Unity Publishing - More Dangerous Than Any False
Apparition
Rick Salbato's writing is in black
font, mine is in red
font.
NOTE: From this point, I will
ignore any reference Rick makes to alleged personal
indiscretions of visionaries, Franciscans or whoever.
This is clearly not relevant to a discussion on the
validity of Mdjugorje and, when looked at in the big
picture, don't help Rick's cause in condemning Medjugorje
ahead of the Catholic Church.
PROPHESY
A major test of any apparition is "Prophesy".
Almost all true apparitions of God have some short-term
prophesies and some of long duration. Never will God
ask us to believe a prophesy without first proving the
prophet with a short-term prophesy that has already
come true.
In Fatima twenty-nine of the thirty prophecies have
already come to pass: the two children's early death,
Communism, the miracle of the sun, the end of World
War I, World War II, the fall of Russian Communism,
etc. Since only God sees the future, it is one way He
proves the authenticity of the seer. God cannot make
mistakes, therefore, the prophecies must be 100% correct.
How about Medjugorje?
On July 3, 1981, the "Virgin" promises a
sign.
"It will be permanent...It will not be possible
to annihilate it...It will be visible for everybody."
August 27, 1981: "It will come soon."
August 29, 1981: "A little more patience."
Later...."It will be on December 8, 1981."
Later...."It will be on Christmas."
Later...."It will be January 1982."
It is now 1996 and there is still no sign. Prophets?
I have no record of the visionaries
EVER saying that the sign will be on Christmas 1981
or January 1981. For a full list of all messages to
the visionaries between 1981 and 1982, please click
here.
The date and description of the
sign was finally entrusted to the visionaries around
April or May 1982. The visionaries wanted to put the
date and description of the sign in a sealed envelop
and place it in the archives. To this suggestion to
the Virgin on 6 May 1982, she responded:
"No! I have entrusted
that only to you. You will unveil it, when I will
tell you. Many persons will not believe you, I know,
and you will suffer very much for it. But you will
endure everything and you will finally be the happiest."
I feel for the poor visionaries.
Mirjana and Jakov were concerned because the people
were treating them like liars. They asked Our Lady to
leave a sign for the people. "My angels do not
be afraid of injustices. They have always existed."
Here, Mary is saying essentially that people can believe
what they want to believe and that she is not going
to pander to the "doubting Thomases". They
asked the Virgin about the sign very regularly and they
appear to have been taking turns asking, possibly to
avoid the Gospa becoming annoyed with the same question.
And, as can be seen from my more accurate and complete
list below, Mary repeatedly asked them to be patient.
Notice the Virgin's comment on
October 22 and 28, 1981 regarding smaller signs witnessed
by many. It's as if she feels our impatience and sends
many small miracles to bolster the faith of people until
the big sign comes. Many of these smaller signs have
continued until today.
The following is a more accurate
and complete list of what the Virgin has said regarding
the sign:
- June 25, 1981. Mirjana asked
if Our Lady would give them a sign, so that others
would believe them. Mirjana believed she had received
a sign, when the Gospa smiled.
- June 27, 1981. Mirjana and
Jakov were concerned because the people were treating
them like liars. They asked Our Lady to leave a sign
for the people. "My angels do not be afraid of
injustices. They have always existed."
- June 28, 1981. Once again
the visionaries asked for a sign, so that the people
would not think of them as liars. They only received
a smile from Our Lady as She told them good-bye and
disappeared. "Go in the peace of God."
- July 1, 1981. Again the visionaries
ask the Gospa for a sign. Our Lady appeared to nod
Her head. "Good-bye, my dear angels."
- July 21, 1981. Our Lady arrived:
"Praise be Jesus." The visionaries asked
again for a sign and the Gospa said yes. They asked
how long She would continue to visit them. "My
sweet angels, even if I were to leave the sign, many
people will not believe. Many people will only come
here and bow down, but people must be converted and
do penance."
- July 27, 1981. Once again
the visionaries asked about the sign. "Wait,
it will be soon. I will appear to you again at 11:15
p.m. Go in the peace of God."
- August 25, 1981. "On
the matter of the sign, you do not have to become
impatient for the day will come."
- August 27, 1981. On this day
the visionaries again asked something regarding the
sign. "Very soon, I promise you. Be strong and
courageous."
- August 29, 1981. Ivanka asks
if a sign will be left soon. "Again, a little
patience."
- August 30, 1981. Jakov asks
about the sign. "Again, a little patience."
- September 3, 1981. Jakov
asked, when the sign would be announced. "Again,
a little patience."
- September 4, 1981.Ivan asks,
when Our Lady will leave the sign. "The sign
will be given at the end of the apparitions."
- September 6, 1981. "Pray
especially on Sunday, so that the great sign, the
gift of God may come.
- September 7, 1981. "Be
converted all of you, who are still there. The sign
will come, when you will be converted."
- September 16, 1981. "The
militia will not stay here a long time. I will leave
the sign. Be patient still.
- October 12, 1981. When will
the sign be left? "I will not yet leave the sign.
I shall continue to appear."
- October 17, 1981. On the sign:
"It is mine to realize the promise. With respect
to the faithful, have them pray and believe firmly."
- October 22, 1981. Many saw
the cross transform itself into a light and then into
a silhouette of Our Lady. "All of these signs
are designed to strengthen your faith until I leave
you the visible and permanent sign."
- October 26, 1981. "Praised
be Jesus. You are not to ask me any more questions
on the subject of the sign. Do not be afraid, it will
surely appear. I carry out my promises. As far as
you are concerned, pray, persevere in prayer."
- October 28, 1981. Regarding
the fire that hundreds of people saw that burned but
did not consume anything. "The fire, seen by
the faithful, was of a supernatural character. It
is one of the signs, a forerunner of the great sign."
- January 21, 1982. Again the
visionaries ask about the sign. "The sign will
appear at the desired time."
- May 6, 1982. Concerning putting
the date and description of the sign in a sealed envelop
and putting it in the archives: "No! I have entrusted
that only to you. You will unveil it when I will tell
you. Many persons will not believe you, I know, and
you will suffer very much for it. But you will endure
everything and you will finally be the happiest."
I don't know where Rick got his
test criteria from. It is my understanding that the
norms for discernment are as follows:
- The first norm for evaluating
miraculous events is that there be moral certainty,
or at least great probability, that something miraculous
has occurred. The commission may interview the visionaries,
call other witnesses, visit the site of the events.
- The second norm deals with
the personal qualities of the subjects who claim to
have had the apparition; they must be mentally sound,
honest, sincere, of upright conduct, obedient to ecclesiastical
authorities, able to return to the normal practices
of the faith (such as participation in communal worship,
reception of the sacraments).
- A third category deals with
the content of the revelation or message: it must
be theologically acceptable and morally sound and
free of error.
- The fourth positive criterion
is that the apparition must result in positive spiritual
assets which endure (prayer, conversion, increase
of charity).
There is no mention of prophesy.
And furthermore, I don't know where it is written that
"Never will God ask us to believe a prophesy without
first proving the prophet with a short-term prophesy
that has already come true". Is this in the canon?
Regardless, there HAS
been a prophesy of a sign that has come true at Medjugorje:
August 6, 1982. The feast of
the Transfiguration. That night, after the apparition,
two luminary signs in the form of rays of light were
displayed on the Cross-at Krizevac and on the Church.
Ivan and the group of young people had been praying
on the hill of Bijakovici. Before the sign
appeared, Our Lady said: "Now I am
going to give you a sign in order to strengthen your
faith." Many members of the prayer group saw this
sign.
It has been clear to most believers
that this is the Virgin's final push to save mankind.
She has been appearing for over 25 years to date. The
visionaries themselves asked her "Why have you
been here so long?". Mary apparently smiled and
said "Are you tired of me already?". Now,
we also know from the visionaries that the 8th secret
has been mitigated because of prayers and sacrifices
of the faithful who have listened to and obeyed Mary's
messages (Note: Apparently, if Rick has his way, all
the faithful will cease these important prayers and
sacrifices). We can deduce from all this that Mary is
pleading before God, with the help of prayers and sacrifices
from the faithful, to have mercy on the world.
FIDELITY
According to the Bible and Catholic Doctrine we must
be obedient to our superiors in all things except sin.
And yet, we are asked to believe that the Virgin Mary
advocates that we disobey the Bishop of Medjugorje.
Again and again, throughout the years of the apparition,
this "Lady" would have us believe that it
is all right for the two suspended priests to disobey
the Bishop. This alone would be enough to declare the
apparitions to be false on grounds of Fidelity to Doctrine,
but this is not the most important point. The most important
point [and this seems to be the main reason for this
false apparition] is pluralism.
Again, very clever use of "Bishop
of Medjugorje" to paint a picture of disobedience
in general to the Catholic Church. Please do not be
deceived. To clear up any doubts regarding the occurrences
with local Bishops, please read the folowing articles
to get familiar with the true story behind the rumour
and to see why it might be possible that a couple of
the visionaries might wish to keep information from
the Bishop:
Remember that it is only disobedience
if the messages are not from God. Our first duty is
to God. Many prophets before Jesus Christ were killed
for saying unpopular things at the behest of God. Jesus
Himself could have said "Father, I have to be obedient
to the Pharisees and therefore I cannot pick corn or
heal people on the Sabbath". God intended to create
a new covenant and Jesus was to be obedient to the Father
in bringing this to pass. That was His only agenda.
The following passage is taken
from http://www.medjugorje.hr/eviktor.html
The Herzegovinian bishops
often stressed obedience as the supreme principle
of conduct within the Church. In practise however,
they themselves at times, did not adhere to this principle
but rather when it suited them. When Bishop Zanic,
for instance, came to Mostar as the Assistant Bishop
he immediately embarked on convincing the Herzegovinian
Franciscans to disobey their lawful Provincial ?li,
with the intention of better achieving his aims. He
did not succeed in this. When he took over the diocese
that is in 1988, a group of Franciscans did not accept
transfers, which had been assigned them by the Provincial
administration. Bishop Zanic backed them up in their
refusal. He even forbid in writing that they be transferred!
They who were disobedient were allowed to keep their
jurisdiction and Canon mission yet he refused to issue
these to those who were lawfully, pursuant to decision
of the Provincial administration, to succeed them.
This same practise was continued by the bishop's successor,
Bishop Ratko Peric.
The Herzegovinian bishops
demanded that the Franciscans hand over parishes which
belonged to them in accordance with the Decrees of
1967 and 1975, yet he continually refused to take
over the parishes of Glavatievo and Nevesinje, which
were assigned to him in the Decree of 1923, and which
the Franciscans had been offering for quite a while.
The bishops were not prepared to implement the Decree
of 1975 in its literal sense. The Franciscans offered
Bishop ani that upon carving up the monastic Franciscan
parish in Humac he found new secular parishes in Zvirii-Bijaa
and Crveni Grm as determined in the Decree of 1975.
Nevertheless he refused this and demanded that the
heart of this same parish - Ljubu?i and Radi?i and
that he be allowed to found a new secular parish in
these towns even though this is the one thing that
was explicitly forbidden in the 1975 Decree! Bishop
Peri at all costs demanded that he be given Mostar
and apljina yet he refused to take over the parishes
in Jablanica and Blagaj which had been virtually completely
ethnically cleansed by the Muslims but which nevertheless
were to belong to him in accordance to the same Decree
of 1975!
These few examples clearly
show that the Herzegovinian bishops are not exactly
marked by uncompromising obedience to decisions adopted
by the Holy See even though they demand this same
obedience of the Franciscans.
It is certainly not
enough to declare visions to be false on the basis of
personal alleged disobedience and Rick is very cheeky
for saying so. If it were enough, the Vatican would
have agreed with him many years ago.
PLURALISM
Pluralism is a Masonic and Charismatic belief that
states all religions are the same in the eyes of God.
Catholic Doctrine states that "except for invincible
ignorance, there is no salvation outside the Catholic
Church". Anyone who says that any other religion
is not "against the word of God" is a heretic.
(As we shall see, the media has
twisted Mary's words)
Fourth Lateran Council, 1215 AD (ex cathedra) "There
is but one universal Church of the faithful, outside
of which no one can be saved."
Unam Sanciam 1302 (ex cathedra) "We declare,
say, define, and pronounce that it is absolutely necessary
for the salvation of every human creature to be subject
to the Roman Pontiff."
Cantate Domino 1441 (ex cathedra) "The Most Holy
Roman Church firmly believes, professes, and preaches
that none of those existing outside the Catholic Church,
not only pagans, but also Jews and heretics and schismatics,
can have a share in life eternal; but they will go into
the eternal fire which was prepared for the devil and
his angels. Unless before death they are joined with
her; and that so important is THE UNITY OF THIS ECCLESIASTICAL
BODY that only those remaining within this UNITY can
profit by the sacraments of the church unto salvation
... NO ONE, let his almsgiving be as great as it may,
NO ONE, even if he pour out his blood for the name of
Christ, can be saved, unless he remain within the bosom
and the UNITY OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH."
The same has been expressed in Vatican II, and can
be found in 1 Tim. 2:4, Acts 4:12, Gal. 1:8, Tit. 3:10,
2 John 10, St. Ireneaus, St. Cyprian, St. Jerome, St.
Augustine, St. Fulgentius and St. John of the Cross.
This point cannot be overlooked since the greatest promoter
of these apparitions is Wayne Weible, a Protestant,
who had no desire to change his religion until recently,
for as he said, "She accepts us all as we are."
Why did he say this? Because after 3000 apparitions
the main theme is Pluralism.
Rick gets the main theme as "pluralism"
from the messages? It is unlikely that he has looked
at many messages, let alone counted the number that
contain endorsements of pluralism and concluded that
more than 50% do so. I'm literally laughing here. I
invite everyone to take a look at some of the earlier
messages.
The words of Mirjana:
"She also frequently said that ... there is only
one God and that it is the people who are separated.
YOU DO NOT BELIEVE IF YOU DO NOT RESPECT THE OTHER RELIGIONS,
MUSLIM AND SERBIAN, AND YOU ARE NOT CHRISTIANS IF YOU
DO NOT RESPECT THEM."
Mohammed claimed to be the son of God, and Christ only
a prophet. He said that any Muslim who killed a Christian
did not sin any more than if he killed a dog. We must
love the Muslim, but never respect his religion. We
must respect truth but never lies. The person - yes;
the religion - no, never.
Please be clear: Respect for
other religions does not equate to
believing that people of any religion will be saved.
How ignorant does Rick think we are?
The Vatican CLEARLY AND WITHOUT
POSSIBLE CONFUSION fully respects other religions and
asks the faithful congregation to do the same. The following
from the CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH
DECLARATION "DOMINUS IESUS" ON THE UNICITY
AND SALVIFIC UNIVERSALITY OF JESUS CHRIST AND THE CHURCH:
In considering the values
which these religions witness to and offer humanity,
with an open and positive approach, the Second Vatican
Council's Declaration on the relation of the Church
to non-Christian religions states: The Catholic Church
rejects nothing of what is true and holy in these
religions. She has a high regard for the manner of
life and conduct, the precepts and teachings, which,
although differing in many ways from her own teaching,
nonetheless often reflect a ray of that truth which
enlightens all men. Continuing in this line of thought,
the Church's proclamation of Jesus Christ, the way,
the truth, and the life?(Jn 14:6), today also makes
use of the practice of inter-religious dialogue. Such
dialogue certainly does not replace, but rather accompanies
the missio ad gentes, directed toward that mystery
of unity from which it follows that all men and women
who are saved share, though differently, in the same
mystery of salvation in Jesus Christ through his Spirit.
Inter-religious dialogue, which is part of the Church's
evangelizing mission, requires an attitude of understanding
and a relationship of mutual knowledge and reciprocal
enrichment, in obedience to the truth and with respect
for freedom.
In an interview with Ivanka, another of the seers,
we hear:
Question: "It is important that people of good
faith, regardless of denomination, not be turned against
each other. [We agree with this.] But tell me more about
this. What did the Madonna say about this?"
Ivanka: "The Madonna said that religions are
separated on the earth, but THE PEOPLE OF ALL RELIGIONS
ARE ACCEPTED BY HER SON."
Now, that statement ends this apparition for us. But
let’s continue.
Rick has dissected the original
statement and taken pieces out of context. Here
is a full transcript of what Our Lady said and I am
open to correction:
All religions are dear
to my son. It is you on earth who are divided. We
are all children of God. The Moslems and the Orthodox
for the same reason as Catholics are equal before
my son and me. All religions are not equal. All men
are equal before God. It does not suffice to belong
to the Catholic Church to be saved. It is necessary
to respect and obey the commandants of God in following
one’s conscience. Those who are not Catholics
are no less creatures made in the image of God and
destined ultimately to live in the house of God. Salvation
is available to everyone without exception. Only those
who refuse God deliberately are condemned by their
own choice.
As if it needs any translation
whatsoever, let's get it clear....
All individuals
are accepted as equal by God regardless of their religion.
This is a biblical truth. St Paul preached to the gentiles
that they were also acceptable to God under the new
covenant and that in fact it was the presumptuous Jews,
who hid behind their religion and who called themselves
sons of Abraham yet disowned Jesus as the Messiah, who
were in more trouble than the gentiles. It is a given
that "many are called but few are chosen"
and the Virgin is not refuting this.
John 10:16 says:
I have other sheep that
do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead,
and they will hear my voice, and there will be one
flock, one shepherd.
Here is another earlier message
which seems to bear out this bible passage:
August 18, 1982:. Concerning
a planned marriage between a Catholic and an Orthodox:
"In my eyes and in the sight of God, everything
is equal. But for you, it is not the same thing because
you are divided. If it is possible, it is better if
she were not to marry this man because she will suffer
and her children also. She will be able to live and
follow only with difficulty, the way of her faith."
What can we make of this statement?
Simply that ever since the founding of the first Christian
Church with Peter as the first pope, there has been
so much division, and over the centuries we have created
all kinds of situations where the living of our faith
has become more difficult, one such situation being
the sacrament of marriage. God doesn't see a problem,
but WE DO because of our disparate staunchly-defended
religious beliefs.
We also have to remember the
political climate in which Mary made these statements.
Our Lady has made it clear that the apparitions and
messages of Medjugorje are not limited to Catholics
only. We are all her children, she tells us. She made
the statements when pressed by the Croatian visionaries
about the oppression and persecution of the Serbian
Orthodox and Muslims in their own country.
Other messages of unity from
the Blessed Virgin:
September 26, 1982: Concerning
the Pope: "Have him consider himself the father
of all mankind and not only of Christians. Have him
spread untiringly and with courage the message of
peace and love among all mankind."
June 29, 1981. "There
is only one God, one faith. Let the people believe
firmly and do not fear anything."
Question: "So that means that all people go to
Heaven?"
Ivanka: "It depends on what they deserve."
Question: "Yes, but many have never heard about
Jesus."
Ivanka: "Jesus knows all about that; I don't.
The Madonna said, 'BASICALLY, RELIGIONS ARE SIMILAR."
Above is a clear example of the
visionary just wanting to "keep it simple".
The word "Basically" shows us this intention.
These are naive humble people, they don't know how the
media intend to twist their statements, so they just
summarise and think they people will get the general
message.
Based on Rick's track record,
I am tempted to think that he knows full well what the
Virgin means. Giving him the benefit of the doubt however,
Rick obviously thinks the Virgin is saying that we
will automatically be saved regardless of our
religion. This is not what she is saying. She is saying
what everybody generally accepts - i.e. that God loves
the individual and will give each person till their
dying day to accept Jesus Christ as being the only way
back to God.
This might not have happened
yet in the case of individuals in other religions, but
who is to say that, with a clear understanding of the
truth and implications of Christ's death and resurrection
that those in misguided religions (because of upbringing
or indoctrination or whatever) would not quickly convert.
Is Rick going to beat up on Buddhists in China living
under an atheist communist regime? Surely they are damned
according to Rick's interpretation of the Virgin's comment.
Yet, the Vatican clearly says otherwise in its Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church "Lumen Genitum"
which says this: "Those also can attain to salvation
who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel
of Christ or His Church, yet sincerely seek God, and
moved by grace strive by their deeds to do His will
as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience.
Nor does Divine Providence deny the helps necessary
for salvation to those who, without blame on their part,
have not yet arrived at an explicit knowledge of God
and with His grace strive to live a good life."
Let's attribute a jot of mercy
to God, or to use mataphors, let's attribute a little
heat to the sun or a little wetness to the ocean.
Some more Bible passages that
bear out what the Virgin says, regarding God being "governor"
of all religions and all peoples being equal in the
eyes of God.
Acts 10:34-46. "Then
Peter proceeded to speak and said, "In truth,
I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in every
nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable
to him". The circumcised believers who had accompanied
Peter were astounded that the gift of the holy Spirit
should have been poured out on the Gentiles also,
for they could hear them speaking in tongues and glorifying
God”
Acts 14:16-17. "In
past generations he allowed all the nations to go
their own ways, 14:17 yet he did not leave himself
without a witness by doing good, by giving you rain
from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying you with
food and your hearts with joy.”
John 14: 21-26. "Whoever
has my commandments and observes them is the one who
loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my
Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.
Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him, "Master,
(then) what happened that you will reveal yourself
to us and not to the world?" Jesus answered and
said to him, "Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him, and we will come to him
and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love
me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is
not mine but that of the Father who sent me. I have
told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the
holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name--he
will teach you everything and remind you of all that
(I) told you."
When combined with Jesus statement
in John 10:16: "I have other sheep that do
not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and
they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock,
one shepherd.", I think we see the answer,
i.e. that God graciously allows other religions to exist
in the meantime and even blesses and bestows graces
on their faithful, but that the mission of Christ is
to eventually bring all into one fold. I think this
will happen through Medjugorje. I think that once the
world realises that Medjugorje is truly from God, through
the promised great sign, members of all religions will
bown down and worship.
In defence of all religions:
Nobody has seen God or heard God speak unequivocally
(except one or two saints). Even the Vatican cannot
decide 100% what is correct in many cases. Even Sts
Peter and Paul had disagreements over certain issues
so soon after Christ's ascension. I mean...PETER
STILL WASN'T SURE IF THE GENTILES SHOULD BE ALLOWED
TO BENEFIT FROM THE NEW CONVENANT IF THEY WERE NOT MADE
INTO JEWS FIRST! Thus, what chance does the
world have to get it 100% right in terms of the truth
about God. Surely, surely, surely God cannot expect
perfection. Surely, if God spoke to the world in an
unequivocal way announcing the real truths, 99.9% of
people in WHATEVER religion would accept that truth
and fall into line. When the Medjugorje sign DOES finally
come and, if it is an unmistakable sign from God as
promised, this will be the start of the harmonisation
process between religions (however, this would be, as
the messages go,"for those that are still alive").
THE VIRGIN’S OWN WORDS
"Tell the priest and everyone, that it is you
who have divided yourselves on earth. THE MUSLIMS AND
THE ORTHODOX AS WELL AS THE CATHOLICS ARE ALL EQUAL
BEFORE MY SON AND BEFORE ME ..."
Rick has curtailed the message.
Please read above for the full message. It is wicked
how he has manipulated Mary's words to support his goals.
Shall we throw the Bible away, throw the Body and
Blood of Christ away, throw Baptism away, throw unity
of belief away, throw priesthood away, throw Confession
away? No wonder a priest had an affair during the apparitions.
No wonder an illegal order of priests and nuns [living
together] has been started at Medjugorje.
No, we should listen to the Bible.
Gentiles and Jews are equal before God under the new
covenant.
Is it any wonder that all the actors of this play:
Weible, Father Kraljevic, Father Laurentin, Father Rupcic,
Father Pelletier, Jim Bailey, Mary Lou McCall, Dr. Miravalle,
Father Vlasic, Father Tardif, Fr. Rancourt, Dr. Madre,
and Mgr. Franci, all are members of the Charismatic
Movement.
We just this week attended a Charismatic Prayer Group
at St. Elizabeth Seton Catholic Church led by Fr. Michael
Barry, Director of Charismatic Renewal for San Bernardino.
In this prayer group were members of Calvary Chapel,
Harvest Crusade and other Protestant cults. Every week
these non-Catholics are permitted to receive communion
in our Catholic Masses. The reason we attended this
prayer group is to find out why they tried to trick
Rick Salbato, one of our speakers, into speaking at
“a Women’s Retreat” with Father Barry.
Irrelevant. Drawing blanks with
the Charismatic movement again. Bedevilling the Charismatic
movement doesn't help his cause. As I have talked about
elsewhere, the Charismatic movement is encouraged by
the Church through Vatican II. Read
this 2006 article from Zenit.org about Pope Benedict's
meeting with over 100 pentecostal movements. Pope Benedict
said "I have present in my heart and prayer the
important appointment of Saturday, June 2, eve of Pentecost,
when I will have the joy of meeting in St. Peter's Square
with numerous members of more than one hundred ecclesial
movements and new communities, from all over the world.
I know well what their formative, educational and missionary
wealth -- so appreciated and encouraged by our beloved
Pope John Paul II -- means for the Church."
Archbishop Rylko said in 2006:
"And I think that, in the significant context of
the solemnity of Pentecost, the Pope will not fail to
launch a strong call to the whole Church to open ever
more to these gifts of the Spirit, encouraging the movements
to continue serving the mission of the Church with generosity
and passion."
Rick and his fellow detractors
confuse Pentecostalism (the Catholic version is know
as the charismatic movement) with Pluralism. Above all,
however, it is a religious movement and not a "denomination",
nor a religious organisation. It is born out of a deepening
of religious and spiritual life. Bernardo L. Campos
M. said "Pentecostalism transcends the exclusive
ecclesial boundaries and presents itself within Christianity
as a divine action through various religious practices
of a certain kind". The Church + The Charismatic
Movement = All that is good and expected from the earliest
days of the Church after Pentecost.
Regardless, we are talking about
whether Mary is actually appearing to 6 people in Medjugorje,
not about any alleged clandestine activity of any alleged
cult, sect and schism as Rick and other detractors try
to portray the Catholic charismatic movement.
Rick Salbato was a member of the Catholic Charismatic
Movement for many years. They knew he would not give
his support to the movement. So, they just didn’t
tell him who he would be talking to. Charismatics have
one Masonic, Pluralistic goal, expressed very well by
Mgr. Franci [the only Bishop out of the 35 Bishops of
Yugoslavia that believes in the seers]:
I don't know why any serious
group or organisation would want Rick Salbato talking
to their group! And I think Rick himself would fear
being in front of a knowledgable audience. I would be
sitting in the front row. I would love to see Rick in
a debate. He would be hammered soundly.
"I see a NEW CHURCH being born beneath our eyes;
the CHURCH OF THE HOLY SPIRIT ... the role of Medjugorje
is to be seen above all, I believe, in this COMING TOGETHER
WITH THE BROTHERS OF OTHER RELIGIONS, WITH THE MUSLIMS
AND EVEN WITH THE MARXIST BROTHERS ..."
This new church will have a new song, for the seers
told Father Gobbi that Mary's favorite song is "THE
BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC. [May, 1988] This new church
has been the goal of Satan for a thousand years. This
new church is what the Antichrist will set up someday.
Wayne Weible now states that from the beginning of
his first trip to Medjugorje he wanted to become a Catholic,
but this is not the statement he printed in the first
five years of his promotion of the apparitions. Then,
he saw no reason to become a Catholic, the virgin did
not require it.
Again I refer to John 10:16 which
says:
"I have other sheep
that do not belong to this fold. These also I must
lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will
be one flock, one shepherd."
(emphasis mine)
She only appears to not require
it if you follow Rick's interpretation of what the Virgin
told the visionaries. Actually, I see the Virgin as
getting us back to grass roots and ending the inter-faith
confusion, just as Jesus indicated in John 10:16 and
as the Vatican envisages in its DECLARATION "DOMINUS
IESUS" ON THE UNICITY AND SALVIFIC UNIVERSALITY
OF JESUS CHRIST AND THE CHURCH (read
here). Differences in faith is a serious handicap
to spiritual progress in this day and age, something
even Rick would have to agree with. It is one of the
signs of the times that the Virgin keeps talking about.
9/11 and the middle east and just about everywhere you
look, there is some conflict or other which has its
roots in faith differences. It would not surprise me
one iota if the Big Man Upstairs sat everyone down and
issued an ultimatum that we need to get rid of these
differences. This might explain why Mary has said that,
after the chastisements, it will be like in olden times
- simple and pure. Yes, possibly the vatican and the
Catholic Institution will also be casualties. We cannot
foresee or even contemplate God's plans.
SUMMARY TO DATE
Rick puts his own spin on Mary's
words regarding the equality of peoples of all religions.
He turns it into a heretical statement, when it is clearly
nothing of the sort. Mary's words are purely an expression
of the love and mercy of God towards all peoples, first
and foremost.
Rick is trying to paint the Charismatic
movement as a schism to be condemned. The Catholic Charismatic
Renewal presents no new doctrine. On the contrary, it
emphasizes the truths which the Catholic Church teaches
as well as maintaining it's ecumenical tendency. If
there is anything at all new about the Renewal it is
the belief that the CHARISMS OR GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
SHOULD PLAY A MUCH GREATER ROLE IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
(1 Cor. 12: 4-11).
The Second Vatican Council opened
the door to this concept in order to emphasize the fact
that the manifestations of the Holy Spirit are not restricted
to the time of the apostles, but that they are a continuous
reality. Lumen Gentium, the councils document on the
Church, states that "these charisms, both the ordinary
and extraordinary, because they are necessary to the
Church, should be received with thanks and consolation.
To me, it makes perfect sense
to be concerned more with the Holy Spirit in these times
(which I actually believe are quite close to crunch
time, not in the sense of the end of the world, but
in a sense of final warnings before drastic action).
Just as the second convenant saw God's Holy Spirit descend
on the apostles who then went out to build the new church,
so I can easily see how, in these times, the Holy Spirit
would be let loose for a new spiritual revival, which
the world sorely needs and Medjugorje is providing.
What is Rick's problem with that?
More to the point, IF IT WERE A SERIOUS PROBLEM,
SURELY MEDJUGORJE WOULD BE OFFICIALLY ON THE VATICAN
BLACK LIST MANY MANY YEARS AGO. But this isn't
the case! It is only Rick and a handful of atheists
who really want it to be blacklisted. Again, we need
to ask why.
To Be Painfully Continued... |
