'Earnestly contending for the faith,' (Jude 3 ) as well as sharing encouragement and hope through Scripture (Romans 15:4), and through the poems and posts that I write. One of many voices on the Internet warning Christians of the importance of testing the teachings of men (and women) against the unchanging truth of God's Word. (Acts 17:11) I 'warn you with tears' through much of what I write, to 'be on guard against the savage wolves that will come in among us who will distort the Word of God' as God's Word warns us about in Acts 20:26-31
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After seeing more and more churches these days promoting not only yoga, but also the Martial Arts, I found the need to set aside some time today to put together this short, but very important post. It is my hope and prayer that this post will reach many Christians — as well as non-Christians — who are sadly involved with the Martial Arts thinking that they are simply just innocent classes that teach discipline and self-defense methods. It is both sad and deeply alarming to realize that many Christians — including pastors — do not realize the spiritual dangers and occult roots of these practices as well as the philosophy that is so prevalent in the Martial Arts! So today I wanted to present to you not only the link to the short version of Gaylene Goodroad’s testimony of her time in the Martial Arts (during which sheachieved not one, but two black belts, both which she has renounced after becoming a Christian), but also the link to her E BOOK:
The link to the short version of her testimony can be found HERE
When time allows, I pray that you will take time to read through all of the important information that she has provided for everyone at the links above so that you can become aware of the spiritual dangers that are involved in these practices. I pray also that you will seek the Lord in prayer and in His Word if you are either presently involved in the Martial Arts or have enrolled your children in these classes, innocently thinking that they will simply learn how to become more disciplined and learn how to defend themselves.
Here also is the link to Gaylene Goodroad’s website where she clearly states that she is: “…determined to expose the spiritual dangers of combat arts.”MY LIFE IN THE WAY
Gaylene also contends for the faith by writing many important and informative posts (along with Sarah Leslie) for the: HERESCOPE BLOG You will find that these posts are all rooted in Scripture in order to expose the many ways in which spiritual mysticism (and more) has infiltrated the Church, thus leading many Christians away from Biblical truth and into the world of the occult. The need to continually pray for spiritual discernment as well as the need to constantly test everything that a professing Christian pastor or teacher says and does is a must these days, and we are shown the importance of doing so in Scripture:
“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)
“Prove [test] all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil. ” (1 Thessalonians 5:21,22)
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try [test] the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)
God’s Word is filled with many warnings about adopting the pagan practices of the culture that surrounded His chosen people, the Jews. Here are just a few of them:
“You must not follow the practices of the land of Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not follow the practices of the land of Canaan, into which I am bringing you. You must not walk in their customs.” (Leviticus 18:3)
“Do not practice divination or seek omens.” ” ‘Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.” Leviticus 19:26,31)
“You must not follow the statutes of the nations I am driving out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them.” (Leviticus 20:23)
“Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou inquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.” (Deuteronomy 12:30)
Similar warnings were given to the church regarding being led astray by the philosophies of men and doctrines of devils, not yoking together with unbelievers, and how false teachers would arise even from among us which is clearly happening today through Spiritual Formation classes, yoga classes, and Martial Art classes that are being presented at many allegedly Biblically based churches. Just as you cannot separate the spiritual aspect of yoga from the different poses that are done, so also you cannot separate the Buddhist spiritual aspects and philosophy from the Martial Arts.
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.” (Colossians 2:8)
“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)
“And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.” (Acts 20:25-31)
We are truly living in the last days! The Book of Revelation clearly shows us the depth of the demonic activity that will be taking place at that time and how the people will refuse to repent in spite of the judgements that God will bring upon the earth because man loved their sin and refused to receive the love of the truth that they might be saved. Instead they will believe the lie because they chose not to believe the truth:
“And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk. Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.” (Revelation 9:20,21)
“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:1-8)
“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-12)
Here also are links to podcasts that Gaylene did with BEREAN CALL’S,T. A. McMahon regarding her time in the Martial Arts:
There are two very important reasons why I felt compelled to write this series of posts, and I’d like to briefly share these reasons with you now before I go any further:
1) Since I am a former Catholic who is very aware of the teachings of the Catholic Church because I attended twelve years of Catholic school, attended Catechism classes, made my First Holy Communion, was Confirmed, and faithfully attended Mass not only every Sunday for many years, but also before school began for three years (as required by the school that I attended at the time), and who came to the knowledge of who Jesus Christ truly is and what He actually accomplished for us by reading a Catholic New Testament Bible exactly like the one pictured above, I decided to write this series with the hope of reaching precious Catholics so that they can not only come to an understanding of who Jesus Christ truly is as His Word, the Bible, declares Him to be, but also so they can see by reading God’s Word that they can have complete forgiveness, lasting joy, true peace, and the assurance of salvation if they choose to believe God’s Word and place their trust in Jesus Christ alone for their salvation. Also, since many Catholics do not realize everything that the Catholic church actually teaches (as I once did not realize until after doing research and reading the CCC), I thought that it was extremely important to share this information to make Catholics aware of many things that are quite disturbing, as you will all soon become aware of as this series continues.
2) This series of posts is also being written with the intention of helping those of you who are born-again, Bible believing followers of Jesus Christ who have no idea of what the teachings of Catholicism are so that you can become aware of their teachings and be prepared to offer hope and assurance of salvation through Jesus Christ to Catholics based solely upon the truth that is recorded in God’s Word.
As we continue on in this series together comparing Scriptures in the Catholic New Testament to teachings found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, we must keep these important thoughts in mind:
When it comes to our eternal destination — heaven or hell — we must be certain that we place our trust in solid truth and not in speculation or in the traditions of men. The Catholic church claims to be the “one true Church.” Therefore, it stands to reason that their teachings must line up with God’s Word and not contradict it since God does not change (Malachi 3:6, James 1:17, Hebrews 13:8), and His Word stands firm forever. (Psalm 119:89, Isaiah 40:8, 1 Peter 1:24,25) If a contradiction is found it must be rejected because God’s Word is our plumb line by which we must measure (or test) the teachings of every religion to see if it lines up or not. If it is off in one point we can be certain that it will lead us further and further away from Biblical truth and lead us into spiritual deception.
This series will cover many different subjects ranging from what does the Catholic Church teach about the Bible, Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, priests, the pope, sin, forgiveness of sins, salvation, prayer, and what must a Catholic believe in order to receive eternal life. Some of these teachings will shock even many Catholics when they learn what their church actually teaches!
Lord willing, I hope to share at least one post every month with you in this new series until I have covered all the most important teachings that need to be brought to your attention. The main goal that I have in writing this series is to present the Word of God to Catholics — and to every person — in order to point everyone to Jesus Christ, who is our only hope and ‘the only name under heaven given among men by which we can be saved.’ (Acts 4:12)
Dear Catholic, please take a minute now to sincerely pray; ask God to open your mind to the Scriptures and to reveal the truth to you –whatever that may be.
Because only God can reveal the truth to you, I will refrain from making any comments unless I find it completely necessary. Since God’s Word is truth I trust that He will not only give you eyes to see the truth, but also I trust that He will give you the courage to respond to His leading. However, each one of you will find yourself having to answer this question when you come to many points that I present to you in these posts after realizing that there are oftentimes extreme differences between what the Word of God says and what Catholicism teaches, and the question that you will have to answer is:
“Are you going to believe the Word of God or the word of man?”
For those of you who are not Catholic, and are taking the time to read these posts in order to learn what Catholicism actually teaches, please keep in mind that every time you see the word “church” spelled with a capital c they are referring to the Catholic church, since they believe that the “Catholic Church” alone is the “one true Church.”All of the information that I will be sharing with you I have obtained from the following sources:
1) CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH (pictured above) – Imprimi Potest – Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (who later became Pope Benedict) – Interdicasterial Commission for the Catechism of the Catholic Church
2) THE WORD OF GOD – THE NEW TESTAMENT OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR IN TODAY’S ENGLISH VERSION – SACRED HEART LEAGUE EDITION – IMPRIMATUR JOHN FRANCIS WHEALON, ARCHBISHOP OF HARTFORD, APRIL 15, 1971 SIGNED AND SEALED BY BISHOP JOSEPH B. BRUNINI, DIOCESE OF JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI
3) Occasionally when I share a Scripture with you from the Sacred Heart League (SHL) Catholic New Testament and notice that it lacks depth and clarity, I will then follow it with the same verse but in the King James Version in order to give you a better understanding of what is being said, and so that you can see what is missing from the SHL translation.
4) Very briefly in this series, when it is necessary to quote from the Old Testament, I will also be quoting from THE CATHOLIC DOUAY RHEIMS VERSION OF THE BIBLE – in which you will find the following statements:
“EXCERPT FROM ENCYCLICAL LETTER OF OUR HOLY FATHER BY DIVINE PROVIDENCE POPE LEO XIII ON THE STUDY OF HOLY SCRIPTURE:
“The God of all Providence, Who in the adorable designs of His love at first elevated the human race to the participation of the Divine nature, and afterwards delivered it from the universal guilt and ruin, restoring it to its primitive dignity, has in consequence bestowed upon man a splendid gift and safeguard–making known to him, by supernatural means, the hidden Mysteries of His divinity, His wisdom, and His mercy. For although in Divine revelations there are contained some things which are not beyond the reach of unassisted reason, and which are made the objects of such revelation in order “that all may come to know them with facility, certainty, and safety from error, yet not on this account can supernatural Revelation be said to be absolutely necessary; it is only necessary because God has ordained man to a supernatural end.” This supernatural revelation according to the belief of the universal Church, is contained both in unwritten Tradition, and in written Books, which are therefore called sacred and canonical because, “being written under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, they have God for their author, and as such have been delivered to the Church.” (Page ix)
“Wherefore it must be recognised that the sacred writings are wrapt in a certain religious obscurity, and that no one can enter into their interior without a guide; God so disposing, as the Holy Fathers commonly teach, in order that men may investigate them with greater ardour and earnestness, and that what is attained with difficulty may sink more deeply into the mind and heart; and, most of all that they may understand that God has delivered the Holy Scriptures to the Church, and that in reading and making use of His Word, they must follow the Church as their guide and their teacher. St. Irenaeus long since laid down, that where the charismata of God were, there the truth was to be learnt, and that Holy Scripture was safely interpreted by those who had the Apostolic succession. His teaching, and that of other Holy Fathers, is taken up by the Council of the Vatican, which, in the renewing of the decree of Trent, declares its “mind” to be this–that “in things of faith and morals, belonging to the building up of Christian doctrine, that is to be considered the true sense of Holy Scripture which has been held and is held by our Holy Mother the Church whose place it is to judge of the true sense and interpretation of the Scriptures; and therefore that it is permitted to no one to interpret Holy Scripture against such sense or also against the unanimous agreement of the Fathers.” (Page xvii)
“Wherefore the first and dearest object of the Catholic commentator should be to interpret those passages which have received an authentic interpretation either by the sacred writers themselves, under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost (as in many places of the New Testament), or from the Church, under the assistance of the same Holy Spirit, whether by her solemn judgment or her ordinary and universal magisterium –to interpret those passages in that identical sense, and to prove, by all the resources of science that sound hermeneutical laws admit of no other interpretation. In the other passages, the analogy of faith should be followed, and Catholic doctrine, as authoritatively proposed by the Church, should be held as the supreme law; for seeing that the same God is the author both of the Sacred Books and of the doctrine committed to the Church, it is clearly impossible that any teaching can by legitimate means be extracted from the former, which shall in any respect be at variance with the latter. Hence it follows that all interpretation is foolish and false which either makes the sacred writers disagree one with another, or is opposed to the doctrine of the Church.” (Page xviii)
“For although the studies of non-Catholics, used with prudence, may sometimes be of use to the Catholic student, he should nevertheless, bear well in mind–as the Fathers also teach in numerous passages –that the sense of Holy Scripture can nowhere be found incorrupt outside of the Church, and cannot be expected to be found in writers who, being without the true faith, only gnaw the bark of the Sacred Scripture and never attain its pith.” (Page xix)
[As I have mentioned in some previous posts in this series, in order to get this entire series finished in a timely manner, from now on I will be trying to keep my comments very brief and will mainly be making them in the introduction and closing sections of these posts. I will, however, continue to keep the focus on Scripture which is where it should be. I am also trying very hard (but not succeeding) to limit these posts to no more than 5000 words which makes it rather difficult sometimes. For those of you who have busy schedules and do not have the time to read lengthy posts, I will continue to highlight just some of the many troubling things in turquoise, the extremely troubling things I will highlight in red, and some things that are Biblical I will highlight in blue in order to quickly bring these things to your attention. Emphasis on certain words that I have put in bold print throughout this post is mine.]
INTRODUCTION TO PART 19
In PART 19 of this series we will be covering pages 526-574 of the Catechism Of The Catholic Church. Some of the topics that are covered in this section are as follows:
Law, grace, justification, faith, the ten commandments, idolatry, divination, magic, atheism, agnosticism, and graven images. I have mentioned this before, and I will say it again: Although Catholicism does present many Biblically solid teachings, (such as the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, the deity of Jesus Christ, the Trinity, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ), their man-made teachings/Catholic Tradition (such as purgatory, wearing a scapular or medals, the worship of and praying to Mary, the mother of Jesus, the blasphemy of the Sacrifice of the Mass in which Jesus Christ is called a victim and is crucified over and over), have no basis for truth because these certain teachings cannot be found in and validated by Scripture and distort and water down the truth that is so clearly presented in Scripture, thus not allowing precious Catholics to truly grasp all that Jesus Christ accomplished for us and how He alone is worthy of all our praise! God’s Word, the Bible, alone has the truth that we need regarding doctrine, reproof, correction, and for training in righteousness. (2 Timothy 3:16) I pray that the Lord will show you these truths as we continue to go through this series together. Some of these concerns, regarding how Catholicism adds to Scripture, I have highlighted for you below (in amethystto signify adding to Scripture), and I have done the same in previous posts in this series, as well. I also want to remind you, once again, that every time you see the word “church” capitalized in their teachings, they are referring to the Catholic Church, and not the Church, the Body of Christ/Christians/followers of Jesus Christ.
Let’s begin:
ARTICLE 1
THE MORAL LAW
Para 1953
The moral law finds its fullness and its unity in Christ. Jesus Christ is in person the way of perfection. He is the end of the law, for only he teaches and bestows the justice of God: “For Christ is the end of the law, that every one who has faith may be justified.”(4 – Romans 10:4)
II. THE OLD LAW
Para 1961
God, our Creator and Redeemer, chose Israel for himself to be his people and revealed his Law to them, thus preparing for the coming of Christ. The Law of Moses expresses many truths naturally accessible to reason. These are stated and authenticated within the covenant of salvation.
ARTICLE 2
GRACE AND JUSTIFICATION
I. JUSTIFICATION
Para 1987
The grace of the Holy Spirit has the power to justify us, that is, to cleanse us from our sins and to communicate to us “the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ”and through Baptism. (34 – Romans 3:22; cf. 6:3-4).
Para 1988
God gave himself to us through his Spirit. By the participation of the Spirit, we become communicants in the divine nature…For this reason, those in whom the Spirit dwells are divinized.”(37 – St. Athanasius, Ep. Serap. 1, 24: PG 26, 585 and 588).
Para 1992
Justification has been merited for us by the Passion of Christ who offered himself on the cross as a living victim,holy and pleasing to God, and whose blood has become the instrument of atonement for the sins of all men. Justification is conferred in Baptism, the sacrament of faith. It conforms us to the righteousness of God, who makes us inwardly just by the power of his mercy. Its purpose is the glory of God and of Christ and the gift of eternal life: (40 – Cf. Council of Trent (1547: DS 1529).
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, they are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as an expiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins; it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies him who has faith in Jesus.(41 – Romans 3:21-26).
MY NOTE: The CCC uses Romans 3:21-26 to rightly declare:”Justification has been merited for us by the Passion of Christ…” However, for them to teach that “justification is conferred in Baptism” which occurs at infancy in Catholicism, is not Biblical due to the fact that an infant is incapable of understanding all that Jesus Christ accomplished for us on the cross and thus unable to express their faith in order to be justified in the sight of a thrice Holy God.
*ADDITIONAL NOTE: Once again, I bring to your attention how the Catholic church refers to Jesus Christ as a victim when the Word of God makes it very clear that Jesus Christ willingly laid down His life for us:
“The Father loves me because I am willing to give up my life, in order that I may receive it back again. No one takes my life away from me. I give it up of my own free will.” (John 10:17,18a)
“For the blood of bulls and goats can never take sins away. For this reason, when Christ was about to come into the world, he said to God: “You do not want sacrifices and offerings, but you have prepared a body for me. You are not pleased with animals burned whole on the altar, or with sacrifices to take away sins. Then I said, ‘Here I am, God, to do what you want me to, just as it is written of me in the book of the Law.’ “ (Hebrews 10:5-7 – Sacred Heart League Catholic New Testament/SHLCNT)
Let’s continue:
II. GRACE
Para 1996
Our justification comes from the grace of God. Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God, adoptive sons, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life. (46 – Cf. Jn 1:12-18; 17:3; Rom 8:14-17; 2 Pet 1:3-4).
Para 1997
Grace is a participation in the life of God. It introduces us into the intimacy of Trinitarian life: By Baptism the Christian participates in the grace of Christ, the Head of his Body. As an “adopted son” he can henceforth call God “Father,” in union with the only Son.
Para 1999
The grace of Christ is the gratuitous gift that God makes to us of his own life, infused by the Holy Spirit into our soul to heal it of sin and to sanctify it. It is the sanctifying or deifying grace received in Baptism. It is in us the source of the work of sanctification.(48 – Cf. Jn 4:14; 7:38-39).
Para 2003
Grace is first and foremost the gift of the Spirit who justifies and sanctifies us. But grace also includes the gift that the Spirit grants us to associate us with his work, to enable us to collaborate in the salvation of others and in the growth of the Body of Christ, the Church. There are sacramental graces, gifts proper to the different sacraments.
Para 2010
Since the initiative belongs to God in the order of grace, no one can merit the initial grace of forgiveness and justification, at the beginning of conversion. Moved by the Holy Spirit and by charity, we can then merit for ourselves and for others the graces needed for our sanctification, for the increase of grace and charity, and for the attainment of eternal life.
Para 2014
Spiritual progress tends toward even more intimate union with Christ. This union is called “mystical” because it participates in the mystery of Christ through the sacraments–“the holy mysteries”–and, in him, in the mystery of the Holy Trinity. God calls us all to this intimate union with him even if the special graces or extraordinary signs of this mystical life are granted only to some for the sake of manifesting the gratuitous gift given to all.
Para 2016
The children of our holy mother the Church rightly hope for the grace of final perseverance and the recompense of God their Father for the good works accomplished with his grace in communion with Jesus.(70 – Cf. Council of Trent (1547): DS 1576). Keeping the same rule of life, believers share the “blessed hope” of those whom the divine mercy gathers into the “holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”(71 – Rev 21:2).
Para 2027
No one can merit the initial grace which is at the origin of conversion. Moved by the Holy Spirit, we can merit for ourselves and for others all the graces needed to attain eternal life, as well as necessary temporal goods.
ARTICLE 3
THE CHURCH, MOTHER AND TEACHER
Para 2030
It is in the Church, in communion with all the baptized, that the Christian fulfills his vocation. From the Church he receives the Word of God containing the teachings of “the law of Christ.”(72 – Gal 6:2) From the Church he receives the grace of the sacraments that sustains him on the “way.” From the Church he learns the example of holiness and recognizes its model and source in the all-holy Virgin Mary; he discerns it in the authentic witness of those who live it; he discovers it in the spiritual tradition and long history of the saints who have gone before him and whom the liturgy celebrates in the rhythm of the sanctoral cycle.
Para 2031
The moral life in spiritual worship. We “present [our] bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God”(73 -) within the Body of Christ that we form and in communion with the offering of his Eucharist. In the liturgy and the celebration of the sacraments, prayer and teaching are conjoined with the grace of Christ to enlighten and nourish Christian activity. As does the whole of the Christian life, the moral life finds its source and summit in the Eucharistic sacrifice.
I. MORAL LIFE AND THE MAGISTERIUM OF THE CHURCH
Para 2032
The Church, the “pillar and bulwark of the truth,” has received this solid command of Christ from the apostles to announce the saving truth.”(74 – 1 Tim 3:15; LG 17). “To the Church belongs the right always and everywhere to announce moral principles, including those pertaining to the social order, and to make judgments on any human affairs to the extent that they are required by the fundamental rights of the human person or the salvation of souls.”(75 – CIC, can. 747 § 2).
Para 2034
The Roman Pontiff and the bishops are “authentic teachers, that is, teachers endowed with the authority of Christ, who preach the faith to the people entrusted to them, the faith to be believed and put into practice.”(76 – LG 25). The ordinary and universal Magisterium of the Pope and the bishops in communion with him teach the faithful the truth to believe, the charity to practice, the beatitude to hope for.
Para 2035
The supreme degree of participation in the authority of Christ is ensured by the charism of infallibility. This infallibility extends as far as does the deposit of divine Revelation; it also extends to all those elements of doctrine, including morals, without which the saving truths of the faith cannot be preserved, explained, or observed.”(77 – Cf. LG 25; CDF, declaration, Mysterium Ecclesiae 3).
Para 2039
As far as possible conscience should take account of the good of all, as expressed in the moral law, natural and revealed, and consequently in the law of the Church and in the authoritative teaching of the Magisterium on moral questions. Personal conscience and reason should not be set in opposition to the moral law or the Magisterium of the Church.
II. THE PRECEPTS OF THE CHURCH
Para 2042
The first precept (“You shall attend Mass on Sundays and on holy days of obligation and rest from servile labor”) requires the faithful to sanctify the day commemorating the Resurrection of the Lord as well as the principal liturgical feasts honoring the mysteries of the Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the saints; in the first place by participating in the Eucharistic celebration, in which the Christian community is gathered, and by resting from those works and activities which could impede such a sanctification of these days.(82 – Cf. CIC, cann. 1246-1248 CCEO, cann. 880 § 3, 881 §§ 1,2,4).
The second precept (“You shall confess your sins at least once a year.”) ensures preparation for the Eucharist by the reception of the sacrament of reconciliation, which continues Baptism’s work of conversion and forgiveness.(83 – Cf. CIC can. 989; CCEO, can. 719).
The third precept (“You shall receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season.”) guarantees as a minimum the reception of the Lord’s Body and Blood in connection with the Paschal feasts, the origin and center of the Christian liturgy.(84 – Cf. CIC, can. 920; CCEO, can. 708; 881 § 3).
The fourth precept (“You shall observe the days of fasting and abstinence established by the Church”) ensures the times of ascesis and penance which prepares us for the liturgical feasts and helps us acquire mastery over our instincts and freedom of heart.* *(Cf. CIC, can. 1249-1251:CCEO, can. 882).
The fifth precept (“You shall help to provide for the needs of the Church”) means that the faithful are obliged to assist with the material needs of the Church, each according to his own ability.** **(Cf. CIC, can. 222; CCEO can. 25; Furthermore, episcopal conferences can establish other ecclesiastical precepts for their own territories (Cf. CIC, can. 455).
Para 2051
The infallibility of the Magisterium of the Pastorsextends to all the elements of doctrine, including moral doctrine, without which the saving truths of the faith cannot be preserved, expounded, or observed.
THE BIBLICAL TEN COMMANDMENTS COMPARED TO THE COMMANDMENTS ACCORDING TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
Below is a chart in which the Biblical Ten Commandments are compared to the listing of the Ten Commandments according to the Catholic church which was established by St. Augustine (Para 2066 – See below). As you can clearly see, the Catholic church removed the second commandment regarding idols, and then split the tenth commandment making two commandments out of the one.
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
The Decalogue In The Church’s Tradition
Para 2066
The division and numbering of the Commandments have varied in the course of history. The present catechism follows the division of the Commandments established by St. Augustine, which has become traditional in the Catholic Church.
Para 2068
The Council of Trent teaches that the Ten Commandments are obligatory for Christians and that the justified man is still bound to keep them; (28 – Cf. DS 1569-1570) the Second Vatican Council confirms:
“The bishops, successors of the apostles, receive from the Lord…the mission of teaching all peoples and of preaching the Gospel to every creature, so that all men may attain salvation through faith, Baptism, and the observance of the Commandments.”(29 – LG 24).
Let’s stop for a moment to see what the Word of God has to say regarding the commandments/law and how mankind is truly justified/made right with God:
“What shall we say, then, of Abraham, our racial ancestor? What was his experience? If he was put right with God by the things he did, he would have something to boast about. But he cannot boast before God. The scripture says, “Abraham believed God, and because of his faith God accepted him as righteous.” A man who works is paid; his wages are not regarded as a gift, but as something that he has earned. But the man who has faith, not works, who believes in the God who declares the guilty to be innocent, it is his faith that God takes into account in order to put him right with himself. This is what David meant when he spoke of the happiness of the man whom God accepts as righteous apart from any works:
“Happy are those whose wrongs God has forgiven, whose sins he has covered over! Happy is the man whose sins the Lord will not keep account of!” (Romans 4:1-8)
“He was given over to die because of our sins, and was raised to life to put us right with God.” (Romans 4:25 – SHLCNT)
“Who was delivered up for our sins, and rose again for our justification.” (Romans 4:25 – Douay-Rheims Catholic Version)
“Now that we have been put right with God through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1 – SHLCNT)
“BEING justified therefore by faith, let us have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1 – Douay-Rheims Catholic Version)
“Indeed, we are Jews by birth, and not Gentile sinners. Yet we know that a man is put right with God only through faith in Jesus Christ, never by doing what the Law requires.We, too, have believed in Christ Jesus in order to be put right with God through our faith in Christ, and not by doing what the Law requires. For no man is put right with God by doing what the Law requires.” “So far as the Law is concerned, however, I am dead–killed by the Law itself–in order that I might live for God. I have been put to death with Christ on his cross, so that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. This life that I live now, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave his life for me. I do not reject the grace of God. If a man is put right with God through the Law, it means that Christ died for nothing!” (Galatians 2:15,16,19-21)
“Does this mean that the Law is against God’s promises? No, not at all! For if a law has been given that could bring life to men, then man could be put right with God through law. But the scripture has said that the whole world is under the power of sin, so that the gift which is promised on the basis of faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.” (Galatians 3:11 – SHLCNT)
“Those of you who try to be put right with God by obeying the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ. You are outside God’s grace.” (Galatians 5:4 – SHLCNT) [Note: Emphasis on above Scriptures are all mine.]
While it is true that in Romans 2:13 God’s Word does say that it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous in God’s sight, and in James 1:22 it also says that we are to “be doers of the word and not hearers only,”we must also keep in mind that the Word of God also says that the law was given to us to show us what sin is and that no man is put right with God by obeying the law:
“Now we know that everything in the Law applies to those who live under the Law, in order to stop all human excuses, and bring the whole world under God’s judgment. Because no man is put right in God’s sight by doing what the Law requires; what the Law does is to make man know that he has sinned.” (Romans 3:19,20 – SHLCNT)
If one truly has their faith and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ’s once for all sacrifice, our faith in Him and our love for Him (for all that He accomplished for us through His sinless life, His death in our place for our sins, His burial, and His glorious resurrection from the dead in bodily form), will fill us with a desire to uphold the law:
“But now God’s way of putting men right with himself has been revealed, and it has nothing to do with law. The Law and the prophets gave their witness to it: God puts men right through their faith in Jesus Christ.God does this to all who believe in Christ, because there is no difference at all: all men have sinned and are far away from God’s saving presence. But by the free gift of God’s grace they are all put right with him through Christ Jesus, who sets them free.God offered him so that by his death he should become the means by which men’s sins are forgiven, through their faith in him. God did this in order to demonstrate his righteousness. In the past, he was patient and overlooked men’s sins; but now in the present time he deals with men’s sins, to demonstrate his righteousness. In this way God shows that he himself is righteous and that he puts right everyone who believes in Jesus. What, then, can we boast about? Nothing! And what is the reason for this? Is it that we obey the Law? No, but that we believe. For we conclude that a man is put right with God only through faith, and not by doing what the Law commands. Or is God only the God of the Jews? Is he not the God of the Gentiles also? Of course he is. God is one, and he will put the Jews right with himself on the basis of their faith. Does this mean that we do away with the Law by this faith? No; not at all; instead we uphold the Law.” (Romans 3:21-31)
Jesus said in John 14:15:
“If you love me, you will obey my commandments.”
[Note: Emphasis in above Scriptures are mine.]
Let’s continue:
Para 2088
The first commandment requires us to nourish and protect our faith with prudence and vigilance, and to reject everything that is opposed to it. There are various ways of sinning against faith:
Voluntary doubt about the faith disregards or refuses to hold as true what God has revealed and the Church proposes for belief.
Para 2089
Incredulity is the neglect of revealed truth or the willful refusal to assent to it. “Heresy is the obstinate post-baptismal denial of some truth which must be believed with divine and catholic faith, or it is likewise an obstinate doubt concerning the same; apostasy is the total repudiation of the Christian faith; schism is the refusal of submission to the Roman Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him.(11 – CIC, can. 751: emphasis added).
Para 2100
The only perfect sacrifice is the one that Christ offered on the cross as a total offering to the Father’s love and for our salvation.(20 Cf. Heb. 9:13-14) By uniting ourselves with his sacrifice we can make our lives a sacrifice to God.
Para 2105
The duty of offering God genuine worship concerns man both individually and socially. This is “the traditional Catholic teaching on the moral duty of individuals and societies toward the true religion and the one Church of Christ.”(30 – DH 1 § 3).
III. “YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME.”
Superstition
Para 2111
Superstition is the deviation of religious feeling and of the practices this feeling imposes. It can even affect the worship we offer the true God, e.g., when one attributes an importance in some way magical to certain practices otherwise lawful or necessary. To attribute the efficacy of prayers or of sacramental signs to their mere external performance, apart from the interior dispositions that they demand, is to fall into superstition. (41 – Cf. Mt 23:16-22)
Idolatry
Para 2113
Idolatry not only refers to false pagan worship. It remains a constant temptation to faith. Idolatry consists in divinizing what is not God. Man commits idolatry whenever he honors and reveres a creature in place of God, whether this be gods or demons (for example satanism), power, pleasure, race, ancestors, the state, money, etc. Jesus says, “You cannot serve God and mammon.” (44 – Mt. 6:24) Many martyrs died for not adoring “the Beast” refusing even to simulate such worship. Idolatry rejects the unique Lordship of God; it is therefore incompatible with communion with God.(46 – Cf. Gal. 5:20; Eph. 5:5)
[MY NOTE: Please note the turquoise highlighted portion above of Para 2113 which is written in past tense form. This is because Catholicism teaches that much of the Book of Revelation has already taken place. They teach that the Book of Revelation is filled with prophecies about the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 a.d.; not future events yet to take place. More regarding the Catholic perspective on the Book of Revelation in a future post, Lord willing.]
Divination and magic
Para 2116
All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead or other practices falsely supposed to “unveil” the future.(48) Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums, all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone. (48 – Cf. Deut 18:10; Jer 29:8)
Para 2117
All practices of magic or sorcery, by which one attempts to tame occult powers, so as to place them at one’s service and have a supernatural power over others–even if this were for the sake of restoring their health–are gravely contrary to the virtue of religion. These practices are even more to be condemned when accompanied by the intention of harming someone, or when they have recourse to the intervention of demons. Wearing charms is also reprehensible. Spiritism often implies divination or magical practices; the Church for her part warns the faithful against it. Recourse to so-called traditional cures does not justify either the invocation of evil powers or the exploitation of another’s credulity.
MY NOTE: Indeed, wearing charms is a practice that should not be done by Christians. How is it any different, though, when Catholics are encouraged to wear medals of saints, such as a medal of St. Christopher to give them a safe journey or for a woman to wear a St. Gerard Majella medal so that she will have a safe child birth process? No difference whatsoever since we are to place our trust in Jesus Christ and pray to the Father for our concerns after we come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ, our only Mediator between God and man.
Irreligion
Para 2118
God’s first commandment condemns the main sins of irreligion: tempting God, in words or deeds, sacrilege, and simony.
Para 2119
Tempting God consists in putting his goodness and almighty power to the test by word or deed. Thus Satan tried to induce Jesus to throw himself down from the Temple and, by this gesture, force God to act(49) Jesus opposed Satan with the word of God: “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.”(50) (49 – Cf. Luke 4:9; 50 – Deut. 6:16 )
Para 2120
Sacrilege consists in profaning or treating unworthily the sacraments and other liturgical actions, as well as persons, things, or places consecrated to God. Sacrilege is a grave sin especially when committed against the Eucharist, for in this sacrament the true Body of Christ is made substantially present for us.”(52 – Cf. CIC, cann. 1367; 1376).
IV. “YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FOR YOURSELF A GRAVEN IMAGE…”
Para 2131
“Basing itself on the mystery of the incarnate Word, the seventh ecumenical council at Nicaea (787) justified against the iconoclasts the veneration of icons–of Christ, but also of the Mother of God, the angels, and all the saints. By becoming incarnate, the Son of God introduced a new “economy” of images.”
Para 2132
The Christian veneration of images is not contrary to the first commandment which proscribes idols. Indeed, “the honor rendered to an image passes to its prototype,” and “whoever venerates an image venerates the person portrayed in it.” The honor paid to sacred images is a “respectful veneration,” not the adoration due to God alone: Religious worship is not directed to images in themselves, considered as mere things, but under their distinctive aspect as images leading us on to God incarnate. The movement toward the image does not terminate in it as image, but tends towards that whose image it is.” (71 – St. Thomas Aquinas STh II-II, 81 3 ad 3).
Para 2141
The veneration of sacred images is based on the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word of God. It is not contrary to the first commandment.
CLOSING COMMENTS
Regardless of how the Catholic church may try to justify her reasons for worshiping sacred images, statues of Jesus, the virgin Mary, saints of the Catholic church, praying the rosary, praying to Mary, the saints, etc., God’s Word clearly shows us that these practices are forbidden! Any attempt to try and redeem these pagan practices and forms of worship and saying that they are acceptable for Catholics or Christians to practice, is to be rejected! We are to come to God through Jesus Christ alone!
The Word of God says:
“Jesus answered him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one goes to the Father except by me.” (John 14:6 – SHLCNT)
“Salvation is to be found through him alone; for there is no one else in all the world, whose name God has given to men, by whom we can be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
“For there is one God and there is one who brings God and men together, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself to redeem all men.” (1 Timothy 2:5 – SHLCNT)
“I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who will judge all men, living and dead, : because of his coming and of his Kingdom, I command you to preach the message, to insist upon telling it, whether the time is right or not; to convince, reproach, and encourage, teaching with all patience. The time will come when men will not listen to the true teaching, but will follow their own desires, and will collect for themselves more and more teachers who will tell them what they are itching to hear. They will turn away from listening to the truth and give their attention to legends.” (2 Timothy 4:3,4 – SHLCNT)
How is it that the Catholic church can warn about superstition and yet teach their people that wearing a Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel around their neck until the day that they die will give them assurance that the virgin Mary will come and deliver them from the purifying fires of purgatory on the first Saturday following their death?
This grieves me when I think of the many precious Catholics who wrongly choose to believe these kinds of teachings that have no Biblical support whatsoever and completely detract from the sufficiency of Jesus Christ’s once for all sacrifice when He willingly died in your place and in mine on the cross for our sins and our guilt, taking upon Himself the full wrath of God that we deserve for our sins! Jesus gloriously arose from the dead three days later in bodily form showing that God’s just demands for sin was satisfied; Jesus won the victory over sin and the grave! Any other teaching that detracts from what Jesus Christ already accomplished for us should be completely rejected!
We are not declared righteous by obeying the commandments, by doing good works, by attending a certain church, or by participating in the Sacrifice of the Mass or taking part in any other religious liturgical practice. It is only by putting our faith and full trust in all that Jesus Christ has already accomplished for us because this is the only means by which God has provided for us to be forgiven and to be accepted by Him and the only way one can become His child. We then choose to obey Him out of our deep love and appreciation to Him for all that He did for us. So much more could be said, and so many more Scriptures could be shared with you, but I need to try and bring this very lengthy post to an end now.
It is not my desire to offend any Catholic who may be reading this post –or any post in any of my series regarding Catholicism. My desire truly is to reach precious Catholics — and all who may be deceived in some way — by sharing the truth that can be found in the Word of God because God’s Word is living and active and has the power to open spiritually blinded eyes so that they can see the glorious good news of the Biblical gospel that will expose any error that holds someone in bondage.
So, dear Catholic, once again I must ask you this extremely important question, and your answer will most certainly determine where you will spend eternity:
“Are you going to believe the Word of God or the word of man?”
The choice is yours to make, and I pray that you will choose to believe the Word of God and that you will choose to seek Him in His Word for the truth regarding all the things that you have been taught throughout the many years that you have been a Catholic.
For me as a Catholic back in 1980 it was difficult decision to make at first because I was bound by fear due to some of the teachings of the Catholic church, especially regarding purgatory and the thought of leaving what I thought at the time was the “one True Church,” as every Catholic is taught. But then Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses are also taught that they are the one true church. That is why, dear reader, we must look to God and read His Word alone for the truth because the teachings and traditions of men only lead us away from Jesus Christ and we end up receiving another gospel and another Jesus, (Galatians 1:6-9, 2 Corinthians 11:4), both having no power to save.
I will end with these two Scriptures:
“So they asked him, “What can we do in order to do God’s Works?” Jesus answered, “This is the work God wants you to do: believe in the one he sent.” (John 6:28,29 – SHLCNT)
“See to it, then, that no one makes a captive of you with the worthless deceit of human wisdom, which comes from the teachings handed down by men, and from the ruling spirits of the universe, and not from Christ.”(Colossians 2:8 – SHLCNT)
Thank you very much for stopping by today.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke – Living4HisGlory
UPDATE:
As I have previously mentioned, there are only four more posts yet to write in this series (181 more pages of 756 total pages to go through). Lord willing, I am hoping to finish writing this series by the end of this year –2020 — after which, Lord willing, I hope to then finish writing the series in which we have been comparing some of the messages given in the many alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary to the truth of God’s Word in order to show the extreme importance of testing everything against the truth of God’s Word to see if what is being said is true or not in order to avoid being deceived.
Are you aware of the dangers of Contemplative Spirituality? Would you know error as soon as you heard or saw something? Do you take the time to do some research on authors of books that are mentioned or suggested for you to read by those in leadership at your church before reading them? I pray that this post will help you learn to discern and show you just how very important it is to not only read and study God’s Word and to pray for discernment, but also how very important it is to always be alert for spiritual deception! I also pray that you will see just how subtle spiritual deception begins and how it can dangerously progress and lead you away from Biblical truth!
Before we begin, here’s some background information:
I used to be on Twitter quite frequently a few years ago. However, going on Twitter, as well as on Facebook, can turn the intended amount of time of being on there for just fifteen or twenty minutes, to at least an hour or two if you get drawn into commenting on a tweet or a post that you see the need to express your appreciation for or concerns about. It made me realize just how time consuming social media can be! All that to say this: I decided to go back on Twitter recently because I saw a huge spike in my blog stats on May 3rd, and the views were all coming from Twitter. Everyone was reading one of my most popular posts regarding why I left my church, HarvestBible Chapel Rolling Meadows, back in 2012 after attending there for 14 1/2 years: https://living4hisglory.wordpress.com/2012/07/08/warning-you-with-tears/ Jessica Hockett, also a former member of Harvest Bible Chapel, had discovered my post and after realizing that she had been — and continues to be — an important person in the ongoing investigation regarding the misappropriation of funds by former Pastor, James MacDonald, and the wrongdoings and coverups that have been taking place at Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows, I began to read up on the very latest of what had been happening.
Now, to get to the important point of this post:
After a few weeks of being on Twitter and connecting with many people who also have serious concerns about those who once were in leadership there, and concerns regarding some who are still in leadership, as well as love and concern for the people who are still attending there, I saw that some people had posted a recording of a recent HARVEST BIBLE CHAPEL ROLLING MEADOWS FAMILY MEETING – (MAY 29, 2019) and decided to listen to see what people were being told by those in leadership and to also see if any emotional manipulation was taking place. There definitely was some emotional manipulation taking place by what was being said to those in attendance, but this post is going to focus on something else that is equally or even more serious. I will continue now by telling you what I heard in that audio that urged me to write this post in order to send out a serious warning not only to those who are still attending Harvest Bible Chapel, but also to everyone because these types of unbiblical teachings are coming full force into many churches these days through so-called Spiritual Formation classes and similar classes!
NOTE: To those of you who may now be reading this post and are still choosing to continue attending Harvest Bible Chapel, (the Rolling Meadows location especially), I want to clearly state beforehand that my intention in writing this post is not to bring you any more pain as you are all trying to heal, but rather to help you — and every one else — realize the importance of thinking for yourselves, to help you realize the necessity of examining the Scriptures daily to see if what is being said is true (Acts 17:11), to alert you to what some — or all — of your leaders are involved in, and to give you information about some troubling things that they have already presented to some of you, and information about what they may very well present to you in the near future.
Although this information mainly has to do with HBC, this information is as relevant to every other Christian because what I am about to share with all of you is coming into many churches through numerous pastors, teachers, and authors of books that are being promoted at many churches these days.
Now back to the main thing that I heard as I listened to the audio of the family meeting at HBCRM and what I discovered after doing a lot of research:
As I continued listening, I heard Greg Bradshaw encourage everyone to “read” this summer and to “get a good book.” He mention a book entitled, Emotionally Healthy Church beginning at the 24:18 minute mark by saying:
“We’re reading as a church — we provided for our staff — ‘Emotionally Healthy Church.’ We’re reading ‘Emotionally Healthy Church’ book this summer as a staff…”
I had never heard of that book before, so I decided to do some research on it, as well as taking some time to do some research on the author, Peter Scazzero. Here are some of the alarming things that I discovered:
Here is what you will see on the Our Vision page on the website of the church that Pete pastors — New Life Fellowship Church — that is located in Queens, New York. Red flag words: Spiritual formation practices, Monastic values, contemplative and monastic traditions, Desert Fathers and Mothers, and monks.
The following 1 hour and 16 minute video is the first of many videos that I watched and listened to in order to find out as much as possible about Pete Scazzero and what he teaches. Below the video you will see a list of notes that I took as I listened. I did that for you for the first 30 minutes of the video.
Pete says people are not experiencing deep transformation.
Mentions self awareness, managing one’s triggers under stress
Pete claims to have had 4 conversions
Notices and says, “People are not changing deeply in our church.”
1994 Pete starts an inward journey for 2 years
Started Christian counseling
His wife confronted him on how he’s not a strong leader – left his church, attended another one
Pete shows diagram created by now deceased professor of Fuller Theological Seminary , Robert Guelich, and claims Emotional Health and Spiritual Maturity are inseparable
Emotional component
He claims he and his wife were “born-again” again
1996-2003 Claims “a little revolution took place in our church just by bringing in the emotional component”
He still felt “something more was needed.” He “began to read quite a bit about Monasticism.”
2003, 2004 – For a 4 month period he and his wife “visited a variety of monasteries and lived rhythms of silence and solitude.”
A revolution. Third conversion.
Pete says about Christians in general, “We’re so busy we have to live off other people’s spirituality.”
Got people connected personally with God directly
Made drastic move to slow down their lives
“…people’s lives began to be radically transformed…finally wrote it down into a couple of books.”
The description that can be found under the following video on YouTube, says:
“Pete Scazzero interviews Rosy Kandathil about her experiences at the Monastery. Rosy is a former staff and pastor at New Life Fellowship and began a journey to become a Benedictine Sister.”
Being a former Catholic, I find it very troubling that he presented this woman, Rosy Kandathil, who was once a “pastor” at his church and who is now in the process of becoming a Benedictine nun to speak to the people at his church, but it further shows that he is clearly promoting Catholicism and Contemplative New Age spirituality.
Just in case the following video entitled, ‘Pete Scazzero Interviewing a Trappist Monk on Prayer‘ disappears for some reason, I did a quick capture of it for you to document the fact that Pete Scazzero is promoting eastern mysticism and Catholicism by featuring William Meninger, a Catholic trappist monk, at his church. Once again I must ask a question: Why would a professing Christian pastor choose to have a monk speak at his church if he wasn’t?
Here is the video:
Below are some quick captures from the above video that will show you how Pete Scazzero has embraced the teachings of Catholicism regarding communion, that being that Jesus Christ is truly present in the elements of bread and wine and that Jesus comes into us when we take communion:
Here is a reminder for you of what it says in the Catechism of the Catholic Church regarding their communion which they call, the Eucharist:
“In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist “the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore the whole Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained.” (Para 1374 CCC)
Here is one of the anathemas (curses) regarding the Eucharist that you will find in the Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent:
Canon 3 “If anyone saith that the Sacrifice of the Mass is only a sacrifice of praise and of thanksgiving; or that it is a bare commemoration of the sacrifices consummated on the cross, but not a propitiatory sacrifice; or that it profits him only who receives; and that it ought not to be offered for the living and the dead for sins, pains, satisfactions, and other necessities; let him be anathema.”
[NOTE: Lord willing, I will be going in depth on the teaching of the Eucharist and the Sacrifice of the Mass in light of Scripture when we get to that part in the CCC book.]
One look at William Meninger in the following picture that was chosen as the main image for this video should leave no doubt in one’s mind that what he presents is not Biblical Christianity, but rather a form of mystical, New Age spirituality that is rooted in Buddhism, which is the same type of spirituality that Pete Scazzero is presenting at the church he pastors, New Life Fellowship Church in New York.
For those of you who have never heard of The Cloud of Unknowing, here are some resources for you to help you learn to discern so that you will not be deceived by this:
The reason I am concerned that these mystical, New Age practices might very well be encouraged to be practiced by those attending HBCRM is not only because this book by Pete Scazzero was mentioned by Greg Bradshaw at the Family Meeting as a book that is being read by the staff, but also because of what Greg Bradshaw said beginning at 16:03-16:46 minute mark which was:
“How do you rebuild hope? I told our staff and I’m telling you, ‘The way you rebuild hope is intimacy with God.’ There’s no shortcut… but if your struggling a little bit with hope, ‘What is this going to look like at our church,’ the way to build hope is intimacy with God. And how do you build intimacy with God? There’s no shortcut, it’s disciplines. It’s finding time to get alone with God. It’s called solitude.”
In order to show you that I am not merely speculating, here is some documented evidence that I came across in my research that will prove to you that as far back as 2012 Pete Scazzero and his Emotionally Healthy Spirituality (EHS) teachings have been promoted in some ways at HBC:
I am also very concerned for all of you at HBCRM because of Greg Bradshaw’s emphasis on having “intimacy with God” and “getting healthy” as a church in light of his focus on Pete Scazzero’s book, ‘Emotionally Healthy Church’ which clearly presents New Age/New Spirituality/Catholic mystical practices as ways to haveintimacywith God. After listening to the audio of HBC’s Family Meeting, I just strongly felt led to write this post as a warning of what might be presented to you this fall as the leadership at HBC seems to be raising a level of excitement about what they desire to see take place starting this fall season.
UPDATE 7/3/19 10:22 A.M.NOTE ADDED FOR CLARIFICATION:
I need to make it very clear that I am not saying that the leaders at Harvest Bible Chapel are intentionally and knowingly promoting these unbiblical, occultic teachings…they may be deceived into believing these are acceptable practices to do to bring one closer to God like so many other Christians have been (wrongly) led to believe. Harvest Bible Chapel leadership has been promoting Beth Moore and Priscilla Shirer for many years now, and these women (wrongly) teach how to hear God speak to you. (Please consider reading the following post to see the documentation that I have on these women: HARVEST BIBLE CHAPEL LEADERSHIP, CHRISTIAN LEADERS, AND THE LACK OF BIBLICAL DISCERNMENT). However, there is no excuse for pastors and teachers who are held to an even higher lever of accountability (James 3:1) to fall for or to present such unbiblical practices to the people at their churches. Sadly, when many pastors see that a certain teacher is popular, they simply order their so-called “Bible studies” and fail to take the time to test what they actually teach against the truth of God’s Word to see if it is true or not. Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows leadership has fail to be Biblical shepherds and to guard their flock from false teachers; instead they just invite them in: Mark Driscoll, Steven Furtick, Levi Lusko, etc.
“Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God which he bought with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28)
We are all called to: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21,22) As Christians, we think that we can trust those in leadership, but that simply is not true. The only one who we can completely trust is Jesus Christ alone and His Holy Word that will endure forever. (1 Peter 1:25)
Besides constantly praying for discernment, now, more than ever before, we as Christians must: study God’s Word ( 2 Timothy 2:15 KJV), examine the Scriptures daily to see if what is being said (and done) is true (Acts 17:11) or not, and always be alert so that we are not deceived by the many ways in which our enemy, the devil, is attempting to devour us. (1 Peter 5:8)
Please also consider reading this post regarding Levi Lusko: HOW DISCERNING ARE YOU? He was a guest speaker at Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows in 2016 on January 2nd and 3rd. [NOTE: Just to let you know, this post also includes a Biblical analysis of a message that T D Jakes’ daughter (Sarah Jakes Roberts) preached, entitled, ‘The Displaced Crown,’ but she did not present this message at Harvest Bible Chapel. The video that she preached her message in was taken down shortly after I posted it.] END OF UPDATE
Dear Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows members and attendees — and every Christian — beware! Beware of what is being presented to you as ways to develop intimacy with God. We have God’s Word, the Bible. What more could we ever need in order to develop intimacy with God? Nothing more! Especially when the practices that are suggested for us to do in order to have intimacy with God is derived from unbiblical, New Age practices that can be found in Buddhism, Hinduism, and mystical practices derived from Catholicism –practices that open up doorways into the world of the occult!
“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.” And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)
“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 4:1-4)
“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard. Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.” (Acts 20:25-31)
Thank you very much for stopping by today.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke – Living4HisGlory
RELATED VIDEOS
In the following video, Pete Scazzero, who is also the co-founder of Emotionally Healthy Discipleship (EHD), where they “help leaders around the world grow their people into mature disciples of Jesus,” tells us how EHD has “helped thousands of people move from a shallow Christianity to a deep authentic relationship with God, themselves, and others.“Although he may give some good suggestions in his courses, such as taking enough time to rest, to say that the Christianity of those who do not pursue the ways through which he suggests in his courses in order to be able to have a “deep authentic relationship with God” is “shallow Christianity,” is very troubling!
In the following video, ‘Pete’s Take on Daily Office,’ that you will find further below this quick capture from the video, Pete Scazzero has this to say beginning at the 1:31 minute mark:
“…but the silence to me is the quality that probably I found most significant because again, I’m being with Jesus my lover, and I’m quieting myself down, I’m centering in Christ and abiding in this love relationship allowing Him to love me and I’m loving Him back.” (Emphasis is mine).
This is sometimes referred to as spiritual romanticism; it is a completely unbiblical form of thinking in which we view Jesus Christ as our “lover.” This is frighteningly becoming a more common belief among professing Christian teachers (such as Ann Voskamp), and it leads Christians down an unbiblical and dangerous path!
In the video that you will find further below, which is entitled, ‘What is the Daily Office & Why is it Needed,’ at the 2:43 minute mark you will find this chart that shows ‘the core of the EHS (Emotionally Healthy Spirituality) Course.’ These are very similar to the experienced based methods that you will find in transcendental meditation and in the New Age Movement.
At the 3:23 minute mark in the video below you will hear Pete Scazzero quote Brother Lawrence, and at the 4:43 minute mark in this same video you will also hear Pete Scazzero quote Dallas Willard. Both of these men promoted unbiblical, contemplative, mystical, spirituality. (See information on these men that I have added below for you at the end of this post).
Beginning at the 5:09 minute mark in the same video that you will find further below, you will also see this chart with Silence & Stillness Guidelines that clearly present the same type of steps that you will find in eastern meditation practices in Buddhism, but they have been repackaged using Christian terminology:
Finally, here is the actual video, entitled: ‘What is the Daily Office & Why is it Needed?’
At the 4:12 minute mark in the following video you will hear Pete Scazzero say:
“Remember, the purpose of the Daily Office is to commune with God.”
He ends this video by saying: “…and I trust that you will find, as I have, that you are remembering and thinking of God much more throughout your days, in ways that you never imagined or did before.”
When anyone tells you to practice spiritual disciplines that are the same types of spiritual disciplines practiced by Buddhist and Catholic monks only Christianized to make them appear acceptable, or if you are told to read a certain book or that taking a specific course is going to change your spiritual life rather than telling you that all you need is to spend time with God in His spiritual life giving, life changing Word — the Bible — that should send up an immediatered flag within your spirit! We are sadly at a point in time when many professing Christian pastors and teachers are casting aside Biblical Christianity. Instead they are now focusing on man’s emotions and promoting having experiences with God that come directly out of the world of the occult!
I am sure that Pete Scazzero and his wife are probably very sincere and wonderful people, but they have sadly been deceived by accepting these unbiblical practices as ways to develop a deeper relationship with God. When trying to search for ways to help their people grow in their relationship with God and to grow spiritually, they have wandered off the Biblical path and are now presenting to their people — and to the world — teachings that are telling everyone to look inward instead of looking to God and seeking Him in His Word.
God is the only one who transforms us by His Word and by His Holy Spirit when we choose to believe the good news of the Biblical gospel and come to Him through Jesus Christ; transformation does not come about by looking inward and dwelling on the past and on our emotional pain and struggles. (Isaiah 43:18) (Philippians 3:13)
Jesus Christ was and is God in the flesh. Jesus, being fully God, took upon Himself human flesh and entered our sin-filled world. He lived the perfect, sinless life that we could never live, and became the perfect sacrifice. Jesus Christ, the spotless Lamb of God, willingly went to the cross where He bore all of our sins as well as all of our grief and sorrows, and God poured out all of His wrath intended for us because of our sins upon His one and only Son. He died in our place, was buried, and was gloriously raised to life on the third day in bodily form to show that God accepted His death as full payment for every one of our sins — no matter what we may have done! God is love, but He is also just. Therefore sin must be paid for, and Jesus paid our debt to sin in full –tetelestai. That is the life changing good news of the Biblical gospel that transforms a person’s life!
May I share a personal illustration with you? During the twelve years of my marriage I became a broken and shattered woman emotionally because of the way that my ‘husband’ treated me. However, everything began to change when I began to read the Bible and came to see the truly good news of the Biblical gospel for the first time and chose to believe it and to place my full trust in all that Jesus Christ accomplished for us. In the midst of my deep hurt I did not look inward. I cried out to God and read His Word often throughout each day as the tears fell and my heart broke in thousands of pieces. As I spent time in prayer and in His Word, God began to heal me and to renew my mind and troubled heart and I no longer based my worth as a person by how my ‘husband’ treated me, but rather by what God’s Word says. That is when my life began to change and God began to transform me into a new creation in Christ. Day by day I learned to trust God more, and day by day His strength became perfected in my weakness and His peace that surpasses all human understanding began to guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus as I prayed and stopped worrying about everything. He proved Himself over and over to be faithful and able to meet all of my needs in ways that I never would have imagined!
I pray that Pete and his wife will begin simply seeking God in His Word and that one day he will cast these unbiblical practices out of his church, his books, and his presentations, as well, and that he will point his people — and all Christians — back to Jesus Christ — who was and is God in the flesh –so that they will find true and lasting transformation! As true Biblical Christians that is what we are all to do.
I hope you can now see that in many ways Christianity today is becoming more and more experiential based. Sadly, God’s Holy Word, the Bible, is now being used by many as a tool to bring one into an altered state of consciousness as it is twisted and repeated over and over. God’s Word is no longer seen as having the greatest importance as it is read and studied in context. The only way to truly come to know God is through coming to Jesus Christ in simple faith and believing that His “once for all sacrifice” was truly enough to pay the debt for all of our sins in full!
Please do not be deceived by these unbiblical types of practices that may sound very appealing to you emotionally, but at their very core is New Age Catholic mysticism.
RELATED VIDEOS
More videos to show you how William Meninger, who was a guest at Pete Scazzero’s church, is heavily involved in New Age/ New Spirituality/Buddhism/Catholic mysticism.
Here is some information regarding Fuller Theological Seminary, the seminary that now deceased Professor of New Testament, Robert Guelich taught at. He was the one who made the chart that Pete Scazzero showed in his presentation at the 22:32 minute mark in the first video entitled, ‘Emotionally Healthy Spirituality – An Evening With Pete Scazzero.’
Lord willing, another new post coming later this month or in August on this same subject regarding how Catholic mysticism is infiltrating many churches these days and leading many Christians astray in order to show the extreme importance of reading and studying God’s Word and praying for discernment.
Also coming later in July, Lord willing, will be another new post in the series in which we will continue comparing the teachings found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church to a Catholic New Testament to show precious Catholics the truly good news of the Biblical gospel and that many of the things that they are being taught, which is based on the traditions of men, contradicts God’s Word, the Bible. It is equally important for all Christians to know this information so that they not only come to realize the need to share the truly good news of the Biblical gospel with their dear Catholic friends and family, but also so that they will not be deceived into thinking that Catholicism is Biblical and end up being lured into Catholicism by one of many ways that have been devised by our enemy, the devil.
Sadly, we live at a time when many of us are like sheep without a shepherd. Many once trusted pastors and teachers have forgotten their God-given role of protecting their sheep from ravenous wolves and have instead chosen to willingly join with them wholeheartedly. Therefore, many precious Christians are prey for the enemy as they attempt to seek a new church where God’s Word is being preached without compromise, and some end up getting involved with another church where yet another form of compromise or spiritual deception is taking place, which is what has happened to me many times now. With that in mind I will rarely be sharing any sermons from any pastors with you here, because the more I find out about them, the more I realize that the only one we can completely trust is Jesus Christ. So, for the time being, I will just be sharing videos like the one below that just have the audio of God’s Word accompanied with pictures highlighting some of the main verses from each particular book of the Bible.
When time allows, I hope that you will take six minutes out of your day to listen to the Book of 2 Thessalonians and allow God’s Word to comfort you, to free you from worry, doubt, and fear, exhort and convict you of sin, and to guide you into all truth.
For those of you who have yet to come to understand all that Jesus Christ accomplished for us when He willingly entered our sin-filled world wrapped in human flesh as an innocent baby, to one day become our Savior, I pray you will come to understand and believe and receive the good news of the Biblical gospel:
Still being God, the second Person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ came into our world to rescue us from sin and hell; He grew and lived the perfect, sinless life that we could never live, to become the spotless, Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. He willingly hung on a cross and suffered the extremely brutal death of crucifixion in our place. God the Father, poured our His full wrath that we deserve for our sins upon His one and only Son — Jesus Christ, God in the flesh — who paid the debt in full for every one of our sins, no matter how heinous the sin may be! He died, was buried, and gloriously arose from the dead bodily on the third day for our justification. Salvation is a free gift; we are not saved by good works or by obeying the law, or Jesus Christ died in vain! (Galatians 2:21) If a person chooses to place their trust in the only provision that God has made for us to be forgiven and to be reconciled to Himself, (which is by trusting in Jesus Christ alone for our salvation), according to God’s very Word we will then have the assurance of eternal life with Him in heaven. (1 John 5:9-13) That, dear reader, is the good news of the Biblical gospel that is not being heard in many churches today! Please get yourself a Bible (preferably a King James version because many verses in newer translations have been either omitted or drastically changed in such a way that changes the meaning of the verses), and read the Gospel of John, the Books of Romans, Ephesians, Hebrews, and 1,2, and 3 John to begin with, so that you might come to know the joyously good news of all that Jesus Christ accomplished for us, and the depth of the love that God has for you. (Ephesians 3:17-19) (1 John 4:9,10)
Thank you very much for stopping by today.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke/Living4HisGlory
UPDATE:
Lord willing, if all continues to go well, after two months of my sister being in the hospital she is scheduled to finally be released this coming Tuesday, after just having two weeks of therapy! Praise the Lord! \0/ She is a living miracle in that she survived all that she went through when it was discovered that her appendix had burst which caused many other serious, life threatening problems. The doctors weren’t sure that she was going to make it, so I praise God that He was gracious to bring healing to her. Losing our sweet Mom last year on Easter/Resurrection Sunday was devastating to all of us, and I just could not imagine the depth of our grief and sorrow if we would have lost our sister too!
Please treasure every moment that you have with your loved ones so that you will not have any regrets when the day comes and you will no longer have them in your life. The emptiness and void that one feels after losing a very special person, is a sorrow that truly grips your heart and fills your eyes with tears, daily. Even though I still have the joy of the Lord which can never be taken away from me, there is still a deep sorrow in my heart because my sweet Mom was the type of person that one can never forget. She was more than just my mother; she was also my friend.
I would have joy that would truly lessen the sorrow if I knew for sure that she chose to place her trust in Jesus Christ alone for her salvation instead of trusting in her good works or in the Catholic church to save her before she took her final breath, but I just have to rest in the Lord and in the fact that ‘He is not willing that any should perish but that all would come to repentance.’ My precious Mom heard me share the gospel with her countless numbers of times when she would ask me questions about God, salvation, death, and different things concerning the Catholic church, and I tried so hard to explain the gospel to her, simply and in depth so that she would realize the importance of the decision that we all need to make before our life comes to an end. However, I need to give by burden to the Lord and spend the time I have remaining on this earth “earnestly contending for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 3) by getting back to sharing the truth with those of you who need to hear it, whether you listen or fail to listen. I am already in the process of writing some posts and hope to have one finished for you in the near future –Lord willing.
Thank you for joining me for Part 2 in this series in which I will be sharing more information with you to give you further evidence in order to show you that the entity that is appearing in these apparitions and claiming to be the Virgin Mary is not the Virgin Mary of the Bible, but rather a deceiving spirit that is bringing unity among all religions and leading many of them into the Catholic church. If you have not yet read Part 1 in this series yet and would like to, you may do so by clicking HERE
APPARITION OF THE VIRGIN MARY – JERUSALEM – 1954
In the following video you will hear about an alleged apparition of the Virgin Mary that took place at St. Anthony Coptic school in Jerusalem where Coptic Christians, as well as Catholics and Muslims attended:
THE APPARITIONS OF MARY AT ZEITOUN
In the video below (which can only be viewed on YouTube since playback on websites has been disabled by the video owner) you will hear the following concerning these silent apparitions that allegedly took place in Zeitoun, Egypt mainly between the years 1968 and 1970:
“As the years have gone by, these apparitions began to attract more and more people, sometimes gathering large crowds of 250 thousand people from different countries and faiths: Christians, Jews, Muslims and even nonbelievers ”
“…all the people present at the time — Christians and Muslims – could also see it.” “The silent apparitions at Zeitoun are considered to be an appeal to ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue.”
The following video gives further details concerning these alleged apparitions regarding healings that were said to have taken place –by the hand of the Virgin Mary. In one instance it is said that a woman came to Zeitoun in search of a cure. Here is the summary of one account:
As a woman who was dying of cancer laid in her bed and before she drifted off into a deep sleep, she was visited by the Virgin Mary who appeared with a small boy who handed the Virgin Mary a small knife. The Virgin Mary told her that she was going to remove the cancer. “Xray analysis proved that she was free of cancer completely.” ‘There was no sign of any wound or any opening.’
It is implied to those who hear about this particular incident in which the Virgin Mary allegedly appeared and healed the woman of cancer, that this small boy who appeared with her was Jesus Christ, thus causing many to wrongly believe that Mary has more power that Jesus Christ, who was reduced from being Creator, Savior of the world, and God, the second person of the Trinity, to a helpless young child who serves Mary.
At this point I would like to stop for a brief moment to share another account with you concerning the Virgin Mary so that you can see the following:
Precious Catholics are being presented with a works based salvation gospel and a gospel that causes them to wrongly place their trust in the traditions and doctrines of their church instead of only trusting in the once for all sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the truth that is presented in Scripture
The Virgin Mary is elevated in the eyes of Catholics by implying that she has more power and authority that Jesus Christ
Here is a portion of the account that I quick captured for you further below:
“One day the King [Alphonsus, King of Leon and Galicia] became very sick. He went unconscious, and everyone thought he was dead! When he was unconscious he had a vision, and found himself before the judgment seat of God. Many devils were there, telling all the sins he had committed, and Our Lord as the Judge, was just about to tell King Alphonsus that he was going to hell! Suddenly Our Lady appeared on the scene and asked for a pair of scales. She placed the King’s sins on one of the scales and on the other scale she put the rosary, which he had always worn, and the Rosaries that had been said because of his good example. The Rosaries weighed more than his sins!
“Looking at King Alphonsus with great kindness, Our Lady said: “As a reward for this little honor that you paid me in wearing my Rosary, I have obtained a great grace for you, from my Son, Jesus. Though you were supposed to go to Hell, you will be able to live for a few more years. See that you spend these years wisely, and do penance!”
When the King came to, he cried out: “Blessed be the Rosary of the Most High Virgin Mary. By her Rosary she has saved me from the terrible fires of Hell!”
Here are some Scriptures to refute the idea that we can be saved by our good works:
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare I say at this time his righteousness, that he might be just, and the justifier of him who believeth in Jesus.” (Romans 3:23-26)
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:8-10)
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”(Titus 2:13,14)
“But after the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:4-7)
Now back to the main focus of this post, which is how these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary are drawing many people of other religions into the Catholic church. I will then follow this section with information to show you the New Age/New Spirituality connection:
Below is a quick capture from an article in which you will read how “Muslims converted” because of these alleged apparitions that took place in Zeitoun, Egypt. Sadly, they did not convert by hearing about Jesus Christ and the Biblical gospel being preached to them, but rather by seeing apparitions of the Virgin Mary. This is not Biblical Christianity.
In the article below you will see how apparitions of the Virgin Mary are being credited for “the conversion of millions of people to Roman Catholicism.” It’s also interesting to note at what point in church history these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Juan Diego took place:
“…just as a large number of people were leaving the Catholic Church in Europe as a result of the Reformation, Our Lady of Guadalupe was instrumental in adding almost 8 million to the ranks of Catholics in the Americas between 1532 and 1538.”
In the following article, dated Aug. 11, 2oo9, Catholic News Agency reports that “the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe was a ‘salvation event’ specifically directed to evangelize of all of the Americas.”
One day when I first began doing research for the Fatima posts that I shared with you last year, I did a search on Lucia Santos, the oldest of the three children who claimed to have seen the apparitions of the Virgin Mary back in 1917, and just happened to come across the following video of two visionaries that I had never heard of before: Sister Lucia de Jesus and Friar Elias del Sagrado Corazon.
These alleged apparitions of Mary are among the many ways in which Catholicism is merging together with the New Age Movement. These messages claim to be “transmissions from the Virgin Mary” to visionaries, Lucia de Jesus and Friar Elias Del Segrado, (seen pictured below on the left), and are translated into English, (usually by this young woman on the right). The alleged apparitions have been taking place for ten years now, and these visionaries travel throughout the world bringing many supposed messages from Mary that speak of peace and unity.
They claim that the Virgin Mary has been transmitting messages to them for the past six to seven years. (Since 2011 for Friar Elias and 2012 for Lucia). As I listened to this video (and many more after it), it became very evident that these messages that were being transmitted were completely New Age in their beliefs because of their strong emphasis on unity and oneness, and did not resemble Biblical Christianity at all.
Sister Lucia and Friar Elias are part of an ecumenical movement that embraces all religions. In the quick capture below it says: “
The spirit of universality and ecumenism is the keynote of the Grace Mercy Order…”
“At Grace Mercy Order we aspire to live Christic universal love…”
Although, as stated above, they claim that they are “not linked to any religion but to the Christic life, in itself…” it is highly immersed in the traditions of the Catholic church as evidenced by the statues of Mary, Jesus, and Joseph, the rosary being prayed, the Eucharistic Christ being displayed in the monstrance, the sign of the cross being performed by those present at these gatherings, and more, as you will soon see further below in this post.
Here is some information that is posted on one of the YouTube channels that uploads some of the videos of these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary to the visionaries, Lucia De Jesus and Friar Elias:
Below is a brief history of the visionaries in which you will discover that allegedly Friar Elias began receiving messages from the Virgin Mary in 2011, and Sister Lucia began receiving them in 2012. According to this information there is another visionary, as well –Mother Maria:
Upon searching Facebook to see if I could find more information about these visionaries of the Grace and Mercy Order I found this page which will clearly show you the emphasis that this movement has on unity. Consider these words from the quick capture below and you decide if it reflects Biblical Christianity:
“As Mother of the World She is the Supreme Feminine Energy that is creator of all, and Her mantle encompasses all.”
This quick capture of their March 2017 Facebook page not only shows information about the latest messages allegedly transmitted to the visionaries through Mary, but also ones reportedly coming from Saint Josephand Jesus Christ:
God’s Word is clear that the Canon of Scripture is closed. However, would Jesus Christ really give a message like the one below if indeed He was still speaking today? Or is this rather a message that would come from a false Universal Christ? When you see the word “universe” capitalized, as you see it capitalized below, it denotes deity and life.
Many in the radical Environmental Movement believe that this planet [Universe] is a living being and oftentimes refer to it as Mother Earth or Gaia. If you’d like, you can read one of my former posts in which I shared some information on this:WARNING YOU WITH TEARS WEDNESDAY – EARTH DAY
Once again, although the Grace and Mercy Order claims they are not linked to any religion, you will now see more evidence of how Roman Catholicism is strongly being promoted:
Source – YouTube video entitled, ‘Apparition of the Virgin Mary Rose of Peace – Marian Center Menino Rei Brazil – Sept. 25, 2017
Starting at the 24:55 minute mark in the video below you will hear “the words that Mary transmitted for the apparition…” What you’re about to read is a very disturbing message that was allegedly transmitted to Sister Lucia from the Virgin Mary. As you read the following message, keep these questions in mind:
“Would the Mary of the Bible say these things? Or does this present a message akin to the New Age/New Spirituality movement that embraces all religions?
Here is the message allegedly given by the Virgin Mary to Sister Lucia:
“When the white buffalo would appear on the horizon, suddenly, walking with serenity before the eyes of the pure, it was a sign of prosperity and of hope. Its mouth did not speak. Its language was not known by humankind. Its silence would transmit the will of God to them. Its language was understood with the heart by those who knew how to become silent. When sadness flooded the hearts of humankind they cried out for the grace of seeing and of feeling the white buffalo. Its serenity calmed them and they felt the hope that the earth would remain fertile, alive, and sacred.
When the heart of the children of the earth was not reached in love and in joy, they cried out for the white buffalo. Its joy and its love did not come from this world, but it nourished and healed it. It appeared on the horizon and represented the arrival of the new cycles where life would have a greater meaning because the land would be fertile and so would the heart.
The white buffalo was the holy spirit of the earth which walked silent among humankind. It came to dissolve fear, anguish, sadness. It came to unite the hearts of the children of the earth with he who created the earth and all the other planets. He created the sun, the moon, and all life. The white buffalo was the bearer of purity and reunited the purity in the hearts of the children of the earth so that they would not lose the hope of a world in peace and in communion with life. The white buffalo was meek but invincible. Nothing could touch it and only the eyes of the heart could see it. Its mystery came from infinity, even though its appearance was of the earth. It made itself lesser than humankind with the living symbol of a simple animal, but it wanted to represent the all. Within it were both the small and the great, from the animals to the Supreme God. From nature to the all. The white buffalo thus made it possible to understand that God is in everything. I am the white buffalo, the spirit of the earth. The spirit of life.
I am the representation of the fertile cycles of the cycles of peace. In my presence despair and fear are dissolved, and hearts again find the faith and the love of God. I am, my children, the Mother of the earth, and also of heaven. The children of the earth were born on it, but they do not come from it. Their spirits come from me. They were born of the universal source of life, protected by the brightness of the stars that sparkle in infinity, embraced by the motherhood of God, Adoni. I come to this world so that you may regain purity and hope, so that you have fear and pain healed, and so that the certainty of being able to experience the sacred and unity on this earth with creation may again shine in your essences. I am here, beloved children, now resembling humankind with a body like yours and with a divine heart so that you may find again within yourselves what unites you with the creator, what makes you a mirror of his most sacred heart.
I came to mirror in your spirits the sacred and the divine. I appear on the horizon in silence, again bringing peace. I appear on this day of a new cycle representing a fruitful cycle in the life of this spirit. I want to strengthen your hearts and to build within you the new gardens of life. I want to cause the new human being to be born, recovering the purity and the divinity of the indigenous consciousness. I come to bring the grace of union with the origin for those called originating peoples and in this way all human hearts may rekindle within themselves the purity of the beginning, the original unity with the heart of God. May your lives be fruitful in love before the white buffalo…”(25:32 – 31:11 minute mark)
“I am the white buffalo, your mother and mother of all creation.”(31:39 minute mark)
If one takes the time to examine all of these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary, you will see how this being who claims to be Mary presents a message that appeals to each people group that she appears to. In the above alleged apparitions in which these messages are given to Friar Elias and Sister Lucia, she speaks to the Indigenous people who have embraced a pagan philosophy that is also very New Age in their belief system, which is why the message refers to her as the White Buffalo.
The Native Heart Healing Oracle – Blue Angel Publishing
Upon doing research to see what I could find concerning the White Buffalo and native spirituality, I came across the following video in which Chief Arvol speaks of a prophecy that said a white buffalo calf would stand upon the earth, and when this would happen many changes would take place upon the earth. Chief Arvol also speaks of “the Creator Wakan Tanka” and a woman who allegedly appeared carrying a buffalo robe. When this woman allegedly appeared before the people the next day she came with the buffalo robe. As she began to walk away she rolled over, and as she stood up she changed into a young black buffalo, then a red one, and then proceeded to turn into a yellow buffalo. Then, as she went over the hill she became a white buffalo calf.
I am not trying to say that the appearance of this particular woman was an alleged apparition of the Virgin Mary, and she never claimed to be the Virgin Mary. I am, however, trying to give you evidence of how these apparitions that claim to be the Virgin Mary (such as the entity that transmits messages to Sister Lucia de Jesus and Friar Elias) give messages that appeal to the spirituality that represents the people she is appearing to.
In this video you will also hear Chief Arvol use many terms that are also used by those in the New Age/New Spirituality Movement, as well as by those involved in the Environmental Movement: global warming, Mother Earth, spiritual unity, peace, harmony, etc.
Are you now beginning to see how many religions and all of these movements — especially the New Age/New Spirituality movement and the Environmental Movement — are all merging together?
Many involved in this movement speak of unity, oneness, and peace, but if one looks closely they will see this oneness is not the same as the oneness that Jesus Christ prayed for in John Chapter 17. For quite some time now we have been seeing many professing Christian pastors and teachers — including Rick Warren — promoting this type of unbiblical unity:
Christian author and speaker, Warren B Smith, was once deeply involved in the New Age Movement. Now he warns Christians just how dangerous this movement really is through the books that he writes and through the presentations that he gives at many Christian Conferences! When time allows, please consider listening to this insightful and very important presentation that he gave at the Last Days Bible Conference a few years ago.
The entity who claims to be the Virgin Mary in these alleged apparitions also refers to herself as the Lady of All Nations and says that she embraces everyone as her children — no matter what religion they are a part of. In some of the messages that were given during these apparitions by the one who calls herself The Lady of All Nations, to the visionary, Ida Peerdeman, “unity” among all Christians was emphasized, and many unbiblical and mystical words of instruction were also given. Here are some examples that you can hear in the video below. Be sure to test them in light of Scripture. These messages were given on September 20, 1951:
“Christians all over the world should unite.”
“Christians shall and must enter into themselves. Let them consider what part they are to play in this world.”
“It [the prayer] has been given so that the coming of the Spirit of Truth may be implored for the world. The lady says, “Child, why is this prayer not being spread abroad? What are they waiting for? I have taught it to you so that it might be circulated among the people. Let everyone say this short and simple prayer every day. This prayer is purposely kept short and simple so that every person may manage to say it even in this modern and speed crazy world. It has been given so that the coming of the Spirit of Truth may be implored for the world.”
No matter what anyone may say, there will be no peace in this world until Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, returns. To say that The Lady of All Nations is the “Key to World Peace” is completely unbiblical!
The last dogma that this entity who claims to be the Virgin Mary is demanding to be proclaimed, is for her to be declared the Lady of All Nations, as well as Co-Redemptrix, Mediatrix of all Graces, and Advocate. She claims that she “freely cooperated with Jesus in redeeming the world.” The blasphemous implications can be clearly seen in the picture below:
In part, this is what the entity, (who claims to be Mary), requested to be said as a prayer:
“Let the Lady of All Nations, who once was Mary, be our Advocate.”
According to God’s Word, who is our Advocate?
“My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1)
According to God’s Word, we have only one Mediator:
“For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” (1 Timothy 2:5)
According to God’s Word there is only one name under heaven by which we must be saved:
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
APPARITIONS OF MARY AND THE NEW AGE CONNECTION
In the following video, Cecil Andrews of ‘Take Heed Ministries,’ presents us with some excellent and even shocking information that shows the parallel between Catholic and New Age Marian Messages. When time allows, I truly hope that you will consider listening to this message that was given by Timothy Kauffman:
‘Catholic’ and ‘New Age’ Marian Messages in Agreement
For further information please consider reading the following by Cecil Andrews of Take Heed Ministries:
(Note: Sources with very good information; not an endorsement. It has come to the point where I can no longer endorse any ministry.)
In the video below is another supposed message given by the Virgin Mary and channeled through a woman named Julie Miller. Channeling is a New Age practice in which a spirit (and in this case it is said to be Mary, the mother of Jesus) speaks forth a message from beyond the grave. In this message you will hear terms such as: vibrations, energy, Mother earth,exhalein his light, pouring his love and light into every person of every creed and race, etc., demonstrating that this is not the Biblical Mary, but rather a spirit speaking forth a New Age message.
In many cases Mary is referred to as the Universal Mother or the Divine Mother, by those who promote the New Age agenda, once again, demonstrating that this entity is promoting unity among all people –Catholics and non-Catholics alike. The following message was channeled by a woman named Linda Dillon:
“…you are so much further ahead in this ascension process in this creation of nova Earth than you suspect “unity, connectedness, and balance and form in creation upon gaia in being a mother you are utilizing all of my blessings …..”
At gatherings, such as where messages offering love, unity, hope, and peace are allegedly being given from the Virgin Mary to visionaries, Friar Elias and Sister Lucia, which are then presented to unsuspecting people in an atmosphere where soothing music is being played, which breaks down the conscious mind so that it cannot properly think and reason, you will most certainly have people falling for a false Christ and an unbiblical Mary; a Mary who is presented as the Divine Mother, a title that many in the religions of Hinduism and Buddhism call their goddesses, as you will see from the quick captures below. Note also the use of New Age terminology that is used:
Giana Talone Sullivan is an example of a modern day visionary who claims to have received messages from the Virgin Mary mainly between the years of 1988 and 1995.
“The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore issued a statement saying they found no basis to support her messages as having an extraordinary source. The statement from the archdiocese condemns the alleged apparitions as not of a supernatural origin.” (1)
However, as you can see from the quick capture below, after French theologian, Fr. Rene’ Laurentin (“who was also an expert advisor for the Council during Vatican ll andan expert investigator of Marian apparitions and seers”) “brought a medical team of scientific specialists from France to America,” in part, the results of their investigation showed that she was found to be in the same state of ecstasies as other seers:
Scientific studies can be helpful to determine many things, but when it comes to the spiritual dimension everything — especially the messages — needs to be tested against God’s Word to see if it is true or not. (Acts 17:11)
“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearances of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21,22)
God’s Word also instructs us to test the spirits to see if they are from God.
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)
In the following video you will see how some people are literally crying out from the depths of their hearts for the trees that are being cut down. While none of these people profess to be Christians, this is simply a clear example to show you just how far many have drifted from what is Biblical, to now embracing a pagan world view, and how Environmentalism has become a form of spirituality and religion.
Why are these people not instead crying out for the lives of the unborn who are being torn apart limb by limb out of the safety of their mother’s womb, or who are having their brains sucked out during a partial birth abortion? We have become a barbaric society in which many place more emphasis on caring for this earth rather than caring for God’s greatest creation –mankind, who has been created in His own image and likeness. (Genesis 1:26,27)
CLOSING COMMENTS:
Please wake up! In this post I have presented you with just some of the many ways in which the plan for ecumenism and creating a One World Religion is taking shape right before our very eyes! You can also see, from the information that I have added to this post, how precious Catholics are being lured into the New Age Movement by these so-called apparitions of Mary!
Yes, as Christians we are to take care of the world that God has entrusted to us, but to put more emphasis on creation rather than on the Creator is unbiblical, and can cause one to shift from what is truly important in the eyes of God –human life made in His image and preaching the Biblical Gospel of faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. The eternal destination of billions of people is at stake!
“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone one who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” (Romans 1:16-20)
Jesus Christ should be our focus, not the Virgin Mary. Many of the messages given to visionaries during all of these alleged apparitions clearly focus much more on Mary, rather than on Jesus Christ. In every form of deception there is always enough truth mixed in with lies so that the lies cannot easily be realized, which is why everything should always be tested against Scripture, and not against church teachings or the traditions of men, which is often the case when it comes to these apparitions and the Catholic church.
We can admire Mary for her willingness to submit to God and to become the mother of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, since most likely she was falsely accused of adultery by many and endured much ridicule, as well. Mary indeed deeply suffered as she watched her Son — Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God clothed in human flesh — suffer the horrendous torture of crucifixion, which led to His death. However, Jesus Christ alone redeemed us. Mary did not in any way suffer to the point of sharing in our redemption process or adding to Jesus Christ’s sufferings to attain our redemption –no matter what any one may say! To say anything more is to add to Scripture, which is forbidden by God. (Deuteronomy 4:2, Deuteronomy 12:32, Proverbs 30:6)
Mary is rarely even mentioned in Scripture! (Lord willing, one day I will do a post on every verse in which Mary is mentioned so that you can see just how little she is mentioned). God’s Word clearly emphasizes that it was only the sinless Son of God, Jesus Christ — the Lamb of God without spot or blemish — whose sinless life, sufferings on the cross, shed blood, and death was sufficient to satisfy God’s just demands by paying the debt for all of our sins –in full.
“Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28)
“Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.”(Romans 3:22,25)
“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.” (Ephesians 1:7)
“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made is meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:12-14)
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (1 Timothy 2:6)
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing og the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” (Titus 2:14)
“Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.” “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.” (Hebrews 9:12-15,22)
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” (1 Peter 1:18,19)
God will not allow any one else to share His glory.
“I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.” (Isaiah 42:8)
We must keep in mind what God clearly warns us about in His Word so that we will not be deceived:
“As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.” (Matthew 24:3-5)
“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times men shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
We must be Bereans and constantly test everything against Scripture, including the messages and teachings of every pastor and teacher –no matter how well respected they may be or how many years they may already have been in ministry! (1 Thessalonians 5:21,22, Acts 17:11)
In PART 3 we will be taking a close look at some end time scenarios that are being presented these days by a growing number of professing Christians that are causing many Christians to not only take their eyes off of the Lord, but alsoto tread on some spiritually dangerous territory! I will be tying all of that together with the alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary, as well and sharing some rather controversial things with you in the process. The information that I will be sharing with you is extremely important for you to be aware of since it’s very possible that these things may very well become part of the strong delusion and spiritual deception that we are warned about quite frequently in Scripture concerning what will take place before the return of Jesus Christ to this earth.
I hope that you will join me for PART 3 in this series that I will try to have completed in the early part of May, possibly sooner –Lord willing. Because there is so much information that needs to be presented to you this may end up being a four part series instead of three, as I had originally planned.
NOTE: October 15, 2021 TO READ PART 3, the final installment in this series, Click >HERE<
Thank you very much for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read this very lengthy post.
God Bless You
~Mary/Living4HisGlory
RELATED VIDEOS
Regardless of the fact that many alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary present messages that are saturated with Catholic doctrine, the evidence that these apparitions are capturing the attention of hundreds of people from different religions can clearly be seen. Here are some examples:
NOTE: This post was updated on February 28, 2021 in preparation for writing PART 3 in this series, ‘APPARITIONS OF THE VIRGIN MARY OR DEMONS IN DISGUISE – EXAMINING THE EVIDENCE IN LIGHT OF SCRIPTURE.’
As hard as I am trying to finish writing the next post in the series, ‘APPARITIONS OF THE VIRGIN MARY, OR DEMONS IN DISGUISE? EXAMINING THE EVIDENCE IN LIGHT OF SCRIPTURE,’ I am still not finished even after spending around eight hours working on it today. It’s now over three thousand words long, so I am trying very hard to bring it to a close so that I can finally share it with you! Lord willing, I hope that by next Sunday evening I’ll be able to. Thank you for your patience.
Thank you very much for stopping by and reading this update.
Many Christians are unaware of how they are giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils when they fail to test the teachings of professing Christian teachers they sit under against the truth of God’s Word. In failing to do so, many are being led into New Age/ New Spirituality practices that are rooted in occultism, and they are being led away from the Biblical Jesus and the Biblical gospel. This is happening through Spiritual Formation classes that present Christians with practices such as Contemplative Prayer, Lectio Divina, Silent Prayer, meditation stations, so-called “holy yoga” classes, and so much more!
The Human Potential Movement (another term for the New Age Movement) is another way in which many Christians are being deceived and are departing from the true faith; the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints. (Jude 3) In many businesses, seminars are being presented to their employees with techniques that they are told will relieve stress and help them to become more productive. However, this movement presents mind altering techniques and tells a person to look within themselves where they will realize that everything they need to achieve success can be found. Therefore, there is no need for God because ultimately you are God. There is no concept of sin and therefore no need for a Savior from sin.
In the following presentation, well respected Christian author and speaker, the late Dave Hunt, warns us about many of these doctrines of demons and emphasizes the importance of getting back to Biblical Christianity. He urges Christians to learn to think for themselves. He also has this to say, which many of us who have been part of an abusive church can sadly relate to:
“I think that some pastors don’t want their people to think. They ought to be able to tell you what to do. That’s one of the problems. There’s a form of guruism in the church of Jesus Christ today, and to follow a guru you check your mind at the door, and they literally do your thinking for you. “Sun Myung Moon said, “I am their mind.” You have got to learn to think for yourself, because you have individual, moral accountability.”
When time allows, I hope that you will prayerfully consider listening to his very important and Biblically based message. As always, please be sure to test every teaching you listen to against Scripture –even what Dave Hunt says. (Acts 17:11)
Thank you very much for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
As we begin this series of posts, I would like to start out by sharing some Scriptures with you in order to lay a solid foundation based on the truth of God’s Word before we start looking into some of the serious concerns that one should have when it comes to these supposed apparitions of the Virgin Mary. We will also be using our critical thinking skills based on what we can learn from what God says in His Word in order to help us learn to discern truth from error, which is a must in these days of rapidly growing spiritual deception!
Let’s begin:
We know from many passages of Scripture that the level of spiritual deception in the end times will be extremely powerful. Jesus Christ, Himself, strongly warned about spiritual deception and mentions it first among the many signs that will point to His soon return. He also made it very clear that these lying signs and wonders could deceive the very elect –if it were possible:
“And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” (Matthew 24:1-4)
“Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” (Matthew 24:23-27)
God also strongly warns us in His Word that we must not be ignorant of Satan’s devices (2 Corinthians 2:11) and how we are to:
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
It is also made abundantly clear to us in John 3:19-21 that those without Jesus Christ love the darkness because of their sin and are not willing to come into the light, and in 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12 we read that many will perish because they will not choose to receive the love of the truth that they might be saved. These are the ones to whom God will send strong delusion to because they chose not to believe the truth; their desire will be to continue on in their unrighteous ways:
“And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light, for their works were evil. For everyone who practices evil hates the light, and does not come into the light, lest his works be reproved. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his works may me manifested that they are wrought in God.”(John 3:19-21)
“For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders. And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:7-12)
One can only speculate at this time as to what all of these lying signs and wonders will actually be. However, if you will please just take the time to read this series — in its entirety — I believe and pray that after you pray for discernment and read and listen to the information that I will be sharing with you (concerning how the messages given by these apparitions contradict the very Word of God and instead reflect the many false messages of unity proclaimed by those involved in the New Age Movement), you will then come to realize that these supposed apparitions of the Virgin Mary are instead cunningly deceptive plans devised by Satan himself to mislead and deceive many who will choose to reject Biblical truth and refuse to test things against Scripture. I truly believe (along with some other Christians) that these apparitions are presently playing — and will indeed continue to play — a huge part in end times spiritual deception! However, my opinion doesn’t matter. Let’s look at some of the facts. Just think of the many who have already been lured into New Age Contemplative Spirituality through Spiritual Formation classes and Contemplative Prayer by reading books by authors such as Priscilla Shirer,Beth Moore, Margaret Feinstein, Ruth Haley Barton, Mindy Caliguire, Richard Foster, Richard Rohr, Rick Warren, Gary Thomas, Henry Blackaby, (and many others), because they have been encouraged to have “experiences with God” instead of seeking to know God in a very real and personal way by reading and studying His living, life-giving, unchanging Word –the Bible! Or think of the many who have involved themselves in Eastern meditation practices by joining so-called Christian yoga classes that, sadly, are being offered at many churches these days!
Here are some more Scriptures that I would like you to please keep in mind as you read through the first installment of this three, or possibly four part, series:
“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As wesaid before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:6-9)
“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For ifhe that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” (2 Corinthians 11:3,4)
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)
“Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.” (Jeremiah 14:14)
“If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.” (Deuteronomy 13:1-3)
For those of you who may be Catholic, please know that I am not out to attack what you may hold dear to your heart if you indeed hold the Virgin Mary in a place of honor much higher that you should. It is out of love and concern for all of you that I am sharing all of this information with you to warn you so that you will not be deceived by these alluring apparitions and the messages that come from this entity that claims to be the Virgin Mary, and to urge you to look to Jesus Christ alone for truth, forgiveness, and salvation!
Let’s begin now by looking at some of the messages given during these apparitions from around the world. If you will take the time to pray for discernment and test these messages in light of Scripture, you will see how this being who claims to be the Virgin Mary does not reflect the humble Virgin Mary that we see revealed in God’s Word who always pointed to her virgin born Son, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, and not to herself. This being who claims to be the Virgin Mary also makes requests for chapels to be built in her honor!
Please also note the emphasis on “penance” and the need to “make sacrifices” that is stressed in these messages given to the visionaries, thus rendering Jesus Christ’s once for all sacrifice on the cross as being insufficient to pay the debt of our sins in full, when God’s Word clearly shows us otherwise!
Apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Juan Diego in 1531
A widely known series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary are the ones that allegedly took place in 1531 in Guadalupe, Mexico when it is said that the Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego and requested that a chapel be built in her honor.
“For I am your merciful Mother,” she said, “to you and to all mankind who love me and trust in me and invoke my help. Therefore, go to the dwelling of the Bishop in Mexico City and say that the Virgin Mary sent you to make known to him her great desire.”
The Bishop was very hesitant to believe Juan Diego and requested that this Lady give him some sign. Juan Diego was told by the Lady that she would grant his request the next morning. However, Juan Diego was unable to return the next morning because his uncle became very ill. Two days later as he was on his way to the church to request for a priest to come to his dying uncle, he was stopped by the Lady, who said to him, “It is well, littlest and dearest of my sons, but now listen to me. Do not let anything afflict you and be not afraid of illness or pain. Am I not here who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Are you not in the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else you need? Do not fear for your uncle for he is not going to die. Be assured…he is already well.” Juan Diego was exceedingly happy to hear her reassuring words, and then asked her for the sign that he was to bring to the Bishop. He was told to climb to the top of the hill where he would find many flowers in bloom, and he was to cut them and bring them to her. He was surprised to find many flowers blooming on the stony ground. Returning to the Lady with the flowers held within his cloak, the Lady rearranged them and sent him on his way to the Bishop, telling Juan Diego that this would be the sign for the Bishop that would convince him to fulfill her request. When Juan Diego was in the presence of the Bishop he opened his cloak, and the flowers gently tumbled to the floor, and the Bishop was awestruck as he saw an amazingly colorful image of the Lady, just as Juan Diego had described her, imprinted on his cloak. “Earlier that same day, December 12th, she had also appeared to Juan’s uncle, Juan Bernardino and restored him to health as she had told Juan Diego.” “Both had been among the first of the natives to be baptized into the true faith several years before.” (Source – YouTube video – The story of the five apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Juan Diego)
The “true faith” that is being referred to here, is the Catholic faith, not Biblical Christianity.
Even though it seems that the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe that appeared on Juan Diego’s cloak/tilma made from cactus fiber came about in a miraculous way, and the colors have somehow been preserved from fading, and the cloak/tilma was protected from damage and deterioration over hundreds of years from being exposed to the smoke of burning candles, and it was not damaged when bombs were planted under the image in some flowers in 1921, we cannot come to the conclusion that this image was a miracle from God since God’s Word clearly condemns images of any kind: Exodus 20:4 Deuteronomy 4:16, 5:8,
We must also keep in mind the warnings in Scripture about false miracles and lying signs and wonders in the last days. (Matthew 7:23, 2 Thessaalonians 2:8,9, Revelation 13:13,14)
The details concerning this image, although intriguing, (reflections of what appears to be that of Juan Diego and other people that were discovered in the eyes of the image, and other details that lead people to wrongly believe that Mary is the Queen of heaven), add to the evidence that this is not a miracle sent from God, but rather a counterfeit miracle that, once again, points people away from Jesus Christ, and to Mary. These apparitions of a woman who claims to be the Virgin Mary, is not the Virgin Mary revealed in Scripture, as you will soon come to realize –if you will choose to test these supposed miraculous details against Scripture.
What I found to be most disturbing is the fact that this image of the Virgin Mary is given credit for the conversion of eight to nine million of the pagan Aztec Indians into the Catholic faith, who had previously sacrificed thousands of their people to their pagan gods, when it is the gospel and faith in Jesus Christ alone that brings one to true salvation!
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16,17)
In this trailer from a documentary movie based upon these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary at Guadalupe, the focus is on “unity,” which has been promoted among religions for quite some time now. It is said that this image brought about “the unity of different peoples and different cultures” and it is also proclaimed as “an image that would unite a continent.” This documentary is narrated by John Caviezel, who states,”The Virgin of Guadalupe is not just a bridge between heaven and earth, but also a bridge between different cultures, it is her love that unites us.”
In the video further below, it is wrongly stated that the Virgin Mary is the woman spoken of in Revelation Chapter 12 who is clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head.
Catholicism also teaches that the Virgin Mary is the woman in Genesis 3:15 who crushes the serpent’s head. In Part 3 of MY TESTIMONY: FROM FEAR AND UNCERTAINTY TO PEACE AND ASSURANCE – HOW GOD REVEALED THE TRUTH TO ME AS I WAS READING A CATHOLIC NEW TESTAMENT BIBLE, (that you can read HERE), I shared with you how the Latin Vulgate mistranslated Genesis 3:15 using the word ipsa (she) instead of ipse, he, referring to Jesus Christ, and therefore the Catholic church claims that it is the woman who crushes the serpent’s head, and that the woman is Mary.You can hear a detailed teaching on this, and more, in the following video:
Former Catholic, Timothy Kauffman, author of Mary Mary Quite Contrary, a book that addressed the apparitions of Mary, made an excellent point in a video (that I will be sharing with you in Part 2 of this series), by stating — and this is not an exact quote — that since the Catholic church teaches Mary was sinless, she should not have experienced pain when she was giving birth to Jesus because pain during childbirth is a consequence of sin. And since the woman in Revelation cries out in pain, it cannot be Mary, or it would not be consistent with Catholic doctrine. He also points out the fact that this woman who claims to be Mary in these apparitions oftentimes proclaims herself to be the woman in Revelation. Later in the video he makes this statement:
“What it all come down to is that…we have the Word of God, and we compare it against what the popes teach, and what the apparitions teach. Both can’t be right; either the apparitions and the pope are right, or the Word of God is right.”
Apparitions of the Virgin Mary at LaSalette, France 1846
Here are some of the messages given during the apparitions at LaSalette (which took place in September of 1846) that I quick captured for you from the video further below. You will also be able to see them — along with many other messages given during these apparitions — if you choose to watch the video when time allows:
There is nowhere in the Bible that mentions there will be a “future Reign of Mary.” You will, however, find that God’s Word tells us that there will be a literal thousand year reign of Jesus Christ on this earth. (Revelation 20:1-4 and Isaiah 65:24,25)
In this message notice how it is Mary who is shown to have power to hold back the arm of her Son, Jesus Christ, from striking out because of the rebellion of mankind:
Here is the video:
Apparitions to Bernadette Soubirous at Lourdes, France in 1858
Next to the apparitions of the Virgin Mary at Fatima, Portugal in 1917 (which I have already written about in great detail), probably the next most widely known apparitions of the Virgin Mary are the ones that allegedly took place in Lourdes, France. It is said that the Virgin Mary appeared to fourteen year old Bernadette a total of twenty-eight times. In many of these appearances it is said that the Virgin Mary remained silent.
Below are some of the messages given to Bernadette during these alleged apparitions. You will find the following messages, and more, in the video above.
8th Apparition February 24, 1858:
“Penance! Penance! Penance! Pray to God for sinners. Kiss the ground as an act of penance for sinners!”
9th Apparition February 25, 1858:
Bernadette: She told me to go, drink of the spring… I only found a little muddy water. At the fourth attempt I was able to drink. She also made me eat the bitter herbs that were found near the spring, and then the vision left and went away.” In front of the crowd that was asking, “Do you think that she is mad doing things like that?” she replied, “It is for sinners.”
10th Apparition February 27, 1858:
800 people were present. The Apparition was silent. Bernadette drank the water from the spring and carried out her usual acts of penance.
11th Apparition February 28, 1858:
Over 1000 people were present at the ecstasy. Bernadette prayed, kissed the ground and moved on her knees as a sign of penance. She was then taken to the house of Judge Ribes who threatened to put her in prison.
13th Apparition March 2, 1858:
The Lady asked her: “Go, tell the priests to come her in procession and to build a chapel here.” Bernadette spoke of this to Fr. Peyramale, the Parish Priest of Lourdes. He only wanted to know one thing: the Lady’s name. He demanded another test; to see a wild rose bush flower at the Grotto in the middle of winter.
14th Apparition March 3, 1858:
Bernadette arrived at the Grotto, but the vision did not appear. After school, she heard the inner invitation of the Lady. She went to the Grotto and asked her again for her name. The response was a smile. The Parish Priest told her again: “If the Lady really wishes that a chapel be built, then she must tell us her name and make the rose bush bloom at the Grotto.”
16th Apparition March 25, 1858:
The vision finally revealed her name, but the wild rose bush, on which she stood during the Apparitions, did not bloom. Bernadette recounted; “She lifted up her eyes to heaven, joined her hands as though in prayer, that were held out and open towards the ground and said to me: “I am the Immaculate Conception.” The young visionary left and, running all the way, repeated continuously the words that she did not understand. These words troubled the brave Parish Priest. Bernadette was ignorant of the fact that this theological expression was assigned to the Blessed Virgin. Four years earlier, in 1854, Pope Pius IX declared this a truth of the Catholic faith (a dogma).
For those of you who are unaware of what this teaching of the Catholic Church is concerning the Immaculate Conception, it is not one that focuses on the virginity of Mary regarding the miraculous birth of Jesus Christ, God in human flesh, but rather it teaches that Mary did not inherit original sin as all of us did. They also teach that she never once committed sin of any kind her whole life long. Here is what it says in the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
The Immaculate Conception
Para 490 To become the Mother of the Savior, Mary “was enriched by God with gifts appropriate to such a role.” The angel Gabriel at the moment of the annunciation salutes her as “full of grace.” In fact, in order for Mary to be able to give the free assent of her faith to the announcement of her vocation, it was necessary that she be wholly borne by God’s grace.
Para 491 Through the centuries the church has become ever more aware that Mary, “full of grace” through God, was redeemed from the moment of her conception. That is what the dogma of the Immaculate Conception confesses, as Pope Pius IX proclaimed in 1854: The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by the virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.
Para 492 The “splendor of an entirely unique holiness” by which Mary is “enriched from the first instant of her conception” comes wholly from Christ: she is “redeemed, in a more exalted fashion, by reason of the merits of her Son.” The Father blessed Mary more than any other created person “in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” and chose her “in Christ before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless before him in love.”
Para 493 The Fathers of the Eastern tradition call the Mother of God “the All-Holy” (Panagia) and celebrate her as “free from any stain of sin, as though fashioned by the Holy Spirit and formed as a new creature.” By the grace of God Mary remained free from every personal sin her whole life long.
To say that Mary was sinless is to go beyond what Scripture says when it declares in Romans 3:23 that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” In Romans 5:12 God’s Word also says that “just as sin entered the world through one man [Adam], and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all have sinned.” To present a teaching that says Mary never sinned her entire life is also adding to the text what simply is not there, and God’s Word warns against doing such things! (1 Corinthians 4:6)If any teaching cannot be found in Scripture, or if the teaching conflicts with Scripture, it is to be rejected! God’s Word is to be held in higher regard than any teaching of any church –no matter what!
In the book of Revelation God gives this warning:
“I warn everyone who hears the words if the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.” (Revelation 22:18,19)
Clearly, God’s Word is not to be tampered with!
In the eyes of precious Catholics the teaching of the Immaculate Conception also places Mary on the same level as Jesus Christ, who, as Scripture clearly shows us, did remain sinless His whole life long even though He was temped in all ways as we are:
“But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him, or known him.” (1 John 3:5)
“He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth. When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” (1 Peter 2:22)
“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who who has been tempted in every way, just as we are — yet was without sin. Let us then approach the of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:14-16)
Once again, for those of you who are Catholic, I must ask you the question that God strongly impressed upon my mind in 1980 when I began to read the little Catholic New Testament and saw how the many teachings of Catholicism totally oppose what God’s Word has to say:
“Are you going to believe the Word of God, or the word of man?”
God’s Word gives us this warning in Colossians 2:8:
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”
In 2 Peter 3:15-18 we are also told:
“Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the errors of lawless men and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.”
In the video below you will see the following quotes taken from messages supposedly given during apparitions of the Virgin Mary. If this was truly Mary she would not be claiming to have the attribute of God’s omnipresence, or telling people to consecrate themselvesto her heart.
“I’m always next to all those who pray and pray with maternal anxiety and concern.” (8:47 min. mark)
“I am always present in your midst.” (@ 7:16 min. mark).
“I am always next to all those who pray and pray with maternal desire and instinct.” (@8:52 min. mark).
“I’m always next to all those who pray and pray with maternal anxiety and concern.”(@8:56 min. mark)
“Consecration to My Heart is the vaccine that as loving Mother, I give you to keep epidemics of atheism that infects so many of My children, taking them to the death of true spirit.” (@9:07 min. mark)
Video – The Truth is Kept Intact Only in the Catholic Church
At the 9:07 minute mark in the video above you will also see the following:
Once again, the above message is one of many examples that show how precious Catholics are taught that they cannot come directly to Jesus, but must come through the Virgin Mary.
In the video below you will hear the following:
“…a bleeding wound appeared on the right hand of the statue of Our Lady in the chapel. Sister’s guardian angel told her the flowing of blood is significant for the conversion of sinners and in reparation for sins.” (5:55 minute mark)
“According to Sister Sasagawa, the Blessed Virgin wants to gather compassionate souls who can please God by their sufferings.” (7:28 minute mark)
Agnes Sasagawa: “He [God] loves us so deeply. He is trying to save us from the chastisements through Our Lady’s messages.” (7:59 minute mark)
If you listen to the video below, you will come to realize by what this priest says, that the Catholic church clearly teaches that Mary is the dispenser of all graces. In doing so they are, once again, causing many dear Catholics to turn to Mary instead of coming to God through Jesus Christ alone as God’s Word clearly reveals we are to do. (John 14:6) (Acts 4:12) You will also see that they attribute to Mary what only should rightly be the accomplishments of Jesus Christ in the role of our redemption:
“…she gave supernatural life to us at the foot of the cross by acquiring with her Son the graces of our redemption. And her role as mother did not cease after her ascension into heaven but she continues to dispense graces to souls here on earth –all graces. And for this reason we call her ‘The Mediatrix of All Graces.’ So today we invoke her under this title and we ask her to give her all the graces that we need to become the saints that God wants us to be.” (00:58-1:40 minute mark),
In the quick captures below, which are illustrations from the Baltimore Catechism, you will see that it is Mary who is identified as the Dispenser of All Graces:
Here are two videos on this topic from a Biblical perspective. I added many more for you on this topic and others, further below under Related Videos:
In the video below you will hear the following:
“So in today’s gospel where we have Our Lady standing at the foot of the cross…this is from St. John’s gospel…this prophecy of the sword of sorrow comes to fulfillment. The sword of sorrow that will pierce the soul of Our Lady is driven through her soul at the foot of the cross. And thus she becomes the Co-redemptrix with the Redeemer and the mother of the human race. So as she brought forth our Lord at Bethlehem with no pain, so now she brings forth the members of His mystical body in great pain… she gives birth, supernatural life to us poor sinners at the foot of the cross. And we too are called to share in this passion, in this work of redemption….we ask to be incorporated into this mystery of redemption, not in the objective redemption that Our Lady took part in, that is, opening the gates of heaven with her Son, acquiring the graces of redemption, but we’re called to share in the subjective redemption, that is in the distribution of those graces by our prayers, by our sacrifices as Our Lady did, uniting those with Christ on the cross we can become co-redeemers ourself, collaborators in the redemption of others, calling down graces, the graces of the redemption, upon souls who are in need…” (00:53-2:41)
While it is true that Mary indeed experienced deep sorrow as she looked upon her Son, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, as He suffered in agony during the six long hours that He hung on the cross and took upon Himself the sins of the world and the full wrath of God that was intended for us because of our sins, to say that she participated in the work of redemption is completely unbiblical! Nothing can be added — or needs to be added — to the sufferings of Jesus Christ that led to His death which satisfied God’s demand for justice.
The Catholic church has been in the process of petitioning popes — past and present — for quite some time now, desiring to have Mary declared as Co-redemptrix with Jesus Christ:
Mary on the cross with Christ – Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome – source – David Clouds video, entitled ‘Catholicism, Past And Present‘ (see below under Related Videos)
This is why it is so very important for everyone to be born again by the Spirit of God (not through baptism, as taught in Catholicism) so that when we read and study God’s Word we can then come to know the truth by the power of His Holy Spirit, and be able to discern truth from error as soon as we hear something! No matter what is proclaimed through the teachings of the Catholic Church, if it is not in God’s Word and if it conflicts or contradicts God’s Word even in the slightest way, it is not true!
Here is some of what God’s Word says that points to Jesus Christ and to Him alone as bringing about our salvation:
“He [Jesus Christ] came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:11-13) (Insertion added)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:16-18)
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” (John 3:36)
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” (John 5:24)
“Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” (John 10:7-9)
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)
“Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:10-12)
“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” (Acts 16:25-31)
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” (Romans 3:23,24)
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”(Romans 5:1)
“For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.” (Romans 5:6-9)
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.” (Romans 8:1-11)
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” (Romans 10:9,10)
“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13)
“Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” (Galatians 2:16)
“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of God’s grace.” (Ephesians 1:7)
“For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1Thessalonians 5:9)
“For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:3-7)
“By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament. And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.” (Hebrews 7:22-25)
“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” (1 Peter 1:18-21)
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.” (1 Peter 3:18)
“For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:3-7 )
“And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”(1 John 5:11-13)
In the following videos you will hear many attempts made by Catholic clergy and leaders in the Catholic church to justify their reasons for petitioning the pope to have the Virgin Mary proclaimed as Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate –titles that should in no way be given to Mary, for Jesus Christ alone is our Redeemer, our Mediator, and our Advocate with the Father, and before Jesus ascended into heaven He made it known that the Holy Spirit would come and be our Advocate (Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:13,14, 1 Peter 1:18-21, 1 Timothy 2:5, Romans 8:34, Hebrews 7:25, 1 John 2:1, John 14:16,17, 26, John 15:26, John 16:7)!
These are also titles that the entity in many of the apparitions is requesting to be proclaimed by the pope as *dogmas of the Catholic church, *(dogma – a truth that must be divinely revealed, and it must be infallibly defined by the Catholic church as something that has been divinely revealed, and it must be believed as true by all who claim to be Catholic). I will be sharing more detailed information with you in Part 2 to give evidence to the fact that this being who claims to be the Virgin Mary is making requests to have the pope grant her these titles, and that when he does, true peace will come to the world for a time!
Blessed Virgin Mary: Coredemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate
Dr. Miravalle, Professor of Theology and Mariology at the Franciscan University at Steubenville for over 35 years. He may have a lot of credentials, but does everything he says line up with Scripture? Or is he simply trying to insert into Scripture what simply is not there?
In the following video, clergy from many nations and from many churches, including an Anglican church, gather together to present a proposal to declare Mary as Co-Redemptrix, Mediatrix of All Graces, and Advocate of the people of God. Nowhere in Scripture do we see any evidence to support giving Mary such titles which, regardless of what anyone says, truly would and does detract from what only Jesus Christ accomplished for us through His propitiatory sacrifice on the cross, His death, and His glorious resurrection from the dead!
Here are some quotes from previous popes and Catholic leaders concerning the Virgin Mary:
“Who can worthily thank thee and adequately praise thee, O Blessed Virgin, who by thy fiat has saved a lost world.” ~Saint Augustine
“Sinners receive pardon by the intercession of Mary alone.” ~Saint John Chrysostom
“All those who seek Mary’s protection will be saved for all eternity.” ~Pope Benedict XV
“For God has committed to Mary the treasury of all good things, in order that everyone may know that through her are obtained every hope, every grace, and all salvation. For this is his will, that we obtain everything through Mary.” ~Pope Pius IX, Ubi Primum, 1849
“The Church…been accustomed to have recourse to that most ready intercessor, her Mother Mary…For as Saint Irenaeus says, she “has become the cause of salvation for the whole human race.” ~Pope Paul VI Christi Matri
“In every miracle we must recognize the mediation of Mary, through whom, according to God’s will, every grace and blessing comes to us.” ~Pope Benedict XV
“O Mary, the guardian of our peace and the dispensatrix of heavenly graces.” ~Pope Leo XIII, Supremi Apostolatus, 1883
Many of the visionaries who see these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary exhibit unusual spiritual and physical manifestations, many which can be observed in the world of the occult: translike states, levitation, ecstatic falls into sculpture-like positions in which four doctors could not move them, no response when being pricked with pins, having flashlights being directed into their eyes, not being burned when a match was held momentarily against their hand, “walking forward and backwards over rocky terrain with heads tilted back and eyes looking heavenward” as they were drawn to the presence that called them inwardly to the spot where the apparitions took place; all manifestations that defy natural law. Another common occurrence in many of these apparitions is the appearance of an angel to the visionaries announcing that the Virgin Mary would soon be appearing to them, just like what happened at Fatima. In the video below you will discover what took place at Garabandal, Spain in 1961-1965 when the Virgin Mary allegedly appeared to four young girls over 2,000 times and gave them the following messages, and many more, which do not reflect the truth that can be found in the Biblical gospel that shows Jesus Christ’s once for all sacrifice on the cross was sufficient to pay the debt for our sins in full; no more sacrifices are needed!
“You must make many sacrifices, perform much penance, and visit the Blessed Sacrament frequently. But first, you must lead good lives. If you do not, a chastisement will befall you! The cup is already filling up. If you do not change, a very great chastisement will come upon you.”
“You should turn the wrath of God away from yourselves by your efforts. If you ask His forgiveness with sincere hearts, He will pardon you. I, your mother, through the intercession of St. Michael the Archangel, ask you to amend your lives. I love you very much and do not want your condemnation. Pray to us with sincerity and we will grant your requests. You should make more sacrifices. Think about the passion of Jesus.”
At the 3:23 minute mark, it is stated:
“On July 1962 a significant phenomenon took place between Conchita and the Archangel Michael. This miracle was prophesized two weeks in advance. Conchita received a visible communion host on her tongue from the Archangel, witnessed by hundreds of people. This miracle was chosen to call our attention to the reality of the True Presence of Our Lord in the Eucharist.”
While the Catholic church does teach that the bread and the wine literally becomes the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ during the Sacrifice of the Mass (CCC Para 1374), many Christians gave their lives and were burned at the stake rather than to accept that as being true. They knew that to accept this teaching would mean they would not only have to deny the sufficiency of Jesus Christ’s once for all sacrifice, but also they would have to reject the truth revealed in God’s Word that clearly says the following:
“Such a high priest meets our need–one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart for sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.” (Hebrews 7:26,27)
“For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one, he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” (Hebrews 9:24-28)
“Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.” (Hebrews 10:11,12)
Visionary, Conchita Gonzalez, says the following beginning at the 5:29 minute mark:
“Our Lady did not come just for the people in the village of Garabandal, but rather, she came for the whole world; for all of mankind.”(Again, a message that reveals this entity is attempting to reach everyone –no matter what their religion may be).
Garabandal predicts four supernatural events will take place, and the date they are to happen will be revealed to Conchita eight days in advance:
1) A celestial worldwide warning
2) The great miracle – the sick will be cured and unbelievers will be converted
3) a permanent visible sign will appear and remain until the end of time; a sign that can be photographed and televised but cannot be touched
4) A chastisement
Near the end of this video, the narrator, Ricardo Montalban, has the following to say, which again shows that the messages given during these apparitions are attempting to bring about unity because they are not intended just for Catholics, but to reach and to influence all the people in the world, (as you will see in Part 2 of this series).
“She [the Virgin Mary] clearly wanted all of us to know that we are all her children.”
There has been talk for quite some time now of a “New Pentecost” by many Catholic leaders, and it has also been said that the Virgin Mary will be the one to bring this about:
In the video below you will hear Dr. Miravalle say the following starting at the 6:05 minute mark:
“Well now, we need a new Pentecost. How are we going to get a new Pentecost? We’re going to get a New Pentecost by doing proper tribute to the Mother. By proclaiming the truth about the Mother. By giving the Mother a dogmatic crown… Conceive it this way if you’re a visual person. Think of…a dove entrapped in the Immaculate Heart. Think of our Blessed Mother’s heart and think of a cage in the heart. And think of a dove entrapped in the heart. Now of course the Holy Spirit is divine…of course the Holy Spirit can do what He wants, but in the order of providence…in the order how God has arranged it, the Holy Spirit will not descend until the mother is recognized. So in other words, when the Mother is recognized in the proclamation of the dogma…when she is solemnly pronounced as the Spiritual Mother of all Peoples, then and only then, the Holy Spirit will be freed to mediate through her in bringing the graces of redemption and a new redemption to humanity. To bring the grace of a new Pentecost to humanity.”
“Saint Maximilian, again, is so one in this thought. He says, “The Holy Spirit is the source of all graces. Mary is the instrument of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit acts only through the Immaculata…” So, she is the Mediatrix of each and every grace of the H S. That means when you get the dogma, and my friends, it’s not if, it’s when…when the Holy Father makes a proclamation of the dogma…when that takes place, when the Mother is acknowledged, the Holy Spirit, the cage will be opened, the Holy Spirit, the dove will fly out of the Immaculate heart of Mary and historic graces will come upon a church, the world, in need of these graces by the day.”
As I was continuing my research for this post by listening to many different videos over the past month, I discovered the following video awaiting me yesterday on my YouTube channel among the list of recommended videos for me to watch. Dr. Miravalle opens the video by saying the following:
“You and I must start tapping the supernatural power of our guardian angels.”
Whether you listened to all of what Dr. Miravalle had to say or not, the title of the above video alone should raise some red flags concerning the reliability of Dr. Miravalle’s teachings!
It is my prayer that many of you are now coming to realize by the power of the Holy Spirit, as well as by the evidence in this information that I have shared with you so far, that the Virgin Mary is truly being exalted to a position that is nearly — if not completely — equal with Jesus Christ, God in the flesh by the Roman Catholic Church by giving her titles, and petitioning for titles, that rob Jesus Christ of all the glory that is due to Him alone!
Many of these apparitions have been approved by the Catholic Church because the messages do not conflict with Catholic doctrine. However, if the Catholic church were to test these messages solely against Scripture and not by their “Tradition” that they declare must be accepted and honored with equal sentiments and reverence as Scripture is (CCC Para 80,81,82,95), most of the messages would fail to line up with God’s Word, and instead they would completely contradict it!
The Virgin Mary as revealed in Scripture would never seek for such power, position, and authority that is being expressed in these messages given during these apparitions! There is only one who would, and he has been striving to do so — and to be worshiped — since the beginning of time –Satan! (Isaiah 14:12-15) (Matthew 4:8-11)
(TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 2)
RELATED SCRIPTURES
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)
“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” (Ephesians 6:10-13)
“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” (Colossians 2:8)
“Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”
“And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”
“Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye hath delivered: and many such like things do ye.” (Mark 7:7,9,13)
“I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.” (Isaiah 42:8)
RELATED VIDEOS
Thank you very much for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
Welcome to Part 2 in this series concerning the 100 Year Anniversary of the alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary at Fatima in 1917. In this post we will look very closely and carefully at some of the messages given during these apparitions. Not only will we “test the spirits to see if they are from God” (1 Thessalonians 5:21, 1 John 4:1) or not, but also we will then compare these messages to God’s Word, the Bible, to see if what was said in these messages is true or not, as we are shown to do in Acts 17:11
“Now the Bereans were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”
The leadership of the Catholic church bases the validity of the messages given during these apparitions mainly on if they agree or if they contradict the teachings of the Catholic church. However, for those of us who are Bible believing Christians, God’s Word must be our final authority; we must make the choice to believe God’s Word when the words of men or any message contradicts Scripture.
Below are the main messages that were given during these apparitions that took place from May 13, 1917 to October 13, 1917, as well as a little added information, as it is recorded in this little book, entitled, Mother of Christ Crusade. Back in the 1980s shortly after I became a Christian I received this book from my Aunt Lee who was a Catholic nun for many years. Time does not permit me to “test the spirits” and to ‘examine every message given during these alleged apparitions in light of Scripture,’ (Acts 17:11) as I was planning on doing, but I have done some for you, and trust that you will pray for discernment and test all of them against the truth of God’s Word, as we as born-again, Bible believing Christians are always to do when we read any article or book, or listen to a teaching by anyone who claims to be a Christian.
This little book also has been approved by the Catholic church and has the Imprimatur:
James E. Cassidy Bishop of Fall River August 11,1947 Fall River, Mass.
At the back of this book, in part, it says the following:
EXACT TRUTH
This book is written by Sister Lucy and Fr. John de Marchi together. He spent 3 1/2 years in her company gathering all the facts and she carefully verified them in every detail personally.
I shared all of that with you to establish the fact that the information concerning the events that took place has been carefully documented and approved by the Catholic church, so that when you read the following Scriptures and keep them in mind as you read the messages given during these apparitions, you will then have to decide to either believe the truth of God’s Word, or reject it and choose to believe the messages of Fatima; you cannot have it both ways. Jesus Christ paid the debt for all of our sins in full, and there is nothing that we can do to add to what He has already done for us; no further sacrifices are needed!
PRAY FOR DISCERNMENT AND READ THESE SCRIPTURES
“He is not like other high priests; he does not need to offer sacrifices every day, for his own sins first, and then for the sins of the people. He offered one sacrifice, once and for all, when he offered himself.” (Hebrews 7:27)
“When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death so that we may serve the living God!” (Hebrews 9:11-14)
“For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; He entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. Nor did He enter heaven to offer Himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Just as man is destined to die once and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him.” (Hebrews 9:24-28)
“Because Jesus Christ did what God wanted him to do, we are all made clean from sin by the offering that he made of his own body, once and for all.” (Hebrews 10:10)
“For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” (1 Peter 3:18)
“For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe. Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.” (Galatians 3:21-24)
“But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God –not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:8-10)
“This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” (1 John 4:10)
“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of righteous things we have done, but because of His mercy.” (Titus 3:4,5)
“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
“But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.” (2 Corinthians 11:3,4)
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel — which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians 1:6-9)
THE MESSAGES OF FATIMA
Before the apparitions of the Virgin Mary allegedly began to take place in May of 1917 at Fatima, Portugal, the three shepherd children, cousins, Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco, were said to have received visits from an angel who identified himself as the Angel of Peace, and later further identified himself as “the Guardian Angel; the Angel of Portugal.” Here are some portions of these accounts as they are presented in this little book:
1915
“When the sun told them that it was mid-day, they sat down to their lunch, and having finished, began the Rosary as was their custom even at that tender age. During the recitation all of them noticed the sudden appearance of a cloud in form like that of a man, hovering above the foliage of the valley. Like a cloud, whiter than snow, slightly transparent, with a human outline, was Lucia’s description.” (Page 1)
A Year Later
“The rain stopped,” Lucia went on, “and the sun shone brightly, but we spent the day in the cave. We had our lunch and after the Rosary we started to play jacks. We played only for a short while, when a strong wind shook the trees, and made us raise our eyes to see what was happening, for the day was serene. There above the trees toward the East, we began to see a light, whiter than snow. It was the form of a young man, transparent, more brilliant than a crystal pierced by the rays of the sun…” Lucia tried to describe each detail of his appearance. “As he approached, we began to distinguish his features. We were so surprised and half absorbed, and we could not utter one word.
He came near us and said: “Fear not! I am the Angel of Peace. Pray with me!” The angel knelt on the ground and bowed very low. By some inspiration, they imitated him and repeated the words they heard him pronounce: “My God, I believe, I adore, I hope, and I love You. I beg pardon of You for those who do not believe, do not adore, and do not love You.”
He repeated this prayer three times. Then he arose and said: “Pray this way. The Hearts of Jesus and Mary are attentive to the voice of your supplications.” The Angel disappeared and the awareness of the supernatural was so intense that for a long space of time they remained there in the same position in which he left them, unaware of their very existence, repeating that same prayer over and over again.” (Page 2)
Summer – Second Apparition of the Angel
“Meanwhile, the three cousins spent their days playing their games under the inviting shade of the fig trees. When they were tired, they relaxed at the well, under the lacy foliage of the olive and almond trees. It was while resting there, during one early afternoon, that the Angel visited them again. Lucia tells us what happened:
“What are you doing?” The Angel suddenly appeared at their side. “Pray! Pray a great deal! The hearts of Jesus and Mary have designs of mercy for you! Offer unceasingly to the Most High prayers and sacrifices!”
“But how are we to sacrifice ourselves?” Lucia said.
“Offer up everything within your power as a sacrifice to the Lord in an act of reparation for the sins by which He is offended; and of supplication for the conversion of sinners. Thus invoke peace upon our country. I am her Guardian Angel; the Angel of Portugal. Above all, accept and bear with submission the sufferings that the Lord may send you.” (Page 5,7 – picture on Page 6)
Autumn- Third Apparition of the Angel
“Autumn drew near. The children set out with the sheep to the hills for the whole day. They were due for another surprise visit. “We wandered from Pregueira to Lapa, going around the hill by the side of Aljustrel and Casa Velha,” Lucia continued her report. We said the Rosary there and the prayer that the Angel had taught us in the first apparition. Then the Angel appeared to us for the third time. He was holding a chalice in his hand. A Host was over it, from which fell some drops of Blood into the chalice. Leaving the chalice and Host suspended in mid-air, he prostrated himself on the ground, repeating this prayer three times:
“Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, I adore you profoundly, and I offer You the Most Precious Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all tabernacles of the earth, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifferences by which He Himself is offended. And by the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of You the conversion of poor sinners.” (Page 9)
Testing The Spirits
The above message speaks of “the chalice and Host” being “suspended in mid-air.” Would the thrice Holy and one true God use the occult practice of levitation, as shown in this apparition of the angel? I think not!
Examining the Message in Light of Scripture
It is not my intention to offend any Catholic who may be reading this, but as a former Catholic I must also point out that even though it is Catholic doctrine to “offer God the Most Precious Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ present in all the tabernacles of the earth in reparation for the outrages, etc…,” it is blasphemy because it denies Jesus Christ’s “once for all” sacrifice; a statement that is repeated over and over in God’s Word (as shown in the Scriptures that I added further above) to emphasize the truth of that fact. If you will take the time to read John Chapter 5:16-47 – John 6:1-69 (so that you read these verses in context) and ask God to show you the truth concerning Jesus’ words about ‘eating His flesh and drinking His blood,‘ your eyes will be opened to see the truth by His Holy Spirit, just as mine were as I took the time to search the Scriptures in a Catholic New Testament that I had been given and tested what I had been taught as a Catholic against the truth of God’s Word.
Here are the main verses that I would like to share with you:
“I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24)
“You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent. You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” (John 5:38-40)
“Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “from now on give us this bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”(John 6:32-35)
“Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth; unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.” He said this while teaching in the synagogue, at Capernaum.
On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching; who can accept it?” Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of man ascend to where he was before! The spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing; the words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.” (John 6:53-63)
Continuing on with the angel’s message:
“The Angel then arose, and holding the chalice and the Host again, he gave the Host to Lucia, and the contents or the chalice to Jacinta and Francisco, while he said: “Take and drink the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, horribly outraged by ungrateful men. Make reparation for their crimes and console your God.” He prostrated himself again on the ground and again repeated with the children three times the prayer: “Most Holy Trinity…” Then he disappeared.
The three of them remained kneeling on the ground for a long while, repeating over and over again the inspired, heart-stirring prayer of the Angel.” (Page 9-11)
I already addressed the angel’s words concerning the “Body and Blood of Jesus Christ,” but there’s one more thing that I would like to point out concerning “the Host” before we briefly look at the prayer that the angel taught the children of Fatima:
As I was doing some research during the time that I wrote Part 2 of my testimony, I discovered that the word ‘host’ actually means “sacrificial victim.” I will share this information for you again here:
Definition of victim on – thefreedictionary.com: “A living creature slain and offered as a sacrifice during a religious rite.”
But God’s Word says Jesus was never a ‘victim’; He gave His life willingly and only once:
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd is willing to die for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. As the Father knows me and I know the Father, in the same way I know my sheep and they know me. And I am willing to die for them.” (John 10:11,14,15)
“The Father loves me because I am willing to give up my life, in order that I may receive it back again. No one takes my life away from me. I give it up of my own free will.” (John 10:17,18)
“In order to set us free from this present evil age, Christ gave Himself for our sins, in obedience to the will of our God and Father.” (Galatians 1:4)
“For the blood of bulls and goats can never take sins away. For this reason, when Christ was about to come into the world, he said to God: “You do not want sacrifices and offerings, but you have prepared a body for me. You are not pleased with animals burned whole on the altar, or with sacrifices to take away sins. Then I said, ‘Here I am, God, to do what you want me to do, just as it is written of me in the book of the Law.” (Hebrews 10:5-7)
Now let’s take a moment and go back to the angel’s prayer and test it against Scripture mainly because of the fact that he repeated it over and over, thus teaching the children to do the same, which is a pagan, occultic practice that is done which can put one’s mind in an altered state of consciousness and leaving it opened to be manipulated by man, or even by demonic spirits, as many who have previously been involved in the world of the occult can attest to.
God’s Word says:
“But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” (Matthew 6:7,8)
May 13, 1917 First Alleged Apparition of the Virgin Mary
“On Sunday, the thirteenth of May, in the year 1917, during the midst of the First World War, God sent to earth the loveliest flower of the ages, His own beautiful Mother, Mary, whom we address as Queen of the May. “Fear not!” the Lady said, “I will not harm you.” “Where are you from?” Lucia made bold to ask. “I am from Heaven,” the beautiful Lady replied, gently raising her hand towards the distant horizons. “What do you want of me?” Lucia humbly asked. “I came to ask you to come here for six consecutive months, on the thirteenth day, at this same hour. I will tell you later who I am and what I want.” (Page 24,27, 28) (Emphasis in purple added)
You may now be asking the same question that I once asked while I was doing research as I wrote Part 2 of my testimony a few years ago, which was, “Who is the Queen of the May?”
But first, a little background:
In Roman Catholicism, the month of May is always dedicated to Mary. During this time there is what’s called a ‘May crowning,’ where there is a procession of children walking into church, and a girl would be chosen to place a crown of flowers upon the head of the statue of Mary. Many songs are sung about Mary and to Mary.
Now to answer the question: “Who is the Queen of the May?” You may find this information as disturbing as I did when I first found it:
“The May Queen or Queen of May…a mythical figure and as a personification of the holiday and of Springtime…”
“Today the May Queen is a girl who must ride or walk at the front of a parade for May Day celebrations. She wears a white gown to symbolise purity and usually a tiara or crown.”
“She is generally crowned by flowers and makes a speech before the dancing begins.”
“According to popular British folklore,the tradition once had a sinister twist, in that the May Queen was put to death once the festivities were over.”
“…frequent associations between May Day rituals, the occult, and human sacrifice are still to be found in popular culture today.”
In the ‘quick capture’ above it says the following:
“The earliest May Day celebrations appeared in pre-Christian times, with the festival of Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, and the Walpurgis Night celebrations of the Germanic countries. It is also associated with the Gaelic Beltane. Many pagan celebrations were abandoned or Christianized during the process of conversion in Europe. A more secular version of May Day continues to be observed in Europe and America. In this form May Day may be best known for its tradition of dancing the maypole dance and crowning of the Queen of the May.” In the Roman Catholic tradition, May is observed as Mary’s month, and in these circles May Day is usually in celebration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In this connection, in works of art, school skits, and so forth, Mary’s head will often be adorned with flowers in a May crowning.”
Oftentimeswhen Mary is crowned, the ‘Maypole dance’ is done that day, as well. The Maypole dance actually has its roots in paganism. It is a pagan celebration called ‘Beltane’ — ‘Celebrating the Fertility of Spring.’ This is how one site describes — ‘How To Celebrate Beltane with a Maypole Dance’
“The pole was erected on the village green or common, or even a handy field–thrust into the ground either permanently or a temporary basis–and brightly colored ribbons attached to it. Young people came and danced around the pole, each holding the end of the ribbon. As they wove in and out, men going one way and women the other, it created a sleeve of sorts — the enveloping womb of the earth — around the pole. By the time they were done, the Maypole was nearly invisible beneath the sheath of ribbon.” SOURCE
After reading all of the above information, one of the many questions that every Catholic should be asking themselves right now is:
“Why is the Virgin Mary being given the same title as that of a pagan goddess –Queen of the May?”
Examining the Alleged Apparition of the Virgin Mary Part 2
“Two girls who used to come to her house to learn sewing from her sisters had recently died. Lucia wanted to find out about them too. “And Maria do Rosario, daughter of Jose’ das Neves, is she in Heaven?”
“Yes,” the Lady replied.
“And Amelia?” “She is still in Purgatory.” Lucia’s eyes filled with tears. How sad, that her friend Amelia was suffering in the fires of Purgatory. Then the Lady said to the children: “Do you want to offer yourselves to God to endure all the sufferings that He may choose to send you, as an act of reparation for the sins by which He is offended and as a supplication for the conversion of sinners?” Promptly Lucia responded for all three. “Yes, we want to.” (Page 29,30)
Is the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory Biblical?
Testing the Spirits:
Did Jesus Christ’s once for all sacrifice on the cross leave some punishment still due for sin as the Catholic church teaches? (Catechism of the Catholic Church Para 1030-1032 and 1472)
God’s Word says:
“Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, Saying, blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.” (Romans 4:4-8)
“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.” ( Colossians 1:12-14)
“Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” (Hebrews 1:3)
“Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.” (1 Peter 1:1-9)
“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:5-9)
PRAYERFULLY CONSIDER WATCHING THESE VIDEOS WHEN TIME ALLOWS
It is my prayer that all of this information will cause every precious Catholic who reads this post to begin reading a Bible and testing everything that they have been taught in light of Scripture and come to the knowledge of the true Biblical gospel.
Now back to testing the rest of the messages against Scripture:
June 13, 1917 Second Alleged Apparition of the Virgin Mary
“Lucia raised her eyes towards the skies, as if in prayer, and was heard to say, “You told me to come here today. What do you want me to do?”
Our Lady: “I want you to come here on the thirteenth of next month. Say the Rosary inserting between the mysteries the following ejaculation — “O My Jesus. Forgive us. Save us from the fires of Hell. Bring all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need.’ I want you to learn to read and write, and later I will tell you what else I want.”
Lucia: “I would like to ask you also to take us to Heaven!”
“Yes,” Our Lady answered. “I will take Jacinta and Francisco soon. You, however, are to stay here a longer time. Jesus wants to use you to make me known and loved. He wants to establish the Devotion to my Immaculate Heart in the World. I promise salvation to those who embrace it and their souls will be loved by God as flowers placed by myself to adorn His throne.”
Lucia: “Am I going to stay here alone?”
Our Lady: “No, my daughter. Does this cause you to suffer a great deal? I will never leave you, my Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God.”
Testing the spirits:
1) The message above implies that Mary is omnipresent; she says what only God Himself has said.
2) God alone is our refuge, not Mary.
3) Jesus alone can lead us to God
God’s Word says:
1) “And the LORD, he [it is] that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.” (Deuteronomy 31:8)
“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you; and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world, Amen.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
“Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” (Hebrews 13:5)
2) “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” (Psalm 18:2)
“For You have been a defense for the helpless, A defense for the needy in his distress, A refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; For the breath of the ruthless Is like a rain storm against a wall.” (Isaiah 25:4)
“O LORD, my strength and my stronghold, And my refuge in the day of distress, To You the nations will come From the ends of the earth and say, “Our fathers have inherited nothing but falsehood, Futility and things of no profit.” (Jeremiah 16:19)
3) “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” (John 10:9)
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)
“It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Jesus is “ ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:11,12)
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (1 Timothy 2:5,6)
Final Portion of Message Given During Second Alleged Apparition of the Virgin Mary
“There was a heart before the palm of the right hand of Our Lady, with thorns piercing it. We understood that this was the Immaculate Heart of Mary, so offended by the sins of mankind, desiring reparation.” (Page 51-53)
July 13, 1917 Third Alleged Apparition of the Virgin Mary
“…Lucia, looking up towards Our Lady, her eyes filled with loving devotion, asked, “What do you want of me?”
“I want you to return here on the thirteenth of next month,” the Lady said. “Continue to say the Rosary every day in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary to obtain peace for the world and the end of the war; for she alone can save it.”
“Continue to come here every month. In October I will say who I am and what I desire and I will perform a miracle all shall see so that they believe.” “Sacrifice yourselves for sinners; and say often, especially when you make some sacrifice: ‘My Jesus, it is for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.’
As Our Lady said these words, Lucia later described the scenes: “She opened her hands again as she had done the two previous months. The light reflecting from them seemed to penetrate into the earth, and we saw as if into a sea of fire, and immersed in that fire were devils and souls with human form…” Frightened, deathly pale, the little ones raised their eyes to Our Lady for help as Lucia cried out, “Oh,…Our Lady!”
Our Lady explained: “You have seen Hell– where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them God wants to establish throughout the world the devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If people will do what I will tell you, many souls will be saved, and there will be peace. The war is going to end. But if they do not stop offending God, another and worse war will break out in the reign of Pius XI . When you see a night illuminated by an unknown light, know that it is the great sign that God gives you, that He is going to punish the world for its crimes by means of war, hunger, persecution of the Church and of the Holy Father [the pope]. To forestall this, I shall come to ask the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart and the Communion of Reparation on the First Saturdays. If they heed my request Russia will be converted, and there will be peace. If not, she shall spread her 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 annihilated; in the end my Immaculate Heart shall triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, which will be converted, and some time of peace will be given to the world. In Portugal, the dogma of the faith will be kept always. Do not tell this to anyone. To Francisco, yes, you may tell it.”
Lucia: “Don’t you want anything else from me?” “No; today I desire nothing else from you.”
August 13, 1917 Fourth Alleged Apparition of the Virgin Mary
“When it became known that the Magistrate had kidnapped them [the three shepherd children], a terrible resentment went through the crowd. There is no telling what it might have turned into, had it not thundered just then. Right after the thunder came a flash, and immediately we all noticed a little cloud, very white, beautiful and bright, that came and stayed over the holmoak. It stayed a few minutes, then rose towards the heavens where it disappeared. Looking about we noticed a strange sight that we had already seen and would see again. Everyone’s face glowed, rose, red, blue, all the colours of the rainbow. The trees seemed to have no branches or leaves but were all covered with flowers; every leaf was a flower. The ground was in little squares each one a different colour. Our clothes seemed to be transformed also into the colours of the rainbow. The two vigil lanterns hanging from the arch over the holy spot appeared to be of gold. When the signs disappeared, the people seemed to realize that Our Lady had come and, not finding the children, had returned to Heaven.” (Page 87,88)
Sept. 13, 1917 Fifth Alleged Apparition of the Virgin Mary
“Another day, while pasturing their sheep, they found a piece of rope. Playfully, Lucia tied it around her arm and soon discovered that it hurt. “Look, this hurts! We could tie this around our body for another sacrifice.” The rope was thick and very rough. They cut it in three pieces and tied it around their waists. The sharp pain it caused was difficult to endure, especially for little Jacinta. Lucia suggested that she take it off, but Jacinta insisted she keep it on. She would willingly endure any sacrifice to save sinners from hell. They even wore the rope to bed. This prevented them from getting the rest they needed and Our Lady spoke about it in her next visit.
“What do you want of me?” Lucia spoke very humbly.
“Let the people continue to say the Rosary every day to obtain the end of the war.” Our Lady responded, at the same time renewing the promises she made during her last apparition. “In the last month, in October, I shall perform a miracle so that all may believe in my apparitions. If they had not taken you to the village, the miracle would have been greater. Saint Joseph will come with the Baby Jesus to give peace to the world. Our Lord also will come to bless the people. Besides Our Lady of the Rosary and Our Lady of Sorrows will come. God is pleased with your sacrifices but does not wish that you sleep with the rope. Wear it only during the day.”
“The people would very much like to have a chapel built here.” Lucia suggested.
“Our Lady: “Use half of the money received so far for the litters. On one of them, place the statue of Our Lady of the Rosary. The other half should be set aside to help with the building of the chapel.”
Lucia: “Many people say that I am a swindler who should be hanged or burned. Please perform a miracle for all to believe.”
Our Lady: “Yes, in October I will perform a miracle so that all m[a]y believe.” (Pages 106,111,112)
October 13, 1917 Sixth Apparition – Miracle of the Sun
“Silence, silence, Our Lady is coming,” Lucia cries out as she saw the flash. The rain having ceased, the sun began gradually to appear, and Our Lady came. The faces of the three children assumed an unworldly expression, their features becoming more delicate, their color mellow, their eyes intent upon the Lady. They did not hear Lucia’s mother warning her to look closely so as not to be deceived.
“What do you want of me?” Lucia inquired of the Queen of Heaven.
“I want to tell you that they must build a chapel here in my honor; that I am the Lady of the Rosary; that they continue to say the Rosary every day. The was will end and the soldiers will return to their homes soon, ” Our Lady responded.
Lucia:”I have many favors to ask. Do you wish to grant them or not?”
Our Lady:”Some I will, others I will not! They must mend their lives, ask forgiveness for their sins. Offend not our Lord any more,” Our Lady continued, her face becoming very grave, “For He is already much offended.”
“Do you want anything else from me?” the girl asked.
“I desire nothing else.” Our Lady took leave of the children, she opened her hands which emitted a flood of light. While she was rising she pointed towards the sun and the light gleaming from her hands brightened the sun itself. ”
“There she goes; there she goes!” shouted Lucia…”
“The sun was now pale as the moon. To the left of the sun, Saint Joseph appeared holding in his left arm, the Child Jesus. Saint Joseph emerged from the bright clouds only to his chest, sufficient to allow him to raise his right hand and make, together with the Child Jesus, the Sign of the Cross three times over the world. As Saint Joseph did this, Our Lady stood in all her brilliancy to the right of the sun, dressed in the blue and white robes of Our Lady of the Rosary.” Meanwhile Francisco and Jacinta were bathed in the marvelous colours and signs of the sun, and Lucia was privileged to gaze upon Our Lord dressed in red as the Divine Redeemer blessing the world, as Our Lady had foretold. Like Saint Joseph, He was seen only from His chest up. Beside Him stood Our Lady, dressed now in the purple robes of Our Lady of Sorrows, but without the sword. Finally, the Blessed Virgin appeared again to Lucia in all her ethereal brightness, clothed in the simple brown robes of Mount Carmel.”
A Few Of Many Eye Witness Accounts Of The Miracle Of The Sun
“We could look at the sun with ease.” Ti Marto testified; “It did not bother at all. It seemed to be continually fading and glowing in one fashion, then another. It threw shafts of light one way and another painting everything in different colors, the people, the trees, the earth, even the air. But the greatest proof of the miracle was the fact that the sun did not bother the eyes.” At a certain point the sun stopped its play of light and then started dancing. It stopped once more and again started dancing until it seemed to loosen itself from the skies and fall upon the people. It was a moment of terrible suspense.”
Maria da Capelinha: “The sun cast different colours, yellow, blue, and white. It trembled constantly. It looked like a revolving ball of fire falling upon the people.”
As the sun hurled itself towards the earth in a mighty zig-zag motion, the multitude cried out in terror, “Ai Jesus, we are all going to die here; Ai Jesus we are all going to die here.”
Some people begged for mercy, Our Lady save us; many others made acts of contrition. One lady was even confessing her sins aloud. At last the sun swerved back to its orbit and rested in the sky.” (Pages 128-131)
We will take a much closer look at this event known as “the Miracle of the Sun” as we briefly look at some more of these alleged Apparitions of the Virgin Mary in light of Scripture in the near future –Lord willing.
Let’s continue on with what some are presently saying concerning the alleged Apparitions of the Virgin Mary at Fatima back in 1917:
I am sure that many of you are aware of Rick Warren’s PEACE PLAN, but are you aware of the fact that Fatima is said to be Heaven’s Peace Plan? Here are some quotes that you will hear in the video further below by a well known Catholic apologist and others:
Gregory Hesse: “She gave very simple and clear instruction. I cannot possibly understand how it would ever be a problem for a pope. She said, “The Holy Father must consecrate Russia to my Immaculate Heart together with the bishops of the world.” (13:02-13:18 minute mark)
Gerry Matatics: “There is absolutely zero possibility of true and lasting world peace apart from this demand being obeyed exactly according to God’s strict letter… God is very clear about it in the Bible…when He gives a covenant, when He gives a command, He wants it obeyed in just that way, and He will not let us substitute.”
“If someone says, “It’s too hard for me to get that, it’s too inconvenient. How about this instead?” You can’t…you can’t bargain with God…And so, unless we do exactly what God has requested, no… there’s no possibility of this at all. There must be submission to the Queen Mother in order there to be submission to her Son. Again we honor Mary, we honor Jesus –it’s a package deal.”(14:58-15:53 minute mark)
Narrator: “But is conversion of an entire nation actually possible? Today Mexico is largely a Catholic society because of a miracle that took place there in 1531. In what is now known as the town of Guadalupe, the Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego and requested that a church be built there in her honor. The ultimate credence was given to his story when he removed his cloak before the local bishop and the inside of his cloak bore this miraculous image of the Virgin herself. The Catholic missionaries had been trying to reach the Aztec people of the region for years without any success, but upon simply seeing this image they were immediately converted. So many were converted that the priests of Guadalupe could do nothing but baptize new converts from morning till night for ten years. If this is the power that Our Lady’s image is capable of, then how can we deny that it may be possible to convert all of Russia, or even eventually –the entire world.”(19:06-20:33 minute mark)
It is very disturbing to see and to hear how many are attributing to Mary the power to bring about peace in our world. There will be no peace until Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace returns to this earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords! What is even more disturbing is the statement that was made by the narrator in the video above, in which he said:
“The Catholic missionaries had been trying to reach the Aztec people of the region for years without any success, but upon simply seeing this image they were immediately converted. So many were converted that the priests of Guadalupe could do nothing but baptize new converts from morning till night for ten years.”
First of all, God’s Word makes it clear that it is the gospel that is the power unto salvation.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” Romans 1:16,17)
If people are converting to a religion — Catholicism — because of an image that they see, this is not true conversion! Sadly, these people are still separated from God because of their sins! They need to hear the true Biblical gospel; that Jesus Christ, fully God and fully man, willingly came to this earth and lived the perfect, sinless life that we could never live, to become the perfect sacrifice for our sins. They need to understand the amazingly good news that Jesus Christ bore all of our sins and guilt upon His body on the cross, suffered and died in our place, and gloriously arose from the dead on the third day. They need to come to realize that through Jesus Christ they can then come before a Holy God:
“He was delivered over to death for our sins and raised to life for our justification.” (Romans 4:25)
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” (Romans 5:1,2)
Another thing that I would like to bring to your attention concerning the narrator’s statement about the conversion of thousands of people due to viewing the image upon Juan Diego’s cloak, are his final and chilling words:
“If this is the power that Our Lady’s image is capable of, then how can we deny that it may be possible to convert all of Russia, or even eventually –the entire world.”
As we continue through this series on the Apparitions of the Virgin Mary it will become very clear to you that when they speak of conversion, it is not to Christianity. The messages that are given to the visionaries during these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary are completely in line with Catholic doctrine, and yet embrace all of humanity. The goal is unity: Not only is the goal to convert Russia, but also to convert the entire world –to Catholicism, by the means of these apparitions and deceptive messages and signs and wonders in the sky. Please do not be deceived!
It is not widely known, but last year on May 4, 2016, another so-called ‘miracle of the sun‘ took place in Ourem, Portugal. This is the same area where the three shepherd children were taken captive back in 1917 by the Magistrate of the country who threatened to kill them if they did not reveal the secrets that were said to have been given to them by the Virgin Mary during the apparitions.
TRANSLATION; INFORMATION EXACTLY AS FOUND UNDER VIDEO:
Published on May 10, 2016
More than a hundred faithful attended yesterday in Orem to what they say is a new sun miracle when they accompanied the pereglina image of Our Lady of Fatima in its passage by the parish
the phenomenon lasted for more than a quarter of an hour and was noticed when the bier with pereglina image of Our Lady of Fatima that is to traverse the diocese leave the church in Orem toward Caxarias
I began to see everyone looks at the sun everyone looks at the sun and I of course, I also see I had no doubt, more expectable thing
and I saw the sun spins dizzily with extreme speed I had never seen and the sun was surrounded by a circumference a blue aurea and then it was a big circle. shall we say, but it was not even red, even, orange, orange, and always the sun to spin and spin and spin
as if it were a slice, a sun round, a round sun, and the return of the sun stood a glare so red, then was yellow
report, wanting to talk moved and no explanation for what happened, the faithful regard as a divine sign, un message of Our Lady
NSS would like to travel and ….
q thought was a lot, do not know
I was a bit excited and thought it clalhar is a high manifestation a manifestation of the divine, I think so, I’m sure because I have faith, and much faith in NSS fátima
q I think yes, I me we were to live a little that a little
the phenomenon occurs a week periguinação that marks the first aparicção NSS to three shepherd children and it was devalued by armindo pastor January, who said he had not seen anything special in the sunshine but who saw, not talk about something else.
sun miracle during a procession with the pilgrim image of Our Lady of Fatima in Ourem – Portugal.
Is this a prelude of what is to come? Will something take place on May 13, 2017 during the 100 year anniversary of these alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary as some modern day visionaries have said in messages supposedly transmitted to them by the Virgin Mary, Jesus Christ, and even Joseph, who was the husband of Mary? (More on that in an upcoming post –Lord willing). One thing is certain. If something does happen, it will not be by the hand of the one true and completely Holy God of the Bible! We have many warnings throughout God’s Word about spiritual deception in the last days Here are just a few of them:
“And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.” (Matthew 24:3-7)
“And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said, As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them. But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by. Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.” (Luke 21:5-11)
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)
Will you be one of the many who will choose not to receive the love of the truth so that you might be saved; will you sadly be one of the many who will reject the truth and therefore God will turn you over so that you will end up believing the lie –whatever the lie may be? I pray not!
In the book of Jeremiah we see the worship of the queen of heaven, and God was clearly provoked to anger by what they were doing:
“Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to other gods, that they may provoke me to anger. Do they provoke me to anger? saith the LORD: do they not provoke themselves to the confusion of their own faces?” (Jeremiah 7:17-19)
“Then all the men which knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying, As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil. But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine. And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men?
Then Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to all the people which had given him that answer, saying, The incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the LORD remember them, and came it not into his mind? So that the LORD could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day. Because ye have burned incense, and because ye have sinned against the LORD, and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies; therefore this evil is happened unto you, as at this day.
Moreover Jeremiah said unto all the people, and to all the women, Hear the word of the LORD, all Judah that are in the land of Egypt: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying; Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and fulfilled with your hand, saying, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her: ye will surely accomplish your vows, and surely perform your vows.
Therefore hear ye the word of the LORD, all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt; Behold, I have sworn by my great name, saith the LORD, that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, The Lord GOD liveth. Behold, I will watch over them for evil, and not for good: and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine, until there be an end of them. Yet a small number that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, and all the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose words shall stand, mine, or theirs. And this shall be a sign unto you, saith the LORD, that I will punish you in this place, that ye may know that my words shall surely stand against you for evil: Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will give Pharaohhophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of them that seek his life; as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, his enemy, and that sought his life. ” (Jeremiah 44:15-30)
IN CLOSING
As I previously pointed out to you in this post through the Scriptures that I shared with you, God’s Word makes it very clear that there will be spiritual deception and many convincing, but lying signs and wonders in the last days. Therefore, we must make sure that we are not led astray by anything that may captivate us emotionally, such as these apparitions.
Many Catholics, as well as some of other faiths, believe that it is truly the Virgin Mary who is appearing to visionaries around the world. They also say that God is using her in these days of turmoil and violence to bring about peace to our troubled world. In the first video in this post, Fatima Heaven’s Peace Plan, it is made abundantly clear that many Catholics believe that it is God who has requested that Russia be consecrated to the Virgin Mary’s immaculate heart, and that this is the key to bringing about world peace.
Sadly, many Catholic leaders — past and present — such as Louis de Montfort, point precious Catholics to Mary, instead of to Jesus Christ, by teaching things such as this:
WHY APPARITIONS?
Why would God send Mary into the world through apparitions, when He has already sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh into the world, and revealed to us all that we need to know? It is only through Jesus Christ that we find true peace. Do not be deceived!
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” (John 3:16,17)
“God, WHO at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” (Hebrews 1:1-3)
God’s Word reveals very little to us about the Virgin Mary, but by what is recorded for us we see that she was very humble, and that in spite of how she would be looked upon by others, she completely submitted to the will of God and gave birth to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
“And the angel said unto her, Fear not Mary: For thou hast found favor with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy things which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:30-35)
With these things in mind, it is evident that she would never have given some of the messages that were said to have been given during the apparitions at Fatima, because, as you have seen, many of them clearly contradict the Word of God.
Turn to God through Jesus Christ: He is the only way to God, the only name under heaven by which we can be saved, and the only Mediator between God and men. (John 14:6, Acts 4:12, 1 Timothy 2:5,6)
Do not be deceived by these apparitions or by the teachings and traditions of men!
“Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias [Isaiah] prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” (Matthew 15:6-9)
“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” (Colossians 2:8,9)
RELATED INFORMATION
These are the three shepherd children who allegedly saw the apparitions of the Virgin Mary – Jacinta Marto, age 7, Lucia Santos, age 10, and Francisco Marto, age 9:
It has been said that over 70,000 people showed up in Fatima, Portugal on October 13, 1917 and witnessed what came to be known as the ‘Miracle of the Sun.’ (Lord willing, in the near future we will be taking a close look at what took place during this event in the next series of posts which will be on the many alleged Apparitions of the Virgin Mary).
The shrine that was built in Fatima, Portugal in honor of the Virgin Mary upon her supposed request given in a message during one of her alleged apparitions:
Our Lady of Fatima statue carried in procession at Fatima, Portugal:
Chapel of the Apparitions – Located in the middle of the sanctuary exactly where the Marian apparitions are said to have taken place:
Source of pictures – Congressional Library – Search words – Congressional Library Apparitions of Fatima Pictures
RELATED SCRIPTURES
“I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.” (Isaiah 42:8)
“Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.” (Exodus 20:3,4)
“Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake. Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God? But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat. They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them. O Israel, trust thou in the LORD: he is their help and their shield. O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield. Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.” (Psalm 115:1-11)
“The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not; They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths. They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them. Bless the LORD, O house of Israel: bless the LORD, O house of Aaron: Bless the LORD, O house of Levi: ye that fear the LORD, bless the LORD. Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, which dwelleth at Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.” (Psalm 135:15-21)
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)
“But he [Jesus] answered and said to them, An evil and adulteress generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:39,40)
“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17)
“And without faith it is impossible to please God; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
“For you know what was paid to set you free from the worthless manner of life you received from your ancestors. It was not something that loses its value, such as silver or gold; you were set free by the costly sacrifice of Christ, who was like a lamb without defect or spot.” (1 Peter 1:18,19)
“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:13)
“Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD will never count against him.” (Romans 4:7,8)
RELATED VIDEOS
Sunday October 13, 2013 – Pope Francis consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary:
Thank you very much for stopping by and taking time our of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
Welcome to another post in the series of posts that I have entitled, Warning You With Tears Wednesdays. Lord willing, at least once a month on Wednesdays I will be writing and sharing one of these posts with you so that I can make you all aware of some important information that I come across on the Internet that you may not have heard about. Since I knew that I would soon be starting a new part-time job (and I did in June) and that my free time would then be somewhat limited, I was trying to think of something that I could write on a regular basis that would be short and to the point (at least that was my intention). And since I am a detective-at-heart and desire to make you all aware of the importance of testing things that pastors and teachers say (and do) in light of Scripture (Acts 17:11), the idea to do these posts — as well as the name — came to my mind in November of 2014, based on Acts 20:26-31:
“For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.”
So with all of that in mind, here is what I’d like to share with you in today’s WARNING YOU WITH TEARS WEDNESDAY:
There have been so many Bible versions coming out that have caused many of us who are Bible believing Christians to cringe and to be horrified by how God’s Word has been altered. And now Glenn Chatfield, who writes atTHE WATCHMAN’S BAGPIPES, shares with us about the latest version that’s perfect for those who are “lovers of self” (2 Timothy 3:2), and you can read about itHERE. While you’re there, please take some time to read through the many very good articles that he has written. He exposes false teachings and also addresses “discernment issues as they relate to the current state of society and the church.”
Speaking of being horrified, the more we learn about what takes place behind closed doors concerning Planned Parenthood, the clearer it becomes that not only are the hearts of all people hard and sinful — some more harder and more sinful than others — but also it becomes evident of the truth declared in God’s Word that everyone is in need of a Savior –Jesus Christ. HERE is the latest heart-wrenching information from LifeSite News.
Berean Research also revealed more information to us that was just released yesterday concerning Planned Parenthood which I happened to see posted on Facebook this morning: THIS ARTICLEwhich reports a story of “sheer evil” gives more solid evidence that in the eyes of some, the value of human life is reduced simply to dollar $ign$.
I hope and pray that after reading these horrific stories, that you will be moved to earnestly pray and speak out for the precious lives of the unborn as THESE people and many others are doing.
The lie that women are often, if not always told when they walk into an abortion clinic, is: “It’s just a clump of tissue.” To destroy that lie, below you will see one of many pictures that a woman took of one of the two precious babies that she miscarried; one at just seven weeks, and the other at eight weeks. Truly we are fearfully and wonderfully made by our Creator (Psalm 139):
You can see more of Mindy Raelynne Danison’s amazing pictures HERE.
Are you a “Christ follower” or a “Christian.” Berean Research shows us of the very important distinction that is being made these days between the two, and how many are out to destroy Christianity in THIS article. (When time allows, please consider reading the many White Paper research articles on Berean Research’s website that are filled with very helpful information on topics such as Contemplative Prayer, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, the New Age Movement, and much more).
In the following article, Roger Oakland, of UNDERSTAND THE TIMES, shares with us the top ten ways the church is being led astray and down the: PATHWAY OF APOSTASY When time allows, please consider reading more of his many good articles in which he makes us as Christians aware of what is taking place within Christianity today and how many are being lured into mysticism which directs many people down the road that leads to Rome.
Speaking of apostasy, yesterday, Tuesday August 26, ’15, Glenn Chatfield of The Watchman’s Bagpipes shared in his post how he and his wife are among the many of us who have sadly watched the downward spiral of James MacDonald of Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows. You can read about itHERE
I’ll end this post with something that will bring God the glory that He is so deserving of:
Here’s a time lapse video from Dakotalapse that will truly show you the amazing beauty of God’s creation:
If you’d like, you can watch more beautiful Dakotalapse videos on YouTubeHERE
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” (Psalm 19:1-4)
Desiring for God to use all that I have been through in life, I decided to start my first blog, living4hisglory.wordpress.com, in order to write poems about some of those experiences to bring glory to God, as well as to share them with others with the hope of encouraging those of you who have been broken and shattered by life's circumstances and hurt by those who were supposed to have loved you rather than abuse you in some way.
Also, because of some pastors and teachers today who seem to be abandoning Biblical Christianity and instead seem to be either seeking to build their own empires and promoting their own agendas, and at times even leading the people in their churches into unbiblical, 'mystical practices' without some people even realizing it, I saw the importance and necessity to begin writing poems and posts in order to inform Christians, as well as to make Christians realize the extreme importance of testing what people say (who claim to speak for God) against the truth of God's Word, (Acts 17:11) so that they will not be deceived. It has never been -- nor shall it ever be -- my intention to bash any particular pastor or teacher; my sole purpose in bringing attention to false teachings is to make Christians realize that we are to be followers of Jesus Christ, and not to be followers of any man (or woman) and his (or her) ministry. I hope that you will be blessed -- as well as challenged -- by the things that I write.
NOTE: COMMENTS ON ALL POSTS CLOSE ONE MONTH AFTER THEY ARE PUBLISHED.
Thank you for stopping by and taking time to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary - Living4HisGlory
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Mary K. Dalke and Living4HisGlory Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
NOTE: Any adds that may be displayed on my blog have not been chosen or approved by me; I can't even see any adds that WordPress chooses to post here.
Desiring for God to use all that I have been through in life, I decided to start my first blog, living4hisglory.wordpress.com, in order to write poems about some of those experiences to bring glory to God, as well as to share them with others with the hope of encouraging those of you who have been broken and shattered by life's circumstances and hurt by those who were supposed to have loved you rather than abuse you in some way.
Also, because of some pastors and teachers today who seem to be abandoning Biblical Christianity and instead seem to be either seeking to build their own empires and promoting their own agendas, and at times even leading the people in their churches into unbiblical, 'mystical practices' without some people even realizing it, I saw the importance and necessity to begin writing poems and posts in order to inform Christians, as well as to make Christians realize the extreme importance of testing what people say (who claim to speak for God) against the truth of God's Word, (Acts 17:11) so that they will not be deceived. It has never been -- nor shall it ever be -- my intention to bash any particular pastor or teacher; my sole purpose in bringing attention to false teachings is to make Christians realize that we are to be followers of Jesus Christ, and not to be followers of any man (or woman) and his (or her) ministry. I hope that you will be blessed -- as well as challenged -- by the things that I write.
NOTE: COMMENTS ON ALL POSTS CLOSE ONE MONTH AFTER THEY ARE PUBLISHED.
Thank you for stopping by and taking time to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary - Living4HisGlory
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Mary K. Dalke and Living4HisGlory Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
NOTE: Any adds that may be displayed on my blog have not been chosen or approved by me; I can't even see any adds that WordPress chooses to post here.
Mary Dalke - Living4HisGlory
Living4HisGlory 