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BB-””Except this “sacramentalism” cannot be traced back to Jesus Christ nor to the Apostles but gradually became ingrained within the organized and controlling institution””

Dear sister, it most certainly can be traced back to Jesus and the Apostles.

We have writings from the life Polycarp (who was a direct disciple of Saint John)and a succession of writings from Saint Irenaues who listened to Saint Polycarp preach. You really should not ignore this connection.

Here is just a few writings .. that obviously cane from Saint John and Christ to Saint Polycarp and than to Saint Irenaues

Eucharist

“[T]he bread over which thanks have been given is the body of their Lord, and the cup His blood...” Irenaeus, Against Heresies, IV:18,4 (c. A.D. 200).

“He acknowledged the cup (which is a part of the creation) as his own blood, from which he bedews our blood; and the bread (also a part of creation) he affirmed to be his own body, from which he gives increase to our bodies.” Irenaeus, Against Heresies, V:2,2 (c. A.D. 200).

Confession

“Moreover, that this Marcus compounds philters and love-potions, in order to insult the persons of some of these women, if not of all, those of them who have returned to the Church of God—a thing which frequently occurs—have acknowledged, confessing, too, that they have been defiled by him, and that they were filled with a burning passion towards him. A sad example of this occurred in the case of a certain Asiatic, one of our deacons, who had received him (Marcus) into his house. His wife, a woman of remarkable beauty, fell a victim both in mind and body to this magician, and, for a long time, travelled about with him. At last, when, with no small difficulty, the brethren had converted her, she spent her whole time in the exercise of public confession, weeping over and lamenting the defilement which she had received from this magician.” Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 1:13 (A.D. 180).

Baptism

” ‘And dipped himself,’ says [the Scripture], ‘seven times in Jordan.’ It was not for nothing that Naaman of old, when suffering from leprosy, was purified upon his being baptized, but it served as an indication to us. For as we are lepers in sin, we are made clean, by means of the sacred water and the invocation of the Lord, from our old transgressions; being spiritually regenerated as new-born babes, even as the Lord has declared: ‘Except a man be born again through water and the Spirit, he shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.’” Irenaeus, Fragment, 34 (A.D. 190).

BB-””I accept that we may not EVER agree about this but I thank you for your respectful manner and your concern.””

I pray for you to return to the Catholic Church because you can be a great asset in helping others with your writing gifts and your passion for Christ.

I will be praying for you at Adoration at the Shrine of Martyrs in Auriesville NY this week..

This beautiful shrine is a very special place to me and the Birthplace of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha to whom my mother was interviewed by the Church for Kateri Tekakwitha’s upcoming Canonization of Saint Ceremony
http://www.martyrshrine.org/

Here is my mothers story that was recorded.

Catherine’s Story

The year was 1957. Shortly after twenty-one year old Catherine Vitullo delivered her first child, she became so ill the country doctor thought she was dying. Catherine suffers from a rare hereditary disease called “Renal Cystinuria” in which the body produces kidney stones that cannot be crushed and are difficult to dissolve. There at the Catholic hospital in Ogdensburg, NY, she went into kidney failure, received the last rites of the Church, slipped into a coma and clinically died on the operating table.

One of the doctors, however, saw movement, and decided she had not died. Catherine remained in a coma for about 2 to 3 weeks.

Upon finally awakening, Catherine reported to the nuns who were attending to her that she felt she had left her body, but returned to her body in obedience to God the Father who spoke to her saying, “You must go back. There is more for you to do.”

It was while she was in that comatose-like state that she saw a gravestone with the name “Anita Tekakwitha” etched in the rock. Suddenly the stone split and broke and she came out of the coma. The nuns listened to her story and wrote everything down as she told it. They believed it was actually Kateri Tekakwitha who was responsible for her recovery. No one, however, could explain the name “Anita” instead of “Kateri”. That’s still a mystery.

Prior to this time, Catherine had never heard of Kateri Tekakwitha, but was determined to thank the saint by visiting the Shrine at Auriesville and praying novenas to her.

Since then, Catherine has had 25 kidney operations, including the removal of one of them. Her prayer for her first child Gene and subsequent children was that they would remain free from this dreaded disease. Catherine’s prayers have been answered, as her 3 children suffer no effects from this disease. Although she had one kidney removed and suffers from painful periodic flare-ups, she has persevered in caring for her family, seeking to do the Will of God in all that He asks of her.