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  Excerpt from 'A Short Biography of Pope St. Pius X': Pius X and the Priesthood
Posted by: Stone - 11-25-2021, 07:10 AM - Forum: The Saints - Replies (1)

The Short Biography of Pope Pius X
Excerpts taken from the book by F.A. FORBES
Originally Published 1918 with Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur

[Image: piusx-bdr2image.jpg]

PIUS X AND THE PRIESTHOOD

A PERSONAL friend of Pius X was speaking to him one day with indignation of the abuse leveled at him by a Modernist writer. The pope's answer was as characteristic as the smile that accompanied it. "Come," he said, "did he not allow that after all I was a good priest? Now, of all praise, that is the only one I have ever valued."

"A man who hid a boundless ambition under a pretense of humility," wrote another opponent. And in one sense most certainly Pius X was a man of ambition, an ambition that had taken shape within him as he knelt before the altar of the cathedral of Castelfranco to receive the priesthood with all that it entailed. Study, prayer, labour, self-denial and unlimited self-devotion, charity, poverty and loyal-hearted obedience --- all these were part of that ambition --- the ambition to be a good and fervent priest, to walk in the footsteps of his Master, it had been his guiding star through life; he had sacrificed everything to it; and in a certain sense it was true that this ambition, realized most perfectly in his holy life, had placed him against his will on the chair of Peter.

A noble and worthy priesthood, according to his first encyclical, was to be one of the means towards that restoring of all things in Christ "which was to heal the wounds of the world." --- "The priest is the representative of Christ on earth," he said on one occasion to the students of the French College in Rome; "he must think the thoughts of Christ and speak His words. He must be tender as Christ was tender, pure and holy like his Lord; he must shine like a star in the world." This was not easy, he acknowledged; it needed a long preparation of study, of self-discipline and of prayer. The spiritual weapons must be well tempered for the combat, for the fight would be hard and long. "A holy priest makes holy people," he said on another occasion; "a priest who is not holy is not only useless but harmful to the world."

And it was not only the cultivation of virtue on which he insisted, but the cultivation of the mind also. The man who all his life had curtailed his hours of sleep in order to study, had done it to perfect his priesthood, to fit himself to cope with the dangers that were abroad, to be armed at every point against error. Although his enemies were never tired of asserting that he was ignorant and unlettered, and he himself was quite ready to let the world believe it, his knowledge and the extent of his learning could not be concealed. Those who came in contact with him and his personal work could not be otherwise than impressed with his depth of thought, the extent of his reading, his literary and classical training, and his strong grasp of philosophy and theology. His wide and far-reaching appreciation of men and things in different countries all over the world was astonishing in a man who had not traveled, as many statesmen often remarked after conversing with him. He read French perfectly, although he felt shy at attempting to speak it. He was an excellent accountant. The delicacy and nobility of his dealings with others were unequalled.

"In order that Christ may be formed in the faithful," said Pius in his first encyclical, "He must first be formed in the priest," and with this end in view he set himself to the task which lay before him. The first six years of his pontificate were chiefly spent in work. which concerned the priesthood and sacerdotal institutions. Uniform rules of study, discipline and ecclesiastical education were given to all the seminaries of Italy, which were to be inspected carefully from time to time by apostolic men, who had at heart the perfection of the priesthood. Small seminaries in dioceses incapable of supporting them on these lines were suppressed. Bishops were exhorted to further the work by all the means in their power; care was to be taken in the selection of candidates for the priesthood, who, after a thorough training in the seminary, were to be wisely directed in the first exercise of their ministry, safeguarded against the errors of the day, and encouraged to keep up their studies without detriment to their active work. The Academy of St. Thomas in Rome and the Catholic Institute of Paris won special praise for the excellence and thoroughness of their teaching. Special regulations were laid down for the examination of those about to be ordained. The study of Holy Scripture was to be pursued in the seminaries during the four years of the theological course, while especially gifted students were to be set apart for more advanced studies. On those who were already, or about to be ordained, the pope enjoined constant and fervent prayer, daily meditation on the eternal truths, the attentive reading of good books, especially of the Bible, and diligent examination of conscience. The priest was to stand forth as an example to all by the integrity of his life, his deference and obedience to legitimate authority, his patient charity with all men. It was not by a bitter zeal that they would gain souls to God; they must reprove, entreat, rebuke, but in all patience; their charity must be patient and kind with all men, even with those who were their open enemies. "Such an example," said Pius X, "will have far more power to move hearts and to gain them than words ot dissertations, however sublime." "The renewal of the priesthood," wrote the pope a little before the celebration of his sacerdotal jubilee in 1908, "will be the finest and most acceptable gift that the clergy can offer to us."

The gift that he himself bestowed on the priesthood on this fiftieth anniversary of his ordination was the wonderful Exhortation to the Catholic Clergy, published on August 4th, 1908. Every word of it was his own, embodying the wisdom and experience of a lifetime spent in God's service. The exhortation set before the clergy of the world the model of "the man of God" --- the perfect parish priest. Its fervent and eloquent appeal to the clergy to show themselves worthy of their high calling, by being truly the --- "salt of the earth and the light of the world," is followed by a clear and practical exposition of the means necessary to attain this great end. His ministry must be in deed as well as in word. He must remember that he is not only the servant but the friend of Christ, who has chosen him that he may go and bring forth much fruit. And as friendship consists in unity of mind and will, it is the first duty of a priest to study the mind and will of his Master, so as to conform himself in all things to them. Stress is laid on the necessity of cultivating the "passive" virtues --- those which perfect the character of the man himself --- as well as the more active ones which are called forth by contact with other people. The exhortation, written for priests, by one who was a model of all priestly virtues, and given 'from the chair of the Apostle, is a perfect rule of life for every priest who aspires to holiness.

Once more he recommended, as he had so often done before, preaching to the people plain and simple gospel truths rather than flowery and rhetorical sermons. Once more, but this time as head on earth of the Universal Church, he insisted on the necessity of clear and simple instruction in Christian doctrine to adults and children alike, again reiterating his conviction that the growth of unbelief was largely due to ignorance of what Christ's teaching was.

"It is in a time of sore stress and difficulty," he writes in his encyclical of 1905 on this subject, "that the mysterious counsel of divine Providence has raised up our littleness to bear the office of chief shepherd over the whole flock of Christ. ... It is a common complaint ... that in this age there are very many Christian people who live in utter ignorance of those things, the knowledge whereof is necessary for their eternal salvation ... we do not only mean the masses and those in the lower walks of life ... but those who, though not without talent and culture, abound in the wisdom of the world, and are utterly reckless and foolish in matters of religion. ... They hardly ever think of the supreme Maker and Ruler of all things, or of the wisdom of the Christian faith ... they in no wise understand the malice and foulness of sin ... a great many ... fall into endless evil through ignorance of those mysteries of faith which those who would be counted among the elect must needs know and believe."

"The erring will of man has need of a guide who shall show it the way ... this guide is the mind. But if the mind itself be lacking true light ... it will be a case of the blind leading the blind, and both will fall into the ditch. ... Only the teaching of Jesus Christ makes us understand the true and wondrous dignity of man ... and is it not the teaching of Jesus Christ again that inspires in proud man the lowliness of mind which is the origin of all true glory? From it we learn the prudence of the spirit whereby we may shun the prudence of the flesh, the justice whereby we may give to everyone his due, the fortitude whereby we are made ready to endure all things and may suffer with gladness for the sake of God and eternal happiness; and the temperance by which we may love poverty itself for the kingdom of God, and may even glory in the Cross, despising the shame. ...

Since then such dire evils flow from ignorance of religion and. ..the necessity of religious instruction is so great, because no one can hope to fulfill the duties of a Christian without knowing them, it remains to ask whose duty it is to destroy this deadly ignorance in people's minds and to teach them this necessary knowledge."

The answer is obvious --- that duty falls on the priesthood, and this the pope clearly points out. "There is nothing nearer or dearer than this to the heart of Jesus Christ," he continues, "who said of Himself through the lips of Isaias, 'to preach the Gospel to the poor He hath sent me'."

Having laid down in urgent words the duty of the shepherds to feed the flock committed to their care, the pope expounds the mission of the catechist, and its power for good. He quotes the words of St. Gregory the Great on the Apostles of Christ. "They took supreme care to preach to the ignorant things easy and intelligible, not sublime and arduous," ending with the saying of St. Peter, ''as every man hath received grace, ministering the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God."

To Pius X the Divine Office had always been a work of predilection. It is said that as a child he had often seen Cardinal Monico with his Breviary in his hands, and had wondered vaguely what beautiful stories there could be in the book that so engrossed his attention. And when in later days he opened it for the first time himself, his childish dreams found their fulfillment. For the Breviary is the story of the Church and her saints, and the whole Psalter enwraps it like a glory. It was to the treasures of that great book that he went all his life for his morning meditation until he knew it as one knows the heart of a friend. And loving it with the love of a true friend, and seeing faults amidst its beauties, he would let it also share in "the restoring of all things in Christ." For over four hundred years a redistribution of the Psalter throughout the week had been sighed for, but every scheme had failed. Pius appointed a commission to deal with this problem, giving certain general lines on which to base the reform, and in a few years the new Breviary was issued. The rearrangement secured the recitation. of the whole Psalter once a week, the length of the office on Sundays and ferias was reduced, while the complexities of the calendar were simplified.

"No one can fail," wrote the pope, "to be stirred by those numerous passages of the Psalms which proclaim so loudly the immense majesty of God, His omnipotence, His unutterable justice, His goodness and clemency. ... Who can fail to be inspired ... by those thanksgivings for God's benefits, by those lowly and trustful prayers for benefits desired, by those cries of the penitent soul deploring its sins? Who is not kindled with love for the picture of Christ the Redeemer so lovingly shadowed forth, whose voice Augustine heard in all the Psalms, praising or mourning, rejoicing in hope or longing for accomplishment? With good reason was provision made in past ages by decrees of the Roman pontiffs, canons of councils, and monastic laws that both sections of the clergy should chant or recite the whole Psalter every week." The pope spoke of the many pleas that had reached him that the old custom might be restored, and of the work that had been done to this effect, which was but a prelude to a further emendation of the Breviary and the Missal.

The reform of the Roman Curia was another undertaking, which did much to simplify the government of the Church. The various Roman Congregations were founded by Sixtus V to study questions submitted to the decision of the pope and to deal with any legal questions that might arise; and as persons of experience and mature judgement alone should deal with these matters, various committees were formed, each of which attended to its own particular branch of business. But the organization of the different congregations needed to be adapted to the requirements of the present day. Pius X, with the practical spirit which distinguished all his undertakings, completely remodeled the curia, fixing the number of congregations at thirteen, and defining clearly the work of each. The constitution "Sapienti consilio" on this matter instituted also many other important reforms in the tribunals and offices of the curia.

The purchase of the Palazzo Mariscotti, assigned to the Cardinal Vicar of Rome, enabled Pius X to carry out another long-cherished plan, for the thorough reform of his own diocese, inadequate in its organization to the needs of the present day. Want of space, which had been the chief difficulty in the way of reorganization, having been thus supplied for, the necessary reforms were at once set on foot. In many other important matters the needs of modern times called for; the simplification and amendment of methods that had become obsolete. The reform and codification of canon law was another laborious work carried on by the pope for eleven years, and brought to a conclusion under his successor Benedict XV.

With affectionate interest the pope watched the progress of Catholicism in England. "If there is any Church in the whole Christian world," he wrote in January 1912, on the occasion of the founding of the two new ecclesiastical provinces of Birmingham and Liverpool, "which merits the special care and forethought of the Apostolic See, it is certainly the Church of the English, which, happily founded among the Britons by St. Eleutherius [History scholars seem now agreed that the story of a mission sent to Britain by Pope St. Eleutherius in the later second century rests on a misunderstanding. Christianity was certainly introduced into Britain during the Roman occupation, but the circumstances are not known.] and still more happily established through apostolic men by Gregory the Great, was subsequently made famous by the numbers of its children distinguished by the holiness of their lives or by the martyr's death courageously suffered for Christ."

"It is with the greatest pleasure that I greet you, my dear children of Great Britain," he said at an audience given to four hundred English pilgrims presented to him by Cardinal Bourne, Archbishop of Westminster, "worthy descendants of your Catholic forefathers who during ten centuries remained constantly faithful to the Church and the Holy See, and who by the purity of their faith and by personal holiness gave many saints to God. And although through the blind passion of an unworthy king your country fell into schism, the Faith is still alive in her midst, for are you not the children of those valiant Christians ... who gave their lives for the truth, and won for Great Britain her title of the Island of Saints?"

The beatification of Joan of Arc in April 1909 was one more token of the pope's love of another country that had given so much for God, and the presence in Rome of forty thousand of her children was a further proof of her true spirit. And when, borne in the sedia gestatoria through the crowd, the Holy Father, leaning forward, lifted the fold of the French flag that had been lowered at his passage and reverently kissed it, the enthusiasm knew no bounds. That flag had stood for much that was not noble; the memory of its origin was still in the minds of many. But by that kiss it was consecrated for ever.

Monsignor Blanc, a Marist missionary in Oceania, wrote thus to his clergy after an audience with Pius X: "My attention was completely captivated by his expression and his eyes. I could not tell you what the room was like nor what the Holy Father wore; I could see nothing but those eyes, and the light of them I shall never forget. He made me sit beside him, and I spoke of our people, our natives, the country that I love. If the life of the missionary is sometimes hard, let us remember that the pope has said 'the missions are my great consolation.' He was full of interest in all I had to tell him of your work, your zeal and your devotedness. I spoke of our schools and he was delighted. 'Tell them to devote themselves there without counting the cost,' he said: 'it is the most important thing of all.' With touching graciousness and cordiality he gave his blessing to you, to our people, to all for whom I asked it."

"You cannot go near him without loving him," said another priest, "his kindness and sweetness are irresistible." Father Boevey Crawley, a South American priest and an ardent apostle of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, went to Rome to obtain the pope's blessing on his mission. His story was a strange one. Attacked while quite young by a serious form of heart disease, he was sent to Paris to consult a specialist. The American doctors had told him that he had but a few months to live; the Paris specialist confirmed their verdict. Father Crawley had an overwhelming devotion to the Sacred Heart and to St. Margaret Mary. He went straight to Paray-le-Monial to ask through her intercession the grace of a holy death. Scarcely had he knelt in the chapel when he felt himself shaken from head to foot. He was cured. That night while kneeling in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament he received a divine intimation that he was to go forth and conquer the world, family by family, to love the Sacred Heart. To preach love was henceforward to be his mission, for what is devotion to the Sacred Heart but love of the love of Christ? The conversion of his father, who was a Protestant, was the first fruit of his apostolate.

Kneeling at the pope's feet, he told him the story of his life, asking permission to begin the work to which he was called. Pius listened with the deepest interest. Then, "No, my son," he said, "I do not give you permission."

Father Crawley looked up at him in consternation; the pope's eyes were shining, and there was a little smile lurking in the corners of his mouth. "But, Holy Father ..." pleaded the priest.

"No," repeated the pope, "I do not give you permission." --- "I do not give you permission," he said again. "I order you to do it. You hear? I am the pope, and I command it. It is a splendid work; let your whole life be consecrated to it."

"He had the greatest heart that it was possible for a human being to have," was said of Pius X, not once but many times. Even for treachery he had no condemnation. A betrayal of trust which had affected him deeply came to his knowledge after the death of the culprit. Folding his hands he prayed silently for the departed soul. "He is dead," he said gently, "may he rest in peace." He met with a sad smile an indignant accusation of treachery against one who was still living, an accusation which could not be denied. "Traitor is a hard word," he said, "let us say that he is a man of many skins --- like an onion. ... " One more picture drawn from life. A young priest, tortured by doubts, knelt shaken with sobs at the pope's feet. The white figure bent compassionately over the kneeling man, the strong and gentle hands of the Holy Father held the head of the suppliant closely to his heart. "Faith, faith, faith," repeated the ringing voice over and over again. "Faith, my son, must be your place of refuge."

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  The First Catholic Thanksgiving
Posted by: Stone - 11-25-2021, 07:02 AM - Forum: General Commentary - No Replies

Our Oldest City and First Thanksgiving

I am glad to acknowledge a note that a reader from Florida sent me bringing to my attention the fact that the first thanksgiving in the territory that today is the United States was not the one I featured in an article on this website several years ago. It actually took place in Florida five years before.

Thus, the first American Thanksgiving was neither at Plymouth Rock in 1621 nor in Texas on April 20, 1568 when Don Juan de Oñate crossed the Rio Grande and took formal possession of present day El Paso. This honor belongs to the city of St. Augustine, Florida, the first and oldest city of our present day United States. The landing of Captain General Pedro Menendez de Aviles and his fleet of soldiers and colonists – accompanied by priests – on the coast of Florida on September 8, 1565 has all the qualification to count it as the first official Thanksgiving Day in our country:

[Image: B_024_Mass.jpg]
Mass of thanksgiving St. Augustine, September 8, 1565

The land was claimed for Spain and a Mass of thanksgiving was said

• It was the first permanent European settlement in North America. There had been other attempts by the Spanish to establish colonies in Florida and Texas, but all were short-lived.

• In an official ceremony Don Pedro Menendez came ashore amid the sounding of trumpets, artillery salutes and the firing of cannons to claim the land for King Philip II and Spain. One of the priests, Fr. Francisco Lopez de Mendoza Grajales, who had gone ashore the previous day, advanced to meet him, chanting the Te Deum Laudamus and carrying a cross which Menendez and those with him reverently kissed. Then the 500 soldiers, 200 sailors and 100 families and artisans, along with the Timucuan Indians from the nearby village of Seloy, gathered at a makeshift altar, and a Mass in honor of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary was said.

• The Mass was followed by a feast shared by the Spanish and the Timucuan Indians. The Timucuans brought wild turkey, venison, oysters and giant clams, as well as maize, beans, squash, nuts and fruits. The Spaniards contribution was cocido, a stew made with pork, garbanzo beans and onions, along with biscuits, olive oil and red wine.

In his well-researched book on the State of Florida titled Cross in the Sand, Dr. Michael Gannon duly affirmed that this Mass and feast was “the first community act of religion and thanksgiving in the first permanent European settlement in the land.” (1) Properly speaking, the history books should acknowledge this feast as the first Thanksgiving. But, as the saying goes, the victors write the history. So, for many years, the textbooks only placed emphasis on the English settlement in Plymouth, ignoring the fact that the Spanish were here long before them.

I believe two positive factors are beginning to change that picture. First, many traditional Catholics – like most of the readers of this website – are interested in learning more about their Catholic roots in America, and want to know disregarded episodes like this one. Second, the growing Hispanic population in our country – and particularly the States of Florida, Texas and the Southwest – is sparking interest in the nation's Spanish heritage.

In St. Augustine, for example, the city's founding is being celebrated each year with speeches and pageantry, starting with the historical re-enactment of Don Pedro Menendez’ landing and the Mass at the Mission Nombre de Dios. Don Menendez gave this beautiful name to the landing site, and today it is the oldest mission in the United States. In 1965 a 200-foot-high-cross was erected on the Mission at the exact site of the city’s founding. There is even a First Thanksgiving Cooking Contest that is held to reproduce the food and drink that would have been served at the original feast.

Local celebrations like these are helping to make the people of Florida aware of St. Augustine’s rich past - which includes a Catholic Thanksgiving that long preceded the one celebrated by the Puritans.


The Huguenot threat

After Juan Ponce de Leon discovered the peninsula in 1513, named it La Florida (covered with flowers) and claimed it for Spain, the Spanish Crown made six attempts to establish a mission colony there. None were successful. Fierce storms at sea, starvation, hostile Indians and every genre of misfortune ended each expedition in failure.

[Image: B_024_Cross.jpg]
Today a 200-foot high cross marks the landing site at Nombre de Dios Mission

Discouraged by those vain attempts, in 1561 Philip II decided that no further attempt should be made to colonize the eastern coast. That decision changed abruptly, however, with a French intrusion of Huguenots who established the small colony of Fort Caroline in present day Jacksonville.

This was a time of violent religious wars between the Huguenots and Catholics in France, with the Spanish Crown supporting the Catholics. The chief of the Huguenot faction was Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, who was looking for a colony in the New World to have a secure place to send his fellow-Protestants persecuted in France. In 1555, he had organized an expedition of 500 colonists who landed in Brazil on an island in the Rio de Janeiro bay. Their fort, however, was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1560. The Huguenots remained in Rio for some time until 1567, when they were definitively expelled in a battle with the Portuguese navy.

After this first defeat in Brazil, Coligny turned his eyes toward the coastline of peninsular Florida. In 1564 he sent out another expedition of Huguenot soldiers and settlers to establish an outpost called Fort Caroline. The French colony there represented a serious threat to Spanish shipping and the safety of the Indies. Not only would Spanish ships traveling with gold from the New World to the Old through the Bahama Channel be exposed to seizure by the French, but even the coastal towns could be attacked at any time. Further, the Catholic Spanish King wanted to avoid heresy spreading in the New World.

When news leaked to the Spanish court that a French fleet led by the sea Captain Jean Ribault was setting out to reinforce the struggling colony with ships, arms and food, Philip II’s reaction was swift. This was foreign encroachment on Spain’s claims in Florida – recognized in a 1559 Treaty with France. A Spanish fleet must be dispatched to stop Jean Ribault, destroy Fort Caroline, secure Florida for Spain and finally establish a permanent Catholic community along the coast of Florida.


The Menendez expedition

The man to whom Philip entrusted the task of driving the French out of Florida had both the experience and strong will needed to accomplish the mission. He was Don Pedro Menendez de Avilés, one of 20 children of an ancient family of the Asturias. As Captain General of the Indies Fleet, he was well acquainted with the routes to New Spain and realized the danger of having French so near the Bahama Channel that Spanish fleets regularly crossed. As a Catholic, he abhorred the prospective that the Huguenots might spread their infectious doctrine among Florida’s Indians in the New World.

[Image: B_024_menendez.jpg]
A portrait of Pedro Menendez Aviles

After a failed attempt to cross the sea because of bad weather, Menendez set sail from Puerto Rico for La Florida with five vessels and 800 soldiers, artisans and settlers, and four secular priests on August 5, 1565. His flagship bore the proud name San Pelayo, a tribute to the warrior who started the Reconquista in Spain.

Thirty-four days later, under his command the Catholic colony of St. Augustine was founded – so named because land was sighted on August 28, the feast day of St. Augustine. On September 20, Menendez and 500 of his soldiers marched on Fort Caroline, captured it and renamed it San Mateo – St. Matthew. (2)

That month, Menendez sent a letter to the King reporting the progress of the expedition. After dealing with practical matters, he affirmed his content to see the Holy Faith established in the new land: “Let Your Majesty rest assured that if I had a million more, I would spend it all upon this undertaking, because it is of such great service to God Our Lord, and for the increase of our Holy Catholic Faith and the service of Your Majesty. And therefore I have offered to Our Lord, that all that I shall find, win and acquire, in this world shall be for the planting of the Gospel in this land, and the enlightenment of its natives, and thus I pledge myself to Your Majesty."(3)

Once again, Admiral Coligny’s plan to establish a haven for the French Huguenots had failed. Instead of becoming the refuge for the 40,000 French Huguenots that France wanted to rid herself of, (4) Florida became Catholic. Around its corner was the Age of the Missions that would only end a century later in 1675.

[Image: 3914f215a548fddde792ee485522ba8b_L.jpg]
[Taken from The Remnant website]


1. Cross in the Sand, University of Florida, 1993, 3rd ed., pp. 26-27
2. For a detailed account of the Fort Caroline battle and the capture and killing of Jean Ribault and his French soldiers who were stranded after their ships were wrecked in a storm, see Gannon’s, The Cross in the Sand, pp. 22-28.
3. Woodbury Lowery, The Spanish Settlements within the Present Limits of the United States Florida, 1562-1574, NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1911, pp. 161-162.
4. "Queen Catherine de Medici expressed herself on this subject to her ambassador to Spain, Fourquevaux, in a letter where she wrote, 'I wish all the Huguenots were in that country [America] over there.' The Spanish ambassador in Vienna, who apparently knew of Admiral Coligny’s plan to send a number of Huguenots to Florida, estimated the number of Protestants in France of which 'the country should be discharged' at more than 40,000 men." Henry D. Folmer, Franco-Spanish Rivalry in North America, 1524-1763, Glendale, CA: Arthur H. Clark, 1953, pp. 88-89.

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  Bishop of Charleston prohibits confirmation, anointing of the sick in ‘Tridentine Form’
Posted by: Stone - 11-24-2021, 08:25 AM - Forum: Vatican II and the Fruits of Modernism - No Replies

Bishop of Charleston prohibits confirmation, anointing of the sick in ‘Tridentine Form’


CNA Washington, D.C. Newsroom |  Nov 22, 2021

Priests in the Diocese of Charleston, S.C. may no longer administer confirmation or the anointing of the sick in Latin using the pre-Vatican II Roman Missal, under a new policy that goes into effect Sunday.

The policy announced by Charleston Bishop Robert E. Guglielmone also limits the use of the Traditional Latin Mass, and comes in response to Pope Francis’ motu proprio Traditionis custodes, or “Guardians of the tradition.” The papal edict states that it is each bishop’s “exclusive competence” to authorize the use of the Traditional Latin Mass in his diocese.

The Mass using the Roman Missal of 1962 is known as the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite, the Tridentine Mass, and the Traditional Latin Mass.

The new “Policy Regarding Celebration of the Mass of 1962 in the Diocese of Charleston” goes into effect on Nov. 28, the first Sunday of Advent. It identifies four parishes in the diocese where the Traditional Latin Mass may be said on Sundays and holy days of obligation, under certain conditions.

Guglielmone stipulates in the new policy that the Traditional Latin Mass cannot be celebrated for midnight Mass at Christmas, or during the Triduum or the Easter vigil. A single Traditional Latin Mass is allowed on All Souls Day. On weekdays, the older rite may be celebrated “if an additional Mass is celebrated according to the ‘NOVUS ORDO’ on the same day,” the policy states.


The four parishes where the Traditional Latin Mass can be celebrated are: Stella Maris in Sullivans Island; Sacred Heart in Charleston; Prince of Peace in Taylors, and Our Lady of the Lake in Chapin.

The policy also limits the celebration of certain sacraments in the “Tridentine form.”

Confirmation and anointing of the sick are not permitted, the bishop states. Baptism is allowed only at the request of the parents. Matrimony using the older rite is permitted with permission of the bishop, and funerals are allowed only at “specific prior written request of the deceased.”

A note adds that “Baptism, Matrimony and Anointing of the Sick can be celebrated in Latin according to the most recent updating of the rites.”

“Those priests who have been celebrating this Mass prior to the date of Pope Francis’ MOTU PROPRIO and who have indicated to me that they were doing so, may celebrate this Mass” in the four parishes, Guglielmone states in the policy.

A spokeswoman for the diocese confirmed that the new policy is in response to Traditionis custodes. “The motu proprio from the Holy Father requested that each bishop evaluate their diocese and implement specific instructions regarding the celebration of the Mass of 1962,” she told CNA. “After reviewing the rites thoroughly and consulting with the pastors of our diocese, the bishop approved this policy effective the first Sunday of Advent.”

The spokeswoman also addressed the sacramental regulations in the policy. “Regarding the specific limitations on certain sacraments, these decisions were made based upon the rubrics and study of the rites,” she said. “For example, before Vatican II the Mass could not be celebrated after 12:00 p.m. on a Sunday and not before midnight the day before a major feast day. Thus, there is no permission in the rubrics to celebrate the traditional Latin Mass on Christmas Eve.”

Guglielmone was appointed bishop of Charleston by Pope Benedict in 2009. The text of the new policy is below.

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The new policy of the Diocese of Charleston, S.C., regarding the use of the Traditional Latin Mass. CNA

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  US COVID Deaths In 2021 Have Surpassed 2020's Total... Despite Vaccines, Treatments
Posted by: Stone - 11-24-2021, 08:16 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular] - No Replies

US COVID Deaths In 2021 Have Surpassed 2020's Total... Despite Vaccines, Treatments

ZH |  NOV 23, 2021


COVID-19 has killed more people in 2021 than 2020.

The virus was reported as the underlying cause of death (or a contributing cause of death) for an estimated 377,883 people in 2020, accounting for 11.3% of deaths, according to the CDC. As of Monday, more than 770,000 people have died from the coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins University data. That means over 15,000 more people have died in 2021 than last year from COVID-19 – and there's still more than a month left.

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This has happened despite the fact that last year no Americans were vaccinated (now 59% of all eligible Americans have had the "life-saving" jab) and some 17% have received booster shots...

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The 2021 U.S. death toll caught some doctors by surprise. They had expected vaccinations and precautionary measures like social distancing and scaled-down public events to curb the spread of infections and minimize severe cases. But, The Wall Street Journal has its own explanation, suggesting lower-than-expected immunization rates as well as fatigue with precautionary measures like masks allowed the highly contagious Delta variant to spread, largely among the unvaccinated, epidemiologists say.

Among missteps, Dr. Abraar Karan, an infectious-diseases doctor at Stanford University, said, public-health officials failed to effectively communicate that the purpose of vaccines is to protect against severe cases of Covid-19 rather than to prevent the spread of infection entirely, which may have led some to doubt the effectiveness of the shots.

CDC has an excuse too, claiming that there was a larger undercount of Covid-19 deaths in 2020, when the disease was newer and a scarcity of tests made confirming some infections difficult.

Deaths remain concentrated in older people (81% of 2020 deaths were among people aged 65 and above, and 69% of the same cohort in 2021).

Still could be worse (and still could be if this latest trend continues in the US)...

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“The vaccine is not a panacea,” said Ana Bento, an epidemiologist at Indiana University-Bloomington.

Well that's pretty clear now, eh!?

This wasn't supposed to happen...

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  "Vaxx'd, Cured, Or Dead" - German Health Minister Hints At Jab Mandate
Posted by: Stone - 11-23-2021, 06:18 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular] - No Replies

"Vaxx'd, Cured, Or Dead" - German Health Minister Hints At Jab Mandate; Merkel Fears "Highly Dramatic" Situation


ZH | November 22, 2021

After demonstrations erupted across Europe and more broadly across the globe over the weekend, outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Monday that the latest surge in European COVID infections is "worse than anything Germany has experienced so far" and called for more tight restrictions to try and stop the virus from spreading again over the holidays.

Merkel told officials from her Christian Democratic Party on Monday that the situation is "highly dramatic" and warned that hospitals would soon be overwhelmed unless the 4th wave of the virus is broken, according to a Bloomberg report.

The outgoing chancellor warned that many Germans don't seem to understand the severity of the crisis as cases have spiked across Europe.

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Meanwhile, Health Minister Jens Spahn warned Monday that most Germans will be "vaccinated, cured or dead" from COVID in just a few months, according to Agence France-Presse, hinting at a potential vaccination mandate.

Quote:"Probably by the end of this winter, as is sometimes cynically said, pretty much everyone in Germany will be vaccinated, cured or dead," Spahn said, blaming "the very contagious Delta variant."

"That is why we so urgently recommend vaccination," he added.

As many have noted, many EU members, including Germany's neighbor Austria, have tightened restrictions amid what many are describing as a "fourth wave" of infections.

As for Germany, many of the country's famed outdoor Christmas markets have already been canceled for the second year in a row, and people who aren’t vaxxed face possible curfews, as well as other restrictions. The situation in hospitals is increasingly strained, with clinics preparing to transfer severely ill people to other facilities, according to the German intensive-care association DIVI.

Stocks dumped late last week on the renewed threats of lockdowns in Germany and across Europe, then bounced after a denial.

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Now, it seems like they're shifting back into the red as European politicians roll out another round of authoritarian crackdowns.

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  Australian Army Begins Transferring COVID-Positive Cases, Contacts To Quarantine Camps
Posted by: Stone - 11-22-2021, 06:25 PM - Forum: Socialism & Communism - No Replies

Australian Army Begins Transferring COVID-Positive Cases, Contacts To Quarantine Camps

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Howard Springs Quarantine Facility has capacity for 2,000 overseas arrivals and about 1,000 domestic travellers. 

ZH | NOV 22, 2021


The Australian army has begun forcibly removing residents in the Northern Territories to the Howard Springs quarantine camp located in Darwin, after nine new Covid-19 cases were identified in the community of Binjari. The move comes after hard lockdowns were instituted in the communities of both Binjari and nearby Rockhole on Saturday night.

"Residents of Binjari and Rockhole no longer have the five reasons to leave their homes," said Northern Territory chief minister, Michael Gunner, referring to the country's five allowable reasons to avoid lockdown (buying food and supplies, exercising for up to two hours, care or caregiving, work or education if it can't be done from home, and to get vaccinated at the nearest possible location).

"They can only leave for medical treatment, in an emergency, or as required by law."

"It's highly likely that more residents will be transferred to Howard Springs today, either as positive cases or close contacts," he continued, adding "We have already identified 38 close contacts from Binjari but that number will go up. Those 38 are being transferred now."

"I contacted the Prime Minister last night. We are grateful for the support of about 20 ADF personnel, as well as army trucks to assist with the transfer of positive cases and close contacts – and to support the communities.

We are doing an assessment today of what extra resources we might need from the Feds, and the Prime Minister is ready to help further – I thank him for that."

Watch:


"We’re conscious of the fact that this can have some impacts on people’s mental health as well as their general well being," Police Commissioner Jamie Chalkner told NT News.

Of note, the Northern Territories are home to a large percentage of indigenous Australians. As the Epoch Times' Steve Milne notes:

Quote:According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, in 2018-19, almost one in five Indigenous Australians lived in overcrowded dwellings (18 percent), compared to 5 percent of non-Indigenous Australians. Although this percentage had decreased from 27 percent in 2004, it still meant an estimated 145,340 Indigenous Australians were living in overcrowded dwellings in 2018-19.

In addition, the more remote an area, the higher the proportion of Indigenous Australians living in overcrowded dwellings (26 percent in remote areas and 51 percent in “very remote” areas), compared to 8 and 22 percent in non-remote areas.

Five days ago, NT Senator Malarndirri McCarthy told ABC that over crowding in Indigenous communities was a "massive problem," pointing to the region's second cluster of new infections - which included nine members of McCarthy's direct family, including her sister who flew from Katherine to Robinson River while unknowingly bringing COVID-19 with her, per the report.

"If we could get housing in there right now, I would be pushing that straight away to the federal government and the NT government to work on that, but we obviously need the resources to do so," she said.

Of the nine new cases in Binjari, four are women and five are men, including a 78-year-old woman who has been transported to Darwin Hospital.

There were zero new COVID-19 cases reported on Sunday, however Minister Gunner said he was worried about 'mingling between households' in Binjari and Rockhole, whose populations are around 220 and 130 respectively.

On Sunday, Gunner said: "Yes, these are strong measures, but the threat to lives is extreme."

Nice people...

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  Fr. Hector Bolduc: Mexico and the Church - Today is Tomorrow June 1981
Posted by: Stone - 11-22-2021, 09:23 AM - Forum: Add'nl Clergy - No Replies

Taken from the June 1981 Angelus:


Mexico and the Church: Today & Tomorrow

by Father Hector L. Bolduc

TO APPRECIATE THE SITUATION in Mexico one must be familiar with the section of the Constitution which deals with religion and religious affairs. Section 11 of Article 27, as well as Article 130, are reprinted at the end of this article for the benefit of the reader. One must keep in mind that the only religion prevalent in Mexico, a nation which is 95% Catholic, is Catholicism. Therefore the laws directed at suppressing religion were directed exclusively against the Roman Catholic Church.

Mexico's Catholics had fought valiantly against the forces of Freemasonry. It is certain that they could have eventually won the fight had they not been duped into laying down their arms. It is true that the actual facts were more complicated; however, it was the ill advice given to Pope Pius XI, prompting him to request that the Catholics lay down their arms, which culminated in the disaster. Pope Pius XI had been made to believe, by advisors already neutralized, that the Masons wanted peace and would respond with kindness to the Church if she cooperated in ending the bloodbath which was raging from one end of Mexico to the other. No sooner had the Catholics acceded to the Pope's request and surrendered their arms, when all the leaders of the opposition, both military and civilian, were rounded up and liquidated in true Masonic-Marxist fashion. With their leaders gone, their spirit broken by what they considered treason from Rome, Mexicans settled down to enslavement and persecution from which they have never recovered.

The saddest circumstances surrounding the plight of Mexican Catholics is that the world is virtually ignorant of these facts. While the free world laments the conditions of Catholics and other Christians behind the Iron and Bamboo Curtains, the situation in Mexico is as serious and far more dangerous simply because it is unknown and ignored. Perhaps it is time to coin a new phrase: the Tortilla Curtain. It is also the largest most important implementation of a Freemasonic government in the world. Through it one can easily see how identical Freemasonry and Communism are, coming as it were from a common root and being in reality one and the same. It is a well-known and clearly documented fact that the government of the United States of America worked diligently for the destruction of Catholicism in Mexico and assisted in the establishment of Freemasonry as the leading power. The attempt to kill Catholicism in Mexico failed largely because the people have such a deep-rooted faith in Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Patroness of Mexico and Mother of all the Americas.

Where torture, imprisonment, death and desecration have failed, indifferentism, compromise, infiltration and ecumenism have succeeded. When one refers to the Red Bishops of Mexico, they are not referring to the color of their blood. Some, like Mendez Arceo, are self-proclaimed Marxists. Holding high office in the Mexican Church, they are of course favored and supported by the government. They receive plenty of publicity and, as their statements are usually of an anti-Catholic nature, the government allows them free reign. The Mexican Bishops and the government of Mexico differ only in that, while the government seeks to bring the nation and its people under complete Marxist domination gradually and with as little disruption as possible, the bishops, having been well indoctrinated with the party line, want immediate action through armed revolution. They have placed all of the Churches' resources toward the accomplishment of that goal. Open fighting has already broken out in several parts of Mexico. It appears that Mexico will once more experience bloodshed and, as of old, it is the Catholic Faith which is at stake.

Unfortunately there is little or no opposition to the Marxists, be they in the government or in the Church. As in America, traditional Catholic groups there are small and for the most part the pawns of politically oriented groups. They act as front groups for the politically motivated opportunist groups, and like some in our own country, call themselves traditional, but are used for the selfish ends of their masters. This is especially true of one of the groups called TRENTO, which has done more to neutralize and compromise Catholics than the Novus Ordo. This group in fact works openly with the Freemasonic government in opposing champions of the faith like Archbishop Lefebvre. During the Archbishop's recent visit, they openly and publicly attacked him, cooperating fully with the government, using the government controlled news media which were placed at their disposal by their comrades in high places. The group is highly organized and generously financed by what some call "Rockefeller money." They hire and control priests by controlling the purse strings, and any priest who does not spout their political line is cast out in the street. The fact that the priest celebrates the Latin Tridentine Mass has no bearing on the matter. They have a paranoia about "Jews" and, while the Zionist threat is real and cannot be minimized, these individuals utilize this stigma by branding anyone who does not agree with them as a "Jew."

A letter being circulated in the U. S. by the leaders of TRENTO, bitterly attacking Archbishop Lefebvre, clearly admits this group's cooperation with the Marxists and Masons to smear Archbishop Lefebvre and to have him expelled from the country. The letter signed by Anacleto Gonzales Flores, carries the following quotations (remember that all papers in Mexico are Masonic-controlled):

Quote:At Morelos newspapers, someone took the name of peasant leaders of Trento, inviting Archbishop Lefebvre to visit the traditionalist churches of Trento. They and we published at paid space our rejection to Archbishop Lefebvre, both in Excelsior, the most important daily in Mexico City, and at Cuernavaca newspapers. [Editor's comment: Excelsior is a well known pro-Communist, anti-Catholic publication. All Cuernavaca papers are Masonic and boast of their anti-Catholic position.]

On Saturday, Trento priest Adolfo Zamora and a group of laymen appeared for one hour on TV. [Trento priest Adolfo Zamora bitterly attacked Archbishop Lefebvre and all traditional Catholics.]

These are the news. Regarding sending article from Gloria Riestra to Fr. Bolduc, better wait until we see what The Angelus prints. Enclosed Xerox of newspaper publications, for your own use. Not for translating. [What does the writer fear of having the truth made known to the public? Does he not want traditional Catholics to know of Trento's alignment with Mexico's Communist government? Trento was more than willing to sponsor the visit of Archbishop Lefebvre if the Archbishop would agree to embrace their heresies, say what they wanted him to say, visit who they wanted him to, etc. If Trento, despite its bad record, is well intended, it had better start manifesting these intentions in a positive manner and use its forces to oppose the enemies of the Church instead of constantly attacking those who defend true Catholic positions. This is, in fact, a veiled bribe. In clearer words, Mr. Gonzales is saying: If the Angelus Press does not expose us, we will keep a low profile and continue our duplicity rather than risk losing the support of the thousands of followers of Archbishop Lefebvre who don't really know what we are up to. Talk about the works of darkness!]


THERE ARE SOME BRAVE PRIESTS who act independently and who, through great sacrifice, bring the Mass and Sacraments to the people. All receive constant persecution from TRENTO.

The Independent University of Guadalajara shows much promise and has accomplished much. They are by far the most effective and the most efficient. It is unfortunate that some of their members have fallen into the "sede vacante" trap. When freedom comes to Mexico, the Independent University of Guadalajara will play an important role. A second great failing is the fact that the True Mass and Sacraments are not available to the students at the campus. The University publishes a newspaper called Ocho Columnas—Eight Columns, which has a wide circulation and which takes a strong stand against Liberalism, Communism and the progressives. They also publish good traditional Catholic catechisms and catechetical material. Mr. Antonio Leano Alvarez del Castilo is a man deeply rooted in the Faith who maintains a private chapel at his home where the Latin Tridentine Mass is celebrated. His position can, in many ways, be likened to that of the late Generalissimo Francisco Franco of Spain.

The TRENTO group, realizing that they had at last blown their cover, and allowed the world to see their anti-Catholic, anti-Lefebvre sentiments, lost no time in sending emissaries to Europe in an attempt to smooth things over with the Archbishop, who quickly surmised that they were talking out of both sides of their mouths. The action of TRENTO confirmed the information confided to me by Father A. Saenz when I ministered to him during his last illness, shortly before his death. The fears he expressed to me then proved well founded.

The greatest hope in Mexico and the only organization working positively for the salvation of souls and in defense of the True Mass and Sacraments is the Society of St. Pius X. Only the Society has the capability of supplying priests for Mexico and it already has a number of seminarians studying at Switzerland, America and in Argentina. Other groups are too busy playing politics for their own financial gain to bother with vocations, the Mass or the Church. Furthermore, it is to their advantage to keep the people without priests and dependent on them (TRENTO). How well they have learned from the Red-masters.

As the Society continues to increase its influence in Mexico, the people will be given a choice between following the politically-oriented pseudo-Catholic movements, or of aligning themselves with those whose only interest is in the salvation of souls. Our priests will be all the advertisement we need—their faith and their actions will speak for themselves. If the true Catholic Church in Mexico is going to enjoy a brighter future, it is because Archbishop Lefebvre produced the spark which lit the lamp.


* * *


THE MEXICAN CONSTITUTION

Section II of Article 27

"II. The religious institutions known as churches irrespective of creed, may in no case acquire, hold or administer real property or hold mortgages thereon; property so held at present, either directly or through third parties, shall revert to the Nation, any person whatsoever being authorized to denounce property so held. Strong presumptive proof shall suffice to declare the denouncement well-founded. Places of public worship are the property of the Nation, as represented by the Federal Government, who shall determine which of them may continue to be devoted to their present purposes. Bishoprics, rectories, seminaries, orphan asylums and schools belonging to religious orders, convents and any other buildings constructed or intended for the administration, propagation or teaching of any religious creed shall at once become, by inherent right, the property of the Nation, to be used exclusively for the public services of the Federal or State Governments, within their respective jurisdiction. All places of worship erected hereafter shall be the property of the Nation."


Article 130

"The Federal authorities shall have power to exercise in matters of religious worship and outward ecclesiastical forms such intervention as may be determined by law. All other authorities shall act as auxiliaries to the Federal authorities.

Congress is not empowered to enact any law establishing or forbidding any religion whatsoever.

Marriage is a civil contract. Marriage and all other acts relating to the civil status of individuals shall appertain exclusively to the civil authorities, in the manner set forth by the law, and they shall have the force and validity which said laws give to them.

A simple promise to tell the truth and to comply with the obligations contracted shall subject the promisor, in the event of non-fulfilment, to the penalties established therefor by law.

The law recognizes no legal capacity to the religious institutions known as churches.

Ministers of religious creeds shall be considered as persons exercising a profession, who shall be directly subject to the laws enacted in regard thereto.

The State Legislatures shall solely be empowered to determine the maximum number of ministers of religious creeds, according to the needs of each locality.

Only a Mexican by birth may be a minister of any religious creed in Mexico.

Ministers of religious creeds may not, either in public or private meetings, or in acts of worship, or religious propaganda, criticize the fundamental laws of the country, the authorities in particular, or the Government in general; they shall have no vote, nor be eligible for office, nor shall they be entitled to assemble for political purposes.

Permission must be obtained from the Ministry of the Interior prior to engaging new places of worship for public use; the opinion of the respective State Governor shall previously be heard on the subject. Every place of worship shall have a person in charge of its care and maintenance, who shall be legally responsible for the faithful performance of the laws on religious observances within same, and for all the objects used for the purposes of worship.

The person in charge of each place of public worship, together with ten residents of the town, shall promptly notify the Municipal authorities as to the person responsible for the same. The outgoing Minister shall in every instance give notice of any change, for which purpose he shall be accompanied by the incoming minister and ten other residents of the town. The Municipal authorities shall be responsible for the exact compliance with this provision, under penalty of dismissal and fine not exceeding 1,000 pesos for each breach; and, subject to the same penalty, they shall keep a register of the places of worship and of the person in charge thereof. The Municipal authorities shall give notice to the Ministry of the Interior, through the Governor of the State, of any permit given for opening a new place of worship for public use, as well as of any change in the persons in charge of it. Collections of personal property may be made inside the place of worship.

Under no condition shall studies be made in institutions devoted to the professional training of ministers of religious creeds be given credits or granted any other dispensation or privilege whereby said studies shall be accredited in official institutions. Any authority who violates this provision shall be liable for criminal prosecution, and all such dispensation or privilege shall be null and void; and the professional degree toward the obtaining of which this provision has been violated shall be wholly and entirely invalidated.

No periodical publication which, by reason of its program, its title or merely its general tendencies, is of a religious nature, may comment upon political affairs of the nation or publish any information regarding the acts of the authorities of the country or of private individuals, insofar as they are directly connected with public affairs.

Political associations whose name contains any word of indication relating to any religious belief are strictly forbidden. No meetings of a political nature may be held within places of worship.

No minister of any religious creed may inherit, either on his own behalf, or by means of a trustee or otherwise any real property occupied by any association of religious propaganda or used for religious or charitable purposes. Ministers of religious creeds are incapable legally of inheriting by will from ministers of the same religious creed or from any private individual to whom they are not related by blood within the fourth degree.

All real and personal property belonging to the clergy or to religious institutions shall be governed, insofar as their acquisition by private parties is concerned, by the provisions of Article 27 hereof.

No trial by jury shall ever be granted for the violation of any of the foregoing provisions."

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  Klaus Schwab’s School For Covid Dictators, Plan for ‘Great Reset’
Posted by: Stone - 11-22-2021, 09:14 AM - Forum: Great Reset - No Replies

Klaus Schwab’s School For Covid Dictators, Plan for ‘Great Reset’


RairFoundation | 21 Nov 2021 


Economist Ernst Wolff believes that a hidden alliance of political and corporate leaders is exploiting the pandemic with the aim of crashing national economies and introducing a global digital currency.

How is it that more than 190 governments from all over the world ended up dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic in almost exactly the same manner, with lockdowns, mask mandates, and vaccination cards now being commonplace everywhere? The answer may lie in the Young Global Leaders school, which was established and managed by Klaus Schwab of the World Economic Forum, and that many of today’s prominent political and business leaders passed through on their way to the top.

The German economist, journalist, and author Ernst Wolff has revealed some facts about Schwab’s “Young Global Leaders” school that are relevant for understanding world events during the pandemic in a video from the German Corona Committee podcast. While Wolff is mainly known as a critic of the globalist financial system, recently he has focused on bringing to light what he sees as the hidden agenda behind the anti-Covid measures being enacted around the world.


Mysterious Beginnings

The story begins with the World Economic Forum (WEF), which is an NGO founded by Klaus Schwab, a German economist and mechanical engineer, in Switzerland in 1971, when he was only 32. The WEF is best-known to the public for the annual conferences it holds in Davos, Switzerland each January that aim to bring together political and business leaders from around the world to discuss the problems of the day. Today, it is one of the most important networks in the world for the globalist power elite, being funded by approximately a thousand multinational corporations.

The WEF, which was originally called the European Management Forum until 1987, succeeded in bringing together 440 executives from 31 nations already at its very first meeting in February 1971, which as Wolff points out was an unexpected achievement for someone like Schwab, who had very little international or professional experience prior to this. Wolff believes the reason may be due to the contacts Schwab made during his university education, including studying with no less a person than former National Security Advisor and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Wolff also points out that while Schwab was there, the Harvard Business School had been in the process of planning a management forum of their own, and it is possible that Harvard ended up delegating the task of organizing it to him.

The Forum initially only brought together people from the economic field, but before long, it began attracting politicians, prominent figures from the media (including from the BBC and CNN), and even celebrities.


Schwab’s Young Global Leaders: Incubator of the Great Reset?

In 1992 Schwab established a parallel institution, the Global Leaders for Tomorrow school, which was re-established as Young Global Leaders in 2004. Attendees at the school must apply for admission and are then subjected to a rigorous selection process. Members of the school’s very first class in 1992 already included many who went on to become important liberal political figures, such as Angela Merkel, Nicolas Sarkozy, and Tony Blair. There are currently about 1,300 graduates of this school, and the list of alumni includes several names of those who went on to become leaders of the health institutions of their respective nations. Four of them are former and current health ministers for Germany, including Jens Spahn, who has been Federal Minister of Health since 2018. Philipp Rösler, who was Minister of Health from 2009 until 2011, was appointed the WEF’s Managing Director by Schwab in 2014.

Other notable names on the school’s roster are Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand whose stringent lockdown measures have been praised by global health authorities; Emmanuel Macron, the President of France; Sebastian Kurz, who was until recently the Chancellor of Austria; Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary; Jean-Claude Juncker, former Prime Minister of Luxembourg and President of the European Commission; and Annalena Baerbock, the leader of the German Greens who was the party’s first candidate for Chancellor in this year’s federal election, and who is still in the running to be Merkel’s successor. We also find California Governor Gavin Newsom on the list, who was selected for the class of 2005, as well as former presidential candidate and current US Secretary of Transportation Peter Buttigieg, who is a very recent alumnus, having been selected for the class of 2019. All of these politicians who were in office during the past two years have favored harsh responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, and which also happened to considerably increase their respective governments’ power.


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Gavin Newsom, Young Global Leaders Class of 2005.

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Angela Merkel, Global Leaders for Tomorrow Class of 1992.

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Peter Buttigieg, Young Global Leaders Class of 2019.

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Emmanuel Macron, Young Global Leaders Class of 2017.


But the school’s list of alumni is not limited to political leaders. We also find many of the captains of private industry there, including Microsoft’s Bill Gates, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Virgin’s Richard Branson, and the Clinton Foundation’s Chelsea Clinton. Again, all of them expressed support for the global response to the pandemic, and many reaped considerable profits as a result of the measures.


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Jeff Bezos, Global Leaders for Tomorrow Class of 1998.

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Bill Gates, Global Leaders for Tomorrow Class of 1993.


Wolff believes that the people behind the WEF and the Global Leaders school are the ones who really determine who will become political leaders, although he stresses that he doesn’t believe that Schwab himself is the one making these decisions but is merely a facilitator. He further points out that the school’s alumni include not only Americans and Europeans, but also people from Asia, Africa, and South America, indicating that its reach is truly worldwide.

In 2012, Schwab and the WEF founded yet another institution, the “Global Shapers Community,” which brings together those identified by them as having leadership potential from around the world who are under 30. Approximately 10,000 participants have passed through this program to date, and they regularly hold meetings in 400 cities. Wolff believes that it is yet another proving ground where future political leaders are being selected, vetted, and groomed before being positioned in the world’s political apparatus.


Wolff points out that very few graduates of the Global Leaders school list it on their CVs. He says that he has only seen it listed on one: namely, that of the German economist Richard Werner, who is a known critic of the establishment. Wolff suggests that the school seems to like to include even critics of the system among its ranks, as another name among its graduates is Gregor Hackmack, the German chief of Change.org, who was in its 2010 class. Wolff believes this is because the organization wants to present itself as being fair and balanced, although it also wants to ensure that its critics are controlled opposition.

Another thing that the Global Leaders graduates have in common is that most of them have very sparse CVs apart from their participation in the program prior to being elevated to positions of power, which may indicate that it is their connection to Schwab’s institutions that is the decisive factor in launching their careers. This is most evident when the school’s alumni are publicly questioned about issues that they have not been instructed to talk about in advance, and their struggles to come up with answers are often quite evident. Wolff contends that their roles are only to act as mouthpieces for the talking points that those in the shadows behind them want discussed in public debate.


Schwab’s Yes Men in Action

Given the growing discontent with the anti-Covid measures put into practice by the school’s graduates who are now national leaders, Wolff believes it is possible that these people were selected due to their willingness to do whatever they are told, and that they are being set up to fail so that the subsequent backlash can be exploited to justify the creation of a new global form of government. Indeed, Wolff notes that politicians with unique personalities and strong, original views have become rare, and that the distinguishing character of the national leaders of the past 30 years has been their meekness and adherence to a strict globalist line dictated from above. This has been especially evident in most countries’ response to the pandemic, where politicians who knew nothing about viruses two years ago suddenly proclaimed that Covid was a severe health crisis that justified locking people up in their homes, shutting down their businesses, and wrecking entire economies.

Determining exactly how the school operates is difficult, but Wolff has managed to learn something about it. In the school’s early years, it involved the members of each class meeting several times over the course of a year, including a ten-day “executive training” session at the Harvard Business School. Wolff believes that, through meeting their classmates and becoming part of a wider network, the graduates then establish contacts who they rely on in their later careers. Today, the school’s program includes courses offered over the course of five years at irregular intervals, which in some cases may overlap with the beginnings of some of its participants’ political or professional careers – meaning they will be making regular visits to Davos. Emmanuel Macron and Peter Buttigieg, for example, were selected for the school less than five years ago, which means it is possible they have been regularly attending Young Global Leaders-related programs while in political office and may in fact still be attending them today.


A Worldwide Network of Wealth & Influence

Graduates from the Young Global Leaders school, and Global Leaders for Tomorrow before them, find themselves very well-situated given that they then have access to the WEF’s network of contacts. The WEF’s current Board of Trustees includes such luminaries as Christine Lagarde, former Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund and current President of the European Central Bank; Queen Rania of Jordan, who has been ranked by Forbes as one of the 100 most powerful women in the world; and Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, the largest investment management corporation internationally and which handles approximately $9 trillion annually. By tracing the connections between the school’s graduates, Wolff claims that you can see that they continue to rely on each other for support for their initiatives long after they participated in the Global Leaders programs.

Wolff believes that many elite universities play a role in the process determined by the WEF, and that they should no longer be seen as operating outside of the fields of politics and economics. He cites the example of the Harvard Business School, which receives millions of dollars from donors each year, as well as the Harvard School of Public Health, which was renamed the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health after it received $350 million from the Hong Kong-born billionaire Gerald Chan. The same is true of the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, which became the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health after media mogul Michael Bloomberg donated $1.8 billion to the school in 2018.

Wolff states that the WEF’s influence goes far beyond those who have passed through the Global Leaders and Global Shapers programs, however, as the number of people who participate in the annual Davos conferences is much larger than many suspect; he mentions being informed that approximately 1,500 private jets bring attendees to the event each year, overloading Switzerland’s airports.


The Alliance of Big Business & Government

The main goal of the WEF’s activities, Wolff believes, is to facilitate and further high-level cooperation between big business and national governments, something which we are already seeing take place. Viviane Fischer, another participant in the Corona Committee podcast, points out that the British-based company Serco processes migrants for the British government and also manages prisons around the world, among its many other activities. The pharmaceutical industry’s international reach is also considerable: Wolff mentions that Global Leaders alumnus Bill Gates, for example, had long been doing business with Pfizer, one of the main producers of the controversial mRNA anti-Covid vaccines, through his Foundation’s public health initiatives in Africa since long before the pandemic began. Perhaps not coincidentally, Gates has become one of the foremost champions of lockdowns and the Covid vaccines since they became available, and The Wall Street Journal has reported that his Foundation had made approximately $200 billion in “social benefits” from distributing vaccines before the pandemic had even begun. One can only imagine what its vaccine profits are today.

Digital technology, which is now all-pervasive, is also playing a prominent role in the elite’s global designs. Wolff highlights that BlackRock, run by Global Leaders alumnus Larry Fink, is presently the largest advisor to the world’s central banks and has been collecting data on the world financial system for more than 30 years now, and undoubtedly has a greater understanding of how the system works than the central banks themselves.

One of the goals of the current policies being pursued by many governments, Wolff believes, is to destroy the businesses of small- and medium-sized entrepreneurs so that multinational corporations based in the United States and China can monopolize business everywhere. Amazon, which was led until recently by Global Leaders alumnus Jeff Bezos, in particular has made enormous profits as a result of the lockdown measures that have devastated the middle class.

Wolff contends that the ultimate goal of this domination by large platforms is to see the introduction of digital bank currency. Just in the past few months, China’s International Finance Forum, which is similar to the WEF, proposed the introduction of the digital yuan, which could in turn be internationalized by the Diem blockchain-based currency network. Interestingly, Diem is the successor to Libra, a cryptocurrency that was first announced by Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook, indicating that a global currency that will transcend the power of either the dollar or the yuan, and managed through the cooperation of Chinese, European, and American business networks, is currently being discussed. The International Finance Forum’s supervisory board includes such names as the WEF’s Christine Lagarde; Jean-Claude Trichet, the former President of the European Central Bank; and Horst Köhler, the former Head of the International Monetary Fund.

Wolff further explains that the lockdowns and subsequent bailouts that were seen around the world over the past two years left many nations on the verge of bankruptcy. In order to avoid an economic catastrophe, the governments of the world resorted to drawing on 650 billion special drawing rights, or SDRs, which are supplementary foreign exchange reserve assets managed by the International Monetary Fund. When these eventually come due, it will leave these same governments in dire straits, which is why it may be that the introduction of digital currency has become a sudden priority – and this may have been the hidden purpose of the lockdowns all along.

Wolff says that two European countries are already prepared to begin using digital currency: Sweden and Switzerland. Perhaps not coincidentally, Sweden has had virtually no lockdown restrictions due to the pandemic, and Switzerland has taken only very light measures. Wolff believes that the reason for this may be that the two countries did not need to crash their economies through lockdown measures because they were already prepared to begin using digital currency before the pandemic began. He contends that a new round of lockdowns may be being prepared that will finish off the world’s economies for good, leading to massive unemployment and in turn the introduction of Universal Basic Income and the use of a digital currency managed by a central bank. This currency might be restricted, both in terms of what individuals can spend it on as well as in the time frame that one has to spend it in.

Further, Wolff indicates that the inflation currently being seen around the world is an inevitable consequence of the fact that national governments, after taking loans from the central banks, have introduced approximately $20 trillion into the global economy in less than two years. Whereas previous bailouts were directed into the markets, this latest round has gone to ordinary people, and as a result, this is driving up the prices of products that ordinary people spend their money on, such as food.


Democracy Has Been Cancelled

The ultimate conclusion one must draw from all of this, according to Wolff, is that democracy as we knew it has been silently cancelled, and that although the appearance of democratic processes is being maintained in our countries, the fact is that an examination of how governance around the world works today shows that an elite of super-wealthy and powerful individuals effectively control everything that goes on in politics, as has been especially evident in relation to the pandemic response.

The best way to combat their designs, Wolff says, is simply to educate people about what is happening, and for them to realize that the narrative of the “super-dangerous virus” is a lie that has been designed to manipulate them into accepting things that run contrary to their own interests. If even 10% of ordinary citizens become aware of this and decide to take action, it could thwart the elite’s plans and perhaps open a window for ordinary citizens to take back control over their own destinies.

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  "We'll Never Give Up" - Protests Erupt Across World Over Gov't COVID Tyranny
Posted by: Stone - 11-21-2021, 08:41 PM - Forum: Global News - No Replies

Notice the image of Our Lady of Fatima being carried in Croatia!



"We'll Never Give Up" - Protests Erupt Across World Over Gov't COVID Tyranny


ZH | NOV 21, 2021


AP News calls them "far-right," but tens of thousands of freedom-loving people marched against new tyrannical public health measures, such as partial and full lockdowns and health passports and mandatory vaccinations, across Europe.

Demonstrations against new virus restrictions were observed in Austria, Croatia, Italy, Northern Ireland, the UK, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Outside of Europe, protesters were seen in several cities across Canada, Australia, Japan, and even the US. Some marked Saturday as part of a "Worldwide Freedom" rally to protest COVID-19 restrictions and vaccine mandates.

Some of the most intense rallies, which turned into riots, were in the port city of Rotterdam. Clashes between protesters and police began Friday and continued through Saturday night.


About 30 minutes away, protests transformed into riots in Hague.





Protesters across many European cities shared commonalities as they marched to preserve their lives and liberty. Governments are attempting to plunder that via increased COVID restrictions, mandatory health passports, and forced vaccinations.

The worst of restrictions, or rather the government's plundering of liberties, was in Austria, where full lockdowns begin Monday. Nationwide lockdowns are expected for at least ten days but can be extended to more than two weeks. Then by Feb. 1, the government will make vaccinations mandatory (only 66% of Austria's 8.9 million people are fully vaccinated). Good luck with that one.

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Saturday's march in Vienna's massive Heldenplatz square had many chanting "My Body, My Choice," "We're Standing Up for Our Kids!," and "Resistance!"


One of the biggest protests might have been in Zagreb, Croatia's northwestern capital, where Citizen Free Press reports as many as 100,000 flooded streets to protest the government's health passports and new COVID measures.

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In Rome, thousands of demonstrators gathered in the capital's Circus Maximus to protest against "Green Pass" certificates required at workplaces, restaurants, cinemas, theaters, sports venues, and gyms, as well as for public transportation.

"People like us never give up," read a protester's sign.


The pushback against totalitarianism is spreading across Europe. Usually, "Europeans generally are more compliant than Americans when it comes to government orders. But even there, citizens are protesting governments seizing power in the name of public health," said American Thinker's Thomas Lifson.

People of the world are awakening to government tyranny plundering their life and liberties as the Davos Man, the world's elites, and their political puppet officials are becoming more unfavorable than ever. The increasing discontent among citizens and their respective governments is dangerous - this is how revolutions begin.

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  Last Sunday after Pentecost
Posted by: Stone - 11-21-2021, 07:58 AM - Forum: Pentecost - Replies (4)

INSTRUCTION ON THE TWENTY-FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST.
Taken from Fr. Leonard Goffine's Explanations of the Epistles and Gospels for the Sundays, Holydays throughout the Ecclesiastical Year, 1880

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REMARK. The Mass of this Sunday is always the last, even if there are more than twenty-four Sundays after Pentecost; in that case the Sundays remaining after Epiphany, which are noticed in the calendar, are inserted between the twenty-third and the Mass of the twenty-fourth Sunday.


THE Introit of the Mass consoles and incites us to confidence in God who is so benevolent towards us, and will not let us pine away in tribulation. The Lord saith: I think thoughts of peace, and not of affliction: you shall call upon me, and I will hear you: and I will bring back your captivity from all places. (Jer. xxix. ii. 12. 14.) Lord, thou hast blessed thy land: thou hast turned away the captivity of Jacob. (Ps. lxxxiv. Glory, &c.)

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH. Quicken, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the wills of Thy faithful: that they, more earnestly seeking after the fruit of divine grace, may more abundantly receive the healing gifts of Thy mercy. Thro'.

EPISTLE. (Col. i. 9 — 14.) Brethren. We cease not to pray for you, and to beg that you may be filled with the knowledge of the will of God, in all wisdom and spiritual understanding: that you may walk worthy of God, in all things pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God: strengthened with all might according to the power of his glory, in all patience and long-suffering with joy, giving thanks to God the Father, who hath made us worthy to be partakers of the lot of the saints in light; who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the remission of sins.

Quote:EXPLANATION. In this epistle St. Paul teaches us to pray for our neighbor, and to thank God especially for the light of the true, only saving faith. Let us endeavor to imitate St. Paul in his love and zeal for the salvation of souls, then we shall also one day partake of his glorious reward in heaven.

GOSPEL. (Matt. xxiv. 15 — 35.) At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: When you shall see the abomination of desolation , which was spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place: he that readeth, let him understand: then they that are in Judea, let them flee to the mountains: and he that is on the house-top, let him not come down to take anything out of his house: and he that is in the field, let him not go back to take his coat. And woe to them that are with child, and that give suck, in those days. But pray that your flight be not in the winter, or on the Sabbath. For there shall be then great tribulation, such as hath not been from the beginning of the world until now, neither shall be: and unless those days had been shortened, no flesh should be saved: but for the sake of the elect, those days shall be shortened. Then, if any man shall say to you: Lo, here is Christ, or there: do not believe him: for there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders, insomuch as to deceive (if possible) even the elect. Behold, I have told it to you before hand: if therefore they shall say to you: Behold, he is in the desert, go ye not out; Behold, he is in the closets, believe it not. For as lightning cometh out of the east, and appeareth even into the west, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Wheresoever the body shall be, there shall the eagles also be gathered together. And immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be moved: and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with much power and majesty: and he shall send his angels with a trumpet and a great voice, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the farthest parts of the heavens to the utmost bounds of them. And from the fig-tree learn a parable: when the branch thereof is now tender, and the leaves come forth, you know that summer is nigh. So you also, when you shall see all these things, know ye that it is nigh, even at the doors. Amen I say to you, that this generation shall not pass till all these things be done. Heaven and earth shall pass, but my words shall not pass.

Quote:EXPLANATION. When you shall see the abomination of desolation. The abomination of desolation of which Daniel (ix. 27.) and Christ here speak, is the desecration of the temple and the city of Jerusalem by the rebellious Jews by perpetrating the most abominable vices, injustices; and robberies, &c, but principally by the pagan Romans by putting up their idols. This destruction which was accomplished in the most fearful manner about forty years after the death of Christ, was foretold by Him according to the testimony of St. Luke. (xxi. 20.) At the same time He speaks of the end of the world and of His coming to judgment, of which the desolation of Jerusalem was a figure.

Pray, that your flight be not in the winter or on the Sabbath. Because, as St. Jerome says, the severe cold which reigns in the deserts and mountains, would prevent the people from going thither to seek security, and because it was forbidden by the law for the Jews to travel on the Sabbath.

There shall rise false Christs and false prophets. According to the testimony of the Jewish historian Josephus, who was an eye-witness of the destruction of Jerusalem, Eleazar, John, Simon, &c, were such false prophets who under the pretence of helping the Jews, brought them into still greater misfortunes; before the end of the world, it will be Antichrist with his followers, whom St. Paul calls the man of sin and the son of perdition, (ii Thess. ii. 3.) on account of his diabolical malice and cruelty. He will rise up, sit in the temple, proclaim himself God, and kill all who will not recognize him as such. His splendor, his promises, and his false miracles will be such that even the holy and just will be in danger of being seduced, but for their sake God will shorten these days of persecution.

Wheresoever the body shall be, there shall the eagles also be gathered together. That is, where the wicked are, who have aimed at spiritual corruption, there punishment will overtake and destroy them.

This generation shall not pass, till all these things be done. By these words Christ defines the time of the destruction of Jerusalem, and says that many of His hearers would live to see it, which also happened. But when the end of the world will come, He says, not even the angels in heaven know. (Matt. xxiv. 36.) Let us endeavor to be always ready by leading a holy life, for the coming of the divine Judge, and meditate often on the words of our divine Lord: Heaven and earth shall pass, but my words shall not pass. [See the account of the Destruction of Jerusalem on the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost.]


PRAYER. Remove from us, O Lord, all that is calculated to rob us of Thy love. Break the bonds with which we are tied to the world, that we may not be lost with it. Give us the wings of eagles that we may soar above all worldly things by the contemplation of Thy sufferings, life and death, that we may hasten towards Thee now. and gather about Thee, that we may not become a prey to the rapacious enemy on the day of judgment. Amen.



INSTRUCTION CONCERNING PERJURY

Amen, I say to you. (Matt. xxiv. 34.)

THE Son of God here, and elsewhere in the gospel, confirms His word by an oath, as it were, for swearing is nothing else than to call upon God, His divine veracity, His justice, or upon His creatures in the name of God, as witness of the truth of our words. — Is swearing, then, lawful, and when? — It is lawful, when justice, or necessity or an important advantage requires it, and the cause is true and equitable. (Jer. iv. 2.) Those sin grievously, therefore, who swear to that which is false and unjust, because they call upon God as witness of falsehood and injustice, by which His eternal truthfulness and justice is desecrated; those sin who swear in a truthful cause without necessity and sufficient reason, because it is disrespectful to call upon God as witness for every trivial thing. In like manner, those sin grievously and constantly who are so accustomed to swearing as to break out into oaths, without knowing or considering whether the thing is true or false, whether they will keep their promise or not, or even if they will be able to keep it; such expose themselves to the danger of swearing falsely. "There is no one," says St. Chrysostom, "who swears often, who does not sometimes swear falsely, just as he who speaks much, sometimes says unbecoming and false things."

Therefore Christ tells those who seek perfection, not to swear at all, (Matt. v. 34.) that they might not fall into the habit of swearing and from that into perjury. He who has the habit of swearing should, therefore, take the greatest pains to eradicate it; to accomplish which it will be very useful to reflect that if we have to render an account for every idle word we speak, (Matt. xii. 36.) how much more strictly will we be judged for unnecessary false oaths! God's curse accompanies him who commits perjury, in all his ways, as proved by daily experience. He who commits perjury in court, robs himself of the merits of Christ's death and will be consumed in the fire of hell, which is represented by the crucifix and burning tapers, in presence of which the oath (in some places) is taken. If you have had the misfortune to be guilty of perjury, at once be truly sorry, weep for this terrible sin which you have committed, frankly confess it, repair the injury you may have caused by it, and chastise yourself for it by rigorous penance.

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  Prayers in Honor of Our Lady's Presentation
Posted by: Stone - 11-21-2021, 07:35 AM - Forum: In Honor of Our Lady - No Replies

Prayers in Honor of Our Lady's Presentation
Taken from here.

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De B. Virgine in Templum Recepta

The exceedingly pure temple of the Savior, the inestimable sheep, the holy Virgin, the sacred ark containing the treasure of the divine majesty, is led today into the house of the Lord; thither she brings the grace of the divine Spirit, while the Angels of God sing her praises, saying: Truly she is the heavenly tabernacle.

While I contemplate the grace of God's ineffable and sacred mysteries, revealed in its plenitude in this Virgin, I am full of joy, and I cannot comprehend the wonderful and inexpressible way in which this chosen and immaculate Virgin surpasses all creatures visible and invisible. Desiring then to applaud her with joyful voice, my thoughts and words fail me; yet I dare to proclaim her praises and exalt her, for she is the heavenly tabernacle.

The Creator, Author, and Lord of all things, out of His incomprehensible mercy and compassion, bent down towards us, and seeing the creature He had made with His own hands fallen away, He in His pity, deigned to restore it by a sublimer work than the creation; for He, so good and merciful, emptied Himself; and in the mystery whereby He freely took on Him our nature, He associated the immaculate Virgin Mary with Himself: and she is the heavenly tabernacle.

The Word of God, our Redeemer, willing to show Himself for our sake in the flesh, brought the Virgin into this world, and honored the coming of that spotless one with new and stupendous gifts; for He gave her as the fruit and reward of prayer, and promised and announced her to Joachim and Anne. Her parents believed the word, and with joyful love they vowed to offer her to the Lord: for she is the heavenly tabernacle.

The lovely Virgin being born according to the divine decree, her holy parents led her to the temple, to fulfill their promise, and give her to her Creator. Anne in her joy thus cried out to the priest: Receive this child, lead her into the most secluded parts of the temple surround her with all care; for she was given to me as the fruit of my prayers, and in the joy of my faith I promised to devote her to God her Creator: she is the heavenly tabernacle.




SEQUENCE

The "Wisdom of God with inscrutable providence, disposeth all things rightly: Joachim and Anne are united in wedlock, but their union is sterile.

With all the heart's affection they together bind themselves by inviolable vow to the Lord: that if He deign to give them offspring, they without delay will consecrate it to Him for ever in the temple.

A bright Angel appears, and tells them their prayers are heard, and by the grace of the most high King, a daughter shall be given them, full of grace.

Holy even in her conception, she is born in a wondrous manner, yet in a way more wondrous still will she give birth, remaining a virgin, to the Son of the most high Father, when He comes to, freely, cancel the guilt of the world.

She is born then, that blessed Virgin, and at the age of three years is presented in the temple; swift and erect, adorned with her beautiful robe, she ascends the fifteen steps, beneath her parents' gaze.

The temple shines with a new glory, when this august Virgin is presented; there she is taught by God, is visited by the Angels from heaven, and rejoices with them.

When the chief priest bids the maidens of adult age prepare for marriage, the Virgin at first refuses; for her parents have devoted her to God, and she herself has vowed to remain a virgin.

God, being consulted, answers that the virgin shall take him for her spouse whom a miraculous flower shall designate; Joseph thus chosen weds the maiden and leads her to his home.

Then Gabriel is sent to her, telling her how she is to become a mother; but the prudent Virgin stands silent, pondering over the strangeness of the message.

But when he explains how this shall be, she believes him; and thus by the Holy Spirit the Word is conceived, and He whom no space can contain is concealed in the Virgin's bosom.

O peerless maiden, how dost thou surpass all praise in thy dazzling glory! Protect us now, that in our fatherland we may enjoy thy fruit, whereby thou art so honored. Amen.




Prayer

"Congratulate me, all ye that love the Lord, because when I was a little one I pleased the Most High (Second Responsory in the Common Office of Our Lady)." Such is the invitation thou addressest to us, O Mary, in the Office chanted in thy honor; and on what feast couldst thou do so more appropriately?

When, even more little in thy humility than by thy tender age, thou didst mount, in thy sweet purity, the steps of the temple, all heaven must have owned that it was henceforth just for the Most High to take His delight in our earth. Having hitherto lived in retirement with thy blessed parents, this was thy first public act; it showed thee for a moment to the eyes of men, only to withdraw thee immediately into deeper obscurity. But, as thou wast officially offered and presented to the Lord, He Himself doubtless, surrounded by the princes of His court, presented thee not less solemnly to those noble spirits, as their Queen. In the fulness of the new light that then burst upon them, they understood at once thy incomparable greatness, the majesty of the temple where Jehovah was receiving a homage superior to that of their nine choirs, and the august prerogative of the Old Testament to have thee for its daughter, and to perfect, by its teachings and guidance during those twelve years, the formation of the Mother of God.

Holy Church, however, declares that we can imitate thee, O Mary, in this mystery of thy Presentation, as in all others (2nd Lesson of 2nd Nocturn Ambr. de Virginibus ii). Deign to bless especially those privileged souls who, by the grace of their vocation, are even here below dwellers in the house of the Lord: may they be like that fruitful olive enriched by the Holy Spirit, to which St John Damascene compares thee (1st Lesson of 2nd Nocturn. Damasc. de Fide orthodoxa, iv.). But is not every Christian, by reason of his Baptism, an indweller and a member of the Church, God's true sanctuary, prefigured by that of Moriah? May we, through thy intercession, follow thee so closely in thy Presentation, even here in the land of shadows, that we may deserve to be presented after thee to the Most High in the temple of his glory (Collect of the feast).

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  Austria is first Western country to make COVID shot mandatory for all citizens
Posted by: Stone - 11-20-2021, 07:40 AM - Forum: Socialism & Communism - Replies (1)

Austria is first Western country to make COVID shot mandatory for all citizens
Meanwhile, daily new cases of COVID have risen to record levels Thursday, even though all unvaccinated citizens have been locked down since Monday.

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Alexander Schallenberg


Fri Nov 19, 2021
VIENNA (LifeSiteNews) — The Austrian government announced Friday it will require all citizens to be vaccinated against COVID-19, starting February 2022. In the meantime, the country will go into a full lockdown starting Monday, as daily new cases have risen to record levels Thursday, even though all unvaccinated citizens are already locked down.

Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg made the announcement at a press conference in a Tyrol hotel where Austrian government officials met last night to decide on the new measures.

“Starting Monday, for a maximum of 20 days, a nationwide lockdown will apply,” he announced. “[In addition], we will initiate countrywide compulsory vaccination [which] will enter into effect from February 1, 2022.”


Nationwide mandatory vaccination as of February

“Despite an intensive media campaign … we have not been able to convince enough people to get vaccinated,” explained Schallenberg. “For a long time, the political consensus was not to introduce mandatory vaccination … but we must look reality in the eyes.”

The Austrian chancellor argued that there are “too many political forces in this country who openly and vehemently oppose this.”

“This irresponsible, this is actually an attack on our health system,” he said. “Because of these radical anti-vaxxers and because of fake news, too many of us have not been vaccinated.”

“We don’t want a fifth wave,” said Schallenberg.

To date, roughly 2 million people out of Austria’s population of 9 million remain unvaccinated.

People who refuse to comply with next February’s mandate could face a fine of up to 3,600 Euros (roughly $4,000) or a 4 weeks prison sentence, if numbers found in a draft bill for health professionals are applied to the entire population. A fine of up to 1,450 euros (roughly $1,600 USD) or a prison sentence of 4 weeks could also be applied to those who fail to receive booster shots.

The city of Vienna, the country’s capital, has already booked vaccination appointments and sent appointment-letters to the 340,000 inhabitants of the city who are still unvaccinated.


Nationwide lockdown

The nationwide lockdown will begin Monday, but will be re-evaluated after 10 days, as Schallenberg explained.

After 20 days, the lockdown will once again apply to the unvaccinated only, as has been the case since November 15.

Until then, vaccinated and unvaccinated people alike will only be allowed to leave their homes for purposes deemed essential.

Schools are to remain open. Nevertheless, the Austrian chancellor advised parents to keep their children at home whenever possible.

While the decision was announced as a way to tackle all-time record numbers of COVID-19 cases in the country, ever since the lockdown for the unvaccinated went into effect last Monday, more cases than ever have been reported. The Austrian government on Thursday announced the unprecedented number of 15,545 new daily positive tests.

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  Official Public Health England Data Says COVID Infection Rates Higher In Vaxx'd Than Unvaxx'd
Posted by: Stone - 11-19-2021, 02:33 PM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular] - No Replies

Official Public Health England Data Says COVID Infection Rates Higher In Vaxx'd Than Unvaxx'd
ZH |  NOV 19, 2021
Authored by Paul Joseph Watson via Summit News,

The Spectator has published an article citing official data from Public Health England, which states that for the over 30’s, “the rates of Covid infection per 100,000 are now higher among the vaxxed than the unvaxxed.”

Well, this is awkward.

The article, written by Lionel Shriver, is titled ‘The absurd theatre of vaccine passports’.

It points out that according to official data, vaccines only offer about 17 per cent protection for the over-fifties.

“As I observed then, this would mean the vaxxed and unvaxxed pose a comparable danger to each other,” writes Shriver.

“All Covid apartheid schemes are therefore insensible.”

She then clearly explains how the official data undermines the entire argument behind vaccine passports, which ban the unvaccinated from entering innumerable venues.

“Fresher information has fortified this conclusion of the summer. In every age group over 30 in the UK, the rates of Covid infection per 100,000 are now higher among the vaxxed than the unvaxxed. Indeed, in the cohorts aged between 40 and 79, infection rates among the vaccinated are more than twice as high as among the unvaccinated. PHE’s fruitlessly rechristened body, the UK Health Security Agency, frantically clarifies that the data ‘should not be used to estimate vaccine effectiveness’, a caveat which I include for the sake of accuracy. But the differences in the infection rates are drastic enough for you to draw your own conclusions.”

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Shriver then summarizes how that data demolishes the reason for implementing vaccine passport schemes.

Quote:“Gatekeeping of pleasure palaces promotes the wrong impression — statistically, the lie — that the unvaccinated riff-raff exiled to the pavement pose a far graver threat of communicable disease than the diners in the nearby banquette who, like you, have righteously got the shot. In truth, the double-jabbed airline passenger in 24A can be just as risky a seat-mate as the great unwashed banished from the flight.”

Meanwhile, the Times reports the results of another study which “found the double-jabbed are just as likely to pass on Covid-19 as unvaccinated people.”

After Public Health England published the data, government bureaucrats begin to panic that people would use it to suggest vaccines were not that effective.

Office for Statistics Regulation director Ed Humpherson called an urgent meeting with U.K. Health Security Agency during which he worried about the data having “the potential to mislead.”

Quote:“We noted that these data have been used to argue that vaccines are ineffective,” Humpherson subsequently wrote.

Isn’t it strange how the government and associated regulatory bodies appear to be afraid of raw data?

If the vaccines are as effective as they tell us, why would they be worried?

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  Austria Re-Imposes Full Lockdown, Vow "Penalties" For Those Who Resist; Germany May Follow
Posted by: Stone - 11-19-2021, 09:59 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular] - No Replies

Austria Re-Imposes Full Lockdown, Vow "Penalties" For Those Who Resist; Germany May Follow


ZH | NOV 19, 2021

Austria will become the first country in western Europe to reimpose a full COVID-19 lockdown starting Monday, November 22, it said on Friday as neighboring Germany warned it may follow suit, sending shivers through financial markets worried about the economic fallout of yet another round of lockdowns, even if some were cynical enough to ask if the whole point of this latest escalation is to greenlight even more stimmies.

Austria also said it would require the whole population to be vaccinated as of February 1. Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg made the announcements at a press conference on Friday,

Roughly two-thirds of Austria's population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and yet its infections are among the highest on the continent, with a seven-day incidence of 991 per 100,000 people.

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Following the previously announced lockdown of the unvaccinated, which failed to put a halt to soaring case numbers, the entire country will now be placed under a full lockdown lasting at least 10 days. Also, starting From February 1st, everyone will also be legally required to have been vaccinated. Austrian authorities also said they would make the COVID-19 vaccine mandatory, vowing “penalties” for those who continue to resist.

“We haven’t been able to convince enough people to vaccinate. For too long, I and others have assumed that you can convince people to get vaccinated,” said Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg. "It hurts that such measures still have to be taken."

He also vowed to impose “penalties” on those who still refuse to get vaccinated, although these weren’t specified.

What are the main rules of the lockdown?
  • From Monday, November 22nd, Austria will go into a three-week lockdown, which will end on December 12th.
  • Shops and restaurants will be forced to close.
  • Working from home will be mandatory in any job where it is possible to do so.
  • FFP2 masks are mandatory in all enclosed rooms.
  • Schools will not be officially closed but will remain open for “those who need them”, although face-to-face lessons will not take place.
  • This mirrors rules from lockdowns in 2020, where schools moved to distance learning but still provided care for students whose parents were unable to do so, for example young children of parents working essential jobs or those with extra learning needs.
  • The government called on parents to return to home-learning if at all possible.
  • The suite of measures will be evaluated after ten days.

It’s likely that Austria will follow the United States in attempting to make vaccination compulsory for having a job, even though much of the Austrian public is highly sceptical about vaccines. It is planning a protest against coronavirus restrictions on Saturday.

Meanwhile, a fourth wave of infections has plunged Germany, Europe's largest economy, into a national emergency, Health Minister Jens Spahn said. He urged people to reduce their social contacts, warning that vaccinations alone would not reduce case numbers.

Asked if Germany could rule out an Austrian-style full lockdown, Spahn said: "We are now in a situation - even if this produces a news alert - where we can't rule anything out. "We are in a national emergency," he told a news conference.

Numerous other countries, including Germany, Italy, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, are all about to implement new restrictions in an effort to combat a “fourth wave” of the virus.

Europe is currently experiencing its highest ever COVID surge, with 310,000 cases being registered across the continent over the last 24 hours. Ireland is also on a “war footing” and could be about to introduce a new lockdown despite having a 94% vaxxed population, mandatory mask mandates, and a vaccine passport scheme already in place.

One country which is coping noticeably better than the rest of Europe is Sweden, which never imposed any strict mask mandates or legal lockdown.

European stocks retreated from record highs, while government bond yields, oil prices and the euro tumbled as the spectre of a fresh COVID-linked lockdown in Germany and other parts of Europe cast a fresh shadow over the global economy. read more

As cases rises again across Europe, a number of governments have started to reimpose limits on activity, ranging from Austria's full lockdown, to a partial lockdown in the Netherlands, to restrictions on the unvaccinated in parts of Germany, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Hungary reported 11,289 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, its highest daily tally, and will make booster shots mandatory for all healthcare workers and require mask wearing in most indoor places from Saturday.

While the new measures across Europe are not seen hitting the economy as much as the all-out lockdowns of last year, analysts say they could weigh on the recovery in the last quarter of the year, especially if they hit the retail and hospitality sectors.

A full lockdown in Germany would be more serious, however.

"A total lockdown for Germany would be extremely bad news for the economic recovery," said Ludovic Colin, a senior portfolio manager at Swiss asset manager Vontobel. "It's exactly what we saw in July, August of this year in parts of the world where the delta (variant) was big, it (COVID-19) came back and it slows down the recovery again," he added.

The pressure on intensive care units in Germany had not yet reached its peak, Spahn said, urging people to reduce contacts to help break the wave.

"How Christmas will turn out, I dare not say. I can only say it's up to us," he added.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday Germany will limit large parts of public life in areas where hospitals are becoming dangerously full of COVID-19 patients to those who have either been vaccinated or have recovered from the illness. Merkel said on Thursday the federal government would consider a request from regions for legislation allowing them to require that care and hospital workers be vaccinated.

Saxony, the region hardest hit by Germany's fourth wave, is considering shutting theatres, concert halls and soccer stadiums, Bild newspaper reported. The eastern state has Germany's lowest vaccination rate.

New daily infections have risen 14-fold in the past month in Saxony, a stronghold of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which harbours many vaccine sceptics and anti-lockdown protesters.

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  Italian Governors Call For Unvaccinated To Be Put Under Lockdown
Posted by: Stone - 11-19-2021, 09:55 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular] - No Replies

Italian Governors Call For Unvaccinated To Be Put Under Lockdown

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ZH |  NOV 18, 2021
Authored by Paul Joseph Watson via Summit News,

Five Italian Governors have called for lockdown measures to be imposed on the unvaccinated, following the example of Austria, while Czech Republic and Slovakia are also moving to enforce similar measures.

As we previously highlighted, after Austria placed the unjabbed under lockdown, preventing them from leaving their homes for anything other than “essential reasons,” police were seen patrolling supermarkets and highways checking resident’s vaccination status.

Several states in Germany also announced that they would ban the unvaccinated from numerous venues.

Now Italy’s unvaccinated population, which stands at around 7 million, could be about to face the same form of medical apartheid.

“Eventual new lockdowns should not have to be suffered by those who are vaccinated. Restrictions should only apply to those who are not immunized,” said Massimiliano Fedriga, the Governor of Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the northeast of the country.

The Telegraph reports that, “His stance is supported by the governors of Tuscany, Calabria, Liguria and Piedmont.”

Former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi echoed the demand, tweeting, “You’re not vaccinated? Then stay at home.”

Outgoing Czech Republic Prime Minister Andrej Babis has also announced that the the unvaccinated will be banned from shops and restaurants, with the option to provide a negative test removed (despite the fact that the vaccinated can still transmit the virus).

“The death toll is rising; the situation is serious. Vaccination is the only solution, there is no other,” said Babis.

Meanwhile, Slovakia will vote tomorrow on banning the unvaccinated from non-essential shops, hotels, big public gatherings, gyms and swimming pools.

As we reported earlier, despite the entirety of its adult population being vaccinated, Gibraltar is also urging people not to attend gatherings and has cancelled its official Christmas events.

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