Our Lady can Convert the World This Time, but the Next?

Excerpt:


The Unforgivable Nature of the Great Apostasy

In the great apostasy, the world will come back to be like our modern age, and, for that matter, any of the great ages of sin before us. They will return to their former ways—just like Pagan Rome; just like the wicked Jews before the Babylonian exile; just like the blasphemous grandeur of Egypt in her pyramids, or Babel with its tower; just like Noah’s day, before the Flood, and so forth. They will be disrespectful of parents and authority, indifferent toward God and religion, complacent, superficial, drunken, using drugs, gossiping, bullying, slandering, vulgar, committing abortion and euthanasia, sexually immoral in all ways—cohabitation, promiscuity, artificial birth control, divorce, sodomy—greedy, dishonest, fraudulent, and on and on. But they will have no excuse.

How? Well, the world will have had two great dimensions placed before them in the past age precedent to this final apostasy:

• The powers of this world
• The powers of the age to come

More specifically, we know that the powers of this world are not enough to bring lasting peace and prosperity to humanity. “With man, this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.” (Mt 19:26) “In the condition of the fallen nature, it is morally impossible for man, without restoring grace, to fulfill the entire moral law and to overcome all serious temptations for any considerable period of time.” (Sent. certa.) 8

Without the knowledge Revelation gives of God we cannot recognize sin clearly and are tempted to explain it as merely a developmental flaw, a psychological weakness, a mistake, or the necessary consequence of an inadequate social structure, etc. Only in the knowledge of God's plan for man can we grasp that sin is an abuse of the freedom that God gives to created persons so that they are capable of loving him and loving one another.9

“God never ceases to draw man to himself. Only in God will he find the truth and happiness he never stops searching for...For if man exists, it is because God has created him through love, and through love continues to hold him in existence. He cannot live fully according to truth unless he freely acknowledges that love and entrusts himself to his creator.”10

In fact, if humanity fully casts aside the powers of the age to come, that is, authentic religion and morals, yet still carries the powers of this world, the result will be catastrophic—incomprehensible horror. Man, when left to his own devices, will destroy himself. The secular sciences that study the rise and fall of empires fully vindicate this claim: for a time, societies that have no God or gods and no morals but great materialistic power, as in wicked empires and kingdoms with great physical wonders and such, can prosper internally and externally. But in time, the moral corruption catches up with them, and they come crashing down, destroying themselves from within. I also discussed this in the apocalypse essay here.11

Hence, this leaves us a law: the powers of this world, when divorced from the powers of the age to come, spell doom for the societies that make this terrible mistake. On the contrary however, when the powers of this world are fully united and reconciled to the powers of the age to come, authentic peace and prosperity becomes a wonderful reality.

These truths set the stage for the two great spiritual developments prior to the great apostasy, namely:

• The minor tribulation
• The Catholic age of peace

Here, the definitive apexes of moral lessons to humanity are made incarnate, never to be repeated:

In the minor tribulation, humanity will be shown its final learning lesson: when the world rejects the fullness of all God’s revelation and grace in exchange for a brute and perverse pursuit of this world, however powerful, however magnificent materially, they will learn, I sense—horribly, and in an epic and apocalyptic manner—the full implications of their errors, their sins, and their blindness. They will see their need—down to the last jot and tittle—for every single doctrine of faith and morals from our wounded, sinful, and yet beloved Church and see such need desperately from great pain, agony, and suffering. Toward this end, humanity will never again be able to tell God that they didn’t know the way, that they didn’t know the consequences, and this, with the fullness of God’s revelation and love. Other lessons have been learned in history, to be sure, but never with the effectively complete set of doctrinal development behind it, at least the primary brunt of it, and throughout the near whole of the world—never again. Hence, if another such secularly messianic apostasy arises later, it will be without excuse.

And yet! Even with this, God is gracious, “long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Pt. 3:9) Our Divine Savior Jesus is not in the business of condemnation but salvation. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (Jn 3:17) Hence, far from condemning the wayward son who repents even far away, the Father runs to meet him and embraces Him with ineffable mercy. How sweet is the love and mercy of the Infinite Father, Son and Spirit towards us sinners, who deserve eternal separation, but who are awarded the affection of a God who would rather forget we ever committed our transgressions, and invite us to love him forever in the wedding feast that shall never end.

Hence, the age of peace! Humanity repents, akin to how the Jews repented radically in the exile in their respective intermediate history, an exile that was a similar chastisement on their wickedness toward the Old Law, even as the Gentiles are now wicked toward the New Law in our own respective intermediate Church history. And what is even more marvelous is that in the age of peace, presumably, the powers of this world will not be lost. Indeed, and unfortunately for various reasons, the great powers of the world that were of Rome were largely lost in the Church’s transformation of Europe from spiritual darkness to light. For this reason, the modern world looks with disdain on Christendom, a phenomenon lasting from roughly 500 A.D. to 1700 A.D., seeing as temporal developments were lacking. Yes, for the most part, if it is true that today we have the powers of this world and not of the other, so in the Middle Ages and surrounding times, they had the powers of the other world but not this one. In the age of peace, they will have both! Science and faith, reason and faith—which our beloved Holy Father Emeritus Benedict persistently trumpets—are not in opposition to one another. In the age of peace, they will be fully reconciled, the fullness of both worlds’ wisdom and power.
...

 

... continued

Note, there will still be the cross, those elements of physical evil and misfortune that cannot be eradicated from this fallen world that is ever “journeying toward perfection.”

...with infinite wisdom and goodness God freely willed to create a world "in a state of journeying" towards its ultimate perfection. In God's plan this process of becoming involves the appearance of certain beings and the disappearance of others, the existence of the more perfect alongside the less perfect, both constructive and destructive forces of nature. With physical good there exists also physical evil as long as creation has not reached perfection.12

Nevertheless, despite the fact that the age of peace will still allow, presumably, disease, sickness, economic troubles, natural disasters, some poverty, and the like, the point is that there will be a civilization of love, per the hopes of the Church today flowing from the missionary call of Vatican II, and the hope of the renewed world of the Third Millennium. In this vein, though suffering of largely physical evil will persist, the world, being in a self-same renewed charity, will live in solidarity with others, and this will enable a true brotherhood of man—a world that more or less fully understands the material order as well as the spiritual, relative to what God desires humanity to know this side of the end of time. And this will last, at least temporarily, for as long as humanity chooses to keep a keen eye on the world that almost was not and to persevere in cooperation with the grace of God.

Consequently, precisely because the powers of this world, without God, brought unfathomable ruin, and, also because the powers of this world with God brought, love, peace and the best of both worlds, relatively speaking, humanity will have no other conclusion from brute and simplistic logic than to admit that the need for God is imperative to human well-being—that without it, no matter how much temporal advancement may be present, certain doom is inevitable.

So then, returning to the great apostasy, if the world goes back to godlessness and the powers of this world without the powers of the age to come after the age of peace, they simply can no longer say they have any mercy left from God in an apocalyptic sense. It will be, as it were, unforgivable historically. Here, one may object, God has persistently shown mercy on fallen civilizations. True, but this last civilization will do so with the fullness of divine revelation, and with a period of mercy already granted once in the minor tribulation. They will have taken the fullness of everything that God can give to a world on this side of the end of time and thrown it in God’s face. Once humanity issues the supreme insult upon the fullness of all that He has to give in this world, short only of eternity, nothing remains to remedy the situation.

Consequently, whereas any individual soul can always attain mercy in confession or the anointing, the world in a social structure, in a historical structure, will be unforgivable, and, dare we say, unrepentant. Here, we can argue this on two counts. One, consider Hebrews 6. The text is referencing Jewish apostates and saying that, mostly likely, they won’t come back (it uses hyperbolic language). I think we can argue a similar context: “It is impossible for those [the world?] who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance.” (Heb 6:4–5) Secondly, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.” (Mt 24:22) Here, the connotation is clear: in the great apostasy and tribulation, if God did not intervene to end the world, the wicked world would destroy itself, since it is en-mass incurably unrepentant.

Consequently, to return to the discourse on the beast kings, when we reach the eighth beast king, or the great apostasy, then the fall, or the “beast,” is back, or “is again.” Humanity is, en-mass, both incurable and unforgivable historically. No further redemption of the fallen nature can be had within human history, saving the en-mass conversion of the Jews and that which is beyond the eschaton, the New Creation. Hence, the fall is back again, as it was in Noah’s day. It once again reigns in human history, casting out the Holy Spirit of redemption—getting St Augustine’s restrainer out the way.

And now you know what [the Holy Spirit, per St. Augustine] withholdeth, that he [Antichrist] may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity already worketh; only that he who now holdeth, do hold, until he be taken out of the way. And then that wicked one shall be revealed whom the Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of his mouth; and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming, him, Whose coming is according to the working of Satan, in all power, and signs, and lying wonders, And in all seduction of iniquity to them that perish; because they receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. Therefore God shall send them the operation of error, to believe lying: That all may be judged who have not believed the truth, but have consented to iniquity. (2 Thes 2:6–11)

This, I argue, implies that once humanity rejects the fullness of divine redemption in history, which is the culmination of the Spirit, no further redemption becomes possible, so that the Holy Spirit is being irrevocably rejected, his restraining activity against iniquity being vanquished, bringing in the appearance of Antichrist. And that means, “the beast [is] again.” Hence, just as the fallen nature reigned in the beginning of human history (the fall and wickedness of Noah's day) [the beast "was"], so the darkness reigns again at the close of human history, where all but a remnant of humanity are in rebellion against God [the beast "will be again"]. And so our theology is perfect.

 

Thank you for posting this. Looking forward to praying with it tonight if it is ever the least bit quiet, which I doubt.

Can I ask who wrote this; it seems a fine bit of writing?

 

Thank you so much, Padraig, I was blessed with the opportunity write it. If you like, I can give you the fully article from mywebsite, althought is very long.

 

Thank you so much, if you could give me a link to your website, that would be wonderful.

Your writing reminds me of that of Mark Mallett. Which is quite a compliment.

 

Thank you so much, Padraig, your words are so kind. I follow Mark Mallet, and our theologies are similar, in the sense that Our Lady is going to bring Peace. I w ill give you the link now:

Here is the article, very long, but you can read independent sections sometimes:

http://www.theologyoftheages.com/content/apocalypse/greater-ages/ages/creation-days-beast-kings.php

and here is the general url for the book i am trying to compile:

http://www.theologyoftheages.com/

 

Thank you Scott, I will read through these tonight.

I'm just curious; what do you make of Pope Francis and current goings on at the Vatican?

 

"On the contrary however, when the powers of this world are fully united and reconciled to the powers of the age to come, authentic peace and prosperity becomes a wonderful reality."

Why do you believe that during the era of peace we will have "the powers of this world "?

If you are speaking of some kind of economic and technological prosperity/ascendancy along with a return to God...

If so I would point you to the Catichism of the Catholic Church...
http://www.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p1s2c2a7.htm
The Antichrist's deception already begins to take shape in the world every time the claim is made to realize within history that messianic hope which can only be realized beyond history through the eschatological judgment. The Church has rejected even modified forms of this falsification of the kingdom to come under the name of millenarianism,577 especially the "intrinsically perverse" political form of a secular messianism.578

677 The Church will enter the glory of the kingdom only through this final Passover, when she will follow her Lord in his death and Resurrection.579 The kingdom will be fulfilled, then, not by a historic triumph of the Church through a progressive ascendancy, but only by God's victory over the final unleashing of evil, which will cause his Bride to come down from heaven.580 God's triumph over the revolt of evil will take the form of the Last Judgment after the final cosmic upheaval of this passing world.

 

But I do agree that we will be more culpable for our sins if we recieve the Great Warning, repent, and then later turn back to our sin.

The bad angels, having greater knowledge of their rejection of God were not allowed a second chance.

 

Hi, Padraig, I have mixed feelings about Pope Francis. On the one hand, I think he is a kind man with a humble heart with simple wisdom and compassion on those who find it hard to be holy and struggle therein, and for the poor. But on the other hand, so many things that he has said off hand are not good, at least at face value, and cause alot of confusion. Plus, I think his stance on divorced and remarried is simply wrong. We must wait for the formality of the Church to enter into sexual union. We simply cannot assume, however most likely f ounded that a previous union is invalid and begin to live as married. Just cannot do that. Plus, he seems to embrace, at least personally, annihilationism, which is heresy. So there are some definite concerns here.

 

Hi, I am not worthy either, just like you!

Anyway, I believe that the CCC is talking a PERMANENT triumph of the Gospel that persists right until the second Coming. It does not mean that there could a TEMPORARY period of material and spiritual prosperity, PROVIDED that is ABSOLUTELY necessary to understand that such period of love and well being will be PRECISELY BY GOD"S GRACE THROUGH AN AUTHENTICALLY Catholic civilization. If you read my ariticle, i make it EMPHATICALLY clear that a period of peace, with or without science is NOT possible purely secularly, but only by Our Lady and Jesus reigning in men's heaerts. Consequently, since a temporary age of spiritual peace is not opposed to catholic teaching, seeing as plethora of private revleation foretells it, and the Church has not condemned this messages but, therefore, by approving them, says they COULD be true, we cannot deny the possiblity that authentic science will attend the age of peace, since there is nothing immoral about science, and God even encourages it from the call at Genesis to have dominion over the earth.

That being said, once again, the is age of spiritual and temporal prosperity will NOT be a utopia, since physical evil still rears its ugly head till the end of time, nor that poverty will be absultely eradicated. But one mystic says that the poor, though poor, will have dignity, meaning, they will live human conditions, and not in garbage or cardboard boxes, or starving horribly without santifation

they will kind of be like the poor of the thirties: they will have cold house to live in, some clothes to wash, and be hungry, but not, again, li;ke fourth world contries, living in deggradation and inhuman conditions.

And also, once again, the age peace dissolves. Peopel get lazy and fall into apostasy again. Then the horrors pour out and the world ends. hope this helps

 

So your belief that the era of peace encompasses not only spiritual peace, but also technological advancement and economic prosperity is based on a specific private revelation; correct?

I will assume for the sake of exploring this further that this revelation is correct. Also we will assume that at the end of this era of peace humanity again rejects God.

That being the case, why would the rejection of God be any more unforgivable because humanity recieved both spiritual and technological/economic prosparity? Would humanity not be just as culpable if she had recieved and rejected spiritual peace without technological/economic prosperity?

Indeed, it could be argued that a gifted era of spiritual peace without greater "powers of this world" (economic and technological prosperity) would be a greater gift since temporal riches would provide greater temptation against holiness.

God sends the rich away empty. If we are satiated by the powers of this world we loose our desire for God.
"I have not come to bring peace but a sword"

So the sin of rejecting God after an extraordinary gift of spiritual peace would increase our capability.

But why do you believe increased economic and technological prosperity constitutes "authentic peace"?

Or am I reading you wrong?...

"On the contrary however, when the powers of this world are fully united and reconciled to the powers of the age to come, authentic peace and prosperity becomes a wonderful reality"

 

I believe that in the Era of Peace, most of the population don't work on Sundays, so no open Malls on Sundays!

 

I agree

 

Sorry, I mean authentic peace as emanating primarily from spiritual peawce.

here is the thing: in middle ages, world has faith but no science. Now we have science but no faith. If it goes back to faith and no science, then the world can say science and faith don't mix well. WIth faith and science together, the world cannot say that spiritual peace necessarily means life sucks temporally.

 

having temporal well being does not have to mean that one will fall away. There are many homeschooled families that have a middle class lifestyle and the kids turn out fine. For that matter, it is easier to live the Gospel with modern benefits, since one is less tempted to serious sin. For example, loving families support girls in crisis. But if she lives in cardboard and her dad threatens to kill her, she will be more tempted to abort. similarly, if whole communities live in middle class lifestyle, there is less temptation to crime, etc

 

There are so many generalizations here.

 

So , you have , ', about Pope Francis;

'I think he is a kind man with a humble heart with simple wisdom and compassion on those who find it hard to be holy and struggle therein, and for the poor.'

..while on the other:

'..so many things that he has said off hand are not good, at least at face value, and cause a lot of confusion.'

This makes me think of a Scripture which is less confused and has less mixed feelings about things;

 

please help by indicating some, I am open to dialogue

 

One generalization that stands out...

I am not a historian, but there are Catholic historians who reject the idea that science was repressed severally during the middle ages. You could research the abundant technological advances yourself...