The Death Penalty, Evil or Not?

I continued to be baffled by statements made about the death penalty by people who should know Church Teaching on the matter, yet continue to say things like “it is always wrong to resort to violence”, or “the death penalty should be abolished”, or “How can civilized countries use the death penalty?”.

In fact, this is so easily refuted that it is a real wonder that Catholics, especially Catholics who have read the Official Church documents about the death penalty, keep getting it wrong.

So, I ask, is it according to Church Teaching to abolish (which, in current English usage, means: “1 : to end the observance or effect of : ANNUL 2 : DESTROY”. From Webster’s online dictionary) the death penalty? No, no it is not according to Church Teaching to abolish the death penalty.

First, let us ask this—is the death penalty an intrinsic evil, like abortion or adultery? The answer is NO. That means that there are times that it can be morally resorted to, and it is even a moral obligation in some situations (unlike abortion or adultery, which actions are wrong always and at all times and can never be resorted to licitly). Why? Because the death penalty is a matter of self-defense, and civil government is obliged to protect citizens from an aggressor, even if the only way to do this is to put the aggressor to death. The Church teaches that in such a case the aggressor has brought his own death upon himself. Given this obligation there has to be some mechanism in the system of law to allow for a case, however rare, when an aggressor must be put to death in order to defend people. Thus, it cannot be “abolished.”

But let me bring one more matter to the fore—most people assume an aggressor can be put in jail for life and thus society is protected. But at the moment, there are people in prison who have already racked up a number of life sentences for murder, and continue, in prison, to murder other inmates, and are given only more life sentences for punishment. One has to ask—what about protecting those other prisoners? If murderers cannot be kept from killing other prisoners, well, those other prisoners should be protected, even if the death penalty needs to be resorted to. At some point perhaps it will happen that when people are put in prison for life they are put in a prison such that they cannot kill another human being. If this cannot happen then those murderers must be stopped in the defense of other prisoners.

One final point though—it also sometimes happens that a prisoner is likely to escape or be released in the future, and upon this release, whether by escaping or being legally put back into society, there is a serious risk of that person killing again. Such a person would also be legitimately given the death penalty.

Lastly, below is an article from the Q & A section at EWTN. It is by a good priest and is faithful to the Teaching of the Church. It was easier to just post it here in its entirety rather than link it—sorry about what amounts to a rather long blog!…

From 01-20-2005 on EWTN
The question:

“I am a Correction Officer in a State system that is soon to have its first execution of a serial killer. If this individual were to escape or be released in the far future, there is a great certainty that he would kill again. Our State's Bishops have urged us to sign a petition to eliminate the death penalty from our State statutes. Our Death Penalty is very rarely utilized and only in the most heinous cases. I found myself unable to sign the petition in this case and unsure if I have in fact separated myself from the Church by not adopting a radical pro life position in this regard. Have I excommunicated myself from the sacraments? I have not been to communion since the petition drive as I am concerned about committing a more grievous sin of receiving communion unworthily.
Hoping I can resolve this…”


The Answer, by Fr. Stephen F. Torraco

“You are on solid Catholic ground. According to the Church's teaching, resorting to the death penalty in a case in which the aggressor cannot be stopped from further aggression is not only morally permissible but also obligatory. Consider the following:
It is unfortunate that in recent times the Church's teaching on capital punishment has been presented so unclearly, both by members of the Church as well as of the media and other sectors of society. The Church's teaching on this matter is governed primarily by the natural law, and secondly by the principle of double effect. The Church's teaching on this matter remains fundamentally the same. The Church has always taught that it is the right and responsibility of the legitimate temporal authority to defend and preserve the common good, and more specifically to defend citizens against the aggressor. This defense against the aggressor, by virtue of the principle of double effect, can resort to the death penalty. The point here is that the death penalty is understood as an act of self-defense on the part of civil society. In more recent times, Pope John Paul II has taught that the need for such self-defense to resort to the death penalty is "rare, if not virtually nonexistent." The important point here is that the Pope has not, as he cannot, change the constant and fundamental teaching of the Church on this matter, based as it is on the natural law, namely that it is the right and responsibility of the legitimate temporal authority to defend citizens against the aggressor. What the Pope IS saying is that, in modern society, the modern penal system, along with an intense anti-life culture, makes resorting to the death penalty *disproportionate* to the threatening aggression. (According to the 4th criterion of the principle of double effect, the unintended evil effect of the act of self defense has to be proportionate to the intended good effect of that act.) Thus, while the Pope is saying that the burden of proving the need for the death penalty in specific cases should rest on the shoulders of the legitimate temporal authority, it remains true that the legitimate temporal authority alone has the authority to determine if and when a "rare" case arises that warrants the death penalty. It would, by the standards of the natural law and the principle of double effect, be morally irresponsible to rule out all such possibilities a priori, just as it would be morally irresponsible to apply the death penalty indiscriminately. For these reasons, the Church cannot possibly embrace EITHER a totally PRO-capital punishment teaching OR a totally ANTI-capital punishment teaching.”


And a question on jury duty and capital cases…

From 01-13-2005 on EWTN
The question:

“What does a faithful Catholic Christian do with regard to serving on a jury where there is a potential for a death sentence?” (I’ve just posted the actual question, not the rest of the comments by this enquirer).


The Answer, by Fr. Stephen F. Torraco

(first he writes the same basic thesis as in the first question, above, and then this)…


“How does this apply to your question? Informed in conscience that it is the duty of the temporal authority - not the Church, not the individual citizen - to determine whether capital punishment is necessary, a Catholic juror may proceed in good conscience to participate in a trial in which capital punishment is a possibility.”

La Sallette, Saint Faustina and Our Times

It is truly astounding how the culture of today is almost completely set-up to draw people away from God. To avoid this, you have to be counter-cultural in so many ways that, really, you have to live a life of heroic virtue, or you will slowly (or not so slowly) sink into a life of serious sin. It’s also interesting how the devil really wants men out of the way by trapping them in sin and making them, well, uncourageous, and not at all holy. It reminds me of St. John Vianney, because he was of the opinion that the devil plays the tyrant especially to those who have succumbed to sins of impurity, and wow do we see that today! Ask anyone addicted to any kind of sexual sin and they will tell you that yes, the devil is indeed a tyrant, and is not willing to let them go. And the devil uses the same tactics now as he did with Adam and Eve—bypass the man, attack the woman. Given the current climate of sin you would think the lines for confession would be very long, and they should be, but they are not. Loss of the sense of sin I suppose, for one thing. I’ve been suggesting to people, when I give talks, to go to confession not once per month, but once a week! That’s what many of the Saints did, and this Sacrament helps you advance in holiness and break sinful habits in a way that only the Sacrament of Confession can, and sometimes very quickly at that.

Anyway, this brings me to the apparition of the Blessed Mother at La Sallette (an approved apparition), which is very interesting because it tells of our times. These are some of the Blessed Mother’s words to little Melanie (the other seer was her brother, Maximin):

“In 1864 Lucifer with a great number of demons will be unleashed from hell; they will abolish the faith little by little and even in persons consecrated to God…”

“Bad books will abound on the earth, and the spirits of darkness will spread everywhere a universal slackening in all that concerns the service of God…”

“The holy faith of God being forgotten, each individual will want to be guided by himself and to be superior to his peers…all order and justice will be trampled underfoot; one will see only homicides, hatred, jealousy, lying and discord…”

“Civil rulers will have all one and the same design which will be to abolish and to make disappear all religious principle, in order to make way for materialism, atheism, spiritualism and all kinds of vice.”

To Maximin, this: “And the monster will arrive at the end of the nineteenth century, or at the latest the commencement of the twentieth.”

I’m not trying to interpret the message of La Sallette, but it seems that the messages of La Sallette have been, and are, being played out today. The point of this post? Where ever you are in the world, pro-life victories will not come merely by politics, legislation and education alone—without holy Catholics those things will achieve but little. It is truly a war in this life against the fallen angels, and if we want pro-life victories, in a word, a “culture of life”, we all need to take the goal of being Saints very, very seriously. And only the Catholic Church can make Saints, because only she has the fullness of truth and the Sacraments, without which one cannot be a Saint (I’m talking about people who live lives that could be considered for canonization, even if they are never in fact canonized).

Finally, speaking of education, the word “abortion” seems to have become so common place that people hear it and don’t really understand what is being said—so few in the world really know what abortion is, which is why I am convinced that, while many will object, images of abortion are extremely important. They are incredibly hard to look at, because abortion is incredibly violent, painful and—need I say it?—evil. But getting them out there brings the point home to people—abortion is murder in one of the more painful and torturous forms, and the mother is tortured as well for the rest of her life. And abortion does kill some women, either because they despair of God’s mercy and commit suicide or because the abortion itself results in the physical death of the mother as well as the baby. For those who may be in despair—Jesus is Mercy, and will forgive you no matter what the sin, He will heal you and give you strength. And do look at the Bethesda Healing website (also linked on the left of this page).

Finally, there is actually a Saint who suffered in reparation for abortion, yet for some reason I have seen this bit of information published almost no-where. Why, I have no idea, but it is the only instance that I know of (there may be more, I just don’t know of any others) where a canonized Saint has suffered for the crime of abortion. In this case anyway, the Saint is Saint Faustina, a Saint of our times (born August 25, 1905; Died Oct. 5, 1938; canonized April 30, 2000) and she describes this experience in her Diary:

At eight o'clock I was seized with such violent pains that I had to go to bed at once. I was convulsed with pain for three hours..... No medicine had any effect on me, and whatever I swallowed I threw up. At times, the pain caused me to lose consciousness. Jesus had me realise that in this way I took part in His Agony in the Garden, and that He himself allowed these sufferings in order to offer reparation to God for the souls murdered in the wombs of [their] mothers(1276)

Saint Faustina, pray for us!

The St. Michael Group and a Pro-life Prayer

I would like to spread the word about a group, small in number at the moment (about 15 people) called The Saint Michael Prayer Group. It is simply a group of Catholics who pray for certain intentions within their diocese. There are no meetings, etc, and the only thing required to join is that one tries to pray for these intentions on a regular basis (daily, weekly, as often as you want). To my knowledge there is no other prayer group like it. That is, I hope there are some, I just don’t know of any others. The intentions and recommended prayers are as follows:

Intentions:

1. For the disbanding of any satanic and occult groups in our diocese
2. For anyone in our diocese involved in such groups and wants to get out
3. For anyone in our diocese suffering from satanic possession, obsession or oppression
4. For anyone in our diocese suffering from demonic infestation
5. That the actions of the above mentioned groups and individuals in our diocese who practice such things, would be mitigated or come to naught
6. For all married couples, families and all children
7. For the closing of all abortion mills in our diocese and that their finances would dry up
8. That those involved in the homosexual lifestyle in our diocese would be converted, and that any homosexual subculture in our diocese would disband
9. For those considering abortion, that they do not go through with it
10. For those who have had an abortion, and for anyone who is or has been involved directly or otherwise in abortion, for their conversion.

Recommended Prayers (others may be added, especially the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet):

Apostles’ Creed

Our Father

Hail Mary

Glory be…

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle…

If you would like to join, or have any questions, just send an email to stmichaelgroup@yahoo.com asking to join. You could pray for those intentions anyway, but sending an email simply allows the group to keep track of how many people are praying in unison for the above intentions. No need to give your name even, just an email with something like “sign me up!” in the subject line will do.

Finally, speaking of prayers, I post here a very good prayer for the closure of an abortion mill. May God bless all of our pro-life endeavors!

Prayer for the Closure of an Abortion Mill

Father in Heaven, we ask You, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and begging her intercession, and in the Name of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, that just as Jesus cursed the fig tree and it withered, that this abortion business and it’s finances be cursed, that this abortion entity wither and die, and that it never return under any form what-so-ever, forever.

But convert those who work here or come here for any reason, and we pray for those who have died here and for those that may, and for any that die or are hurt in anyway because of this business.

Blessed Mother, claim this land as your own. Cover it in your mantle, and in the Precious Blood of Christ, and hide it in His holy wounds. Oust the Evil Spirit and all demons from this place. One sigh alone from you to your Divine Son is enough to secure that this place yield no more death. Destroy this business and all its finances; let their finances dry up, and save the souls associated with this abortion mill. We ask all of this in Jesus’ name, believing in His words, “Whatever you ask in my Name, that I will do.” Amen.

Martyrdom

I'm willing to bet that most Catholics don't consider martyrdom very often—that is to say, their own martyrdom. This is probably because the chances of being killed for the Faith are small, at least in America. But small does not mean impossible (even in America). In fact, even today a Catholic is obliged to accept the gift of martyrdom rather than deny the Faith. But let me quote Pope John Paul II before I go on...

"Although martyrdom represents the high point of the witness to moral truth, and one to which relatively few people are called, there is nonetheless a consistent witness which all Christians must daily be ready to make, even at the cost of suffering and grave sacrifice. Indeed, faced with the many difficulties which fidelity to the moral order can demand, even in the most ordinary circumstances, the Christian is called, with the grace of God invoked in prayer, to a sometimes heroic commitment. In this he or she is sustained by the virtue of fortitude, whereby--as Gregory the Great teaches--one can actually "love the difficulties of this world for the sake of eternal rewards." From the Encyclical Letter Veritatis Splendor (the Spelndor of Truth) by Pope John Paul II.

Which brings me back to my first points:

1. Martyrdom, though relatively few are called to it, does happen, and someday it could potentially happen to you or to me. Sure, it is unlikely, but the fact that every Catholic is obliged to accept death rather than deny Christ, should such an occasion present itself, is a stunning thing! It’s no accident that Pope John Paul II spoke about martyrdom more than any Pope in modern times—the world especially today needs Catholics who have the faith of martyrs, and that includes you and I—and of course, if God does bless you with the grace of martyrdom He will give you the grace to hold fast, no matter what, so no need to go around worrying about it.

2. Martyrdom is a gift! It is a gift because it gives a person the opportunity to love Jesus in the highest way possible, because as Jesus said, “no greater love has one than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” And it is also a gift because someone who is martyred (killed) out of hatred for the Faith goes straight to Heaven.

3. Martyrdom, however, is not always “red” martyrdom (being killed out of hatred for the Faith). More common today is what is called “white” martyrdom: suffering little or very much (though not to the point of death) for the Faith. “White” martyrdom is something we will probably encounter almost every day in some measure or another. But “white” martyrdom does not mean it is easy! In fact, Fr. Hardon said that he thinks “red” martyrdom may be easier—as he said, “you’re killed, and it’s over with”, while “white” martyrdom is ongoing. Yes, I think we would all agree that laying down your life every day for love of Jesus and His Bride, the Church, is no easy thing.

4. And at last we have to remember to be prudent. St. Thomas More provides us with a great example. He tried to avoid being killed, but when it came down to it and it was unavoidable, he accepted martyrdom. We shouldn’t go seeking to be killed for the faith or to bring sufferings upon ourselves: “it is God’s place not ours to bring us to such point”, as St. Thomas More says in A Man for All Seasons. But if we are trying to live according to the Gospel, sufferings will inevitably come. In fact, if things keep going the way they have been there will come a time (if it has not come already) when there will be only two kinds of Catholics: those who remain faithful and orthodox, living lives of heroic virtue to be so; and those who do not. Thankfully, Jesus said that those who suffer for what is righteous are blessed! There is a real, supernatural joy in suffering for Christ. And being heroic in our faith is catching. When one sees others being heroic it is well nigh impossible to not want to do as they do. We get caught up in their fervor. The same thing happened with the first Christians, who when watching their brothers and sisters in Christ being given the gift of martyrdom would accidentally betray their own Christian identity (which was illegal and punishable with death) by cheering them on and encouraging them to keep their faith in Jesus even as they faced bodily death; and some Christians who had denied their faith under threat of death or torture, seeing their fellows bravely facing death rather than deny Jesus, repented and recanted and became martyrs after all. I suspect this is one reason that reading the lives of the Saints is such a fulfilling thing, and once you start it is hard to stop—we get caught up in the fervor of their love for Jesus and His Church, we want to follow their example.

Let’s pray for each other as we try to lead such lives of heroic virtue, because we can’t do it without God’s grace. And do read Veritatis Splendor, you won’t be disappointed!

Then read something by P G Wodehouse, because if we’re going to be Saints, we should be cheerful Saints, and when you’re having a tough time (and who doesn’t now and again, or most days?) and need some levity, well, as one reviewer said, “It is impossible to read P G Wodehouse and be sad at the same time—and I’ve tried!” I’ve tried as well and he’s right, it’s absolutely impossible.

Praying at Abortion Mills--What is Going On?

It is amazing how few Catholics believe that the devil is a real personal being, a fallen angel. Some say they believe this, but in practice they do not. The devil’s greatest strategy is to get people to believe he does not act, or not very much, or that he does not exist. In reality he is incredibly active. He still goes about “like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” That someone is me, you, everyone. He is always subtle, but sometimes obvious as well, such as in the case of demonic possession or demonic infestation (demonic influence on a place). I know three families currently who have been undergoing a variety of frightening events. But before I continue please do check out this interview with Fr. Gabriel Amorth, Chief Exorcist of Rome when you have chance.

One place he is very active is at abortion facilities. It is a fact that the devil is behind every willful killing of an innocent person. In addition to this—not many people are aware of this—to Satanists the more innocent a victim that is killed as a sacrifice to the devil (yes, this happens), the more pleasing they believe it is to the devil. Concerning abortion, over 1 million babies are murdered in our country alone every year. Is it a coincidence that:

a) the devil is behind every murder
b) Satanists prefer more innocent victims, and
c) abortion is world-wide murder on a never-before-seen scale?

Of course it is not—that’s why Fr. John Hardon calls abortion “world-wide Satanism.” I don’t mean that women who have abortions are Satanists—that’s not at all what I mean, and I am sure most of them are not. I don’t even mean that the abortionists are—but is the devil literally behind abortion? Yes. Does he possess some people whose sins include abortion? Yes (Fr. Gabriel Amorth alludes to this in his book, “An Exorcist Tells His Story”, page 59).

And this is one of the reasons it is very good to pray at abortion facilities. The evil one is active at these places, but he cannot stand to be in the presence of holy Catholics. He especially cannot stand, after Our Lord Himself, the Blessed Mother, and the demons are very scared of St. Michael. So when holy Catholics go to abortion sites and pray the Rosary, the St. Michael prayer and the Divine Mercy Chaplet they not only do much good for the women going into the abortion mill (giving them perhaps the last grace they will get to not murder their children), it is also like hitting the demon in the head with a bat, and every time we go to these places to pray it is like hitting the devil with a bat again—eventually the devil simply cannot stand it any longer and leaves. This is why when we pray at abortion mills there is such an angry reaction on the part of pro-abortion people: it’s not just that they don’t want to lose business and money—the devil is angry and is working through them to stop holy Catholics from praying at these places of death.

Praying at abortion mills is also a good example to the people that work in these places, and some of them have left and are now pro-life due to the prayer and example of these holy Catholics. And need I say that babies are alive today and mothers have been spared lives of torment because these good Catholics were there? There are numerous examples of this.

This brings me to one more point (for today anyway!) about praying at abortion mills—people sometimes wonder why so few people go there to pray. The usual answer is that people are scared because the media makes it seem that praying there will get them hurt, arrested, branded as a crazy person, etc: but none of these things could be further from the truth! Well, you may be labeled a fanatic, but so what? Being holy and saving lives and souls is much better, and when you suffer for doing what is right, Jesus said you are blessed! Anyway, peacefully praying at these places while standing on public property is legal. Look at the Priests for Life website and find on-line their booklet, “Our Media is the Streets” for more information on what is legal concerning praying at abortion mills. But the bottom line is, praying there with your parish group, while standing on public property, is something every Catholic should do. And this fear of praying at abortion mills, need I even say it, is a trick of the devil who works, even apart from the media, on people’s imaginations—he gets people to think it is not worth the trouble, it will be difficult, they have other things to do, something bad will happen, their reputation will be ruined, etc almost ad infinitum. All lies. He is adept at tricking people and keeping people away from praying at abortion mills, which is why relatively few Catholics go there—the devil does not want holy Catholics going there, and will go to incredible lengths to stop it. But I’ll tell you what—consecrate yourself to the Blessed Mother and she will protect you from the deceits of the devil, and lead you to her Son and to holiness.

I pray that many more Catholics go to pray at abortion mills.

There is No Stopping Abortion Without the Eucharist

This article is one of the best treatments there is on the culture of death and abortion, who is behind it, and what needs to be done about it. Since this article could serve as a sort of charter for any pro-life group, I include it here as the first entry on this blog. May God bless all pro-life endeavors in Ohio, in our country and the world. Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.

There is No Stopping Abortion Without the Eucharist
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.

Introduction: There is no stopping abortion without the Eucharist. Abortion is murder. It is on a scale today greater than all previous combined abortion murders in human history. Public demonstrations and statements of all kinds and sizes are all very important. They offer the opportunity for the pro-life Catholic to publicly identify before the world where he or she stands. We must put first things first to know and understand that behind every abortion is the devil, a murderer from the beginning. Our own human resources are entirely inadequate. Divine grace is absolutely necessary to stop abortion. All graces come through Jesus Christ in His human nature. The primary source of these graces is Holy Mass, Holy Communion and Holy Adoration of our Lord in His Real Presence. Eternal Life’s spiritual director keeps us committed to the truth. Let’s hear it from Fr. Hardon.

Fr. Hardon: Good evening. Suppose we start with a prayer. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Hail Mary full of grace the Lord is with thee, Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus. Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Mary Mother of the Holy Eucharist pray for us.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Our present conference is on, “There is No Stopping Abortion Without the Eucharist." For weeks now we have been asking ourselves why Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist. We have seen that He gave us the Eucharist in order to remain among us in the fullness of Incarnate Divinity. He gave us the Blessed Sacrament so we might come to adore Him and like the apostle Thomas speak to Him as my Lord and my God.

He has instituted the Eucharist and the Sacrifice of the Mass in order to reenact twenty centuries later what He did on Calvary when He shed His blood for the redemption of the world. However, our focus here is Christ institution of the Blessed Sacrament is the most powerful channel of grace.

As we have seen God became man that through His humanity, I repeat through His humanity, He might communicate the light and strength we need to follow Him who is in His own words, “Our way, our truth and our life.” You might say we are addressing ourselves to a strange combination of words. Abortion and the Eucharist. What possible connection is there between murder and Jesus Christ and the Blessed Sacrament.

What do we mean by combining those words. We mean that the world wide mania of killing innocent unborn children is literally (and I mean literally) the work of the evil spirit. As Christ made so clear that the devil not only was a murderer from the beginning he is the principle agent behind every willful killing of innocent people. Especially behind what once civilized nations have now legalized by civil law.

If ever Christ’s words were meaningful, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and give to God what belongs to God.” If ever those words of our Savior were relevant dear Lord they are that today. In one nation after another what belongs to God is being given to Caesar.

Our focus in this conference (you may be surprised) will be on the responsibility that we Roman Catholics have throughout the world have to stop the global homicide which is plaguing most of the nations in the twentieth century. Over the years I have been telling one audience after another, one of the main reasons for the world wide homicide millions of innocent unborn children is because Catholics are not living up to practicing their faith.
How well I know so many Catholics, and I mean every syllable, are cowards. Over the years I have been saying that there is no stopping the crime of abortion without the Catholic Church. Until Christianity came into the world with the death of Christ on Calvary abortion was universally, and I mean that adverb literally, was universally practiced and legally approved throughout the whole Roman Empire.

We can honestly say that except for the Catholic Church abortion would still be what it was, simply accepted by those who were governing the world. Before the end of the first century of the Christian era believers in Christ were told that abortion is murder, and no murderer can reach heaven unless he or she repents. But what the early Christian were also told that abortion is a result of the two sins of pride and lust. At root pride is self love. Even to the hatred of anyone and I mean anyone who stands in my way.

The virtue contrary to selfish pride is the Christian virtue of humble charity. Along with selfish pride is unchastity is the co-cause of the worldwide murder of over 65 million unborn children every year.

What are we saying? We are saying that unless the practice of charity and chastity is restored not only is there no stopping of abortion this crime will only increase in intensity, and the number of innocent victims beyond all human calculation.

Catholics as Channels of Divine Grace

Our present conference has a thesis. Our thesis may be stated in one declarative sentence. Professed Catholics must become channels of extraordinary grace to the modern world. And they will become channels of grace to others in the measure, I repeat only in the measure, of their own reception of grace through the Holy Eucharist as the sacrament sacrifice of the mass, as the Communion sacrament of Holy Communion and as the presence sacrament of Christ’s Real Presence now on earth in the Holy Eucharist.

We are only channels of grace to others in the measure that we are possessed of God’s grace ourselves. Let me repeat in the clearest words in my disposal. I would restate our thesis in two propositions. Proposition #1 There is no stopping abortion without an ocean of grace from Jesus Christ. No way will human means stop abortion.
#2 The principle source of this grace is the Holy Eucharist.

We go on with a subtitle- The Need of Divine Grace to Stop Abortions. Over the years of teaching theology especially to my own Jesuit priests and scholastics I have told them my favorite definition of Grace is Grace is that Divine power which enables human beings to do what is humanly impossible. The global homicide of unborn children throughout the world is indeed perpetrated by human beings. But the selfishness (what a cheap word) the selfishness which inspires this widespread murder is the envy of the evil spirit. It is the devil who is behind the practice and legalization of abortion in the 20th century. Not to know that is not to be in touch with reality.

We come and correctly speak of Divine grace as supernatural life and strength from God. Where super means beyond the light that the human mind has by itself beyond the strength that the human will has by itself. What we should remember is that the grace is supernatural twice over. First it is supernatural beyond the powers of nature because it provides us with a means of living an above human life here on earth and attaining an above human life and a blessed eternity. But divine grace is also super- natural in providing us with a means we need to cope with and overcome the super human forces of evil which pervade human society ever since the fall of our first parents.
In other words, divine grace is supernatural because it provides us with light for the mind and strength for the will to overcome the machinations of the evil spirit which is so demonically active among the members of a fallen human family today. It is impossible to exaggerate the close relationship between having access to God’s grace and having the power to resist the devil. There is no way, no way you can overcome the devil by your own power. Human nature by itself cannot cope with Satan and his minions.

Either our human nature is elevated by divine grace or it becomes the inevitable victim of the wiles and wickedness of the evil spirit.

I think I have told you in a previous conference that I counted 158 books now in print in the United States alone on the angels, but I should add on both the good angels and the bad angels. Even otherwise unbelievers who are asking themselves if it is possible for the massive crime in the world today, is it possible that human nature by itself could be so wicked. The answer is no.

The Three Main Sources of Grace

There are three main sources of grace available to us from the mercy of God. Let me tell you this needs to be memorized. What are the three main sources of divine grace, or what we are calling superhuman power. They are prayer, sacraments and the practice of virtue. If we use these means and use all three the grace will be given to us and through us to others. We pick up each of these three in sequence.

First the power of prayer. If there one thing that runs through the teachings of Jesus Christ it is the power of prayer. “Ask and it shall be given to you. Seek and you shall find. Knock and it shall be open to you. For everyone who asks, receives. He that seeks finds, and to him who asks it shall be opened.” Again all things whatever you shall ask in prayer believing you shall receive. “What ever you ask the Father in my name then I will do that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” “ If you ask me anything in my name that I will do.” One more quotation out of many others, “If you abide in Me and My Word abides in you, you shall ask whatever you will and it shall be done unto you.”

The power of our prayer depends on our faith. Prayer does not mean lisping words. Christ promised to work miracles if we ask Him provided we believe, we believe that He is the almighty God. As we reread the gospels and by the way every time you reread the gospels you discover new insights which you had not seen before. As we reread the gospels it is both inspiring and sobering to see what wonders Christ performed in favor of those during His visible stay on earth those who earnestly begged Him and had faith to do the humanly impossible.

I cannot repeat too often. We need miracles. You need miracles. I need miracles to remain believing Christians. Do you hear me? It is a defined article of the Catholic faith that the final and most fundamental source of creditability of our faith is miracles. Do you hear me? Either we experience miracles and I mean experience miracles or our faith will lack the credibility that it sure needs especially in our unbelieving world.

To stem the tide of abortion we require a series of moral miracles. By definition we have seen a moral miracle is a visible effect produced by God which exceeds the native powers of the human will. Let’s make sure we know that Christ wants to work this miracle. When He rebuked the disciples and told them to, “That the little children come unto me.” He was speaking to all of us. He wants the children conceived to be born to reach maturity and glorify Him by their loving service. But Christ demands that we pray. Pray in faith and in trust and His divine power to change hearts of stone into hearts of selfish love for the unborn. Only God can do it.

As we shall see the most powerful prayer in the world is Eucharistic prayer. Prayer during the Sacrifice of the Mass. Prayer after receiving Holy Communion, and prayer to our risen savior in His real but hidden presence in the Blessed Sacrament. So far for the first source of grace prayer.

Now the sacraments. There are two sacraments that especially provide the grace necessary to conquer abortion. They are the Eucharist and confession, and they should be seen together. We correctly associate the Eucharist with the mass and Holy Communion. What we may not realize however is that the early Christians as I have said more than once attended mass and received the Holy Eucharist every day. They were taught by the Holy Spirit that the legalized abortion and infanticide of pagan Rome could be overcome by their daily participation in the Holy Eucharist. Participation in the mass and reception of the Eucharistic Christ.

But, we know we better now that the Eucharist is not limited to mass and communion. Jesus is really present in the Blessed Sacrament. Whether reserved in our churches and chapel or exposed on the altar for veneration and intercession by faithful. Notice the word intercession by the faithful.

In the last several years in my speaking engagements I have given lectures in churches where I could not see because there was no tabernacle. Or the tabernacle as in a church in Louisville way out of ordinary sight on the windowsill. Not even an altar. When I came into the chapel and the people were filing in I asked where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved. I had to get up and look above the heads of the people. “It is over there.” I was told. Well as I walked to the pulpit to give the lecture, having been on the stage for six years before becoming a Jesuit I dramatized quite big ostentatious genuflection to the Blessed Sacrament hidden out of sight. And on the way back after the lecture I did the same thing.

We believe, I know I am talking to the right audience, it is the same Jesus now glorified who stilled the storm at sea and raised the dead Lazareth back to life. We believe it is the same Jesus who performed wonders during His visible stay in Palestine. Christ wants to do the same in our day, provided we have the faith. To convert selfish wills, dare I say it? Wills possessed by the devil to stop murdering children. Maybe, pardon me, St. Augustine said it is a greater miracle than calling Lazareth from the tomb. A greater miracle to raise a dead soul back to supernatural life than to raise a dead body from the grave.

Christ can do it if only we ask Him now on earth in the Eucharist to perform this sign of His omnipotence.
You may be surprised by what follows. The Sacrament of Penance and the Sacrament of Confession. The Holy Father’s terms he says I prefer to call this the Sacrament of Confession. Thanks your Holiness. The Sacrament of Penance or the Sacrament of Confession should be received at least twice a month. Where do I get that mathematics? From the teaching of the Church when she prescribes confession and Holy Communion there must be confession and Holy Communion within eight days before or after we gain a plenary indulgence. Of course there may be no grave sins to confess. That is the whole purpose of confessions of devotion. They are potent channels of grace for the massive conversion of sinners. If ever the mania of abortion is to cease, but I am not finished what I am saying now.

To be emphasized is the close relationship between these two sacraments of penance and the Holy Eucharist. Remission of sins in confession is one of the necessary conditions for being in the state of grace when receiving Holy Communion. Otherwise Holy Communion becomes an unholy sacrilege.

As I have told more than one church full of people on a Sunday morning when I heard confessions all afternoon and all evening and almost nobody showed up for confession. So I told the people on a Sunday morning crowded church, “Just about all of you are going to Communion I cannot imagine you are all in a state of grace.” Almost one half of the church did not come to Holy Communion.

Moreover, the more sinless we are especially assured by the Sacrament of Penance the more sinless we are the more grace we possess and thereby become more effective channels of grace to other people.

Third source of grace - The practice of virtue. We merit grace by cooperating with the graces we receive. It is the practice of virtue, and lets hear it, the practice of virtue benefits not only the one who performs the good work but also (and hear the adverb) always, always every good work that I perform in the state of grace always obtains grace for others. And the adverb is always.

Who would doubt that abortionists and their clients need Divine Grace to see the horror of their crime and to have the courage to desist. Where can they obtain this grace, from God of course. But it is ordinary Providence that God human beings who are in His friendship to merit (that means win, that means earn) grace for others.
Here gaining grace for the age of abortion. They need spiritual light and strength to return to God from whom they have strayed. That is why over the years I have encouraged Catholics (whatever word you use) walk in front of abortion mills say the rosary, just be there, and indicate in some way their opposition to the crimes being performed behind those walls.

The principle purpose is to be a channel of grace, and for some (I am sure we all know) for some people it is the last grace, say a women will receive not to murder the child in her womb. The measure of the graces needed for this cosmic repentance tells us something about the degree of virtue that the friends of God are expected to practice. Read, reread, and reread the Holy Father’s “Gospel of Life” Read and reread his encyclical on the “Splendor of Truth”. He tells us Catholics, ordinary Catholics will not do today. Only heroic Catholics.

I don’t know of any Roman Pontiff in the Church’s history who has spoken more openly and unqualifyingly about the need of Christians being martyrs today. And between the red martyrdom of shedding one’s blood for Christ and the white martyrdom of witnessing to Christ in today’s world. Frankly, I think red martyrdom is easier. You are killed and it is over with. How well I know how very well I know.

Nothing less than heroic patience in suffering united with the passion of Christ. Nothing less than heroic faith in believing united with Mary as she stood on Calvary. Nothing less than heroic chastity in resisting the allurance of a world drunk with sexual immorality. Nothing less than heroic charity in loving those who ignore us or oppose us or deride our loyalty to Jesus as psychosis.

I would like to repeat what a bishop told me over the telephone. “John” he told me, “you know what your problem is?” I thought I knew what my problems were.
“Bishop, I don’t know tell me.”
Said the Bishop, “You have a fixation on dogma.”
So I thanked him. Your excellency what ever you think you said you have given me one of the highest complements I could ever get. Thank you. And I should add His excellency hung up the telephone.

How important is the Holy Eucharist for the practice of virtue. It is indispensable. Of course we need to obtain grace from the practice of virtue. Grace for ourselves and grace for others, but watch it, the measure and degree of this grace depends on our own union with God. And there is no more effective way of becoming united with God than through receiving the living God who took on human flesh from His mother Mary.

A person is only as holy as he or she is living an Eucharistic life, and believe me that is not a pious figure of speech. Saintly people of channels of extraordinary grace for others. Can anyone doubt that the plague of abortion will (I do not say be stopped) but even reduced, except by abortioners and abortionists receiving a flood of Divine Grace through the sanctity of apostles of the Holy Eucharist.

Holy Eucharist Principle Source of Grace

Our next subsection- The Principle Source of Pauline Priests is the Eucharist. All we have said so far is a preparation for the main theme of this conference. The genocide of innocent children is the work of the devil. No natural means can put a stop to this worldwide satanism. I mean what I am going to say next. Millions of Americans are possessed by the devil. “Millions.”, said the chief of exorcists of Rome in speaking to me.

No merely human means can put a stop to this satanism. Only God. In fact, only God become man can control the demonic influence which the evil spirit is exercising in our century. In passage after passage of the gospels Christ tells us that without Him we can do nothing on the road to heaven. Which means overcoming the evil spirit who is hell bent on dragging human beings to join him in the infernal world to which he has been condemned.

On what grounds do we say that the Holy Eucharist is our principle source of grace to practice humble charity and self-denying chastity. The grounds are now almost two thousand years of Christian experience. First the experience of the early Church. How many times in these conferences have I told you how in the early Church the Christians went to mass and received Holy Communion everyday. They could never, and the adverb is never, remained faithful to Christ even as tens of thousands did shedding their blood for the Savior unless they have received strength from Jesus whom they received in Holy Communion and whom they joined in their sacrifice with His sacrifice of Calvary reenacted in the Sacrifice of the Mass.

Remember our focus. We are to be channels of grace to others. I have never forgotten the words I saw carved into stone at Pompeii. The carving was done before 70 A.D. It read in Latin. Oh how I like to repeat these words: *Christiani Deledisant** which means Christians must be exterminated. But they were not exterminated. They were killed by the thousands. The coliseum was filled with pagans watching Christians being devoured by wild beasts. But, so far from exterminating Christians, Christians as we know took centuries to do it, converted the pagan murderers of their day because as I have said so often, abortion and infanticide were legalized in the Roman Empire. But, the death of the Christians as we are told became the seed which then increased the Church. The blood of martyrs became the seed of Christianity.

We continue, the teaching of the Church (here remember we are talking about the Holy Eucharist) to produce communicators of God’s grace. This is part of the unchangeable doctrine of Catholic Christianity. To give just one example, St. Augustine describes the influence his mother Monica had in converting her pagan, unfaithful, lecherous, self-willed husband to Christianity. Took years to do it. It was, St. Augustine tells us, her daily assistance at mass and reception of Holy Communion that did the humanly impossible. When we say that the Church teaches that the Eucharist is our most potent source of grace, once more lets understand what this means. It means that Christ confers His grace in the measure of a person’s faith.

As we have said so often during His public ministry in Palestine Christ could not (get the verb) could not, the Almighty could not work miracles in some places. Why not? Because the people lacked the necessary faith. Jesus Christ wants to work miracles. I would not have the gall to give these conferences or to talk the way I am speaking unless my now 50th year in the priesthood I experienced many, many miracles of conversion.

What did Christ’s contemporaries and first century Palestine have to believe? They had to believe that a man who spoke a human language, who had human feet, human hands, human face, that that man is God. What are we to believe if we are to be channels of miraculous grace to others? We must believe behind what looks like bread and tastes like wine is a man and that man is God.

Some Catholics do not ever know. They may and even are encouraged to receive Holy Communion twice on the same day. Pope John Paul II who put this provision into the Code of Cannon Law. He put it in the first time in two thousand years. Never, never before. If a person were dying than *viaticum* could be administered giving Holy Communion to a dying person even though that person had already received Communion on that day. But, otherwise no one without committing (hear it!) a grave sin.

The modern world our Holy Father tells us is practicing the culture of death. If this world is to be converted it will only be through strong, and I mean through heroically strong Catholics who are communicators of God’s grace to the ages of death that surround us by the atmosphere we breath.
It is wise too for the first time in Catholic history to talk about an innovating Pope. Pope John Paul II is an innovator. For the first time in Catholic history the present Pontiff has Eucharistic adoration exposed on the altar in St. Peter’s basilica on all the weekdays of the year.

Grace through Christ’s humanity. If there is one fundamental reason why the Holy Eucharist is such a powerful channel of grace it is because the Holy Eucharist is (watch it) the incarnate God. What are we saying? We are saying that the Holy Eucharist is such superhuman source of Divine Grace because the Eucharist is God in HUMAN FORM. That is why God became man. He became man that He might be able to die. God as God cannot die so God became man so that He might be able to die for our salvation. But that is only the first reason.
God became man so that He would remain as the God-man. With us, among us and when we receive Him within us, because it is through Christ’s humanity that I have told my Jesuit students over the years that I have taught them. Don’t forget the adverb. All grace comes from Christ who is God, through Christ who is man to us. It is Christ’s human nature through which all the grace is communicated to the human race.

During His visible stay on earth, Christ taught extensively. He worked miracles beyond number. He converted hardened criminals. All the phenomenal effects which Christ produced were achieved ( hear it again) through His humanity. He spoke with human lips, He touched with Human hands. Why? In order to teach us that God became man in order to exercise His divine power, but (hear it!) through the human nature which He assumed to become the means by which He would exercise His divinity.

What we begin to understand is that the Holy Eucharist is God, but God in human form. God who received His flesh and blood from His mother Mary. We also begin to appreciate how necessary the Eucharist is to obtain the phenomenal graces that our homicidal age needs to return to the God from whom it is so widely and deeply strayed.

Everything depends on our faith. In the measure that we believe that the living God who made heaven and earth is on earth and the same humanity which He received from His Virgin Mother. In that measure we shall convert the culture of death to the culture of life. That by the way in case is not clear is why I made sure we brought the Blessed Sacrament here, so the Lord would be here in His divine and human natures so that through this sinner who has no power at all to convert anyone that Jesus Christ might through the words which I speak through you make you the channel of grace to convert this multitude of criminals in the modern world.

Conclusion

We began this conference with a title: There is No Stopping Abortion Without the Eucharist. We conclude where we began. There is no stopping abortion except through the devoted faith of professed Catholics who are apostles of the Blessed Sacrament. Our frequency of assisting at mass, our devotion in attending mass, our frequency and fervor in receiving Holy Communion and on being completely detached from everything that could weaken our love for God.

Let me be as clear as I can. We receive as much grace from Holy Communion as our will are detached from everything, everything, everything in this world. That is why I have said so often, suffering is such a treasure. Such a blessing from God. Because through suffering God weans our wills from the creatures in our lives. Our devotion to the Blessed Sacrament through Eucharistic Adoration (but hear it) and Eucharistic petition. All of these are divinely provided means of not just stopping abortion, we shall be cultivating a respect for human life such as the world has never known. Ours is the most murderous century in human history.

As believing lovers of the Holy Eucharist we are to make the next century the most self-giving and self-sacrificing century since Jesus offered His first Mass. Which is as we know began at the Last Supper on Holy Thursday night and ended on Calvary on the first Good Friday.

Lord Jesus Christ really present in the Holy EucharistYou want to convert the millions who are behind the worldwide homicide in our day.You want to convert these murderers. You want to use us as the channels of your grace.Give us dear Jesus, a deep, deep faith in your Real Presence and a total detachment toeverything in this world so that we may love you our God become man with all our heartsby faith here on earth and face-to-face in that eternal Easter Sunday for which we were made.

Hail Mary full of grace the Lord is with thee,Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus.Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. AmenMary Mother of God - Pray for us.In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Copyright © 1996 Inter Mirifica