After the Illumination

All light in the heavens will be extinguished, and there will be great darkness over the whole earth. Then the sign of the cross will be seen in the sky, and from the openings where the hands and the feet of the Savior were nailed will come forth great lights which will light up the earth for a period of time. This will take place shortly before the last day. —Divine Mercy in My Soul, Jesus to St. Faustina, n. 83

AFTER the Sixth Seal is broken, the world experiences an “illumination of conscience”—a moment of reckoning (see The Seven Seals of Revolution). St. John then writes that the Seventh Seal is broken and there is silence in heaven “for about half an hour.” It is a pause before the Eye of the Storm passes over, and the winds of purification begin to blow again.

Silence in the presence of the Lord GOD! For near is the day of the LORD… (Zeph 1:7)

It is a pause of grace, of Divine Mercy, before the Day of Justice arrives…

THE DAY OF JUSTICE

In the Diary of St. Faustina, the Blessed Mother says to her:

…you have to speak to the world about His great mercy and prepare the world for the Second Coming of Him who will come, not as a merciful Savior, but as a just Judge. —Divine Mercy in My Soul, n. 635

When posed a question recently as to whether or not we are “obliged to believe that,” Pope Benedict responded:

If one took this statement in a chronological sense, as an injunction to get ready, as it were, immediately for the Second Coming, it would be false. —POPE BENEDICT XVI, Light of the World, A Conversation with Peter Seewald, p. 180-181

Following the teachings of the Early Church Fathers on the latter times, one can better understand why it is not an injunction to get ready “immediately for the Second Coming,” but rather the preparations for the period leading to it. ^[1]see Wedding Preparations We are approaching the end of this age, not the end of the world. ^[2]see Pope Benedict and the End of the World And the Fathers were clear about what would occur in the transition from this age to the next.

They divided history into six thousand years based on the six days of creation, followed by a seventh day of rest. ^[3]“But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like one day.” (2 Pet 3:8) They taught that at the end of the “sixth thousandth year,” a new era would begin in which the Church would enjoy a “sabbath rest” before the end of the world.

…a sabbath rest still remains for the people of God. And whoever enters into God’s rest, rests from his own works as God did from his. (Heb 4:9-10)

And as God laboured during those six days in creating such great works, so His religion and truth must labour during these six thousand years, while wickedness prevails and bears rule. And again, since God, having finished His works, rested the seventh day and blessed it, at the end of the six thousandth year all wickedness must be abolished from the earth, and righteousness reign for a thousand years; and there must be tranquillity and rest from the labours which the world now has long endured. —Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius (250-317 A.D.; Ecclesiastical writer), The Divine Institutes, Vol 7

This new era, this rest, would be nothing other than the Kingdom of God reigning to the ends of the earth:

We do confess that a kingdom is promised to us upon the earth, although before heaven, only in another state of existence; inasmuch as it will be after the resurrection for a thousand years in the divinely-built city of Jerusalem… —Tertullian (155–240 A.D.), Nicene Church Father; Adversus Marcion, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Henrickson Publishers, 1995, Vol. 3, pp. 342-343)

The Church Fathers teach that, first, there will come a purification of the earth—what is essentially the “day of the Lord,” —when Christ will come “like a thief in the night” as a “just Judge” to judge the “living and the dead.” ^[4]from The Apostle’s Creed However, just as a day begins in darkness and ends in darkness, so too does the Day of Justice or “day of the Lord.”

…this day of ours, which is bounded by the rising and the setting of the sun, is a representation of that great day to which the circuit of a thousand years affixes its limits. —Lactantius, Fathers of the Church: The Divine Institutes, Book VII, Chapter 14, Catholic Encyclopedia; www.newadvent.org

The Day begins in darkness: a purification and judgment of the living:

…when His Son will come and destroy the time of the lawless one and judge the godless, and change the sun and the moon and the stars—then He shall indeed rest on the seventh day… after giving rest to all things, I will make the beginning of the eighth day, that is, the beginning of another world. —Letter of Barnabas (70-79 A.D.), written by a second century Apostolic Father

We read of this judgment of the living—the “lawless one” and the “godless”—in St. John’s Apocalypse followed, not by the end of the world, but by a reign of peace.

Then I saw the heavens opened, and there was a white horse; its rider was (called) “Faithful and True.” He judges and wages war in righteousness… The beast was caught and with it the false prophet who had performed in its sight the signs by which he led astray those w
ho had accepted the mark of the beast and those who had worshiped its image. The two were thrown alive into the fiery pool burning with sulfur. The rest were killed by the sword that came out of the mouth of the one riding the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh… Then I saw thrones; those who sat on them were entrusted with judgment… They came to life and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years. (Rev 19:11-21; Rev 20:4)

This “coming” of Jesus is not His final return in glory. Rather, it is a manifestation of His power:

…in the sense that Christ will strike the Antichrist by dazzling him with a brightness that will be like an omen and sign of His Second Coming. —Fr. Charles Arminjon, The End of the Present World and the Mysteries of the Future Life, p.56; Sophia Institute Press; cf. 2 Thess 2:8

The judgment of the dead, the Final Judgment, occurs after the sabbath rest in the eve of the “seventh day.” That judgment begins with “the last anger of God,” ending with purification by fire of the entire world.

Therefore, the Son of the most high and mighty God… shall have destroyed unrighteousness, and executed His great judgment [of the living], and shall have recalled to life the righteous, who… will be engaged among men a thousand years, and will rule them with most just command… Also the prince of devils, who is the contriver of all evils, shall be bound with chains, and shall be imprisoned during the thousand years of the heavenly rule… Before the end of the thousand years the devil shall be loosed afresh and shall assemble all the pagan nations to make war against the holy city… “Then the last anger of God shall come upon the nations, and shall utterly destroy them” and the world shall go down in a great conflagration [followed by the judgment of the dead]. —4th century Ecclesiastical writer, Lactantius, “The Divine Institutes”, The ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol 7, p. 211

St. John describes this “last” judgment as well:

When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison… He will go out to deceive the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle… But fire came down from heaven and consumed them… Next I saw a large white throne and the one who was sitting on it. The earth and the sky fled from his presence and there was no place for them. I saw the dead, the great and the lowly, standing before the throne, and scrolls were opened. Then another scroll was opened, the book of life. The dead were judged according to their deeds, by what was written in the scrolls. The sea gave up its dead; then Death and Hades gave up their dead. All the dead were judged according to their deeds. (Rev 20:7-13)

THE ILLUMINATION: A WARNING AND INVITATION

The Great Storm that is here and coming, then, is nothing short of a judgment in which God will purify the world and establish His Eucharistic Reign to the ends of the earth, as prophesied by Isaiah and other Old Testament prophets, and of course, St. John. This is why Jesus tell us:

I am prolonging the time of mercy for the sake of [sinners]. But woe to them if they do not recognize this time of My visitation… before I come as the just Judge, I am coming first as the King of Mercy… I first open wide the door of My mercy. He who refuses to pass through the door of My mercy must pass through the door of My justice…. —Jesus to St. Faustina, Divine Mercy in My Soul, n. 1160, 83, 1146

Another name for this Illumination is “the warning.” The grace of the Sixth Seal is intended to correct the conscience of souls. But it is more than that: it is the last opportunity to board the “Ark” before the final winds of the Great Storm pass over.

This “last call” of God will bring about a tremendous healing in many souls. ^[5]see The Prodigal Hour Spiritual bondages will be broken; demons will be expelled; the sick will be healed; and the knowledge of Christ present in the Holy Eucharist will be revealed to many. This, I believe brothers and sisters, is what many of you who are reading these words are being prepared for. This is why God poured out His Spirit and gifts in the Charismatic Renewal; why we have seen a great “apologetics” renewal in the Church; and why Marian devotion has spread throughout the world: to prepare a little army ^[6]see Our Lady’s Battle to be witnesses and ministers of truth and grace in the aftermath of the Illumination. As my spiritual director put it so well, “There cannot be a “period of peace” if there is not a “period of healing” first.” Indeed, the spiritual wounds of this generation far surpass those of the past as the world has never drifted so far from its proper course. The Fullness of Sin has led to the fullness of sorrows. In order to exist in peace with God and one another, we must learn again that we are loved, and how to love. God will overwhelm us with mercy the way the prodigal son, in the fullness of his sin, was overwhelmed with the forgiveness of his father, and welcomed home. This is why we cannot stop praying for our loved ones who have fallen away and for souls who are far away from God. For there will be an exorcism of the Dragon, a breaking of Satan’s power in many lives. And that is the reason the Blessed Mother has been calling for her children to fast. For Jesus taught, regarding powerful strongholds, that…

…this kind does not come out except by prayer and fasting. (Matt 17:21)

Then war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels battled against the dragon. The dragon and its angels fought back, but they did not prevail and there was no longer any place for them in heaven (see footnote 7 on “heaven”). The huge dragon, the ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, who deceived the whole world, was thrown down to earth, and its angels were thrown down with it. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have salvation and power come, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Anointed. For the acc
user of our brothers is cast out, who accuses them before our God day and night… But woe to you, earth and sea, for the Devil has come down to you in great fury, for he knows he has but a short time.. Then the dragon became angry with the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring, those who keep God’s commandments and bear witness to Jesus. It took its position on the sand of the sea… Then I saw a beast come out of the sea… They worshiped the dragon because it gave its authority to the beast. (Rev 12:7-17; Rev 13:1-4)

The dominion of Satan over men through lies and deception will have been broken in the “heavens” ^[7]Though this text can also be interpreted as referring to the primordial battle between Satan and God, it’s context in St. John’s vision is of a future event tied to the breaking of Satan’s power and his “short time” left before he is chained in the abyss. St. Paul referred to the domain of evil spirits as being in the “heavens” or the “air”: “For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.” (Eph 6:12) and in many souls. Thus, knowing “he has but a short time”, the dragon will concentrate his power in a “beast”—Antichrist—in order to dominate and destroy through totalitarian power and manipulation.

ORDO AB CHAOS—ORDER OUT OF CHAOS

The Illumination comes in the midst of great chaos on earth. This chaos does not end with the Sixth Seal. The most intense winds of a hurricane are at the rim of the “eye.” When the Eye of the Storm passes over, there will be more chaos, the final winds of purification. ^[8]see the Trumpets and Bowls of Revelation which are like deeper cycles of the Seals; cf. Revelation, chapters 8-19.

The dragon gives his power over to a “beast,” the Antichrist, who will rise out of the chaos to bring a new world order. ^[9]see Global Revolution! I have written about this before, and wish to shout it out again with all my being: there is coming a spiritual tsunami, a deception after the Illumination of Conscience to sweep away those who refuse to believe the truth. The instrument of this deception is the “beast”…

…the one whose coming springs from the power of Satan in every mighty deed and in signs and wonders that lie, and in every wicked deceit for those who are perishing because they have not accepted the love of truth so that they may be saved. Therefore, God is sending them a deceiving power so that they may believe the lie, that all who have not believed the truth but have approved wrongdoing may be condemned. (2 Thess 2:9-12)

The deception will attempt to twist the grace of the Illumination through “New Age” concepts. Christians speak of a coming “era of peace.” The new agers speak of a coming “age of Aquarius”. We speak of a Rider on a White Horse; they speak of Perseus riding upon the white horse, Pegasus. We aim for a purified conscience; they aim for a “higher or altered state of consciousness.” We speak about an era of unity in Christ, while they speak of an era of universal “oneness.” The False Prophet will attempt to reduce all religions down to a universal “religion” in which we may all seek the “christ within”—where we can all become gods and achieve universal peace. ^[10]see The Coming Counterfeit

[the] New Age shares with a number of internationally influential groups, the goal of superseding or transcending particular religions in order to create space for a universal religion which could unite humanity. Closely related to this is a very concerted effort on the part of many institutions to invent a Global Ethic. —Jesus Christ, The Bearer of the Water of Life, n. 2.5 , Pontifical Councils for Culture and Inter-religious Dialogue

It is not only this perversion of truth that will ultimately produce an open schism ^[11]see Sorrow of Sorrows in the Church, the persecution of the Holy Father and all faithful Christians, but it will also alter the earth beyond the point of no return. Without science and technology working on the basis of a “moral consensus,” a respect for natural law, the earth will have become a great experiment whereby man, in his arrogant pursuit to usurp the place of God, will damage the earth beyond repair.

When foundations are being destroyed, what can the upright do? (Psalm 11:3)

Pollution, genetic manipulation of food and animals species, the development of biological and high-tech weaponry, and pesticides and drugs that have made their way into the ground and water supplies, have already brought us to the brink of this disaster.

This fundamental consensus derived from the Christian heritage is at risk… In reality, this makes reason blind to what is essential. To resist this eclipse of reason and to preserve its capacity for seeing the essential, for seeing God and man, for seeing what is good and what is true, is the common interest that must unite all people of good will. The very future of the world is at stake.—POPE BENEDICT XVI, Address to the Roman Curia, December 20th, 2010

A Cosmic Surgery will be necessary, one brought about by the power of the Holy Spirit…

THE PURIFIED KINGDOM

We humbly implore the Holy Ghost, the Paraclete, that He may “graciously grant to the Church the gifts of unity and peace,” and may renew the face of the earth by a fresh outpouring of His charity for the salvation of all. —POPE BENEDICT XV, Pacem Dei Munus Pulcherrimum, May 23rd, 1920

Divine Spirit, renew your wonders in this our age as in a new Pentecost, and grant that your Church, praying perseveringly and insistently with one heart and mind together with Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and guided by blessed Peter, may increase the reign of the Divine Savior, the reign of truth and justice, the reign of love and peace. Amen. —POPE JOHN XXIII, at convocation of Second Vatican Council, Humanae Salutis, December 25th, 1961

How this renewal of the planet will occur is a source of several prophetic and scientific speculations. What is not speculative is the words of Scripture and the Church Father’s who say that it will come: ^[12]see Creation Reborn

And it is right that when creation is restored, all the animals should obey and be in subjection to man, and revert to the food originally given by God… that is, the productions of the earth. —St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Church Father (140–202 A.D.); Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons, passim Bk. 32, Ch. 1; 33, 4, The Fathers of the Church, CIMA Publishing Co.

But the purification is not limited, of course, to a geological purging. It is above all a spiritual cleansing of the world, beginning with the Church. ^[13]cf. 1 Peter 4:17 In this regard, the Antichrist is the instrument who will bring about the “passion” of the Church so that she may also experience a “resurrection.” Jesus said He could not send the Spirit until He had left the earth. ^[14]cf. John 16:7 So too will it be with His body, the Church, that after her “resurrection,” ^[15]Rev 20:4-6 there will come a fresh outpouring of the Spirit, this time not only upon the “upper room” of the remnant, but on all of creation.

The Church will enter the glory of the kingdom only through this final Passover, when she will follow her Lord in his death and Resurrection. —Catechism of the Catholic Church, 672, 677

Just as a sword pierced the heart of Mary, who is an image of the Church, so too will the Church be “pierced by a sword.” Hence, the reason the Holy Spirit has moved most especially the modern Popes to consecrate the Church to Mary in our times.

We believe that consecration to Mary is an essential step toward the sovereign act needed to bring about the new Pentecost. This step of consecration is a needed preparation for Calvary where in a corporate way we will experience the crucifixion as did Jesus, our Head. The Cross is the source of the power both of resurrection and of Pentecost. From Calvary where, as the Bride in union with the Spirit, “together with Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and guided by blessed Peter” we will pray, “Come, Lord Jesus!“ (Rev 22:20) —The Spirit and the Bride Say, “Come!”, Mary’s Role in the New Pentecost, Fr. Gerald J. Farrell M. M., and Fr. George W. Kosicki, C.S.B

The coming of the Holy Spirit in the Era of Peace, then, is The Coming of the Kingdom of God. Not the definitive reign of Christ, but the reign of His justice and peace and sacramental Presence in every nation. It will be, says Pope Benedict, the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

May the seven years which separate us from the centenary of the [Fatima] apparitions hasten the fulfillment of the prophecy of the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to the glory of the Most Holy Trinity… This is equivalent in meaning to our praying for the coming of God’s Kingdom. —POPE BENEDICT XVI, Light of the World, A Conversation with Peter Seewald, p. 166; the comments regarding Fatima were made in a homily, May 13th, 2010, at Fatima: www.vatican.va

That is what we hope and pray for now… and after the Illumination.

 

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The following words were given to a priest in the United States where an image of Jesus is appearing inexplicably on the wall of his chapel (and possibly John Paul II above?) In prayer, a passage from the Diary of St. Faustina and the following words came to him, which his spiritual director asked him to spread to everyone he knew. Knowing the credibility of both the priest and his holy director, I place them here for your prayerful reflection:

March 6th, 2011

My Son,

I wish to reveal to you a mystery which my Sacred Heart is making known. What you see reflected on the wall of your Adoration Chapel is the Glory which emanates from the image of the Sacred Heart which hangs on the wall in the chapel. What you see in the reflection is the Grace which pours out of My Heart into the homes and lives of my people who enthrone this image and invite me to be the King of their hearts. The light which shines and reflects My image on the wall is a great sign, my son, of the light which the Father is ready to send upon all mankind from the Sacred Heart of His only Son. This light will penetrate every living soul and will reveal the state of their lives before God. They will see what He sees, and know what He knows. This light is to be Mercy for all who can accept it and repent for all the sins which distance them from the Father who loves them and desires that they come to Him. Prepare my son, for this event is much closer than anyone believes, it will come upon all men in a moment. Do not be caught unaware in order that you may prepare not only your heart but your parish.

Today I saw the glory of God which flows from the image. Many souls are receiving graces, although they do not speak of it openly. Even though it has met up with all sorts of vicissitudes, God is receiving glory because of it; and the efforts of Satan and of evil men are shattered and come to naught. In spite of Satan’s anger, The Divine Mercy will triumph over the whole world and will be worshiped by all souls. —Divine Mercy in My Soul, Jesus to St. Faustina, n. 1789

 

First published March 9th, 2011. 

 

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