Exciting new insights on St. Paul’s Operation of Error

by T. Stanfill Benns | Mar 21, 2023 | New Blog

+St Benedict of Nursia, Abbot+ 

Before we continue our series on how to best prepare for and survive the end times, I wish to bring attention to a recent post regarding the errors discovered in articles appearing on a website some may have viewed, believing that it advocates the pray-at-home position. Please do read this new post in order to better understand why these sites must be avoided and how cleverly they phrase their subtle, misleading statements to make it appear their position is correct. It is available here.

This week I am honored to introduce the first of several excerpts from a recently released work by Javier Morell-Ibarra, a pray-at-home Catholic, translator and interpreter living in Spain. Mr. Morell-Ibarra has written an excellent summary of our position today — particularly how to detect and escape the operation of error and weather the storms that yet face us as Catholics. It is a most compelling and well-written work, one which I hope will provide consolations for the faithful as well as the information and necessary graces so many desperately need in these final days to see and acknowledge the truth. Many thanks to you, Javier, for allowing these excerpts to be printed here! May those reading them receive the graces necessary to understand.

 Survival Guide and Reference Handbook During the Great Tribulation and the Operation of Error 

By Javier Morell-Ibarra

1. Dedication
2. Introduction
3. Development and exposition of the true and dramatic general situation
4. Compendium of the main fables or false logics of the Anomos spread by the false Christs and their false prophets, with their consequent refutation by the Magisterium and the Code of Canon Law of 1917
5. Where exactly are we and where are we going? Through the Great Tribulation…
6. About the world and its deceptions for the soul
7. Modus operandi of the unfathomable mystery of the Operation of error, who it hits and how to get out of it, God One and Triune willing
8. Our only possible weapon and defence to spiritually survive the Great Tribulation and the Operation of Error combined as we await the Second Coming in glory and majesty of Our Lord Jesus Christ to judge the insolent nations and all those who do iniquity
9. Conclusion. Peter is the cornerstone of the Church
10. Final thanks

1. Dedication

The author writes the following fundamental essay moved by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost and following its divine instructions, always seeking the greatest honor and glory of the Holy Trinity, in order to defend the honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, uphold the Papacy and its infallible Magisterium, the true hidden treasure for the last times, defend the Holy and Immaculate Spouse of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church. Finally, to help and guide the poor souls of faithful Catholics who are scattered throughout the orb, and who are witnessing, terrified, the increasingly rapid decomposition of everything they considered sacred and immutable, without being able to find a point of reference in the midst of this terrifying diabolical confusion that has covered everything after the death of the last Vicar of Christ Pope Pius XII.

It is my sincere hope that this work will set a humble rule and final consideration to which everyone can turn for safe haven, a reliable guide to finally understanding where we are, how we got here, and lastly, most important of all, how to deal with the perfect storm that is beating down on all of us since the death of S.S. Pius XII, in other words, how to survive the Great Tribulation and the Operation of Error and not die trying.

May God Almighty have mercy on all of us and grant us wisdom, understanding, and much humility to understand and digest what is going to be exposed here.

May the Most Holy Virgin Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit and Mediatrix of all Graces, and her blessed husband Saint Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, give us all the help from Heaven that we will need to stand tall as we hoist the holy banner of the Cross and persevere until the very end fighting the good fight for the defense of our Holy Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Faith, just as the Son of Man will come to look for in His glorious and terrible Parousia. (Luke 18, 8).

May the blessed Apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul pray and intercede for us, arming us with the invincible swords of the Magisterium and Holy Scripture, against which no enemy can resist.

Christus vincit! Christus regnat! Christus imperat!

Ad Jesum Per Mariam!

Pro Deo et Pontifice!

2. Introduction

The “consummationem saeculi” is not the destruction of the physical world, nor the Last Day. The “consummationem saeculi” is the end of one era and the beginning of another, this period that we call the “end of the world” is a period of time that encompasses different events, from the proclamation of the Gospel to all Nations [event that has already happened], the obstacle or KATEJON [the visible Church and the Roman Pontiff, as interpreted by unanimous consent by the Church] is removed, the so-called Millennium ends (which marks the end of an era), Satan is released to seduce all nations (beginning of another era that we call the end of the world), the Great Apostasy occurs, the Operation of error is unleashed, the Abomination of desolation is placed in the Holy Temple, the Antichrist is crowned [in this very temple], the Perpetual Sacrifice is abolished, the Harlot is confused with the Bride, the flock is abandoned like sheep without a Shepherd, the Bride flees into the desert fed by Divine Graces, the false shepherds appear, that is, the false Christs with their false prophets (Matthew 24:24), who claim to know where the Christ is, and who are placed there for the Scripture to be fulfilled, etc., etc… All of these are the green shoots of the fig tree that indicate that summer is coming, that is, that the Parousia or Second Coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ in glory and majesty is truly at hand. He that readeth, let him understand.

It is essential that our readers understand the eschatological and spiritual context in which we find ourselves, otherwise we will continue to wander aimlessly around the desert, being vulnerable to the fables of the Anomos and the sophistry of the wolves in sheep’s clothing that swarm everywhere to devour what little remains of Our Lord’s flock. In fact, all the errors that overwhelm and afflict us today, and which we will include under the name of the Operation of error or the seduction of iniquity (II Thessalonians 2, 10), originate from not having correctly understood the eschatological discourse of Our Lord in the Gospel of Saint Matthew, chapter 24, as He Himself rightly warns us at the beginning of said discourse: 4 Jesus answered them saying: “Take care that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come under my name, saying: «I am the Christ», and many will be deceived. And as is made clear to us in the comments to these verses in the Bible of Bishop Straubinger: *4 ss. To understand this discourse and the parallel accounts in Mark 13 and Luke 21, one must keep in mind that, according to the prophets, the “last times” and the events related to them that we usually designate with the Greek term eschatological, do not refer only to the last day of human history, but rather a longer period, which St. Thomas calls the preamble to the judgment or “Day of the Lord”, which he also considers inseparable from its concomitant events. (Cf. 7, 22 and note). It is not necessary that all the phenomena announced in this speech take place together and in a more or less distant future. Some of them may have already been fulfilled, especially taking into account the metaphorical character of many apocalyptic-style expressions (cf. I Corinthians 6, 2 s. and note).

Therefore, keeping this in mind, we are going to develop in greater detail all these events that we call the green shoots of the fig tree, which unmistakably announce the arrival of summer, that is, the imminent Parousia of Our Lord Jesus Christ, placing them within the historical-eschatological context in which we find ourselves.

3. Development and exposition of the truly dramatic and general situation

On October 9, 1958, with the death of Pope Pius XII, the last Vicar of Christ, was thus removed from the Obstacle or Katejon that held back and prevented the manifestation of the son of perdition (II Thessalonians 2, 6), which was the visible Church and the Roman Pontiff, as interpreted with the unanimous consent of the Church. With the removal of the Katejon, the so-called Millennium or Christian era is concluded, in which the Mystical Body of Christ the Holy Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church, with the Popes as visible Head, illuminated and sanctified the entire orb with the salvific and overwhelming influence of the Holy Ghost through the preaching of the Word of God and the administration of the Holy Sacraments.

With the Church and the Papacy having been removed from the midst, the Obstacle that prevented the advent of the Antichrist was also removed, and the son of perdition effectively manifested himself in the unfortunate person of impious G. B. Montini, alias “Paul 6”, who was “announced ” by his false prophet Angelo Roncalli, alias “John 23”, preaching a false gospel diametrically different from the Gospel taught by Our Lord Jesus Christ, in which peace and security are sought (I Thessalonians 5, 3) on earth, despising life eternal until reaching absolute oblivion of the supernatural and spiritual dimension of man, which inevitably leads to the most frightening apostasy. The so-called era of Satan unchained begins, or THE TIME OF ANOMOS, that is, of lawlessness, disorder and total absence of any superior spiritual or moral authority to which one submits and by which to govern oneself, a superior authority that was always present in the Holy See, the Rock of the Papacy, the Katejon that kept at bay, repressing with the vigorous sword of the blessed infallible Magisterium, the gates of hell, which are the heresies and errors in Faith, morality and discipline, preventing time and again that they would prevail against the Primacy of Saint Peter and his Successors. In these sad times, however, Our Holy Mother the Catholic Church has been eclipsed by an abominable sect, the Great Montinian or Babylonian Prostitute, which masquerades as Her and has usurped all its external structures, deceiving the unhappy inhabitants of the earth, as prophesied by Our Lady the Most Holy Ever Virgin Mary in her apparition at La Salette, France, in 1846.

It is the time when Satan has been released to seduce all nations (Revelation 20, 7-8). through the deceits of the world, always full of vanities, and the triple concupiscence of the eyes, the flesh and pride, leading the entire world to apostasy before God. Thus we see that Antichrist Montini was, indeed, the one in charge of sowing tares in the vast field of the world that the Holy Church of God had fermented and sanctified for 2,000 years with the Gospel and the Sacraments, promoting a new “religion” that apostatizes from the eternal and immutable Catholic Religion and preaches in its place an absolute falsification of the Truth and an inversion of all Dogmas, extolling human progress and technology, indifferentism, the diabolical ecumenism that brings together all false religions and heresies existing, atheism, tolerance of any error and heresy, the false and masonic human fraternity in which there are no longer barriers or separations and all are “brothers” in chaos and deceit, the most terrifying relativism and subjectivism, in short, total chaos or Anomos.

To achieve such a perverse end, the Antichrist made use of the Great Apostasy of the entire Episcopal Body, which actually took place on the fateful day of December 8, 1965, when the unhappy Bishops and Cardinals miserably betrayed the Flock of Christ and they apostatized en masse at the moment they signed their signature on the heretical closing documents of the accursed Vatican 2 cabal, thus consummating a public and notorious act of apostasy and being excommunicated en bloc [Canon 188.4 and Bull Cum Ex Apostolatus Officio], losing ipso facto any position and jurisdiction they had when joining a non-Catholic sect. In this way, it was fulfilled what was predicted in the book of Revelation, chapter 13, verses 5 to 7, where we read that: “And he was given a mouth that uttered haughtiness and blasphemies; and authority was given to him to do his work for forty-two months. He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, blaspheme his Name, his dwelling place, and those who dwell in heaven. He was also allowed to make war with the saints and defeat them; and authority was given to him over every tribe and people and tongue and nation.”

 Both Antichrist Montini and his infamous successors Luciani, Wojtyla, Ratzinger, and Bergoglio today, who form the mystical body of the Antichrist incarnated in the Great Whore of Babylon or Montinian/conciliar sect, have uttered and still utter arrogance and blasphemies in the form of heresy, irreverence, and other countless barbarities against the Most High God and against all His Saints, whom those supreme wretches insult and slander with their insolent impiety, falsehoods and desecrations. Montini made war on the Saints with his abominable heresies uttered during the Vatican 2 cabal, especially in the arch-heretical declarations Lumen Gentium and Nostra Aetate, and defeated them, since he made those who still kept the sound Catholic doctrine received in the times of Popes Leo XIII, Saint Pius X, Benedict XV, Pius XI and Pius XII, throw overboard all the immense work that the Holy Spirit, the Comforter or Paraclete, had worked in them and for them, thus losing its flavor and serving nothing more than to be thrown to the ground and trampled on by the disbelieving Gentile “dogs”, when they gave assent to the unusual apostasy driven and promoted from Rome and the Vatican by the son of perdition. Once the Antichrist and his minions defeated the Saints and won them over to their impious cause, it was very easy for them to impose themselves by false obedience and authority over every tribe and people and language and nation, leading the once Catholic world to the most frightening apostasy and religious indifferentism regarding the One and Triune God.

Thus, the Operation of error or the seduction of iniquity is unleashed (II Thessalonians 2, 8-12), which consists in an impressive series of errors and doctrinal contradictions, false sacramental prodigies and heretical atrocities disguised as apparent Catholic orthodoxy that we will call fables or logics of the time of Anomos, but which all of them contain a deadly deception; said Operation of error being inaugurated with the advent of Antichrist Montini, and above all, with the great apostasy promoted by him which led to the massive defection of the entire Episcopal Corps, formalized on the disastrous day of December 8, 1965 on the occasion of the signing of the heretical acts of the accursed Vatican 2 bogus council. The Operation of Error is a false power sent by God to lose those who did not love Truth as it was revealed by God in Sacred Scripture and the Magisterium, but rather took pleasure in deceit and wickedness; it is a really insidious seduction and it strikes practically all the souls that have been rescued by God from the world and its many deceptions. Later on we will explain the modus operandi of this unfathomable mystery called the Operation of Error, and we will try to give a formula to get out of such implacable universal deception, God willing.

Going back to the infamous Montini, he and his impious successors in the abominable conciliar sect have implanted the Luciferian “New Pentecost”, which in reality is the large-scale spread of Satan’s filthy spirit of errors and heresies by taking advantage of the visible structures of the Holy Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church, thus managing to deceive the entire universe through “all power and signs and prodigies of lies, and with all seduction of iniquity for those who are to be lost in retribution for not having accepted for their salvation the love of truth. And, for this reason, God sends them powers of deception, so that they believe the lie, so that all those who disbelieve the truth, who take pleasure in injustice, may be judged”. Well, as we read in the comments to this passage in Monsignor Juan Straubinger’s Bible (Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of Müenster, Germany, 1883-1956), and which I allow myself to complement with my own additions:

[* 10. Those who are to be lost: This passage (verses 9-12) is perhaps one of the most terrible in Scripture and worthy of serious meditation. God, who is mercy itself, is also the truth, whose expression he gives us in his Son Jesus Christ, who is his Verb or Incarnate Word, and who does not cease to present himself as Truth and Light. Just as there will be a tremendous revenge of despised Love (Song of Songs 8, 6 and note), so we also see here the revenge of the unheeded truth. We see in Psalms 80, 13 that God abandoned the people of Israel to their dalliances, who did not want to listen to him [just as today’s heretics and schismatics have not wanted to listen to the Popes and their infallible Magisterium, thus obstinately and criminally refusing to submit to the authority that the Vicars of Christ possess over every human creature and which must be obeyed in order to aspire to achieve eternal salvation, cf. Pope Boniface VIII, Bull Unam Sanctam]; He will do so here by handing them over unarmed “so that they may believe the lie, since they had no interest in arming themselves with the sword of the spirit which is the Word of God” [expressed and revealed both in the Gospel and Sacred Scripture as well as in the infallible Magisterium of the Vicars of Our Lord Jesus Christ] (Ephesians 6, 11, 13 and 17). And then that word of Jesus in John 5:43, which some interpret precisely as an announcement of the Antichrist, will be fulfilled tragically—as it has been for a long time. See also Amos, 8, 11 and note. * 12. He who is incredulous to the truth, will be pleased in wickedness for the same thing that we saw, inversely. in Ephesians 5, 9 and note.]

In this way, we then have the Abomination of Desolation placed in the Holy Temple (Matthew 24, 15), which is the coronation of the Antichrist and his minions usurping the Papacy and generating a monstrous Harlot of Babylon that eclipses the Spouse of Christ to deceive the entire world, and against which Our Lord warned us to get out of there immediately and not turn back, lamenting for those who are pregnant and those who are giving birth at that time(Matthew 24, 19), which refers to the souls who were carrying out their vocation to the priestly or religious life during the fateful moment in which Antichrist Montini was crowned as impious king, these are the ones who are pregnantbecause they had been called by the Holy Spirit for that holy vocation and were to be the salt and light of the world, but unfortunately with the advent of the son of Satan they lost all their flavor and their sacred mission, becoming propagators and accomplices of the apostasy and impiety of the Antichrist and his infamous successors at the head of the Great conciliar or Montinian Whore; while those who were giving birth and raising infants at that sad moment are to be understood as the souls chosen by the Holy Ghost to be formators and spiritual directors of many priests, seminarians, religious, novices, postulants, pastoral care of families, etc., in clear allusion to the Hierarchy , that is, the Bishops, since they had entrusted to them innumerable souls in their respective dioceses, whom they were raising, that is, spiritually feeding them with the Holy Word of God and the Holy Sacraments.

It is now understandable the serious warning of Our Lord Jesus Christ so that, when that happened, everybody was to immediately leave the Holy Place where the Abomination had been installed, since the Antichrist and his recently gestated hellish sect were going to pervert and mutilate absolutely everything, altering the Sacraments and causing them to permanently lose their Grace, changing the liturgical times and destroying the Holy of Holies, getting rid of a terrifying number of Saints, suppressing and abolishing the Perpetual Sacrifice as already predicted to us in Daniel’s prophecy, causing the Harlot to be confused with the Holy and Immaculate Spouse of Christ, to the astonishment and horror of the entire universe, leaving the Flock literally as sheep without a Shepherd, and having the last chosen Catholic Faithful who make up the true Bride in the desert, keeping the Faith in the catacombs of their own homes and the silence of their hearts, led there by the Holy Ghost, the Consoler or Paraclete, who feeds them with the Divine Graces that are essential so as not to faint. And if those days were not shortened, no one would be saved; but because of the elect, those days will be shortened. *If then they tell you: “See, the Christ is here or there”, do not believe it. *Because false Christs and false prophets will arise, and they will do stupendous things and wonders, to the point of diverting, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have predicted it to you! Therefore, if they say to you, “He is in the desert,” do not go out; “He is in the cellars”, do not believe it. (Matthew 24, 22-26)

Comments on these verses in Bishop Straubinger’s Bible supplemented by my own reflection: [*23. Buzy, drawing attention to the fact that Jesus constantly speaks in the plural of false Messiahs and false prophets and never of a false Messiah in singular or of an Antichrist, concludes: “that in the teaching of Jesus as in that of Saint John (I John 1, 18-23) there is no individual Antichrist; there is only one powerful and terrible collectivity of antichrists.” The same author observes in his note to II Thessalonians 2, 7.  *24. The elect will be freed from deceit because the just will be given a sure judgment as a defense (Wisdom 5, 19). Cf. II Thessalonians 2, 10 ss. and note. [And what better sure judgment and right guide to judge everything than to follow the infallible authority of the Papacy and its Magisterium! Thanks to them, as well as fidelity to Divine Grace and the gifts and lights received from the Holy Ghost Paraclete to understand and penetrate the meaning of Scripture and the Magisterium, the last elect will be able to be saved in the midst of the Great Tribulation].

At the same time, during this time of the Antichrist or the Anomos, the false shepherds appear, that is, the false Christs with their false prophets (Matthew 24, 24) who make propaganda for them, and who claim to know where the Christ is and perform great wonders to mislead even the elect if possible. These unfortunate individuals must be there for the Scripture to be fulfilled, their role is very ungrateful, comparable to that of Judas, since they must be there so that they deceive with their elaborate and perverse fables many who are going to be lost because they do not possess the love of Truth, trying to deceive also even the ones chosen by God, if this were possible.

THE FALSE CHRISTS are the representatives of the conciliar Harlot, as well as its franchises of the Anomos, which are the sects and the traditionalist – sedevacantist false clergy that emerged from the schisms engendered by Marcel Lefebvre and Peter Martin Ngô Thuc, both excommunicated for public and notorious apostasy [Canon 188.4 and Bull Cum Ex Apostolatus Officio], who have been generating a monstrous multi-headed hydra without any control or direction, invalidly and illegally consecrating pseudo “bishops” against the provisions of the Magisterium of Pope Pius XII [Apostolic Constitution Vacantis Apostolicae Sedis] and the Code of Canon Law of 1917, which punishes with very severe penalties of excommunication ipso facto those who have the impious audacity to proceed to an episcopal consecration without permission from the Holy See [Canon 2229.3, 3º ; AAS 43, 1951, pp. 217-218; Canon 953] as well as those who presume to receive consecration from the hands of those reckless false Christs who acted without permission from the Holy See [Canon 2370].

From which it follows, then, that the spiritual offspring of these two arrogant hypocritical rebels who were disobedient to the Magisterium of Pius XII are also false christs themselves, and are thus marked with the leprosy of schism and heresy by osmosis or mutual influence with their heretical and schismatic “fathers” and “superiors”, being struck with the penalties of ipso facto excommunication and legal infamy [ Canon 2372; Pope Pius XII, AAS 42 (1950) p. 601], thus becoming dangerous heretical and schismatic intruders without mission or jurisdiction over the flock of Our Lord Jesus Christ. These must be avoided by all the faithful so as not to concur in communicatio in sacris with individuals who have been excommunicated for their adherence to schism and heresy, and whose acts are null, void, invalid, illicit, gravely sinful, in short, sacrilege and desecration, as the Magisterium and the CIC teach us. The aforementioned censorships apply to the false “clergy” arising from the sect generated by hypocritical apostate Bishop Marcel Lefebvre, the SSPX, whether they continue in that sect or pretend to function as false “clerici vagantes”, as well as to all pseudo “bishops” and “priests” emerged from the schismatic hands of the mentally deranged and simoniac Bishop Thuc and his equally impious and arrogant spiritual offspring.

Likewise, within the category of false christs we must also include all the false “religious” and the pseudo “nuns”, to whom the following censorships of excommunication and infamy by law are applied for having dared to profess religious vows in the face of intruders apostates, heretics, and schismatics without a mission or jurisdiction [Canon 646.1; Canon 2314.1] and/or have dared to found a religious congregation without the permission of the Pope [Canon 492.1 and 3; Canon 497.1 and 4]. All these false christs are authentic lepers of schism, heresy and apostasy, who are spreading their despicable pride and their disobedience to the supreme authority set by God — who is the Pope — wherever they go, infecting everything they touch. Hence Our Lord Jesus Christ has warned us expressly and repeatedly (Matthew 7, 15-20; Matthew 24, 4-5; Matthew 24, 11 and 12; Matthew 24, 24; II Thessalonians 2, 8-12) not to listen to them or have anything to do with them, since they are placed there to confuse and mislead even those chosen by the One and Triune God, if this were possible, thus fulfilling their thankless but inevitable role in Scripture.

THE FALSE PROPHETS are all those who support and recognize a false authority and jurisdiction in the already mentioned false Christs, propagating and spreading their diverse and numerous sects founded on lies and fraud, in abject contempt for the Papacy and its infallible Magisterium and the Holy Canons of the 1917 Code of Law. All of them are blind leading the blind, who will all end up in the pit for their enormous sins of pride and disobedience to the Holy Ghost who speaks through the mouth of the Vicars of Jesus Christ. The Great Montinian or conciliar Harlot is the parent sect from which all these false Christs and their false prophets arise, who are all miasmas of the mystical body of the Antichrist, putrefying elements that walk towards their perdition while trying to deceive the greatest possible number of candid souls with little or no formation in the Faith, the Doctrine, and the Magisterium.

Hence the vital importance of knowing the perverse and twisted fables of the Anomos with which these supreme rebels disobedient to God try to deceive over and over again their own guilty conscience and the many unwary who are caught in their nets of deception; I have said rebellious and disobedient to God, because whoever disobeys Pope Pius XII also disobeys blessed Saint Peter, and so disobeys Jesus Christ Himself, Son of the living God and Second Person of the Holy Trinity, thus disobeying the Eternal Father and wanting to point out any flaws (!) to the Holy Ghost, the Paraclete who speaks through the mouth of the Supreme Pontiffs. This constitutes a very serious mortal sin for which Our Lord Jesus Christ warned us that there would be no forgiveness (Matthew 12, 31-32). Hence, I repeat, the tremendous importance of knowing about the absurd and diabolical fables that these unfortunate characters use to deceive locals and strangers, which will be dealt with in the next point.

How to survive the Passion of the Church and keep the faith intact

by T. Stanfill Benns | Mar 15, 2023 | New Blog

VIENNA, AUSTRIA – DECEMBER 19, 2016: The painting Jesus dies on the cross in church kirche St. Laurenz (Schottenfelder Kirche) by unknown artist of 19. cent.

+St. Longinus, Martyr, and St. Louisa de Marillac, Widow+

It may seem strange to some that there have been articles this Lent on the culmination of the end times, but actually, it is something in perfect “sync” with our present situation. We are reliving Christ’s Passion as members of His Mystical Body, and in approaching the end of this long and painful Passion we must anticipate what it will mean for us, what to expect and how we will keep our faith in these times. The changes ahead of us will come gradually but could descend into absolute deprivation and general chaos at any time. One individual who lived in a Communist country for many years describes the rationing of everything — food, fuel, electricity, water, clothing and other necessities. Medical care was poor at best, if it could be obtained at all. Few could afford personal vehicles. None were allowed to openly practice their religion.

Most of us know the possibilities and have taken steps to prepare to a certain degree. But few of us could anticipate everything, and no one can actually prepare emotionally for what is coming.  We have been shamelessly spoiled for many years and it will be very difficult for some to return to an era only their grandparents or great-grandparents knew — the Great Depression and World War II. And our ancestors did not have the added burden of recovering from device reliance or addiction — cell phones, computers, television, smart appliances, gadgets etc… They also were able to resort to a functioning Church, something none of us have had access to in our lifetime. Our ancestors also were healthier, had greater stamina and endurance, and were stronger mentally. And they did not have to worry about microwaves, mind control devices, AI, identity verification processes and surveillance techniques then unknown.

Is all of this just fear mongering? It is hard for me to wrap my arms around the concept that anyone thinks that the visible Church could be absent in their lives for nearly 65 years and that this would not eventually result in disastrous consequences for the entire world. People are naturally optimistic, but as things stand today such optimism is misplaced. Realistic optimists hope for a good, or at least a not so bad, outcome but prepare for the worst-case scenario. We must never lose hope in our salvation, but we have seen where placing hope in Church leaders, government, politicians, and the education system has led us. Fortunately we have already prepared ourselves for the worst-case spiritual scenario by learning to pray at home and leading relatively quiet, peaceful lives. This spiritual preparation will make us more conformable to God’s will and ready to accept any trials or deprivations He may send our way.

As noted previously, knowledge in our case is peace and power. We can pray for the strength to accept our future and resign ourselves to whatever befalls us in advance.  But one thing we can never do is compromise in matters of faith. And it is sometimes difficult to determine how far we are allowed to go in order to defend ourselves, and when we should simply allow ourselves to be led away to prison, an internment camp, or some other unknown fate. I know, these are very depressing subjects. But they need to be examined and they seem to be nowhere discussed from a spiritual point of view. There are many training opportunities regarding weapons and self-defense but they are not usually considering the outcome from a moral standpoint. In his On Kingship: to the King of Cyrus, St. Thomas Aquinas argues that God permits tyrants to rule in punishment for the sins of the subjects, and such punishment is commonly called the “anger of God” in the scriptures (Ch. 10). The Lord says through Hosea: “I will give thee a king in my wrath” (Hosea xiii:11). And he addresses how such a tyrant should be opposed. All of the following is taken from this same work, On Kingship.

 St. Thomas Aquinas on opposing tyrants

Although God gives permission for the punishment of His people, St. Thomas Aquinas believes that the king who inflicted God’s wrath upon the people will be unhappy and his dominion cannot be lasting. Aquinas argues that God, as a loving God, will not fail to pardon and to show mercy, despite His anger: “He is gracious and merciful and ready to repent of the evil” (Joel ii:13). According to Thomas Aquinas, God does not allow tyrants to reign overlong, but makes use of them to let loose a storm upon His people. He sweeps them away and restores calm. We read in Ecclesiasticus: “God hath overturned the thrones of proud princess, and hath set up the meek in their stead” (Ecclesiasticus x:17; Ibid., Ch. 6). ‘It is a saying worthy of the majesty of a ruler, if the prince professes himself bound by the laws: for even our authority depends upon that of the law. And, in fact, the most important thing in government is that power should be subject to laws.” (Summa Theologica 1-2, q. 96, a. 5 ad 3um.). “The purpose of the rule of law is to protect basic individual rights by requiring the (prince) ruler to act in accordance with the law. The prince is therefore subject to the laws of the state. St. Thomas states: “Whoever enacts a law for another should apply the same law to himself. And we have it on the authority of the wise man that you should subject yourself to the same law which you promulgate.’ (Summa Theologica 1-2, q. 96, a. 5 ad 3um. Extra, de Constitutionibus, cap. Cum Omnes).

“A tyrant robs, murders and enslaves his subjects. He despoils everyone, tramples on the liberties of all, and takes life at a mere whim. This is done perpetually under his rule. This is what Thomas Aquinas meant by tyranny (Ibid., Ch. 6). “The tyrant does not merely oppress his subjects in corporeal things but he also hinders their spiritual good. Those who seek more to use than to be abuse their subjects prevent all progress, suspecting all excellence in their subjects to be prejudicial to their own evil domination. For tyrants hold the good in greater suspicion than the wicked and to them the valor of others is always fraught with danger. So the above-mentioned tyrants strive to prevent those of their subjects who have become virtuous from acquiring valor and high spirit in order that they may not want to cast off their iniquitous domination.

“They also see to it that there be no friendly relations among these so that they may not enjoy the benefits resulting from being on good terms with one another. They sew discords among the people, foster any that have arisen and forbid anything which further society and cooperation among men such as marriage, company at table and anything of light character through which familiarity and confidence are engendered among men… They moreover strive to prevent their subjects from becoming powerful and rich since suspecting these to be as wicked as themselves, they fear their power and wealth. For the subjects might become harmful to them even as they are accustomed to use power and wealth to harm others… Few virtuous men are found under the rule of tyrants.

“If the excess of tyranny is unbearable, some have been of the opinion that it would be an act of virtue for strong men to slay the tyrant and to expose themselves to the danger of death in order to set the multitude free. An example of this occurs even in the Old Testament… But this opinion is not in accord with Apostolic teaching, for Peter admonishes us to be reverently subject to our masters not only to the good and gentle but also the froward. Wherefore when many emperors of the Romans tyrannically persecuted the faith of Christ, a great number both of the nobility and the common people, were converted to the faith and were praised for patiently bearing death for Christ. They did not resist although they were armed and this is plainly manifested in the case of the holy Theban legion. Should private persons attempt on their own private presumption to kill the rulers, even though tyrants, this would be dangerous for the multitude as well as for the rulers.

“This is because the wicked usually expose themselves to dangers of this kind more than the good. For the rule of a king, no less than that of a tyrant, it is burdensome to them since according to the words of Solomon, ‘A wise king scattereth the wicked.’ Consequently, by presumption of this kind of danger to the people from the loss of a good king would be more probable than relief through the removal of a tyrant. Furthermore it seems that to proceed against the cruelty of tyrants is an action to be undertaken not through the private presumption of a few but rather by public authority. Should no human aid whatsoever against a tyrant be forthcoming, recourse must be had to God the King of all who is a helper in due time in tribulation. For it lies in His power to turn the cruel heart of the tyrant to mildness according to Solomon: ‘The heart of the king is in the hand of the Lord, whithersoever He will He shall turn it.” He it was who turned into mildness the cruelty of King Assuerus who was preparing death for the Jews… But to deserve to secure this benefit from God the people must desist from sin, for it is by divine permission that wicked men receive power to rule as a punishment for sin, as the Lord says by the prophet Osee: ‘I will give the a king in my wrath;’ and it is said in Job that: ‘He maketh a man that is a hypocrite to reign for the sins of the people.’ SIN MUST THEREFORE BE DONE AWAY WITH IN ORDER THAT THE SCOURGE OF TYRANTS MAY CEASE.”(End of St. Thomas Aquinas quotes).

Just war theory

Unless one is contemplating war with Mexico to fight the drug cartels, which in my opinion would be a just war, another world war may be unavoidable but could never be just or winnable. This because of the international nature of the enemy we are fighting and the almost certainty of deception, chaos and defeat. Given the circumstances today in our own country, however, what was said by Pope Pius XI in 1937 to the Mexican bishops, during the ongoing political persecution following the Cristero rebellion, certainly applies to us.

“27. You have more than once recalled to your Faithful that the Church protects peace and order, even at the cost of grave sacrifices, and that it condemns every unjust insurrection or violence against constituted powers. On the other hand, among you it has also been said that, whenever these powers arise against justice and truth even to destroying the very foundations of authority, it is not to be seen how those citizens are to be condemned who unite to defend themselves and the nation, by licit and appropriate means, against those who make use of public power to bring it to ruin.

“28. If the practical solution depends on concrete circumstances, We must, however, on Our part recall to you some general principles, always to be kept in mind, and they are:

• “That these revindications have reason [the ratio] of means, or of relative end, not of ultimate and absolute end” [there must be reasonable hope of a victory and the necessary means to win the battle].
• “That, in reason [ratio] of means, they must be licit actions and not intrinsically evil;
• “That, if they are to be means proportionate to the end, they must be used only in the measure in which they serve to obtain or render possible, in whole or in part, the end, and in such manner that they do not cause to the community greater damages than those they seek to repair…” [No excessive use of force or unnecessary endangerment of the citizenry] https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xi_enc_28031937_nos-es-muy-conocida.html

Pope Pius XI’s teaching embodies what is cited from St. Thomas, above but allows for the just defense of one’s country in the event of religious persecution strictly so-called, which has already begun in this country. As Gerald Vann, O.P. wrote in 1939, in his Morality and War: “a Christian community can accept Pagan domination and yet remain Christian, for matter cannot defeat spirit if the spirit is strong. But the paganism of today is likely, as Pope Pius XI pointed out, to achieve the success of Julian the Apostate. For it attacks Christianity through education; it takes control of the child. The Christian community’s act of self-sacrifice might turn out to be an act of the sacrifice of its children to Moloch… There are millions today who are as convinced as we can ever be of the futility of war, of the barbarism to which it will lead, of the evil it will do. And they are ready to sacrifice almost anything to avoid war. But they are not ready to sacrifice one thing: …That liberty which, in Christian eyes, is ultimately the liberty to worship God and to ensure that one’s children shall worship God” (pgs. 68-70).

In this war Christians, especially Catholics, are the target. And to maintain our religious freedoms guaranteed in this country’s Constitution, we are justified in defending our rights and obligated to defend our faith.

When self-defense is justified

Rev. Bernard Wuellner, in his Summary of Scholastic Principles, outlines the defense of rights and its particulars, explaining what Pope Pius XI teaches above. He states:

• # 497: Force may be used only in the defense of a genuine right.
• An unalienable right prevails over an alienable right.
• A right for more necessary, higher and more general goods prevails over less urgent, less important and private goods.
• A right based on a higher duty prevails over rights based on less serious duty or opportunity (#495; C, E and F).
• Persons and societies have the natural right to defend perfect rights against unjust assailants in proportion to both a) the necessity of the measures necessary for effective defense and b) the comparative importance of the right or good under attack.
• The law does not concede the right to intend evil, to use intrinsically evil means against the assailant or to do more harm than good by exaggerated or useless defense.
• Defense of one’s rights is blameless when:

1. a) they are unjustly attacked;
2. b) the attack is actual or imminent;
3. c) the right is one capable of effective defense;
4. d) the defense is the last resort to secure justice, that is the use of force is necessary and
5. e) the defense does not employ more force nor inflict a greater injury than necessary for successful protection of rights. (#498)

• The right of self-defense is conceded to the person or society attacked to oneself, peers and to public authorities as defenders of their subjects or of international justice. But while the primary holder of the right of self-defense is the party enduring the injustice, the primary exercise of the right belongs to public authority and organized society.

So, suppose someone comes to your front door and tells you that they are taking you forcibly under order of the federal government to receive the COVID vaccine, or arresting you for domestic terrorism, or some such other pretext. In such a case, a Christian has every right to fear, in these circumstances, that the intent of those apprehending them is ultimately to deprive them of their mental capabilities, either through medical means (psychoactive drugs, DNA alteration), physical and mental torture, or all of these, thus endangering their mental ability to practice the faith. They may therefore prevent this by any necessary means even though it results in their death or the death of others, because it is an immediate threat to their salvation. If they have good reason to think that the arrest for something less serious would result in their eventual release without any danger to the faith, they could allow themselves to be arrested. All of this is a matter of conscience, however and is up to the individual. But it is solidly based on the professed teachings of the Church above.

NO ONE IS SUGGESTING HERE THAT CATHOLICS INITIATE ANY SORT OF REBELLION. This did not work well for those executing the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 and it would scarcely work any better today. Wuellner’s (c) above advises that the only time one can engage in defense of a right is when it is capable of effective defense. Should an effort made by others be sufficiently established with a likelihood of success, that would be one thing; depending on the moral fiber, the necessary means and the objectives of those involved, one might be allowed to join in. But Christians are so hopelessly divided that it seems impossible they themselves could be the ones to first propagate such a cause, and Satan has worked long and hard to make sure of this. There can be no unity in this type of diversity, for in order for any such venture to be successful, sin must be entirely done away with as St. Thomas teaches above. The situation leaves Catholics with hardly any prospects of successfully defending themselves, meaning that, as we have known all along, all must be left In God’s hands. “Here is the patience of the saints, who keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus” (Apoc. 14: 12).

New articles available

Two new articles are available on the website. The first is a belated article detailing the Lenten fast laws here, since there seems to be much confusion about what fasting laws apply today. The second article located here is a supplement to the article linked in the previous post, The Final Chapter: Apocalyptic Prophecy Fulfilled. There we discussed the topic of when and how the Jews will be converted in the latter days and surprisingly, new information is available that will show they probably were converted several hundred years ago. The sources cited in the article entirely disprove the Protestant British Israel theory of what happened to the 10 lost tribes, addressed in The Final Chapter…. The article will help date the Jewish conversion to the beginning, not the end, of the Great Apostasy.

May all those praying at home enjoy a peaceful and prayerful Lent.

NWO plans to abolish papacy, set up an antichrist/ false messiah

by T. Stanfill Benns | Mar 7, 2023 | New Blog

Stained Glass depicting Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274) in Mechelen Cathedral, Belgium.

+St. Thomas Aquinas, Angelic Doctor+

In order to know how to survive something spiritually, we must first know what it is we are expected to survive. In recent blogs we have tried to explain that misinformation, diversion, distraction and deceit are all tools used by those wishing to promote Traditionalism as the surefire solution to the crisis in the Church. The only path Catholics must faithfully follow today was mapped out long ago by the teachings of the Roman Pontiffs until the death of Pope Pius XII, the ecumenical councils and the Sacred Canons. This is what constitutes the Deposit of Faith in the Catholic Church. Unless we adhere strictly to this Deposit as it was bequeathed to the Church; unless we obey the Roman Pontiffs, we are not members of Christ’s Mystical Body the Church. According to these teachings, no one who has ever been ordained or consecrated when the Church is without a true pope — and that rules out everyone today — can convey valid Sacraments. If we seek such persons out for Mass and Sacraments despite these teachings, we are no longer members of the Church.

This leaves only one option open to us — praying at home, availing ourselves of the spiritual substitutes for Penance and Holy Communion, baptizing those newly born and converts to the faith and contracting marriage under Canon 1098. And we must constantly pray and watch. In watching we must study our faith and be on our guard against any innovations. We must especially be on alert for supposed fulfillment of private prophecy reflected in recent events and Scriptural prophecy which has been improperly fitted to some specific occurrence. On the other hand we must recognize the “signs of the times” as Christ advised and not discount the actual fulfillment of Holy Scripture, and this can be a laborious process. Some have become confused regarding what we must believe of faith regarding these signs and what we may consider only as opinion. Below we will try to provide some pointers on this.

Where we stand today in Scriptural prophecy

Unfortunately much of what is contained in Holy Scripture describing the end times is a matter of opinion on the part of those approved commentators writing pre-1959. None of them seem to have anticipated a lengthy interregnum, the extended reign of usurpers in Rome, or the impersonation of valid and licit clergy by Traditionalists. Some hint at this and allow it as a possibility, but only for a brief time. Even such saintly writers as St. Augustine and St. Robert Bellarmine leave it up to those living in these days to determine what has or has not been fulfilled, presumably on the assumption that there will be clergy to guide us, or that God Himself will assist us. Given all this, we must carefully sort out for ourselves the things that we must believe regarding these times and those that we must consider only probable. As we know, we cannot act on a probable opinion regarding eternal salvation, so anything that would possibly involve mortal sin (such as believing a certain personage or event was or was not prophesied in Holy Scripture when this is only probable) is not binding on us.

How do we learn of these things? The theologians and commentators have provided some clues and Holy Scripture itself is sometimes clear on these matters. We have covered this in previous blogs. In some instances the popes have even addressed these things and must be relied upon to guide us. But anything presented here is only this blogger’s interpretation of events and is of far lesser value. The only advantage we do have is one that the commentators noted and granted us gratuitously — we are living in the times they only attempted to anticipate and comment upon. This is why the identification of Paul 6 as the Man of Sin, something first proposed in 1990, has any merit. This because it is solidly based on the definition of the abomination of desolation by Pope Paul IV, and the warning he issued in his 1559 bull (Cum ex Apostolatus Officio) regarding the election of a heretic, apostate or schismatic to the papacy. This is patently obvious, since Paul 6’s abrogation of the Novus Ordo Missae is what drove the remaining faithful to fulfill the prophecy of the scattered flock and leave the Novus Ordo church. And this could only occur once the pastor was struck (Matt. 26:31; Zach.13:7).

As described by St. Bernard Clairvaux and various ecumenical councils, those usurping the papacy are always referred to as antichrists, just not the antichrist. The two things that qualify Paul 6 as the Man of Sin according to Holy Scripture are his usurpation of the papacy and the abrogation of the immemorial Latin Mass of Pope St. Pius V. Pope Paul IV predicted the usurpation, and his bull was later confirmed by Pope St. Pius V. According to Henry Cardinal Manning, “he who withholdeth” is the papacy and it is the unanimous opinion of the Fathers that Antichrist will cause the cessation of the Continual Sacrifice. Catholics must accept this as certain from the Vatican Council: “…No one is permitted to interpret Sacred Scripture itself… contrary to the unanimous agreement of the Fathers” (DZ 1788). So if those today deny that in abrogating the Latin Mass Paul 6 was not the Man of Sin, they are contradicting the teaching of the Vatican Council and the ancient Fathers.

And no obfuscation of this truth by appealing to the fact that the Latin Mass is still celebrated can be taken for anything other than the falsehood that it truly is. Pope Pius XII infallibly decreed in Vacantis Apostolicae Sedis (VAS) that nothing may be changed regarding Canon and papal law during an interregnum and that if such a thing is attempted, it is null, void and invalid.  Establish that this interregnum yet exists — which we have — and the 1983 revised Code crumbles into dust, along with any “teachings” promulgated since Pope Pius XII’s death.  Now the first law to be changed or ignored was the election of an unworthy (heretical) candidate in John 23. This invalidated the entire election as it is laid out in VAS. And furthermore, Canon 2391 §1 invalidated all future elections held by a college electing an unworthy candidate, with the canon commentary specifically mentioning  that this applies to those excommunicated for heresy, apostasy or schism. This coincides with the mention of Can. 188 no. 4 in VAS, automatically also disqualifying electors guilty of heresy, apostasy or schism. And the parent law of Can. 188 no. 4 is none other than Pope Paul IV’s Cum ex Apostolatus Officio.

Since papal teaching and Canon Law upholds the conclusion that Paul 6 was the Son of Perdition, the Antichrist, we can be certain that this was indeed the case. Pope Paul IV explains in his bull how he who withholdeth is taken out of the way (by the election of a heretic, apostate or schismatic) and who the man so elected would be — the abomination of desolation. Paul IV taught: “…It behooves us to give fuller and more diligent thought where the peril is greatest, lest false prophets (or even others possessing secular jurisdiction) wretchedly ensnare simple souls and drag down with themselves to perdition and the ruin of damnation the countless peoples entrusted to their care and government in matters spiritual or temporal; and lest it befall Us to see in the holy place the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, We wish, as much as possible with God’s help, in line with our pastoral duty, to trap the foxes that are busily ravaging the Lord’s vineyard and to drive the wolves from the sheepfolds…” Now this abomination when detected in cardinals or bishops, (addressed in the bull along with a pope), would be heresy proper. But when it involves the Roman Pontiff, who can never be guilty of heresy in his official capacity, it styles him as THE abomination.

Paul 6 and his fellow antichrists

Rev. E.S. Berry, in his The Apocalypse of St. John, 1921, (p. 137) tells us that abominations perpetrated in former times are nothing in comparison to what will occur during Antichrist’s reign: “Such things but faintly foreshadowed the abominations that will desecrate churches in those sorrowful days when Antichrist will seat himself at the altar to be adored as God.” Was not Paul 6 adored as the defender of the Jews, the idol of the liturgical renewal crowd — the people of God — and the darling of the ecumenists? Is it not true that not only did he abrogate the Latin Mass, but that he made a new liturgy his own, with the help of Protestants and even Jews, entitling it the Novus Ordo Missae? And is it not also true that having done that, he was then mentioned in the canon of this sacrilegious mass as a valid pope, there to be worshipped in this new liturgy and adored? And this not only for instituting the new mass but for the changes wrought by the false Vatican 2 council to accommodate the faithless remaining laity and endorse the heresies of Americanism and ecumenism.

Daniel speaks of no other abomination except the Jewish antichrist Antiochus and the sacrilegious sacrifices he demanded of the Chosen People; the two are described together. throughout his book.  And it has ever been the unanimous opinion of the Fathers and theologians that this also applies to the reign of Antichrist. So why has the cessation of the Sacrifice in our day been entirely disconnected from the abomination of desolation who forbade it in the first place?! (For further explanation of this term, see the articles HERE and also HERE.) The main objections to Paul 6 as Antichrist are addressed in the second of these two links: that his reign must last only three years and a half. And yet the commentators clarify this by stating that the time limit applies primarily to the height or end of his reign, when actual physical persecution will probably commence. At that same time Antichrist will be at the apex of his ability to deceive and will make it appear that he can and is accomplishing actual feats that he is unable to perform. And these include his claim to be the actual Jewish Messiah heading a newly reorganized “Christian“ church from Solomon’s rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, there to reign; events that now seem close to fulfillment.

It has been explained elsewhere that while Paul 6 was the Man of Sin, he and Roncalli established Antichrist’s system in their Roman successors, a system still in existence today and growing bolder by the minute. This system is the Whore of Babylon and is closely aligned with the New World Order’s political/financial system. Each successor of the Man of Sin corresponds in power and likeness to the original, since Satan, ever jealous of the God who exiled Him and determined to exact retribution, wished to imitate Him as closely as possible. He accomplished this by creating a diabolical papacy with its own succession in opposition to the See of St. Peter and his successors. This may very well have reference to the beast in Apocalypse whose deadly wound was healed, who dies and lives again in each devilish successor. They are Antichrist clones only, not Antichrist proper. Yet they form a perpetual chain and each rules in his own right, in mockery of the popes, creating a sort of diabolical “continual magisterium.” Just as no one else could be St. Peter, the original, no one else could be Paul 6.

Only Christ’s Mystical Body will survive

And yet the evil he began has perfected itself and expanded, until now Satan himself can be more clearly seen in each one of these usurpers. They have been planning their grand finale for decades and it now seems to be at our very doors. The gifts that will be most needed during this final phase of Antichrist’s reign are knowledge and understanding, for he will be at the peak of his ability to deceive even the elect. And this is what the article we have just completed HERE will attempt to provide. The conclusions in this article are very much dependent on the invalid election of John 23 and the identification of Paul 6 as Antichrist. For on these facts hinge whether or not the very idea of the Catholic Church will even survive. I once wrote a book entitled, Will the Catholic Church Survive the Twentieth Century? Of course the Mystical Body will never lose its Divine Head and in that sense the Church will always survive until the consummation. At the time I wrote that first book, I believed a true pope could still be validly elected. Of course today, after long years of study, I must sadly admit this is now impossible.

The answer to the title of that book, then, is that the juridical Church has NOT survived into the 21^st century. And yet there are those alive who still know what the Church was and how She taught and functioned, who remember receiving valid Holy Communion and Confession and attending valid Masses. But all that is a memory of the last century. Traditionalists today think they continue the Church but we know this is a lie. And even the externals they think they perpetuate lack the necessary sensus Catholicus, a sense which fades a little more each day with the death of those baptized Catholic who once knew the beauty, the sanctity, the unity of doctrine and Sacraments shared with fellow Catholics that was once the Church. And soon it will all slip away, even the memory of it and the anchor of faith that secured it. Because Satan is not satisfied with simply usurping the papacy and falsifying Sacraments through the Novus Ordo and Traditionalists. His hatred is so great that he is determined to do everything in his power to completely eradicate the Church’s very existence.

How will this happen, you will say. Well it will happen because when something as precious as Christ’s very Spouse on earth is not loved, not defended, not preserved inviolate, not treasured and not obeyed, God rightfully removes it from us. Catholics lost their Church long ago, and sadly they did not really lose it; they assisted in its destruction by their disregard for the pope, their bishops, their adoption of liberalism and their demands for change. And now there is a plan, long in the making, to unite all religions except one under one universal head — and that exception is the Catholic Church. Our religion will be destroyed, discredited and replaced by some yet unknown Protestant hybrid, one that may not even be entirely acceptable to some Protestants. This is not a theory, or an hypothesis but a plan that has been documented and promoted publicly for decades. The only thing preventing its fulfillment was the proper puzzle pieces falling into place and the dying out of those more conservative Catholics and Protestants standing in the way of Satan and his henchmen.

Of course the Novus Ordo and Traditionalism hasn’t been Catholic since the death of Pope Pius XII. And the erosion of the faith has been so complete that little now remains that has not been somehow perverted. Well Satan wants that little and he will have it. They will make it official and the Catholic Church will be no more. The one thing that has aided them more than anything else in this effort is the distrust of and indifference toward the papacy, dating back to the 19^th century and beyond. This then became outright defiance, rebellion and insubordination — even subversion and betrayal — in the case of the hierarchy, with the advent of Modernism and ecumenism. And of course it ended with the outright usurpation of the papal throne, and the banishment of any idea of the papacy among the ranks of those claiming to uphold “Tradition.” Then came the financial scandals, the strange liturgical aberrations following Vatican 2, the sex scandals, the heretical teachings of so many usurper “popes.” Each one opened a door, a door that certain Protestants and the secret societies were only too happy to run through.

They gloated over the fact that the false church in Rome now fit the description of the Scarlet Whore in Apocalypse 17 and used their popular publications and broadcasts to good effect to point out the many similarities. Sadder still because so much of it was true, all of course save their horrid blasphemies regarding the Blessed Mother and what once was the Holy Sacrifice; also all those Protestant teachings condemned at the Council of Trent. This then is how the papacy as Antichrist and the Church as pagan Rome was revived in the latter part of the  20^th century, after largely dying out in the early 1900s. And what tools did 1950s “Catholics” employ to combat this? Nary a one, because they had none. They were focused on their own needs, not the deadly serious plight of the Church. Their understanding of God only encompassed one side, and that the self-interested side, of their relationship with Him.  God is there for us; yes, always. But only if we are fully in union with Him and place Him first in our everyday lives.

If God had truly been first in the lives of Traditionalists, they would have championed the papacy, not made their crusade the loss of the Mass. They depended, however, on those they believed to be leading them to inform them properly; but these men were actually intent on diverting them. Henry Cardinal Manning observes that this diversion tactic was successfully employed by the Protestants and Old Catholics already in the 1800s as one of their  “weapons… to fight the Church and destroy it internally.” Quoting the liberal Protestant, Dr. Friedburg, Manning writes: “’One must first attempt to draw off the waters carefully, letting them flow into other channels and conducting them into reservoirs. What remains will then be easily absorbed into the air.’ In other words, dry up the Church, draw from it all intellectual, moral and spiritual influence over the people, paralyze the action of its pastors et cetera… This done, religion will soon evaporate” (The Vatican Decrees and Their Bearing on Civil Allegiance, 1875).

Following their exit from the Vatican 2 church, Catholics were informed that no one could really figure out the problem with the usurper popes and declare them false popes; they were offered mass and sacraments, nothing else. At that time Lefebvre was in the lead, and he cow-towed to Rome until his death. So why not?

Christ is the true head of His Church

Because the papacy was just the visible manifestation of the true head of this Church — Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Redeemer, invisible head of His Mystical Body. The real objective of those aiming to destroy the Church was the destruction of Christ, Himself, that only their perverted image of Him would remain in the minds of those calling themselves Christians. Their war against the papacy is proof of this, which is why they must obliterate it at all costs. It is proof also that the Catholic Church alone is the true Church of Christ on earth — why else would hundreds of years been spent in “an universal and simultaneous conspiracy against it… [by] civil governments, …[who are] now preparing for their own dissolution” (Ibid., Manning). And we are seeing today the end result of what Manning foretold. The Great Apostasy and the arrival of Antichrist had to occur to fulfill Scripture prophecy; it was unavoidable. So also the operation of error to believe lies. But the wholesale reaction of Catholics to this event was entirely avoidable; many could and should have called Traditionalists’ bluff but failed to do so.

They had forgotten, or perhaps they never completely comprehended the fact, that the true head of their Church was Christ Himself; we have discussed this in previous blogs. One must wonder if they never even grasped the reality of Christ’s physical existence on this earth, His commission to St. Peter and all its implications, his dual participation with the pope and only the pope in the Church’s governance. Christ never left His Church; the Church left Him. Catholics in the 1960-70s had a very important job to do and they chose to gratify themselves with externals rather than take up their Cross and follow in Our Lord’s footsteps. If anyone at all was truly interested in “saving souls” — and not just their own, or those of Catholics in general but non-Catholic souls as well —  they would have worked as a dedicated group to study the situation and explain from the teachings of the Continual Magisterium, the ecumenical councils and Canon Law precisely what happened to the Church and how it yet exists today. They would have witnessed to the truths of faith they claimed to hold.

Most importantly of all, they would have emphasized the fulfillment of prophecy in the absence of the papacy and insisted on upholding and guarding the teachings found in the Deposit of Faith, issuing from the Roman Pontiffs. They would have created public awareness regarding the changes in the Church and the differences between what passes for the Church in Rome and the unchangeable, irreformable teachings of Christ’s true Church, and not from the standpoint of Traditionalism. They would have insisted that Protestants make the necessary distinction between the church they see ruling from Rome today, and that Church as She rightfully existed up to the death of Pope Pius XII. Their personal example and commitment, given the strength of their convictions and sufficient numbers, would have spoken volumes. And perhaps it could have sufficiently curbed the renewed portrayal of the Church, clear back to its founding, as the spawn of Satan and the deceiver extraordinaire. At any rate, all had the obligation to at least make this concerted effort, regardless of its outcome.

Some did attempt to do so, even though they were long past the point where it could have made a real difference, and God will reward them for their efforts. Life is a continual warfare, and the previous generation of Catholics deserted the battlefield; the culmination of that desertion is looming straight ahead. Several readers have requested that this author provide a more complete timeline for the end times, and this is finally available in the see link provided above. It seems apropos that it be released during Lent, since some commentators on Holy Scripture have suggested that the final act of the Church’s betrayal will occur during the Lenten season. We have tried to prepare readers in advance for the shock they may receive in reading it, but many already know much of what they can expect. May the Holy Ghost guide you and may Christ the King soon come to claim His kingdom!

(See the newly posted Lenten reflections at our spiritual healing page.)

Balm for those suffering with Christ as martyrs of the mind

by T. Stanfill Benns | Feb 28, 2023 | New Blog

Month of St. Joseph

(Please pray for the repose of the soul of Larry K. Benns, July 25, 1951— March 1, 2021)

Prayer society intention for the Month of March 

Jesus, Mary and Joseph, bless us and grant us the grace of openly professing as we are bound to do with courage and without human respect the faith that we received of thy gift in holy Baptism— (Raccolta, no. 257)

+St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows+

The following was written to help those grieving for the Church they lost and the sins they believe they committed by following Traditionalists. If we are to survive spiritually in the coming days, we must better understand how our journey through unbelief to the light affected us, to better prepare ourselves for even greater trials and clear our minds of any misperceptions. Most especially we must diligently avoid the trap of guilt obsession over past sins, a trap set by Satan himself that allows him to prey on our minds and impede any spiritual progress. We must also earnestly petition the Holy Ghost for the gifts of wisdom, knowledge and understanding — especially knowledge of self (nosce te ipsum). This will help clear the way for a more fruitful study and knowledge of our faith as well as facilitate the understanding.

It is clear from a psychological perspective that Catholics never dealt with the loss of their Church, because they were redirected into other channels by Traditionalists.  A quick walk through the seven steps of grieving as taught by psychologists will help both readers praying at home and those new to this site to understand the feelings that often threaten to overwhelm them when they realize just how completely they have been deceived.

Seven steps of grief

Shock and denial — Hanging onto Traditionalism despite obvious signs it is not Catholic or moving to another sect thinking it will be the answer. This is the practice of avoidance, in order to relieve the anxiety of dealing with the real problem.

Pain and guilt — Blaming oneself for being fooled by Traditionalists and NO clerics; pain when criticized for questioning or “abandoning” the faith and considering being “home alone;” also the pain of being subjected to shunning and ridicule.

Anger and bargaining — Lashing out at pseudo-clerics and trying to reason with them. Going back and forth between what has been learned and understood about their errors and wanting to belong to what one thought was the true Church.

Depression, reflection, loneliness — All this occurs after separating from these groups. Distrust of self and others, difficulty sleeping, brain fog, difficulty concentrating, panic attacks, difficulty making decisions, spiritual dryness or malaise and other disturbances may continue for a time, but eventually subside if one slowly and carefully re-evaluates the basic truths of faith.

The upward turn — Eventually, with prayer and study, the dark clouds clear and one begins to understand.

Reconstruction and working through — Once one has accepted the fact that the faith can be kept whole and entire only by avoiding these bogus groups then additional study can begin and one can work toward arriving at true certitude.

Acceptance and hope — Once true certitude is obtained, then a commitment can be made to pray at home, amend one’s life and do penance. But this decision must come gradually and cannot be rushed. Any resentment, all remaining doubts, must be vanquished. This can be achieved only by progressing through steps 4-6. And for those to whom God grants this rare and special grace, we urge them to look up, not back, and use these graces to amend their lives and secure their salvation.

Why were the above steps missed? Because, as the early 1970s writer Mary Lejeune in her newsletters, The Sword of Truth and the author Craig Heimbichner later documented in Blood on the Altar, false priests (and bishops) were already in the wings in the 1950s waiting for the changes in the Church, knowing that those exiting would be disoriented and ripe for the picking. And they were. Using mind control as practiced on Cardinal Mindszenty in the 1950s, wolves in sheep’s clothing sympathized with Vatican 2 refugees, to gain their trust. They later offered their services, interrupting the natural psychological process they knew would be necessary to Catholics, a process that would logically have resulted in the election of a true Pope and the survival of the Church. Not only were remnant Catholics vulnerable and in denial about the destruction of their Church, but they were also entirely incapable of comprehending that the very ones rushing to their rescue could possibly be part of the same hideous nightmare they had just escaped. They believed that this would mean that God had abandoned His Church and it no longer existed, something that simply could not be possible in doctrinal terms. And yet the ante-Nicene Fathers predicted that this is exactly what would happen with the advent of Antichrist, although this ancient teaching was never pointed out to them. 

Cardinal Mindszenty’s ordeal

On February 18, 1946, Pope Pius XII raised the Primate of Hungary, Jozsef Mindszenty, to the Cardinalate. As Pope Pius XII placed the Cardinal’s hat on his head, the Holy Father said: “Among the thirty-two, you will be the first to suffer the martyrdom whose symbol this red color is.” https://mindszenty.org/mindszenty-bio/ Only two years later, the Communists seized control of Hungary. Cardinal Mindszenty was arrested for “subversive activity” Dec. 28, 1948, after opposing Communism as an “atheistic theology.” Following a mock trial for his “crimes,” preceded by weeks of beatings, sleep deprivation, possibly hypnosis and mind-altering drugs added to his food, Mindszenty spent eight years in jail.  He had informed some of his fellow priests before his arrest that should his captors claim he had signed a confession of crimes against the state, placed into evidence during his trial, such a signing would be null and void, the result of human frailty and coercion. Mindszenty was released by a provisory government in 1956 following a brief victory won by the Hungarian Revolution, but the Soviets quickly took control once again, and the cardinal fled for protection to the American Embassy in Budapest.

Despite Mindszenty’s heroic refusal to leave the American embassy for 15 years, in support of the faithful in his country suffering under Communist oppression, Paul 6 lifted the excommunications imposed by Pope Pius XII on his captors and ordered the cardinal to relocate to Rome. A few years later Paul 6 also ordered Mindszenty to resign his Primacy. The cardinal refused, pleading with Paul 6 to consider the consequences of his actions and the evils of Communism, but to no avail.  Paul 6 then deposed him on the 25^th anniversary of his mock trial, in an attempt to appease the Communists. “This is what I said on February 6, 1974 — there is nothing more to say — and this is how I found, waiting to greet me at the end of the road, complete and absolute exile.” He died in Vienna, Austria 15 months later, at the age of 83. Surely his time in prison could not equal the blow dealt to him by his own Church, the removal of the ancient primacy he had fought so hard to keep all those years as a symbol of hope for his enslaved people.

Why have I related this story? Because Jozsef Cardinal Mindszenty could be the “patron saint” of those who today are suffering the mental torments of being duped by Traditionalists, deprived of the Mass and Sacraments, the hierarchy, and most importantly, the papacy. Traditionalism is only the extension of a decades-long Masonic plot to destroy the Church, a plot largely engineered by the CIA, British Intelligence and other American intelligence agencies. A monumental work by international attorney David Wemhoff, published in 2015 and running to 800 pages of documentation, adeptly chronicles this effort. If Catholics and God-fearing men of good will only knew the role the media — not to mention the American government — has played in manipulating the news and destroying the Church, they would be hard-pressed to believe it. And even if they managed to believe it, they still would not be able to draw from it the enormous theological consequences that have cascaded relentlessly around us through the past five decades of our existence.

Mind control used to seduce Catholics

We have covered this at length in previous blogs, But it is best explained in the book The Phantom Church in Rome. There David Wemhoff’s work, John Courtney Murray, Time/Life, and the American Proposition: How the  C.I.A.’s Doctrinal Warfare Program Changed the Catholic Church is cited as the itemized documentation, taken largely from declassified material, of just how the American government set out to infiltrate, subvert and subjugate the Catholic Church — and other more orthodox Christian churches — using religion as a means of building empire under the guise of combating Communism.

As Wemhoff explains, it was an intense psychological campaign harnessing the print and broadcast media — employing government officials, professors, priests, ministers and American business leaders — to make it appear that the Church had abandoned Her condemnation of Americanism as a heresy. It involved active infiltration and subversion. This out-and-out warfare was declared in order to coerce Catholics worldwide into embracing the Americanist conception of religious liberty and ecumenism. This was accomplished in large part long before Vatican 2 convened; in fact, it was this very protracted campaign that paved the way for the modernization of the Church, largely carried out by its own clergy and liberal members of the educated laity.

Those living in the 1940s-50s had to know there was an ideological war going on, even if they were only the sort of Catholics who seldom did any more than attend Mass on Sunday. It was in the air, and publications from that time period clearly reflect this. But as it turns out, they cannot be blamed entirely for not being able to pin it down, or effectively resist it. When an intelligence agency sets out to deliberately wage psychological warfare on an entire segment of the population, it successfully distorts reality and actually reprograms brains. Edward Hunter, a C.I.A. propaganda operator who worked undercover as a journalist, wrote in his 1956 work:

“The highly educated person who bends medical discoveries to the practice of mind attack is incalculably more evil than any savage using potions, trances, and incantations…The word brain-changing became obscured as brainwashing and began to embrace all the available pressures that could be utilized to bend a man’s will and change his attitudes fundamentally. Brain-changing specifically refers to the complete job in all its wickedness. Cardinal Mindszenty underwent a brain-changing. That was how his vigorous mind was bent. A man’s memory can be physically eliminated, if at all possible, only at the price of permanent damage to the brain. In such a brain-changing, drugs have to be used to destroy the natural alertness and strong character of the individual, and hypnotism must be employed, too, to help in breaking down resistance. Information obtained through the most persistent inquiry by every possible channel reveals that drugs and hypnotism were used on the cardinal.”

And techniques today have been further perfected to anticipate all possibilities and eventualities and to better bind captives to the particular mindset at play. Hunter spoke at length with servicemen and others who were victims of brainwashing; individuals who, following their release, clung to the beliefs they had imbibed while prisoners of the Communists. He became convinced that at some deep level, all who had experienced “brain-changing” had the tentative idea they were deluded and even could be brought to this conclusion through intensive debriefing. “If truth can linger in the mind in spite of the strongest hallucinations, and the evidence I have accumulated indicates it can, the reason is clear why the Reds cannot be sure of even their completest victories, their Mindszentys. They never capture their minds completely!”

And this remark is very revealing. The primary difference between those who were the initial lab rats for brain-changing then and those who experienced it years later is this: Hunter and others noticed that Americans were far more susceptible to these tactics, for some reason, than others, and this cannot have improved with the passage of time. Those wishing to use these tactics always look for the weakest, most vulnerable links — the elderly, the young, the disoriented, the uneducated, the grieving, and those emotionally or mentally unstable, for whatever reason. We read everywhere that prior to the false Vatican 2 council, Catholics in general were not well instructed in their faith and tended to lay undue emphasis on external religion. They certainly never possessed the level of faith and spiritual formation of a Cardinal Mindszenty. And so it is not surprising that they became sitting ducks for those wishing to finish the destruction of the juridical Church once and for all.

Despite the fact that Mindszenty was entirely broken by his captors and his brain thoroughly changed or “washed” — even to the extent that he appeared to deny his faith and concede to all Communist demands — Pope Pius XII neither condemned nor deserted him for these forced concessions. Pope Pius XII’s example concerning Cardinal Mindszenty should indicate the mind of the Church in this matter. His behavior in Mindszenty’s case should prompt us to be more open-minded in dealing with those who have experienced what modern experts adjudge to be even worse and more seductive torments than Mindszenty himself experienced. It is interesting that one of the last constitutions Pope Pius XII wrote contained a section on brain-changing and its evils.

17. “There should also be noted those courses of instruction by which pupils are forced to imbibe and embrace this false doctrine [Communism]. Priests, religious men and women, ecclesiastical students, and faithful of all ages are forced to attend these courses. An almost endless series of lectures and discussions, lasting for weeks and months, so weaken and benumb the strength of mind and will that by a kind of psychic coercion an assent is extracted which contains almost no human element, an assent which is not freely asked for as should be the case.
18. “In addition to these there are the methods by which minds are upset — by every device, in private and in public, by traps, deceits, grave fear, by so-called forced confessions, by custody in a place where citizens are forcibly “reeducated,” and those “Peoples’ Courts” to which even venerable bishops are ignominiously dragged for trial.
19. “Against methods of acting such as these, which violate the principal rights of the human person and trample on the sacred liberty of the sons of God, all Christians from every part of the world, indeed all men of good sense cannot refrain from raising their voices with Us in real horror and from uttering a protest deploring the deranged conscience of their fellow men” (Ad apostolorum principis, June 29, 1958). And indeed, Pope Pius XII himself may well have been one of the unwitting victims of this very psychic coercion, carried on by Holy Office officials skilled in such techniques who practically kept him a prisoner until the time of his death.

Culpability of most Traditionalist followers diminished

Does anyone really think that we would be held entirely accountable for the fraud perpetrated on us, especially when we break away from Traditionalist and Novus Ordo sects and try to do all we can to help others? That we would be given such a great grace to see the truth only to turn it into despair over “sins” committed in good faith? Such a want of confidence in God will not lead us to heaven but will only alienate us from Our Lord. We must fight it at every turn. Those who are victims of fraud cannot be held accountable for their misdeeds if they were erroneously taught and truly believed they were doing the right thing. A grave sin is only a sin if we know it to be wrong — or could and should know it to be wrong — and act despite this knowledge. Given the situation today, there is grave doubt whether the censures for heresy and schism fully apply to those leaving Traditionalism. Historians have dismissed the idea that any real schism existed among the faithful during the Western Schism, and it is most likely that if we ever miraculously see another pope in our lifetime, the large majority of the faithful would be exonerated for their participation in Traditionalism.

There is a difference between absolution from such sins and abjuration from heresy. If we make a perfect Act of Contrition and do penance for these sins, they will be forgiven. It is impossible to seek abjuration, and God will make allowances for this, provided that we earnestly desire to be abjured. Canon 2199 states: “The imputability of an offense depends on the evil will of the delinquent, or on the extent to which his ignorance of the violated law or his omission of proper diligence was culpable.” Lay Traditionalists possessed no evil will. And it can be said only of a scant minority of them that they were culpable of ignorance regarding the law and did not use proper diligence. The general uneducated state of the laity in the 1960s was such that many of them could not even properly understand those truths necessary to salvation, far less the much more complicated precepts of Canon Law and moral and dogmatic theology. Canon 2200 states: “The evil will spoken of in Canon 2199 means a deliberate will to violate a law and presupposes on the part of the mind a knowledge of the law and on the part of the will freedom of action. Given the external violation of a law the evil will is presumed in the external forum until the contrary is proved.”

It cannot be said that there was any deliberate will by Traditionalist followers to violate Church law because a true knowledge and understanding of the law was lacking, thanks to the false teachings of Traditionalist pseudo-clergy. And actual cult tactics (coercive persuasion) employed by Traditionalist leaders further complicates matters. Nevertheless, “For formal heresy to exist… it is not necessary that the individual believer realizes that the truth in jeopardy has been revealed” (Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P., The Theological Virtues, Vol. I). And here we are talking formal, not material, heresy that has been expressed in belonging to a schismatic sect that was founded on a heresy — a denial of the necessity of the papacy and the supreme jurisdiction of the Roman Pontiff. As Can. 2200 teaches, however, the evil will of the delinquent must be presumed until the proper authorities can judge the case on its merits under Can. 2199.

Because we can have no certainty, then, regarding their decision, we must observe the censures, since it is entirely possible, at least in some cases, that — should we ever again see the Church restored, a very faint possibility — the hierarchy might determine us wholly or partially guilty. But there is a remedy the Church offers to prepare oneself for complete abjuration should we ever again see valid clergy. It is based on Canon Law and consists in three years of prayer and study as prescribed under Can. 672, a probationary period which is also referred to in other canons (see https://www.betrayedcatholics.com/begin-the-probationary-period/). This three-year period offers the faithful a welcome respite from the perpetual drama of Traditionalism and allows time for us to better know our faith and practice it. It also allows time for healing and reflection to help complete the grieving process.

The above censures for heresy and schism, however, DO generally apply, in their full rigor, to Traditionalist “clerics” and certain lay leaders who boast they are trained in Canon Law and theology and have benefited both financially and personally, in way of their elevated status as “clerics” or experts. They will bear the lion’s share of the guilt for all this, since the information regarding the necessity of jurisdiction and the inability of the Church to exist without a true pope was made available to them as early as the mid-1980s. The good news is that under Pope Pius XII’s Vacantis Apostolicae Sedis, their acts were all null and void from the beginning, so no one ever committed actual sacrilege, although they did publicly adhere to a schismatic sect. And Traditional clerics, as leaders of these sects, were guilty of erecting a religious foundation outside the Catholic Church without papal approval, making them not only a non-Catholic sect, but automatically dissolving their organizations (Canon Law Digest, Vol. IV, AAS 49-34, Can. 211). Moreover, they are excommunicated also for “pretending to say Mass or hear Confessions by one who is not an ordained priest” (Can. 2232 §1). This in addition to a slew of other excommunications specially or simply reserved to the Holy See.

Victim Souls

One true priest called those suffering mental torments “martyrs of the mind,” and this is a most apt description of what has happened to many Catholics desperately trying to keep the faith in these days. We should all remember that St. Therese of Liseux and other commentators described those living in the end times as the greatest saints of all, and we must at least try to be those saints! That seems impossible, but what we are really being asked to do is to become white martyrs, who willingly suffer without shedding their blood, or better yet, victim souls. This we examined in one of our Advent blogs here.

“A victim soul is a chosen soul who freely sacrifices oneself, one’s health, material goods, happiness etc. as an offering to divine justice for the sins of the world, for sinners or for the benefit of the Church… In the mysterious designs of the Eternal Father, a certain reparation must still be made for sin so that our sufferings and trials ‘…may fill up those things that are wanting of the sufferings of Christ’” (Col. 1:24). Another author writes: “A victim soul is an individual who has been chosen by God to undergo physical, and sometimes spiritual, suffering beyond that of normal human experience. The victim soul willingly accepts this unique and difficult mission of offering up his or her pains for the salvation of others” (Gerald Korson).

Every member of the laity leaving a Traditionalist sect has been given the opportunity to make this most precious and grace-filled gift of self to God — that of becoming a victim soul by praying at home and offering up their sufferings. How can one resist this invitation issued directly by Our Lord to participate in his Passion this Lent? Are we not undergoing the Passion of His Church on earth? Can we not watch one hour with Him? Let no one waste this precious gift, thinking they are condemned by God and cannot redeem themselves. Let them rather gladly take up their cross and follow that Holy One who has so sweetly called them.

Mental Suffering with Christ

As strange as it may sound, there is a reason why so many today suffer with various kinds of mental difficulties. We are told that we are reliving the Passion of Christ, and this condition has to do with filling up what is wanting to His Passion. Rev. Alan Keenan O.F.M. writes: “‘For who can overcome the hatreds of the world, or the whirlwinds of temptation or the terrors of those who persecute if Christ suffering in all of us and on behalf of all of us did not say to His Father: Thy will be done,’ (St. Leo, Sermon 16, de Passsione)…The neurotic carries the mental stigmata of Christ. This is credible, but for some, not palatable. Only the flame of faith will carry conviction of it, and even then the flame may scorch while yet it heals…The nearest friends of Christ, the chosen apostles, were invited to Gesthemane. They were healthy and slept. Perhaps only the sick of mind can really keep the vigil. The supernatural limit to pain is martyrdom. Martyr of course means witness. The neurotic is called to martyrdom within. Only the nearest friends of Christ are invited there.”

It is most assuredly God’s will and a matter of Scriptural truth that the worst persecution ever will occur in the time of Antichrist. Mental and spiritual torment is far more painful than anything Antichrist and his system can do to our bodies. We must bear witness to all that has happened, and yet we must fight giving in to our neuroses if we wish to watch one hour with Christ. This is martyrdom of the spirit at its finest, and we are privileged to be able to offer these sufferings back to Jesus, especially during Lent, who suffered so much more for us.

Consoling Scripture verses

“But in all things let us exhibit ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in tribulation, in necessities, in distresses, in stripes, in prisons, in seditions, in labours, in watchings, in fastings, In chastity, in knowledge, in longsuffering, in sweetness, in the Holy Ghost, in charity unfeigned, In the word of truth, in the power of God; by the armour of justice on the right hand and on the left; By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet known; As dying, and behold we live; as chastised, and not killed; As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as needy, yet enriching many; as having nothing, and possessing all things” (2 Cor 6: 4-10).

“Wherein you shall greatly rejoice, if now you must be for a little time made sorrowful in divers temptations:  That the trial of your faith (much more precious than gold which is tried by the fire) may be found unto praise and glory and honour at the appearing of Jesus Christ:  Whom having not seen, you love: in whom also now, though you see him not, you believe: and believing shall rejoice with joy unspeakable and glorified;  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and diligently searched, who prophesied of the grace to come in you.  Searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ in them did signify: when it foretold those sufferings that are in Christ, and the glories that should follow:  To whom it was revealed, that not to themselves, but to you they ministered those things which are now declared to you by them that have preached the gospel to you, the Holy Ghost being sent down from heaven, on whom the angels desire to look” (1 Peter 1:6-7).

Preparation for Lent: Learning to develop spiritual survival skills

by T. Stanfill Benns | Feb 18, 2023 | New Blog

+ St. Simeon, Bishop and Martyr +

As we prepare for the Lenten season, may those honoring Our Lady daily increase their devotion to her, Mother of Sorrows, whose Divine Son in the Blessed Trinity is the source of all truth. Another article has been completed further exposing the fallacies promoted by Traditionalists to shore up their false claims to validity and liceity. This piece addresses the longstanding work of Anthony Cekada, Canon Law and Common Sense, which can still be found circulating on the Internet. It explains how Traditionalists dismissed Canon Law as solely the product of  human law to justify their use of epikeia and necessity in order to promote their agenda. You may read it here.

Peering into the future

The train carrying the Novus Ordo and various Traditionalist sects is slowly leaving the station, bound for who knows where. Same train, different cars. Whether Rome anathematizes the “Latin Tridentine Mass” (so many believe it is identical to the John 23 Missal, which tells us how much they know about their faith) is scarcely the issue. It is only thesymbol of a romanticized Church that once existed long ago. The true Mass was the fulfillment of Christ’s request to commemorate His Passion and death on the Cross, the actual re-enactment of that Holy Sacrifice. But it could onlyBE that actual re-enactment if offered by valid and licit priests and bishops in communion with a canonically elected Roman Pontiff, and that ended with the death of Pope Pius XII. For as Henry Cardinal Manning taught in his The Vatican Decrees and Their Bearing on Civil Allegiance: “The doctrine of the Church does not determine the doctrine of the Primacy, but the doctrine of the Primacy does precisely determine the doctrine of the Church.”

The Traditionalist train is leaving the station because they have never possessed the true faith to begin with, and now it is becoming increasingly clear. They have embraced political ideologies and heretical propositions condemned by the Church. They have made a travesty of Catholicism because they have touted the Mass, rather than the papacy, as the source of unity and belief. And if it is taken from them, they lose nothing, because they never had it in the first place. But many of them could easily lose their way, because this is the sole focus of their identity as Catholics. It is the one thing separating them from Novus Ordo believers and other non-Catholics, (although some would say that they could never accept Francis as a true pope, and of course this is correct). Yet they fail to even consider, far less understand, that this all began with John 23^rd, not Francis. And we have the material-formal proponents to thank for that. So where will they go and what will they do once their make-believe mass disappears?

I think we all know a time is soon coming when we will either be persecuted for our faith or lose our lives defending it. Or we will die in one of the many staged events we see playing out across this country today, events that will only become more prevalent and more deadly with the passage of time. It seems likely that we may see an actual Communist takeover, and/or experience a financial disaster that will change forever the way we have lived for over a century. Traditionalist preppers think they are ready for this, but I have news for them. They may have gathered together many of the necessities for physical survival but they know little of what it will take to survive spiritually. That requires a very disciplined approach, and years of training. It involves trial and error, swift repentance, solitude, study, prayer and sacrifice — a separation from everything worldly and an entering into self, to purge and learn to be vigilant.

The great betrayal

This has been stated many times before, but it needs to be emphasized here: Traditionalist pseudo-clergy have betrayed their people. They kept them in diapers and made sure they had their pacifiers in place when they needed to be training the spiritual equivalent of Green Berets and Navy Seals. They told them fairy tales instead of delivering hard truths and gave them stones for bread. They kept them immersed in a fantasy world and never attempted to bring them to the knowledge of the truth. They failed to teach them how to develop the interior life because of course they could not, having never developed it themselves. And yet the means to do this were out there, had been out there for many years. The work that needed to be done was made clear even before Vatican 2, but none of the clergy possessed the humility, the courage — the unfailing faith — to implement it.

In a previous blog we quoted Solange Hertz, writing for The Wanderer in the 1980s, who penned the following: “Fr. François Dufay, who witnessed the battle at close quarters in China [in the 1940s], says to lose no time in preparing the Church of the Catacombs: “Take as principle that normal exterior life – liturgy, teaching, apostolate – should continue as far as possible [but only when certainly valid clergy are available — Ed.]. But, at the same time, prepare Christians to preserve their essential religious life in the absence of priests, worship and Sacraments… Prepare memory aids on the dogmas of necessary means, marriage without clergy, perfect contrition, assistance to the dying, Baptism, child education, etc., and place these leaflets in safe places…”

“It would be good if trustworthy priests of high caliber were to set themselves to living the life of the people. They need profound dogmatic and spiritual formation, especially on the theology of the Church, the meaning and value of persecution and suffering, and should be steeped in the remembrance of the great saints and martyrs of the past. Thus armed, the Christian faith will use its bad times for growth in charity,” making the most of the service Communism will render it by purifying and detaching it from all that is not God here below. And again, “Actually it’s solitaries who must be found and trained, in other words, Christians capable of living their faith all alone, amid the strongest pressures, the most painful happenings and the most forbidding of deserts.”

And no one has trained them.

Hirelings, not pastors

This is what I would love to be able to earnestly impress on those who may soon be left without any spiritual compass, when the going gets tough: If these men truly loved the faith; if they had been validly ordained priests, they would never have lived this charade and involved those emotionally attached to the Mass and other religious externals to be used as props in their infernal plots. “By their fruits you shall know them,” our Lord said, and He warned us to be wary of the hirelings and false christs. Isn’t it clear that no one has nourished the flock, that there are no fruits? Pope St. Pius X taught that the primary duty of bishops and priests before conveying the sacraments was first to teach, just as our Lord instructed: “Going therefore, teach ye all nations; [then] baptizing them…” (Matt. 28: 19-20). In Acerbo nimis, Pope St. Pius X wrote:

“’I will give you,’ God promises by the mouth of the Prophet Jeremias, ‘pastors according to my own heart, and they shall feed you with knowledge and doctrine’ (a). And so the Apostle said: ‘Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the Gospel’ (b), indicating thus that THE FIRST OFFICE of those who are set up in any way for the government of the Church is to instruct the faithful in sacred doctrine.” Please tell me, how can any of these men pretend to teach the doctrines of Christ when they refuse to acknowledge His Vicars?  Pietro Parente, Antonio Piolanti, and Salvatore Garofalo write in their Dictionary of Dogmatic Theology (May 1, 1951, p. 170-171):

“According to Catholic doctrine therefore, Holy Scripture and Tradition are only the remote rule of faith, while the proximate rule is the living magisterium of the Church, which resides in the Roman Pontiff and in the bishops, inasmuch as they are subject to and united with him. The Vatican Council (sess. 4, c. 4, DB, 1832) has sealed this truth by defining that the primacy of Peter and his successors is included in the supreme power of teaching, which is veritatis et fidei numquam deficientis charisma (“the chrism of never-failing truth and faith”).”  

In other words, those who pass themselves off as pastors and teachers are not and cannot be such if not in communion with and subject to the pope. Because we have no pope today and no hope of electing one, anyone attempting to present sacred doctrine for belief must at least be united to the Roman Pontiffs by desire and willing to strictly obey all the Continual Magisterium ever taught. Catechetical centers, not Mass centers, is what should have been established. Much could have been accomplished if those of good will had not committed schism by jpoining the Traditionalist movement. But Traditionalist pseudo-bishops did not possess the necessary office, hence jurisdiction, to ever become teachers. They were B-movie actors at best; amateur philosophers, perhaps, but they never were and never could be teachers commissioned by Christ as successors to the Apostles; the “pastors according to my own heart” spoken of by the prophet Jeremias.

Liturgy junkies and neo-Modernists

Some people say they get tired of the Traditionalist clergy beat-up. Well I am tired too; tired of sad, discouraged and frustrated Catholics trying to save their souls, going from group to group, being battered with political sermons and bored with talk of the bishop’s cats, weathering scandal after scandal, but never receiving the soul-saving doctrinal food they deserve. Or even worse, they hear sermons and instructions that contain false doctrine; or pieces of the truth but not the integral truth necessary to increase faith; or in some cases the standard sermon one would have heard pre-1959, when so much more than the average doctrinal fare is required today. Catholics deserve the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and that comes only from God’s mouth, through His Son, to Christ’s Vicars enlightened by the Holy Ghost and bishops commissioned by Him. If bishops had fulfilled their teaching duties instead of obsessing over liturgical renewal, bishops who later brought us Vatican 2, we wouldn’t be here today.

Traditionalists are no less liturgy junkies than their Novus Ordo counterparts; they simply chose a different “liturgy.” Neither the John 23 “mass” or a mass simulated by those never ordained is any more “worship” than the Novus Ordo Missae purports to be. In all cases it is a matter of pandering to the emotions and the senses.; entertainers, actors parodying the mass in Latin and officiating at “sacraments” with all due pomp and splendor. This to produce optical wonders and effect magical graces. Pope St. Pius X, in his encyclical Pascendi dominici gregis, notes how Modernistsuse sentiment and emotion to “hijack the intelligence.” What he says about this is very revealing, for he explains that faith is to be reduced to a “religious sentiment” and dogmatic formulas “sanctioned by the heart.” Sacraments are only “symbols and signs, although not devoid of a certain efficacy… [They are] the result of a double need, for everything in their system is to be explained by,” INNER IMPULSES OR NECESSITIES.”  And after all, isn’t necessity one of the main tenets of Traditionalism?

This sainted pope continues: “Since God is the object of religion, we must conclude that faith, which is the basis and the foundation of all religion, consists in a sentiment which originates from a need of the divine. This need of the divine replaces intellectual knowledge of God with a “a certain special sentiment” (which the pope identifies as Fideism, condemned by the Church). Modernism finds in this sentiment not faith only “but with faith, as they understand it, revelation… This makes God both the object and the cause of faith, this revelation being the same time of God and from God; that is God is both revealer and revealed.” And according to Pope Pius X, this leads to indifferentism and naturalism — “…It is  religious consciousness given as the universal rule, to be put on an equal footing with revelation. And all things must be made subject, even the supreme authority of the Church,” to this pernicious Modernist doctrine. (Taken from Rev. J.B Lemius, A Catechsim of Modernism).

Here we see the beloved symbolism, the emotional need, the “necessity” which bypasses the intelligence to create a religion of the emotions. And we ought to begin to see, then, who was behind the engineering of this false Traditionalist church. Pope St. Pius X explains the dual personality of a Modernist, describing such a heretic as “…proclaiming publicly his profound respect for authority, while continuing to follow his own bent.” This is how Traditionalists dismiss the papacy and is followed by a contempt for dogma and discipline, which the pope also notes. St. Pius X further condemns Modernists for their contempt for the scholastic method of philosophy and theology, the authority of the ecumenical councils and the Fathers, and the authority of the Supreme Magisterium itself. He concludes: “They propose to remove the ecclesiastical magisterium itself by sacrilegiously falsifying its origin, character and rights and by freely repeating the calumnies of its adversaries.” What better description of what has happened to the Church without her Supreme Head could one possibly hope for?

We have fully documented and repeatedly demonstrated on this site Traditionalists’ contempt for the scholastic method, the ecumenical councils, especially Trent and the Vatican Council, their revival of the Gallicanist heresy, their rejection of Canon Law and all ecclesiastical discipline, and finally their rejection of the papacy itself by pretending bishops alone can rule the Church. Ah yes, they profess to respect and even quote papal documents when it suits them, all the while “continuing to follow [their] own bent.” But they do not obey them, and they refuse to teach their followers the integral truths they contain. So shall we simply call them neo-Modernists?

When reality sets in

What happens then when reality sets in, and what today IS that reality? Some would say that Traditionalist followers had to be coddled and shielded from the unvarnished truth; that many would have either lost their faith or given way to despair. But that remains to be seen. Without the right support and guidance, some probably would have suffered in this way; but with the truth comes peace, and power. Truth alone, Scripture tells us, will set us free.  For “Whoever sincerely seeks the truth is already by that fact armed with a terrible force.” (Theodor Dostoyevsky). Traditionalists could have offered that support, been those guides, warned of the dangers awaiting us. Because it is quite clear now, although it wasn’t in the beginning, that wherever we are in time, whatever lies ahead, only a miracle, one we don’t deserve, will save us from utter disaster.

And we needed to know, to prepare. Because it is quite possible we could see the Second Coming, and who is really spiritually capable of even comprehending this? What situations might we face, how have Catholics coped in the past, what moral teachings bind us in the event of persecution, even torture, what devotions are most profitable, what spiritual helps most beneficial and how are we to keep oil for our lamps — that we not fall asleep before the Bridegroom cometh, but continue to watch?

For those just now realizing the deceits of Traditionalism, the safest refuge is Our Lady of Sorrows, mercifully waiting to hide in her garments those who are distressed and confused, unable to sufficiently prepare themselves spiritually. We are reliving Christ’s Passion on earth, and She alone best understands our sufferings. As Lent approaches, let us ponder these things, and remember how even the Apostles did not expect Christ’s death on the Cross. Let us gather, not scatter, as they did that night in Gesthemane.