ON THE FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
DURING the scene of “Our Lady” at Arcātheos, it seemed as if the Blessed Mother really was present, and sending us a message at that. One of those messages had to do with what it means to be a true woman, and thus, a true man. It ties into Our Lady’s overall message to humanity at this time, that a period of peace is coming, and thus, renewal…
THE BIG PICTURE
The Plan of the Ages is that God wishes to restore in man and woman the original harmony and grace they enjoyed in Eden, which was full participation in the Divine Life—the “Divine Will.” [1]cf. CCC, n. 375-376 As Jesus revealed to Venerable Conchita, He wishes to bestow on His Church the “Grace of graces… It is a union of the same nature as that of the union of heaven, except that in paradise the veil which conceals the Divinity disappears.” [2]Jesus to Venerable Conchita; Walk With Me Jesus, Ronda Chervin, cited in The Crown and Completion of All Sanctities, p. 12
The “Triumph” that Our Lady of Fatima speaks of, then, will result in far more than just the establishment of peace and justice in the world; it will draw down the Kingdom of God upon creation.
We are given reason to believe that, towards the end of time and perhaps sooner than we expect, God will raise up people filled with the Holy Spirit and imbued with the spirit of Mary. Through them Mary, Queen most powerful, will work great wonders in the world, destroying sin and setting up the kingdom of Jesus her Son upon the RUINS of the corrupt kingdom which is this great earthly Babylon. (Rev. 18:20) —St. Louis de Montfort, Treatise on True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin,n. 58-59
The Body of Christ will come into “mature manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ.” [3]Eph 4:13 It will be the coming of the Kingdom in a new modality or what St. John Paul II called a “new and divine holiness”.
Thus is the full action of the original plan of the Creator delineated: a creation in which God and man, man and woman, humanity and nature are in harmony, in dialogue, in communion. This plan, upset by sin, was taken up in a more wondrous way by Christ, Who is carrying it out mysteriously but effectively in the present reality, in the expectation of bringing it to fulfillment… —POPE JOHN PAUL II, General Audience, February 14, 2001
My kingdom on earth is My life in the human soul. —Jesus to St. Faustina, Divine Mercy in My Soul, Diary, n. 1784
THE TRUE AND FALSE DAWNS
One could therefore say that the entirety of Satan’s strategy has been to corrupt the original plan of creation in which “man” and “woman” are its pinnacle. Attacking this summit, which has caused a ripple effect of death throughout the entire universe, Satan has virtually attacked God himself, since man and woman are “made in His image.” [4]“Whoever attacks human life, in some way attacks God himself.” —POPE JOHN PAUL II, Evangelium Vitae; n. 10 And now we come to it after several millennia: the “final confrontation” between God’s plan for mankind and Satan’s scheme. While the Church is…
…turning our eyes to the future, we confidently await the dawn of a new Day… God is preparing a great springtime for Christianity and we can already see its first signs. May Mary, the Morning Star, help us to say with ever new ardor our “yes” to the Father’s plan for salvation that all nations and tongues may see his glory. —POPE JOHN PAUL II, Message for World Mission Sunday, n.9, October 24th, 1999; www.vatican.va
…Satan is also generating a false dawn to be peopled by a kind of “anti-woman” and “anti-man”:
The New Age which is dawning will be peopled by perfect, androgynous beings who are totally in command of the cosmic laws of nature. In this scenario, Christianity has to be eliminated and give way to a global religion and a new world order. —‚Jesus Christ, The Bearer of the Water of Life, n. 4, Pontifical Councils for Culture and Inter-religious Dialogue
We are now reaching the pinnacle of this satanic revolution, which is an attack upon family, life, and human sexuality.
In the fight for the family, the very notion of being – of what being human really means – is being called into question… The question of the family … is the question of what it means to be a man, and what it is necessary to do to be true men… The profound falsehood of this [gender] theory [that sex is no longer an element of nature but a social role people choose for themselves] and of the anthropological revolution contained within it is obvious… —POPE BENEDICT XVI, December 21st, 2012
The problem is worldwide!… We are experiencing a moment of the annihilation of man as the image of God. —POPE FRANCIS, Meeting with Polish Bishops for World Youth Day, July 27th, 2016; vatican.va
BECOMING OURSELVES AGAIN
The damage that the sexual revolution has done to humanity cannot be underestimated, because, with it, came the distortion of what it means to be a real man and a true woman.
The “pill” brought about a moral tsunami of change whereby sex was suddenly torn from its procreative purposes and thus its unitive graces. Oh, how true were the warnings of Pope Paul VI when he spoke of the consequences of artificial contraception!
Let them first consider how easily this course of action could open wide the way for marital infidelity and a general lowering of moral standards… Another effect that gives cause for alarm is that a man who grows accustomed to the use of contraceptive methods may forget the reverence due to a woman, and, disregarding her physical and emotional equilibrium, reduce her to being a mere instrument for the satisfaction of his own desires, no longer considering her as his partner whom he should surround with care and affection. —Humanae Vitae, n. 17; vatican.va
What God has desired most, from the moment of Adam and Eve’s fall, was for them to become themselves again: for man and woman to be restored in the image of Love. Thus Satan has attacked the very essence of what love is, twisting its meaning into lust, mere attraction, sensuality, desire, attachment, etc.. Reducing love exclusively to eros or “erotic” love, Satan has deceived a good portion of mankind into believing that eros is an end in itself, and thus, any expression of erotic love—whether it is between two men or two women—is acceptable.
…this counterfeit divinization of eros actually strips it of its dignity and dehumanizes it… An intoxicated and undisciplined eros, then, is not an ascent in “ecstasy” towards the Divine, but a fall, a degradation of man. —POPE BENEDICT XVI, Deus Caritas, n. 4; vatican.va
This is why Jesus revealed agape love, which is selfless, a gift of oneself to another. But in such a giving, the dignity and reality of the other person is always considered, never exploited. It is in this kind of love that man and woman will find themselves again and “the path along which his [and her] life and love must move.” [5]cf. POPE BENEDICT XVI, Deus Caritas, n. 12; vatican.va
True, eros tends to rise “in ecstasy” towards the Divine, to lead us beyond ourselves; yet for this very reason it calls for a path of ascent, renunciation, purification and healing. —POPE BENEDICT XVI, Deus Caritas, n. 5; vatican.va
The path of ascent is the path of Christian love, as revealed upon the Cross. It therefore also the path to authentic freedom.
Freedom cannot be understood as a license to do absolutely anything: it means a gift of self. Even more: it means an interior discipline of the gift. —POPE ST. JOHN PAUL II, Letter to Families, Gratissimam Sane, n. 14; vatican.ca
THE ANTI-WOMAN AND ANTI-MAN
During that scene at Arcātheos when “Our Lady” appeared, many of us felt the Blessed Mother’s presence among us, including the actress who portrayed her, Emily Price. The next day, I asked Emily what she experienced. She said, “I have never felt so feminine as I did then, but also, I felt such strength.” In those two words—which I believe were an experience of the Blessed Virgin’s womanhood—Emily conveyed what a true woman is.
Woman vs. the anti-woman
The true and unique strength of a woman lies in her innate tenderness, sensitivity, and wisdom that is expressed most profoundly in her maternal role. There is nothing comparable on earth to a mother… she who is the warmth of the home and soul of the family. Moreover, her femininity, naturally revealed in her soft skin, gentle curves, and smaller frame, is—most men will agree—the pinnacle of God’s creation. Indeed, so precious was her maternal beauty that God named the first woman “Eve”, which means “mother of all the living.” [6]Gen 3:20
The world wants to be mothered, and only a woman was designed for this noble task.
But the anti-woman is a figure who not only rejects motherhood, but skews her strengths. She manipulates her femininity to be wielded as a power to control and indulge, to entice and lure. She rejects her true feminine strength, and instead, seeks to counterfeit the strength of man….
Man vs. the anti-man
Just as a woman’s virtue is her strength, so is it too for a man—though expressed 
in his own unique way. Here too, his body “tells a story” that his strength is given to protect, guard and provide. Thus, his inner strength and virtue is in the laying down of his life for his family; of giving and providing, of leading and example, since his masculinity naturally draws respect as much as a woman’s femininity commands reverence.
The world wants to be fathered, and only a man was designed for this noble task.
But the anti-man is a figure who not only neglects his fatherhood, but who uses his strength to dominate, control and demand. He uses his masculinity to indulge and coerce, to lust and acquire. He rejects his masculine strength that could lead, and instead, follows himself.
BECOME YOURSELF
…it comes as no surprise to the Church that she, no less than her divine Founder, is destined to be a “sign of contradiction.” —POPE PAUL VI, Humanae Vitae, n. 18; vatican.va
To my female readers, I wish to say: become yourself. Become the woman whom God made you to be. Reject the lure and temptation to immodesty—to that “power” over men that turns their heads, draws their eyes… but pulls them into sin. You have a responsibility to use your femininity in order to love, nurture, and generate life; to reflect the beauty, wisdom, and purity of God. Likewise, through humility, tenderness, patience, and kindness, you have the capacity to convert the hardened hearts of men who have long lost the sense their manhood. Honor men, starting with your modesty.
To my male readers, I wish to say: become yourself. Embrace your manhood, fatherhood, and role as “priest of the domestic home.” The crisis of the family 
today is often a crisis of the father… strike the shepherd and the sheep will scatter. [7]cf. Mark 14:27 Use your strength to lead, not for greed; use your masculinity to love, not lust; use your strength to serve, and not be served. You have a responsibility to use your masculinity in a way that reflects the gentleness, providence, and strength of the Father. Honor women, starting with your eyes; lay down your life for your wives, as Christ laid His life down for the Church. [8]Eph 5:25
Avert your eyes from a shapely woman; do not gaze upon beauty that is not yours; through woman’s beauty many have been ruined, for love of it burns like fire. (Sir 9:8)
When Emily descended the steps of Arcātheos, she was not wearing revealing clothing or walking seductively…. but her strength and femininity were like a bright sun shining into the darkness of today’s distorted human sexuality. I personally felt the extraordinary beauty of the Blessed Mother that transcends, but also includes her sexuality that was ultimately used to glorify God, as every man and woman are called to do.
Man and woman are both with one and the same dignity “in the image of God”. In their “being-man” and “being-woman”, they reflect the Creator’s wisdom and goodness. —Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 369
My soul magnifies the Lord… (Luke 1:46)
It is this true womanhood, as well as true manhood, that God wants to restore in humanity when the final confrontation of this era is finally over.
We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-church, of the Gospel and the anti-gospel, between Christ and the anti-christ. —Cardinal Karol Wojtyla (ST. JOHN PAUL II), at the Eucharistic Congress, Philadelphia, PA; August 13, 1976; Deacon Keith Fournier, an attendee at the Congress, reported the words as above; cf. Catholic Online
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Footnotes
| ↑1 | cf. CCC, n. 375-376 |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | Jesus to Venerable Conchita; Walk With Me Jesus, Ronda Chervin, cited in The Crown and Completion of All Sanctities, p. 12 |
| ↑3 | Eph 4:13 |
| ↑4 | “Whoever attacks human life, in some way attacks God himself.” —POPE JOHN PAUL II, Evangelium Vitae; n. 10 |
| ↑5 | cf. POPE BENEDICT XVI, Deus Caritas, n. 12; vatican.va |
| ↑6 | Gen 3:20 |
| ↑7 | cf. Mark 14:27 |
| ↑8 | Eph 5:25 |