Today, April 6, 2021 Bishop Robert M. Coerver released a surprising Official Statement regarding Planned Parenthood and the Lubbock Sanctuary City Ordinance. The Statement is available on the Diocesan Website and will be published in the South Plains Catholic.

It is time to take concerted action beginning with the May 1 vote on the Ordinance to ban abortions within the City of Lubbock. It is clear that the bishop cannot tell his people how to vote, but he encourages “Catholics and all citizens of Lubbock to get informed and exercise their right and duty to vote”. He concludes this surprising Statement with what might be interpreted as an episcopal exhortation – it is certainly an unexpected and highly unusual conclusion.

Access the Statement here

CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING is the fruit of a long line of thinking about man and society. Its roots are burrowed deeply in the natural law tradition of Aristotle and Cicero and in the moral and judicial precepts of the Old Testament perfected by the commandment to love as God loves (John 15:12) revealed in the New. Ultimately, it is grounded in the inscrutable mystery of the individual and communal dimensions of the Holy Trinity and the corollary mystery of the human person made to the image of the Trinity, that is, the individual and communal dimensions of the human person.

Being made to the image of God implies that every human being is by nature Trinitarian; that is, every human being is by nature both individual and communal. The perfection of God consists in the individuality of the Persons united as one Substance – the Father cannot be separated from the Son or the Spirit without doing damage to the Divine Persons and to their Unitive (communal) Love which is the very essence of God (1 John 4:8). Likewise, the individual and communal dimensions of human existence cannot be separated without doing damage to both man and society. No one is perfected alone. Find one saint and you will inevitably find another (Mary and Joseph, Francis and Clare, Benedict and Scholastica, Augustine and Monica etc.) each contributing to the common good (Matt 10:28) through individual acts of love.

“Being made to the image of God implies that
every human being is by nature Trinitarian”.

Since human beings are simultaneously individual and communal beings, any society that disregards one or the other ends up working against human nature. As such, both Communism and poorly or unregulated Capitalism (to the extent that they promote the communal good to the neglect of the individual or the individual good to the detriment of the communal) are criticized by the Church as destructive partial truths rooted in a materialistic world view. Thus, when asked to compare Communism and Capitalism Padre Pio replied:

“They are both indescribably evil. In the East they deny God from the head to the belly button. In the West, they deny Him from the belly button to the feet”.

The East under Communism was guilty of “Scientific” or “Atheistic” Materialism. That is, intellectual materialism, materialism in the head, i.e., the radical refusal to think about God and thus intellectually ascribe everything to a material cause. The West under Liberal Democracy has been guilty of “Hedonistic Materialism”. That is, materialism from the belly button to the feet by which Padre Pio meant the stomach and sex organs, i.e., the failure to think about God because more weight is given to sex, food and material pleasures than to serious philosophical thought and spiritual progress. In other words, although apparently different, Atheistic Communism and Hedonistic Capitalism are two sides of the same coin, viz., the coin of Materialism – Atheistic Materialism and Hedonistic Materialism.

Echoing Padre Pio, Pope John Paul II also pointed out that materialism is the destructive bond common to both Capitalism and Communism:

“While… it is true that this social model (Capitalism) shows the failure of Marxism to contribute to a humane and better society… insofar as it (Capitalism) denies an autonomous existence and value to morality, law, culture and religion, it agrees with Marxism, in the sense that it totally reduces man to the sphere of economics and the satisfaction of material needs” (materialism).^[2]

Thus, when discussing whether or not the Church’s critique of Capitalism was positive or negative, John Paul II stated:

“…if by ‘capitalism’ is meant a system in which freedom in the economic sector is not circumscribed within a strong juridical framework…the core of which is ethical and religious, then the reply is certainly negative.” [3]

What capitalist economy that you know of is regulated by a juridical framework the core of which is “ethical” and “religious” (that is, rooted in divine and natural law)? Market economies would look much different if regulated by the natural precept of justice and the divine precept of charity. Unfortunately, none are, and that is precisely the main economic problem.

“What capitalist economy that you know of is regulated by a
juridical framework the core of which is ‘ethical” and ‘religious'”?

Contrary to free-market ideologues who would have everyone believe that the market is regulated by its own laws (as if God made economic laws just as He made laws of nature such as gravity), the truth is: No such laws exist. The market is not a living organism; it cannot regulate itself. Like everything else entrusted to human ingenuity, the economy is a human construct, the creation of redeemed but fallen human beings who are too often dominated by concupiscence and self-love. If the economy is not regulated by just laws drafted to serve the common good, it will end up serving the individual good of a few contrary to the Trinitarian communal dimension of human existence (the common good). Thus,

“It is the task of the State to provide for the defence and preservation of common goods…, which cannot be safeguarded simply by market forces….The State and all of society have the duty of defending those collective goods”.[4]

The Church, however, looks favorably on market economies when they are properly regulated, that is, when they are circumscribed by laws derived from the precepts of justice and charity and therefore serve both the individual and common good. However, this is rarely the case. Because market economies are too often regulated by laws created by politicians who profit from the market they are supposed to be regulating, the free market as it now exists is proscribed by the Church. A market economy unregulated by the Divine and Natural Law can be “indescribably evil”.

This fact is difficult to accept because most of us have been educated and formed to believe that Capitalism is somehow sacrosanct – few of us have been taught the truth that the Church teaches otherwise. The truth remains hidden for many reasons including the fact that we have a two party system in which we must choose between one of only two political alternatives. The problem is that each contains significant error such that voting in America has become a choice between the lesser of two evils resulting in partial evil no matter which side is chosen.

Because many Catholics place their politics on par with their religion, the church has been rent by political polarization. Most of us find ourselves on one side or the other identifying as Republicans or Democrats and thus divided against our Catholic brothers and sisters when we should be working together to make Lubbock and the world a better place.

“Because many Catholics place their politics on par with their religion,
the church has been rent by political polarization”.

Neither political party is blest with the fullness of Catholic truth – each contains partial half truths. The Republican Party rightly promotes Christian family values, limited government and the dangers of a welfare-state killing individual initiative and impeding the action of intermediary institutions that should act as major players in the realm of social reform. Unfortunately, it also promotes fundamental Christian errors because its basic economic premises are rooted in the promotion of rugged individualism and enlightened self-interest rather than the genuine disinterested service of others, because it mistakes legality for morality (laws rooted in natural and divine law), ignores the precepts of economic justice and of charity mandated by Christ, and fails to recognize the Church as the new Israel.

The Democratic Party promotes social justice, a fair wage, fair lending practices and environmental stewardship, but incorrectly advances illicit ideas about sexuality and the family. In short, it tends to over-stress the social dimensions of human existence to the detriment of individual human initiative thereby creating over-dependence on the state.

Unlike either the Democratic or Republican parties, the Church does not teach partial truths about man and society; she teaches the total truth that is divided between the two parties while avoiding all of their respective errors. These truths rest on seven integrated pillars all included in Catholic Social Teaching: Financial Justice; Economic Justice; Environmental Stewardship; War and International Relations; Abortion and Related Life Issues; Sexuality, Marriage and the Family; Immigration and Racism.

Each party advances some of the above seven while at the same time erring on some of the others, which is one of the primary reasons that the Church refrains from politics: As it now stands, neither party is fully endorsable; both promote some moral good and some moral evil. The problem is that most of us do not get our ideas about politics, economics and the common good from the Church. Instead, we often give more time to Sean Hannity, Rachel Maddow, CNN and Fox News. In the process, we end up becoming mouth pieces for a political platform that is at odds with what the Church teaches while believing ourselves to be fully professing Christians. As a consequence, some of us try to reform the Church according to our political beliefs rather than correct our political ideas based upon what the Church actually teaches.

The truth about man and society articulated by the Church is, like the Divine Persons of the Trinity, one, whole and undivided. Each part is integrally related to every other part; if any part is missing both society and the individual human beings (that together constitute the social body), will suffer. If the individual body is to function properly, every organ and part are needed. Likewise, for the social body to function correctly, the complete truth about man and society must be articulated and applied.

Regarding the body and the way its various parts work together as one, I have had an eye-opening experience serving as a strength and conditioning coach for two national championship football teams: The University of Florida and the University of Notre Dame. At Notre Dame and Florida we produced championship teams (social dimension) because we first produced champion caliber athletes (individual dimension). As experienced athletes and strength and conditioning coaches, we knew the importance of identifying and training all seven physical components of the body (strength, power, muscle endurance, cardiovascular endurance, agility, speed and flexibility).

Although one or two of these physical components are dominant in each sport – regardless of the sport – to produce champions all seven must be trained. A team is only as strong as its weakest link. You can almost always tell an inferior team by the way their athletes are conditioned; some get winded easily; others lack muscle and or cardiovascular endurance, which shows in the fourth quarter; some lack flexibility and are plagued by too many injuries; some are very strong but too slow etc. Rather than making the all too common mistake of over emphasizing one component, such as strength, to the detriment of the other six, we focused simultaneously on all seven and  in the proper balance; we produced champions.

“Rather than making the all too common mistake of over emphasizing one
component, to the detriment of the other six,
we focused on all seven”.

Likewise, no program of social renewal will be successful if it over emphasizes any one of the seven pillars of human life and development while neglecting or damaging the others. An integral Catholic political platform does not weaponize one moral issue, such as protection of the unborn, in order to advance other immoral economic and financial issues that work to the benefit of a few while acting as a detriment to the common good. Catholic Social teaching alone provides a platform that unites all seven pillars. If we continue to let politics divide us, we will fail to accomplish the solidarity necessary to advance a comprehensive Catholic world view, a view that truly benefits the common good while simultaneously benefiting the individual good from which the common good is derived. When Catholics (and Protestants) finally overcome political polarization and join hands in solidarity, we will be the strongest force for good (both individual and common) in Lubbock and in America.

Sanctuary City for the Unborn

On May 1, the City of Lubbock will hold an historic vote to make Lubbock a Sanctuary City for the unborn by outlawing abortion within city limits. This is not a partisan election; moreover, only one life issue is being voted on – the other six are not in play. Because abortion is the only issue being voted on, because this is a non-partisan vote and because the vote is so critical – murder is taking place in Lubbock – we must focus our current efforts on ending abortion.

The Sanctuary City initiative provide us with an unprecedented opportunity to overcome political polarization and work together as one body in Christ to make Lubbock a more Christian city. To do so will require self-scrutiny followed by honest and concerted efforts to erase city lines and political barriers that have polarized us, weakened our voice and nullified our efforts for too long.

The time has come for Lubbock to rise as a Champion of Christ, which requires mending and strengthening His broken and divided body. To be successful in the long-run we must broaden our limited social and political perspectives in light of Catholic Social Teaching.  Nonetheless, we must first learn to cooperate; then after we learn to work together to end abortion in Lubbock, we can proceed to the other six life issues.  Viewing our politics through the broad lens of Catholic Social Teaching will have a revolutionary effect on Lubbock. The process begins by working together and voting for the Ordinance on May 1, 2021. Then, we can proceed to strengthening and conditioning the rest of the body necessary to build a champion.

______________________________________
NOTES:

[1] https://newera.news/intelligence-report-fatima-tradition-family-property-error-on-the-right/

[2] http://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_01051991_centesimus-annus.html

[3] John Paul II also stated: ““The Church…recognizes the positive value of the market and of enterprise, but which at the same time points out that these need to be oriented towards the common good”.

Pope John Paul II Centessimus Annus para 42-43

[4] Centessimus Annus para 40.

New Era World News and Intelligence

POPE FRANCIS IS BEING FALSELY ACCUSED once again.  On August 2, 2018, the pope announced a revision to the Catechism of the Catholic Church regarding the death penalty. Detractors are wrongly claiming that the pope declared the death penalty has ceased to be a valid moral option.  Rather, many report, that Francis stated that the death penalty is “intrinsically evil” and anyone employing it NOW is involved in a sinful act. Life Site News, 1 Peter Five, the Lepanto Institute and other “Catholic News Agencies” continue to paint Pope Francis as a sinister or weak-minded pretender, an “Antipope” who confuses issues thereby introducing moral error and step-by-step leading the Church into apostasy. But do not worry they assure us, there is a “Papal Posse” (led by EWTN’s Raymond Arroyo, the self-appointed sheriff) out to round him up and bring him to trial before he can do any more damage.

The Church does not need supposed Catholic News Agencies to identify the pope’s theological errors because the pope is not guilty of any theological errors. In fact, if such news agencies continue acting as papal judges, they might risk bringing condemnation upon their own heads. They act as though they alone are capable of guiding the flock because they alone are able to “see.”  It would be better for them if they were blind. Then they would at least have a valid excuse, but they claim to see – therefore their guilt remains:

“Jesus said to them: If you were blind, you should not have sin: but now you say: We see. (Therefore) Your sin remaineth” (John 9:41).

The Lord refers to such men as “blind guides” (Matt 23:24) and cautions his humble followers, those who hear His voice (John 10:26-27), to ignore false shepherds who are consciously or unconsciously doing the work of their father, the devil.

“My sheep hear my voice: and I know them, and they follow me. And I give them life everlasting; and they shall not perish” (John 10: 27).

“Why do you not know my speech (Jesus asks)? Because you cannot hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and he stood not in the truth; because truth is not in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof” John 8 42-47).

Jesus speaks in ways that are impossible for false prophets to speak: He is an excuser (Matt 26:28), the devil is an accuser (Rev 12:10). The Pharisees followed and talked like the latter (Mark 2: 15-16). Therefore they failed to heed the Lord’s words, failed to grasp the centrality of Mercy (Matt 9:10-13) and then wrongly accused Jesus of teaching error (John 10:33; Matt 26:59-64). Wise men should think twice before repeating pharisaical accusations against Christ or His Vicar, especially when they should know that Jesus taught Peter that he would be falsely accused, that his accusers would come from his own house, and that the false accusers would be condemned as blind guides. To the extent they are conscious of their malady, the more they are culpable. Nonetheless, in reality (conscious or unconscious) men who falsely cry wolf, as the pharisees did regarding Jesus (Luke 11:16) and as these men are regarding His vicar, men such as these will eventually be devoured by the wolves (Matt 24-21) along with those who have had the great misfortune of listening to and believing them.

No, it is not the pope who is a wolf in sheep’s clothing; it is not the pope who is introducing confusion by twisting texts, employing subtle vocabulary,  introducing foreign teachings; it is not the pope who is stealthily misrepresenting the magisterium.  NO, IT IS NOT THE POPE THAT EMPLOYS THESE METHODS BUT THE ANTI-PAPAL FAKE NEWS MEDIA THAT EMPLOYS THEM TO MISLEAD THEIR UNSUSPECTING “SHEEPLE.” Those eager to trip the pope up either are unaware of, ignore, or overlook their own errors and then in the name of truth, zealously foist error on their readers, such as the errors introduced recently by Life Site News,  One Peter Five, Professor Robert de Mattei of Lepanto Institute (cited by the Remnant) and Dr. Edward Feser:

Life Site judges itself so completely competent that it even dares to call the pope a “heretic”:

“Pope Francis has shown himself to be openly heretical on a point of major importance, teaching a pure and simple novelty” (Kwasniewski Aug 2, 2018).

The only question, according to sources such as these, is if Francis is a formal heretic (a heretic that is aware that what he is teaching is contrary to Catholic doctrine and yet remains pertinacious in his error despite rebuke) or only a material heretic:

“Whether Francis is a formal heretic — and proves pertinacious in maintaining his position in spite of rebuke— is a matter to be adjudicated by the College of Cardinals” (Kwasniewski Aug 2, 2018).

Either way, according to Kwasniewski and the editorial staff at Life Site that approved his blog, Pope Francis is a heretic that must be opposed:

“No doubt exists, however, that orthodox bishops of the Catholic Church must oppose this doctrinal error and refuse to use the altered edition of the Catechism or any catechetical materials based on it.”

Like the others,  Dr. Edward Feser (whom National Review cited as “one of the best contemporary writers on philosophy) does not make necessary and proper distinctions and then proceeds to make egregious mistakes followed by false accusations:

According to Dr. Feser.

“To say, as the pope does, that the death penalty conflicts with ‘the inviolability and dignity of the person’ insinuates that the practice is intrinsically contrary to natural law. And to say, as the pope does, that ‘the light of the Gospel’ rules out capital punishment insinuates that it is intrinsically contrary to Christian morality,

If they took time to carefully analyze the news, and to properly understand the terms employed, the detractors might get it right.  As it is, they consistently get it wrong – and with condemning arrogance. As such, they might be surprised to learn that Pope Francis, like his predecessors, never stated that capital punishment is intrinsically evil nor has he contradicted his predecessors as they falsely claim.  The detractors seem more interested in fighting with a papal straw man (that they can easily knock down in front of an audience of indiscreet admirers) than they do with ascertaining the truth. If they actually possess the intellectual tools needed to critique a pope, they should be able to clarify what the pope actually said; something  they consistently seem unable to do.

Gentlemen, the pope never said that the death penalty is “intrinsically evil”; please stop misrepresenting him.

.

What Exactly did the Pope Say?

According to the Prefect for the Congregation of the Doctrine of Faith, “The Supreme Pontiff Francis, in the audience granted on 11 May 2018 to the undersigned Prefect… has approved the following new draft of no. 2267 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, arranging for it to be translated into various languages and inserted in all the editions of the aforementioned Catechism.”

Flexing his intellectual muscle, Professor Robert de Mattei President of Lepanto Institute stated that, “The lawfulness of the death penalty is a truth de fide tenenda defined by the ordinary and universal Magisterium of the Church, in a constant and unequivocal manner.”  Then, after striking a side-chest pose, he implies that Pope Francis is a heretic:

“Whoever affirms that capital punishment is in itself an evil, falls into heresy (Remnant News).”

To defend his damning claim, he quotes Pope Innocent III (Innocent III, DS 795/425):

“The teaching of the Church was clearly expressed in a letter dated December 18, 1208, in which Innocent III condemned the Waldensian position with these words, reported by Denzinger:

.

‘With regard to the secular power, we affirm that it can exercise a judgment of blood without mortal sin, provided that in carrying out the punishment it proceeds, not out of hatred, but judiciously, not in a precipitous manner, but with caution.’” (Enchiridion symbolorum,definitionum et declaratium de rebus fidei et morum, edited by Peter Hünermann S.J., n. 795).

It is surprising that an esteemed doctor of philosophy could make such a sophomoric mistake, surprising that he could fail to note the fundamental distinction between the Natural Law and the Divine Law and the fact that Francis was not speaking to leaders of the state but to faithful Catholics.  The Pope made it very clear that he was NOT speaking within the context of the Natural Law but within the context of Divine Law, (in the context of the GOSPEL). The Gospel is the GOOD NEWS of salvation, the GOOD NEWS  of MERCY not of judgement.  In the context of Gospel Love and Mercy, sinners are forgiven.

POPE INNOCENT WAS REFERRING TO ROMANS 13 REGARDING THE “BLOODY SWORD” OF JUSTICE WIELDED BY THE EMPEROR. POPE FRANCIS IS SPEAKING OF THE GOSPEL SWORD OF MERCY, THE ONE THAT JESUS TOLD PETER TO “PUT AWAY” (MATT 26:52). They are two very different swords, two very different standards of dealing with sins and crimes.

Pope Innocent was clearly speaking about the authority of the state as derived from the Natural Law as is clear from the use  of the words “judgement” and  “blood”.  Those however who fall under the Divine Law of Love are not judged, instead they plead for mercy and avoid judgment, avoid the bloody sword of justice and death:

“For God so loved the world, as to give his only begotten Son; that whosoever believeth in him, may not perish, but may have life everlasting. For God sent NOT his Son into the world, to judge the world, but that the world may be saved by him. He that believeth in him is NOT judged. But he that doth not believe, is already judged: because he believeth not in the name of the only begotten Son of God(John 3: 16-18)

Natural Law follows the dictates of natural reason culminating in human wisdom and acts of natural justice; Divine Law exceeds the dictates of human reason and is guided by the dictates of supernatural reason culminating in Divine Wisdom perfected by acts of Divine Love. The former is bequeathed by the gift of FAITH in Jesus the WORD of God and in His GOSPEL; the latter in the gift of the Holy Spirit conferred in Baptism and Confirmation. Wisdom (human or Divine) is an intellectual virtue that is not perfected until it reaches its end (unity of lover and beloved) in ACTS of Love.

“For my thoughts (INTELLECT) are not your thoughts: nor your ways (ACTS) my ways, saith the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).

Dr. Feser, quoted above, makes a similar mistake. He stated that Pope Francis “insinuates that the practice (the death penalty) is intrinsically contrary to natural law.” Obviously, the death penalty is NOT contrary to Natural Law (it is not even contrary to the Divine Old Law) but it is contrary to the Gospel of Mercy as Pope Francis correctly teaches. Feser is simply fighting a “straw man” of his own making!

Next, he fails to recognize that the Gospel does in deed rule out the death penalty:

“To say, as the pope does, that ‘the light of the Gospel’ rules out capital punishment insinuates that it is intrinsically contrary to Christian morality,”

Mr. Fesser, Christian morality is rooted in the GOSPEL.  Natural morality though it leads to Christian morality is not the same thing. It is the morality discovered by unaided natural reason known even to the PAGANS (Aristotle) – it is not specifically Christian.  It might be proto-Christian, but it is NOT Christian per-se, in itself, that is substantially. It is merely a human standard, not the Divine standard rooted in Love (1 John 4: 7-8).

At least Mr. Fesser is a reputable philosopher, Life Site consists mainly of untrained laymen most of whom are not even competent to be in the discussion. Thus, Life Site reported that this amendment of the Catechism is “bold” and “reckless” move and that Francis’ pontificate is “out of control.”

“In the boldest and most reckless move to date in a pontificate that was already out of control and sowing confusion on a massive scale, the Vatican has announced Pope Francis’s substitution, in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, of a new doctrine on capital punishment.”

It should be clear who is “reckless” and “out of control.” Francis has not altered the fact that under the Natural Law, the state retains the intrinsic power and authority to impose the death penalty.  As Vicar of Christ, however, he is pointing them to the Gospel and asking, that in its context, heads of state show mercy by not admitting the death penalty into their tribunals. If they fail to do so, judges and heads of state can still impose the death penalty without incurring moral guilt, if they do so correctly; that is, within the confines of natural justice as was always the case. However, by continuing the practice of imposing the death penalty, heads of state are reducing their judgements to the lower moral standard of natural justice.  The pope is appealing for them to raise their hearts and eyes to the realities of the higher GOSPEL STANDARD of Divine Mercy, which is at the heart of his pontificate.

In short, the pope is not a schoolboy to be spanked by a group of neophyte philosophers.  Francis is a well seasoned priest, a man who both knows the principles and has the experience necessary to apply them correctly in widely varying circumstances and in an environment such as the present one, an especial time of supernatural grace in which the King of Kings has pronounced His desire for an Hour of Mercy, an Hour of Mercy before the dread hour of vindictive justice from which no man can escape.  Just about everything that Francis speaks of must be interpreted within the context of Mercy.

“Today I am sending you with My mercy to the people of the whole world. I do not want to punish aching mankind, but I desire to heal it, pressing it to My merciful Heart. I use punishment when they themselves force me to do so; My hand is reluctant to take hold of the sword of justice. Before the Day of Justice, I am sending the Day of Mercy. … I am prolonging the time of mercy for the sake of [sinners].” (Jesus’ message to Saint Faustina; Diary, 1588 and 1160).

Because he is presenting the death penalty in the context of mercy, he is easily misunderstood by those who fail to recognize the context. Thus, Pope Francis never stated that the death penalty is “intrinsically evil” nor did he ever say that it is morally ILLICIT.  What Pope Francis did say is that the death penalty is “INADMISSIBLE.”  When something is inadmissible it implies that it can also at times be admissible. Inadmissible is a procedural not a substantive term – inadmissible is a legal term dealing with procedures that govern evidence, trial protocol, and sentencing etcetera. That is, it has to do with correct procedures employed in a criminal or civil case not with the substantive moral facts of the case. According to Black’s Law Dictionary, inadmissible refers to:

“That which, under the established rules of law, cannot be admitted or received: e. g., parol evidence to contradict a written contract.”

When the pope teaches that the death penalty is inadmissible, a reasonable person might be expected to ask: Where or when is it inadmisible.  The answer: In the Tribunal of Mercy (or in an Eclesial Court – the death penalty has always been inadmissible in Ecclesial Courts). The death penalty is certainly admissible in a Tribunal of Justice (a secular Criminal Court or the Court of the Eternal Judge) in which a person can be found guilty by a temporal judge and sentenced to death. or by the Eternal Judge and sentenced to hell, to what eschatological literature refers to as the “Second DEATH” (Rev. 20: 13-15).  However, the Second Death is not possible for any person judged in the Tribunal of Mercy. Such people will never taste death again! When a person refuses to avail himself of God’s Mercy, he places himself outside the Tribunal of Mercy and is handed over to death which is OUTSIDE the Kingdom of Heaven – Death is not admissible in Heaven.

“Then shall the king say to them that shall be on his right hand: Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess you 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; I was a stranger, and you took me in: Naked, and you covered me: sick, and you visited me: I was in prison, and you came to me…. Then he shall say to them also that shall be on his left hand: Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt 25:34-41).

Instead of saying they were sorry, those sentenced to the Second Death in the above scripture, complained of their innocence.  Thus, instead of mercy and eternal life, they received justice and eternal death, the death penalty. Had they availed themselves of mercy they would have known life because the death penalty is inadmissible in the Tribunal of Mercy!

Detractors, please be very careful, those who clamor for the sword of justice, risk having the death penalty imposed upon themselves:

“JUDGE not, that you may not be judged, For with what judgment you judge, you shall be judged: and with what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you again” (Matt 7:1-2)

The only reason people are sentenced to the “Second Death” is their radical refusal to ask for forgiveness, the radical refusal to say, “sorry.” If they did so, they would find themselves forgiven and inheritors of eternal life. The Lord, Himself, does NOT ADMIT the death penalty into His Tribunal of Mercy – the death penalty is INADMISSIBLE!

Pope Francis is pleading with modern men and women to save their brothers and sisters from the Second Death and showing them how to avoid it themselves.  This is something that the Mother of God also taught at Fatima. She showed Jacinta, Francisco and Lucia a momentary vision of hell to inspire them to save souls from being sentenced to is endless caverns.

“You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in this world devotion to my Immaculate Heart.”

The death penalty is clearly “inadmissible” in a Tribunal of Mercy as Pope Francis correctly teaches.  However, the death penalty is not “intrinsically evil”, nor did Pope Francis ever say that it is.  The death penalty can surely be imposed in a Tribunal of Justice, which is exactly what those risk who clamor that sinners be subjected to justice and who falsely accuse the pope of being a wolf by misrepresenting his words.

It would be better for them to humbly admit their ignorance:

“Jesus said to them: If you were blind, you should not have sin: but now you say: We see. (Therefore) Your sin remaineth” (John 9:41).

l

Newera Global Intelligence Report:

ITALY HAS TAKEN A MAJOR STEP into the future. Governed by a new coalition of two populist parties (“Northern League” and “Five Star”) the beleaguered nation has taken its first major step away from liberalism and EU diktat toward national sovereignty. Following Austria in Central Europe and Poland and Hungary in Eastern Europe, Italy is the first Western European country to elect populist leaders committed to much needed systemic economic, political and cultural change. As such, it did not take long for liberal billionaire financier and philanthropist,George Soros to drum up the his brand of conspiracy theory invoked whenever Christians get elected – Putin did it:

“There is “a strong threat and I’m really worried” says Soros. “There is a close relationship between Matteo Salvini and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin… I do not know if Putin actually finances his party, but Italian public opinion has the right to know if Salvini is in Putin’s pay check.”

Emanuele Fiano, deputy of the ousted Democratic Party,  also weighed in on the debate, telling Radio Cusano Campus listeners that:

“Parliament should have some more certainty about the relations between the League, M5S and Russia.”

Matteo Salvini, head of the newly elected Northern League, strongly denied the allegations:

“I have never received a lira, a euro or a rouble from Russia,”  adding, “I am ashamed that a speculator like him is invited to speak” at the Trento Festival of Economics.”

Soros’ rhetoric is worn and increasingly ineffective; Italy’s problems will not be solved by giving time to his brand of dying liberalism . Italy stands in dire need of an alternative economic plan that could very well emerge throughout the Peninsula. Although the third largest economy in the European Union, and historically a major player in both European and world affairs, Italy is racked with overwhelming economic challenges effecting its current and future stability.  Italian debt is now the second highest in Europe after Greece – it has reached 132% of GDP.

Italy is suffering an economic crisis, a crisis  exacerbated by pressures from foreign powers who have successfully persuaded Italian leaders to curtail trade with Russia, a move supported by the government of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. To compound its trade and debt problems, unemployment has skyrocketed in some areas (primarily in the south) to nearly 30%.

Economic facts such as these help account for the resignation of Prime Minister Renzi  (December 2016) following a Renzi sponsored referendum to reduce the powers of the Senate thereby increasing those of his left-leaning Democratic government by making it easier to enact legislation through the lower Chamber of Deputies without having to face resistance from the various regions represented in the Senate. Italian voters soundly rejected the proposal and then threw their votes to Italy’s two new populist parties, Five Star (M5S) and Lega Nord (Northern League), which emerged as Italy’s two most influential parties following the country’s general election in March, 2018.

Despite their success, neither Lega Nord nor M5S were large enough to form a majority and thus had to look for coalition partners. The Five Star Movement refused to form a coalition with any of its its rivals, but acknowledged that if forced to, it would partner up with the Northern League. Eventually forced, the two combined having well over the 40% threshold needed to govern.

Election Results:

• Five Star Movement 32.22
• Democratic Party 18.9
• Lega 17.69 (Lega was part of the Right-Centre Coalition” [Forza Italia, Fratelli, and Lega Nord] that garnered 37% of the vote)
• Forza Italia 13.94
• Fratelli d’Italia 4.35
• Free and Equal 3.38

Northern League garnered 124 seats in the Chamber of Deputies (lower house) out of a total of 630 and 58 in the Senate out of a total of 315.

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M5S attained 227 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 112 in the Senate.

Together they have

• 351 seats in the Chamber out of 630 and
• 170 seats in the Senate out of 315

Most pundits ruled out or fretted a Five Star-Northern League alliance.  According to the UK Business Insider, such a coalition would be “worst case scenario for markets.” Likewise,  BBC Europe Editor Katya Adler said such an alliance would be the “EU’s nightmare result to come true.”  According to the Guardian,

“Many analysts believed the left-wing of M5S would revolt were there a hookup with the League.”

However, if a coalition had not be formed, Italians would have been forced to vote all over again, in which case both the League and M5S would risk not repeating at the polls. Short of that, there were two options: (1) Form a broad “grand coalition”  of cross spectrum parties or (2) Form a “Euro-skeptic anti-establishment alliance.” Surprisingly, Northern League and Five Star chose the latter option.

League Leader Matteo Salvini approached M5S leader Luigi Di Maio with a deal: Northern League would form a coalition with M5S if League ally Forza Italia, headed by ex-premier Silvio Berlusconi was part of the ruling coalition.

“Di Maio refused the deal, saying Salvini was “choosing restoration instead of revolution” because “Berlusconi represents the past.” He added that his movement was “not interested in remaining stuck or in looking to the past, we want to look to the future.”

To drive the point further, Alessandro Di Battista, a prominent Five Star member, staunchly opposed any alliance with Forza Italia, describing Berlusconi as the “pure evil of our country.“

Finally, on May 13, Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, the two reached a surprising agreement to form a coalition government drafting a contract in which they refer to themselves as “the government of change” (Contratto per il governo del cambiamento).

Who is the Northern League or Lega Nord

Lega Nord represents the underdog that no one took seriously.  According to Politico:

“When Matteo Salvini took over the leadership of the Northern League at the end of 2013, Italian politicians and the media said his job would be to officiate at the party’s funeral. Two years later, it is back from the near dead — and stronger than ever.”

The party’s complete name is Lega Nord per l’Indipendenza della Padania (Northern League for the Independence of Padania). Born as a regional party in wealthy northern Italy, Lega Nord initially campaigned for independence from the poorer south. However, once Salvini assumed the helm, Lega softened its aspirations to succeed from Italy to that of more local or regional autonomy. Realizing the possibility of becoming a national party, it was re branded as Lega or simply League for the 2018 elections during which it focused heavily on the Islamic refugee crisis, the negative effects of the Euro and of continued membership in the European Union. According to Reuters,

“The Northern League…would aim to pull Italy out of the European Union if Brussels refused to re-negotiate fiscal and immigration rules.”

Allied with other European populist parties in the European Parliament, such as Marine Le Pen’s National Front in France, Northern League advocates resumed trade with Russia and returning to EU’s status before the 1992 signing of the Maastricht Treaty (which laid the foundations for a single currency) thereby signaling a move away from the Euro.

In this regard, Salvini recently hosted a Milan Conference for a new group in the European Parliament known as Europe of Nations and Freedom Group (ENF), which includes Marine Le Pen and other Euroskeptic party leaders from throughout the continent. ENF is working to establish a “Europe of free nations in which power is fully returned from the European Union to the voters of sovereign states. The group’s commitments are to sovereignty, democracy, freedom and ending mass immigration so that members may advance their own interests at the domestic level. Along these lines, the League, promotes Italy’s cultural values, supports the traditional family, is opposed to same sex union, globalism, and the spread of liberalism.

In the words of Marine le Pen VP of ENF:

“Each day, the Europe of Brussels unveils its fatal design: deconstructing nations to build a new globalist order, dangerous for the security, prosperity, identity, the very survival of the European peoples.”

 

“Faced with the proponents of federalism, we are the guardians informed of the national spirit and the defenders of the interests of European peoples.”

 

“An opposing force that embodies the patriotic alternative to the globalist Europe, Brussels…”

 

“This pole of resistance, which today unites the elect of eight European nations, pursues a compelling purpose: to free Europe from the chains of servitude…and build a continent of peace and prosperity.”

At the close of the Milan meeting of ENF, Salvini had a photo taken with Le Pen and others containing the caption:

“We will not surrender to the clandestine invasion.”

Whether it was the refugee crisis, the Marine Le Pen bandwagon or what party insiders prefer to call the “Salvini Effect”, the party that sank to an historic low of 4 percent in the 2013 election is now part of the ruling coalition leading Italy into the future.

Following the 2018 elections Salvini exclaimed:

“It’s a fantastic victory which fills us with pride.” He claimed Italian voters had “made a step forward to be free from the cages and ties that are bringing back hunger and insecurity in Europe”.

New Era World News and Global Intelligence

THIS YEAR THE CHURCH IS CELEBRATING the centenary of the appearance of the Mother of God at Fatima, Portugal in 1917. Since that time Fatima has become the world’s most prominent center of Marian devotion, a place that John Paul II referred to as the “Marian capital of the world.”  Our Lady of Fatima precisely foretold the outbreak of World War II, the rise of Communism, the persecution of the Church and the world-wide spread of Communism before the Bolshevik Revolution ever occured, Her other prophecies concerning the conversion of Russia to be correlated with a promised “Era of Peace” are of especial importance since, unlike the former that have already occurred, these prophesied events are in the process of occurring.  Any impartial observer of global events can discern the Hand of God at work in the world as Russia is being converted and the nations of the world are one by one in the process of rejecting global liberalism while many are reasserting their Christian identities (Eastern Europe, Africa, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia France, Austria, Asia, Argentina, Middle East).

As stated, the universal church is in the midst of celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Our Lady’s appearance at Fatima. Perhaps one of the most astounding events of the the centenary is the reconciliation of North and South Korea following a visit of a pilgrim statue of Our Lady of Fatima to the Korean demilitarized zone. Although not reported by any of the mainstream media, on January 11, 2017 Pope Francis conducted a ceremonial blessing of six statues of Our Lady of Fatima to be sent on a world-wide mission of Peace and Reparation to the six populated continents of the world. During the blessing of these pilgrim statues, Pope Francis also renewed his declaration that the Centenary of Fatima be a Jubilee Year, with plenary indulgences available under the normal conditions for those who participate in memorial celebrations, including pilgrimages, public veneration and rosary prayers before any image of Our Lady of Fatima and also for the infirm and elderly who unite their suffering and prayers to those of Jesus (Colossians 1:24).

This video is an essential watch during this 100th Anniversary of Fatima:

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Broiling Problems in Korean Conflict

According to Professor Americo Lopez Ortiz, International President of the World Apostolate of Fatima,

“The Message of Fatima has it all: The doctrinal richness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; its freshness, images, gestures of the primitive Christian catechesis; the calls to penance from Saint John the Baptist, preparing the way for the Redeemer; the strong eschatological accents of Christ before the ruins of Jerusalem (Luke 19:41-44); the didactic force of Jesus’ parables; the simple life of the villagers, their emotional gestures and learned prayers; the prophetic contents of the Book of Revelation with the confrontation between “the Woman clothed with the sun… and the red dragon”; as well as God’s seal with the Miracle of the Sun October 13, 1917 (video 5:32) and the profound spiritual peace found in that holy place where heaven and earth meet for the welfare of humanity.”

Our Lady of Fatima also promised the conversion of Russia and an Era of Peace:

“In the end, My Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to Me, and she will be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world.”

The conversion of Russia and the promised Era of Peace are contingent upon two things:

1. The faithful performance of First Saturday Devotion (see note below), which has called the “hidden part of the Message of Fatima” and
2. The Papal Consecration of Russia to her Immaculate Heart, which was accomplished by Pope John Paul II on March 25, 1984.

Following the 1984 papal consecration, as promised, Communism was toppled, the Solidarity movement gained momentum in Poland, the Berlin wall came down and one after another the nations behind the “Iron Curtain” were given political and then religious freedom – Russia is being converted as Our Lady of Fatima promised.

Communism, however, continues to influence North Korea. Its influence was manifest in 1950 when Communist Soviet and Chinese leaders supported North Korea’s invasion of South Korea. Within two years, United States led UN forces suffered horrendous casualties: 93,000 prisoners of war, 118,000 dead and another 265,000 wounded; by the time UN troops withdrew, over 3,000,000 men had died on the battlefield. After the fighting ceased, Korea became a pivotal state in the global cold-war fought between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR). Americans lined up behind South Korea while North Korea became a proxy of the USSR.

The cold-war conflict in the Korean peninsula has been exacerbated by another little recognized fact:  The war never officially ended; a final peace treaty has never been achieved.  Instead, facilitated by the United Nations,  North Korea and South Korea agreed to an armistice, which was signed by representatives of the three parties on July 27, 1953. Since that time, the US has maintained a significant troop presence and, along with South Korea, has manned what has become known as the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).  The DMZ is a 2.5 miles wide and 160 miles long area that divides the Korean Peninsula in half.  Although referred to as a demilitarized zone, a large contingent of troops are amassed along each side of the line within 2.5 miles of each other. The conflicting zones are surrounded by barbed wires, fortified by walls and protected by mines.

From its inception until the year 2000, over 50 US soldiers, 500 South Korean soldiers, and 250 soldiers from North Korea have been killed along the DMZ. Both sides have violated the territorial integrity of the other: South Korea has discovered four tunnels crossing the DMZ that have been dug by North Korea. In 1976, William Clements, the US Deputy Secretary of Defense reported to US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, that South Korea had conducted 200 raids into North Korea from the South.

As stated above, the war between North and South Korea never formally ended. Instead, it has been the front of a Cold War that is recently growing hot. In September, 2017, North Korea launched a ballistic missile over northern Japan thereby triggering a widespread emergency alert across that island nation. Nikki Haley, US Ambassador to the United Nations, then warned North Korea to relinquish its nuclear weapons programmes, emphasizing that the regime faces “destruction” if it continues its threatening behaviour and forces the US to defend its allies.

“If North Korea keeps on with this reckless behavior, if the United States has to defend itself or defend its allies in any way, North Korea will be destroyed” (Washington Post).

President Trump then referred to North Korean President Kim Jong Un as “Rocket Man“. The President of North Korea, however, could not humble himself to be upstaged; Kin Jong fired back:

“Action is the best option in treating the dotard who, hard of hearing, is uttering only what he wants to say” (BBC News).

He ended his analysis of President Trump and summarized his intentions toward him:

“I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged US dotard with fire.”

A stated above, the definitive Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary has two requirements.  The pope has fulfilled his requirement. However, the other part, the part concerning First Saturday Devotion, requires the participation of the lay faithful. Prof. Ortiz has referred to First Saturday Devotion as the “forgotten part of the Message of Fatima”

“The forgotten part of the Message of Fatima”, that is, the Eucharistic and Marian reparatory practice of the First Saturdays Devotion, (is)  the missing link needed to pass from one stage of the Message of Fatima to the next and definitive one, making possible the announced Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”

Neither God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, nor the pope, are expected to bring about an Era of Peace all by themselves.  Jesus will not build His Kingdom by Himself. He expects His people to participate – to be co-creators of His kingdom (Ephesians 4: 11-12; 1 Corinthians 12: 24-26;  Matt 28: 18-20; Matt 24:14).  Likewise, from the beginning of the Fatima Message, the Virgin Mary has asked for the participation of the Church, both the pope and all the faithful.

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She both commissioned the pope to make the consecration of Russia, and asked the rest of her children to participate by engaging in First Saturday Devotions, by praying the rosary, wearing the brown scapular, making reparation (especially Eucharistic Reparation) and offering sacrifices united to those of Jesus for the “conversion of poor sinners.”

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Eyes have been so focused on what the pope was supposed to do that the people of God forgot what they were supposed to do. Thus, Profesor Ortiz refers to First Saturday Devotion as the “forgotten part of the Message of Fatima.” The pope did his part, and the effects are clearly manifest.  The more that the people of God do theirs, the more quickly the full effect of the promised Triumph of the Immaculate Heart will be felt.

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Pilgrim Statue Comes to Korea on Peace Mission

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The 100th Anniversary of Our Lady’s appearance at Fatima is also the 50th Golden Jubilee of the World Apostolate of Fatima’s appearance in Korea. Korea is among the fastest growing Catholic nations in the world. It is a land soaked with the blood of Catholic martyrs, over 8,000 along with 103 saints whom Pope John Paul II canonized in 1984.  Thirty years later, before a throng of 800,000 Koreans, Pope Francis beatified 123 more. Korea thus exalts in having the fourth largest number of saints of any country in the world.  Because the martyrs are also viewed as patriots liberating Korea from injustice, Francis beatified them on Korea’s National Holiday celebrating its liberation.

Three years following his pastoral visit to Korea, Pope Francis commissioned one of the six Fatima statues he blest for the Fatima Centenary to tour Asia. The statue began its Asian journey in January by traveling to Hong Kong; it then proceeded to Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines.  It arrived  in Korea on May 17, 2017. Our Lady was greeted by an enthusiastic crowd at the Jesuit Sogang University. Then on June 5, after touring the country, she proceeded to the Demilitarized Zone.  Rather that write about the events, I prefer and request that you watch the embedded video.  Please do not stop at the 4:00 mark but continue to the end.

Leaders of North and South Korea Proclaim They are Ushering in an “Era of Peace” (5:56 in Video):

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Korea Today

Today, roughly one third of Korea is Christian. The Catholic church is booming. Between 1997 and 2007, it increased its membership by a phenomenal 70%.

“‘Over the past ten years, the Catholic Church in Korea has gone from three to five million faithful’. Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, archbishop of Seoul, has said in an interview. The Catholic Church in South Korea is the one that is growing most vigorously in Asia.”

But, according to the New York Times, “Not everyone in South Korea welcomed the pope” or is happy about the exponential growth of the Catholic Church:

“And it is not Buddhists or Confucians  (the country’s two major non-Christian religious groups) who publicly expressed unhappiness with his visit, but members of Protestant groups who fear Catholic encroachment in a country where Christians make up 29 percent of the population.”

A  fundamentalist pastor named Rev. Song Choon-gil,  could not restrain his dispensational and apocalyptic anti-Catholicism:

“The enemy king has appeared at the center of our nation!”, (he) shouted during a rally of hundreds of Protestants who gathered a few blocks from the papal Mass on Saturday. Accompanied by a band, the evangelical Protestants sang hymns and danced, shouting that they were sounding “the trumpets of spiritual war” against the “idol worship” and “satanic forces” they said Roman Catholicism represents” (New York Times).

In addition to, and perhaps related to, these troubles, Jeong Se Hyun, South Korea’s unification minister from 2002 to 2004 and a former envoy to North Korea stated that:

“In order for the peace treaty (signed by the two Korean leaders) to be an effective safeguard that can prevent U.S. military action against North Korea, there needs to be more than a two-party deal….China needs to be a signatory, in addition to the United States, South Korea, and North Korea,”

Peace is a very real possibility, but will the Neocon warhawks in the Trump administration, the deep-state bureaucrats and pro-Zionist Christian Fundamentalists (the vocal core of Trump’s Christian supporters) support a Peace Treaty that is intended to initiate a “New Era of Peace“?

Our Lord and Our Lady want peace, but dispensational fundamentalist preachers in Korea (as throughout Latin America), along with the warmongers of the world, are intent to spread their rapidly fading tide of neoliberalism. They want to hold onto their solipsistic money machine.  They seem to prefer the Gospel of Prosperity to the Gospel of Jesus Christ who commanded his followers to love all men and to lay down their lives for each other; they seem to forget or ignore the fact that Jesus was born into poverty and died naked on the Cross, and that He preached that it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Mark 10:25). Francis, who has criticized capitalism and alluded to it as the “dung of the devil,” is clearly not to their liking. Speaking in Bolivia, the pontiff said:

“There is the stench of what Basil of Caesarea called ‘the dung of the devil’. An unfettered pursuit of money rules. The service of the common good is left behind. Once capital becomes an idol and guides people’s decisions, once greed for money presides over the entire socioeconomic system, it ruins society, it condemns and enslaves men and women, it destroys human fraternity, it sets people against one another and, as we clearly see, it even puts at risk our common home.”

Francis might not be the friend of neoliberalism and warmongers who support it, but the important thing is that he is the friend of Jesus and His mother, the Virgin Mary.

As indicated in article after article during this 100th Year anniversary of Fatima: Liberalism is failing. First challenged in Eastern Europe, the challenge is spreading to Western Europe and rapidly taking root in Africa and Latin America as well.  The peace process has now reached the Christian blood-stained Korean Peninsula. However, just last week, National Security Advisor Robert Bolton in an interview with FOX News, stated that the US has not made any commitment to remove its military presence from the Korean peninsula.

“There’s nobody in the Trump administration who’s starry-eyed about what’s happening here (in Korea).”

Men and women who want peace are anathema to those who want war.  Being anathema, the warmongers can’t stand looking at the peace advocates, especially if they carry a rosary. If so, they certainly have disdain for the Mother of God, the “Queen of Peace” who has been decreed by the Holy Trinity to bring and an end to war, to usher in an Era of Peace and triumph over the world’s greatest warmonger:

“And the Lord God said to the serpent: Because thou hast done this thing, thou art cursed among all cattle, and the beasts of the earth: upon thy breast shalt thou go, and earth shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.”

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“I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel” (Genesis 3:15).

The enmity between Satan and the Woman was decreed at the beginning of time (Genesis). It is to be fulfilled at the end:

“A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars” (Revelation 12:1).

NSA Bolton does not see any stars in Korea – “no one” he says, “is starry-eyed about what’s happening” in Korea. Neoliberal warhawks are apparently not looking in the Virgin Mary’s direction. The stars that grace her crown are not hard to miss.

North Korea and South Korea’s Nine-Point Reconciliation Plan:

• Declaring the Korean War over
• Setting denuclearization as a common goal
• Hosting President Moon in North Korea’s capital by year’s end
• Ending hostilities on land, air and water
• Stopping propaganda broadcasts
• Establishing a joint liaison office
• Holding reunions of families separated by the Korean War in August
• Reconnecting an inter-Korean railroad; and
• Participating in the 2018 Asian Games together

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__________________

NOTE:

“The First Saturday’s Devotion in reparation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is a devotional practice that includes sacramental reception of Confession (at least one per month), Holy Communion on Five Consecutive First Saturdays of the month; meditation of the Holy Rosary, including 15 minutes reflecting on its Mysteries, to accompany Mother Mary in her solitude, with the intention of reparation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”

“The Apparitions began on December 10, 1925 while Sister Lucia was at the Dorothean Convent in Pontevedra. Our Lady of Fatima in the company of the Sacred Heart of Infant Jesus appeared to her while the Child Jesus said to Lucia: “Have compassion on the Heart of your most holy Mother, covered with thorns, with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, and there is no one to make an act of reparation to remove them.”  

“Then, the Most Holy Virgin said: “Look, my daughter, at my Heart, surrounded with thorns with which ungrateful men pierce me at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You at least try to console me and say that I promise to assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation, all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, shall confess, receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the Rosary, and keep me company for fifteen minutes while meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me”  (Quoted from Americo Lopez Ortiz).