Still Running Off at the Keyboard

MEL GIBSON SPEAKS ON TERRI'S BEHALF

According to email from "Inside the Vatican", Mel Gibson has released the following statement to the Florida organizers working on Terri's behalf:

"I fully support the efforts of Mr. & Mrs. Schindler to save their daughter, Terri Schiavo, from a cruel starvation.
Terri’s husband should sign the care of his wife over to her parents so she can be properly cared for."

NOT ONE OF MY BETTER DAYS...

I spent the morning and part of this afternoon reading The Secret of the Beloved Disciple by James Twyman with a preface by Nick Bunick.

It's the story of Twyman, Jacqueline Ripstein, and "Fr. John", whoever he is, though at least half of the time he appears to be Fr. Jozo Zovko. It's a story of miracles, and visions, and why we no longer need the priesthood or the Church. A story of an exorcism, of energy and light and meditation, and shamans who seek the guidance of the Mother of God.

A story of apparitions of "Maria" here, there, and everywhere...Maria who claims to be Our Lady of Peace and Our Lady of the Universe and whose early appearance was on the Hill of Apparitions in Medjugorje. It's a story of being a channel of peace like the prayer of St. Francis teaches, but the source of this channeled grace or whatever it is does not appear to have any place within Christian faith.

It's a jumble of Catholic beliefs and beliefs that are wholly unCatholic. It's a story about Mary the Mother of God telling people that the brand of religion doesn't matter, and never once mentioning her Son, Jesus. It's a story about meditating for peace and singing the peace prayers of the 12 world religions.

This book has left me with a sense of confusion, discouragement, and frustration. It has left me wondering what it means to be Catholic and how to maintain beliefs in the face of the sort of stuff contained in this book. Stuff that is catching on like fire in dry tinder.

Today I have no more stomach for investigating heresy. I have no more stomach for defending the faith. I have little stomach for practicing it. Mostly it just left me feeling sick and as though no matter what we do it's really all a futile waste of time.

So I won't be blogging anything else today or this weekend. I'm going to Mass shortly and hope that helps me to get my balance once again.

Sometimes doing what I am doing has serious drawbacks. This is one of those times.

Our Lady of Fatima, pray for me!

AN OFFER HE CAN'T REFUSE ?

A reader sent in this article from Christian Communication Network:

We are here today to announce that our client, Robert Herring, Sr., is making an offer to Terri Schiavo's husband, Michael Schiavo, which could save Terri's life. ...

Terri Schiavo is not likely to survive very long after March 18th. Knowing that time is of the essence and realizing that he is fortunate enough to be able to help, he has decided to take action.

He contacted me [Attorney Gloria Allred] and retained my law firm to convey the following offer to Terri's husband. If Mike Schiavo agrees to transfer the legal right to decide all of Terri's current and future medical desicions to Terri's parents, then Mr. Herring will pay Mr. Schiavo the amount of 1 million dollars (subject to court approval of Terri's parents as her conservators or guardians).

The million dollars was deposited into my law firm's client trust account yesterday and this morning we communicated this million dollar offer in writing to Mr. Schiavo's attorney.

This offer will remain open until Monday, March 14, 2005 at 5:00 p.m.

Mr. Herring thinks there might be hope for Terri Schiavo and wonders why there is a rush to death, especially in view of the advances being made in medical research. He feels that he couldn't live with himself if he didn't make this offer and he sincerely hopes that it will be accepted.

DIVINIZATION OF NATURE AS ECOLOGICAL SIN

ROME, MARCH 9, 2005 (Zenit.org).- Contemporary radical ecology has divinized nature and relegated human beings to a secondary role, participants at a symposium on original sin were told.

"The sin in contemporary radical environmentalism consists in divinizing nature, in suffocating the importance of the human being as custodian of creation, and in forgetting God as author of man's natural surroundings," said Joan Andreu Rocha Scarpetta, professor of theology of religions at the Regina Apostolorum Pontifical University. The institution sponsored the symposium.

Rocha's address, entitled "Radical Ecology and Original Sin," was one of the addresses delivered at the March 3-4 symposium, whose theme was "Original Sin: An Interdisciplinary Perspective." Archbishop Angelo Amato, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, opened the event.

"Contemporary radical environmentalism has forgotten divine transcendence; it has placed man on the same level or below nature" and, in forgetting the created character of nature, "has given it a magical, almost divine value," said Rocha.

CULTURAL EARTHQUAKE

The Independent reports young women want to be full-time wives and mothers:

They are the generation of women who grew up expecting to have it all. No longer forced to choose between children and a career, they were set to embrace superwomanhood by doing both - while holding down a perfect relationship and keeping a spotless home in their spare time.

But modern woman has taken a reality check. The average 29-year-old now hankers for a return to the lifestyle of a 1950s housewife. The daughters of the "Cosmo" generation of feminists want nothing more than a happy marriage and domestic bliss in the countryside, according to a survey.

Research into the attitudes of 1,500 women with an average age of 29 found that 61 per cent believe "domestic goddess" role models who juggle top jobs with motherhood and jet-set social lives are "unhelpful" and "irritating". More than two-thirds agree that the man should be the main provider in a family, while 70 per cent do not want to work as hard as their mother's generation. On average, the women questioned want to "settle down" with their partner by 30 and have their first child a year later.

Vicki Shotbolt, deputy chief executive of the National Family and Parenting Institute, said: "This is the generation of young women who have seen the 'have it all' ethos up close and personal, and they have realised that it doesn't work.

Blogger credit to Crux News.

WEEPING ICONS

A report from UPI at the World Peace Herald:

TARTU, Estonia -- Visitors to a Russian Orthodox Church in a small town near the Belarusian capital report that icons there are now weeping blood, a development that the local clergy say reflects God's sadness at the rising tide of evil in the world and may point to impending disaster in that country.

According to an article published in "KP v Belorussii" and posted online late last month(portal-credo.ru/site/print.php?act=monitor&id=5871), approximately a dozen icons in an Orthodox church in Dzerzhinsk began to weep myrrh about a month ago, something that attracted the attention of the local community.

But in the last two weeks of February, more than 80 of the holy images in that church have begun to shed what appear to be tears of blood, as a picture featured in the article on the Web site shows. That in turn has attracted more people to the church and prompted the media attention that resulted in the "KP v Belorussii" report.

Blogger credit to Spirit Daily.

JUDGE BORK

The mailman brought a solicitation for funds for Ave Maria University today. What was interesting about this was that the letter was signed by Judge Robert H. Bork, Professor of Law, Ave Maria School of Law.

WHAT'S WITH BLOGGER TODAY?

I can't seem to get it to work properly.

NEW LEADER OF SPANISH BISHOPS' CONFERENCE

is a moderate deal maker as opposed to the outgoing bishop who is described in this article about the passing of the baton as a fundamentalist. This sounds like a move to increase the deChristianizing power of the government. Apparently Rome is not pleased.

SPAIN’S political and social transformation after the Madrid bombings, which unseated a conservative government a year ago, continued yesterday when a moderate bishop replaced a hardliner as the head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Ricardo Blázquez, Bishop of Bilbao, was elected president of the bishops’ conference after Antonio María Rouco Varela, his precessor, failed by one vote to win the two-thirds majority needed for a third term.

Mgr Rouco Varela was the Vatican’s preference and has come into conflict repeatedly with the Socialist Government in the past year, during which it has legalised gay marriage, made divorce simpler and eased rules for stem-cell research.

VATICAN SPEAKS ON TERRI'S BEHALF

once again:

In an unusual foray into American politics and law, a highly placed Vatican cardinal issued a second statement in two weeks in defense of the life of Terri Schiavo, saying "How can anyone who claims to speak of the promotion and protection of human rights–of human life–remain silent?"

In reaction, a prominent Catholic pro-life figure said that Cardinal Renato Martino’s second statement should prod the U.S. bishops to do more to try to save the life of the disabled Florida woman who faces a March 18th date to have her feeding tube removed.

Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in Rome, said in a March 7th statement distributed via Virginia-based Human Life International:

"Without the tube, which is providing life-giving hydration and nutrition, Terri Schiavo will die. But it is not that simple. She will die a horrible and cruel death. She will not simply die; she will have death inflicted upon her over a number of terrible days, even weeks. How can anyone who claims to speak of the promotion and protection of human rights--of human life--remain silent? Is this not a question of the right to life? I believe that I must speak out about this in the same way that I would speak of the protection of the unborn and just as I would concerning any injustice."

Blogger credit to Crux News for the link.

CRITICAL DECISIONS IN TERRI'S FIGHT

will be made today. From Fr. Johansen's blog:

On Wednesday, the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) will go before Judge Greer regarding their motion for a stay on the removal of Terri's feeding tube pending their investigation of abuse charges against Michael Schiavo. Some have theorized that Judge Greer is legally bound to grant the stay, but what Greer will actually do is anyone's guess.

This is not just a fight for the life of one handicapped woman. This is a fight for the life of each of us and all of us. Once the decision is made that murder is legal based on the quality of life, there is nothing to put the brakes on the definition of that "quality." Given a pagan worldview in those with political power, it is conceivable that belief in Christianity could one day be declared a sub-standard quality of life not worth preserving. Many prominent figures are calling for peace and saying that "fundamental" religions inhibit the peace process. Imagine how Catholic belief that Jesus Christ is unique among the world's religions would be viewed if the president, the judges, and congress all shared a pagan belief system. Fundamentalist = person opposing peace. Person opposing peace = person with no right to life because this person endangers the existence of life on earth. This is not as far-fetched as it might sound.

WELL DUH

ABC Radio National The Religion Report

David Rutledge: Welcome to the program.

This week we’re talking with two distinguished international guests, one of whom is the American author and Kabbalah scholar, Rabbi David Cooper, and we’ll be hearing from him a little later in the program.

The other guest is a pioneer in the study of women and religion. Her name is Dr Carol Christ; she’s originally from the US, having taught at Harvard Divinity School and Columbia University. But these days she lives in Greece, where she’s Director of the Ariadne Institute for Myth and Ritual. Carol Christ’s first book Womanspirit Rising , was a key text in the emerging field of feminist theology in the late 1970s, and since then she’s been a leading writer and teacher on ancient traditions of goddess religion.

And if you thought that feminist theology in the 21st century had lost its power to confront, then you’d be sadly mistaken. Carol Christ was scheduled to give a lecture this Saturday evening in Sydney, at Santa Sabina College in Strathfield, that’s run by the Dominican Sisters. But it turns out that she was too hot to handle. Early this week, the College was contacted by the Catholic Auxiliary Bishop of Sydney, Julian Porteous. He’d been asked by Cardinal George Pell to inquire into the nature of the lecture being given at Santa Sabina. A statement released by the Bishop said that ‘following an enquiry from myself on behalf of the Archdiocese, the Dominican Sisters decided it would be inappropriate for a talking promoting Goddess worship and Pagan spiritualities … to be held in a Catholic venue.’ The Dominican Sisters were unavailable for comment, and Cardinal Pell is currently in Rome.

You'd think making this decision wouldn't require the involvement of the Bishop, but obviously the Dominicans just don't get the strange god picture. I suspect the average 7-year-old from an Orthodox Catholic home could explain it to them.

Sad.

PUBLIC TOILET

I bet you couldn't...no matter how badly....

A reader sent in the picture saying it's in Houston. This website says it's in Korea and Switzerland. This blog says it's in London at a construction site.

As this blog puts it "Repeat after me--you can see them but they can't see you."

Probably just an urban legend facility.

FUN AT THE CINEMA

First we had "Indigo" and Spiritual Cinema. Now let's follow it up with a little Aleister Crowley.

The man is becoming a cultural icon...icon of a sick culture.

Anyway...

For all those who believe occultists are weird people who live behind the city land fill and have three eyes, there is the screenwriter Lon Milo DuQuette.

Internationally renowned author, occultist, and humorist, DuQuette is hailed by critics as the most knowledgeable and entertaining writer in the fields of magic, mysticism, and the occult. His works (more than a dozen in print) exhibit a level of wit and wisdom that reviewers have compared to Mark Twain and Robert Benchley. His award-winning 1999 autobiography, My Life With The Spirits, took the #1 spot on Amazon.com's New Age Biography category and is now under negotiation to become one of 2005's most eagerly awaited made-for-television movies.

The mystic lure of evil is serving him well. I wonder what price will be exacted in eternity for his temporal fame? I wouldn't want to be the one who gets to find out!

What's your prediction--Flop? Box office sell-out? Oscar?

MONK CAKE

Abbey of the Genesee:

* * * * * * * *
also available in foil
24 oz. Date Nut Cake (with whiskey) - $10
24 oz. Blueberry Cake (with whiskey) - $10 new
24 oz. Chocolate Chip Cake (with whiskey) - $10 new
24 oz. Brownies (with Brazil nuts) - $10

Add .50 for cakes sent to zip zones 300 - 499. For zip zones 500 - 994 add $1.00. IF more than one cake or brownie is sent to the same address there is no extra zone charge AND you may deduct $1.50 for each cake. This amounts to $8.50 per cake or brownie.

* * * * * * * *

The reader who sent in this link suggested it MIGHT be Laphroaig, but she doesn't guarantee it.

I think the chocolate chip sounds best since the brownies with Brazil nuts doesn't seem to be marinated. Guess I could always have the marinate on the side, though. Or skip the marinate and get totally involved with the chocolate.

Decisions...decisions...decisions...

(One should never indulge in this sort of fantasy on a Tuesday in Lent!)

THOSE ARE NOT YOUR AVERAGE SURVEY RESULTS

at LifeSite, linked by Fr. Sibley. Not what we've been hearing at all. But certainly what a lot of Catholic bloggers are trying to say. Toss out the modernists and bring back the orthodox in vestments, and the pews will fill up again. At least if this survey is any indication.

New Springtime? Well, it's way overdue!

I COULD BE TEMPTED TO FRAME IT…

“It” is an article at Chiesa about the theology of Cardinal Kasper. Never thought I’d see the day when I agreed with everything he said. Is hell freezing over?

The article is about the nature of the Eucharist. Cardinal Kasper, the consummate ecumenist, openly acknowledges the progressivist arm of the Body of Christ is getting some things wrong. According to the article:

in the closing homily for the annual week of prayer for Christian unity, last January 25, Kasper said some things out of keeping with his reputation as a progressivist.

He made strong references to faith in Jesus Christ as the "only savior of all humanity" – in full agreement with the declaration "Dominus Iesus" published by Ratzinger in 2000 and bitterly contested by the advocates of dialogue – and continued:

"But is this reality still clear to all of us? Do we keep it well in mind during our discussions and reflections? Or do we not rather find ourselves in a situation in which our primary task, our greatest challenge, is to remember and reemphasize this common foundation, and prevent its being rendered meaningless by the so-called 'liberal' interpretations which define themselves as progressivist but are, in reality, subversive? Precisely at this moment, when everything is becoming relative and arbitrary in postmodern society, and everyone creates his own religion à la carte, we need a solid foundation and a common point of reference that will be trustworthy for our personal life and for our ecumenical work. And what foundation could we have, except Jesus Christ? Who better than He to guide us? Who can give us more light and hope than He can? Where, except in Him, can we find the words of life (cf. Jn. 6:68)?"

This is the central difficulty with ecumenism. Christ is being reduced to just another prophet or holy man. If this is to be the outcome of ecumenism, count me among the objectors. It’s grand to read the defense of Christ’s unique position in religious history coming from one who is heavily involved in ecumenism.

But there is more…

He denounces the trend in the Church today “of celebrating the mass without an ordained priest, due to the scarcity of priests or to an erroneous interpretation of the equality of all Christians.” Kasper is quoted:

"A celebration of the eucharist without the ministry of the priest is unthinkable. The ministry of the priest is integral to the celebration of the eucharist. This is also true in cases of extreme emergency. Wherever there have been situations of extreme persecution, in which it has not been possible to have a priest for years or for decades, we have never heard of a parish community or an individual group celebrating the eucharist by their own initiative, without a priest."

One would hope that would put “paid” to feminist liturgies. Wishful thinking, I suppose.

Our feminist nuns are not going to like this statement from the Cardinal, but I do:

The homily – Kasper says with support from the New Testament – must also be reserved to the priest. In absolutely exceptional cases a layman could address a "spiritual address" to the community, but this must always be "distinguishable from the homily."

Let us hope and pray that "absolutely exceptional" doesn't go down the road "extraordinary ministers" took.

Then there are his comments about the nature of the Mass:

Kasper contests the tendency to "interpret in a simple metaphorical and purely symbolic" sense the words of the consecration:

"The words of Jesus 'This is my body' and 'This is my blood' must be understood in the real sense, and in this sacramental sense we speak of the real presence; that is, the true, real, and substantial presence of Jesus Christ under the signs of bread and wine."

The cardinal contests the obfuscation of the mass as sacrifice and its reduction to a meal at which "the celebration of the eucharist is almost indistinguishable from a banquet or a party."

Yup! Right on target again. Is there some way to spread the word around the American Catholic parishes? Many of them have gotten this message. Many of them have not.

He addresses another pet peeve of mine, neglecting the worship of God transcendent in favor of worshipping God in my pew partner which reduces the Mass to a celebration of our humanity:

"The primary meaning of the eucharistic celebration is the 'cultus divinus', the glorification, adoration, praise, and exaltation of God in remembrance of his mighty deeds. This aspect becomes all the more difficult to understand in our society, which is focused upon human needs and their satisfaction. And yet, this is where lies the true reason for the crisis of the liturgy and the widespread inability to understand it. Neither the priestly ministry not (sic) the eucharist may be derived 'from below' and from the community. A reduction of the eucharist to its anthropological meaning would be a false renovation of the Church."

Oh yes! We are not God. Our needs do not come before His.

But he doesn’t stop there. He also says:

"The mass is not a 'service' which, following the law of supplication and offering, is oriented primarily according to the needs or desires of certain groups. It is not a means to an end, but rather an end in itself. It must not become a 'happening'. It is wrong to evaluate it on the basis of its capacity to entertain. The liturgical celebration must be animated, instead, by respect for the holy God and for the presence of our Lord in the sacrament. It must be a space for silence, reflection, adoration, and personal encounter with God."

No more rainbows. I don't suppose one could hope that this would put an end to the Communion hymn, so that we would be given a measure of silence in which we can actually interact with our Lord at this most important moment when He has come to be with us. That would truly be too much to hope for.

He reaffirms that the Eucharist is not available to anyone who happens to be in the Church, but rather it must not be disconnected from the Sacrament of Confession, and from the need to be Catholic.

He cites Bonhoffer:

"Cheap grace is, for Bonhoeffer, the cause of the Church's decline. The rediscovery and renewal of the character of the assembly and of the banquet of the eucharist have undoubtedly been important, and no intelligent person thinks of undoing them. But a superficial conception of these, detached from the cross and from the sacrament of penance, leads to the banalization of these aspects and to a crisis of the eucharist such as we are witnessing in the life of the Church today."

I can only hope that Cardinal Kasper’s statements will go to the heart of those in charge in American Catholic parishes. His words quoted in this article are so vital to the health of the Catholic faith. May God grant that none of our bishops search for weasel words to get around what has been written in this article. God must come first. Otherwise we might as well be atheists.

Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us!

Thanks to a reader for sending in the link.

AD MAJOREM DEI GLORIAM

If you're not a member of Roman Catholic Faithful and would like to read their Summer 2004 newsletter which targets Cdl. Roger Mahony, it's online here.

Thought provoking intro over there.

BUGABOO

David Kuo at Beliefnet debates the merits of an $800 stroller weighed against the statistics on world poverty, and manages by the end of the column to just about convince himself that $800 for a blue-chip stroller is acceptable even if it means that he spends more money on that piece of baby equipment than any one of the 3 billion people who are living in poverty have to spend on their needs for an entire year.

Sort of explains how the phrase "Ugly American" got to be so popular. We are talking serious discrepancies here.

BISHOP SHEEN DESCRIBES THE ANTICHRIST

The Antichrist will not be so called; otherwise he would have no followers. He will not wear red tights, nor vomit sulphur, nor carry a trident nor wave an arrowed tail as Mephistopheles in Faust. This masquerade has helped the Devil convince men that he does not exist. When no man recognizes, the more power he exercises. God has defined Himsel as "I am Who am," and the Devil as "I am who am not."

Nowhere in Sacred Scripture do we find warrant for the popular myth of the Devil as a buffoon who is dressed like the first "red." Rather is he described as an angel fallen from heaven, as "the Prince of this world," whose business it is to tell us that there is no other world. His logic is simple: if there is no heaven there is no hell; if there is no hell, then there is no sin; if there is no sin, then there is no judge, and if there is no judgment then evil is good and good is evil. But above all these descriptions, Our Lord tells us that he will be so much like Himself that he would deceive even the elect--and certainly no devil ever seen in picture books could deceive even the elect. How will he come in this new age to win followers to his religion?

The pre-Communist Russian belief is that he will come disguised as the Great Humanitarian; he will talk peace, prosperity and plenty not as means to lead us to God, but as ends in themselves. . . .
. . . The third temptation in which Satan asked Christ to adore him and all the kingdoms of the world would be His, will become the temptation to have a new religion without a Cross, a liturgy without a world to come, a religion to destroy a religion, or a politics which is a religion--one that renders unto Caesar even the things that are God's.

In the midst of all his seeming love for humanity and his glib talk of freedom and equality, he will have one great secret which he will tell to no one: he will not believe in God. Because his religion will be brotherhood without the fatherhood of God, he will deceive even the elect.

Imagine

Imagine there's no heaven,
It's easy if you try,
No hell below us,
Above us only sky,
Imagine all the people
living for today...

Imagine there's no countries,
It isnt hard to do,
Nothing to kill or die for,
No religion too,
Imagine all the people
living life in peace...

Imagine no possesions,
I wonder if you can,
No need for greed or hunger,
A brotherhood of man,
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...

You may say Im a dreamer,
but Im not the only one,
I hope some day you'll join us,
And the world will live as one.


Blogger credit to Novus Ordo Watch for the Sheen quote.

COMPLETELY SPOILED...

I used to think this was the best scotch in the world. That was before I tasted this one when my husband came home with a bottle of it recently. Now I'm completely spoiled for any other brand. And at the price, there is absolutely no danger I'll ever turn into a lush! ;)

A VARIETY OF HOMILIES...

Amy Welborn has opened a thread for comments about the Sunday homily each week in her blog. This week's variety is interesting. If you check in, be sure to read the comments about "Fr. Bubbles". It's bound to give you a greater appreciation for the homily you heard, assuming it was at least marginally orthodox.

There's also the little skit between the priest and the deacon, apparently orchestrated rather than spontaneous, with a curtain call later in the Mass that included the deacon's guitar which mysteriously appeared from behind the altar. It was probably entertaining, but hardly fits the concepts of "pius" or "sacred" or "prayer." But hey...what do I know?

I've stuck my own comment in there as well. Someone read it and emailed me to say that the saint, whose name I didn't catch when Father gave it, is Blessed Margaret of Castello.

And lastly, what is with the "Amazing Grace" Sunday? We didn't have that, but apparently is was sung in the majority of churches. We did have "Shepherd Me O God" which someone else mentioned.

THE EVER MORE INTERESTING JAMES TWYMAN

has found himself a rock and a shaman to go with it. Fr. John--sometimes known as Fr. Jozo Zovko--got into the act as well. It seems that the splitting of the rock was expected to coincide with the awakening of the Divine Feminine. So is she awake? Shaman Shri Naath Devi thinks the splitting of this rock is an indication the Mother has opened her arms to humanity.

In another website that is devoted to many positive comments made about Jacqueline Ripstein's artistry, James Twyman offers the leading critique. A bit further down the list is "Father Jozo Zovko, Franciscan Monastery, Bosnia Hercegovina, 1997". That would be "Fr. John." The same Fr. Jozo who is a spiritual adviser to the Medj. visionaries.

There are some other admirers of Ripstein as well--Marla Maples Trump, among them.

Fr. Zovko is quoted in Twyman's book where he is also referred to as Fr. John:

Maybe I should explain something. Though I am a priest, I have always known that I am also part of the 'Order of the Beloved Disciple.' I am, in the strictest sense of the word, a heretic in my own church. This is obviously not something I can talk about publicly, but it is true nonetheless. It has always been one of my goals to help reestablish the order. I also know that it has continued to this day, but only in total secrecy. It is a long-standing tradition that the communities pray for the evolution of humanity, as well as wait for the return of the Light of Christ. And this fits in perfectly with your Emissaries."

"And the fact that the Emissaries were in Bosnia makes sense as well, " I [Twyman] said. "If what you said is true, that Bosnia was the only country where the society was the official religion, then it explains why the Emissaries were there."

You can read the passage for yourself here. Twyman talks about Ripstein in the book as well.

Interestingly, Bosnia is the one place on earth where the Bogomil Heresy became the state religion. This website makes the claim. Others do as well. Bogomilism is a form of Catharism, and Catharism was called the Albigensian Heresy in France where it was the cause of a crusade.

According to Twyman and also according to the Catholic Encyclopedia, one key factor of this Heresy was the rejection of the priesthood. They also believed in suicide, rejected marriage, opposed having children, and believed there was a good God who created the heavens and the spiritual world, and an evil God who created the material universe. Some sources claim the word "Bogomil" was corrupted into "buggery" to reflect a Bogomil practice of intercourse that would not result in pregnancy.

In The Secret of the Beloved Disciple--the section titled "The Woman on the Hill of Apparitions"--Twyman visits the hill where Mary is said to have appeared, and while he is sitting there has a vision. He writes:

I could hear the sound of footsteps very close behind where I sat. If I waited much longer she would be at my side, and I wanted to look before then. When I turned it took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust, then I saw her. I gasped when I realized who it was, as if all the air suddenly went out of me. My eyes widened and I couldn't move.

"Hello. Do you remember me?" she smiled.

...She wore a brown suede jacket, jeans and leather boots. Her long hair was straight and blonde, falling loose behind her long thin neck.

A bit further along in the conversation, the woman in the vision explains her clothing this way:

"God always works in ways we can understand. To six Croatian children who know only their catechism, I appear as the Queen of Peace holding a rosary. To you...well, you can see that it's different. But the message is always the same. I have come to call people back to God, to ask them to convert their lives. But people don't understand what that means. Often they believe it means sacrifice and penance, but in reality it means to accept love over fear. To sacrifice and deny yourself engenders and promotes fear, it doesn't release it. God asks only that you release the blocks that have kept you away from love...that have kept you from realizing that you are one with the Divine.

Still further along, this woman in the vision tells Twyman:

In a very short time the whole world will see me flash through the sky with a tail of light....

And then she adds:

"The reason I am with you like this is because my whole teaching is contained in this form. Find God in the ordinary. Seek the Divine in each other, and within yourself. That's how the transformation begins. That's how you'll remember who you are--the Sacred Self that God perceives.

CELL CHURCH

If you've heard of it, you know more than I knew when I landed in this website. Basically what it amounts to is a cell group that meets in people's homes, with a group member who is essentially untrained, taking the lead. This group then gathers with other small groups on Sunday for Mass, but the basic identity as a believer is not with the church but rather with the small group.

The lilnked paper associates this with communism, and indicates it is an outgrowth of a Lusanne inspired AD 2000 and Beyond conference of some sort, and also indicates it was used in South America to respond to the priest shortage. Which means, I suppose, that since we are dealing with a priest shortage, we can expect it to come home to roost. This is not good news, and in fact the linked article is titled "Second Protestant Reformation".