Seen on the Babylon Bee

Yesterday was Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent according to the Roman Church calendar. Walt [and Ed.! Ed.] did go church to be reminded that "thou are dust, and unto dust thou shalt return," while the priest marked us with a sign of our Faith. 

Let's not be silly. Those people you saw marked like this are not extremists or terrorists, although many of them will surely vote Republican in November. They are devout Catholics, and probably patriots too!

That little jape is from the Babylon Bee, of course. Our trusted source of Christian satire also features this one.

"Devout Catholic..." HAH! That's good for a belly laugh right there. You won't be seeing any cross of ashes on Joe's forehead. His handlers have strictly forbidden any such pictures less people think that the cross sends the message that his brain is dead! [You mean it's not? Ed.]

As for Catholic... any politician [or even a normal person. Ed.] who calls himself/herself "Catholic" and yet supports a woman's "right" to kill her baby, is, according to even the liberal Church of Francis, not following the precepts of the True Faith.

Click here to read the accompanying article, from the Bee,.14/2/24. 

Ask God for mercy! Lenten message from Abp Carlo Maria Viganò

What follows is excerpted from the Lenten message of Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, who served as the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States from October 2011 to April 2016, and is now in the forefront of the movement for the return to Catholic Tradition. 

Come and be converted to me, says the Lord. Come weeping, let us shed tears to God: because we have transgressed, and because of us the earth suffers: we have committed iniquity and because of us its foundations have been shaken. Let us hasten to prevent God’s wrath, weeping and saying: You who take upon Yourself the sins of the world, have mercy on us. 

These words...are simple in their severe clarity, for they show us that God’s wrath because of our sins and betrayals can only be appeased by contrition and penance. In the Roman Rite this concept is made even more clearly in the prayer of the Litany of Saints: Deus, qui culpa offenderis, pænitentia placaris: preces populi tui supplicantis propitius respice; et flagella tuæ iracundiæ, quæ pro peccatis nostris meremur, averte. O God, who is offended by guilt and appeased by penance: look kindly on the prayers of your people who implore You; and turn away from us the scourges of your wrath, which we deserve because of our sins.

Christian civilization was able to treasure this salutary notion, which keeps us away from sin not only for fear of the just punishment that it entails, but also for the offense caused to the Majesty of God, "infinitely good and worthy of being loved above all things," as the Act of Contrition teaches us. 

Down the centuries humanity converted to Christ knew how to recognize in the mournful events of history – in earthquakes, famines, pestilences, and wars – the punishment of God; and always the people struck by these scourges knew how to do penance and implore Divine Mercy. And when the Lord, the Blessed Virgin or the Saints intervened in human affairs with apparitions and revelations, in addition to the call to observe the Law of God they threatened great tribulations if men were not converted.

At Fatima, also, Our Lady asked for the Consecration of Russia to Her Immaculate Heart and the reparative Communion of the First Saturdays as an instrument to appease the anger of God and to be able to enjoy a period of peace. Otherwise, Russia "will spread its errors throughout the world, promoting wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to suffer, various nations will be destroyed."

What should we expect from disregarding Our Lady’s requests and continuing to offend the Lord with more and more horrible sins? "They did not want to fulfill My request! Like the King of France, they will repent and do it, but it will be late. Russia will have already spread its errors throughout the world, provoking wars and persecutions of the Church."

These wars, which today afflict humanity to enslave it and submit it to the infernal plan of the Great Reset inspired by Chinese Communism, are once again the result of our indocility, of our obstinacy in believing that we can trample on the Law of the Lord and blaspheme His Holy Name without consequences. What wretched presumption! How much Luciferian pride!...

As long as we have time, dear brothers and sisters, let us ask God for mercy; let us implore His pardon and make amends for sins that have been committed. Because a day will arrive when the time of Mercy will be completed, and the day of Justice will begin. Dies illa, dies iræ: calamitatis et miseriæ; dies magna et amara valde. 

That day will be a day of wrath : a day of catastrophe and misery, a great and truly bitter day. On that day the Lord will come to judge the world with fire: judicare sæculum per ignem. 

May it please God that the admonitions of Our Lady and the mystic Saints lead us, in this hour of darkness, to truly convert, to recognize our sins, to see them absolved in the Sacrament of Confession, and to atone for them with fasts and penances. So that the arm of God’s Justice may be stopped by the few, when it ought to fall upon the many. 

And so may it be. 

+ Carlo Maria Viganò, Archbishop 

Further reading: Click here to read Archbishop Viganò's message in full.

See also "Russia's war against Ukraine explained by Our Lady of Fatima", WWW 3/3/22.

“Death, Judgment, Hell and Heaven” - Lenten Mission - Fr Isaac Relyea Saint Catharines, Ontario - 20-23 February

February 26th is Ash Wednesday. What better way to get ready for this season of reflection and repentance than by hearing a soul-stirring Catholic mission -- "Death, Judgment, Hell and Heaven" -- preached by Father Isaac Mary Relyea. This series of four powerful talks will be given at Holy Face of Jesus Church (SSPX) in Saint Catharines ON, from February 20th to 23rd.

Father Relyea is a traditional Franciscan priest from New York. After a successful secular career, Father entered religious life following a reversion to the Catholic Faith.

He is well known as a powerful speaker, who has travelled internationally since ordination to preach traditional missions and speak at conferences, particularly on the Four Last Things. Father has not given this Mission since 2013. It's definitely one you don't want to miss!

"Death, Judgment, Hell and Heaven" is a stirring wake-up call to modern society, which has desensitized itself to the realities of sin, death, man's immortal soul, and the life hereafter! Father Relyea follows the wisdom of saints such as St. Alphonsus de Liguori and St. Leonard of Port Maurice. Attending this Mission has helped many people. It has brought about conversions, changed life-styles, increased fervor, and helped people commit themselves to living a life centered on Christ.

Holy Face of Jesus Church
181 Lake Street
St. Catharines, Ontario
120 km from Toronto and
45 miles from Buffalo.

Thursday, February 20th - Rosary 7:00 pm, Conference 7:30 pm
Friday, February 21st - Rosary 7:00 pm, Conference 7:30 pm
Saturday, February 22nd - Rosary 10:30 am, Conference 11:00 am
Sunday, February 23rd - Rosary 12:30 pm, Conference 1:00 pm

"Death, Judgment, Hell and Heaven" is sponsored in part and promoted by the Fatima Center, founded by Father Nicholas Gruner+. For more information, including information on accommodations at special rates, visit the Fatima.org website.

The Irishman who ordered three beers

Agent 36, who has been mentioned in Walt's blog under his own name, gets his Agent Number for this lovely (and timely) Irish tale...

An Irishman moves into a tiny hamlet in County Kerry, walks into the best pub and promptly orders three beers. The bartender raises his eyebrows, but serves the man three beers, which he drinks quietly at a table, alone. An hour later, the man has finished the three beers and orders three more. This happens yet again. The next evening the man again orders and drinks three beers at a time, several times.

Soon the entire town is whispering about The Man Who Orders Three Beers. Finally, a week later, the bartender broaches the subject on behalf of the town. "I don't mean to pry, but folks around here are wondering why you always order three beers?"

"Tis odd, isn't it?" the man replies. "You see, I have two brothers, and one went to America, and the other to Australia. We promised each other that we would always order an extra two beers whenever we drank... as a way of keeping up the Irish family bond."

The bartender and the whole town were pleased with this answer, and soon "The Man Who Orders Three Beers" became a local celebrity and a source of pride to the hamlet, even to the extent that out-of-towners would come to watch him drink.

Then, one day, the man comes in and orders only two beers. The bartender pours them with a heavy heart. This continues for the rest of the evening. He orders only two beers. The word flies around town. Prayers are offered for the soul of one of the brothers.

The next day, the bartender says to the man, "Folks around here, me first of all, want to offer sincere condolences to you on the death of one of your brothers. You know... the two beers and all."

The man ponders this for a moment, then replies, "You'll be happy to hear that both of me two brothers are alive and well. It's just that I, myself, have decided to give up drinking for Lent."

Lenten sacrifice

I hope you're enjoying your pancakes and generally having a ball today, because tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent.

I'm not licensed to preach so won't, but will remind you that Lent is not necessarily about giving up something, like ice cream. In fact a lot of people use Lent to try to give up bad habits or lose weight. As with all such plans, we might do it for 40 days, but afterwards we slip back into our old ways.

Lent is about making a sacrifice. You can do it by giving something up, but you can also do it in a positive way. You could sacrifice a few moments each day to say a little prayer, for instance grace at meals. You could go to church on a day when you don't have to, especially during Holy Week. You could give to the Church or to a charity such as Share Life which promotes Christian projects and Christian values. Any or all of the above would be good.

To all who believe, I wish a Holy Lent.