02-The Sea Beast
Good evening everyone!
Greetings again to our audio and YouTube listeners!
Scripture
Last week in our introductory overview of How Mary
helps us understand the Book of Revelation, I showed that Mary gave Father
Gobbi, in great detail an explanation of the meaning of the first four of the
“seven signs.” Last week we began to talk a look at the second signs, the Red
Dragon, which she identified as atheistic communism and which Scripture
identifies as Satan. She’s not contradicting scripture, but saying that Satan
is the driving inspiration beyond communism because it’s atheistic, anti-God. Mary
said the dragon was red because it was a bloody murderer. Jesus called Satan “a
murderer from the beginning” [Jn 8:44]. And we know that the regimes of Lenin,
Stalin and Mao Tse Tung shed the blood of hundreds of thousands, even millions
of people, and who can count the victims of communism in other countries?
As I showed in the diagram, the seven signs form the
central column, the supporting structure of this book, so of course we’ll be
talking about these signs often as we move along. Today I’d like to introduce,
and take a close look at the next sign, the beast which comes up from the sea.
Let’s read straight from the Word of God:
And I beheld rising out of the
sea a beast which had ten horns and seven heads, and upon its horns ten diadems,
and upon its heads blasphemous names. And the beast which I saw
was like to a leopard, and its feet were as those of a bear, and its
mouth was as the mouth of a lion.
And the dragon gave it his might
and his throne, and great power. One of its heads was as
it were wounded unto death; but its deadly wound was healed. And the
whole earth followed the beast, wondering; and men worshiped the dragon,
because he had given authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast,
saying: ‘Who is like to the beast, and who can battle with it?’ And there was
given to it a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and there was given
to it power to work during forty-two months. And it opened its mouth in
blasphemy toward God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, and those
tabernacling in heaven.
And it was given to it to make
war with the saints and to conquer them; and there was given to it power over
every tribe and people and tongue and nation. And all that dwell upon the earth
shall adore it, every one whose name is not written in the book of life of the
Lamb that was sacrificed from the foundation of the world.
Rev 13:1-9
Does Scripture mention this Sea Beast again?
This beast is like the dragon in that it has seven heads
and ten horns. But this Sea Beast has one head that was wounded. The Greek can
also read, the “first head” was wounded, as if it’s a representative head for
the seven. Later on, we run into a seven-headed beast which was also wounded.
Chapter 17 begins:
Come, I will show you the judgment of the great
harlot who is seated upon many waters, . . . and I saw a woman sitting on a
scarlet beast which was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and
ten horns. . . . [The angel explains to John:] “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is to come up from the abyss .
. . the dwellers on earth . . . will marvel to behold the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.”
We’ll be told that the next beast is the Land Beast.
Further down in Chapter 13 we read:
it makes the earth and all the dwellers therein to
adore the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
. . . It bade the dwellers upon the earth to make an image of the beast which had the wound of the sword, and yet is alive.
Mary will give us a clue to understand what is meant by
the mortal wound which gets healed, causing a virtual resurrection of the dead.
The Sea is identified with the Nations
Before we read what Mary says about the Sea Beast,
let’s consider the attitude of the Israelites toward the sea. The Israelites
had no seaport. They were not swimmers. 2 Macc 12:1-4 reports an incident of
two-hundred men, women and children being tricked by an invitation, during
peacetime with the city of Joppa, to a boat ride on the Mediterranean, then
their hosts threw them into the sea and they all drowned. Many OT references to
the sea are pejorative. The Land was Holy, but the sea was the place where
monsters dwelt like Leviathan. Even the crossing of the Red Sea was regarded as
an event when God killed the monsters.
You divided the sea by your
strength; You broke the heads of the sea monsters in the waters.
Ps 74:13
The Book of Revelation tells us up front:
The waters that you saw, where
the harlot is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.
Rev 17:15
Holy Land (Earth) vs. Pagan Nations. It’s a symbol that
makes sense
–Jesus taught by the sea, calling his
apostles to fish for men throughout the whole world.
–The Dragon stands by the Seashore. The
shifting sand represents instability, contrasted with the land.
–We often hear about the roar of many
waters; the sea is noisy.
The Sea is also identified with the Abyss
From the earlier-mentioned passages of the Book of
Revelation, the same mortally wounded beast is described in one chapter as
coming up from the sea, and in another chapter as coming up from the abyss. The
English word is straight from the Greek abussos,
meaning boundless, bottomless. Chapter 20 tells us that abyss is the dwelling
place of Satan:
And I beheld an angel coming down
from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the abyss, and a great chain. And
he seized the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and
bound him for a thousand years, and cast him into the abyss.
Rev 20:1-2
The Greek Old Testament, the Septuagint, identifies abussos with the sea. Jonah falling into the mouth
of the whale (a sea monster) cries out:
The waters compassed me about . .
. the abyss closed me round about, the sea (or
seaweeds) covered my head.
Jon 2:5
The Book of Revelation takes it a step further to
identify the sea with the abyss, and then the abyss with the abode of Satan,
evidently hell. But this is not to equate the pagan nations with hell. If Satan
can be identified with communism, then the Sea Beast can represent a nation, or
particular ideology that is inspired by hell.
What Does Mary say about the Sea Beast?
So, from Scripture we’ve got a hellish nation or
ideology which had a life for a while, then was slain by the sword, then comes
back to life. If it’s a nation, then the sword can be a military defeat. If
it’s an ideology then it was slain by the sword of the Spirit, which Paul says
is the word of God [Eph 6:17] and the author of the Letter of the Hebrews says
is sharper than any two-edged
sword . . . discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Heb 4:12
The Mother of God has quite a bit to say about this
beast. Well quote slowly from Message 405. She delivered this message in Milan,
Italy on June 3, 1989, not only the First Saturday of the month, but the Feast
of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, thus giving the message special importance.
Milan has been the home of a Masonic lodge since 1756.
405b–In
these times of the apostasy, of the purification and of the great tribulation,
my Immaculate Heart is the only refuge and the way which leads you to the God
of salvation and of peace. Above all, my Immaculate Heart becomes today the
sign of my sure victory, in the great struggle which is being fought out
between the followers of the huge Red Dragon and the followers of the Woman
Clothed with the Sun.
405c–In
this terrible struggle, there comes up from the sea, to the aid of the Dragon,
a beast like a leopard.
To the Priests, Our Lady’s Beloved Sons.
Freemasonry aids Atheism by blasphemy
405d–If
the Red Dragon is Marxist atheism, the black beast is Freemasonry. The Dragon
manifests himself in the force of his power; the black beast on the other hand
acts in the shadow, keeps out of sight and hides himself in such a way as to
enter in everywhere. He has the claws of a bear and the mouth of a lion,
because he works everywhere with cunning and with the means of social
communication, that is to say, through propaganda.
405h–The
task of the black beast, namely of Masonry, is that of fighting, in a subtle
way, but tenaciously, to obstruct souls from traveling along this way, pointed
out by the Father and the Son and lighted up by the gifts of the Spirit. In
fact, if the Red Dragon works to bring all humanity to do without God, to the
denial of God, and therefore spreads the error of atheism, the aim of Masonry
is not to deny God, but to blaspheme Him. The beast opens his mouth to utter
blasphemies against God, to blaspheme his name and his dwelling place, and
against all those who dwell in heaven. The greatest blasphemy is that of
denying the worship due to God alone by giving it to creatures and to Satan
himself This is why in these times, behind the perverse action of Freemasonry,
there are being spread everywhere black masses and the satanic cult. Moreover,
Masonry acts, by every means, to prevent souls from being saved and thus it
endeavors to bring to nothing the redemption accomplished by Christ.
To the Priests, Our Lady’s Beloved Sons.
Ten crowned horns are loud calls to disobey the ten
commandments
405e–This
black beast has ten horns and, on the horns, ten crowns, which are signs of
dominion and royalty. Masonry rules and governs throughout the whole world by
means of the ten horns. The horn, in the biblical world, has always been an
instrument of amplification, a way of making one’s voice better heard, a strong
means of communication.
405f–For
this reason, God communicated his will to his people by means of ten horns
which made his law known: the ten commandments. The one who accepts them and
observes them walks in life along the road of the divine will, of joy and of
peace. The one who does the will of the Father accepts the word of his Son and
shares in the redemption accomplished by Him. Jesus gives to souls the very
divine life, through grace, that He won for us through his sacrifice carried
out on Calvary.
1st anti-commandment = to adore false idols
405j–To
the commandment of the Lord: ‘You shall not have any other God but me,’ it
builds other false idols, before which many today prostrate themselves in
adoration.
2nd anti-commandment = to blaspheme the Holy Name
405k–To
the commandment: ‘You shall not take the name of God in vain,’ it sets itself
up in opposition by blaspheming God and his Christ, in many subtle and
diabolical ways, even to reducing his Name indecorously to the level of a
brand-name of an object of sale and of producing sacrilegious films concerning
his life and his divine Person.
3rd anti-commandment = to spend the Sabbath in sports and
entertainment
405l–To
the commandment: ‘Remember to keep holy the Sabbath Days,’ it transforms the
Sunday into a weekend, into a day of sports, of competitions and of
entertainments.
4th anti-commandment = redefining family life, homosexuality
405m–To
the commandment: ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ it opposes a new model of
family based on cohabitation, even between homosexuals.
5th anti-commandment = homosexuality, etc.
405n–To
the commandment: ‘You shall not commit impure acts,’ it justifies, exalts and
propagates every form of impurity, even to the justification of acts against
nature.
6th anti-commandment = abortion
405o–To
the commandment: ‘You shall not kill,’ it has succeeded in making abortion
legal everywhere, in making euthanasia acceptable, and in causing respect due
to the value of human life all but disappear.
7th anti-commandment = theft
405p–To
the commandment: ‘You shall not steal,’ it works to the end that theft,
violence, kidnapping and robbery spread more and more.
8th anti-commandment = lies
405q–To
the commandment: ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ it acts in such a way that
the law of deceit, lying and duplicity becomes more and more propagated.
9th anti-commandment = coveting of goods, corrupt conscience
405r–To
the commandment: ‘You shall not covet the goods and the wife of another,’ it
works to corrupt in the depths of the conscience, betraying the mind and the
heart of man.
10th anti-commandment = coveting of neighbor’s wife, betrayal
of the heart
405r–To
the commandment: ‘You shall not covet the goods and the wife of another,’ it
works to corrupt in the depths of the conscience, betraying the mind and the
heart of man.
To the Priests, Our Lady’s Beloved Sons.
Seven heads are Masonic lodges and Seven Capital Sins
405d–The
seven heads indicate the various Masonic lodges, which act everywhere in a
subtle and dangerous way.
405g–The
grace of the redemption is communicated by means of the seven sacraments. With
grace there becomes implanted in the soul the seeds of supernatural life which
are the virtues. Among these, the most important are the three theological and
the four cardinal virtues: faith, hope, charity, prudence, fortitude, justice
and temperance. In the divine sun of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, these
virtues germinate, grow, become more and more developed and thus lead the soul
along the luminous way of love and of sanctity.
405t–To
the seven theological and cardinal virtues, which are the fruit of living in
the grace of God, Freemasonry counters with the diffusion of the seven capital
vices, which are the fruit of living habitually in the state of sin. To faith
it opposes pride; to hope, lust; to charity, avarice; to prudence, anger; to
fortitude, sloth; to justice, envy; to temperance, gluttony.
405u–Whoever
becomes a victim of the seven capital vices is gradually led to take away the
worship that is due to God alone, in order to give it to false divinities, who
are the very personification of all these vices. And in this consists the
greatest and most horrible blasphemy. This is why on every head of the beast
there is written a blasphemous name. Each Masonic lodge has the task of making
a different divinity adored.
Pride
405v–The
first head bears the blasphemous name of pride, which opposes itself to the
virtue of faith, and leads one to offer worship to the god of human reason and
haughtiness, of technology and progress.
Lust
405w–The
second head bears the blasphemous name of lust, which opposes itself to the
virtue of hope, and brings one to offer worship to the god of sexuality and of
impurity.
Greed
405x–The
third head bears the blasphemous name of avarice, which opposes itself to the
virtue of charity, and spreads everywhere the worship of the god of money.
Anger
405y–The
fourth head bears the blasphemous name of anger, which opposes itself to the
virtue of prudence, and leads one to offer worship to the god of discord and
division.
Sloth
405z–The
fifth head bears the blasphemous name of sloth, which opposes itself to the
virtue of fortitude, and disseminates the worship of the idol of fear of public
opinion and of exploitation.
Envy
405A–The
sixth head bears the blasphemous name of envy, which opposes itself to the
virtue of justice, and leads one to offer worship to the idol of violence and
of war.
Gluttony
405B–The
seventh head bears the blasphemous name of gluttony, which opposes itself to
the virtue of temperance, and leads one to offer worship to the so highly
extolled idol of hedonism, of materialism and of pleasure.
To the Priests, Our Lady’s Beloved Sons.
The Beast which had the Wound of the Sword, and yet is
Alive!
Eight Popes have condemned Masonry since 1738 beginning
with Pope Clement XII less than twenty years after the founding of the first
Lodge. Catholics who join the Masonic sect were automatically excommunicated, a
drastic penalty but its object was to cure the offenders and bring them back to
the Church, and to prevent innocent Catholics from joining the local lodges as
if they were an innocent fraternity. Quoting an old document:
Masonry
constitutes a religion of naturalism which considers the basic Christian
doctrines of the Trinity, the Incarnation, the Atonement, the necessity of
baptism, and the role of the Church in the plan of salvation to be quite
incidental. The lodge furthermore exacts a series of oaths from its candidates,
agreeing to the most horrible self-mutilation in order to protect a few passwords
and secret grips, thus objectively guilty of either vain or rash swearing. Most
importantly, the Masonic order has historically sought to destroy the Catholic
Church and to substitute a purely secular society.
In a reply to an encyclical from Pope Leo XII, Albert
Pike boasted:
But it’s the
crowning glory of Freemasonry that, requiring only that a Candidate shall
believe and put his trust in a living and personal God, a beneficent and
protecting Providence, to whom it is not folly to pray; and shall believe in
the continued existence of the Soul of man after the death of the body, it
receives into its Lodges the Christian of every sect, the Hebrew, the Moslem
and the Parsee, and unites them in the holy bonds of brotherhood.
Albert Pike
So, the Sea Beast was definitely wounded with the sword
[of the spirit], and any Catholic who joined was considered dead in sin. But
uncertainty reigned during the Second Vatican Council, causing many Catholics
to think that all was well with the Lodge.
Throughout the jubilee of 1966, Pope Paul VI granted
every confessor the faculty to absolve censures and penalties of the 1917 Code
when Canon 2335 was incurred by penitents who [formally had to agree] to
completely separate themselves from Masonic association and promise to repair
and prevent, as far as possible, any scandal and damage they caused.
In early 1968, rumors circulated that Vatican sources
were reported as saying that Catholics are now free to join the Masons in the
United States, Britain and most other countries of the world–but not the
European Grand Orient Lodge of Masons of Italy and France, still considered
anti-Catholic. Other rumors said that “the Congregation for the Doctrine of the
Faith ‘let it be known that Catholics joining the Freemasons are no longer
automatically excommunicated.’ More rumors promised that the wording of the New
Code of Canon Law would be changed to modify the Church’s position when the new
Code of Canon Law was completed.”
Rumors seemed to be ratified when the Catholic Church
officially replaced the 1917 Code of Canon Law with the present 1983 Code. In
the new Code, canon 1374 does not name any groups it condemns; it stipulates
that the Catholic who joins “such an association” should be justly punished,
while the one who promotes or is the leader of such an association should be interdicted.
The new canon does not mention specific sects, as did the previous canon, thus
raising doubts, especially about the attitude of the Church toward Masons.
This omission led many Catholics and Freemasons,
especially in America, to believe that the ban on Catholics had changed, and
likewise caused confusion in the Church’s hierarchy. Many Catholics justified
joining by their conviction that Freemasonry does not plot against the Church.
Killed by the sword again? Yes and no. In 1983, Pope
John Paul II, issued a Declaration on Masonic
Associations, which reiterated the Church’s objections to Freemasonry.
The 1983 declaration states:
the faithful
who enroll in Masonic associations are in a state of grave sin and may not
receive Holy Communion. . . . the Church’s negative judgment in regard to
Masonic association(s) remains unchanged since their principles have always
been considered irreconcilable with the doctrine of the Church and therefore
membership in them remains forbidden. And no individual bishop or bishops’
conferences has the power to permit Catholics to belong to masonic lodges.
Declaration
on Masonic Associations, Pope John Paul II, 1983
But in 2000, David Patterson, executive secretary of
the Masonic Service Bureau of Los Angeles, asked Cardinal Roger Mahony whether
a practicing Catholic may join a Masonic Lodge.
Father Thomas
Anslow, Judicial Vicar of the Archdiocese, replied to Patterson that “the
matter is too complex for a straightforward ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer. But at least
for Catholics in the United States, I believe the answer is probably yes.”
David
Patterson, executive secretary of the Masonic Service Bureau of Los Angeles,
2000
I’ll quote now from Masonry
Unmasked, by John Salza 2006 p. 187ff:
Freemasonry has
not been bashful about its goal of achieving a New World Order governed by
Masonic principles. The New Age has said that
Freemasonry is “the missionary of the new order–a Liberal order.” [“New Age, Dr. James D. Carter, Why Stand Ye Here Idle? (March 1959), 155] . . . a
new societal order, one devoid of Christ and his Church. “Masonry will
eventually rule the world,” and the brethren are to pray for the “universal
dominion of the true principles of Masonry.”
Masonry’s voice
for secularization primarily came through its periodical New Age, a magazine published by the Scottish Rite
of the Southern jurisdiction. (In 1990, the Scottish Rite changed the name of
its magazine to the Scottish Rite Journal to
avoid unwanted publicity about its New Age ideologies).
. . . “The
majority of Masons are sadly lacking in the knowledge of the height, breadth
and depth of Masonic teachings as contained in the meanings of the many symbols
of Masonry.”
In 1920, the
Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite developed a comprehensive education plan
that required sending all children to public schools for a certain number of
years. . . .
The Scottish
Rite membership included many Supreme Court justices, U.S. presidents, and
other high government officials,
The New Age also did not hide its antipathy toward the
Catholic Church.
The 30th degree
of the Southern Jurisdiction denounces the Pope while participants perform the
sacrilege of stabbing a skull adorned with the “tiara of the cruel and cowardly
Pontiff,” while the candidate exclaims, “Down with imposture! Down with crime!”
The degree concludes with the participants stomping on the papal crown.
It also said
that Catholicism, not communism or socialism, was the real threat to society
The bishops
listed twelve areas of Masonic teaching that are irreconcilable with Catholic
faith: [4 Cf Ronny E. Jenkins, “The Evolution of the
Church’s Prohibition against Catholic Membership in Freemasonry,” The
Jurist (Summer 1997), 741-43]
1. The Masonic world-view. Masons promote freedom from
dogmatic adherence to any specific set of revealed truths.
2. The Masonic notion of truth. Masons deny the
possibility of objective truth.
3. The Masonic notion of religion. Masonic teaching
propounds the notion that religions are all concurrently seeking the truth of
the Absolute.
4. The Masonic notion of God. The Masons’ deistic
notion of God excludes any personal knowledge of the deity.
5. The Masonic notion of God and revelation. The
deistic notion of God precludes the possibility of God’s self-revelation to
mankind.
6. Masonic toleration. The Masons promote a principle
of toleration regarding ideas. Such a principle threatens not only the Catholic
position, which holds for objective truth, but also the respect due to the
Church’s teaching office.
7. Masonic rituals. The rituals of the first three
Masonic degrees exhibit a clear sacramental character, indicating that a
significant transformation is undergone by those who participate in them.
8. The perfectibility of humankind. Masonic rituals
have as an end the perfection of humankind. Masonry claims to provide all that
is necessary to achieve this goal. Thus, the justification of a person through
the work of Christ has no part in the struggle for perfection.
9. Masonic spirituality. Masonry makes a total claim on
the life of its members. True adherence to the Christian faith is thereby
jeopardized by the primary loyalty demanded by the Masonic Order.
10. Divisions within Masonry. Freemasonry is composed of
lodges with varying degrees of adherence to Christian teaching. But even those
lodges made up of Christian members seek to adapt Christianity to the Masonic
world-view.
Masonry
Unmasked, by John Salza 2006 p. 187ff
The Catholic Church is not the only church to oppose
the Lodge. Whalen’s report to the U.S. bishops provides a list:
Other groups
hostile to lodge membership include many branches of Lutheranism, the Christian
Reformed Church, most Pentecostals, the Church of the Nazarene, the Seventh day
Adventists, the Holiness churches, the Quakers, the United Brethren in Christ,
the Mennonites, the Free Methodists, the Church of the Brethren, the Assemblies
of God, the Wesleyans, the Regular Baptists, the Salvation Army and significant
minorities in such mainline churches as the Episcopal. Jehovah’s Witnesses and
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [Mormons] also oppose Masonry.’
“The
Pastoral Problem of Masonic Membership,” Origins, 15/6 (June 27, 1985), 90.
James B. Earley,
chancellor for the Diocese of Scranton, provided a similar list in his 1998
notice on Freemasonry.
War
And it was given to it to make
war with the saints and to conquer them
Rev 13:7
405A–The
sixth head bears the blasphemous name of envy, which opposes itself to the
virtue of justice, and leads one to offer worship to the idol of violence and
of war.
To the Priests, Our Lady’s Beloved Sons.
Albert Pike’s Amazing Predictions of Three World Wars
Albert Pike was a 33rd degree Mason, was one of the
founding fathers, and head of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite of
Freemasonry. He died in 1891. In 1869, he was a top leader in the Knights of
the Ku Klux Klan. He received a vision, which he described in a letter that he
wrote to Mazzini, dated August 15, 1871. This letter graphically outlined plans
for three world wars that were seen as necessary to bring about the One World
Order, and we can marvel at how accurately it has predicted events that have
already taken place. To date, no conclusive proof exists to show that this letter
was ever written. Nevertheless, the letter is widely quoted and the topic of
much discussion. Following are apparently extracts of the letter, showing how
Three World Wars have been planned for many generations.
The First World War must be brought about in order
to permit the Illuminati to overthrow the power of the Czars in Russia and of
making that country a fortress of atheistic Communism. The divergences caused
by the “agentur” (agents) of the Illuminati
between the British and Germanic Empires will be used to foment this war. At
the end of the war, Communism will be built and used in order to destroy the
other governments and in order to weaken the religions.”
Students of history will recognize that the political
alliances of England on one side and Germany on the other, forged between 1871
and 1898 by Otto von Bismarck, co-conspirator of Albert Pike, were instrumental
in bringing about the First World War.
The Second World War must be fomented by taking
advantage of the differences between the Fascists and the political Zionists.
This war must be brought about so that Nazism is destroyed and that the
political Zionism be strong enough to institute a sovereign state of Israel in
Palestine. During the Second World War, International Communism must become
strong enough in order to balance Christendom, which would be then restrained
and held in check until the time when we would need it for the final social
cataclysm.
After this Second World War, Communism was made strong
enough to begin taking over weaker governments. In 1945, at the Potsdam
Conference between Truman, Churchill, and Stalin, a large portion of Europe was
simply handed over to Russia, and on the other side of the world, the aftermath
of the war with Japan helped to sweep the tide of Communism into China.
The Third World War must be fomented by taking
advantage of the differences between the political Zionists and the leaders of
the Islamic World. The war must be conducted in such a way that Islam and
political Zionism (the State of Israel) mutually destroy each other. Meanwhile
the other nations, once more divided on this issue will be constrained to fight
to the point of complete physical, moral, spiritual and economic exhaustion.
Then we shall unleash . . . (condensing: as sense of horror against
Christianity as a fomenter of wars,) By that time Christianity will be without
compass or direction, anxious for an ideal, but without knowing where to render
its adoration, so it will receive the “true light” through the universal
manifestation of the pure doctrine of Lucifer, brought finally out in the
public view.
George Washington’s Vision
These are the words of a first-hand observer, Anthony
Sherman, who was present with George Washington and described the situation in
1859 to Wesley Bradshaw. These are extracts from what was published in the National Tribune, Vol. 44 #12 December 1880:
I want to tell
you an incident in Washington’s life . . . The darkest period we had, I think,
was when Washington, after several reverses, retreated to Valley Forge, where
he resolved to pass the winter of 1777.
I have often
seen the tears course down our dear commander’s careworn cheeks, as he would be
conversing with confidential officers about the condition of his poor soldiers.
You doubtless heard the story of Washington’s going to the thicket to pray.
Well, it is not only true, but he used often to pray in secret for aid and
comfort from God, the interposition of whose Divine Providence brought us
safely through the darkest days of tribulation.
One day . . .
he remained in his quarters nearly all the afternoon alone. When he came out, I
noticed that his face was a shade paler than usual. . . . Just after dusk, he
dispatched an orderly . . . After a preliminary conversation [with me]
Washington . . . related the event that occurred that day. He said:
This afternoon,
as I was sitting at this table engaged in preparing a dispatch, something
seemed to disturb me. Looking up, I beheld standing opposite me a singularly
beautiful female. So astonished was I, for I had given strict orders not to be
disturbed, that it was some moments before I found language to inquire the
cause of her presence. A second, a third and even a fourth time did I repeat my
question, but received no answer from my mysterious visitor except a slight
raising of her eyes.
. . . Presently
I heard a voice saying, ‘Son of the Republic, look and learn,’ while at the
same time my visitor extended her arm eastwardly. I now beheld a heavy white
vapor at some distance rising fold upon fold. This gradually dissipated, and I
looked upon a strange scene. Before me lay spread out in one vast plain all the
countries of the world–Europe, Asia, Africa and America. I saw rolling and
tossing between Europe and America the billows of the Atlantic, and between
Asia and America lay the Pacific.
. . . He went
on to describe the War of 1812 which would very much threaten the young nation
. . . Sharp
flashes of lightning gleamed through it at intervals, and I heard the smothered
groans and cries of the American people. A second time the angel dipped water
from the ocean, and sprinkled it out as before. The dark cloud was then drawn
back to the ocean.
Again, I heard
the mysterious voice say, ‘Son of the Republic, the end of the century cometh,
look and learn.’ [and this was clearly the American Civil War
And again, I
heard the mysterious voice saying, ‘Son of the Republic, look and learn.’ At
this the dark, shadowy angel placed a trumpet to his mouth, and blew three
distinct blasts; and taking water from the ocean, he sprinkled it upon Europe,
Asia and Africa. Then my eyes beheld a fearful scene: from each of these
countries arose thick, black clouds that were soon joined into one. Throughout
this mass there gleamed a dark red light by which I saw hordes of armed men,
who, moving with the cloud, marched by land and sailed by sea to America. Our
country was enveloped in this volume of cloud, and I saw these vast armies
devastate the whole country and burn the villages, towns and cities that I
beheld springing up. As my ears listened to the thundering of the cannon,
clashing of swords, and the shouts and cries of millions in mortal combat, I
heard again the mysterious voice saying, ‘Son of the Republic, look and learn.’
When the voice
had ceased, the dark shadowy angel placed his trumpet once more to his mouth,
and blew a long and fearful blast. Instantly a light as of a thousand suns
shone down from above me, and pierced and broke into fragments the dark cloud
which enveloped America. At the same moment the angel upon whose head still
shone the word Union, and who bore our national flag in one hand, and a sword
in the other, descended from the heavens attended by legions of white spirits.
These immediately joined the inhabitants of America, who I perceived were
well-nigh overcome, but who immediately taking courage again, closed up their
broken ranks and renewed the battle. Again, amid the fearful noise of the
conflict, I heard the mysterious voice saying, “Son of the Republic, look and
learn.’ As the voice ceased, the shadowy angel for the last time dipped water
from the ocean and sprinkled it upon America. Instantly the dark cloud rolled
back, together with the armies it had brought, leaving the inhabitants of the
land victorious!
Then once more
I beheld the villages, towns and cities springing up where I had seen them
before, while the bright angel, planting the azure standard he had brought in
the midst of them, cried with a loud voice: ‘While the stars remain, and the
heavens send down dew upon the earth, so long shall the Union last.’ And taking
from his brow the crown on which blazoned the word ‘Union,’ he placed it upon
the Standard while the people, kneeling down, said, ‘Amen.’
The scene
instantly began to fade and dissolve, and I at last saw nothing but the rising,
curling vapor I at first beheld. This also disappearing, I found myself once
more gazing upon the mysterious visitor, who, in the same voice I had heard
before, said, Son of the Republic, what you have seen is thus interpreted:
Three great perils will come upon the Republic. The most
fearful is the third, but in this greatest conflict the whole world united
shall not prevail against her. Let every child of the Republic learn to live
for his God, his land and the Union. With these words the vision
vanished, and I started from my seat and felt that I had seen a vision wherein
had been shown to me the birth, progress, and destiny of the United States.”
Thus, ended
General George Washington’s vision and prophecy for the United States of
America as told in his own words.
Anthony Sherman, National Tribune, Vol. 44 #12 December 1880
Victory
The Saints in heaven help us fight the Black Beast
413d–To
the dangers which, in these times, the wicked set for you, seeking to strew
with obstacles, with difficulties, and with subtle opposition, the road along
which you must walk, the saints in paradise respond with their powerful
assistance and intercession. The hidden and obscure plots which Masonry sets
against you, to make you fall into its net, are revealed and destroyed by the
saints, who cause to come down from paradise a strong light which surrounds you
to make your whole life fragrant with the perfume of faith, of hope, of love,
of purity and of holiness.
413e–The
communion of life with the Saints of paradise is the remedy which I am giving
you against the subtle and very insidious dangers which today the black beast
of Masonry is setting for you.
To the Priests, Our Lady’s Beloved Sons.
An article came into my email this morning from the
Center for the Study of Global Christianity
The Center for the Study of Global Christianity has
done extensive research on Christian martyrdom, both historical and
contemporary. We estimate that between 2005 and 2015 there were 900,000
Christian martyrs worldwide–an average of 90,000 per year.
–http://us11.campaign-archive1.com?u=060e80f6eebfc8804f8049bad&id=c0d75f13c6&e=88b938d3be
At Hrushiv, where Mary appeared in Ukraine in 1987, she
chastened everyone to remember the martyrs of the 20th century. We must have
confidence in their intercession. They have our backs. We must step out bravely
like David with our slingshot, trusting in God and the merits of the saints. We
don’t have to imagine we can’t make a difference because we are nobody special.
We are anointed with our baptism. We are certainly special in the eyes of
Satan. He fears the power we possess in Jesus Christ.
The Book of Revelation is about victory over the plans
of Satan. Christianity will inaugurate a better New Age, with a better New
World Order. So many peoples and nations will receive baptism that the Book
celebrates the Feast of Tabernacles, as the pinnacle of the three feasts which
Yahweh required the Israelites to observe. Jesus promised that not a jot or
tittle [Mt 5:18] in God’s word would go
unfulfilled. The Feasts of Passover and Pentecost were fulfilled in the Son and
Spirit. Only the greatest feast is yet to be fulfilled.
Why did I say that this feast corresponds to the greatest
Person in the Holy Trinity, when all are God and all are equal? First of all,
Jesus Himself declares that “the Father is greater than I” [Jn 14:28]. But He was not referring only to his
humanity. As eternal Son, He does not generate a Son of God. Only the Father
generates.
Many Catholics are not aware that the ancient dispute
between Catholics and Orthodox over one clause in the Creed was happily
resolved officially by both Churches during the pontificate of Pope Saint John
Paul. This pope strove mightily for Church unity and really the only remaining
major hurdle between the Catholics and Orthodox is the interpretation of the
position of the Pope. I want to close with a summary about this important
resolution to the Filioque clause.
The Nicene-Constantinopolitan
Creed was originally written in Greek. The Council of Nicaea, in 325, as
regards Trinitarian dogma, was only concerned about the relationship between
the Father and the Son. The text in Greek that was eventually universally adopted
contains the phrase which means:
[We believe] in
the Holy Spirit . . . who comes forth from the Father.” It echoes John 15:26
“The Spirit of Truth, who comes forth from the Father, he will bear witness to
me.”
The various Vetus Latina and Vulgata
versions of the New Testament translate the Greek word as procedit which caused a problem in technical
theological documents because the Greek means “to come from something;” while
the Latin procedo means “to issue forth.”
The key
difference, at least the way the different traditions understood the terms, is
that the Greek word insists on the ultimate origin of whatever has come forth,
whereas procedo only insists on the fact of
issuing forth.
The Eastern
Fathers always understood it in such a way as to refer to the monarchy of the
Father. Only the Father can be the ultimate Source or Origin. No Greek Father
ever said, “the Spirit comes forth from the Son;” they would rightly consider
such a statement to be heresy, since it would imply that the Son is also an
ultimate Source, and hence does not receive everything He has from the Father.
The Western
Fathers understood “procession” to mean the communication of the Divine Essence
from the Father to the Son, and from the Father through the Son to the Holy
Spirit. For Latin Trinitarian theology, the concept of “procession” does not
automatically imply that the principle of that procession must be the ultimate
source.
Both Eastern
and Western Fathers agree that the Father communicates His essence to the Son,
and that the Son communicates that essence to the Holy Spirit.
Why did the
Western Church insist on the insertion of the Filioque? In the Latin version of
the Creed, the equivalent clause says
[Credo]
in Spiritum Sanctum . . . qui ex Patre (Filioque) procedit.
Denying the
Filioque would imply that the Son has received the Divine Essence only
“partially” (if that makes any sense) and hence that He is not fully
consubstantial with the Father. The Western theological tradition for
historical and linguistic reasons, fused together into one concept called
“procession” what Greek theology had divided into two. Neither approach is
erroneous, but each one must be understood in its context.
The conclusion
is that there is no fundamental contradiction between the Eastern and Western
understanding of the Trinity, merely a difference in approach and terminology.
The basis for this reflection can be found in an
excellent document entitled the Greek and Latin Traditions Regarding the
Procession of the Holy Spirit, issued in 1995 by the Pontifical Council for
Promoting Christian Unity.
https://houseofmaryomd.org/wp-content/uploads/04-behold/04a-apocalypse-now/04aa-mary-unveils-the-apocalypse/04aa01-essential-overview/filioque-clarification-christian-unity.pdf
https://houseofmaryomd.org/wp-content/uploads/04-behold/04a-apocalypse-now/04aa-mary-unveils-the-apocalypse/04aa01-essential-overview/filioque-clarification-christian-unity.docx