Holiday Greetings

I would like to wish all the readers of this blog Happy Holidays, and to Christians I pray that you will have a very blessed and special Christmas, and to all, a New Year filled with Hope!

I have been very busy writing my second book. As soon as I finish it some time next year I hope to resume postings on this blog on a regular basis.

News about Our Lady of Emmitsburg's Apparitions

On Oct. 8, 2008, the Rev. Edwin F. O’Brien, Archbishop of Baltimore, issued an advisory regarding Our Lady of Emmitsburg’s messages to Dr. Gianna Sullivan. The Archbishop writes: "The alleged apparitions to Gianna Sullivan have not been recognized by the authority of the Church. Studied in detail by experts in theology and other pertinent fields, the investigations have come to the conclusion that the alleged apparitions are not supernatural in origin. This has been confirmed by the authority of the Church."

The net directive from the Diocese seems to be that Gianna should not in any way disseminate information within the diocese of Baltimore about her alleged apparitions. For more information, including Dr. Gianna Sullivan’s response as well as the Advisory put out by the Archbishop of Baltimore, click here. (www.prourladyofemmitsburg.org/latestnews.html )

It appears to this writer that the investigations of which Archbishop O’Brien speaks are not new. On Sept. 8, 2000, Dr. Gianna Sullivan received notification from Archbishop Keeler’s office that they were suspending the Marian Prayer Meetings which were being held in St. Joseph’s Church, Emmitsburg, MD pending an investigation of her mystical experiences. The report of the Commission was never made public.

In Sept. 2002 Cardinal Keeler sent a letter to the pastor of St. Joseph’ parish apparently indicating that they were continuing the ban on the use of Church facilities in the Diocese of Baltimore for the dissemination of Gianna’s messages. After Gianna and her husband, Michael, received a brief communication from Cardinal Keeler’s Delegate for Canonical Affairs, Gianna’s husband, Dr. Michael Sullivan, was quoted in the Frederick News-Post of Dec. 8, 2002 as saying that: "the church only restricted using the church property to deliver the messages and the Commission did not specifically condemn or approve the messages."

Most of the priests who back Gianna felt that the Commission’s investigation was flawed and asked for a second investigation. To my knowledge, the Diocese never authorized a second investigatory commission. For more information click here to see the website of the Foundation of the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary. (www.centeroftheimmaculateheart.org/foundation/welcome.asp )

It appears very likely to me that the message from Our Lady of Emmitsburg on June 1, 2008 upset some of the Archbishop’s parishioners. In particular, the warning that: "Approximately 60-70% of the world’s population, as you know it, will cease... Prayer is the answer! Prayer can mitigate much of anything to come." Such a warning does not seem to me to be sufficient reason to issue an "advisory" about Dr. Gianna Sullivan! Quite the contrary, this message of June 1, 2008 should be made known to all Catholics!

Why? Because very similar warnings have been reported by Church approved visionaries. For example, at Fatima Our Lady warned Sr. Lucia that "several entire nations would be annihilated" unless the people of the world started to pray more and amend their lives. And, on Oct. 13, 1973, the anniversary of the Fatima Miracle of the Sun, Our Lady appeared to Sister Agnes Sasagawa in Akita, Japan and said: "If men do not repent and better themselves, the Father will inflict a terrible punishment on all humanity. It will be a punishment greater than the deluge. Fire will fall from the sky and will wipe out a great part of humanity." As I said, both these warnings have been approved by the Catholic Church. Our Lady of Emmitsburg gave the same type of warning on June 1, 2008! Is it possible that this warning was one of the prime movers in Archbishop’s O’Brien’s decision?

One more thing needs to be stressed. Two of the visionaries, Sr. Lucia and Dr. Gianna Sullivan, have reported that Our Lady is also predicting that there will be an Era of Peace which will come either through Grace or chastisement, depending on our response! In the book, The Fatima Prophecies , by By Thomas W. Petrisko, et al, the Era of Peace is described by a commission of six experts as referring to the "true reign of Christ". This amazing statement reads as follows: "At Fatima a commission of six experts appointed by the Bishop to interpret the message of Fatima rendered the opinion that the ‘Era of Peace’ promised by Mary implied a ‘true reign of Christ’ on the earth. This was because, they said, there ‘could be no other meaning of the word peace’ on the lips of the Mother of Christ and ‘no other meaning to her words’ my Immaculate Heart will triumph."

TWO SUNS ON THE HORIZON

A private message to Gianna Talone Sullivan was given to her on Memorial Day, May 26, 2008, by Our Lady of Emmitsburg. In this message Our Lady introduced the idea of “stars aligning and moving in their own orbits.” Mary says that this event, which could come: “ sooner than you know, could result in the death of 70% of this world’s population.”

In Our Lady of Emmitsburg’s Public Message to the World on June 1, 2008, she says: “When you see the two suns on the horizon, you must know that this is a time of change, a time of this new beginning about which I have spoken to you before. After you see the two suns, there is only a short time before you will see a tremendous change in weather...I can tell you this: Even your governments and the Church authorities already have knowledge of the stars aligning and its implication upon you...Approximately 60-70% of the world’s population, as you know it, will cease. Of those who survive, 60% of them could die of disease and starvation.”

However, Our Lady of Emmitsburg continues to offer us hope. She says that: “PRAYER IS THE ANSWER! PRAYER CAN MITIGATE MUCH OF ANYTHING TO COME. Love and unity must be at the forefront, not survival of the fittest.”

If these predictions seem far fetched, consider the Catholic Church approved apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima. In the Fatima apparition the Mother of God predicted that a great chastisement was imminent and that “several nations would be annihilated” IF the world did not turn back to God. To support her words, Mary promised that a miracle would be performed at a predicted time and place. The ‘Miracle of the Sun’ occurred as promised on October 13, 1917 in the Cova da Iria, Portugual before more than 100,000 people! For more information see the book, Meet the Witnesses, by John M. Haffert.

In another of his more than twenty books, John M. Haffert describes this amazing Miracle of the Sun as follows: “A light was seen in the sky which looked like the sun. It was visible within a radius of more than twenty miles, clearly defined (hence not something seen through a fog or mist), whirled in the sky like a wheel of fire, threw off shafts of colored light which colored objects on the ground. After several minutes, it seemed suddenly to loose itself from the sky and to plummet toward the earth, causing the crowd to believe that the world was about to end. It was over in twelve minutes.”

It is not so easy to be incredulous about the Miracle of the Sun, when we learn that not only was it witnessed to by over 100,000 people, but that it was attested to by the two most powerful, atheistic newspapers in Portugal, O Seculo and O Dia. Prior to the Miracle, these two newspapers : “had been blasting at the story of Fatima as being anything from a Jesuit fraud to rankest superstition.”

After the Miracle occurred both newspapers accurately printed what their reporters had seen. These descriptions were so thorough that the Vatican used them in the Beatification and Canonization proceedings of the two young visionaries, Jacinta and Francisco! Never before in the history of the Catholic Church had a miracle happened at the very time and place predicted in advance!

Is it too late for us to respond to these critical messages from God? The late Pope John Paul II, that great contemplative, spoke about the importance of the Fatima messages. He said that the key point was that at Fatima Our Lady had pointed the way for us to respond in order to “save mankind from self-destruction.”

Which Will You Choose?

On April 8, 2008, God the Father through Dr. Gianna Sullivan spoke once again to humanity. He points out how we have been blessed and given life. And He asks us whether or not we realize that we are “special and savored by Heaven”? God the Father emphasizes that we "have every port of glory" at our fingertips.

Referring to the apocalyptic challenges that face mankind as never before, God the Father points out the two choices that face us and speaks of the tremendous graces that He is now making available to the whole human race. He tells Gianna:

“I am relinquishing all graces unto you, not one by one but as if a floodgate was to open to you so that you can be inebriated by My Love and come DROWN in the Precious Blood of My Son, protected and full of Life. "

“Or, if you do not desire that, then the floodgates of the human natural world will pour forth and overtake you; and there, at the mercy of nature, you will have the same opportunity to DROWN in another world."

Pope Benedict XVI and Prophecy

I just purchased online for $61, including shipping, a newly published book, Christian Prophecy, The Post-Biblical Tradition, written by Niels Christian Hvidt. The list price is $74. The book has a hard cover with approximately 400 pages, printed on acid free paper, and is published by Oxford University Press. As far as I can tell this book, written by Dr. Niels Christian Hvidt whose degree in theology is from the Pontifical Gregorian University, is a major work on Christian Prophecy. It is a must read for anyone who wishes to get a new insight into the Divine interventions occurring today as well as during the last few centuries.

One thing that impresses me is the fact that the Foreword is written by Pope Benedict XVI! He begins by telling us what a prophet is not. He “is not a soothsayer; the essential element of the prophet is not the prediction of future events. The prophet is someone who tells the truth on the strength of his contact with God—the truth for today, which also, naturally, sheds light on the future." He makes an important point in that Moses speaks of himself as a prophet when he says to his people “God will send you a prophet like me.” Pope Benedict XVI says that Moses was a friend of God in a special way. He writes: “I tend to see the root of the prophetic element in that ‘face to face’ with God, in ‘talking with Him as a friend.’ Only by virtue of this direct encounter with God may the prophet speak in moments of time.”

Pope Benedict XVI points out that Niels Christian Hvidt worked within the framework of fundamental theology in his study of Christian Prophecy and therefore “investigates the purpose and preconditions of Christian prophecy in light of developments in the past 50 years in Revelation theology.” Most importantly he says that this book “offers a new approach to the actualization of Revelation, especially in the very life of the Church, which sociological investigations show in an interesting way.” The Pope ends with these words: “Niels Christian Hvidt has trod new theological land and therewith has made important contributions to a theme that needs further thought.”

In what I have had an opportunity to read thus far, I find the book quite deep but very readable. It is a big help to me in understanding not only how prophecy developed, but also its role in the Christian church.

"'TWO EASTERS IS A HOUSE DIVIDED'"

According to Western Christianity, which includes both Protestant and Catholic churches, today is Easter Sunday. However, the Eastern Orthodox Church does not celebrate Easter for five more weeks, that is, until April 27, 2008. According to www.religionfacts.com it was decided "at the Council of Nicea in 325, which decreed that Easter should be celebrated by all on the same Sunday, which Sunday shall be the first following the paschal moon (and the paschal moon must not precede the spring equinox), and that a particular church should determine the date of Easter and communicate it throughout the empire (probably Alexandria, with their skill in astronomical calculations).

"The policy was adopted throughout the empire, but Rome adopted an 84-year lunar cycle for determining the date, whereas Alexandria used a 19-year cycle. Use of these different "paschal cycles" persists to this day and contributes to the disparity between the eastern and western dates of Easter."

In the TLIG International e-news letter of March 19, 2008, it claims that "Two Easters Is A House Divided." In the past I had never really focused on this as being very important. However, as I now look forward to the Second Pentecost and Christian Unity (as yet undefined), I am impressed by the following excerpted from the TLIG international e-news:

"And, have you ever thought of what this looks like to the non-Christian world? Here is what Monsignor Isidore Battika, Greek Catholic Patriarchal Vicar in Damascus, Syria, where Christians are a minority has to say about it. 'For the Easter feast it is very important. We have two Easter feasts in Syria. It is a bad thing for the church. We don’t testify to Jesus Christ. To the Moslem, when they see us have two Easter, two Crucifixions, two Resurrections it is too much.'"

Consider expressing yourself by voting on the following petition to Unify the Dates of Easter:
http://www.onedate.org

A Second Spring

We have just arrived home, after spending a month in sub-tropical, Hilton Head Island, SC having paid only winter rates. However, spring had already started when we arrived. Gardeners were in the process of planting yellow and violet flowering pansies all over the entrances to the island's plantations. The 'Empress of Winter', the camellia shrub with gorgeous red blooms, was already in flower, surrounding the entrance to Captain's Walk in Palmetto Dunes, where we were staying. And with each day we seemed to see new evidence of spring. The shrubs and the ornamental grasses began to grow. Day after day we saw more and more azaleas with many different colorings come into bloom. The yellow daffodils started to flower on the green shoots that had poked their heads through the earth almost everywhere we looked. The pink and white buds on the flowering trees were just about in full bloom. And of course, the grass was lush and green. As we departed gardeners were again planting annuals, this time impatiens and petunias. What a delight spring is!
And now that we are back home, about 700 miles north of Hilton Head Island, we are looking forward to experiencing a second spring. How blessed we are!

"A Wondrous Tomorrow" Will Explode

On http://www.centeroftheimmaculateheart.org/, the Foundation of the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary website, new words from God the Father, through Gianna Sullivan, were published on March 8, 2008. As usual, they are addressed to the Children of Humanity, to all of us! He tells us that because there is no peace in our hearts, there is chaos throughout the world. He urges us to "live in Truth", and to "come back to the Truth." God the Father says: "Every day is a new opportunity to give yourself unconditionally to the Truth, regardless of your sinful ways. I, your God of Mercy, am that indeed! If you do not, then the pain and suffering, the fear and panic and confusion, and the division and scandals will only escalate."

Then God the Father speaks these extraordinary words! "As the prophets before and as the prophets now all join in unity to give glory to God through My Son, there will explode a wondrous tomorrow! Painful it might be for those who do not know the Truth and for those who do and refuse to accept it. For those who do know it and accept it, painful it might be; but the overall safety of their souls will be preserved, and the world will be brought forth to its proper place from its inception in Creation.

The last sentence gives me a new and amazing insight into the Second Coming.

A Message from Our Lady for the United States

In my blog posting of 11-27-07, titled New Era of Peace, I quote Our Lady of Emmitsburg as saying two things. One is that we need to prepare ourselves for this new Era of Peace. Second, that the new Era of Peace will be "proceeded by confusion and controversy, battles, pain and the other bowls of purification." Finally, in my 1-26-08 post I quote Our Lady of Fatima as saying that "various nations will be annihilated" if we do not listen to her warnings and change our lives.

Now, Our Lady has given a specific message for the United States. On 1-19-08 Our Lady of Emmitsburg gave a message to Gianna Sullivan for release on 1-31-08. The Mother of God begins:

"Little ones, I do not think that your country realizes the seriousness of the world's condition and the effects it will have on humanity worldwide. Those, who say they are Christian and love Jesus and who are prayerful and spiritual, and yet disconnect themselves via politics and other spiritual elements from moral values, are in most serious danger!"

Our Lady makes an interesting point about us here in the US. She says:

"There are people on other continents who are willing to die for what they believe in truth, and they do; and yet, this country allows people to die from lack of food, shelter and healthcare, and from the kind of death caused by lack of respect and lack of dignity, killing the hearts and the vibrancy of life through slander, malice, gossip and selfishness.

Later Our Lady addresses the apocalyptic aspects of her message:

"If you think any war in this world has been devastating up to this point, you have not witnessed what will come without change. You can dismiss only so much; however, you had best be prepared to answer for what you yourself have done."

"What will it take for you to realize your visitation is here at hand and the many gifts God wants to give you to protect you, to keep you safe, and to draw you to His Truth?"

"various nations will be annihilated."

During my vacation in the Bahamas I was reading a number of books about Our Lady of Fatima, who appeared to three young children in Fatima, Portugal, beginning in 1917! Ultimately these apparitions of Mary were sanctioned by the Catholic church. One of the prophecies that the Mother of God made was that, if we did not turn our lives back to God, that “various nations will be annihilated.” It should be noted that this prediction was made long before the atomic bomb was detonated over Hiroshima. Although I had heard about the apparitions of Fatima many years ago, I did not become aware of this prophecy and it implications until very recently,

While the visionaries, Dr. Gianna Talone-Sullivan and Mrs Vassula Ryden, both say that they are not prophets of “doom and gloom”, there is, nonetheless, an apocalyptic element in their writings. What impresses me is that, what these mystics are saying, is amazingly consistent with the messages of Our Lady of Fatima!