Saint Ignatius of Loyola is asking us to Become Soldiers for Christ

Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Soldier, Poet, Mystic, Author, Defender of the Faith
and Founder of the Society of Jesus

Saint Ignatius was born in 1491, the year before Christopher Columbus was commissioned by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to go to the New World, in thanksgiving for Spain having been liberated from the yoke of the Saracens. For nearly 700 years, Spaniards could not worship in Catholic Churches; they were deprived from receiving the Sacraments; religious and clergy were exiled, imprisoned or killed; all mention of Jesus was forbidden under the penalty of death. How did the people from whom our Saint comes, preserve their faith with this persecution going on for most of seven centuries?

How did Spain and the Catholic Church raise up such powerful soldiers as the much maligned Catholic Queen Isabella, Saints like Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Paschal Baylon and Ignatius of Loyola to mention a few? We believe the answer lies in the stories of Saints and Martyrs, and others not yet proclaimed.

He was an avid reader, his taste leaning toward books on chivalry, knights and ladies of the court, recounting tales of glorious times of valor and honor. So, it is no surprise, we find him, in 1517, at twenty-six years of age, leaving to engage in his first battle, the defense of Navarre of which his uncle was Viceroy. The attack was suppressed by the Spaniards; but the French renewed their offensiveand this time captured Navarre, and laid siege on Pamplona. Ignatius and the other Spanish soldiers were in the garrison, heavily outnumbered. Victory was impossible; but Ignatius was able to convince the others to remain with him and defend the fort.

The walls of the fortress began to crumble beneath the furious battery of cannon balls striking at its ramparts, quickly tearing down the soldiers’ defenses and with that their hope of victory. Knowing the end was near and they would die, Ignatius turned to a good friend and asked him to hear his confession. He fought courageously, right up to the moment a heavy cannon ball pierced the wall where Ignatius was fighting, shattered the bone of his right leg and seriously injured the other. When he fell, the others surrendered and the French soldiers captured the fort. But seeing how bravely he had fought, the French carried him to his rooms in town and had their physicians attend him for close to fifteen days. When they realized they were limited, the French had a litter made to carry the brave little soldier home. His small frame bobbing up and down on the litter (Ignatius was barely 5’2”), his red hair matted by the sweat pouring down his face from the intense pain, Ignatius never let out a cry!
It is not known why the bones did not set properly. Was it that he had been moved too soon or was it the arduous trip back home? Back at the Castle of Loyola, the doctors decided that the bones had to be broken again. Again, brave and noble knight, he asked for no form of anesthetic and went through the operation with his hands and teeth clenched. He grew weaker and weaker. The doctors advised him he was dying. Ignatius called for a priest and asked to receive the Last Rites of the Church. Ignatius would not last the night.
But again, God had another plan. The eve of the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, at midnight, Ignatius passed the crisis. Now, he had always had a devotion to St. Peter, and historians all agree that Ignatius had an apparition of St. Peter who told him he would be cured, and he was!

His recovery was slow and arduous. Ignatius had an active mind, but it was locked up inside a body which was betraying him. But he could read! His mind and heart never left the young lady he had left behind. Now, he waited for the time when he would return and tell her how she had occupied his every thought in battle and as he was recuperating. He practiced over and over again what he would wear and what he would say. To prepare himself, he requested books on knighthood and ladies of the court. But (as God would plan it), in the Castle of Loyola there were only books on the life of Jesus and of the Saints!
Soon he found that contemplating things of the world gave him momentary pleasure, which soon faded away in the light of what he was reading about the graces from Above! Through the lives of Jesus and the Saints he was discovering a new world and a new battlefield! The Saints taught him he had to make a choice between the kingdom of Satan and the Kingdom of God. Their lives became strategic maps revealing the great battles needed to be waged, in order to gain eternal victory. All the vain glory he had sought in the past went up like so much smoke, when he discovered the sweet fragrance that was his to give, the offering he was being called to make to God the Creator. He discovered there was only one true, lasting glory in that which makes the “soul pure and like unto God.”

 For more information and media about

Saint Ignatius of Loyola click here

Saint Cecilia Virgin and Martyr

St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr Heroine of the Early Church

Family, the Lord has given the Church many heroes and heroines down through the centuries, and each person He gives us is for a special reason for that time, not only for that time but for all time.  The time of St. Cecilia is a perfect example of that.  The Church suffered greatly during that century, but the Lord, knowing we needed Him to be at our sides to assure that He could keep His promise that the gates of hell would not prevail against His Church.  We have a saying which you may have read in any one of our books:

In times of Crisis, God sends us special grace.  This grace may come from Eucharistic Miracles, Apparitions by Our Lady, and Saints and other Powerful Men and Women in the Church.  It may come in the form of Angelic intercession.  It will come from anywhere the Lord deems necessary.  There is only one thing of which we can be assured; it will come.  He will use whatever or whoever it takes, whenever it is needed, to protect us from anything or anyone, who would bring us anywhere near the brink of hell.  Very often, even if it means protecting us from ourselves. In the centuries following the death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus, there was a great deal of fervent zeal for our Church and all things related to God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, in short the Trinity.  However, the power of each Person of the Trinity was manifested in every instance where a zealot for the Faith called upon that Person, especially the Holy Spirit, and was rewarded with signal grace and courage to stand up for, and die for their love for and belief in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

A very charismatic figure for that time, and for our time as well is St. Cecilia, a beautiful child of Jesus, physically as well as spiritually, who was not only willing to give up her life for her beliefs in our Faith, but by her glowing example, encouraged others to do the same, in this instance, her husband Valerian and his brother Tibertius.  But we’re getting ahead of ourselves here.  Let us begin with the birth and early life of this powerful woman of the Church.

Cecilia was born of a noble Roman family, all of whom had embraced Our Lord Jesus and our Church.  She was beautiful outside as well as inside, all through her life.  She was a perfect example of a fine Christian girl, and was a tremendous influence on everyone she came in contact with.  She had a great love for Jesus, and vowed her virginity to Him.  She asked for protection from anyone or anything that would jeopardize her virginity. She has been called a “heavenly lily of modesty for her virginity.”  She was given an Angel to watch over her and aid her in keeping her vow of virginity.  She carried a copy of the Gospel in her bosom and prayed night and day.

She was very desirable as a wife, and when the Lord presented her with Valerian, a suitor who was acceptable to her, her family and our Lord Jesus, she prayed that he would understand her vow of virginity.  On their wedding night, after the festivities had ended, and she and her husband retired to their wedding chamber, she shared a secret with him.  She said:

“O sweetest and most loving young man, I have a secret to confess to you, on condition that you swear to keep it a secret. ”  He agreed with her.  You have to understand, he was deeply in love with her.  We can’t think of anything she could have asked him that he would have refused her.  She shared that she had a lover, an Angel, who watched over her body, her virginity.

She said to Valerian, “If my Angel feels you are touching me with lust in your heart, he will strike you and you will lose the flower of your gracious youth.  If however, he knows that you love me with sincere love, he will love you as he loves me, and will show you his glory.”

Now Valerian truly loved her, and could accept that she was a virgin, and wanted to protect her virginity until the day she would wed.  He really wanted to believe that she had an Angel to protect her virginity, but he need to be sure that this was true.  He asked to see the Angel.  He said: “If I see that he is truly an Angel, I will do as you ask.  But if I find that he is another man, and that you are in love with him, I will finish you both with my sword.”

Cecilia instructed Valerian to go to the third milestone from the city on the Appian Way, and say to the poor people there, “Cecilia has sent me to have you show me an old man named Urban, because I carry secret orders for him which I will pass on to him.  When you see this Urban, and tell him all that I have told you, he will purify you and you will be able to see the Angel.”

Now, keep in mind, this is their wedding night.  How much did he have to love her to get up, leave the house, travel to the Appian Way by horse or carriage, and look for this man?  He really did love her.  He did what she asked.  He spoke to the poor people, who pointed him to the direction of the old man.  He met Urban the bishop, who wept, and prayed over Valerian.  Suddenly, an old man, dressed in a white garment, holding a gold book, appeared before them.  Valerian fell to the ground, for fear of his life.  The old man picked him up, and had him read from the gold book.  “One Lord, one Faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of all, Who is above all and through all and in all of us.”  The old man asked him, “Do you believe, or do you still doubt?”  Valerian responded, “There is nothing else under Heaven that could be more truly believed.”  The old man disappeared; Urban baptized Valerian, and when he returned to his wedding chamber, he saw the Angel with Cecilia.

The Angel gave both of them crowns of roses and lilies, and told them to preserve this gift they had been given by the Lord.

Ebook in process of publishing http://www.bobandpennylord.com

Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi – Miracles

Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi was endowed with many Heavenly gifts. She was able to foretell the future. She told Alexander de Medici that he would be Pope but that he would have a short reign. His papacy lasted twenty-six days!

Sometimes a gift and other times a cross, Mary Magdalen was granted the Grace to read men’s hearts.

Many witnesses attested she bi-located, appearing to different people in different places at the very same moment.

The Lord made her an instrument of healing and many were healed through her prayers and intercessions.

Her ecstasies came more and more frequently. There were those times, when she was experiencing heavenly rapture, when her body would become taut and remain stiff, almost lifeless like rigor mortis had set in. Then there were those other times when the sisters were completely unaware anything was happening. How could they know, she was communicating with Jesus and possibly one of His Heavenly Court; as Sister Mary Magdalen went about her daily duties.

There were occasions when they could tell she was sharing in the Passion of Our Lord Jesus, the agony plainly revealed on her face and body. She looked like one of the women of Jerusalem who followed Jesus and wept. At other times, Sister Mary Magdalen could have been Veronica boldly going past the centurions and wiping her Lord’s bleeding Face. Then there were those times when she evidenced excruciating pain, her face and eyes filled with horror and unbearable grief. Was she standing beneath the Cross beside Mother Mary as her Son took His Last Breath; was she crying out for Mary, who dared not weaken that those around her would be strong? Was she like her namesake, Mary Magdalen who had wiped His Feet with her tears and now was prostrate at those same Precious Feet? Whatever part she may have been reenacting in the Passion, it was obvious she was there with her Lord and His Pain.

And then there were those times, when they thought they would lose her; only the weight of her body kept her from soaring up to Heaven. She looked as if she did not want to come back. She later shared with the sisters (under obedience to her Superior) that she was ecstatically engaged in conversation with her Spouse Jesus, at other times with Mother Mary, and then those joyful times with Jesus’ Heavenly Army of Angels. Was she seeing Our Lord, the Lord of Easter Sunday, He Who had risen? Was He standing at the gates of Heaven and she wanted in? All they knew, she was not with them, and they did not know if it was the kindest thing to do to pray she not leave them.

For more information about Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi click here http://www.bobandpennylord.com/St_M_M_de_Pazzi.htm

Video clip  http://www.staged.com/video?v=wTd

Saints In The Catholic Church – We Salute You!

We pray that you will find something about Saints in the Catholic Church we’ve written that will make you want to go to your priest, and thank him for being a priest.

Luz Elena tells us that in Mexico, they used to kiss the priest’s hands, out of respect for their being consecrated.  You may not feel comfortable doing it.  But do go up and tell them how much you appreciated their homily; mention something they said, which touched you.  Let them know you weren’t sleeping during the Mass.  Thank them for their “fiat.”

We believe there’s much to be learned, from reading about Saints in the Catholic Church who have preceded us.  These are men and women who said “yes” to Jesus, knowing in advance that their lives would never be the same.  They fell in love with Jesus, and through Him, their brothers and sisters.  You and I are that family of Christ, these saints fought for.  The battle for the Church over the centuries, has always been for the people of God.  All the wars that have ever been waged, including those of the Twentieth century, have been for the people of God.  There were those who wanted to protect and save the people of God; then there have been those who have wanted to destroy the people of God, hoping thereby, to destroy God Himself.  We know that will never happen!

Woman has always played a major part in God’s plan.  When God made woman of man’s rib, He formed unity.  “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united with his wife, and they become one.” (Gen 2:24-25)

It is interesting to note that Adam, from whom Eve was taken, was placed by God into a deep sleep.  Was it that Eve was to be brought forth by God Himself, of man but not by man? Could it be that God did not want Eve to be a cause of pain for Adam but a loving partner and companion?

When Eve disobeyed God’s mandate not to eat the forbidden fruit, her action was to cause a reaction that not only would affect her happiness and life but that of her Adam and all generations to come.  It reverberated down through the centuries, not to be overturned until, thousands of years later, another woman, a second Eve, was to make her Fiat with the words  “I am the handmaiden of the Lord.  Let it be done unto me according to your will.” (Luke 1:38)

Eve’s act of disobedience was to give birth to other acts against our loving God by the family of man that would follow.  But God is a God of mercy, love and forgiveness, a forever God of Faithfulness to a very often unfaithful people.  When I think of how lovingly God fashioned Adam and Eve, the joy He felt as He looked about at the life they would have, I cannot help grieve with Him as He, the Loving Parent saw them throw it all away.  But our Compassionate God could not close the door on His Children.

To know of God’s Love for woman down through the centuries, one only has to begin with the women of the Old Testament.  If we listen to God’s Word carefully, we see Mother Mary, the New Eve in God’s promise to the serpent, of the woman whose “offspring will crush your head.” (Gen 3:15)  As one woman’s “yes” was to lead to betrayal, God accepted another woman’s “yes” to redeem that betrayal.

The echoes of the women before us resound even to the most sacred times in our lives.  During the Holy Sacrament of Matrimony, one reading recalls Ruth’s faithful response to her mother-in-law Naomi’s plea for Ruth to leave her, “Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live.  Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”  (Ruth 1:16)

Under pain of death, mid-wives disobeyed Pharaoh’s order to kill all male children born to Israelite women.  Because of one woman’s courage, his mother, Moses was born and sent down the river in a basket.  Another woman, Pharaoh’s daughter, showed her strength by taking the Jewish baby Moses into her home and raising him.  Because of their yes’es, the Jews were freed from the clutches of Pharaoh, and brought to the Promised Land. (Exodus 2:1-10)

In the tradition of our Jewish ancestors, for centuries women have begun the Sabbath on Friday night with the lighting of candles and recitation of prayers.  The Faith of the Jews is passed on by the woman; for the children to be Jewish, the mother, not the father, must be Jewish.

Children have been taught by the mother from time immemorial.  In our own modern society, the tradition is carried on.  We gave a talk to a group of women in Louisiana.  We said to them, “Are you aware that 85% of what is taught in your home to your children and your husband, is done by the wife?  The bulk of informational material that comes into the house comes from the wife and mother.”

We believe it’s been part of God’s plan from before the creation of man, that woman could bring us to the depths of despair, or to the heights of ecstasy.  They have been given this power by God to be instruments of the greatest good, as with Mother Mary or, as in the case of Eve, the worst evil.

The focus of this article is on those Saints in the Catholic Church who have glorified God, who have given their sisters role models to follow, reason to hold their heads high.  These are men and women who have contributed to a heritage of which we can all be truly proud.

Saints in the Catholic Church

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Who is Saint Frances Cabrini?

Our story begins with St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. Born in northern Italy in 1850, thirty nine years later, in 1889, she would sail for the United States, the first of many voyages she would make in her sixty seven years of service to the Lord. She is the first American citizen to be raised to the Communion of Saints, a member of the Church Triumphant. The story of Mother Cabrini, as she has been called throughout the Twentieth Century, is very simple. The Lord asked her to do something; she said yes. Although it sounds simple, it was by no means an easy task. Someone had to take care of the Italian brothers and sisters in the United States; she saw the need and filled that need. The living out of that commitment is what made her a Saint.

We travel to the northern part of Italy, east of Turin and south of Milan, to the little farming village of Sant’ Angelo Lodigiano to find the birthplace of our future Saint, Frances Xavier Cabrini. She was born in that small rural community on July 15, 1850, the thirteenth in a family of thirteen children. She was the youngest and the last of the family of Stella and Agostino Cabrini, saintly parents. She was baptized the same day or the following day, given the name Maria Francesca, and in later years when she became a religious, she added Saverio (Xavier) to her name, after her most special Saint, Francis Xavier, who evangelized in India.

There were many unusual, unexplainable, or what we would term miraculous occurrences in the life of Mother Cabrini. The very first one happened on the day she was born. On the modest little farm of the Cabrinis, a flock of doves settled in the back yard of their home. This was extremely unusual because doves never settled in this area; pigeons yes, doves no. Her father, Agostino, a simple man, had no idea what it signified, so he tried to shoo them away. They wouldn’t budge. This was the beginning of many special gifts and signs given to this selfless servant of God. Humble, she never gave any importance to these gifts. But she never denied them either.

Her mother and father were holy people. They taught their children everything they knew about the Church and their Faith. The children especially looked forward to their father reading them stories on the Lives of the Saints. They all gathered around him, as he spun tales of these brothers and sisters in Christ who had passed the test of time, had been washed in the blood of the Lamb, and were part of the Church Triumphant. This was the family into which this future Saint was born.

Frances was frail all her life, which accounted for her father rushing her off to Church to be baptized right after her birth. He feared she might not live. Isn’t it just like the Lord to choose someone who’s weak to do the work of ten strong people? She was in good company. Most of our powerful women in the Church have been sick all their lives, like St. Teresa of Avila, Catherine of Siena, Mother Angelica, just to name a few. People were amazed at her remarkable energy.

Frances was the youngest; what with her mother having so much to do and because of the toll that years of caring for the family had taken on her, little Frances was assigned to Rosa, the oldest girl, who was fifteen years old. It was a good choice in that Rosa had dreamed of becoming a nun, as well as a school teacher. She taught little Francesca, or Cecchina, (as she was called because she was so delicate), everything she knew. Rosa was an excellent teacher, and so Francesca had the gift of private tutoring. She received an excellent education – gaining both secular and religious values from her sister.

For more about Saint Frances of Cabrini go here

Who is Saint Martin de Porres?

Saint Martin de Porres has been given many titles over the years including Apostle of Charity, Saint of the Slaves, Patron of the Negroes, Patron of Social Justice, and others, all true, all describing one or more of his attributes, but none actually goes to the heart of who this Saint was. He was love; he was Christian; he was truly son of the Father, brother of the Son, and vessel of the Holy Spirit. It’s hard to describe all the charisms of St. Martin de Porres, or cover all the gifts he received from the Lord. The more we read about him, the more we realize what a powerful instrument of God he was. He had the gifts of bilocation, healing, multiplication of food, reading men’s minds, raising the dead, levitation, ecstasy, visions, inner locution; it goes on and on. Martin de Porres was one of the most powerful and yet one of the gentlest Saints in the history of our Church, and without doubt, a true disciple of the Lord in the New World. We will try to give you just a taste of how the Lord worked in this hemisphere through this Saint. Martin de Porres was born in 1579, in Lima, Peru. It was only 83 years after Columbus placed a small Spanish flag on the island of San Salvador, claiming it and the entire new world for the Catholic Queen, Isabella, as it was she who had financed this expedition in thanksgiving to God for deliverance of Spain from the Moors. In 1535, the city of Lima was founded, and in 1551, the Dominicans began a university there. [An aside, the Dominicans were the first order of religious to preach the gospel in Peru.] Martin de Porres was born of John de Porres, a Spanish nobleman and Knight of the Order of Alcantara, and a black free woman, Anna Velazquez. Martin’s father was not very happy to find his child was black. He did not want to be connected with the child in any way. As a matter of fact, on the baptismal record there was no mention of the father at all. The Baptismal certificates read only “Martin, son of an unknown father.” But some years later, he officially acknowledged Martin as being his son. We’re not sure if John ever married Anna Velazquez. If he did, he didn’t treat her very well. He spent most of his time in other countries, leaving Anna and the children, Martin and his sister Joan to fend for themselves. Though Martin was not from a poor background, you would not have known it by the way he and his family lived. They were always at least borderline poverty, and sometimes full-blown poverty. But none of this had any detrimental effect on Martin. If anything, it gave him an understanding and empathy for his poor brothers and sisters. From his earliest days, he focused completely on his Lord present in the tabernacle of all the churches of Lima and in helping out the poor. His mother became furious with him in the early days. She would send Martin shopping for food, entrusting to him the meager pennies the family had, just enough to get some bread and a few necessities to see them through their meals. Martin inevitably took the money and gave it to the poor. When he returned home with nothing in his basket, his mother would let him have it. “How can you give to the poor? We are the poor! It’s bad enough that you will not eat today, but what of your sister and me? We didn’t volunteer to starve!” He got lost in the churches. This was his most favorite time. When he entered the dark, cool church, the entire world was left outside. He was in a haven. He spent hours before the Blessed Sacrament, before the Crucifix looming high on the altar or a statue or painting of Our Lady. This was truly his home. He was an orphan on pilgrimage, journeying through this time on earth in preparation for his trip to his heavenly Home in Paradise. Although John de Porres only came to Lima on very rare occasions, he must have been shamed by his relatives or neighbors who could see the way Anna and the two children were living. They needed some kind of home, education, food and clothes. Anna also had need, but John had never cared much about her well-being, so it was not thought that he would now spend any amount of time and money, taking care of her or her children. Never mind that he was the father. Although he had finally recognized them as his own, his behavior towards them was the same as towards a slave. However, when Martin was about eight years old, the father came and took him and his sister back to Ecuador with him, which was where he was living at that time. The children went to school; they were fed and clothed properly. The father actually admitted to being the parent of both children to his various relatives whom they met in the few years they lived in Ecuador. Bob and Penny Lord invite you to learn more about Saint Martin de Porres www.bobandpennylord.com/St_Martin_de_Porres.htm

Bob and Penny Lord’s Message on All Saints Day!

Dear family, I was praying on what we should cover in this column; and then what should pop up on my desk?

I found the following article which was written many years ago. The truth is always the truth, always timely.

As we have been reading the following article about our beloved Church, the life of our Church and of our dear country, there is a tragic echoing ring to the message we were sending years ago to our brothers and sisters in Mother Church, and to our fair country.

Sunday, in our little country church, the recessional hymn was “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” I could barely sing; I felt a lump in my throat and my eyes were filled with tears. Oh, dear Lord what if we should lose our country and all it stands for? What if we should no longer be free to worship as we choose? Dear fair country, have I taken you and our liberty for granted? I was working with a speech therapist the other day, and the passage I had to read was The Pledge of Allegiance.

As the words came screaming off the page, I could barely keep from crying. Oh dear flag for which it stands, have I taken you for granted? As the words popped out of the page, challenging me to say them, I found myself choked up with tears. I remembered how my father, who came to this country when he was three years old, proudly saluted the flag, his hand on his heart, tears spilling unashamedly when he recited the pledge, his pledge to the United States of America.

Do you know the pledge of allegiance by heart?

“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under GOD, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.”

There is so much passion, the passion of Our Savior in those words, a liberty we would have to defend with our loved ones fighting overseas to keep those promises alive.

The founding fathers had a plan, I believe under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Our ancestors died for those words and their meaning. Our country is the only one that I know of that was founded under GOD! And our Holy Family wanted to insure this gift to us by GOD sending His Mother to look over this land, cover us with Her Mantle, protecting us, even sometimes from ourselves. And how She weeps!

“Our Lady as the Patroness of America.”

Mary under her Immaculate Conception was the result of the worldwide Marian movement which culminated in the definition of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception by Blessed Pope Pius IX in 1854. The Sixth Provincial Council of Baltimore had, in 1846, requested the Holy See that Mary under the title of the Immaculate Conception be made patroness of the United States. The petition was granted in 1847.” (Dictionary of Mary, Catholic Publishing Co. N.Y.)

Our Holy Family is watching over this country. They always have! But there were other countries that were under the protection of Mother Mary, and they prospered! Take Mexico! Did you know that for many centuries our Lady of Guadalupe’s Image was on the flag of Mexico! And did you know that under her banner Mexico was one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Then the powers that be took her off the flag but could not take her out of the hearts of the people. And Mexico has not known the position it once had in the world. I could go on and on; Portugal was another country that suffered the same fate. I read somewhere that a man was praying, complaining to God how He could allow the violence in schools.

Why doesn’t He do something! God replied, You threw Me out: I’m not allowed In schools! “Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it!” My father was an enthusiastic student of ancient history. He taught us children that ancient history Is history that is bound to happen. When we study history that has passed and open our eyes to what is presently happening, we find that there is nothing new under the sun. Open my eyes, Lord that I might see!

The mistakes we make and the little nothing sins we ignore, will grow into giant catastrophes. Read the Bible! It’s all there!

That’s why there is such a drive to do away with the Bible. This is the article we wrote some years ago. Dear Family, Brothers and Sisters in Christ, You are all this; but you are so much more; you have been called by the Lord to be Defenders of the Faith, and Soldiers of Christ. Never before in the History of the Church and the World have we had such an awesome privilege and responsibility to serve God and country.

We have a vested interest in both our beloved Church and in our precious country. We have seen the slogan (referring to our country), Love her or leave her. We say (referring to our Church and our Faith), Love it, Learn it, Live it, or Lose it! We are engaged in a Gentle Revolution. In our travels around the world, we see our Lord and His Mother gathering soldiers for the battle ahead – love and knowledge of our Faith their armor and shield. . We are a chosen people called to a royal priesthood by virtue of our Baptism.

We have been mandated by our Lord, and all the successors of St. Peter our first Pope, to go out to all the world and evangelize to the lambs who have strayed, and to strengthen, arm and call forth those who have remained to join the battle. Put on the armor of God’ We are in the most glorious days of the Church. More and more people are Iea\1..ing what i$ missing in their hves is God. . We have over 100,000 converts coming intO the Catholic Church each year, and that makes the Father 1Il Heaven so very happy.

But the Hearts of Jesus and Mary are pierced each time one of their baptized Catholic children leaves Home leaves the Faith of their fathers – the Roman Catholic Church. Whose responsibility is it to protect the innocent lambs of God? Who will be held accountable for every soul who could have been touched by word nr deed? Every soul is uniquely created by God and therefore precious to our Father in Heaven.

When we stand before the throne of God, how will we respond when Jesus says, I chose you to be an instrument of hope, a bridge for the lost to cross over to the one true Church, but you were too busy. This is our Church. We belong to the family of God,

Every child is our child. Each child of God lost, puts another thorn on Jesus’ Heart, makes our Church the poorer, and makes us the weaker. We believe our Apostolate has been called to help save Jesus’ lambs from being led to slaughter by Judas goats today! We are determined to stop the father of lies from killing any more children, from robbing them of their God and then their lives. No more are to be lost, as long as we have a breath left in our bodies. What part in the defense of the Church and her family are you being asked to take? You have to know your Faith, in order to defend yourself and your Church. You also must know if someone in our own Church is preaching heresy, or is denying the Church’s authority to determine the eternal Truths of the Church. Our Church is in danger.

But Jesus made a promise, “The gates of Hell will not prevail against it (His Church).” Some of our strongest Catholics, converts and those baptized Catholics who had left the Church, have come Home to the One True Church, the Roman Catholic Church, because Jesus wants us all to stand side-by-side, brothers and sisters in Christ, ready to live for her, prepared to die for her, if need be.

There is a madness spreading throughout the world a well-planned, well-disguised design to snatch the innocent and devour them. We are all partners in Christ. The Catholic who is led astray may be your child, your grandchild!

The Catholic you will save may be your child, your grandchild! Every child is our child; every soul won or lost is a soul created by God! We, the Mystical Body of Christ, must save the children of God. We, the Church Militant will save the children of God!

Remember the Saints are our guides to the light.

Bob and Penny Lord

Special Message for Bob and Penny Lord

Today, as never before we are called  to be the new Jonahs of the Old Testament and the new St. John the Baptists of the New Testament pleading with this fallen generation to repent.  They will tell you for generations, people have thougt he end of the world was coming in their time. But even they must admit, man never had the means to destroy himself the way he has at this present time.

Our Ministry has always been known the Good News Ministry, and we do have Good News for you. We are not helpless and hopeless. In the light of all the darkness threatening the skies of our lives; there is a rainbow, a double rainbow representing the Lord and His Mother, a rainbow of promise and hope! Mother Mary is holding up Her Son’s Arms and, as with Moses, as long as She is so doing, God will not mete out Justince. But hear this and take it to your hearts, Our God of Mercy not allow the inhumanity that has pervaded our country and our world, swarming over and infecting everyone with whom it comes in contact, to continue.

There is little time; but there is time! We can make a difference. We must make a difference! If we will only turn back to Lord Our God, the final price exacted, will not be disastrous. God is ready to embrace us, to take us back; to forgive us. He will allow us to refuse Him, to reject His Mercy, to turn our backs on Him, to go to hell if we insist. But one thing we can hold onto, and I guess it is the most painful to remember–it is so one-sided, is God’s never ending love, forgiveness, and sacrifice for us, which began on the Cross.

Is that why the enemy of God, has misled pastors into ripping the crucified Lord from the Altars and replacing Him with fancy bars of gold and silver?

Are we emulating Judas when he sold Jesus out for thirty pieces of silver? Are we willing to let the enemies of the Cross strip the memory of the extent of pain and suffering Our Lord Jesus was willing to endure to prove how much He loves us.

Does the enemy want us to rely on sinful man for our salvation and, knowing how man will fail, despair.

Well, as never before the people of God are well armed, like Blessed Miguel Pro with a Crucifix in one hand and a Rosary in the other, and the doubleedged sword of the Word as our shield, we fight for our Church and for this country founded under God, Our United  States of America.

We are reclaiming our beloved country back for God! Pray and teach your families to pray! Who can you trust? You can trust God!

Remember the Saints are our Guides to the light

http://www.bobandpennylord.com/roman-catholic-saints.htm

Bob and Penny Lord

America’s Miracle Worker

America has its own Miracle Worker, and Miraculous healings are happening now!
Francis Xavier Seelos died in New Orleans and his Shrine is receiving thousands of visitors daily!

http://www.bobandpennylord.com/bl-francis-xavier-seelos.htm

On September 27, 1866, Fathere Francis Xavier Seelos  began his last journey for the Lord, to New Orleans, Louisiana.

As he was traveling on the train to New Orleans, a nun asked him how long he would be stationed in New Orleans.

His reply was “I will be there for one year, and then I will die of the Yellow Fever”, which is exactly what happened.

He spent just short of 11 months in Louisiana, and on September 17, 1867, he caught the lethal Yellow Fever.  He tried to continue with his work, but in short order, he was incapacitated, and on October 4, 1867, he died.  But his time in New Orleans and the work he did there was enough for the priests and parishioners of St. Mary’s Church to realize they had a saint among them.  The works he did, the kindness towards the people, reaching out to the sick and dying, made them aware they had been given a special gift in Francis Xavier Seelos.

Work was immediately begun on this Canonization, because they knew he was a Saint.  And while it was completed and sent to Rome in 1903, for whatever reason, it was not taken up seriously until the end of the 20^th century.

His burial place was even lost in the Church.  When it was definite that he would be beatified, the officials of the Church wanted to make a shrine for him.  And in the construction process, his original tomb in the Church was uncovered.

A miracle attributed to his intercession took place in 1967, when a woman, Angela Boudreaux, who was diagnosed with a massive malignancy in her liver, was healed.  Her doctor testified that there was no hope for her.  However, within a few weeks of praying to Fr. Seelos, she was completely healed.  Pope John Paul II beatified Francis Xavier Seelos on April 9, 2000.

His is a powerful story, one that you should take seriously.  As we said at the opening of this article, we are the most blessed, in that we were able to spend days at his shrine, interviewing Fr. Byron Miller, Joyce Boudreaux, and many other involved in the cause for his Canonization.

We just completed our one hour special program about Blessed Seelos and we included the Healing Mass attended by thousands in New Orleans and interviews with some people that havehave received Miraculous healings through Blessed Seelos’s intercession.

Give yourselves a treat.  Go to the Shrine of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos in New Orleans.  You will be blessed.  We love you.

Discover the many other Miracles happening now!

http://www.bobandpennylord.com/bl-francis-xavier-seelos.htm

Saint Catherine of Bologna

Saint Catherine of Bologna
From Visionaries, Mystics and Stigmatists

Perhaps, one of the greatest Miracles is the incorrupt body of our Saint, seated on a regal throne in a Chapel to the left of the main altar in the Church of Corpus Domini in Bologna. It remains intact, never having decomposed for over five hundred years!

In the beginning, after they realized they could not place her body in the grave, four nuns would carry Saint Catherine’s body to the parlor on a wooden stretcher, every time visitors came to view the body, or the faithful wanted to venerate the Saint. This went on for twelve years! Then the nuns decided that the faithful could view her better if she were seated on a chair. To their amazement, her body which had lost none of its suppleness, rigor mortis never having set in, became stiff, and the nuns could not place her in the chair. It was only when the Abbess ordered her, did Catherine, out of obedience, sit unaided in the chair and in the same position she can be found to this day.

Our Saint wanted to be where all the people of God could venerate her easily, and so she appeared to one of the nuns of the Monastery of Corpus Domini and told her she wanted a Chapel built close to the outer church. Previously, she had been in a Chapel inside the Monastery.

From the very beginning, Saint Catherine’s Miracles and fame have brought people from all parts of the world, not only the simple faith-filled believers who fill and enrich our beautiful Church, but also future Saints, Kings and Queens and scholars. Among the first to come was Queen Isabel of Naples, Italy, who arriving in her regal finery, venerated our Saint and then left her ring as a token of her affection. She was followed by Popes (one of whom was Pope Clement VII), Cardinals (including St. Charles Borromeo who gifted her with a precious vestment), Emperors, Princes and all kinds of personages.

Pope Clement VII granted the nuns permission to say the Office and celebrate Holy Mass in honor of Saint Catherine on March 9th which became her Feast Day. He inscribed her name in the Martyrology of Saints of the Roman Catholic Church. He was followed by other Popes who have granted indulgences and privileges to pilgrims coming to the Sacred place to venerate the saint. The process for her Canonization was started in 1669 and was solemnly concluded on Trinity Sunday, the 22nd of May, 1712 when Pope Clement IX proclaimed to the whole world, to the whole Roman Catholic Church that we had a Saint!

The first time we went to visit Saint Catherine, it was out of holy curiosity; her body was incorrupt! But when we got there, we discovered a very powerful Saint who became very personal to us. We have loved her since 1977, the first time we brought our grandson, all of ten years old, to Europe with us. We hope reading about her that you will turn to her and get to know her with your head and heart, as we have. We love you!
For more Visionaries, Mystics and Stigmatists like Catherine of Bologna click here

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[1]Every mortal sin is a sin against God.

[2]make amends, restitution

[3]a substance emanating from tar – used for waterproofing and covering roofs

[4]refer to chapter on St. Catherine of Genoa

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www.apparitions-of-our-lady.com

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