Posted on 01/31/2020 4:15:46 AM PST by JosephJames
The saints tell us that the Catholic Church is the soul of the world. Above all what sustains the Church is the Most Holy Eucharist (Vat. II: LG 11; CCC 1324). Even though the great majority of the baptized Catholics have lost their faith in the Eucharist, Satan knows very well what the Eucharist is and that it is the Eucharist above all which “restrains” Satan (2Thess 2:3-4). Satan already deprived the Protestants of the Eucharist 400 years ago, just as Satan did for many disciples of Jesus (Jn 6:66) 2000 years ago. Thus we are finally quickly arriving to the great prophecy to which Jesus referred to (Mt 24:15) in the Book of Daniel: “And from the time that the continual burnt offering is taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” (Dan 12:11; 7:25; 9:27).
(Note: When pasting this document into Free Republic, it seems that most of the special formatting is lost, such as bold, italics, underlined words and embedded links. To read the document with the formatting and embedded links go to the link of the document.)
It is important to know the four conditions for a valid Mass, and not to be misled by groups on the left side or the right side regarding the true doctrine of the Church about “The Validity of the Holy Mass” (https://spir-food.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-validity-of-holy-mass.html; https://josephdwight.wordpress.com/2019/11/24/the-validity-of-the-holy-mass/). The Mass is not valid if the priests uses Coca Cola and cookies instead of bread and wine. But there are three other precise conditions for a valid Mass, in particular the validly ordained priest must say (not silently) during the consecration: “This is my Body … This is my Blood”! People know that if you do not follow the rules of nature or the orders of the boss at work, things can often have disastrous consequences. How many things in this world have to be precise otherwise they do not work? But we feel we can play, according to our own whims and pride, with sacred things of God, which have much more value and power. God instructed Moses how much humility and reverence must be used before sacred things which were of much less value than the infinite God personally present in the Most Holy Eucharist. The people of the generation of ’68, who are in power today, thought they would find happiness and freedom by throwing out all rules and regulations, rejecting all authority and God, but they unwittingly fell under the dominion of the “prince of this world”, Satan (Jn 12:31; 14:30; Rev 12:9), who they believe does not exist!
I believe that the grand finale of this period of the “great tribulation” (Mt 24:21) will occur in October 2024, when Nibiru, the planet that NASA discovered for the first time in 1983, will pass too close to our planet Earth.
Message from Luz de Maria, October 5, 2019:
“This generation teeming with sin is not being punished by God – no !, the chastisement has not yet come. The earth, unstable as it is, will be deviated by the breath of a star that will pass nearby without your being able to announce it, and here will be man’s lament” (https://littlepebble.org/2019/11/03/message-to-luz-de-maria-5-october-2019/).
I believe that this message is referring to the Dark Star, around which Nibiru orbits, and will pass very close to the Earth about five years after this message! Visit: “Signs of God vs. Signs of Satan” (A Woman Clothed With The Sun - A Great Red Dragon (Nibiru)) (http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2016/12/signs-god-vs-satan.html; https://josephdwight.wordpress.com/2016/12/12/signs-of-god-vs-signs-of-satan/).
Thus, if we count backwards 1290 days from October 2024, I believe that we will lose the Eucharist in all the public churches in the world in the spring of 2021, with a new Roman Missal for the whole world in which there will not be the words in the consecration of the Mass: “This is my Body … This is my Blood”. But I believe that there is a great POSSIBILITY that the new Roman Missal in Italian in April 2020, will already oblige an invalid Mass, without the essential words of the consecration.
Over 400 years ago Our Lady of Good Success warned us:
“Thus I make it known to you that from the end of the 19th century and shortly after the middle of the 20th century…the passions will erupt and there will be a total corruption of morals… As for the Sacrament of Matrimony, which symbolizes the union of Christ with His Church, it will be attacked and deeply profaned. FREEMASONRY, which will then be in power, will enact iniquitous laws with the aim of doing away with this Sacrament, making it easy for everyone to live in sin and encouraging procreation of illegitimate children born without the blessing of the Church… IN THIS SUPREME MOMENT OF NEED FOR THE CHURCH, THE ONE WHO SHOULD SPEAK WILL FALL SILENT.”
Regarding what Our Lady of Good Success said, “In this supreme moment of need for the church, the one who should speak will fall silent”, it is very interesting that Our Lady said “the ONE who should speak”; she did not say, “the ONES who should speak”, or “those who should speak”, that is, not a group of bishops, but ONE PERSON. Today people are well prepared for this underhanded and very devastating deception of silence after many years of silence about sin and about the consequences of sin on the part of almost all the fathers of the families, of the priests and of the bishops, totally immersed in relativism. (“The False Pope Will Fall Silent”; http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2015/09/the-false-pope-will-fall-silent.html).
Very few Freemasons know the true reason for which they are ordered to work to destroy the family, the Catholic Church and the Eucharist; they just obey the directives of the Grand Master of Masonry (“The Masonic Plan For The Destruction Of The Catholic Church” ; http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2013/11/masonic-plan.html). To become a 33 degree member of Masonry, one must take the oath “Ordo ab Chao”, which is a Latin expression meaning Order out of Chaos! “Ordo ab Chao” is the motive to promote “UNCONTROLED” immigration (http://god-politics.blogspot.it/2016/03/future-objectives-freemasonry.html), as well as undermining commerce and the whole of the structures of societies in a covert and underhanded way using their very numerous bribed Masonic politicians and corporate directors! Most Masons do NOT know they are WORKING FOR SATAN until they have been formed and brainwashed in at least 24 degrees of Masonry (http://spir-food.blogspot.com/2018/06/only-god-can-save-italy.html). But immediately at the first degree of Masonry one must accept religious syncretism, that all religions are equal, which means that Jesus Christ is at the same level with Mohammad or Buddha or any religious founder.
The seer of Itapiranga, Brazil, Edson Glauber (approved by his local bishop), two years ago indicated that after Pope Benedict will be assassinated, everything will become much worse, especially in Italy, and thus I believe that after Benedict is killed, we will lose the Eucharist in all the public churches in Italy. Freemasonry cannot risk that Benedict might cry out from the roof tops about an invalid Mass officially promoted by the Vatican, especially given Pope Benedict’s recent open opposition to what is being now promoted, such as married priests. Certainly there are already many idiot priests and bishops who already change the Mass to the point of rendering the Mass invalid. Since the great majority of Catholics have lost the faith in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, very few people will understand the CAUSE of the great worsening in Italy (and later in the whole world), after a new Roman Missal in Italian with a Mass without the words in the consecration: “This is my Body … This is my Blood”. People will believe that the cause of the great worsening stems from the corrupt politics or the economy, etc. The assassination of Pope Benedict, probably by a terrorist group, will also be useful to distract our attention from the great fundamental blow of depriving Italy, and afterwards the world, of the infinite God in the tabernacles of the public churches.
The seer of Itapiranga, Brazil, Edson Glauber, with permission from his bishop, in the presence of his confessor, said on February 16, 2018 at Vigolo, Italy, while he was in Italy for a few cycles of catechesis:
“Our Lady told me that the times are very difficult. As I said in Amazonia, I say also to you: that which still holds back to a certain extent the evil, as long as he is alive, is Pope Benedict. When Pope Benedict dies … poor humanity! I can say this with all sincerity. When Pope Benedict goes away … poor Church and poor humanity! And we must pray much. What is his name? Joseph. The month of Saint Joseph arrives … one never knows if Saint Joseph might come to take him in his month, or on his feast day …” (The feast day of Saint Joseph is March 19! Glauber did not indicate the year.) (“After many years, NEW MESSAGE from AKITA”; https://spir-food.blogspot.com/2019/11/after-many-years-new-message-from-akita.html; https://josephdwight.wordpress.com/2019/11/07/after-many-years-new-message-from-akita/).
On February 21, 2018, Our Lady of Itapiranga asked the Italians in particular to pray intensely for Italy, because there will happen in Italy very sad things. In fact Edson during one of these messages broke out in tears, shaken; he then said to the Italians: “I cannot tell you all what I know, out of obedience to the Virgin, but I tell you pray very much”!
Sister Lucy of Fatima wrote that in the third apparition of Our Lady at the Cova da Iria-Fatima, on 13 July 1917, Our Lady revealed that a pope in the future will be killed. Pope St. Pius X (1903-14) had two visions that were similar to the Fatima Vision of Sister Lucy, in which it was revealed to him that the future pope that will be killed will have his SAME NAME. The name being referred to is not the papal name – Pius or Benedict – but rather the baptismal name. The baptismal name of Pope St. Pius X is Giuseppe (Joseph in English) Melchiorre Sarto; the baptismal name of Pope Benedict XVI is Joseph Ratzinger. (“Saint Peter returns the keys to Jesus”; http://spir-food.blogspot.com/2018/09/saint-peter-returns-keys-to-jesus.html). Many terrorist groups are funded by Masonry, by the New World Order.
Our Lady Queen of Peace (Anguera) has warned us many times that the Eucharist will be taken away:
“Dear Sons and Daughters, your life here on earth is, in truth, a continual succession of encounters with My Son Jesus, but the encounter most important with Jesus you have in the Eucharist. Value the Presence of My Jesus. There will come the day in which the Precious Food in many places will be taken away. Times will come when YOUR ENCOUNTER WITH MY JESUS WILL BE GIVEN IN SECRET, thanks to the Faithful Ministers who will remain firm in the TRUTH. The time announced by God through Daniel will come. Be attentive. …” (Message 4442, given on 03/16/2017) (“Soon No More Eucharist Anguera”; http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2017/03/soon-no-more-eucharist-anguera.html; https://josephdwight.wordpress.com/2017/03/18/soon-no-more-eucharist-anguera/). Visit: “The Eucharist in the Catacombs “ (http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2017/10/the-eucharist-in-catacombs.html).
Above all what is “RESTRAINING” the “man of lawlessness” (2Thess 2:3-8) is the presence of Jesus Christ as the Truth (Jn 14:6) and His real presence in the Most Holy Eucharist of the Holy Mass; “the continual burnt offering” (Dan 8:11; 12:11), will be taken away, and the “sacrifice and offering” will cease (Dan 9:27). “FREEMASONRY, which will then be in power”, pulled off a “coup d’etat” in the last conclave, in a hidden and sly way (“Pope Benedict XVI Forced To Resign”; http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2017/01/pope-benedict-xvi-force-to-resign.html; https://josephdwight.wordpress.com/2017/01/27/pope-benedict-xvi-force-to-resign/). Thus we are quickly being deprived of the last remains of the Truth of God which sets us truly free (Jn 8:32). Very soon we will be deprived of the Most Holy Eucharist for 1290 days.
St. Francis of Assisi prophesied (http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2013/11/prophecy-st-francis.html) that “very few Christians will want to obey the true Sovereign Pontiff and the Roman Church”, in particular regarding sexual morality (Humanae Vitae, 1968), and thus “Our Lord Jesus Christ will send them not a worthy Pastor, but a destroyer.” The great majority of Catholics no longer believe that the Eucharist is the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ and thus we will soon lose the presence of Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Eucharist of the Holy Mass, which will be the beginning of the “great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be” (Mt 24:21). When the survivors see what happens to the world without the Eucharist in the churches around the world, they will finally believe in the incredible greatness of the Most Holy Eucharist! It would have been better to believe before the “great tribulation”!!!
Those who understand what the Eucharist really is, the infinite God under the appearance of bread and wine, will realize that this sacrilege is the ultimate “DESOLATING SACRILEGE” (Mt 24:15; Mk 13:14; 2Thess 2:3-4; Dan 9:27; 11:31; 12:11)!!!
SAINT PADRE PIO said: "It would be easier for the world to survive without the sun than to do so without the HOLY MASS." This saint also said: “The ROSARY is the weapon for these times”!
Our Lady gives us an idea of the strategy to destroy faith in the Eucharist as well as how the Eucharist will be restored for the coming of the glorious reign of Christ.
“The Sacrifice of the Mass renews that which was accomplished by Jesus on Calvary. By accepting the Protestant doctrine, people will hold that the Mass is not a sacrifice but only a sacred meal, that is to say, a remembrance of that which Jesus did at his Last Supper. And thus, the celebration of Holy Mass will be suppressed. In this abolition of the daily Sacrifice consists the horrible sacrilege accomplished by the Antichrist, which will last about three and a half years, namely, one thousand two hundred and ninety days” (December 31, 1992; “To The Priests Our Lady’s Beloved Sons”; http://our-lady-priests.blogspot.it/). These messages to Don Stefano Gobbi from Our Lady are a great gift to us for these very confusing times. Read them and put them into practice so as to be prepared for this period of the “great tribulation” (Mt 24:21)!
“The coming of the glorious reign of Christ will coincide with the greatest splendor of the Eucharist. Christ will restore his glorious reign in the universal triumph of his Eucharistic reign, which will unfold in all its power and will have the capacity to change hearts, souls, individuals, families, society and the very structure of the world. When He will have restored his Eucharistic reign, Jesus will lead you to take joy in this habitual presence of his, which you will feel in a new and extraordinary way and which will lead you to the experience of a second, renewed and more beautiful earthly paradise.
“But before the tabernacle, yours should be not only a presence of prayer, but also of a communion of life with Jesus. Jesus is really present in the Eucharist because He wants to enter into a continual communion of life with you. When you go before Him, He sees you; when you speak to Him, He hears you; when you confide something to Him, He welcomes into his Heart your every word; when you ask something of Him, He always hears your prayer. Go before the tabernacle to establish with Jesus a simple and daily rapport of life. With the same naturalness with which you seek out a friend, or entrust yourself to persons who are dear to you, or feel the need of friends who assist you, in that same way go before the tabernacle to seek out Jesus. Make of Jesus your dearest friend, the most trusted person, the most desired and the most loved. Tell your love to Jesus; repeat it often because this is the one thing that makes Him immensely happy, that consoles Him for all the ingratitude, that compensates Him for all the betrayals: 'Jesus, You are our love; Jesus, You alone are our great friend; Jesus, we love You; Jesus, we are in love with You'.” (August 21, 1987).
Father Joseph Dwight
http://josephdwight.blogspot.com
https://josephdwight.wordpress.com/2015/09/21/joseph-dwight-index/
As would be expected.
Nevertheless, a lack of understanding is not the same as discovery of error.
In a word, “yes.”
Because if that’s so, it’s just flat-out untrue. I see over the years how He’s been at work at my life, including over the decades when I didn’t even really understand that. And since I really began to study His Word, go to church, pray, praise Him and speak out as a witness for Him, He has grown my faith and also brought me ever closer to Him.
Which is different from the witness of a Mormon, how?
How so when I’ve experienced myself being drawn closer to Him, including knowing Him better and growing in faith?
And He has endorsed that conclusion, how?
I am wondering what your thoughts are on what the Three Kings saw over 2000 years ago to motivate them to go toward Jerusalem (http://bethlehemstar.net/)?
Also I am wondering what your thoughts are on what was seen early in the morning of September 23, 2017 regarding the combination of the Constellation Virgo and the planets. I am convinced that we saw on this morning the first two verses of Rev. 12: “And a great sign appeared in heaven: A WOMAN CLOTHED WITH THE SUN, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars: And being with child, she cried travailing in birth, and was in pain to be delivered” (Rev 12:1-2).
I find it also very interesting the next verse: “And another portent appeared in heaven; behold, A GREAT RED DRAGON, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems upon his heads” (Rev 12:3).
Certainly you can accuse me of prooftexting as do many Christians. But also there are many Christians who do not want to consider the possibility that our modern mass media is very highly controlled by the super elite of the world; this would not be “politically correct”, to which a great number of Christians bow down to.
God created the universe, which moves like a huge precise clock. The universe was above all created for the King of the Universe, Jesus Christ, and secondarily for human beings. God has programmed signs in the heavens especially to indicate, to those who have their eyes open and are seeking their Creator, the first and the second coming of the Son of God. With the computer, we can see for ourselves what the Three Kings saw before the birth of Christ, THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM, which convinced them to travel about 1000 kilometers to Bethlehem. Recently we have seen the extraordinary sign from God in the heavens on September 23, 2017: “And a great sign appeared in heaven: A WOMAN CLOTHED WITH THE SUN, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars: And being with child, she cried travailing in birth, and was in pain to be delivered” (Rev 12:1-2). Visit: “Signs of God vs. Signs of Satan” (http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2016/12/signs-god-vs-satan.html).
You wrote: “What God-given satisfaction and enjoyment do you believe you get out of your beliefs on the Lord’s Supper? Include whatever you believe faithful Protestants don’t get.
”
It always amazes me how much we are surrounded by and immersed today into subjectivism and relativism!!! “Satisfaction and enjoyment”!!! I am seeking the objective truth from God, not my own “satisfaction and enjoyment”, the truth that God has revealed throughout the history of mankind that we call Divine Revelation. The truth of God, not of man, will set us free (Jn 8:32)! Certainly we humans, in our subjectivism and relativism can wrongly interpret Divine Revelation, which is clearly seen by the very numerous contradictory interpretations from one independent protestant group to the next. This is why Christ founded one divinely guided Church.
The truth is not based on human intelligence, as St. Paul many times explained. At this point, if we do not accept the one Church that Christ founded, the discussion ends up only on human intelligence, and thus I do not think we need to waste each other’s time. Let us pray for each other that we correspond with all the graces God gives to each of us.
“To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary; to one without faith, no explanation is possible” – St. Thomas Aquinas.
Mom MD said: “praying to Mary and putting her in between the believer and Christ does offend Him. We are told there is but one mediator between God and man and that is Christ the Lord. Rationalize your treatment of Mary anyway you want but it is unbiblical idolatry”
And yet...
[11] I discover then the truth unto you, and I will not hide the secret from you. [12] When thou didst pray with tears, and didst bury the dead, and didst leave thy dinner, and hide the dead by day in thy house, and bury them by night, I offered thy prayer to the Lord. [13] And because thou wast acceptable to God, it was necessary that temptation should prove thee. [14] And now the Lord hath sent me to heal thee, and to deliver Sara thy son’s wife from the devil. [15] For I am the angel Raphael, one of the seven, who stand before the Lord. - Tobit 12:11-15 D-R Bible
[2] And I saw seven angels standing in the presence of God; and there were given to them seven trumpets. [3] And another angel came, and stood before the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given to him much incense, that he should offer of the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar, which is before the throne of God. [4] And the smoke of the incense of the prayers of the saints ascended up before God from the hand of the angel. - Revelation 8:2-4 D-R Bible
So, the Archangels deliver our prayers to God. Pray tell me, how this possible if your interpretation is correct?
[1] I desire therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men: ... [2] For kings, and for all that are in high station: that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all piety and chastity. ... [3] For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, [4] Who will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth. ... [5] For there is one God, and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus: [6] Who gave himself a redemption for all, a testimony in due times.
Jesus Christ is the sole mediator between God and man, with regard to Redemption.
Besides, Jesus taught to us pray to God the Father by saying the Our Father. So, how does this jive with your response? Clearly, “there are more things in heaven... than are dreamt of in your philosophy.” - Hamlet (1.5.167-8)
Tradition guides understanding.
Hamlet and Tobit are not authoritative scripture.
Yes we are to pray but never are we told to pray to anyone but God. Never. Show me one instance in Scripture of Christ or the apostles addressing prayer to anyone but God. You can’t.
Christ is the only mediator between God and man period. There is no wiggle room in that verse.
Im still waiting for scripture to prove otherwise.
Ask this false prophet about his belief on Nibiru.
You are, of course, entitled to your inferences. However, one would expect some support for those inferences, particularly when said inferences have a firmly established home elsewhere in Protestantism.
Conversely, the motivations of prominent Catholics who become Protestant seem rather obvious as, including Martin Luther himself, they invariably renege on their vows of celibacy.
And what does being a religious leader prove?
A more than capricious interest in the faith traditions they walk away from.
Given that Herod had males killed who were two years and under,I believe what the Magi saw was an object that they had observed from at least 2 years before their arrival to Jerusalem, per the story where Herod had asked about the times of the appearance of the star.
We know that the stars in the sky appear to move through-out the night due to the Earth’s rotation on it’s axis and that the constellations them selves move seasonably due to the Earth’s rotation about the sun. I think they began viewing an unblinking object, to their west, that appeared not to move through out the night and did not move with the seasons. That is why the two year figure is important.
As magi, they would have been well versed with the seasonable movements of the constellations and the nightly moves of the stars as well as the expected rises and the expected movements of the planets as they were studied and tracked and records kept for centuries before them. They would have known about the longer term processional movements of the constellations. One FREEPER argues that the Magi saw the last bit of the southern cross just before it finally slipped out of view of the Northern hemisphere and they attached special meaning to it. Yet the Magi, though knowledgeable of the legends attached to the stars, and well versed at pondering the portents of the appearances of comets and conjunctions would have been aware of these natural movements and I believe would have attached no undue significance then to wonder...”hmmm maybe an important person was born somewhere.
No, I think they saw something so awesome yet its significance would not have been guessed at by regular people because the star at a distance probably looked so ordinary. It was something that piqued their interest in that it DID NOT APPEAR TO MOVE!
So my scenario goes like this: So these night observers scan the heavens and they note one night that some ordinary magnitude looking star appears in the west. Everything else was where it had always been and where it has been expected to be. They weren’t quite sure perhaps when it precisely appeared but perhaps they knew it wasn’t there “last week” when they last viewed that area. There had been new stars and phenomena before and some predicted earthly events based on such phenomena had not always panned out as predicted or had to be “fudged to look like they did”. The Magi knew this, it was a hazard of their trade.
So they kept an eye on this star for a bit, studying the times and the legends. One night one of the magi says to a buddy” You know buddy, do you notice that this “King” star doesn’t move? Right at sun down there it is shining about 15 degrees above the eastern horizon and it stays there all night...everything else moves but there it is all night, right in the same place... Do you suppose the Hebrew legends were true?”
His buddy, the senior magi, was more cautious” We’ve seen strange things in the skies before that didn’t amount to much when it came to events upon the Earth, but lets carefully study this star’s movements in relation to everything else for another month or so...”
So they studied it and a certain sense of excitement began to build in them...could it be? Was the long awaited savior of the world finally born? The star did not move from its position, night after night. So they decided to mount an expedition to look for the possible savior of the world. They studied the Hebrew legends and calculated from the time line listed in Daniel that “NOW” might be the right time.
One of the Magi traveled North for 100 miles and returned to them. He reported that the apparent position of the star did not stay specifically strictly directly westward but apparently appeared more a little southwest of his position. Trips were taken south with the star appearing more Northwest than what would be expected. Palestinia/Israel was the triangulated center! Based on their measurements, the triangulated center was some distance away at least 3 months journey
So like Moses, who had noted countless trees that had burst into flames due to the sun’s heat acting on their resins in the hot desert climate, yet who looked again and saw a bush that was not being consumed in the flame that emanated from it and thus turned aside to see that great sight, the Magi upended their lives and destinies to study this star that did not move in it’s position.
They traveled to see and worship the king that most assuredly was directly under the position of that most unusual star. They felt an inward radiant unction, some of their number were having dreams!!
As they wandered toward Palestinia, they noted that the apparent position of the star was apparently elevating upward above the horizon the farther west they went. Still it did not move it’s position or change it’s brightness thoughout the night while disappearing in the day. The constellations changed, the planets moved as expected but night after night the star stayed stubbornly in it’s position other than moving apparently upward the further west they traveled.
One week they tried an experiment, as a group they would travel due North and watch the star’s position. Sure enough the star appeared to recede south west of them while otherwise staying in it’s position and not moving thru the night but dipping a bit in when compared to the south west horizon. They traveled again straight to where the star appeared directly east and the star’s position also rose in elevation as compared to it’s elevated position. This allowed them to use Greek geometrical math to map their way and calculate apparent distance to where the star would appear directly over head. 2 more weeks travel. They would stop first in Jerusalem as the great Temple was there that they had heard about. Perhaps the priests there would have more information about their search, about this great Star risen out of Jacob, (Jacob, whom God had surnamed Israel)!
Perhaps it was a cloudy period when the Magi had reached Jerusalem. They were sure they were near the right place but they needed more info. They were an unusual sight, these company of wisemen and mystics, in Jerusalem. They approached the temple priests with their queries and were soon ushered into the presence of Herod. The Romans had delicate dealings with the lands that these magi came from and Herod needed to be cautious but gracious in his dealings. The Magi explained that they had arrived to see the King of the Jews and have come to worship him. The temple priests were consulted and they did confirm that according to the Daniel timelines that a prince would be born at this time but then be cutoff for his people but that was just legend and no one had really seen such a star that the Magi had spoken of. Herod I think was immediately more troubled and a bit supersticious. He asked about the times and the appearance dates of the star and began to form a plan in his evil mind...”two years, hmmm, somewhere in the Bethlehem district according to the temple priests...and if I could find this child , he could be made to disappear and that will quash this messiah business and end a threat to my throne”
Herod sent the Magi on their way after making them promise to send word of his location so he could “come and worship him, too!”
The rest is biblical history. As they left Jerusalem, they again saw the star that appeared to “go before them” and they rejoiced. This was no ordinary star and as they found where the star shown overhead they found their Messiah, now a toddler about two years old and living in a house that Joseph had presumably procured for his Holy family.
Imagine, Mary sitting and pondering, Joseph scratching his head a little worried but a bit interested in the gold and gifts brought to the King, not avariciously so, just naturally so, the way any father would be in seeking advantages when raising and supporting his family. And then Jesus, laughing and giggling, running amongst the camels and gazing and giggling at the Magi who had bowed down to worship him. Jesus knew their hearts even then; these Magi too , were His sheep and had heard his voice!
The magi as the Bible stated, had dreams and to a man, they were warned by God not to return to Herod but to go back to their lands by another way.
Perhaps,It was a wrathful Herod who realized his mistake in not having the magi followed or by not sending an escort with the Magi. Roman edicts and complicated politics perhaps, perhaps a clouding of Herod’s mind by God. Nevertheless,the Bible says he exacted his vengeance on the males 2 years and younger in that Bethlehem district and wiped them all out. Too late, God had warned Joseph, and he took his family to Egypt before Herod’s forces could get to the young Jesus.
Anyway that is my opinion on the star, not that the story I spun happened the way I wrote it. I think they saw a star, that did not move the way everything else did in the heavens. It was not necessarily a super shiny star when they saw it, but it did not move night after night in comparison with anything else that moved. And that is what got their attention....was there a bit of Holy Spirit unction? You decide.
I saw that. Hm.
I don’t have time to reply to this today.
My point is that what you are describing is totally subjective.
That being said, what is it about your subjective experience that makes it more authentic than that of a Mormon claiming exactly the same experiences?
In innumerable ways...etc.
Again, you're not describing anything that falls outside the norms of the human condition. Even Alcoholics Anonymous, a overtly secular organization, has direct experiential analogs to everything you mentioned.
Seeking to develop certain habits of mind develops and strengthens those habits of mind; there's nothing spiritual about that.
What you describe is no different than a person seeking to improve their physique through the habits of exercise finding it easier to perform exercise, and even extending that habit into attention to their diet.
And how do you believe He's endorsed a Catholic's personal relationship with Him but not another Christian's?
See my tagline.
[Jde 1:17-19 KJV] 17 But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; 18 How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. 19 These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.
YOU’RE BELIEVING THIS FALSE PROPHET????
Better watch it, Father. You're sounding like one of us "rednecks."
So, in chapter 16 of Saint Paul to the Roman,... http://drbo.org/chapter/52016.htm ...Paul says to salute these people who worked for Christ. But you say, as soon as they “have run their race” and secured themselves to Christ through a Holy death, why then we can’t salute them in victory (veneration)? Nor ask them to pray for us as we could in life (petition)? Those who are one Spirit in Christ? And they call Catholics rigid, narrow and mean?
Look at how you narrowed the parameters, I went from searching the Old and New Testament, to you cutting off books of the Old Testament, to you cutting off all examples that aren’t limited to Christ and the twelve Apostles, not just saying to pray to the Saints but actually doing it! If I should say, look at the Transfiguration, Christ giving us the example of talking to Saints after their death, why you will say that doesn’t count, that was under the old Law. If you have to move the goalpost like that to “win” your argument,... you already lost it.
Let us pray for each other. In the end if we have true humility, and thus are seeking the Truth that comes from outside of ourselves, from God, we will find the Truth that sets us free (Jn 8:32). In our atmosphere today of relativism, it is very difficult to realize on which side we are on. So many Christians say the Our Father, “THY will be done”, in live it, “MY will be done”, and are not willing to consider the point of view of another that might help us to realize how far we are totally immersed in relativism. Only one time did Jesus say “learn from me”: “Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Mt 11:29). Life is short, eternity is very long. Let us pray for each other.
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