Mark Mallett

AS world events intensify, many are feeling panicked as they watch their security begin to crumble. It should not be so for believers. God cares for His own (and how He wishes the whole world were of His flock!) The care God provided His people in the exodus from Egypt prefigures the care He is giving to His Church today as they pass through this desert toward the "promised land".

The LORD preceded them, in the daytime by means of a column of cloud to show them the way, and at night by means of a column of fire to give them light. Thus they could travel both day and night. Neither the column of cloud by day nor the column of fire by night ever left its place in front of the people. (Exodus 13:21-22)

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Elijah in the Desert, by Michael D. O’Brien

PART of the struggle many Catholics have with private revelation is that there is an improper understanding of the calling of seers and visionaries. If these "prophets" aren’t shunned altogether as fringe misfits in the culture of the Church, they are often the objects of envy by others who feel the seer must be more special than themselves. Both views do much harm to the central role of these individuals: to carry a message or mission from Heaven.

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Jesus Condemned, by Michael D. O’Brien

THERE is coming a time when the Church will imitate her Lord in the face of her accusers, when the day of debating and defending will give way to The Silent Answer.

"Have you no answer? What are these men testifying against you?" But Jesus was silent and answered nothing. (Mark 14:60-61)

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The Dream, by Michael D. O’Brien

Within the past two hundred years, there have been more reported private revelations that have received some form of ecclesiastical approval than in any other period of the Church’s history. —Dr. Mark Miravalle, Private Revelation: Discerning with the Church, p. 3

STILL, there seems to be a deficit among many when it comes to understanding the role of private revelation in the Church. Out of all of the emails I have received over the course of the past few years, it is this area of private revelation which has produced the most fearful, confused, and mean-spirited letters that I have ever received. Perhaps it is the modern mind, trained as it were to shun the supernatural and only accept those things which are tangible. On the other hand, it could be a skepticism generated by the proliferation of private revelations this past century. Or it could be the work of Satan to discredit genuine revelations by sowing lies, fear, and division.

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St. Faustina 

FEAST OF DIVINE MERCY

First published November 24th, 2006. I have updated this writing…

WHAT would you say was Pope John Paul II’s central mission? Was it to bring down Communism? Was it to unify Catholics and Orthodox? Was it to birth a new evangelization? Or was it to bring the Church a "theology of the body"?

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Jesus Prays in the Garden, by Gustave Doré,  1832-1883

First published September 27th, 2006. I have updated this writing…

WHAT is this fear that has gripped the Church?

In my writing How To Know When a Chastisment is Near, it’s as though the Body of Christ, or at least parts of it, are paralyzed when it comes to defending the truth, defending life, or defending the innocent.

We are afraid. Afraid to be mocked, insulted, or excluded from our friends, family, or the office circle.

Fear is the disease of our age. —Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, March 21, 2009, Catholic News Agency

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First published April 11th, 2007.

THIS coming Sunday, the eighth day in the Octave of Easter, is Divine Mercy Sunday. Many Catholics still have no idea what this is… which as you’ll see, is a tragedy.

According to Saint Faustina’s diary, Jesus said of this Feast day:

I am giving them the last hope of salvation; that is, the Feast of My Mercy.  If they will not adore My mercy, they will perish for all eternity… tell souls about this great mercy of Mine, because the awful day, the day of My justice, is near. —Divine Mercy in My Soul, Diary of St. Faustina, n. 965 

The "last hope of salvation"? One might be tempted to dismiss this along with other dramatic private revelation—except for the fact it was Pope John Paul II who inaugurated the Sunday after Easter to be Divine Mercy Sunday according to this private revelation. (See Part II for a complete understanding of Diary entry 965, which does not restrict salvation to Divine Mercy Sunday.)

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The Rescuer, by Michael D. O’Brien

THERE are many kinds of "love" in our world, but not all triumph. It is only that love which gives of itself, or rather, dies to itself that carries the seed of redemption.

Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. (John 12:24-26)

What I am saying here is not easy—dying to our own will is not easy. Letting go in a certain situation is hard. Seeing our loved ones go down destructive paths is painful. Having to let a situation turn in the opposite direction we think it should go is a death in itself. It is only through Jesus that we are able to find the power to bear these sufferings, to find the power to give and the power to forgive.

To love with a love that triumphs.

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Crucifixion, by Michael D. O’Brien

SO many of you have written me, overwhelmed by the division in your marriages and families, by the pain and injustice of your present situation. Then you need to know the secret to conquering in these trials: it is with the love that triumphs. These words came to me before the Blessed Sacrament:

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First published November 15th, 2006.

DURING one Mass, I was attacked by the "accuser of the brethren" (Rev 12:10).

The entire Liturgy rolled by and I had barely been able to absorb a word as I wrestled against the discouragement of the enemy. I began my morning prayer, and the (convincing) lies intensified, so much so, I could do nothing but pray aloud, my mind completely under siege.  

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Already, the driving winds of secularism have shaken apart several mainstream denominations. The United Church, the Anglican Church of England, the Lutheran Church, the Episcopalian, and thousands of other smaller denominations have begun to cave in as the raging flood waters of moral relativism pound at their foundations. Permission of divorce, birth control, abortion, and gay marriage has eroded the faith so drastically that the rains have begun to wash large numbers of believers out of their pews.

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AFTER many months of wrestling, prayer, editing, head-scratching, consultations with my spiritual director, prostrations before the Blessed Sacrament, gallons of coffee, and long nights into the wee hours… I’m still not done my book.

The good news is that the final draft has gone out for editing this morning.

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