Are you, like me, seeing how fast things are moving at this moment? One cannot go a day now without seeing/reading how the world around us is spinning out of control. News in the church, in the politics and in the world are changing so fast that if one misses a day of reading a paper or going on the internet, its as if you are missing huge news in the transformation of the world we are living in. Yet, there seems to be many who remain clueless in the transformation only looking for the next event or activity to pacify their time. The world has never been in such a spin, largely due to instant communication and the electronic social media. I think this is all planned out by the antichrist. I sense his presence in all this. He is at the helm of the confusion in the aforementioned. Seems his plan to confuse even the elect is clearly present in the swirling changes all around us. I have never felt such instability in the church, country or world. Seem to me the only question is what implodes first that makes the rest fall like domino's. Even the weather has changed with the most odd winter I can remember with temperatures changing 50 degrees F in a matter of less than 48 hours in Minnesota and elsewhere (in the winter months). Finally, I don't know about you, but I find myself waking up several times a night and taking right to prayer. Maybe it is only a few Our Father and Hail Mary's and then sometimes it goes on for long periods of time. Something is happening at this moment and I sense this profoundly. God is speeding things up and the days are flying by. Evil is spreading everywhere and lawlessness is creating a fear in some countries and large cities globally. No one knows for sure, but 2017 seems to be a pivotal time that God has something big planned for. Stay close to prayer.
I think all of us whether we admit it or not feel like you. Sometimes I do not sleep wondering what the future will bring to my grandkids. Praying is the only thing that bring some sanity to these times.
It seems like a snowball going down hill getting geometrically larger and faster as it travels down. Something is definitely happening now. Something big...
View attachment 6088 We have the weapon everyone......given to us by the MOTHER of GOD....that's why we are all here....at the MOG .
Fatima, you hit the nail on the head... I have been feeling that the time is quickening and have been waking up several times a night with the need to pray. The evil one is working overtime as our heavenly Father puts everything in place. I too sense something big is in our near future. May God protect all here, I ask this through the intersession of our Blessed Mother.
Yes, that time is moving so quickly. So many friends I speak to have commented on this. The world is in chaos...something is up.
A small group of friends I know compare notes. We can usually "feel" when something big is about to hit. A feeling of dread, bad dreams, exceptional difficulty with what should be normal daily tasks or family interactions, difficulty praying, etc. It seems to come in waves and it does correspond to major developments in the world. Judging by this last 4 days I personally have experienced we are in deep and imminent trouble.
I had a wonderful dream about St Bernard of Clairvaux last night, very fresh and vivid. I have been praying to him all morning. I am full of hope despite all, the saints are praying for us all and the Church heaven is not idle. St Bernard of Clairvaux, great son of the Church , pray for us. https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-bernard-of-clairvaux/ Saint Bernard of Clairvaux’s Story Man of the century! Woman of the century! You see such terms applied to so many today—“golfer of the century,” “composer of the century,” “right tackle of the century”—that the line no longer has any punch. But Western Europe’s “man of the twelfth century,” without doubt or controversy, had to be Bernard of Clairvaux. Adviser of popes, preacher of the Second Crusade, defender of the faith, healer of a schism, reformer of a monastic Order, Scripture scholar, theologian, and eloquent preacher: any one of these titles would distinguish an ordinary man. Yet Bernard was all of these—and he still retained a burning desire to return to the hidden monastic life of his younger days. In the year 1111, at the age of 20, Bernard left his home to join the monastic community of Citeaux. His five brothers, two uncles, and some 30 young friends followed him into the monastery. Within four years, a dying community had recovered enough vitality to establish a new house in the nearby valley of Wormwoods, with Bernard as abbot. The zealous young man was quite demanding, though more on himself than others. A slight breakdown of health taught him to be more patient and understanding. The valley was soon renamed Clairvaux, the valley of light. His ability as arbitrator and counselor became widely known. More and more he was lured away from the monastery to settle long-standing disputes. On several of these occasions, he apparently stepped on some sensitive toes in Rome. Bernard was completely dedicated to the primacy of the Roman See. But to a letter of warning from Rome, he replied that the good fathers in Rome had enough to do to keep the Church in one piece. If any matters arose that warranted their interest, he would be the first to let them know. Shortly thereafter it was Bernard who intervened in a full-blown schism and settled it in favor of the Roman pontiff against the antipope. The Holy See prevailed on Bernard to preach the Second Crusade throughout Europe. His eloquence was so overwhelming that a great army was assembled and the success of the crusade seemed assured. The ideals of the men and their leaders, however, were not those of Abbot Bernard, and the project ended as a complete military and moral disaster. Bernard felt responsible in some way for the degenerative effects of the crusade. This heavy burden possibly hastened his death, which came August 20, 1153. Reflection Bernard’s life in the Church was more active than we can imagine possible today. His efforts produced far-reaching results. But he knew that they would have availed little without the many hours of prayer and contemplation that brought him strength and heavenly direction. His life was characterized by a deep devotion to the Blessed Mother. His sermons and books about Mary are still the standard of Marian theology.
I find that I am now living in the present moment. I take time to sit and enjoy nature more, admire God's creations and thank Him for this gift. I try not to be concerned about the news cycle, not even what is happening in my own community. I pray my rosary, my chaplet my prayers every day. Try to stay in a state of grace, and just live the moment, love God, love my neighbor, help if I can, keep in contact with family members, and turn everything over to His Will. Otherwise, I'd go crazy.
I'm sure some have seen this but it's worth posting: http://m.ncregister.com/blog/msgr-pope/st.-michael-and-our-lady-of-fatima-why-2017-is-such-a-critical-moment St. Michael and Our Lady of Fatima Posted by Msgr. Charles Pope on Wednesday Jan 18th, 2017 at 6:01 AM Why 2017 Is Such a Critical Moment I have written elsewhere about why I think that 2017 will be a critical year. I believe it will be a year of hidden blessings or one of something so shocking that it will usher in a blessing that will only be understood later. It has been 100 years since the apparitions at Fatima and 500 since the Protestant revolt. The 1517 revolt ushered in a shocking, wrenching pruning of the Church. So did the apparitions in 1917, when Our Lady warned of great suffering if we did not pray and repent. God seems to permit (not cause) such things either as penance or as purification. The last 100 years have seen horrifying warfare, death tolls in the hundreds of millions driven by ideological conflict, abortion on demand, the destruction of marriage and the family, sexual confusion and misbehavior, and the rise of the culture of death (the demand for the right to die and the right to kill). Indeed, Christendom in the West is in the midst of a great collapse: tepid and compromised faith, a tiny minority who attend Mass, and the growth of militant secularism. Who among us can deny that the Church, especially in the affluent West, has been under attack. We have preferred to sleep through most of it and make one compromise after another. Who among us can deny that we need another “counter-reformation”? Two significant prophecies warned us of these events if we did not repent. For indeed, Scripture says, Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets (Amos 3:7). And while many apparitions occurred (some approved, some not), two in particular stand out: First, it is said that in 1884 Pope Leo XIII had an experience during which he heard God say that he would permit a period of 100 years that would test the Church in Job-like fashion. This alarmed Pope Leo enough that he penned the well-known Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel and asked that it be prayed at the end of Mass throughout the universal Church. Some dispute the accuracy of this and call it mere legend, but it is hard to deny that the attack/test occurred. But when and what is the hundred-year period? That leads to... Second, in 1917, Our Lady appeared in the region of Fatima, Portugal to three young children: Jacinta, Francesco, and Lucia. Mary indicated that the horrific First World War was soon to end, a war that featured the use of chemical weapons so devastating that an international agreement was developed banning their use. However, she warned that an even more terrible war would ensue if people did not repent and pray. Our Lady went on to say that in the aftermath of the war, Russia would spread the errors of atheism and materialism, leading to grievous suffering for the Church and many of the faithful. She also prophesied that there would be a final warning of light in the sky just prior to the onslaught of this new war. In order to provide veracity to her message, Our Lady promised a miracle at her final apparition. On Oct. 13, 1917, the “Miracle of the Sun” took place, and as many as 70,000 people witnessed the sun dancing about in the sky and moving toward the earth. In January 1938, a display of the aurora borealis vividly lit the skies far south of its normal reach; newspapers throughout the world reported the event. Later that same year, Germany entered Czechoslovakia, and in 1939, Poland was invaded; the Second World War was under way, a consequence of our failure to repent. More than 60 million people were killed in World War II. At the end of the war, Russia dropped the Iron Curtain and atheistic communism held sway in the Eastern Bloc. Churches were closed, clergy and religious were killed, and great suffering came to all who would not acquiesce. The prophesies of 1917 proved to be sadly and vividly true. Another prophecy of the Fatima apparitions was kept secret until the year 2000; it spoke of the murder of a pope as he walked past martyrs up a hill toward a cross in a ruined city. In 1981, St. John Paul II, nearly killed by an assassin, attributed his survival to the prayers of many who did hear the call of Our Lady to pray. Cardinal Ratzinger, in his commentary on the “third secret” of Fatima, called it the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) of an entire century. Indeed it was: ruined cities, martyrs, and the long shadow of a cross over those years for the Church and the world. A final aspect of the Fatima apparition came to light in 1981 when Sister Lucia wrote to Msgr. (now Cardinal) Carlo Caffara at the Vatican to thank him and to assure him of prayers for the founding of the John Paul II Institute on Marriage and the Family. In the letter she also related something she heard from Our Lady: a final battle will signal the end of the period in which we now struggle. Sister Lucia recounted Our Lady’s words as follows: The final battle between the Lord and the reign of Satan will be about marriage and the family. Don’t be afraid, … anyone who works for the sanctity of marriage and the family will always be fought and opposed in every way, because this is the decisive issue. … However, Our Lady has already crushed its head. I think the period of 100 years of trial seen by Pope Leo is coming to its culmination. My premise is that, though it was foreseen by Leo in 1884, it actually began in 1917 with the warning of Our Lady. Her message was clear: pray and be converted or else suffer grievously the consequences of human sinfulness. It is clear that we have suffered grievously for our failures. Attempting to follow Our Lady’s direction in 1917 at Fatima, three popes (Pius XII, John Paul II, and Francis) have consecrated Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. But arguments go back and forth about whether any of these was “valid” (e.g., Was the wording just right?). But no technicality can eclipse our failure to repent and pray; I believe that repentance and prayer are the true heart of Our Lady’s message. And so here we are at the culmination of the battle. Though it is disheartening, the battle in the Church over the sanctity of holy matrimony has reached the highest levels, just as our Lady said. Cardinal is pitted against cardinal, bishop against bishop. In the wider culture, marriage has been redefined; biblical and natural law teachings have been set aside. At this point I don’t think that our culture has a definition of marriage at all; it’s whatever anyone wants to say it is. This is no minor error; it is a civilization killer. Something tells me that this year of 2017 is going to be critical and that we had better pray — a lot more than we have in the past. Repentance is also crucial. Being sleepy in the battle cannot be an option. We are at a turning point. Perhaps the hundred years of trial are ending; they might end well or they might come to a dreadful conclusion. That is why we must pray. Cardinal Ratzinger, in the same Vatican document referenced above reflecting on Fatima, said: The purpose of the vision is not to show a film of an irrevocably fixed future. Its meaning is exactly the opposite: it is meant to mobilize the forces of change in the right direction. Therefore, we must totally discount fatalistic explanations. … Rather, the vision speaks of dangers and how we might be saved from them. Will you join me in praying with special fervency this year? In my own parish, we will be observing the First Saturday devotions that were requested by Mary at Fatima. This will be a communal way to engage the call to prayer. It involves attending Holy Mass, praying the Rosary, and going to confession (that day or within one week) on the first Saturday of five consecutive months. Others also add the wearing of the scapular and/or making a consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Such a communal observance ought not to eclipse personal prayer and conversion; it is merely to augment it. Are there devotional practices you can undertake, such as the daily Rosary, the Angelus, or the Chaplet of Divine Mercy? Are there sins you need to make special effort to avoid? Are there lawful pleasures you can set aside? What will you do? This is a critical moment; I am convinced of it. Will you join me in special prayer this year, the 100th anniversary of the Fatima apparitions?
You're right, Brian. I, too, am trying to fulfill the five first Saturdays devotion and consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, especially this year. It's encouraging that about 100 people attend Mass both on first Fridays and first Saturdays at my local church. Also, two priests hear confessions after the first Saturday Masses and the lines are always long. This in California!
Ha Ha! That is so far from the truth I actually have a condition called Dyscalculia which makes math tremendously difficult for me. My brain don't work so good with numbers.
The ROSARY! The best of weapons. Place everything/everyone around you and in your life within the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of our dear Blessed Mother and pray Rosaries!
I share your opinion Fatima, I had difficult time myself but if I can add just few words and I learned it from Father Gruner, the Fatima Priest himself, the Good Father was used to remind us, Know your Faith, Know your Cathechism, Know at least the main Dogmas of the Catholic Faith and you will be able to discern correctly, I can say today that his advices have been a great Help to me, especially today when the devil knows that his time is near the end, the Rosary and the Scapular are also great weapons against him and I will add the Daily Saint Michael Prayer as well.
Yes, please wear the scapular...another gift from Our Lady! Kiss it when you put it on and take it off as an act devotion. Buy them for your family as well.
Right Beth B but let me insist again, I know many who are wearing their Scapular daily and Praying their Rosary daily as well but they do not know their faith enough, what I want to say, you can Pray many Rosaries you like and wear your Scapular all your life but if you don't know your Faith via your Cathechism or at least the main Dogma of the Catholic Faith, you won't be able to discern correctly, the devil is cleaver especially today and he is always in the details and be sure in my case, promoting Garabandal for years as working on the Fatima 3rd Secret for years as well, I often met him, this is in other words my testimony due to my own experience, please know your Faith, if it's not the case, then learned it, thank you.
I agree completely Aviso! I am learning my faith daily. I'm so grateful for friends who are not afraid to share the faith and correct me when I'm wrong. I'm blessed.
