Skip to main content

We who are about to die salute you!

Image
By
 +
JMJ

 

So I received my vaccine in June 2021, so depending on which particular YouTube (YT) celebrity you follow, a sizable portion of my family and myself will die in 3 to 15 months.

I have had some colds and my normal collection of allergic reactions to pollen, dust and conspiracy theory (sorry just had to add that one).

However, I am not concerned about the morality of being vaccinated with the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines.  I am concerned about the state of the Church, its crisis and how I respond to it.

The writings of Skojec continue what appears to be an unhealthy spin and I have seen it in others who pour themselves into combatting the crisis of the Church, get all chewed up and pooped out (exhausted).  

Once again, I thank the priest to advised me to keep my cup full (see below: Spiritual Nourishment for Spiritual Warfare link).

P^3

Reblog

 

 

By
When I became, by Divine Providence, involved in an active apostolate beyond the confines of my family, I dove into studying the faith and the position of the SSPX.


Up to that point, my understanding was based on what I had learned in an SSPX school and in my own random readings.  I realized, with the challenges that I was facing, that I needed to deepen my understanding of the faith, as well as the postion of the SSPX vis-a-vis the documents of the Second Vatican Council.

My reading list since that time has included:
  • Mystici Corporis (my favorite encyclical)
  • The Catechism Explained, Spirago & Clark
  • Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma
  • Catechism of St. Pius X
  • Catechism of the Council of Trent
Some of these I have read from cover to cover, others I use extensively for studying particular questions / subjects. 

When discussing some of the spiritual issues that I was facing with a priest, he gave me some excellent advice. A paraphrase of the advice follows:
Studying does not put grace into your cup. If you continue to give to other people from your cup without replenishing it, you will end up with an empty cup. You fill your cup with by an active spiritual life.  Start with spiritual reading, when something strikes you pause, move to prayer, from prayer to medication, from meditation to contemplation. This is how you fill your cup to overflowing, only give to others from the overflow.
What I did not realize was that I was only partially armed for the spiritual warfare in which I was engaged.  In a sense I had the arms and armour, but not the strength to use them effectively.

So what have I learned?  First, studying only makes your 'cup' bigger, you understand more, but without an active spiritual life, your cup remains only partially filled - or worse empty.  When it is empty the bigger the cup, the bigger the fall.

I have attached some resources (mostly for myself).  I have found the writings of St. Alphonsus particularly nourishing as well as my long time companion: The Imitation of Christ.

Another thing to keep in mind when practicing an active apostolate: if you do not practice the virtues in doing so (patience comes to mind first and foremost) then you risk doing more harm than good.

No matter how a person attacks you, remain patient and do not take any of the assaults personally. Bear them for the honour and glory of God, and offer them for the person's conversion.

Remember:
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Catholic Church and the Rule of Law- Part II: Dr. John Lamont

By
+ JMJ This is the second article from Dr. Lamont from his lecture given in May 2014. P^3 Source Part A: Society of St. Hugh of Cluny Source Part B: Society of St. Hugh of Cluny 8 May2014 The Catholic Church and the Rule of Law- Part II By John Lamont To understand how the Jesuit conception of obedience departed from earlier conceptions, it is helpful to compare it with the teaching of St. Thomas on obedience. The fundamental difference between the two is that St. Thomas considers the proper object of obedience to be the precept of the superior (2a2ae q. 104 a. 2 co., ad 3). Obedience that seeks to forestall the expressed will of the superior does not bear on what the superior wants or thinks in general, but only on what the superior intends to command. St. Ignatius’s lowest degree of obedience, which he does not consider to be virtuous, is thus what St. Thomas considers to be the only form of obedience. St. Thomas holds that St. Ignatius’s alleged higher forms of o...
Post a Comment
Read more

Open Letter to Cardinal Gantin - July 6, 1988

By
There has been some discussion (read lots) about the term 'Conciliar Church'. I have posted this letter written by the Superior General and District Superiors of the SSPX after the 1988 Consecrations. Of particular interest is that the 'Conciliar Church' being referred to as a system. My paraphrase would be that the SSPX regards the 'conciliar Church' as an error within the Church. Source Open Letter to Cardinal Gantin Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops
Post a Comment
Read more

Morning and Evening and other sundry Prayers

By
+ JMJ Along the theme of P^3 (Prayer, Penance, Patience), and for my own reference ... here is a collection of Morning and Evening prayers from the Ideal Daily Missal along with some additional prayers. In this crisis of the Church, I do not think it is possible to do too much prayer, penance and have patience. P^3
Post a Comment
Read more

Rome and the SSPX - Version 2026 Part 6b: Principles and Rules for Surviving this Crisis of the Catholic Church (Principle 1)

By
 + JMJ Principle 1: Realize that something is amiss in the Catholic Church The world in which I had my Traditional Awakening, is one in which practically anything pre-Conciliar such as liturgy, doctrinc, and even dogmas are either suppressed, ignored or re-framed to be acceptable to the ‘world’. What is more, the people adhering to these pre-conciliar teachings and liturgy are persecuted by other members of the Catholic Church. The things that non-Trads say about Trads can be quite extreme. For example, accusations against Traditionalists include that they are: A revival of the Jansenists (link) , Schismatics, Heretics, Uncharitable, Lefebrists Radicals Integrists When one group of Catholics is persecuted by the others for simply wanting to live as Catholics before them did for generations … well something is wrong. Further, we need to realize that when what was previously condemned is now promoted and what was previously promoted as the trut...
Post a Comment
Read more

How is the SSPX prepared to accept the Second Vatican Council??? - Reblogged and Updated.

By
+ JMJ The Archbishop remained steadfast. In the 1980s, in his correspondence with then-Cardinal Ratzinger, Archbishop Lefebvre stated his position that the criterion for interpreting Vatican II in light of Tradition comprises three elements: 1) He and the SSPX would accept anything in Vatican II that is clearly consistent with Tradition; 2) Any ambiguous texts of Vatican II must be interpreted strictly according to Tradition; according to the consistent teaching of the Church throughout the centuries. 3) Anything in the Council that cannot be interpreted according to Tradition should be revised. The Archbishop laid this out explicitly in his letters to Cardinal Ratzinger in 1982 and 1985. CF News: Rome-SSPX: Background to the Doctrinal Discussions CF News: The April 15 Deadline A few years ago Tony La Rosa (aka ecclesia militans a Toronto based 'resistor') had a difficult time accepting this approach to the council. He held that it must be completely tossed as...
Post a Comment
Read more