January/February 2002 CRRUSADEUSADE · 2 crusade january/february 2002 Since the beginning of the...

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January/February 2002

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Standing up fStanding up fororGod’God’s Rightss RightsJJananuaruary 22,y 22, 20022002

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January-February 2002

ContentsC O M M E N TA RY 2Harry Potter

F O R G O T T E N T R U T H S 3Exorcist Comments on Harry Potter

O N LY I N A M E R I C A 4

“Icon of the Heavenly Jerusalem”

C O V E R S T O RY 6The Challenges We Face

RA I S I N G O U R C H I L D R E N 8The Missing Ingredient III

A M E R I C A N E E D SFAT I M A P R O G R E S S R E P O R T

Bringing the Morning Star into Homes 9Our Readers Write 1 1Interview with Australia Needs Fatima Director 1 2The Future Depends on You 1 3Fatima Custodian Visits Houseof Elian Gonzales 1 3Devotion to the ImmaculateHeart of Mary 1 4

Will Americans Accept this? 1 4

R E V O L U T I O N A N D C O U N T E R -R E V O L U T I O N I N H I S T O RY 1 6The Papacy in Crisis — Part II

FA M I LY S E R I E S 2 0

Cecy and her Friend

Crusade Magazine is a publication of The American Society forthe Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). List ofother TFP publications available upon request. Direct allrequests and inquiries to: Crusade Magazine, P.O. Box 341,Hanover, PA 17331 or e-mail to: [email protected] Tel.: 888-317-5571, Fax: (570) 450-6352, © 2002 by The Foundation for aChristian Civilization, Inc.This publication may include images from Dynamic Graphics,Corel, and Art Today which are protected by copyright laws ofthe U.S. and elsewhere.

ISSN 1096-3782LCCN 98-641433M-55

Editor: C. Preston Noell III Associate Editors: Earl Appleby, Eugenia Guzman, John Horvat, Thomas J.McKenna Photography: Gary J. Isbell Foreign Correspondents: Raymond de Souza, Australia;Charles E. Schaffer, Austria; Jose Carlos Sepulveda, Brazil;Paul Foley, England; Benoit Bemelmans, France; BenoHofschulte, Germany; Juan M. Montes, Italy;Felipe Barandiarán, Spain

The American TFP

The American Society for the Defense of Tradi-tion, Family and Property (TFP) was founded in1973 to confront the profound crisis shaking themodern world. It is a civic, cultural and nonparti-san organization which, inspired by the traditionalteachings of the Supreme Magisterium of theRoman Catholic Church, works in a legal andpeaceful manner in the realm of ideas to defendand promote the principles of private ownership,family and perennial Christian values with their

twofold function: individual and social. The TFP’swords and efforts have always been faithfully atthe service of Christian civilization.

The first TFP was founded in Brazil by the famousintellectual and Catholic leader Prof. Plinio Corrêade Oliveira in 1960. His work has inspired the for-mation of other autonomous TFPs in 26 countriesacross the globe, thus constituting the world’slargest anticommunist and antisocialist networkof Catholic inspiration.

CRUSADECRUSADE®

Page 3An exorcistcomments onHarry Potter

Page 9 Custodians of Our Lady ofFatima — on the go for 2002

Page 4 Icon of the Heavenly Jerusalem in America

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New: America Needs Fatima Newsletter inside!

Cover: March for Life, January 22, 2002

Magazine

CRUSADECRUSADE®

January/February 2002

Standing up fStanding up fororGod’God’s Rightss RightsJanuary 22, 2002January 22, 2002

traditionfamily

Property

c r u s a d e j a n u a r y / f e b r u a r y 2 0 0 22

Since the beginning of the HarryPotter phenomenon, the great jubila-tion of middle class America has beento marvel at Little Johnny readinginstead of watching TV or playing videogames. The fact that he is reading isconsidered such a moral triumph that itcovers a multitude of sins. Yes, there isa lot of weird stuff in Harry Potter, buthow is it different from C.S. Lewis or J. R. Tolkien?

What is the appeal of this dumberversion of Lord of the Rings? There isobviously some greater lure for themind of a child than the profane attraction to thedisgusting (vomit flavored jelly beans, etc.) and theoccult that is the destination the child ultimatelyarrives at on the train with Harry Potter.

Abstract for a minute from the obvious objec-tions to the initiation in magic that is clearly a dan-ger to the soul of a child enmeshed in the web ofHarry Potter novels. This done, there are two ele-ments that jump out at once from the Harry Potterstory.

First, there is the alluring theme of vocation.Harry lives an ordinary life. His stepparents do notunderstand him and he is downtrodden by theirpreference for their own son. He does not fit in. He isdifferent.

As he reaches a certain age, hebegins to receive mysterious letters thatare an invitation to follow another pathand escape from the tedium and futilityof everyday life. His stepparents doeverything in their power to prevent themessage from getting through. It is,however, too powerful. They cannotprevent him from choosing the voca-tion that has chosen him.

He will come to understand his realnature and the nature of the world byanswering this call. He leaves home tobe educated at a mysterious boarding

school for witches. But he must first make a leap offaith through a wall that will lead him from theworld of ordinary people to the world of witches andwizards.

Here, the second point comes into focus. Theworld is not one-dimensional. There is anotherworld hidden just behind the visible world thatHarry is about to discover. It is a marvelous worldwhere the normal rules of life do not apply. The pos-sibilities are unbounded. There he will learn manythings and he will be challenged to do great things.

It is a world steeped in medieval imagery. Thereis ceremony, ritual and the invitation to the mysteri-ous. The gothic structures of the boarding schoolseem at times ominous and at times warm and invit-

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ing. There is structure hereand there is a certain hier-archical paternalism inthe way Harry is cared for.The introduction to themysterious, accompaniedas it is with the “miracles”of magic, give Harry an ele-ment of certainty that he didnot possess in the real world.Here there is a reality that the com-mon people (the muggles) do not perceive or care about.Trapped as they are in their one-dimensional world, theyseem inferior in every respect to those called to the mys-terious world of magic.

For the child reading the books or seeing the movie,these elements of the marvelous have a powerful appeal.The trick is that they are paired with the horrendous.There is a constant transshipment from the appeal to themarvelous to the grotesque and to the occult.

Parents are duly lulled to sleep by the all powerful “Atleast he is not watching TV.” The child is enticed by themarvelous and the invitation to live life on another plain.He eventually understands that perhaps that otherdimension he is looking for is in fact horrendous. Henow knows where to look to satisfy that yearning foranother world. He has found it in the occult; a substitutefor what has been taken away from his world with thedisenchantment of his reality and especially the de-mys-

tification of religious ritual. Our modern world has

taken away the mystery.Even at church, the com-mon practice is to try tomake ritual as ordinary and

close to the “real” world aspossible. This has perhaps left

a void in the child’s soul. Thesuccess of Harry Potter is an indi-

cation that this tendency to make reli-gion as close an approximation to everyday life with aview to making it accessible is a mistake. The CatholicChurch tells us that there is both a visible and invisibleworld, that our universe is not a closed materialist onebut has a supernatural dimension that is not seen byordinary people. Harry Potter offers children a glimpseat an invisible world; unfortunately, it is not the super-natural world of the Heavenly Kingdom, but a dangeroussubstitute.

It is perhaps not the content of the books which is soupsetting, but the lack of viable alternatives. The answerto the problem of disenchantment that Harry Potter givesresults in the deviation of good instinct. The series’ popu-larity, which took the world by surprise, is an indicationthat there is a healthy reaction to the prosaic and materi-alistic aspect of our world in the youngest generation.That quest unfortunately leads to a trap.

F o r g ot t e nT r u t h s

In a recent interview, with the Italian newsagency ANSA, Father Gabriele Amorth, author of AnExorcist Tells His Story, spoke out against J. K. Rowl-ing’s book and the subsequent movie, Harry Potter.While pointing out that the book has serious moralflaws (it promotes lying and disobedience), his mostserious criticism was regarding the way Harry Potterpromotes magic. Harry Potter created a fightbetween good and bad magic, which makes thereader feel sympathy for the “good” magic personi-fied in Harry himself.

Harry looks like a nice little boy who, comparedto his evil enemies, is almost virtuous. In reality, Fr.Amorth explains that, good magic or a good magi-

cian “does not exist, becausemagic is always a turn to theDevil...magic is the satanic art parexcellence. Behind Harry Potter hides thesignature of the king of darkness, the Devil.”

Born in Modena, Italy in 1925, Fr. Amorth hasbeen an exorcist most of his priestly life and isRome’s chief exorcist as well as the president of theInternational Association of Exorcists. After thepublication of his best seller, An Exorcist Tells HisStory, Fr. Amorth is considered one of the world’sforemost authorities on diabolical possession andthe occult.

Exorcist Comments on Harry PotterB Y P A U L S L O B O D N I K


“Icon of the Heavenly Jerusalem”B Y N O R M A N J . F U L K E R S O N

Building a Domus Dei“I was in awe. In every direction I looked, Isaw images that reminded me that I wasstanding at the meeting place of Heaven andearth,” said 13 year old John Schulte as heentered Assumption Cathedral in Covington,Kentucky. Everything seemed to “draw meup,” he continued, “and away from the ordi-nary, and into the realm of the sacred.” 1

The year was 1965 and a lot has changedin Church architecture and renovation sincethen. John Schulte, however, was so movedby what he saw that day that he decided tobecome a priest. Now, over 30 years later, heis pastor of All Saints Parish in Walton, Ken-

tucky and is building his very own “DomusDei” or House of God with the enthusiasticsupport of his parishioners.

His love for beauty and attraction to thesacred is not unique amongst Americans.That could have been the reason for the largeand enthusiastic turnout at the “Building theChurch for 2010 Conference” in Mundelein,Illinois this last October.

“The response was much greater than weexpected,” said Denis MacNamara, theorganizer. “Our attendance was 300% of whatwe planned.” One of the goals of the confer-ence, he continued, was “to provide a forumfor discussion about the role of traditionalarchitecture and iconography in current daychurch building.”

Denis is the Assistant Director at St.Mary’s of the Lake University, the host forthe conference. St. Mary’s was the ideal set-ting for such a seminar on architecture withits magnificent colonial revival style build-ings placed within a sprawling 800-acreestate. “One of the themes [throughout theconference],” Denis said, “was that thechurch building is not simply a gatheringhall, but...an icon of the Heavenly Jerusalem.”

Beauty: “That which when seen pleases” Duncan Stroik, author of “ReconqueringSacred Space” was one of the speakers at the

conference. He is also a Professor at NotreDame University and the architect whodesigned Fr. Schulte’s House of God in Wal-ton. “Why the revival of Classical and GothicArchitecture?” he asked the attentive audi-ence. His answer was simple, “People aretired of their modernist buildings from the60’s and 70’s which in some cases are actual-ly falling apart. O’Hare airport is more beau-tiful than some of our churches,” he affirmed.“Laymen and pastors are again demandingthat churches look like churches.”

Such talk of traditional architecture and aheavenly Jerusalem was very refreshing forme since I have heard my share of complaintsfrom dissatisfied Catholics regarding thebizarre structures some people call churches.Take St. Clare of Assisi in Ballwin, Missourifor example. Friends of mine refer to thisplace of worship as the “potato chip church.”The sad thing is, that is exactly what theirchurch looks like. This may seem disrespect-ful to some, but I see it as an obvious associ-ation of ideas. If it looks like a potato chip,that is what people will call it.

While members of St. Clare complainabout the present, others mourn the past.Many were the beautiful churches destroyedto make room for architectural monstrosi-ties that replaced them. And all of this wasdone in the name of modernity.

According to the simple definition of St.Thomas Aquinas, beauty is “that whichwhen seen, pleases.” Now that which formal-ly was very pleasing to the eye is sadly dis-

O n ly i na m e r i c a

Priests, architects, members of liturgical councils andparishioners gathered in Mundelein, Illinois to discusshow a Church will look in 2010. What most peoplewant is beauty!

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One of the main stained glass windows of the Cathedral of Covington, Kentucky.

A inside picture of the stained glass windowsof the Cathedral of Covington, Kentucky.

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carded in favor of cost, comfort and conven-ience. Such is the mentality of our utilitarianworld, which places the material above thespiritual, and ends up losing both.

There are plenty of people upset with thisutilitarian approach to sacred buildings, butlittle did I realize that an intelligent defenseof the spiritual and sacred —in architec-ture— is being waged right here in America.

Dominican nuns and their trusty architectMany Americans attending the conferenceare fed up with the “recovations,” as they arecommonly called, going on in the Churchtoday. Conspicuous among them were agroup of Dominican nuns from St. Cecilia’sCongregation in Nashville, Tennessee,dressed in the black headdresses and flowingwhite habits of their spiritual father, St.Dominic. Of the 192 nuns currently in theirconvent, 119 are 39 years or younger.

They are getting ready to build a newchapel, renovate their motherhouse and adda new wing to the convent because of theinflux of new vocations.

“We are in a position where we have tomake bed space for them,” said Sister JohnMary Fleming. “But we have to renovate it insuch a way that is appropriate to their spiri-tual formation.” She was alluding to the pos-itive effect a beautiful building has on thesoul. Traditional architecture, a nice matchfor their wonderful Dominican habits, is, atthe same time, very compatible with theirrapidly growing order.

To insure they got what they wanted, theybrought along their architect, MarionFowlkes. “You have to keep the customerhappy,” was how he explained his reason forattending. It was amusing to see this man sit-ting amidst his customers, a group of Domini-can nuns, during the meetings. He was thetrusty architect protecting St. Dominic’sdaughters from architectural absurdities.

“It was not a historical renovation, it was trendy.”Timothy Ehlen of the Saint Francis XavierGuild in Petoskey, Michigan also brought hisarchitect and good friend Steve Wiseman.They are opposed to the renovation of theirparish church of St. Francis and explainedhow a neighboring church had previouslygone through the same process. That historicchurch was ruined, causing tremendous divi-

sion within the parish. They hoped to preventa similar catastrophe. Monthly guild meet-ings have attracted as many as 250 concernedmembers of the parish and of the 1100 fami-lies who previously called St. Francis home,over 900 were opposed to this renovation.

Steve Wiseman presented a restorationplan, which the parish loved. The liturgical“experts,” however, did not. His plans weresummarily rejected with no specific reasongiven, in favor of the modern approach. Thedesires of the parishioners were completelyignored. “It was not a historical renovation,”Ehlen said, “but one which was fashionableand trendy.”

Mr. Wiseman is a convert from Lexington,Kentucky. As an architect he admits it was thebeauty in church buildings, which played a bigpart in his conversion over fifteen years ago.He quit going to church five years later whenhis church in Lexington went through a simi-lar “renovation.” Missing the beauty of theFaith, he eventually returned. “I came backafter studying what the Church really taught,”he said. “Now I know our faith is as solid asever and we just have to keep fighting.”

“The liturgists shrugged their shoulders”Ben Coggeshall, a student at the Universityof Illinois showed the same dogged deter-mination. He decided that he was going tobe an architect when he read a book on Ver-sailles. “I want to build buildings like that,”he categorically affirmed, “and if they(modern day architects) don’t want to buildthem, then, by gosh, I will.”

The parishioners of Fr. Schulte’s House ofGod echoed the same message to DuncanStroik. “They insisted from the beginningthat they wanted a traditional church andthe first thing on their list was for the taber-nacle to be in the center,” he said, “whichcomes up a lot in parishes today.”

In order to reconcile the desires of theparish and that of the diocese —who wanteda Blessed Sacrament Chapel off to the side—they ended up doing both. “The people wereelated,” Stroik continued, “and the liturgistsshrugged their shoulders.”

Many people might also shrug theirshoulders in bewilderment to hear aboutsuch a conference concerned with building atrue “icon of the heavenly Jerusalem” beingheld in the United States of America. Theymight also wring their hands in frustrationwhen they realize that this desire for tradi-tional architecture in the most modernnation on earth is just one more paradox thatexists only in America.

Notes:1. A “Domus Dei” in Northern Kentucky, by

Father John Schulte St. Catherine Review.(Sept./Oct. 2000)

Friends of mine refer to thisplace of worship as the

“potato chip church.”

Saint Clare of Assisi Catholic Church, Ballwin, Missouri

The pictures of Covington Cathedral used inthis article and on the Contents page may bepurchased from:

Visionary Art in ActionAttn: Doreen LaRue 945 Hatch Street, Mt. Adam Cincinnati OH, 45202 (513) 421-4455 www.visionaryartinaction.com


Since September 11, the winds ofwar have swept the nation, reawaken-ing in Americans a healthy sense ofunity and patriotism. We have unitedaround a common cause, focusing

with heroic and white-hot resolve ondefeating an elusive enemy.

In our intense desire for justice and in response tofears of further attacks, we have found points of affin-ity among ourselves and with the world community.We do well to pursue our common enemy with all thetact, resources, and power at our command.

However, the scope of such a unity is limited. In ourpassionate zeal to find shared principles we cannotallow this affinity to overshadow principles not shared.

Principles cannot be sacrificed, reduced to irrele-vancy or traded for sympathy. A common enemy doesnot change the reality of our political, cultural andeven religious differences. Nor does it negate the moralills that undermine the Nation.

The Cultural War ContinuesWe enter the 2002 March for Lifeunited as Americans but greatlyconcerned about the moral issuesthat divide our Nation, especiallythe continued slaughter of inno-cents.

In the quest for internal con-sensus on fighting terrorism wecannot suspend what is calledthe “cultural war.” We must con-tinue our struggle not onlyagainst abortion but alsoagainst violence, promiscuity and blasphemy, whichcreate the cultural climate wherein abortion flourish-es.

September 11 has taught us that there are causesthat are worthy of every form of dedication and sacri-fice. Ours is certainly one such cause.

Indeed, we must continue this struggle since thosewho promote abortion are relentless in putting theiragenda in place. There is no ceasefire on the abortionkilling fields, for there is no lull in the efforts of thosewho would destroy all Christian morality.

On the contrary, pro-abortion forces are on the offen-sive, pulling down the barriers of horror and proceedingyet further into new frontiers of the unimaginable.

A Biogenetic Tower of BabelOn the horizon looms an ominous developmentwhose dark shadow races forward at breakneck speedto engulf us. In a cynical but logical progression, theculture of death is now bent on engendering humanlife so as to destroy it.

Its new frontier is embryonic stem-cell and humancloning research. In the name of science and health,we are now asked to destroy human life at its veryinception. We are asked to accept “limited” cloning toproduce usable cells that can be manipulated and har-vested to aid the living.

In short, the remaining ethical barriers that pre-

The Challenges We FaceC o v e r

S t o ry

S ince September 11, the winds of war haveswept the nation, reawakening in Americans ahealthy sense of unity and patriotism. We have unit-ed around a common cause, focusing with heroicand white-hot resolve on defeating an elusive

enemy.

In our intense desire for justice and in response tofears of further attacks, we have found points of affin-ity among ourselves and with the world community.We do well to pursue our common enemy with allthe tact, resources, and power at our command.However, the scope of such a unity is limited. Inour passionate zeal to find shared principles we can-not allow this affinity to overshadow principles not

The AmericanSociety for the

Defense ofTradition, Familyand Property - TFP

P.O. Box 341Hanover, PA 17331Web: www.tfp.org Email: [email protected]: (717) 225-7147Fax: (717) 225-7382

The ChallengesWe Face

We enter the 2002 March for Life united as Americans but greatlyconcerned with the moral issues that divide our nation, especially thecontinued slaughter of innocents.

Message of the American TFP to those who marched againstabortion on January 22, 2002, Washington D.C.

March for Life, January 22, 2002

Flier distributedat the March.


serve human dignity and God’s rights in creation aresteadily coming down.

In their place is a biotech revolution that has as itsavowed goal not just curing disease but the construc-tion of a brave new world of genetic engineering,changing the very makeup and design of man himself.

A biogenetic Tower of Babel is rising, challengingGod the Creator.

From the Tower of Babel to Pandora’s BoxThe American Society for the Defense of Tradition,Family and Property (TFP) calls upon all Americans toreject this latest attack on human life and God’s orderof creation. We cannot accept the deceptive, unprovenand — in any case — immoral argument that embry-onic stem cells are needed to save adult lives. We can-not permit the completion of this new Tower of Babel,which will be like another Pandora’s box, unleashinguntold ethical and moral havoc on a nation already vis-ited by tragedy.

We believe the key to our national well-being willnever be found in choices that violate the moral andnatural order. The end never justifies the means, andsuch efforts can only result in tragedy.

Thus, as we participate in this 29th March for Life,

we must unite with renewed resolve. We must contin-ue the “cultural war,” employing all legal and peacefulmeans to defend our Christian order. We must standfirm against all destructive embryonic research byuncompromisingly maintaining the sanctity of inno-cent and defenseless human life, knowing that theleast opening of a Pandora’s box can bring aboutunimaginable ruin.

If we are faithful to this just cause, we can beassured that God, through the special intercession ofthe Mother of all mothers, the Blessed Virgin Mary,will bless our efforts and fulfill the hopes of so manywho gather each year to implore an end to the slaugh-ter of the innocent.

From this hope we may see the rebirth of a nationbased not on the false promises of science but upon aconcern for the greater glory of God.

If we are faithful to this just cause, we can beassured that God, through the special intercession

of the Mother of all mothers, the Blessed VirginMary, will bless our efforts and fulfill the hopes of so

many who gather each year to implore an end tothe slaughter of the innocent.

His Imperial and Royal Highness, Prince Bertrand ofOrleans-Braganza distributes fliers during the March.

The American TFP bandplays while thousands marchtowards Capitol Hill againstabortion.

Our Lady of Fatima is carried aloft duringthe mile long march.


The Missing Ingredient

Part III — Beauty

B Y M I C H E L L E T A Y L O R

In the last article pertaining to this seriesof the “Missing Ingredient,” I broached thesubject of the intemperance of our modernculture and the need for temperance in shap-ing the inclinations and tendencies of ourchildren. *

Although many of us may no longer per-ceive it, everything screams at us: colors,sounds, posters, television commercials,movies, video games and so much more.Either life is lived on the fast lane or we aremade to feel we are missing something vital.We have the impression of our children’ssouls, minds and hearts pressed into a furi-ous blender, which instead of helping themaffirm and define their own personalitiesrobs them of the capacity to think, analyze,and choose better paths for themselves.

We need balance and the virtue for thejob is temperance. According to the greatcatholic leader of our times Professor PlinioCorrêa de Oliveira, temperance is the cardi-nal virtue on which hinges the balance of life.

Here we run into a problem. Usually,when we hear the word “temperance,” ourminds’ eye many times tends to see emptyplates, stripped walls, drab clothes, old cars,scant hugs, and a general withdrawal fromlife altogether to achieve “detachment” frommaterial things. In reality, the virtue of tem-perance should encourage us to “detach”from bad things, as much as it shouldencourage us to “attach” to good things.

Temperance is therefore a virtue to helpus deny ourselves from those things thatdraws us away from God, and to attach our-selves to those beautiful things that elevateour souls to God. To every virtue, there is anegative and a positive application. It is likethe virtue of Justice. Most people when theythink of the virtue of Justice, they immedi-

ately think of punishment of the evildoers.However, Saint Thomas Aquinas defines Jus-tice as the virtue that gives to each one thatwhich he or she deserves, punishment orreward.

In fact, today, faced with a neo-pagan cul-tural revolution that attacks morals and goodcustoms from all sides, we are either steepedin materialism or some other “ism” or we havea tendency to swing to the other extreme.

Most of us belong to a generation that isonly now feeling the unbearable oppressive-ness of living without God Who is balance

itself. As we wake up to this fact and veeraway from Godlessness, we search for under-standing of who God is and how to imitateHim in our daily lives.

Perhaps as a reaction to the formerexcesses of materialism, we think we mustadopt a somewhat rigid way of being, whichwe misunderstand as temperance or balance.Many families will go as far as stripping their

homes and their wardrobes of anythingbeautiful. Perhaps, this may be useful as acorrective and temporary measure but not,necessarily as a permanent way of life.

This is especially true when we have chil-dren to bring up. What applies to Francis-cans who have the specific and mostadmirable vocation for complete poverty soas to counter social excesses in luxury, doesnot necessarily apply to our innocent chil-dren whose souls and imaginations thrive onbeautiful things as a means to better under-stand God. **

In my last article, I spoke of tendencies orinclinations and how important it is to pro-vide our children with the cultural ambiancethat will support their tendencies and incli-nations in their quest for God.

Again, the great Saint Thomas Aquinas,Doctor of the Church, teaches us that God’sattributes are Truth, Goodness and Beauty. Forsome reason, we easily understand that ourchildren need to learn all about Truth and allabout what is Good, but we tend to disregardthe role of Beauty in their lives. Yet, in the yearsof their infancy, childhood and adolescence, itis the language most easily understood bythem as opposed to doctrinal truths that maystill be difficult for their young minds.

Of course, this does not preclude theteaching of sound doctrine but only stressesthe need for it to be accompanied by beauty.

In fact, beauty is the language most easilyunderstood by adults as well. How manytimes have I stood before a roaring ocean andthought almost immediately of God? Howmany times I have watched other people dothe same? As they stand there, you canalmost “see” their thoughts rising from the

R a i s i n go u r

C h i l d r e n

You can almost “see” theirthoughts rising from the

waves to the horizon, fromthe horizon to the sky, and

from the sky to God in acontinuous line.

Continued on page 15

(*) See Crusade Magazine, November/December2001, p.19. (**) See Crusade Magazine, May/June 2001, TheCult of Ugliness in America, by Fr. Anthony J.Brankin. To order a copy of these articles call 1-888-317-5571.


America Needs Fatima®PROGRESS REPORTJanuary-February, 2002

I always wondered why the Statues of the Pil-grim Virgin of Our Lady of Fatima show herwith a beautiful star on the hem of her

dress. After a year coordinating the work of theFatima Custodians, bringing Our Lady to tens ofthousands of homes across America, I think Iknow.

From the earliest times of the Church, starswere used by sailors and travelers everywhere toguide them and to stay on course. Compared toa guiding star, Our Lady became known as Stel-la Maris, the Star of the Sea. An invocation inthe Litany of Loreto calls her the Morning Star.Our Lady brings sure direction, but more pre-ciously, she brings hope.

As one Fatima Custodian left a home inLouisiana, the man of the house was at the doorholding back his emotion. Looking straight intothe Custodian’s eyes, he said: “Your visit tonightchanged my life.” Our Lady stirred up new andvibrant hope in this man’s troubled life.

In days gone by, when piety ruled in hearts,innocent minds compared Our Lady to theevening star, the planet Venus. They noticedthat this planet was the first reassuring light toappear at dusk, the last to grow faint and even-tually disappear at dawn. They drew a parallelbetween this phenomenon and Our Lady’smotherly zeal for souls. When trials set in, shewas always the first on hand offering hope and

strength to make it through the night.When morning finally came, the soulfound peace again, for she was alwaysthe last to leave. They gratefully invoked hermaternal help as the Morning Star throughoutlife, but particularly when the darkness of nightdescended upon their souls.

So, it is in many of the Fatima Home Visits.Unfortunately, a large number of the people wemeet have drifted away from the practice of theFaith. Many, in fact, learn how to say the Rosary

Bringing the MorningStar into HomesB Y B Y R O N M . W H I T C R A F T

New!

Above: Joseph Ferrara, along time Fatima Custodian,is ready for a new series of

home visits for 2002.

Below: Fatima CustodianMarlin Duncan says

goodbye to his family beforeleaving for the 2002 Fatima

visit Apostolate.

Currently theAmerica NeedsFatima campaignhas eight FatimaCustodians whodedicatethemselves to thislabor of love. Myonly wish is thatwe had eight more.

during the visit itself. Most have neverheard of Mary under the title of MorningStar, but there is no mistaking the senti-ments in their hearts. They latch ontoher as a shipwrecked sailor to a savingrope. She is their only real hope.

Currently the America Needs Fatimacampaign has eight Fatima Custodianswho dedicate themselves to this laborof love. My only wish is that we hadeight more. For this, dear reader, I askthat you pray earnestly in accor-dance with Our Lord’s words:“Pray to your Father in Heav-en to send laborers to theharvest, for the harvest isgreat, but the laborersare few.”

The harvest beingso vast, there was notime to lose as wemoved on to the newcalendar. Fatima Cus-todians were drivingand flying to their areasof apostolate on January2. Home visits began onJanuary 4.

Bringing Mary into homeshas been the focus of this particu-lar apostolate since its inception in1995, yet the Fatima Custodianshave always made time toinclude hospitals, churches,nursing homes, schools, busi-nesses, and prisons. During2002, we feel very strongly thatwe must expand this extra effort.With the nation under attack,we must reach out to our bravesoldiers selflessly sacrificingthemselves for the commongood.

Wherever they go in 2002 though, thegoal of our eight Fatima Custodiansremains unchanged: to work withoutrest to bring Mary, the Morning Star,and hope, to the very heart and soul ofAmerica.

Bringing Maryto every home

Nicholas Mac leaves for Florida on January 2nd.

Fatima Custodian Jose Walter says goodbye to his family beforeleaving for Puerto Rico.

John C. Costa is on his way to Kentucky.


Marc Lascelle will begin his Fatima visits this year in the state of New Mexico.ANF PROGRESS REPORT

Roger Louis is ouryoungest FatimaCustodian

Your letter thanking me for my donations toyou was very encouraging. I am going to tryto say 5 decades (at least) of the rosary everyday now. This is a very sick and sad worldand we need more people like you andorganizations like “America Needs Fatima.” Iwill pray for you and ANF and the rest of ourworld.

M.F. — Los Gatos, CA

Has brought me much hopeAs a contributor to your organization, Iwould like to thank you for the great workbeing done — specifically with the rosary. Iam a sincere believer in praying the rosaryand I am trying to make others do the same.I would like to share a very extraordinaryevent that just occurred: Recently, I wasasked for a rosary by my ex-husband. Wehave just been through a bitter separation.He is a non-Catholic and does not belong toany faith. He claimed that he has not beenable to sleep at night. Since he has beenwearing the rosary, he feels much better.

This has brought me much joy and hope. L.B. — Email

I received in the mail from ANF a bookletcalled The Book of Confidence. This small butwonderful little book was what I needed allthe time and forever. I am sure many peoplewould benefit from it and renew their faith,trust and confidence in God.

F.M. — Waltham, MA

This book can change lives!Please mail to me at least 5 copies of TheBook of Confidence by Father Thomas deSaint-Laurent — this book can change lives!

L.M., — Munster, IN

You just don’t know how happy I was when Ireceived this Christmas gift of yours —Thank you so much! It came just in timewhen I was almost losing confidence ineverything, in everybody — with all theproblems in life, in the family and with myillness. If it will not be too much to include

me in your prayers and Masses, I shouldappreciate that very much.

R.C. — North Hollywood, CA

Strong and consistent standI wish to congratulate you and the ANF/TFPfor the strong and consistent stands thatyou have taken opposing blasphemy in yourcountry. Here in Malta, when the “film”Dogma was screened, nobody protested andour clergy simply ignored the whole issue.

P.B. — Malta

Thank you so much for your card. Our Ladyheard your prayers because I got a new jobafter I was laid off in November 2001. Thisjob is for six months only, but it should, inprinciple, be renewed. I included a $500check to help you to spread the Fatima mes-sage and to support your anti-blasphemywork.

D.B. Atlanta, GA

America Needs Fatimareceived letters ofcommendation andthanks for its 2002Fatima Calendar fromAnthony CardinalBevilacqua, Archbishopof Philadelphia, BernardCardinal Law,Archbishop of Boston,Nicholas d’Antonio Ret.Auxiliary Bishop of NewOrleans, and Most Rev.Ronald M. Gilmore,Bishop of Dodge City,among many others.

ANF PROGRESS REPORT

Our Readers Write

During the months of October andNovember 2001, America NeedsFatima mailed 220,000 free FatimaCalendars and, in view of theSeptember 11 attacks, 80,000 freeBooks of Confidence by Fr. Thomas deSaint-Laurent.

Right: Matthew Shibler anANF volunteer, holds a boxfull of Books of Confidence.Top: America Needs Fatima2002 Calendar


Crusade Magazine: Can you give us a bit ofthe history of the Australia Needs Fatimacampaign?

Mr. John Tucker: America Needs Fatima inspiredthe Fatima Campaign in Australia. Robert Ritchie,ANF director, is a friend of mine and he insistedrepeatedly that we make every effort possible to spreadthe message of Our Lady in the Land Down Under.

The Australia Needs Fatima campaign began on the24th of May 1996, feast of Our Lady Help of Christians,patroness of Australia. Throughout the country we dis-tributed over 1.7 million Fatima fliers, many of them byhand on the streets and corners of the major cities ofSydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.

Crusade Magazine: Could you tell us whattype of activities and events you promote tospread the Fatima message?

Mr. John Tucker: Talks, meetings and conferenceson the Fatima message form a large part of our efforts.Just last year, we delivered over 100 public talks relatedto the Fatima message. I personally delivered talks inchurches, schools, and homes throughout the country.

Our home visitation program with our pilgrim vir-gin statue of Our Lady is alive and well. The Statue’spresence has graced thousands of homes.

Spreading the book Our Lady of Fatima: Propheciesof Tragedy or Hope? is also a vital part of our efforts aswell as spreading devotion to the most Holy Rosary. Inthe last four years, we distributed over 15,000 FatimaBooks and 10,000 Rosary kits.

It is important to remember that there are onlysix of us doing this work in Australia. Thus we con-

stantly find ourselves in the situation mentionedby Our Lord in the Gospel “The harvest is great,but the laborers are few.”

We also worked hard to spread the Fati-ma message throughout the Pacific. We visit-ed New Zealand, Western Samoa, and Amer-

ican Samoa with Our Lady’s statue. Thereceptivity towards the Fatima message in those

places is overwhelming and we hope to continue

our activities there and other places as well.Our Fatima Calendar was very popular throughout

the Pacific. In fact, we sent out more than 14,000 cal-endars last year alone.

Crusade Magazine: What has been thereceptivity of Australians to the ANFcampaign?

Mr. John Tucker: It is a known fact that Australiahas a weaker religious disposition than the UnitedStates. Thus, the results of our Australia Needs FatimaCampaign far exceeded all of our expectations. Thereare more requests for Fatima home visits than our vol-unteers can handle. Some of our friends have to waitmore than a year to receive Our Lady’s statue in theirhome.

The number of requests for talks and lecturesabout the Fatima message also exceeds our capacity.At one point, last year, I gave as many as seven talks aweek.

Crusade Magazine: Concerning your anti-blasphemy campaigns, what are youraccomplishments?

Mr. John Tucker: Thanks be to God, far fewer blas-phemies reach Australian shores than occur in Amer-ica. However, we are actively engaged in protests andpreventing those blasphemies that do come to Aus-tralia. Last year, the film Dogma debuted in Australia.Our volunteers and friends protested in writing and inperson in front of cinemas throughout the country.

Crusade Magazine: What are your futureplans for the Australia Needs Fatimacampaign?

Mr. John Tucker: For this year, we hope to expandour home visitation program and our Fatima talks atschools. We are also planning another trip to NewZealand and Samoa. Plus we hope to reach Tonga andTahiti this year. We will also be engaging in a project tospread the Book of Confidence.

Interview with Australia Needs Fatima Director

Since May of1996, over 1.7

million Fatimafliers have been

distributedthroughout

Australia.

John Tucker, AustraliaNeeds Fatima director

Australia Needs Fatima 2002 Calendar

ANF PROGRESS REPORT


ANF PROGRESS REPORT

Like Mr. and Mrs. Jay Duncan of Conyng-ham, PA, many want America Needs Fatima tobe around for their grandchildren...and beyond.So, please consider making a charitable bequestto America Needs Fatima when you write oramend your will.

You will be deeply satisfied to know thatyour generosity will help future generations toknow, love and practice a message of suchimportance, that God sent His Holy Mother todeliver it personally to us at Fatima in 1917.

St. Louis de Montfort says that Mary, beingthe most gracious and giving of all pure crea-tures, never lets herself be outdone in love andliberality. As a holy man said of her, for an eggshe gives an ox; that is to say, for a little that isgiven her, she returns a hundred fold.

And St. Bernard says that “when you wantto offer anything to God, take care to offer it bythe most agreeable and worthy hands of Mary,unless it be rejected.”

Pass on Devotion to the Next GenerationTo pass on devotion to Our Lady to the nextgeneration ask your attorney to include in yourwill either of the two phrases below:

Option 1“I give and bequeath the sum of $______dol-

lars to be used for the general purposes of Amer-ica Needs Fatima, a special campaign of TheFoundation for a Christian Civilization, Inc., of1358 Jefferson Rd., Spring Grove, PA. 17362, a501 (c)(3) tax-exempt charity.”

Option 2“I give, devise and bequeath to America

Needs Fatima, a special campaign of The Foun-dation for a Christian Civilization, Inc., of RR1358 Jefferson Rd., Spring Grove, PA 17362, a501 (c)(3) tax-exempt charity, for its generalpurposes all (or state fraction or percent) of therest, residue and remainder of my estate,whether real or personal.”

* * *

Fatima’s Echo to the Next GenerationYour bequest will help future generations liveOur Lady’s Fatima message and you will also

receive many spiritual benefits. We pray dailyfor our benefactors, both the living and thefaithfully departed. Fr. Kevin J. Beaton saysMass on Saturdays for the intentions of Ameri-ca Needs Fatima members.

Your generosity is not only appreciated byus, but, much more importantly, our BlessedMother and Her Divine Son. They are moreinterested than anyone in the restoration ofsociety and the triumph of the ImmaculateHeart of Mary.

Your help will make such apostolate possi-ble:

Home-visitations with the Pilgrim Virginstatues of Our Lady of Fatima, reaching tens ofthousands of families each year.

Protests and acts of reparation nation-wide to stop blasphemous attacks against theSacred Persons of Jesus and Mary.

Massive promotion of FREE religious lit-erature, books, medals and especially rosaries.

Family Pilgrimages to Marian Shrines.Fatima lectures and audio-visual presen-

tations.Outreach programs for high school and

college students.Fatima Proclaimers nationwide volunteer

network, reaching millions with the Fatimamessage.

The Future Depends on You

Last December 8, Fatima Custodian JoseWalter visited the house where Elian Gonzaleslived while in America. This was the houseinvaded by FBI agents under the orders of JanetReno during the early hours of Holy Saturday,April 22, 2000, to drag Elian away from his rela-tives and eventually return him to Cuba.

In the picture to the right, Mr. Jose Walterposed with Elian’s uncle Delfin Gonzales andaunt Caridad Gonzales around the statue of OurLady during the celebration of Elian’s birthdayon December 8, 2001.

The picture to the lower right, shows a ladywearing a T-shirt with a picture of Elian nextto a ANF statue of Our Lady of Fatima whileholding and kissing a small 10” Fatimastatue.

On December 23, 1999, Elian Gon-zales was present during a Fatimapresentation. When the ANF Custo-dian uncovered the statue of OurLady of Fatima, Elian exclaimed thatshe was the Lady who had savedhim from the waters.

Fatima Custodian Visits House of Elian Gonzales

Fatima pilgrim statue visits thehouse where Elian Gonzaleslived while in the U.S.


ANF PROGRESS REPORT

Filthy Attack on Our Lord: Until recent-ly, the Baltimore Museum of Art offered PissChrist postcards for sale in their gift shop.This blasphemy by Andres Serrano, depictsOur Lord Jesus Christ crucified dunked in ajar of urine.

To voice your protest call the

Baltimore Museum of Art at 410-396-7100.

Blasphemy in Boston: As a lead up toChristmas, the blasphemous play Jesus hastwo Mommies was performed several timesin The Copley Theater in Boston.

Call 617-824-8000 to share your outrage with

The Copley Theater for hosting this blasphemy.

Wellesley hosts homosexual play:Wellesley College in Massachusetts will showthe blasphemous play Corpus Christi for fourconsecutive nights in February. The play por-trays Our Lord Jesus Christ and the apostlesas homosexuals. Thirteen Wellesley studentsare in the cast.

To express your opinion of the play, call

Wellesley College Theater Office at 781-283-2000.

Sodom and Gomorrah in Vermont:According to The Washington Times, “Ver-mont’s Supreme Court has rejected a chal-lenge to the civil unions law granting homo-sexual couples many of the rights and bene-fits of marriage. In a Dec. 26 order signed byall five justices and released yesterday, thecourt turned aside claims brought by taxpay-ers, legislators and town clerks” (The Wash-ington Times, Jan. 4, 2002).

Note: The Washington Times uses the word “cou-ple” in reference to same-sex unions. However, toavoid relativism when referring to sodomite unions,we will not use the word “couple” since that normal-ly denotes a man and woman union.

Museum mocks Pope and nuns:According to the Los Angeles Times(latimes.com), there is “an exhibit at Copia,the Napa Valley’s heralded new food, wineand arts museum, that includes figurines ofthe pope and several nuns defecating” (LosAngeles Times (latimes.com) Jan. 5, 2002).

ANF members can call Copia at 707-265-5948 to

voice their opinion about the exhibit.

Christmas kicked out of schools: Indozens of public schools across America, anyreference to Christmas was expressly forbid-den. The wave of anti-Christmas sentimentlast year went so far that school authoritiesforbid both children and teachers to say“Merry Christmas” or even to hand outChristmas cards.

Filth Fed College Students: As if theimmoral filth on TV, in print, and on theInternet was not enough, it is now taught inmany colleges. According to Accuracy inAcademia, Fort Lewis College in Durango,CO, joins a growing list of colleges that teachclasses in pornography. A senior seminar,The Poetics of Porn, is offered this spring”(Accuracy in Academia, Dec. 3, 2001).

The phone number for Fort Lewis College in

Durango, CO, is 970-247-7184.

Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of MaryAn essential part of the message of Fatima

Will Americans accept this?

Our Lady revealed to Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta in Fatima during her second apparition on June13, 1917, “Jesus wishes to use you in order to make me known and loved. He wishes to establishdevotion to my Immaculate Heart in the world. I promise salvation to those who embrace it; andthese souls will be beloved of God like flowers arranged by me to adorn His throne.”

“What Our Lady says about devotionto her Immaculate Heart is amazing.She formally promises heaven to all thatpractice this devotion. There are no twoways about it, she is very clear: to thosethat embrace devotion to her Immacu-

late Heart, she promises salvation.”“This promise was made to Lucia, Jacinta, Francisco and through

them, all of humanity. It holds true for all that would learn of it inyears to come. Thus, wherever it is announced, this promise is made.For example, as I speak of it at this very moment, this promise isbeing made.”

“So, then, what are we waiting for? Let us immediately accept it! Itis Our Lady herself who makes this promise. It is as if she said to us:

‘Make haste to embrace this promise. I shall love you so much morefor it. Come!’”

“It is as if Our Lady were trying her hardest to think of new waysof drawing us to heaven. But there is a miserable something or otherin modern man that makes him impervious to even the most mag-nificent promises. He would rather trust his all to a life insurance pol-icy than to a promise such as this.”

“Now, consider the beautiful comparison Our Lady makes: shesays that those souls that embrace devotion to her Immaculate Heartwill be placed near the throne of God in heaven, as a lady places flow-ers before an altar near the Most Blessed Sacrament.”

“What a magnificent thought; to think of our soul placed nearGod as if it were a flower! Could anything be compared to that? Yetpeople hear this and remain indifferent…”

Commentary by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira

Please remember that violencehas no place in any ANF protest.

Protests should always be strictlylegal and peaceful.

waves to the horizon, from the horizon to thesky, and from the sky to God in a continuousline; and suddenly the exclamation emerges:“Wow! What an awesome Creator!”

On the other hand, how many times have Iheard people tell me things like: “My motherhad beautiful china and crystal glasses butalways kept them in her cupboard. We neverused them.” Or, “At home, we had a beautiful liv-ing room that was always kept locked.” Or, “Ialmost never saw my mother dressed up, butwhen she did she was stunning!”

Why? Why did the china and crystal stay inthe cupboard, why did the beautiful living roomremain locked, and why did the beautiful dress-es hang all year in the closet? As human beingsmade to the image and likeness of God Himself,we are all entitled to be surrounded by a rea-sonable amount of beauty. We do not necessar-ily have to be kings and queens for that.

The ongoing tendency is to strip, downplay,and downsize. More and more the tendency isto use only plastic or paper plates and cups forall occasions, to use the den all year round, andto dress down all the time.

In a word, life is not only simple but alsooutright plain. For a child this is a great moti-vation killer because it starves their inbornthirst for beauty, by means of which theyunconsciously tend toward God. Moreover,right on the heels of beauty is dignity, and chil-dren make that connection very easily.

Parents, without realizing it, take the placeof God for their young children. The child has asense that God has to be beautiful and digni-fied. Therefore, when parents begin dressingdown all the time, the child realizes that some-thing is wrong, and thus the respect begins todecline. This principle is applicable to manyother things as well.

I once watched as five and six year olds satat a beautifully decorated Christmas table anddrank from stemmed glasses like perfect ladies

and gentlemen without spilling a drop onto thetablecloth. I was flabbergasted. I hadapproached the hostess with a few countersuggestions before the meal but she had smil-ingly affirmed to me, “Watch, they will sensethe ambiance and will rise to the occasion.”And the incredible did happen.

Once a little neighbor boy came running upto me, eyes glistening, with the grand news,“Mom is going to be wearing her crystal ear-rings for Easter!” I will never forget the expres-sion of almost ecstasy in the child’s face as hemade the glorious announcement.

Though reasonably well off, by one of theseinexplicable modern tendencies, his parentsusually dressed like hoboes. The most themother donned was a pair of jeans, an old topand a head of hair that begged for a comb.

As I stood there and watched the little boyrun off, I couldn’t help thinking how muchmore he would respect and love his mother ifshe wore those crystal earrings often with hairand outfit to match.

Furthermore, would it be too improbable tosurmise that when the time came for him tolearn the catechetical truth of “Honor thyfather and mother,” how easily he would respectand honor such a dignified woman as hismother? And when the catechist admonishedhim, “be good for your mother,” it would comemore naturally to him to be good for such abeautiful lady as his mother?

Yes, beauty is a powerful tool. Archbishop Fulton Sheen, in one of his mas-

terful talks, speaks of the “Apostolate of Beau-ty” and affirms that it is one of the most effi-cient means of reaching people.

Let us use this apostolate with our chil-dren. Of course, like everything that is good, ittakes time. Nothing good happens overnight.Nevertheless, if we apply the principle of Beau-ty consistently and pray, between God’s graceand our beautiful example, children will have amuch better chance of turning out nothing butbeautiful.

Continued from page 8

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The Papacy in Crisis

B Y J E R E M I A S W E L L S

The death of Boniface VIII did nothing tosoften the rapacity and autocracy of KingPhilip; it merely removed a Pope who frus-trated his unjust schemes. He continuedwith his designs to subjugate the Church andfind new sources of revenue.

While the gangsters organized by Nogaretand Sciarra Colonna were harassing PopeBoniface and plundering his palace at Anag-ni, all the cardinals fled except two. One ofthem, Nicholas Boccasini, was elected as hisreplacement. Taking the name Benedict XI,he granted a general amnesty to all thosewho had fallen under the ban of excommuni-cation provided they indicated a sincererepentance to which even Philip agreed. Onegroup was explicitly excepted. Nogaret, Scia-rra Colonna and fifteen others weredenounced by name in a special bull andordered to appear before the Pope to receivethe punishment they deserved. When theyrefused, he declared that he would announcethe sentence anyway which, at the very least,would have confirmed that Nogaret was anoutlaw (anathema). Such a condition wouldhave jeopardized not only his possessions,but also his life for the unscrupulous coun-selor also had enemies. On July 7, 1304, Bene-dict XI died suddenly after enjoying a plateof poisoned figs.

After a year of haggling, the Sacred Col-lege elected the Archbishop of Bordeaux,Bertrand de Got, who took the nameClement V. A compliant, vacillating man, helacked the strength of character to stand upto the ruthless cunning of Philip and hismalignant genius, Nogaret. A series of eventsensued which debased the moral prestige ofthe Church and hastened the decline ofWestern Civilization.

Among the first acts taken by Clementwas the revocation of the disciplinary bulls

against Philip, the restoration of the dignitiesof the Colonnas1 and the creation of ten car-dinals, nine of them French. However, themalevolence of Philip and the weak compli-ance of Clement are best illustrated by theattack on the memory of Boniface VIII andthe murderous assault on the Knights Tem-plar. Since Philip saw that the good name ofBoniface was a reproach to his own evil rep-utation, he applied pressure on Clement to

have the actions of the dead Pope con-demned. When the harassed Pope resisted,the wily King extracted other concessions,principally forcing Clement to remain onFrench soil from which he never left and toassist him in his protracted campaignagainst the Templars.

Suppression of the TemplarsAlthough the once-great religious militaryorder had amassed great wealth and power,they had fallen into a pattern of uselessnesswhen their original vocation of fighting inthe Holy Land disappeared with the fall ofAcre in 1291. The Knights of the Hospital ofSt. John retained their medical service andtheir warriors transformed themselves intothe Knights of Rhodes by assailing Moslemshipping in the Mediterranean from that

island. Conversely, the Templars just lan-guished in their banking strongholds, whichattracted the attention of the always impe-cunious Philip. Mollat made an astuteobservation when he declared, “temporalprosperity (in a religious order) almostinevitably produces a slackening of disci-pline, excites pride and favors the deteriora-tion of moral standards.”2

In order to facilitate the attack againstthe Templars, Philip had a list of the mosthorrible crimes imaginable compiled fromhearsay and innuendo. In this sorry mess,Philip, his lawyers, and his compliant bish-ops were not able to produce any solid evi-dence of heresy, blasphemy or grossimmorality which they unfairly attributed tothe Knights. Nevertheless, they forged aheadthrough audacity and strokes of violence.

While trying to convince an incredulousPope of their supposed evil deeds, Philip pre-sented him with fait accompli by arresting

all the Templars in France, some 2,000, andsequestering their property. Holding themincommunicado and in separate cells with-out any moral support, Philip’s jailers appliedmerciless torture to the unfortunate broth-ers, which caused dozens of them to die.Nogaret anticipated modern times in his dia-bolical ingenuity by inflicting continuous,unbearable pain over a period of weeks andmonths. Not surprisingly, many confessed tothe most heinous crimes and sins on Noga-ret’s list.

In the months that followed, the still-unconvinced Clement once again wasthreatened with a trial against the memoryof Boniface VIII, suffered under a barrage ofslander created by Nogaret and forced to rec-ognize the confessions of the tortured Tem-plars. Finally he capitulated and ordered aninvestigation to be modeled on the Inquisi-

Chapter 1

Part two: Avignon Captivity

R e v o lu t i o na n d

c o u n t e rr e v o lu t i o n i n H i s t o ry

Palace of the Popes, Avignon, France


tion, which was unfortunate because if anyof the Knights repudiated their confession,they could be burned as relapsed heretics.That is indeed what happened to many,including Jacques de Molay, the Grand Mas-ter and many of his assistants.

In the other countries, that is, those out-side of Philip’s power, the Templars werebasically exonerated, especially where tor-ture was not used. In France if the processmet with obstacles, a few dozen wretchedKnights would be dragged from their cellsinto the surrounding fields and burned at thestake, which caused the process of death toaccelerate once more.

The posthumous trial of Boniface, whichthe Pope delayed by every expedient avail-able, was resolved by another humiliatingcompromise. All papal acts against the Kingwere erased from the papal register. Nogaret,Colonna and the other conspirators of Anag-ni were absolved and without a hint of ironyPhilip the fair was publicly praised for hiszeal and good intentions.

The fate of the Templars was settled atthe Ecumenical Council held at Vienne in1311-12. A special committee of bishopsreported that the Templars should be heardin their own defense. Philip came to Vienneand alternately cajoled and threatened. Thecommittee, sad to say, reversed its decisionand recommended that the religious orderbe suppressed. In a solemn session on April3, 1312 after imposing silence under the painof excommunication, the Pope read thedecree—without allowing any debate—thatdestroyed the great military Order of theKnights of the Temple and distributed their

property to the Hospitallers. But they saw lit-tle of it, for Philip deducted a large amountfor the “expense of protecting their property.”

The Popes at AvignonAlthough these events overshadowed all elsein Clement’s pontificate, the most notableoccurrence was the establishment of thepapal residence at Avignon where itremained to the great detriment of itsauthority and the unity of the Church for thenext 70 years. Sitting on the French border,Avignon was a possession of the King ofNaples, but in reality an independent city.The Romans called the long sojourn the“Babylonian Captivity” because of its resem-blance to the exile of the Jews in Babylon inthe sixth century B.C. and also in allusion toits worldliness which was constantly criti-cized by the Italian poets, Dante and Petrar-ch. Clement saw his stay in France and Avi-gnon from 1309 as a temporary expedientdue to constant warfare in Northern andcentral Italy and his failing health. But hissuccessor, John XXII, took concrete steps toestablish a permanent residence.

Any blame that can be placed on the Avi-gnon popes can be mitigated by the anarchicconditions in Italy. Disastrous wars were lay-ing waste the Church lands and neighboringregions. The dissension between the Guelphsand the Ghibellines, who still supportedeither the Papacy or the all-encompassingEmpire, had lost none of its bitterness. Romeitself was controlled by riotous and feudingnobles when it was not subjected to someglory-hungry adventurer. The pleasant,peaceful Rhone valley was far more con-

ducive to the comfort of the increasinglyFrench College of Cardinals and Curia, but ata debilitating price.

The preponderance of French cardinalsand the subsequent election of seven Frenchpopes contradicted the universal characterof the Church that gave unity and strength toMedieval Christendom. Although most ofthe popes were competent by ordinary stan-dards, the impression of a Papacy swayed bynational and personal considerations weak-ened its authority and served to increase theantagonism of the constantly growing secu-lar movement.

A Revolution in ideasThe bitterness of the factional disputesserved as a backdrop and a stimulus for theemerging pernicious philosophies and here-sies that were to rend Christian unity. Anoth-er excommunicated German King, Louis IV(1314-46) invaded Italy to give support to theGhibellines in their war against Pope Johnand to receive the imperial crown that Johnhad denied to him. In his entourage travelledMarsilius of Padua, who had just writtenDefensor Pacis, the most explosive attackagainst papal supremacy until then. Theprovocative ideas of Marsilius anticipatedLutheranism, Thomas Cromwell and theworst aspects of the French Revolution. Infact, Cromwell, while engineering HenryVIII’s split with Rome republished DefensorPacis in an English translation.

Among the subversive propositions is theunconditional sovereignty of the people overboth Church and State. The Church is whatsociety feels at any given moment about reli-

Place in Paris (Ile de France) wherethe last Grand Master of theTemplars, Jacques de Molay, wasexecuted by fire.


gion. Since whatever the people do is goodthere can be no moral criticism of legislation.According to Marsilius’ pernicious ideas, thePope, whose primacy is not founded onScripture, is subject to a General Council,which in turn is subject to state authority.The confirmation of the Pope’s election isrequired by the State, which also has theauthority of summoning a General Council,presiding over it, drawing up its decisionsand executing them. This submission of theChurch to lay power extends to the parishlevel where the people elect and control theofficial duties of the priest and have thepower of dismissal. In short, the function ofthe clergy was to keep quiet, administer thesacraments and stay out of public life, alaicism that was instituted in the FrenchRevolution.

Marsilius’ attack on the clergy’s right tohold private property found a sympatheticresonance with a troublesome wing of theFranciscans known as the Spirituals. Theyadvocated absolute poverty, both personaland in the order as a whole, which was quiteunreasonable because the order grew to suchlarge proportions that it needed residentialbuildings, schools and land on which toplace them. Their zeal for holy poverty wasonly exceeded by their disobedience to theirsuperiors who in conjunction with the popeswere trying to resolve the vexatious problem.The spirit of contention and rebellion severe-ly affected the order internally and, becauseof its size, the Church as a whole. In theensuing conflict, the Spirituals declared thattheir way of life was more perfect than anyother and that Christ and His Apostles prac-ticed perfect poverty. John XXII denied theformer and condemned the latter.

The few Franciscans who did not submitwere encouraged by Louis IV, now Emperorfor he had been crowned in 1328 by SciarraColonna, the assailant of Boniface VIII.When Michael of Cesena, the FranciscanMinister-General, was called to Avignon toexplain his relationship with the GermanEmperor, he argued his case with such disre-spect and vehemence that Pope John placedhim under arrest. Michael escaped from hisconfinement and fled to Louis’ court withanother highly influential Franciscan mal-content, William of Ockham.

The English Franciscan sowed the seedsof disaster that were reaped in the four-teenth and fifteenth centuries in philosophy,theology and political science. The thinkingof Saint Thomas Aquinas achieved harmonybetween faith and reason, theology and phi-losophy, and revelation and science. Ockhamdestroyed that harmony by denying the exis-tence of universals or concepts (nominal-ism), thus saying that reason cannot provethe existence of God, the immortality of thesoul, or the freedom of the will, which SaintThomas clearly demonstrated. In practice,Ockham denied the necessity of supernatu-ral grace and the value of merit, which playedright into the hands of Martin Luther andthe German Protestants. Interestingly, onehistorian has claimed that Luther can be“regarded as the last in a long line of Catholictheologians of scholastic decadence.”3

The existing order was further violated bythe political views of Ockham, which com-plemented those of Marsilius. His stronglyanti-papal, secularizing opinions attractedfollowers who prolonged the Great WesternSchism in the next generation and reap-peared in the heretical systems of John

Wyclif, John Hus and Martin Luther. The lat-ter proclaimed himself to be an Ockhamist.

The Black DeathRumors were reaching Southern Europeabout a terrible disease that was devastatingthe populated areas along the RussianSteppes, travelling in a westerly direction.Largely ignored at first, Westerners began totake notice when the ravaging diseasereached the northern coast of the Black Seawhere Italian merchants had a number oftrading colonies. In October 1347, a dozenGenoese galleys docked at the port of Messi-na in Sicily. Within a short time, their disas-trous cargo of plague was killing hundreds ofvictims a day. The Messinans drove the mer-chant sailors away, which caused the devas-tation to spread throughout the port cities ofItaly and southern France, ran up the riversand advanced into the interior. Throughoutthe next two years, the disease moved north-ward and then spread east and west infect-ing all of Europe.

The Black Death consisted of two strains:the more prevalent bubonic plague whichwas spread from infected rats by fleas andthe more-deadly, highly contagious pneu-monic plague which affected the lungs withsymptoms similar to pneumonia. Between1348 and 1350, one-third to one-half of theEuropean population succumbed.

Social and economic conditions and reli-gious fervor declined as repeated smallerplagues continued for the rest of the century.Family life suffered when the epidemic pro-duced countless widows and orphans andkilled other members of the family who pro-vided the necessary support for daily living.The ranks of the clergy suffered a frightful toll

Altar dedicated to Saint Catherine of Sienna at the church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, Rome.


since in times of pestilence they generouslyexposed themselves to death by caring for thesick and administering the sacraments. Theirreplacements were recruited from the unedu-cated and those unqualified for life in holyorders. In general, the Black Death and theprolonged warfare during the fourteenth andfifteenth centuries (which will be discussed ina subsequent chapter) brought about pres-sures and strains that resulted in socialunrest and peasant uprisings.

Profile: Saint Catherine of SiennaOne of the delights of studying history is dis-covering those occasions when God providesunmistakable evidence of His Divine Provi-dence in the management of our earthlyaffairs. The marvelous life of Saint Catherineof Sienna falls into that category, thus indi-cating the foolishness of dividing history intoartificial, airtight compartments on Churchhistory and secular history. Catherine had aprofound influence on the events of her time,but her action occurred not because of herown volition but because of her extraordi-nary union with God under His immediatedirection.

Born into a large family of a reasonablypious mother and an industrious father whoprepared colors for wool dying, CatherineBenincasa exhibited a mature sweetness andjoy at an early age that impressed not onlyher family but also the entire neighborhood.At the age of six, she beheld a remarkablevision of Jesus Christ sitting on a splendidthrone with Saints Peter, Paul and John theEvangelist at His side. While she stood inadmiration and contemplation, Christ culti-vated an overpowering love for Him in herheart. From that moment, the force of divinelove induced her to emulate the prayers, aus-terities and sacrifices of the great saints, par-ticularly Saint Dominic. She abstained frommeat and otherwise ate extremely little, usedthe discipline despite her tender age, andprayed throughout the night, allowing her-self only a quarter of an hour of sleep daily.One day while praying to the Blessed Virgin,she made a vow of perpetual virginity inorder to unite herself closer to Christ. Soclose was her union with Christ that later inlife, at her request she, received the fivewounds of the Stigmata.

As she approached her teen years, herparents began their search for a suitablemarriage partner. To forestall their romantic

activities, the determined mystic sheared offher beautiful hair and covered her head witha veil. In retaliation, her furious parentsloaded her with all the manual work in thehouse, which she characteristically per-formed with her usual joyfulness. Finally herfather relented when he became convincedof her religious sincerity. Always attracted tothe spirituality of Saint Dominic, Catherinewas clothed as a Dominican tertiary whenshe was sixteen. Reluctantly, we must passover her numerous miracles and an accountof many lives that she enriched spirituallyand go to her involvement in the AvignonesePapacy.

Gregory XI and the return to RomeWhen Gregory XI was elevated to the papalthrone in 1370, its prestige had sunk so lowthat any attempt by the popes to resolve thenumerous problems besetting Christianitywas largely ignored. Due to her reputationfor sanctity and her influence as God’s mes-senger on earth, Saint Catherine rose to theforefront among those who saw that thesolution to the problems facing the Churchwas a return of the Papacy to Rome.

She wrote several letters to Gregory urginghim “to come and defend the place of the glo-rious Pastor St. Peter. Raise the standard ofthe Holy Cross and we shall be delivered fromdiscord, war, and wickedness and those whohave gone astray will return to their alle-giance.” Catherine travelled to Avignon in1376 on a peace-making mission for Florenceand arrived at the frivolous, worldly fortress-palace of the popes in July. There she encoun-tered a deep-seated hostility from the paintedladies of easy virtue and the corrupt clergy-men who saw in her holiness and dedicationto virtue the end of their sumptuous lifestyle.

In one of the early audiences, the austeremystic convinced the Pope of her divine mis-sion by revealing to him a secret vow, knownonly to him, to return to Rome. Her problemwas not to convince him of the necessity ofthe move but to overcome his irresolutenature and his timidity in facing the power-ful French cardinals in the curia who enjoyedtheir pleasant surroundings on the banks ofthe Rhone. She also complained of thestench of sin in the palace and Gregory’s tol-erance of it. Strengthened by Catherine’sadvice and support, the Pope quietly madepreparations to leave and departed by boaton September 13. Her mission supposedlycompleted, Catherine travelled separatelyoverland to resume other responsibilities.

By the time the papal fleet reached Genoain October, Gregory’s resolution was shakenby the constant complaints from the cardi-nals in his entourage. Catherine had arrivedsome days earlier by a different route and bycoincidence or Divine Providence was stillthere. One night a simple priest, showingsigns of depression, knocked on her door.Immediately she recognized the SupremePontiff. After several hours of conversation, areassured and confident Pope resumed hisjourney. Gregory entered Rome amid wildacclaim on January 17, 1377. Unfortunately,an even greater crisis for the Papacy loomedover the horizon.

Biographical NoteA judicious, objective approach to many

problems covered in this period can be found inPhilip Hughes, A History of the Church, vol. III,(New York, 1947). Stephen Howarth, The KnightsTemplar, (New York, 1982) gives a colorfulaccount of their history. The standard work forthe Avignonese Papacy is G. Mollat, The Popes atAvignon (New York, 1963). For a discussion of theideas of the day see David Knowles, The Evolutionof Medieval Thought, (Baltimore, 1962). For SaintCatherine we used biographies by Blessed Ray-mond of Capua, her confessor and Alice Cur-tayne (London, 1929). Throughout this and sub-sequent chapters, we will rely heavily on thatgreat work of Catholic scholarship, Dr. LudwigPastor’s History of the Popes.

Notes1. In his war with the rebellious Colonna fam-

ily, Boniface VIII reduced two of them from therank of Cardinal. See the article in the last issue.

2. Mollat, op. cit., P. 2303. Pasrtor, op. cit. vol. I, p.105.

One of the delights ofstudying history isdiscovering those

occasions when Godprovides unmistakableevidence of His Divine

Providence in themanagement of our

earthly affairs.


Cecy and her FriendB Y P A U L I N E S A N D E R S

My name is Cecy Cony. I am now inHeaven with my Guardian Angel whobrought me here and am waiting for all ofyou to come one day.

Like you, I was also a child and, like you,had a very special friend, my Guardian Angel.I want to tell you all about him and how Icould hear him and see him for a long timebut, first, let me tell you a little about my selfand my family and how I first learned aboutthe good God who gave me my great friend.

I was born in the year 1900, in the faraway land of Brazil where the sun shinesbrightly, palm trees sway in the wind and col-orful birds sing many songs. My father was acaptain in the army and my mother a verysweet lady. I loved my parents and had a veryspecial spot in my heart for “Papai” which ishow we say “Daddy” in Brazil.

Papai had a big soft spot in his heart forme also. I was glad because when I came tolearn of the other big “Papai in Heaven,” asmy father called the good God, I knew Hewas just as good as my father only much,much more; which made me love the goodGod hugely!

I can remember as far back as when I wasfour years old. I can remember the day Papaisaid to me: “Cecy, come see the baby the bigstork brought in his beak to Mother.” It wasmy little brother!

I remember that even at that time Ialready knew something about the good

God. That is because my parentshad a crucifix on top of a bureau. Iwould ask Acacia, my good nanny,who took care of me until I waseleven, to hold me up so I could seeit. I also remember the big pictureof the Holy Trinity, God the Father,God the Son and God the HolyGhost. We also had a holy waterfont with the image of the BlessedMother on it.

Thunder and lightningOne day, Papai was sitting in his bigcomfortable chair reading when itbegan to storm. There were huge claps ofthunder and lightning. Frightened, I ran to myfather’s arms and hid between his knees. It wasthere that he told me about “Papai in Heaven.”

“Hear that, Cecy?” he said. “That is Papaiin Heaven who is not happy with those chil-dren and grown ups who do not want to begood. But when we are good, Papai in Heav-en is very happy and makes the sun shine.”

It was my first lesson about the good God.From then on, as soon as I woke up in themorning, the first thing I did was check if thesun was shining or if it was raining. When itwas raining but there was no thunder, I fig-ured, Papai in Heaven was just sad but notupset. Then I tried to remember what I didwrong that could have saddened Papai inHeaven.

I often remembered something ugly I haddone. One day I did not let good Acacia putcurls in my hair and called her ugly. The otherday I threw a fit because I wanted to seeCongo, Papai’s big horse, given a bath. Then,yet another time, I had pretended to eat buthad angrily thrown the food on the ground.That day, it rained and thundered.

After these tantrums, I felt ashamed forhaving made the good God sad. Then I ran tomy mother’s bedroom and looked hard at thepicture of the Eternal Father with the longwhite beard to see if He was still sad or upsetwith me. I never found His holy face angry, butrather calm and peaceful looking down on me.

It was then I began to love the good Godvery much. In my heart, I felt the wish toplease Him and not make Him sad anymore.I thought, “My Heavenly Father is so good,and He wants to do good things for me.When I am bad, He does not like it, but whenI tell Him that I will not do such a bad thingany more, then my Heavenly Father is myfriend once more.”

“Behold I will send my angel, who shall go before thee,and keep thee in thy journey, and bring thee into theplace that I have prepared…”

— Exodus 23:20-22

fa m i lys e r i e s


I did not know how to pray yet. I onlylearned how to pray in school when I turnedfive. I did know that God who lived in Heav-en made all that is good and beautiful.

Jesus Crucified and His Holy MotherThe crucifix on top of the big bureau fright-ened me a bit. That is because I did not knowwho was the poor man hanging on the crossand felt very sorry for Him.

One day Dona Mimosa, a friend of mymother, came to visit us. I liked this lady verymuch and always stayed with her when shecame to our house. That day, taking me up inher arms she approached the bureau andasked me if I knew who the man on the crosswas. I did not know. Then, turning to the pic-ture and pointing to the old man with thebeard as white as cotton, she asked if I knewwho He was. “O, yes,” I said, “that is Papai inHeaven!”

Returning to the crucifix, she explainedto me that the man on the cross was Papai inHeaven’s Son. She said, “Your name is Cecyand His name is Jesus.” She explained thatHe lived in Heaven with His Father and thatHeaven was a beautiful place. She alsoexplained that His Father made everythingon earth for good people and that some dayall the good people would come to live withHim in Heaven. However, the bad peoplewho did not want to live with Him in Heav-en would go for punishment to the deepearth where there is a lot of fire.

“But the good Father in Heaven had pityon those bad people,” she continued, “so Hesent His Son Jesus to live here on earth to askall the bad people to be good and to do onlywhat His Father wanted them to do.” Thenshe said that many people did not like thegood Jesus. They beat Him, and soldiersseized Him and nailed Him to a big blackcross. Jesus died but then He came to lifeagain and went to Heaven.

But the good Jesus is so good and Heloved those bad people so much that He saidto them: “Do not do bad things! Everyone,even children like Cecy who want to be good,I shall bring to the beautiful Heaven that isfilled with angels who fly like butterflies,” shefinished.

Then taking the holy water font with animage of the Blessed Mother on it, sheshowed it to me and said: “This beautifulwoman is the Mother of the good Jesus. Sheis good like her Son and went with Him toHeaven.”

This was the first catechism lesson I everreceived. It sank deeply into my heart and Inever forgot it. I was always grateful to DonaMimosa. She does not know the good she didto me!

My first sorrowAfter Dona Mimosa explained to me aboutJesus, I felt a great pain in my heart. I felt sosorry for Papai in Heaven and for His Sonnailed to that big black cross! Burying myface in her shoulder, I cried bitterly. Mymother and Dona Mimosa were frightenedand did not know why I was crying. ThenAcacia came and took me out to see Congo.

From that day on, I loved Papai in Heavenmuch more and felt a great desire to pleaseHim. Even though I still did many wrongthings, it was never on purpose any-more. I tried more and more to be goodfrom the day of that holy lesson.

From then on, I also decided tokeep Jesus company. When it wasgetting dark, I would go into theroom with the big bureau, pull upa chair and stand there with thegood Jesus so He would not befrightened of the bad soldiers.The darkness scared me but I didnot want to leave Him alone.

One time, Papai brought us a

delicious box of candied fruit. My motherkept it on the bureau. One day, finding me onthe chair, Acacia thought I was there tosneak some fruit. However, I was not. I wasjust keeping Jesus company. She did notknow better and told my father. He said tome sadly: “Now I know that my little girl islike the little mice who love to take awaywhat they can find..

I never said anything. I could not under-stand why Acacia had said what she did butthen I was too small to realize that she didnot realize why I was there.

After some time, I went back to keep thegood Jesus company. Whenever we went vis-iting people, I always felt sorry for Jesus allalone in the house and hoped He would notbe too scared of the bad soldiers.

Next time, I will tell you how Jesus gaveme yet another companion who never leftme and who became my great friend.

This is a true story taken from the autobiography of Cecy Cony,later Sister Maria Antonia, O.F.M. She was born in the year 1900, inBrazil and died in 1939. Until the age of thirty, Cecy had the privilegeof seeing and hearing her Guardian Angel.

While faithful to the facts, we have adapted the narration for youngreaders with the intention of publishing a fully illustrated book forchildren containing all the episodes published in Crusade Magazine.

The Way of the Cross

At that time therewere good soulswho, realizing

the enormity of the sinbeing committed,feared divine justice.

Don’t I witness simi-lar sins? Is it not truethat today Our LordJesus Christ and HisHoly Church are beingdisobeyed, aban-doned, betrayed? Is

it not true that thelaws, institu-tions, morals,and ways of peo-ple are more and

more hostile toJesus Christ? Is it not true

that Our Lady spoke at Fatima, pointing out all ofthese sins and asking for penance?

But where is that penance? How many arethere who really see these sins and who try topoint them out, denounce them, fight them, dis-

pute every inch of their progress, raise up againstthem a whole crusade of ideas, of acts, of force ifit be necessary? And how many are there who arecapable of unfurling the standard of absolute andflawless orthodoxy in the very places where impi-ety or false piety struts? How many are they wholive in union with the Church during thismoment that is tragic, as the Passion was tragic,this crucial moment of history when all mankindis choosing for Christ or against Christ?

Oh, my God, how many are so short-sighted asto prefer neither to see nor to foresee the realitywhich lies plainly before their eyes! How muchfalse peacefulness, how much trifling well-being,how many petty routine pleasures! How manytasty dishes to be eaten!

Grant us, Jesus, the grace not to be of thatnumber. Grant us the grace to follow Thy counsel,that is, to weep for ourselves and for our own.Give us not just a few sterile tears, but grant us aflood of tears, which, poured out at Thy feet andmade fertile by Thee, may become for us forgive-ness, strength for the apostolate, for the fight andfor acts of courage.

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