Tuesday, October 08, 2013

Anne Catherine Emmerich

"

"I saw also the relationship between two popes ... I saw how baleful would be the consequences of this false church. I saw it increase in size; heretics of every kind came into the city of Rome. The local clergy grew lukewarm, and I saw a great darkness...

"I had another vision of the great tribulation. It seems to me that a concession was demanded from the clergy which could not be granted. I saw many older priests, especially one, who wept bitterly. A few younger ones were also weeping. But others, and the lukewarm among them, readily did what was demanded. It was as if people were splitting into two camps."

...

"I see the Holy Father in great anguish. He lives in a palace other than before and he admits only a limited number of friends near him. I fear that the Holy Father will suffer many more trials before he dies.

"I see that the false Church of darkness is making progress and I see the dreadful influence it has on the people. The Holy Father and the Church are verily in so great a distress that one must implore God night and day…”

I don't usually talk about my own religious experiences or practice, really. I never could stand this nauseating, trendy nonsense of "faith sharing" or, as I like to call it, "indiscriminately blabbing all over the place details of the most intimate and private relationship imaginable". But here is one I will share, given the current circs.

Many years ago, I lived in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and was going through an excruciating process of re-entering the practice of the Faith. During that time, I was Devout. I prayed a lot. I went to Mass every day if I could. I went to confession a great deal. I hung out with other Devout people, and I read a lot of books about the Faith. It was at this time I discovered Peter Kreeft, who sometimes still gets a mention around here. He helped to walk me logically through the process. I think I read nearly every book he wrote up to that point. Kreeft introduced me to Thomas, and the rest, as they say...

However, I never really cottoned on to much of the "spooky" end of things. The Eucharist simply seemed to me a no-brainer. Of course the bread can become the body, blood, soul and divinity of the Son of God and feed us. What's the problem? Angels, demons, miracles, walking on water, bilocation, incorruptibility, liquefaction... it all just seemed perfectly sensible. Hardly even worth remarking on.

Where I drew the line was with all this "charismatic" nonsense. One could not simply work oneself up into a lather of emotional fervour and call it spirituality or "gifts of the Spirit". It was nothing but a bunch of enthusiastic, self-generated, egotism and pseudo-mystical rubbish. When one was praying, one did not get "words". I thought then, and still think even more now, that such things betrayed a childish (not, mind you, "child-like") faith, and the people who indulged in these festivals of egoism needed to grow up.

Thus, imagine my surprise when I was sitting in my usual back pew at St. Mary's Basilica one afternoon, reading my Breeve, and the name "Anne Catherine Emmerich" suddenly popped in there. I had heard the name of course, she was one of these visionaries. Beyond that, I thought it very suspect. But there it was: unmistakable.

I did not immediately go out and buy the book, however. It was not for a few years that I started just happening across her stuff now and then, here and there, as you do.

Many years after that, I was living in Toronto in the house of the late, great John Muggeridge, and we were having our little evening sit-down. It was our little unofficial prayer time. We would say the Rosary, and I would read aloud something spiritual of his choosing. One day, the book was the Dolorous Passion of Our Lord by Anne Catherine Emmerich. We got to the bit where she said that the angel told her that Stan would be released "50 or 60 years before the year of Our Lord 2000" and John, who had been sitting back in his chair listening with his eyes closed, suddenly sat up and said, "What was that?!" "I'll just read it again, shall I?" "Yes please."

After that, I started paying more attention to her.



~

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think it's important to distinguish between hyped-up Charismatic types, and saints who God can sometimes grace with charismatic gifts, such as the gift of prophecy, healing or discernment. I am suspicious of visions, locutions and such, and I suspect most of them are fake and motivated by either demonic influence or egotism, but every now and then one comes across a saint (or saint-to-be) who really nails it on the head. As long as it all squares up with the teaching of the Church, it should be ok.

Lydia

Teresa B. said...

This book was part of my husband's collection from his time in the seminary in Conneticut.
I have never even opened it. I guess I should.

My mom was a "crazy charismatic" and she totally turned off everyone in the family.
She would come home from these meetings angry because she didn't get the gifts of tongues that night and so and so did.

I recall attending youth retreats that were of the same style. Lots of emotional and happy/clappy type stuff. I loved going to these retreats as they were hook-up opportunites and parties to follow. Most people I knew from these retreats don't even attend mass anymore.
I reverted and not because of any of this sort of stuff.
I needed the Genuine and this stuff didn't cut it.

Anonymous said...

This has got to be some kind of generation gap thing because I cannot imagine any Catholic youth event having any kind of fun party following ever. - Karen

Hilary Jane Margaret White said...

Oh yes, gift-of-tongues envy. I remember that. They're all totally obsessed with it. Very strange.

Hermit Crab said...

Thank you for this. Great stuff !

Anonymous said...

....just FYI. The book you are quoting is probably a fabrication....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Catherine_Emmerich

- Marta

Anonymous said...

Dear Miss White,

I'm really sorry that this has to be my first post on your site after having lurked for, like, forever, but it just does.

All I can say is, if I'd read that an angel had told Bl. Anne Catherine that Stan would be released circa 1940-1950, boy, I would have jumped too. I mean, I had no idea that Stan was even in custody.

Like I say, I'm really sorry.

(Btw, "cyrillist" is actually my superhero monicker. My secret identity is "Gary Johannes.")

Cheers,
Gary Johannes

Seraphic said...

Oooh! Is the Stan nickname from Alice Thomas Ellis? She uses it in "Strange Laughter."

Toronto Students for Life stuff had lots of fun parties after. And now Trad Mass in various places around the world has fun parties later. I remember a fun lunch after Trad Mass at Notre Dame (the South Bend, Indiana one).

-Dorothy

Hilary Jane Margaret White said...

We have lunch parties together every Sunday after the Trad Mass in Rome.

No, I've been calling that one Stan for years. No offence meant to the Stanley's of the world who, I'm sure, are not at all demonic.

Anonymous said...

There, I thought it was a funny typo. Never mind. Gary

Geremia said...

It's interesting she notes the older and some very young priests were weeping. I've noticed today's young priests are relatively more orthodox than those ordained immediately after the Vatican II bombshell.

Amen to "implor[ing] God night and day."

So, you think she thinks Benedict XVI is still pope?

Geremia said...

@Anonymous: What makes you think it's fabricated?

Even if it were, whoever did the fabrication would seem to have a gift of prophecy.

Jeff said...

"the angel told her that Stan would be released"

Took me a few minutes and some good hard staring before I got who this "Stan" was.

Gerald said...

I think I'll start calling him Stan from now on. It's funny, and he must hate it.

My last experience with the Charismatic "Renewal" was at a post-baptism Mass. The baby's father is a friend of mine, and his sister was directly in front of me in the communion buffet line. As soon as she popped the host into her mouth, she dropped to the floor and started writhing and convulsing. Panicking, I didn't receive from the lay communion dispenser, expecting the paramedics to be called to help this poor women who was clearly having some sort of epileptic seizure.

The lay communion dispenser then gestured me to come forward, saying, "She does that every time."

Hilary Jane Margaret White said...

Look at MEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

... is pretty much what the whole "charismatic" thing is about.

Anonymous said...

Marta:

Don't you realize that if there are ANY prophecies that fit the current picture, somehow, somewhere, someone in the Catholic hierarchy ensures it is deemed a 'fabrication.'

Funny, I just had a conversation with a priest asking how John XXIII could be considered a Saint if he disobeyed the Command of the Queen of Heaven Earth; i,e., calling a 'council' instead of revealing the Third Secret of Fatima as requested in 1960. What the priest said to me was that Lucy, in her own handwriting, had stated that it was never to be revealed in 1960 as requested by Mary, but it was her own mind who thought it up. So for 43 years, Lucy just told everyone something she made up!

We must understand as faithful Catholics that the apostasy is now at the top and they will do everything to tell us that past prophecy is a 'fabrication.'

Indeed, if you have any knowledge of the devotion to Our Lady of America, which the hierarchy has ignored and allowed two devious men to highjack, the lies they make up about the visionary's only remaining fellow Sister who promotes the devotion is nothing less than stantanic (did I get that right, Hillary?) and full of calumny.

That's what we are dealing with, and Francis is nothing more than their PR man to make you feel good as they continue to destroy what is left of the papacy as Emmerich envisioned.

Yeah, it's a 'fabrication,' all right and ignore the fact that so many other of her visions, such as the Passion of Christ conforms to exactly what is witnessed by the Image on the Shroud of Turin.

But I like your comfort zone: if doesn't walk like two popes than it cannot possibly be the time she envisioned of the two popes. It probably will happen some time in 2302 and not the time you are living in.

May God and His Mother give us all the eyes to see through the smoke of stan (BTW, since I brought this up, ask why the Church now claims the vision of Leo XIII is a 'fabrication' or the prophecies of La Sallete, as well). Of course they are all made up even though they say the same thing about the uncomfortable days we live in.)

Sorry, I went on too long. Back to closing my eyes and read some other 'fabrication,' like Windswept House.

Steve

Geremia said...

@Hilary Jane Margaret White: Did you take your Bl. Anne Catherine Emmerich quotes from The Life and Revelations of Anne Catherine Emmerich (2 vols.)? If so, what pages are these quotes on?
thanks

Unknown said...

This is a very inspiring blog site.
I don't see any reason to doubt Blessed Catherine Anne Emmerich. From my limited knowledge she has been totally consistent regarding the evils assaulting and infesting the Church.

Unknown said...

This is a very inspiring blog site.
I don't see any reason to doubt Blessed Catherine Anne Emmerich. From my limited knowledge she has been totally consistent regarding the evils assaulting and infesting the Church.

Geremia said...

@TheJoeman11: Here is a good reason to doubt Emmerich's prophesies.