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     Just before Saint Bernadette Soubirous, the visionary of Lourdes, died on April 16, 1979 at Nevers, France she wrote down five prophecies the Blessed Mother had given her and gave them to the new Holy Father Pope Leo XIII. Shortly before the turn of the century the five pages of prophecies were lost. It wasn't until just recently within this last year that they have been found and what they reveal ties in with all Our Lady has been imparting with a tremendous exclamation mark that may cause one to do cartwheels between prayers!!! Today, in the second part of our editorial we bring you the specifics revealed here for the first time ever. We only ask you to pray on it and if it moves you, please pass it on to whomever you know. Spread the word and help launch a prayer crusade that will see our beloved Holy Father Pope John Paul II lead us into what Our Lady calls the "Second Golden Age of Mankind." For our second part of a two-part editorial, entitled Oh what a Triumph it will be!!!, click on today's CATHOLIC PewPOINT

Oh what a Triumph it will be!!!

      As we mentioned in yesterday's editorial, today we shall reveal the five purported prophecies imparted to Lourdes visionary Saint Bernadette Soubirous by the Blessed Mother, including the blockbuster FIFTH PROPHECY. In 1879 she submitted them to Pope Leo XIII who had been supreme pontiff for only a year, having followed in the footsteps of Pope Pius IX, the pope who not only proclaimed the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, but the one who ruled during the Apparitions at Lourdes in 1858 and who gave the apparition ecclesial approbation in 1862. The letters were never revealed by Leo nor his successor Pope Saint Pius X. In fact, shortly before the turn of the century the letters were misplaced and the Vatican lost track. Fast forward a century later. Deep in the bowels of the Vatican Library, amid the many volumes of materials, Father Antoine LaGrande, a researcher on Lourdes came across an iron box. Voila. Upon opening it he discovered what he had been looking for and now it can be shared with the world. It is by the Providence of God that it has been found and found now...in God's time! It was first revealed earlier this year in an article by a Vincenzo Sardi in the tabloid Weekly World News. While we are skeptical about anything appearing in such a publication of that type, we have reason to believe it has a lot of veracity to it and are grateful to Bob C. and Ron Smith from the Holy Family Ministry in Ohio for providing the information. We now share it with you and urge you to share it with as many as you can. As we write this we are still following up in order to further verify its authenticity.

     There were five pages and on each page was listed one of the prophecies. The first four have already been fulfilled and we will first touch on them briefly.

The first dealt with the fact that Lourdes would become a renowned center for healing after Bernadette's death. This it has. In fact Leo authorized that in 1883 the magnificent Church of the Rosary be built. Since that time millions have visited the shrine and countless faithful have been healed physically and spiritually. One down, four to go.

The second dealt with something few realized in 1879 when Thomas Alva Edison was still tinkering with electrodes and the advent of what Our Lady referred to as "scientific achievements in harnessing lighting.' This, of course was electricity and it was just around the corner, literally in lighting the world and taking the world into a new dimension that has passed all expectations. This, the Blessed Mother said, would begin before the 20th century dawned. Two down, three to go.

The third was not as encouraging but, like the others, also came to pass when Our Lady foretold of the terrible evil that would rise up in Germany and stifle most of Europe and much of the world in the 1930's causing a war that would enmesh almost all of the major countries of the world. This, of course, was World War II which Our Lady reaffirmed would happen in her messages at Fatima in 1917. Three completed, two to go.

The fourth concerned something that only Heaven could foresee: the fact that an American would walk on the moon near the year 1970. That was nearly a century after Bernadette received these prophecies. As we all know that American was Neil Armstrong and he bounced across the Lunar surface in July 1969. Consider the fact that in 1879 the Wright Brothers were still nearly a quarter of a century away from even coming on the scene, let alone the tremendous leap in technology that would allow man to fly to other planets! That is four prophecies that have definitely been fulfilled. Now for the final prophecy, the one that is still to come to pass: The Triumph of Mary's Immaculate Heart!

And now the Fifth Prophecy: Following are the exact words of Bernadette: "Your Holiness, the Virgin has told me that when the 20th century passes away, with it will pass away the Age of Science. A new Age of Faith will dawn around the world. Proof will come at last that it was Our Lord Who created the world and man, and this will be the beginning of the end for the scientists, in whom the people will cease to believe. Millions will return to Christ, and as the numbers of believers swell, the power of the Church will grow as never before. Also causing many to turn their backs on science will be the arrogance of physicians who use their knowledge to create an abomination. These doctors will find the means to combine the essence of a man and the essence of a beast. The people will know in their hearts that this is wrong, but they will be powerless to stop the spawning of such monsters. In the end they will hunt scientists down as ravening wolves are hunted. On the eve of the year 2000, a final clash between the followers of Mohammed and the Christian nations of the world will take place. A furious battle will be waged in which 5,650,451 soldiers are killed and a bomb of great power will fall on a city in Persia. But in the fullness of time, the sign of the cross will prevail and all of Islam will be forced to convert to Christianity. There will follow a century of peace and joy as all the nations of the earth lay down their swords and shields. Great prosperity will follow as the Lord showers His blessings down upon the faithful. No family on earth will know poverty or hunger. One person in ten will be granted by God the power to heal and they will cast out all sicknesses from those who seek their aid. Many will rejoice at these miracles. The 21st Century will come to be known as the Second Golden Age of Mankind."

     Wow!!! Talk about a great scenario ahead! It has to fill one with the greatest of hope and joy and peace that truly all Our Lady has foretold will come to pass. This will truly be Utopia on earth and the Church will be the focal point of this tremendous transition. For anyone who doubts, just look at Blessed Mary's track record in prophesy. Enough said. Also consider that what Bernadette was writing about we doubt she or even Leo, though he was filled with the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, had a clue what it really meant. In fact, had this letter been discovered prior to the the decade of the 1990's, chances are not everyone would have completely understood what Our Lady was referring to regarding scientists and creating an abomination - "a newborn creature that is neither fully man nor fully beast." But we know now it refers to cloning, spawned from the atrocieties of abortion, it refers to the inhuman ways so many medical professionals treat patients today, forgetting the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy, even forgetting their Hippocratic Oath. Also, consider the advances computer technology has made and what seemed impossible in the 19th Century is very real in our time. Also, the reference to the great war between the Islam world and Christian world is coming to a head in the mideast. It has been for nearly two decades with Iran and Iraq. Persia today is the area of Iran and part of Iraq, formerly Babylon. The "bomb of great power" refers to what we commonly call the nuclear bomb and it will fall on a city such as Tehran or Baghdad. No mention is made of Jerusalem and war there. It could be that the Christian nations will rise up to defend Israel against the Moslem threat just as they did during the days of the crusades. Unlike the crusades of the middle ages which were, for the most part, highly unsuccessful, this one portends to be a great battle but in the end a victorious one that can match no other in the annals of mankind; not because of superior weapons or know-how, but because God wills it. We pray daily that "all may be one." Those aren't idle words, they have meaning and fulfillment in what Our Lady conveyed to Bernadette. The words "Proof will come at last that it was Our Lord" could very well pertain to the great Warning and Miracle foretold by the Blessed Mother at Garabandal. Our Lady has confided in many visionaries and messengers since then that her Immaculate Heart will triumph before the year 2000. The words of Bernadette "On the eve of the year 2000" only bear this truth out all the more. Bernadette's words to the Pope regarding that one in ten persons would be granted by God the power to heal and cast out all sicknesses bears out what Jesus said in Mark 16: 18, "they shall lay hands upon the sick and they shall get well." Think about it, no more HMO's, no more hassles with doctors or medical bills!!!

      As the countdown to the Jubilee points out in these pages we have only 596 days to go. That is just a little over a year and a half. We are that close. Please, copy this and send it to as many people as you can. But don't forget to pray. For prayer is the one weapon we all have in helping promote what Our Lady has foretold and in helping save as many souls as possible in the very, very near future. There are no doubts that very soon the Queen of Heaven and earth, the angels and saints, will triumphantly usher in her Divine Son's Reign of the Sacred Heart - the New Period of Peace - the Second Golden Age of Mankind - The Eucharistic Era - the New Advent. Isn't this crusade worth enlisting in? After all, with God's hand in this all-out Heavenly push, this Final Crusade for the Triumph will be victorious beyond our comprehension! Yes, with so little time left it's going to be one heck of a battle, but it will be well worth it. After all, we have God's, Our Lady's and Saint Bernadette's word on it! Oh what a Triumph it will be!

Michael Cain, editor

     In the sixty-ninth installment of our megaseries on the state of the Church Today we trace the lay efforts of a few outstanding souls who mobilized the laity to help save Rome when first the French Revolution threatened to quash Catholicism and then the threat of terror from Napoleon Bonaparte in the early part of the nineteenth century. From these seeds would come great oaks of faith throughout France and many parts of Europe, solidifying the Church. Two woman, two Roman housewives blessed with the acceptance of God's Will - Blessed Elizabeth Mora and Blessed Anne Marie Taigi answered the call and together not only formed a prayer crusade but personally convinced Pope Pius VII that he was walking into a trap set by the ravenous wolves within the Vatican curia. Their involvement saved the Church of Rome and strengthened the Holy See from that point on. For the rest of the story, click on WHERE IS HOLY MOTHER HEADING AS WE NEAR THE MILLENNIUM?

INTRODUCTION
      The Feature Article, begun in the inaugural issue two years ago, deals with the state of the Church. We continue probing the question that has perplexed the Magisterium and the laity for the past 30 years as the liberal element has left its mark, effecting changes that have seemingly watered down the "Roman Catholic" traditions. Yet, God in His Infinite Wisdom, has allowed this to happen for a specific purpose. He has been preparing us in a special way by sending His very Own Blessed Mother to guide us and remind us of our roots. Through perseverance, prayer and loyalty to Holy Mother Church headed by the Holy Father John Paul II and adhered to by the faithful who will not compromise, the pendulum is beginning to swing back toward the conservative side. In the sixty-ninth installment of this on-going feature series, we continue to sound the clarion as a wake-up call to all Catholics, especially bringing to the attention of all Catholics the necessity to mobilize the laity for the sake of Holy Mother Church. If we don't pay attention, we shall pay dearly as the third millennium dawns. We continue to alert the reader to what is happening and sound the call to arms, to enlist in Mary's army and take up the battle cry. God said it, we believe it, that settles it! Too many Catholics are going their own way with little regard to what their spiritual shepherd - the Vicar of Christ says. Sin is whitewashed. If we're not careful there will be a tremendous backwash and who among us wants to get caught in the vortex of that swirling whirlpool of Justice? With this chapter we continue our multi-installments on the vision to Saint John Bosco and its meaning today especially concerning schisms within the Church that, like an iceberg, show only the tip but threaten to sink the good ship Holy Mother Church. Today we cover other successful ventures in recent history where the laity mobilized to fend off threats against the Holy See. That is the crux of our retort for this series is a set blueprint for Catholics everywhere to take up the banner of truth in defending Christ's One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.

      Last installment we detailed the efforts of Saint Nicholas Von Flue the precursor to the Swiss Guard. Today we fast forward three centuries to the late eighteenth century into the early nineteenth century and the interference of the "little general" - Napoleon Bonaparte and the Reign of Terror when King Louis XVI was deposed in France and anarchy broke out against not only those suspected of loyalty to the monarchy but against all Catholics, climaxing with the vulgar madness of beheading 215 priests and bishops before the angry mobs stormed the Bastille on July 14, 1789 and then placed a vile woman on the altar of the renowned and sacred Cathedral of Notre Dame and idolized this satanic charcter as the "Goddess of Reason." The new government aboloshed Sundays and all Holy Days on a new calendar issued to the citizens. All of Europe was rightfully alarmed as they could see the handwriting on the wall, they joined forces against the new government of France which dispatched a young general to march on the Papal States. He charged one of his officers General Berthier to take possesson of Rome and, following with the anti-papist platform of the new French government, declared that the temporal power of the Popes were finished, Catholicism was dead. He captured Pope Pius VI and handed him over to Napoleon who took him back to France in chains to be imprisoned. Pius VI died two years later in a dank jail cell in 1799. It was during the time of his imprisonment Our Lord chose a Roman mother and wife to convey the vision and message that would rally the faithful to saving Holy Mother Church. The woman was Blessed Elizabeth Mora who had been left to struggle raising two children since her husband had left her for another woman. Faithfully she stayed the course and she was rewarded by messages and interior visions. The following are from the notes by Paola Giovetta, the author of a biography of Blessed Mora which was published in 1992 in Rome at the same time as Pope John Paul II beatified her. In the first message Jesus consoled her, "My dear daughter, offer yourself to My Heavenly Father for the Church. I promise to help you." He then revealed to her a castle on the brink of collapse from the ramparts battering its walls outside and the political corruption within that threatened implosion. The latter of course was the corruption within the Vatican surrounding the Pope. She was given to see the Holy Father who was flanked by two angels and surrounded by cardinals and bishops of the curia who came across as ravenous wolves. Blessed Mora understood and from that day forward dedicated her life to doing all in her power to mobilize the laity, offering whatever suffering she would undergo for the reparation of sins and the glory and honor of God as well as the welfare of her beloved Church. She began immediately asking all she came in contact with to pray for the Holy Father and the Church, beginning, in effect a tremendous prayer crusade that gained unbelieveable circulation in a very short time. Such is the power of the Holy Spirit. In her evangelizing she came across another Roman housewife who had practically the same vision as she but nearly two decades before Blessed Elizabeth received hers. This woman, who had seven children, was none other than Blessed Anne Marie Taigi who had offered her life for the safety and welfare of the Holy Father since she had been nine. The grew to be close friends and together they spearheaded a spiritual campaign to that ultimately saved the Pope and the Church. After Pius VI's death, the College of Cardinals, under the protection of the German Emperor, met on an island just outside of Venice and elected a Benedictine Italian cardinal who chose the name Pope Pius VII in honor of his predecessor. True to Jesus' word he returned to Rome which had been without the presence of a pontiff for over two years. However satan had also returned in the person of those ravenous wolves in cardinals' clothing as revealed to the two women in private revelation. These mongerers had persuaded the Pope to flee Rome and they had clandestinely arranged for a carriage to take him to a waiting French ship docked in Civitavecchia which would ferry him to France. Unbeknownst to the Pope, there he would meet the same fate as his predecessor. But Jesus revealed the plot to the two women and they relied on the strength of the Holy Spirit to steal inside the Papal Palace and receive a private audience with Pius VII. They were able to convince him their plea was indeed from God and he believed, not only deciding not to leave but solemnly announcing it and then dismissing the majority of the cancerous cardinals who had infested the Holy See. For his obedience and the perseverance of these two women, the Church was not only spared in Rome, but in France, which had grown increasingly anti-Catholic, Napoleon had grown to great power replacing the leaders of the French Revolution and loomed as a great threat to all of Europe and the Church. But unexpectedly he relented from his pursuit of abolishing Catholicism and made peace with Pius VII. Many believe the prayer crusade, begun by Blessed Elizabeth and Marie, had reached France and thousand of French faithful raised their voices as one to Heaven and God answered their prayers for Napoleon would write that he could see the faithful of France, despite all the setbacks, still persisted in practicing their faith. That had scared him into relenting and compromising his quest for demolishing the Church. It was just after his treaty with the Pope in 1801 that Napoleon became France's emperor in 1804. To give his stature even more credibility and honor he invited Pius VII to crown him in Paris, similar to how the medieval popes had done with the Holy Roman Emperors. It was, on Napoleon's part, just a political ploy, but it backfired because the people went gaga when Pius entered French soil. Everywhere he drew crowds and adulation. This infuriated Napoleon who wanted all the glory for himself and in retaliation he remained cold toward the supreme pontiff, so much so that when Pius was about to place the crown on his head, he grabbed the tiarra from the Pope's hands and placed it on his own head himself. Napoleon would make life as difficult as he could for Pius throughout his reign, even taking forced possession of the Papal States in 1809 and, in the same manner as Pius VI, bringing Pius VII back to France in chains as his prisoner. To curtail any power Pius VII might have, Napoleon forbid him to communicate in anyway with the outside world, depriving him of all reading material including his Daily Breviary while in prison in Fontainebleau. But Pius VII persevered and by 1814, when Napoleon's armies were being soundly beaten by European allies formed to stop this madman, the "little general" had no choice but to release the Pope. A year later in the Treaty of Vienna or Treaty of Peace the victorious European nations forced Napoleon to sign a treaty which reverted the Papal States back to the Holy See, though Avignon was ceded to France and a small northern strip of land in the farthest northern regions of Italy was deeded to Austria.

     The prayer crusade organized by Blessed Maria and Elizabeth had paid tremendous dividends and the Church was saved. To assure this would not happen again Pius VII took measures to make up for the harm done by Napoleon, signing concordats with various nations throughout Europe which, in effect, protected the rights of Holy Mother Church in those countries. He spearheaded a campaign to reeducate the people of France, ensuring they would receive a Christian education by reinstating the Jesuit Order which had been banned for so many years. Even though the spirit of revolution would not die and many European nations that had tasted the ideals of liberty, fraternity and equality espoused by the French Revolution nurtured the possibility of it working in their countries, it would be another century before this vile menace would truly take root in the Communist revolution in Russia and then the Nazi terror in Germany and the ultimate World War II. The end of Napoleon marked the end of monarchy as Europe had known it for so many centuries. From that time on any time a king would usurp his powers, the people would rise up against him. But prayer preserved the Church. Had Blessed Elizabeth and Maria not had the "holy hutspah" to bore into the Vatican private chambers to demand an interview with Pius VII there is no telling what might have happened with the papacy and the Church. France, which had been the seat of so much turmoil and terror against Rome, would in the new nineteenth century be blessed as the cradle of Our Lady's love for she would appear there numerous times beginning with Rue de Bac outside Paris and follow up with Lourdes - one of the most famous of apparitions and LaSalette. It would be the Catholic laity that would rally in support of the Church in France, always defending her against the onslaughts of the French government. Though there were some who were overzealous and overstepped their bounds such as Henry Lacordaire who was censured by the Holy Father for his writings. Rather than rebell, he submitted to Rome and became a great Dominican for the honor and glory of God and His Holy Church. Another great layman was Frederick Ozanam, a French attorney who suffered much through doubts about his faith, but God spoke to him alleviating his fears and doubts and he became a giant in the lay movement in France in the early to middle part of the nineteenth century, going on to found the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul.

     As you can see the laity has played a significant role in helping preserve Holy Mother Church throughout history and in modern times an even greater part in staying the course as we near the end of the second millennium and await the glories ahead in the fabulous third millennium. In our editorial today we speak of those glories through a purported prophecy given to Saint Bernadette Soubirous that pertains to the glorious Golden Age of Mankind which is just around the corner. From Pius VII on there has been stability in the Church and no vacancy within the Holy See as she has grown in stature and prestige through the last two centuries. According to Our Lady's prophecy to Bernadette the Church will come into even greater power and influence with the return of millions of lost sheep to the True Fold once God reveals His truths to the world. In these time of dire shortages of priests and religious, the laity is again mobilizing through the Marian organizations and other ecclesial and evangelical groups including authorized charismatic movements and another massive prayer crusade is underway. The whole reason for the DAILY CATHOLIC is to promote this prayer crusade and inform Catholics of the daily scenario in the Church and on the front lines of battle. The vision and messages to Saint John Bosco bear out all that has happened to this point and, like Bernadette's letter to Pope Leo XIII, bears a fitting and glorious climax to the battle: Victory.

     In the next several installments we shall deal with preparations for the much-anticipated Triumph of the Immaculate Heart for it is, happily and joyfully, inevitable. Alleluia!

Today's prayer is in honor of Saint Matthias, Apostle, and is taken from the Preface of the Mass - the Opening Prayer

Father, in order that the number of the apostles would be complete, You cast a special glance of love on Matthias, who was already introduced to the following of Christ and to His mysteries. His voice was in accord with that of the other eleven witnesses of the Lord and he announced to all the world that Jesus of Nazareth is truly risen and the kingdom of Heaven has been proclaimed to all men.

   Dear children! Today I call you, through prayer, to open yourselves to God as a flower opens itself to the rays of the morning sun. Little children, do not be afraid. I am with you and I intercede before God for each of you so that your heart receives the gift of conversion. Only in this way, little children, will you comprehend the importance of grace in these times and God will become nearer to you. Thank you for having responded to my call.

For more on Medjugorje, click on MEDJUGORJE

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May 14, 1998 volume 9, no. 94   DAILY CATHOLIC