The Sanctity of Marriage and the Family
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I’d like to talk today about family issues, as we just celebrated the Feast of the Holy Family this past Sunday. Over the past 25 years or so, society’s definition of what constitutes a family has rapidly changed. We have gone from the model of one man, one woman and a child/children to two men, two women, etc. Most likely, in the future, the definition will grow to include one man and multiple women, one woman and multiple men, etc. If people in 1950 had been given a glimpse of the world in 2020, they wouldn’t have believed their eyes! How did an institution as old as civilization itself change so drastically and so quickly? Well, we were warned by Sr. Lucia of Fatima who predicted that the final battle between Christ and Satan would be over marriage and the family.
“Cardinal Carlo Caffarra, reported that Sr. Lucia sent him a letter with this prediction when he was Archbishop of Bologna, Italy. On Feb. 16, 2008, the Italian cardinal had celebrated a Mass at the tomb of Padre Pio, after which he gave an interview with Tele Radio Padre Pio. He was asked about the prophecy of Sister Lucia dos Santos that speaks about “the final battle between the Lord and the kingdom of Satan.” Cardinal Caffarra explained that Saint John Paul II had commissioned him to plan and establish the Pontifical Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family. At the beginning of this work, the cardinal wrote a letter to Sister Lucia of Fatima through her bishop, since he could not do it directly. “Inexplicably, since I did not expect a reply, seeing as I had only asked for her prayers, I received a long letter with her signature, which is now in the archives of the Institute,” the Italian cardinal said.
“In that letter we find written: ‘The final battle between the Lord and the kingdom of Satan will be about Marriage and the Family.’ Don't 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’.” Cardinal Caffarra added that “speaking again with John Paul II, you could feel that the family was the core, since it has to do with the supporting pillar of creation, the truth of the relationship between man and woman, between the generations. If the foundational pillar is damaged, the entire building collapses and we're seeing this now, because we are right at this point and we know it.” “And I am moved when I read the best biographies of Padre Pio,” the cardinal concluded, “about how this man was so attentive to the sanctity of marriage and the holiness of the spouses, even with justifiable rigor at times.”
Also, in a 1957 interview with Fr. Alonso Fuentes, on December 26, 1957, it was reported: “She [Sr. Lucia] was very sad, very pale and emaciated. She said to me [Fr. Fuentes]: “Father, the Most Holy Virgin is very sad because no one has paid any attention to Her message, neither the good nor the bad. The good continue on their way but without giving any importance to Her Message. The bad, not seeing the punishment of God actually falling upon them, continue their life of sin without even caring about the message. But believe me, Father, God will chastise the world and this will be in a terrible manner. The punishment from Heaven is imminent …[T]ell them Father, that many times, the Most Holy Virgin told my cousins Francisco and Jacinta, as well as myself, that many nations will disappear from the face of the earth. She said that Russia will be the instrument of chastisement chosen by Heaven to punish the whole world if we do not beforehand obtain the conversion of that poor nation… Father, the devil is in the mood for engaging in a decisive battle against the Blessed Virgin… he does everything to overcome souls consecrated to God, because in this way the devil will succeed in leaving the souls of the faithful abandoned by their leaders, thereby the more easily will he seize them. Tell them also Father, that my cousins Francisco and Jacinta sacrificed themselves because in all the apparitions of the Most Holy Virgin, they always saw Her very sad. She never smiled at us. This sadness, this anguish which we noted in Her penetrated our souls. This sadness is caused by the offenses against God … Sister Lucy also said to me: Father, we should not wait for an appeal to the world to come from Rome on the part of the Holy Father, to do penance. Nor should we wait for the call to penance to come from our bishops in our diocese, nor from the religious congregations. No! Our Lord has already very often used these means and the world has not paid attention. That is why now, it is necessary for each one of us to begin to reform himself spiritually. Each person must not only save his own soul but also all the souls that God has placed on our path…”
—Fr. Epperson
Announcements
MASS SCHEDULE FOR JANUARY 1ST (Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God):
Spanish Vigil Mass - Thursday (1/31) at 6:30 p.m.; English Masses 8:00 a.m. & 7:00 p.m.; Latin Mass - 5:30 p.m. All Masses, except the 7:00 p.m., will be live-streamed. A collection will be taken on this day.
2021 CHURCH CALENDARS: Due to a glitch with the publisher, our Calendars will not arrive until the last week of January. We are sorry for this inconvenience and will make them available after all Masses when they finally arrive!
MANY THANKS to those of you who have given a bit extra each week to help us with our deficit. We are steadily chipping away at it! The pandemic has hit us hard, for about two thirds of our parishioners are unable to come to Mass. This is just a reminder that on-line giving is quite easy to do. Just go to our website at www.steugenes.com and click the “GIVE” button. You can then use your credit card to make your donation. I would also urge those who may want to close out their tax year with a donation, to do it soon! Every little bit helps!
Parish Finances in the Age of Covid
As you all know, these are hard times for all parishes in terms of finances. Even though we are “shut down,” the bills keep coming in and salaries have to be paid. For those of you who have been giving a little extra each week/month, I really appreciate your generosity. For those of you who are unable to come to Mass, please consider giving on-line or the good old-fashioned way, by mail. Thank you and God bless you. Learn more »
Year to Date:
Income $671,104
Short fall $-9,783
THANK YOU to all of those parishioners who gave a bit extra to help us decrease our shortfall.
Please support our advertisers and let them know that you saw their listing in the Pastor’s Notes.
