Seen on the web: JPII beatification validating the catastrophe of Vatican II

A new CEO takes over the world’s largest corporate body. He declares he will continue the work of his predecessor once removed. A work that saw a widespread decline in prophets. He treats his oath of office as belonging to another time not his. His words and actions over 25 years effectively deny a cardinal tenet of his mission statement. They foster indifference to the company product.

During his stewardship his sales force declines precipitously. Trainees for replacements are down 90 percent. Plants are closed.

Two-thirds of former clients no longer use the product. Those who do are divided between those who don’t see or are resigned to accepting a watered down product (indistinguishable from competitors) and those who want to water it down further.

On passing, some declare him “saint” while others add “the Great” to his name. The world loves him whereas the founder of the company said “as they have hated me they will hate you.”

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Complete Listing of Chicago Area Divine Mercy Sunday (5/1/2011) Devotions

Click here for complete listings (PDF)

Submitted by Chuck H.

A pictorial essay on Pope John Paul II (33 photos)

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Planned Parenthood does more than just killing babies … and John Wayne Gacy built some nice homes!

New Planned Parenthood Mascot?

by Doug Lawrence

Besides annually killing around 350,000 babies, and abusing as many women, Planned Parenthood would like you to know that they also provide health screenings, STD tests, and contraceptives (for a fee).

What they don’t say is that around a third of their profits come from abortion alone, and they have a very peculiar way of counting visits for services.

Let’s say you went to a restaurant for pizza, but every time you reached for a drink, or a napkin, a fork or a knife, the restaurant counted it as another “visit”. Weird, huh?

That’s how Planned Parenthood “cooks the books” in their favor. Books they have been totally unable to balance, by the way. They have yet to pass muster on key government audits of their use of state and federal funds.

But they claim that no federal money is used to provide abortions.

I say, “Prove it … or quit!”

You can’t lose 53 million lives (to abortion) and not also expect it to have a serious economic impact.

Economists tell us that unless we raise taxes, cut benefits, or overhaul the entire system, both Medicare and Social Security will be a crisis in about twenty years.  Why is that?  A big reason is that the prevalence of abortion means there are a diminished number of workers to support the beneficiaries.

In 2008, the Social Security program tells us there were 3.2  workers for  every retired, disabled, or survivor beneficiary.  By 2030, though, there will be just 2.2 workers per beneficiary, that is, the taxes of two people will have to pay for the benefit that three people’s taxes now cover. That’s a heavier tax burden than either individuals or the economy will be able to bear.

Some of this is a consequence of the aging of the large baby boom generation and people generally living longer, but abortion is certainly also taking its toll.

According to estimates provided by political scientist Laura Hussey, Ph.D., of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, if abortion had not been legalized in 1973, there would have been 17.2 million more people employed in 2008, earning nearly $400 billion in wages and salary.  At the current rates, that would have meant more than $11 billion more contributed to Medicare and at least $47.4 billion more going to Social Security.

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Priest: Parents should stop giving silly names to children.

Father Dias said that he took up the subject after the pope raised the issue in a sermon at Vatican City in March.

“I have been baptising children and parents come up with all kinds of strange names,” said Dias who said that he recently came across a boy with the name ‘Asprin’.

Father Dias said people are naming children after perfumes (Chanel), Russian ballerinas (Natasha) and pop stars.

“Names give you an identity. We are supposed to be witnesses to our faith. That is the reason why children were named after saints. Names should be of some value or should be of a personality who can be a role model for the child. How do you emulate a diamond if you are named after it?” asked Dias.

In South India, father Dias said, there is a trend of giving children the complete name of a famous person. He said he has come across a Father John Kennedy and a Prince Albert. “What happens when these young people grow up? They become the butt of jokes. Imagine me introducing a ‘Father John Kennedy’,” said Dias. “Children are not places or commodities. If I had such a name, I would be embarrassed.”

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Oprah show: Obamas gush over meeting Pope

Obama and his wife were asked about their best moments as a family since they moved into the White House in January 2009.

“A lot of our foreign travel for me I think, watching Malia and Sasha Obama, … meet the pope,” said the first lady in remarks released of the interview’s full airing on Monday.

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Official Vatican JPII website launched

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Michelle Malkin: Pfleger … finally!

News out of the Windy City tonight: Chicago’s Cardinal Francis George has at long last suspended prog nutball Rev. Michael Pfleger.

Pardon my language, but it’s about damned time.

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Extraordinary and chilling story: How being an organ donor can cost you your life.

Pronounced “brain dead” in ER and a “donor,” obviously alive, he is pronounced dead three more times!!

First death-a convenience death-invented to schedule and regulate the actual time of real death. We were told five hours after his having been admitted into ER that he was “dead.” The hospital records confirm this time, stating “brain death” had occurred after the apnea test was performed. Obviously my son’s organs had already been sold to the highest bidder-he received the death sentence and despite his fight for life, he had been condemned to death. Despite the fact that he could not respond due to being sedated, “brain death” was pronounced.

Second death: the “paper death”-the death certificate. This indicates that he died one and one half hours prior to the apnea test and having been labeled “brain dead!”

Third death-the true “physical death”-having completed their ritualistic rite, our son had been dissected alive and in doing so, killed. The medical records indicate that our son had been given anesthesia nineteen hours after he was suppose to be DEAD! Two drugs were administered-one to relieve pain and a paralyzing drug to inhibit movement-prior to this fatal dissection-half way through his torture, all pain medications was withdrawn. The length of time for his beating heart and other vital organs to be cut out was three and one half hours.

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Foolish and conspiratorial vs. foolish and deceptive. Take your pick!

by Doug Lawrence

Democratic spin-meisters are calling Republicans “foolish and conspiratorial”.

Republicans are calling Barack Obama “foolish and deceptive”.

Meanwhile, a president who can afford to take a day off to appear on the Oprah Winfrey Show, has no business complaining that responding to a legitimate demand for acceptable proof of his American birth constitutes an unnecessary demand on his valuable time.

If Mr. Obama wants to save even more time, and he truly has nothing to hide, he should promptly release all the other sealed documents relating to his life and his person.

Then perhaps, we can all get back to work!

This Week’s Ask Alice: Discerning Spirits. Dealing with apparitions.

Send A Question To Alice

She’ll answer as many questions as possible,
right here, every Thursday.

Email responses will also be provided, as time permits.

Carolyn Asks: My youngest daughter has twice seen a man during Mass that is wearing what she calls “Ellis Island” clothing. Yesterday at Holy Thursday service, she witnessed him during the consecration. She said he genuflected, put his cap on (touring cap) and walked out the back. He is older (she described a bowl cut hairstyle). She is very uncomfortable about this. As side note, recently, while spending the night at a friend’s house, she witnessed what she described as three ghosts . I called our priest about that. We went to confession asap. She slept on our floor for a month. She’s okay, now. She’s 16 years old. Should I find her a spiritual director?

Alice Answers: It is a privilege to answer your question. I believe your daughter has a special gift. She sees spirits because the eyes of her heart are open wide to Christ, and to the members of His Mystical Body.

Many years ago, during the consecration at Mass, I saw John, our deceased parish business manager. He was on the left side of the church, behind the altar. John had been kind to me when we served together on the Parish Council. Seeing him brought tears to my eyes by reminding me that, even in death, we remain connected, through the Body of Christ.

One evening at a party, I was telling a friend about seeing John’s spirit. An elderly priest approached and told me I had been given a gift.

Many people see spirits. Through the years, relatives, friends, and even complete strangers have shared their stories with me.

Spirits exist, whether or not we are aware of their presence. There are good and evil spirits all around us. Good spirits appear to bring us messages, comfort or assistance.

Sometimes, souls appear, asking us to pray for their release from Purgatory. Or, a soul might manifest, asking us to tell a loved one that they are well and happy.

Evil spirits also sometimes make their presence known, to people both good and bad. They tempt, taunt, disturb, and attempt to lure people away from God.

Scripture tells us to test the spirits:

“Beloved, do not trust every spirit, but put the spirits to a test to see if they belong to God.” (1John 4:1)

If your daughter has not engaged in occult practices, utilizing a Ouija board or Tarot cards, exploring Wicca, or visiting a psychic, then she most likely has not opened the door to evil spirits.

Since your daughter was cautious and uncomfortable toward the spirits she encountered, she seems to be wise in faith. If she has a good relationship with the Lord, then you can be reasonably sure that her mysticism comes from God.

As you have already demonstrated, frequent reception of the sacraments of Holy Eucharist and Penance are most important to your daughter’s spiritual growth and strength. Prayer and visits to the Blessed Sacrament will draw your daughter closer to the Lord.

Hopefully, she has some Catholic friends to help support and encourage her, in her faith.

Should you seek a spiritual director for your daughter? That’s a tough question!

Some priests, not having experienced mystical experiences themselves, may be squeamish and/or skeptical about such things, and may not be of much help. Pray that if God desires a spiritual director for your daughter, He will lead you to that person. A spiritual director doesn’t have to be a priest or religious, but might be a lay man or woman, who has been given the gift of wisdom.

“To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good…Prophecy is given to one; to another power to distinguish one spirit from another.” (1 Corinthians 12:7, 10)

Clearly, God has given your daughter spiritual gifts and a loving, devoted mother to watch over and guide her. She is indeed blessed! As the late, soon to be beatified, Pope John Paul II liked to say, “Be not afraid!”

In Christ’s Love,

Alice

EWTN Q&A Forum on the subject with related links

Book excerpt from Google Books by noted author, theologian and philosopher Peter Kreeft, on the subject (see pages 32-35).

Seven kinds of ghosts

Seven steps to self deliverance

Useful Prayer Resources

A collection of related Q&A’s

Click here to see all of Alice’s other columns

How Catholic “gay ministries” serve the homosexual collective

“Gay Ministries” are Trojan Horses in the Catholic Church

The very fact that so-called “gay ministries” exist today in the Catholic Church in almost every major diocese in the world is a testimony to the ability of heretofore sexual outlaws to successfully organize, politicize and legitimatize sexually deviant behavior even within traditional enemy camps.

Of all society’s institutions, none is as important to the Homosexual Collective as organized religion, especially the Catholic Church. Religion is the supreme arbitrator and validator of human behavior. The secular State declares what acts are legal, but only the Church can declare which acts are moral and which are sinful. Hence, the Collective’s preoccupation with infiltrating, colonizing, and subverting the Church using the same strategies that have proven effective in the penetration of secular institutions in order to bring it under the Collective’s sphere of influence.

Clearly, under the leadership of Bishop Vera López, the Diocese of Saltillo in Coahuila has become the beachhead, the first secured area for political advancement of the “Gay Liberation Front” in Mexico.

Read more from Randy Engel

Dr. Ron Paul Explains His Anti-Abortion Position

In the 1960s when abortion was still illegal, I witnessed, while visiting a surgical suite as an OB/GYN resident, the abortion of a fetus that weighed approximately two pounds.

It was placed in a bucket, crying and struggling to breathe, and the medical personnel pretended not to notice.

Soon the crying stopped. This harrowing event forced me to think more seriously about this important issue….

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Obama’s population control dogma rejected. Vatican blamed.

If I asked you who understood a country’s needs better, its residents and leaders or some foreign technocrat who had never been there, you might think that it was a trick question.

Well, according to some Obama administration officials, you would be wrong. Not only that, but believing otherwise is proof that you are under the Vatican’s thrall. At least that was the position taken by the American delegation at a recent United Nations’ panel entitled “Secure Human Development: Marriage, Family, Community.”

The American delegation tried to persuade other countries to adopt a more “comprehensive” approach to development and population. By “comprehensive” the American delegation means fewer people. Their emphasis was on “family planning” and access to abortion.

To the Americans’ consternation, the foreigners weren’t buying. The representative from St. Lucia asked a good question: “How do we get our fertility rate to rise? We were told we needed to reduce our fertility rate — [but] now we have an aging population.”

St. Lucia is not alone: After 40 years of population control propaganda and coercion, all of the industrialized and much of the developing world has below-replacement level fertility rates and aging populations, which in turn threaten economic development.

Read more from Chuck Colson

Really big show: Picture of Pope John Paul II is six stories tall.

April 27, 2011. (Romereports.com) (-ONLY VIDEO-) St. Peter’s Square is receiving a face-lift this week, as the biggest picture ever created of John Paul II was draped from the columns that encircle the square. Pilgrims arriving early for the beatification were able to watch as Vatican workers prepare St. Peter’s Square for the beatification ceremonies on May 1.

Link

A comedy writer’s conversion story. No kidding!

My name is Tom Leopold and I’m a comedy writer (Seinfeld, Cheers, Will and Grace…). I am a Jewish comedy writer, although I always felt saying that was kind of redundant. So much of my humor — practically all of it I suppose— comes from who my people are, what they’ve been through and how they were able to turn it all on its head and find the funny side, even and especially if there was none to find.

I know it sounds odd, but I always liked Jesus. I was never “deep” enough to wrestle with the concept of his being the son of God. For me he had this James Dean-Bob Dylan-daring rebel-hero “thing” about him. Once in a while, I did wonder, had I been nearby when Jesus walked among us, would I have had seen him for who he said he was? And, if so, would I have had the courage to say “Hey, everybody says we’re waiting on the Messiah. Well, the ‘wait’ is over!” Fast forward two thousand years later and I’d follow Jesus anywhere if he’d have me.

Come Easter I’ll still be a comedy writer, but a Catholic one. I consider my upcoming baptism a blessing. One that ranks right up there with the day I met my wife or the birth of our two daughters, to say nothing of having the good fortune to have made a living in a business that I love.

So here is a flashback of how I became Catholic.
(Cue the music!)

You can say hateful morons represent the anti-abortion culture if we can say the murdering butcher in Philadelphia and the enablers and concealers of statutory rape represent the pro-choice culture.

Writer Harold O. Koenig covers a lot of ground in his recent article, discussing both sides of the abortion/birth control argument.

It’s well worth reading.

Lila Rose is a pro-life hero

A young woman who has become a household name in the pro-life movement will be addressing the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast tomorrow.

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Donald Trump was right

Donald Trump has taken credit for Barack Obama’s late and all too reluctant release of his birth certificate.

I’m no fan of Donald Trump, but I think he’s right, on this one.

Let’s hope “The Donald” can continue to shed light on the shady background of this all too mysterious American President.

‘Ataboy, Donald!