Category: Love

The goal of all that is good

All Creation is Shouting for Joy!

Revelations from Nature

I went for a nice long walk in Echo Lake Park in Mountainside, NJ. It was an atypical Sunday in February. It was not below freezing and with the sun it actually was quite comfortable. I had my binoculars with me, as any avid birder would on any walk. The day was bountiful with birds. I spotted over twenty species, which is a huge accomplishment in the winter.

Then I strolled over to the connecting Lenape Park. On the path that leads to the pond there used to be a garden nursery. Sadly, as the community progressed things changed and the property was sold. Now there is what appears to be a massive luxury apartment building complex under construction. To be fair, they are close enough to the park where they will surely be required to plant trees and shrubbery to keep with the setting and this will create homes for the wildlife that as of this time have been displaced.  Hence, it was not as lovely as usual but will be once again.

As I reached the pond, there were two county police officers in their cruiser, I assume taking a break. Reaching the edge of the pond itself another birder came up and greeted me. He had all the gear including an expensive camera with a telephoto lens. I had done the photography thing for a few years but tired of it interfering with my appreciation of nature. Anyway, he told me he had been watching a Pileated Woodpecker over at yonder tree. He also told me of teenagers dumping the picknick tables into the pond. He decided to go to speak with the police about the issue while I went to explore the trees and hopefully see the same woodpecker.

Looking up at two trees, not sure which was the one he had been directing me to. I noticed the birds had gotten eerily quiet; I could only hear bird song in the distance. To my amazement, I spotted a Red-Tailed Hawk up on the top of a tree eating its prey. I couldn’t make out whether it was eating a small bird or a mouse. Either way it was having its fill, and I had now had an exceptionally wonderful experience on this walk.

I was due home to bring my wife, breakfast and then get ready to get to church in time. I quickly left the pond and informed the birder-photographer who was more excited about my find than he had appeared to be of the woodpecker and went running to try to get a picture, he was very grateful.

Some people do not understand this hobby and I guess people may have different reasons for doing it. But my reason is quite simple and after leaving Lenape Park while headed back to my car that was parked at Echo Lake it just jumped out of my mouth as if all the years of birding culminated to this point. I began to sing at the top of my lungs, if my wife was with me, she would have turned all different colors, but when I am alone and at my age, I share my joy. I don’t get embarrassed easily. So, this is what I sang:

The heavens are telling the glory of God,
And all creation is shouting for joy!
Come, dance in the forest, come, play in the field,
And sing, sing to the glory of the Lord!

Having known these words for much of my life. I have sung it; I have read it from the original prayer, and I have studied its inspiration. Canticle of the Sun was written in Italian by St. Francis of Assisi in 1225. Incidentally, I took his name for my confirmation at the age of 14, and I wear a medal of St. Francis always. He has been an inspiration for me all my life. His humility and love have always drawn me close to him. I always thought I understood him but until recently it truly did not click in my simple mind.

Yes, I understood his love for the Lord and all His creation. I know as most people do and some don’t want to admit that there is a Creator. I personally am not surprised that He would want to look in on us and that He loves us. But I didn’t understand though simple, it didn’t hit me until that day and then it would be several weeks later that I have been given the true understanding to express it.

As Ash Wednesday came and the Lenten season was once again upon us, I decided to reread the ever-perennial Book of Job. A book from the Old Testament that in a certain way delves into trying to understand human suffering, sacrifice and our relationship with our Lord. This time I concurrently read the book “On Job” by Gene Fendt that was released this year. I found it incredibly helpful to meditate and pray with.

This is a immensely deep topic. Volumes of books have been written by theologians, philosophers and thinkers. People with greater skill and study than I will ever have. Yet, we have all been given the same gift and this is what is most important.

Job in his infinite wisdom never denies the Lord. He does not understand why he suffers and groans at the suffering, but Satan could not break him. Because he knew with deep understanding and acceptance that all he is and all we have is given to us by the Lord our God. How can we, which are only part of His creation, think or believe that we can understand all things. It is a farce for us to act as we do. “The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD!”

Even the greatest scientists in the world have found that intelligent design can be the only thing that can explain creation. This is why all life is precious. We create, but we are limited. Only our Lord God has created all things, and He is always calling us home. As Gene Fendt states in his book “The world is groaning and cries out for its recreation. Only that will answer: all things must be made new again.” This making new again can only done with and through the creator.

So many fall for the lies of the evil one. Anyone who denies creation and nature in an attempt to bend it to their will only make a mockery of themselves and ultimately destroy themselves. We should always work in concert with nature not against it. Then we truly participate in the natural order. I pray for those that deny nature and its order to come back to the reality that their true longing is to be with the Creator God. Sadly, they fall for lies when all around them is beauty and the truth is in our face, if only, we should all open our eyes. As a Christian and from my own natural observance I know that my redeemer lives that I may rise again.

It is God calling us, everything in nature is shouting to us; “Hear me and follow me for I AM the LORD your God.” With humility and this understanding, I know I must accept all burdens that come my way and I must face them always realizing that everything belongs to the Lord for the rain falls on the Good and the Bad and I must always do all things with Love for others.

Thank you, St. Francis and St. Job, for giving me the words I need to express the revelation given to me that day in the park and most importantly thank you my Lord and God Jesus Christ for your love always. I am but nothing in this world and humbly I beg you to have mercy on my sins and those of the whole world.

With that said, I will continue to sing! Sing to the glory of the Lord!

The World Full of Lost Souls

Finding the True Shepherd

It is truly perplexing how mankind is always lost. It seems you can give a person a map and he will turn it upside. You can show him joy and he will turn it to sadness. You can give him peace and he will ruin it with violence and greed. One interesting thing is people comment on it like it is a sport.

Ultimately, you can always tell the fruits of one’s work or action by the results it brings forth. But for some reason mankind sees the results of certain actions and continues to persist with the actions that they know will perpetuate negative results.

Somehow people are still falling for the same tired lies. Marxism and all its forms will bring nothing but destruction. It has been tried and tested, has failed miserably. It’s evangelist falls back over and over again on its most popular myth, “It hasn’t really been tried”. The list goes on and on of where it has been tried, and how it always converts into the same gutter trap, a form of dictatorship and enslavement of the masses in all its many forms. The constant propaganda being fed to the populace that a government will solve their problems is a lie that destroys all hope, joy, and purpose in life.

Now they want to destroy the United States of America. Sadly, these people with their complete lack of morality will likely succeed. They have taken a bite of the apple and though the fruit is bitter they will engage believing that mankind can create heaven on earth or nirvana, whichever you prefer. They believe anarchy and violence towards our system of government will somehow liberate them. When studying history, it is easily revealed that their socialist end goal will bring injustice, poverty, and misery.

The USA was not perfect by any means. But in the last ten years it has become a much more imperfect place and has fallen to become a world full of lies in which the new order is attempting to control the people. The push is for more legalized drugs and the acceptance of all forms of sexual perversions as a right above all things decent. I believe the main reason for this is the lack of respect for human life.

When a people do not believe life has any value and it is cheap, it will act that way. This is why our leaders are leading us into wars and creating scenarios for more. That is why our government wants us, the taxpayers, to fund the destruction of human beings in the womb. That is why our government is pushing for the destruction of children’s bodies for the Frankenstein like experimentation on our young, knowing full well, that unlike God, humans can no more change the natural born sex of a person than we can create new worlds.

Does any of that sound to you like people we want running our government? Do you feel the desire to raise the flag in your house when you hear of these horrors and for some reason feel an inability to stop it? I know I don’t. If I raise the flag, it is in remembering the USA of the past, not the present with all its globalist, socialist anarchistic schemes.

All is not lost because there is but one truth and how I pray that people would search in their hearts and know it.  How do you know as a people, that you leadership cares or has love for you? Iti is simple, by their actions.

Below is Excerpt from Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI;

“In the same way, the “sheep”, who after all are people created by God, images of God, do not belong to the shepherd as if they were things-though that is what the thief, and robber thinks when he takes possession of them. Herein lies the distinction between, the owner, the true shepherd, and the robber, for ideologues and the dictators, human beings are merely a thing that they possess. For the true Shepherd, however, they are free in relation to truth and love; the Shepherd proves that they belong to him, precisely by knowing and loving them, by wishing them to be in the freedom of truth. They belong to him through oneness of “knowing,” through the communion in the truth that the Shepherd himself is. This is why he does not use them, but gives his life for them. Just as Logos and Incarnation, Logos and passion belong together, so too knowing and self-giving are ultimately one.”

The lies we are now seeing constantly propagated through the mainstream media, by our politicians who believe themselves above us when they are beholden to us, and other nefarious global entities such as the United Nations, the World Economic Forum, and the World Health Organization do nothing more than bring despair to our society.

Human life is the highest and most sacred creature on the planet. We need to know that each individual has value, and we need to protect the individual as a special autonomous person and not a vassal of any government. Once people are affirmed in their value to society, then they will have an open heart to embrace the truth.

The truth can be found in Jesus Christ and when people can put aside all prejudices and open their hearts, they will find it irresistible to follow for he is the true Shepherd who cares for us. Not Karl Marx.

John 8:31-32

Jesus then said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

Without Truth There in No Life, With Lies Comes Violence and Destruction

In a society that does not seek truth above all else we will have corruption and destruction. With the seemingly endless senseless unprovoked murders of innocent victims in the United States the primary question should be, what is driving these people to such violence?

However, the media ignores this question and looks at each case as if they are independent. However, in the majority of cases, where the perpetrators are not Sociopaths, they are disturbed individuals who have been created by society.

The current mode, of those that have the most control over our children’s self-worth are in education, the balance outside the parents are in media whether passive or direct, meaning the range between TV entertainment and online platforms.

These modes of influencing our children are anarchistic and dark. Their world is hyper-sexualized with a twisted focus on worth through physical appearance and popularity. It is strange that health and safety are the lowest on their priority, with a focus on feelings as the driver for all a person’s needs.

Hence we have the recent death of a 37-year-old woman who was an advocate for respect of obesity, which of course is an unhealthy lifestyle. No one cared to correct her and denounce her propagation of such a lifestyle. Worse is the promotion of transgender operations on minors as a solution to their so-called “confusion” at an early age. Let’s face it, this is just a moneymaker for a greedy pharmaceutical industry, and they care not who they hurt. This is proven by the high risk of suicide for the individuals who suffer this fate. This is being promoted in our schools, and we still don’t understand how we are raising sick children?

The natural order is being ignored and preferred for the Frankenstein style solutions to life’s problems. If you are confused about one thing, take this pill, change your body medically or embrace your unhealthy lifestyle as good. Unhealthy lifestyle includes the hyper-sexualization promoted by our society.

Promiscuity embraces a lack of respect for the purpose of one’s nature for which the body serves and a degradation of one’s own worth by giving away yourself freely for instant gratification with no strings attached. The sexual revolution as it has been called is not a revolution but a perversion of the natural world. We are part of nature, not outside of nature. We are called to be who we are, not to change our stripes every time we “feel” different or think we don’t fit into some mold that our society claims is being “imposed” on us. It is a lie that boys and girls are the same and that only social constructs determine those differences. It is the natural order of things that fathers, and mothers pass down that natural order of things as has been done for thousands upon thousands of years. Additionally, studying the rest of the animal kingdom you understand that this is the way of the world.

For all the talk of  “Save the Planet”, these same people forget we are not outside the planet. We humans are part of the ecosystem. Please stop the resurgence of the sacrificial nature worship. One that has led to the willing sacrifice of our children to abortion for the selfish mores of an immature generation that cares not for its children, born or not yet born. This is what I call the underlying sickness of our society which has created children who are selfish and are not taught to love.

Additionally, another one of our society’s sickness is the objectification of human beings through pornography. Pornography, is just bad as heroine is for our society or even worse because it often destroys families and in numerous instances leads to violence upon women and children. This objectification, of course, will lead to oneself questioning their own self-worth. If you believe yourself to have no value, then you can’t believe anyone else has value.  Once one believes that humans are just objects, then they can do anything to them, including murder.

I am not totally against tattoos but the excessive use of what could be a nice decorative body art ascribes to the same self-loathing that is permeating our society today. This one of the many symptoms we can see clearly on our everyday walk of life. This points to illness.

In summary, the lack of love for ourselves and the humans around us is what is driving the perpetrators of these heinous crimes against society. Teaching our children to hate themselves and human beings in general are what is currently undermining the respect for the social norms that have for thousands of years helped our world grow and keep our future bright. If we do not teach our children to love human life above all things then we will continue to suffer the consequences.

*A Little Change of Heart

It was about one year ago I made a difficult change in my life. It didn’t affect many people. It was simply that I had decided to befriend and get to know a homeless person. I felt like St. Francis, I had an aversion to the destitute of society and I needed to break that association and come to know them as children of God.

It so happened that there was a colored woman who every morning would sit in front of the St. Patrick’s Cathedral gift shop on 51st street (right over a grate where heat would come up). I remember before the first day I approached her I used to look down at her. I remember there was always crumbled food next to her and I thought it was disgusting. I always averted contact with people like her believing that many are drug addicts, alcoholic etc. and that I should not give them money because I may be supporting their habit. So though I knew in my mind they actually have the same gift of life from God that I have, I treated them like lesser people.

Then I made the effort. It started at first I would just give her a few dollars a day, which made me feel better. However I truly did not change until she asked me my name. Her name was Ann. She had a beautiful smile when you spoke to her. The crumbs she placed on the ground where there to feed the birds. She was an avid reader and enjoyed science fiction. She smoked cigarettes, but only two or three a day. Every day I saw her brought me great joy. She would ask me about my family, my children, my weekend, and my business trips. I would ask her about her health and if she needed anything. She always said she was fine.

Then one week she was not in her spot for a few days. I was concerned and hoped she would come back soon. On Thursday morning she was back. She told me she has a heart condition and had been in the hospital. I told her I would pray for her recovery and I asked her to quit smoking. That was a few months ago.

Recently, I went to mass with a coworker who I had gotten a Mass said for his departed grandmother. I saw my friend enjoy the mass and feel close to his grandmother a year after her death. We came out of the cathedral and went across the street; I was sharing with him my morning routine and so I introduced him to Ann. Ann said to me, “You’re really happy this morning.”  I said I was because my friend Gerry was with me. Gerry said hello and I gave her some money and we said goodbye. It was a special morning.

The week before Ann told me one of her favorite book collections is “The Lord of the Rings”. I was planning on bringing her the full collection in paperback as a gift. Then sadly the day after I spoke to her with Gerry she was not at her normal spot. It has now been almost three weeks since I have seen her. I looked for her at lunch time in different buildings with public parks where she told me she is often found. I did not find her. I have been praying for her everyday hoping that she is well and that I may see her gain.

Sadly I fear that she may not be coming back. I know she would have good and bad days with her heart condition and she often talked it down. Now I am thinking that I may not have done enough to help her. I should have tried harder. I know that I did not give to her as much as she gave to me. She opened my eyes and my heart to the love of God. Her concern for me, a person in a much better state in life, made a significant impression on me. She truly cared for me as a true friend. She had love, the kind of love that we should share and have for all people. She had a truly Christian heart and I will strive to be like her.

I still hold hope that she may come back. But if the good Lord took her I am certain that she is in the bosom of his love. I will continue praying for her everyday not knowing for sure what has happened to her. And if she is in Heaven I know that she prays for me to our Lord.

With love in my heart I say God bless you Ann wherever you may be.

*Written in 2006

What is Love?

(written in 2006)

I recently went on a one-day retreat run by the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. The title for this event, which they usually run twice a year, is called “Catholic Men’s Day of Prayer”. This specific retreat had as its focus Fatherhood.

Fatherhood is a large topic but one of the topics we touched upon was the relationship with our spouses. It was during these conversations that many discussions were shared that opened my eyes to a widely known fact that is in most part ignored in our current society.

We currently live in a society that worships to an extreme individualism and materialism. It seems to be the focus of everyone to be independent, to have their own things etc. However, in a loving community this kind of attitude is actually hurtful and dangerous. It leads to anger, envy and greed. This selfish focus is not how we were created. Man is a social creature, and we need each other to survive and to create a healthy and happy environment for all.

When discussing these issues it became apparent, as usual, that our catholic faith stands in stark contrast to what is promoted by our society. In the early church Christians gave up all their material possessions to join the community. This, of course, is not required of us now but that is because we have a different world economy altogether. But what is required of us is that we love our neighbors as ourselves.

It sounds so nice: love your neighbor as yourself. However it is difficult as we will know. However what makes it even more difficult is our understanding of the word Love. The dictionary has it as follows: 1 a (1) : strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties <maternal love for a child> (2) : attraction based on sexual desire : affection and tenderness felt by lovers (3) : affection based on admiration, benevolence, or common interests <love for his old schoolmates> b : an assurance of love <give her my love> This is the primary view of the understanding and use of the word in our society.

The problem lies in that our Lord asks us to do another kind of love. This love is an action word. It is something we do and not something we feel. It is a command as Christians that we are under strict orders to comply. We must love all as our neighbors. Not the soft weak mushy stuff that we are constantly sold but the tough hard love. The kind of love that tells a child no, cares for a sick person and bites its tongue not to say something hurtful. This world would be a much better place if all persons understood this.

One priest told a story that he was speaking to a man who said to him “Father, I don’t love my wife anymore” He looked at this man and said to him “Well, love your wife.” The man looked at him and was confused. He didn’t understand and simply put it is because he thought it was a feeling and not an act. There is one big prerequisite to be able to do this. We must die to ourselves. We must kill that selfish part of us and do what we are asked to do all the days of our lives. Look up to the greatest act of love ever done in the history of the world, our Lord giving his life for us on the cross. Then take up our cross.

If we can achieve this our lives will come together and bring us great joy. We will be able to put our wives and families first and our marriages will be happy and lifelong. We will put others always before ourselves and then the rewards will be great here, and they will be even greater in heaven.

 The New Old Evangelization

(Originally written in 2011)

The Catholic faith is constantly under attack, not only by those directly opposed to the faith but by Christians as well. Our stance against abortion and contraception, sexual promiscuity of any form and also for tenants of the faith are examples of issue which seem to be stumbling blocks. But we Catholics understand the truths handed down to us from the apostles through the church and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We know these to be truth and with our eyes set on the things not seen we focus on the eternal. To gain the eternal, we must live a fruitful life through witness to the gospel in this world.

However we have a real problem here. The issue is that we have two types of horrible Catholics both in and out of the clergy. So many hypocrites exist but the biggest problem I fear are twofold, The disconnect that is often between the actions of our authorities within the church and what is preached and taught.

We often have Bishops and or priests that when the secular public makes a scene about the teachings of the faith they back track. In one instance in the Diocese of San Diego a Bishop twice back tracked when they denied a Christian funeral for two non-practicing catholic homosexual that owned gay bars. It has always been understood and is canon law that anyone who lived in obvious sin without any signs of repentance cannot receive a Christian funeral. But when they tried to enforce this rule public opinion and condemnation swayed the Catholic authority.

The attempt to prevent scandal in actuality created a double scandal. Not only did know they allow it, which then sent the message that it is ok to live in Sin. However then they also affirm that church teaching is essentially meaningless. If they are willing to back down to popularity, then they have lost all authority to teach. They have condemned themselves because these actions will certainly drive others to sin instead of show them the truths of the faith.

Had the Bishops stood up and in a loving manner explained the teachings of the faith and why the funerals would not be allowed it would have sent a signal that we stand for the truth. Now it appears to others that we stand for nothing that could not be changed with a popularity contest. I cringe when I see these types of reports; this is more hurtful to the conversion of souls than the actual sins perpetrated by others within our midst.

Another issue is those within our midst that do not live the Gospel but want to hit others over the head with our teachings.  What I mean is that we cannot change the hearts of others by attacking them with the truths or condemning their actions. So, often I see many people get into arguments instead of dialogue. To dialogue you need to have a loving respect for the other person. It is only through love that we will ever change the hearts of this society.

Recently, I have had a change of view about a serious issue. I may be wrong but the whole gay marriage issue I think is overblown. The civil form of marriage has little value in my eyes. I never thought highly about it when I got married, and I think less about it now. When we fight those trying to propagate this highly political issue we give these people a stage to call us all kinds of names like hate mongers and the like. Meanwhile the courts grant divorces at the drop of a hat. The fact that marriage is a business transaction in most cases should be made apparent. So, it is meaningless.

I believe we should drop this fight and instead focus on teaching within our own church the proper meaning and understanding of marriage.  But when we talk of marriage in the Catholic Church we speak about two people, a man and a woman, who join together in a complete natural union created by God that will bring the gift of life, which is children, if God wills it. Marriage is a gift of love which is a gift that comes from God. That way we understand and become open to life. At this time unfortunately most Catholics are not. It is that mentality that allows people to accept contraception and abortion since we think we are the arbiters of life and not God himself.

But the point I am trying to get at it is this. We need to focus on our own household. We have to build the proper supports and understanding that will lead to a life of living the gospel and the teachings of our faith in everything we do and say. That is how the church was born. That is how the church grew. It was by giving and loving and not by arguing with others. When others see the joy we have within our communities and in the way we live our lives and that we are faithful then they will join us. Then their hardened hearts will change. But when you look around at how poorly we are behaving it is no wonder that few truly believe that we have a real and vibrant faith.

We must turn our faith into one of love for our Church community but also for love of all outside our church as well. Even the sinners need our love. How will we save souls as God has asked us to do if we do not show them love? It will be by loving the world that we can affect the most change not by entering into political arguments or popularity contests. Hence it is the old way of evangelization that becomes new again.

As Saint Francis was quoted as saying, so we must live “It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching.”

Pregnancy is a Gift, It is Human Life Not a Disease!

The Truth Revealed

In general, our society has become one of quick fixes and denial. We deny responsibility for almost everything, we have people suing others for things they do to themselves. People always decry that they are suffering because of others and not because of their own actions or inaction. It seems to me that whoever cries or screams the loudest gets the most attention and action whether they are in the right or not. The individual seems to lose more and more responsibility and becomes less and less important at the same time.

There is no real logic or reason. The people are so conditioned not to use their brains, not to analyze. Simply put they are for the most part conditioned not to look for the truth. Truth has become relative but not because the people believe in relativity it is because they are being trained to live life in relativity. But there is still a chance for this tide to be turned if we ourselves live life by truth.

Quo ist veritas? What is Truth? That is what we need to train our children to seek. They need to weigh all components and listen with both heart and mind. If they do so it will be apparent what is truth.

The biggest competition though is the constant barrage of images from the major media outlets. Whether it is music, movies, television or the internet our society just never take the time to think it is all set to keep you off guard. To be able to seek truth you have to remove yourself from a situation and look at it objectively. In general, our society does not do that and in fact it just promotes the acceptance of a status quo of where we are. It also promotes the idea that someone else will solve your problems. This is the reason, the basic truths of life are not understood.

I believe it is astonishing that two plus two still equals five. In a society where it is constantly promotes the false concept of “Gay Marriage”. This lie that is being perpetuated and successfully so is a great example. Everyone knows that there is no physical way that two people of the same gender can be joined together to procreate. But yet, we have sane men and women supporting these people so that they can feel accepted. The truth is they want us to make a lie a truth.

Under the same guise in the business community from which the world suffered in the economic collapse of 2008 they managed to perpetuate a lie. The lie was one of earnings, with no real production or growth. Products that did nothing but hide truths, such as Sub-prime lenders that lent money creating false growth to people or businesses that do not have the ability to pay. Notice just like gay marriage a lie twisted to appear true for the incipient purpose of the persons who benefit. In this case, the brokers and others involved made off with billions of dollars.

Then finally and the saddest of all is the twisting of the truth of life. There is only one point at which Human Life is created. The point at which Human Life is created is called conception at that point a Human Being exists and is growing totally independent of the mother who carries that baby and feeds it from her body. We know by the science that at that exact moment a new DNA has been created and a new person exists.

But instead we have an abortion industry, originally promoted in the USA by Planned Parenthood to control the growth of the undesirable population of minorities, is perpetuating the lie that it is not a baby, that it is not human life and that it is something else. They purport it to be a disease, a mistake not anybody’s fault. This is simply a lie they propose as a truth. Sadly, it feeds on the irresponsibility built into the society these days that enables the individuals not to accept responsibility for their choices and at the same time not look for the truth because it may not be convenient at that time.

The truth is that pregnancy is a gift it is a human life. One that will continually change anyone’s life for the better even if the baby is infirm. I have seen many blessings brought to families with children with disabilities, but our society does not like to see this truth either.

Another lie being purported as a truth is that abortionists are pro-choice. Their goal is to kill as many children as possible because that is how they make their money. The only real group that is Pro-Choice are the Pro-Life advocates which believe that the choice is actually before conception. The true choice is whether one should or should not have sexual intercourse with someone to create a child which is the act’s primary function. To propagate that we humans are not in control of ourselves is an insult to our intelligence. The solution to a mistake is not another mistake. Yet, that is the lie that is constantly promoted. The problem lies in that there is big money in contraception and abortion and that is why this lie has such a great rate of success. The solution lies in teaching our children the truth because we know that unfortunately neither school systems Public nor Catholic can be trusted.

So, this leads to the point of the most heinous of crimes attempted in this country. The Freedom of Choice Act, which thankfully never passed, was not about choice but about murder. It is the freedom to kill act. Any society that kills their own children is not far from killing anyone for any reason. Acts such as these should be fought with a passion by all people of good will.

From an article, I read recently at a pro-life rally in front of a church a pro-abortion woman tried to chase the children who were there away. The children replied that they would stay. Then one of the young boys asked no one in particular, “What’s the matter with her? Everyone knows that abortion is murder.” It was a simple truth.

Now if only everyone would stick to the truth life would be much easier for everyone.

The Lady in the Van or The Snake in the Garden

I watched recently on Amazon Prime the 2015 movie The Lady in the Van. This film was obviously produced to the highest standards. The actors were of the highest caliber. The scenes were exquisite and the production quality, the best in its class. Artistic talent was not left for want in this film. 

Maggie Smith, A Master of her Art

The movie is centered around an unhappy vagabond old woman and her benefactor. Loosely based on the true story of Margaret Fairchild, there is no doubt that much artistic license was used in the creation of this fanciful story line. 

The main character who is truly the writer of the story is meant to be a protagonist, but in truth of which this film has no connection to, is that he is an antagonist. In the true story, Alan Bennet had allowed this cantankerous woman to live in his driveway with her van for fifteen years. In this movie, there is no doubt of the twists and turns taken to fit modern narratives and themes to get the support needed to make such a cruel film. 

Basing what I write here from what I saw in the film and some research, I would like to bring to you my take-aways as we often call what we learn at educational business meetings from the film. 

The first is that the film is a veiled malicious attack on the Catholic Church and the faith. Its careful nuance is to project the Church as being puritanical and uncaring. First by intimating that Ms. Fairchild’s mental illness was caused by her being told not to play piano while undergoing discernment for vocation to focus on prayer. It imputes this to be some sort of punishment when it was most likely meant as a discipline which enables one to be less selfish and more attentive to the needs of others. This is a very necessary trait to be able to live in a small, closed community with other people which is called a convent. The fact that she was difficult would indicate that she may already had begun to suffer from some mental illness, and it was beginning to manifest itself. The scene in the film where a nun viciously shuts the piano, though theatrically effective, is questionable at the least. 

The second, the implication that in confession she would have heard that her desire to play piano may be a window for the devil is something puritanical. The Puritans were a sect of the Church of England which began after its separation from the Roman Catholic Church in the sixteenth century. As any student of music would know, the Roman Catholic Church has always supported and promoted the use of beautiful music to elevate the soul to the worship of God. Hence, her musical talent would not be ascribed to the devil, but her selfishness and lack of discipline may have been. This again to cast a dark view of the one true faith. 

Then continuing in its same path of lies, the writer and producer paint the nuns to be uncaring and vicious because of Ms. Fairchild’s past insubordinate behavior after she becomes ill. This is ignoring the fact that local nuns did assist in her care though she was not in their community. Also, ignoring the truth that the Catholic Church on a whole does more for the sick, elderly and dying than any institution on the earth. Most importantly, it does it with love and sacrifice. The works of St. Teresa of Calcutta are but one small example of the many works of this blessed institution. 

The movie ends with the death of Ms. Fairchild. The author uses this event to mock, almighty God, the assumption of Mary and the existence of Heaven with a scene where the deceased asks of him to write a glorious ending to her life. The interesting point is what it really points to is the unhappy life that the writer lives, knowing full well his internal twisted unhappy existence, which he cannot accept when faced with truth. So, to reject truth, he needs to destroy God. This is oldest of stories, since beginning of creation and the fall of mankind from grace in the Garden of Eden. 

How did evil and death come into this world? It was with the rejection of truth which is given to us by God mostly embedded in our hearts but also through scripture and tradition. All those who reject His words of good will live-in a constant state of misery while those who work at perfecting virtue find true peace and love in their lives. In this film, the author is in no way a character any human looking for joy would want to emulate. And I thank the makers of this film for raising my thoughts to see through the smoke of Satan for the lies that they are.