There was no way I was ever going to be able to leave this one alone! Today in Rome Pope Francis is 'canonising' Popes John XXIII & John Paul II. What this means to Catholics, in the words of the Catechism of the Catholic Church is this:
'By canonizing some of the faithful, i.e., by solemnly proclaiming that they practiced heroic virtue and lived in fidelity to God's grace, the Church recognizes the power of the Spirit of holiness within her and sustains the hope of believers by proposing the saints to them as models and intercessors. "The saints have always been the source and origin of renewal in the most difficult moments in the Church's history." Indeed, "holiness is the hidden source and infallible measure of her apostolic activity and missionary zeal."' (Paragraph 828 http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p123a9p3.htm#828)
These saints are marked out as special exemplars of virtue & faithfulness to God's grace. I don't have a problem with that in the slightest. None. In times past it has been extraordinarily difficult to get canonised by the Catholic Church - even today they require two miracles at the person-to-be-canonised's intercession, as evidence that they are in heaven. This is the ultimate Catholic accolade, kids. Remember these people are at the summit of the practice of virtue & have not resisted the grace of God. These people must therefore say something about the Catholic church's idea of what constitutes virtue & the nature of what they believe to be the grace of God. The catechism again:
'The grace of Christ is the gratuitous gift that God makes to us of his own life, infused by the Holy Spirit into our soul to heal it of sin and to sanctify it. It is the sanctifying or deifying grace received in Baptism. It is in us the source of the work of sanctification[.]' (Paragraph 1999 http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s1c3a2.htm)
It is therefore the making holy work of God - it isn't that different from the way in which witches work in a less-defined separation of divine & human so that we cross over & interact with each other. So obviously we're talking one really holy God-like man here. What's wrong with this picture is the evidence is mounting up thick & fast that he could have intervened to prevent clerical child abuse but didn't (http://ncronline.org/news/accountability/records-show-john-paul-ii-could-have-intervened-abuse-crisis-didnt). By canonising him the church is clearly saying that the sanctifying grace of God enables the believer to be holy, which means not preventing abuse & covering it up. Even as I write this I feel physically sick - the man thoroughly deserves the title of Turd. No doubt it is not holy to consider omens & portents, but the suggestions that their God is well pissed off are heaping up - obviously since they're not bothered by child abuse they're not going to worry that they're supposed to believe in one seriously assertive God who has the power to fry for eternity. JP2 appeared in the flames of a bonfire, a crucifix erected to commemorate his visit collapsed, killing a pilgrim there. His relics were prevented from entering the basilica at Lourdes by flash flooding, & he allegedly appeared to a dying cancer patient telling him not to waste his time praying to him (See http://www.traditio.com/comment/com1405.htm - the strange terms used are because this is a sedevacantist website who think the present pope isn't pope, etc. I will admit to choosing some fairly anti sources for this information, but a search for 'Pope John Paul abuse' reveals the rest of the world remains unimpressed). The seriousness of the matter aside, this is a seriously bad publicity move, although given the size of the expected crowds, an interesting example of the willingness of people to be duped.
Of course this is a witchcraft blog, & questions of power, survival & being a target (I refuse to allow the v-word to pass my lips) are at the heart of witchcraft. My will for targets of abuse is that it will empower them to turn it on its head & become the person who says 'Enough'. This is what is meant by Aradia coming to give the power of poisoning great princes in their palaces to the poor - it is the power to end their oppression. Personally I don't want these people dead - I want them confronted by their actions & unable to escape. Their hiding places must be poisoned for them so that they can't go to them. The remainer of this post is a repost of the open letter from the Survivors' Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP):
Our hearts ache for each of you who were abused during and after John Paul II's long tenure as Pope. We know these days are difficult, even painful, for many of you, given the awful suffering so many still experience, suffering that is often made worse as the Catholic�hierarchy praises wrongdoers instead of punishing them.
Our hearts also ache for all of you who tried to protect children from clergy predators during John Paul II's tenure, yet were met with cold indifference or open hostility.
John Paul II is revered by many across the world, but as you know, during his rule, great harm was committed which endures to this day. At best, he turned a blind eye to clergy sexual crimes and cover-ups. At worst, he perpetuated and approved them. For him to now be given the highest honor in the church rubs even more salt into the already deep and still fresh wounds of thousands of struggling victims and millions of betrayed Catholics and victims.�
For all of you who are upset because of this callous sainthood decision and celebration, we want you to know that you are not alone, that you can heal, and that real justice, prevention and recovery � no matter how depressed or pessimistic you may feel right now � is possible.
While John Paul�s sainthood will soon be history, the courage and strength and perseverance of you and your brothers and sisters in this movement for children's safety is ongoing. That's where our hope lies.
There is no better example of courage and strength and perseverance than the dozens of brave Maciel survivors. Their persistence eventually exposed the world's most notorious predator priest. Survivors across the globe should take note: it's a long, tough battle, but by persisting, we CAN achieve what Maciel's victims have achieved � letting millions learn about child molesting clerics and their corrupt church supervisors. The eventual outcome of their lengthy ordeal proves our contention that for clergy sex abuse victims, justice, prevention and healing ARE possible. �
These men are an inspiring example - among thousands of similar examples - of survivors making life-saving changes. Years ago, all of us were alone, now we're not. Years ago, few of our predators were "outed" now many are. Years ago, few people knew the scope of the abuse and cover-up scandal. Now millions are. Years ago, few people believed that allegedly holy, celibate and trusted clergy were capable of heinous crimes and cover ups. Now millions are.
So we beg you to keep protecting kids by speaking up, exposing wrongdoers, calling police. We beg you to keep healing yourself so that the cycle of violence is broken by and with each one of us. We're extraordinarily grateful for all that you have done and are doing to prevent crimes, expose cover ups and demand justice.
Together, despite the horrific things we have seen and suffered, there are practical, proven steps we can take, and that thousands of victims are taking, to better protect the vulnerable and heal the wounded.
To each of the hundreds of thousands of clergy sex abuse victims, witnesses, and whistleblowers across the globe, we pledge that for the safety of children we will never give up. Despite horrific pain and continued setbacks, we know you won�t either.
(http://www.snapnetwork.org/open_letter_to_victims_witnesses_whistleblowers_on_eve_of_jpii_sainthood_from_snap)
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