Feast of St. John Bosco - May He Protect Christian Education

Torch of The Faith News on Saturday 31 January 2015 - 13:34:40 | by admin

Come, children, hearken to me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord (Offertory. Ps.33. St. John Bosco - 31st January, Traditional Missal).

We are blessed at present to be looking after a first-class relic of the great St. John Bosco. He was a remarkable priest, educator and religious founder in 19th-Century Italy. St. John Bosco helped many young people to convert from sin, escape from poverty and find their true vocations on the way to Heaven. The Lord blessed him with gifts of miracle-working, prophecy and wisdom. These gifts assisted the saint in his work and defended him from the onslaughts of the devil and his minions. 

St. John Bosco is a marvellous saint to pray to in these times when young people are under so much attack through atheistic secularism, drugs, gender ideology, faulty education systems, pornographic 'culture' and violence.  

Christian parents and teachers in the UK find themselves facing increasingly open persecution for bringing up children to follow Christ. Only this week, it emerged that two Christian schools, in the north-east of England, had been 'downgraded,' following an Ofsted inspection to monitor 'tolerance' and the imposition of 'British Values'. This bodes ill in light of new Ofsted rules, introduced late last year, which could lead to faith-schools even being closed if they were deemed to be 'intolerant' of homosexuality or other beliefs. Illogical, isn't it, that people who view themselves as so 'tolerant' of others, will resort to closing down anyone who does not agree with them? 

Durham Free School, a school shaped by Christian Values, is seeking professional advice following an Ofsted inspection and downgrade. The school has also posted many positive parental testimonials on its website to counter the negative judgement it has received from Ofsted, secularists and the media.  

Grindon Hall Christian School has also been downgraded following a similar Ofsted inspection. This has occurred in spite of the fact that the Grindon Hall school has the best A-level results for any school in its area. GCSE results were also much higher than the national average; 68% of Grindon Hall's students attained grades between A - C, compared to a national average of 53.4%.

Anyone who cares about children would be disturbed to hear that inspectors were asking pupils, as young as 10 and 11, the following: whether they feel comfortable in their own body; if they knew any lesbians; if they knew what lesbians 'do'; if their parents had any 'gay' friends. Naturally, at least one of the children was very distressed by exposure to such intrusive questions from adult strangers. Good grief, such people would have been prosecuted for grooming kids just a few short years ago. 

Chris Gray, the Principal at Grindon Hall Christian School, stated to Christian Concern: 'Ofsted's approach to us was negative at every stage, as if the data collected had to fit a predetermined outcome.' He also pointed out that the questions inspectors asked the children, made clear that the inspection team understood a 'balanced curriculum' as one which forced pupils to take part in non-Christian festivals; something which would breach the Christian foundation of the school. 

Most Catholic schools in England have been so denuded of Catholic content, in terms of faith and morals, that it will be interesting to see whether any Catholic schools, or the costly 'Catholic' Education Service (CES) receive similar treatment from Ofsted. 

In any case, the government - overlooking the fact that the parents of these children are tax-payers and have inherent rights as primary educators of their own children - is clearly ramping up its enforcement of the dictatorship of relativism and homosexualist ideology; agendas which nobody - outside of the few MPs - in this country even voted for. 

Ah, the new 'tolerance'! Persecution cometh... 

May St. John Bosco - Pray for us!

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Back to the Future - A Pastoral Plan for Modern Times

Torch of The Faith News on Friday 30 January 2015 - 10:41:19 | by admin

As the news breaks that Pope Francis approved the October Synod's hugely problematic Relatio post disceptationem before it was published - the document which Bishop Athanasius Schneider described as representing 'a radical neo-pagan ideology' - it is perhaps worth recalling an earlier pope with a rather different pastoral plan.

This coming November will mark the 800th anniversary of a Church council which marked an important stage in the development of pastoral praxis. We speak, of course, of the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215.

In his conciliar summons, written a couple of years earlier, Pope Innocent III set forth the outline for the programme of pastoral planning. Looking back from 2015, it is apparent just how applicable Pope Innocent's pastoral programme would be in meeting the crisis faced by the Church and society today and in the times ahead of us.

In April 1213, Pope Innocent described to the bishops the purposes of the forthcoming pastoral council in the following terms: 'To eradicate vices and plant virtues, to correct faults and reform morals, to remove heresies and strengthen faith, to settle discords and establish peace, to get rid of oppression and foster liberty, to induce princes and Christian people to succour the Holy Land.' 

Wow, Lateran IV - It's just so 2015!

Perhaps we need to get Back to the Future!  

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Priests and Laity Defend the Sacrament of Marriage

Torch of The Faith News on Thursday 29 January 2015 - 11:09:00 | by admin

We've now heard that the majority of the 80 lay groups, who were gathered in Rome last week to provide input for the 2015 Synod, spoke out in favour of retaining the traditional teaching of the Church on marriage. Although it would not have made any difference to the objective truth if only a minority had defended the Faith - the Church has received the truth from God and is not a democracy - this news nevertheless provides further colour to the responses of Cardinal Baldisseri, which we highlighted here on Monday. The Eponymous Flower has an interesting and thought-provoking caption entitled: ''Cardinals Kasper, Baldisseri and the agenda of Pope Francis: Listen to the laity, but silence them if they do not say what you want?'' How similar such a model would appear to the manipulations which emerged at the 2014 Synod. 

It is splendid to hear about so many lay people standing up to affirm the true faith. Today we are also delighted to note the organized defence of the sacrament of marriage gradually emerging among the clergy.

Several days ago we read Msgr. Charles Pope's article, entitled 'A Lowly Pastor Comments on Troubling Developments in the Divorce Debate,' at the blog of the Archdiocese of Washington. Reflecting on the new theories being advanced by influential bishops and theologians, Msgr. Pope stated: ''Please remember to pray diligently for the Church in this hour. If any age is ill-equipped to teach on marriage, family and sexuality, it is ours. The Church cannot afford to take cues from a confused and darkened culture. Jesus must always be our light, He and none other, speaking through Scripture and Tradition. Pray!''       

The good monsignor also drew attention to a necessity, which we would say is as urgent as it is practical: ''Frankly, I think it is going to be necessary to develop a mechanism through which ordinary priests like me can weigh in together with our strong belief that the Church's teaching and discipline in this matter must be upheld unchanged.'' 

Such a mechanism would certainly be a great encouragement to priests throughout the world who have been discouraged and disoriented by the strategy of the revolutionary Kasperites.

The urgent need to implement this idea is underscored by the fact that Cardinal Baldisseri has described this period between the two synods as ''the most important time.'' 

To speak plainly, it is clear to anyone not still slumbering into their cornflakes that we are being played by those manipulating the synod. These Modernists are highly organized and efficient. Having first seized the 'choke-points' of education, seminary formation, diocesan curia, and now even the highest seats of power in Rome, after many decades, they have finally arrived ''down the road,'' and are rapidly outflanking the remaining decent and honest Catholic cardinals, bishops, priests and laity with their doctrine-dissolving, end-game. The real problem is that the decent and honest ones are too frequently naive or afraid to rock the boat. More often, they have been bullied and broken into silence by those trying to subvert the Church's nature and mission from within. This has allowed evil to take over and thrive in many places over a prolonged period of time.

It is heartening therefore to read Fr. Tim Finigan's article yesterday.

Fr. Tim announced that the British Province of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy had published a statement called Marriage in the Teaching of the Catholic Church. Fr. Tim describes this statement as a good summary of Catholic doctrine concerning marriage. He adds: ''Ordinarily it might be considered simply a workmanlike pastoral document for sharing, to avoid different priests having to compose their own text. In the present circumstances, it has the character of a courageous statement of what we've always believed and continue to believe, despite the efforts of some to undermine Catholic teaching or compromise with the values of the world.''

Here is the actual text:

Marriage in the Teaching of the Catholic Church

Marriage was instituted by God, not invented by man (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n.1603). The Creator has built it into human nature, even into the human body, in its two complementary forms, male and female. 'Male and female He created them' (Gen 1:27): man for woman, and woman for man, united in marriage as 'one flesh' for the procreation of new life: 'Be fruitful and multiply ' (Gen 1:28).

God has given marriage its essential characteristics and proper laws: unity (one man married to one woman); indissolubility (nothing but death can end a marriage); and openness to procreation (in every act of physical love). No president or religious leader, no senate or synod, nor any government has the authority to re-define marriage. 

Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Son of God, raised marriage to the dignity of a Sacrament. The marriage of a Christian man and woman is a sacramental sign of His union with His Church (cf. Eph.5:32). Since the union of Christ with His bride, the Church, cannot be dissolved, no power on earth, not even the Pope himself, can dissolve the valid sacramental marriage, once consumated, of a Christian man and woman. 'Those whom God has joined together, let no man put asunder' (Matt 19:6).

The Church's discipline is built upon the doctrine of the Faith, and gives practical expression to it. To introduce a discipline at odds with a doctrine thus implicity undermines the doctrine. The discipline of not admitting to the Sacraments, divorcees who have entered into a subsequent civil 'marriage' follows directly from the doctrine of Marriage and the Eucharist as the Church has received it from Christ and His apostles. Unless an anulment has recognized the invalidity of the original marriage, then the state of life of divorced and 'remarried' Catholics objectively contradicts the union of love between Christ and the Church signified and effected by the Eucharist' (Pope St. John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio, n.180). However sorrowful for their sins they may be, the divorced and 'remarried' remain 'one flesh' (cf. Gen.2:24; Matt.19:5) with their original and only spouses. Therefore, their second 'marriages' cannot participate in the one flesh union of Christ and His Church that is signified and effected by the Eucharist.

In the absence of a clear appreciation of marriage and the true meaning of human sexuality, a number of associated moral challenges have arisen. Amongst these is the growth of widespread homosexual activity and the promotion of such behaviour. The Church teaches, as She has always taught, that homosexual activity is gravely sinful, as it distorts one of the most sacred and fundamental dimensions of human life. Even the inclination towards homosexual activity is 'objectively disordered (CDF 1986) in the sense that such a sexual inclination, with its associated tendencies, feelings and expressions, is not properly directed to spousal union, marriage and procreation. The Church, of course, welcomes all human beings created in God's image, who by His grace have the power to renounce their sins, live a chaste life and become saints. But the Church cannot bless, or tolerate, sin in any form, nor structures and lifestyles that encourage or promote sin, disorder and temptation. 

The Church in so many ways reaches out to those broken and hurt by the breakdown of marriage in our society and by the widespread confusion about what it means to be male and female. No-one is turned away. The first mercy and true compassion is offering to sinners the truth of Christ as the light by which to live. The greatest help for those who struggle is to point out with charity the way of Christ, the only way conducive to virtue and true joy. 

The Church has nothing, can do nothing, is nothing, without Christ, Her Head and Bridegroom. She is the servant of the Word of God (cf. Dei Verbum, n.10). Her pastors therefore have no power whatever to change what He taught about the nature and goods of marriage and have the duty to promote and defend that truth for the good of every person and society.

With this kind of clarity - the type Catholics were accustomed to receiving from Rome prior to the present papacy - it makes you wish these priests were running the synod. Well, let's face it, some of them would likely have been bishops had a Modernist and anti-Catholic clique not seized power within the local Church in recent decades. We all know priests, seminarians and former seminarians who have been undermined, sidelined and even openly persecuted for upholding the teachings of the Magisterium in dioceses throughout England. Indeed, we have also met such men from America, Germany, Holland and Ireland. As Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen warned, this problem is supranational - it is legion! 

The wolves are no longer circling the hen house, they have now taken over and are greedily licking their lips. Friends, it is the hour to stop clucking and get going on some organized and effective squarking! The time to 'keep your head down and try and do some good until things get better' - as well-meaning priests used to tell orthodox priests and seminarians - is long past. Better to stand now and prevent a diabolical schism happening later. May God bless the priests of the Confraternity in Britain - together with all faithful priests struggling through these times - and uphold them in the difficult days ahead.

St. John Vianney - Pray for us!       

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Bishop Olivera Doeme of Maiduguri: All of North Eastern Nigeria Could Fall to Violent Islamists

Torch of The Faith News on Wednesday 28 January 2015 - 21:17:38 | by admin

Bishop Olivera Doeme, of Maiduguri in Nigeria, has warned that the entire north eastern region of his country could fall to the violent Boko Haram Islamists, if Western assistance is not forthcoming.

''We find ourselves in a very dangerous and difficult moment,'' he explained to the Fides news agency. ''We risk seeing Boko Haram conquer the entire north east before the end of the election (14th Feb), unless foreign troops intervene.''

Following their recent attack on Baga - in which up to 2,000 people were slaughtered - Boko Haram has captured the city of Monguno and is attacking Maiduguri, a city of 1.2 million people. The bishop has also lamented to Aid to the Church in Need about the deaths of at least 1,000 Christians and the destruction of church structures in the region.

Please pray for the Nigerian bishops and their people in the midst of these grave dangers.    

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Je Suis Pro-Life - 45,000 Join March for Life 2015 in Paris

Torch of The Faith News on Tuesday 27 January 2015 - 14:48:58 | by admin

Although mainstream media in France have suggested that only 'several thousand' attended La Marche Pour La Vie 2015, in Paris at the weekend, the organizers suggest that as many as 45,000 may have been present.

Marchers were encouraged this year by the presence of Cardinal Philippe Barbarin of Lyons among the marchers. A further fourteen French bishops were also in attendance. As with the March for Life in Washington D.C., last week, Pope Francis sent words of support; these were read out by Archbishop Ventura, the papal nuncio to France.

As well as protesting against French abortion laws, which facilitate the destruction of around 200,000 babies every single year, the marchers this year were standing up against President Hollande's attempts to bring in new euthanasia laws. 

Many marchers carried black balloons as a sign of mourning for all those who had been killed under anti-life legislation. Others toted banners announcing ''Je Suis Vincent Lambert.'' This was to give public support to a gentleman who has been in a coma since a road- traffic-accident in 2008. His life had been threatened by some of his family members and doctors who wished to remove his life-support-system. The highest administrative court in France had ruled that his life-support would be removed last summer. However, Monsieur Lambert's parents are devout Catholics, and they appealed to the European Court of Human Rights. Madame Lambert, Vincent's mother, was one of those leading the march through the streets of Paris on Sunday. Many French people are worried about the Hollande government's push for euthanasia and the social consequences this will lead to.

Organizers of the march in Paris noticed a similar phenomenon to those working over in Washington D.C.; a predominance of teenagers and young adults in the vast march demonstrated the fact that pro-life support is growing and it is getting younger. This can only be good news.

St. Catherine Laboure - Pray for us! 

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Bald Heresy at Marriage Conference in Rome?

Torch of The Faith News on Monday 26 January 2015 - 13:14:03 | by admin

Voice of the Family has warned that Cardinal Baldisseri, the general secretary of the Rome Synod on marriage and family, has further undermined the Church's teaching on the indissolubility of marriage. Before reading Voice of the Family's full article below, it is worth reflecting on these summarized teachings from two great popes. Firstly, Pope St. Pius X.    

And then Pope Pius XI.

The report from Voice of the Family follows:-

'Cardinal Baldiserri furthers confusion, says pro-family coalition

Rome, 25th January 2015: Comments made by Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri have further undermined Church teaching on the indissolubility of marriage says Voice of the Family, an international coalition of pro-family groups. 

An international conference, organized by the Pontifical Council for the Family from 22-24 January, was addressed by Cardinal Baldisseri, organiser of the upcoming Synod on the Family. The expressed purpose of the conference was to provide opportunity for 80 lay groups to assist the PCF provide input into the synod to be held in October 2015.

Baldisseri defended the right of Walter Cardinal Kasper to assert that divorced persons living in unions not recognised by the Church should be admitted to receive Holy Communion. Baldisseri, in response to a concerned pro-family advocate, told delegates that we should not be ''shocked'' by theologians contradicting Church teaching. The cardinal said that dogmas can evolve and that there would be no point holding a Synod if we were simply to repeat what had always been said. He also suggested that just because a particular understanding was held 2,000 years ago does not mean that it cannot be challenged.

Patrick Buckley, international envoy for the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, commented: ''The Church teaching on the indissolubility of marriage is founded on the words of Jesus Christ. These words may have been spoken 2,000 years ago but for Catholics they remain nothing other than the unchanging commands of God.'' 

Maria Madise, Director of Voice of the Family, said: ''Cardinal Baldisseri publicly corrected a delegate who protested about attacks on Catholic teaching. It was noticeable that he refused to do the same when the Church's teaching on contraception was denied a few minutes later by a different delegate. The impression given is that the only sin today is to uphold what the Church has always taught.'' 

Madise continued: ''Everything seemed up for discussion at this conference, including questions already clearly resolved by the Magisterium of the Church. Such discussion detracts from the task of finding real solutions to the problems faced by real families. Grave evils such as abortion, euthanasia and attacks on parental rights scarcely featured in discussions. These are some of the key issues also omitted from the final report of the 2014 Synod. Suffering families are not assisted by the sophistry of professional dissenters, whether clerical or lay.''

Voice of the Family urges everyone to join us in prayer for a clear reaffirmation of Catholic teaching on marriage and family in any outcome document to be produced by the Pontifical Council following this conference.''

We at Torch of The Faith share the deep concerns expressed in this press-release from Voice of the Family. It is worth remembering that Our Lady of Good Success of Quito, in a series of Church-approved apparitions and prophecies during the 16th-Century, warned that Freemasonry would make a major attack on the Church, marriage, morals and society.

Our Lady foretold that, shortly after the middle of the 20th Century, Masonry would be reigning and a great spiritual catastrophe would engulf the Church. The Blessed Virgin promised that, at the point when all seemed lost, She would intervene and rescue the Church.

If you hope to remain on the winning side, you may like to join us in praying the Special Novena to Our Lady of Good Success, which is presently under way. More details can be found at the Tradition in Action website.   

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Msgr Gilles Wach: ''Isn't it time to rediscover the work of St. Francis de Sales?''

Torch of The Faith News on Sunday 25 January 2015 - 12:16:14 | by admin

The great St. Francis de Sales is the protector of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest (ICKSP). The Solemnity of his feast this week will be honoured today with Sung Mass at the Shrine Church of Ss Peter, Paul and Philomena. A plenary indulgence may be gained there today under the usual conditions (Confession, Communion and Prayer for the Holy Father). After Mass, the relics of St. Francis de Sales will be venerated. There will also be a social following in the hall.

Msgr. Gilles Wach, Founder and Prior General of the ICKSP, wrote an encouraging and timely message about St. Francis de Sales to mark the start of this new year. We reproduce a part of it below for your edification.  

''Our contemporaries have a pressing need to see authentic Christians: Christians who know how to bring them Christ's charity.

Isn't it time to rediscover the work of St. Francis de Sales? He was so concerned for souls, and he knew how to find the words, the gestures, the methods, that can bring our neighbour back to God. He was very close to sinners, victims of the devil's tricks, and while he was always quite preoccupied by this issue, he avoided falling into subjectivism. He is a model for us during these difficult times. He helps us really to live our motto: Veritatem Facientes in Caritate (Proclaiming the Truth in Love).

With St. Francis de Sales, with his beautiful spirituality, and above all with the help of the Immaculate Conception, let us work to diffuse ever more around us the love of God, and thus to send back to hell all of these demons who should never have left it in the first place!

Happy and Holy New Year in the Hope of Our Lord.'' (Anno Domini 2015: New Year Message of Msgr. Gilles Wach, Prior General, ICKSP).

St. Francis de Sales - Ora Pro Nobis! 

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Equality and Diversity - Rather Like What You Used to Hear About Communist Countries...

Torch of The Faith News on Saturday 24 January 2015 - 12:01:44 | by admin

You may have heard by now about Richard Page, the 68-year-old Justice of the Peace, who was subjected to a reprimand, suspension from duties and a day of 're-education'.

During a family tribunal court last summer, Mr. Page, who is an Evangelical Christian, raised questions with other judges about what was best for the child, when it was suggested that a child should be placed with a pair of homosexuals. Not only did the other judges disagree with Mr. Page, but they complained about his views. A review committee agreed with the complaint, recommended that he be kicked off the judiciary and suspended him from the bench.

The Lord Chancellor and the Chief Justice decided to reprimand Mr. Page and order him to attend a day-long session of 're-education'. 

Anyone with an inkling of understanding about faith, reason, morality, authentic freedom, or even social history will be gravely concerned to hear that Mr. Page was deemed to have a closed mind due to his holding of Christian beliefs. The Lord Chancellor and Chief Justice considered the influence of religious beliefs over 'evidence' as an example of 'serious misconduct'.

Of his day's re-education, Mr. Page has told LifeSiteNews: 'It was quite interesting. Rather like what you used to hear about Communist countries, all about equality and diversity.'

Andrea Williams of Christian Concern commented: 'Richard Page is accused of being prejudiced on account of his Christian faith. Ironically, closer inspection of this case reveals that the real discriminatory prejudice is that practiced by those who would prioritise the placing of this child with a same-sex couple, not on the basis of evidence but on the basis of ideology.'

This all calls to mind a compulsory one-day-course, on 'Equality and Diversity,' that Angeline had to attend, a few years ago, as a requirement of employment.

During the day a video was shown promoting homosexualist ideology. The same video included dramatized work-place situations and stories to enforce its ideological message. 

One of these dramatizations included a blasphemy of Our Blessed Lord's Holy Name, and a brief mockery of Christians; who it was suggested were a hindrance to the holiday list with all their Christian festivals. 

So much for equality and diversity!

Angeline did complain about these matters to her boss when she returned to the workplace. The boss was sympathetic, but no action was ever taken.

We got more of an insight into the background of that particular course when we held up the certificate of attendance to the light, and discovered a background watermark depicting a pentagram...

As we've said so often, once the Natural and Divine Law are denied, the pursuit of truth and charity give way to the enforcement of ideology. May Our Lord and Our Lady protect us all. 

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Vast Crowds Attend March for Life 2015 in Washington D.C.

Torch of The Faith News on Friday 23 January 2015 - 12:28:33 | by admin

EWTN's Teresa Tomeo estimated that around 500,000 pro-lifers turned out yesterday to support the 42nd Annual March for Life, in Washington D.C. She admitted that this was only a 'guesstimate,' and some other reporters suggested that the numbers may have actually exceeded the record 650,000 who marched in 2013.

The march is held every year to mark and protest against the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court to 'legalize' abortion in the fateful Roe v Wade case. Since then over 57.5 million babies have been killed by abortion in the U.S.A. Presently 1.1 million babies are being destroyed by surgical abortion in America every single year. That equates to 1/5 of all known pregnancies in that nation.

This year's march received an opening benediction from Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky. As ever, the Catholic Church was very well represented at the march, with leadership shown by cardinals, archbishops and bishops. Countless parish priests also led their communities in the public pro-life witness, whilst scores of Catholic institutions of prayer, learning and healthcare were also present. Franciscan University of Steubenville was particularly well represented again this year, with Fr. Sean O. Sheridan, TOR, leading around 800 of the community of priests, faculty and students to Washington; after first praying in a Holy Hour for Life at the campus chapel. His Holiness, Pope Francis, also sent a tweet message from Rome in support of the march's 2015 theme: 'Every Child is a Gift.'

Although the mainstream media has traditionally ignored or downplayed the march over the years, the sheer volume of pro-lifers sending out information via social media has forced a change in this regard.

As during last year's march, it was heartening to read that there were a number of Traditional Latin Masses offered in churches around the city. Bishop Thomas Paprocki, of Springfield Illinois, again offered a Pontifical Mass, which was followed by a young adults' social, organized by Juventutum Michigan.

This year's march has been noteworthy due to the large proportion of young people in attendance. As March for Life chairman, Patrick Kelly, observed in his speech: ''When I look out on this enormous crowd, I see a tide turning in America. March for Life is getting bigger and younger every year.'' Thousands of young representatives from Students for Life chanted: ''We are the pro-life generation!'' When their president, Kristen Hawkins, a mother of four, asked the crowd if their generation would be the one to stop abortion, she was answered by thousands of young adults shouting, ''Yes!''

We thank God for this large demonstration of pro-life activisim and pray that our culture will again come to accept every life as a gift - and a gift from God at that!

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The Hard Bread of Trials Can Bring Growth

Torch of The Faith News on Thursday 22 January 2015 - 12:39:13 | by admin

Many sincere Catholics are struggling against discouragement in light of events happening in the Church and the world. In these times, one even hears good and faithful people asking for prayers that they will persevere in faith. 

As is so often the case, the great St. Padre Pio has left some words of wisdom which some readers may find encouraging today:

''In order to attract us, the Lord grants us many graces that we believe can easily obtain Heaven for us. We do not know, however, that in order to grow, we need hard bread: the cross, humiliation, trials and denials.''

The events of our times can indeed be unsettling and even disconcerting. Still, let us never forget that God is always in charge and that His grace is always sufficient. He is the one Who guarantees that our faith is not in vain. God never wills evil, but He can - and does - draw a greater good from it. We each have the opportunity to draw benefit from the hard bread of these times, by proving our love for Christ and His Church. Growth may come through co-operation with God's grace expressed in acts of faith, hope and charity. In all things, let us keep the eyes of our hearts focused on Christ and His Blessed Mother.

St. Paul also reminds us: 'And we know that to them that love God, all things work together unto good, to such as, according to His purpose, are called to be saints' (Romans 8:28).

Keep the Faith!  

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