Monday, December 26, 2022

The Gratitude Of The Woman

 

To My Readers: The last post of the year 2022 will be from my guest poster, Joanna From Poland. Thanks to Joanna and Lee helping me, this blog is able to continue with one well-written post each Monday. I hope all of you had a Holy Christmas, and may you all have the blessings of God upon you in 2023. Please feel free to comment as usual. If you have a specific question or comment for me, I will respond as always, but it may take a bit longer than usual for my reply this week.

God bless you all, my dear readers---Introibo

The Gratitude Of The Woman
By Joanna From Poland

As I am writing these words, we are on the eve of the last full week of Advent. Our minds and bodies have started to grow weary with penance while the post-Christian or rather anti-Christian world around us has been indulging in a full-blown celebration of the “holiday season” for weeks now. Stacks of Christmas decorations lay disorderly in our stores, having been thoroughly searched through by countless customers already, though the most frantic shopping days are probably yet to come. Ember Friday has been substituted by the so-called Black Friday where you go on an online hunt in pursuit of the best bargain. It certainly takes a lot of perseverance for Catholics today not to get swayed by the worldly idea that the “magic” of Christmastime lies in going on shopping sprees and humming “Christmas” tunes along the way.

As the bulk of Christmas preparations rest with the wife and mother, or the woman in general, it seems to me that it is also the ladies who must decide whether Christmas is celebrated in our homes according to the wishes of Our Lord and of His One True Church – and act accordingly. We simply owe it to Our Lord and with this post I would like to share with you some of the reasons that could inspire that gratitude towards God in us this coming Christmas.

There has been much talk of the so-called female liberation in the past decades. The Vatican II sect has been in the process of feminizing their false religion for years now and Bergoglio has certainly pushed things ahead when he officially allowed women to act as lectors and acolytes with his Motu (Ina)Proprio Spiritus Domini issued January 11, 2021. Obviously, the practice of having “altar girls” goofing around the table and female “Eucharistic ministers” has already been well-established in the Novus Ordo. All of this is naturally abominable to anyone who still retains even the remnants of Catholic sense, and does not mistake equality for equity.

One of the most prominent figures of the Novus Ordo who failed to grasp that distinction in terms was John Paul II. In his Letter to Women, issued in relation to the Fourth World Conference on Women, sponsored by the United Nations, and held in Beijing in 1995, having first expressed his deep appreciation to the UN for the organization of this “very significant event,” he states that “as far as personal rights [of women] are concerned, there is an urgent need to achieve real equality [emphasis in the original text] in every area," adding that this is “a matter of justice." 

(See: https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/letters/1995/documents/hf_jp-ii_let_29061995_women.html)

Just to give you a short overview of what that very significant event heartily endorsed by the then chief apostate in the Vatican aimed to accomplish, here’s an excerpt taken from one of the UN-run websites:

The 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing marked a significant turning point for the global agenda for gender equality. The Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action, adopted unanimously by 189 countries, is an agenda for women’s empowerment and considered the key global policy document on gender equality.

A section of that declaration says the following with regards to the “Human Rights of Women”:

223. (…) the Fourth World Conference on Women reaffirms that reproductive rights rest on the recognition of the basic right of all couples and individuals to decide freely and responsibly the number, spacing and timing of their children and to have the information and means to do so, and the right to attain the highest standard of sexual and reproductive health. It also includes their right to make decisions concerning reproduction free of discrimination, coercion, and violence, as expressed in human rights documents.

Try squaring that with the true Magisterium of the Church expressed in the encyclical on marriage, divorce, and birth control “Casti Connubii” by Pope Pius XI (which, at the time of its release in 1931, was re-printed in full by… the New York Times! Times certainly have changed…).

As we are (hopefully) preparing ourselves spiritually for the joyous and thankful celebration of the Nativity of Our Lord, let us first consider the state of the world before the first coming of Christ, and – in particular – the position of the woman in the pre-Christian society.

Arguing that the restoration of the world through Christianity proves its divine origin, Fr. Stanislaw Bartynowski S.J. in his textbook on Catholic apologetics (1939 Imprimatur) gives an apt description of the world and society before Christ:

Errors with regards to the most basic philosophical and moral issues were dominant everywhere, except for the people of Israel. Only the Israelites worshipped the true God – all of the other nations venerated nature and prostrated before stones and trees, made by their own hands. The entire earth was a vast temple of idols, in which, according to Bossuet’s words: all was God, except for God Himself. Even the most civilized and mentally-developed nations were no less backward in terms of religion than the savage ones. People lost their sense of morality to such an extent that they would adore iniquity in public: each passion and every kind of cruelty had its guardian deity that was venerated by the practice of the corresponding iniquity; thus, pagan temples became places of utmost scandal. Whereas, real virtue, such as charity was regarded as a vice by Seneca or Plautus; honest labor was the object of scorn – according to Aristotle and Plato, an occupation unbecoming of a man since “everyone who has respect for himself” should lead an idle life, as Terence wrote.

As a result of such a revolution in concepts and degeneration of morals, the holiest of man’s affections disappeared – justice and honesty were unheard of and the dignity of man trampled upon. Thus, contempt for human nature was formed. For instance, the father as the master of life and death in his family, could either acknowledge a child as his own or reject it, nay, even kill it with impunity. Seneca regarded this as a just thing to do and, according to Quintilian, the killing of one’s own child was supposed to be a beautiful deed!... [Quintilian was a Roman educator or pedagogue, living in 35-100 A.D. – so much for the rights of children in pagan Rome] Woman was deprived of her honor and regarded as something lower than man. Thus, the wife was the first among her husband’s female slaves, whom he could dispose of at any moment. The family was abused amidst such relations, and the hearth and home shattered by polygamy.

The society became such as were its members: criminal and unhappy. The lust for living it up and the egoism of the mighty caused abject poverty of the poorer classes, which was conducive to all kinds of crime. Major part of the population found themselves in the most pitiful conditions of all, being deprived of their civil rights, nay, even, their human rights… Those were the unfortunate slaves, used for the hardest labor, treated like animals by their masters to be sold or killed on a whim. They could at any time be thrust into the amphitheater to be devoured by lions and tigers…  such spectacles would take a heavy toll of about thirty thousand victims each year!

Liberty in the state was known only by its name, the citizen had no freedom – he was regarded as nothing in the face of the god-state, that could at any moment demand the sacrifice of the citizen’s property, liberty, and life. State orders, though inhumane, were thought to be good and just. The tyranny of the mighty was a substitute for all law – as a consequence, all respect for authority vanished, and those in power could never be sure whether they would live or not… In a word, the law of the fist was the only norm of conduct.

Generally speaking: overabundance and the violation of all that is law at the top, with debasement and slavery of the lowest classes – such is the image of the pagan society before the coming of Christ.

In particular, people were so much accustomed to the corruption and bloody lawlessness which would outrage any honest man today, that neither the lawgivers, nor the philosophers and poets cared at all to raise the world from this moral abyss.

How different is this description of the world immersed in sin and blinded by paganism from the alleged glorious image of ancient civilizations peddled by the media today.

Such was the miserable state of humanity more than 2,000 years ago. Without becoming overly apocalyptic, we can safely assume that the modern world bears a striking resemblance to the one in which the Incarnate Word was to be made flesh and born of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the cold stable of Bethlehem. The general falling away from the Catholic Faith in the aftermath of Vatican II has led many to adopt the pagan ideas of old – if not in theory, then certainly in deed. Nature abhors a vacuum, and human nature is no exception to that rule. Most people who consider themselves educated and intelligent sincerely believe that it is imperative that we stop burning fossil fuels so as to “save the planet” but shrug their shoulders at the thought of innocent babies being murdered in their mothers’ wombs at an unprecedented rate.

If human dignity as such was utterly destroyed in the pre-Christian era, the position of the woman was particularly pitiful. Fr. Jozef Stanislaw Adamski thus outlines the lot of the weaker sex in the pagan world in his book The Dignity and Mission of the Christian Woman (1922):

The originally beautiful and noble creature of God – the woman – was basically devastated. God has, since the dawn of time, clearly defined the position and the mission of women. He provided the first couple in Paradise with mutual unity and love. The woman was no stranger to the man, much less was she lower than him or insignificant. (…) Therefore, the very means of creating her should inspire in her husband the love for her, should make him sacrifice himself for her, and respect her. God set His goal for the woman clearly: she was to be the man’s helper, being similar to him, having the same nature and value as he has – the alike helper (adjutorium simile). God demanded of him limitless sacrifice for her: “wherefore a man shall leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife” (Gen. 2: 24). Such was the original work of God: kind, gentle, harmonious, fertile, and powerful.

However, man destroyed this wondrous work, and put his own monstrosity in its place. In the place of union and love, he introduced tyranny – the woman was supposed to cater to his base lust like a slave. Having humiliated the woman, man started to despise her; deprived her of the due honor, denied the position assigned to her by God, devised laws against her – wicked and cruel ones – which deprived the woman of the dignity of a human being which left her to fall prey to all kinds of injustice. The man, instead of putting his own strength and the energy of his sacrifice at the service of her weakness, took advantage of her feebleness in order to subjugate her completely and destroy her. God called her the mother of the living, gave her the right to bear and educate her children, but the man took away even this most crucial right from her! In the most enlightened Rome in the full bloom of civilization under the emperor Augustus only the free women were defended from violence by the law – [a man] was free to do with his female slaves whatever he pleased. The woman was denied her civic laws; she was held in custody her entire life. As a daughter, she was her father’s possession who could kill her or sell her and offer her hand in marriage without her consent. The woman was underage her entire life – from her father’s slavery she was passed under the hand (sub manum) of her husband as his daughter (filiae loco), for her husband to regard her as an object. According to the Lex Voconia [the Roman law of inheritance passed in 169 B.C.], she was denied her father’s inheritance even if she was a single child. In relation to her husband, the woman was a servant, a slave, allocated to the lowest works. The role of the slave was so eagerly accepted by the disgraced woman that, after having served her entire life, she would commit suicide on her husband’s grave as it was the case in India or among the Gaul tribes, not because she wanted to be happy in the life to come (paganism did not regard women as being worthy of happiness), not because she wished to accompany her husband – but in order to serve him still in the afterlife!

Not very different was the fate of the woman among the Slavonic peoples, in Poland. In order to understand the sad lot of the woman, suffice to say that polygamy was a common practice. Once introduced into the house and handed over under the authority of her husband, the woman awaited a most painful fate. Only yesterday [that is, before she was married] was she so respected that if any man should come into contact with her, it was regarded as her being defiled. She was believed to be a creature so pure and exalted that she would be called a diva, a kind of a goddess who could at any moment take the honorific place of a priestess and a seer in the pagan temple of ancient Slavs – now she is called names such as the one who does not know, cast into the cabin of the savage master of her life and death. The husband, dissatisfied with a daughter being born, would (many times before the mother’s eyes) grab an ax and kill the baby – woe to the mother if she dared weep or complain! (…) Such is the fate [of the woman] today in places where the rays of the Gospel have not reached yet or the warmth of which cannot be felt any longer.

Indeed, the paragraphs quoted above express to some degree the present condition of the woman in today’s world which had known Christ and His One True Church yet rejected Him, and fell once again into the pits of sin. Isn’t the so-called “liberated” woman a slave to her own wicked passions when she is willing to walk the streets with lewd banners in support of her “right” to kill her own unborn baby? Isn’t she complacent with her own enslavement when, working all week as a clerk in the supermarket, grumbles at the prospect of having a free Sunday due to the state legislation on restricting public commerce on that day?

Let us now consider, Fr. Adamski continues, how Our Savior raises the woman up from her debasement and ennobles her. (…) Christ Our Lord elevates the woman in Holy maternity. Oh, how wondrous, how lovely is the scene that begins the work of our redemption! The angel – sent to the woman - descends from heaven; he comes to arrange with her the greatest work of God destined to regenerate and save the human race. He solemnly declares that she is full of grace; at her feet homage is paid; heaven and earth awaits her consent for the work in which she is to play the most crucial part. What an amazing and most marvelous turn of events this is! What glory; what a wonderful restoration of the woman! At once, the woman who groaned under the weight of most shameful slavery, stands at the unparalleled heights, at the highest throne of heaven right next to God-Man. “The queen stood on thy right hand, in gilded clothing; surrounded with variety” (Ps. 44:10).

Our Savior raises the woman up illuminating her with innocence and grace. The Virgin Mother, the Mother of God inaugurated the liberation and elevation of the woman with unsurpassed charm and light. Still, in order to lift the woman up something more was needed since the long ages of pain and ruin had deprived her of the freshness of her original innocence and the strength of her native virtue. Lo! At Christ’s feet there kneels a woman, representing the degradation of the female, shedding profuse tears of contrition at the feet of God-Man, Who, before the spectators’ eyes, restores her good name, and, to some degree, illuminates her with the original innocence. Jesus not only says to her: “thy sins are forgiven thee” but also praises her fervent faith, extols her magnanimous charity, and the service of her boundless sacrifice. The purified and sanctified woman is led by the Holy Savior to the heights of heroism. During the horrifying passion of Christ, when His flock was scattered, when men – the Apostles, except for St. John – desert Jesus, the woman takes their place at Calvary, fearlessly facing the rage of the murderers of God and gathers in a way the last drops of His Blood!

(…)

Our Savior dignifies the woman with the honors of the hearth and home. Those rays of God in which Christ clothed the woman who became His spouse in the religious life, are shining also beyond the cloister, and are spread throughout the entire world. From that time on the mother of the family has occupied a prominent and wide place in the home, guaranteed her by the Christian right of sacramental marriage. The woman is a spouse inseparably joined with her husband. Here does she reign – and if the Apostle reminds her of her duty to be obedient to her husband (Col 3:18), then it is the obedience full of glory which does not violate any of her rights. Now, she is the one who educates her children who acknowledge in her the most tender and sacred authority and prestige.

Our Savior consecrates and dedicates the woman to great works in the society. (…) From the early centuries of Christianity, where events of great importance have been taking place, there have been found a Christian woman. Constantine is aided by [his mother] Helena; Theodosius  had [his daughter] Eudoxia and [sister] Pulcheria; Clotilde [a Catholic princess who remained Catholic despite the Arianism of her court] converts Clovis [the first king of the Franks whose baptism in 496 unified the Frankish tribes; he is regarded by the French as the founder of France]; Blanche transforms her son into St. Louis; Doubravka [a Bohemian princess] brings the light of the Faith into Poland [with her husband, Mieszko I, being baptized in 966 thus consolidating the once-pagan tribes and giving rise to the first independent and Christian Polish state, the Duchy of Poland], and Hedwig [or Jadwiga of Poland, the first woman to be crowned as monarch of the Kingdom of Poland in 1384] brings the Faith into Lithuania. On the throne as well as on the lowest steps of the social ladder, the woman, lifted up by Christ, becomes a heroic creature, eager for the highest sacrifice, a fearless aide, whether she is called “the good duchess” Elizabeth of Hungary or Genevieve, the humble Parisian shepherdess, or the Maid of Orleans, Joan, sent by God to free France (…). Fr. Ventura rightly states that “popes, apostolic men, founders of religious congregations, saintly priests and lay people, even kings who were not saints, would have accomplished nothing sacred, great, beautiful, useful in the interest of the faith or morals, nay, even the material prosperity of peoples without the cooperation in this or that way of a Catholic woman: if that woman – for her part - was thoroughly Catholic and – apart from her lofty virtues - she would have a profound and extensive knowledge of religion; if she would shine with impeccability”. (…)

May the women craving for unhealthy emancipation remember just what they owe to Christianity, without which the slavery and shame of old awaits them!...

Conclusion

Although people like Karol Wojtyla may have envisaged that the great process of women’s liberation (…) is still unfinished, true Catholics surely know better than that. Ladies, we’ve already been liberated! Let us give thanks this Christmas to the One who truly liberated us, male and female alike, having broken the chains of our pagan captivity, snatching us with His own Precious Blood from the shadow of death, and having illumined the entire world with the light of the True Catholic Faith which we must preserve and spread according to our abilities in these trying times of near universal apostasy. May our gratitude to Jesus Christ, our greatest Heavenly Benefactor be ever renewed in our hearts, especially as we kneel in our churches, our chapels, and our homes before the crib of Our Redeemer in the midst of the world which “knew him not.”  Merry Christmas!

Monday, December 19, 2022

Montessori Education And Indifferentism

 


In 2018, I published a post regarding the occult dangers inherent in Waldorf Schools; I also discussed same with Mr. Kevin Davis of the always excellent Catholic Family Podcast. 

(See catholicfamilypodcast.podbean.com/e/waldorf-schools-and-occultism).

(See also introiboadaltaredei2.blogspot.com/2018/06/an-education-in-evil.html).

I was a middle school science teacher here in New York City prior to becoming a lawyer. However, my research into Waldorf Schools was recent and not from my studies in education. Both as an undergraduate and graduate student, my classes centered on traditional public school education. Only a brief and shallow overview was given regarding Waldorf and Montessori methods of learning, and we were never tested on it. I therefore took at face value what my professors claimed as true of these alternate methods of imparting knowledge. 

One of my readers suggested that if I looked deeper into Montessori Schools, I would find disturbing truths there as well. Dr. Maria Tecla Artemisia Montessori (1870-1952) was born in Italy, and became the first Italian woman to earn a medical degree from the University of Rome. As a doctor, Montessori became involved in the treatment of children with disabilities and devised a special method of treating and educating them. Her method soon proved suitable for more general application and became known as the Montessori Method. I was a bit skeptical that I would find something wrong, as Dr. Montessori had always been presented as a devout Catholic and she wrote a book explaining the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass to children. 

Nevertheless, I've come to expect the unexpected, and when I dug beneath the surface, Maria Montessori proved to be deceptive, and her pedagogy is rife with problems. This post will deal with Montessori and the educational system that bears her name.  

What is Montessori Education?

According to one Montessori website, the conventional method is explained thus:

Montessori is a scientifically based education approach that emphasizes independence, freedom within limits, and respect for a child’s natural psychological, physical, and social development. It was developed by Italian physician and educator Maria Montessori.

Montessori education is based on the belief that all children are unique individuals, that they all have immense potential, that they want to learn and be busy. Therefore the teacher needs to guide each child through the learning process by using materials that fit their specific needs and pace.

A Montessori education is based on the seven principles:

FREE CHOICE

Learning and well-being are improved when children have a sense of control over their lives. Although Montessori programs impose definite limits on this freedom, children are free to make many more decisions than are children in traditional classrooms: what to work on, how long to work on it, with whom to work on it, and so on.

ORDER

Recent research in psychology has proven that order in the environment is indeed very helpful to learning and development. Montessori classrooms are very organized, both physically (in terms of lay-out) and conceptually (in terms of how the use of materials progresses).

INTEREST

Your gut feeling is right: Research has shown that when people learn with the goal of doing well on a test, their learning is superficial and quickly forgotten. Children (and yes, adults, too) learn better when they are interested in what they are learning.

LEARNING FROM PEERS

Children in Montessori classrooms learn by imitation models, through peer tutoring, and in collaboration. In mixed age classes, younger children learn from older ones by asking them questions while watching them work. Older children who are teaching younger children repeat and consolidate their knowledge and skills and obtain social skills.

MOVEMENT

Our brains evolved in a world in which we move and do, not a world in which we sit at desks. Movement and cognition are closely entwined. Education, therefore, would involve movement to enhance learning.

CONTEXT

Rather than learning largely from what teachers and texts say to them, children in Montessori programs learn largely by doing. Because they are doing things, rather than merely hearing and writing, their learning is situated in the context of actions and objects. For example, children go out of the classroom and into the world to research their interests.

TEACHER GUIDANCE

Montessori teachers provide clear limits but set children free within these boundaries. They sensitively respond to children’s needs while maintaining high expectations. This kind of ‘authoritative parenting’ seeks a middle ground between a traditional, authoritarian attitude (“Do it because we say so”) and an overly permissive, child-centered approach of other progressive schools.

(See montessorimallorca.org/montessori-seven-principles). 

This is what is commonly sold to parents. However, there is no proof that Montessori education is in any way superior to traditional methods. In Nature, a peer-reviewed article entitled Montessori education: a review of the evidence base [2017] by Chloe Marshall, had this to say:

There are few peer-reviewed evaluations of Montessori education, and the majority have been carried out in the USA. Some have evaluated children’s outcomes while those children were in Montessori settings, and others have evaluated Montessori-educated children after a period of subsequent conventional schooling. As a whole this body of research suffers from several methodological limitations. (See nature.com/articles/s41539-017-0012-7; Emphasis mine). 

So there is no definitive evidence that Montessori Schools will better educate children. Some religious parents send their children to such a school because if Dr. Montessori developed the methods, they must be based on Catholic principles. Nothing could be further from the truth. 

Maria Montessori: Modernist and Occultist

Maria Montessori was raised in a devout Catholic home. She received a papal blessing from Pope Benedict XV (r. 1914-1922) and published The Mass Explained to Children in 1933. In accordance with Italian law, her first schools taught the One True Faith (Catholicism was the State religion). These are the parts of her life that get touted, and the appearance of a "good Catholic" served her well. What she really believed and did tell another story.

Montessori joined Theosophy, the occult sect of Madame Helena Blavatsky, founded in 1875. Theosophy, among other tenets,  teaches that knowledge of God may be achieved through spiritual ecstasy, or direct intuition, known as vital immanence, a teaching of Modernism. Theosophy also teaches reincarnation and incorporates many pagan Hindu ideas. According to Joy Dixon, Divine Feminine: Theosophy and Feminism in England, [2001], pgs. 3-4, Theosophy has as its goal "to form a nucleus of the Universal Brotherhood of Humanity without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste or color." (Emphasis mine). 

According to The Theosophical Society in America:

MARIA MONTESSORI had her first acquaintance with Theosophy, early in the twentieth century, when she went to hear Annie Besant speak in London in 1907 after Montessori had established her first Casa dei Bambini (i.e., Children's House). Annie Besant spoke in praise of Montessori's work in education which pleased Montessori, and thus sealed their friendship...

My own acquaintance with Montessori began through the Theosophical Society and reading her writings. In 1940, when I was seven years old, my family moved to a farm northeast of Ann Arbor, Michigan. My father's dream was to make it a Theosophical community and, for a while, it was. In 1956 my former sister-in-law, Barbara Bailey, and I started the first Montessori school in Michigan. In 1970, I took the Montessori Elementary training course for teachers in Bergamo, Italy and while there learned that some of the Montessori Elementary educational materials had been designed while Montessori was in India. (Hindu/Theosophy influence; See theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/42-publications/quest-magazine/1409-montessori-and-the-theosophical-society; Emphasis mine). 

Following her death in 1952, the [Theosophical] Society President, C. Jinarajadasa, reported that Maria Montessori did in fact join the Theosophical Society on May 23, 1899. Her original application had been found by the Recording Secretary's Office at Adyar. There being no Italian Section the time, Montessori joined the European Section and was admitted by the General Secretary, Mr Otway Cuffe. Her membership was later dropped... 

It is now clear, however, that Montessori's connection with Theosophy was older than the Method. The Dottoressa [i.e., female medical doctor] thus may have been influenced by early Theosophical literature on education. Indeed, in 1889 one of the Society's founders, the Russian mystic Madame Blavatsky, seemed almost to prophesy the future Montessori Children's Houses in the slums of Rome: I quite agree that there is a great advantage to a small child bred in the slums, having the gutter for playground, and living amid continued coarseness of gesture and word, in being placed daily in a bright, clean school-room hung with pictures, and often gay with flowers. There it is taught to be clean, gentle, orderly; there it learns to sing and play; has toys that awaken its intelligence; learns to use its fingers deftly; is spoken to with a smile instead of a frown; is gently rebuked or coaxed instead of cursed. All this humanizes the children, arouses their brains, and renders them susceptible, to intellectual and moral influences.

It is unlikely that the fiercely independent Dottoressa would have enabled Theosophists to claim her as their own by admitting that she had once been a member of their Society, or that she had been inspired by the writings of Madame Blavatsky. Montessori had also returned to Catholicism and Theosophy, with its belief in Karma and reincarnation, 'has been categorized "as being at heart Hindu" and hence antithetical to Catholic orthodoxy'.  Indeed Jinarajadasa presumed that Montessori failed to acknowledge the efforts of the Theosophical Society in furthering her work, particularly in India, 'because she was a Roman Catholic, and to have mentioned the work of 'The Theosophical Society', would have drawn upon her the wrath of the Catholic hierarchy'. 

(See kelpin.nl/fred/download/montessori/english/theosophist.pdf; History of Education Society Bulletin (1985) Vol. 36 pp 52 -54 "Montessori was a Theosophist;" Emphasis mine). 

During the reign of Pope St. Pius X (1903-1914), many theologians suspect of Modernism held Montessori in high esteem. She was a leading proponent of feminism, and denigrated marriage and motherhood. In an article entitled Dr. Maria Montessori, Feminist, the doctor is quoted as saying:

...the woman of the future will have equal rights as well as equal duties…Family life as we know it may change, but it is absurd to think the feminism will destroy maternal feelings. The new woman will marry and have children out of choice, not because matrimony and maternity are imposed on her.(See thenewinquiry.com/blog/dr-maria-montessori-feminist). 

The idea that marriage and family are "imposed" by society, and is not a vocation from God, can only be described as repugnant. The 1917 Code of Canon Law, Canon 1013, section 1 states: "The primary end of marriage is the procreation and education of children. Its secondary end is mutual help and the allaying of concupiscence." It's easier to understand her position when you know she conceived a son with a fellow doctor via fornication. They agreed not to marry, and Montessori put her son Mario into foster care to continue her career. Later, he would work with her when he was an adult. 

Montessori spent time in India, and let her occultism show full force. In an age without computers and easy communication, Montessori felt safe in the pagan country. (I have seen pictures of her sporting the Hindu "bindi"—-a red dot in the middle of the forehead that symbolizes the pagan/occult "third eye"). She wrote for the Theosophy Journal in India, and became convinced of Indifferentism (i.e., one religion is as good as another as they all contain some truth--Vatican II anyone?). 

Montessori stated: Just as language has many expressions: English, Swedish, Swahili, and so forth, so does elevation express itself by way of different creeds: Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and many different belief systems in order to communicate with and about God. 

(See lifesongmontessori.com/montessori-philosophy.html). 

Also, she believed in the Modernist doctrine of vital immanence: We must remember that religion is a universal sentiment which is inside everybody and has been inside every person since the beginning of the world. It is not something which we must give to the child. (See The Child, Society and the World: Unpublished Speeches and Writings by Montessori; Emphasis mine). 

Vital immanence is a doctrine of the Modernists forcefully condemned by Pope St. Pius X:

However, this Agnosticism is only the negative part of the system of the Modernist: the positive side of it consists in what they call vital immanence. This is how they advance from one to the other. Religion, whether natural or supernatural, must, like every other fact, admit of some explanation. But when Natural theology has been destroyed, the road to revelation closed through the rejection of the arguments of credibility, and all external revelation absolutely denied, it is clear that this explanation will be sought in vain outside man himself. It must, therefore, be looked for in man; and since religion is a form of life, the explanation must certainly be found in the life of man. Hence the principle of religious immanence is formulated. Moreover, the first actuation, so to say, of every vital phenomenon, and religion, as has been said, belongs to this category, is due to a certain necessity or impulsion; but it has its origin, speaking more particularly of life, in a movement of the heart, which movement is called a sentiment. Therefore, since God is the object of religion, we must conclude that faith, which is the basis and the foundation of all religion, consists in a sentiment which originates from a need of the divine. This need of the divine, which is experienced only in special and favorable circumstances, cannot, of itself, appertain to the domain of consciousness; it is at first latent within the consciousness, or, to borrow a term from modern philosophy, in the subconsciousness, where also its roots lies hidden and undetected. (See Pascendi Dominici Gregis, para. #7; Emphasis mine).

Montessori's Indifferentism is Inherent in the Curriculum

Once Catholic countries were destroyed by Vatican II, Montessori Schools wasted no time implementing their founder's poison:

As you would expect of an Italian woman at the turn of the twentieth century, Dr. Montessori grew up in the Catholic faith and its influence can be clearly observed throughout her life: threaded throughout all of her work are the unshakeable beliefs in the sanctity of the human spirit, the fraternity of all humankind, and the pursuit of peace as the noblest effort we must undertake.

Already during her studies and especially after the success of her early work, Dr. Montessori began to travel extensively. During her lifetime she met with leaders in all areas of human accomplishments: scientists, artists, political and religious leaders, and those encounters and relationships deeply influenced her work and thinking. It is unclear how exactly Dr. Montessori’s religious beliefs continued to develop as she kept this part of her life private, but there is evidence she came to a principal dissent with the Catholic church, and also that she had meaningful ties to non-European religions and even esoteric philosophies, particularly through the Theosophic Society.

Ultimately though, as they say, the proof is in the pudding, and the legacy Dr. Montessori left us is one of profound humanism. Now, as a century ago, her work encourages and empowers children and adults alike to celebrate, develop and uphold our shared humanity.

In Montessori theory, spirituality is listed as of the the five fundamental human tendencies: alongside and interconnected with the other four (work, exploration, group behavior and the mathematical mind) it is understood as one of the universal drives shaping our shared human experience. The four chief aspects of Spirituality, usually given as Art, Music, Dance and Religion (including its secular, atheist or humanistic manifestations), are considered as present and innate to every human culture throughout the history of our existence.  Dr. Montessori thus explicitly named religious and spiritual life as something that connects us rather than divides us.

Most Montessori schools choose to present religion as a part of our cultural curriculum, both in the set materials and resources present in the classroom, and through actively involving the student body. As we encourage children from different language, ethnic or national backgrounds to study, share and celebrate each others heritage, so do we invite them to share their faiths, if they wish to: students are invited to bring photographs, artifacts, special clothing or stories and songs to the classrooms and learn to share their unique identity with pride.

Some schools (especially international schools with a diverse student body) organize cultural fairs when students act as ambassadors of their nations and cultures and teach attendees about them, including their faith backgrounds. Festivals and events are held as a way to honor and explore each other’s heritage. The same school might thus have special activities to celebrate Diwali, Mawlid, Hanukkah, Christmas and Chinese New Year in quick succession, allowing its students to experience wonder and beauty in each. (See montessoriparenting.org/montessori-and-religion: Emphasis mine).

Conclusion

Dr. Maria Montessori was a Modernist and occultist posing as a Catholic. Her teaching methodology is based on the false ideas that one religion is as good as another, and all children have a universal sentiment inside that lets them experience God. There is no body of research to prove Montessori education is in any way superior to traditional education. Save your money and your child's soul by keeping them out of these learning institutions. Warn other parents who send their children to a Montessori School. After learning about Dr. Maria Montessori, I'll be putting my copy of The Mass Explained to Children next to my Fulton Sheen Missal, in my library section "Know Thy Enemy."

Monday, December 12, 2022

The Dangers Of Randonautica

 

To My Readers: This week's post is a most fascinating contribution by my guest poster Lee. Please feel free to comment as usual. If you have a specific comment or question for me, I will respond as always, but it may take me a bit longer to do so this week. 

God bless you all, my dear readers---Introibo

Dangers of Randonautica
By Lee


I'm sure many have heard the old saying, "if you play with fire, you will get burned." With that said, the best way to avoid getting harmed is to not play. Unfortunately, curiosity always kills the cat (more on that below) and with a world centered around me, myself, and I, millions of people have shown interest in a new hobby that they can download on their Android or iPhone called Randonautica.

What is it?

First launched on February 22, 2020 by Joshua Lengfelde, Randonautica is an app downloaded on a mobile device which allows a user to look for adventure in real time. The user must set an intention that they wish to look for and from there be given a random GPS signal of an exact location for the user to pursue. Wherever the location may be is what the user is expected to find once they arrive at their destination, so long as they follow the map. The whole purpose of Randonautica is, according to the official website, "used as a tool to enhance human experience with novelty by mindfully exploring the world and to venture outside their day-to-day routine."

The mobile app was programed under quantum physics and with "spirituality" in mind. According to quantum mechanics, a small change in your life can set off a series of unpredictable effects.

It's also important to note that the user has three types of locations to choose from;  Attractor, Void, and Anomaly. The Attractor type means that there is a dense area of all sorts of potential clusters of quantum points. The term quantum point describes random numbers that have been converted into a coordinate location in a densely populated area near the users surroundings that could pick up a lot of energy. The Void type is thought of being the opposite meaning with low density quantum points which would be places that have lesser populations of people. The Anomaly type is considered the strongest type of location to visit, especially if the user has a strong intention and is determined to find specific answers.

Needless to say, many videos on YouTube and other social media platforms have countless people recording different experiences with the app. There are times a person will end up finding nothing of significance, like being sent on a wild goose chase. However, more so than not, there have been many occasions where the app on the phone will find strange objects in connection to a past event, unusual or scary people, or horrifying places that should altogether be avoided. It's even been known to find things like pets that have been abandoned and where nobody would be able to find them.

Creepy Examples

​Number 1

An article from the National Post reveals:

"A group of teenagers in Seattle found a suitcase containing human remains near a shoreline after a popular smartphone app, Randonautica, prompted them to explore the area.

The group had been filming their explorations and posted a video to TikTok, a social media platform. User @ughhenry posted the TikTok on June 20 and it shows the group stumbling upon a small, black suitcase.

At first, childish laughs permeate the video as they initially think it’s filled with money, a caption reads. Egged on by the group, one girl opens the top and lifts it from a distance using a wooden stick, revealing a black plastic bag filled with something.

“As soon as she opened it, the smell was overwhelming,” read one of the video captions.

They then called the police, the video shows. The next clip shows police and fire trucks surrounding the beach.

Seattle police later confirmed the contents inside the suitcase were human remains and said investigators had found several other bags in the area, also body parts.

KING 5, a local news outlet, reported the remains belonged to 35-year-old Jessica Lewis and 27-year-old Austin Wenner. Both died on June 16 from multiple gunshot wounds. Seattle police said the case is still an open homicide investigation.

Randonautica told BuzzFeed News it was “shocked at the very unfortunate coincidence.”

“Our first reaction was to reach out to the teenagers to make sure they were doing alright. We sent a message letting them know the intention of Randonautica is not to find something disturbing like this,” it said.

The exploring app has gained popularity since much of the world entered lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The app generates random coordinates in a user’s general vicinity that the user, called a Randonaut, can then travel to. The idea is meant to encourage a “choose your own adventure” reality game."

Number 2

Another example caught on video by a man named Bryan from Texas shared a Tik Tok video where one night he was led to a destination near his home where the Randonautica app brought him. It was a street corner just few blocks from his apartment building.

When he arrived, nothing out of the ordinary happened for a few minutes as he looks around until he started searching around the ground. Near a telephone pole he spots a California license of a man. It had expired 16 years prior.

When Bryan went home to do some research on the man to see if he could return his license to him he discovers that the man on the license was in a shootout with the police back in 2001 where he ended up passing away from his injuries. Police were looking for him because he was involved in the murderer of two people near the very apartment building where Bryan lived. He also died in the area of where he found his expired license.

Number 3

A teen named Mykena on TikTok shared a video of themselves immediately following their Randonautica quest. In the video, Mykena cries and explains why she will never go Randonauting again.

The intention she entered into the app was “death,” and that’s very nearly what she found. The app sent her to a spot where a body lay still on the ground, bleeding. Mykena assumed that they were indeed dead. Based on her follow-ups and investigations from local news and police, it appears that Mykena did indeed stumble across a body, though it was only near to death. The 23-year-old victim of a recent shooting was luckily discovered in time and brought to a nearby hospital.

Number 4

Reddit user u/mindf[censored]_ shared a photo of their Randonautica experience. What was scary about the experience was not what the app led the user to, but what it led them away from.

Their post title speaks volumes: “Went randonauting last night at 3 am. Came back to my shop burned down.” Their photo indeed shows a workshop, complete with a collection of expensive tools and vehicles, heavily burned and covered in ash. They go on to respond to several comments, among which two hypotheses stand out: if indeed Randonautica is not so random, then it either got him out of the way to facilitate arson, or it saved his life from an attack.

The Angelic Doctor's teaching

Most people who use the app do it for a number of reasons. Those who are skeptical want to see if it works like everybody says. Some may use it because they are bored and because of idleness, want to have something to do that is fun or popular. Others do it because they want to jump on the band wagon with their friends. Regardless of why people do what they do, any reason for using the app can be centered on some form of curiosity. Hence the reason the app's logo is the owl looking sideways which is supposed to mean getting a new perspective.

The great St. Thomas Aquinas explains how the virtue of temperance can be violated in regards to the sinful vice of curiosity:

Curiosity

​1.Curiosity, in our present use of the word, is the vice which stands opposed to studiousness. Curiosity throws aside the moderating influence of studiousness, and disposes man to inordinateness in seeking knowledge. This inordinateness appears in a variety of ways, Thus: a) a man may seek knowledge to take pride in it; b) he may seek to know how to sin; c) he may seek useless knowledge and waste effort which should be expended in learning what he needs to know; d)he may seek knowledge from unlawful sources, as from demons; e) he may seek creatural knowledge without referring what he knows to God; f)he may foolishly risk error by trying to master what is beyond his own capacity.

2.Curiosity appears also in the order of sense-knowledge. Inordinateness here appears in an excessive love of sight-seeing; of neglecting study to gaze idly on a meaningless spectacle; of looking needlessly on what may occasion evil thoughts; of observing the actions of others to criticize and condemn them, and so on. If, however, one is intent upon material things in an ordinate way (that is, in a way that accords with reason) one exercises studiousness, not curiosity, even in the order of sense knowing.

We can see from the above understanding of curiosity that Randonautica could potentially fall under any of the descriptions laid out in a-f. Randonautica can simply be avoided by not giving into the temptation of trying it out, even if the intent is set by the user to see something "good."

St. Thomas continues to explain the virtue in opposition of curiosity:

Studiousness

1.Studiousness is the virtue which disposes a person to apply his mind for the purpose of acquiring and extending knowledge.

2.The virtue of studiousness is a part of the virtue of temperance. For it is the function of temperance to moderate the appetite, to prevent excess, in the use of material goods. In reference to the spiritual appetite for knowledge, studiousness has this temperance-function of moderating desire and preventing excess. The tie-up of studiousness with temperance is effected through the virtue of modesty. (A Tour of the Summa 288-289)

Artificial Intelligence or Satanic Power?

The most puzzling question is how does Randonautica have the ability to search out places of interest with such precision as to reveal hidden things? Many would argue that it's a mere coincidence, a glitch in the matrix, or that A.I. itself is so sophisticated that it has the ability to know an abundance of knowledge from the collection of data that gets stored from being a super-computer. While there may be some truth in that, the question still can be deeper. How does it specifically know things so hidden as to be able to lead people to an exact location, with no possible history of stored data that leads to such things, which cannot be traced, such as expired driver's license from 15-20 years prior? I personally believe that the app itself has some form of demonic power. Why? It has been known to bring about bad luck in peoples lives who use it obsessively. It has the ability to know exact locations without any foreknowledge; a symptom of possessed people. It lures people away from belief in God or the devil by trusting it more. It becomes like a god. Lastly, it could lead to somebody's death if the person is in the wrong place at the wrong time. Even if the "intention" is good it can be a path leading right to Hell.

Much like a Ouija board or an amulet, the Randonautica app breaks with the First Commandment by the sin of vain observance.

According to the Theologians McHugh and Callan, vain observances are described as:

(a) those (things) by which one puts into use vain ceremonies or objects in the expectation that they will secure certain desired effects, or puts an exaggerated confidence in lawful rites or sacred objects;
(b) those by which one directs one's life through fortuitous and impertinent happenings in the belief that they have the power to influence one's fortunes favorably or adversely. This form of superstition is like divination by omens; the difference is that in using omens one chiefly seeks for knowledge of the future, while in observing chance events one chiefly intends the direction of one's conduct. Examples are found in persons who fear to make a journey on Friday or to begin any important affair during the dark of the moon.
 
Conclusion

There are plenty of ways to go on a adventure without needing an app to set ones' desired effect. If you are a thrill seeker, look for things that are not dangerous and which are lawful. If you want to go to a quiet place, just make sure wherever it may be is a safe area. In other words, common sense should tell us that Randonautica is a disaster waiting to happen.

"Seek not the things that are too high for thee, and  search not into things above thy ability: but the things that God hath commanded thee, think on them always, and in many of his works be not curious. For it is not necessary for thee to see with thy eyes those things that are hid. In unnecessary matters be not over curious, and in many of his works thou shalt not be inquisitive. For many things are shewn to thee above the understanding of men. And the suspicion of them hath deceived many, and hath detained their minds in vanity. A hard heart shall fear evil at last: and he that loveth danger shall perish in it." Sirach 3:22-27

Monday, December 5, 2022

Contending For The Faith---Part 10

 

In St. Jude 1:3, we read, "Dearly beloved, taking all care to write unto you concerning your common salvation, I was under a necessity to write unto you: to beseech you to contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints." [Emphasis mine]. Contending For The Faith is a series of posts dedicated to apologetics (i.e.,  the intellectual defense of the truth of the Traditional Catholic Faith) to be published the first Monday of each month.  This is the next installment.

Sadly, in this time of Great Apostasy, the faith is under attack like never before, and many Traditionalists don't know their faith well enough to defend it. Remember the words of our first pope, "But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect..." (1Peter 3:16). There are five (5) categories of attacks that will be dealt with in these posts. Attacks against:
  • The existence and attributes of God
  • The truth of the One True Church established by Christ for the salvation of all 
  • The truth of a particular dogma or doctrine of the Church
  • The truth of Catholic moral teaching
  • The truth of the sedevacantist position as the only Catholic solution to what has happened since Vatican II 
In addition, controversial topics touching on the Faith will sometimes be featured, so that the problem and possible solutions may be better understood. If anyone had suggestions for topics that would fall into any of these categories, you may post them in the comments. I cannot guarantee a post on each one, but each will be carefully considered.

The Moral Argument for the Existence of God

In this month's post, I will be writing about one of the proofs for the existence of God; the Moral Argument. Psalm 14:1 tells us, "The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” The fool's mind doesn't say such, for as the Vatican Council of 1870 teaches,  "Canon 1.  If anyone saith that the One, True God, our Creator and Lord, cannot be known with certainty from the things that have been made, by the natural light of human reason: let him be anathema." It is, therefore, a dogma of the Faith that God's existence can be known by human reason alone. Romans 1:20 says, "For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse." 

The Moral Argument comes in many forms. It has been championed by such illustrious philosophers as St. Thomas Aquinas, Robert Adams, William Alston, Mark Linville, William Lane Craig, Paul Copan, John Hare, Stephen Evans, and others. This post comes from the work of the aforementioned philosophers, and I take credit for none of it. I give full credit to those philosophical giants, whose intellects far exceed mine. All I did was take their expressions of the argument, and compress them into the main ideas that can fit in a post.---Introibo

A Simple Formulation

1. If God does not exist, objective moral values and duties do not exist. 

2. Objective moral values and duties do exist. 

3. Therefore, God exists. 

This simple little argument is easy to memorize and is logically ironclad. Together, the first two premises imply the conclusion: the existence of God. What makes this argument so powerful is that people generally believe both premises. In a "WOKE" age, people are scared to death of "imposing their values" on someone else, so premise 1 seems correct to them. At the same time, however, certain values have been deeply instilled into them, such as tolerance, open-mindedness, and love. They think it is objectively wrong to impose your values on someone else! So they’re deeply committed to premise 2 as well.  I will examine more closely each of the argument’s two premises in order to see what defense might be offered on their behalf and what objections might be raised against them.

Premise 1: If God does not exist, objective moral values and duties do not exist.

First, the distinction between values and duties. Values have to do with whether something is good or bad. Duties have to do with whether something is right or wrong. Now at first sight this might seem to be a distinction without a difference: “good” and “right” mean the same thing, and the same goes for “bad” and “wrong.” But if we think about it, we can see that this isn’t the case.

Duty has to do with moral obligation, what you ought or ought not to do. However,  you’re obviously not morally obligated to do something, just because it would be good to do it. For example, it would be good if someone became a doctor and saved lives, but you are not obligated to thereby become a doctor. It would also be good to become a teacher, or a CPA, or a police officer, but you can't possibly do them all. So there's a difference between good/bad, right/wrong. Good/bad deal with something's intrinsic worth, while right/wrong deal with something being morally obligatory. 

Second, there is a distinction between objective and subjective moral values. Objective means independent of what anyone thinks, while subjective means dependent on what people think. Therefore, to claim there are "objective moral values" is to say that some things are good or bad independent of whatever anyone thinks about it. Likewise, having "objective moral duties" means certain actions are right or wrong regardless of what people think. Hence, had Stalin conquered the world for Communism and brainwashed everyone in the whole world into thinking Communist oppression and political purges were a great thing, it would still be bad.

What evidence is there that premise one is true? Traditionally, people placed moral values in God, Who is the highest Good. If God does not exist, what is the basis for objective moral values, and why believe humans have objective moral worth? On the atheistic viewpoint, matter and energy are all that exist. All we can know, comes primarily through science. Yet, science has nothing to say about moral values; they cannot be examined in a test tube via the scientific method. For atheists then, morality is simply the subjective creation of humans. They are the product of evolution and social conditioning. Just as a troupe of baboons exhibit cooperative behaviors and even self-sacrificial acts because natural selection has determined it to be advantageous for survival, so homo sapiens exhibit similar behavior for the same reasons.  

As a result of socio-biological pressures, there has evolved among homo sapiens a certain "herd morality," which functions well in the preservation of our species. Yet, on the atheistic viewpoint, there is nothing about homo sapiens that makes this morality objectively true. There's no reason to think people with a very different set of values might not have evolved instead. To think, on this worldview, that homo sapiens are special, and their morality must be true, is to succumb to speciesism , an unjustified bias towards your own species and lacking any justification. 

If there is no God, any basis for the herd morality which evolved as being objectively true is gone. All you're left with is an ape-like creature on an insignificant spec in the universe with delusions of moral grandeur. Moving on to moral duties, it was traditionally thought to spring from the Ten Commandments, but, once more, if God does not exist, what basis is there for objective moral duties? On the atheistic worldview, humans are merely highly developed animals. When a lion kills a zebra, he kills, but does not murder it. Likewise, when a Great White Shark forcibly copulates with a female, he forces her, but does not rape her. There are no moral dimensions to these actions; they are neither prohibited nor obligatory.

So, if God does not exist, why should people think they have any moral obligations and prohibitions? They are nothing more than subjective ideas derived from parental and societal conditioning. Certain actions such as incest or rape may not be biologically and societally advantageous, and so in the course of human development, have become taboo. However, this does not equate with being wrong, only disadvantageous. The rapist who goes against the herd morality is really only doing something frowned upon, much like belching loudly at the dinner table. 

Be careful: The question we should ask is not, "Can non-believers live moral lives?" There are plenty that do live what most people recognize as decent lives. The  question is also not, "Can we recognize objective moral values and duties without belief in God?" The Natural Law can be known by all. Parents need not believe in God to realize they should love and care for their children. Rather, the question is, " If God does not exist, do objective moral values and duties exist?" It is not about belief in God for objective morality, but the necessity of His actual existence. 

There are some who hold to "Atheistic Moral Platonism," which declares there is objective morality, but it is not grounded in God. How to reply? First, it seems absurd to say, e.g.,  the moral value of justice exists. In the absence of people, how does justice exist? Moral values appear to be properties of persons, e.g., "St. Joseph was just." Second, let's suppose, ad arguendo, that moral virtues like justice, mercy, and loyalty exist as abstract objects. How does that become a moral duty to behave that way? Ostensibly, moral vices such as greed, lust, and envy, also exist as abstract objects. Why must we align ourselves with one set of abstractions over another? Atheistic Moral Platonism, lacking a Lawgiver, has no basis for moral obligation.

How do atheists respond? They want there to be objective moral values and duties (the majority of them anyway), so they claim some kind of humanism and declare that human flourishing is the objective good. However, human flourishing is merely arbitrary and capricious. Given atheism, why think what is conducive to human flourishing is any more valuable than what is conducive to the flourishing of ants or rats? Why is it wrong to harm another member of our species, if we get a benefit? 

Premise 2: Objective moral values and duties do exist.

As to the second premise, we have reason to believe objective moral values and duties do exist. I believe in an external world of objects as my senses tell me, unless there is an overriding defeater not to trust my senses. Likewise, in the absence of a defeater, I should accept what my moral experience tells me about what is good and bad. Most people will readily admit that acts such as rape, child abuse, and torturing an innocent person to death, aren't merely socially unacceptable--they are moral abominations. Anyone who would claim such actions are good or morally neutral would (rightfully) have their mental fitness called into question. 

In my personal experience, I've found that moral relativists will quickly become flustered and unable to answer, if you turn their own anti-Catholic assumptions against them. Since they hate what they perceive as the "evil" of the Inquisition and Crusades, ask them, "Were they objectively bad? Isn't it just your own personal opinion?" Do the same with the V2 sect abuse of children. "Is it really wrong, or your opinion?" Of course, if they claim it's just an opinion, any real opposition crumbles. Why should I be bound by your opinion? If they admit them objectively wrong, they concede the second premise as true. 

Conclusion: God Exists

Given the truth of the first two premises, it logically follows that God exists. A final consideration is the objection called "The Euthyphro Dilemma." The question is asked, "Are the Ten Commandments good because God made them, or did God make the Ten Commandments because they are good?" If you say, "The Commandments are good because God made them," it makes those commands arbitrary. God could have just as well commanded, "Thou SHALT kill." If you say "God made the Commandments because they are good," then what is good is independent of God and contradicts premise one. 

Fortunately, this is a false dilemma.  The answer is that the Commandments are an expression of the Attributes of God. God Wills the Commandments because He is good, and they are the realization of His Supreme Moral Goodness.  The Moral Argument compliments the Cosmological Argument by telling us the moral Nature of the Creator of the Universe. It gives us a necessary, personal Being, Who is not only Perfectly Good, but is the standard of goodness, and Whose Commandments  constitute our moral duties. 

Monday, November 28, 2022

Bergoglio: Welcoming False Prophets

 

The Deposit of Revelation ended with the death of the last Apostle, St. John, in the year 100 A.D. That's the teaching of the Church, but Bergoglio seems to disagree. Only the Catholic Church has claim to the title Christian in the strict theological sense, for She alone follows Her Divine Founder, Jesus Christ. Ever since the so-called "Protestant Reformation" there have been thousands of sects falsely claiming the title "Christian." In common parlance, the term was used to designate those who believed in the Trinity, Incarnation and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. As time went by, even those basic doctrines began to be obscured or implicitly denied by some new sects.

The "Charismatic Movement" came with bizarre and demonic practices like snake-handling, "speaking in tongues," and even "holy laughter."  However, there is a new movement that makes the Charismatics seem normal in comparison. The movement is not really "new:" it has its roots in the 1970s, but it has really grown in leaps and bounds starting circa 2010. Calling itself  The New Apostolic Reformation or "NAR," they seek to establish themselves as a "new Branch" of Christianity along with the Vatican II sect ("Catholicism"), Eastern Schismatics, and Protestantism. They hold that Christ continues to appoint "Apostles" and "Prophets" today. Revelation is ongoing and the Bible can be supplemented by these "revelations." NAR is a descriptive term for all the churches that teach this, most notably the 11,000 member Bethel Church in California. 

This post shall outline their strange (even occult) practices, and how Bergoglio wants them in his sect. 

Raising The Dead?
Bethel Church has two pastors, Bill Johnson (the "Apostle"--pictured above), and Kris Vallotton (the "Prophet") who have written numerous bestselling books, like When Heaven Invades Earth and Supernatural Ways of Royalty. In 2019, the following tragedy made headlines around the globe:

On December 14, 2019, two-year-old Olive Heiligenthal was sleeping in her bed and suddenly stopped breathing. When this was discovered, her family called 911, and paramedics rushed her to the hospital. But it was too late. Olive had died. Most grieving parents would have planned a funeral. But not Olive’s parents. Her mother, Kalley—a worship leader at Bethel—and her father, Andrew, refused to accept her death. Based on their peculiar understanding of the Bible—taught to them by Bethel Church leaders—they appeared 100 percent convinced that God would raise Olive from the dead. So they kept her body at the local morgue—just for a bit—while they waited for her to come back to life. Through social media, Bethel leaders urged Christians around the world to join the parents in “declaring” a resurrection because they believed their spoken words, as children of God, had the power to bring Olive back. The hashtag #wakeupolive went viral. Tens of thousands across the globe joined the chorus of “declarations” posted to Facebook and Instagram.

American singer and songwriter Kari Jobe made what must have been a startling announcement to her one million followers: “We’re still standing in faith for Olive to wake up.” The story was picked up by national news. The Washington Post, the Daily Mail, USA Today, Slate, and BuzzFeed were among the many high-profile media outlets that covered it. BuzzFeed used words like heartbreaking and horrifying in this description of the church’s attempts to raise Olive. Do a search for Olive's name and see the multiple news sources covering this event. Finally, after six days, the church suddenly gave up. USA Today declared: “Olive Hasn’t Been Raised: After Praying for a Miracle, Girl’s Family Now Plans Memorial.” Many other news organizations ran similar headlines. The conclusion to the dramatic events of the previous week was anticlimactic. Bethel leaders sent out a press release announcing that the family had begun planning a memorial service. Their attempts to raise her had been loud and took place very much in the public eye. In contrast, the service was planned quietly and held behind the scenes. Almost as if they were hoping to draw as little attention as possible to the funeral—and their failure to raise Olive.

There were saints who raised the dead, by an exceptional gift of God. It is not something that anyone can do by "declaring a resurrection." This only serves the enemies of Christ by making belief in the resurrection look nonsensical. Yet nonsense is exactly what NAR peddles.

"Grave Sucking"
What would make a bunch of college-age students hang around a graveyard? The desire for miraculous powers. Some will be sprawled on their backs on the tops of grave markers. Others will lay face down on the grass before the headstones. Some will even roll-up in a fetal position in front of a tombstone, as though nourishing himself/herself on the corpse’s "still-living spiritual power."

 NAR people call this power the “anointing.” Bethel Church has a  Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry (BSSM), and it has been called a "Christian Hogwarts." (Hogwarts is the name for the school of witchcraft in the Harry Potter series of books). This practice is occult and the occult can in no way be Christian in any sense of the word. They would visit the gravesites of well-known “miracle-workers”—such as the British faith healer Smith Wigglesworth and the American “healing” evangelist Kathryn Kuhlman—and try to “suck” (or “soak”) up the dead miracle workers’ powers. What reason did they give for their ghoulish goings-on? They pointed to a little-known Bible verse, 2 Kings 13:21. It’s the story of when a dead man’s body came into contact with Eliseus’s bones and the man came to life. "And some that were burying a man, saw the rovers, and cast the body into the sepulchre of Eliseus. And when it had touched the bones of Eliseus, the man came to life, and stood upon his feet." NAR will cherry-pick Bible verses to invent strange and occult practices. Grave sucking is a form of the occult practice of spiritism---making contacts with spirits or their power. (See https://bssm.net/school/introduction/).


Wakey, Wakey
This sounds so insane, it should be called "wacky, wacky." Did you know there are thousands of angels so bored that they fall asleep and need people to wake them up? Neither did I. Beni Johnson, wife of "Apostle" Bill Johnson, talks about "sensing angels sleeping" and saying "wakey, wakey" to get them awake. Seriously. She relates one such episode:

One morning as we were driving up over Tehachapi Pass and coming down into the Mojave Desert, I began to feel angels. The closer we got, the stronger the impression felt. I could see them everywhere! Whenever there are angels present, I get very animated and excited, knowing that God is up to something big. I announced this to the group and said, “We have got to stop! We have to stop somewhere.” We found an exit, took it, and drove into this little town. We didn’t really know what to do or where to go. We just knew that something was going on and we needed to find out what. As we drove around a corner I said, “I think that we are going to wake up some angels here.” No sooner had I said that than we drove past a hotel to our left and, no joke, the name of the store was Mariah Country Inn. When I saw that sign, we immediately remembered the wakey story from Wales. We knew we were to turn around, get out of the RV and wake up the angels. I wish I could convey to you the energy and the quickness of how God was working. We jumped out of the RV, I blew the shofar [a trumpet made from a ram’s horn] and rang the bell, and we yelled, “WAKEY.” We got back into the RV and drove off. As we drove off, hilarious laughter broke out! We were stunned at the speed at which this all took place and were spinning from the adventure and the angelic activity. What in the world has just happened?! Heaven collided with earth. Woo hoo!!” (I could no longer find this video from which this story came but here ia another video where she tells the same story---https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q25oPxQ7zH0&t=314s). 

Jenn Johnson (The "Apostle's" daughter-in-law) said she was thinking about angels worshipping around the Throne of God, and she thought of ways the angels probably laugh and goof off when they’re circling the Throne. These thoughts came to her mind: “I bet they text each other. I bet they have farting contests.” (See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdeqtJvkE5w at 4:35-4:45).

NAR treats holy things as commonplace and trite. It is blasphemous. 

NAR Ended Racism
Were you aware racism is gone forever? Yes, it happened because several "Apostles" reenacted a scene from The Lord of the Rings movie. To watch this lunacy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8b3yumhMNU

NAR and the New Age Occult Connection
The following are excerpts from a book The Physics of Heaven [2012], by Judy Franklin and Ellyn Davis, both believers in NAR. The "Prophet"  Kris Vallotton wrote the preface, and "Apostle" Bill Johnson wrote two chapters. Therefore, the book is indeed indicative of the movement. They blasphemously assert that New Age occultism was really Christian first, and then those practices were appropriated by the New Age for its own purposes. That this "reformation" movement is clearly occult can be seen in the following quotes:

  • Ellyn has had a desire to bridge the gap between Christianity and the discoveries of quantum physics as well as discover God truths hidden in quantum mysticism and the New Age

  • Because I believe what the Lord has been showing both of us (authors)  is the absolute truth that will help us bring God’s kingdom to this earth. The Lord is ready to use sound, light, and energy in ways we never dreamed.

  • Jesus calmed storms. We should be able to do that too. Jesus healed the sick, cast out demons, raised the dead. We have that same power within us.

  • It wasn’t that I wanted to become a New Ager, I just wanted to find out if maybe they had uncovered some truths the church hadn’t.

  • I have found throughout Scripture at least 75 examples of things that the New Age has counterfeited, such as having a spirit guide, trances, meditation, auras, power objects, clairvoyance, clairaudience, and more. These actually belong to the church, but they have been stolen and cleverly repackaged.

  • Now we are beginning to hear more and more revelation that is in line with what New Agers have been saying all along and we are hearing more and more teaching about Christians “taking back truths” from the New Age that really belong to citizens of the Kingdom of God.

  • They all agree that the next move of God will cause a shift at the deepest level of who we are—perhaps at the very “vibrational level” that the New Age movement has been exploring.


Who Is Kris Vallotton?
Partnering with Bill Johnson is Kris Vallotton, the senior associate leader at Bethel and the church’s chief “prophet.” Unlike an "apostle," who calls the shots in a NAR church and has the final say in all important decisions, the prophet’s job is to receive direct revelation from God and share it with the apostle. Thus, an apostle and prophet will often team up, as Johnson and Vallotton have done. These two claim to have formed a special “covenant” relationship that is intended to be lifelong and allows them to tap into each other’s miraculous gifts and anointings.

Vallotton claims to have had remarkable encounters with God. During one encounter in 1985, "Christ" told him that he had a special calling regarding his life. Jesus walked into my bathroom amid my evening bath and told me, “I have called you to be a prophet to the nations. You will speak before kings and queens. You will influence prime ministers and presidents. I will open doors for you to talk to mayors, governors, ambassadors, and government officials all around the world.”
(See https://www.krisvallotton.com/prophetic-gifting-vs-calling)

In 1998, Vallotton was invited by Johnson to join him at Bethel and start the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry. Vallotton writes: That same year, I was lying on the floor and praying one morning when the Lord spoke to me so clearly that it stunned me. He said, There is a new epoch season emerging in this hour. Much like the Protestant Reformation, there is another reformation coming that will unearth the very foundation of Christianity. This move of the Spirit will absolutely redefine your ideologies and philosophies concerning what the Church is and how she should function. I asked Him, What will this transition look like? He said, My Church is moving from denominationalism to apostleships. (See Heavy Rain: How to Flood Your World with God’s Transforming Power [2016], ch. 1, pg.27; Emphasis mine). 

Vallotton has since become a bestselling author. Under his leadership, Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry—a three-year, full-time program—has grown from an annual enrollment of just thirty-seven students to more than 2,600. His rising reputation as a "prophet" landed Vallotton a meeting with Bergoglio himself.

A False Prophet Welcomed by a False Pope
In 2016, the Argentinian apostate of the Modernist-occupied Vatican met with Vallotton. This is how false prophet Vallotton himself characterizes the meeting:

This week I had the privilege of meeting with Pope Francis. It was probably one of the highlights of my life. He was funny, warm and very spiritual.

I was invited, along with several other pastors, to a small connect forum with Pope Francis because he has a deep passion for unity among Believers – and I do mean DEEP!

We spent about two hours asking him questions about whatever was on our hearts. His opening comments blessed me. He said, “We must invite the prophets back into the church and welcome them with open arms.” I thought it was interesting that this was his opening comment. Of course, many of the pastors looked over and smiled at me... He made it clear that theology shouldn’t divide us. I also think he was making a point that he wasn’t a theologian, in that he said “they” should work it out while “we” love people.(To read the whole unabridged article; See https://www.krisvallotton.com/pope-francis; Emphasis in this excerpt mine). 

There was a question when Bergoglio was asked if Jesus is the only way to Heaven. Francis replied "the only way into heaven is through Jesus Christ." Notice he omitted that a fiduciary, fuzzy "faith" that "Jesus saves me" does nothing. It is through Christ IN HIS ONE TRUE CHURCH. There was no attempt to proselytize only "welcome them in" because "proselytism is solemn nonsense." 

So isn't this just another example of Vatican II sect ecumenism? Ecumenical, yes, but in my opinion, far more odious. Bergoglio is acknowledging that there are still "apostles" and "prophets" that receive continuing Divine Revelation. Moreover, "God" sanctions wacky, and even occult practices. As the NAR grows, Bergoglio may welcome them in some special way that they begin to have direct influence on the trajectory the VII sect is taking "from denominationalism to apostleships."

Conclusion
“Apostles” and “prophets” in the New Apostolic Reformation lure their followers with the promise of blessings. Blessings are the bait. They claim they have something no other church leaders have. Apostles and prophets have the "new revelations" their followers need to "develop miraculous powers," bring God’s kingdom, and fulfill His Will on Earth. These are occult lies, and Bergoglio, far from warning against them and condemning them--embraces them as "Christians." Don't be fooled and pray harder than ever for God's mercy and protection.