Saving the family during revolutionary times

Tyler Nix – Unsplash

By Deacon Bob Ellis

Two years before his ascendancy to the Chair of Peter in 1978, Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, now St. John Paul II, spoke these words in an address in Philadelphia:

“I do not think that wide circles of American society or wide circles of the Christian community realize this fully.  We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-Church, of the Gospel versus the anti-Gospel.

“This confrontation lies within the plans of Divine Providence; it is a trial which the whole Church must take up. It is a trial of not only the Church, but, in a sense, a test of 2,000 years of culture and Christian civilization with all its consequences for human dignity, individual rights, human rights and the rights of nations.

“We must be prepared to undergo great trials in the not-too-distant future; trials that will require us to be ready to give up even our lives, and a total gift of self to Christ and for Christ.  Through your prayers and mine, it is possible to alleviate this tribulation, but it is no longer possible to avert it. How many times has the renewal of the Church been brought about in blood!  It will not be different this time.”

Those behind the violence now destroying our cities are trained Marxists dedicated to the ideology of Communist leader Karl Marx who, along with German communist philosopher Friedrich Engels, promoted the destruction, dissolution and abolition of the family. They are reaping the fruit of many years of redefining the family.  

The Family is anathema to the establishment and sustaining of the kind of Socialist/Communist societies, which are the objective of the radical left in the revolution taking place in our nation and around the world today. This renders the Family an endangered species in the radical left’s utopian national and world order.

It is both sobering and helpful to our understanding of what is happening in our nation today to recall the following quotes of Nikita Khrushchev:

“We can’t expect the American people to jump from capitalism to communism, but we can assist their elected leaders in giving them small doses of socialism, until they awaken one day to find that they have communism.”

“We do not have to invade the United States, we will destroy you from within.”

“We will take America without firing a shot … we will bury you!”

On the spiritual side of things, this short synopsis about the John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family reveals an ominous threat to the family as designed by the Creator.

At the conclusion of the 1980 Synod of Bishops devoted to the family, the Synod Fathers called for the creation of theological centers devoted to the study of the Church’s teaching on marriage and the family. Accordingly, Pope John Paul II responded to the Synod with the establishment of the Pontifical Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family and the Pontifical Council for the Family.

Cardinal Carlo Caffarra was commissioned by Pope John Paul II to establish the institute. Its establishment was to be announced at the Holy Father’s Wednesday audience on May 13, 1981. Because of the attempted assassination, the Institute’s Apostolic Constitution, Magnum Matrimonii Sacramentum, was instead given on Oct. 7, 1982, the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. On that occasion, the Institute was entrusted in a special way to the care of the most Blessed Virgin Mary under her title Our Lady of Fatima.

At the beginning of this work, the cardinal wrote a letter to Sister Lucia of Fatima requesting her prayers. She replied with a long letter, which is now in the institute’s archives in which she wrote: “The final battle between the Lord and the kingdom of Satan will be about Marriage and the Family. Do not be afraid,” she added, “because whoever works for the sanctity of Marriage and the Family will always be fought against and opposed in every way, because this is the decisive issue.” Then she concluded: “Nevertheless, Our Lady has already crushed his head.”

The 1980 Synod of Bishops devoted to the family strongly supported traditional families, while the 2014-2015 Synod of Bishops devoted to the family was much vaguer, leading to interpretations which defy the earlier positions held by the Church. Unfortunately, this lack of solid positioning has led to people doubting earlier teachings once thought to be unchangeable.

So how do we save and sustain the family?

It seems to me there are two dimensions we need to address. 1. We need to protect it from attacks by the revolution as it unfolds, and 2. Fortify it so that it can be sustained in the aftermath whether the revolution succeeds or fails. Our primary weapon of defense or protection, sustenance and fortification is singular – grace.

We all know that the primary sources of grace are the sacraments. But alas, they are no longer available to vast numbers thanks to the radical left’s co-opting of the Covid-19 pandemic and shutting down of our churches. They never let a crisis go to waste, do they? But we are not out of ammunition by a long shot.

The Rosary

First and foremost, pray the Rosary every day. Immediately following the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass it is the second most powerful prayer we have. Therefore, Our Lady asked for it during all of her apparitions at Fatima and so frequently calls us to it in so many of her other apparitions.

Sacramentals

“Holy Mother Church has, moreover, instituted sacramentals. These are sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments. They signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church. By them men are disposed to receive the chief effect of the sacraments, and various occasions in life are rendered holy.” (CCC 1667)

“…they can also respond to the needs, culture, and special history of the Christian people of a particular region or time… (CCC 1668)

 “…they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it.” (CCC 1670)

Since the destruction of the family is so essential to the success of the revolution, it is in most need of fortification. A family in which Jesus is King, Mary its Queen, and the members consecrated to them enjoys security beyond measure. We cannot say it is completely impenetrable, because, just like the rest of us, all its members are saddled with concupiscence and will fall from time to time. Nonetheless, its level of protection is beyond anything the world has to offer.

The apostolate’s Home Enthronement Program is the best means I know of to make Jesus Head and Mary Queen of the family and get members consecrated. Everything one needs to know about it is available on our website located here: https://archive.bluearmy.com/home-enthronement. Kristin Stravinsky, our National Home Enthronement chairperson, is happy to assist you.

Jesus and Mary can become the King and Queen of individual souls providing fortification for them as well and I strongly urge everyone to consider making them such. There are two methods of consecration and everything you need to know about both of them is on our website here: https://archive.bluearmy.com/total-consecration.

St. John Paul II told us in 1976 that it was not possible to avert the tribulation we are now experiencing, but he did say we could alleviate it. The keys to alleviation are the sacraments for those of you who can avail themselves and the sacramentals I have written about here for those of you who do not have access. I think it important to point out, however, that those of you who have access now would be well-advised to begin making use of sacramentals as well because, as the revolution progresses, the access you currently enjoy could evaporate in a flash.  

If you have a question or would like to discuss anything in this article further, I can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at 920-371-1931.

May God bless each of you and your families.

Deacon Bob Ellis is the National Coordinator of the World Apostolate of Fatima USA.

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