Strawberries and the Sacred Heart

June, the month of strawberries and rhubarb, is also the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I've written many times about it-- Vijaya Bodach: June is the Month of the Sacred Heart and Vijaya Bodach: Feast of Corpus Christi and Vijaya Bodach: Feast Days --because I'm still trying to fathom the depths of our Savior's love for us poor sinners. I think I'll never know because my own heart is so poor. And I'm about to exhibit my poverty. I'm finding it very difficult to love the sinner but hate the sin. In the past few years the culture is hell-bent on celebrating sin, especially the deadliest--pride. And the more you look at pride month, the more you see demon. Let us remember that it is pride that changed angels into demons. This server would not let me upload a picture showing it. Funny how that works. Not really. But here's something that's truly funny: Eccles is saved: It's WRATH Pride! (ecclesandbosco.blogspot.com) 

Speaking of demons, we saw Nefarious. Talk about truth bombs coming from a demon. Really well done; only two scenes were really difficult to watch but not at all gratuitous. It's really a conversation between the demon and the psychiatrist who's an atheist, more along the lines of My Dinner with Andre or Sunset Limited. What struck me was the progression of evil; the starting point is often parents not baptizing their children and well-meaning people inadvertently opening the door to the demonic by giving children toys like Ouija boards. Michael remembers getting one as a kid. They played only a few times but it didn't hold their interest. Thanks be to God. Still he was completely unprotected until his conversion, when he was baptized. I wish he would write his testimony. It would give parents much hope for their adult children who are far from the Lord, because truly, nothing is impossible for Him. Indeed, with God's grace, even middle-aged people can change, choose virtue over vice. Deo gratias! 

Today is the Feast of Corpus Christi; we had a beautiful High Mass followed by a procession and benediction. Deacon Ludlam gave an outstanding homily on both marriage and the Eucharist. Marriage is the closest analogy for what is occurring in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Our Lord instituted the Eucharist because He loves us so much, He wanted to give us Himself--His most Holy Body and Blood--in a real, physical, tangible way.

It's only in the last year that I began praying this beautiful prayer regularly. I first saw it in a Padre Pio prayer book; it was his favorite way to pray for all the people who asked him to pray for them. This is a wonderful novena to begin tonight and end of the Feast of the Sacred Heart next Friday. 

Sinner to Saint

Today is the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene, the woman from whom Jesus expelled seven demons, the woman caught in adultery to whom He says, "Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more." Mary Magdalene is penitent, who anoints Jesus, the woman who washes His Feet with her tears and dries them with her hair, the first person who sees the Risen Lord. "He is Risen!" An apostle to the Apostles. Mary Magdalene is completely transformed by Christ. Sinner to Saint. I feel this transformation in myself--I am no longer the same person after knowing Jesus. I am still a sinner but with His Grace a saint-in-making. 

I was thinking in the context of stories, when that shift occurs in characters and how best to show that internal illumination. I'm not sure I succeeded in BOUND, that mirror moment when there's the tiniest shift in Rebecca's heart but it changes everything and she knows it too. I didn't realize until now that it's a sheer act of grace. And Rebecca would never put it in those terms. It is my wonderful instructor, Nancy Butts, who gave me the gift of "titanic echoes." God rest her soul. She died in a tragic accident involving a train. Please pray for her and her family. She loved taking long walks with her dogs, decorating for Christmas, and writing stories. I have all her letters and a couple of her books too, my favorite being Spontaneous Combustion. They are a treasure. But I am sad there will be no more. Requiescat in pace, dear Nancy. May we meet again in heaven and share our love of the Greatest Story!

On Generational Spirits

I spent a most enjoyable hour petting the kittens as I listened to Fr. Chad Rippenger (sorry, but I can't seem to make a direct audio link)expand upon the article he'd written a couple of years ago in the Latin Mass Magazine on generational spirits through the last hundred years. It's a fascinating account of both social and spiritual history, and a reasonable explanation of how we've managed to sink so low. Here's a summary as part of Fr. Anderson's homily.

The generation that came of age during WWI suffered a great deal but did not express it, especially talking about the virtue of embracing the cross. Their children, who grew up during the Great Depression and fought in WWII are called the Greatest Generation (remember Tom Brokow's book?) and although they did what had to be done, they lacked a "spirit of mortification." They never wanted their children to suffer as they had and so they indulged their children. These are the Baby Boomers (Michael and I are both in this generation and the way we spent our 20s and 30s reflects what follows). Their parents “did not pass on the traditions of their fathers which required discipline and self-denial," which led to lack of temperance. This made them indocile (not following authority, people who know more, their betters). Yup. That was definitely us: we were our own gods. 

 

The children of Baby Boomers are known as Generation X and Y (born in the 70s and 80s), also called the 'me-generation' because they are noted for sense of entitlement. They are not necessarily immoral, but rather, amoral. Their children are known as Generation Z (our children fall in this category given that we had our kids later). "It is the generation that has gone without a coherent moral code, religious doctrine, or societal norms." This describes our children up until the time of our conversion and in fact, it was the lack of anything authoritative beyond us that made us realize we needed God desperately. Thank GOD! However, we still suffer from all the generational sins because it is very difficult to uproot what you've sown. Only by the grace of God are we growing in faith and virtue. And we hope and pray to keep the faith until the very end.

I will never forget this pivotal moment in our lives: Michael and the children receiving baptism and with it sanctifying grace. Tears of joy!

The Sixth Generation is the one being born now. “This generation will have a spirit that is not like any of the other generations. It is a spirit of paganism, fueled by the licentiousness and depravity passed down from the last couple of generations."

Depressing, no?

As you can see, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree for a reason, and the sins are compounded. From a "spirit on non-communication" we have reached a "spirit of depravity." Note that not everyone is affected by these. Those who try to live a sacramental life, doing their duty in their state of life, obedient to God do not succumb to the spirit of the ages.

Have hope.

Fr. Anderson says: "The Holy Spirit is at work among the young generation today. Many who are coming of age today recognize the truth and beauty of the Catholic faith in all its richness. They readily see how the rejection of traditional, orthodox Catholicism has deprived them of their spiritual inheritance, but they are claiming it back. Each generation is called by God to accomplish certain tasks, to fight off certain evils, and to achieve certain perfection. The Holy Spirit is now giving this generation what was not passed down to them. They are receiving Catholic tradition and they love it."

 

I have copied a prayer from Sensus Tradionis website. They have others as well.

 
Binding Prayer

Spirit of N., I bind you in the Name of Jesus, by the power of the most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ and by the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Michael the Archangel, the blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul and all of the saints, and I command you to leave N. (Name of person or object) and go to the foot of the Holy Cross to receive your sentence, in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

I like to sing St. Patrick's Breastplate and I hope someone will sing it for me when I die.

Three generations of Bodachs -- Greatest, Baby Boomers, and Gen X, Y, Z. Parce Domine! 

On Angels and Demons: Notes from ME Conference Part II

Of all the lectures, I enjoyed those of Fr. Joseph Leo Iannuzzi the most because I learned so many new and interesting things. He did his doctoral dissertation on Living in the Divine Will. It is a private revelation* given to a mystic, Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta. 

I've begun reading this tome (without my hand getting tired, thanks to my kindle) and simply fascinated by her life. She lived on only the Eucharist for 60 years! Although bedridden, she had no sores. Only after a priest would bless her could she be propped up to write (she was ordered to do so once they figured out her condition wasn't normal, that she was having visions). She was in good health until she contracted pneumonia at the age of 80, when she died. She was a contemporary of Padre Pio and he read her visions as well. I am so thankful her little pamphlets caught the eyes of Fr. Iannuzzi. He has not only translated her writings but also given a larger context. It truly is amazing how God chooses a lowly woman to reveal Himself and a humble priest to bring it to the world. God bless you, Father. 




Fr. Iannuzzi covered a great deal of theology about angels and the fall of man. Some things to know about angels. They possess a far greater intellect than we can imagine. They can see the consequences of all their actions (it reminded me of the character in Men in Black III who could calculate all possibilities and thus make the correct decision) and this is why they cannot be forgiven if they do not choose God. Every creature is tested before entry into heaven and the angels had individual tests. Those that passed can no longer sin. They are with God. Those that didn't joined Lucifer. This angel of Light rebelled against the foreknowledge of God being incarnated as a human, a creature with an intellect far below those of angels. I will not serve, he said. Lucifer enters the garden to stop the Incarnation.

It is a mystery why God allows temptation but had Adam corrected Eve, we'd still be sinless. Adam would've been the prince of the human race, Christ, the King. But Adam loved Eve more than he loved God. Jesus tells Luisa that before the fall, they both lived in the Divine Will. After the fall, you can see there is an immediate correlation between natural disasters and diseases -- all creation groans from the sin of Adam.

Jesus is the new Adam. He lived in the Divine Will. He was tempted and tested in the desert. But it wasn't over. He was tempted and tested again on the Cross. It was His complete obedience to the Father that set us free from sin and death and the power of Satan.

Mary lived in the Divine Will. Her test was the Fiat. So be it.

Since you've stuck with me so far, I'll share a Catholic joke Father told. Why did Mary and Joseph take a donkey to Bethlehem?

Because she gave her Fiat to God.

To learn more about living in the Divine Will, please see http://www.ltdw.org/. 

Fr. Iannuzzi spoke at great length about other visions of Luisa that shed light on salvation history but I want to share some notes on his second lecture on Spiritual Warfare and Demonology without resorting to Part III. While he was in Rome, he assisted the Vatican's Chief Exorcist, Fr. Gabriele Amorth. So ...

No one is exempt from Satan.

A story: A man tells his wife to not buy anything expensive but she comes home with a gorgeous red dress, with a hefty price tag. When the husband sputtered about it, she said, "It was like Satan whispering that I'll look good in it so I just wanted to try it on."
"Then why didn't you tell him to get behind you?" said the husband.
"I did," said the wife, "and he said it's fabulous."


Nowadays, most people don't think much of Satan or believe in his existence. We've lost our horror of sin. If you've read the Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis, you already know this is one of Satan's strategies. Because now he can move around without being detected. But Satan is real and so is hell and as much as we'd like to believe that it is empty, the many saints who did have visions, saw hell populated, and among them priests ... priests who led their flock astray. St. Teresa de Avila always cracks me up even when she is serious, with her sorrow for especially the Lutherans.

God allows Adam to be tested. He fails; sin and death enter the world. But God sends his Son -- Jesus Christ -- to save us and to destroy the work of the devil. The faith of our parents saves us. We are like the paralytic, bound in sin. They bring us to the baptismal font and baptism begins the work of sanctification. At baptism, we receive the gifts of faith, hope and love. Through practice, these gifts grow in us. But it's not a free pass ... concupiscence remains even after baptism. It takes work on our part to grow in holiness and the outpouring of grace from God. And as we all know, it's not easy, the work part. We fall again and again. I tell you, the Church is a great hospital for sinners. I know, because I am a sinner, and without a sacramental life, I would fall deeper and deeper into sin. Jesus saves ... again and again, in the sacrament of confession and by feeding me Himself. 

Satan is always prowling about like a lion, ready to pounce upon us. But Jesus taught the Apostles to cast out demons in His name. It is a direct and solemn command that we can use as well. 

Problem is that Satan doesn’t leave us alone. In Matt 12:45 we learn that the evil spirit “goes and brings back with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they move in and dwell there; and the last condition of that person is worse than the first. Thus it will be with this evil generation.” That’s why exorcisms have to be performed multiple times.

Did you know that confession is actually an exorcism? Fr. Iannuzzi said that repressed mortal sins are often the cause of severe depression and other physical ailments that defy medical explanation. After prayers and absolution the person is often miraculously healed. The Sacrament of Healing, which I have received a few times for severe migraines, is also an exorcism. I gain 50% reduction that lasts a good 6-8 months that no physician can explain. It's better than even the placebo effect (which is typically 30%). I am much better now since I started my treatment on low-dose beta blockers, but I am still susceptible, like the weekend of the conference. I have been purified through this suffering and no longer afraid of any attacks because I know I can offer it up. I would never choose it, however. I’m still too weak and always prefer not to sacrifice.  

An interesting tidbit: evil spirits reside in arid places. There are several references to this in the Bible, the most famous one being that Jesus went to the desert to fast and pray and there he was tempted. The early Church Fathers went to the desert to combat Satan too. 

Another interesting tidbit: The Latin Rite is more effective for casting out demons.

But we can use any language to do simple exorcisms, to heal the family tree, free ourselves from hauntings or involvement of the occult.

There are three parts:
1. Prayer – of liberation, praise, thanksgiving, intercession, and in tongues (this is where the Holy Spirit takes over). Of all these prayers, the prayers of praise are the most powerful. Satan hates for us to praise and thank God.
2. Word of God – read Psalms and the Gospel with conviction. Believe!
3. Command the evil spirits – to leave, and to never return in the name of Jesus. You can command them to go to the foot of the Cross or to hell.

A person has to go through a thorough physical, mental and spiritual evaluation when demons are suspected. Fr. Iannuzzi said that people who are possessed have these signs: chronic depression, repugnance to holy objects and prayers, resentment, levitation, extraordinary physical strength, violent, knowledge that the person wouldn’t normally have.

Confession, Mass, Adoration, Exorcism, Litany of Saints, Crucifix, blessed salt, oil, Holy Water, profession of baptismal promises are the tools of the trade. Father said it takes on average 3 years to cleanse the person from evil.

After all the stories Fr. Iannuzzi shared, I was surprised that he’s not a scaredy-cat priest. Au contraire. He is calm and funny, a man at peace and without fear. Jesus is his Rock.

He said that Satan can enter your memory and intellect without your consent, but he cannot enter your will without your consent. And God allows Satan to test you. Resisting temptations make you stronger. This is why it is imperative you live in the Divine Will.

Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our Daily Bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with Thee. Blessed are thou amongst women and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.



Michelangelo: Last Judgment

*A note on visionaries: Catholics are not required to believe any private revelation, even if it has the imprimatur of the Church.