In the last days leading up to Antichrist, there will apear many anti-christs. Indeed, this is the chief sign by which we will know that the hour of the great trial is at hand. During this time, evil will abound more than at any other period in the history of the world. As darkness descends upon the Church, fiction will be preferred to truth. We have arrived at the time when the world wishes to be seduced.
It is now the time referred to by Saint Augustine, Father and Doctor of the Church, "For then shall Satan be loosed, and by means of that Antichrist shall work with all power in a lying though a wonderful manner...they shall be such signs and wonders as shall seduce those who shall deserve to be seduced, 'because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved.' Neither did the apostle scruple to go on to say, 'For this cause God shall send upon them the working of error that they should believe a lie.' For God shall send, because God shall permit the devil to do these things, the permission being by His own just judgment, though the doing of them is in pursuance of the devil's unrighteous and malignant purpose, 'that they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.' Therefore, being judged, they shall be seduced, and, being seduced, they shall be judged. But, being judged, they shall be seduced by those secretly just and justly secret judgments of God, with which He has never ceased to judge since the first sin of the rational creatures; and, being seduced, they shall be judged in that last and manifest judgment administered by Jesus Christ, who was Himself most unjustly judged and shall most justly judge." (City of God, Modern Library edition, p. 740).
6 comments:
The spiritual darkness precedes the three days of darkness which are prophesied in Scripture. I think you are 100 percent correct. The world is ripe to fall into the hands of the Evil One. Movies and books are also being used to prepare people to be seduced. Such as The Davinci Code.
I think one of the dangers today Alzina is that there are so many web sites and blogs on the internet and many of these are written by people who are confused as to what the Church actually teaches or whose commitment to the Church's teaching is less than exemplary. Many Catholics are searching for the truth and are hungry for it. But many more are looking to have their "ears tickled" by people who are really offering chaff instead of wheat.
One has to be very careful to say the least.
The Bishops are opposing the darkness represented by the Senate health care bill.
Washington D.C., Mar 20, 2010
09:41 pm (CNA)
In a final, urgent plea to prevent the passage of the current form of the Senate health care bill, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) on Saturday evening sent a letter to Congressmen asking them to vote “no.”
“For decades,” the letter says, “the United States Catholic bishops have supported universal health care. The Catholic Church teaches that health care is a basic human right, essential for human life and dignity.”
“Our community of faith,” the bishops continue, “provides health care to millions, purchases health care for tens of thousands and addresses the failings of our health care system in our parishes, emergency rooms and shelters. This is why we as bishops continue to insist that health care reform which truly protects the life, dignity, consciences and health of all is a moral imperative and an urgent national priority.”
Nevertheless, they add, “we are convinced that the Senate legislation now presented to the House of Representatives on a ‘take it or leave it’ basis sadly fails this test and ought to be opposed.”
The letter is signed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Chairman of the Committee of Pro-life Activities; Bishop William F. Murphy, Chairman of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development; and Bishop John C. Wester, Chairman of the Committee on Migration.
“Why do we take this position, when we have a long record of support for health care reform?” the USCCB letter asks, answering that the fundamental objections can be summarized in two points.
First, the bishops argue that health care reform “must protect life and conscience, not threaten them." The Senate bill "extends abortion coverage, allows federal funds to pay for elective abortions (for example, through a new appropriation for services at Community Health Centers that bypasses the Hyde amendment), and denies adequate conscience protection to individuals and institutions."
"Simply put," the letter to Representatives continues, "health care reform ought to continue to apply both parts of the Hyde amendment, no more and no less."
The bishops also argue that, despite claims to the contrary, "the status quo prohibits the federal government from funding or facilitating plans that include elective abortion. The Senate bill clearly violates this prohibition by providing subsidies to purchase such plans."
"While the Senate provides for one plan without abortion coverage in each exchange, those who select another plan in an exchange to better meet the special needs of their families will be required to pay a separate mandatory abortion fee into a fund exclusively for abortions. This new federal requirement is a far more direct imposition on the consciences of those who do not wish to pay for the destruction of unborn human life than anything currently in federal law."
Thus the bishops insist that "it is not those who require that the Hyde Amendment be fully applied who are obstructing reform, since this is the law of the land and the will of the American people."
"Rather, those who insist on expanding federal participation in abortion, require people to pay for other people’s abortions, and refuse to incorporate essential conscience protections (both within and beyond the abortion context) are threatening genuine reform. With conscience protection as with abortion funding, our goal is simply to preserve the status quo," the letter argues.
The second point of objection, the USCCB says, is that "universal coverage should be truly universal. People should never be denied coverage because they can’t afford it, because of where they live or work, or because of where they come from and when they got here."...Full article at CNA.
Have to agree with eveything you have written. I haven't watched TV in about five years, but tuned in this weekend at a friends to watch the NCAA Tourney. I was shocked at the ads during timeouts. I can't believe we've fallen this far in such a short period of time.
The speed of our decline is itself a sign. Who would have imagined Fitchburg embracing the Culture of Death while Churches emptied out just 10 years ago?
Meditation: John 5:43.
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