Wednesday, April 30, 2008

"My work is getting in the way of my sanctification..."

This has been said by many who find work interfering with their sanctification.  How to harmonize work and sanctification?

May 1 is the feast day of Saint Joseph, the Worker. 

So, let's start to harmonize work and piety by saying this prayer to Saint Joseph before starting our work.  It was written by Pope Saint Pius X.

O Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance in expiation of my many sins; to work conscientiously by placing love of duty above my inclinations; to gratefully and joyously deem it an honor to employ and to develop by labor the gifts I have received from God, to work methodically, peacefully, and in moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from it through weariness or difficulty to work; above all, with purity of intention and unselfishness, having unceasingly before my eyes death and the account I have to render time lost, talents unused, good not done, and vain complacency in success, so baneful to the work of God. All for Jesus, all for Mary, all to imitate thee, O Patriarch St. Joseph! This shall be my motto for life and eternity.
Amen.

Saint Joseph, the Worker

In the Gospel we read that the Child Jesus grew in grace and sanctity before men. Next to Him, Our Lady was constantly growing in sanctity. And with them was Saint Joseph, the virginal man par excellence, descendent of King David, a man modeled by the Holy Ghost to be proportional to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

He is the patron of a good death because everything indicates that Our Lord and Our Lady were at his deathbed, helping him until the very last instant to attain the summit of perfection for which he was created.

In his last moments, and with his sight fading to this life, Saint Joseph looked to his Spouse and Son, the joy and admiration of his entire life; he saw Our Lord and Our Lady growing in sanctity, going up, always higher and higher.

And by seeing them both rising in perfection, Saint Joseph grew in sanctity, going always higher.

The three most holy persons who lived in the humble house of Nazareth were in a constant state of ascension in grace and sanctity.

Imagine for a moment a clock that would count their growth in sanctity. With each second that went by, with each tick-tack of the second hand, one could say the members of the Holy Family grew in grace and sanctity before God and men, until they reached the summit to which each one was destined.

However, the summit of perfection of each member of the Holy Family were different. These summits “loved” and “understood” each other intensely. And in them was a hierarchy desired by God, a hierarchy with an order that was admirably inverted: the head of the household on the human level was the least in the supernatural order and the boy who should obey his parents was God.

It was a type of inversion – an inversion that makes one love yet more the richness and complexity of all order that is truly hierarchical.

On the other hand, God willed another mystery in these most noble complexities of the hierarchical order. He willed that Saint Joseph be the representative of the most august lineage on earth. Other lineages, such as the Hapsburgs, are noble because from them came kings, but what can be said about a lineage from which a God was born?

And God willed that Saint Joseph be a carpenter and a king at the same time. In this way, both extremes of the temporal hierarchy were joined in him. Our Lord Jesus Christ is God-Man. The divine and human natures are joined in Him.

In the case of Saint Joseph, we have a carpenter-king. In the case of Our Lord, we have a creature-Creator. In both cases, there is the union of the intermediary elements of hierarchy by the union of its most extreme points.

Let’s imagine something that will help us to understand this. It is something slightly prosaic, but illustrates the point. Watch someone playing an accordion. He squeezes the ends of the accordion and brings the whole instrument together in one compact block.

Here we see the hierarchy in the Holy Family as a chain of tall mountains, mountains so tall our eyes and mind must strain to understand all they represent. But there’s more.

In the Holy Family we see represented a united hierarchy, an unequal yet affectionate union of the entire social order. In sum, here we see the higher lovingly embrace the lower and say: “We are all one.”

"Look what he did to Our Lady of Mount Carmel..."

Imagem Na Sra do Carmo queimada

BEFORE                            AFTER

A friend sent these pictures from Chile, South America.

They are from the recent and horrific blasphemy perpetrated by a man dressed in black who walked into the church and set this statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on fire.

This is an abomination!  And I wonder what it means?

Some are trying to say the man dressed in black was insane.  While I have great sympathy for the mentally ill, I have a hard time understanding why an insane man would walk into a Church, go right up to the statue, pour gasoline on the statue, and light it on fire.

It does not add up to me.

Our sister organization in Chile is preparing a national campaign of reparation.  They are trying to get at least one million rosaries of reparation prayed on July 16th, feast day of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Please pray they are successful in getting millions to join.

"...maniacal intent..." denigrators say about America Needs Fatima. What should I answer?

Yesterday, two people left posts that I want to share with you. They are below.

Please help me to answer them.

Thank you.

Post #1:

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "How would you answer this comment?":

If you believe that protesting a play is "God's Will," then you're even more an apostate to the Gospel than I originally realized. I really do pity you people for your misdirected energy, your false proclamations, and your maniacal intent.


Post # 2:

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "ANF answers objection...":

Here's the opposite side of the coin to the Great CommissionMatthew 23:15 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves."Your protests and threats do nothing to glorify Christ or His Church.

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Academy celebrates St. Louis de Montfort's feast day with Mass and banquet...

Dinner

The staff and boys of St. Louis de Montfort Academy celebrated their special patron yesterday, April 28.

Mass

The St. Louis de Montfort Academy is an independent boarding school for boys, encompassing grades 7 through 12. Founded in 1995, it is staffed by full-time volunteers of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP).

Dinner 2

 

A Day at the Academy

"There is nothing shorter than time, but there is nothing more valuable," says Saint Alphonsus Liguori. In the formation of Catholic gentlemen, a well-structured daily schedule is not only indispensable, but also an obligation before God, the Creator of time. Aiming to impart a threefold spiritual, intellectual and cultural formation to its students, the Academy follows a rigorous daily schedule.

As the sun begins to beam through the students' bedroom windows, the bell-ringer strikes the bell seven times in honor of the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady. The students line up along the hallway outside their bedrooms to start the day with a prayer to St. Michael, asking his aid in the day's battle. Punctuality for this and other formations is much emphasized, so those who are tardy often make amends by way of a few pushups.
After this morning formation, everyone washes up and prepares themselves for Mass in the nearby city of Shamokin.  If for some reason there is no Mass scheduled on a particular day, a rosary is prayed together in the chapel. After returning from Mass, all gather for inspection, an important practice that helps keep the students and the school building in order. Students and bedrooms must be impeccable, uniforms pressed, shoes polished, bed coverings taut and tidy.
Click to see larger image of

Raising of the Standard Following inspection, the students assemble before the school building for the "Raising of the Standard." As the ruby-red standard of the TFP is hoisted, the students sing the Creed in Latin, Gregorian chant style. With a sign from an instructor, the students file out in orderly ranks for the refectory, singing Saint Louis de Montfort's hymn We Want God. A good book like The Dreams of Saint John Bosco is read aloud while the students enjoy a hearty breakfast. Before classes commence, the flag-bearer of the week raises the national flag while the students say a prayer for America, invoking the Immaculate Conception and American saints such as St. John Neumann and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.

Every class begins with a short prayer, keeping in mind the important role the Angels and Saints have in the students' intellectual formation. There are four periods in the morning, covering the more important subjects of Religion, English, Mathematics and History or Science. Short breaks between classes give the students time to stretch and get some fresh air.

By lunchtime the stomachs of the growing young men are clamoring for attention, but they remember Saint John Bosco's admonition, "Don't live to eat; eat to live." Often, a rule of etiquette or of chivalrous treatment is given at the beginning of lunch. At other times, lunch is enlivened with organized debates -- sometimes heated -- or a short speech by one of the older students.

Back in the classrooms by two o'clock, the students finish the afternoon classes and study hall. At four o'clock, the students change into their gym uniforms and run for at least half-a-mile to start off their much-needed physical exercise. A small snack follows and, Click to see larger image of Afternoon exercise depending on the day, they play organized sports or work on various projects, such as building a Nativity Scene, planting a vegetable garden, or clearing brush on the Academy's twenty-acre property. The games help to instill sportsmanship, while the chores help the students gain a sense of duty and accomplishment. On occasion, in place of games or projects, a member of the staff or a guest gives a short talk on topics related to our Catholic faith and culture. Sometimes these talks focus on the enemies of the Church and their errors, for a good Catholic must be prepared to defend the Church.

             Afternoon exercise

As the sun begins to dip behind the rolling hills that surround the Academy, the students pray their last Rosary together in the chapel or in the open air. Click to see larger image of

Academy Choir at Christmas A candle-lit dinner follows. With lively conversation throughout, dinner not uncommonly lasts for an hour or more.
Saint John Bosco once told his boys that a group without music is like a body without a soul. Mindful of this, the Academy conducts a music program which includes a brass band with percussion and a choir. Practice and/or instruction follows dinner. The band's repertoire has included classical pieces such as Pachabel's Canon and patriotic marches. The choir rehearses for the Academy's Christmas open house or for the indult Latin Masses in Harrisburg and Hazleton.

 

By now, the sun has set and the young men gather in the chapel to say the final prayers of the day: St. Louis de Montfort's Consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Bernard's Salve Regina sung in the ancient simple chant. After final prayers, "Grand Silence" begins, allowing the students to get ready for bed and recollect themselves, and to read or do some homework. Before long, the hand bell for the students to be in bed tinkles, but students may read a little while longer until "Lights Out." Then only the peacefulness of the Pennsylvania countryside can be heard....

As can be seen, there is no time for idleness at the Academy. Punctuality, esprit de corps and readiness in the context of a structured but rich daily program combine to instill a sense of order and duty in the young men, molding them into eager members of the Church Militant. The goal of St. Louis de Montfort Academy is to provide an environment that will facilitate the healthy growth and maturity of young Catholic gentlemen. May God and Our Lady help us achieve this goal, as we take advantage of every precious moment.

Another way to answer objector to public protests...

Two thoughts came to mind;

One I'll call the "I'll see your Scripture quote and raise you one; "Remove the splinter from your eye..."

The other is to simply ignore it and go on doing what you/we are called to do by God's Grace knowing that there are many more like this unfortunate person used by the enemy to try to undermine God's Will.

Mark Serafino

Monday, April 28, 2008

ANF answers objection...

An anonymous writer sent me a note in which he/she protests the public actions of America Needs Fatima with these words:

"Imagine if all of your energy was redirected to helping the poor or taking care of widows. Unfortunately, it seems you people care more about attention and public protest than you do about the Gospel.

"Matthew 6:1 "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven."

--------------------------------------------------------

Our answer:

There is no contradiction between public acts of reparation and helping the poor and widows.

Countless groups today are dedicated to helping them.  Very few, however are dedicated to doing public acts of reparation, such as the one scheduled for the blasphemies in the Jerry Springer show on June 26 in Cincinnati.

We are inspired to publicly defend the honor of Our Lord Jesus Christ in these passages of St. Matthew 10: 32, 33:

Every one therefore that shall confess me before men, I will also confess him before my Father who is in heaven.

But he that shall deny me before men, I will also deny him before my Father who is in heaven.

And, we also read in the Gospel:

Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit:

Mat 5:15 Neither do light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but on the; and it shineth unto all that are in the house.

Luk 11:33 No man, when he hath lighted a lamp, putteth it in a cellar, neither under the bushel, but on the, that they which enter in may see the light.

So, much to the contrary of what our writer/objector affirms, doing public acts of reparation are very much inspired by the Gospel.

Update on Thomas Shibler: He's been home for 3 days now...

Hard to believe Thomas has been home for three days!

It's so nice to have him home.  He gets everyone going with his little chuckle that triggers laughter in all of us.

He's happy to be home too, although he is having a hard time taking thing slow and always having a shadow.

He's still bashful to go in public with his helmet. When we went to Mass on Sunday, he convinced Mom to let him hold it in his hand if he held on to her.

Friday evening was big and long, with guests and a lot of talking, everyone telling stories and him trying to follow.

Saturday was somewhat busy too with the same sort of thing.  Poor fellow!  He was sooo tired.

He says it's nice to have people over but, he wanted to just spend a day or so with family and rest. 

There are certain things that he loves to tell all of the time, such as, "I lost over 40 pounds! Can you believe that?!!"

Or, "I juggled three balls with one hand at the hospital and the nurses were impressed! They couldn't believe it!"

He was at 138 pounds when he left the hospital, and was around 170 before he went in.  So, he did loose quite a bit of weight. He's really a bean pole now!

He still lives in a bit of a fantasy and thinks things are true that he is really imagining. But, we learn to know what is true and what's not.

He's doing so miraculously well considering all he went through!  We're so grateful for your prayers - we know it wouldn't have been the same without them!

We're lost for words - Thomas is too. Whenever we mention the prayers, he gets all serious and says "I know! There are sooo many people praying! Tons of them! I know that helped me! Wow! And did you see all of the nice things people wrote in!?"

He is so touched. But, please keep praying - Thomas is counting on your prayers. He's all worried about always being "messed up" as he says.  We tell him that he's doing great -- that he's a miracle!

He knows it, but it's still hard.  He's scared to death that when they put his skull back in, he's going to loose all of his memory.

We try to explain that it won't be like that. Of course, he may have a setback, but it won't take him two weeks to wake up again.

Of course, it's going to be several months before he gets the piece of his skull put back in.

So, please keep up the prayers!  It works to storm heaven!  Trust!  Confidence!  Perseverance!

How would you answer this comment?

 

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "See you in Cincinnati...":

 

"Imagine if all of your energy was redirected to helping the poor or taking care of widows. Unfortunately, it seems you people care more about attention and public protest than you do about the Gospel.

"Matthew 6:1 "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven."

April 28: Feast of St. Louis de Montfort; please read from His Letter to Friends of the Cross...

Is St. Louis de Montfort one of your favorite saints?

Well, he is one of mine. And it is my opinion, whatever it's worth, that if every priest practiced what St. Louis outline here below in his letter to The Friends of the Cross, the world would enter a golden period of grace and sanctity within just 5 years!

Judge for yourself. Read this excerpt from The Friends of the Cross, and let me know what you think, OK?

----------------------------

Friends of the Cross!

You are like crusaders united to fight against the world; not like Religious who retreat from the world lest they be overcome, but like brave and valiant warriors on the battle- field, who refuse to retreat or even yield an inch. Be brave and fight courageously.

You must be joined together in a close union of mind and heart, which is stronger and far more formidable to the world and to hell than are the armed forces of a great nation to its enemies.

Evil spirits are united to destroy you; you must be united to crush them. The avaricious are united to make money and amass gold and silver; you must combine your efforts to acquire the eternal treasures hidden in the Cross. Pleasure-seekers unite to enjoy themselves; you must be united to suffer.


Greatness of Your Title!

You call yourselves "Friends of the Cross." What a glorious title! I must confess that I am charmed and captivated by it. It is brighter than the sun, higher than the heavens, more magnificent and resplendent than all the titles given to kings and emperors. It is the glorious title of Jesus Christ, true God and true man. It is the genuine title of a Christian.


But, if I am captivated by its splendour, I am no less frightened by its responsibility, for it is a title that embraces difficult and inescapable obligations, summed up in the words of the Holy Spirit, "A chosen race, a royal priesthood, a people set apart."

A Friend of the Cross is one chosen by God, from among thousands who live only according to their reason and senses, to be wholly divine, raised above mere reason and completely opposed to material things, living in the light of pure faith, and inspired by a deep love of the Cross.


A Friend of the Cross is an all-powerful king, a champion who triumphs over the devil, the world and the flesh in their three-fold concupiscence. He crushes the pride of Satan by his love of humiliations; he overcomes the greed of the world by his love of poverty; he retrains the sensuality of the flesh by his love of suffering.

A Friend of the Cross is one who is holy and set apart from the things that are visible, for his heart is raised above all that is transient and perishable, and his homeland is in heaven; he travels through this world like a visitor and a pilgrim, and, far from setting his heart on it, he looks on it with indifference and tramples it underfoot with contempt.


A Friend of the Cross is a glorious trophy gained by the crucified Christ on Calvary, in union with his holy Mother. He is a Benoni or Benjamin, a child of sorrow and of the right hand, conceived in the suffering heart of Jesus, born from his pierced side, and baptised in his blood. True to his origin, his life embraces the cross, and death to the world, the flesh, and sin, so as to live here below a life hidden with Christ in God.

In short, a perfect Friend of the Cross is a true Christ-bearer, or rather another Christ, so that he can truly say, "I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me."


My dear Friends of the Cross, do you live in accordance with the noble title you bear? Or, at least, have you a real desire and a sincere determination to do so with the help of God's grace, under the shelter of Christ's Cross and of our Lady of Sorrows? Are you taking the means necessary for this?

Are you walking along the true way of life, which is the narrow and stony way of Calvary? Or are you, without perhaps realizing it, on the wide road of the world which leads to perdition? Are you aware that there is a highway which is to all appearances a straight and safe road, but which really leads to eternal death?


Do you clearly distinguish the voice of God and his grace from that of the world and of human nature? Do you listen to the voice of God, our heavenly Father, pronouncing his three-fold curse on all who follow the desires of the world: "Woe, woe, woe to all the people on earth;" the Father who stretches out his arms to you in loving appeal, "Come out, my chosen people," dear friends of my Son's Cross, away from worldlings, who have been cursed by myself, rejected by my Son, and condemned by my Holy Spirit? Beware of following their counsels, of sitting in their company, or even lingering on the road they take. Hasten away from the infamous Babylon.

Listen only to the voice of my beloved Son and follow only him, whom I have given you to be your way, your truth, your life, and your model. (Ipsum audite.) "Listen to him."

Do you listen to the voice of Jesus who, burdened with his Cross, calls out to you, "Come after me; anyone who follows me will not be walking in the dark; be brave; I have conquered the world."?


The Two Companies [This is exactly what St. Ignatius preached in his spiritual exercises]

My dear brothers and sisters, there are two companies that appear before you each day: the followers of Christ and the followers of the world.

Our dear Saviour's company is on the right, climbing up a narrow road, made all the narrower by the world's immorality. Our Master leads the way, barefooted, crowned with thorns, covered with blood, and laden with a heavy cross. Those who follow him, though most valiant, are only a handful, either because his quiet voice is not heard amid the tumult of the world, or because people lack the courage to follow him in his poverty, sufferings, humiliations and other crosses which his servants must carry all the days of their life.


On the left hand is the company of the world or of the devil. This is far more numerous, more imposing and more illustrious, at least in appearance. Most of the fashionable people run to join it, all crowded together, although the road is wide and is continually being made wider than ever by the crowds that pour along it like a torrent. It is strewn with flowers, bordered with all kinds of amusements and attractions, and paved with gold and silver.

On the right, the little groups which follow Jesus speak about sorrow and penance, prayer and indifference to worldly things. They continually encourage one another saying, "Now is the time to suffer and to mourn, to pray and do penance, to live in retirement and poverty, to humble and mortify ourselves; for those who do not possess the spirit of Christ, which is the spirit of the cross, do not belong to him. Those who belong to Christ have crucified all self-indulgent passions and desires. We must be true images of Christ or be eternally lost."


"Have confidence," they say to each other. If God is on our side, within us and before us, who can be against us? He who is within us is stronger than the one who is in the world. The servant is not greater than his master. This slight and temporary distress we suffer will bring us a tremendous and everlasting glory. The number of those who will be saved is not as great as some people imagine.

It is only the brave and the daring who take heaven by storm, where only those are crowned who strive to live according to the law of the Gospel and not according to the maxims of the world. Let us fight with all our strength, let us run with all speed, that we may attain our goal and win the crown.


Such are some of the heavenly counsels with which the Friends of the Cross inspire each other.

Those who follow the world, on the contrary, urge each other to continue in their evil ways without scruple, calling to one another day after day, "Let us eat and drink, sing and dance, and enjoy ourselves. God id good; he has not made us to damn us. He does not forbid us to amuse ourselves. We shall not be damned for so little. We are not to be scrupulous. 'No, you will not die'."

Dear brothers and sisters, remember that our loving Saviour has his eyes on you at this moment, and he says to each one of you individually, "See how almost everyone deserts me on the royal road of the Cross. Pagans in their blindness ridicule my Cross as foolishness; obstinate Jews are repelled by it as by an object of horror; heretics pull it down and break it to pieces as something contemptible.


"Even my own people - and I say this with tears in my eyes and grief in my heart - my own children whom I have brought up and instructed in my ways, my members whom I have quickened with my own Spirit, have turned their backs on me and forsaken me by becoming enemies of my Cross. 'Will you also go away?' Will you also desert me by running away from my Cross like the worldlings, who thus become so many antichrists? Will you also follow the world; despise the poverty of my Cross in order to seek after wealth; shun the sufferings of my Cross to look for enjoyment; avoid the humiliations of my Cross in order to chase after the honours of the world? 'There are many who pretend they are friends of mine and protest that they love me, but in their hearts they hate me. I have many friends of my table, but very few of my Cross.' (Imit. II, 11, 1)."

At this loving appeal of Jesus, let us rise above our human nature; let us not be seduced by our senses, as Eve was; but keep our eyes fixed on Jesus crucified, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection (Heb 12.2).

Let us keep ourselves apart from the evil practices of the world; let us show our love for Jesus in the best way, that is, through all kinds of crosses. Reflect well on these remarkable words of our Saviour, "If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself, and take up his cross and follow me" (Mt 16.24; Lk 9.23).

Sunday, April 27, 2008

April 27: Feast of Saint Peter Armengol, the saint of confidence in Our Lady...

Saint Peter Armengol

Related to the Counts of Urgel, Peter Armengol was born in Guardia dels Prats (Tarragona) in the middle of the thirteenth century. He spent his childhood and adolescence in a quiet family atmosphere of honesty. But having barely reached the threshold of youth, Peter was drawn by bad company to the abyss of dissolute and criminal life of a bandit.

In an encounter of armed people sent by James I to rid the area through which the royal suite was to travel of evildoers, with his sword in his hand, libertine Peter Armengol found himself face to face with his own father, Arnaldo. This providential circumstance made Peter lay down his weapons before his progenitor, ask for his pardon and, with iron will, decide to change his life.

His father’s prestige saved his son from the deserved punishment and Peter Armengol badgered the Mercedarian friars to accept him in the Order since he wanted to dedicate the rest of his life to the work of mercy of the redemption of captives so that the Lord would use his infinite mercy with him.

After he was received in the Order, Peter was able to go twice to Moorish lands to carry out the ministry of redemption. On his second trip in 1266, he remained as a hostage for captives in Bejaïa. He had stayed behind as a pledge but the money for the ransom did not arrive in time and he was hanged from the gallows.

However, thanks to Mary’s singular protection, he was not hurt. The day after the hanging, when Brother Guillermo of Florence arrived with the money agreed upon, he found Peter alive. As a result of his ordeal, he had a twisted neck for the rest of his life. Upon returning to Spain, for almost forty years, Peter lived in seclusion in the convent of Santa María dels Prats where he died a holy death in 1304.

Saturday, April 26, 2008

Protestant challenge to Catholic Devotion to Our Lady; and our answer...

Here at America Needs Fatima we receive the most interesting and varied correspondence.

For example, please read this letter-challenge from a Protestant lady:

"Challenge for you.  Name 10 beers. Now name the 10 commandments.  More people know more about the beer than God's word. 

"If you named more commandments than beer, very good.  You are one of the very few.  Give yourself more points if you actually know where it is in the Bible. Exodus 20 btw.  The first commandment says you shall have no other gods before me.

"The second commandment says, you shall not bow down yourself to them, nor serve them.  If those commandments are God's word, why do I see Catholics and even the Pope bowing and praying to a statue of Mary on CNN?

"I checked this out to see if it was true because I didn't believe it myself.  There are literally hundreds if not thousands of pictures of people kneeling and praying to the Pope and to Mary. 

"In one email I read: "Catholics do not pray to Mary. We PRAY FOR HER INTERCESSION. It's like having a dear friend to pray for you. And who can be a better friend than Jesus' mother who so humbly and willingly cried out "FIAT"...May God's will be done, her whole life. We honor her because she draws us to her Son."

Now, what does the Bible say about that? 1 Timothy 2:5, For there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. 

"Also why pray to the "saints" when I can go to the head CEO in charge?

"Jesus can hear everything!  Why do I need a "saint" to pray for me?  To help Jesus!?  That's crazy!  Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life:  none cometh unto the Father but by me.

"John 14:6. Trust in Jesus to save your soul not prayers to dead saints.  Jesus will never let you down.

In Christ Alone,

Stephanie, 2 Timothy 2:15 

------------------------------------------------------- 
 
Here is the answer sent by America Needs Fatima member Luis Solimeo:

"Dear Stephanie

"Allow me to answer your challenge in a summarized way in order to be more clear and concise.  I do so with all my respect and sympathy.  The tone is a little polemical, but not intentional.  My intention, as I said, is to be clear.

  1. It is true that Saint Paul says that Our Lord Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and men. and that is what the Catholic Church teaches.
  2. But the Apostle does not say that we cannot have recourse to the intercession of another’s prayers in our behalf with the unique and absolute Intercessor, Jesus Christ.
  3. On the contrary, the same Saint Paul say to the Romans: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, through our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the charity of the Holy Ghost, that you help me in your prayers for me to God.” (Romans 15:30), and to the Corinthians: God, “Who hath delivered and doth deliver us out of so great dangers: in whom we trust that he will yet also deliver us. You helping withal in prayer for us: that for this gift obtained for us, by the means of many persons, thanks may be given by many in our behalf.” (2 Cor 1:9-11).
  4. That Our Lord accepts the intercession of His Most Holy Mother is proven by the Cana’s wedding episode: Mary most Holy asked Her Son to perform a miracle to avoid the shame of the new spouses; Jesus answers that His time had not yet arrived, but, in attention to His mother’s desire, He anticipates His time and performs the miracle (John, 2:1-11).
  5. The Protestants in general see in that passage of the Gospel that Jesus didn’t care for His mother and that she had been indiscreet and thus was rebuked by her Son.
  6. Actually there is nothing of that. First, it is contrary to someone that was praised by the Angel as "you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." (Protestant Bible New International Version, Luke, 1:28): or “full of grace, the Lord is with thee,” (Catholic Douay-Rheims), to be indiscreet with her Divine Son. Lack of discretion is the opposite of “being with Lord,” full of grace, favored by the grace.
  7. The appellative “Woman” used by Our Lord is not a mark of scorn in relation to His mother, but an oriental form of been solemn; it is why, in the most solemn occasions, that is at the Cross, Jesus, after giving Mary as mother to St. John, called her “Woman.”
  8. All the theology of Mary’s intercession to the Intercessor is resumed by the Gospel of St. Luke: “And Mary said: My soul doth magnify the Lord. 47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. 48 Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.” (1:46, Douay-Rheims) “And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord
    47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,  48for he has been mindful
          of the humble state of his servant.    From now on all generations will call me blessed, 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name.” (New International Version).
  9. Is to kneel down a sign of adoration? Is a child adoring when he/she kneels before his mother to beg her intercession with the father to avoid a chastisement or obtain a grace? The external human acts are, commonly, ambiguous; they can mean many different things according to the interior disposition and intention.
  10. But the main problem in your argumentation is the following: there is no other authority besides the Bible; not the authority of the Fathers of the Church, nor the Pope, nor the Church.
  11. If there is no other authority than that of the Bible, we have many ways to interpret it:
  12. a) God illuminates people so they can correctly understand the text;
  13. b) I accept an authority besides that of the Bible, mine or that of another;
  14. c) that would be against the wisdom of God to give a Revelation without the means to understand it correctly;
  15. d): History shows us the huge divisions in the interpretation of the Bible among men; now, if everyone who reads the Bible receives special illumination to understand, that division would be impossible. If God give that illumination only to Protestants, why are they so divided?
  16. For these reasons, I accept the Authority of the Church which took the books of the Old and New Testaments and composed the Canon of the Bible; the Authority of the Church from the beginnings of Christianity to now has preached the same things, and given the same interpretation.

Cordially yours,

Luis Solimeo

Friday, April 25, 2008

April 26, Feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Genazzano. Pray for many graces on this day!

A few miles from the city of Rome, lies Genazzano—a city rich in history and blessed with the presence of a miraculous painting of the Blessed Virgin that has an amazing story.

The origins of Genazzano date back to the times of the Roman emperors. Because of its proximity to Rome, the city was chosen by many patricians and imperial courtiers as a site for their country villas. The vast gardens surrounding these villas often served as the stage for perverse feasts, pagan games and heathen rituals in honor of the gods to whom the Romans attributed the fertility of their fields.

One of these celebrations was held every April 25 in honor of the goddess Flora or Venus. For this event, people of all social classes—freemen and slaves, patricians and plebeians—gathered together for a great feast. This practice gradually dissolved and the temples fell into ruins as the life-giving breath of Christianity regenerated the peoples of Europe.

In the third century, an order was given to build a shrine dedicated to the Mother of God under the tender invocation of Mother of Good Counsel on the ruins of the Roman temples.
As the years went by, the city became more populous and the shrine grew in fame. During the Middle Ages, the Franciscans and the Augustinians founded monasteries nearby. With the passing of years, the primitive temple erected in honor of the Mother of Good Counsel began to show signs of disrepair. Moreover, as the shrine was small, the faithful built larger and richer churches for their solemn functions.

In 1356, about a century before the appearance of the miraculous painting that would introduce Genazzano into the annals of marvels in the Church, Prince Pietro Giordan Colonna, whose family had acquired lordship of the city, assigned the most ancient church of the city and its parish to the care of the Hermits of St. Augustine. The faithful would thereby have the necessary pastoral assistance, and repairs could be made on the old church.

Although the prayers of the faithful intensified, financial difficulties prevented the necessary and urgent restoration of the ancient temple. But the Mother who gives wise counsel in every circumstance and attentively provides for the necessities of men chose a Third Order Augustinian, Petruccia de Nocera, to carry out a supernatural prodigy that would bring about the much-desired restoration.

Petruccia had been left a modest fortune following the death of her husband in 1436. Living alone, she dedicated most of her time to prayer and services in the church of the Mother of Good Counsel. It grieved her to see the deplorable state of the sacred premises, and she prayed fervently that they would be restored. Finally, she resolved to take the initiative. After obtaining permission from the friars, she donated her goods to initiate the restoration in the hope that others would help complete it once it was commenced.

A plan was drawn up for the building of a magnificent church. However, once that arduous undertaking had begun, Petruccia, who was already eighty years old, found that her generous offering was scarcely enough to complete the first phase of the new construction. To make matters worse, no one came forth to help.

To her dismay, the building had hardly risen three feet when construction came to a halt due to lack of resources. Her friends and neighbors began to ridicule her, and detractors accused her of imprudence. Others severely reprimanded her in public. To all of them she would say: "My dear children, do not put too much importance on this apparent misfortune. I assure you that before my death the Blessed Virgin and our holy father Augustine will finish the church begun by me."

On April 25, 1467, the feast day of the city's patron, Saint Mark, a solemn celebration began with Mass. It was Saturday, and the crowd began to gather in front of the church of the Mother of Good Counsel. The only discrepant note in the celebration was the unfinished work of Petruccia.
At about four in the afternoon, everyone heard the chords of a beautiful melody that seemed to come from heaven. The people looked up toward the towers of the churches and saw a white cloud that shone with a thousand luminous rays; it gradually neared the stupefied crowd to the sound of an exceptionally beautiful melody. The cloud descended on the church of the Mother of Good Counsel and poised over the wall of the unfinished chapel of Saint Biagio, which Petruccia had started.

The miraculous image of Our Lady of Genazzano.

Suddenly, the bells of the old tower began to ring by themselves, and the other bells of the town rang miraculously in unison. The rays that emanated from the little cloud faded away, and the cloud itself gradually vanished, revealing a beautiful object to the enchanted gaze of the spectators. It was a painting that represented Our Lady tenderly holding her Divine Son in her arms. Almost immediately, the Virgin Mary began to cure the sick and grant countless consolations, the memory of which was recorded for posterity by the local ecclesiastical authority.

The news of the painting and its miracles spread throughout the province and beyond, attracting multitudes. Some cities formed enthusiastic processions to see the picture that the people called the Madonna of Paradise because of its celestial entrance into the city. Numerous alms were donated as an answer to the unwavering confidence that Our Lady had inspired in Petruccia.
Amidst the general enthusiasm caused by the painting, Our Lady wished to divulge the true origin of the marvelous fresco to her devotees. Two foreigners named Giorgio and De Sclavis entered the city among a group of pilgrims that had come from Rome. They wore strange clothes and spoke a foreign tongue, saying they had arrived in Rome earlier that year from Albania. While most people had refused to believe their story, it had a special significance for the inhabitants of Genazzano.

*****

January of 1467 saw the death of the last great Albanian leader, George Castriota, better known as Scanderbeg. Raised by an Albanian chief, he placed himself at the head of his own people. Subsequently, Scanderbeg inflicted stunning defeats on the Turkish army and occupied fortresses all over Albania.

With Scanderbeg’s death, the Turkish army, finally free from the Fulminating Lion of War, poured into Albania, occupying all its fortresses, cities and provinces with the exception of Scutari, in the north of the country.

However, the city's capacity to resist was limited, and its capture was expected at any moment. With its fall, Christian Albania would be defeated. Faced with this prospect, those who wished to practice their faith in Christian lands began a sad exodus. Giorgio and De Sclavis also studied the possibility of fleeing, but something kept them in Scutari, where there was a small church, considered the shrine of the whole Albanian kingdom. In this church the faithful venerated a picture of Our Lady which had mysteriously descended from the heavens two hundred years before.

According to tradition, it had come from the east. Having poured out innumerable graces over the whole population, its church became the principal center of pilgrimage in Albania. Scanderbeg himself had visited this shrine more than once to ardently ask for victory in battle.

Now the shrine was threatened with imminent destruction and profanation.

The two Albanians were torn by the idea of leaving the great treasure of Albania in the hands of the enemy in order to flee the Turkish terror. In their perplexity, they went to the old church to ask their Blessed Mother for the good counsel they needed.

That night, the Consoler of the Afflicted inspired both of them in their sleep. She commanded them to prepare to leave their country, which they would never see again. She added that the miraculous fresco was also going to leave Scutari for another country to escape profanation at the hands of the Turks. Finally, she ordered them to follow the painting wherever it went.

The next morning, the two friends went to the shrine. At a certain moment they saw the picture detach itself from the wall on which it had hung for two centuries. Leaving its niche, it hovered for a moment and was then suddenly wrapped in a white cloud through which the image continued to be visible.

The pilgrim painting left the church and the environs of Scutari. It traveled slowly through the air at a considerable altitude and advanced in the direction of the Adriatic Sea at a speed that allowed the two walkers to follow; after covering some twenty-four miles, they reached the coast.

With unbounded confidence, Giorgio and De Scalvis walked on the waves of the Adriatic Sea.

Without stopping, the picture left the land and advanced over the waters while the faithful Giorgio and De Sclavis continued to follow, walking on the waves much like their Divine Master had done on Lake Genesareth. When night would fall, the mysterious cloud, which had protected them with its shade from the heat of the sun during the day, guided them by night with light, like the column of fire in the desert that guided the Jews in their exodus from Egypt.

They traveled day and night until they reached the Italian coast. There, they continued following the miraculous picture, climbing mountains, fording rivers and passing through valleys. Finally, they reached the vast plain of Lazio from where they could see the towers and domes of Rome. Upon reaching the gates of the city, the cloud suddenly disappeared before their disappointed eyes.

Giorgio and De Sclavis began to search the city, going from church to church asking if the painting had descended there. All their attempts to find the painting failed, and the Romans incredulously regarded the two foreigners and their strange tale.

Shortly thereafter, amazing news came to Rome: a picture of Our Lady had appeared in the skies of Genazzano to the sound of beautiful music and had come to rest over the wall of a church that was being rebuilt. The two Albanians rushed to find their country's beloved treasure miraculously suspended in the air next to the wall of the chapel where it remains to this day.
Although some inhabitants found the strangers' story difficult to believe, careful investigation later proved that the two were telling the truth and that the image was indeed the same one that graced the shrine in Scutari.

*****

Thus Mary Most Holy, with the humble participation of a pious Third Order Augustinian on one side of the Adriatic and two faithful Albanians on the other, transported her mysterious fresco from the unhappy and unfortunate Albania to a little city very close to the heart of Christendom. Beginning her historic journey from that small Albanian shrine, which she had not chosen by chance, she traveled across the sea to pour on the world a new torrent of graces under the invocation of Mother of Good Counsel.

This page printed from: http://www.tfp.org/TFPForum/ourladythequeen/mother_of_good_counsel_story.htm

April 26, Feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Genazzano. Pray for many graces on this day!

A few miles from the city of Rome, lies Genazzano—a city rich in history and blessed with the presence of a miraculous painting of the Blessed Virgin that has an amazing story.

The origins of Genazzano date back to the times of the Roman emperors. Because of its proximity to Rome, the city was chosen by many patricians and imperial courtiers as a site for their country villas. The vast gardens surrounding these villas often served as the stage for perverse feasts, pagan games and heathen rituals in honor of the gods to whom the Romans attributed the fertility of their fields.

One of these celebrations was held every April 25 in honor of the goddess Flora or Venus. For this event, people of all social classes—freemen and slaves, patricians and plebeians—gathered together for a great feast. This practice gradually dissolved and the temples fell into ruins as the life-giving breath of Christianity regenerated the peoples of Europe.

In the third century, an order was given to build a shrine dedicated to the Mother of God under the tender invocation of Mother of Good Counsel on the ruins of the Roman temples.
As the years went by, the city became more populous and the shrine grew in fame. During the Middle Ages, the Franciscans and the Augustinians founded monasteries nearby. With the passing of years, the primitive temple erected in honor of the Mother of Good Counsel began to show signs of disrepair. Moreover, as the shrine was small, the faithful built larger and richer churches for their solemn functions.

In 1356, about a century before the appearance of the miraculous painting that would introduce Genazzano into the annals of marvels in the Church, Prince Pietro Giordan Colonna, whose family had acquired lordship of the city, assigned the most ancient church of the city and its parish to the care of the Hermits of St. Augustine. The faithful would thereby have the necessary pastoral assistance, and repairs could be made on the old church.

Although the prayers of the faithful intensified, financial difficulties prevented the necessary and urgent restoration of the ancient temple. But the Mother who gives wise counsel in every circumstance and attentively provides for the necessities of men chose a Third Order Augustinian, Petruccia de Nocera, to carry out a supernatural prodigy that would bring about the much-desired restoration.

Petruccia had been left a modest fortune following the death of her husband in 1436. Living alone, she dedicated most of her time to prayer and services in the church of the Mother of Good Counsel. It grieved her to see the deplorable state of the sacred premises, and she prayed fervently that they would be restored. Finally, she resolved to take the initiative. After obtaining permission from the friars, she donated her goods to initiate the restoration in the hope that others would help complete it once it was commenced.

A plan was drawn up for the building of a magnificent church. However, once that arduous undertaking had begun, Petruccia, who was already eighty years old, found that her generous offering was scarcely enough to complete the first phase of the new construction. To make matters worse, no one came forth to help.

To her dismay, the building had hardly risen three feet when construction came to a halt due to lack of resources. Her friends and neighbors began to ridicule her, and detractors accused her of imprudence. Others severely reprimanded her in public. To all of them she would say: "My dear children, do not put too much importance on this apparent misfortune. I assure you that before my death the Blessed Virgin and our holy father Augustine will finish the church begun by me."

On April 25, 1467, the feast day of the city's patron, Saint Mark, a solemn celebration began with Mass. It was Saturday, and the crowd began to gather in front of the church of the Mother of Good Counsel. The only discrepant note in the celebration was the unfinished work of Petruccia.
At about four in the afternoon, everyone heard the chords of a beautiful melody that seemed to come from heaven. The people looked up toward the towers of the churches and saw a white cloud that shone with a thousand luminous rays; it gradually neared the stupefied crowd to the sound of an exceptionally beautiful melody. The cloud descended on the church of the Mother of Good Counsel and poised over the wall of the unfinished chapel of Saint Biagio, which Petruccia had started.

The miraculous image of Our Lady of Genazzano.

Suddenly, the bells of the old tower began to ring by themselves, and the other bells of the town rang miraculously in unison. The rays that emanated from the little cloud faded away, and the cloud itself gradually vanished, revealing a beautiful object to the enchanted gaze of the spectators. It was a painting that represented Our Lady tenderly holding her Divine Son in her arms. Almost immediately, the Virgin Mary began to cure the sick and grant countless consolations, the memory of which was recorded for posterity by the local ecclesiastical authority.

The news of the painting and its miracles spread throughout the province and beyond, attracting multitudes. Some cities formed enthusiastic processions to see the picture that the people called the Madonna of Paradise because of its celestial entrance into the city. Numerous alms were donated as an answer to the unwavering confidence that Our Lady had inspired in Petruccia.
Amidst the general enthusiasm caused by the painting, Our Lady wished to divulge the true origin of the marvelous fresco to her devotees. Two foreigners named Giorgio and De Sclavis entered the city among a group of pilgrims that had come from Rome. They wore strange clothes and spoke a foreign tongue, saying they had arrived in Rome earlier that year from Albania. While most people had refused to believe their story, it had a special significance for the inhabitants of Genazzano.

*****

January of 1467 saw the death of the last great Albanian leader, George Castriota, better known as Scanderbeg. Raised by an Albanian chief, he placed himself at the head of his own people. Subsequently, Scanderbeg inflicted stunning defeats on the Turkish army and occupied fortresses all over Albania.

With Scanderbeg’s death, the Turkish army, finally free from the Fulminating Lion of War, poured into Albania, occupying all its fortresses, cities and provinces with the exception of Scutari, in the north of the country.

However, the city's capacity to resist was limited, and its capture was expected at any moment. With its fall, Christian Albania would be defeated. Faced with this prospect, those who wished to practice their faith in Christian lands began a sad exodus. Giorgio and De Sclavis also studied the possibility of fleeing, but something kept them in Scutari, where there was a small church, considered the shrine of the whole Albanian kingdom. In this church the faithful venerated a picture of Our Lady which had mysteriously descended from the heavens two hundred years before.

According to tradition, it had come from the east. Having poured out innumerable graces over the whole population, its church became the principal center of pilgrimage in Albania. Scanderbeg himself had visited this shrine more than once to ardently ask for victory in battle.

Now the shrine was threatened with imminent destruction and profanation.

The two Albanians were torn by the idea of leaving the great treasure of Albania in the hands of the enemy in order to flee the Turkish terror. In their perplexity, they went to the old church to ask their Blessed Mother for the good counsel they needed.

That night, the Consoler of the Afflicted inspired both of them in their sleep. She commanded them to prepare to leave their country, which they would never see again. She added that the miraculous fresco was also going to leave Scutari for another country to escape profanation at the hands of the Turks. Finally, she ordered them to follow the painting wherever it went.

The next morning, the two friends went to the shrine. At a certain moment they saw the picture detach itself from the wall on which it had hung for two centuries. Leaving its niche, it hovered for a moment and was then suddenly wrapped in a white cloud through which the image continued to be visible.

The pilgrim painting left the church and the environs of Scutari. It traveled slowly through the air at a considerable altitude and advanced in the direction of the Adriatic Sea at a speed that allowed the two walkers to follow; after covering some twenty-four miles, they reached the coast.

With unbounded confidence, Giorgio and De Scalvis walked on the waves of the Adriatic Sea.

Without stopping, the picture left the land and advanced over the waters while the faithful Giorgio and De Sclavis continued to follow, walking on the waves much like their Divine Master had done on Lake Genesareth. When night would fall, the mysterious cloud, which had protected them with its shade from the heat of the sun during the day, guided them by night with light, like the column of fire in the desert that guided the Jews in their exodus from Egypt.

They traveled day and night until they reached the Italian coast. There, they continued following the miraculous picture, climbing mountains, fording rivers and passing through valleys. Finally, they reached the vast plain of Lazio from where they could see the towers and domes of Rome. Upon reaching the gates of the city, the cloud suddenly disappeared before their disappointed eyes.

Giorgio and De Sclavis began to search the city, going from church to church asking if the painting had descended there. All their attempts to find the painting failed, and the Romans incredulously regarded the two foreigners and their strange tale.

Shortly thereafter, amazing news came to Rome: a picture of Our Lady had appeared in the skies of Genazzano to the sound of beautiful music and had come to rest over the wall of a church that was being rebuilt. The two Albanians rushed to find their country's beloved treasure miraculously suspended in the air next to the wall of the chapel where it remains to this day.
Although some inhabitants found the strangers' story difficult to believe, careful investigation later proved that the two were telling the truth and that the image was indeed the same one that graced the shrine in Scutari.

*****

Thus Mary Most Holy, with the humble participation of a pious Third Order Augustinian on one side of the Adriatic and two faithful Albanians on the other, transported her mysterious fresco from the unhappy and unfortunate Albania to a little city very close to the heart of Christendom. Beginning her historic journey from that small Albanian shrine, which she had not chosen by chance, she traveled across the sea to pour on the world a new torrent of graces under the invocation of Mother of Good Counsel.

This page printed from: http://www.tfp.org/TFPForum/ourladythequeen/mother_of_good_counsel_story.htm

April 26, Feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Genazzano. Pray for many graces on this day!

A few miles from the city of Rome, lies Genazzano—a city rich in history and blessed with the presence of a miraculous painting of the Blessed Virgin that has an amazing story.

The origins of Genazzano date back to the times of the Roman emperors. Because of its proximity to Rome, the city was chosen by many patricians and imperial courtiers as a site for their country villas. The vast gardens surrounding these villas often served as the stage for perverse feasts, pagan games and heathen rituals in honor of the gods to whom the Romans attributed the fertility of their fields.

One of these celebrations was held every April 25 in honor of the goddess Flora or Venus. For this event, people of all social classes—freemen and slaves, patricians and plebeians—gathered together for a great feast. This practice gradually dissolved and the temples fell into ruins as the life-giving breath of Christianity regenerated the peoples of Europe.

In the third century, an order was given to build a shrine dedicated to the Mother of God under the tender invocation of Mother of Good Counsel on the ruins of the Roman temples.
As the years went by, the city became more populous and the shrine grew in fame. During the Middle Ages, the Franciscans and the Augustinians founded monasteries nearby. With the passing of years, the primitive temple erected in honor of the Mother of Good Counsel began to show signs of disrepair. Moreover, as the shrine was small, the faithful built larger and richer churches for their solemn functions.

In 1356, about a century before the appearance of the miraculous painting that would introduce Genazzano into the annals of marvels in the Church, Prince Pietro Giordan Colonna, whose family had acquired lordship of the city, assigned the most ancient church of the city and its parish to the care of the Hermits of St. Augustine. The faithful would thereby have the necessary pastoral assistance, and repairs could be made on the old church.

Although the prayers of the faithful intensified, financial difficulties prevented the necessary and urgent restoration of the ancient temple. But the Mother who gives wise counsel in every circumstance and attentively provides for the necessities of men chose a Third Order Augustinian, Petruccia de Nocera, to carry out a supernatural prodigy that would bring about the much-desired restoration.

Petruccia had been left a modest fortune following the death of her husband in 1436. Living alone, she dedicated most of her time to prayer and services in the church of the Mother of Good Counsel. It grieved her to see the deplorable state of the sacred premises, and she prayed fervently that they would be restored. Finally, she resolved to take the initiative. After obtaining permission from the friars, she donated her goods to initiate the restoration in the hope that others would help complete it once it was commenced.

A plan was drawn up for the building of a magnificent church. However, once that arduous undertaking had begun, Petruccia, who was already eighty years old, found that her generous offering was scarcely enough to complete the first phase of the new construction. To make matters worse, no one came forth to help.

To her dismay, the building had hardly risen three feet when construction came to a halt due to lack of resources. Her friends and neighbors began to ridicule her, and detractors accused her of imprudence. Others severely reprimanded her in public. To all of them she would say: "My dear children, do not put too much importance on this apparent misfortune. I assure you that before my death the Blessed Virgin and our holy father Augustine will finish the church begun by me."

On April 25, 1467, the feast day of the city's patron, Saint Mark, a solemn celebration began with Mass. It was Saturday, and the crowd began to gather in front of the church of the Mother of Good Counsel. The only discrepant note in the celebration was the unfinished work of Petruccia.
At about four in the afternoon, everyone heard the chords of a beautiful melody that seemed to come from heaven. The people looked up toward the towers of the churches and saw a white cloud that shone with a thousand luminous rays; it gradually neared the stupefied crowd to the sound of an exceptionally beautiful melody. The cloud descended on the church of the Mother of Good Counsel and poised over the wall of the unfinished chapel of Saint Biagio, which Petruccia had started.

The miraculous image of Our Lady of Genazzano.

Suddenly, the bells of the old tower began to ring by themselves, and the other bells of the town rang miraculously in unison. The rays that emanated from the little cloud faded away, and the cloud itself gradually vanished, revealing a beautiful object to the enchanted gaze of the spectators. It was a painting that represented Our Lady tenderly holding her Divine Son in her arms. Almost immediately, the Virgin Mary began to cure the sick and grant countless consolations, the memory of which was recorded for posterity by the local ecclesiastical authority.

The news of the painting and its miracles spread throughout the province and beyond, attracting multitudes. Some cities formed enthusiastic processions to see the picture that the people called the Madonna of Paradise because of its celestial entrance into the city. Numerous alms were donated as an answer to the unwavering confidence that Our Lady had inspired in Petruccia.
Amidst the general enthusiasm caused by the painting, Our Lady wished to divulge the true origin of the marvelous fresco to her devotees. Two foreigners named Giorgio and De Sclavis entered the city among a group of pilgrims that had come from Rome. They wore strange clothes and spoke a foreign tongue, saying they had arrived in Rome earlier that year from Albania. While most people had refused to believe their story, it had a special significance for the inhabitants of Genazzano.

*****

January of 1467 saw the death of the last great Albanian leader, George Castriota, better known as Scanderbeg. Raised by an Albanian chief, he placed himself at the head of his own people. Subsequently, Scanderbeg inflicted stunning defeats on the Turkish army and occupied fortresses all over Albania.

With Scanderbeg’s death, the Turkish army, finally free from the Fulminating Lion of War, poured into Albania, occupying all its fortresses, cities and provinces with the exception of Scutari, in the north of the country.

However, the city's capacity to resist was limited, and its capture was expected at any moment. With its fall, Christian Albania would be defeated. Faced with this prospect, those who wished to practice their faith in Christian lands began a sad exodus. Giorgio and De Sclavis also studied the possibility of fleeing, but something kept them in Scutari, where there was a small church, considered the shrine of the whole Albanian kingdom. In this church the faithful venerated a picture of Our Lady which had mysteriously descended from the heavens two hundred years before.

According to tradition, it had come from the east. Having poured out innumerable graces over the whole population, its church became the principal center of pilgrimage in Albania. Scanderbeg himself had visited this shrine more than once to ardently ask for victory in battle.

Now the shrine was threatened with imminent destruction and profanation.

The two Albanians were torn by the idea of leaving the great treasure of Albania in the hands of the enemy in order to flee the Turkish terror. In their perplexity, they went to the old church to ask their Blessed Mother for the good counsel they needed.

That night, the Consoler of the Afflicted inspired both of them in their sleep. She commanded them to prepare to leave their country, which they would never see again. She added that the miraculous fresco was also going to leave Scutari for another country to escape profanation at the hands of the Turks. Finally, she ordered them to follow the painting wherever it went.

The next morning, the two friends went to the shrine. At a certain moment they saw the picture detach itself from the wall on which it had hung for two centuries. Leaving its niche, it hovered for a moment and was then suddenly wrapped in a white cloud through which the image continued to be visible.

The pilgrim painting left the church and the environs of Scutari. It traveled slowly through the air at a considerable altitude and advanced in the direction of the Adriatic Sea at a speed that allowed the two walkers to follow; after covering some twenty-four miles, they reached the coast.

With unbounded confidence, Giorgio and De Scalvis walked on the waves of the Adriatic Sea.

Without stopping, the picture left the land and advanced over the waters while the faithful Giorgio and De Sclavis continued to follow, walking on the waves much like their Divine Master had done on Lake Genesareth. When night would fall, the mysterious cloud, which had protected them with its shade from the heat of the sun during the day, guided them by night with light, like the column of fire in the desert that guided the Jews in their exodus from Egypt.

They traveled day and night until they reached the Italian coast. There, they continued following the miraculous picture, climbing mountains, fording rivers and passing through valleys. Finally, they reached the vast plain of Lazio from where they could see the towers and domes of Rome. Upon reaching the gates of the city, the cloud suddenly disappeared before their disappointed eyes.

Giorgio and De Sclavis began to search the city, going from church to church asking if the painting had descended there. All their attempts to find the painting failed, and the Romans incredulously regarded the two foreigners and their strange tale.

Shortly thereafter, amazing news came to Rome: a picture of Our Lady had appeared in the skies of Genazzano to the sound of beautiful music and had come to rest over the wall of a church that was being rebuilt. The two Albanians rushed to find their country's beloved treasure miraculously suspended in the air next to the wall of the chapel where it remains to this day.
Although some inhabitants found the strangers' story difficult to believe, careful investigation later proved that the two were telling the truth and that the image was indeed the same one that graced the shrine in Scutari.

*****

Thus Mary Most Holy, with the humble participation of a pious Third Order Augustinian on one side of the Adriatic and two faithful Albanians on the other, transported her mysterious fresco from the unhappy and unfortunate Albania to a little city very close to the heart of Christendom. Beginning her historic journey from that small Albanian shrine, which she had not chosen by chance, she traveled across the sea to pour on the world a new torrent of graces under the invocation of Mother of Good Counsel.

This page printed from: http://www.tfp.org/TFPForum/ourladythequeen/mother_of_good_counsel_story.htm

Reparation! Burnt statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel; before and after...

The Chilean newspaper La Segunda shows pictures of the burnt statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Before. (Foto: El Mercurio)

After. (Foto: Michael Gálvez, La Segunda)

According to news reports, the culprit of this blasphemy was arrested.

Please continue to pray and offer sacrifices of reparation.  If America Needs Fatima were in Chile, we'd hold many public acts of reparation.

Plea to the Catholic Bishops of Zimbabwe: Prayer Can Save Zimbabwe...

I am posting here below a copy of a letter that was sent last weekend to the Zimbabwean Catholic Episcopate.

In last Thursday's news report from the Rome-based Zenit News Agency, reference is made to a joint statement issued by a variety of Church Groupings in Zimbabwe "voicing a desperate appeal for a solution to the escalating crisis in the country". The signatories express "deep concern over the deteriorating political, security, economic and human rights situation in Zimbabwe, following the March 29, 2008 National Elections".

There are also increasing reports of enormous injustices taking place. One reads heart-rending letters of appeal - the situation is explosive and catastrophic.

It is my humble impression that the only way out of this impasse is a determined prayer effort - hence the letter below. May I beseech every one who reads this to pray earnestly and boldly for a solution to the diabolical madness in which that country is gripped and to encourage as many others as possible to follow suit.


**********************************************************************************************************

Your Lordship
The Most Rev. Archbishop Robert Ndlovu
Archbishop, Archdiocese of Harare

Permit me, writing to you as a simple Catholic layman to make a suggestion about the situation in your dear country. Millions of us are watching the unfolding events there with a great deal of trepidation and anxiety and a sense of absolute helplessness. It is quite clear to concerned observers that there are terrible intrigues absorbing the life of the nation, fuelled by wild rumours and worrying reports of this or that incidence of bloodshed and violence.

It is equally clear to all of us that Zimbabwe is hovering on the brink of a humanitarian crisis, fruit of a near meltdown of the national economy. No country can sustain this level of unemployment, hunger and despair without catastrophe.

A solution is urgently needed. Humanly speaking it is quite clear that the odds are heavily stacked in favour of the status quo. At this stage it seems that only Divine Intervention can change the course of history. I believe the best recourse we have is to a Rosary Crusade: A National call to prayer, launched by the ZCBC, beseeching the Blessed Virgin to free Zimbabwe from all her problems and give speedy solutions to all the crises assailing her. This could take the form, for example, of a daily Rosary by every Catholic, private or public, perhaps processions, united in love for the Holy Church, for the beloved country and for the relief of the suffering people of Zimbabwe.

Many would join me in believing that it is the only thing that can help in this 11th hour. Our own Episcopate, the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference could be relied on to rally South Africans in a joint prayer effort with their suffering neighbours. Such a Crusade could also rally the brother Bishop Conferences of the entire world and seek to make this initiative global. The Holy Father himself must be particularly anguished by events in your homeland and would certainly lend his enormous weight to such a noble campaign.

There are many historical precedents allowing us to place absolute trust in the victory of Our Lady in such instances - one of these was the enigmatic, sudden withdrawal of Soviet communist forces from occupied Austria in 1955. Another was the stunning victory of Catholic forces over the Turkish fleets (threatening Europe and the Church) at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571. Both these triumphs were attributed to the direct intervention of the Blessed Virgin Mary through the power of the Holy Rosary.

The promise of "The Memorare" is infallible. Our Lady will not abandon her children - she will not despise a humble and contrite heart. There is no way out and virtually no lower to sink! The country is at a crossroads, a dangerous crossroads for all of us! Can we not turn to Our Lady and with the childlike confidence of St Louis Marie Grignon de Montfort place Zimbabwe in her hands?

With Sincere Good Wishes, united in Prayer and beseeching Your Lordship's Blessing,

I am yours in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

Bernard Tuffin.
P O Box 38765
Pinelands, Cape Town
7430

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel was torched in the Cathedral of Santiago, Chile...

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According to police reports, on April 18, a historic statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the patroness of Chile, was set on fire by unknown people in the Cathedral of Santiago, the nation's capitol.

Although the fire was put out by people who were in the Cathedral at the time of the attack, the garment of Our Lady's statue were burnt to a crisp.

This statue had been crowned by Pope Pius XI and had survived earthquakes.

A large prayer gathering of Catholics is Santiago, Chile, took place to make reparation  for this terrible blasphemy.

Please offer prayers and sacrifices for this terrible attack on Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

April 26: Feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Genazzano

Pray for Us in These Times of Confusion,O Mother of Good Counsel

Does the devotion to the Mother of Good Counsel have any significance for our times?

Undoubtedly, innumerable souls in our disturbed and afflicted times are in need of good counsel in some way or another. They could do nothing better than to implore the help of her, whom Holy Church invokes as Mater Boni Consilii in the Litany of Loreto.

Evidently, the greater the importance of one’s predicament, the greater is the value of the counsel given.

This is the first premise which shows that the devotion to Our Lady of Genazzano is especially necessary in these times, which could go down in history as the greatest period of confusion.
Moreover, if we broaden our horizons beyond our individual lives and consider, from a historical perspective, the crisis through which the Church of God is now passing, we cannot help but conclude that, now more than ever, mankind needs the good counsel of the Virgin of virgins…

The modern world finds itself at the crossroads of a dark, gloomy future, faced by either capitulation before the extremes of evil or an enthusiastic embracing of the plentitude of truth and goodness. The problem is how to move humanity towards the path taken by the prodigal son who returned to his father’s house.

This is impossible without the powerful help of grace speaking in the interior of countless souls. And what better way is there to obtain this good counsel, which must be intimately present in hearts for the salvation of humanity, than to implore the Mother of Good Counsel to convert, through a new grace, the “super-civilized” barbarian of the our times?

Only in this way will we be able to “burn what we have adored and adore that which we have burned,” as did the sub-civilized barbarians of the fifth century. Only then can a new and even more splendorous era of Faith be born. This is the good counsel par excellence that the devotees of Mary must ask for themselves and for all men of our days.

It may appear excessive to some readers that we call these the most confused times in history.

Nevertheless, among the many proofs of this assertion, we need only one to justify our affirmation; indeed, it would be difficult to prove that the confusion in Catholic circles has ever been greater than it is today.

Certainly, there were times when the Church appeared to be engulfed by greater confusion. But those crises were struggles that either involved personal matters rather than principles or jeopardized only some principles – albeit basic ones – of Catholic doctrine.

Today, on the contrary, there is no error, no matter so crass or total, that does not seek to cloth itself in more or less new clothing in order to gain free admission into Catholic ambiences. One can say that we are seeing in our midst an open parade of all errors, disguised in sheep’s clothing and deceiving many unwary, superficial Catholics who have but little love for their Faith.

How many concessions, how many acts of false prudence, how many criminal courtships with heterodoxy take place! The confusion is so great that more than a few zealous Catholic circles are regarded with derision or suspicion, while the horde of disguised errors reigns confident.

Describing this scene, we affectionately but apprehensively consider the many souls whose circumstances of life do not permit them to undertake comprehensive religious studies. How necessary it is for them to have the good counsel of Our Lady to overcome this confusion!

It is natural, then, for us to affirm that these times represent the greatest confusion of history and for our lips to plead a supplication to the Mother of God: Our Lady of Good Counsel, pray for us and help us to remain faithful to the Way, the Truth and the Life in the midst of so much rebellion, so much deceit and so much destruction!

To read a short historical account of the miraculous image of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Genazzano, click here.

Miracles and victories of Our Lady at Czestochowa, Poland

Preliminary Note: The account of the siege of Czestochowa which we present here is based on the Memoirs of the Siege of Czestochowa by Father Augustine Kordecki (Pamietnik oblezenia Czestochowy, edited and with a preface by Jan Tokarski, London, Veritas, 1956) Written by Friar Kordecki in response to a wish of King Casimir, these memoirs were originally published in Latin.

"When God the most High decided to chastise the Poles, in His goodness He first sent various signs warning of the catastrophe which approached."

So He permitted that, the 10th of February 1654, the high tower of the Sanctuary of Czestochowa be struck by lighting and consumed by fire.

In that same year, on the 9th of July, everyone saw a miracle which occurred in the face of the sun: "In the nose of the sun there appeared a cross, which gradually became transformed into a heart, this latter pieced by a sword moved to one side and halted at the position of an eye. In the place of the other eye, one saw a hand holding a mace, which moved toward the forehead, dividing into four parts, and then on reaching the rim of the solar disk, became a scourge"(pg. 97).


"The following year God's scourge against the Poles, Karl Gustav, king of the Swedes, set out from the north."

This king was one of the most outstanding generals of his time and one of the most ferocious of the Protestant leaders.

I THE SIEGE: PHASE BEFORE THE ATTACK THE EMPLOYMENT OF THE BINOMIAL FEAR -KINDNESS PREDOMINATES


The Swedes easily took the whole country, almost without resistance. Practically all the nobility, part of which was Calvinist, accepted Karl Gustav as "Protector of the Polish Crown," abandoning King Jan Kazimierz to his own fate. After conquering Krakow in the far south, they sent, on orders of the Swedish King, an army of three or four thousand men to take the fortress - sanctuary of Czestochowa, about 125 miles from there.

1. A third force Catholic* employs for the first time the binomial fear - kindness


Going ahead of the enemy, Count Jan Wejchard of Wrzeszczewicz, in order to gain the good graces of the king of the heretics, demands of the Pauline Friars that they hand over the fortress of Jasna Gora to him, a Catholic, to avoid its falling directly into the hands of the Swedes. He threatened to take the sanctuary by force, if the did not heed his demand. The monks headed by their Friar Augustine Kordecki tried to dissuade the count from his vile pretension and refused his proposal.

2. An authentic Catholic reacts


Meanwhile, some nobles, fleeing before the Swedish advance, sought refuge in Jasna Gora. One of them, Stephan Zamoyski, counseled the religious not to give in to the enemy, and affirmed that those who sought refuge there were prepared to die in defense of the holy place, confiding themselves to the protection of Our Lady.


3. The first refusal of the monks, in the face of the binomial fear - kindness

The Count of Wrzeszczewicz, however, did not give up his plan, and sent an ultimatum to the Prior, demanding openly that Jasna Gora yield to the Swedish King and swear submission and loyalty to the usurper, and that the religious promise to denounce to him any uprisings which they may hear of in the future.


The monks respond immediately, through their prior: "It is better to die worthily, than to live
impiously." (pg. 103)

4. The third force Catholic shows himself a traitor


Since the treasonous Count did not have the means to conquer Jasna Gora by arms, he attacked and damaged some properties of the monastery, and hastened to meet General Miller, who was moving his troops not far away. Enticing him with the treasures of the shrine, he managed to convince him to attack Jasna Gora right away.

The prior, calling together the council of the monastery, communicated to the religious his decision not to hand the holy place over to the heretics, and to resist with all disposable resources. His decision was unanimously approved.


5. Defections generalized in Poland, only the monastery resists

Meanwhile, King Jan Kazimierz took refuge in the neighboring principality of Opole, in Silesia, where he would try to reunite the remnants of the army of Poland. But he could not give any assistance to Jasna Gora. Many nobles, on the other hand "satisfied" with the promises of peace and security made by the Swedes, began to return to their properties.

But Stanislaw Warszycki, noble owner of the Castle of Krakow and First Senator of the Crown, sent provisions and 12 cannons at that moment as his contribution to help in the defense of Jasna Gora.

6. Second employment of the binomial fear-kindness


Now came reports that General Miller, with an army of three or four thousand men and nineteen heavy guns, plus some supporting bands from the Count of Wrzeszczewicz, Waklaw Sadowski and the Prince of Saxony, were setting out from Weilun toward Czestochowa, where he should arrive on the eighteenth.

Then there was no lack of "prudent" advice for the Father Prior. So, the Prior of the convent of Wielun, "taking into account the disparity of the military forces," advised Father Kordecki not to resist, thus sparing Jasna Gora from material damage. This had its influence on the defenders of a weaker character.

7. Second refusal of Father Kordecki the monastery prepares for every eventuality


But Fray Kordecki did not count on material resources alone. He encouraged all to offer their lives in defense of the honor of the holy place, and to place all their hopes in the Blessed Virgin, "who in such an extreme necessity would not fail them with her help." He asked them all to assist at the Mass which he would pray before the altar of the Image of Our Lady of Czestochowa. He ordered that the Blessed Sacrament be carried in procession along the walls and bastions. He blessed the cannons, one by one, the cannon balls, the bullets, and the barrels of powder.

8. "The monastery answers by the mouth of its cannons": the struggle begins


Meanwhile, the Swedes reached the foot of Jasna Gora. It was two o'clock in the afternoon. General Miller sent a written peace proposal with a delegation, proposing the peaceful capitulation of Jasna Gora, to avoid "unnecessary bloodshed"... The declared adversary also pretended to be merciful.

The enemy troops had already taken up positions for the siege of the walls, and were studying the positions of the cannons of the fortress.


"It did not seem fitting to answer that letter in writing," reported Fr. Kordecki. "It was no longer the hour to write, but to take up arms... We answered by the muzzles of our cannons..." (pg. 109).

The answer was so convincing, that, at nightfall, Miller had to beg for a truce, and he took advantage of the occasion to assure the friars that he did not want to do any damage to the sanctuary.


Since the Swedish troops had occupied granaries belonging to the convent and located outside the walls, the defenders bombarded them at night with incendiary projectiles, so that they could not be used to supply the enemy.

The following day, Miller hid his artillery in the nearby village of Czestochowa, whence he bombarded Jasna Gora. When the religious realized this, they considered that the destruction of the village was of no importance in comparison with the defense of the sanctuary of Our Lady, and, directing their artillery in that direction, they set the thatched houses on fire. Many of the Swedes in their surprise ran out into the open where they were brought under the fire of the monastery's defenders.


9. The fourth attempt to apply the binomial, Fray Kordecki rejects it

Then, Miller sent another delegate to convince the Pauline Friars to accept the peace, by showing them that the resistance of Jasna Gora was unreasonable, in view of the fact that the whole country had already surrendered.


10. The fifth attempt to employ the binomial, Fray Kordecki defiant


The commandant of the heretics sent a new message requesting capitulation, for Karl Gustav had ordered him to take the fortress of Czestochowa. It was nighttime, and since the following day was Sunday and a Feast of Our Lady, there were various ceremonies for the occasion, among them a procession with the Blessed Sacrament, inside the walls.

In view of this, the Swedes had to wait until midday for their answer, which was moreover negative.


II THE BATTLE


Infuriated, the Protestants concentrated a three day attack on Jasna Gora, launching grenades and incendiary projectiles, trying to set fire to the installations of the monastery and the sanctuary. By night they dug trenches leading toward the walls.


1. Amidst the cannons' roar a hymn from the tower.


Infuriated, the Protestants concentrated a three day attack on Jasna Gora

At a certain moment, in the midst of the noise of the bombardment, a pious and sacral hymn was heard, coming from the height of the tower of the sanctuary, and giving new heart of the defenders. From then on, it became customary to hear everyday, in the midst of the fight, the hymns which emanated from the solid and majestic tower. At this, the Swedes became even more infuriated, for they saw it as a manifestation of contempt for them.


Fire fighting equipment was distributed near the bases of the roofs to combat the incendiary bombs launched by the enemy. Some of them ricocheted off the roofs and fell outside the walls. A bomb, launched at the chapel where the miraculous picture of Our Lady of Czestochowa is found, "turned back toward the enemy camp, as if it had been touched by an invisible force, spreading a terrible fire through the air" (pg. 118)

2. A "commando" raid against the Swedes

Sir Piotr Czarniecki, Commandant of Kiev, one of the five nobles who participated in the defense of Jasna Gora, distinguished in previous wars, decided on a bold stroke against the Swedes.

Sallying forth at night with a detachment of soldiers he managed to get into the rearguard of the enemy camps without their detecting him. And he did a beautiful job: he killed the commandant of artillery, various officers, many soldiers, and, having seized two cannon, returned inside the walls.

Taking advantage of the confusion and panic which, established themselves among the Swedes, many of them having come out into the open, the cannon of Jasna Gora, complemented Czarniecki's blow eliminating some more of the besiegers, Czarniecki lost only one of his men in the expedition


Miller, becoming convinced that it would not be easy for him to take the fortress, sent a message to Wittemberg, commander of the Swedish armies in Krakow asking him to send cannon powerful enough to break down the walls and additional infantry.

3. Sixth attempt at the binomial:hypocrisy of "a third force"


Meanwhile, a Polish noble, respectable for his age and his speech, unsuspected at first sight, was sent to the fortress to try to persuade its defenders to surrender. "I have come to propose capitulation," he said, "for I consider that it is a pretension beyond the bounds of reason for a monastery to wish to resist the Swedish power, when the whole country has buckled under."

And then he gave the age old "friendly advice": "the continuation of the resistance can only stir up the violence of vengeance - it is better to make an agreement with the enemy while you are still intact.... Act as the others have done, for your own good...."(pg. 119) "Moreover the aim of a religious order is to abstain from temporal matters. What do you have to do with the turbulences of war, you whose rules call you to solitude and silence. Ponder it well, lest the arms which you brandish instead of your Rosaries, carry you to perdition...." (pg. 120)


4. The fifth column helps the third force

That was the psychological warfare which Miller carried on during the whole time of the siege. He knew that his messages were presented before all the monks and as many of the civilian defenders as had permission to hear them, on this basis he tried to play on internal public opinion against Fray Kordecki.

It seems that Father Prior - either did not discover this ploy - because he always read the successive proposals of Miller before everyone of the psychological conditions of those he commanded would not permit him to act any other way. Nevertheless, he always kept control and maintained his intransigence against the enemy-external and internal.


5. "A noble and a religious in every bastion"

The following day, Fray Kordecki was informed that some members of the garrison were plotting to flee from Jasna Gora and hand themselves over to the Swedes. Fray Kordecki acted immediately: he expelled the chiefs of the revolt from the fortress, increased the salaries of the garrison (the 160 soldiers were paid), and obliged all members of the defending force to swear an oath that they would fight until the last drop of their blood. And he humbly confessed that he, "warned by this event, realized that he had to exert a greater and more exact vigilance" over the troops as well as over the nobles and religious.

He assigned the older friars to the choir, particularly the night office, "for during the day even the youngest were usually there." He made a redistribution of the defense, designating a noble and a religious for every bastion; he confided the general command to Sir Stephan Zmoyski and Fr. Ludwick Czarniecki.


6. Two religious to investigate the enemy camp

In order to gain time by delaying the enemy assault, to study his forces, and obtain any news about possible reinforcements which might have been dispatched to Jasna Gora, two religious were sent to the Swedish camp, under the pretext of studying the proposals of General Miller (The Father Prior continuously tried to entertain the enemy commander with this exchanging of messages, to gain time until the winter became more intense, or reinforcements eventually arrived).

In hopes of obtaining their rendition, Miller received the two delegates with open arms, gave them six great fish as a sign of his "generosity," and sent them back with his conditions for a treaty: "the monks must recognize the Swedish King and abjure King Jan Kazimierz."
Fray Kordecki sent him the following answer, with the two monks:

"By no means can we deny the rights and protection of King Jan Kazimierz as long as another King, has not been selected according to the laws and consecrated by the most Reverend Primate of the Crown as the customs of our ancestors prescribe.... If some have abandoned our legitimate King, by no means may this proposal to us be an example, to us who are ready to seal with our blood our fidelity to our Lord. Thus to the limit of our forces, we shall defend all the rights of God and of men!"


7. "Even though they kill the hostages,we shall not yield..."

Angered, the heretic commander imprisoned the two religious, sending word that he would only free them if their superiors gave them authority to discuss the terms of surrender with him. And, in the face of Father Kordecki's silence, the general affirmed that he would have the two hostages executed if the defenders of the monastery fire on his soldiers, who then began to move their cannons to positions nearer the walls, always repeating at the top of their voices, the "slogan" of their commandant: shoot and we will liquidate your monks....


At the same time, the heretics spread the news of the fall of the last pockets of resistance in the country, to take away from the beleaguered garrison any hope of receiving external assistance.

By all means the tried to break their spirit.


The Father Prior did everything possible to rescue the two monks held by Miller, accusing him of violating the law of nations, the right of immunity of delegates, of showing himself a man without honor, and saying that no agreement would be possible with one who did not respect individual liberty.

Finally he warned him that if the heretics in their impiety decided to kill the two hostages, "they (the defending garrison) could not oppose themselves to the will of God, without whose assent not one hair falls from our heads...Let them die then, that by their blood, they may obtain on honorable liberty; while as for us, we swear that we shall dedicate ourselves courageously and confiding in the help of God Almighty, to the defense of the sanctuary"(pg. 129).

Miller decided then to change his tactics: he freed one of the hostages but under the condition that, after visiting the monastery, he return to his clutches, threatening to deal a "terrible death" to the other prisoner, if the condition were not fulfilled.

8. Heroism in obedience


On reaching the convent, as Miller hoped, the religious told what he saw and heard in the enemy camp, and concluded by saying that he considered it madness to continue resisting in the face of such a powerful enemy; nevertheless, he said further - what Miller did not expect - considering the value of his life less than that of the good of the Congregation, he was disposed to review his conclusions if his superiors considered otherwise. And he returned to the Swedish camp with the following proposal: contrary to all the laws of the nations, the two representatives of Jasna Gora had been enslaved: as slaves, they were deprived of their own will so it did not make sense to confer on them authority to discuss anything. As far as they, the hostages, were concerned, they were disposed to sacrifice their lives for the glory of God.

So, Miller sent the second hostage, committing him first by the same oath to return into his hands.


Entering the walls of the fortress, the religious exposed the situation to his confreres, delivering his life into the hands of his superiors and disposing himself to die to keep the Holy Place from being stained by the heretics. When he returned to the camp with the same answer as the first one, both heard the condemnation to the pain of death, to be executed the next day; they were advised moreover by General Miller, to prepare themselves to die by hanging. Hearing the sentence they exclaimed to the shock of the Swedes: "Ah, why may we not die today, if we must be immolated tomorrow for God, for the King and for our Fatherland?"(pg. 130) On the following day however the execution of the penalty was postponed to an indeterminate date.

9. Seeing the armistice violated, the monastery opens fire


While this was going on, an armistice was in force. But the Swedes began to take positions nearer to the walls. In the face of this, the beleaguered force broke the ceasefire, imposing heavy casualties on the enemy.

10. Friar Kordecki resists rank and file pressures favorable to the third force


And General Miller sent yet another messenger demanding the rendition of Jasna Gora. Fray Kordecki answered him that, first of all he demanded respect to the pledged word, for what guarantee could he have that the Swedes would fulfill the agreements they made, if they kept the delegates sent by the monastery as hostages? Disappointed in his hopes to take Jasna Gora by peaceful means, Miller finally ordered the freeing of the hostages.

11. The seventh pressure of the binomial fear-kindness: Friar Kordecki resists


In the days which followed, the general insistently sent delegations to the besieged fortress, trying to convince its defenders to open the gates to a Swedish garrison, and to discuss the terms of a treaty. But, to the despair of the heretics, the Father Prior, "in order to have a guarantee that the agreements would be respected," now demanded that they be discussed directly with Karl Gustavo, who was far from Czestochowa.

Meanwhile, a Polish noble, approached the walls, and addressed the faithful nobles: "...for us (traitors) the salvation of our Fatherland is also very dear, we are just as interested as the other nobles are, in the preservation of the country's integrity. Since, it is more and more menaced with ruin, it is necessary to dedicate ourselves to it (our fatherland) with sincerity. So we have decided, prudently, to help it (our country) by going over to H.M. the Swedish King, our most benign lord and defender"; cease, then, this resistance...(pg. 133).


Wittemberg himself, commandant of the troops in Krakow sent a letter to the beleaguered troops, indicating all the "benefits" which the monks would gain if they entered into a treaty with General Miller, and threatened them with cruel reprisals if they continued their resistance.

12. The Protestants employ their arms once again.


Enraged by the intransigence of the defense, the Swedes, losing all hope of any agreement, unleashed heavy attacks against Jasna Gora; but the cannons of the fortress did not permit them to get close to its walls.

13. The Protestants exercise the pressure of fear and kindness for the eighth time.


The seventh of December, Eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, a Polish noble, Piotr Sladowski, who had been arrested by the Swedes when he was returning from Prussia to this village, was sent to the fortress charged with pressing the monks to capitulate. But on the contrary, he encouraged them not to give up, saying that the invading armies had begun to suffer their first defeats, and that the continuous acts of violence of the heretic sacking of the properties of the nobles, murders of priests, profanations of churches, violations of women - were stirring up great reaction in the country.

All of these violence's were taking place, he added, with God's permission and as a chastisement for those who were lacking in fidelity to Jan Kazimierz.


14. Two valuable hawkish reports

The following day, the Feast of Our Lady, one of the villagers of Czestochowa, disguised as a Swedish soldier; managed to reach the walls, and informed its defenders that the besieging army was about to receive six heavy cannons from Krakow to demolish the walls, plus reinforcements of 200 infantrymen; on the other hand, many Tartar troops were going to join Jan Kazimierz.

He also threw in a letter signed by Fr. Antoni Paskowski, Prior of the Paulist Convent in Krakow, which described the atrocities committed by the heretics and recommended to the defenders of Jasna Gora that they not let themselves be deceived by the kind of words of the enemy for "among the Swedes nothing is sacred, neither faith, nor religion, divine or human; they are not accustomed to fulfill any agreement or political oath" (pg. 137).

A little later, a Tartar, who was permitted to come within the walls, after contemplating the sanctuary, surprised the monks with words of encouragement, urging them not to permit that "swine and perjurers occupy the place consecrated to the Most Pure Virgin."


With all of these facts, noted Fr. Kordecki, the people under his command recovered their confidence and spirits, although they knew that Miller would soon receive six heavy cannons to batter down the walls.

15. The Catholics witness a clear intervention of Providence


While the ceremonies of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception were being carried out, a Swedish soldier who was returning from the village of Redzin, where he had blasphemed against the honor of Our Lady, fell struck by a ball coming from Jasna Gora, which was not aimed at him, but which ricocheted off the snow and hit him.

Fr. Kordecki noted the fact, commenting that thus, "he who insulted the sempiternal brilliance and glory of the Most Holy Mother of God, received at God's hands a just chastisement, as unworthy to see the sun"(pg. 137).


16. More armed combat than ever

On Saturday, the heretics began once again to bombard the monastery, and on Sunday the bombardment took on such a fury, that it appeared that "hell itself was vomiting against the sacred icon." The monks, however, carried out that morning - as was their custom - a ceremony in honor of the Blessed Sacrament. After the Holy Mass, the Most Holy was carried in a procession along the walls; Fr. Kordecki said that the balls passed closed to the heads of the defenders, but that only after the termination of the ceremonies did they respond to the enemy fire. During that day, 330 projectiles fell upon the fortress, and three of its soldiers gave their souls to God.

About midday, the enemy ceased fire and sent a message asking if the monks had been convinced yet to accept the protection of the Swedish king. But the Prior was not in a hurry: he told them that he would send his answer the next day. Immediately, the Swedes renewed the heavy bombardment. The following day, the scene was repeated, and the monks responded once again: "such important matters must be pondered at length..." (pg. 140).


17. The Catholics witness another intervention of Providence

At that stage, the winter was becoming more intense, so the Swedish soldiers were led to light bonfires at night to protect themselves from the cold, however, in this way they revealed their positions, coming under the direct fire of the defenders of Jasna Gora. And they quickly convinced themselves that, between cold and death, it was better to take the cold.

By this time already, the garrison was preparing itself for the assault which the enemy would launch, sooner or later, against the walls. They prepared the clubs with nails sticking out of them, iron bars, beams and rocks to repel those who might reach the walls.


When the Swedes launched themselves for the first assault, they were easily repelled, because their movements showed up against the snow and made them an easy mark for the defending troops.


In the days that followed, a dense fog covered Monte Claro, making it possible for the Swedes to move their great assault machinery closer, unperceived, while the great cloud was not cleared away by the supplications and prayers of the besieged. In view of this, the Prior selected one of the religious to "cry out for help of the powers of God against the spells of the enemy, to clear the darkened air with exorcisms, and bless the arms of the garrison," this turned out to be so efficient that, it neutralized the efforts of the witches, clearing the darkness from the air, and once again their shots were sure, and the enemy fell, in spite of being protected by the abject help of the demon" (pg. 143).

18. New third force defections within the monastery

While the heretics continued pounding Jasna Gora, two Polish nobles had taken refuge there. Fearing that the fortress would be taken, one of them took two religious and the other his wife and small son. They had even obtained permission of Miller to pass through the line of fire, but Father Kordecki categorically prevented them from carrying out their intentions, so that such an act might not affect the morale of the defense.


But this event, added to the insistence of the enemy attacks plus the death of a youthful member of the garrison, did not delay in influencing the spirit of some of the monks. They, in a state of continuous fear, began to urge surrender, arguing that, if Providence, in whose hands is the power to lose thrones or to put them in other hands, had delivered the Polish Crown to the Swedes, it did not behoove them as monks, to oppose themselves to the will of God, but to accept it, all the more so since the enemy assured them the defense of the Faith and freedom of worship...

When such insinuations became more frequent in the meetings of the Congregation, the Prior called them to order, fraternally enough but not without energy: "...what Faith is ours, he bellowed, what love, what gratitude to God so generous to us - that such small damage to our earthly comforts is able to turn us away from the guard and protection of the chest containing the celestial treasures of the eternal King? Let us consider that it is by far more prudent for us to defend the integrity of the House of God, the Holy Faith and at the same time our own liberties, than for us to lose all and, in addition to that, to go into exile and eternal slavery." (Pg. 146).


19. Another "hawkish" report

A letter, signed by a noble, found in the moat around the walls, which Fray Kordecki considered a grace destined to revive the hopes of those who were intimidated, reported the movement of the Tartars to the aid of Jan Kazmierz. This news really encouraged the defenders again.


20. The Protestant aggression grows more intense

After trying an assault on the north side, the heretics then tried to demolish the walls on the south side, by means of an intense bombardment. They also fired against the sanctuary itself, trying to weaken its walls.


21. The third force in the monastery applies the ninth fear-kindness pressure

Now it is some of the nobles who have take refuge there, who go suggesting to the Prior that he reach an agreement with the enemy. The enemy, they say, who has dominated the whole country, will not be intimidated by the resistance of his last focus. We have no prospects of receiving reinforcements. So, why not accept an accord with the Swedes, which they themselves are offering us, while our situation is still good? (Fray Kordecki does not mention names, but it appears clear that those "doves" were from among the number of those ignominious nobles, who sought refuge in Jasna Gora, but refused to take up arms, in order not to "compromise" themselves... There is a note about them at the end of this work).

Fray Kordecki answers them: "...but the enemy will not concede all that we demand; we desire (above all), that the place consecrated to the Virgin Most Pure never be stained by the impious feet of the heretics. You, dear sirs, overcome by adversities, desire to reach an accord so that, relieving yourselves of the unhappiness of the siege and the discomforts of the war, you will then be able to enjoy an agreeable peace without any worries. Do you think that, if we surrender, you will be free from all the adversities of war once you have left the cloister?... The capitulation will become for you, then, a spring of misfortunes and defeats; but if, on the contrary, bearing the slight inconveniences, we overcome the obstinacy of our enemies with the help of God, then we should surely win a certain stable peace." Peace through intransigence (pg. 148).


22. Pressure from the Protestants for the tenth time

One day, Miller's soldiers discovered a number of silver objects belonging to the sanctuary, which had been hidden in the bottom of a tank, on hearing the news of the advance of the Swedish troops toward Czestochowa. The chief of the heretics as a proof of his "respect" for the holy place, offered the silver which had been found, promising to add moreover some of his personal jewels, if the monks agreed to place Jasna Gora under the "protection" of Karl Gustav.

The Prior responded immediately: "As to the return of the silver objects, we accept the gracious offer of the General, but not accepting the condition which was proposed to us: because the glory of God and the protection of the sacred things is more important for us than all the treasures in the world" (pg. 150).


23. A notable victory of the Catholics

The 20th of December, Sir Stefan Zamoyski, in broad daylight, at one o'clock in the afternoon, sallied forth on horseback with a group of soldiers, and moving through the moat, and then through trenches which the enemy was digging toward the walls, took some advance detachments of the besieging forces by surprise, killing several soldiers and destroying two of their cannons. They retired under cover of fire from the walls. In this incursion, Zamoyski lost only one man. The Swedes suspended their attack for two days, in order to take care of their dead and wounded.


Perhaps fear also led Miller to cease his fire, comments Fray Kordecki for the news went about that, when the general was offering a banquet for his officers, a cannon ball fired at his tent, went through the wall and destroyed the table, causing all the guests to leave hurriedly, without even making their farewells.


24. Within the monastery the supreme pressure of fear-kindness

On the third day, the defenders of Jasna Gora identified on the horizon the wagons loaded with gunpowder, and the heavy guns coming from Krakow, to reinforce the besieging army. Then, fear once again came to dominate the besieged. And many of the nobles tried to convince the monks to surrender.

The religious debating about the new situation, reached contradictory decisions. "The power of the enemy, the lack of reinforcements, the atrocious fury of the heretics, the loss of their possessions, the injury of the Holy Place," all this occurred to the mind of the monks. In the hour of pressure, sophisms: "Those who were attached to their lives and were eager for peace, wanted an accord with the enemy. They were saying: "It is right for a religious, who has renounced the world and consecrated himself to the spiritual service of Christ, to take up the sword and shed blood; he should rather forget such things and dedicate himself to his own salvation and if we are going to have to surrender to our enemy for lack of food, isn't it better to do it now, so we will avoid increasing his anger by our delay?" (pg. 155).


The older monks, however, were of exactly the opposite opinion, and they managed to make their counsels prevail. After expounding some of the reasons why the resistance ought to continue, they urged them all to wait for the coming of reinforcements and confide in the mercy of God, "because if we once give up to the enemy, then there will be no more possibility of correcting our error." (Pg. 155).

"Without doubt, if the Supreme Judge disposes that our Fatherland recover its ancient grandeur (and this we cannot even doubt), all the force of its libertarian must come from Jasna Gora," for, since Our Lady has been pleased to be called Queen of Poland, She has made Jasna Gora the capital of Her Kingdom. Whence it follows that Jasna Gora is "the fountain of the graces which God will pour out over souls, curing them of their internal weaknesses, whence also will flow the strength and health of the whole body of our Fatherland. That most glorious Lady will extend her hand once again - (which she withdrew, on account of the inscrutable designs of God) to the defense of our unfortunate Fatherland, and lift it up from its defeat; so that we may understand that the Kingdom of Poland will recover its ancient grandeur only by generosity, the power and the protection of its queen." (Pg. 156)


With the new heavy guns and the assault carts which he had received from Wittemberg, Gen. Miller prepared himself for a second assault, and, as usual, he sent a message to the monks proposing peace, and threatening to discharge all his hatred over the Holy Place, if his proposal were refused.

As was his custom, also, Fray Kordecki answered amiably asking for time "to consult his superiors": only then..."shall we do what seems suitable." He also asked a truce for the following day, since it would be the day of the Holy Nativity.


At the same time, the Prior wrote to the Count of Wrezczewicz, appealing to him to intercede with the general, to obtain a truce of Christmas. His purpose in this was to mystify the Swedes about the state of spirit of the besieged garrison, and to gain time, which would be particularly precious now, in view of the news that the King had begun to move with his troops.

But Miller responded immediately through the treasonous Count; he would concede a truce only if he received, that same night, an answer from Kordecki agreeing to surrender.


This time the Prior of the Paulines decided not to answer: and the religious spent all night Christmas Eve awake: some watching on the walls, others encouraging the garrison; but the majority stayed in the church praying.

25. The Protestants launch yet another attack


A more intense movement in the enemy camp, more numerous campfires presaged something menacing for that night. God, however, did not permit the heretics to pour out their fury over Jasna Gora, until the following day, after the end of the Catholic ceremonies in the sanctuary.

At midday the 25th, the massive attack commenced.

"The cannons to the north thundered, and the balls struck with such force on the walls of the cloister, that, in many places they went right through them, flying and bouncing around amid the debris and dust that they scattered in the corridors and stairways, and causing such fear among its residents that no one had the courage to look out the window. Now the enemy hurled torches wrapped in hemp, soaked in pitch, and studded with brimstone and sulfur. They scattered a terrifying fire, principally those that came in iron tubes, so that they vomited fire and lead on all sides. They were similar to grenades, but since the majority of them fell outside of the Cloister, or in its interior patio, they did not do any damage" (pg. 162-163). The most dangerous projectiles after all, were the iron ones with lead in their bellies which on exploding, scattered pieces of iron in all directions.


"At nightfall, finally, one of the heavy guns which was doing the most damage, burst, putting an end to the attack. It was said all over, and heard from the Swedes themselves, in the camp, during the siege, as well as amidst other circumstances, that the cannon balls fired against the cloister frequently bounced off the walls and, returned to the Swedish camp with great force.

When many doubted this, the respectable Piotr Okrasa, who Christmas day was delivering provisions in the camp of the besieging troops, affirmed categorically that is what occurred with the last shot of that canon and that in the midst of an unusual fear, they were saying in the camp that by the force of the projectile, which had bounced back from the wall, the cannon was destroyed and its gunner killed. He (Piotr Okrasa) said that this seemed to him to be true, for the projectile which was then carried about through the camp, had the characteristics of a true Swedish cannon ball - it was larger than any of those in Jasna Gora. There is not the slightest doubt that, from the moment in which that cannon was blown up,The roar of the cannons was no longer heard-neither on that day, nor on those that followed-thus it seemed that a great and miraculous power, contrary to the enemy, put an end to the siege of Jasna Gora, for the Swedes had all the ammunition they wanted (pg. 164).


26. The eleventh and supreme pressure of fear and kindness

At dusk General Miller once again wrote to the Pauline monks. It would be his last proposal, his last threat. After regretting the intransigence of the defenders of Jasna Gora, he offered them two alternatives: either they would hand the fort over to the Swedish troops on that very day, or, swearing on oath of fidelity to Karl Gustav, they would pay an indemnity of 60 thousand talars to the besieging troops, after which the siege would be lifted. If the offer was refused, however, he threatened "to reduce to ruins and ashes all the villages and hamlets located within a radius of three miles, and to hand over all the properties of all the nobles who were resisting in Jasna Gora to be sacked, burned and totally destroyed..." (pg. 165).

On the following day, the 26th of December, the Father Prior responded to the Swedish General; It is a shame, but now we have no means to pay the ransom you ask!But you, sir general, know that we are not rebels, for we are not against the monarchy...


At the same time, he wrote to the Count of Wrzeszczewicz, but in other terms: On account of former benefits which Your Excellency has conceded to this sanctuary, your life has been spared various times during this siege; but lower thy head, "do not abuse the patience of God!"

27. The supreme refusal of Fray Kordecki:the definitive victory of the convent


On that day, according to the custom, the defenders continued the commemorations of the Nativity, with chants and ceremonies. But the Swedish troops thought that it was the celebration of some victory, and began to abandon their positions in their consternation. The officers recognizing what was really going on, concluded in their turn, that the besieged forces must be very well provisioned, in victuals and in munitions, to permit themselves such festivities. In fact, the provisions were already at their end...38 days of siege had gone by.

"In the obscurity of the night, the heavy guns were retired from their positions; in the early morning the commanders of that so numerous army withdrew, each on his own way. Miller went to Piotrkoy, the Count of Wrzeszczewicz to Welum, Sadowski to Sieradz, the Saxon Prince to Krakow" (pg. 168).

III INTERVENTIONS OF OUR LADY WHICH THE PROTESTANTS SAW AND THE CATHOLICSDID NOT SEE: OUR LADY, THE GREAT VICTOR

"How could it have happened that only 70 religious (absolutely non-combatants) should have felt such force in themselves, that with five nobles and their few servants, plus 160 infantry men, the greater part of them villagers, that they dared to resist such a numerous army, if God Himself, protecting that place consecrated to the glory of his dear Mother, had not inspired this determination in the religious and had not inculcated courage in the midst of the general fear?

Because, although sometimes they lost hope, whenever, after the recitation of prayers, they assembled in the refectory and each one was consulted, all voted unanimously that they would prefer rather to fall suffering the most terrible of deaths, than to permit that the infamous Swede stain with his feet the place consecrated to the Most Pure Virgin" (pg. 170).


1. So that no man may boast...

"God Himself disposed things in such a way, that among the mountains celebrated for their miracles, might also be numbered this Mount Clear of Poland, defended by a special mercy of God, obtained by the Most Holy Virgin; so that no man may brag of having saved it, or at least repeat proud and boastful phrases: it was our hands that did this..."


2. "A Lady of a menacing countenance..."

"According to the testimony of our enemies themselves, it is manifest that Jasna Gora was defended miraculously and successfully, because Lord Grodzicki, Commandant of artillery of H.M., and others, revealed that Miller said in the encampment that the only motive which lead him to raise the siege of Jasna Gora was the word and the menacing face of a noble lady, who appeared before him, leaving him perturbed. Whence the report was spread about among the Swedes that Miller lifted the siege because he was deceived by a maiden at the service of the monks. What was said among the people, however, was that the general was severely warned by a lady who appeared to him, to raise the siege, under pain of the complete loss of his army" (pg. 172).


The letters of the Dominican nuns of Piotrkow to the sisters who were then in Jasna Gora are in accord with this description, they contain, among others, the following facts: "Miller observed with great attention, here in the church, the picture of Our Lady of Czestochowa, and since his interpreter asked us to give him a small copy of the image, we gave it to him, and Miller took it from his hands. Thus it became clear to us that Miller wanted to find out if the vision he had at night was similar to the picture."

The same religious of Piotrkow later told the Most Rev. Provincial (under whose jurisdiction is also the convent of Czestochowa), that Miller, after he took the picture from the hands of the interpreter, said the following: "It is absolutely not comparable to that virgin who appeared to me; for it is not possible to see anything comparable on earth. Something of the celestial and divine, which frightened me from the beginning, shone in her face."


I return to the letter: "The Swedes themselves affirmed, that some of them saw a Lady on the walls, pointing the cannons and furnishing with her own hands, the necessary arms to the defenders who were in the trenches; and to whose who were tunneling in the rock (the mount is based on a rock, and the Swedes were excavating tunnels toward the walls) toward the walls there appeared a venerable old man, who counseled them to give up their useless labor, for not even in seven years would they manage to carry it out. Crushed then by these apparitions, they gave up the siege." This was also heard from the Swedes by Sir Aleksy Sztrzalkowski, who told it to the monks, on his word of honor."

"Lady Jadwiga Jaroszewsha also told that she saw the figure of a venerable old man, who encouraged her with the hope that God would in brief manifest His mercy, and the enemy would raise the siege of Jasna Gora. In that vision, a friar (who called her by the name), in a white habit, celebrated Mass at an altar located in a corner to the right, on the east side of the Church. We could not consider the old man as any other than St. Paul (the first hermit and our Patriarch), to whose honor this altar is consecrated. Sirs Jan Wiechowski and Maciej Wegierski of the Polish nobility, testified that they had heard the Swedes telling how they had seen an old man beside a Lady, who appeared on the walls and beat back the Swedish projectiles."


3. "She obliged us to cover our eyes and bow our heads

"So also, Father Blazej Wadowski, Prior of Weiruszov of our Order, stated under oath that in the house of a citizen of Wieruszow invited by the Swedish commanders, Jorge Eichner and Arens Lukman to eat with them they heard such blasphemies from the mouths of the profaners as: "What witch is this that is to be found in your cloister of Czestohowa, who covered with a blue mantle sallies from the cloister and walks along the walls, resting from time to time on the bastions - and whose sight makes our people drop with terror, so much so that, when she appears, we have to turn our faces to the ground and protect our eyes?"


"Other military chiefs who were then seated at the table confirmed this. Some of them added moreover, as if they were vomiting it: "Your monks are perfect sorcerers. Look how they bewitched one of our companions so that, from the moment in which he fired against the church, he has his arm stuck straight out, and it is impossible to lower it or bend it in any direction; what is more, his whole body is as it were paralyzed, making it impossible for him to sit or dismount from a horse, so we had to send him to Leszno with his arm extended, in the position in which he was when he pointed the carbine, because he was a useless burden to us."


"The Prior cited above added that, formerly, the Swedes, arrogantly spread blasphemies against the Most Holy Virgin, now, after the withdrawal from Czestochowa, they have become more bland and not one did not hear anything like that from their lips" (pg. 173-174).

4. "…and pointed a sword at the Swedish Camps"


"Sir Mikloj Bielawski, of Ruska, described the commentaries of the Swedes, with his own pen, for our perpetual remembrance, as follows:

"The soldiers of the division of Sadowski (a turncoat noble), who as a colonel of the Swedish army, returning from Jasna Gora, passed through my village, which is called Golina. When I asked, once, those who were quartered in my house, what had happened at Czestochowa, and if they had been successful in the siege of Monte Claro, with such a numerous army, they answered: -- that frequently there had appeared to them a person in a white mantle, who, coming out from the cloister, would point at the Swedish camp with a sword (here a line of the book is missing)… immediately would fall. We learned also from the very sentinels that forty soldiers, terrified by this awful vision, had lost their lives."


"When this same noble was visited a second time by the soldiers, out of chivalry, they told him "that they themselves had seen a Lady vested in a white mantle; when two Silesian brothers by the name of Dudzicz, pointed their carbines at Her, part of the breech of the carbine of one of them was driven so far into his face, that it was impossible for us to remove it, the surgeon had to cover it; the other had his body paralyzed as if he were petrified; the Swedish army took him with them. "This account, they made under oath, and the aforementioned noble signed it and sent it to Jasna Gora."

"Sir Strzalkawaki, already mentioned before, an eminent and cultured man, a citizen of Greater Poland, testified that he also heard from many Swedes, that the Lady seen on the walls of the cloister terrified them by her bearing, as well as by the dense fog which enveloped the cloister, just when they were making the greatest efforts to take it. We have also been informed of this same fact by outstanding men and trustworthy citizens of Czestochowa, who heard such reports from Polish soldiers in the service of the Swedes" (pg. 175).


"Many trustworthy nobles testified how they found the following fact among the commentaries of the besieging Swedes particularly noteworthy: "frequently (said the Swedes), when we were preparing for the assault of the cloister with siege guns, there would appear a fog, enveloped in this fog the mountain cast false shadows which tricked our vision - it would appear that the mountain with the cloister was raised high in the air, and when we aimed our cannon fire up there, the projectiles passed over the cloister without doing it any damage. Sometimes also in the midst of that dark fog, which confused our vision, we would see the cloister on top of a low hill; when our gunners, deceived by the shadows took the cloister as their target, as it appeared, the projectiles would fall close to the walls of the fortress and ricocheting on the frozen ground return at great velocity" (to the Swedish camp).

"I decided to add to the account of the siege of Jasna Gora some of these examples of miraculous facts, to show clearly that the hill of the Most Holy Virgin was defended and saved by the hand of God Himself," writes Fray Kordecki (pg. 176.)


IV THE PROPAGANDA OF THE SWEDES

The Swedes had a booklet published in Amsterdam which contained a fanciful description of the "conquest" of Jasna Gora and which they spread all over Europe prior to their withdrawal from Czestochowa. This description showed in detail what they would like to have done if they had in fact taken the shrine. Kordecki includes it in his Memoirs "For the shame of that subversive and impious people." King John Casmir, who had received it from Paris, gave him a copy of the booklet.

Under the title "Victory of the Swedish King, in which twenty thousand Poles fell and Czestochowa was destroyed," the document reports falsely that Jasna Gora was taken and that Swedish soldiers "spared neither man nor women and killed the monks and priests... and that the victors carried off as spoils even the silver picture frames form the church." (Pg. 181).


V THE JUST END OF A CENTRIST

The traitorous Count of Wrzeszczewicz, after having been defeated in battle in Lesser Poland, was later discovered by peasants and beaten to death with rods (pg. 186).


VI THE INTRANSIGENCE OF JASNA GORA SPARKS REACTIONS ALL OVER

Published with the "Memoirs" is the text of the document with twelve "demands" which the nobility presented to the invaders, right after they had entered the country, as a condition for their recognizing the Swedish King. The "demands" boil down to the following: Do not touch our possessions and leave us freedom of worship… Fray Kordecki merely reproduces the text of the document, without making any commentary.


For such a document to be valid, however, explained the Prior of Jasna Gora, it would have to be ratified by the Senate. There the chief influence belonged to the ecclesiastical senators, who chose exile rather than approve such an agreement.


The Archbishop of Gniezno, Primate of the Polish Crown and first Duke, sent out a call to all the provinces immediately after the fall of Krakow on the 17th of November, 1655, summoning all the nobles to unite around the legitimate king in order to fight against the invaders. His terms however, have neither energy nor Catholicity: "I hope that all will return to fight for our King and our Fatherland…"


On January 3,1656. The Primate announced to the nation an unexpected event: the Khan of the Tartars, entering the Polish territories, communicated to King John Casmir that he wanted to unite his armies with those of the Poles to combat the enemies of His majesty. "This is especially a work to the mercy and Power of God," continued the Primate, inasmuch as, while some Christians rejoice at our ruin and other refuse us any help or protection, He aids us by means of those who are outside the Church of Christ... Thus, offering His all-powerful right hand to those who had grown weak, He does not permit the Kingdom to disappear. (pg 204).

Despite the Primate's summons and this encouraging support, the nobles did not respond until after the news of the victorious defense of Jasna Gora had spread all over Poland and had commenced to stir up a great reaction among the humble folk. Only then, on the 29th of December 1656, they formed the Confederation of the Nobility in Arms. The oaths they took, were like the following: I swear to do my duty "before God, my conscience and public law…"


VII THE GLORIFICATION OF OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA

Once the faithful forces had been gathered together, and so that the counter-offensive would have the greatest success, the King made his way to the Cathedral of Lwow in the company of the nobility and the people, and there, with the approbation of the Senate, solemnly proclaimed Our Lady of Czestochowa Queen and Mother of Poland, that is of the Poles, Lithuanians, and White Russians, the peoples who then formed part of the Polish-Lithuanian Crown.

The act was carried out before the altar of the Most Holy Virgin in the following terms:


"Great Mother of God and Most Holy Virgin! I, John Casmir II, by the grace of Thy Son, the King of Kings, and by Thy Grace, I, the King, casting myself on my knees at Thy Most Holy feet, take Thee today as my Patroness and Queen of my dominions, and I recommend to Thy special protection and defense, myself and my Polish Kingdom, The Nation of Lithuania, and the Principalities of Ruthenia, Prussia, Mazuria, Zmudzia, Inflanta, and Czernichow, as well as the armies of both nations and all my people.

" I cry humbly, from this pitiful and devastated state of my Kingdom, for Thy mercy and assistance against the enemies of the Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church, and, grateful for the immense benefits conferred by Thee, I sense with the nation, a commanding desire to serve Thee zealously, and, in my name and in that of the administrators and of the people, I promise to Thee and to Thy Son, Jesus Christ Our Lord, I will spread Thy glory though all the countries of our Kingdom. Finally, I promise and vow to obtain from the Holy See, since it is only through thy powerful intercession and through the mercy of Thy Son that I shall obtain victory over our enemies, and particularly over the Swedes, that this day be celebrated annually and forever and consecrated to Thee and Thy Son in acknowledgment of these graces, and I will dedicate myself with the Bishops of the Crown so that my promised be kept by my peoples.


"As I see, to the great sorrow of my soul, that all the adversities which have fallen upon my Kingdom in the last seven years, the epidemics, the wars, and other misfortunes, were sent by the Supreme Judge as a punishment for the groans and for the oppression of the peasant. I promise and vow, after the conquest of peace, in union with all the states, to use all means to free my people from all unjust burdens and oppressions. Grant, Oh most loving Queen and Lady, that I obtain the grace of Thy Son to do all that I propose, to which Thou Thyself has inspired me!"
The people wept with emotion on hearing the words of the King, realizing that, from then on, the Blessed Virgin would be recognized as Queen of Poland.

VIII POLAND SAVED AT CZESTOCHOWA

Immediately after their defeat in Jasna Gora, the Swedes began to lose their fervor, and defeated in battle after battle, they had to fall back into Prussia and lost the greater part of their units.


IX OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA GLORIFIEDIN THE EPIC OF JASNA GORA

"On Easter Sunday, a few days after the King's arrival a Jasna Gora, a triple sun appeared to the south and at the same time there was seen a double solar crown, one of which moved through the air and enveloped the hill and the cloister, the other turned upward with its high point toward the sun, touched the solar disc itself.


"It was beautiful to contemplate these celestial phenomena, for we considered them as symbolizing a victory and as a visible manifestation of the appeasement of the divine anger. Just as the tragic signs in the setting sun of three years before foretold the cruelty of was and immense bloodshed, so the clear brilliance of the sun now returning and the extraordinary crowns, seemed to all to announce the palm of victory and peace." (Pg. 212-213)

"Poland, if thou fightest for Mary, thou shalt be terrible to the followers of hell."


"Contemplate, Poland of posterity, what a great benefit was conferred upon Thee by the Mother of God, whose devotion thy Apostle and martyr Saint Albert, Archbishop of Gniezno, so zealously propagated together with the Roman Catholic Faith! Follow then the holy example of they forefathers, for, if you guard your devotion to Mary, propagate it zealously, and defend it generously, you will attract even greater mercies and become terrible to the followers of hell! Let Christendom look and admire how courageously our Queen of Heaven and earth protects Her kingdom, and how efficaciously She sends aid to Her subjects, deprived of all human help! May the angel of the armies of the Lord, guardian of Poland, deign to move the heavenly militias to pay homage together with us to the supreme majesty of God for such great benefits and may He, with His powerful hand, disperse all the enemies who ally themselves to eradicate from Poland devotion to the Queen of Angels!" (pg. 213)

* The expression third force is employed here to refer to those who are neither with the
Catholics against the enemies of the Catholic cause, nor openly against them.

1 The Primate was in Poland the 1st Duke; when the throne was vacant, he would assume the Regency.