Author: Catholic Candle

Lesson #10 The Principle and Foundation – Part I

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                    Mary’s School of Sanctity                   

Having covered the Rules for the Discernment of Spirits, it is now time to examine and study the foundation which St. Ignatius gives as the preparation to do his actual Spiritual Exercises.

Before beginning to give the actual exercises, St. Ignatius gives an introductory meditation in which he expounds to the exercitant the true purpose of life.  Because St. Ignatius knew that in order for the purpose of life to be deeply rooted into the soul, a person must generously ponder the very reason why man was created.  This pondering naturally includes understanding more about the Creator.  Hence, St. Ignatius intends that this particular meditation has such an impact on the soul that it is never forgotten.  Consequently, this meditation on the purpose of man’s existence is meant to give the exercitant a firm foundation that he can use for the remainder of his life.  Indeed, this meditation sets the tone for all of his actions.

St. Ignatius calls this meditation the Principle and Foundation.  Every retreat or setting out to do all of the Spiritual Exercises begins with this meditation.  It is such a fundamental and rich meditation that this one lends itself to be done frequently even outside of a retreat per se.  It could be done as a meditation even as often as once per week as a means to keep one working out his salvation with the intense, necessary seriousness we need in this work.

In other words, this meditation on the Principle and Foundation is a powerful way to humble the soul and firmly cement the virtue of humility in the soul.  This is mainly true because this meditation helps a person grasp exactly where he fits in God’s plan of creation.  He sees how crucial it is to fulfill God’s plan for man’s existence and how our entire eternity is determined by how well we love and obey   God’s plan for us.

As the reader may recall, Lesson #2 in Mary’s School of Sanctity[1] explains how to do a meditation.  So here we give the “meat”, as it were, of the meditation which one can use for this introduction meditation of St. Ignatius of Loyola.

First, we give the text of St. Ignatius and then expound on the various points one can use for his considerations in his actual meditation.  St. Ignatius says:

Man is created to praise, reverence, and serve God Our Lord, and by this means to save his soul.  All other things on the face of the earth are created for man to help him fulfill the end for which he is created.  From this it follows that man is to use these things to the extent that they will help him to attain his end.  Likewise, he must rid himself of them insofar as they prevent him from attaining it.

Therefore, we must make ourselves indifferent to all created things, insofar as it is left to the choice of our free will and is not forbidden.  Acting accordingly, for our part, we should not prefer health to sickness, riches to poverty, honor to dishonor, a long life to a short one, and so in all things we should desire and choose only those things which will best help us attain the end for which we are created.

There are actually two parts here which one must consider.  The first part regards man’s service to God, and the second part is man’s proper use of creatures when serving God.  Therefore, we will divide this beginning meditation into two parts, only considering the first part now.  In our next lesson, we will take the second part.

Man’s Service of God – the reason God created man

God made us to praise, revere, and to serve Him.  We often think of our catechism answer to the question of why God made us, “God made me to know, love, and serve Him in this life so I can be happy with Him in the next.”  Although this is true, it often, unfortunately, makes us focus too much on ourselves.  St. Ignatius would have us direct our main focus on the service of God.  Ad majorem Dei gloriam was St. Ignatius’s motto, which means “all for the greater glory of God.”

St. Ignatius tells us that it is God Who must come first in our lives.  We owe Him praise, homage, and our service.  We must give Him all our praise.  We owe and ought to give Him all of our homage.  We owe Him our complete service.

In this meditation St. Ignatius wants us to think deeply of all the aspects of what it means to say that “Man is created”.  There are many consequences of God creating man.   Let us try to penetrate the most obvious ones.

1) “Whence am I?  I am from God.”[2]

God made man out of nothing.  God made man in His Image and likeness.[3] This means that God made man rational. Man can think and reason things out.  Indeed, man has the obligation to use his reason.  This use of reason is what makes a man’s action moral.[4]

I owe to the Almighty all that I am and possess: my body and soul, my intellect and will, my five senses, my talents and my powers, my health and my life…What gratitude do I not owe to Him?  “What shall I return to the Lord for all the things that He hath rendered to me?” Ps. 115:12[5]

Indeed, we should ponder each and every benefit that God has given to us as creatures and be very grateful.  Hence, “I can attribute nothing to myself, to my own merits; not the least thing did I give to myself.  I must, therefore, be humble and not presumptuous.”[6]

Likewise, I must think about the fact that:

I am the property of God, [and] that I belong entirely to Him.  He that makes a thing has also a claim to it.  As I am the property of God, I must keep myself holy!  I must not desecrate the property of God.  I must keep myself holy, my will, my heart, my imagination, my eyes, my ears, my tongue.  Hence the warning of St. Paul: “Or know you not that your members are the temple of the Holy Ghost, Who is in you, Whom you have from God, and you are not your own?   Glorify and bear God in your body.” [I Cor. 6:19-20][7]

Another point to ponder about being owned by God is the fact that God can do what He wills with His own property, namely, me.  He has given me everything to be used for His service and He can take everything away if He wishes.  “He can exalt me and lower me.  I must be entirely submissive to His holy will, and be disposed as Job was.”[8]

Knowing that we are the work of God’s Hands we must marvel at the honor that He bestows on us as being His highest material creatures. 

What an honor, what a joy to be able to glory in having such an originator, such a Creator!  With what confidence in God’s help and assistance ought I not to be filled!  The Almighty will not forsake the work of His Hands: “For thou lovest all things that are, and hatest none of the things which thou hast made: for thou didst not appoint or make anything, hating it …  But thou sparest all, because they are all thine, O Lord, Who lovest souls.” [Wisdom 11:25, 27].[9]

2) “Why am I here? I am for God.”[10]

“For what end did God create me?”[11]  “We were not created for this world; He created everything else in this world for us, [12] but us He created for Himself, to praise Him, to honor Him, and to serve Him.”[13]  Then it is clear that God determined what we must do and what our role in His Creation exactly is, namely:

1.    “To honor God in His infinite majesty, in His house, in His Church, in the representatives whom He has placed over us.

 

2.    “To praise God, not only with our tongue, but with our heart also; that His sharp rebuke may not strike us: ‘This people honoreth Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.’ [Matt. 15:8]. We must praise God by our good works, by our good example; for the glory of parents are their virtuous children: ‘Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father Who is in heaven.’ [Matt. 5:16].

 

3.    “But our principal duty to God is to serve Him, for He is Our Lord and we are His servants.  Now what does it mean to serve?  It means to do the will of the superior, to submit oneself to him.  But how can we know the will of God in order to serve Him?

 

a.    “From His commandments.

 

b.    “From His holy Church.

 

c.     “From our conscience, through which He speaks to us, to warn us against evil and urge us on to do good.

 

d.    “From our parents and superiors, who take His place in our regard.

 

e.    “From the vocation which He has given us; for quite often very definite duties come along with it.

 

f.     “From evils permitted by God, that strike us even against our will.  In spite of all precautions, you get sick –– the permission of God.  It is His holy will that you accept this sickness patiently from His Hands.  You are unjustly slighted, accused and calumniated –– the providence of God.  It is His will that you do not complain and murmur, but humble yourself under the hand of God. ‘Be humbled therefore under the mighty hand of God.’ [I Peter, 5:6].  The time for you to die arrives: submit yourself; it is the will of God. ‘Whether we live we live to the Lord, or whether we die, we die to the Lord.  Therefore, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s’ [Romans, 14:8]”[14]

3) “Whither am I going?  We must go back to God.[15]

What will happen if we do what we were created to do?  We shall go back to God for He Himself is our reward.  Yet if we do not do what we were created to do, we shall receive the eternal perdition that we deserve. The following points are crucial to penetrate in this aspect of the meditation:

a.    “How important then our destiny is: this business of which we, here upon earth, have charge and care, –– the glorification, the praise, and the service of God.  On it depends our whole eternity of bliss or misery.

 

b.    “It is our only business, because for it alone we are here on earth.

 

c.     “Precisely because this business is so important and our only one, all other business to which we must attend must be made subordinate to this, so that it [the other business] does not interfere, but supports and promotes our destiny. [The purpose of our existence in the first place]. We must ask ourselves, with St. Stanislaus: ‘What has this to do with eternity?’  Is this or that business conducive to my salvation?

 

d.    “This is a personal business.  I can let friends and servants take care of all other business, but of this I must take care myself.

 

e.    “It is a constant and everyday business, because I am always the servant of God, and He is always my Lord.

 

f.     “Furthermore, I have this business on hand but once, as a concern of my present life.  Should I neglect it, I can never repair it, not even in eternity.”[16]

All of these points are extremely serious and help one to have a proper perspective of life and look on all of life decisions as important in direct reference to pleasing God and eternal salvation.  Each point should be considered and when the exercitant is struck by any of the points and finds himself saying something to God, he should feel free to express what is in his heart at that moment.  Whether these be words of awestruck wonder and amazement or words of contrition for past ingratitude, or words of overwhelming love and thanksgiving, the exercitant should not hold back his heart from speaking to His Creator.  This is the colloquy that St. Ignatius speaks of.  This colloquy is a heart-to-heart talk with God and the fruit of the careful considering of the points.  Namely, we want these acts of the will to arise in us so that we can express them to God.

Some further points in concerning our service of God should be taken.  These points foster a healthy self-examination of how one has viewed God and God’s intended purpose of one’s life.  These points are also very striking and tend to make the exercitant be shaken with the awesome responsibilities that we creatures have in owing God praise, honor, and service.

1.    “Which is the pivot of my life, upon which everything turns, I or God?

 

2.    “Which is my most important business here on earth:  my honor, my praise, my service, the gratification of my passions; or the honor, praise, and service of God?

 

3.    “Is my life a constant service of God, a continuous hymn of praise, a continuous ‘Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost’?

“In the light of this meditation we now understand our destiny [God’s plan for us].  Let us repent of our many deviations from our course, and give back to our life its right direction to God. ‘Come let us adore and fall down and weep before the Lord that made us.  For He is the Lord Our God and we are the people of this pasture, and the sheep of His hand.’ Ps. 94; 6-7.”[17]

This is certainly a very striking examination of one’s priorities in life.  How full of shame we find ourselves because God is not high enough in our estimation!  The distractions of life are continually tugging us away from this crucial center of our existence.  Even if we think we are trying very hard to have a God-centered life, when doing this meditation, we always find ourselves lacking.

One should ponder this topic as much as possible in the time period of the meditation, trying to draw fruits and humbling himself by seeing how little he is within the plan of God and what he owes to God.  Two strong conclusions that one should take away with from this meditation are that the purpose of life is our service to God and that our goal in life should be to serve God to our maximum capacity.  After the meditation, it is good to jot down some notes of the insights that especially struck one so he can keep these inspirations in mind and truly appreciate them.  Also, it is a good idea to say some prayers in thanksgiving after the meditation to thank the Holy Ghost for His assistance in the meditation.  And it is important to examine the meditation to see if one was generous in his efforts to cooperate with the Holy Ghost in giving glory to God and drawing fruits from the meditation.

In our next lesson we will consider the second half of St. Ignatius’s Principle and Foundation and how we can do a meditation on our proper use of creatures in our service of God.


[2]               Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 2.

 

[3]           Genesis,1:2

[4]           St. Thomas Summa I-II Q.18 Art. 8 Whether any action is indifferent in Its Species? Respondeo; Art. 9, Whether an Individual Action Can Be Indifferent?

 

[5]           Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 2.

 

[6]           Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 3.

 

[7]           Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 3 [bracketed word added for clarity]

[8]           Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 3.

 

[9]           Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 4.

 

[10]         Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 2.

 

[11]         Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 4.

 

[12]         While God did make other creatures to help man to attain his end, God did of course make all creatures to glorify Him, according to their capacity.

 

[13]         Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 5.

[14]         Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition, 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London. Page 5 – 6,

(bi-level list taken from the original).

 

[15]         Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck copyright 1918.; third edition 1926, St. Louis, MO and London, page 2.

[16]         Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London. Page 7 – 8

(lettered list taken from the original).

[17]         Considerations from Sketches for the Exercises of An Eight Days’ Retreat by Hugo Hurter, SJ., Ph.D., D.D., Professor Emeritus of Theology in the Catholic University of Innsbruck, copyright 1918, third edition 1926, St. Louis, MO, and London, page 8, (Numbered list taken from the original).

Take hold of the Shield of Faith to Drive Away All Cowardice!

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We are being continually attacked by the devil and by the Marxists.[1]   For this reason, many Catholics are scared.

 

Further, we know that the end never justifies the means.[2]  A perfect, current example of the application of this principle is in the context of the leftists manifesting their alarm at the prospect of women (at least in some places in the U.S.) being unable to murder their unborn babies (so-called “reproductive rights”), if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.  It is obvious that a Catholic could never make it appear that he agrees with those who bemoan the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

As Our Lord told us:

Every one that shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven.  But he that shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.  Do not think that I came to send peace upon earth:  I came not to send peace, but the sword.

St. Matthew’s Gospel, 10:32-34.

But many Catholics are scared to stand up for the truth in the face of the opposition that they know they will encounter.  However, as always, and in everything, our Catholic Faith has the answer – and also is our comfort. 

After the Last Supper, Our Lord told His apostles that He would soon be killed and that they were about to abandon Him.  In their own weakness, they were afraid and dismayed at the opposition they would encounter.  He told them, “Let not your heart be troubled”.  St. John’s Gospel, 14:1. 

In this same tender discourse, Our Lord gave them the solution to their fear, viz., the Catholic Faith.  His very next words were: “You believe in God, believe also in Me.”  St. John’s Gospel, 14:1.  Our Lord assured his apostles (and He assures us): “have confidence, I have overcome the world.”[3] 

Here is how St. Cyril of Alexandria, Doctor of the Church, teaches this truth using military terms in order to call to mind that we are soldiers of Christ in the Church Militant:

Faith, therefore, is a weapon whose blade is stout and broad, that drives away all cowardice that might spring from expectation of coming suffering, and that renders the darts of evil-doers utterly void of effect and utterly profitless of success in their temptations.[4]

Our Lord responds in the same way to us as He did to His apostles, when we are afraid or dismayed at how His enemies also oppose us.  We are certain that when we live the way that we should (viz., knowing, loving, and serving God), then nothing can truly hurt us and there is nothing to fear.  Even our crosses are for our good!  As St. Paul exclaimed: since “God be for us, who is against us?”[5]  What a source of confidence and peace this is!

Being on Christ’s side, we are on the side that has already won the war against the powers of darkness.[6]  We can’t lose and we know that everything will go in our favor.  We know by Faith that “all things work together for the Good for those who love God.”  Romans, 8:28.

Thus, we should be of good heart!  This truth is what St. Paul calls the “shield of Faith”[7].  In other words, the Catholic Faith shields us from the fears of our times.  This is the consolation of the Catholic Faith, i.e., as St. Paul put it, “the comfort of the Scriptures”: 

For what things soever were written, were written for our learning: that through patience and the comfort of the Scriptures, we might have hope.

Romans, 15:4.

Thus, to the extent we are scared, it is because we have weak Faith.  St. Cyril tells us how to remedy our fears, viz., that the increase of our Faith “drives away all cowardice”.  We should continually strive to increase our Faith as a remedy for this fear we have. 

Just as the virtue of patience is strengthened and increased by repeated actions of patience, so also, the virtue of Faith is strengthened and increased by repeated actions of Faith.  Of course, praying for greater Faith is important, but we must also perform actions of this virtue. 

So, for example, it is an action of the Catholic Faith that we refuse the mortally sinful Covid “vaccine”.[8]  Refusing the COVID “vaccine” – this action of Faith – is required under pain of grave sin.  However, there are many other opportunities to increase our Faith by actions of this virtue – such as making a Sign of the Cross in public and praying our meal prayer without fear, when we are about to eat with co-workers.

Let us always strive to strengthen our Faith through frequent actions of this virtue!  As our Faith gets stronger, it “drives away all cowardice”, as St. Cyril assures us.  That stronger Faith pleases God and He richly rewards it.

Therefore, let us go onward to the battle, with stout hearts on fire for God, knowing that “if Christ be for us, who can be against us”!

We are soldiers fighting together, side-by-side, in the “trenches” of the Church Militant.  Let us not only fight fearlessly for Christ the King, but also let us give great moral support and encouragement to our fellow soldiers who are timid, wavering, and fearful!



[3]           St. John’s Gospel, 16:33.
 

[4]           Quoted from St. Cyril of Alexandria’s commentary on St. John’s Gospel, 14:1 (emphasis added).


[5]           Romans, 8:31.

 

[6]           Read this further source of comfort and hope in these times of great apostasy: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/hope-during-the-current-great-apostasy.html

[7]           “In all things taking the shield of faith, wherewith you may be able to extinguish all the fiery darts of the most wicked one.”  Ephesians, 6:16.

Let us Detach Ourselves from the World and Focus on our Eternal Goal

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Let us Detach Ourselves from the World and Focus on our Eternal Goal

One key element of the work of salvation is to rid ourselves of a false notion of self-importance and instead to foster a true self-forgetfulness and a focus on the things of God.  Here is a poetic way in which Professor Smith observed the importance of this truth in a speech at the University of Chicago, in 1902:

We proud men pompously compete for nameless graves while some starveling of fate forgets his way into Immortality.

Posted on by Catholic Candle

Let us Detach Ourselves from the World and Focus on our Eternal Goal

One key element of the work of salvation is to rid ourselves of a false notion of self-importance and instead to foster a true self-forgetfulness and a focus on the things of God.  Here is a poetic way in which Professor Smith observed the importance of this truth in a speech at the University of Chicago, in 1902:

We proud men pompously compete for nameless graves while some starveling of fate forgets his way into Immortality.

The Feminist Program is the same as that of Satan and Marx – Part III

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Catholic Candle note:

In February 2022, Catholic Candle began a multi-part examination of how the feminists follow the same program as Satan and Marx.  This article is entitled The Feminist Program is the same as that of Satan and Marx. 

Part 1 can be found here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/02/24/the-feminist-program-is-the-same-as-that-of-satan-and-marx/. 

Part 2 can be found here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/03/27/the-feminist-program-is-the-same-as-that-of-satan-and-marx-part-ii/   This second part begins at the discussion of the third point of Marx’s implementation of Satan’s eight-point program.  This third point is entitled: “Like Satan, Marx fundamentally sought to divide people and set one group in opposition to another.”

As shown in the first two parts of this article, Satan’s and Marx’s program:

1.    Is anti-God (and anti-worship of God);

2.    Promotes disobedience and opposition to the authority ordained by God;

3.    Seeks to divide people;

 

4.    Promotes discontent, envy, and discord;

 

5.    Promotes hatred;

 

6.    Is result-oriented and self-interested; Satan neither acts according to immutable principles nor encourages his followers to do so;

 

7.    Is full of lies; and

 

8.    Is against Nature and is anti-Natural Law.

Now we begin examining how the modern feminist movement follows the same eight-point program promoted by Satan and Marx.


Part 3:

The Feminist Program is the same as that of Satan and Marx

(Continuing where we left off last month)

We now begin to study feminism and (more recent) feminist leaders to see how they follow this same satanic and Marxist program.  It makes sense that feminism follows this same program because feminism is an important tool of Satan and Marx. 

Rosemary Ruether, a modern feminist leader, showed this Marxist connection in 1977, during her keynote address to Minnesota’s International Women’s Year meeting, when she identified feminist theology as a species of [Marxist] liberation theology.[1]

Mrs. Donna Steichen, the author of Ungodly Rage, is a Catholic journalist who attended many “women’s empowerment” conferences in many locations, investigating the feminist movement.  Here is part of her biography from a May 31, 2011, interview:

In the 1970s, Steichen began working as a Catholic journalist, writing for her diocesan newspaper.  She was also active in the pro-life movement, the Catholic League and religious education.

Long an avid reader of Catholic publications, in the 1980s Steichen became increasingly concerned about the effect of feminism on American Catholicism.[2]

Mrs. Steichen studied religious feminism because, as she explained, “it is the ultimate manifestation” of feminism.[3]  She explained further how she came to write her book, Ungodly Rage:

This book is a report on the subterranean phenomena of religious feminism as observed over more than a dozen years. …[4]

1.   Like Satan and Marx, Modern Feminists and Feminist Principles are Anti-God.

Mrs. Steichen explains feminism’s anti-God agenda:

Feminism is about overthrowing the structure of the family and society.  It rose out of the writings of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels [authors of The Communist Manifesto].  They saw that the family was at odds with their vision of society.  Owning the factories is not enough; you can’t change society unless you get rid of the family.  When you attack the family, you attack society itself, including its institutions, authority, and traditions, as well as the Ten Commandments and God.

Religious feminists, and even secular feminists, want to overthrow God.  The religious feminists have set about replacing the Trinitarian God with a mishmash of New Age spirituality[5], paganism, psychology, and anything that is not structured, that is not traditional, that is not Christianity.[6]

Like Satan and Marx, feminism and its leaders are anti-God.  This is because God is a Father and the model of all fathers.  St. Paul emphasizes this fact here:

For this cause, I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom all paternity in heaven and earth is named.

Ephesians, 3:14-15.

Feminism and feminists are anti-God because they are anti-patriarchy, which is the order that God created.

Mrs. Steichen explains that “the ultimate feminist objective is the obliteration of Christianity.”[7]  She explains that even the leaders of the secular feminist movement know that feminism is, at bottom, a revolution against traditional religion.  Mrs. Steichen quotes secular feminist leader, Gloria Steinem, as saying, “Women-Church [which is a feminist movement] is the women’s movement.”[8]

Secular feminist leader, Betty Friedan, bluntly stated: “the Church is the enemy”.[9]

But feminist leader, Carol P. Christ, in her essay “Why Women Need the Goddess,” argued that women need a substitute for the traditional religion that they seek to overthrow.  Here are her words:

Symbol systems cannot simply be rejected; they must be replaced.  Where there is not any replacement, the mind will revert to familiar structures at times of crisis, bafflement or defeat.  …  A question immediately arises, Is the Goddess simply female power writ large, and if so, why bother with the symbol of Goddess at all?  Or does the symbol refer to a Goddess “out there” who is not reducible to a human potential?[10]

According to Starhawk, who is a feminist leader and a practicing witch:

The symbolism of the Goddess is not a parallel structure to the symbolism of God the Father.  The Goddess does not rule the world; She is the world ….  The importance of the Goddess symbol for women cannot be over-stressed. The image of the Goddess inspires women to see ourselves as divine, our bodies as sacred, the changing phases of our lives as holy, our aggression as healthy, and our anger as purifying.  Through the Goddess, we can discover our strength, enlighten our minds, own our bodies, and celebrate our emotions.[11]

Religious feminist leader, Mary Daly, a former Catholic nun, wrote many influential feminist books, in which she mocked the Blessed Trinity, Our Lord, Holy Communion, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and was anti-God in many other ways.  Here is one way she mocked the Most Blessed Trinity:

I see myself as a pirate, plundering and smuggling back to women that which has been stolen from us.  But it hasn’t simply been stolen; it’s been stolen and reversed.  For example, the christian [sic] trinity [sic] is the triple goddess reversed.  The trinity [sic] is aptly described as a closed triangle.[12]

Daly wrote that feminism is Antichrist.  Here are her words:

Does this mean, then, that the women’s movement points to, seeks, or in some way constitutes a rival to “the Christ”?  …  Michelet [a different feminist author] wrote that the priest has seen in the witch “an enemy, a menacing rival.”  In its depth, because it contains a dynamic that drives beyond Christolatry, the women’s movement does point to, seek, and constitute the primordial, always present, and future Antichrist.[13]

Mrs. Steichen also quotes secular feminist leader, Betty Friedan, about the feminist agenda being, at bottom, anti-God:

When asked what the feminist movement could hope to accomplish in the future, Betty Friedan told reporters, “I can’t tell you that now.  You wouldn’t believe it anyway.  It’s theological.”[14]

This “theological” is not God’s religion; it is Satan’s.  As Mrs. Steichen explains, “Feminism appears to be the bait, moral disintegration the hook and the occult the dark and treacherous sea into which the deluded are towed.”[15]

“Women’s empowerment” conferences frequently feature occult rituals.  Here is one eyewitness account:

By Sunday morning, the Mankato conference crowd had declined to about three hundred.  While two other feminist services were held down a hallway, some 150 women gathered for the Wiccan rite described in the program as combining “both ancient matriarchal concepts and contemporary feminist issues”.  The large room was unfurnished except for a table altar, decorated with corn and gourds, four unlighted candles, a conch shell and a small brass cauldron.  Priestesses Patti Lather and Antiga said the service would be conducted in the “Dianic Wiccan tradition”.  The women formed a loose circle and followed Antiga and Lather in a vigorous opening chant:

We are strong and loving women;

We will do what must be done,

Changing, feeling, loving, growing,

We will do what must be done.

It was repeated, in accelerating tempo, half a dozen times.  Next came a song in a quick folk-blues rhythm. The women sang eagerly, clapping in time, some singing the harmony:

Woman am I, Spirit am I,

I am the infinite within my soul;

I have no beginning and I have no end,

All this I am.[16] …

Antiga called the large circle together again with a blast from her conch shell.  The women stood with hands linked, eyes closed, while she led them in the hypnotic “centering meditation”, a “Tree of Life ritual largely taken from Starhawk’s Dreaming the Dark” and almost identical to the one used earlier in Joan Keller-Marcsh’s workshop.[17]


Conclusion

It is clear that feminism is anti-God.  The religious feminists show this more often and more plainly than the secular feminists.  But the secular feminists show they are anti-God also.  Thus, we see that the feminist leaders and feminist principles follow the first point of Satan’s and Marx’s program.

Next month, we will examine how the feminist leaders and feminist principles follow the second point of Satan’s and Marx’s program by promoting disobedience and opposition to the authority ordained by God.

To be continued next month …


[1]           Ungodly Rage, The Hidden Face of Catholic Feminism, By Mrs. Donna Steichen, Ignatius Press, San Francisco ©1991, page 17.

 

[2]           May 31, 2011 interview found here: https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2011/05/31/incalculable-damage/

 

[3]           Ungodly Rage, The Hidden Face of Catholic Feminism, By Mrs. Donna Steichen, Ignatius Press, San Francisco ©1991, page 237.

[4]           Quoted from the May 31, 2011 interview found here:

https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2011/05/31/incalculable-damage/ (bracketed words in the original).

 

[5]           See, further information in Ungodly Rage, The Hidden Face of Catholic Feminism, By Mrs. Donna Steichen, Ignatius Press, San Francisco ©1991, page 122.


[6]           Quoted from the May 31, 2011 interview found here:

https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2011/05/31/incalculable-damage/ (bracketed words in the original).

 

[7]           Ungodly Rage, page 79.

 

[8]           Ungodly Rage, page 117-118 (emphasis in the original).

 

[9]           Mary Daly, Beyond God the Father, p.155, as quoted in: http://www.angelusonline.org/index.php?section=articles&subsection=show_article&article_id=2163 (2010).

[10]         Carol P. Christ, quoted from her essay “Why Women Need the Goddess”, as quoted here: http://www.angelusonline.org/index.php?section=articles&subsection=show_article&article_id=2163

[11]         Starhawk, The Spiral Dance, (Harper & Row, 1989), pp. 23-24, as quoted here: http://www.angelusonline.org/index.php?section=articles&subsection=show_article&article_id=2163

[13]         Daly, Beyond God the Father, (Beacon Press, 1973) p.96, as quoted in http://www.angelusonline.org/index.php?section=articles&subsection=show_article&article_id=2163 (emphasis added; bracketed words added).

[14]         Ungodly Rage, page 20.

 

[15]         Ungodly Rage, page 27.

[16]         Ungodly Rage, page 35.

 

[17]         Ungodly Rage, page 35.

 

Did the Pope’s Consecration Fulfill Heaven’s Command?  No!

Posted on by Catholic Candle

 

As our readers know, Pope Francis[1] consecrated Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on March 25, 2022.  Does this consecration fulfill Heaven’s request?  No!

 

We know that Our Lady of Fatima came to Sister Lucy in Tuy, in 1929, and told her:

The moment has come when God asks the Holy Father to make, in union with all the bishops of the world, the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, promising to save it by this means.

So numerous are the souls which the justice of God condemns for sins committed against me, that I come to ask for reparation.  Sacrifice yourself for this intention and pray.[2]

We are more familiar with the first paragraph of this quote, but Sr. Lucy assures us that Our Lady told her both paragraphs.


A similar, alternate, phrasing of Our Lord’s request for consecration

In 1930, Sr. Lucy repeated Heaven’s request in different words.  She wrote that:

The good Lord promises to end the persecution in Russia, if the Holy Father will himself make a solemn act of reparation and consecration of Russia to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, as well as ordering all the bishops of the Catholic world to do the same.  The Holy Father must then promise that upon the ending of this persecution he will approve and recommend the practice of the reparatory devotion already described [viz., of the five First Saturdays].[3]

In this 1930 phrasing of what is necessary for this consecration, Sr. Lucy mentions two additional conditions which Heaven revealed to her, which are not mentioned in the 1929 quote.  The consecration must be to both the Sacred Heart of Jesus as well as the Immaculate Heart of Mary and also the pope must promise to approve and promote the reparatory devotion of the Five First Saturdays.

Thus, based on Our Lady’s words in 1929 and 1930, we know that the consecration has seven conditions.  It must be performed:

1.    by the pope;

2.    together with all of the bishops;

3.    consecrating Russia specifically;

4.    to Our Lord’s Sacred Heart specifically and

5.    to Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart specifically;

6.    to make reparation for sins against Our Lady; and

7.    must be accompanied by the pope’s promise to approve and promote the reparatory devotion of the Five First Saturdays.

Below we examine each of these seven conditions to determine whether it was fulfilled in Pope Francis’ March 25 consecration.

1.   Condition one was fulfilled by the pope performing the consecration.

Pope Francis actually recited the consecration prayer, fulfilling the condition that he must do it.

 

2.   Condition two was not fulfilled, since the consecration was not performed in union with all of the world’s bishops.

The consecration appears to plainly have not been performed as Our Lady (and Her Son) commanded because Condition 2 was not fulfilled, viz., it was not performed jointly with all of the bishops[4] of the world.

Although we do not know the exact number of Catholic bishops in the world, it seems certain there are thousands of them (including all those with doubtful consecrations but with true jurisdictional authority).  The leftist source, Wikipedia, says that in 2020, there were about 5,600 bishops in the world.[5] 

A relatively small number of local ordinaries announced they would join the pope in the consecration.  Whatever the number was of these “bishops” who joined in the pope’s consecration, we know of no reason to think it was even a quarter of the total number in the world.  In fact, the video of Pope Francis reciting the consecration show cardinals and “bishops” attending but not participating.

We note that the 1930s statement of Heaven’s request says that the pope must order the world’s bishops to participate.  Presumably this is necessary because otherwise many (most) of them would not do so.  However, we note that a question would arise under the strange (hypothetical) circumstance where the pope failed to order the world’s bishops to perform the consecration but they all joined in voluntarily.  Perhaps the consecration would suffice to fulfill Heaven’s command, although the pope did not fulfill Heaven’s command that he order the “bishops” to join him, under obedience.

 

3.   Condition three was probably fulfilled, relating to the consecration of Russia in particular.

Condition 3 required Russia specifically, to be consecrated.  This condition was not fulfilled in the plainest and most straightforward way.

The text of Pope Francis’ consecration states:

Mother of God and our Mother, to your Immaculate Heart we solemnly entrust and consecrate ourselves, the Church and all humanity, especially Russia and Ukraine.  …  To you we consecrate the future of the whole human family, the needs and expectations of every people, the anxieties and hopes of the world.[6]

It is true that Russia was mentioned specifically.  However, there were other subjects of the consecration including “all humanity”.  Although Heaven required Russia to be consecrated by name, Our Lady did not say that the consecration must be of “only Russia with absolutely nothing else”. 

On the other hand, Heaven simply and straightforwardly commanded the consecration of Russia in particular.  This aspect was at least not fulfilled in the simplest, most straightforward way possible.   

Although Russia is specifically named, nonetheless, when other subjects are added to the consecration of Russia, it detracts from the focus on consecrating Russia.  If we were to take this point “to the extreme”, in the case of the pope mentioning hundreds of other subjects in the consecration, this would seem to entirely nullify the mention of Russia.  For example, suppose the pope had individually mentioned each and every one of the countries in the world.  That is, Russia is just one of 195 countries consecrated by name.  Would that fulfill Heaven’s command to consecrate Russia?   It would seem not.  That consecration would seem not to differ from consecrating “the world” to the Immaculate Heart – and that (previous) consecration was insufficient. 

Although Pope Francis did not mention every country, yet the principle stands: viz., at least “in the extreme” a consecration would be insufficient even when Russia is named in particular – viz., if the mention of Russia were diluted by too many other subjects of consecration. 

Catholic Candle tends to think that Pope Francis’ consecration was not so extremely diluted so as to fail to fulfill Condition #3 (see above) that Russia in particular be consecrated.  But the consecration did fail to pertain simply to Russia, and it failed to fulfill this aspect of Heaven’s simple, straightforward command in the simplest, most straightforward way.

4.   Condition four was not fulfilled, because there was no consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

There was no consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, as Sr. Lucy affirms to be necessary, in her 1930 letter on this subject.  The Sacred Heart of Jesus was not even mentioned in Pope Francis’ consecration.

5.   Condition five was fulfilled, because the consecration was specifically made to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

As quoted above, the text of Pope Francis’ consecration states:

Mother of God and our Mother, to your Immaculate Heart we solemnly entrust and consecrate ourselves, the Church and all humanity, especially Russia and Ukraine.[7]

6.   Condition six was not fulfilled, because the consecration was not made in reparation for sins against Our Lady.

To make reparation is to amend or repair a wrong done.  Here is how one dictionary defined “reparation”:

1. The act or process of making amends for a wrong.

2. Something done or money paid to make amends or compensate for a wrong.

3. reparations, compensation or remuneration, as for damage or economic loss, required from a nation defeated in war.

4. The act or process of repairing or the condition of being repaired.[8]

In Pope Francis’ consecration, there is no mention of reparation for sins against Our Lady in particular, as she requested.  In fact, there is no mention of reparation at all. 

Pope Francis’ consecration asks for forgiveness.  The prayer states: “with shame we cry out: Forgive us, Lord!”[9]  However, there is nothing promised or done in reparation.  Although contrition is an essential element of forgiveness, asking for forgiveness is not amending the wrong.  For example, if one man damaged another man’s car, apologizing is appropriate but that apology does not repair the wrong (the damage).  An example of reparation which Pope Francis could have made – but didn’t – would be approving and promoting the Five First Saturdays of reparatory Holy Communions, as Our Lady requested. 

Likewise, Pope Francis’ consecration prayer asks for other things that are not reparation.  He asks Our Lady to:

Ø  “help us and grant us your comfort”;  

Ø  “grant that war may end and peace spread throughout the world”; and.  

Ø  “help us to foster the growth of communion”.[10]  

But none of these requests are reparation, i.e., amending past wrongs (sins).  Again, there is no reparation made or promised in these requests for help.

7.   Condition seven is not fulfilled (so far) by Pope Francis promising to approve and promote the reparatory devotion of the Five First Saturdays.

The consecration which Heaven requests includes the requirement that the pope must “then” make a promise.  We do not know if this must be part of the consecration prayer itself.  Here is how Sr. Lucy phrased Our Lady’s request for this:

The Holy Father must then promise that upon the ending of this persecution he will approve and recommend the practice of the reparatory devotion already described [viz., of the five First Saturdays].[11]

If this promise must be made at the time of the consecration, then it plainly was not done and cannot be done now.  During the consecration, the pope did not mention or promise to approve and recommend this devotion.  Thus, this condition was not fulfilled – as least so far.  Perhaps this promise could yet be made.

Summary and assessment

For the above reasons, it seems clear that Heaven’s command has not been fulfilled and the consecration has not occurred as Heaven ordered.

Conditions 1 and 5 were fulfilled.  Conditions 2, 4, and 6 were not fulfilled. Condition 7 was not fulfilled, at least so far.  And condition 3 was probably fulfilled.


A few additional observations

In the cover letter addressed to the world’s bishops, the pope does not request them to recite the consecration with him, much less does it command them to do so (as Our Lady directed).  The pope says that the way they can join him is by inviting their subordinates to recite this consecration.  Here are his words:

I[12] ask you to join in this Act by inviting the priests, religious and faithful to assemble in their churches and places of prayer on 25 March, so that God’s Holy People may raise a heartfelt and choral plea to Mary our Mother.[13] 

Maybe one could suppose that the pope implied that he wanted the world’s “bishops” to join in the consecration also.  Perhaps this is true.  Nonetheless, the pope does not specifically ask them to consecrate Russia in union with him, much less does he command them to do so.

Also, the pope does not ask that anyone recite this consecration at the same time he does.  He says people can recite it “throughout the day”.  Here are his words:

I am sending you the text of the prayer of consecration, so that all of us can recite it throughout that day, in fraternal union.[14]

Further, there is a conciliar and globalist “stench” to the text of the consecration, implying or saying things such as:

Ø  it is a sin for a nation to “stockpile weapons”, thereby implying that unilateral disarmament is necessary;

Ø  we must all be stewards of the world because it is our “common home”, suggesting that nations must support global environmental projects;

Ø  we sinned because we “ravaged the garden of the earth” apparently because we were not environmentally conscious; and

Ø  Pope Francis says "we have disregarded the commitments we made as a community of nations”.  This certainly seems to refer to the globalist commitments of the United Nations, the European Union, the World Economic Forum, etc., where nations have committed themselves to the globalist agenda, e.g., ecological targets to reduce carbon emissions.[15]  

Then after listing the world’s “failures” to sufficiently promote globalist evils, Pope Francis – ever the showman – dramatically exclaims “Forgive us, Lord”.  However, it is these globalist evils themselves, not failure to implement them, which anger God.

Conclusion: Pope Francis’ consecration does not fulfill Heaven’s command!  Let us pray for the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary by the Consecration of Russia to her Immaculate Heart in the way that Heaven has commanded for almost 100 years!

 

Postscript:  The SSPX continues to find ways to praise what comes from the conciliar church and to obscure the truth.

 

The SSPX publicly said how “happy” it is that Pope Francis’ consecration has “taken into account” Our Lady of Fatima’s request, even though the consecration fails to fulfill Heaven’s command.  Here are the SSPX’s words:

 

After a long wait, punctuated by fervent crusades and assiduous recitation of rosaries, the Society of Saint Pius X is happy to see the request of Our Lady of Fatima taken into account, which called for a solemn act by the Pope in union with all the bishops.[16]

 

 

In this public statement, the SSPX scandalously implies that Pope Francis is following Our Lady’s request.  That is false!

 

To “take into account” means to “make allowances for”.[17]  Pope Francis did not change his planned consecration to comply with Our Lady’s request.  Perhaps it is even true that, if Pope Francis took Our Lady’s request “into account”, it was in order to reject her wishes.

 

On the day of the consecration, Bishop Fellay said:

 

We have for years and years asked for this, begged God for this consecration to happen.  Thus, we rejoice, we do rejoice, with our whole heart we unite ourselves to this act of consecration.  The promise is not directly in the message of the pope’s text: Russia will convert.  …  [L]et’s hope that this is the right one … this consecration.  …  It is not certain that this is the right one ….[18]

 

Lastly, notice that the “new” SSPX impliedly takes credit Pope Francis is performing this consecration.  The “new” SSPX points to its own “fervent crusades”, “assiduous recitation of rosaries”, and its years of “begging God for this consecration”.[19]


[1]           Sedevacantism is a grave error.  Catholic Candle is not sedevacantist.  For an explanation of why sedevacantism is an error and why Francis is our pope (as bad as he is), read the small book, Sedevacantism, Material or Formal Schism, by Quanta Cura Press: which is available here:

 

Ø  Here, for free: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/against-sedevacantism.html 

or

 

Ø  Here, at cost ($4): https://www.amazon.com/Sedevacantism-Material-Quanta-Cura-Press/dp/B08FP5NQR6/ref=sr_1_1

[2]           The Whole Truth About Fatima, Frére Michel de la Sainte Trinité, translator John Collorafi, vol. II, Immaculate Heart Publications, Buffalo, NY, © 1989 for English translation, p.464 (emphasis added).

[3]           The Whole Truth about Fatima: The Secret and the Church, Volume II, by Br. Michel de la Sainte Trinité, Immaculate Heart Pub., 1989, Chapters 6, p. 465, quoting a letter received by Father Gonçalves on May 29, 1930 (Doc., p. 405). The letter of next June 12, addressed to the same person, literally employs the same formula (Doc., p. 411).

[4]           It might occur to the reader here that the new conciliar rite of consecration of a bishop is inherently doubtful.  For an explanation of why this is true, read this analysis: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B49oPuI54eEGZVF5cmFvMGdZM0U/view?resourcekey=0-d98Ksw0xkbtafE2fYSTq8A


Because this conciliar rite is doubtfully valid, it should be treated as invalid (as far as having the effect of the sacrament).  Read this explanation here of why a doubtful sacrament should be treated as invalid: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/new-ordination-doubtful.html

 

However, the Catholic Church continues to have a full hierarchy (a pope and the local ordinaries governing the dioceses of the world).  The Church leaders’ jurisdictional power (authority to govern) remains intact (including the pope’s) even though their Episcopal consecrations are doubtful (including the pope’s) and should be treated as invalid.  For a full explanation of this fact, read the article at this link: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/against-sedevacantism.html#section-10

 

These local ordinaries of the world’s dioceses can be called “bishops” even if they lack Episcopal sacramental powers because they are bishops in their authority and office governing the Church.  Look how the Catholic Encyclopedia uses that term to refer to a man who has Episcopal governing authority but not Episcopal sacramental power:

 

Internal jurisdiction is that which is exercised in the tribunal of penance.  It differs from the external jurisdiction of which we have been speaking, in that its object is the welfare of the individual penitent, while the object of external jurisdiction is the welfare of the Church as a corporate body.  … 

[F]or the exercise of external jurisdiction the power of orders is not necessary.  A bishop, duly appointed to a see [i.e., a diocese], but not yet consecrated, is invested with external jurisdiction over his diocese …

 

The 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 3, article: Church, §VIII (2), p.755 (emphasis added; bracketed words added).

 

Liturgical Historian, Fr. Adrian Fortescue, used the term “bishop” to describe those possessing the power to rule a diocese but who were not yet consecrated a bishop.  Here are his words:

 

The bishop must be canonically appointed and confirmed, otherwise he is not mentioned [in the Canon of the Mass].  But he need not yet be consecrated.

 

The 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia, article Canon of the Mass, author: Fr. Adrian Fortescue, vol. 3, article Canon of the Mass, p.262 (emphasis added; bracketed words added).

 

Of course, we should avoid confusing such bishops (who govern the world’s dioceses), with those bishops who without any doubt possess Episcopal sacramental powers.  For this reason, we suggest that, presently, it is better not to refer to the local ordinaries as bishops simply (i.e., without qualification) wherever there might be confusion, because their conciliar episcopal “consecrations” make it doubtful that they possess a bishop’s sacramental power.  Catholic Candle makes this distinction clear by referring to the local ordinaries as “bishops” (in quotes).

 

The consecration of Russia apparently does not require Episcopal sacramental powers.  This consecration must be performed by the Catholic Church’s rulers, who govern the Church.  Thus, it seems, this consecration invokes the bishops’ governing (jurisdictional) authority under, and in union with, the pope.

[6]           This is the official text published by the Vatican’s website and found here: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2022/documents/20220321-lettera-consacrazione-cuoredimaria.html (emphasis added).

[7]           This is the official text published by the Vatican’s website and found here: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2022/documents/20220321-lettera-consacrazione-cuoredimaria.html (emphasis added).

[9]           This is the official text published by the Vatican’s website and found here: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2022/documents/20220321-lettera-consacrazione-cuoredimaria.html (emphasis added).

[11]         The Whole Truth about Fatima: The Secret and the Church, Volume II, by Br. Michel de la Sainte Trinité, Immaculate Heart Pub., 1989, Chapters 6, p. 465, quoting a letter received by Father Gonçalves on May 29, 1930 (Doc., p. 405). The letter of next June 12, addressed to the same person, literally employs the same formula (Doc., p. 411), which indissociably unites the Holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

[12]         The pope uses the singular pronoun “I” to refer to himself, not the plural pronoun “we”, continuing this practice of his post-conciliar predecessors.  This is a departure from the traditional practice of the popes using the “royal we” before Vatican II. 

[15]         This is the official text published by the Vatican’s website and found here: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2022/documents/20220321-lettera-consacrazione-cuoredimaria.html (emphasis added).

[17]         Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, Definition: “to take into account”.

[18]         March 25, 2022 Interview of Bishop Bernard Fellay, quoted in April 8, 2022 letter of Fr. Yves le Roux, to friends and benefactors.


[19]         This last quoted phrase was grammatically changed from “begged” to “begging” for grammatical agreement.

Posted on by Catholic Candle

Words to Live by – from Catholic Tradition

 

Let us be fearless in defending the truth!  Here is how St. Thomas Aquinas, greatest Doctor of the Catholic Church, explains this zeal we should have, quoting Alcuin, Father of the Church:

 

Zeal, in the good sense of the word, is a certain fervor of soul, by which we set aside all human fear, for the sake of defending the Truth.

 

Catena Aurea on St. John’s Gospel, St. Thomas Aquinas, quoting Alcuin, ch.2, §4.

Lesson #9 Explanation of the Second Week Rules for the Discernment of Spirits (part 2)

Posted on by Catholic Candle

           Mary’s School of Sanctity – Lesson #9         

In our last lesson we discussed the tactics of the evil one which he uses to drag us off our course when we are in consolation.  In this lesson we will discuss the last two Rules for the Second Week.

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #7.  In those who are making spiritual progress, that action of the good angel is gentle, light, and sweet, as a drop of water entering a sponge.  The action of the evil spirit is sharp, noisy, and disturbing, like a drop of water falling upon a rock.  In those souls that are going from bad to worse, the action of these two spirits is the reverse.  The cause for this difference of action is the disposition of the soul, which is either contrary or similar to that of the spirits mentioned above.  When the disposition of the soul is contrary to that of the spirits, they enter it with noise and disturbances that are easily perceived.  When the dispositions of the soul and that of these spirits are similar, they enter silently, as one coming into his own house through an open door.

This Rule reminds us a bit of the First and Second Rules from the First Week, where we saw how the good spirit and the evil spirit each deal with souls based on the state of the soul.  A major point to remember is that the good spirit and the evil spirit always work in opposite directions.  They always oppose each other.

Two opposing spirits for two opposing states of soul:

In his 2nd Rule for the First Week, St. Ignatius speaks about the soul that is striving to serve God.  In this case he tells us that the good angel encourages the soul to persevere in the service of God.  He says the good spirit helps the soul “put away all obstacles”[1] in order to help the soul advance.  In addition to this, the good spirit “gives courage and strength, consolations, tears [of compunction], inspirations, and quiet.”[2]

Here in the 7th Rule in the Second Week, St. Ignatius further informs us that the good spirit is “gentle, light, and sweet, as a drop of water entering a sponge.” In the case we are considering now, the soul is in the proper disposition.  Thus, St. Ignatius explains, that the good spirit will enter silently as if “coming into his own house through an open door.”

In this same soul with proper disposition, the evil spirit, being contrary to the soul’s disposition, will enter it “with noise and disturbances that are easily perceived.”[3] Thus, the evil spirit enters “like a drop of water falling upon a rock” and his action is “sharp, noisy, and disturbing.”[4]

In addition, St. Ignatius told us in the 2nd Rule for the First Week that the devil tries to “bite, sadden and put obstacles, disquieting with false reasons, that one may not go on.”[5]

It is easy to see how this method is described accurately and how the devil would try to push the soul to scruples or some other form of pride.  One typical tool for the devil to use is to try to sow discouragement into the soul, saying something along the lines of, “It is too hard to keep going like you are.  You can’t ever save your soul.  It is impossible.  Certainly, it is impossible to keep up these efforts you are making.” Of course, the evil spirit is urging the soul into a form of self-pity, pride and despair.

We can see the good spirit would do the exact opposite and soothingly tell the soul the following types of things: “You are doing the right thing.  Hang in there, God will never abandon you.  You can make it (with His help).  Don’t give up, because every struggle is worth the effort.  Remember, God is not outdone in generosity.  This suffering is for the good of your soul and that is one of the reasons why He has sent it.  Look how much God has done for you in the past and see how He has taken such providential care of you.  Etc.”

God willing, we are in this state of soul and striving to please almighty God.  Let us strive to stay alert in order to detect the evil one playing his tricks!

Let us now examine what St. Ignatius says about the soul going from bad to worse. 

As we saw in the First Rule of the First Week where a soul is going from bad to worse, the devil encourages the soul to keep in this state.  He proposes apparent pleasures to the soul to entice it to remain living in sin.  In the 7th Rule for the Second Week, St. Ignatius gives us further insights about the devil’s stratagems.  The devil, being similar to this wretched soul, will influence this soul “like water on a sponge,” because he will deal with the soul gently and coax it along to remain indifferent to its perilous state.  This method of the bad spirit is easy to see in the worldling who just lives to go from one pleasure to the next and doesn’t reflect on the purpose of life, namely, his final end.

For the soul in this horrible state St. Ignatius explains in the First Rule for the First Week, that the good spirit pricks the conscience.  He tells us that the good spirit will “prick the soul and bite the conscience through the process of reason.”[6]  It is thus in this 7th Rule for the Second Week that St. Ignatius explains how the good angel enters the soul noisily like “a drop of water on a rock” in order to awaken the soul to its danger.

It is very interesting to note how the good spirit urges the soul to use its reason which is the highest faculty of the human soul.  In stark contrast, we see how the bad spirit incites the soul to not use reason.[7]

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #8.  When consolation is without preceding cause, although there is no deception in it since in proceeds only from God Our Lord, as has been stated above [in Rule 2 of the Second Week[8]] the spiritual person to whom God gives such consolation ought still to consider it with great vigilance and attention.  He should carefully distinguish the exact time of such consolation from the time that followed it, during which time the soul continues in fervor and feels the divine favor and the after effects of the consolation which has passed.  Often in this latter period the soul makes various plans and resolutions which are not inspired directly by God Our Lord.  They may be the result of its own reflections, in accordance with its own habits and the consequence of its own concepts or judgments, and they may come either from the good spirit or the evil one.  It is therefore necessary that they be very carefully examined before they are given full approval, and are put into action.

In this Rule St. Ignatius is warning us to be very careful when in consolation.  As we discussed in our last Lesson (#8), the devil knows we are especially vulnerable during consolation.  We are capable of being easily fooled by the bad spirit.  This is because in consolation we feel especially fervent and full of love of God.  We feel as if we would be willing to do any service for Our Lord.  The devil knows this and will tempt us to something perhaps rash or something that will foster inordinate self love and pride.  This is why St. Ignatius recommends getting advice from a wise person, about any resolutions we may have.  So many souls have been led astray because they get some idea to do something that is not truly good for their eternal salvation.[9]

Another key instruction of St. Ignatius for when one is in consolation is to be sure to humble oneself.[10]  Acts of humility are very important.  There are several that would be good to consider and to put into practice.  One is to count one’s blessings and all the insights that God has bestowed on him.  This counting of blessings fosters gratitude towards God.  In turn, this gratitude fosters a greater love of God.

An additional humbling practice that St. Ignatius speaks of is to consider what it is like to be in desolation.  He tells us to remember how weak and helpless we feel during desolation.  He also tells us that during the current consolation, we should build up strength upon which to rely later, when desolation returns, so that we might act well then.[11]

In our next lesson we will begin discussing the first Exercise of St. Ignatius, what he calls the Principle and Foundation.  Let us be grateful to God for these special Rules for the Discernments of Spirits which help us perceive the movements of the good and bad spirits on our souls.  By knowing these Rules and consulting them frequently, we can use them effectively to defend ourselves from the enemy and cooperate with the good spirits.  Blessed be God for His Divine assistance and assurances that He never abandons souls!


[1]  Taken from Rule #2 from First Week.  (see January 2022, Catholic Candle’s Mary School of Sanctity Lesson #6 also found here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/01/10/lesson-6-explanation-of-the-first-week-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits/ )

[2]  Taken from Rule #2 from First Week.  (see January 2022, Catholic Candle’s Mary School of Sanctity Lesson #6 also found here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/01/10/lesson-6-explanation-of-the-first-week-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits/ )

[3] See Rule #7 given above

[4] See Rule #7 given above

[5] Taken from Rule #2 from First Week, found in the January Catholic Candle and found here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/01/10/lesson-6-explanation-of-the-first-week-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits/

[6] Taken from the First Week Rule # 1; see Catholic Candle’s Mary’s School of Sanctity Lesson #6 found in the January 2022 Catholic Candle and found here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/01/10/lesson-6-explanation-of-the-first-week-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits/

[7] We must remember that our enemy, the evil spirit, hates us and he especially hates the fact that we have the use of reason.  Ever since the Garden of Eden, the tempter has tempted man into not using his reason.  We will discuss this further in future lessons, especially in the Ignatian exercises concerning our final end and on sin. 

[8] Bracketed words added for clarity.

[9] See Catholic Candle Mary’s School of Sanctity Lesson #8 Rules #4 ,5 and found in the March 2022 Catholic Candle and also here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/03/27/lesson-8-explanation-of-the-second-week-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits/

[10] See Catholic Candle Mary’s School of Sanctity Lesson #7 Rules #10 and #11, found in the February 2022 Catholic Candle and also here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/02/25/lesson-7-explanation-of-the-first-week-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits/

[11] See Catholic Candle Mary’s School of Sanctity Lesson #7 Rules #10 and #11, found in the February 2022 Catholic Candle and also here: https://catholiccandle.org/2022/02/25/lesson-7-explanation-of-the-first-week-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits/

Evolution is an Anti-God, False Religion

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Evolution is impossible and is a false religion.  It is contrary to true science and to careful reasoning.  However, just as Marxists falsely appeal to (supposed) science, so do the evolutionists.  But the truth is that Marxists and evolutionists both adhere to the (false) religion of Materialism.

 

Most Marxists and evolutionists are too naïve and uninformed to know that they are simply believing this (false) religion of Materialism, or they are not candid enough to admit this.  However, occasionally one of them admits the truth that their position is really a tenet of a (false) religion, and that their conclusions are not compelled by real scientific reasoning. 

 

Below, is one such admission by evolutionist, Richard Lewontin, a Professor of Zoology at Harvard.  He tells us that he is an evolutionist because of his prior (religious) decision to be a materialist.  Further, he admits that he chooses to be a materialist in order to not admit that God has any role in the world and in order that he can reject the existence of God (i.e., to not “allow a Divine Foot in the door”).  Here are Lewontin’s words:

                                                          

We take the side of science [sic] in spite of the patent absurdity of some of its constructs, in spite of its failure to fulfill many of its extravagant promises of health and life, in spite of the tolerance of the scientific community for unsubstantiated just-so stories, because we have a prior commitment, a commitment to materialism.  It is not that the methods and institutions of science somehow compel us to accept a material explanation of the phenomenal world, but, on the contrary, that we are forced by our a priori adherence to material causes to create an apparatus of investigation and a set of concepts that produce material explanations, no matter how counter-intuitive, no matter how mystifying to the uninitiated.  Moreover, that materialism is absolute, for we cannot allow a Divine Foot in the door.[1]

 

In the same way in which Catholics should approach the adherents to any false religion, we should respond to evolutionists by using sound, rational arguments and real science to remove obstacles which prevent those persons from coming to the truth.  However, their chief problem is a moral one,[2] i.e., accepting a false principle because of their prior commitment to it (like Lewontin explained).  In the conversion of an evolutionist, God’s grace and prayer for the person play a larger role.

 

 

 

 


[1]           Richard Lewontin, Billions and Billions of Demons, New York Review of Books, January 9, 1997, p.31 (emphasis added).

[2]           By observing that evolutionists’ chief problem is a moral one, this does not mean that we judge their subjective culpability for their false and evil position.  Similarly, we judge drunkenness to be a moral problem, but we neither judge the subjective culpability of alcoholics nor say that we know with certainty they will go to hell.

 

Concerning the distinction about our duty to judge exterior actions (and statements) but our obligation not to judge interior, subjective culpability for sin, we recommend that you read chapter five of the book, Sedevacantism, Material or Formal Schism, which is available here:

Ø  Here, for free: https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/against-sedevacantism.html 

or

Ø  Here, at cost ($4): https://www.amazon.com/Sedevacantism-Material-Quanta-Cura-Press/dp/B08FP5NQR6/ref=sr_1_1

The Father’s Love for Man + The Son’s Love for the Father = Salvation for Man

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 He who is not ready to suffer all things and stand resigned to the will of the Beloved is not worthy to be called a lover.[1]

God so loved man that He sent His only Son to suffer and die as a fitting sacrifice in satisfaction for the sins of man, and to regain for mankind the gift of being children of God and heirs of heaven. 

Sin offends an infinite God, and therefore, would need infinite satisfaction.  Thus, Someone Infinite, Jesus Christ, had to offer that satisfaction.  Only the Blood of God Himself could accomplish this.

We can never repay Him in this life or the next.  The only way we can show our appreciation is to live according to His will.  Here is how My Catholic Faith explains this truth:

Our Lord looked forward to His agony, saying to His Apostles, “That the world may know that I love the Father, and that I do as the Father has commanded Me.  Arise, let us go from here.”  (St. John’s Gospel, 14:31).  In the garden, Jesus felt so sad at the sins of men and at what would befall Him that He said, “My soul is sad even unto death” (Matt. 26:38). 

To His Father, He cried out in pain: “Father if Thou art willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Thine, be done.”  (Luke 22:42).

Jesus pleaded three times this same prayer.  In His agony, “His sweat became as drops of blood, running down upon the ground.”  (Luke, 22:44).[2]

Jesus Christ suffered and died as Man; as God He could neither suffer nor die.  He suffered excruciatingly in order to make full reparation for sin.  Even only one sin is so abominable to God that not all the deluges and fires can wipe away the stain.  Only the blood of God Himself can do so. “The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”  (Is. 55:6).[3]

 

From the Passion of Christ, we learn the evil that sin is, and the hatred that God has for it.  Here is how My Catholic Faith explains this truth:

St. Augustine says that on the cross Our Lord bent His Head to kiss us, extended His Arms to embrace us, and opened His Heart to love us.  How thankful we should be to Christ for His love!  “He humbled Himself, becoming obedient to death, even to death on a cross” (Phil. 2:8).[4]

It was not necessary for Jesus to suffer so intensely in order to redeem all men.  As His merits are infinite, He could have wiped away the sins of a thousand worlds by shedding one drop of His blood.  But He chose to suffer agonies because He loves us.[5]

The sufferings of Christ, in addition, serve as an example for us, to strengthen us under trials.  Christ gave us an example of patience and strength.  If we receive trials, we should accept them with resignation, in imitation of Our Lord, Who suffered so willingly for our sake.  We can never have as much suffering as He did.[6]


[1]           Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis, Book 3, Chapter 5.

[2]           My Catholic Faith, Bishop Louis Morrow, My Mission House, Kenosha, WI, ©1949, Lesson 34, page 69.

[3]           Id.

[4]           My Catholic Faith, Bishop Louis Morrow, My Mission House, Kenosha, WI, ©1949, Lesson 35, page 71.

[5]           Id.

[6]           Id.

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Words to Live by – from Catholic Tradition

 

There are no better means of distinguishing the chaff from the wheat in the Church of God than the suffering of contradictions, trials, and contempt.  He who stands firm through these is the grain.  He who recoils from them is the chaff.  The further he recoils, that is, the more upset and arrogant he becomes, the more worthless he is.

 

Words of St. Augustine taken from the Spiritual Diary, Daughters of St. Paul Press, Boston, © 1962, page 86.

 

 

Lesson #8 Explanation of the Second Week Rules for the Discernment of Spirits

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Mary’s School of Sanctity

In our last lesson in Mary’s School, we finished discussing the Rules for the Discernment of the Spirits for the first week of the Spiritual Exercises.  Now we turn our attention to the Rules for the second week of the Spiritual Exercises.  These Rules help with a greater discernment of the spirits. The more one advances in the spiritual life and the more effort one is making to work out his salvation in fear and trembling, the more complex are the subtle attacks of our common enemy, the devil. Therefore, St. Ignatius explains how to be on extra high alert for the sneaky tactics that the devil uses.  He says that these Rules are more applicable to the Second Week because the Spiritual Exercises for this week are designed to help a person to dig harder and deeper to get to know himself even better.  Thus, the soul can get to recognize the movements of the spirits in greater detail.

Yet, as we have been repeating as we go along, these Rules are applicable to our daily lives.  Therefore, it is a good idea to become more and more familiar with them so that when we need to recall them to discern a situation, they are readily available to us.

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #1.  It belongs to God and his angels to bring true happiness and spiritual joy to the soul and to free it from the sadness and disturbance which the enemy causes.  It is the nature of the enemy to fight against such joy and spiritual consolation by proposing [seemingly] serious reasons, subtleties, and continual deceptions.

 This is a general rule for us Catholics to keep in mind.  One basic fact we must remember is that the enemy always acts opposite to the good angel. 

Because the enemy is seeking whom he can devour and he is out to destroy us, he does not want us to have spiritual joys.  This Rule reminds us somewhat of the second Rule for the First Week.  In that Rule #2 we saw that when the soul is making spiritual progress, the devil tries to disrupt the progress by throwing wrenches in, as it were.  He presents false reasoning.  For example, he may tempt a soul with scruples so one constantly thinks that he is doing something sinful when the truth is quite the contrary. 

Thus, St. Ignatius is warning us that it is important that we be alert to the devil’s subtle deceptions.   We must keep in mind that one powerful tactic against the devil is simply to use our reason and, with God’s help, the devil will not be able to fool us.  Furthermore, remaining objective and matter of fact in our thinking will help us foster humility which always keeps the devil at bay.   The following Rules get into deeper details of the wiles of the devil.

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #2. It belongs to God alone to give consolation to the soul without previous cause, for it belongs to the Creator to enter into the soul, to leave it, and to act upon it, drawing it wholly to the love of His Divine Majesty.  I say without previous cause, that is, without any previous perception or knowledge of any object from which such consolation might come to the soul through its own acts of intellect and will.

One possible previous cause of consolation could be reading an inspiring spiritual book.  So, for example, one could have just read about King St. Ferdinand III of Spain spending the night in prayer and going out to conquer the Moors the next day and about the fact that he was never wounded in any battle.  This would make one glad to be a Catholic and be very edified by such a holy king.  Reading such things could naturally fill one with spiritual joy and an increased love of God.  One could easily see himself praying and thanking God for electing such a wonderful saint.  But St. Ignatius is speaking here of a consolation that God sends to us without anything we did in particular that could have been the cause of a consolation.  In other words, we sense the consolation and we can think of nothing that we thought, did, or said that might have brought on a consolation.

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #3.  When a cause has preceded, both the good angel and the evil one may console the soul but for different purposes.  The good angel works for the advancement of the soul, that it may grow and rise to what is more perfect, the evil one consoles for the opposite purpose, that he may draw the soul on to his own evil designs and wickedness.

St. Ignatius warns us to be careful when we have consolations because we can be drawn by the evil one into sin.  Especially when there has been a previous cause for our consolation, for example, having just got done reading a very beautiful inspirational spiritual book, we still do not know for certain if the consolation we are experiencing has not been inspired by the evil spirit.  We must be on our guard.  The good angel is going to always lead us to holiness, yet we know that the evil spirit wants the opposite and he can lure us away so easily.  The next three Rules explain the tactics of the evil one in more detail.

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #4.  It is characteristic of the evil one to transform himself into an angel of light, to work with the soul in the beginning, but in the end to work for himself.  At first, he will suggest good and holy thoughts that are in conformity with the disposition of a just soul; then, little by little he strives to gain his own ends by drawing the soul into his hidden deceits and perverse designs.

Rule #4 concerns temptation under the appearance of good.  Such temptations are a very common trick of the devil because with them, he succeeds so often.  Some examples of this are the following:

·         The priests and laity going along with the Novus Ordo Missae.  People went along with the “changes” because they were told it was obedient to do so.  Thus, under the “appearance of good,” people accepted a sacrilegious mass.

 

·         Women in the work force during World War II because the U.S. said it needed their help to keep up with the manufacturing needed for the war effort.  The women were told to wear pants for “safety” sake.  Safety is a good thing, so the pushing of pants for women was accepted.  Yet, unfortunately, this fashion was pushed more and more even after the War so that it came to be viewed as the “norm.”  Consequently, what Our Lady of Fatima predicted came true, namely, that fashions would come that would displease her Son very much.  A further harm is the destruction of the nature of women by such abominable attire. [As Deuteronomy and St. Paul call it.]

Another example of this tactic of the devil is found in the marriage of Louis and Zelie Martin, the parents of St. Therese of Lisieux.  The Martins wanted to live a celibate marriage.   They had both thought they had a religious vocation before they married.  Zelie had been turned away by the Visitation nuns telling her that she didn’t have a vocation to the religious life.  Louis Martin had tried to learn Latin because he wanted to be a priest and finally after spending lots of time and money, he finally gave up the idea.  When Louis and Zelie married, they decided to live as brother and sister.  After nine months of marriage their confessor told them that this was not God’s will and that God wanted them to have children.  They ended up having nine children: three of which died in infancy, one died at the age of five, and five daughters who became nuns.  Thus, under the “appearance of good” this couple, at first, was not doing what God wanted for them.

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #5. We must pay close attention to the course of our thoughts, and if the beginning, middle, and end are all good and directed to what is entirely right, it is a sign that they are inspired by the good angel.  If the course of the thoughts suggested to us ends in something evil, or distracting, or less good than the soul had previously proposed to do; or if these thoughts weaken, disquiet, or disturb the soul by destroying the peace, tranquility, and quiet which it had before, this is a clear sign that they proceed from the evil spirit, the enemy of our progress, and eternal salvation.

St. Ignatius’s warning from Rule #4 continues in Rule #5.  Not only must we be on our guard during consolations with a previous cause, but we must think carefully about any inspirations or resolutions which come to us during this time.  We must ponder where our thoughts are heading.  If we make resolutions or plans during a consolation, we must think through our thoughts carefully in order to discover if they are leading to something good and positive for our salvation.  As St. Ignatius explains, if the thoughts end up being something evil, then of course we would not want to follow those inspirations knowing that they come from the evil one.  Getting advice about any resolutions inspired during consolations of this nature would also be a good idea as a means to prevent doing anything imprudent.

This fits well with our example of the Martins given above.  If the Martins had thought about the fact that they could show God their love by raising up saints for His greater honor and glory, then surely they would have wanted to live a regular Catholic marriage.  The devil wanted to frustrate God’s plan for this holy couple so he most likely hatched this apparently “good” plan for their marriage.  Their confessor saw through this deceit and told the Martins to have children to please God.

During consolations of this type, we must watch our thoughts and the movements of our souls because it so easy to be drawn off course.  The devil will tempt us to do things which would puff us up and lead to other forms of pride.  He can use one’s virtues to deceive the soul.  He can drive the soul to want to climb too high and too fast in order to set the soul up for a fall so one will get discouraged if spiritual progress does not happen as fast as the person expects.   

Also, the devil can use the consolations to foster pride by letting us think we are so wonderful because we have these spiritual consolations.  Thus, as we have mentioned already, we must take every opportunity to humble ourselves when we have consolations and desolations.

St.  Ignatius’s Rule #6. When the enemy of our human nature has been detected and recognized by his deceptions and by the bad end to which he leads, it is well for the person who has been tempted to examine afterward the course of the good thoughts that were suggested to him.  Let him consider their beginning and how the enemy contrived little by little to make him fall from the state of sweetness and spiritual delight that he was enjoying, until the devil finally brought him to the devil’s perverse designs.   With the experience and knowledge thus acquired and noted, one may better guard himself in the future against the customary deceits of the enemy.

This Rule discusses a great strategy for the spiritual life.  When we sense that we have been fooled by the tricks of the evil one, we must retrace our steps, as it were, and find out how the devil fooled us.  On a natural level, we do not want to be deceived by others.  How much more should we want to avoid being trapped by the devil, who is the father of lies!  If we examine the situation and circumstances of our going off course, then we can know ourselves better and know our weakness, which is itself humbling. Then we can be better prepared in order to avoid getting fooled the next time.

In our next lesson, we will examine the last two Rules for the Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises.  These last two Rules consider the strategies with which the devil attacks souls based on their dispositions, and give further explanations about desolation and consolation.  Yet, even with the Rules we have considered so far, we can see plainly that with these heavenly aids Our Good Lord trains us to be His soldiers.  Because we battle, as St. Paul says, “with the principalities and powers of darkness,” we need clear and concrete rules to avoid being fooled by the evil one.  Let us thank God abundantly for these powerful aids to our eternal salvation!