The New Gideon

 

Mark is coming to Philadelphia in September, 2017. Details at the end of this writing… In today’s first Mass reading on this memorial of the Queenship of Mary, we read about the call of Gideon. Our Lady is the New Gideon of our times…

 

DAWN expels the night. Spring follows the Winter. Resurrection proceeds from the tomb. These are allegories for the Storm that has come to the Church and the world. For all will appear as though lost; the Church will seem utterly defeated; evil will exhaust itself in the darkness of sin. But it is precisely in this night that Our Lady, as the “Star of the New Evangelization”, is presently leading us toward the dawn when the Sun of Justice will rise upon a new Era. She is preparing us for the Flame of Love, the coming light of her Son…

Ah, my daughter, the creature always races more into evil. How many machinations of ruin they are preparing! They will go so far as to exhaust themselves in evil. But while they occupy themselves in going their way, I will occupy Myself with the completion and fulfillment of My Fiat Voluntas Tua (“Thy will be done”) so that My Will reign on earth—but in an all-new manner. Ah yes, I want to confound man in Love! Therefore, be attentive. I want you with Me to prepare this Era of Celestial and Divine Love… —the Lord to Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta, Manuscripts, Feb 8th, 1921; excerpt from The Splendor of Creation, Rev. Joseph Iannuzzi, p.80; printed with permission of the Archbishop of Trani

 

ONLY A REMNANT

The story of Gideon is a parable of what is unfolding.

Gideon is called by God at a time when the Israelites had fallen into apostasy. Surrounded by the vast armies of Midian, God calls the humble Gideon to lead his people out of their bondage. But the Lord has him only take 300 of the 32,000 men at his disposal, in part, because two thirds of them were unwilling to fight. ^[1]cf. Jud 7:3

Coincidentally, as I was preparing this writing, I received an email with the monthly message allegedly from Our Lady of Medjugorje. She says in part:

Small is the number of those who understand and follow me… —message to Mirjana, May 2nd, 2014

Indeed, a mere remnant is left today of Catholics who are unafraid to be authentically Catholic; who are courageously living out and upholding the moral teachings of the faith; who are living the messages of Our Lady, beginning with Fatima. For many would rather remain silent than enter the battle for souls; complacent than being pro-active; withdrawn than being witnesses.

In a speech at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast, Princeton Professor Robert P. George acknowledged what several have been warning for years: persecution is now here. But he adds, not for every Catholic.

Of course, one can still safely identify oneself as a ‘Catholic,’ and even be seen going to Mass. That is because the guardians of those norms of cultural orthodoxy that we have come to call ‘political correctness’ do not assume that identifying as ‘Catholic’ or going to Mass necessarily means that one actually believes what the Church teaches on issues such as marriage and sexual morality and the sanctity of human life. —May 15th, 2014, LifeSiteNews.com

One can be a Catholic, just as long as one isn’t actually a Catholic.

But this writing, this moment, is an invitation to you to join Christ’s battalion, led by His Mother. To be faithful, a faithful Catholic. From the Church-approved messages to Elizabeth Kindelmann:

All are invited to join my special fighting force. The coming of my Kingdom must be your only purpose in life… Do not be cowards. Do not wait. Confront the Storm to save souls. —Jesus to Elizabeth Kindelmann, The Flame of Love, pg. 34, published by Children of the Father Foundation; imprimatur Archbishop Charles Chaput

And so, Gideon takes those troops who gave their fiat into a divine battle plan. “Watch and follow my lead,” he tells them. ^[2]cf. Jud 7:17

 

PREPARING THE REMNANT ARMY

It must have seemed crazy to Gideon’s men—300 of them against tens of thousands of the Midianite armies. So too today, Our Lord is inviting us to totally abandon ourselves to Him. To trust completely in His plan as the world of pagans begins to vastly outnumber the little remnant. More than that, He is asking us to cancel out our will in order to live in the Divine Will. This is the great plan He has entrusted to Our Lady—to bring us to the point of our own personal fiat such that it draws down the Holy Spirit and Jesus within us, which is really the reign of His Kingdom on earth in us.

…take a look at where Jesus calls you and wants you: under the wine press of My Divine Will, so that your will receives a continuous death, as did My human will. Otherwise you would not be able to inaugurate the new Era and make My Will reign on earth. What is needed in order for My Will to come and reign on earth is the continuous act, the pains, the deaths in order to be able to draw down from Heaven the Fiat Voluntuas Tua. —the Lord to Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta, Manuscripts, December 26th, 1923;; excerpt from The Splendor of Creation, Rev. Joseph Iannuzzi, p.133; printed with permission of the Archbishop of Trani

In a word, Gethsemane. St. John Paul II delivered this very message to the youth before World Youth Day in Toronto:

…only by following God’s will can we be the light of the world and the salt of the earth! This sublime and demanding reality can only be grasped and lived in a spirit of constant prayer. This is the secret, if we are to enter into and dwell in God’s will. —ST. JOHN PAUL II, To the Youth of Rome Preparing for World Youth Day, March 21, 2002; vatican.va

And so, Gideon demands something of his men that seems impossible: to lay aside their swords and take up God’s weapons. He places in each of their hands a horn and a torch to be put inside an empty jar.

Not by an army, nor by might, but by my spirit, says the LORD of hosts… for the weapons of our battle are not of flesh but are enormously powerful, capable of destroying fortresses. (Zech 4:6; 2 Cor 10:4)

It must likewise seem crazy to some that the Rosary has been given by Our Lady as the choice “weapon.”

At times when Christianity itself seemed under threat, its deliverance was attributed to the power of this prayer, and Our Lady of the Rosary was acclaimed as the one whose intercession brought salvation. —ST. JOHN PAUL II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 40

But the Rosary, more so, prayer itself, is like the empty jar that is raised up, waiting to be filled. With what? The torch. And what is the torch? It is the Flame of Love. And now, here is the key to understanding what is coming into the hearts of the remnant, into the world…

…my Flame of Love… is Jesus Himself. —Our Lady to Elizabeth Kindelmann, August 31, 1962

It is the coming of Jesus in the Spirit to reign “on earth as it is in heaven.” ^[3]cf. Dear Holy Father… He is Coming

 

WHEN IT IS DARKEST

That night the Lord said to Gideon: Go, descend on the camp, for I have delivered it into your power… So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch…

It is at the darkest part of night—the “middle watch, or after midnight—that the Lord sets Gideon in motion.

I am reminded of a powerful interior vision I had several years ago of a smoldering candle. ^[4]cf. The Smoldering Candle While the flame of truth was going out in the world, it was growing in a remnant of souls. While the world began to follow a false light, the light of truth was burning in the faithful—an utter gift for those who disposed themselves to it.

There is an urgent need, then, to see once again that faith is a light, for once the flame of faith dies out, all other lights begin to dim… A light this powerful cannot come from ourselves but from a more primordial source: in a word, it must come from God. —POPE FRANCIS, Lumen Fidei, Encyclical, n. 4 (co-written with Benedict XVI); vatican.va

Gideon commands his army to light the torches and hold them in the jars. Only at the specified moment are they to blow their horns (symbolic of the message of Mercy) and break the jars, crying out: “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon” (or we might say today, “For the Two Hearts!”). When the 300 horns were blown and the jars broken, suddenly the Midianite camp was thrown into utter confusion. They were surrounded by blinding light such that they panicked, turned on one another, and scattered.

This will be precisely the effect of the Flame of Love:

It will be the Great Miracle of light blinding Satan… The torrential flood of blessings about to jolt the world must begin with the small number of the most humble souls. —Our Lady to Elizabeth, www.theflameoflove.org

And once again, Our Lady’s recent alleged messages from Medjugorje continue to coincide with this theme, as on May 2nd, 2014, she spoke of a light coming from “the simplicity of an open heart” that “shatters darkness.” ^[5]cf. www.medjugorje.org/messagesall.htm I am reminded of St. John Bosco’s famous dream where he sees the Barque of St. Peter moored to the two pillars of Mary and the Holy Eucharist.

With that, the enemy ships are thrown into confusion, colliding with another and sinking as they attempt to disperse. —St. John Bosco, cf. Da Vinci Code… Fulfilling a Prophecy?

 

EVIL FLEES—NOT THE REMNANT

The effect of grace of the Flame of Love will begin to drive out darkness from millions of souls, just as Gideon’s army began to pursue the armies of Midian and their leaders and drive them out of the land. ^[6]cf. Exorcism of the Dragon It will set the stage for the final confrontation of this era between the children of Light and the children of Darkness.

Then war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels battled against the dragon… 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 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… (Rev 12:7,9; 13:1)

But by then, the Flame of Love, the Kingdom of God, will be established in the hearts of the remnant—which is why after the exorcism of the dragon, St. John the Apostle hears in his vision:

Now have salvation and power come, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Anointed. For the accuser of our brothers is cast out… 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. (Rev 12:10)

Giving his authority and power to the beast, the dragon will pursue the People of God through the lawless one. But whether they live or whether they die, they will reign with Christ in the new Era. ^[7]cf. Rev 20:4

 

A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT

At this moment, many of you may be feeling afraid, confused, and even terrified as the world rapidly enters into one of the darkest parts of the Storm. But there is a grace coming, and already available, that will conquer and repel evil such that the world has never seen before. At Fatima, Our Lady promised that her Immaculate Heart would be our refuge. Of the Flame of Love, Jesus said to Elizabeth: My mother’s Flame of Love is for you what Noah’s Ark was for Noah!

Once Jesus gave His fiat in Gethsemane, an angel was sent to strengthen Him. This is the hour of the Church’s Gethsemane. We have to go through this stripping, this testing where we may feel alone, isolated, afraid to suffer, to be persecuted—we have to follow in Jesus’ footsteps. But like Him, we too will be strengthened. Our Lady is like that angel and she is coming with the grace of the Flame of her Immaculate Heart, with Jesus Himself through the power of the Holy Spirit.

This past week, I went through a terrible darkness. I felt tremendous doubts, surges of fear, despair, terror, and abandonment. But then a few mornings ago… she came. Our Lady’s presence was so beautiful, so powerful, so gentle, so in control, so reassuring, so consoling…. how does one find words? I guess in a word I could say, she was and is a soul consumed with Jesus. She reassured me and left me filled with new strength, courage, and trust in the Lord.

I share this personal experience with you to encourage you that she is coming to be with every one of us. She is your Mother! Be patient; remain in Gethsemane; give your total “yes” to God; prepare your “jar” through prayer, ^[8]Most of us have filled our jars with materialism, sin, distractions, lust, worldliness, etc. At the end of The Triumph – Part III, I share from the Catechism the best way to empty our jars and make them ready for the Flame of Love. and wait for her to come and place a horn and a Torch in your hands and heart.

The New Gideon is coming to lead us to Triumph.

 

From this moment forward, add the following verse to
each “Hail Mary” you will be reciting:
“Spread the effect of grace of thy Flame of Love over all of humanity.”
—Our Lady to Elizabeth Kindelmann

 

First published May 23rd, 2014. 

 

 

RELATED READING

The Convergence and the Blessing

More on the Flame of Love

The Rising Morning Star

Political Correctness and the Great Apostasy

Is Jesus Really Coming?

Dear Holy Father… He is Coming!