Pope Francis opening “doors of mercy”, December 8th, 2015, St. Peter’s, Rome
Photo: Maurizio Brambatti/European Pressphoto Agency

FROM the very beginning of his pontificate, when he refused the pomp that often accompanies the papal office, Francis has not failed to stir controversy. With deliberation, the Holy Father has purposely tried to model a different kind of priesthood to both the Church and the world: a priesthood that is more pastoral, compassionate, and unafraid to walk among the fringes of society to find the lost sheep. In so doing, he has not hesitated to sharply rebuke his confréres and threaten the comfort zones of “conservative” Catholics. And this to the glee of modernist clergy and the liberal media who intoned that Pope Francis was “changing” the Church to become more “welcoming” to gays and lesbians, divorcées, Protestants, etc. ^[1]eg. Vanity Fair, April 8th, 2016 The rebukes of the Pope toward the right, coupled with the assumptions of the left, has led to a cascade of downright anger and accusations toward the Vicar of Christ that he is attempting to alter 2000 years of Sacred Tradition. Orthodox media, such as LifeSiteNews and EWTN, have openly questioned the Holy Father’s judgment and rationale in certain statements. And many are the letters I’ve received from laymen and clergy alike who are exasperated with the Pope’s soft approach in the culture war.

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DEAR brothers and sisters of the Lamb. I want to take a moment to thank so many of you for your prayers, love, and support this past year. Both my wife Lea and I have been incredibly blessed by your kindness, generosity, and the testimonies in how this little apostolate has touched your life. We are grateful to everyone who has donated, which has enabled me to continue my work that is now reaching hundreds of thousands of people each year.

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ON the first night of my missions in Louisiana this past autumn, a woman approached me afterward, her eyes wide open, her mouth agape.

“I saw her,” she quietly whispered. “I saw the Blessed Mother.”

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WE are on the very cusp of some astounding events in the Church and the world. And among them, the return of the Jews to the fold of Christ.

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The Sinful Woman, by Jeff Hein

SHE wrote to apologize for being so rude.

We had been debating on a country music forum about excessive sexuality in music videos. She accused me of being rigid, frigid, and repressed. I, on the other hand, tried to defend the beauty of sexuality in sacramental marriage, of monogamy, and marital fidelity. I tried to be patient as her insults and anger mounted.

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BEFORE the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord communicated a word so powerful, so pregnant with Mercy, that I left the church exhausted…

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CHRIST IS RISEN, ALLELUIA!

Let us lift our hands to our King!

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THERE is much on my heart to write and speak about in the days ahead that is serious and important in the big scheme of things. In the meantime, Pope Benedict continues to speak lucidly and candidly about the future the world faces. It is no surprise that he is echoing the warnings of the Blessed Virgin Mary who, in her person, is a prototype and mirror of the Church. That is, there should be a consistency between her and Sacred Tradition, between the prophetic word of the body of Christ and her authentic apparitions. The central and synchronous message is one of both warning and hope: warning that the world is on the very precipice of disaster due to its present course; and hope that, if we turn back to God, He can heal our nations. I want to write more about Pope Benedict’s powerful homily given this past Easter Vigil. But for now, we cannot underestimate the seriousness of his warning:

The darkness that poses a real threat to mankind, after all, is the fact that he can see and investigate tangible material things, but cannot see where the world is going or whence it comes, where our own life is going, what is good and what is evil. The darkness enshrouding God and obscuring values is the real threat to our existence and to the world in general. If God and moral values, the difference between good and evil, remain in darkness, then all other “lights”, that put such incredible technical feats within our reach, are not only progress but also dangers that put us and the world at risk. —POPE BENEDICT XVI, Easter Vigil Homily, April 7th, 2012 (emphasis mine)

And thus, the world has arrived at The Prodigal Hour: a period of both hope and warning…

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The Prodigal Son, the Return by Tissot Jacques Joseph, 1862

THE Lord has been speaking non-stop since I arrived here in Paray-le-Monial. So much so, that he has been waking me up to converse in the night! Yes, I would think I was crazy too if it were not for my spiritual director ordering me to listen!

As we watch the world descend into unprecedented paganism, the gap between rich and poor continue to grow, and the innocence of children increasingly endangered by hedonistic ideologies, there is a cry rising from the Body of Christ for God to intervene. I hear more frequently these days Christians calling out for the fire of God to fall and purify this earth.

But God has always surprised His people with mercy when justice was deserving, both in the New and Old Testaments. I believe the Lord is preparing to surprise us again in a most unprecedented way. I hope to share more of these thoughts with you over the next few days as the World Congress of the Sacred Heart begins this evening here in this little French town where the Sacred Heart was revealed to St. Marguerite-Mary.

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Photo by Geoff Delderfield

There is a small window of sunshine here in Western Canada where our little farm is situated. And a busy farm it is! We have recently added chickens to our milk cow and seeds to our garden, as my wife and I and our eight children are doing everything we can to become more self-sufficient in this costly world. It is supposed to rain all weekend, and so I am trying to get some fencing done in the pasture while we can. As such, I have not had time to write anything new or produce a new webcast this week. However, the Lord continues to speak in my heart of His great mercy. Below is a meditation I wrote around the same time as A Miracle of Mercy, published earlier this week. For those of you who are in that place of hurting and shame because of your sinfulness, I recommend the writing below as well as one of my favorites, One Word, which can be found in Related Reading at the end of this meditation. As I’ve said before, rather than giving me something new to write, the Lord often urges me to republish something written in the past. I am amazed at how many letters I receive at those times… as if the writing was prepared in the past moreso for that moment.  

The following was first published November 21st, 2006.

I DID not read the Mass readings for Monday until after writing Part I of this series.  Both the First Reading and the Gospel are virtually a mirror of what I wrote in Part I…

LOST TIME AND LOVE 

The first reading says this:

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him, to show his servants what must happen soon… blessed are those who listen to this prophetic message and heed what is written in it, for the appointed time is near. (Revelations 1:1, 3)

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First published January 23rd, 2008.  This word brings into focus once again what all our waiting, watching, fasting, praying, and suffering is all about at this time in history. It reminds us that darkness will not triumph. Moreover, it reminds us that we are not defeated souls, but sons and daughters of God called into a mission, sealed with the power of the Holy Spirit, and inscribed with the name and authority of Jesus. Do not be afraid! Nor think that because you are insignificant in the eyes of the world, hidden from the masses, that God does not have a significant plan for you. Renew your commitment to Jesus today, trusting in His love and mercy. Begin again. Gird your loins. Tighten the ropes upon your sandals. Lift high the shield of faith, and grasp the hand of your Mother in the holy Rosary.

This is not the time for comfort, but the time for miracles! For Hope is dawning…

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FEAST OF OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY

AFTER the fall of Adam and Eve, God declared to Satan, the serpent:

I will put enmities between you and the woman, and your seed and her seed: she shall crush your head, and you shall lie in wait for her heel. (Gen 3:15; Douay-Rheims)

Not only the woman-Mary, but her seed, the woman-Church, will engage in a battle with the foe. That is, Mary and the remnant which forms her heel.

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FOR six months now, the Lord has remained mostly "silent" in my life. It has been a journey through an interior desert where great sand storms swirl and the nights are cold. Many of you understand what I mean. For the Good Shepherd is leading us with His rod and staff through the valley of death, the valley of stripping, the Valley of Achor.

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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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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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