of impression or action. He does not want to be alone or rec

ollected. He does not like ceremony and

silence. His liturgy must be devoid of

prayer, recollection, and ceremony; rather,

A psychiatric revolution It is no surprise that fast-paced modem

it must have noise, handshaking, and spon

life finds a companion in the world of

taneous outbursts.

drugs, with explosions of whirling unreali ty. Nor is it surprising that it affects adults, children, and society as a whole. Today's

in the constant agitation of modern life, everything is moving, sensational,

exciting, and hurried. Is it any wonder that

most people, and especially youth, are not

widespread mental unbalance and neuroses are due in part to the inability to cope with a whirling and incomprehensible reality.

themselves in God for study and prayer?

Worse yet, the appetite for ever-greater and faster sensations prepares man for the

Nurtured in the culture of speed, mod em man, having lost the compass for tme

prepared for the true joy of recollecting

ultimate of sensations: the shocking, the

happiness found in the Catholic Church,

hideous, and the Satanic.

accelerates uncontrollably toward chaos. â&#x2013;

The mania for speed has invaded every

aspect of modem life, and today there is a veritable culture of speed. The world of dance, for example, ran

parallel to the Industrial Revolution. Dancing evolved from the slow, structured

The appetitefor ever-greater andfaster sensations prepares man for the ultimate ofsensations: the shocking, the hideous, the Satanic.

minuet to the waltz, the Charleston, jazz,

the Jitterbug, the Twist, rock 'n' roll, and Rap.

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1998

The First Marian Shrine he sentiment ofZaragozans toward their beloved Virgen del Pilar — the Virgin of the Pillar — is quite different from the ordinary homage paid to a favorite saint or even to other Marian devotions elsewhere in the

Catholic world. It is an inheritance from their forefathers, a love

that is bom with them and ends only with their deaths. It is inter woven with their patriotism, with their nationality, with their home life, and with their daily tasks and amusements, and it is an ever-

recurring theme in their popular songs. The faithful of Zaragoza repair to her shrine in their joys and in their sorrows. They speak to her not in the ordinary forms of prayer, for she is not far away in Heaven, but here on earth among them,in her own shrine where

she has dwelt for over nineteen hundred years. They converse with her as with a friend, and with the confident faith of children.

"Viva la Virgen del Pilar" was the rallying cry that filled Zaragozan hearts with courage and strengthened their arms when,

in 1809, they had to fend off the Napoleonic invasions of Spain. Then, frail women,faint with fatigue, disease and hunger, fired the guns and defended their homes, barricading doors and windows with the fallen bodies of their husbands, parents, and children. Then, the greatest kindness one could show the wounded, when all

hope had fled, was to take them to the Capilla Santa — the Holy Chapel — where they could look upon the little brown face of"La

Pilarica" — the Virgin of the little pillar — and speak with her, kiss the pavement of her house, and die breathing her name.

Saint James the Apostle That Our Lady appeared to the Apostle Saint James, patron of Spain, is a well-founded tradition and forms part of Zaragoza's history and patriotism. The church of the Pillar was the first shrine

ever raised in Our Lady's honor, and every Zaragozan, rich or poor, ignorant or learned, knows that the shrine "will last with the Holy Faith until the end of the world." In support of this convic

tion is the fact that since the city's conversion to Christianity in Apostolic times, the sacred image has escaped injury, the rituals of

the Catholic Faith have been celebrated unceasingly in the chapel where Saint James first officiated, and its altars have never been

defiled by pagan rites despite all the centuries of war, rampage, and desecration by the Romans, Goths, Moors, or Vandals. Even time, the great destroyer, has failed to leave its marks on the stat

ue; Although nearly twenty centuries old, it shows not the slight est sign of deterioration.

Our Lady ofthe Pillar at

Zaragoza 6

CRUSADE

Traditions of extreme antiquity attest to the Chrisiianization

of Spain by Saint James the Apostle. It is supported by such writ ers as Saint Hypolite, in his treatise "De duodecim apostolis" by Saint Isidore, and by the Venerable Bede, and it is verified by the ancient Spanish liturgy, the Rite of Toledo, the so-called

Visigothic or Mozarabic liturgy. More recent and better known to

American Catholics are the writings of Venerable Mary of Agreda, which contain a worthy account of his apostolate in the Iberian

peninsula and, more specifically, about Our Lady's miraculous visit to Saint James in Zaragoza during her lifetime. Most impres sive are the countless pilgrimages to the tomb of the Saint by the entire Christian world since long centuries ago, whereby we toow that it was generally held not only that Saint James spread the Gospel in Spain but that after his martyrdom in Jerusalem, his

body was returned to Spain and buried next to his disciples in the

Our Lady of the Pillar

little Galician town of Iria Flavia where he

of the glories of the Heavenly dome, in

had dwelled and whence he used to set forth

whose wonders they saw the Master's hand,

on his journeys to preach of Christ through

they spoke reverently of the sublime mys teries of the Divinity.

out the Peninsula.

from Iria Flavia, now called Padron, to the

At the same hour the Blessed Virgin was in Jerusalem, praying to her Son for

nearby village of Libemm Domum, which

Saint James, who,she knew, would soon be

later became the famous Compostella, that

called upon to give his life for the

His body was afterwards removed

is, Field of the Star, where, tradition states,

Faith.While she prayed, her Divine Son

a miraculous star appeared about the begin ning of the ninth century over the Saint's burial site, leading to the discovery of his tomb, hidden during the first cenmries of

appeared to her and, as the Venerable Mary of Agreda relates in her Mystical City of God, He commissioned her to go to

Zaragoza: "As thou already knowest, it is

Mohamedanism. The Zaragozans further

necessary for My glory, that the Apostles

tell us that Saint James came to Caesar

labor with My grace, and that at the end they must follow Me to the cross and to the death I have suffered for the whole human race. The first one who

That Our Lady appeared to the Apostle Saint James, patron ofSpain, is a well-founded tradition

is to imitate Me therein is My faithful servant James, and I will that he suffer

martyrdom in this city of Jerusalem. In order that he come hither, and for other

purposes of My glory and thine, I desire thee to visit him in Spain, where

he is preaching My name. I desire. My Mother, that thou go to Zaragoza

andforms part of Zaragoza's history and

return to Jerusalem. But before he

patriotism.

leaves that city, he is to build a temple in thy name and title, where thou shall

where he now is, and command him to

be venerated and invoked for the wel

Augusta, later Zaragoza, and founded the first church of the Pilar, and this is is the

Story, handed down from generation to gen eration, sung by poets and immortalized by artists, of the Virgin's gift to the city of Zaragoza.

After having preached the Gospel of our Divine Lord and Master in Judea and

Samaria, Saint James traveled to Spain to

spread the Faith there. He disembarked at Carthagena and started to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His simple elo quence won the hearts of the rude Iberians,

fare of that country, for My glory and pleasure, and that of the most Blessed Trinity." Later, according to the same

Venerable Mary of Agreda, Our Lord added; "I give you My royal word that 1 shall look with special clemency and fill with blessings all those who with devotion and humility call upon Me

canst signalize that place by depositing therein the riches and promising in it

thy favors; for all will be fulfilled

receive the Sacrament of Baptism from his hands. In Andalusia, Castile, Galicia, and Portugal he met with the same success, and

according to thy will and pleasure." Having spoken these words, He disappeared, and a band of angels, singing

so when he finally entered Zaragoza his fame had traveled before him, and the light of Faith spread quickly throughout the city.

canticles of joy, filled the room. Raising Mary on their wings, they bore her through the air.

Saint James, near the banks of the

On the night of the second of January, forty years after the birth of our Savior, Saint James was walking along the banks of

the river Ebro with seven disciples whom he had won to the Faith in Zaragoza. The sky was aglow with myriads of stars, the toils of the day were over, both man and beast had gone to rest. Inspired by the calm beauty of the night and the contemplation

through thy intercession in that temple. In thy hands have 1 deposited and con signed all My treasures; as My Mother, who holds My place and power, thou

who came flocking in large numbers to

The Virgin's visit

Church of the Virgin of the Pillar in Zaragoza, shrine of

the venerable statue of Mary Most Holy that she miracu lously gave to Saint James

the Apostle and to Spain.

Ebro, knelt in prayer with upturned face while his companions, fatigued with the labors of the day, had closed their heavy eyelids and. like the Apostles before them, slept while their master prayed.

A flash of light suddenly lit up the fields, sounds of Heavenly music filled the

air, and the seven di.sciples, roused from their slumbers, gazed with wonder and fear at the apparition before them. Seated on a throne of

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBHR199K

Our Lady of the Pillar

ones and only in other parts of the world.

light, borne aloft by angels, was Mary, whom they supposed was in Jerusalem.

The statue of the Virgin is made of a mater

ial not found on this earth. By a miraculous

Angels knelt around her on transpar

ent clouds while others, playing mystical

divine action, no dust ever settles on it, so

harps, sang the sublime words with which,

for almost 2,000 years the statue has never

forty years before, the Archangel Gabriel

needed dusting.

had saluted her in her home in Nazareth,

Universally honored

"Ave Maria Gratia plena, Dominus tecum" Saint James, seeing this vision in ecstasy, saw the angels suspend the throne

and loved

A silver railing of exquisite workman ship runs the entire length of the three altars,

in front of him and place themselves before

it. Mary, taking from the hands of the Seraphim a small column upon which stood

and the walls of jasper and marble glitter with offerings of gold, silver, and precious stones which, flashing in the light of the numerous silver lamps, fairly dazzle the eyes of the spectator. But the Zaragozan sees only "La Pilarica" and the costly gifts

a beautiful statue of herself with the Infant

Jesus in her arms, showed it to Saint James,

gave him her blessing, and said, "James, servant of the Most High, blessed be thou by Him, and may He fill thee with His Divine

that have been offered in faith, devotion,

and love to adorn her holy chapel: gifts from kings, queens, princes, and noble knights who have prayed at this shrine throughout the centuries: gifts from pilgrims who have come on foot from afar to lay their offerings

Grace."

To this the angels answered,"Amen," and she continued: "My son James, the Most High and Mighty God of Heaven has

chosen this place that you may consecrate and dedicate here a temple and house of prayer where, under the invocation of my

jewels here before retiring from this world

by the fame of the miracles attributed to the Virgin of the Pillar, eventually raised a

for ever: gifts from humble peasants, from toilers of the deep, and from the poorest of God's poor, who saved and fasted for years

name. He wishes to be adored and served,

and all the faithful who seek my interces

sion will receive the graces they ask if they

at her feet: gifts from saints who left their

Our Lady appears to the Apostle Saint James

have true faith and devotion, and in the

church that remained until the end of the

to be able to offer a token of their love to La

Name of my Son I promise them great favors and blessings, for this will be my

seventeenth century, when Charles II, the

Patrona â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the Patroness,

temple and my house, my own inheritance

occupy the Spanish throne, built the splen

of Aragon knelt to take their oaths of fideli

and possession, and in testimony of my

did edifice that now enshrines the column

promise, this pillar will remain here, and on

and statue. The fir.st stone was laid on the

it my own image that, in this place where

feast of Saint James in 1686. In 1753, King

ty to God and to the people. Isabel the Catholic, who helped Columbus with his journey to the Americas, went frequently to

last monarch of the Austrian dynasty to

It was in this church that the old kings

you will build my temple, will last and

Zaragoza and gave priceless jewels to the

endure with the Holy Faith until the end of

treasury of the Virgin: the Emperor Charles V, heavy with the weight of crowns, visited

the world. This must be done at once, and

when your work is accomplished, you will return to Jerusalem where it is the will of my Divine Son that you make the sacrifice of your life where He gave up His for the

redemption of mankind."

Mary, seated on a throne of light, was borne aloft by angels.

She then commanded the angels to

place the column with its sacred image where it stands to this day, and as the angel

Our Lady of the Pillar and laid his sceptre at her feet before retiring to the monastery at Juste; Philip II, Philip III. Philip IV. all left memorials at the shrine, and Don Juan of

Austria had such a devotion for the Virgin of the Pillar that he wished his heart to be

buried in the crypt of the holy chapel. The holy chapel is never unoccupied

ic cortege disappeared. Saint James and his

Ferdinand VI engaged the celebrated archi tect Ventura Rodriguez to build the sumptu

disciples praised God and offered to Him

ous chapel in which the statue is now pre

the first shrine ever dedicated to His Blessed

served.

Mother.

Above the high altar is a carving of the Virgin extending her hand to the Apostle, '"La Potronar and depart.

Saint James builds the

and over an altar to the right of this is a pic

first chapel and others follow

ture of the seven disciples of Saint James.

Soon after. Saint James and his disci

ples built a modest chapel, sixteen feet long by eight feet wide, to enclose the Virgin's gift. This chapel succumbed to time and the

elements and was replaced by several others, but the sacred column has always remained in the spot where the angels placed it. The piety of the faithful and the offer

On the left is the altar where, under a rich

canopy of silver, against a dark background thickly studded with diamonds, stands the miraculous pillar with the statue of the Blessed Virgin and the Infant Jesus. Miraculous attributes

Scientists, attempting to match the

for a moment from daybreak until the doors

are closed at night, The crowds come and go continually. Very few people pass the church without entering, if only to salute Every now and then one sees an

acolyte in cassock and surplice wending his way through the groups of worshippers, car rying in his anus a tiny baby, perhaps only a few weeks old, This is the one occasion in

his life when a son of Zaragoza is privileged to touch the sacred statue; the baby, its inno cent face wet with the waters of Baptism, is raised in the arms of the chaplain and pressed against the face of ""La Pilarica."

ings of pilgrims, whose numbers increased

granite of which the pillar is made, have

There are chaplains whose lime is

steadily to multitudes, attracted to the shrine

been able to find similar but not identical.

entirely given to the services in the holy

CRUSADE

Our Lady of the Pillar

chapel; four of these guard the vestments and jewels of the Virgin, which they change

according to the rituals of the Church and

clothes, others in tatters; women, some

wearing the latest French hats and others with their heads enveloped in traditional

the festivals of the year. No others are

mantillas or in old shawls; working people

allowed to touch the statue or to have access to the mantles and ornaments that belong to

from the vicinity, and tourists with

her.

gle with throngs of soldiers, priests, and Infantes, all pressing as one moving mass to

Shrine ceremoniai

Every morning, as the first streaks of dawn break through the sky and the last stars have faded, one of the chaplains sings

Baedeckers in hand. All sorts of faces min

hear the solemn notes of the Salve, the last

act of devotion of the Feast of Our Lady of the Pillar.

the choir is composed of eight small boys,

Outsiders may look upon this tradition as absurd and impossible, but the Zaragozan sees nothing unusual in it; he dwells in an

Infantes, who are dedicated to the service of

atmosphere of saintly love, and the inhabi

the "Mass of the Infants." so called because

the holy chapel and serve the many Masses

tants of Heaven do not seem so very far

that are celebrated daily. These boys wear a

away from him,for he has evidences of their

special uniform during the liturgy and pro

presence on all sides; he lives with them

cessions. This Mass is the first of the innu

with a familiarity that might appear irrever

merable prayers that are murmured unceas ingly from this moment until the echo of the

ent were it not for its genuine simplicity.

last notes of the Salve Regina die away in the vast arches at nightfall. It is considered a

great privilege among the Zaragozan fami lies to have a son as an Infante of Our Lady of the Pillar.

The Feast of the Virgin of the Pillar is celebrated with great pomp and ceremony

There is no place in the world where devo tion to the Holy Mother of God is so deeply rooted as in the heroic city of Zaragoza, where her statue has been defended, with

the lives of thousands of her children, and

where it is firmly believed that her revered statue will surely endure "with the Holy Faith until the end of the world."

on October 12, beginning with the Mass of the Infants at four in the morning. The city

puts on holiday attire for a week, all work is suspended, and visitors pour in from all parts of the Peninsula to make their devo tions and take part in the celebrations at the famous shrine.

On October 11, bands parade the streets and fireworks are set off at intervals.

This is the formal announcement to the pub lic that the festivals are about to commence.

Trains arrive every half hour loaded with

passengers, and cars by the thousands come from every corner of Aragon and the

remotest parts of Spain. As early as two o'clock on the morn

ing of the 12th, the crowds begin to enter the church, and when the beautiful voices of the

Infantes sing the first notes of the Mass, the

edifice is so packed that it is difficult to move. At the conclusion of the Masses the

worshippers stream out at one end while others stream in at the other, and this con

tinues throughout the entire day, It is virtu ally impossible to estimate how many come to pray on this occasion. When the sun has set and night begins to fall, the bells pea! a joyous call to the Salve Regina. all the doors are thrown wide open, and the church soon fills to capacity,

without apparently diminishing the immense throngs that have gathered in the Plaza del Pilar. All classes are there, peas

ants in picturesque costumes who proclaim their native places; children, some in fine

Nowhere in the world is devotion to the Holy

Mother of God so deeply rooted as in the heroic city ofZaragoza, where her statue has been defended with the lives of thousands of her children.

September-October 1998

Ambiences, Customs and Civilizations

■

w '

'"f

Pagan Manliness and False Christian Patience Certain

of art discreetly

contradict the Church \s ideas

about tnoral perfection.

3ft. •

■

by PUnio Correa de Oliveira If we compare the features of this third-century Roman, repre

resemble this youth, who, while riddled with arrows, looks the very

sented in a splendid sculpture from the Capitoiine Palace, with those

opposite of Christian mortification, fortitude, and seriousness?

of the famous Apollo Belvedere, its irregularities become evident. In this sense, we could not exactly call this man handsome. Nonetheless, no one can deny that his countenance possesses a

assured of his good looks and satisfied with showing them off. His

certain element of beauty, mainly a moral beauty. The contours of the face and skull are well proportioned. All of his features are balanced,

The painting presents a youth comely of face and body, quite face has a sentimental and capricious expression. His posture is that of one who, though somewhat weary of standing, indolently enjoys the sun and the breeze. The tree serves him as a convenient prop, and

strong, and regular, and all find their highest and most vivid expres

he adroitly manages to support his feet comfortably on two sawed-

sion in his gaze. It is the lucid, calm, and serious look of a man accustomed to analyzing the world with a truly admirable sense of

off stumps. The arrows cause him not the least pain. Nothing in his

command and with confidence in his own abilities. It is a look that

God and of eternal life, a prayer for final perseverance, prayers for

person conveys the impression that he is going to die. Thoughts of

reveals a soul of manly temperament, capable of confronting the tri

Holy Church, a vigorous rebuke or a word of kindness to his tortur

als and uncertainties of life with strength and nobility.

ers — none of this is expressed or represented in the picture.

Such is the character of the Roman soldier, as we know from

history. He had those qualities that enabled him to spread Rome's great accomplishments: the Empire, law, literary and artistic master pieces.

In the same third century. Saint Sebastian served as the com

mander of the imperial bodyguard under the Emperors Diocletian and Maximilian. This guard comprised the army's elite and, for the

One could say that this youth, bored with being alone, merely waits for someone to find him and return him to his everyday life. In short, this is a morally mediocre figure, concerned exclu sively about himself — and with the world insofar as it affects him. He belongs to the moral family of banal souls. Artistically, the work is a masterpiece, ascribed to the immor tal brush of Botticelli. But the master should not have titled it Saim

people of Rome, embodied the ideal of manliness. We know of no existing document that describes the actual fea tures of this glorious martyr, but everything leads us to believe that he would have been even stronger and more serious than the anony

Sebastian. Rather, he should have left out the arrows, placed the

mous Roman in the first picture.

pagan Renaissance caused to souls by spreading an impalpable but

This is so because Saint Sebastian was a Catholic. Grace,

youth on the ground, and called the work Vain Yonng Matt Basking in the Sun.

Why these comments? To help us perceive all the evil that the contagious state of mind through its art, a state of mind that dis

which elevates and fortifies nature, would, far from weakening the

creetly contradicted all the ideas of the Church about moral perfec

virtues of the Roman, render these same virtues incomparably

tion.

greater.

How, then, could the noble Praetorian officer of the guard

CRUSADE

Furthermore, it is a warning for Catholics in face of the much more serious deviations and aberrations of numerous modem artists! ■

Ambiences, Customs and Civilizations

Forgotten Truths

rhose who persist in laziness and inaction, under the pretext of awaiting some percepti ble or extraordinary assistance from on high, displease and tempt God, and are left with no excuse for not having done their duty.

It is always from want of

preference to any other which

instruction, or from inattention

He might have determined,

to that which we have received,

because He is the author of

that we are led to form unrea

nature as well as of grace....

sonable expectations. God's

He wished to leave man with

providence in regard to man is

out excuse if he failed to do for

of two kinds: The first is extra

an eternal good what he daily

ordinary and miraculous, in which He displays the wonders of His power. The second is

does for perishable ends, for a

common and ordinary, in

in that which most concerned

which He acts, as our reason

him to follow them....

passing pleasure, and if he neglected the dictates of reason

Hence, those saints and

can perceive, by means propor tionate to the end which His

Fathers of the Church, who,

wisdom proposes. The first is rare and passing. God employs it only for some special design,

enlightened by the Spirit of God, have given rules for con ducting souls to perfection, do

but man, to whom these

not prescribe anything extraor

motives are unknown, would

dinary. They are content to point out ordinary means â&#x20AC;&#x201D; fre

be tempting God were he to count on receiving it....

The second kind of provi

quent prayer, spiritual reading, repeated examination of con

dence is general, ordinary, and

science..., silence, which favors

constant for all men. If the

our union with God and pre

Almighty has at times made use of the first, with regard to some, in changing them all at once, He

vents dissipation....

No matter how great may

to the common order, and treat

be our dryness, weariness, dis gust, and temptations, we can always make use of these

ed them as the rest of

[common] means, which God

mankind....

will always strengthen by His

has afterward made them return

The Almighty has chosen

this order of providence in

grace, if we have recourse to Him with confidence. â&#x2013;

(Excerpt from Rev. P. J. Michel. S.J., Spiritual Despondency and Tempcatiotis (N.Y.: Benziger Brothers, 1904), Chapter XIV.

,..1

Re-engineering the Human Species What to think about the revolution in human biology by Thomas Becket

In 1931, Aldous Huxley wrote his

the totalitarian state. It is the market. He

the pro-life movement to be patented?

famous novel Brave New World. He

points out that if there is money to be

After much public debate, a "solution"

described a society that produced

made, there will always be someone

was proposed: Simply thaw the embryos

willing to do the work.

in a laboratory dish and discard them.

children in hatcheries and then condi

tioned them to fill a preordained role. An

Since the birth in 1981 of Louise

Now, the possibility of cloning,

all-powerful slate socially engineered

Joy Brown, the world's first "test-tube baby," through the process of in vitro

reproducing animals and even humans

fertilization (IVF), over 150,000 chil

reduce human life to an industrial com

dren have been conceived in this fash

modity in this way would be achieved

ion. As long ago as 1984, the first child

would no longer be a need for two par

only in future centuries. He did not fore see the possibility for science to domi nate the very biological identity of the human species or that only a few short decades would produce the technology

was bom from a frozen embryo.

ents. Any individual could have a child

These practices have led to moral quandaries which have challenged even

"created" in his own image through

the watered-down ethics of modern sci

in vitro fertilization has the equipment

to make his nightmare a reality. Reflecting on the advances in genetic technology since then, scientist

Lee M. Silver, author of Remaking

through asexual means, opens up much greater possibilities for making life a mere economic commodity. There

the whole of .society. Huxley believed the capacity to

entists. They have raised legal issues and theological questions. What happens when you have hundreds of living embryos frozen in laboratories? Do they have rights? If their parents die. do they

cloning. Any practitioner who performs necessary to clone. There is no foresee

able reason why cloning will not

become readily available, whether legal ly or not. once the process is perfected. In Silver's projection, this demand-

Eden: Cloning and Beyond in a Brave New World, projects his view of the

inherit? This issue caused considerable

driven economy in reproductive technol

public outcry when the parents of a

ogy could even lead to the development

future of genetic engineering into a 1990s framework. The driving force

number of frozen embryos were unex

of two wholly different branches of the

pectedly killed. Should the embryos be

human species, one which has received

behind genetic engineering is no longer

kept or perhaps given to volunteers from

genetic enhancement and one which has

CRUSADE

Cloning

utmost possible extent, any need of others in reproduction and subject those conceived in

much romantic interest in each other as a

through abortion, the next steps, cloning and re-engineering of the human species, are but small ones. The major moral barriers already

current human would have for a chim

fell long ago.

control of them.

not. These two branches would eventually

have no ability to interbreed and "about as

this fashion to the whims of whoever is in

set of intellectual tendencies and habits,

A technology that does not promote the integrity of the human person but instead

and recombination of human DNA to

established new moral parameters, begot

reduces the person to a mere commodity to

produce "new and improved"

changes in thinking about children. No longer gifts from God. children became merely possessions. They became a means, to be had by choice, for the personal happi ness of the parents, because once the prima

be manipulated at will is completely unac ceptable. In its instruction on respect for life in its origins when discussing IVF, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

Birth control and abortion produced a

panzee."

Subsequent to discussion of cloning

ry purpose of marriage, the procreation and rearing of children, is rejected, its goal becomes, in most cases, a mere arrangement

convenience

for

self-gratification.

Further, the possession of children started to look more like a right, hence

â&#x20AC;˘m

even

homosexuals

obtained the "right" to

explained that: "Such fertilization entrusts the life and

identity of the embryo into the power of doc tors and biologists and establishes the domi nation of technology over the origin and des

tiny of the human person. Such a relation ship of domination is in itself contrary to the dignity and equality that must be common to parents and children." His Holiness Pope John Paul II.

addressing the members of the World Medical Association in 1983, said:

Genetic manipulation becomes arbi

trary and unjust when it reduces life to an object, when it forgets that it is dealing with a human subject, capable of intelligence and freedom, worthy of respect whatever

may be his limitation or when it treats this person in terms of criteria not founded on the integral reality of the human person, at the risk of infringing upon his dignity,

in this case, it exposes the individual to

the caprice of others, depriving him of his autonomy." Man does not have the right to make himself the master of human life. The

licitness of the new reproductive tech

nologies depends on whether the integrity of the person is maintained. If the technology dominates the act of

conception, it violates the rights of the embryo. If a human embryo is deprived human products, there may come discussion of creating sub-species of humans to do dangerous or unpleasant jobs. With the development of recombinant genet ic engineering, which allows a gene to be taken from one organism and transferred to

of autonomy by being frozen, conceived outside the natural environment such as

with IVF, or manipulated in any other way that does not have in view its own integrity

adopt. Clearly, once the relationship between parent and child is undermined, mtUTiage and

but some other end such as social engineer ing or .someone else's gratification, the act cannot be morally accepted. If this teaching

the chromosomes of another, changing the form of the human body will become as easy

family life are undermined.

as choosing options at a car dealer.

uct to be bought at will, enhanced, and sub

for aben-ations that have, thus far, only exist

jected to "quality control," there is no limit

ed in the imaginations of writers like Huxley. God gave man dominion over nature in

These new assaults are natural exten

Once life is no longer a gift but a prod

sions of the long-standing but erroneous

to the abuse a defenseless human can be sub

belief that people have the right to control

jected to, and really no moral argument to

is not upheld, we fling open the floodgate

every aspect of their lives. Once it is accept

defend him. The introduction of the new

Genesis, But his dominion stops short of the

able to dominate human reproduction by preventing conception through birth control

reproductive technologies and eventually of cloning and re-engineering of human DNA

sanctity of human nature and life. Science

and eliminating unwanted pregnancies

continues the trend. They eliminate, to the

become its master. â&#x2013;

must remain the servant of humanity, not

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1998

Protest

Protest and

mandments. It is because of this that when

we fall into sin we turn to Him and ask His

forgiveness. And it is to Him, above all, that

we Catholics look as the most perfect model and goal for the life of Christian perfection

Reparation

to which He calls us.

It is this image, then, this example, this perfection, that the sons of corruption

in Manhattan

attempt to destroy, because they know that if

they manage to destroy the image of the Head of Christianity, they will in a short while destroy Christianity itself.

Thousands of Catholics voice their outrage

Increase of Catholic fervor

over the blasphemous play Corpus Christi

Catholics today find it difficult to put aside

by Robert E. Ritchie

their personal interests for the sake of defending their Creator's honor in face of

It is unfortunately true that many

blasphemous affronts, and unfortunate, too, that many others have somehow embraced When playwright Terrence McNally first conceived the idea of portraying the

Second Person of the Holy Trinity as a homosexual in his blasphemous play Corpus Christi, he probably did not expect that it would provoke such a substantial protest as took place in Manhattan on Saturday, September 26. Perhaps he thought Catholics

would take this new blasphemy sitting down,

the idea that it is better to do nothing about them. Yet, there are still numberless true

Catholics who would echo the great Saint

wlVl

Jerome: "A dog may bark in his master's defense, and am I to stand by silent when God's holy name is blasphemed? I would sooner die then forbear to speak." Since beginning this campaign in May, we have encountered many expressions of such fervent faith. One man on hearing

as they have so often done in the past. Since news of the play was reported last May, the American TFP and its America Needs Fatima campaign has led hundreds of

about the campaign promised, "Let me know if you are going to protest in N.Y. I am

thousands of Catholics across the country to

said, "I am so infuriated I can hardly speak.

stand up in defense of the honor of Our Lord

I am going to do all it takes to slop this, even

Jesus Christ and proclaim a resolute No! to blasphemy.

if it means standing alone on the streets." Yet

The blasphemy perpetrated by McNally and the Manhattan Theatre Club may very

ago, but heart surgery or no heart surgery,

going to make this my mission." Another

another said, "I had heart surgery a month I'm getting out of bed to fight this one."

well be the worst blasphemy in American

Yes, America may pride itself in that there are still many good, militant Catholics who will not stand by, will not remain in

history, for it offends the Most High with the worst and most infamous of insults that can

be thrown against a man,that is of the unnat ural sin of homosexuality. Nothing could be more monstrous or blasphemous: and there

their comfortable chairs, but will readily sacrifice their spare time and even much

of the Blessed Virgin Mary foretold by all the prophets, He is our Redeemer, the God-

more to go forth vested with noble indigna tion to do whatever the law permits to fight

Man, the Divine and Incarnate Word, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity made man. In His name every knee should bend,

as many groups, such as the Catholic League and the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement,

Why is it that for 2000 years we have been called "Christians"? Why has our Faith during all these twenty last centuries called

"of those that are in heaven, on earth, and

have made noteworthy efforts to raise their

under the earth." He is the very core, the liv ing heart of our faith. Nobody goes to the

voices in opposition to Corpus Christi.

"Christianity"? Why is it that the blessed

Father except through Him.

Our Catholic duty to protest

fore nothing deserves to be fought against with so much firmness and urgency. What are we Christians for?

and happy family of Catholic nations who

live according the teaching of the Gospel has been termed "Christendom"?

It is because the Divine Person of Our

Lord Jesus Christ is the central point in our

We leam from childhood that the rea

son for our very existence is to know, love, and serve Him. He created us and all things from nothingness. He is Lord of all and of everything. He is the center of all things and

lives, individually and socially. He is the

therefore of our lives. It is because of all this

vine and we are the branches. He is the Son

that we try as best we can to follow His com

Crusade

against blasphemy. Many individuals as well

The outrage expressed by hundreds of

thousands of Americans against this play proves that America harbors gallant souls

who care more for good principles then for their personal comforts and interests. This

has encouraged the American TFP to go all out in protesting and making reparation for

â&#x2013; / i-o/

prayer and righteous act to defeat the sin that is so arrogantly displayed before our very eyes. There is certainly a battle going on. May we always be on the side of God, defending what is sacred, defending the truth.

Fr. Andrew Apostoli You know there's an old

saying, for evil to suc ceed all that is needed is

for good people to do and say nothing. You have come up here to be

Chris Slattery The play Corpus Christi is an inde cent and outrageous direct assault

counted. Thank you, because we have to let

Fr. Andrew Apostoli, a Franciscan

the people know,for

Friar of the Atonement, is a fre

on God, on the Holy Family, the

putting on this blasphe

quent guest on Eternal Word

mous play, that they have offended the dignity and feelings of many, many

Television Network, an author and

Holy Apostles, and our holy Church and Faith. Corpus Christi's play wright and promoters have created a

a professor at Saint Joseph's

Seminary of the Archdiocese of

pathetic excuse of a play. Their

New York.

people. I think they

intent is nothing less than to mock,

underestimate that there would be anything like this kind of

blaspheme, and insult God, and to outrage Christians and moral

response, and you know what? We have only just begun!

Americans, and to flout the freedom

But they take the liberty to attack Jesus Christ. We must

of expression guaranteed in our nation's Bill of Rights.

let them know that we honor Jesus Christ as the Son of God,

we honor Him as Our Lord, and we will not stop protesting

this play as long as it runs. I tried to quote Yogi Berra before to say, "It ain't over till its over."

Christ taught us to turn the other cheek, but He didn't say to be a doormat. He said we must speak, and it would be wrong of us not to speak out against what they are doing to

Why is it that the art communi ty of New York tolerates blasphemy against our Blessed Lord and the Holy Apostles? Would they dare openly tolerate a play that mocks the Jewish faith? No! Black culture? No! Latino culture? No! Islam? No!

Our Blessed Lord.

Remember there have been men and women that, for two

thousand years, have laid down their lives for their belief in Jesus Christ. And that's why we are here today, to let them know across the street that we love Jesus so much that we give

Where is the mayor? Where are

members of the city council? Where are the politicians of this city?

our ail for His sake.

Christopher B. Slattery Is the Founder and President of

Expectant Mother Care Pregnancy Centers and

Program Director for the Legal Center for the Defense of Life

In New York City.

We will not be silent when

Our Lord is affronted. We will not be silenced when Christians

are mocked. We will not, however, hate. We will not return the

mockery with hate of our own. We will pray for the offenders, we will pray for their conversion,just as we pray for the con

Fr. Andrew McCormick

Fr. Andrew McCormick Is a

priest of Saint John Cantlus parish in the Archdiocese of

Philadelphia.

There are many today who say that such a protest is futile and fruitless. We ought just to keep

version of the abortionists.

silent so as not to draw much

Steve Schwalm

attention to the evil that is tak

Militant homosexuality is fundamen

ing place in our world. They claim that if we ignore it, it will just fizzle out and die. As we have seen, evil, perversion, and blasphemy are not dying out as they predict. Rather, the situa

tally contrary and opposed to reli gion, family, and anything else that presupposes a natural moral order, a transcendent God, or anything higher

tion is getting worse and worse. That is why we not only have a

right, but an obligation to speak

than ourselves. The activist homo

sexual agenda and world view are fundamentally incompatible with Christianity or any form of true reli gion, because homosexuality is ulti mately narcissism. It denies the

out against all the affronts to

our Lord and Lady, these attacks against all that we hold and believe to be sacred.

of our spirits. That is why attacks on

Saint Catherine of Sienna said,"We had enough exhorta tions to be silent. Cry out with a hundred thousand tongues! I see that the world is rotten, because of silence." Pope Felix III

the faith, such as Corpus Christi, are not the exception, but rather the-rule. This foul blasphemy is part and

Steve Schwalm is Senior Analyst for Cultural Affairs

said that not to oppose error is to approve it, and not to defend truth, is to suppress it, and indeed, to not confront evil men

parcel of an agenda and people who

with the Family Research

know, much better than many

Council

when we are able is no less a sin than to encourage them. As soldiers of Christ and members of the Kingdom of God, we cannot remain idle. We must take up the weapons of

nature of our bodies and the nature

Christians know, that there is and

can be no peace between the two world views.

Protest

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1998

a !7i

Over 2,500 people gathered In front of the Manhattan Theatre Club to protest against Terrence McNally's blasphemous play Corpus Chrlstl. this unprecedented offense. The campaign against Corpus Chrisii began last May with a letter to McNally urging him to eradicate

addressed to the Manhattan Theatre Club,

from our files in the New York metropolitan

one for the leaflet's recipient and the other

area, urging their participation in the protest. Buses and vans were arranged for

the blasphemous aspects of his play but

for a family member or friend. Nearly four million protest postcards were distributed.

assuring him that if he persisted in his intent

The flyer provides a third card to be returned

we would be obliged to launch a massive

to us in confirmation that the protest cards

Massachusetts; Long Island, Queens, and

campaign of protest across the country. McNally made no reply within the time set â&#x20AC;&#x201D; nor anytime since â&#x20AC;&#x201D; so the campaign

had been sent. By the response we received,

Rochester. New York; Hazleton, Scranton, and York, Pennsylvania.

was launched.

Nearly 4 million postcards distributed

we estimate that the Theatre Club has

participants from numerous locations,

including Rhode Island, Virginia, and

received at least 180,000 protest cards.

When the dates of the play's previews were announced, time was clearly not a favorable factor, since we knew that many

Catholic spirit echoes throughout Manhattan On-site set up could, of course, be done only on the day of the protest. This work

Through direct mail, networking with

people who would like to have come would be unable to do so on very short notice and

other Catholic groups, distribution by

much preparation needed to be done.

numerous volunteers in front of churches, at

Permits had to be obtained from both New

podium, loudspeakers, microphones, and other items necessary for a large public

began at noon, with arrangement of the

protest. Everything was ready on time. At 2:00pm, Thomas McKenna, Vice

parish gatherings, and on public streets, mil

York City Hall and the Police Department.

lions of "Stop Bla.sphemy Now!" leaflets

After these had been secured, several ban

were distributed nationwide. The leaflet

ners and 300 "Stop Blaspheming Our Lord Now!" placards had to be printed.

President of the American TFP introduced

briefly describes the play's blasphemous character and issues a call to action. Each

Some 25,000 packages were mailed

the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement and

leaflet includes two detachable protest cards

out with invitations and instructions to be

Participants join In praying the Rosary led

invitation flyers were distributed by hand on

Among the participants at the rally was Steven McDonald a former New York City policeman who

the streets of New York City. Letters were

was wounded and partially paralyzed while on duty.

photocopied and distributed. Thousands of by Fr. Andrew McCormick.

sent to 1.500 clergy and other distinguished

persons asking for messages of support to be read at the rally. Faxes were sent to Catholic institutions in New York inviting

them to join the protest. Invitations to the rally were published in Catholic New York. of the Archdiocese of New York, and in The

Tablet of the Brooklyn diocese. A "phone-

tree" was set in motion, with 160 American TFP and America Needs Fatima members

and friends calling some 5,000 persons

Father Andrew Apostoli, a representative of

Raymond E. Drake, President ol the American TFP, delivers the closing

a frequent guest on Eternal

through Manhattan's canyons of glass and

Word Television Network.

stone skyscrapers, where God's rights are

Father Apostoli opened the event with a prayer. Then

too seldom remembered and His holy name too often invoked in vain. The participants

to be brought to a close. Mr. Raymond E. Drake, president of the American TFP,

solemn

also joined in shouting slogans in protest

entrance of a statue of Our

delivered the closing remarks, which were heard with great attention and provided

followed

the

speech at the protest.

Lady of Fatima carried on

and reparation, led by Mr. McKenna: "Every one therefore that shall confess

the shoulders of two sturdy

Me before men,... I will also confess him

many thoughts and hopes for carrying on the battle against blasphemy. "This play

"Fatima

Amidst Marian hymns and applause and

before My Father in Heaven!" "Blasphemy! Blasphemy!... A sin that

Christ, the very antithesis of Who He really

with a beautiful flower arrangement at her feet, the statue of the Virgin Mother of God

cries out to heaven for vengeance!" "Catholics of America, will you

passed through the crowd and took her place near the speakers' platform, where she reigned throughout the protest. The

remain silent as Our Lord is blasphemed?...

American TFP band then played the

mercy on us."

Proclaimers."

National Anthem.

America Needs Fatima director Robert

Never! Never!"

"0 Sacred Heart of Jesus,... Have

"O Mary conceived without sin,...

Pray for us who have recourse to Thee!"

presents a distorted, immoral, and twisted is, and as such, we see it as a vile and cruel

attack against Jesus and the Catholic Church, His Mystical Body.... "We are here today to sound an alarm!

We are here to give a cry of warning to our fellow Catholics: Wake up, don't allow

Jesus to be disfigured in your very hearts.' We are here to proclaim our love for Christ

Ritchie led off the line-up of speakers.

The verses of "Immaculate Mary,"

crucified and to shout out in reparation with

Referring to the humble woman who wiped Jesus' face along His way to Calvary, he

"God Bless America," and "Holy God, We

our whole soul: 'Lord Jesus, never in 2,000

Praise Thy Name" resounded alternately between the speeches and prayers. Simulta

years of history have such insults ever been

said: "Veronica didn't hesitate! She saw for Jesus moved her to take her veil and

neously with the rally in Manhattan, hun dreds of priests, nuns, and lay people across

wipe His face. She just did it, It was God who inspired her to do it. And she had the

the country who could not attend offered prayers and sacrifices in reparation.

Our Lord wounded and bleeding! Her love

hurled at Thee.'" â&#x2013; American TFP volunteers distributed anti-

blasphemy flyers at the entrance to the Manhattan Theatre Club during the rally.

obligation to do what God asked of her. It was something beyond tactics. It was hero ic! Today we have the chance to console

Impressive support for theTFP's rally

Jesus for the outrage being committed

Many messages of support for the rally

inside that theater, where He is being

were received from numerous religious and

mocked."

other public figures. These included Adam

Following Mr. Ritchie, both Father who came with a busload of his parish

Cardinal Maida of Detroit. Bernard Cardinal Law of Boston, Archbishops Elden F, Curtiss, Archbishop Harry J.

ioners from Philadelphia, addressed inspir

Flynn, and Archbishop Philip M. Hannan;

ing words to the crowd about the evil of blasphemy, Among the other speakers were

Bishops Nicholas D'Antonio, Henry

Steve Schwalm, a senior cultural analyst

Bruskewitz; Senator Bob Smith. Congress

with the Family Research Council, Dick

men Mark E. Souder and Hostettler; and Morton Blackwell. Brent Bozell III, and

Apostoli and Father Andrew McCormick,

Walsh, president of Americans for Life, and

Mansell, Thomas Doran, and Fabian

John Dabbene of the Sons of Italy,

Paul Weyrich. Excerpts from just a few of these messages may be found in back cover

Prayer and Protest

of this issue.

The Rosary, led by Father McCormick and answered by all present, echoed

The allotted time passed much too quickly, but by four o'clock the protest had

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1998

In June of 1992, Father Edward C. Petty The story of two priests who in defending theirflockfrom a fundamentalist assault, came out victorious and

suffered no casualties

was assigned as pastor of one of the largest parishes in a Midwestern diocese. The area is 90-percent Catholic, with just one small Lutheran church and an even smaller Kingdom

r catechetics for some 30 years, were Catholics only because their parents and grandparents had been Catholic. They were good "cultural

Catholics" but did not know what they believed nor why.

Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses.

The associate pastor, also newly assigned,

The strategy

arrived at the same time as the new pastor.

"We decided we had three choices in

Happily agreeing on basic theological and

dealing with this challenge," writes Father

administration issues, they set out to work together on parish goals. Within a few months

Petty. "We could do nothing, ignoring the interlopers, or we could try to be 'nice' and go

they reached one of their goals: having 75 per

out of our way to be ecumenical. With either of

cent of their parishioners at Mass on weekends. Parish life was running smoothly when, in

these

late January of 1993, an unexpected challenge arrived. A small group of Fundamentalists

Catholics away from the Faith. The third choice was to be real leaders and pastors of our parish and take on this challenge. We chose the third option and decided to act quickly, before

rented an unused movie theater to use as a

church. Visiting evangelists and college stu dents came to help, including to knock on doors. Some fallen-away Catholics among them were more than aggressive in their entrance to the neighborhood. The Fundamen talists made it plain that the town had been tar

geted because it was predominantly Catholic

choices

could

envision

the denomination could get a foothold in the community." Even the local Lutheran pa.stor encour aged them since he did not cherish the idea of

losing his own parishioners either.

and because they had previously been success

Father Petty and his associate decided on a series of sermons with apologetic content as

ful in Catholic areas. The town was "ripe for

the best way to reach most of the parish. With

the picking."

the permission from the chief pastor of the dio cese, the archbishop, they began. Using primarily two sources, Karl

They were right. Even though Mass atten

dance was good. Catholics, having had poor

This article is condensed from an article of the same title published in the February 1995 is.sue of This Rock. Condensed by Crusade Magazine and published with permission of This Rock.

CRUSADE

the

Fundamentalists taking many of our cultural

Keating's Catholicism and Fundamentalism and the collection of tracts from Catholic Answers, along with other apologetics material such as Fathers Leslie Rumble and Charles

McCarty's Radio Replies, the priests launched a series of explanatory sermons on our Catholic Faith. They began on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday with a

On the fifth weekend, the annual Forty Hours devotion

began, extending through Tuesday. This devotion had always been held in the parish during Lent, but in recent years atten

dance had dropped. The "old stuff"

short history of Catholicism in America, of its struggles with

Father Petty says, "Remembering the truth of lex orandi,

opposition and its conquests to the point where antiCatholicism had practically dwindled, at least for a time. The

lex credendiy we decided to 'do it up big' and make Forty

Hours a spectacular, extemal statement of our faith in the Real

sermon went on to explain a new religious phenomena: the

Presence. We got out all the 'old stuff from the sacristy and

rise of Fundamentalism in America, the new anti-Catholicism

their Faith when challenged.

built a real throne for the monstrance. We had 40 candles plus banks of flowers on the high altar, trained an army of servers, invited a number of orthodox priests to attend, made sign-up sheets for

'Then we used examples of Fundamentalist openers," says Father Petty, such as: "We [Fundamentalists] put our

engaged the choir for each evening

faith in Jesus, not in any church or sacraments";"Why go to a

service, ran

priest to have your sins forgiven, when Jesus can do it direct ly?" "The Bible says not to drink blood; that's why the

solemn Mass on Sunday.

accompanying it, and how Catholics are succumbing to Fundamentalism because they no longer know how to defend

Catholic idea of Jesus' body and blood in the Eucharist is

half-hour periods of adoration,

Eucharistic hymns, and opened with "The

weekend

sermon

was

wrong." "Show me in the Bible where it says to honor Mary

essentially a warm-up on the impor

so much."

tance of the Eucharist in our lives and

Presenting the challenge "We challenged our parishioners: 'Could you answer those standard openers?' The ending of the sermon was a veiled reference to the new challenge in our community:'We,

a pitch to attend the Forty Hours, especially the evening services. Not only did we have good crowds for quiet adoration during the three days,

in this parish, have a wonderful opportunity this year to take a

was packed Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday evenings for the special ser

riiese things.'

vices."

ation was being addressed. During the following week the coffee shops were buzzing with talk about the sermon series. Folks were interested. There

was a sense of competition in the air, a sort of our-team-ver-

sus-their-team situation, which the priests down-played, but it interested some marginal Catholics.

The next two sermons focused on keeping the Bible in

proper perspective, on how the Church Our Lord Jesus found ed predated the New Testament, how it was the Church that gave us the Bible we have today, and how Scripture was meant to be used with, in, and through the Church.

After this two-part series on the relationship between

direct apologetical preaching, we were able to reaffirm to this parish that it

but our church, which holds 1,400,

good look at what we as Catholics believe and why we believe By then most of the parishioners knew exactly what situ

In afew weeks of

off sheets of real

The priests took advantage of

is reasonable to be a Catholic and

the Forty Hours to preach three

longer sermons pertaining to the Real Presence and answering Fundamen talist objections to it. They gave a short explanation of transubstantia-

nothing else.

tion, described Christ's preparation

of His disciples for the Eucharist, covered in Saint John's Gospel, chapters 2-6, and ICorinthians 10-11, and acceptance of the Eucharist by the early Church using testimonies of Saints Irenaeus, Justin, and Ignatius of Antioch. Father Petty says: "By the time the great procession

wound its way around the church the final night, with Knights

Scripture and the Church, the sermons began to address spe

of Columbus, servers, and priests, with candles and incense,

cific Fundamentalist arguments against Catholicism: "accept

and with a kneeling congregation belting out 'Jesus, My Lord,

ing Jesus as Lord and personal Savior," "being 'saved,'" "not calling anyone 'Father,'" "evil clergy and popes," "infallibili ty," and the "the pillar and foundation of truth" for Christ's

greatly strengthened in the parish."

My God, My All,' we knew that faith in the Eucharist had been On the sixth weekend, the sermons continued with

followers.

answers to specific Fundamentalist arguments against Catholic beliefs: images, veneration of Mary and the saints,

The first results

and the identity of the "brethren of the Lord." The following

After the first week, an unexpected thing happened. People began to ask for copies of the sermon. There were fam ilies in the parish who had a son or a daughter who had gone away to college and been lost to a Fundamentalist group. They wanted to send them copies of the apologetic homily. At the

weekend. Palm Sunday, the parish was given a "break."

same time, the Bible college students were beginning to knock

on doors, so the parishioners wanted ammunition. If they couldn't argue,they would just hand them the sermon and say, "Read this."

On Easter Sunday, Father Petty and the associate pastor

preached on the lives of the apostles on that first Easter Sunday as a testimony to the reality of the Resurrection. On the Sunday after Easter, the final apologetical sermon was given, dealing with the Sacrament of Penance. The priests promised the parish that in the future, when the readings touched on some point of Catholic doctrine challenged by the Fundamentalists, they would preach on that doctrine. In keep-

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1998

The invasion...

ing with that promise, they eventually

preached on Peter's primacy,on Purgatory, and on the Marian dogmas.

The truth prevails What was the result of the sermon series?

"In spite of their money, personnel,

and aggressive proselytizing," says Father Petty, "we did not lose a single

parishioner to the Fundamentalists.(The Lutherans did not fare as well.) In a few

Professor Fred Singer is onevf the preeminent authorities on ener

weeks of direct apologetical preaching, we were able to reaffirm to this parish

gy and environmental issues in the United States. He has never been one to

that it is reasonable to be a Catholic and

lean on conventional wisdom.

nothing else. This is a small town and

even the 25 percent or our parishioners who are not here weekly heard the mes sage. None of them defected either. Over 700 copies of each sermon were taken.

' An atmospheric and space physicist, Prof. Singer vvas- a pi^eer in the development ofrocket and satellite technology. fPe designed thefirst satellite instrumentfor measuring atmospheric ozone and n'a.s: a principal developer ofscientific and weather satellites.

ing away from home, and there have

A Research Fellow at the Independent Institute in Oakland, California, and President ofthe Science and Environment Policy Project,

been good results in returns to the faith

Prof. .Singer is Professor Emeritus ofEnvironmental .Science and a member

when families had concrete evidence that

ofthe Energy Policy Studies Center at the University of Virginia.

Many were sent to prodigal offspring liv

ours was the real 'Bible-believing' Church.

"During Lent of 1994, we decided to

The Left has made extensive use of the

do another sermon series. This time it was

supposed threat of global warming in its

temperatures.

on the beauty and benefits of God's for

relentless attack on material progress, private property rights, and civilization itself. An

Singer discusses why the current warming trend is not only natural but likely beneficial.

giveness in the Sacrament of Penance. By Easter Sunday the vast majority of our adult parishioners had made a good con fession. For many it had been ten or more years since they had confessed. What a

change this has made in our parish! It has been visible in the faces of the congrega tion.

integral part of the environmentalist agenda because of its apocalyptic flavor, the theory of global wanning asserts that man-made

emissions increase the atmosphere's tenden cy to trap the sun's heat. This wanning, since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, has

supposedly led to the expansion of desert

human activity has triggered rises in global Here, Professor Frederick

Crusade: Professor, this issue of the environment can be divided into

two parts: a scientific part and a

philosophical or ideological part. Science is being used to promote an ideological agenda. Media reports often assert that global warming is

"We are not a perfect parish and

areas and to unusual weather patterns,

real, imminent, and a threat to human

never will be. But with God's grace we

including more frequent hunicanes, floods,

life. Is there scientific grounds for

are trying to be better Catholics and fol

and other natural disasters. Eventually, glob

that as.sertion?

lowers of Jesus Christ in our daily lives.

in 1993,1 shudder to think what the situ

al warming will cause potentially catastroph ic climate changes in crop-growing regions and will melt much of the polar ice caps, raising sea levels and swamping coastal

ation would be in this parish, with fami

areas around the world.

climate changes all the time. There was a

lies split, people arguing, and who knows how many Catholics being lost to the

The burning of any organic material produces carbon dioxide. Most of man's energy-generating machines â&#x20AC;&#x201D; internal combustion engines used in cars, coal-fired power plants â&#x20AC;&#x201D; produce carbon dioxide, and

substantial global warming between 1900

Had we not had the courage and the abil

ity to meet the Fundamentalist challenge

Faith.

"The 'Bible-believing' and 'fastgrowing' Fundamentalist church is still in

our community. When their one-year lease on the old theater ended, however,

the denomination's national headquarters decided not to renew. They are now in a small metal building at the edge of town, and at last count there were eight cars parked in front on Sunday mornings. "Thank you, Lord, for all your mira cles!" â&#x2013;

CRUSADE

it is the most frequently cited man-made

"greenhouse gas," a gas that contributes to the trapping of the sun's rays and warming the atmosphere. This enables the Left to use

Professor Singer: Well, this is a very complicated question. First of all, there is

both global warming and global cooling. The

and 1940, which was entirely due to natural causes. From 1940 to 1975 there was a

strong cooling, which is well established by observations.

So the climate does cool and warm, depending on the time.... The question is, is

this a problem for mankind? It can be, par ticularly the cooling. Cooling can be very

harmful. Judging from human history over

global warming as a pretext for undermining almost any civilized activity. In contrast to the widely proclaimed

the last 2,000 years, we have records of what

fears of some political leaders, journalists,

ed agriculture, caused crop failure, which in

and other doom sayers, surveys of climatologists show that most are unconvinced that

turn caused starvation and great misery. On the whole, warming tends to be

happened when the climate cooled. It affect

Global Wanning

Interview with

Professor Fred Sin^ier probably as a result of the higher level of

more beneficial to human activity than cooling. So, things being equal, I would prefer

carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

a warmer climate to a colder climate.

there are basically two methods. One is to

If you want to control carbon dioxide, control emissions, and the other would be

Crusade: There is talk about dif

ferent ways of controlling pollution

and the like. What do you think of these kinds of controls? Is there an

alternative to government control?

climate treaty and they each have delegates to the meetings taking place almost contin ually, if you're from a small country, you have a lifetime job. It's a nice existence. And then, of course, there are people

to remove it from the atmosphere.

who have other motives. Some people pre

Removing it from the atmosphere is possi ble if, for example, you grow trees. If you

fer to have international sovereignly rather

plant forests, you take the carbon dioxide

than national sovereignty. They prefer to have international government, and this

from the atmosphere and put it into the

would be a step toward international gov

Prof. Singer: First of all, if you're

trees. That would be a way of controlling

ernment, because, clearly....

referring to greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide from the burning of fuels,

carbon dioxide. Now, the question is, does

it pay to do this? Should you do this? That

carbon dioxide is not a pollutant. One

becomes an economic and political ques

should not use that word. The reason I

tion.

would not call it a pollutant is because it is not harmful. It doesn't affect human health. We have carbon dioxide in our blood. We

Crusade: Are you referring to one-world government? Prof Singer: Yes, yes. Some of these

people are certainly idealistic, Utopian. Crusade: What is the hidden

agenda of this environmentalism?

Others have less admirable [motives].

And finally you have people who are

probably the most dangerous, purely ideo logical and in a sense very anti-religious.

exhale carbon dioxide. As a matter of fact,

Prof. Singer: There are many agendas

carbon dioxide is beneficial. It feeds plants. Plants live on carbon dioxide, they take it

here. Different people have different agen das. Some have no agenda. Some are afraid

out of the atmosphere and use it to grow.

of a warmer climate because they don't

which sustain our civilization, the Judeo-

Plant material is basically carbon dioxide from the atmosphere that has been turned

understand the situation, they have not been educated. I hope we can reach them. Others do have an agenda. One clear agenda is that you can make money from this, you can become wealthy, famous, and gain political power. Obviously, if you're an

Christian tradition which puts human exis

into plant material. That's the first point. Second, should we control it?

Well, carbon dioxide has increased

slightly in the last hundred years or so as a result of human activity. There's no ques tion about that. Whether this is good or bad,

international bureaucrat, if you work for a

I would imagine that on the whole it would

good for you. because it gives you more

be good, because it provides more plant

money, more opportunities to do things, more travel...and if you keep in mind that there are 160 nations that have signed the

food, more material for plants to grow on,

and we have seen an expansion of forests.

U.N. environmental program, that's very

That is. opposed to the traditional values

tence above everything else, because we were created in the image of God. These

people believe that humans are not at the pinnacle of creation, and in fact, that humans are against nature, the antithesis of nature, that we should do everything possi

ble. if not do away with humanity, at least to reduce humanity, bringing us down to the level of animals. In other words, they con

sider human beings no different than ani mals. â&#x2013;

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1998

Women Priests? Why Not? by Raymond de Souza

Does a female priesthood reflect the mind of Christ?

Our family was leaving Perth's

sultation with the women in the early

Cathedral after Mass on a customar

ministry. Isn't that so, Lil?"

ily glorious sunny morning when

Sister Lilith purred and agreed

Sister Lilith, a loquacious American

wholeheartedly, as though their agree

nun known for her struggles in favor

ment would change past history and

of the rights of women in the Church, approached us with an atti

doctrine.

tude at once challenging and patron

Church is or should be a democrati

izing â&#x20AC;&#x201D; or should 1 say "matroniz-

cally-run organization, rather than a divinely-ordained institution?" asked

"Do you sisters believe that the

ing"? In any case, she asked my wife if she was going to hear Sister

my wife. "Don't you know," said Sister

Chittister's lectures.

My wife simply replied that

Ruth, without bothering to answer,

she had no time for dissenters who

"that the Church took on the charac

know exactly what they are doing. Sister Lilith was expecting that.

teristics of a patriarchal-dominated

hierarchy because the early Church

Glancing at our seven children

moved to Rome and was influenced

around us, she said, "Poor thing!

by the Greek and Roman cultures of

What would

you know about

woman's rights in the church com

Our Lord with the Samaritan woman. He called neither

her nor any other woman to the priesthood.

munity?" She waved a meager good

the time, in which women were

oppressed?"

I was dying to jump headlong into

bye to the children, but before she could sail

the fray, to cite biblical arguments to Justify

away towards another prospective convert,

wife served tea (nothing happens in Australia without a cup of tea). The two sis

my wife said: "Sister, why don't you pop by

ters exchanged knowing glances from time

Church, to show that the Apostles could not

the imperishable and infallible nature of the

our place this afternoon for a chat? I'd love

to time. Ruthless Ruth could hardly contain

be so misguided, but my wife's warm glance

to hear about my rights in the church com

a little chuckle here and there. The two

and little nod suggested that she could han

munity, Would you come?" Poor Sister Lilith could not say no â&#x20AC;&#x201D; at least not in front of so many people. She agreed to come

looked as contented with themselves as

dle it. I sat back, all ears.

lionesses after a hearty meal. Yet when they spotted Donna Sleichen's book Ungodly

"If the Apostles had remained in Jerusalem, Sisters," she said, "There would

around 3:00.

Rage and

Miilieres

be no Church today. Jerusalem was totally destroyed in AD 70 by the Roman legions.

Ordinatio

The joust begins At 3:00 p.m., a quick but resolute

the

papal

Sacerdotaiis

pronouncements and

Dignitatem casually strewn on the coffee

Thank goodness the Apostles and the

table (my wife pleaded guilty to putting them there on purpose), their gazes became

advice and left the city before the siege,

come â&#x20AC;&#x201D; with revenge. She had brought her

more like those of hyenas around wounded

don't you think?"

friend

prey.

knock at the door told us that sister had

Sister Ruth (nicknamed

Sister

Ruthless for the dictatorial way she runs her

Church in Jerusalem listened to Our Lord's

Sister Ruth did not bother to reply. She

Sister Ruth started the discussion with

simply started another dissertation on how

parish council). They were ready for an

a long dissertation on the equality of men

argument, which I would not have missed

and women in what she called the "church

for all the tea in China.

community," and finished by saying that "in

oppressive life was for women in the Church in the pre-Vatican II days. She concluded; "Today women can become doctors,

We exchanged the usual greetings and seated ourselves in the living room. My

fact, the Apostles were going to ordain women to the priesthood after proper con

lawyers, account executives, ministers, prime ministers, ambassadors, presidents.

CRUSADE

whatever! So, the priesthood should be

blessed are they that hear the Word of God

available too. We must know and have our

and keep it.' That was a great praise of his own mother, and right there in public, for

rightful place in the Church!" "Aren't you confusing apples and oranges, Sister?" replied my wife. "Isn't there a substantial difference between the

secular and the religious fields? We're deal

ing with two distinct societies. The Church and the secular world live together, but do not follow the same rules."

Sister Ruth muttered a casual "huh-

uh" and again changed the subject: "Of late we've drawn much inspiration from the lib erating voice of the prophetess of Nazareth in our women's spirituality, you know?" Not being able to figure out who that

prophetess was, I had to ask her name. "Mary," was the curt reply."In her can ticle of liberation, the Magnificat, she

alfirmed that oppression among the people would be done away with, and the Deity did many great things for her."

she was the first to hear the Word of God

and keep it. More, she conceived the Word

Jesus was free and indepen

of God made flesh, and gave birth to Him. Our Lady was the perfect follower of Jesus, much more than the Apostles. And yet, Jesus...did...not...call...Her...to...the...priest

dent from the mores of His time

hood," concluded my one-and-only, pro

Sister Ruth had her reply on the tip of her tongue: "It is very easy to explain why Jesus did not call His mother, or any woman for that matter, to the priesthood:

He was conditioned by the cultural environ

nouncing each word very slowly to make sure they got the message. "Would you like some more tea, Sisters?" she asked the visitors in a smiling, candid tone. Ignoring the offer. Sister Lilith

"Being God, He could do something that you seem to forget: He is able to foresee

asked,"And why so? Why do you think she

our future. One of the greatest, most won

wasn't ordained?"

derful, and most consoling things He told us was that 'The gates of Hell would never

"Because it was not according to the mind of Jesus Christ to have women in the

sanctuary," replied by wife, matter-of-factly

ment of His time!"

"Sister! Really now!" my wife said.

prevail against the Church.'" "So?" said Sister Lilith, half-exasper

as usual. "Jesus came to do the will of the

ated.

Father, and everything He did was to fulfill

"So," my wife replied,"If anyone knew that the twentieth century was going to have a lot of unhappy women — such as you —

the Divine plan, according to the wisdom of Our Lady herself was not called to the priesthood

it wholeheartedly in faith, because 'Blessed are those who believe without having

the Lord of the Universe."

"And, who, pray, said so?" asked the

in regard to His Church, it was Our Lord. If

"Feminists may try to identify with

ruthless one with a dash of sarcasm. "Did

He knew that His Church could fail Him in

Our Lady, Sister," said my wife, "but they

you come up with this pious thought, or was

this issue of refusing to ordain women, and

lose out in the first round. She was many

it your hubby who suggested it to you?"

thus oppress them for nearly 2,000 years,

"No, no, it wasn't my idea," my wife

wouldn't He have provided for it?"

things they could never be: humble, as opposed to proud and indignant; self-effac ing, as opposed to ostentatious and loud; always thoroughly ladylike, fully under

either. It was Pope John Paul n who said it, in his apostolic letter about priestly ordina

standing that she and her husband existed

tion, Ordinatio Sacerdoialis, which we hap

not to compete with one another, but to complement one another."

pen to have right here on the coffee table. Pope John Paul II brings it all together when

"But Jesus said that what counts is to

he says, 'The fact that the Blessed Virgin

hear His word and keep it!" inteijected Sister Lilith, with a dry, calculated smile,

Mary, Mother of God and Mother of the

women as fitting candidates for the priest

Church, received neither the mission proper

hood, as you suppose? Why, we could ask once again, didn't He solve this terrible problem that afflicts feminists while He had the chance? He taught the Apostles all they needed to know. He sent the Holy Spirit to reinforce what they had been taught, and He bestowed specific graces. How many

attempting to change the subject.

replied, half-flattered. "Nor my husband's,

My wife smiled and said, "I was just

to the Apostles nor the ministerial priest hood shows clearly that the non-admission

going to mention that episode. Thank you

of women to priestly ordination cannot

for prompting me."

mean that women are of a lesser dignity, nor

"Jesus abolished the Law of Moses

and established the law of love without dis

criminations!" replied Sister Lilith. "One moment, please," answered my wife. "Our Lord said that He had come to

perfect the Old Law, not destroy it. Why, then, in perfecting it didn't He consider

The dry smile disappeared from Lil's

can it be construed as discrimination against

face, and my wife went on: "When a

them. Rather, it is to be seen as the faithful

woman came to Jesus and praised His

observance of a plan to be ascribed to the

women — and men, too. for that matter

mother with the words 'Blessed is the womb that bore Thee, and the breasts that

wisdom of the Lord of the universe.'

— have gone against the Pope these days

"We may not see this divine plan in all

and left the Church because of this 'lack of

nursed Thee,' Our Lord responded: 'Rather,

of its details," she went on,"but we accept

inclusion of women in the priesthood,' by

"The fact that the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God and Mother of the Church, received neither the mission proper to the Apostles nor the ministerial priesthood shows clearly that the non-admission of women to priestly ordination cannot mean that women are of a lesser dignity, nor can it be construed as discrimination against them. Rather, it is to be seen as the faithful observance of a plan to be ascribed to the wisdom of the Lord of the universe."

Catholic Apologetics

Father did not call women to the priest

Our Lord? How many in our days have died

holding this false idea? How many may hold Our Lord responsible for it?" "You are free to think as you wish,"

interrupted Sister Ruth. "I agree with Lil.

"I declare that the

Church has no authority

Jesus was a man who lived in a particular

hood in the Old Testament. God the Son

did not call women to the priesthood dur

ing His life here on earth. God the Holy Spirit did not call women to the priesthood on Pentecost — nor ever since. That's

whatsoever to confer

demonstrably the will of God in heaven!

to reflect the customs of His time."

cultural and political environment and had

Our response is, 'Thy will be done!'

I couldn't take it anymore."Excuse me. Sister Ruth," I said."I believe that for anyone

priestly ordination

People who favor women priests should stop saying the Lord's Prayer, the Our

on women"

done on earth as it is in heaven," not 'my

to say that Our Lord was conditioned by the culture of the time, or anything like that,

Father, because there we say, 'Thy will be

sounds blasphemous — or, on a lesser scale,

will be done.'"

ludicrous! In today's terms, what does it mean to be conditioned by the culture of the

Pope John Paul II

The infallibility of the Church established by Christ "Couldn't the Church have been mis

taken all these years?" asked Sister Lilith in near desperation. "It is only now. after

the Council and the development of femi

nist theology, that we have come to realize the error and correct it! Wouldn't that be

the work of the Spirit in the Church, too?" "You've got a choice to make. Sisters,"

my wife began. "Either you believe that Our Lord Jesus — Who promised that 'the gates of hell would not prevail' and that He would be with us till the end of time — has

allowed the Church to be wrong for the last 2.000 years, allowing the Church to be an

instrument of sin by degrading and oppressing women because they do not have

access

one

the

seven

Sacraments, or... or He made the Church

correctly, exactly as She is, a mother and a teacher. And, we all know that sometimes

some of us may find it difficult to do or accept what our Mother or Teacher has to say. Yet we know we must do as She teach es, especially when this Mother and Teacher is infallible."

Sister Ruth could not allow any weak

ness in her sister; "And suppose the Bishop with which, in all His behavior. He empha

of Rome decides one day to ordain women, what will your theology be worth then, eh?" My wife, cool, calm, and collected,

One who said, i am the Way, the Truth, and

sized the dignity and the vocation of women, without conforming to the prevail ing customs and to the traditions sanctioned

the Life' and that 'the truth will set you free.'

by the legislation of the time."

time? It means simply to be RC.. politically correct! How can anyone imagine Our Lord

giving in to political correctness? He is the

Our Lord is Truth itself. How can you sug

once again picked up the text of Ordinatio

Sacerdolalis and said: "That will not hap pen, Sister, purely and simply. And do you

gest that such a Person, so divinely logical, so supremely free, all-knowing, almighty, and all-loving, is politically correct? It is

Catholic priesthood

want to know why?" Without waiting for an

reflects the will of God

answer, she went on: "Let me read for you this little passage, in which Pope John Paul

insulting to Him, 1 say." While 1 was speaking my mind, my wife was glancing quickly through the

encyclical next to Ungodly Rage,"let's not blame the Pope or the orthodox bishops for

II clearly acknowledges that the Church has

what Our Lord did. Any complaints, revolt,

ordination on women.

encyclical Ordinatio Sacerdolalis. "Listen to what the Pope teaches," she said. "In call

anger protests, marches, even petitions — like that failed one of Call to Action in the

■"In order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great impor

ing only men as His apostles, Christ acted in a completely free and sovereign manner. In

States — in favor of the ordination of

tance, a matter which pertains to the

women, must be addressed directly against

Church's divine constitution itself, in virtue

doing so. He exercised the same freedom

Jesus himself! The fact is that God the

ot my ministry of confirming the brethren

CRUSADE

"Sisters," she said, replacing the

no authority whatsoever to confer priestly

IN BRIEF

Catholic Apologetics

0 Remember the Sudan

(cf. Luke 22:32), I declare thai the Church

Numerous starving Sudanese,forced to

In its mid-year report NARAL stated that over 300 bills to curb abortions have

has no authority whatsoever to confer

move by the war waging between Sudan's

been introduced in stale legislatures since

priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all

Islamic government and Christian forces from the south of the country, are crowding

January of this year, with over 50 being approved in 23 states. It reported that most

the Church's faithful.'"

into Catholic missions.

of the measures dealt with restrictions on

Hundreds of people per day, many sur

abortions other than partial-birth abor

The aftermath

viving on leaves and grass, desperately flock

tions.

Sister Ruth abruptly excused herself just then, saying she had to go some

to the town of Wau in south-central Sudan. "This has been the situation for the last three

course, the battle is not over until all forms

where. But Sister Lilith was somewhat

months, and the Islamic government has

of this affront to God and natural law are

impressed by the underpinning idea of

ob.stinately refused to let in food supplies, clearly with the intention of genocide," stat

banned.

my wife's argumentation. Her eyes betrayed a spark of hesitation, although she would not have admitted it had we

ed Salesian Father Vincenzo Donati.

Catholic missionaries report that hun

Its complaint is encouraging, but, of

0 Assisted suicide update — Michigan

pressed her. As the sisters walked

dreds of bodies are taken away every day,

A current proposal to legalize assisted

towards the door, my wife addressed

most receiving no burial. They also report that thousands of orphaned children are herded by Muslim authorities into "peacecamps," where they are "Islamized."

suicide in Michigan faces a multi-million dollar ad campaign. The elfort against

Sister Lilith: "The Catholic Church does not have the mandate, the power, the

competence, to change the law of God,to change the nature of the Church and Her Sacraments, because they were instituted by Our Lord Himself. And the reserva

0 What was their crime?

"Proposal B" has been launched by a united front made up of the groups Citizens for Compassionate Care, which includes Lt. Gov. Connie

Binsfeld, the

Michigan

tion of priestly orders to men alone is precisely part and parcel of the nature of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, therefore

in Yemen murdered three nuns of the order

Disability Rights Coalition, Right to Life Michigan, and representatives of Catholic

founded by Mother Theresa of Calcutta. These missionary martyrs were killed

and other religious denominations. Samples of the ads presented were at a

of the Church herself, of the Law of

while laboring at the works of charity for

news conference held at the state capitiol on

God."

which their order is well known. Were

Monday, September 14, including a 30-sec-

A few months ago Muslim extremists

these works of the Faith the "crimes" for

ond spot showing a match burning a copy of

Redemption, we must go!" sneered Sister

which they were "sentenced" to the ulti

Ruth the Ruthless. It was only then that we learned Sister Lilith's full new reli

mate punishment?

the Hippocratic oath, in which physicians promise not to harm patients. Proposal B would allow the infamous

gious name. A couple of platitudinous

missionary of the Franciscan Sisters of the

parting words, and the two were on their way. We hoped that, at least, 'Sister Lil'

Child Jesus was kidnapped and found dead,

Jack Kevorkian, and other like-minded killers, to circumvent the ban on assisted

and a Jesuit missionary was assassinated,

suicide that went into effect on September

would begin to do a bit more thinking and

both in the Republic of Congo.

"Sister Lilith of the Liberating

About the same time as this incident, a

We closed the door and returned to

our living room. The children were

1, even without a valid medical license. 'All he would have to do is find someone with a

a lot less purring. 0 The devil's lament

When the National Abortion Rights

demanding what the sisters might call, in

Action League reports "bad news," there is

the domestic church community, their

at least some cause for rejoicing.

medical license. Dr. Georges Reding [a part ner of Kevorkian] comes to mind," said Sen.

William Van Regenmorter, author of the ban

targeted by Proposal B. ■

inalienable human right to be fed. As she

prepared dinner, my wife said, "You know, Our Lord wants us to go to Him full of love — for Him first, for ourselves and

How to Subscribe to Crusade

our neighbor second. Some say He died of a broken heart out of His love for all of us.

Call 1-888-317-5571 or 717-450-6500

Our Lady expects us to imitate Him in His

or write to:

love. So. we should pray for the radical

Crusade Magazine, P.O. Box 1868,York, PA 17405

feminists like Sister Ruth and those who

or email:

experience difficulty in accepting the way

Crusade@tfp.org

Our Lord established His Church, like

Sister Lilith, and enlighten them whenev

er possible. But, most importantly, we must learn more and more about the

teaching of the Church on this issue so we

Six times a year, Crusade offers timely articles of lasting interest for each and every member of your family — from the

history of Christian civilization to current Catholic events; from episodes in the lives of the saints to the persecution and martyrdom of

As she went on with the dinner, I

Catholics in our own days; from inspirational stories for children to insightful discussion of child rearing; from apologetics to recipes. Fully illustrated and dynamically presented, Crusade will be a wel

thought to myself,"Women! What would

come addition to both your coffee table and library. Subscribe now!

can share the Catholic truth and teachings

with others, don't you think?"

the Church be like without them!" ■

SEPTEMBER-OaOBER 1998

Basic History Course

Probus,one of the few worthy emperors of his day, was struck down by his own troops. Cams, another Illyrian' warrior, replaced him and immediately went on a successful campaign against the

Western Civilization

Persians with his own son Numerianus at his side. At the hour of his tri

umph, Carus's tent

was seen going up in flames with him in it.

During the journey home

the

CHAPTER

new

emperor Numerianus contracted an eye dis

Christianity: Its Triumphs and Trials During the Time of Constantine

ease that forced him to travel in a closed litter.

Several days later, the trav elers opened up the litter

by Jeremias Wells

Constantine

and found inside a decay ing corpse, a victim of murder. Such were

the hazards of governing the Roman Empire as the third century was drawing to a close. The official suspected of murdering

of statesmanship, especially a genuine con cern to preserve order. He concluded that

Numerianus was brought before an assem

to the imperial throne in 284 and became

to sink the Empire, the bloody battles over succession and the consequent ineffective ness of the army, which encouraged the bar barian invasions, could be resolved by increasing the number of emperors. Two

known to history as the great emperor

years after his accession, Diocletian raised

Nicomedia in northwest Asia Minor near

Diocletian.

Maximian, a loyal companion at arms, to

the Bosporus, also for strategic reasons.

Caesar Augustus, Vespasian, and the "Good Emperors" all put a temporary halt

the throne. Both assumed the title of

Augustus with Maximian controlling the

The final persecution

to the downward movement of the Roman

western half of the Empire and the former establishing himself in the East.

after forty years of relative calm, the num

bly of generals. One of them stood up, grabbed his sword and slew the suspect. After more bloodshed, that general climbed

political and military situation. But each

the overwhelming problems that threatened

renewal accelerated it's disintegration.

In 293 each elected an heir, called a

Diocletian was the last emperor to tem porarily fend off the dissolution of the

Caesar, to assist in defending the frontiers, and their choices began a process that for ever changed the direction of imperial and

Roman Empire as a whole. Although without a cultural back

religious history. In the East. Diocletian

ground, Diocletian possessed the qualities

chose Galerius. an ignorant, violent man

ROMAN EMPIRE under DIOCLETIAN

who had begun his career as an illiterate

shepherd in Illyria. The tetrarchy (rule of four) was completed by Constantius Chlorus, a nobleman of high merit who suc cessfully defended Gaul and Britain. Maximian abandoned Rome as his

capital for Milan to be nearer the frontier.

Diocletian had long since resided at

At the beginning of the fourth centui7, ber of Christians had been steadily increas ing. Many of them had moved into high positions in the administrative and financial

departments of government. Moreover, in the large cities, magnificent churches were

being built, giving Christianity a visible presence. These examples of success great ly irritated the Church's more destructive enemies.

Galerius, aroused by his bitter hatred

BRITAIN

of Christianity and the influence of his mother, a pagan sorceress in a debased

GERMANY

nature cull, inaugurated the last and most

violent attempt to exterminate the supernat ural religion. Diocletian, who did not want to see the Empire torn apart by strife and ..V/

bloodshed, at first resisted. But his failing mental and physical health was no match J

P.A UN

RMENIA UACCDONiA

for Galerius's malicious determination.

The persecution was driven by a

series of progressively brutal imperial SARDINIA

ASIA

edicts, beginning with the destruction of the

siciLy

cvphii

TBim

SYRIA

houses of worship and the copies of Holy Scripture and ending with death for those who refused to worship heathen gods. The

fiendish campaign exceeded all others in its duration (303-311), its variety of tortures, and the numbers of its victims. Special effort

Constantine was truly a gifted com

were easily recognized. So much was this so that they aroused the jealousy of Galerius.

mander. Once he realized that conflict was

Constantine, aware that his life was in dan

inevitable as the only means of resolving the

was made to force apostasy through lengthy

ger, jumped on a horse one night and rode

problems of dynastic ambition, he moved

prison stays accompanied by the usual

through the darkness from relay station to relay station, across the Bosporus by ferry,

father's army camp along the English

south to engage Maxentius at Rome with the same decisive energy, speed, and boldness that characterized his ride across Europe. Displaying brilliant maneuvers and prevent ing any ravishing of the civilian population,

hot irons to sear or destroy tissue.

Channel, a stupendous ride of over 1500

he conquered or won over all the towns

Towards the end, the courage of the victims exhausted the strength of the prose

miles.

between the Alps and the River Po.

cutors and numerous Christians were sent to the mines in conditions little better than the

year (306), his army proclaimed the young

hunger, thirst, and filth, combined with the most savage torture, which included scourg ing, the rack, the combing of sensitive parts of the body with iron nails, and the use of

through the central Balkans, up the Danube River Valley and across northern Gaul to his

When Constantius died the following man his successor as Augustus in the West.

The conversion of Constantine However, the closer he

agony of the prisons, espe

approached Rome, the more

cially when the standard pro cedure required that an eye

precarious his position became, for his troops were

be torn out and one leg be

crippled in order to prevent

outnumbered

escape.

four to one, 170,000 to

than

A.D. 305,

40,000 by one account.- No

Galerius took advantage of

perceptive, astute general

Early in

would have led his troops

Diocletian to force the latter,

along with Maximian, into

down through the narrow peninsula of Italy with such

the

failing

health

retirement. Both Galerius and

Constantius advanced to the

without having some power

senior throne as Augusti.

or support upon which to draw. But that support he

While Constantius showed a favorable attitude toward the

tactical

disadvantage

did have â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and from a

persecution without opposi

supernatural source. As the campaign was beginning, many thoughts

tion in the eastern Empire. |j

ran through Constantlne's

suffering Church, Galerius could now continue his brutal

Then a disgusting malady Having the odds Having turne turned to the true God for help before a battle where the odds were were

especially the ineffec-

struck the evil-living emper- heavily again over- tiveness of the pagan gods against him, Constantine received help from above andI won an over dge against Maxentius at the battle of Miivian Bridge or. Huge, putrefying sores whelming whelming victory vie

and the heroic resistance of

covered the lower part of his

the martyrs, who seemed to

enjoy supernatural assistance. So one after noon he prayed fervently to God for help. A

The stink of decaying flesh filled the imper

Although a period of vicious intrigue and invading armies followed, Constantine

ial palace. Recognizing the failure of his

avoided the violent politics for the most part

marvelous sign appeared to him from heav

murderous policy and the resilience of the

by concentrating on his immediate responsi bilities: subduing the turbulent Franks and restoring order along the Rhine. In 308, eight combatants claimed the title of Augustus: by 312 death and illness

en. Struck with amazement, Constantine,

along with his troops, saw a cross of light in the sky bearing the inscription "In this sign conquer" (in hoc signo vince). Sometime later. Our Lord appeared to him in a dream

narrowed the field to four: Constantine and

and directed him to inscribe on his shield

abdomen and worms invaded his bowels.

oppressed religion, he issued an edict of tol eration and implored Christians to pray to the triumphant God for mercy. He died five days later.

Constantine the Great From the time of Diocletian's abdica

tion in 305 to the death of Galerius in 311,

the idea of having two senior emperors with two juniors waiting in the wings all but van ished as several powerful men positioned themselves to battle for the top spot.

Maxentius, the renegade son of

and equipment a symbol formed by

Maximian, in the West; and in the East, Licinius and Maximin Daia, a

^ the Greek superimposed letters chi

j) and rho, which represented the name

nephew of Galerius and even more

of Christ.

cruel towards the Christians â&#x20AC;&#x201D; if such ^

was possible. The last three named ^ had few redeeming qualities; all were

^1 V

Foremost among them was Constantine,

soldiers of fortune seeing no purpose

son of Constantius Chlorus and the future

up as a virtual hostage at the imperial court

in life other than self-glorification and the increase or exercise of power. Although in the ensuing civil war, Licinius was allied with Constantine, before long they, too,

in Nicomedia, his qualities of greatness

faced off in battle.

saint, Helena.

While the young prince was growing

Battle of Miivian Bridge Assured of divine assistance, Constan-

tine's battle-hardened army advanced south ward toward Rome. Maxentius moved his

troops, of whom a large number had been corrupted by the sensual city life of Rome, across the Tiber River to a position a few

SEPTEMBER-OaOBER 1998

miles north of the city. On October 28, 312, Constan-

tine struck his enemy's cen ter with force and speed.

The Arian heresy, which lasted most of the fourth century, struck at the very root of the Church's existence hy denying the divinity of Her Founder.

rior lay a proud and arro gant temperament that was by nature rebellious. Alexander, the kindly

Maxentius' soldiers broke

bishop of that great intel

and fled toward Milvian

lectual center, called upon

Bridge and a hastily erected pontoon bridge nearby. The panic-stricken troops jammed the structures, and the overburdened pon toon bridge collapsed, throwing many heav ily-armored soldiers, including Maxentius,

into the Tiber where they drowned. With no place to go, many others were cut down on the approaches. Constantino's victory gave him complete control of the western

mixed blessing to Christianity and at times a colossal irritant by interfering in theologi cal issues far beyond his understanding.

Arius to recant, but he defiantly refused. Alexander then convoked a synod of Egyptian and Libyan bishops that deposed

The Arian heresy

Instead of humbly submitting to his superi or and the authority of the Church, Arius went about the eastern Empire gathering ^ support from other malcontents.

and

Throughout recent chapters, we have mentioned that Jesus Christ looked into the

future and saw the many struggles that the Church He was establishing would have to

excommunicated

the

heresiarch.

By far his most illustrious recruit was

face. He entered into the domain of world

Bishop Eusebius of Nicomedia,^ one of

history by predicting, among other things, the persecution of His followers and the rise

those ambitious, political prelates who advance by their connections with royal or

of heretics "to lead astray, if possible, even the elect"(Matt. 24:24). Saint John, relying

great noble families. Eusebius was working his way into the confidence of

on Our Lord's revelation in the Apocalypse, used a second beast arising from the earth to symbolize the temptation of enticing here

Constantino's sister Constantia at the very

Maximin Daia. The latter's death resembled

sies that will attempt to destroy the deposit

Licinius.

that of Galerius. He died of a wasting dis ease through which he recognized the tri umph of Christianity, albeit in his typically brutal way. He took revenge on the pagan priests by having them massacred for deceiving him about the falsity of their reli gion, especially the oracles who promised him victory.

of truth He left as a legacy to mankind.

As the controversy was unfolding, another powerful personality joined the fray. Athanasius, the chief support and con fidential secretary of Alexander, began

Empire. Early during the next year, Constan tino and Licinius met and issued the famous

Edict of Milan, which granted complete freedom to Christians and restored to them

all confiscated property. Later in the year, the number of surviving emperors was reduced to two when Licinius defeated

The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste After that, Licinius reverted to his

greedy, pagan self. Seeing that Constantine favored the Christians, Licinius decided, in

Throughout the centuries, rare indeed is the period that lacks some member of the flock playing the role of a Judas goat. The Arian heresy, which lasted most of the fourth century, struck at the very root

moment when the emperor was establishing

his residence there in 324 after defeating

writing the apologetic works and letters that eventually earned him the title "Doctor of

of the Church's existence by denying the

Orthodoxy." Although only in his twenties,

divinity of Her Founder. At one blow, the

he showed unusual vigor and clarity of

Arians

thought, and his life-long love of Christ, especially in the Incarnation, was easily

assailed

the

doctrines of the

Incarnation and the Redemption, hardly a "trifling and foolish verbal difference," as

recognized. Constantine often showed a morbid

Constantine would have it.

One of the best descriptions of Our

fear of religious controversy and would insist on reconciliation without examining the relative positions of the opposing sides.

his twisted logic, to persecute them. This

Lord's essence comes from the first lines of

caused one of the more dramatic acts of

John's Gospel where the beloved saint dis

martyrdom. Forty youths of one of the best Roman legions, stationed at Sebaste,

closes that Jesus, as the Word of God, was

When the intensity of the conflict came to

divine, separate from the Father, and always co-existing with Him. Other statements,

his attention, he sent Hosius, the aged and

Armenia, refused to sacrifice to idols as

ordered by Licinius. As punishment they were taken to a frozen pond, entirely

such as "I and the Father are one" (John

10:30), reinforced this concept. In other

learned Bishop of Cordova, to Alexandria with instructions to Patriarch Alexander and Arius to settle their differences. Constantine

stripped of clothing, and left there during a

words, Jesus Christ was fully man and fully

was beginning his unfortunate interference

severely cold and windy night in full view of a lighted building that contained a steam bath. As the end of the agony was approach

God and, as God, existed eternally with the Father(and the Holy Ghost for that matter). This the rationalist and anti-supernatural

in ecclesiastical affairs far beyond his com petence. The Roman emperor would not accept a subservient role in religion when

ing, one of them lost his courage and

Arians would not accept.

he was all-powerful in other matters.

which promptly killed him. One of the

Arlus and Eusebius of

returned with the advice that Constantine

guards, seeing a supernatural brilliance envelope the martyrs, took off his clothing

NIcomedia, heresiarchs

should call a general council of all Christian

and joined them, bringing the number back

priest in Alexandria called Arius who,

Without achieving any success, Hosius

crawled into the warmth of the steam,

The movement took its name from a

bishops, which he wholeheartedly did.

to forty.

although not the originator, was its master

The Council of NIcaea,

With the religious antagonism causing a deep rift between the two surviving lead

ful propagandist. He possessed excellent

the first General Council

ers, Constantine attacked Licinius in 323

and permanently removed him from the

scene. Constantine, now in sole possession of the Empire, unfortunately proved to be a

CRUSADE

credentials for his nefarious work. This

Prior to the fourth century, bishops

articulate troublemaker attracted a large fol lowing, especially among women, because of his imposing, ascetic appearance and smooth voice. But behind the pleasant exte

habitually gathered together in councils or synods to resolve local problems. However,

325 bishops representing the entire

Church were convoked to form the first

History

General Council, sometimes also called

at him. Initially the courageous prelate

"Ecumenical" from the Greek word mean

defended himself well, but the constancy of the attack began to do damage.

ing "the whole world." The popes have the right to preside over the action of such councils, either personally or through dele gates, and must subsequently approve the decisions as the authentic teaching of the Church. Since Nicaea was situated across

the Bosporus near Nicomedia in Asia Minor, the frail and elderly Pope Saint

Sylvester sent two Roman priests as his del egates and Bishop Hosius presided in his name.

The death of Arius

Eu.sebius, hypocritically misrepre senting supposed changes in belief, con vinced the emperor that Arius should be restored to his priestly functions. When Constantine ordered Bishop Athanasius to receive the heresiarch. the indomitable saint

replied, "There can be no communion between the Catholic Church and a here.sy

Three parties emerged during the

which fights against Christ.""' As a result,

deliberations: a small group under Eusebius

supporting Arius and his heresy; the

Athanasius was rernoved from his see and banished to Treves in Gaul for over two

Patriarch Alexander, some stalwart bishops,

years.

Saint Athanasius

and their chief counsel. Athanasius, who

In the meantime, the increasingly dark

championed the teachings as received by the Apostles from Christ himself; and. finally, the vast majority sitting in the mid

and brooding Comstantine moved the

dle. Arius, infatuated by his prominence,

emperor forced the bishop of that see to

up and carried him to safety. He went into

spoke and imprudently carried his yiews to

receive Arius back with full faculties.

the limit. When the greater number in the third party showed their displeasure, his

On the final day before the .solemn ceremony of rehabilitation. Arius and his party were swaggering through the city

the Egyptian desert to join Saint Anthony's monks for six years. There he wrote many great works exposing the treachery and

case was lost. The crafty Eusebius then

church where Athansius was celebrating a

Roman capital to Byzantium, eventually to

night vigil, a bloody riot broke out. During

be named Constantinople in his honor. The

the melee, the bishop's friends picked him

malice of the Arians.

Although Athanasius had to endure

while the bishop, prostrate on the sanctuary fioor in his church, was pleading with God

two more exiles under different emperors,

ed into a creed ravorabic to the Arian posi tion. However. Athanasius strongly insisted

to prevent the sacrilege. Arius felt uncom

the force of the here.sy was playing itself out

fortable and entered a nearby building.

that the tliird party declare themselves for or

Moments later his followers lound him dead, bathed in his own blood. His midsec-

and splintering into small groups of di\ er.se opinions. In effect, one faithful bishop who corresponded to grace for well over fifty years had outlasted the heresy. â&#x2013;

urged the council to accept an ambiguous formula which could later have been twist

against the traditional doctrine in clear, con cise language.

The important breakthrough occurred when the word "consubstaniial" was intro

tion had burst open. Constantine followed him to the grave one year later after finally receiving baptism from Eusebius.

Bibliographical note:

duced to specify that the Father and the Son were of the same substance or essence. This

formula was accepted and included in the Nicene Creed which is used in the Catholic

Mass to this day. Conslantinc. as a result, banished Arius and. when Eusebius contin

ued his agitation, exiled him as well. But Constantino's closing advice that Christians should be accommodating and compromis

ing rather than unyielding portended great problems for the future.

Athanasius against the world

(New York, 1942), Giuseppe Ricciotti,

gained complete control and indulged his twisted hatred by inaugurating a reign of terror against the hierarchy of the Church.

and N. H. Baynes, Constantine the Great (London. 1930). Among the many

But all his actions, like those of Eusebius. who was now dead, had Athanasius. whom he had earlier exiled, as the ultimate target.

duel with Arianism, the most prominent

In 328 Alexander died and was

Only Pope Liberius and Hosius, the

replaced in that most important sec of

venerable Bishop of Cordova, dared to stand by the extraordinary saint. The rest had either yielded or been exiled, impris

Alexandria by Athanasius. About the same lime Eusebius returned from exile to make

war against the young bishop and every thing he stood for. The evil genius of the malignant

heretic quickly regained his influence over the royal family. Through the use of deceit,

intrigue, and treachery, he was able to

depose, one after another, the orthodox bishops of the East that opposed him and supported the Nicene formula. With Athanasius isolated, the resurgent Arians

attacked him by hurling absurd accusations

For the emperor's conversion see Lloyd Holsapple, Constantine (he Great

The empire was divided among Constantino's three sons. By 350 the Arian Constantius 11. a bandy-legged dwarf, had

oned, or killed. Liberius, after two years of imprisonment and psychological torture, finally signed a carefully worded statement which avoided the word "consubstantial."

Hosius, now nearly a hundred years old, required more vicious treatment. They scourged the old man, stretched him on a rack and forced him. his body broken, to

sign a document that made concessions to Arianism.

The Age of Martyrs (Milwaukee, 1959),

sources consulted for Athanasius and his were the multi-volume Church histories

by Philip Hughes (vol. 1) and Femand Mourret (vol. 11) and the works already cited by F. Cayre, W.T. Walsh, Maisie Ward, and Henri Daniel-Rops. The Catholic Encyclopedia was used exten sively for this chapter.

Notes

1. niyria is roughly equivalent to modem Serbia and BrMiia.

2. David Chandler, Ed., The Dictionary of Battles

(New York. 1987). p. 26. 3. Not to be confused with Eusebius of Caesaria, the noted historian who was a semi-Arian, a fence straddler.

4. Quoted in Philip Hughes, A History of the Church (New York. 1935), Vol. I. p. 239.

When armed soldiers in 356 invaded a

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1998

Ch Id en Are People A sequel to "Starting Early"* Michelle Taylor

It was a long,long time

She had invited many friends to

ago. The little girl could

spend Christmas, and I was one

not have been more than

of them. There were about

five years old, but she remembers being at a party

twenty-five children present. Even though she had planned a

where all sorts of delicious

menu for them different from

looking desserts were being

ours, theirs was a very good

passed around. At one point, she beheld

one prepared with care.

a beautiful sight. Someone

especially for them with gar

passed by holding aloft a platter with what looked to

Christmas ornament on the

She decorated a room

lands and lights and a red

her childish fancy like a mountain of golden hair. It was something called "gold

nose of the deer head on the wall. Then she dared the

impossible, challenging dis aster! Since it was such a spe

en egg strands," made with egg yolks and sugar. It was

cial occasion, she set beauti

marvelous. She knew it was

ful tables with blue table

sweet and wanted some, and

she said so to a lady standing by her. The good lady bent

cloths, china, silverware and The am azing hostess trusted the children with "big people's"

down to her and patiently explained that this was a dessert for adults but that she would certainly have a chance to taste it some day. Adults always knew better, the little

girl thought. Yet, somewhere deep inside her a small voice asked, "If it is beautiful and good, why do I have to be two feet taller to

appreciate it? I'm a person too!" It was many, many years before I saw that dish again. When it finally materialized before me once more and I tasted it, I found

glasses, and they did not fall her!

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the ultimate temporary insanity, I thought â&#x20AC;&#x201D; stemmed glasses! To top it

set with linen, china, and stemware, the chil

all, she was going to serve a cherry-colored

dren will be satisfied with paper plates and

punch!

plastic cups â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and not notice the difference.

Something inside me began shaking,

We think there is plenty of time for them to learn to appreciate the finer things later. I knew a good old-fashioned lady who

but this amazing hostess trembled not one

held the opposite view. She maintained that children issue forth from God's hands with

fine instincts that only await being given a chance and a bit of prodding to develop. She also held that appreciation for good food,

bit. "Watch, they will behave perfectly," she assured me.

She was right. Of course, several moth ers supervised. Their eyes were wide open, partly in disbelief like mine. The children

sat like little ladies and gentlemen, and not a single glass overturned nor a single drop of punch spilled. And this notwithstanding that

it to be as delicious as I knew it would have

fine tableware, and pleasant environments is

been many, many moons before. That adults eat shrimp and stroganoff

intimately linked to the development of

several of the children were no more than

good manners. She proved it to me satisfac torily one Christmas.

four or five years old. As I gaped, several chubby hands

while children eat hot dogs and potato chips is a very widespread notion in our society today. While we adults may appreciate a table

CRUSADE

clasped the stems of the individual glasses (*) See Crusade, July-August, 1998, pp. 36-37

and ever so carefully lifted them to their lips.

They drank, then began the wobbly but everso-careful journey to set them safely down on the table again. There they were, then, the innocent expressions of complete satisfac tion and pride! They had been trusted with "big peoples'" glasses and had not failed! I had learned a lesson. It was a lesson

The palate, like manners and appreciation for anything better, must be developed

that, deep down, really did not surprise me

is nothing to "wait" for. It is all there. They

are people like us and will respond intelli gently, appreciatively, and at times amaz ingly to being treated as such. Of course, as I said, this must be done

within the right proportions. Children must be allowed to be children. There is nothing more irritating than a child who thinks he or

as I remembered my own experience with

affirmed that the fostering of good manners

she is a miniature adult.

the golden strands and my intense wish to taste the "big people's" dessert. I thought to myself: If within the right,

and intelligence are intimately linked.

He needed to expound no further; I

What Emily Post and others, including this writer, advocate is to treat them not like

understood. My imagination returned to

adults but like little people developing into

proper, and balanced proportions we

those chubby hands cautiously struggling with those stemmed glasses and the look of intelligence in the small faces striving to

cation line, say, at ten or so, to begin intro ducing them to all that is better in life but,

included our children in our appreciation

of special foods, table settings, and sur roundings, they would not only develop

win that battle. At that moment, I had seen

appreciation but also better and, eventual ly, very natural manners. Natural? Yes,

something develop, struggle, and "grow" inside those children for the better. I knew

because, somehow, people who learn man

the statement was true.

ners only later in life from a business

course or a book, seem always to present

Emily Post has written a book titled Children Are People. The "Etiquette Lady"

an artificial, self-satisfied impression.

is an advocate of manners taught early and

Something tells me that it would help

consistently to children. Her title, borrowed

mature the children as well.

for this article, seems to suggest our tenden

adults. The idea is not to establish a demar

rather, to start young. How many times I've watched children look with longing eyes at what their parents are

eating while returning without enthusiasm to their hot-dogs in the kitchen. After a while, of course, they will only want hot-dogs. The

palate, like manners and appreciation for any thing better, must be developed. If not, children will want only what is plain, easy, and com

Just the other day this last thought was

cy of not considering children people like us

monplace. But life certainly is not plain, easy,

inadvertently confirmed for me by none other than the director of France's largest

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; at least as far as manners go â&#x20AC;&#x201D; until

or commonplace. We owe them more. We will

later. And so we wait for that later time.

give them more if we truly believe that ftom the

anti-abortion organization. At a talk titled

"The Hidden Enemies of Family Life," he

Yet the entire "code" for the man- or

woman-to-be is present in the child. There

very awakening oftheir beings they are people like us. â&#x2013;

Aesthetic Education by Saint John Bosco It is the duty of parents or teachers to help their children or pupils perfect their sentiments towards the beautiful. This is a sentiment that comes with nature, but

needs to be worked on and perfected. Every child holds the capacity to appreciate the beauties of nature, art, and religion. I recall that, when I was a child, my mother would often have me look to the

sky and observe the marvels of the countryside. On serene and starry nights, she

would take us to the fields and, pointing to the heavens, would say: "God is the One Who created the world and has made all those beautiful stars; and if the skies are

so beautiful, imagine what Paradise will be like!" When spring came around and when there appeared with the first light of the sunrise the fields covered with flow

ers, she would exclaim; "How many beautiful things the Lord has made for us!" And when clouds gathered and the sky became darkened and obscured, and thun der reverberated, she would say: "How powerful is the Lord! Who can resist Him? Because of this, let us not sin." And in the wintertime, when everything was cov

ered with snow and ice, and we who were poor were found gathered around the fire, with much simplicity she would say; "How much gratitude we owe the Lord, who has furnished us with everything necessary! God is truly a Father: Our Father, Who art in Heaven.,."

Biografia y Escritos de San Juan Bosco, B.A.C., Madrid, 1955 p.438.

Education SEPTENtBER-OCTOBER 1998

'Cheophilus ear reader, this is a true story. It

Father of Lies between shouts and curses,

is also a frightening one but it has a beautiful ending. Above

"but. in turn, you must give me the one thing of yours that is of any use to me. You must give me your soul. You must turn your back

all, it is a great lesson to all of us, big and small, who must brave the battle

on your Catholic Faith, on the Church, the

field of life to get to heaven where we are because, as I said, it is a true story and a great

Virgin Mary, and Jesus Christ." The young man shuddered at hearing this terrible proposition, but his will was so weak

lesson.

ened by then and he so avidly desired his post

meant to go. So read it and pay attention

A very long time ago, on the island of

again that he agreed.

Sicily, in the days when men built castles of

Even so, the devil still wanted more. He

solid stone and cathedrals that reached for the

gruffly ordered the old man to write out a

sky, and when men knew that good was good and evil was evil, there was a young priest named Theophilus. This young priest was

contract on a piece of paper stating that the priest had officially "sold" his soul to him, the

devil. He then had Theophilus sign the paper. Taking hold of the paper with his ugly paw,

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris

well-meaning and served God well, and he

helped his bishop so efficiently that the bishop was quite proud of him. One day, however, the bishop died and the new bishop removed Theophilus from his former position. With that, Theophilus was sad and downcast. Then, the devil, a

very, very clever fellow who watches day and night and plots how to harm God's children, began to whisper in his car,"How could he do

this to you,Theophilus? You, who have been so faithful, to lose your post, to lose your career! You can't stand for this!"

Theophilus gave ear to the devil, and he became very, very sore

the devil said: "1 will take this to Hell with me just in case you

change your mind. This way I'll have proof of our agreement!" Having said this, the fiend disappeared, leaving behind a terri

ble smell of sulphur. After this, matters suddenly began to work out for Theophilus. Ill no time at all he was back in his former position and as well

regarded as before. He had everything he wanted or needed. Everything, that is, except happiness. Theophilus was not happy because it is not in the devil's power to make us happy. Only

inside.

God can give us happiness.

At this point the devil again whispered in his ear; "Why don't you go to see Mr. So-and-so? He is a powerful magician and can get

could not sleep at night and soon could not even eat. His stomach

you your position back."

This "powerful magician" was nothing but a very bad man who

The wretched young priest was more miserable than ever. He

was in one great knot, and his heart felt like a great lump of lead within his chest.

did the devil's work. He could work "magic" only because the devil helped him do so â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and only to harm people.

"What is it worth to a man to gain the whole world but to lose his

Giving in to the devil's .suggestion, Theophilus set out one night

soul in the end? You have what you wanted for a little while, but you

Over and over he seemed to hear a voice in his mind that said:

under the cover of darkness so that no one would .see him. He

will never see God nor Heaven. When you die. you will rejoin that

walked through the windy streets of his town till he came to a low.

scrap of paper and your new master in his fiery home for ever and

deep-set door. He knocked. A dark, ugly old man opened it and bid

ever and ever and ever and..."

him step in. It was the wizard himself.

He listened to Theophilus's story, heard his requests, and then said, "This can be arranged only if 1 ask for 'higher help.' And, like everything of value, it will have its price..." "Name the price," said the pitiful young priest, "and if it

is in my power to pay I will pay." "I must consult my master," said the wizard.

The old man then began to mutter some strange incantation. Soon a great cloud of smoke filled the room.

"O my God, what have I done!" cried Theophilus one day. able to bear it no longer.

At that the devil was right at his side again, whispering some thing new in his ear: "My God? What do you mean, "My God"? I ^bought you had given Him up... for me... I am your master now. You think God would even want to look down upon you now? Forget it! Besides. I have that paper, remem ber?"

Then there was a long, delighted, cruel laugh...

Theophilus beheld , in the middle of the cloud, the ugli

"It's true." thought Theophilus. "I'm finished.

est, blackest, the most crooked, dirty, and deformed crea

How can I even think of approaching God when I turned my back on Him tor a mere position? There is

ture he had ever seen. It was the devil himself.

"I will give you the position you want," said the

CRUSADE

no way out for me."

m Son, could not go to such a hideous place to get

From the far off recesses of his memory, how

ever, something seemed to say; "Remember the Blessed Virgin Mary whom you once loved so much? Was she not your mother? Try her. Maybe

y/ In an immense, incredible act of mercy, she ^ offered to go herself. For three days the priest remained pros trate on the ground. Then the Immaculate Virgin

she can still do something for you. People say she

never turns anyone down, even the most wretched,

appeared again with the cursed contract, which

miserable sinner."

she herself had taken from the devil!

"Can it be?!" wondered Theophilus."Can it be

But this is not the end of

that she will still listen to me?"

the story. After the next Sunday

Theophilus ran to an altar

Mass, before anyone had left

of the Virgin and, bowing his

the church, Theophilus publicly

forehead to the ground, began

confessed his sin before the

to implore mercy from her

bishop and the whole congrega

who is the Mother of Mercy.

He prayed for a whole

tion, and then he burned the

cursed parchment as the people sang hymns of thanksgiving. Three days later Theophilus

day, then another. All in all, he prayed for forty days, sighing and weeping for his sin. Finally, one day, as he

died, comforted by the holy

looked upward, he found Our Lady standing before him! She reprimanded him severely for

sacraments, and was laid to rest in that same church.

what he had done, but he

begged for mercy, reminding her of so many other sinners who had been forgiven. She replied: "I will for

Medieval churches were true story books carved In stone for the benefit

So, dear readers, young and old, every time we say the Our Father we should be especially careful when we say, "and lead

of all the faithful. The story of Theophilus Is told In stone on the fa9ade us not into temptation, but deliv

of Notre Dame. Top;Theophilus takes refuge behind Our Lady as she wrenches his fateful contract from the devil's grip.

er us from evil." And when we

your back on me, but I am unable to forgive you for turning your

recite the Hail Mary, we should mean it with all our hearts when we say, "pray for us sinners now

back on my Son."

and at the hour of our death. Amen"

give you for having turned

Then Theophilus begged her to speak to her Son, for he didn't dare. Then Our Lady reminded him of the contract he had signed with the devil. Before all else it must be retrieved, but Christ, her

We should always be careful and pray with attention, for we never know what ugly devil is waiting around what dark comer with a temptation "made to order" for each one of us.B

The Mothet'Of'Pearl Rosary Includes Magnlfiicent Rosary Guide and Handy Rosary Carrier-pouch In response to Mary's request at Fatima to pray the rosary. Crusade Magazine offers you the new Mother-of-Pearl Rosary, including both our magnificent Rosary Guide booklet and a handy Rosary Carrier-pouch.

The Mother-of-Pearl Rosary centerpiece depicts the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Heart that dearly loves men and is so little loved by them. The ornate crucifix, centerpiece and chains are gold plated to subtly blend with the soft while mother of pearl beads. The rosary is hand crafted with care by Catholics who love Our Lady and pray the rosary every day.

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As the mayor of a town I am angry and as

a Catholic I'm outraged. I am taking this opportunity to let you know that the majority of Americans are not supportive of this dis play of hate and bigotry. If any other figure in religious history was depicted as this, there would be a hue and cry, but for Jesus we are His body on earth and we must continue to do His work and not be afraid to stand up to the media and individuals that attack Him.

Denis Weber, Mayor, Agoura Hills, CA

I share your abhorrence for the use of tax payer dollars to fund exhibits that undermine the moral fabric of our country. Furthermore, I agree that we need to strongly consider the

fiscal responsibility of subsidizing art with taxpayer dollars when it has survived and

flourished for most of this country's existence

you imagine a play as blasphemous as Corpus

What people say about

Christi, so offensive to all sensibilities but the

Corpus Christi

How about 100 years ago? Or even 50 years

Letters and

Comments over

swept aside in the name of tolerance, choice, and freedom - in this case, artistic 'freedom' funded by the National Endowment for the Arts!

U. S. Senator Robert Smith, New Hampshire

While Bishop Doran's schedule does not 'Let me know if you are going to protest in New York. I am going to make this my mission."

Mark F. Souder

We are alarmed that this devilish work is

ago? Of course not. But in the confused and

degenerate society of today, right is wrong and wrong is right. TXvo thousand years of moral standards and righteous teaching are being

the phone

without federal aid.

Member of Congress, 4th District, IN

most depraved, being produced 200 years ago?

"I am so infuriated I can hardly speak. I am going to do all it takes to stop this, even if it means standing alone on streets."

permit him to participate in person with you and so many others at the planned rally on September 26, he has asked me to thank you for your fidelity to God and His Church and for the good example which you set by your courageous public protest of what can only

be termed as blasphemy of Our Lord and Savior.

directed to mock our loving Savior. In order

Your public witness to what is morally

to help in defending the honor of Jesus, we

good and right stands in evidence and stark

will silently pray so that we may gain victory in overcoming such terrible blasphemy.

'We are finally getting mad about something.

Sister M. Adeie, Daughters of Mary of the Immacuiate Conception, New Britain, CT

'I'm sick at heart. He has got the devil in I add my voice of protest against Terrence

him and cannot see God."

McNally's play Corpus Christi for using the figure of Jesus Christ to promote his homo sexual agenda. For the disciples of Jesus who recognize Him as Savior and Lord, this kind

'We better stand up this time. Jesus said He

of portrayal is totally unacceptable and must

would spit us out if we were lukewarm."

be stopped.

contrast to the gross, depraved and clearly

anti-Catholic bigotry of this so-called play. What you do is an act of martyrdom in its wider sense for the sake of the Most Holy Name of Jesus!

Since many are unwilling to protest this affront to all Christians, we must perform acts of reparation for this grave sin of blas phemy. Fortitude, one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit and a Cardinal Virtue, gives us all that we need to prevail and to over come this work of the devil and just one

Archbishop Elden Francis Curtiss,

more evidence of the culture of death in our

Omaha, NE

We in law enforcement, who uphold and value the authentic laws of God, deplore this

"Lucifer is loose and running around"

midst. You may count on our union with you in prayer and penance on September 26! Reverend Mons. David D. Kagan, J.C.L. Vicar General, Rockford, IL

despicable blasphemy entitled Corpus Christi, the Body of Christ. Corpus Christi was created in the deformed mind of an

admitted pervert, Terrence McNally, reenforced by a number of his peers, is an

"God have mercy on us if we were to experience His full wrath!"

attack on Goodness itself.

Vincent A. Ciappetta, Founder and Director of National Cops for Life, Cutchogue, NY

"We have to put a stop to this. We can't even

allow their wheels to start rolling".

My hat's off to TFP for organizing this much-needed protest against the blasphemous and perverse Corpus Christi play, which unfortunately now disgraces New York and our nation.

Horrible as this most recent effrontery to

Jesus Christ is, insult is added to injury by the National Endowment for the Arts' continual

funding for the Manhattan Theatre Club.

When a play as foul and profane as this

one is produced and shown in this great city, the Big Apple, it becomes even more obvious that America has lost her moral compass. Can

"I'm tired of hearing people say just pray, for that's all we can do. We need prayer with action!"

Morton C. Blackwell

Republican National Committee Washington, D.C.

J >/

November-De

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A Victim for the

20"^ Centlky •'I

ociety for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property - TFP

IN BRIEF 0France rejects homosexual unions Victory in the continuing battle for traditional marriage cannot be

ing the government building in

claimed, but advocates of homosexual unions suffered several major

Paris. Avenir de la Culture also

setbacks this fall. Voters in Hawaii and Alaska, by 2-to-l margins,

assembled and .sent to each mem

approved measures to bar homosexual "marriages," and Colorado vot ers, by almost the same margin, rejected an "anti-discrimination" ini

ber of Parliament an 80-page

sure, dealt a stunning blow to advocates of perversity by rejecting the

dossier detailing the position of the Church regarding this sin that cries to Heaven for vengeance. This dossier clearly showed that all of the projects in favor of homosexual "marriage," despite

Civil Pact of Solidarity, a pet project of the Socialist government.

their differences, originate from

The French proposal, a rights package for couples living together that would have effectively legalized homosexual unions in France,

ological bloc and are steps in the

tiative. The vote in Hawaii was especially significant, for the state

supreme court had issued a ruling five years ago that threatened mar riage in all fifty states. Beyond our borders and prior to these November votes, the Parliament of France, under strong public pres

the same socialist/communist ide Notre Dame of Paris

was championed by the French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and his fellow Socialists, and by the Communists and Greens, who, with the

cultural

Socialists, compri.se the "plural majority." The French media made

Inspired by the example of the French TFP and Avenir de la Culture, numerous other organizations and individuals added their own efforts to the campaign. The Association Famille Catholique. for

much ado about this project and, with the influence of the powerful

sodomite lobby, its approval was touted as imminent. But Goliath had not reckoned with David. Avenir de la Culture, a

sister organization of the French TFP, organized a most efficacious campaign against this horror. More than a hundred thousand postcards protesting the measure

rained on the French prime minister's office thanks to friends and sup porters of Avenir de la Culture and the French TFP, virtually inundat

0Fewer nightsticks and more violins In efforts to control vandalism, theft, and assaults in the

subway system of Newcastle, England, transit managers employed all the classical methods: redoubled surveillance and police presence, prohibition of loitering, and .so forth.

Nothing came of it. The di.sorder continued and at the( notorious Shiremoor station alone the damage grew to nearly a million dollars per year. What to do?

Well, today the station is neat and clean.

People no longer go about with apprehen sive looks but in an atmosphere of safe ty, cordiality, and...classical music. At the beginning of the year, the /A

management of the Newcastle sub- ' " way decided to replace the public

revolution

aimed

destroying Christian morals and the institution of the family.

example, gathered the signatures of 19,000 mayors on a petition defending traditional marriage and explicitly condemning homosexu al unions.Homo.sexual advocates in France, the United States, and

elsewhere will not be deterred by these reverses. They are waging a cultural war and, despite parliamentary and electoral setbacks such as these, are gaining on numerous fronts. The battle is far from over.

0Authenticity of Holy Sepulcher affirmed The consensus among scholars is that the present tomb enshrined by the Church of the Holy Sepulcher dates back only to the nineteenth century when changes were made. Challenging the

popuUu- wisdom, Oxford professor Martin Biddle affirms that parts of the outer walls of the shrine dating from the fourth, eleventh, and sixteenth centuries are still intact, all these being in

addition to the original tomb cut from the stone itself. Biddle was not permitted to excavate, but after ten years of analyzing models, centuries-old pilgrims' diaries, and other evi dence, he stated, "We are now sure that inside...are the remains

of...the original stone-cut tomb."

0Any god except God

sound system's usual fare of hard rock and pop music with classical

The remains of 54 aborted children found dumped in card board boxes in a field near Los Angeles last year were recently

music. Serene, harmonious, and intelli

given a Christian burial by anti-abortion activists of the area. These groups asked the coroner's office to release the aborted chil

gent, classical music calms peoples' spirits, quite unlike the di.sordered excitement of rock.

Thieves and vandals could not endure the change.

Having withstood the organized and heightened surveillance of subway pensonnel and municipal police, they took to their heels before the "onslaught" of violinists, cellists, and flutists.

With the self-possessed air of a conqueror, a professor

dren for burial after a criminal investigation into the incident was closed.

Surprisingly - or perhaps not, in this day and age - this act of charity did not go unchallenged. The ACLU of Southern California claimed that turning the murdered innocents over to the opponents of infanticide violates - what else? - the separation of church and state.

of the Royal College of Music who is deemed responsible for inspiring the project commented to the press that the

The problem seems to be the Christian burial. But if unborn children may be murdered and "properly" disposed of like any

result "reveals the power that music has over one's disposi tion; it is able to change it; the thieves did not find the

other hospital trash, or used for research, cosmetics, or the like all with impunity - is that not a sacrifice to some other god and

impulse necessary for crime in the classics."

therefore a violation of the same sort?

Contents November-December, 1998

Editorial

Reclaiming the Realm of the Extraordinary

Cover: Statue of Our

Lady of Good Success, Retrospective Pinochet, Faith and Reason,

John Glenn, Slavery

Quito, Ecuador

Elections in Germany

When the Left Plays Center

Christmas

Lessons from the Holy Grotto

The Industrial Revolution

Flight from Temperance: The Rise of the Man-Machine

8 Cover Story: The story of Our Lady

Cover Story

A Victim for the 20^^ Century

of Good Success and of Mother Mariana of Jesus is little known

by our century, yet has

The American TFP in Action

so much to do with it.

Hawaii, March of Intransigence, Marian processions, America Needs

Fatima, university campuses

Colombia

Colombia: Capitulation, Not Pacification

Apologetics: Can the Bible be the only source of salvation?

Catholic Apologetics Sola Scriptura Is the Bible the sole rule of Faith? ..,30

Basic Course of History

As the Empire Collapses, Christianity Rises

Commentary

II ^traditional ,0Y i

Subiaco: The Birthplace of Western Monasticism

Family Series Michael

40 Hawaii takes the right stand.

Crusade Magazine is a publication of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). Subscriptions in the United States and Canada, $24.00. Foreign subscriptions, $35.00. List of other TFP publications available upon request. Direct all subscription requests and inquiries to: Crusade Magazine, P.O. Box 1868, York, PA 17405 or e-mail to:

Crusade@tfp.org Tel.: 888-317-5571, Fax:(717) 225-7382, Copyright 1998 by The Foundation for a Christian Civilization, Inc. This publication includes images from Corel and An Today which are protected by Copyright laws of the U.S. and elsewhere.

Crusade

Reclaiming the Realm of the Extraordinary

EnrroR:

C. Pre.stoii Noell 111 Associatk Euii'ors:

Earl Appleby Tliomas Becket

It is fashionable today to accept the validi ty of almost anything that comes under

the title "paranormal." Psychic reading has become big business. Producers of televi

Jack Bumham

When He does so. He leaves little room for

doubt about it. His actions are singular, often inscrutable, and always wholesome.

Eugenia Guzman Gary l.sbell Thomas J. McKcnna PllOT(HiK.\l>HY:

sion shows captivate audiences by exploring

Mother Mariana was one of those privi leged and holy souls specifically chosen by

every tale they can dig out of the chronicles

God to sacrifice and make amends for the

Circiii.ation:

of the preternatural. Oddly, however, the

sins of other people and even other times. In

fascination is one-dimensional. With few

addition, God entrusted her to witness and

exceptions, what attract people are the prodigies of spiritualism, whose origin, according to Catholic teaching must be dia

make known the prophetic messages of His mother under the title of Our Lady of Good

bolical.

Success. It is this latter mission that links Sister

Orlando Lyra Gregory Escaro FOKKioN CoRKi-:.sroNnKN'rs:

AUSTRALIA: Raymond dc Souza AUSTRIA: Carlo.s E. Schaflcr

BRAZIL: Jose Carlos Sepulveda FRANCE: Bcnolt Bcmelmans

When it comes to truly extraordinary manifestation of the supernatural, say, the

Mariana so closely to our times. Our Lady spoke to her of the moral corruption, the

Shroud of Turin or the numerous

loss of faith, the decline in vocations, and so

ROME: Juan M. Monies

Eucharistic miracles in the Catholic Church,

SOUTH AFRICA: Richard Urban

sive smiles.

many other failings of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The prophecies of Our Lady of Good Success are clearly ominous,

For many Catholics today, the reality of God's intervention in history through extra

consistent with those of Our Lady's mes sages at Fatima, La Salette, and Akita, but

ordinary supernatural phenomena is a bit unnerving. Perhaps it too clearly reminds us that God is watching, paying attention.

they also bring great hope and consolation. A longing for the supernatural is inher ent In us, urging us to our proper goal of

Perhaps beneath our Catholic faith we have

knowing, loving, and serving God. Certainly

Family and Property (TFP) was

a hidden tendency towards deism, the belief that God exists but that He does not really

God did not establish this thirst to leave it

founded in 1973 to confront the

the response is scientific skepticism or deri

care or have anything to do with the world. Perhaps the fascination with the paranormal is an implicit recognition that for the most

unfulfilled. Ordinarily He satisfies it through the Sacraments and the ordinary ministry of the Church. But this does not preclude His occasional recourse to the

part we are, as a society, closer to the devil

extraordinary. Man seems to need these spe

than we are to God.

cial reassurances from God, but because we

In this issue of Crusade we focus on

necessarily believe the Church's teaching

GERMANY: Bono Horschultc PORTUGAL: Antonio de Azeredo

SPAIN: Felipe Barandiaran

The American TFP

The American Society for the Defense of Tradition,

profound crisis shaking the modem world. It is a civic, cul

tural and nonpartisan organiza

tion which, inspired by the tra ditional teachings of the Supreme Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, works

in a legal and peaceful manner

the remarkable life of Mother Mariana of

through the veil of faith, these divine inter

Jesus Torres y Berriochoa, a Spanish nun

in the realm of ideas to defend

ventions must remain exceptional. When they do occur and are accredited by the

and promote the principles of private ownership, family and

Church, we should make use of them. The alternative is to leave the field of extraordi-

perennial Christian values with

studied for many years, her life is relatively unknown in America and elsewhere.

nai7 phenomena to the devil and his follow

ual and social. The TFP's words

Nevertheless, her mission is specifically connected to our twentieth century.

ers - which, unfortunately, is what has hap

and efforts have always been faithfully at the service of

who lived in Ecuador in the sixteenth centu

ry. Although well-documented and well-

Mother Mariana's life is one of ineffa

pened today.

All the phenomena surrounding the life

their twofold function: individ

of Mother Mariana are recorded in the

Christian civilization. The first TFP was founded

bors. This was so even in the face of sick

annals of her day and attested by the pres ence of the miraculous statue of Our Lady of Good Success and the supernatural

tual and Catholic leader Prof. Plinio Con-ca de Oliveira in

ness, persecution, and incredible spiritual desolation. Yet, what is most striking in her

atmosphere surrounding the incorrupt bod

1960. His work has inspired the

ies of Mother Mariana and the other

formation of other autonomous TFPs in 26 countries across the

ble charity, and she stands as an example of a truly Christian lady ready to make any

sacrifice for the love of God and her neigh

life is the abundance of supernatural phe nomena that accompanied it. Her biography is a testimonial of how God sometimes

manifests Himself in extraordinary ways.

Crusade

founders of their convent in Quito, as well as by the fulfillment of the prophecies. By bringing such events to light, we Catholics can reclaim our rightful territory. â&#x2013;

in Brazil by the famous intellec

globe, thus constituting the world's largest anticommunist and antisocialist network of

Catholic inspiration.

Elections In Germany

wanted a less obvious victory for the left.

When the Left

The word of order for the time being is "continuity."

Plays Center

Kohl, the German Kerensky? That is not difficult for the leftists now

in power. Joschka Fischer, a Green leader

and now the Foreign Minister, stated during the campaign that chancellor Helmut Kohl

by Mathias von Gersdorff

Ending sixteen years of a centrist gov ernment in Germany, the Social Democrat Gerhard Schroder, 54, has

is "a socialist disguised as a conservative." Reformed anarchists

That does not seem mistaken in view of

The Greens are participating in the fed eral government for the first time. Formed

some of the results of Kohl's sixteen years in power: taxes increased, the state's share

won the recent federal elections. The Social

in 1980, the ecological party stemmed from

in the economy grew, abortion was liberal

Democratic resurgence, due to a coalition with the Green party, brings the postwar

the left-most wing of the Social Democrats.

ized, the communist land reform program in

They have defined themselves as an

the former East Germany was not ended, nor were certain reforms of the preceding Social

generation and figures of the student rebel

topics in its campaign, the winning party took advantage of the eroded public image

"Aniiparieien-Partei" — "anti-party party." Denouncing the present political, social, and economic system as intrinsically unjust and destructive of the environment, they contend that an ecological revolution is nec

of the Christian Democrat government of

essary for Germany. This means dismantling

Helmut Kohl.

heavy industry, immediately terminating

lion of May 1968 into control of Germany for the first time. Avoiding controversial

The new chancellor appeared as right

nuclear energy production, democratizing

ist as his Social Democratic party would

all German sectors, and so on. Their pro posed model is a sort of ecological anarchy with a self-managed economy and without

allow, following the example of the last Social Democratic chancellor, Helmut

Schmidt. Given his great popularity in Germany, Schroder managed to assume

positions at odds with his party's left wing,

private property. This, however, belongs to the past, at

which is led by party chairman Oskar

least for the parliamentary leaders. These induced the party to take increasingly mod

Lafontaine, now Finance Minister.

erate positions over the years in order to

Immediately after the elections it became evident that German politics would

form a coalition government with the Social Democrats, respecting the interests of the

be deeply marked by both wings of the

workers, if possible. Significant segments of the party would still insist on a more rev olutionary approach, but they kept quiet during the electoral campaign, knowing that

Social Democrats. The "traditional" wing professes such old socialist doctrines as more rights for the workers, redistribution of income, and state intervention in the

economy. The "modernizing" wing is more

difficult to define, for they want to keep a strong "social" profile while promoting pri vate initiative, putting aside some dogmas of the welfare state, and preparing Germany for the era of globalization.

Democratic era, such as liberalized laws

regarding blasphemy and pornography. This was partly the cause of Kohl's downfall. Christian and conservative voters

were so disappointed with the Christian Democrats that they simply did not vote. Political existentialism

What image will the new parly project through the present legislative period, which ends in 2002? It is difficult to know

today. The leaders themselves seem rather uncertain. The concept of "Mediendemo-

kralie" — democracy that is sensitive to the reaction of the media and the public to gov ernment measures — has been very much in vogue lately. In consequence, contradictory policies,

aimed at creating an atmosphere in society, are appearing. This "^Stimmungsdemokratie" — democracy of a state of mind —

their chances of a part in the government depended on appearing moderate to such a

does not lack an existentialist and fatalist

passionately centrist public as Germany's.

German mentality during certain epochs.

note that has been quite dominant in the

After their September 27 triumph, their

Schroder won the elections not so much

tone remains moderate. In no case should

because he was popular but because the Germans were tired of Kohl. At the end.

the public be alarmed, especially when post-election polls reveal that voters had

Kohl's government was completely worn

New German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer was a leader of the 1968 student revolution and other

violent confrontations of the 1970s.

Interior Minister Otto Schlly defended terrorists. Finance Minister Oskar

Lafontaine aggressively opposed NATO until 1982.

Joschka Fischer

Otto Schily

Oskar Lafontaine

November-December 1998

Elections in Germany

icmrDDpBmyBout; he himself would sometimes appear exhausted. This added to a sensation of disorientalion and confusion in face of the

pressing problems besetting Germany. This led voters to opt for a coalition that wishes to experiment and do crazy things within a certain order â&#x20AC;&#x201D; something like a bourgeois who goes about on weekends unshaven and wearing torn blue jeans. Irritation

Large segments of public opinion remain unconvinced of the sincerity of this moderate appearance, for the newly empowereds' past speaks differently. Joschka Fischer, for example, was a leader of the 1968 student revolution and participated at the barricades and other violent confrontations of the 1970s. Otto

Schily, a Social Democratic legal expert, defended members of the Red Army Faction (RAF, the German communist terrorist brigades) of that same period. Other leaders hail from the paci

Pinochet The arrest of 82-year-old former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet on October 16 brings back to the public eye a chapter of history that seemed to be fading along with the Cold War. In 1973 Chile faced the prospect of falling into a Marxist regime with all the

trappings â&#x20AC;&#x201D; suppression of civil liberties, nationalization of the economy, and Cubanstyle alliance with the Soviet bloc. The Communist government of Salvadore Allende was engaged in a rapid attempt to bring about a communist society. Anti-government strikes ensued, causing

munist Germany and defended a former RAF terrorist in the

shortages. Ultimately the population pan icked, bringing about the psychological state in which the military took power

General Pinochet

1980s.

under the command of Pinochet. The

in earlier days

fist, feminist, or other radical movements of the '70s. Schroder

himself kept close and friendly contacts with the leaders of com

Marxist Allende apparently committed sui Cultural revolution

With this leftist background, the new government will not

cide in the final hours of the takeover.

Under Pinochet, Chile returned to a market economy and

be able to be moderate in all sectors. It can be foreseen that rad

became one of the most stable countries in Latin America. Chileans

ical goals of the cultural revolution will be pursued: homosexu al unions, liberalization of some drugs, greater access to abor

enjoyed an affluence that no other country in the region attained. At

tion, feminist measures, "ecological modernization," and so Even without new legislation, cultural-revolutionary politics that can effect great changes in the German social atmosphere are

that beset other countries, such as Colombia and Peru. This explains why, even today, so many Chileans support Pinochet. They just have to compare their situation to that of Cuba or the other Latin American countries that have been devastated by socialism and

possible. Homosexual artists and writers, ecologists and feminists

Communist guerrilla movements.

forth.

the same time, they were not bothered by the continual terrorism

will receive more money and prominence. Television will be freer

Where did Pinochet go wrong then? At face-value, there would

to present blasphemous and pornographic programs. Education

seem to be a balance of atrocities between the left and the right. The

will be more leftist. No new laws are necessary for this; the new

difference is that in some places the left prevailed, and the liberal media overlooks the torture, suspension of liberties, and oppression the left carries out. Since Pinochet represented the reaction, the

direction of political leadership will suffice. The greatest confrontations between the left and the Christians and conservatives will revolve around these issues.

What role the Christian Democrats, now the opposition, will play in this is impossible to know at present, especially since the party has strong leftist sectors that would like to transform it into

media continually scorned Chile. Pinochet ultimately failed because of a flawed notion of how to turn back the tide of leftism in his country. Like other military dic

a "modern, popular" party.

tators, his only real method of defeating the left was to suppress it. He thought that eliminating leftists and bringing prosperity to Chile

A "socialist" Europe?

sion; He failed to realize the importance of ideological and moral

would insure his country's future. There was, however, a fatal omis

With Schroder's triumph, eleven of the fifteen countries of

the European Community are now led by the left. What will result? It is dilTicuit to make precise conjectures, because the dif ferences are great. Will Schroder try to approximate the "pink" socialism of England's Tony Blair or the markedly leftist French socialism? It is too soon to be sure. At any rate, the left will try

to do something. They complain that the right built United Europe on liberal economic principles. The left, now triumphant in Germany, a country that spurred the process of European uni fication, claims that the hour of a "socialist" Europe has arrived,

attuned to the "citizen," not just to the "commercial interests of big business." Schroder has insinuated some of those ideas, defending the

formation.

To legitimize his actions after the 1973 coup, it was necessary for Pinochet to work towards normalization of his country's gov ernment and, after the crisis, return it to constitutional rule. A dic

tatorship, in which the customary guarantees of civil liberties are suspended, can only maintain its legitimacy to the extent that it works to return the state to conditions in which those guarantees

operate. Pinochet did not do this; instead, he remained in power until the tide of opposition was too much to hold back. Had Pinochet worked to bring to light the real causes of Chile's crisis and to inform the public about the threats posed by the leftist

ideologies his antagonists proposed, he might have won the battle

assumption that social reforms should now be made at a

for public opinion and today hold an entirely different position in history. Instead, he opted for the easier short-term solution of sup

European rather than a national level. We have to see how much

pression. Now, whatever the outcome of his arrest in the United

of this will be realized in view of the financial crisis and the

Kingdom, he will be remembered for the human rights violations

threatening recession. â&#x2013;

committed under him.

Crusade

- by Thomas Becket should be. But this need goes beyond the religious field

Faith and Reason

and is true for any aspect of life, be it military, scientific,

political, or social.

On September 14, His Holiness John Paul II issued his latest encyclical

John Glenn seems to fit the bill. Best known for his

Fides el Ratio. In it he does for philos

1962 Mercury-Atlas Friendship 7 orbit of the earth, he also

ophy what Veritatis Splendor did for the existence of absolute truth that is

had a brilliant career as a Marine aviator flying combat missions in both World War II and Korea. In just the last nine days of fighting in Korea, Glenn downed three MIGs.

attainable through philosophical inves

The public reception of Glenn's trip not only points up the

tigation and that should be its proper

lack of contemporary heroes, but gives evidence that there is still a great desire for heroism alive and well in the American public. And that is good news.

moral theology. It is an affirmation of

object.

The encyclical defends Thomistic metaphysics and attacks those currents of modem thought that abandon the search for truth and that the Pope sees as decadent. The encyclical also encour

Pope John Paul II

ages Catholics to pursue philosophical studies. The question that comes to mind is: What impact will this

Slavery returns to the United States In its most brutal form, pagan slavery allowed the master to make whatever use of his slave he wished. He could kill the

encyclical have on Catholics and philosophy?

slave for the perverse pleasure of watching him die. He could

The unfortunate situation we are in today is that it is not enough for John Paul II to point out the right course and for everybody to hope that the mere good inclinations of Catholics

administer a poison to a slave to see how it would serve as an

will suffice to bring about change. What is necessary to remem

ber is that the Holy Father's teachings can only arrest the decay of Catholic philosophy if they have an effective apostolic movement behind them.

Like Veritatis Splendor, however, this new encyclical will probably remain largely ignored.

instrument in his own suicide or for use against an adversary.

Pagan slave owners even cut open young girls to drink their blood in efforts to regain youth. The slave was reduced to a mere commodity to be bought and sold and disposed of as one pleased. Slaves had no rights, living solely to satisfy his master. This was the essence of slavery. The recent success of scientists at the University of

Wisconsin at Madison and at Johns Hopkins University in devel

John Glenn

"We have lift-off of Space Shuttle Discovery with six American heroes and one American legend." These words have been repeated ad nauseum in the days following John Glenn's return to space. After much talk about the symbolic and scientif

left over from fertility treatments and from abortions once again

becomes clear: His mission has

raises the issue of experiment on human embryos. The scientists have successfully grown what are called "undifferentiated human

extremely high approval ratings

stem cells" from the earliest stages after conception. These cells

from the American public,

have the potential to develop into any type of human tissue. With the new techniques, the cells can be cultured indefinitely and

ic validity of his journey, one thing

Senator John Glenn In

oping cultures of"human stem cells" taken from human embryos

his private airplane

Why so? An answer might be found by observing the panorama of public figures from which to choose role-models. The horizon appears completely void of real con temporary heroes. Thus the need to dig one up from the past and send him

then used to produce desired kinds of tissue. The articles covering the breakthrough are replete with examples of how the new technology would open the road to an

endless supply of human organs for transplant. The term "stem cells" has become the buzzword to help us forget where these

on a ride to outer space, John Glenn's

cells actually come from. The same linguistic transshipment

mission directive could well be "to

that was used to dehumanize unborn children by insisting that

restore America's faith in her great

they be called fetuses and then embryos, and finally, that the

ness."

newly conceived child was merely a clump of cells works now to convince us that we are just growing "stem cells."

There is an inherent psychologi cal need for human embodiments of

By using surplus embryos kept alive from in vitro fertil

In the Church, the lives of the Saints

izations, researchers treat human life with exactly the same spirit as the pagan slave owner who tortured and killed his slave

have always been proposed to us for

to enhance his own life. Will anyone take a stand against this

timely and solid examples of how we

modem form of slavery? â&#x2013;

values for admiration and emulation.

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

Christmas

Lessons fron unity that translates into a unity of objective. Thus, human egoism

tends necessarily toward one of these three poles. For a time, some determined souls may strive for all three — worldly riches, delights, and honors — but having sampled each, they ultimately make one their life's goal.

As Saint Ignatius teaches, God wished to educate man thr*. jgh the birth of His Divine Son. The circumstances of His birth show

that worldly riches, delights, and honors are nothing compared with the supernatural treasures, joys, and grandeur of God. Vanity of worldly riches

God. Who is infinitely rich, came to earth in poverty. In the sta

ble of Bethlehem, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Omnipotent Lord of all. eloqucnily instructs us regarding the vanity of worldly riches. He chose the poorest place imaginable for His birthplace — a manger. Wrapped in swaddling clothes by His Mother, the Holy Babe was sheltered in a stable made for beasts.

Through His birth in such impoverished circumstances, the Word of God made evident the indifference with which we should

regard this world's riches. Used rightly, money may contribute to

passing and imperfect happiness, but all too frequently it is the cause of suffering, anguish, and even tragedy.

The Holy Family sought, first and foremost, to obey the Divine Will in all things, in this receiving a hundredfold here on earth, as

promi.scd in the Gospel (Matt. 19:29). In man. a virtuous life gener ates supernatural happiness and often natural happiness as well — happiness so incommensurably more valuable than worldly riches that it inspired Saint Francis to confide the following to Brother

In the moral order, the world is composed largely of sinners, self ish creatures who live not to serve God. but to please themselves.

These self-serving souls comprise the vast majority of mankind, especially in times of decadence — as were the days of Our Lord, as are our own.

In their selfishness, such men strive to gratify their disordered love of worldly riches, worldly delights, and worldly honors, as Saint John, the beloved Apostle, describes them. By worldly riches, he means the avarice of those who. in a frenzy, seek what they regard

Massco:

"My dear companion, let us beg Saints Peter and Paul to teach

us to possess the immeasurable treasure of holy poverty; for it is a treasure so divine that we are not worthy of possessing it. consider ing that it is a celestial virtue, by means of which earthly and transi tory possessions are trampled underfoot and by means of which every obstacle retreats before the soul, so that the soul may be freely united with the eternal God. This is the virtue that permits souls on earth to converse with angels in Heaven. This is the virtue that accompanied Christ on the Cross, with which Christ was buried, the

as a great fortune. These grasping Midases are so attached to the possession of money that often they do not take advantage of what they have, living in an obscure, banal, and even miserable state.

cinates .souls in this life and gives them wings to carry them to Heaven in the next, for it bears the marks of humility and charity"

Worldly delights denote the pleasures generated by the senses, that

(The Litlle Flowers of Saint Francis, Pan I. no. 13).

virtue with which He resurrected and ascended into Heaven. It fas

is, taste, sight, touch, sound, and smell. They, sensual pleasures above all, are ultimately everything agreeable and pleasing that a life of luxury may provide. In seeking worldly honors, man

desires the exaggerated consideration of others, striving to be the object of great homage and adulation, in a word, to secure

prestige. When man does not seek God, he elects one of these three

pleasures a.s his ultimate end. In him there exists an ontological

CHUSADE

Born at midnight in the depth of winter, the Holy Infant trembled in the cold night air, warmed only by the breath of beasts.

Christmas

the Holy Grotto by Plinio Correa de Oliveira Disdain of worldly delights

Our Lord could have ordered the angels to embellish the Holy Grotto with the most delicate silks, the most aromatic perfumes, and the most celestial symphonies. He could have enjoyed every legiti

more powerful than Alexander the Great, Charlemagne, or

Napoleon, or any and all of the mightiest armies known to man;

mate material delight from the first moment of His human life.

immeasurably wiser than King

Instead. He chose the very opposite. His delicate body lay not on

Solomon, Saint Thomas the

soft silk, but on coarse straw. His crib was a feeding trough which,

Angelic Doctor, and the hosts of

however diligently scoured by Our Lady, did not exude the sweet

human genius; within that grot to lay a Child whose every expression reflected divine majesty, inef

smells of exquisite perfumes. Bom at midnight in the depth of the winter, the Holy Infant trembled in the cold night air, warmed only by the breath of beasts. His cradlesong was the lowing of cows. Thus, Our Lord Jesus Christ showed us how foolish it is to

make this world's delights the end of our lives. To the

contrary, Christ taught us to disdain them for the glory

fable holiness, utter wisdom, and limitless power. Enchanted, let us consider the perfections mysteriously expressed in the fair countenance of the Child Jesus. One

moment. He reveals His Divine majesty. In another, a

resplendent light shines forth from His eyes — the

of God and the good of souls, in the measure that they

windows of His soul. He inspires sinners to convert — to repent and confess their sins — while He

distract and even deviate us from our ultimate end, the eternal delight of unending life with Him.

attracts them through the intimacy of His love.

The German mystic Anne Catherine Emptiness of worldly honors

Emmerich thus describes a vision she had of

Our Lord wished to deprive Himself of everything that might serve as a symbol of

the Nativity: "1 saw Our Lord as a very little child,

worldly prestige. While Jesus was born a

Prince of the Royal Hou.se of David, that house had lost its power and prestige in the eyes of the

world. Indeed, Christ the King was born an out cast, for none would shelter Our Lady who bore

Him within Her womb; Saint Joseph had knocked on door after door, only to be sent away. The Child Jesus thus demonstrated the vanity of those who seek only to be .seen in the eyes of the world.

True grandeur

Let us now take a moment to contemplate the grandeur and majesty of the Child Jesus and His Most Holy Mother. Imagine the Holy Grotto of Bethlehem, lofty and spacious as a

resplendent, whose brilliance surpassed that of every light in the grotto, lying upon the floor, before the knees of Mary. It seemed to me that He was very small and grew larger before my

eyes. Then 1 saw Angels in human form all about, prostrate in adoration before the Child" {The Life, Passion, and Glorification of the Lamb of God). It is said that as a child. Saint Therese of the

Child Jesus had such a stately bearing that her father

called her "my little queen." During the process of her canonization, the gardener of the Carmel testified that he

cathedral. Its mstic stones transcend their lack of architectural defi

came unobserved upon one of the nuns working and recognized her as Sister Therese. Asked how he was able to identify her without seeing her face, he replied that it was by her majesty, for none of the other sisters was as majestic as she.

nition, bringing to mind the vaults of a magnificent basilica. The cradle of the Infant Jesus lies beneath the point where several of the

Earth? Let us contemplate the Most Holy Virgin, the masterpiece of

embryonic arches, crafted by nature, come together. In heralding the birth of her Divine Son. the Archangel Gabriel

an angelic chorus intones anthems of adoration. Touched by the

said to the Blessed Virgin Mary; "He shall be great, and shall be

called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of David His father; and He shall reign in the house of Jacob forever"(Luke l;32-33).

Within that grotto lay a Baby, fragile yet omnipotent, the King of Heaven and Earth, God-niade-Man. From the first moment of His

conception within the maternal cloister. He possessed grandeur and power infinitely superior to that of any man who has ever lived — of all men from the beginning to the end of time. Incomparably

What then could we say of Our Lady, Queen of Heaven and Creation, most majestic and pure, praying to her Divine Infant, as Holy Family, the ambience of that humble stable transcends the grandeur of the most refined court.

Approaching a scene so sacred, we revere the Christ Child,

and in Him adore all that is beautiful, noble, and holy. We prostrate ourselves before the Divine Incarnation. The perfect model of all created grandeur, which is but a mere reflection of His Infinite

Majesty, the God-Man attracts every form of sanctity, while repelling sin. error, and chaos. He does not reject but rather embraces the humble and contrite sinner. ■

November-December iggg

The Industrial Revolution

Flight from Temperance The Rise of the Man-Machine Machines are ever more plentiful and useful, but something more important, more spiritual, is being lost by John Horvat

One of the greatest influences of the Industrial Revolution on society was perhaps its ability to mechanize our lives. In a materialistic world, which adores speed, it seems only natural that matter and speed come together in the omnipresent machine. So, machines surround us. We talk to

nological development. Historians of

the medieval period speak of an extra ordinary thirteenth century "industrial revolution" that waned only with the

coming of the Black Death and the Renaissance. Medieval civilization was

actually so full of machines that

them. They talk to us. Virtually every aspect

medieval historian Lynn White, Jr..

of our lives involves .some kind of mechan

claims that it was actually the first com

ical or electronic contraption. We even con ceptualize our actions in mechanical terms: We become "dynamos" that move "into

not on the backs of sweating slaves or

coolies but primarily on non-human

high gear" or go "full steam ahead." And the machines reciprocate, becoming infected with "bugs" and "viruses."

power." It was, however, a different type of machine that prevailed. Pre-Industrial

Perhaps the greatest illusion in this

plex civilization in history that "rested

Revolution

civilizations

were tool-

whole scenario is that we somehow believe

using cultures in which craftsmen exer

we are completely in control of these

cised a control over their machines.

machine-servants that make our lives easier.

Their machines were not intruders into

their lives or their way of looking at

Finding the right machines

life.

Far be it for us to condemn all machines.

As Neal Postman notes in his book

Machines by definition make life easier. Historically, they helped build pre-industri-

Tt'chnopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology, tool-using cultures developed relationships between tools and their belief systems."They were integrated into the cul ture in ways that do not pose significant

al civilizations like the highly .sophi.sticated

Roman Empire. In fact, pre-industrial civi lizations were often eras of incredible tech

contradictions to its worldview. Medieval

process.

In short, the machine became and

remains the metaphysical standard by

theologians developed an elaborate and

which all things of consequence are done.

The process of taking raw materials, putting them through the same process, and mass

man to God, man to nature, man to man,

The machine itself is not the target of criticism but, rather, the type of machine. Marx rightly said. "The handloom gives you a society with the feudal lord; the steam mill, with the industrial

producing identical finished products became the supreme model for doing things well. Hour after hour, the machine carries on its tasks; it does not err.

The lure of machinery and technology was surrounded by a myth that encouraged

capitalist."

veneration and worship. The "infallible" machine is a kind of superior being of

A new metaphysical

almost angelic proportions. It does its

standard The Industrial Revolution introduced

monotonous work with apparent perfection and obedience. In an effort to imitate this

a boom of inventions that overwhelmed

newfound god, the citizen of the industrial

pre-industrial man. The new machines

civilization mechanized his very life. Today there is no field of human action

took on

CRUSADE

mous masses that assumed the role of mere

interchangeable cogs in the industrial

systematic description of the relation of and man to his tools."

dwarfed him. They acquired awesome power beyond the control of a single crafts man. Huge factories attracted the anony

gigantic proportions that

The Industrial Revolution

Until modern man that has not been modified in some aspects by the desire to act like a machine.

Without the moral compass of the True Faith, the masses are the easy playthings of

anyone who can exploit their instincts and An inhuman world This desire was not without its disad

vantages. It thrust modem man into a mer

ciless, inhuman world where all things are

coldly analyzed, processed, and quantified. People are depersonalized "units" capable of a certain number of daily man-hours. Men are judged by their efficiency, not their virtue.

From early youth, the child is run

through the process of education. The edu cation machine no longer seeks to impart eternal truths but, rather, identical units of

impressions. In his 1944 Christmas mes sage, Pius XII masterfully characterized the

masses as victims of an equality that "degenerates to a mechanical leveling, a colorless uniformity; [in which] the sense of true honor, of personal activity, of respect for tradition and dignity â&#x20AC;&#x201D; in a word, all that gives life its worth â&#x20AC;&#x201D; gradu ally fades away and disappears." In our modern society, steeped in material comfort and progress, something spiritual is missing. The most important things in life cannot be processed, mecha

information divided into courses. A given

nized, or quantified. The valueless machine

number of credit hours can be traded in for

knows no morals, dignity, or honor. Until modem man restores Catholic principles as

a diploma.

Modern medicine tends to process people through medical procedures based on highly specialized tests. The body is

the true metaphysical standard, society will feel the lack of "all that gives life its worth."

increasingly seen as a machine where parts

ance of a people endowed with a mission

can be replaced, transplanted, or repaired.

given by God. â&#x2013;

Meals are eaten mechanically. Fastfood chains have counters or drive-up win

dows where customers pick up their food, silently eat it, and throw away the remains.

Examples abound everywhere. Litera ture is no longer written; words are merely

restores Catholic

principles as the true metaphysical standard, society will feel the lack of

all that gives life its worth.

We will never live the fullness and exuber

Right and below: Austrians celebrate the Erntedankfest, a festival of thanks

giving to God for the harvest. Before the machine era invaded the

world with its frantic ways, men lived

processed. Cows are labeled "milking

calmer lives, enjoying less ambitious yet more innocent things, as can be

units" that produce "dairy products." Government becomes a bureaucracy whose

seen in the traditional Erntedankfest,

which dates from pre-industrial times.

slow-moving wheels, devoid of human sen timent, churn out identical decisions. Even leisure is mechanized. Television comedies are little more than half-hour slots

of canned laughter. Sporting events, more often than not, present athletes who are

carefully conditioned machines that per form automatic movements in a given time. The rise of the masses

It is not surprising that mechanized action gives rise to mechanized mass

thought. The masses rose in part because of the

migration of the villager to the factory, The country peasant who had roots and identity in his village suddenly became an anony mous number on the industry payroll. This new working class was integrated into the industrial system that mass-produced a

mentality dominated by empty secular and materialistic values. Mora! and spiritual values were relegated to a secondary plane.

November-December 1998

Victim for the

20^*' Century uring the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries there lived in Quito, Ecuador, a Spanish nun whose liitle-known but extraordinary life has a direct con nection with our days. Mother Mariana of Jesus

Torres y Berriochoa, a nun of the Conceptionist Order, sur passed the already strict discipline of her congregation in the traditional penances she undertook. Beyond even those, she lovingly accepted unprecedented sacrifices and sufferings directly asked of her by Our Lord and Our Lady. Her frequent contact with heavenly beings and her supernatural sufferings stand in such contrast to the ways of our impious century and are so extraordinary in themselves

that a word needs to be said of their credentials.

Mother Mariana left a full written account of her life at

the command of her superiors. This account was approved by the Most Reverend Pedro de Oviedo, Quito's tenth bishop, who was privileged to know and direct her. Additionally, with fresh memories of all the extraordinary facts not only of her life but also of those of her eight holy companions, the

and the sermon preached by Bishop Oviedo at Mother Mariana's funeral.

In 1790, Fr. Manuel Souza Pereira, O.F.M., published an extensive work based on the earlier documents. Father

Franciscan Fathers who had been their spiritual directors and

Souza Pereira, of illustrious Portuguese lineage, joined the

brothers wrote their biographies. In 1650, fifteen years after Mother Mariana's death.

military as a young man. A series of Providential events and several apparitions of Mother Mariana of Jesus convinced

Diego Rodriguez Docampo published a story of her life endorsed by an official document from the King of Spain and the Royal Court of Quito.

him that his true calling was to the Franciscan Order. Later,

Between 1760 and 1770, after new facts and more abun dant documentation surfaced, Fr. Bartholomew Ochoa de

having been sent to Quito, he became known there for the austerity of his life and solid virtue. A decisive moment for him was an invitation to accompany his Bishop into the

Mariana. This work received widespread circulation and enthusiastic response in the Franciscan monasteries of Spain

Papal cloister where his holy protectress had lived and died. There he traced her footsteps and venerated her incorrupt body. With his heart aflame, he vowed not to rest until he had finished a complete account of what he was to title The Admirable Life of Mother Mariana of Jesus. It is largely on

and Portugal. This book includes chronicles from the convent

this account that we have based this article.

Alacano, O.F.M., a Spaniard living in Quito, published a series of articles that formed a large volume about Mother

Mother Mariana of Jesus Torres y Berriochoa

CRUSADE

ne day in the year 1582, a

years, an age then considered very early for first

young nun prayed before the

communicants.

Blessed Sacrament in the choir

So intense was Mariana's joy at this first

of her convent in Quito.

meeting with her Sacramental God that she

Suddenly, she heard a terrify ing rumble and saw the church

"faint" she saw Our Lord Jesus as a young boy of

swooned and fell into a deep faint. During this

enveloped in a thick, smoke-filled darkness. The

her own age placing a beautiful ring on her fin

main altar alone remain illuminated, as if in

ger, claiming her for Himself. Mariana readily

broad daylight. There, the tabernacle door swung open and our crucified Lord came forth,

accepted this proposal. The Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph witnessed the event and stood

nailed to a life-size cross. The Blessed Virgin

as sponsors to this "engagement." In this same vision the Blessed Virgin showed her that she was destined to belong to

Mary,Saint John the Evangelist, and Saint Mary Magdalen stood by, as on Calvary. Our Lord was agonizing.

her Order of the Immaculate Conception. This order had recently been founded by another

The young nun heard a voice: "This

punishment is for the twentieth century."

privileged soul. Saint Beatrix da Silva, a

Portuguese woman of noble lineage.

Then she saw three swords hanging over Our Lord's head, each with an inscription. On the first was written, "I shall punish heresy"; on the second, "I shall punish blasphemy"; and on the third, "I shall

punish impurity." Then the Blessed Virgin addressed the young nun:"My daughter, do you wish

to sacrifice yourself for these people?"

The Order of the

Immaculate Conception

"I am ready," responded the nun. At that, the three swords plunged into the

The great love of Saint Beatrix was the Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God. After many sufferings and difficul ties, she founded this new order to honor

this exalted privilege of Mary Most Holy, centuries before it was declared a dogma of our Faith.

nun's heart, and she fell dead by the vio

The new order adopted the Franciscan

lence of the pain.

rule and took Saint Francis of Assisi as their mentor and father. Their habit is white and

blue,

Is this a fairy-tale? An incredible allego

the

colors

the

Immaculate

Conception, with a black veil.

ry? The fantastic figment of .someone's fertile imagination? No, these are facts.

A request from the colony of Ecuador

God occasionally visits the earth with the

"magic touch" of His omnipotence. By Divine

Some influential and pious ladies in the

discretion He makes an exception to the earthly

then Spanish colony of Ecuador learned of this

standards of everyday and introduces the extra

recently established order. Delighted with the

ordinary. We learn of His interventions and mir acles as if the veil of Faith is lifted a little, and we get a glimpse of Heaven, helping us feel closer to our celestial home.

Many claim to have received this magic touch, yet just a few bear the august mark of authenticity, which is usually a purifying process

of the favored soul through acute suffering. Mariana

In the year 1563 a little girl was bom to Don Diego Torres and Dona Maria Berriochoa, both noble Spaniards and fervent Catholics. At the baptismal font the girl, their first child,

new institute's devotion, these ladies wished to

The few souls who

have it established in Quito, their country's

capital. remain faithful to

grace will suffer a cruel, unspeakable, and prolonged mar tyrdom. Many of them will descend to

They submitted their request for this to

King Philip II of Spain. Acceding to their peti tion, he named a nun of great virtue. Mother Maria of Jesus Taboada, to head the foundation

of the new convent. This viituous and holy nun, an aunt of Mariana, was to be accompanied by six other nuns, all women of great merit and

solid virtue. They were Mothers Francisca of

the Angels, Anne of the Conception, Lucy of the

received the name of Mariana Francisca, This

their graves due to the violence of suffering

privileged girl was singled out by Divine

and will be counted

The separation

among the martyrs

God wished to pluck this rose before it even

Providence from her earliest days. To begin, she

was graced with a rare angelical beauty. As she grew, her one fascination was Jesus

who sacrificed them

Cross, Magdalen of Saint John, Catherine of the Conception, and Maria of the Incarnation.

Mariana was then just nine years old, but

budded. One day as she received Holy Communion He again appeared to her and told

hidden in the Bles.sed Sacrament, before Whom

selves for the Church.

Because of heP .spiritual maturity, her confessor

her that He wished her to leave her father's house and to embrace His cross in a far-off land.

allowed her to receive Communion at nine

Mariana understood that she was to go

she knelt for hours even at the age of six.

From the prophecies of Our Lady of Good Success for the 20th Century

November-December 1998

with her aunt as part of the expedition to

body remained supple for the clothing,

found

her soul was in the presence of God Our

the order of the Immaculate

Conception in the Americas. Burning

Lord.

with love for her crucified Jesus, she had

Our Lord Jesus presented His own

already reached that stage of love where

cross to His spouse and showed her all the

sufferings pose no obstacle.

enormous sufferings, persecutions, sick

Broken hearted but resigned, her most Christian parents gave her over to her holy aunt, who now promised to be

nesses, and temptations she would under go for His sake and ours. He preserved her only from temptations against purity. She was never to have a single thought or

her true mother.

inclination against this angelic virtue. The voyage Life of penance

The devil could not bear the thought of this foundation being accomplished. No sooner had the nuns'ship left port than

After her profession. Our Lord again appeared to Mother Mariana and gave her

a terrible tempest, the likes of which had

the schedule to be observed in the free

seldom been seen before, overtook them.

hours of the community and the penances she should perform during the week.

The sky changed from clearest day to the darkest night. The frightened sailors did

These penances were so severe that

not know what to do and thought all was lost. In fact, the ship seemed doomed.

Mother Maria Taboada feared for her

health. But, in another vision. Our Lord

placed a drop of crystalline water from

It was then that both aunt and niece

saw in the raging waters a horrible and

"The Crowned Virgin," by Gustave Dore

gigantic snake with seven heads, attempt ing to destroy the ship. Mariana screamed

He asked of her.

at seeing this and lost consciousness. Mother Maria prayed to God with all her .soul, asking

scene. To this day, the nuns of the Immacu late Conception of Quito wear this medal

that if He truly willed that the foundation be accomplished. He quell the storm.

over their habits.

As soon as Mother Maria said this

His wounded side on Mariana's lips and fortified her in a marvellous way for all The penances practiced by this angel in human flesh can only be understood when we consider that she was called to be

a victim for our twentieth century. For an Foundation

example, she wrapped nearly her whole

Arriving in Quito on December 30,

innocent body in wires with iron points,

light of day overcame the darkness. But a ter

1576, the foundresses were received with

rible voice was heard: "I will not allow this

great joy and housed in a few of the inhab

even her ears, leaving only her face and hands free. Thus she lived a penitential, prayerful life, ever increasing in virtue.

prayer, Mariana opened her eyes and the

foundation to come about; I will not allow

itable buildings of the convent, which was

it's progress; I will not allow it to endure to the end of time; 1 will persecute it."

still under construction. When the construc

tion was concluded, the official founding

Vision of the twentieth century We come then to that day in the year

.seen something during her faint and, retir

took place on January 13, 1577. Soon, several young girls of Quito

ing with her to a secluded place, asked her

began to request admission to the convent

1582 when she was praying before her Eucharistic Lord and suddenly saw the

to relate all she had been shown.

of the Immaculate Conception and the con

church, except the main altar, immersed in

ventual life was in full bloom.

darkness. The rest, until her painful death by means of three swords plunged into her heart as an expiation for the sins of our cur

Mother Maria knew that Mariana had

"I don't know where I have been, my

Mother," answered the girl,"but I saw a ser

pent bigger than the sea, twisting and con torting itself. Then I saw a lady of incompa

Nuptials

rable beauty, garbed with the sun and

tiate and, a few years later, professed. As she pronounced her vows before Mother Maria Taboada on the day of her nuptials, she was taken up in a sublime

of this article.

ecstasy. While on earth her lips formed the

of the community, did not appear on the day

words for the formula of her vows and her

following her vision of Our Lord on His cross. Noting her absence, the abbess

crowned with stars and with a babe in her

arms. On the lady's breast I saw a mon strance with the Blessed Sacrament. In one

of her hands she held a golden cross having a lance point. Anchoring the lance over the

At fifteen. Mariana entered the novi

Blessed Sacrament and in the infant's

hand, she struck at the seipent's head with such force that it was completely split. At that moment the serpent cried out all his horrible threats about not

allowing the founding of the Order of the Immaculate Conception." Mother Maria understood all that

this vision signified and was later to have a large medal cast depicting the

Anchoring the lance over the Blessed Sacrament and in the

Infant's hand,she struck at the

serpent's head with such force that it was completely split.

CKUSADE

Resurrection

Mariana, always the first at all the acts

and the other nuns searched for her.

They found her dead in the lower choir,

her body already cold. With enormous grief they carried the young nun's remains to her cell and laid her on her bed.

The doctor, Don Sancho. and the Franci.scan Friars who attended the con

vent were all called. Don Sancho con-

Cover Story 12

rent century, we have related at the opening

Volcanic CotopaxI peak rises majestically 120 miles southeast of Quito and can be seen from the city.

firmed that death had occurred and there was

Lord."When I took you for my spouse I tested

nothing to be done except give her proper

your will, and now I wish to do the same."

burial.

Outside, the people of Quito clamored

"My daughter, I left the glories of heaven and

at the convent doors to see the body of their

returned to earth to protect my children*. I

beloved benefactress, for Mother Mariana

want you to imitate me in this, for your life is

had become well-known in the town, having

very necessary for my Order of the

helped many with her counsels, penances,

Immaculate Conception.

prayers, and even miracles.

Quito

The Blessed Virgin Mary now spoke:

ECUADOR Guayaquil

"Woe to the colony in the twentieth cen

tury!" continued the Virgin. "If then there are The two crowns

no souls who, with their life of sacrifice and

Mother Mariana appeared before the

holocaust following your example, will

Divine Judge. Finding no fault in her, He said, "Come, beloved of my Father, and receive the

appease Divine Justice, fire will come from

crown We have prepared for you from the

purify Quito."

heaven and, consuming its inhabitants, will

beginning of the world." She was thus in

Hearing this, the humble virgin agreed to

heaven before the Blessed Trinity and the celestial court, in unutterable happiness. Meanwhile, on earth, the prayers of

return to earth. She was to have a long life of

incredible sufferings, since part of her mission on earth was to atone for the sins of our poor,

Mother Maria and all her sisters as well as those of the Franciscan Fathers and the

chaotic, corrupted, and sinful century.

townspeople rose to the throne of the Holy

Stigmata, sickness, and death

Trinity. The sisters could not bear the thought of living without this angel and true lightning rod of God's justice for their community. Sighing and weeping, they begged God to return her to them.

Wishing to lend an ear to the supplica

Because Mariana of Jesus was destined

for extraordinary graces all her life. Our Lord spared her nothing that could possibly con tribute to her purification and perfection. Thus, on the night of September 17, 1588, as Mother Mariana prayed, she

tions of these children on earth. Our Lord pre

received the holy wounds of Our Lord Jesus

sented Mother Mariana with two crowns, one

in her hands, feet, and side. She cried out and

of glory and the other of lilies intertwined with thorns. He bade her choose one, making

was left trembling, and had to be helped to her bed. The stigmata appeared in the palms

her understand that by choosing the crown of

of her hands and the soles of her feet like

glory she would remain in heaven, as was her right, but by choosing the other, she would

puncture wounds; on her side was a reddish-

return to earth and resume her suffering.

Bourn AHEBIOA

purple mark like a sword wound. After this, she sickened terribly and

The humble virgin then asked her

entered an excruciating trial. She could not

Beloved to choose for her."No," answered Our

move a single member of her body.

â&#x2122;ŚAccording to the Mvsiicat City of God written by Maria of Agreda, another Conceptioni.st and mystic, the Blessed Virgin was taken to heaven on the day of Our Lord's Ascension and also given the choice to stay or return to earth to help the young Church.

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

Cover Story

Death of Mother Maria Taboada

In 1594 Mother Maria Taboada, who

had been truly a mother to Mother Mariana and all those under her care, rendered her

soul to God. She had suffered greatly before

her death, and the community was incon solable at the loss of their beloved foundress.

Nevertheless, from heaven she contin

ued to guide her monastery as she had promised in her last words before entering

her agony. Then she had suddenly sat up in bed, all traces of the illness gone and her face as fresh and young as when she was thirty three, the age at which she founded the monastery. She had left them with ,he

most touching of farewells, promising them Cloister of the Convent of the Immaculate Conception, Quito

continuing assistance from heaven.

In fact, she frequently spoke with Mother Mariana in visions when the latter

Aggravating her sufferings, the devil did his utmost to break her by suggesting to her that her life had been in vain, a lie, a hoax.

He prowled around her bed constantly in the form of a hideous serpent, the sight of which tormented her unceasingly. One night, no longer being able to bear this terrible five-month ordeal, she called on

the Most Blessed Virgin. Then, feeling a

Jesus, trusting in her exalted virtue despite

her being only thirty. She, as mother superi or, guided the convent with great wisdom, prudence, charity, and goodness in the ways of the Lord, fulfilling every point of the holy rule, omitting nothing. Mariana knew

sought her guidance and counsel. First Apparition of the Mother of Good Success Around this time Mother Mariana suf

fered cruelly with all the cares of her com

she would still have her aunt with her for a

munity. They lacked proper financial sup

while and took full advantage of her coun sel and guidance.

port, and the added cross of the threatening

hand caressing her head, she looked up to

separation from the Franciscans inflicted a real martyrdom on her.

see the Queen of Heaven, beautiful, kind,

Predictions about

and majestic in a nimbus of light. She could now move and no longer saw the hideous serpent. Her condition still

the community Several times both Mother Mariana

high choir. Prostrate with her forehead

and Mother Maria received revelations

touching the floor, she implored help for her

worsened, however, and,to the distress of the

about the future of their convent.

entire community, she once again breathed

They knew each and every nun who would profess in their community to the end

community and mercy for the sinful world. She then heard a sweet voice calling

her last. It was Holy Saturday and her body

In the early morning of February 2, 1594, Mother Mariana was praying in the

her name. Rising quickly, she beheld a most

tudes came to view it and cried aloud: "The

of the world. They knew that in every age there would be souls of great virtue, merit

arm she held the Child Jesus and on her

saint is dead! Our angel is gone!"

and holiness in this blessed house, but

right a crosier of the purest gold adorned

ungrateful and disobedient ones as well. The holy souls would divert great calamities

found on this earth.

was laid in state in the low choir. The multi

Yet, the next morning as the commu

beautiful lady in an aura of light. On her left

with such precious stones as are not to be

nity filed into the high choir to recite the Office they found her praying! Like her Divine Spouse, Whom she sought to copy in

from Ecuador and would maintain the faith

burning even during the calamitous twenti

asked,"and what dost thou wish? Dost thou

everything, she had been resurrected on

eth century,

not know that I am but a poor nun, filled with love for God. true, but suffering and

more to continue suffering for souls and for

The devil plots to destroy

tried to the utmost?"

the world.

the convent from within

Easter morning and returned to life once

Superior In 1589, feeling her health failing and wishing to prepare henself for her approach

ing end, which had been predicted to her. Mother Maria Taboada suggested that a new

Both holy women were also shown that very soon, incited by mankind's enemy, some unruly and disobedient nuns

"Who art thou, beautiful lady?" she

The lady answered: "I am Mary of Good Success, the Queen of Heaven and

Earth. Precisely because you are a religious soul full of love for God and for His Mother

of their convent who wanted a less strin

who now speaks to you, I have come from

gent rule than the Franciscan rule would

heaven to sooth your burdened heart."

attempt and obtain the separation of their

Then the Mother of God showed her

superior be elected. She had ruled for six teen years by the unanimous wish of her convent, who thought no one more suited

community from the direction of the

how her prayers and penances pleased God.

Franciscan Friars. Since the order of the

She explained that she held the golden

Immaculate Conception was like a branch

crosier in her right hand because she wished

for the task than the holy foundress. Now, in deference to her wishes, they

on the tree of the Franciscan Order, this

to govern the convent herself, and that the

separation caused the faithful nuns most

devil would do all in his power to destroy

unanimously elected Mother Mariana of

grievous suffering.

the convent by means of some ungrateful

CRUSADE

Cover Story

daughters of hers dwelling there. "He will not attain his goal," she con tinued, "because I am the Queen of Victories and the Mother of Good Success.

Under this invocation I wish, in the cen

turies to come, to perform miracles for the preservation of this, my convent, and its inhabitants. "Until the end of the world I will have

holy daughters, heroic souls, in the obscure

life of their convent, who, suffering perse cutions and slanders from within their own

community, will be much loved by God and

His Mother.... Their lives of prayer, penance, and sacrifice will be extremely necessary in all times. After having spent their lives unknown to all, they will be called to heaven to occupy an exalted throne of glory." She then revealed to Mother Mariana

that hers would be a long and suffering life, but she bid her never lose courage. Saying this, she placed the Infant

Jesus in the humble virgin's arms. Clasping Him tightly to her heart. Mother Mariana felt the strength to suffer all for His honor

and glory and the good of souls. Our Lady was to appear several times to Mother Mariana under the title of the

Mother of Good Success. During some of these apparitions she prophesied many things about our own twentieth century.

ones he left words of malediction. Prison

Separation from

Immediately, with Mother Valenzuela

the Franciscans

at the helm but manipulated by the unruly faction, observance of the rule began to

The ominous day predicted both to

appointed shepherds. There had been new elections for a superior and Mother

this situation, which defeated the true pur pose of the conventual life. Mother Mariana

Magdalene of Jesus Valenzuela, the newly

"I am Mary of Good Success, the Queen of Heaven and Earth."

Mother Maria and Mother Mariana had

decline, prescribed times of silence were no

arrived, the day in which their small flock

longer observed, and abuses multiplied.

would be separated from their divinely

Worried and afflicted in her heart with

appointed prioress, lost no time in accom

humbly approached her new superior, beg ging as foundress and ex-prioress that these

plishing this. This lady was not a bad person,

infractions and deviations be corrected for

but being weak, she often served as a tool in

the good of the community. The secular ecclesiastical prelate now

the hands of other nuns with evil intent.

Quickly, she worked to annul the obe

in authority over the convent heard of this

dience to the sons of Saint Francis and to

appeal. But the rebellious faction made sure

submit the direction of the monastery to the Bishop of Quito. This was a sad day for the

he received the worst possible report, mak ing Mother Mariana out to be unruly, insub

heroic and saintly foundresses and all the

ordinate, and much more. As a result, he ordered the innocent vir

obedient Conceptionists of that house. As the Franciscan Fathers said farewell,

gin to be imprisoned for three days. He also

Mother Mariana and all the obedient nuns

ordered that her veil be removed, that she

wept unconsolably. Nevertheless, they obe

receive a public scourging at meal times in

diently submitted to the new authority.

the refectory, and that she eat kneeling on the

encouragement and consolation, assuring

floor These three days were spent in a dark, underground prison. There, Sister Mariana had to expiate her perfect innocence.

them of their future return. For the unruly

After three days, she was removed to

The

Father

Provincial

Franciscans left them

with

the

words of

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

Cover Story

The main square of Quito, Ecuador's

capital. The central building Is the Presidential Palace. The smaller red arrow

indicates the approximate place where, in exact fulfillment of Our Lady's prophecy, Gabriel Garcia Moreno died. The larger red arrow Indicates the Convent of the

Immaculate Conception, directly across the street.

Eucharistic souls who would take upon them

selves to offer reparation for the sacrileges committed again.st the Divine Victim.

Thus did these holy souls spend those bitter days of imprisonment within their

own house, persecuted, reviled, and aban a solitary room. The Spanish foundresses, unable to contain themselves seeing her suf

the Seraphic Order, will sustain the regular

fering, visited her there. For this they were

itent and dedicated lives."

doned by their own.

observance of the monastery with their pen

ordered to be incarcerated along with

The next morning, that nun was found

Mother Mariana for a full month. Others

dead in her cell, her face a blackish purple.

Freedom

Tortured by pity and remorse. Mother Valenzuela could no longer bear the thought of these innocent and holy nuns incarcerated in that awful place. She wrote a letter to the

who showed solidarity with them also

The prisoners were made to carry her body

joined the holy foundresses in prison. At

one time they were twenty-five thus paying

for burial. Imagine Mother Francisca's sor row on having to carry the body of this sis

for their fidelity.

ter she had loved and served but was not

the rebellious nuns to manipulate her and

able to save!

cause the imprisonment of these perfectly

Bishop confessing her weakness in allowing

Mother Magdalen of Saint John beheld

innocent women.The prelate was very upset

One night, a small cross that Mother Mariana had painted on the wall began to shine intensely. As the light increased mar-

Saint John the Evangelist. He revealed to her that on the day of the Last Supper, as he

on receiving this message. He reprimanded

reclined his head over Our Saviour's heart,

immediate release of the victims.

velously to the astonishment of the innocent

one of the secrets that had been revealed to

prisoners, the seven foundresses were each taken up in a sublime ecstasy and each

him was the foundation of this monastery. Our Lord let him know how much He

shown a different vision.

loved this house and that in it would live

On being released, the poor suffering souls humbly kissed the feet of their pri oress and those of their persecutors. Despite this, it would take a veritable

Divine consolations

Mother Valenzuela severely and ordered the

As an example of these visions. Mother Francisca of the Angels, one of the

Spanish foundresses, saw their Seraphic Father, Saint Francis of Assisi, in a state of fury and going about the convent with a bow, shooting arrows right and left. As one of the arrows pierced the heart of one of the disobedient nuns, she fell dead instantly. Then Saint Francis said to Mother

Francisca: 'This nun is the one mainly

responsible for the separation from the Franciscans and the laxity introduced in the monastery. She will be held accountable for

all the sufferings and lack of observance of the rule in the centuries to come until the

Juri.sdiction of the Franci.scan family returns. Then the rule given us by Pope Julius II will be perfectly observed. But 1 will see to it that in all times there will be souls who, loving

CRUSADE

XT'

Drawing of the prison of the convent where Mother Mariana of Jesus and the other holy foundresses were unjustly imprisoned.

Cover Story

Shortly after his reelection as President, in a great impnlse of manly fervor, he shouldered a huge wooden cross during a Holy Week procession and led the cortege through the streets of Quito

this monastery will seem finished, but unbe

book to relate the continuing episodes of

intrigue, calumny, and persecution stirred

known to them, I live and God lives to raise

up by the father of lies against the faithful

in their very midst powerful defenders of

nuns. Let it suffice to say that this was only

this work. We will also place unsurmount-

the beginning of the terrible persecution

able difficulties in their paths, and the tri umph shall be ours."

suffered by these holy souls, who were later returned to that awful prison.

These predictions were fulfilled to the letter.

Once more, election

and...imprisonment

Gabriel Garcia Moreno Gabriel Garcia Moreno was a man of

After this release from imprisonment. Mother Mariana was again elected prioress,

unshakable courage, brilliant intellect, and ardent love for the Church and the Papacy.

receiving the majority of the votes from the

such a fury in the rebellious band that again

As president of Ecuador, he led the repub lic in the paths of Faith and righteousness

she was slandered to such a point that the

for several years, accomplishing tremen

obedient faction of the convent. This caused

Bishop, not knowing what to do, had her iso

dous religious, moral, educational, and

lated in a cell. The hate-filled, unruly bloc wished to send her to the dark prison again

economic reform.

Further prophecies about the

Shortly after his reelection, in a great impulse of manly fervor, he shouldered a huge wooden cross during a Holy Week procession and led the cortege through the

nineteenth and twentieth

streets of Quito. Shortly thereafter, the

but Mother Valenzuela would not hear of it.

centuries

Masonic lodges of Peru sent an assassin to

One day during this second period of isolation, as she prayed and suffered. Mother Mariana again beheld a lady of

kill him.

6. 1875, in front of the presidential palace

incomparable majesty and beauty surround ed by light. Once more the lady called her

as he returned from Mass and Holy Communion in the Cathedral. He fell in the

He was brutally murdered on August

square on which stands the convent ot the

self Mary of Good Success. Again she car President Gabriel Garcia Moreno

Immaculate Conception, just as Our Lady had predicted.

the center of the cross and the name of

will consecrate the Republic of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of my most holy Son, and

It is said that while dying in a pool of blood from multiple machete wounds, he

Mary was engraved on this ruby star, shim

this consecration will sustain the Catholic

managed to dip his finger into his own

mering with many different lights.

Faith in the years to come, which will be

blood and write on the pavement. "Dios no

ominous for the Church.

muere" â&#x20AC;&#x201D; God does not die.

ried her infant Son and the golden crosier. A diamond-studded cross shimmered like so

many suns on the crosier; rubies adorned

This time, among many other things, the Mother of Good Success said: "In the

"During these years, in which Mason The Mother of God asks that a statue be made

nineteenth century a truly Christian presi dent will govern Ecuador. He will be a man

ry, that accursed sect, will take over the

of character to whom God Our Lord will

tion against religious communities. They

During this same apparition the

grant the palm of martyrdom on this same central square where my convent stands. He

will also violently attack this convent which

Blessed Virgin of Good Success asked

is particularly mine. To tho.se wretched men

Mother Mariana to have a statue of her

government, there will be a cruel persecu

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

made exactly as Mother Mariana saw

revoked their right to vote and ordered

her. She wished this statue to be

that they be given the hardest and most menial work in the convent. If they

placed in the Prioress' seat in the high

choir so that, from there, she might effectively rule over her convent. She

resisted, they were to join their leader in prison, They were also expelled

wished a crosier to be placed in her

right hand as a sign of her authority as superior, along with the keys of the

from the voting room. Finally, Mother Valenzuela was elected prioress once more.

monastery so she might defend it in the centuries to come.

The immense sacrifice

Defend it she did. On several

As this hate-filled and crazed

future occasions, hostile governmen

creature spoke to the Bishop, Mother

tal officials sought to move the sis

Mariana was sitting quietly in a cor

ters or close the convent. Not one of

ner of the room, whence she beheld

these attempts succeeded. In some cases the person in charge died or

hideous monkeys approaching this nun. Their mouths, eyes, and nos .ils vomited fire that they poured into her

was removed from office before the order was carried out. On one occa

heart and into those of her rebellious

sion, a large number of men assigned to converge on the convent at a spec ified time all forgot the rendezvous until the time had passed.

followers. Mother Mariana saw that this

unhappy nun and several of her fol lowers would not be saved. But, well aware of Mother Mariana's unbound

The Blessed Virgin

ed love for souls. Our Lord appeared to her and proposed the unimaginable. There was but one way to save this

is measured

Mother Mariana was puzzled over how to obtain the Heavenly Lady's exact measurements. Noticing her confusion. Our Lady had her

sins and the harm caused to the com

and preside over the new election.

habit. Then, with immeasurable grace, she

Blinded by envy and hate, the leader

took one end of the cord and held it at her forehead while Mother Mariana touched

of the rebellion, a small nun known as "Lxt

the other end to Our Lady's foot. The cord,

herself while reviling and insulting Mother Mariana and the Spanish foundresses. She also requested their return to Spain.

that she well deserved for her many

measuring Our Lady

remove the cord from the waist of her

too short for such

soul from the eternal flames of Hell

Painting representing Mother Mariana

measurement,

stretched to the perfect length.

Capiioncr requested the post of prioress for

For some unknown reason. Mother

This proved a fatal mistake for the

Mariana experienced some temptations and difficulties in believing the validity of this apparition. Consequently, many years went

by before the statue requested by the

revolted ones, for the Bishop now clearly saw with whom he was dealing. Indignant, the Bishop ordered Ui Capiumo to be imme diately removed and locked in the prison

Mother of Good Success was made.

where her innocent victims had formerly suffered so much. As to the others, he

munity for the coming centuries: This way was for Mother Mariana to agree to suffer five years in Hell for her. The heroic nun trembled to her very

core, but she accepted. La Capitana

One day. the prioress and ex-prioress heard ugly voices issuing from the prison. Mother Valenzuela asked Mother Mariana

what she thought these might be. to which

the holy nun responded: "Mother, this poor

sister is a victim of the devil. Let us go and visit her and bring her out to the garden so

Trouble in the convent continues

she does not despair. We must look after her soul."

Affairs remained far from settled

the

On seeing them, the miserable

Convent of the

creature began running around the

Immaculate Conception. Always

prison hitting her head against the

spurred by the devil who had vowed to destroy this holy house

walls and screaming: "i'm dyinc! I'm dying! The devil is going to take

that caused so much havoc to his

me!" Then she fell face to the

plans, the same brood of rebel

ground. Turning to Mother Valenzuela, Mother Mariana beckoned,"Come.

lious, disgruntled, and envious nuns never ceased plotting. Again came time for a new

Mother,"

election for superior. The revolu

"No." answered the superior.

tionary element raised so much

Mother Valenzuela. much fright ened. "your Reverence must go

friction that after many sessions a decision had not been reached. The

Bishop himself had to intervene

CRUSADE

alone."

The upper choir, where the nuns sing the Divine Office

Bending down to the fallen

Cover Story

nun. Mother Mariana, turned her over, weeping as she did so. Her tears bathed the face of the wretched creature, who was foaming at the mouth and had blood flow ing from her nose. Mother Mariana cleaned

they will take me!" She pathetically clung

and rubbed her, attempting to bring her

to Mother Mariana, who silently wept a tor

hold on to Him as much as possible, but as

back to her senses. Then she asked for

rent of tears over the head and face of the

Mother Francisca of the Angels, who was the infirmarian, to provide a few remedies.

dying nun.

soon as the divine species dissolved, she felt a terrible pain as if her heart had been

cried in a terrible agitation: "It is too late for me. I cannot love her nor forgive her. I want to be saved but cannot. Oh! Get those black

creatures to go away! Help me, because

A priest was called, but she would not

"Are you going to be all right?" asked

confess. The priest left, saddened by this

Mother Valenzuela, who had remained

scene of dying impenitence. She then

panic-stricken at the door.

breathed her last.

"Do not worry. Mother. Jesus and

The next day, as she approached to receive her God in Holy Communion and to

take leave of her intimate relationship with Him for the long duration of five years, she felt as if her heart would break. She sought to

wrenched from her chest. From that moment

.she became totally insensitive to God.

Although she was to remain five years in the state of a damned soul, she lost the

Mother Mariana continued to hold the

Mary are with me," was the calm answer.

corpse in her arms. Her Spanish sisters and

notion of the time and was convinced that it would be endless. Her sublime love for God

Exorcism

co-foundresses begged her to lay her back on the bed. but Mother Mariana said; "My Sisters and Mothers, do not so soon forget

and her most holy Mother now changed into a feeling of hate, disgust, and despair.

denly noticed two black creatures crouching against the wall in a corner of the room, timidly trying to hide from her. Indignant,

my sacrifice that was accepted to save this soul. Pray to God fervently for her. She is now before the judgment seat of God and

the tonnents of the damned, her five bodily

she addressed them in a loud voice: "Vile

she has realized all the evil she has done.

and abominable beasts, what are you doing here? Go back to your cruel home, for this

She will live again. Do not be frightened; remain calm because she will repent and

is a holy place, a house of prayer and penance. All your efforts to snatch my sis

amend. Later she will die and be saved, but

her Purgatory will last to the day of

her ears. Her sense of smell was plagued by

ter's soul will be in vain. Jesus Christ died

Judgment. This the Lord has revealed to me."

all the filth of humanity, and her sense of

for her and, in spite of you. she will be

As she finished saying this, the dead

touch was tormented by sharp points pene-

As Mother Mariana waited, she sud

saved. I command you in the name of the mysteries of the Most Holy Trinity, of the

Divine Eucharist, of the Divine Maternity of Mary Most Holy and the glorious Assumption of her body and soul into Heaven, that you immediately leave this

Meanwhile, as her soul suffered all

.senses were steeped in incredible torture.

Her body was like a glowing ember, burn ing without being consumed amidst unspeakable pains. Her eyes beheld the most horrible infernal scenes while the most

atrocious blasphemies constantly assaulted

"Vile and abominable beasts, what are you doing here? Go back to your cruel home,for this is a holy place, a house of prayer and penance. All your efforts to snatch

holy place. Leave it, and never more return

my sister's soul will be in vain."

to torment any of my sisters with your abominable pre.sence." As she pronounced these last words,

nun's body quivered and she opened her

there was a terrible noise. The ground shook

eyes. She looked all around the room as if

palate was tortured by a horrible, unknown

and horrible screams were heard. Then the

taste, while demons forced melted sulphur

devils were gone.

seeking someone. Then, fixing her eyes on Mother Mariana, she wanted to speak but

down her throat. At the same time, the

Infirmary and death

her voice choked in a torrent of tears. The angelic Mother Mariana dried them with a

demons beat her head to the point of spilling her brains, thus inciting her to

trating to the very center of her body. Her

On returning to her senses, the sick

mother's love and spoke to her words of

wrath, despair, and blasphemy.

nun was very embarrassed, but she would

confidence in the goodness of God. The

talk only to Mother Valenzuela. She .spent a

poor creature finally felt how much she

She suffered all this while living her daily life in the convent. She never opened

terrible night suffering the cruelties of a criminal conscience. Still, envy had such a

was loved.

her lips with a single complaint to the com

hold over her heart that she could not bring

began to recover. She was now as docile as

herself to ask pardon of Mother Mariana, much less bring herself to love her.

example of sweetness, humility, and obedi

a child and never wanted to be away from

ence. Only the Franciscan priest who direct ed her and the other foundresses knew what

After a general confession, she slowly her holy benefactress.

At the doctor's orders, she was moved

to a room where she could be nursed, for

munity. Rather, she remained a perfect

Mother Mariana endured, and they prayed Mother Mariana enters Hell

she had a contagious disease and was very

Some time later, Our Lord appeared to

sick. Mothers Mariana and Francisca

Mother Mariana. He reminded her that the

nursed her with great love, tenderness, and

time had come for her to pay the price for

for her unceasingly. The only exterior sign of the hell she

suffered was that her cheeks, normally rosy and healthy, enhancing her natural beauty,

affection. Yet, the sick woman treated them

the salvation of La Capitana's soul. He let

lost their color and became sallow. In the

rudely, complaining about everything. De.spite every care and treatment, her condition worsened to the point that death

her know that next day, after receiving Holy

end, she was a walking cadaver.

Communion, as soon as the sacramental species dissolved within her. she would

Death of La Capitana

was imminent. Feeling herself dying, .she

enter Hell.

Five years later, while in prayer. Cover Story NOVEMBER-DECtiMBER 1998

Twice a year, in February and October, the statue of Our Lady of Good Success is brought down from the cloistered choir to the convent church for public veneration. Mother Mariana cried out and fell as if

We will limit our story to the remark

Castillo would .sculpt it and that her angels would refinish it.

dead. She was unconscious for a long time

able making of the statue ot Our Lady of

and then finally, sighing deeply, opened her

Good Success and the detailed revelations

eyes, which filled with tears of relief. Her

about the twentieth century, which we pub

heavenly Lady's measurements. Again, as

hell was over. Gradually she recovered her

lish on page 23.

in the first instance, Mary Most Holy gra

Again the holy nun asked to take the

ciously took one end of the cord and placed

beautiful color and health.

it to her forehead while Mother Mariana

Not long after, La Capitana fell sick once again and approached her end. She

The miraculous statue

On January 21, 1610, the Blessed

touched the other end of the miraculously

confessed all her sins and died calmly,

Mother of Good Success appeared for the second time, now accompanied by the three

extended cord to her foot. But this time, so

archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, to request again that her statue be made.

the end of the cord to her forehead, the three

Then the sweet Queen indicated the artist who was to carry out this holy task. It

crown slightly above her head, then gently

was to be Francisco del Castillo, a man of

reverence.

assisted by Holy Mother Church. Mother Mariana of Jesus saw the sis

ter's judgement, where she was shown that her .salvation was owed to her mother's five

years in Hell. She carried this immense

that the Blessed Virgin could easily place archangels raised her magnificent golden

set it down again with boundless care and

gratitude with her to eternity. In Purgatory she was much helped by her benefactress,

good family and a consummate sculptor.

who did not cease to pray for her. After

Moreover, he was God-fearing, honest, and

Mother Mariana still

Mother Mariana's death, this soul in

upright and. with his wife and children,

hesitates; Our Lady insists

Purgatory was gradually forgotten.

scrupulously ruled his life by the ten com

Miracle worker

The life of this angelic creature was a

Incredibly, even after these two

mandments.

requests of Our Lady herselt. Mother

"But Lady and dear Mother of my soul," said Mariana, "this tiny little ant

Mariana still hesitated.

before thee will never be able to convey to

She feared that the Bishop would

steady succession of divine revelations, interventions, and miracles. During her life

any artist thy beautiful features.... It would

doubt her and pose obstacles to the erection of such an image. She also feared that the

.she levitated, bilocated to save a soul, mul

really be necessary that one of the

Indian population of Quito, only recently

tiplied bread, cured the sick, reconciled

archangels accompanying thee sculpt this holy image that thou dcsirest."

catechized and still with inclinations to

families, predicted the future, worked con versions. These are simply too numerous to relate here.

CRUSADE

The heavenly Queen quieted her wor

ries by assuring her that Francisco del

idolatry, would offer the wrong reverence

to such a magnificent representation of God's Mother.

Cover Story

On February 2 of that same year, Mother Mariana knelt before the Blessed

Sacrament, finishing her customary nightly

prayer, when she felt her heart leap within her in a mixture of joy and no little fright. In an instant, she found herself before

the Queen of Heaven, who stood bathed in glowing lights within an oval frame of glimmering stars. Mariana felt an impulse to escape but something restrained her. She saw the sovereign Queen looking at her

with severity and without saying a word. Mother Mariana begged Our Lady not to look at her like that and promised to carry out all she commanded even if it cost her her life.

The Heavenly Lady then reprimanded

her patiently, asking her why she doubted and feared despite knowing her to be a pow

these measurements, the Blessed Virgin

Mary stood five feet, nine inches tall. Miraculous completion

In January, 1611, when the statue was

nearly done and lacking only the final touches of paint and varnish. Francisco del Castillo informed Mother Mariana that because this last application was the most

important one, he wished to make sure that he had the very finest materials. He said he would return in two weeks, on January 16, and resume work after receiving Holy Communion.

During tho.se days the community talked of little else but the holy image that was about to be finished, blessed, and installed as Queen and Superior of their convent.

erful Queen. She assured Mother Mariana

On the morning of January 16, as the

that there would be no danger of idolatry. Much to the contrary, this statue was not

sisters approached the high choir to pray the morning Office, they heard a beautiful melody. On entering the choir they beheld the statue, bathed in a celestial light, while angelic voices sang the "Salve Sancta

only meant for the good of the convent but also that of the people in general throughout the centuries.

Then Mother Mariana begged Our

Lady that her own name be hidden so that she, Mary Most Holy be glorified. This Our Lady granted, pleased at her

humility, and assured Mariana of Jesus that

Pcirens."

Profile of the statue of Our Lady of Good Success

into the confessional. He knew that she must

know something of what had occurred. Finished by heavenly hands Mother Mariana then revealed that a

They saw that the statue had been

great light had filled the church and the

exquisitely finished and that its face emitted

choir while she prayed there in the early hours of January 16. She had beheld the

rays of the brightest light! Francisco del Castillo, arriving and

Most Holy Trinity present in the church and understood the infinite love of the three Divine Persons for Mary Most Holy, who

the facts concerning the making of this stat

beholding the image, fell to his knees say

ue and of Mother Mariana's life would only

ing,"Mothers, what do 1 see? This precious

come to be known in the twentieth century.

statue is not the work of my hands. 1 do not

was also present, resplendent and queenly.

know how to describe what 1 feel in my

The nine choirs of angels then praised and offered reverence to her. The three

The statue is made

Word of Our Lady's request pro

foundly moved the Bishop. He reprimanded

heart. This was made by angelic hands!" In

fact, the outer layer of the statue lay on the ground.

archangels Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael each knelt before her, saying in

before it, likewise acknowledged the prodi

turn: "Hail Mary, daughter of God the Father," "Hail Mary, Mother of God the

With the Bishop's permission and full

gy as large tears welled in his eyes. He

Son." "Hail Mary, most chaste Spouse of

support, Francisco del Castillo was contact ed. The poor man could scarcely contain his surprise, joy. and gratitude at having been named by the Mother of God herself for this holy project. He refused any payment, con sidering himself fully compensated solely by this selection. He asked only

attested that the image had been modified and enriched by other than human hands. Afterwards, calling Mother Mariana, who

the Holy Ghost." Then Saint Francis appeared with his sacred wounds shining like suns. Approach

Mother Mariana for not having conveyed it to him sooner.

that his family and descendants

always remain in the prayers of the community. To find material for the statue,

he travelled outside Quito and only returned when he was sure he had

found the best wood, paints, and

finishes the country had to offer, Mother Mariana described to him as best she could the features

of the Heavenly Queen as she had appeared and then gave him the exact measurements. According to

The Bishop, coming and kneeling

was abbess once again, he asked her to come

ing the unfinished statue and taking his cinc ture from around his waist, he tied it tu'ound

Partial view of the cloister of the convent of the Immaculate Conception

her waist, placing his beloved convent of the Immaculate Conception in her hands and asking her to be its defender, teacher, and mother in the difficult times to come.

Meanwhile, the statue shone

as if in the midst of the sun. Lo and behold, the Blessed Virgin,

approached and entered it as the rays of the sun penetrate a transpar ent crystal. At that moment the stat ue took on life and sang the Mcignificcil\

This happened at three o'clock in the morninu.

NOVr.MBER-DEfEMBER 1998

Cover Story

Cordial and kind as ever, the holy nun gave her some aniseed water â&#x20AC;&#x201D; with which

she had performed innumerable cures â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

and allayed her fears by assuring her she would give birth to a beautiful baby girl. The comforted mother then asked her pro tectress to pray for her baby.

Mariana of Jesus responded: "You do

not have to ask for my prayers, for this girl is more mine than yours. She is a soul cho sen by God and will perfume this cloister

with the aroma of her virtues. Bring her here often, for I wish to see her. She shall dress my body for burial."

As predicted, a beautiful and healthy girl was born, receiving the name Zoila

Blanca Rose. At the age of ten she begged to be admitted to the convent where she

The incorrupt bodies of Mother Mariana and the other seven foudresses are keot tn glass cases dressed In their habits.

was already an example of virtues as well as a ray of sunshine by her ever joyful and innocent disposition. In the convent she became Zoila Blanca Rose of Mariana of

Mother Mariana also saw her aunt,

Jesus.

Mother Maria Taboada, who congratulated

And so it happened. Mother Mariana's health began to fail, but she still went about

her for such graces granted to her and the community and once again showed her all

sible. Yet, a time came when she had to be

tiful face, for she could not bear the thought

confined to bed.

of living without her saintly Mother. One day she emerged from the sick

the battles the convent would face, espe cially in the twentieth century. She also

her duties in the convent for as long as pos Knowing the day and hour of her

When her beloved Mother Mariana

fell ill for the last time. Zoila devotedly nursed her. Yet, the sunshine left her beau

spoke of the holy souls whose names were

death, she prepared her aggrieved daughters

inscribed in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary

room radiant again. On being asked the rea

for her final voyage to eternity. She was to go to her Lord at 3 p.m. on January 16, 1635.

son for such unbecoming joy in view of her Mother's approaching death, she explained that Mother Mariana had promised to take

and who not only would maintain the com

munity, but would also avert many calami ties from the people in those times.

She was then seventy-two years of age. Around one o'clock of that day, she

At this. Mother Mariana returned to

asked the Mother Abbess to summon the

her senses. Looking at the statue, she saw

community. When they arrived she read aloud her magnificent testament, which began by affirming that she died a faithful

it radiant and finished in a marvellous way!

daughter of the Holy, Roman, Catholic, and Home

her with her.

As Mother Mariana's body was laid

out in the low choir, surrounded by a profu sion of flowers. Rose of Mariana knelt at her Mother's feet and leaned her head on them.

After a while, the prioress approached to bid

Apostolic Church. Then, with a voice vibrant with emotion but firm with the

her take some rest. She did not answer. On

and her mouth was filled with blood. They

she noticed that the sanctuary lamp had gone out. Instinctively she prepared to

strength of faith and sincerity, she echoed Her Master's words: "It is necessary that I go but I will not leave you orphans. I go to my Father and your Father, to my God and

descend to the church in order to re-light it,

died instantly when the main artery of her

your God, and the Divine Consoler will

but an unknown force immobilized her so

heart was wrenched."

descend to comfort you." After receiving the Holy Viaticum, she, on fire with love, calmly closed her

Rule for the adornment of their sisters' bodies had been used for Mother Mariana.

At three o'clock on the morning of February 2, 1634, Mother Mariana had just finished her prayer in the upper choir when

that she could not take a single step. At this moment Our Lady of Good Success appeared carrying the Divine Infant in her

left hand and the crosier in her right. Calmly approaching, she said: "My beloved daughter, today I bring you the pleasant notice of your death, which shall

occur in eleven months. Your eyes will then close to the material light of this world in order to open to the brilliance of eternal

moving her. the nuns saw that she was cold

immediately summoned the doctor. After a

thorough examination the doctor said, "She

All the flowers prescribed by the

eyes and ceased breathing. Mariana of

Improvising a bier, they carried the body of

Jesus was with God.

their youngest member to the low choir devoid of flowers, amidst sobs and canti

A rose at her feet

cles. As they passed the patio, they saw it abloom with most magnificent white roses,

We cannot refrain from mentioning a most touching and golden episode as an

fragrant and double the normal size.

ending to our story.

Zoila's body was covered with those roses,

light. Prepare your soul so that, purified ever more, it may fully enter into the enjoy

Several years before, an anxious

laden with perfume and the essence of mir

expectant mother had come to ask Mother

acles, and placed by that of her holy

Mariana to pray for her condition, which

ment of your Lord."

Mother Mariana.

had been diagnosed as precarious.

CRUSADE

Blessed be God in his saints! â&#x2013;

Our Lady's prophecies about our times The Pope's "infallibility will be

Pastor and Vicar of Christ on earth who, a

declared a dogma of Faith by the same

prisoner in the Vatican, will shed secret

Pope chosen to proclaim the dogma of the

and bitter tears in the presence of God Our Lord, asking for light, sanctity, and per

mystery of my Immaculate Conception.

He will be persecuted and imprisoned in the Vatican through the usurpation of the Pontifical States and through the malice,

envy, and avarice of an earthly monarch."

fection for all the clergy of the world, to whom he is King and Father."

"Unhappy times will come wherein

those who should fearlessly defend the rights of the Church will instead, blinded

"Unbridled passions will give way to a total corruption of customs because

despite the light, give their hand to the

Satan will reign through the Masonic sects, targeting the children in particular

Church's enemies and do their bidding. But when [evil] seems triumphant and

to insure general corruption. Unhappy,

when authority abuses its power, commit ting all manner of injustice and oppress

the children of those times! Seldom will

they receive the sacraments of Baptism

ing the weak, their ruin shall be near.

and Confirmation. As for the sacrament of

They will fall and crash to the ground.

Penance, they will confess only while attending Catholic schools, which the

"Then will the Church,joyful and tri umphant like a young girl, reawaken and

devil will do his utmost to destroy by

be comfortably cradled in the arms of my

means of persons in authority.

most dear and elect son of those times. If

"The same will occur with Holy Communion. Oh, how it hurts me to tell

you that there will be many and enormous public and hidden sacrileges! "In those times, the sacrament of

Extreme

Unction

will

â&#x2122;Ś

largely

he lends an ear to the inspirations of grace - one of which will be the reading of these great mercies that my Son and I have had toward you - we shall fill him with graces and very special gifts and will

make him great on earth and much greater

license...Innocence will scarcely be

ignored.... Many will die without receiv

in Heaven. There we have reserved a pre

found in children, or modesty in women. "He who should speak seasonably

ing it, being thereby deprived of innumer

cious seat for him because, heedless of

will remain silent.

able graces, consolation, and strength in the great leap from time to eternity. "The sacrament of Matrimony, which

men, he will have fought for truth and ceaselessly defended the rights of the Church, ilcserving to be called 'martyr.'"

souls in the world. The delicate flower of

symbolizes the union of Christ with the

Church, will be thoroughly attacked and profaned. Masonry, then reigning, will

and throughout a great pan of the twenti

implement iniquitous laws aimed at extin guishing this sacrament. They will make it

these lands....

"At the end of the nineteenth century eth, many heresies will be propagated in

easy for all to live in sin, thus multiplying

"The small number of souls who will

the birth of illegitimate children without the Church's blessing....

secretly safeguard the treasi ; of Faitii

"Secular education will contribute to a

scarcity of priestly and religious vocations. "The holy sacrament of Holy Orders

and virtues will suffer a criiLi. unspeak able, and long niartyrdoiii. Many will descend to their graves through the vio lence of suffering and will be counted

will be ridiculed, oppressed, and despised,

among the martyrs who sacrificed them

for in this both the Church and God

selves for the country and the Church.

"There shall be scarcely any virgin virginity will seek refuge in the clois ters....Without virginity, fire from heaven will be needed to purify these lands.... "Sects, having permeated all social classes, will find ways of introducing themselves into the very heart of homes to corrupt the innocence of children. The children's hearts will be dainty morsels to regale the devil.... "Religious communities will remain to sustain the Church and work with

courage for the salvation of souls.... The

secular clergy will fall far short of what is expected of them because they will not

Himself arc oppressed and reviled, since He is represented by His priests, The devil will work to persecute the ministers of the Lord in every way. working with baneful cunning to destroy the spirit of their voca tion and coiTupiing many. Those who will

To tr>' the faith and trust of these just ones,

"Pray constantly, implore tirelessly,

thus scandalize the Christian flock will

there will be times when all will seem lost

bring upon all priests the hatred of bad

and paralyzed. It will then be the happy beginning of the complete restoration.... "In those times the atmosphere will

and weep bitter tears in the seclusion of your heart, beseeching the Eucharistic

Christians and the enemies of the One,

Holy. Roman Catholic, and Apostolic Church. This apparent triumph of Satan will cause enormous suffering to the good pastors of the Church., and to the Supreme

"To be delivered from the slaveiy of these heresies, those whom the merciful

love of my Son has destined for this

restoration will need great will-power, per severance. courage, and confidence in God.

be saturated with the spirit of impurity which, like a filthy sea, will engulf the streets and public places with incredible

pursue their sacred duty. Losing the divine compass, they will stray from the way of priestly ministry mapped out for them by God and will become devoted to money, seeking it too earnestly.

Heart of my most holy Son to take pity on

His ministers and to end as soon as possi ble these unhappy times by sending to His Church the Prelate who shall restore the spirit of her priests. â&#x2013;

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

The American TFP in Action

Hawaii Votes Pro Family by Joseph D'Agostino

The homosexual rights movement has advanced so far that it felt 1998 was the right year to launch its first attempt at popular

Plmio Correa de

approval of same-sex "marriage." Now that almost all main stream media and entertainment sources promote the homosexual

Oliveira tm MATcri

lifestyle as morally acceptable, legal recognition of same-sex unions represents the most important symbolic acceptance of their vice except for the approval of the Catholic Church, which will never come. Though the Church may forever withhold the seal of God's approval from sodomites, the State will only do so if godly men con vince the people to demand that their leaders refrain from this form of extreme egalitarianism.

Several states forbid discrimination against homosexuals in employment and housing, and several cities recognize domestic part nerships between couples of the same sex. But no state or city yet rec

ognizes so-called same-sex marriage, a contradiction in terms since marriage is the lifelong union of a man and a woman for the purpose

of mutual domestic support and procreation. When governments, beginning with the French Revolution, began to transfer the concept of marriage from the spiritual to the secular sphere â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and from Church control to civic control â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the true foundation of the institution disap peared. Two states held popular referenda in November on ban

ning same-sex unions. Conser

by Prof. Roberto de Mattel

vative

Alaska

and

liberal

Hard cover, 380 pages

Hawaii both approved the ini tiatives by large margins,68 per

b&w illustrations, for only $14.95

cent to 31 per cent and 67 per cent to 33 per cent respectively.

The life of Professor Plinio Correa de Oliveira spans

There the state's Supreme Court appeared on the verge of deciding that the state constitu tion demanded the recognition

Hawaii was a crucial test.

the century from 1908 to 1995. His first and most prized tide is "Roman Catholic," and it was as a man of faith that he confronted the harrowing events of the

twentieth century. On the doctrinal field, in the field of action, and in his personal life he provided the sub stance for lighting the way ahead in a dark century.

of same-.sex marriage. If any one state in the Union approves it, homo.sexual couples could then marry there and move to other states which

"With the integrity of his life as an authentic Catholic,

would, most likely, have to recognize the marriages under the U.S. Constitution's "full faith and credit" clause. The clause requires states to acknowledge the legal acts of other states. The Congress did pass and President Clinton did sign the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), exempting states from that requirement when it came to same-sex mamage, but there is no guarantee that the

Plinio Correa de Oliveira offers us a confirmation of

U.S. Supreme Court would find DOMA valid.

the Church's fecundity," writes Cardinal Stickler in his

The Catholic Church in Hawaii as well as many wholesome lay institutions put forth great effoils to defend the traditional family and prevent Hawaii to falling into such a disgrace as the legal acceptance of same-sex unions by means of public demonstrations and newspaper

preface to Prof. Roberto de Mattei's The Crusader ofthe 20th Century: Plinio Correa de Oliveira, recendy pub lished in Italian and now available in English.

ads. The American TFP contributed to these efforts by publishing a full page ad in The Star Bulletin - The Honolulu Advertiser, the major

To obtain a copy of:

Crusader of the 20th Century: Plinio Correa de Oliveira,

(D (888) 317-5571 or [3D Crusade Magazine P. O. Box 1868, York, PA, 17405 24

CRUSADE

Hawaiian newspaper, on November 1, two days before the referendum. (See text of this ad on next two pages). It condemns homosexuality as a vice "absolutely incomparable to any other, for it surpasses all of them in enormity," in the words of Saint Peter Damian, on the grounds of society's good, natural law. Scripture, and Church teaching. â&#x2013;

The American TFP's pre-election ad in The Star Bulletin - The Honolulu Advertiser, November 1,1998

Appeal to Hawaii's Voters

Defend God's Law and the American Family Vote YES! Against Homosexual "Marriage' Hawaii is at the threshold of one of the most serious and

testing ground for degrading doctrines and the hotbed of a

transcendent events in its history: the November 3 ballot ini tiative to amend its Constitution to prevent the State

moral infection which will spread to other places. In view of this, the American Society for the Defense of

Supreme Court from mandating homosexual "marriage." family, Hawaiians will be able to live according to morality

Tradition, Family and Property (TP?) urges Hawaii's voters to consider that their vote on this key initiative can contribute not just to Hawaii's fidelity to Christian civilization, but that

and Christian tradition. If, on the contrary, the ballot's out

of the entire Nation. If, however, this ballot initiative opens

come favors the legal and shameless practice of unnatural

Hawaii's doors to homosexual "marriage," it will stain the

vice, the state will sink into a moral abyss. It will become the

Nation's honor.

If voters reaffirm their commitment to the American

"Protect the Constitution!" — a

slogan favoring homosexuai "marriage"

To further their agenda, the advocates

of homosexual unions are casting them selves as defenders of the state Constitution.

They argue that the document implicitly

moral degeneration in many countries have striven to legitimize the worst perversions,

changes in legislation, since laws should reflect the prevailing customs. The result is

specifically such unnatural and profoundly

that as customs wax increasingly immoral

degrading acts as homosexuality. Public opinion in several countries has thwarted this. The public realizes that widespread permissiveness of anti-natural and immoral

and anti-Christian, laws provide impunity for new perversions. Besides demanding the legalization of homosexual

unions, homosexuals

are

sanctions such a union and should not be

customs will result in a climate of oppres

already clamoring for the "right" to adopt

touched.

sion against those who respect the Ten

They err on both accounts. They over look the legal maxim "Salus populi, supre mo lex" (Cicero, De Legibus, III, 9), which states that society's welfare is the supreme

Commandments and will hurl society into moral disintegration.

children, with the inevitable risk that the lat ter will be induced to follow their perverse

unions in Hawaii are obviously a first step

incest are next on the list. The triumph of such dissoluteness would spell the doom of

law according to which the Constitution and other laws must be interpreted. Since obser

for their acceptance in other states and

the family.

vance of the Ten Commandments — which are but the embodiment of Natural Law —

for the moral corruption of the rest of the Nation. If Hawaii legalizes homosexual

The efforts to introduce homosexual

example. The legalization of pedophilia and

would transform Hawaii into an instrument

unions, homosexuals from around the coun

Homosexuality is condemned in the Old Testament

The Old Testament condemns unnatur

is indispensable for the good of man and society, the Hawaiian Constitution should not be interpreted as implicitly sanctioning their violation by infamous vice.

and will then use the full faith and credit clause in Article IV of the U.S. Constitution

al vice with the greatest severity. Leviticus, which contains the precepts dictated by God to Moses to preserve the Chosen People

Furthermore, no one can honestly affirm that the authors of Hawaii's Constitu

to force their home states to accept their new legal status. This will lead to a system

from corruption in matters of faith and cus toms, firmly condemns homosexuality:

tion intended to legitimize homosexual

atic, steady, ostentatious, and unbridled vio

"You shall not lie with a male as with a

"marriage." The principles of Natural Law were much more generally accepted fifty

lation of morality throughout the country.

years ago than they are today. Conse quently, there was no intent to grant the sta

The goal of the promoters of

woman, both of them shall be put to death

moral aberration: destruction

tus of marriage to a violation of Natural

of the family

for their abominable deed; they have for feited their lives"(20:13).

Law.

try will travel to Hawaii to be "married,"

woman; such thing is an abomination"

(18:22);"If a man lies with a male as with a

The world is witnessing an obsessive,

multi-pronged offensive against the family,

The divine punishment of

advocate the "untouchability" of Hawaii's Constitution, refusing to improve it in face

the basic cell of society.

Sodom and Gomorra is a lesson for history

of new dangers to the common good, would

ily offensive encouraged private perversion.

The Bible's condemnation of homo

be false traditionalism and attachment to

sexuality is not just theoretical, but is mani

Hawaiian Constitution.

To engage in such — we were told — is a personal right and any attempt to restrict or prevent it is oppression and discrimination. When degenerate acts became fre

The descent to depravity

quent, anti-family forces began to cite them as proof of an evolution in customs. Such an

striking example is narrated in Genesis, when God sent angels in human form to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorra, corrupted by unnatural vice. (Cf. 18:20;

evolution — they now argued — calls for

19:12-13,24-25, 27-28.)

Now that there is such an intent, to

form to the neglect of substance. What is

unchanging is morality, not necessarily the

Over the last several years the agents of

Initially, the promoters of this anti-fam

fest in the chastisement of sinners. The most

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

The American TFP in Action

^YES

under the inspiration of the

TRROniOHAL MRRRlRae

.1 Homosexuality is condemned In the New Testament as well

Sacred Scripture, which presents homo

later Pope Saint Gregory VII.

sexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tra

In this book, dedicated to

dition has always declared that 'homosex

Pope Saint Leo IX, we read:

ual acts are intrinsically disordered.' They

"The vice of homosexuality is absolutely incomparable to any other, for it surpasses all of them in enormity. This vice

are contrary to the natural law. They close

The New Testament reiterates the

produces the death of the bodies and the

destruction of the souls. It pollutes the flesh; extinguishes the light of intelli gence.... It opens hell and closes the gates

the cities of Sodom and Gomorra to

the Catholic Church promulgated by His Holiness John Paul II: "Basing itself on

Cluniac monk Hildebrand,

condemnation of homosexuality. Saint Peter reminds us that God "condemned

destruction, reducing them to ashes, thus making them an example" (2 Peter 2:6).

of Heaven"(Chapter 16).

the .sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no cir cumstances can

they

be approved"

(2357). John Paul II:"Homosexual

'marriage' is the legitlmlzatlon

Saint Paul writes in his letter to the

Saint Plus X:"Homosexuality

of a moral disorder."

Romans: "God abandoned them up to

cries out to Heaven for

shameful lusts; for their women have

vengeance."

On February 20, 1994, shortly after the European Parliament approved a reso lution in favor of homosexual "marriage,"

exchanged the natural use for that which is

In his 1910 catechism, the great

against nature, and in like manner the men

Pontiff Saint Pius X classified the "sin of

His Holiness John Paul II reaffirmed the

also, having abandoned the natural use of

impurity against nature" second only to voluntary homicide among the sins that

illicitness of such unions. In his Angelus address he stated: "The Juridic approval of homosexual practice is morally inadmissi ble. In effect, to show understanding for those who sin or for those incapable of freeing themselves from this tendency is

the women, have burned in their lusts one

towards another, men with men doing shameless things and receiving in them selves the fitting recompense of their per

"cry out to Heaven for vengeance." He

explained that this expression comes to us from the Holy Ghost Himself and means

versity.... Although they have known the

that homosexuality's iniquity is "so grave

ordinance of God, they have not under stood that those who practice such things are deserving of death" (1:26-27, 32). In

and manifest that it provokes God to send the severest punishments"(967).

not tantamount to the lessening of the

demands of morality.... The Parliament has inappropriately given institutional

his first epistle to Timothy, Paul groups the

The Congregation for the

merit to devious behavior that is not in

sodomites with the murderers, the perjur

Doctrine of the Faith:

conformity with God's plan.... Forgetting

ers, and "whatever else is contrary to the

"Homosexual relations are a

sound doctrine" (1:10).

serious depravity."

And in 1

Corinthians, he declares that those who

the words of Christ 'the truth shall set you free'(John 8:32), it has tried to show our

In accord with the millennial tradi

continent's people a moral evil, a devia

practice unnatural vice will not possess

tion

the kingdom of God (cf. 6:9-10).

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has spoken out several times

Saint Augustine of Hippo: "Offenses contrary to nature are

against the present homosexual onslaught, for "according to the objective

1994).

moral order, homosexual relations are

YES! Amend the Constitution!

to be detested and punished."

Saint Augustine (354-430) echoes these teachings in his Confessions. "Those foul offenses that are contrary to nature

the

Catholic

Church, the

tion. a form of slavery, as a way of libera tion, falsifying the family's very essence" {L'Osservatore Romano, February 22,

acts which lack an essential and indis

pensable finality. In Sacred Scripture they are condemned as a serious depravi

In light of these documents as well as

the opportune and courageous September 25 letter of Honolulu's Bishop Francis X.

are everywhere and at all times to be

ty and even presented as the sad conse

DiLorenzo asking Catholics to help edu

detested and punished; such were those of

cate voters on this serious issue, we con

the Sodomites, which should all nations

quence of rejecting God. This judgment of Scripture...attests to the fact that

commit, they should all be held guilty of the same crime by the law of God, Who

homosexual acts are intrinsically disor dered and can in no case be approved"

tradition, and the family, it is necessary to

hath not so made men that they should so abuse one another"(Book III, Chapter 8).

{"Declaration on Certain Questions

Constitution. True marriage, which con forms to the Natural Law instituted by God, must be upheld.

Saint Peter Oamian:

"Homosexuality surpasses all

The Catechism of the Catholic Church-."Homosexual acts are

Other vices In enormity."

Intrinsically disordered."

In the eleventh century. Saint Peter Damian wrote "Liber Gomorrhiamis" for

the clerical reform carried out

I3YES

\ES ftOmOHftL MABRlABt

CRUSADE

Concerning Sexual Ethics," 1975).

Homosexual relations are again clearly condemned in the Catechism of

clude that to defend morality, Christian vote

YES

and

amend

Hawaii's

May Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, Patroness of the United

States, protect our country from moral

ruin and convert it into an example of respect for God's Law. â&#x2013;

The American TFP in Action

TFP participates in Cubans' "March of Intransigence"

Intransigence is perhaps not a well-regarded quality in today's world, especially when it refers to intransigence on the right. Exiled Cubans, however, faced with 40 years of Fidel Castro's

thoroughly intransigent exercise of destructive communist princi ples in their homeland, have concluded that nothing less than intransigence will shake Castro's stranglehold. Some 100,000 Cuban-Americans, then, gathered for a "March

Above: Members of the American TFP pose for a picture at Radio Mambi, Below: Partiai view of the March of

Intransigence, Miami.

of Intransigence" along Calle Ocho in Miami's La Pequena Havana neighborhood, expressing their resolve not to accept any compro mises with Castro's policies by secular or religious authorities.

Organizers of the event invited the American TFP to partici pate in the rally with its red standards and marching band. During the march, TFP members carried a large statue of Our Lady of Fatima, for it was precisely in Fatima that the Mother of God

warned mankind against the evils of Communism, under which Cuba has suffered since 1959.

Arriving in Miami a few days before the march, the 22 repre

sentatives of the American TFP were interviewed and pho tographed by Radio Mambi and television Channel 51, both of which gave the TFP extensive coverage in their broadcasts of the March. The TFP members visited both studios with the statue of

Our Lady of Fatima.

Rosary march for the unborn Since 1995 the Corpus Christi Council of the Knights of Columbus, Scranton,

Pennsylvania, has organized a Rosary procession through the streets of Scranton to pray for the unborn and to

heighten awareness of the tragic holo caust of abortion. Members of the

Montfort Academy have joined the

the route, the inspiring strains of Marian hymns and the prayers of fifteen decades of the Holy Rosary echoed through

Knights and their families, parishioners of

Scranton's streets.

Saint Michael's parish, and other faithful from the area for this important event for

When the procession reached Saint Michael's, Fr. Charles Connor spoke about the evils of abortion and the necessity of

American TFP-America Needs Fatima

apostolate and students of St. Louis de

the past two years.

This year's march, on October 4,

Repeat of popular lecture tour

working harder than ever to stop it.

began at the Tomb of the Unborn in

Everyone then entered the church for a

Cathedral Cemetery and made its way to

solemn Benediction of the Blessed

Mr. Nelson Fragelli recently visited the

Saint Michael's Catholic Church. Along

Sacrament. Good Catholic conviviality, accompanied with refreshments in the

United States and made a speaking tour through Louisiana, California, and

church hall, closed the occasion.

Seeing the beautiful Pilgrim Virgin statue escorted through the streets by the faithful and the tall red and gold TFP

Pennsylvania, delivering talks on two topics, "The Hidden Enemies of the Family" and "Cathedrals and Castles." Mr. Fragelli. an active member of the French TFP, has become

banners was reminiscent of a bygone era

a regular guest of the American TFP and will

of faith and devotion, when Catholics

be returning soon to present his talks in other

were not afraid to be fully Catholic. May Our Lady's work be done so as to make

parts of the country. "Catechism in Stone."

this past a common and vigorous reality

published in the January-February 1998 issue of Crusade, was based on Mr. Fragelli's

once again.

"Cathedrals and Castles" lecture.

The American TFP In Action

America Needs

Fatima pilgrimages

James Dowd recently spent three months in Hawaii, where the Fatima vis

its were welcomed with great devotion.

Convinced that the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima contain the most important message for our troubled limes, ten teams of

Above: A presentation is made to children at a Hartford, Conn., school. Below and left: Marc Lascelle, one of the ten custodians who travel around the coun

try, visits the sick and elderly.

American TFP volunteers have,

since July of last year, continually

toured the country with beautiful four-foot pilgrim statues of Our

Lady of Fatima, visiting homes, churches, schools and hospitals. Each team makes an average of three visits a day. The visits con

sist of a spoken presentation fol lowed by an audio-visual on the

apparitions of Our Lady in Fatima. then a rosary in common.

The programs seldom conclude without lively conversations around an array of refreshments offered by the host or hostess.

Public Marian procession

Working with the youth

The Tradition Family Property student network works on campuses nationwide. Currently focused in the

ClirrstI

Washington, D.C. area and dealing with Corpus Christi and other such works, the TFP

is challenging the egalitarian myth of absolute freedom of expression. "Some students mistakenly think that freedom of expression is an absolute

"Believe it or not, this was my first public procession in

my life," commented an America Needs Fatima member par

freedom. It's not. It stops where

ticipating in the public procession in honor of Our Lady last September 27 in south-central Pennsylvania.

other rights are violated," says Bryan Blanck, a volunteer of

the two-mile late-afternoon procession, organized by a local

Some 300 persons gathered for the Marian devotions and

right to one's own good name,

America Needs Fatima supporter, from Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in McSherrystown to the Basilica

especially when applied to the

of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Conewago. Five large standards

God-Man, should never be vio

of the American 1FF led the procession as it .started from the

the TFP student network. "The

lated under pretext of exercising one's freedom of expression," he says. Discussing these issues with students at Georgetown, George Washington, George Mason, and other universities, and showing that absolute liberty without any restraint of law is equivalent to chaos has been very fruitful. A petition drive, distribution of informative literature, and lively discussions are part of each campaign. For more information, please call Matthew Carlson at (717) 225-7147.

doors of Annunciation Church. Parishioners of Annunciation

carried the local Pilgrim Virgin statue on their shoulders, escorted by an honor guard of the Knights of Columbus. The

faithful followed in orderly fashion as the procession wended its way along the local streets and country roads toward Conewago. Many were those who came out of their homes to

pay homage to the Queen of Heaven as she passed.

Capit

Pacification Is the government obliged to establish an enclavefor the narcoterrorist? by Alfredo MacHale

These past few months Colombia, the most

traumatized country in the Americas, has been the stage for

vated by the fact that 97 percent of those prosecuted for these crimes never receive any sentence.

have been made by Colombia's new presi

Despite all this, the Colombian gov ernment appears to have learned nothing and ceaselessly seeks dialogue with the guerrillas. For their part, the guerrillas inevitably reject discussions unless the gov

dent, Andres Pastrana. The most recent, controversial, and

ernment prevents the Colombian military from fighting them in the areas the guerrillas

hazardous of these capitulations, which the

control. If the military undertakes any ener

extremely perilous concessions to the communist guerrillas and drug traffickers

that plague the country. These concessions

president assumes will move these crimi

few months and the government's refusal to provide the army with better means to wage this war, are inclined to point out that the

Colombian military could well suffer defeat within the next five years.* The withdrawal

promised by the new president is for a cer tain transitory and, therefore exiendible, period, and this refuge given the guerrillas will itself compromise national sovereignty. Within this conceded enclave, the

guerrillas will ferociously subjugate the local population. From it they will besiege other areas of the country, returning with

nals to obey the law, establishes an area of some 16,000 square miles â&#x20AC;&#x201D; about the size of Switzerland â&#x20AC;&#x201D; from which the govern

impunity after their attacks. Allowing this,

ment will withdraw all its armed forces,

the Colombian government protects rather than fights them.

thus leaving the area's civilians defenseless in face of constant aggression from the nar-

them juridical and political recognition. By

Eventually, the government will grant tolerating the guerrillas' drug production

coterrorists.

To properly assess the tragedy that has

and trafficking, a sort of "cocaine republic"

befallen Colombia, as well as the unprece dented concessions that have been made to "free" her of this tragedy, we must recall the

ders, and the amount of drugs contributing

will be established within Colombia's bor

to the corruption of the more developed

general pattern of events there over the years. We will see, in the light of historical

countries will increase. As another condi

experience and common sense, just how

tion of talks, they will demand sanction of the finances they have acquired through

tion set by the guerrillas for the continua

absurd this method of "pacification" is. For the last fifteen years, the Colom

such criminal means as drug production and

sales, kidnapping, and extortion. Thereby

Marxist guerrillas has allowed them to grow stronger and more unified. In consequence,

getic action in defense of the country, as is their duty, the guerrillas boycott the talks. The government, wanting talks at any price,

a powerful and aggressive force has been

makes concessions that are most harmful to

formed that brutally subjugates the greater

the country. This, of course, leaves the guer

itarian" NGOs, (international non-govern

part of the civilian population and, through the systematic demolition of juridical order,

rillas at liberty to do as they please. As if this were not enough, before

demand that the Colombian army be reduced

bian govemment's indolent toleration of the

emboldened, they will move to destroy what remains of juridical order.

With the support of numerous"human mental organizations) the guerrillas also

the destructive force of their subversion.

to one third of its present strength and that the officers who have proven most effective in fighting against them be dismissed. The guerrillas themselves are then to be admitted

Despite meager and ridiculous promises on their part, the guerrillas are not ashamed to

ing more than an official showpiece of crim

make it known, by word and by deed, that

inal and devastating nature.

they will continue their criminal activity.

While the population suffers ever

The guerrillas' demands are clear. What have they promised in return? They

Among countries not in a declared

greater oppression and the guerrillas obtain

Continues on p. 34

state of war, Colombia stands out for having

ever greater protection and guarantees from the government, the hands of the Colombian military are bound ever tighter. United States military observers, noting the armed success of the guerrillas these past

renders the State ineffective.

The government has justified this tol erance as a means for bringing peace, yet the concessions have only served to increase the violence perpetrated by the

guerrillas. These concessions allay any fears the guerrillas may have of being pun ished for their crimes and rouse them to fur ther subversive action.

the greatest number of assassinations, assaults, and kidnappings within her bor ders. The more than 30,000 violent deaths

per year within Colombia are further aggra-

agreeing to talks, the guerrillas also oblige the government to free imprisoned mem bers of their ranks. This clearly augments

into the army. The anny would become noth

(*) According lo retired Special Forces Major F. Andy Messing. Jr.. an expert in Colombia's tragedy, the guer

rillas will have control ol' Bogota, the country's capital, within one year, regardless of the peace talks.(Cf. Tiie New York Times. Dec. 1. 1998).

NOVEMBER-DECEMBFR 1998

Catholic Apologetics

Q O

TK)'

Is the Bible

the sole rule ofFaith?

Ife l real y sor y for you, poor benighted Roman Catholics," said John, the tie-less gentleman in the black suit across the

table at the anti-abortion committee meeting. "If you could only understand that the Bible, and the Bible alone, is God's word to mankind!"

I take some exception to assertions like that, right out of the blue. After all, we were there to defend the right to life of the unborn

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; not to argue about religion. There were fifteen of us at the meet

ing, seated around a large wooden table. John, our treasurer, is rather disgruntled at being the only non-Catholic on the committee. For some reason, the vast majority of active members in the group

ther Latin nor Greek.

My Bible is in good American English, and I'll have none of that of

dead language stuff, thank you very much" It was now my turn

to apologize. "I'm sorry, John. Since you mentioned

Luther, I thought you'd know the terms he used to

are from the old-fashioned, benighted, mediaevalist Roman

preach the idea of the Bible

Catholic Church.

alone â&#x20AC;&#x201D; sola scriptura. He was

The meeting had ended, and we were picking up the paperwork en route to the traditional cup o' tea, without which nothing of importance happens in these parts. While the chairman was seeing

very proficient in Latin, you know, and a lot of his writing was done in that of dead language stuff."

to the water being boiled, John continued to push his Protestant

"I don't care if he wrote in German or

approach to religion. "Jesus condemned the man-made traditions of the Pharisees, but you R.C. folks have never understood that the Word of God, as

Maori, what counts is that I've got my Bible in English, and that's all I need, thank you very much,"

Wycliffe and Luther have shown for all to see, is the Bible, only the Bible, and nothing but the Bible," he said triumphantly. "Are you talking about sola scriptiiraT I asked.

languages of the Bible. When I read the Bible in English or any

"I beg your pardon?" he replied. "Sorry, but I understand nei

CRUSADE

"Like yourself, John, I don't understand Greek or Hebrew, the

other language, I must rely on the ability of the translators who did the job for me." "So?" asked John, not quite getting the point.

Catholic Apologetics

"Well, if you have your Bible in

English, you are implicitly trusting the translation made by the Bible society you

got your copy from. Can you guarantee that they did a good job?" While John remained open-mouthed, probably realizing he had

Bible does it say that the Bible alone con tains all the truth we must know about Jesus?' No one can answer that, because

there is no such verse. Quite the contrary."

never thought about that, 1 concluded my

"One can actually prove that the Bible is not the only source of divine revelation and rule of faith just by quoting the Bible?"

thought: "Can you be sure that your Bible society did not mistranslate your American

she asked, chuckling a bit at the irony. "Exactly. You can prove that Jesus gave

English Bible?"

us much more than the Bible, such as the

"There is nothing wrong with my

Apostolic Tradition and the Magisterium of

through faith in Christ Jesus." In his child hood Timothy knew nothing about the New Testament. Thus, the New Testament is not

necessary, just the Old,.. That's what hap pens when you quote a text out of context. Take another example. If you ask,

"What is the pillar and foundation of the truth?" any denominational Christian will

say, "The Bible, of course." But the Bible says that the pillar and foundation of the truth is the Church. In 1 Tim. 3:15, Saint Paul refers to the "household of God, which

American English Bible, thank you very

His Church. In fact, if you can gel your fun

much," he retorted. "But John," I said, "if you don't know Greek or Hebrew, how can you know that

damentalist friend to listen to your argu

is the Church of the living God, the pillar

ment, you can prove that Wycliffe's and

and foundation of the truth."

Luther's claim of sola scriptura is unscrip-

The Church says the Bible is the word

the translation was well done, accurate,

tural, unreasonable, unhistorical, and

of God, and the Bible says the Church is the

intellectually honest?"

unworkable.

pillar and foundation of the truth. God Our Lord inspired the Bible and established the

"I have a friend in America, a Bible

scholar, and he's more than able to compare

"Incredible! Go on, please, I'm all ears. Begin with the claim of sola scriptura

my Bible with the ancient manuscripts,

being unscriptural. It would be entertaining

thank you very much!" (I must say, his repeated "thank you very much" was begin ning to get on my nerves.)

to show a fundamentalist that his belief in

It didn't seem opportune to tell John that the originals of the New Testament

around the fourth century. It was the Church

who preserved them and passed them on to subsequent generations. "Is your Bible scholar infallible, John?" I asked, a trifle tongue-in-cheek.

a perfect marriage. What God hath joined together, let no man put asunder.

the Bible alone is not in the Bible."

I picked up my notes from various seminars on the topic by Gerry Matatics and

The Church was built

upon a rock, not a book Jesus did not build His Church upon

the Bible. On the contrary, it was His

have been lost since the early centuries, that the oldest manuscripts we have, all copies

made by the Catholic Church, date from

Church. They are to work together as one in

Sola Scriptura is unscriptural

Church that put the Bible together. The Magisterium of the Church is the guide for interpreting Scripture and the oral tradition of the apostles: "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the

gates of hell will not prevail against it" (Matt, 16:18).

Jesus was true to His word. He prac

"Surely you don't believe that! If he is falli ble, how can you be sure he's got it right?"

ticed what He preached. He established His

Tea time was over, and everyone was

Church — which Saint Paul calls the House

moving towards the door. All that John said in reply was, "I'm happy with my Bible,

of the living God — on a single rock, Peter.

Recall the parable of the house built upon

and 1 don't need any Pope or council to tell

others, and we spent the last hour of the evening talking about sola scriptura. Here

me otherwise, thank you very much. And

is a summary of my notes.

good night!" The evening over, we all went home. There I discussed the issue with my wife. "How would you summarize the Catholic

Sola scriptura is unscriptural Fundamentalist Christians commonly quote 2 Tim. 3:17 to defend sola scriptura:

teaching on the Bible for someone who

"All scripture is inspired by God and prof

the Bible, One single rock is Kepha, Petros.

thinks that the Bible alone contains the

itable for teaching, for reproof, for correc

Peter. A multitude of little rocks or pebbles

whole divine revelation, that the written

tion, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work," Saint Paul does say that scripture is

or grains of sand is sola scriptura. If today we affirm that the Bible is the

word of God is the only rule of faith?" she asked. "A simple, straightforward reply would be quite handy to have. What approach would you suggest?" "Rather than the long and roundabout

approach of explaining the Church's teach

rock and the one built upon sand (see Matt. 7:24-27). The "foundation" of the first house was as strong and solid as a rock, but

the shaky foundation of the second house was a multitude of little rocks, grains of sand, individual minds trying to interpret

word of God, nearly 2,000 years after the birth of Jesus, we are taking the word of the

profitable for many good things, but he does

Catholic Church for it, because She said so.

not say scripture alone. The word alone is neither explicitly present nor implied,

That had been the stated — and lived —

belief of all Christians for 1500 years by the time Luther came along.

ing on the role of Scripture, I would suggest

Luther and his followers read too much

a to-the-point approach, as Jesus used with

into it. If we take this verse as they did, without its context, we do away with the whole New Testament! The preceding verse

Good and bad traditions

reads:"From your childhood you have been

quotation is this one: "Why do you also

the Sadducees in the Temple; when they asked Him about His authority to preach.

He replied with a question." "What question would you ask?" "Something like this; 'Where in the

The fundamentalists" pet "Bible alone"

acquainted with the sacred writings, which

transgress the commandment of God for the

are able to instruct you for salvation,

sake of your tradition?,.. You have made

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

Catholic Apologetics

void the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Well did Isaias prophesy of you when he said,'This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is

living in idleness, and not in accord with the

tradition that you received from us" (2 Thess. 3:6).

What good tradition is Saint Paul talk

far from Me. In vain they worship Me,

ing about? Certainly not that one con

teaching the doctrines and precepts of men"

demned by Jesus, because the Scribes and Pharisees replaced the word of God with it, but those of the Apostolic Tradition. He had already written: "So then, brethren, stand

(Matt. 15:3, 6-9).

"See?" the fundamentalist will pro claim, "Jesus condemned tradition!" Not so! Jesus condemned those man-

fast; and hold to the traditions which you

made doctrines and precepts of the Scribes and Pharisees, because they had replaced

were taught by us, either by word of mouth, or by letter"(2 Thess. 2:14).

the word of God with their own tradition.

Of course, there is no contradiction between Jesus and Saint Paul. In fact, here

Jesus goes into detail in Matthew Chapter 23, condemning these man-made traditions, but He Himself said He had come to fulfill,

Saint Paul speaks of the two good tradi tions: those conveyed in writing and those

not to destroy, the traditional religion of the

conveyed orally.

Jews. That is why He does not condemn tra dition as such. Otherwise He would be con

Jesus commanded His

tradicting His own actions. He Himself

Apostles to preach

observed all the good doctrines and precepts

"And Jesus came and said to them,

— traditions — of the Hebrews, such as the

saying: all power in heaven and on earth is

All of creation is also

Pasch and all the solemn festivals celebrated

given to Me. Go therefore, and make disci

in their liturgical calendar, with all their

ples of all nations; baptizing them in the

God's book, wherein we read of His power, mag nificence, simplicity, innocence, and more.

appurtenances, songs, and ceremonies. Secondly and more importantly, His Apostles handed on the Apostolic Tradition,

name of the Father, and of the Son, and of

the oral teaching that was not committed to writing: "Now we command you, brethren, in the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, that

you keep away from every brother who is

the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you: and behold. I am with you always, even to the consum mation of the world"(Matt. 28:18-20).

This is very important, because He

commanded the Apostles to teach every thing they had learned from Him. Everything Jesus said or did was divine rev

elation, was God speaking to us — His words and deeds. His examples and signs. But was everything written in the Bible? The Bible says that all of Jesus'teachings are not in the Bible

Ask any fundamentalist if all of Our Lord's teachings arc in the Bible. There is no evidence that Jesus wrote a

:'v

single book. He only preached, and preached orally. He did not command His Apostles to write, but to preach. In the beginning of the Church the only means of knowing the truth about Jesus was by lis tening to oral preaching. Later, Our Lord inspired some of them

— not all — to commit to writing some — not all — of His teachings. How can we

affirm that? The apostles themselves explic itly say it. Take Saint John; "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the dis

ciples. which are not written in this book" (John 20:30).

Why are they not all written? It is humanly impossible. Saint John says at the end of his Gospel (21:25): "But there are

CRUSADE

The dome of Saint Peter's

Catholic Apologetics

also many other things which Jesus did; were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written." The written word of God — the Bible,

in Rome

obedience to the will of God the Father, is

called Apostolic Succession. That is what Saint Paul says to Timothy(2 Tim 2:2):"And what you have heard from me before many witnesses, entrust to faithful men, who will

and especially the New Testament — accounts for a great part of Jesus' teachings

be able to teach it to others also."

and the signs He performed, but not every

thing. A large part of His teaching was not

ironically enough, that it is unscriptural. Quite the contrary, the Bible speaks of the

put in writing, but was orally transmitted by the Apostles and disciples to their successors

the Church.

So, the problem with sola scriptura is,

Apostolic Tradition and the Magisterium of

down the ages. Therefore, one cannot be

against Apostolic Tradition without being against the Bible itself.

So/a scriptura In unreasonable The Bible was not given to the world as

a single gilt-edged, leather-bound tome. It Saint Paul and the necessity of oral preaching Saint Paul exhorts his followers to

was the result of a historical process where in the Catholic Church played the main role: She assembled it by determining which

observe everything that Jesus preached by

books were inspired, saved it from the per

following his own example and heeding his

secutions, translated it carefully, ensured

words, not just by reading his writings:

that its teachings were spread without error,

"Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. I

and so forth. Therefore, the authority of the

commend you because you remember me in

Bible logically rests upon the authority of

everything and maintain the traditions even

the Church.

as I have delivered them to you" (1 Cor.

If we accept the Bible as the written

11:1-2).

word of God, we are actually accepting the

"Follow the patterns of .sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith

declared it so. If the Church was correct

and love which are in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 1:13).

when She said those books were inspired, She is also correct when She interprets

"What you have heard from me before many witnesses, entrust to faithful men who

them. It would be inconsistent for God to

will be able to teach it to others also"(2 Tim, 2:1-2).

"But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing

testimony of the Catholic Church who

give the Church infallibility to put the Bible together without giving Her infallibility to interpret the books She assembled. That

Now. how could the Apostles accom

Sola scriptura is unhistorlcal If Jesus had intended that individual

plish Our Lord's mandate that they preach to

Christians should interpret the Bible on their

all nations all things whatsoever He had

own without a Church to guide them, why

taught them if everything He taught is not

did He not say so in the Bible, right at the

written in the Bible?

outset? And why did no theologian or Bible

For a Catholic, the answer is simple

scholar ever teach this idea for the first four

(and we have been saying this for the last

teen centuries of Christian history? The early

couple of thousand years): Jesus established His Church upon the rock called Peter, He gave His Apostles the Holy Ghost, invested

the Bible together for us, are all insistent that

them with His teaching authority, and .sent

taught in the early centuries of the Church

them forth to preach — not to write. Had Jesus wanted His Apostles to write

books, even inspired books, why did He not

Fathers and Doctors of the Church, who put one cannot depend on the Bible alone. They that the Bible must be interpreted in the light

of the Apostolic Tradition, not in the light of individual minds.

say so? Only two Apostles wrote gospels. Saints Matthew and John. The other two

Sola scriptura is unworkable

Gospels were written by disciples. Saints

Suppose for a moment that Jesus had left

Luke and Mark. Some Apostles wrote not

us neither Church Magisterium nor Apostolic Tradition. Suppose further that He had

one single epistle so far as we know.

The way the Apostles handed down through the centuries the faith once delivered unto the saints, just as Jesus did with them in

without words. Such are the

Church's architecture, art, ceremonies, and rituals, which

are often more expressive than

would be contradictory, but God has no con tradiction.

from whom you have learned it" (2 Tim. 3:14).

Through His Church, God speaks to us in many ways

intended that Christians should find the truth

about Him by the Bible alone. Would this not be unfair to the illiterate? Since widespread

the written word.

Catholic Apologetics

Colombia Continued from p. 29

have agreed to stop kidnapping children and elderly or pregnant women. They promise to end all kidnapping eventually — if they are compensated for the money they would have

made in this way! But they will not lay down their arms, something they have affirmed from the beginning.

Following the example of the guerrillas, other criminal elements will feel inspired to make

their own demands. If these demands are granted, Colombia could well be transformed into a mosa ic of small zones under the control of various criminal elements. Other countries of the continent will face

similar demands from guerrillas and drug pro ducers and traffickers within their own borders,

once these are emboldened by events in Colombia. Various key nations — Mexico, Panama, Venezuela. Ecuador. Peru — will sink

into agonizing chaos, which in itself will pro foundly disturb the entire hemisphere. The concessions made by Colombia's president could have particularly fatal conse An interior detail of Saint Peter's Basilica

quences around the world in view of a number

of current situations:

literacy is a comparatively recent reality in historical terms, the Apostles would have faced an impossible task, giving Bibles to people who could not read!

Even supposing that everyone could read, does the Holy Ghost necessarily inspire everyone to understand the truth?

If so, why is there no consensus among the defenders of sola scriptural Why are there so many churches, denominations, creeds, communities, ministries, free

ty of Christ, the Trinity, the second com ing, the sacraments — especially baptism of infants and the Eucharist — female

Hugo Chavez, an expert in violent methods,

priests, divorce, abortion, contraception, capital punishment... The list is almost endless! In any of these points, you will find one denomination vigorously defending its view, Bible in hand, and the

and a friend of Fidel Castro and the Colombian

other denomination opposing it with equal vigor and with Bible in hand. "This is the sad reality of the

lance evangelists, splinter groups — you name it — each defending some doctrine that the others oppose? Why so many disagreements about Bible interpretation

Protestant Revolution: One knows a tree

among non-Catholics, so many doctrinal

Pharisees. It is unscriptural, unreason

differences among self-professed Bible

able, unhistorical, and unworkable. Sola

believers in the last 500 years?

scriptura is a man-made tradition, with out any foundation in the early Church, the Apostolic Tradition, or the Bible itself. It is Just a human opinion — and a

Conclusion

"It's really nonsensical!" said my wife. "There are at least 18,000 Christian denominations in America alone, accord ing to a yearbook of America's Christian

Venezuela is now faced with the possible

election of a president who is pro-Mtu-xist,

by its fruit. That's why the Catholic Church rejects sola scriptura as a tradi tion of man like those of the Scribes and

wrong one — and, however sincere it may be in the minds and hearts of many, it ends up subverting the authority of

churches."

scripture itself.

"You are quite right. It makes no sense. There are so many disagreements on such fundamental points as the divini

Luther for the religious chaos they engen dered, 'thank you very much!'" ■

"One could say to Wycliffe and

guerrillas; the United States is handing the vital Panama Canal over to the government of Panama, next year, a nation that is far from

being a model of stability and respect for law; the Marxist "landless" movement in Brazil, with strong clerical support, continues its land

invasions and class struggle; and the risk of an

international financial crisis grows, threatening all the emerging countries, producing great social conflicts, and perhaps even greatly dam aging the more developed countries of the world.

The pastors of this continent, so often

looked upon by the Church as the great hope of the twenty-first century, should be moved by these imminent perils to raise their voices in

grave eloquence, warning their respective flocks and governments of the need to defend

Christian civilization. Yet, sadly, the pacifist actions and illusions of the President of

Colombia are often encouraged by bishops of the country and even the ecclesiastical organs of other nations that close their eyes to the obvious dangers. And in addition to these ecclesiastical elements, other public figures do the same.

Must the tragic reality of the demands of

Author's note: The positive response of Crusade readers to the new section on Catholic

Apologetics has encouraged me to ask if there is any particular subject they would like

the Colombian narcoterrorists spread to other countries before these public figures recover

to see expounded in these pages, one that may be of greater importance to share with

their objectivity and lead the people as they

friends and relatives who ask questions about the Faith. Please address your requests to the Editor of Crusade. Altematively, feel free to drop me a line at St. Gabriel

ought? We hope not, for if the mounting crisis must explode before they do so. the resulting confiagrations will suipass any and all in the.se

Communications, PO Box 201, Burswood WA 6100 Australia. Or send me an e-mail:

St_Gabriel_Comm@bigpond.com

past decades, and their lamentable effects will

be felt for many years to come. ■

CRUSADE

Basic History Course

Brief analysis of the Empire's decline However, the end of the Western

Empire occurred not as the barbarians began to pour through the frontier defenses,

Western bimiZATION Chapter 14

but at least a century earlier when softness and decay attacked the entire social fabric. Historians list many political and economic factors in this complex subject such as the despotism and corruption of the govern ment and the excessive taxation that ruined

the middle class. However, many other fac

tors suggest a moral decay that ate away the foundations of social and family life.

As the Empire Collapses, Christianity Rises

es were principally occupied in acquiring wealth and luxury in order to spend their days in rounds of pleasure, ease, and com

Part One: The Decline

The aristocracy as a group, once the field of

by Jeremias Wells

recruitment, was no longer fit for military service or civic leadership. At the time of the final collapse, most of the important

The upper and more influential class

fort. Literature and learning were ignored.

pushed westward and southward, these ter

Visigoths went on a rampage of plunder throughout the Balkans. Valens marched against the barbarians with an insufficiently prepared army. In A.D. 378 near the city of Adrianople in Thrace, the Visigoths crushed

rifying raiders applied enormous pressure

the Romans with a vigorous cavalry attack,

to the Germanic tribes who piled up against

killing the emperor along with two-thirds of

the Danube River, the northern frontier of

his army.

The Huns, an Asiatic horde ol" repul sive. nomadic horsemen, were sweeping in a violent scries of raids across the south

Russian steppes toward Europe. As they

the Roman Empire. Suffering grievously

Although the crisis quieted down to

from hunger and dislocation, a large tribe of

some extent, the disaster marked a major break in the history of the Empire, for the

Visigoths sought and received permission from Emperor Valens to settle within the

Romans were incapable of avenging the

confines of the Empire. Unfortunately, the cruel rapacity and inexcusable stupidity of the Roman com missioners provoked an uprising, and the

defeat, nor could they move the Visigoths

out. One hundred years later, a barbarian chieftain sat on the imperial throne. Below: Attila the Hun

positions were held by descendants from barbarian families who had settled earlier in

the provinces. By the fourth century, the city-mob was more degraded than in any other period of Roman history. Bread rations along with allowances for bacon and wine relieved

them from the necessity of work. In order to

keep the populace amused, the state increased the number of holidays, accom panied by the usual games, races, and

obscene theater, from 65 days under the Republic to 135 under Marcus Aurelius and then to 175. The games exhibited the most

savage violence, pitting beasts and humans against each other in all sorts of bloody combinations. These contests stimulated a

taste for cruelty and lust that developed into

a pernicious social aberration. With all

pleasure sated, the population drifted into a state of indifference, not even caring to defend itself. Add to this a declining birth rate because of the destruction of family life

that depopulated the countryside. It is certainly not necessary to cata

logue the prevalent vices of the day in any detail. The quest for selfish immorality never ceased from the time of Christ to the

military collapse. When Saint Paul was traveling through Asia Minor, he witnessed

an appalling spirit of hedonism, which he noted in his epistles, especially Romans and

Ephesians. In the latter (Chap. 4). he com plained that the people had delivered them

selves up to impurity so as to perpetuate all kinds of uncleanness.

T. W. Allies in his monumental Formufion of Christendom observed that "in

the age of Augustus Caesar no virtue had become so rare and so little esteemed as the

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

virtue of moral purity."' But ultimately that

Saint Ambrose

Church and State give each other mutual

virtue was raised to the highest pedestal, for

The moral strength and great personal merit of the fourth and fifth-century bishops provided the Church with the indispensable

ence of faith.

at that very moment the Mother of God gave birth to the Christ-child and has ever

support and are held together by the influ

since been exalted as the Blessed Virgin.

aristocratic authority to confront not only

The young emperors, Gratian

By the end of the fourth century, con temporary writers, both pagan and patristic, show time and again that the situation had

the collapsing world but also the vicious

and Valentinian 11

backlash of stubborn, militant disbelief. All

In Ambrose's second year as bishop, the highly temperamental Emperor Valen tinian died during a fit of anger, leaving six

not changed. Saint Augustine in a frequent ly quoted passage in The City of Gotf com ments that pagan society was not the slight est bit troubled by moral degradation and then continues with a long list of vices. Their only concern, he noted, was that the man who dislikes these pleasures should be

of the great Church Fathers of the East were bishops (Saints Athanasius, John Chrysos-

tom, Basil, and Gregory Nazianzen) as were two of the four great Latin Fathers in the West, Saints Augustine and Ambrose. Gregory the Great was, of course, a Pope,

years later (378) after the death of Valens, Gratian

of lingering opposition and barbaric, politi

chose as his eastern col

cal intrigue. Saint Ambrose, the epitome of the courageous bishop, stands out like a

those rare choices that

shining beacon of light.

tumed out extremely well. After Gratian

met

Ambrose, he became suffi

ciently captivated by the bishop's strength of char

Gratian

acter and personality that he provided the material assistance of the

the appointment as governor of northern Italy with his headquarters at Milan, which

State to help eradicate Arianism and to stall the return of paganism.

was also the capital of the Westem Empire. This location turned out to be a most provi

Ambrose zealously worked to elect orthodox bishops in the neighboring sees. He

dential assignment since it afforded Ambrose the opportunity to influence three different

cil at Aquileia, condemned two Arian bish

emperors and certainly changed the direction

ops, and left their removal to the emperor.

of Roman and Church history. In his capacity of governor, he was called to the basilica one day to settle a ran

The council produced a document written by

corous dispute between the Arian heretics

that the secular arm carry out decisions reached by Church authorities while leaving

and the Nicene Catholics, The true believers

had suffered for several years under one of those clever Arian bishops and upon his death were determined to regain control. The

heretics were just as determined to prevent it. Just as the governor had quieted the crowd with his soothing words, a child's voice rang out, "Ambrose, Bishop," and the

emperor's repentance.

league. Theodosius, one of

while still in his early thirties, he accepted

of civil administration. About A.D. 370,

Saint Ambrose receives an

Westem Empire. Three

category by himself. Against this raging sea

family, the young patrician received the excellent classical and legal education for one who was destined for the highest ranks

Valentinian II, a child of four, in control of the

and Jerome, essentially a monk, was in a

Bom into an aristocratic, Christian

teen-year-old Gratian and his half-brother.

congregation, forgetting their hostility, took up the cry. Accepting this supematurally induced career change most reluctantly, Ambrose received the necessary sacraments and consecration and within the week

prevailed upon Gratian to call a special coun

Ambrose that regulated relations between Church and State with great clarity. It asked

its spiritual freedom intact.

Gratian's inexperience of youth and natural hesitancy assumed a firmness under

the guidance of the Bishop of Milan that were revealed in his anti-pagan edicts. In 382, the young prince issued an order abol ishing all official recognition and all subsi dies for the maintenance of heathen sacri fices and ceremonies.

Unfortunately the typical Roman con

vulsions broke up the great partnership. A bmtal usurper from Britain who was quite

became bishop of the most important see in

popular with his troops landed in Gaul and

ognized the chastisement of God in the bar

Europe after Rome. The energetic bishop has gained fame

barian invasions. "It is our vices which pro

for his pastoral work, for relief of the poor,

hounded to death. Salvianus of Massila, a renowned teacher and monk from Gaul,rec

voke the Lord of Heaven to let loose these

and for the justice he dispensed in both pri

rough nations," he wrote,^

vate and public quarrels. His treatises on

However, as life was slowly draining out of civic and pagan society, a source of

morality, ecclesiastical discipline, and the

began a rebellion. When Gratian hastened to the scene, he was treacherously ambushed and slain. He died at the age of 25. Upset by these events, Justina, the scheming Arian mother of the 12-year-old Valentinian, brought the boy to Ambrose.

ology have earned him the title of Doctor of

The malicious woman had been struggling

strong vitality still existed: the Catholic

the Church, the first so declared from the

with Ambrose for years, but now adverse

Church. It was the one creative force left in an

West. But the special feature of his life was the role he played as adviser and friend to three emperors, Gratian, Valentinian II, and Theodosius. This collaboration presents an image of a Christian Empire in which the

circumstances forced her to recognize his

otherwise dreary future. Moreover as the gov ernment became more corrupt and oppres sive, it was the Christian bishops who rose to the forefront and insisted upon justice,

CRUSADE

courage and integrity and place her son under his protection.

The great bishop then embarked on a dangerous mission to the violent usurper to

History

forestall an invasion of Italy. What a change in events: The Church, heretofore persecut

history occurred when Theodosius, angered by the murder of his commander in

Empire between his two sons; one imbecil-

ed by the Empire, is now called upon to pro tect it. In the protracted negotiations,

Thessalonica, had 7,000 men, women, and

two and a half months later, avoiding the

Maximus, the rebel emperor, agreed to stay

children of that city executed. Ambrose promptly excommunicated him and refused

sacked.

on his side of the Alps.

to admit him back into the Church until he

ic, the other useless. Saint Ambrose died

agony of seeing Italy invaded and Rome

had done public penance. Initially resisting,

Barbarian invasions

pagan senatorial aristocracy mounted one

the remorseful Theodosius eventually com

last attempt to secure imperial recognition

plied in a touching scene in the cathedral

After Adrianople, Theodosius had set tled the Visisgoths in Thrace as federates,

and a restoration of state subsidies from the

that brought tears to the eyes of all.

that is, as a reserve army. They were not

With Ambrose away from Milan, the

absorbed into Roman civilization, but main

boy-emperor. The most gifted pagan orator

After Theodosius' noble submission

of the day pleaded brilliantly before the

to God, he left his trusted general Arbogast

tained their own leaders, customs, and lan

court to restore the heathen privileges that

as protector of Valentinian and relumed to Constantinople. Tempted by enormous power, the pagan Arbogast turned into the classic tyrant, caused the death of the isolat ed emperor and began to establish an anti-

guage. With the great emperor now gone,

were abolished by Gratian. When the bishop was informed upon his return that the court was about to restore

the revenues that paganism needed to sur vive, he became furiously indignant and wrote two respectful but stem letters to

however, no one had the wisdom or ability

to control this highly spirited tribe. Alaric, who had been educated in a Roman military school and had fought for Theodosius,

grabbed the reins of leadership and went on

Christian empire.

The pagan aristocracy of Rome, many

a marauding spree throughout the Balkans.

Valentinian. Ambrose warned him that any

of whom still held the highest positions in

Other tribes, especially the Vandals,

emperor who assisted the pagan gods, whom he considered demons, could not expect

the land, joined the conspiracy and revived idol-worship. Once again Theodosius had to

had crossed the poorly guarded Rhine and

were pillaging Gaul in a slow migration toward Spain. With these catastro

Christ's blessing and that Christ

would

refuse

phes brewing over the Empire, the

the

Emperor's gifts because he

txleni ol Ihe tmpire

had served idols. Ambrose's

vehement protest won the day. The

HUNS

pathetic emperor shut himself up in the walled city of Ravenna where he indulged in petty intrigues and

stupidities like executing his best general on a frivolous suspicion.

young emperor con

demned the pagans and their

When the imperial government became paralyzed, Alaric invaded Italy. In 410 the city of Rome fell

ceremonies.

Other disturbing trou bles descended upon the Justina insisted that Ambrose

prey to Visigoth brutality. For three days the barbarians plundered,

relinquish one church in

slaughtered, and did incalculable

valiant bishop. The vexatious

Milan to the court for Arian

worship. Ambrose, risking imprisonment and his life,

damage. ^dile rrtine an

Saint Jerome lamented from

Bethlehem,"My voice fails, choked

VAN0AI5

with sobbing.... The city which has

adamantly refused. A protract ed struggle that included riots

taken the whole world is now her

and threat of bloody civil dis

self captured.... When Rome falls,

turbances ensued. The climax

was reached when imperial

The barbarian invasions of Europe

the world falls.""" Saint Augustine saw it differently: In the City of

soldiers surrounded the cathe

God he explained that all the

dral for several weeks, impris oning the bishop and a large number of the faithful. To relieve the tension during the

actions fulfilled the will of God and

cross the Julian Alps to restore order.

we must extract from them the necessity of

Arbogast and his puppet emperor were

following His law which had been sorely neglected. â&#x2013;

siege, the innovative bishop introduced the

waiting for him as he descended the moun

practice of antiphonal chanting of hymns,

tain passes in file. Before Theodosius could

which he wrote for the occasion, and

deploy his troops along a broad front, the

psalms. In the end the patient courage of Ambrose prevailed; to prevent bloodshed Justina capitulated.

enemy attacked and slaughtered large num

Theodosius the Great

When the usurper Maximus, not con tent with half the Western Empire, invaded

Italy to have it all, Theodosius marched against him and had the troublesome rene gade killed. He then moved on to Milan to

begin his remarkable friendship with Saint Ambrose.

One of the most famous incidents in

bers of Christians. At nightfall, Theodosius

pulled his troops back and spent the night in prayer. At dawn he attacked, calling all the while on God for help. Human effort did not decide the issue that day. A violent storm roared out of the mountains. As the fury of the wind knocked the weapons from their

hands, the pagan army tumed in terror and fied. For sixteen months Theodosius ruled

as the last emperor of the united Roman

NOTES

1. 4th ed.,(London: 1904), vol. I, p. 189. 2. Book, n. Chap. XX.

3. Quoted in Hartmann Grisar, History of Rome and the Popes in the Middle Ages, (London, 1911), p. 71. 4. Jeremiah 0'Sullivan and John F.

Bums,Medieval Europe,(New York 1943), p. 103.

world. Before his death he divided the

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

'All

"The soul needs silence to hear the

gentle whispers of Heaven."

The feeling that came over me when I made a pilgrimage to Subiaco this fall is eloquently expressed in those words of Saint Mary Magdalen dei Pazzi, Subiaco, a

To this day, the rose bushes upon whose thorns the saint martyred his flesh to put temptation to flight seem to give forth the subtle aroma of chastity and purity. A French writer and polemicist of the 1800's,

the Count de Montalembert, skillfully

small medieval town in central Italy, owes its entrance into history to the shining figure

describes the extent of Saint Benedict's

interior struggle: "What human powers never achieved, what they were never able nor ever tried to achieve, and what they will never manage to bring about is the disci

pline of the soul. That is, to transform the

soul by means of chastity, obedience, sacri

fice, and humility. The reinvigoration of

of Saint Benedict of Nursia, the patriarch of

these virtues within man, who had been cor

Western monasticism. In this blessed locale,

rupted by sin, made prodigies of evangelical

Benedict purified his soul in the crucible of

perfection a daily occurrence within the

prayer and penance. Out of that crucible came the multi-faceted Benedictine Order,

Church for centuries. This is what the

from which more than three thousand can

monks desired, and it is precisely what they did"[Jhe Monks of the West).

onized saints have ascended to the altars of the celestial court.

tary life of a monk, certainly did not imag

Bom in 480 of an illustrious family of

Benedict, in deciding to seek the soli ine that Providence would make him the

Nursia, Benedict resolved while still young

starting point of a colossal work of civiliza

to flee the moral decadence that had under

tion and evangelization. Despite his seclu sion, however, word of his sanctity spread throughout the region in a short time and drew multitudes from every rank to Subiaco. In the span of a single generation, his ideal of Christian evangelical perfection

mined the society of his day. A still palpable blessing permeates the very rocks in the solitude of that rugged, privileged place where fifteen centuries ago the young her A fresco at Subiaco depicting Saint Benedict mit waged battle against the malignant one. with Saint Maurus and an unidentified monk

CRUSADE

Commentary

A statue of Saint Benedict at Subiaco

was firmly implanted in the heart

the human spirit, and the violence of events.

of a society that until then had

been decomposing.

In short, it needs institutions that improve the intellect and that purify and ennoble the

It was thus that Western monasticism arose. Monasticism

heart, thus providing society with a move ment of resistance and reaction against the

itself, bom in the Near East in the resented the most sublime and

degeneration that leads to ruin and death. In large measure, it was the monasteries and convents that provided society with the

original creation in the history of the Church's spirituality. With

incomparable bishops who were the bul warks of Christianity in times of peril. From

middle of the fourth century, rep

Saint Benedict giving it renewed impetus in the West, this institu

less important. Science and literature vivid

within their sacred walls came the Basils, the Gregorys, the Bonifaces, the Martins, and so

tion, treading the heroic path of

ly record the impulse received from within

many other giants of the Faith who evange

chastity, poverty, and obedience,

the silent and recollected cloisters of the

lized the nations, established schools, found

would survive the vicissitudes of the centuries, immovable as a

monasteries. More than once, the light and

ed hospitals, cultivated the wild places, built

life that abode therein overflowed the walls

bridges, caused the beasts of prey to with

to illuminate and nurture a world then lan

draw, and converted the barbarians.

guishing in chaos. The monks not only exercised the primordial task of sanctifying

first time in history was able to assimilate

pyramid in a desert storm. After the long years in the cat acombs, the Church found it indis

pensable to maintain the spirit of heroism that for three centuries had nourished the souls of

Christians with the powerful exam

their own souls, but they powerfully influ enced the course of events throughout the Church's history. How fortunate for mankind that as bar

Thanks to the monks, Europe for the and convert a terrible and otherwise uncon

querable enemy. In fact, such was the reli gious power operating within the West that

all the invading peoples either found them

ple of the martyrs. Now that the

barism and corruption so rapidly extended

Roman persecutions had ceased

their conquests, monastic walls sprang up

and the number of martyrs had

assuming the habits, ideas, and customs of the conquered peoples under ecclesiastical guidance.

fruit, no longer now by physical blood, but

as vaults that preserved science and virtue, the precious legacy of the past, the ines timable writings and works of antiquity! Society in a state of dissolution requires more than words, projects, and

with that of the soul. Donning the mantle of

laws. It needs solid institutions that resist

total renunciation of self for the love of

the impetus of the passions, the caprices of

defeat of Attila, miraculously stopped at the gates of Rome by Pope Saint Leo I, the con

diminished, divine grace worked through other channels to ensure that the seeds sown

by their sacrifice would continue bearing

selves obliged to retreat — like the Huns — or converted to the Catholic religion,

History expressively demonstrates the fecundity of the missionary efforts: the

Christ, these new "martyrs of the spirit" car

version of the Franks, the victories of

ried the sacred torch of Christian heroism

Charlemagne over the Saxons and other

even further. The monks assumed the sub

peoples beyond the Rhine, the successive

lime task of offering themselves in oblation for the graces necessary for the conversion

conversion of the idolatrous nations of the

of sinners and the regeneration of the world. The Flemish writer Joris Karl Huysmans. in

victory of Catholic Spain over the Moors after eight centuries of struggle. Such was

a joyous and rich expression, de.scribed

the civilizing seed of the Church, planted in

these heroic vocations as "lightning bolts of

medieval Europe and watered with the per spiration. tears, sufferings, and prayers of

God"(£n RfHite).

North, the triumph over the Vikings, and the

While monasticism represents an essential element in the supernatural life of

countless monks and nuns, known and

the Church, its role in the historical plan for

cloisters and hearing "the gentle whispers

temporal Christian civilization has been no

of Heaven." ■

unknown, dwelling in the solitude of the

Do you wear or carry the powerful medal of Saint Benedict? See page 41. NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1998

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as retold by Pauline Sanders

This is the true story of a Marine wounded in

Korea in 1950. Writing to his mother, he told her of a fascinating encounter he experienced in the war. Father Walter Muldy, a navy chaplain who spoke to the young Marine and his moth er as well as to the outfit

commander, always affirmed the veracity of this narrative. We heard it from someone

who read the original letter and retell the story here in all

its details and in die first per son to better convey some of

the impact it must have had when first told by the son to his mother.

Dear Mom, I am writing to you from a hospital

bed. Don't worry, Mom, I am okay. I was wounded, but the doctor says that I will be up in no time. But that's not what I have to tell you, Mom. Something happened to me that I

Korea, I sometimes said it a couple of times a day while marching or resting. Well, one day, we were told to move forward to scout for Commies. It was a

really cold day. As I was walking along, I perceived another fellow walking beside me, and I looked to see who it was. He was a big fellow, a Marine about

don't dare tell anyone else for fear of their disbelief. But I have to tell you, the one

didn't know him, and I thought 1 knew

person I can confide in, though even you

everyone in my unit. I was glad to have the

may fi nd it hard to believe. You remember the prayer to Saint

company and broke the silence between us; "Chilly today, isn't it?" Then I chuck led because suddenly it seemed absurd to talk about the weather when we were

Michael that you taught me to pray when I was little: "Michael, Michael of the morn

ing,.. ," Before I left home for Korea, you urged me to remember this prayer before

any confrontation with the enemy. But you really didn't have to remind me. Mom. I have always prayed it, and when I got to

6'4" and built proportionally. Funny, but I

advancing to meet the enemy. He chuckled too, softly.

"I thought I knew everyone in my out fit," I continued," but I have never seen you before."

Family Series

"No," he agreed,"I have just joined. The name is Michael."

swooned and I remember thinking, "I must be dying..." Someone

"Really?! That's mine, too." "I know," the Marine said, "Michael, Michael of the morn

gently on the snow. Through the daze, I opened my eyes, and the sun

was laying me down, strong arms were holding me and laying me

I had taught it to many of the other guys, so I supposed that the

seemed to blaze in my eyes. Michael was standing still, and there was a terrible splendor in his face. Suddenly, he seemed to grow, like the sun, the splendor increasing intensely around him like the wings

newcomer must have picked it up from someone else. As a matter

of an angel. As I slipped into unconsciousness, I saw that Michael

of fact, it had gotten around to the extent that some of the fellows were calling me "Saint Michael."

held a sword in his hand, and it flashed like a million lights. Later on, when I woke up, the rest of the guys came to see me with the sergeant.

ing...."

Mom,I was really surprised that he knew about my prayer, but

Then, out of the blue. Michael said,"There's going to be trou

"How did you do it, son?" he asked me. "Where's Michael?" I asked in reply. "Michael who?" The sergeant seemed puzzled.

ble ahead."

I wondered how he could know that. I was breathing hard from the march, and my breath hit the cold air like dense clouds

"Michael, the big Marine walking with me,right up to the last

of fog. Michael seemed to be in top shape becau,se I couldn't see his breath at all. Just then, it started to snow heavily, and soon it was so dense I could no longer hear or see the rest of my outfit. I oot a little scared and yelled, "Michael!" Then I felt his strong

hand on my shoulder and heard his voice in my ear, "It's going to clear up soon." It did clear up, suddenly. And then,just a short distance ahead of us, like so many dreadful realities, were seven Commies,

moment. I saw him there as I fell."

"Son," the sergeant said gravely, "you're the only Michael in

my unit. I hand-picked all you fellows, and there's only one Michael. You. And .son, you weren't walking with anyone. I was watching you because you were too far off from us, and I was wor

ried. Now tell me, son," he repeated,"how did you do it?"

looking rather comical in their funny hats. But there wa.s nothing funny about them now; their guns were steady and pointed .straight in our direction.

It was the second time he had asked me that, and I found it

irritating.

"Down, Michael!!" I yelled as I dove for cover. Even as I was hitting the ground, I looked up and saw

Michael still standing, as if paralyzed by fear, or so I thought at the time. Bullets were spurting all over the

place, and Mom, there was no way those Commies could have missed at that short distance. 1 jumped up to pull him down, and then I was hit. The pain was like a hot fire in my chest, and as I fell, my head

"How did I do what?"

"How did you kill those seven Commies? There wasn't a single bullet fired from your rifle." "What?"

"Come on, son. They were strewn all around

you, each one killed by a swordstroke." And that. Mom, is the end of my story. It may

have been the pain, or the blazing sun. or the chill ing cold. I don't know. Mom, but there is one thing I am sure about. It happened. â&#x2013;

The Medal or Cross of Saint Benedict Origin

As explained on pages 39 and 38, Saint Benedict was the founder of Western Monaslicism and one of the great lights of Christian Civilization. The Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ was the chief object of

devotion of this great patriarch, With it he performed many a miracle and put many an evil spirit to flight. It was this devotion to the Cross, the sign of our redemption, that gave rise to the Medal of Saint Benedict. Use

The Medal of Saint Benedict is a powerful devotional item. It is known to be particularly efficacious

against the attacks of the devil specially in temptation and also very powerful against poi sons.

It may be carried in any way about one's person or hung above doorways and on walls of dwellings. It is often placed in the foundations of houses. It may dipped into water or medicine to be given to the sick or applied

Shown in actual size, above is the

face of the Medal of Saint Benedict and, on the left, its versus.

to wounds.

No particular prayer is attached to it because the devout wearing of

The medal is cast in solid bronze and

the medal itself is a silent prayer. However, if a special favor or grace is

worked with beautiful detail. It

sought through the use of the medal, it is advisable to make a novena or

comes packaged with an explanation

triduum making each day the Way of the Cross or reciting five Our Fathers and Hail Marys in honor of the five wounds of Our Lord and say

of all its symbolism and a translation

ing some prayers in honor of Saint Benedict. In time of temptation, it is advisable to hold the medal in one's hand, kiss it reverently, and make use of the ejaculatory prayer on the medal.

of the inscriptions and prayers. Each medal is $14.00

To order, call: 717-450-6500 or 888-317-5571

egend has it that when the shepherds were called to adore the

/newly born Infant Jesus, they wished to take Him special gifts, r

"They decided to harvest the choicest fruits and flowers from the

trees in and around their pastures. No sooner had they left than the trees broke out in whispered conversation. Oh, how happy they were to have

something to offer their newborn Creator. One offered its plumpest dates, a second its juiciest cherries, another its largest almonds, and yet another its sweetest oranges. Thus they chatted cheerily on and on.

The fir tree, however,stood by in silence. Neither its sharp needles nor its prickly cones seemed presentable to such an Infant. So, it had been left alone.

The fir tree humbly acknowledged its nothingness. Feeling too ill at ease to Join the conversation, it instead directed a silent prayer to Heaven: "My newborn God, what can I offer Thee? Nothing much more than my poor and useless being. This I happily offer to Thee in great thanks for having created me in Thy goodness and wisdom."

God heard this prayer and was greatly pleased by the humility of the fir tree. Wishing to reward it in some way. He commanded a multitude of tiny stars to descend from the heavens to rest on the

branches of the modest fir. Immediately there came a shower of

3^'^ j the brightest stars adorning the firmament: stars of gold, silver, ,, red, and blue.

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a second group of shepherds passed by, selecting

their gifts, as had the others,from among the fruits and flowers of the neighboring trees. But on beholding the twin-

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evergreen, they took the whole tree, resplendent

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stars and all, for such marvelous beauty had never

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been seen before!

That,legend tells us, is how the fir tree came to pay homage in the

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stable at Bethlehem, being

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Intant Jesus,Our Lady,

and Saint Joseph!

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