FROM MARK MALLETT: The consciences of this beloved people must be violently shaken so that they may "put their house in order"… A great moment is approaching, a great day of light… it is the hour of decision for mankind.

Wormwood

  

   

“the smoke of Satan is seeping into the Church of God through the cracks in the walls.” —POPE PAUL VI, first quote: Homily during the Mass for Sts. Peter & Paul, June 29, 1972

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THERE is an elephant in the living room. But few want to talk about it. Most choose to ignore it. The problem is that the elephant is trampling all of the furniture and soiling the carpet. And the elephant is this: the Church is polluted with apostasy—the falling away from the faith—and it has a name: "Wormwood".

This writing was first published March 24th, 2009. I have added a powerful quote at the end from a Canadian Archbishop…

"WORMWOOD"

Shortly before Christmas 2008, myself and visionary Mary Reilly—who lives 2000 miles away—received a strange word on the very same day:

Wormwood.

It is a word mentioned in the Bible. From Webster’s Online Dictionary:

In the symbolical language of the Apocalypse (Rev. 8:10, 11) a star is represented as falling on the waters of the earth, causing the third part of the water to turn wormwood. The name by which the Greeks designated it, absinthion, means "undrinkable."

Indeed, the Church is meant to be the source of living water, nurturing and nursing her children on the Truth, who is Christ. But these waters in many places have been poisoned by heresy—mass heresy. Many are those who claim to be Catholic ministers, but like wolves in sheep’s clothing, lead their flocks to errant pastures, groomed and tended by dissident theologians—the false prophets of our day. It goes to show that a theological degree is no guarantee of orthodoxy. Indeed, the ecclesiastical orders in North America have been routing the faith to such a degree that several theological seminaries and universities as well as hospitals and schools are now Catholic in name only. They are often the very source of the moral pollution in our culture.
Almost as damaging are those who simply remain silent out of fear:

Pastors who lack foresight hesitate to say openly what is right because they fear losing the favor of men. As the voice of truth tells us, such leaders are not zealous pastors who protect their flocks, rather they are like mercenaries who flee by taking refuge in silence when the wolf appears… When a pastor has been afraid to assert what is right, has he not turned his back and fled by remaining silent? —St. Gregory the Great, Liturgy of the Hours, Vol IV, p. 342-343

If we want to know where our culture of death—of abortion, euthanasia, and contraception—came from, look no further than the episcopate’s doors. Forty years ago, when the world’s predators stood ready to devour the faithful, many sheep (such as my parents) were told that "the pill" was acceptable and that they could follow their conscience. Alas, the wolves were already inside the sheep pen, already inside the Church! I was born in 1968—just five months before the release of Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI’s encyclical letter reaffirming the Church’s teaching against contraception. It would be eight years later before my parents were taught the truth about birth control by two lay people (which resulted in the birth of my dear little brother.) How close I came to not existing due to false teaching! (Two years later, the minister who advised my parents, left the priesthood and got married.)
The flood of abortion, pornography, STD’s, and divorce entered Catholic homes and society at large when the moral dam of clergy collapsed. There is an elephant in the living room, and its name is Wormwood.

THE BITTER PLANT
"Wormwood" is also known as a bitter plant.

The tradition is that this plant sprang up in the track of the serpent as it writhed along the ground when driven out of Paradise. —Webster’s Online Dictionary

Yes, in the wake of the the ancient serpent’s tail:

The tail of the devil is functioning in the disintegration of the Catholic world. The darkness of Satan has entered and spread throughout the Catholic Church even to its summit. Apostasy, the loss of the faith, is spreading throughout the world and into the highest levels within the Church. —POPE PAUL VI, Address on the Sixtieth Anniversary of the Fatima Apparitions, October 13, 1977

Contraception is the primary bitter agent of the "fallen star"—that is, the fallen clergy and theologians who have rejected the Church’s moral teachings. The Barque of Peter, the Church, is like…

…a boat about to sink, a boat taking in water on every side. —Cardinal Ratzinger (POPE BENEDICT XVI), March 24, 2005, Good Friday meditation on the Third Fall of Christ

I have met several priests from various regions of the United States who estimate that over 50 percent of their fellow seminarians are gay—many living active homosexual lifestyles. One priest recounted how he was forced to lock his door at night. Another told me how two men burst into his room to "have their way"—but turned white as ghosts as they looked upon his statue of Our Lady of Fatima. They left, and never bothered him again. Another was brought before his seminary’s disciplinary panel when he complained about being "hit on" by fellow seminarians. But they asked him why he was "homophobic." Other priests have told me that their faithfulness to the Magisterium was the reason they almost didn’t graduate, and that some of their colleagues did not survive because of their obedience to the Holy Father. How can this be?!

Her most crafty enemies have engulfed the Church, the Spouse of the Immaculate Lamb, with sorrows, they have drenched her with wormwood; on all Her desirable things they have laid their wicked hands. Where the See of Blessed Peter and the Chair of Truth have been set up for the light of the gentiles, there they have placed the throne of the abomination of their wickedness, so that the Pastor having been struck, they may also be able to scatter the flock. —POPE LEO XIII, Exorcism Prayer, 1888 A.D.; from the Roman Raccolta of July 23, 1889

There is an elephant in the living room, and its name is Wormwood… and Schism is her twin sister.

I had another vision of the great tribulation… It seems to me that a concession was demanded from the clergy that could not be granted. I saw many older priests, especially one, who wept bitterly. A few younger ones were also weeping… It was as if people were splitting into two camps. —Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774–1824); The Life and Revelations of Anne Catherine Emmerich; message from April 12th, 1820.

REAPING WHAT HAS BEEN SOWN
It is this acceptance of contraception that has led to and continues to foster a literal "Wormwood" in our waters. Studies are beginning to reveal that hormones from contraception are making their way back into the water supply. The results are frightening. In some cases, such as in Canada’s Great lakes or Colorado’s Boulder Creek, male fish have begun to change sex and their populations have been greatly reduced. It has been traced to estrogen—the female hormone found in oral contraceptives or birth control patches.

It’s the first thing that I’ve seen as a scientist that really scared me. It’s one thing to kill a river. It’s another thing to kill nature. If you’re messing with the hormonal balance in your aquatic community, you’re going deep down. You’re twiddling with how life proceeds. —Biologist John Woodling, Catholic Online , August 29, 2007

Furthermore, as evangelical writer Julio Severo points out, contraception also results in "micro-abortions":

...rivers have become deposits of annihilated lives. Hundreds of millions of women use pills and other birth-control devices that provoke micro-abortions that end flushed in toilets, and then into rivers. —Julio Severo, article "Rivers of Blood", December 17, 2008, LifeSiteNews.com

The water we cook with, we bathe in, we drink, is tainted with the blood of these murdered individuals. There is an elephant in the living room, and its name is Wormwood.

Who can fail to see that society is at the present time, more than in any past age, suffering from a terrible and deep-rooted malady which, developing every day and eating into its inmost being, is dragging it to destruction? —POPE PIUS X, Encyclical E Supremi, n. 2

THE TIMES OF SORROW

You shall not pollute the land in which you live, for blood pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed in it, except by the blood of the one who shed it. (Numbers 35:33 ESV)

It is difficult for me to write these things. I’d much rather kick my feet up, read a novel, and pretend that everything in the world is going to go along as it always has. The problem is, there’s an elephant in the living room. I can’t in good conscience pretend that it doesn’t exist. The dung has piled up high, the smell of disobedience is everywhere, and the damage to our children’s future is irreparable, save for a direct intervention from on High.
The warning in my heart is clear of a coming instrument of purification:

War is coming to the shores of the Americas.

Keep your eyes on the unholy trinity forming with Cuba, Venezuela, and Russia:

Be careful, especially when all seems to be peaceful and calm. Russia may act in a surprise way, when you least expect it… [God’s] justice will begin in Venezuela. —The Bridge to Heaven: Interviews with Maria Esperanza of Betania, Michael H. Brown, p. 73, 171

Because God loves us, our consciences need to be violently shaken. Before there can be an Illumination of Conscience, before we are willing to look up, we have to be brought to our knees, just as the Prodigal Son would not think to return home until his pride was crushed.

And let us not say that it is God who is punishing us in this way; on the contrary it is people themselves who are preparing their own punishment. In his kindness God warns us and calls us to the right path, while respecting the freedom he has given us; hence people are responsible. —Sr. Lucia, one of the Fatima visionaries, in a letter to the Holy Father, May 12th, 1982.

MERCIFUL JUDGMENT
The bitterness of Wormwood has reached the Lord’s mouth:

Because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. (Rev 3:16)

If the Lord spits a portion of His Church out of His mouth—that is, removes His divine protection—it is not because He does not love us. It is precisely because He loves us:

If you are without discipline, in which all have shared, you are not sons but bastards… whom the Lord loves, he disciplines; he scourges every son he acknowledges. (Heb 12:6,8)

In chaos, Mercy will come…

Is Ephraim not my favored son, the child in whom I delight? Often as I threaten him, I still remember him with favor; My heart stirs for him, I must show him mercy, says the LORD. (Jeremiah 31:18-20)

…for the elephant in the living room needs to be exposed. Wormwood needs to be uprooted. Poison needs to be drawn out so that Living Waters can flow again.

What I want to say is: Enough is enough! How much more can all of us take? Like you, my heart is broken, my mind is confused, my body hurts and I have moved in and out of a variety of feelings especially shame and frustration, fear and disappointment, along with a sense of vulnerability, and a tremendous poverty of spirit. I have cried and I have silently screamed,and perhaps that was my prayer to God: Why Lord? What does all this mean? What are you asking of me and of my priests? What do you want to see happen among your people? Is this a time of purification or is it nothing more than devastation? Are people going to stop believing, will faithful people stop being people of faith? Lord, what are you asking of us and how can we make it happen? —Archbishop Anthony Mancini, Halifax, NS, in response to a fellow bishop’s arrest on possession of child pornography; Letter to the Roman Catholic Faithful of Nova Scotia, Oct 2nd, 2009

The consciences of this beloved people must be violently shaken so that they may "put their house in order"… A great moment is approaching, a great day of light… it is the hour of decision for mankind.—Catholic mystic Marie Esperanza (1928-2004), Antichrist and the End Times by Fr. Joseph Iannuzzi in P. 37

REFERENCE:

• Wormwood… a literal falling star? See The Seven Year Trial — Part VII and Part XI

• The unfolding levels of Scripture: A Circle and The Spiral of Time

• An Intimate Testimony

Published in: DAILY JOURNAL, SIGNS | on October 6th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Have a GPS Device? Here's the codes for Garabandal Sites:

San Sebastian de Garabandal, situated in one of the most remote corners of Cantabria Spain, is a place of wonder.  Here we present the

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first ever GPS mapping of the significant sites in San Sebastian de Garabandal:

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Parish Church:  N43.20142 W4.42403

Site of the Miracle of the Host:  N43.20069 W4.42257

Conchita Gonzalez’ childhood home:  N43.20047 W4.42251

Ancient Fountain:  N43.20038 W4.42245

Start of the Path to the Pines:  N43.20020 W4.42383

Site of 1st apparition of St. Michael the Archangel:  N43.20006 W4.42381

Site of 1st apparition of the Virgin Mary at Garabandal:  N43.19981 W4.42396

Rock of St. Michael the Archangel:  N43.19928 W4.42442

The Pines:  N43.19842 W4.42440

The Church's TRUE Position Regarding Garabandal

  Too many people are quick to judge Garabandal and those of us who promote the Events. I post this article once again to help them understand where we are at in this time frame and what the Church says:

Deacon John

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                        by Geoffrey A.P. Groesbeck

It's time to set the record straight, once and for all.. .

One of the most misunderstood matters regarding Garabandal is the Church's true position on it. Opinion as to what it has been, is, or will be, has see-sawed relentlessly in the nearly five decades since the apparitions began in the tiny hamlet of San Sebastian de Garabandal in northern Spain. There are those who are convinced the Church is disposed to look favourably upon it, and those who believe the opposite.  And there is a large camp in the middle, uncertain as to which side to join. It is time to set the record straight, once and for all. Plainly put, these are the actual facts.

The Church has not yet made any Definitive Pronouncement
Although the evidence suggests an increasing receptivity towards Garabandal, as of August 2008, the Church absolutely has not made any all-encompassing pronouncement upon the matter.  Equally important, the Church has not, in any way, condemned it.

Perhaps we should start by asking what constitutes an "official" position, who declares it so and to what extent it is binding upon the faithful. To answer these questions, we must first sound the Church's feelings as to the status of Garabandal within the larger context of apparitions in general. In other words, we ask whether Garabandal meets the Church's criteria for consideration as a valid apparition, before assuming a definitive position on the matter.

The Church's Criteria
An excellent introduction to the Church's criteria for reviewing Marian apparitions was provided not long ago by the late Fr Jesu´s Castellano Cervera, OCD, a professor of theology and specialist in Mariology at the Teresianum in Rome, who was until his death in 2006 a consultant to no less than the seven dicasteries, including the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Church's agency that investigates reports of Marian apparitions.

In response to being asked what are the key criteria for discerning alleged apparitions, Fr Castellano replied, "The first criterion is cordial communion with the Church and her magisterium. "

Garabandal certainly meets this criterion. Its messages time and again have been pronounced in complete accordance with Church teachings by all levels of the clergy, including canon lawyers, theologians,and some of the highest-ranking members of the Roman Curia.

The Church's Process
From here, the formal process of ruling on an apparition is both painstaking and time-consuming. Given the enormity of the consequences, the Church is justifiably extremely prudent on this matter.

How prudent?  After the famous Marian apparitions at Lourdes, there were more than 150 alleged appearances in just the next five years none of which was approved by the Church. In statistical terms, the odds of an apparition being declared true are slightly above zero.

Just as it is important to note that the criteria are extremely challenging, it is equally important to remember that the Church teaches that no one is obligated to believe in private revelations, regardless of whether they are approved of or not.

This point cannot be emphasized enough:  Acceptance of apparitions on a personal level is a matter of private faith, not a mandatory command of the Church. Unfortunately, some believe that unless the Church pronounces a verdict within a certain time span, the apparition in question cannot be real. Nothing could be further from the truth! By the same token, if people automatically assume a negative attitude towards an apparition simply because it has not been approved, this in no way implies that the message should not be heeded, assuming it is in conformity with the Church's teachings.

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Establishing Procedural Authority
There are three levels of authority with regard to investigating alleged apparitions:  first, the local bishop (in this case, that of Santander);  second, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome;  and finally, if deemed appropriate, the Pope himself.  Determinations at the local level are not final, but are always subject to the higher authority, which can either ratify the findings made at the diocesan level or reserve judgment.

So who has the final say?  The Pope himself.   As the authors of Star On The Mountain note, "According to the doctrine of the Fifth Lateran Council and Pope Leo X (1512), the Holy Father is the only judge of revelations of this kind (prophecies)".

Many readers may not know that there have been three investigations into Garabandal at the local or diocesan level and a fourth one still underway. The first one (1961-62), was held under the auspices of the then apostolic administrator Bishop Doroteo Fernandez. Yet it can hardly be called an "investigation" at all, due to the obvious prejudicial attitude shown by the investigators and amply documented since.

What do we know for certain of this initial query?  The commission visited the village briefly and only three times, and never questioned the visionaries, their parents or the parish priest, and carefully avoided anyone who might have given favourable testimony.

No questions regarding the apparitions themselves were put forth; those that were asked were of a general nature, e.g. the way of life in Garabandal, the social activities of its inhabitants, and so on.  Not only did the priest on the commission resign, but two decades later its chief medical examiner, Dr Luis Morales Noriega - with the permission of the bishop at the time (the late Juan Antonio del Val Gallo) - publicly reversed his original negative position, after having received and asked for a miraculous sign.

A second and a then third study (1986-91) were commissioned by the same Bishop del Val (ironically who was the priest on the original commission). The findings of the first of these two commissions were neither finalized nor sent to the Vatican.

The results of the second investigation - started by Bishop del Val and transferred, upon his retirement in 1991, to the former bishop - Jose Vilaplana, eventually were sent to Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) at the Vatican, and have not yet been made public.  

The investigation continues, with additional materials having been sent to the Vatican within the past few years.  However, no official pronouncement has been made, although recent rulings at the local level by various bishops on aspects of Garabandal (e.g. lifting of the ban on saying Mass at the Pines, declarations of theological conformity of the messages of Garabandal with the Church's teachings) have been uniformly positive.

For the actual process of discerning the validity of apparitions, we turn to an article written by Bryan J. Walsh, a member of the Eternal Word Television Network and a well-known author on apparitions.   (For the text of the entire article online, please go to http://www.ewtn.com/library/mary/apparit.htm)

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The Four Categories of Apparitions
According to Walsh, all private revelations, such as Garabandal, fall into one of four categories.

Questionable :
Every purported apparition starts in this category. The Church assumes that nothing unusual is occurring until a thorough evaluation takes place.

False:
After careful evaluation, almost all questionable apparitions are determined to be "false alarms" even though the individuals involved may be mentally healthy and sincere in their statements.

Fraudulent :
A few alleged apparitions are fakes.   On rare occasions an element of satanic involvement was uncovered.

Authentic :
Very few private revelations have been determined to be authentic in that they appear to involve supernatural intervention and act to strengthen the faith of those who follow them.

The Four Stages of Authentic Apparitions
Those few apparitions considered authentic then are subjected toanother level of the Church's scrutiny, as follows.

1. After thorough evaluation by the local bishop, he issues a statement of support for the event by stating the apparitions contain nothing contrary to faith or morals, that it appears to be supernaturally inspired and that it is worthy of devotion by the faithful.

2. Once approved, a lengthy period of devotion by the faithful that results in a deepening of faith and a return to a life of self-denial and prayer, is then permitted to develop. If it develops, then the next stage becomes possible.

3. Papal acknowledgement. The Pope states publicly that he is favourably disposed to the events and contents of the apparition.

4. Liturgical recognition by recognizing the apparition officially on the Church liturgical calendar.

Most Catholics know that only four Twentieth century apparitions have progressed to the fourth stage:  Fatima (Portugal, 1917);  Beauraing (Belgium 1932-3);  Banneux (Belgium, 1933);  and Amsterdam (1945-59);  although there are others (e.g. Akita, Japan; Betania, Venezuela) that have passed the first two stages.

Towards An Official Position
From the above, we see that not only is the process a lengthy, multi-part one, but also that almost no apparition - including authentic ones - has made it to the ultimate stages of papal acknowledgement and inclusion in the liturgical calendar. It is essential to remember that not reaching these final two stages does not signify that the apparition is not authentic.

Indeed, far more important in determining the apparition's authenticity are the first two stages:  Episcopal support after a thorough investigation; and a lengthy period of devotion. The italics in the previous sentence are deliberate: One of the areas regarding Garabandal about which there is universal agreement is that the initial investigation of 1961 was anything but thorough, let alone canonically valid.

Consider the comments of the long-serving parish priest at Garabandal, Fr Valentin Marichalar, who witnessed literally hundreds of apparitions. It is inconceivable that the one person who could speak most authoritatively to the matter would not be questioned by either the local bishop at the time (Doroteo Fernandez), or the commission he established to investigate the matter!

Yet, this is exactly what happened.  In a 1976 interview with Needles magazine, Fr. Marichalar remarked that the commission wanted only to get the job over
with quickly, and that virtually nothing was done in accordance with proper custom.

In fact, every single major work published on the history of Garabandal has underscored this unavoidable point.  The glaring lack of thorough enquiry on the part of the original commission was so noticeable that the enquiry was re-opened by the local bishop, an almost unheard of event in Vatican circles. As such, Garabandal's file is in no way closed - it has been re-opened - and no pronouncement has been made from Rome.

The only official pronouncements to date have been those from the succession of local bishops occupying the bishopric of Santander, under whose jurisdiction lies San Sebastian de Garabandal. None of these have ever condemned Garabandal outright.

In the past, they prudently urged caution, and one went so far as to prohibit saying Mass there without diocesan approval (although this restriction has since been lifted).  Bishop del Val removed all restrictions on Garabandal, and any priest is free to say Mass there now, including saying it at the Pines.

These notas oficiales, as they are termed, may have been circumspect, but they never explicitly condemned Garabandal. To the contrary, since 1965, these notas have very clearly affirmed that there are no grounds whatsoever for ecclesiastical condemnation. Equally important, the most nota, that of former Bishop Vilaplana, explicitly stated that he was in agreement with the position taken by his predecessors, including   Bishop del Val, who did so much to keep Garabandal front and centre in the eyes of the Vatican.

From Initial Skepticism …
Much has been made of the first nota's statement, published in August 1961, that "Nothing up to the present obliges us to affirm that the events occurring … are supernatural."  This should not be misinterpreted as meaning the events of Garabandal were considered by the bishop not to be of supernatural origin.  A careful reading of the text indicates quite clearly that he reserved the right to withhold judgment until later, nothing more, nothing less.

… To Increasing Acceptance
In the intervening years, the tenor of these notas shifted dramatically, starting with the one of 1965 from then-bishop Eugenio Beitia Aldazabal, which again explicitly stated that Garabandal was not condemned at all. Further, in 1972, Bishop del Val reiterated that Garabandal was not to be considered condemned, a position he stated again in 1992.

His exact words in the 1992 statement underline the importance of not misinterpreting the Church's prudence by using it as an excuse to jump to false conclusions: " The previous bishops did not admit that the apparitions were supernatural, but to condemn them, no, that word has never been used."

Along the way, the evidence in favour of Garabandal has mounted steadily. As noted above, a second (and subsequently, a third) official investigation was opened in 1987, and again in 1991, at the request of Bishop del Val. The bishop nominated four groups of experts to look into the sociological, psychological, theological, and scriptural/spiritual aspects of Garabandal.  These findings have since been sent to Rome along with additional material.

The Occasional Negative Voice
There have been dissenting voices, of course, most of whom have focused their attention upon wildly inaccurate pieces that have circulated on the internet. Almost all of these can be traced to a single source:  a badly flawed translation of a spurious letter purported to be from the former Bishop Vilaplana.  Needless to say, its views have long been discredited, although the rumour remains.

This version of Bishop Vilaplana's letter is flawed in that it fails to accurately translate key text that designate the status of Garabandal. This is a very important point. Whenever bishops address private revelation or mystical phenomena in which they are required to render a judgment, they use very specific terminology, signifying the classification in which they place the event. There are three classifications, similar to those used by Walsh earlier.

1. Constat de supernaturalitate - It is certain that the events are of supernatural origin.
2. Non- constat de supernaturalitate - It is not certain that the events are of supernatural origin i.e. the supernatural origin has not been established. Here the events in question are still open to eventual recognition as being authentic.
3. Constat de non supernaturalitate - It is certain that the events are not of supernatural origin.

The key word in all of these categories is constat, which has the meaning " to be certain, sure, or evident ". So long as a manifestation is in the second category, it is in the safe zone. Garabandal is in this second category. In fact, the purported letter used to discredit it confirms its status as such. The Spanish verb constar is derived from the Latin constat and has the same meaning. In Bishop Vilaplana's original letter, he uses the expression no consta ("not certain"), thus clearly assigning Garabandal to the second category.

There remain those who will insist upon interpreting the Church's silence as a condemnation. This is all the more the pity, as such self-proclaimed views do little besides obscure the matter and usurp the Church's position as the final arbiter on such matters.

Papal Acknowledgement
There is a very interesting conjecture - nothing more - that Garabandal may already have received a tacit acknowledgement from the Vatican itself. It should be stressed that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has yet to issue a statement on Garabandal, and has not taken away jurisdiction from the local hierarchy. At the same time, one of the principal visionaries, Conchita Gonzalez, was summoned to Rome, first in 1966 by Cardinal Ottaviani, and then again in 1968. It is difficult to imagine there would be such interest at the highest levels of the Vatican in a teenager from rural Spain were there not some compelling reason! Popes Paul VI and John Paul II met with Conchita and Loli respectively, and issued their blessings to them.

Where Now?
The road to open acknowledgement of Garabandal as an approved apparition is far from finished. In truth, it is still premature to expect a definite pronouncement, by either the local ordinary bishop or the Church hierarchy. We must remember that even the positive judgement of a thorough and fully canonical investigation cannot alter its current status as long as certain prophesied events are still pending.

The Blessed Virgin herself may have anticipated this, and made the necessary provisions. Indeed she predicted that one day Garabandal would be promoted, with the permission of the Church. " She will give time for the Message to be spread with the permission of the Church."

This already has come to pass in large degree, with the abrogation in 1967 of Canons 1399 and 2318. These permit, without fear of ecclesiastical censorship, the publication of information on alleged manifestations, and further permit visits to the sites of alleged Marian apparitions, as long as there is nothing in the events contrary to the Church's teaching on faith and morals.   As noted earlier, Garabandal clearly passes this test.

Thus, the status of Garabandal is the same as it always has been and will remain, pending the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Warning, the Miracle and the Permanent Sign. During this waiting period, all Catholics are free to learn of Garabandal, visit it, and most important of all, heed and follow its messages without fear of ecclesiastical censure.

Full recognition can come only with the fulfillment of the prophesied events. Given their awesome nature, undoubtedly they will be recognized by the Church and the world at large as an act of God.  At which point Garabandal will have proved its own authenticity.

The New Bishop Of Santander

The Spanish Apostolic Nunciature announced to the Spanish Conference of Bishops at 12:00 pm today, Friday the 27th of July, that the Holy See has made public the news that Pope Benedict XVI has named as bishop of Santander, Msgr. Vicente Jiménez Zamora, currently bishop of Osma-Soria.
Msgr. Carlos Osoro, the outgoing apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Santander, asked that the church throughout Cantabria embrace with love Msgr. Jiménez, the current Bishop of Osma-Soria and future Bishop of Santander.

The Diocese of Cantabria y Valle de Mena now has its new pastor. Pope Benedict XVI announced at noon yesterday the naming of Msgr. Vicente Jiménez Zamora, Bishop of Osma-Soria, the official head of the Cantabrian church. Minutes after the papal announcement the bells of the cathedral in Santander rang for fifteen minutes to call attention to the announcement.

The new bishop will take charge of the diocese in September, exactly one year after his pre-decessor, Msgr. José Vilaplana, was transferred to the Diocese of Huelva after 15 years of episcopal ministry in Santander. The Holy See named Vilaplana its chief official in Huelva last July.

The Archbishop of Oviedo, Msgr. Carlos Osoro, who had been the apostolic administrator of the Cantabrian diocese during the year-long interregnum, said yesterday that during the three years that Jiménez was Bishop of Osma-Soria, he had shown himself to be a person both humble and approachable. "He is a man of God and of faith, with a good head for getting things done the right way".

Background
Vicente Jiménez Zamora was born in Agreda, Spain on 28 January 1944. He holds degrees in Philosophy and Dogmatic Theology, and specialized in Moral Theology at the Universities of Saint Thomas, the Gregorian, and the Alfonsina Academy, Alfonsina in Rome, respectively. He also studied for two years at the seminary in Comillas.

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I just found this Dutch article about the Garabandal Miracle:

Translated from Dutch by Google: http://www.dagelijksestandaard.nl/2009/10/01/het-wonder-van-garabandal/comment-page-1/



The miracle of Garabandal

Oct 1st 2009Hans Labohm Climate

People sometimes ask me if I'm not tired to write about climate. The answer is 'no'. Climate is the 'big story' of our time. The 'rescue' of climate policy requires that in many areas and requires great sacrifices of our deep impact on our political, economic and social life. Everyone has to do it everyday. Climate is similar to the 'isms' (socialism, communism, Nazism and fascism) of the last century. Did we just time enough attention to it. That was probably suffering we can save.

But now something quite different: the miracle of San Sebastian de Garabandal. What was that again? Just refresh the memory.
A long time ago - before the creation of DDS - Marcel Haenen wrote about in NRC HB:

     The return of Jesus Christ by the year 2010 will be a reality, predicts former top official Prof. F. Rutten.
     Barendrecht, March 15. It is perhaps a little mad about that understands Professor Frans Rutten (66) also. As if Rutten Lord will put pressure. Because, as was the economist this week in a newsletter known as next year on April 11 in the Spanish village of Garabandal not he predicted "wondrous clarion call" can be observed that heralds the return of Jesus, will step down as editor and Rutten Chairman of the Catholic Information Institute (IKI). Then he is "a marsh fire" proved.
     "It's not that I want to challenge God," says Rutten. The exact theological predictions have "an administrative reasons". Rutten, 1973 and 1990 Secretary-General of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and former Chairman of the Scientific Council for Government Policy, wants his countrymen to mobilize time. Ensure that the traditional Dutch infidel comfortably next year on the first row in the Spanish village of San Sebastian de Garabandal "a very great wonder to see lasting fifteen minutes. The Americans have been because he "paid fat" to be in time to book a place on flights to Spain.
     "There the sky indicate that a decisive period in the history of mankind has come. The phenomenon is more spectacular than the spin on its axis as that of the Sun in 1917 in Fatima in Portugal to see. And in a grove will remain a symbol, "says Rutten. Then Jesus will between 2005 and 2010 in the manner described in the Gospels return to earth.

Read more here.

So pulled Rutten on the date indicated by a number - some older - followers to Garabandal for the miracle to behold. After all wheelchairs the hill had been dragged to fully enjoy the spectacle, the wait was blown. And what happened eventually? Absolutely nothing.

The frightening thing is that a seemingly sober and wise man, which the pillars of our bureaucracy was counted and carried great social responsibility, such strange and irrational beliefs cherished. But Rutten was a loner, had few followers and his ideas had little or no social consequences. This in stark contrast to ... ...

Ouch! Now I had something close again on the impending climate crisis began.

Protestants, Catholics, and the Coming Wedding

Mark Mallett continues his prophetic inspirations on what will happen after the Illumination (The Warning) that is soon to come:

—THE THIRD PETAL—

THIS is the third "petal" of a flower of prophetic words that Fr. Kyle Dave and I received in the Fall of 2005. We continue to test and discern these things, while sharing them with you for your own discernment.

First published January 31st, 2006:


Fr. Kyle Dave is a black American from the southern United States. I am a white Canadian from the northern Canadian prairies. At least that’s what it looks like on the surface. Father is actually French, African, and West Indian in heritage; I am Ukrainian, British, Polish, and Irish. We have vastly different cultural backgrounds, and yet, as we prayed together in the few weeks that we shared, there was an incredible unity of heart, mind, and souls.
When we speak of unity between Christians, this is what we mean: a supernatural unity, one that Christians immediately recognize. Whether ministering in Toronto, Vienna, or Houston, I have tasted this unity—an immediate love-knowing-bond, rooted in Christ. And it only makes sense. If we are his Body, the hand will recognize the foot.
This unity, however, goes beyond merely recognizing that we are brothers and sisters. St. Paul speaks of being of “the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing” (Phil 2:2). It is a unity of love and truth. 
How will the unity of Christians be achieved? What Father Kyle and I experienced in our souls was perhaps a taste of it. Somehow, there will be an “illumination” in which believers and non-believers alike will experience the reality of Jesus, alive. It will be an infusion of love, mercy, and wisdom—a “last chance” for a wayward world. This is nothing new; many of the Saints foretold such an event as well as the Blessed Virgin Mary in alleged apparitions around the world. What is new, perhaps, is that many Christians believe it is imminent.

Image via Wikipedia

THE EUCHARISTIC CENTER
The Eucharist, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, will become the center of unity. It is Christ’s body, as Scripture says: “This is my body…. this is my blood.” And we are His Body. Therefore, Christian unity is intimately tied to the Holy Eucharist:

Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. (1 Cor 10:17)

Now, this might take some Protestant readers aback as most of them do not believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist—or as Jesus put it: 

…my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. (John 6:55)

But I saw in my mind’s eye the day coming when Pentecostals and Evangelicals will be pushing Catholics aside to get to the front of the church to Jesus, there, in the Eucharist. And they will dance; they will dance around the altar the way David danced around the Ark… while stunned Catholics look on in wonder. (The image I saw was of the Eucharist in the monstrance—the container which holds the Host during Adoration—and Christians worshiping with great joy and acknowledgment of Christ among us [Mt 28:20].)

The Eucharist and the unity of Christians. Before the greatness of this mystery St. Augustine exclaims, "O sacrament of devotion! O sign of unity! O bond of charity!" The more painful the experience of the divisions in the Church which break the common participation in the table of the Lord, the more urgent are our prayers to the Lord that the time of complete unity among all who believe in him may return. —CCC, 1398

But lest we fall into the sin of triumphalism, we must also recognize that our Protestant brethren will also bring their gifts to the Church. We have already seen a foreshadowing of this recently in the great conversions of Protestant theologians who brought and continue to bring with them into the Catholic faith not only thousands of converts, but new insights, fresh zeal, and infectious passion (Scott Hahn, Steve Wood, Jeff Cavins and others come to mind).
But there will be other gifts. If the Catholic Church is rich in spirituality and Tradition, Protestants are rich in the spirit of evangelism and discipleship. God did pour out his Spirit on the Catholic Church in the 60’s in what became known as the “Charismatic Renewal”. But rather than heeding the Pope and the statements of Vatican II which recognized this “new pentecost” as necessary for the “building up of the body” and “belonging to the whole Church”, many clergy literally shoved this movement of the Spirit into the basement where, like any vine needing sunshine, open air, and the need to bear fruit, it eventually began to shrivel—and worse, cause division.

THE GREAT EXODUS
At the onset of the Second Vatican Council, Pope John XXIII exclaimed:

I want to throw open the windows of the Church so that we can see out and the people can see in!

Perhaps the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the Renewal was God’s grace to breath new life into the Church. But our response was either too slow or too unwilling. There was a funeral procession almost right from the beginning. Thousands of Catholics left the stale pews of their parishes for the vitality and excitement of their Evangelical neighbors where their new found relationship with Christ would be fostered and shared.
And with the exodus also left the charisms which Christ gave to His Bride. Decades later, Catholics would still be singing the same old songs they did in the 60’s, while Evangelicals would sing out spontaneously in their assemblies as new music poured forth from young artists. Priests would continue to search publications and internet sources for their homilies while Evangelical preachers would speak prophetically from the Word. Catholics parishes would close in on themselves as routine gave way to apathy, while Evangelicals would send missionary teams by the thousands to harvest souls in foreign countries. Parishes would close or merge with others for lack of priests while Evangelical churches would hire multiple assistant pastors. And Catholics would begin to lose their faith in the Sacraments and authority of the Church, while Evangelicals would continue to build mega-churches to welcome new converts—often with rooms to evangelize, entertain, and disciple fallen away Catholic youth.

THE BANQUET GUESTS
Alas! Perhaps we can see another interpretation of the King’s wedding banquet in Matthew 22. Perhaps those who have accepted the fullness of Christian revelation, the Catholic faith, are the invited guests welcomed to the banquet table of the Eucharist. There, Christ offered us not only Himself, but the Father and the Spirit, and access to the treasuries of heaven where great gifts awaited us. Instead, many have taken it all for granted, and allowed fear or complacency to keep them from table. Many have come, but few have feasted. And so, invitations have gone out to the byroads and backstreets to invite those who would receive the Feast with open hands.
And yet, those who accepted these new invitations passed by the choice Lamb and other nutritious foods, opting instead to banquet only on the desserts. Indeed, our Protestant brothers and sisters have missed the main course of the Eucharist and many fine vegetables and salads of the Sacraments and family Traditions.

Ecclesial communities derived from the Reformation and separated from the Catholic Church, "have not preserved the proper reality of the Eucharistic mystery in its fullness, especially because of the absence of the sacrament of Holy Orders." It is for this reason that, for the Catholic Church, Eucharistic intercommunion with these communities is not possible. However these ecclesial communities, "when they commemorate the Lord’s death and resurrection in the Holy Supper… profess that it signifies life in communion with Christ and await his coming in glory. —CCC, 1400

They have often feasted instead on the delights of the charisms and the sweetness of emotion…. only to find themselves looking for something richer, something more savory, something deeper. All too often, the answer has been to move to the next dessert table, ignoring the Head Chef dressed in his miter, seated in Peter’s Chair. Fortunately, many Evangelicals have a great love for Scripture and have been fed well, even though interpretation at times is dangerously subjective. Indeed, many of the mega-churches today teach a shadow of Christianity or a false gospel altogether. And the subjectivism so rampant in non-Catholic communities has led to division after division with tens of thousands of denominations forming, all claiming to have “the truth.” Bottom line: they need the Faith which Jesus passed on through the Apostles, and Catholics need the “faith” which many Evangelicals have in Jesus Christ.

MANY ARE CALLED, FEW ARE CHOSEN
When will this unity come? When the Church has been stripped of everything not of its Lord (see The Great Purification). When that which is built on sand has crumbled and the only thing remaining is the sure foundation of Truth (see To the Bastion-Part II).
Christ loves all of his Bride, and would never forsake those whom He has called. He especially will not forsake that foundation stone which He himself firmly planted and named: Petros—the Rock. And so, there has been a quiet renewal in the Catholic Church—a new falling-in-love with the teachings, truth, and Sacraments of the Catholic (katholicis: “universal”) faith. She is being prepared to receive her separated brethren. They will come with their passion, zeal, and gifts; with their love of the Word, prophets, evangelists, preachers, and healers. And they will be met by contemplatives, teachers, ecclesial shepherds, and little souls built not on sand, but on the Rock which even the gates of hell cannot shatter. We will drink from one chalice, the Chalice of One for whom we would gladly die and who died for us: Jesus, the Nazarene, the Messiah, King of kings and Lord of lords.

FURTHER READING:

• MegaChurches?
• Personal Relationship With Jesus
• On the interpretation of Scripture: The Fundamental Problem
• Two Reasons to Become Catholic
  

Under the sub-heading WHY CATHOLIC? there are many more writings relating to my personal testimony as well as explanations of the Catholic faith to help readers embrace the fullness of Truth as revealed by Christ in the Tradition of the Catholic Church.

Published in: DAILY JOURNAL, THE PETALS | on October 1st, 2009 |