Republished: Saint Peter Claver, S.J: South America's True Liberator

Today, Saturday, September 9, 2017, is the feast of Saint Peter Claver, a Spanish Jesuit who came to the New World to work for the conversion of the blacks being brought to this hemisphere to toil in chattel slavery. He personally baptized over 300,000 souls during his missionary work, understanding that he had been ordained a priest to bring souls into the true Church founded by Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ upon the Rock of Peter, the Pope, so that that they could work out their eternal salvation by cooperating with the Sanctifying Graces administered to them by the working of God the Holy Ghost at the hands of priests in the sacraments.

Saint Peter Claver had zeal for the souls of the African slaves whom the Spanish had bought and then shipped in cruel conditions across the Atlantic Ocean from what is now Angola to what is now Colombia in South America. Seeing in these human beings who were destined for the horrors of chattel slavery as involuntary workers in gold mines to enrich their torturers the very image of the Most Blessed Trinity, Saint Peter Claver, S.J., much unlike the lay Jesuit named Jorge Mario Bergoglio, sought to liberate the slaves from captivity to the devil by means of Original Sin prior to their captivity in chattel slavery at the hands of their cruel, greedy slave-drivers who had besmirched the royal dignity of their own baptismal innocence. Although Simon Bolivar, who was a Freemason, is considered the "liberator" of South America, the true liberator of South America was Saint Peter Claver, a Jesuit who worked to liberate the souls of infidels from slavery to the devil and who worked to liberate Protestants from their heresies.

Here is an account of Saint Peter Claver's work that is available online: 

When you see any one standing in need of your assistance, either for body or soul, do not ask yourself why someone else did not help him, but think to yourself that you have found a treasure. 'Do thou seek nothing in this world save that which Jesus Christ Himself has sought--to sanctify souls, to work, to suffer, nay, to die for their salvation.'--Blessed Peter Claver.

When Easter came, Blessed Peter left the town to search the mountains for the negroes who might be scattered among them. The tropical storms drenched him to the skin, but he never turned nor stopped. When he found a settlement he would never leave it till the last negro was brought to the Sacrament of Penance. He once suddenly left the house where he was staying, and plunged without guide or road into impracticable mountain recesses. None knew whither or why he went; but when he returned pale and worn, it was discovered that he had gone to administer the last Sacraments to three old negroes who had been abandoned by all the world, and had crawled into a ruined hut to die.

When Peter Claver thought them (the slaves) sufficiently instructed, he appointed a day for the administration of baptism. He arranged them in tens, giving the same name to each ten that they might better remember it. He baptized the children first, then the men and boys, and lastly the women and girls. But before beginning the ceremony, he knelt down and prayed fervently for those poor souls redeemed by the blood of God, to whom he presented them all, conjuring Him to purify them. This being done he arose, his face inflamed like a seraph's, and approached those to be baptized, accompanied by an interpreter and a Christian Negro and Negress, to act as god-father and god-mother. The neophyte knelt down with his hands joined upon his breast, and the father showing him the baptismal water in a silver vase, said, "Behold this saving water, which in virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, washes and purifies the soul, rendering it brilliant as the sun. Behold the fountain of grace which makes men, children of God, and gives them a right to the kingdom of His glory. To obtain this favor we must repent of our sins, renounce the devil and the maxims of the world. Will you not do this with all your heart? Do you believe in Jesus Christ? Will you enter His Church and receive baptism?"

He repeated these words two or three times; and when the Negro had answered properly, he was immediately baptized. After this, in order to distinguish him from those not baptized, he put round his neck a medal bearing the names of Jesus and Mary. "Whilst thus employed, were he informed that any one of the sick was in danger, he hastened immediately to him. It is impossible to say how many souls he snatched from the devil by this prompt and timely succor; for many died instantly after baptism. On such occasions he immediately knelt down to thank God for deigning to employ him in the salvation of those unfortunates who without this grace would have been irretrievably lost.

When the ceremony of baptism was over, he made a pathetic exhortation to the newly-baptized, reminding them of the great benefit they had just received, and of the obligations they had contracted. He then exhorted them to observe faithfully the law of Jesus Christ, whose members they had become, and to die rather than violate it by a single sin; adding, that if unfortunately they should sin, they would find a salutary remedy, a secure and ever-open resource, in contrition and confession. After this he explained to them the way in which Christians should receive the sacrament of penance. To strike them the more forcibly, to give them a greater horror of sin, and to incite them more efficaciously to the practice of virtue, he drew a picture to them, on the one hand, of a lost soul, with the eternal punishments which God has prepared for sinners, and on the other a beautified soul, resplendent in glory; "Behold," he would say to them, "what you will one day be, if you are faithful in preserving the grace of baptism."

All these exercises finished with a fervent act of contrition and love of God. Taking the crucifix which he wore upon his breast, he held it up so that all might see it, and exclaimed, "Behold how our sins have treated our great God and loving Father. See to what a plight He is reduced by our exceeding malice and His boundless love for us! Yes, it is for us that He died upon this cross;--for us that He was plunged in this abyss of ignominy and suffering!" These words were accompanied with such deep sighs and bitter tears, that the poor savages replied with sobs and cries that would have moved the hardest hearts. Finding them in the dispositions he wished, he taught them to say and repeat often these beautiful words: "O Jesus Christ, only Son of God, Thou art my Father, my Mother, my Treasure, my only Good! I love Thee with all my heart, and I am grieved beyond measure that I have offended Thee: yes, I love Thee with all my strength and with all my soul." Then, at length, looking upon them as true children of God, purified in the blood of the Lamb, he tenderly embraced them all.

He showed a heart so affectionate, and a countenance so loving and full of joy, that these poor slaves, delighted with his goodness, and animated by that new spirit which baptism gives, knew not what return to make for so much love. In order to show their consolation and joy, they raised their eyes to heaven, clapped their hands, and threw themselves on their knees at his feet, that they might kiss at least the border of his cassock. Each one uttered redoubled shouts of gladness, and in his own language and manner overwhelmed the father with a thousand blessings. Wherever they met him afterward, they always showed the same demonstrations of love and respect, and prostrating themselves on the ground called him their master, their protector, their father; never thinking that they did enough to express their gratitude. This labor alone would have sufficed to occupy several missioners; yet to Father Claver it was not the labor of every year, but of every week, and almost of everyday. At the arrival of each fresh cargo of Negroes he was obliged to recommence the same exercises, with the same care and renewed trouble; so that he often had but short intervals to devote to other labors. (Saint Peter Claver.) 

This is sort of true pastoral care that has been denied the descendants of African slaves here in the United States of America, great numbers of whom today have been enslaved anew to the social engineers of the civil state, whose own ideological ancestors, working in concert with the nymphomaniac enemy of families named Margaret Sanger (see In League With Racial Engineers) planned the systematic destruction of their families in order to make them wards of the state and perpetually dependent clients of the organized crime family of the naturalist "left," the Democratic Party. The lords of conciliarism do not seek to evangelize black Americans. No, the lords of conciliarism show themselves to be their worst enemies as they refuse to evangelize the descendants of African slaves while at the same time supporting their enslavement at the hands of the statists in the name of "charity" for the poor. The truth is, of course, that the conciliar revolutionaries, starting with Jorge Mario Bergoglio/Francis, do not know a thing about authentic Catholic charity, starting with seeking the salvation of the souls of all non-Catholics by working with urgency their unconditional conversion to the true Faith.

 Pope Leo XIII canonized Saint Peter Claver, a tireless worker for souls, on January 15, 1888, the Feast of Our Lady of Prompt Succor here in the United States of States of America, in the Basilica of Saint Peter, thirty-six and one-half years after Pope Pius IX had beatified him on July 16, 1851, the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. We had the privilege of visiting Saint Joseph's Church in Saint Louis, Missouri, which displays a statue of Saint Peter Claver because one of their parishioners, Ignatius Strecker, was cured miraculously through his intercession:

Here is an account of that cure as found on the same website from which the summary of Saint Peter Claver's remarkable work was copied:  

The second miracle took place in St. Louis. In 1853 Ignatius Strecker had brought his family from Germany to the United States, and in 1861 he was working at St. Louis in a soap factory. One day he happened to strike his breast against an angular piece of iron. The shock was very violent, and although no exterior injury was apparent, the breastbone had been bruised. He suffered acute pains followed by a burning sensation and a swelling of the wounded part. And yet it was only after two years that he resolved to consult a physician. A large tumor had grown on the breast. He called in Doctor Heitzig, who immediately said that the bone was ulcerated. He had exhausted nearly all the resources of his medical skill, and at last after nine months he was forced to hold a consultation with his partner, Dr. Schoeneman. They did all in their power to check the ulceration which, by this time, had spread to three ribs of the left side. All remedies proved ineffectual to stop the progress of the evil, but rather complicated the maladies,--asthma, fever, a cough, suffocation, night sweats attacked the man in turns. He was so reduced that his skin was almost transparent. For two years had he endured all these sufferings, without one interval of rest. The doctors finally pronounced his case hopeless, and told him that he could not live beyond the 15th day. He then absolutely renounced all treatment and dismissed his physician.

His wife had heard Father Weninger preach upon the efficacy of recourse to Blessed Peter Claver, and she induced Strecker to have recourse to him. He went with great difficulty to the church where Father Weninger was applying the relics to a large number of sick. He was touched and blessed with the relics and his strong faith was soon rewarded. From that moment, the tumor ceased to flow, an indication that the ulceration had come to an end. In a few weeks, the wound healed, and all the accompanying evils, as well as the advanced symptoms of consumption, disappeared, so that shortly after his visit to the church, he had recovered his former vigor. He justly acknowledged that he owed this great favor to the intercession and merits of Blessed Peter Claver, whom God had wished once more to glorify. Dr. Schoeneman, who had despaired of his recovery, was greatly surprised at this unexpected cure ; and although not a Catholic, he regarded the fact as a manifestation of God's omnipotence.

On the canonical verification of these two miracles, the Sacred Congregation of Rites proclaimed on the 26th day of November, 1887, that the canonization of Blessed Peter Claver might be undertaken; and on the 15th of January, 1888, Leo XIII placed St. Claver upon the altar, together with his holy friend, Alonzo Rodriguez--thus uniting in glory those whom God had so intimately united here below. (Saint Peter Claver.)

In the counterfeit church of conciliarism, however, they don't "need no stinkin' miracles" as one revolutionary figure after is promoted to its Cranmer tables, the latest being Mother Teresa of Calcutta, about whom a separate commentary will be written soon.

Saint Peter Claver's entire priestly work stands is a stunning condemnation of every false belief and ideological cliche that the native South America named Jorge Mario Bergoglio, has mouthed since he walked out on the balcony of the Basilica of Saint Peter on the evening of March 13, 2013, including in his now infamous Amoris Laetitia, March 19, 2016.

Here is paragraph seventy-eight from Amoris Laetitia, March 19, 2016:

78. “The light of Christ enlightens every person (cf. Jn 1:9; Gaudium et Spes, 22). Seeing things with the eyes of Christ inspires the Church’s pastoral care for the faithful who are living together, or are only married civilly, or are divorced and remarried. Following this divine pedagogy, the Church turns with love to those who participate in her life in an imperfect manner: she seeks the grace of conversion for them; she encourages them to do good, to take loving care of each other and to serve the community in which they live and work… When a couple in an irregular union attains a noteworthy stability through a public bond – and is characterized by deep affection, responsibility towards the children and the ability to overcome trials – this can be seen as an opportunity where possible, to lead them to celebrate the sacrament of Matrimony”.78 

79. “When faced with difficult situations and wounded families, it is always necessary to recall this general principle: ‘Pastors must know that, for the sake of truth, they are obliged to exercise careful discernment of situations’ (Familiaris Consortio, 84). The degree of responsibility is not equal in all cases and factors may exist which limit the ability to make a decision. Therefore, while clearly stating the Church’s teaching, pastors are to avoid judgements that do not take into account the complexity of various situations, and they are to be attentive, by necessity, to how people experience and endure distress because of their condition”.7 (Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Amoris Laetita, March 19, 2016.)

Yes, everything must be “complex” and “nuanced.” Those living in states of Mortal Sin, a phrase that Jorge Mario Bergoglio himself has said should not be used lest the tender sensibilities of people steeped in unrepentant sinners have their “self-esteem” wounded (“Ralph, you wound me!”—if you don’t know the reference, there is no need to strain your brain) by any hint of an exercise of the Spiritual Work of Mercy to admonish the sinner, must be “welcomed” without judgments.

After all, nothing is “black and white” for the Argentine Apostate except things like “global warming” and special rights for those are engaged in illegal invasion of sovereign nations in full disregard of just laws regulating migration. Those things are “non-negotiables.” Matters of Faith and Morals must be nuanced into oblivion by having recourse to the Modernist heresy of the evolution of dogma and simple, old-fashioned moral relativism of the sort that was taught by Protagoras and the Sophists who put Socrates on trial for corrupting the youth of Athens.

Bergoglio believes that no non-Catholic must be exhorted to convert to the Catholic Faith, and he believes that hardened sinner must be upbraided for his life of sin or told that he runs the risk of eternal perdition. Such people are to be accepted uncritically in the hope of a “gradualism” that does nothing but scandalizes believing Catholics while giving non-Catholics and hardened sinners a false reassurance that they are in no danger at all of losing their immortal souls to eternal hellfire.

The false beliefs expressed in Amoris Laetitia, which was written by Victor Manuel Fernandez for his mentor and countryman, Bergoglio, stand in stark contrast with the work of Saint Peter Claver, S.J.

Saint Peter Claver was a true son of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, a zealous missionary to the Negro slaves who were brought in captivity to New Grenada and to all non-Catholics who ventured into Carthagena, New Grenada (now Colombia) between 1610 and the time of his death on September 7, 1654, at the age of seventy-three. Here is an account of his work to convert the souls of two Dutch Calvinists and of a “prelate” of the Anglican sect:

It was in the hospital of St Sebastian that Father Claver was so successful in bringing back heretics to the bosom of the Church, that few could resist him. Amongst many examples, we will selected a few of the most remarkable. In one of his usual visits to the poor sick, he met a Calvinist, so obstinate that after an attempt of several days, he failed to convince him of his error. Thinking that his endeavors might be more useful elsewhere, he accosted another invalid, whom he found animated with such an implacable hatred against an enemy, that he determined to kill him. To all the persuasions of the zealous missionary his only answer was, that when the Calvinist renounced his heresy, then he would forego his desire for revenge. At these words Father Claver fell on his knees, and addressed a fervent prayer to God. A person hastened to tell him that the Calvinist was converted, and wished to make his confession before he died. At this happy news he turned to the other man, and said to him with much kindness, “Do you not see my son, that God will have you, no matter at what price? Yes, He intends to save two sinners at once; let us go to His feet and thank Him!” The man was astounded, and scarcely believing what he heard, he ran to learn the truth from the heretic. This prodigy completely changed him. He humbly three himself at the feet of the holy man, placed all his affairs in his hands, and became sincerely reconciled to his enemy.

But the most illustrious conversion and the one which led to the conversion of many others, was that of an English prelate. To make this circumstance more clear we must revert to an earlier date. For several years, English and Dutch privateers had infested the seas of America. Having long threatened the kingdom of New Grenada, they at length took possession of the islands of St. Christopher and St. Catherine, where they established colonies, and incessantly attack the Spaniards. They captured the vessels laden with Negroes, Mahomedans, and other slaves, whom they employed to cultivate their own lands. His Catholic Majesty was informed of the injuries done to his subjects by their troublesome neighbors, and sent out a fleet against them, with strict orders to Don Frederick of Toledo, to expel them at any cost from those islands. This officer executed his commission so well, that he not only made himself master of the islands, but captured nearly all the English and the Dutch, together with the slaves whom they had carried off. He put them in ships and conveyed them to the Bay of Carthagena. But lest they should ascertain the strength and the fortifications of the palce, or spread their heresies in the country, he obliged them to remain on board. Full of confidence in God, and animated with his usual zeal, Claver asked the permission of his superior and the officer, to visit the fleet, and repaired thither, with the proper requisites for the celebration of holy mass. He entered a ship in which were more than six hundred English, guarded by some Spaniards; the latter received him with great joy, and begged him to say mass for them, which they had not heard since their departure from the islands. No request could have been more agreeable to him. His devotion and modesty while celebrating, and the majesty of the Church ceremonies, struck the heretics, who flocked in crowds to witness a spectacle so novel to them. After mass the Spaniards invited the father to dine with them. He accepted the offer with pleasure, because he hoped to gain souls for God; and he had the example of Jesus Christ, who, in order to win sinners, sat at table even with publicans. At the end of the repast, some of the English, already half gained by his mild and amiable manner, asked him whether he would not like to see their prelate, as they called the Arch-Deacon of London, who was with them. The holy missionary hoping to gain the head, and thus all the rest to the Catholic faith, answered that he would consider it an honor. Thereupon a venerable old man appeared. His beard and hair had grown quite long, and his deportment was serious and modest. The father arising at this entrance, saluted him with much respect, and according to the English custom very politely drank to his health. This evidently pleased the prelate who immediately asked in Latin to have a private interview with Father Claver. While the other Jesuits were conversing with the English on matters of religion, these two remained together until evening, discussing all those points controverted between Catholics and Protestants. The Englishman often saw the truth in spite of himself. He was convinced, but obstacles too difficult to surmount—his wife and his children—would not admit of his conversion. If he changed his religion he would leave them without resources. His courage failed him, and his temporal interests overbalanced those of his religion. All that the father could gain from him was a protest, that for the rest of his life he would be a Catholic in heart, and that at his death he would publicly declare himself, and be reconciled to the Church; but, for the interest of those so dear to him he must exteriorly profess the Anglican creed. Grieved at this obstinate resistance of heart, the father was on the point of quitting him, when he suddenly recollected that the festival of St. Ursula occurred on that day. Immediately he turned to the prelate, and like a man inspired, thus addressed him, “Sir, this day is the feast of an illustrious virgin, the honor of your country; who with her companions sealed with her own blood that Catholic religion the truths of which you yourself acknowledge. St. Lucius, King of Britain, the model of a truly Christian king, sent annually to the Holy See presents worthy of a monarch, as a tribute of gratitude and as a mark of his attachment to the Church. From his time, all your sovereigns followed his example and his piety, up to the unfortunate Henry VIII. And had not this very price written in defence of the Church, and of the primacy of St. Peter’s chair? What then induced him to forsake the ancient religion and establish a new one? What is not to contract a scandalous and adulterous marriage with Anne Boleyn, after he had repudiated his lawful wife, in defiance of all laws, both human and divine? These were the abominations that produced your religion: judge them the effect from the cause. Ah! how can a sensible and conscientious man prefer a law, the offspring of adultery, to that announced by the Apostles, and confirmed by the blood of so many martyrs; defend by your illustrious virgins and honored for so many ages by your noble ancestors? Shall the authority of a king, notorious for vice, outweigh that of so many others, distinguished for their piety? What! can the religion introduced by the piety of a Lucius be false, and the one founded on the adultery of a Henry be true? If this prince could sustain his crimes, only by the support of a new religion, why must you, who are not guilty of the same crimes, adhere to the same religion! You say that on your deathbed you will repent and declare yourself. It may then be with you as it was with him. Are you not terrified at the awful words with which he expired? ‘Omnia perdimus!—We have lost all!’ He sought to be reconciled with the Church, but he had not the opportunity! Who has assured you that the same may not happen to you? Will not your property, your wife and children, present the same difficulties then as now? Blush, that you have not the courage enough to sacrifice such things, while so many young virgins courageously sacrificed their lives. Your first interest, Sir, is yourself. Do not expose yourself to eternal torments for a few transitory goods which you must soon leave to others.” The aged prelate was so moved at these words, that with tearful eyes he begged Father Claver to pray for him—a request which was readily promised—and thus they parted. The holy missioner redoubled his prayers and penances, and the week following the festival of All Saints, as he was entering the hospital of St. Sebastian, he perceived that a sick man was being carried thither in a sedan chair. It was the English prelate! At the sight of Father Claver he exclaimed, “It is time, father, it is time for me to accomplish the promise I made to God and to you. I wish to embrace the religion of my ancestor—the faith of the holy Roman Church.” He begged him at the same time not to abandon him, because he felt very ill. No words could express Father Claver’s joy at a conversion so much desired, yet so little expected. The prelate made a public abjuration of his errors, and became at once a both submissive disciple and an enlightened doctor of truth. In the most lively and moving terms he exhorted all around him to imitate his example, for salvation could be not be hoped for out of the Roman Church. He made his confession with an abundance of tears, received the sacraments with exemplary piety, and died soon after whilst sweetly conversing with his Saviour. The father who assisted him throughout his illness, but performed his funeral obsequies in the most honorable manner possible. (John R. Slattery, The Life of St. Peter Claver, S.J.: The Apostle of the Negroes, published originally by H. L. Kilner & Co., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1893, and republished by Forgotten Books in 2015, pp. 115-121.)

Saint Peter Claver, S.J., sought the conversion of all others with urgency, knowing that death could befall upon a non-Catholic or a Catholic who had apostatized or fallen into Mortal Sin at any time. He did not use conciliarism's language of "encounter" or "dialogue" or "entering into the other." He even warned the Anglican what would happen to him if he died outside the bosom of Holy Mother Church as he had done with the Dutch Calvinists. 

The likes of Jorge Mario Bergoglio and Victor Manuel Fernandez are anti-apostles, if you will, who are content to lead souls gradually into hell with themselves. The conciliar revolutionaries are simply drunk with pride in what they believe is the “novelty” of their “openness.” Yet is that their “openness” is not all new. It is as old as Original Sin itself.

Saint Peter Claver compared the holy Saint Lucius (a figure many scholars consider to be merely legendary, an assessment with which Saint Peter Claver did not agree, obviously) with the lecherous Henry VIII, whose desire to “marry” his mistress, Anne Boleyn, took England out of the true Church and resulted in a barbarous persecution of Catholics who remained faithful to Rome. 

The conciliar revolutionaries would have us believe that Pope Clement VII and Paul III (who convened the Council of Trent in 1545) were too “judgmental” against the lecherous and murderous tyrant, Henry VIII, who should have been “understood” and "accompanied" rather than excommunicated.

Such are the differences between truth and falsehood.

Indeed, the dilemma faced by the Englishman who waited to convert to the true Faith because of fear of what would happen to his wife and children (and his own reputation, of course) is also what holds back many Catholics from even considering the fact that the counterfeit church of conciliarism is not the Catholic Church. There is just too much to “lose,” and this is a special problem with many conciliar presbyters who talk the talk behind the scenes with each other but will not give up their pensions and pastoral perquisites to seek conditional ordination and to state publicly that what appears to be the Catholic Church is but her counterfeit ape.

It is in light, therefore, of the diabolical abomination that is false ecumenism that has been enshrined in the documents of the "Second" Vatican Council and the actual praxis of the counterfeit church of conciliarism in the past fifty-eight years, one has to ask the following, all-too-logical question: Did Saint Peter Claver have a misplaced zeal for souls?

That is, both the late Karol Wojtyla/John Paul II and his two immediate successors, Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI and Jorge Mario Bergoglio/Francis, have never never once invited those outside of the Church to convert unconditionally to the true Faith, thus reaffirming them in the false belief that there is any kind of salvation whatsoever to be found by adhering to religions that are founded on (or persist in) a rejection of one or more of the truths that Our Lord has entrusted solely to the Catholic Church for their safekeeping and infallible explication. Bergoglio has even gone so far as to say that such conversion is not necessary, explaining to several Protestant "clergymen" that he has no intention of seeking their conversion. This failure to plead for the conversion of all of those outside of the true Church, Protestants, Orthodox, and non-Christians alike, to her ranks stands in stark contrast to the zeal for such conversion exhibited by Saint Peter Claver and scores upon scores of others, including Saint Peter Canisius, who was called the Hammer of Protestants.

Indeed, Pope Pius XII wrote approvingly of the zeal for the conversion of souls that prompted the missionaries of the First Millennium and thereafter to Christianize Europe by bringing all souls into the Barque of Saint Peter. Writing in Evangeli Praecones in 1951, Pope Pius noted: 

Likewise all know that the Gospel followed the great Roman roads and was spread not only by Bishops and priests but also by public officials, soldiers and private citizens. Thousands of Christian neophytes, whose names are today unknown, were fired with zeal to promote the new religion they had embraced and endeavored to prepare the way for the coming of the Gospel. That explains why after about 100 years Christianity had penetrated into all the chief cities of the Roman Empire.

St. Justinus, Minucius Felix, Aristides, the consul Acilius Glaber, the patrician Flavius Clemens, St. Tarsicius and countless holy martyrs of both sexes, who strengthened and enriched the growth of the Church by their labors and the shedding of their blood, can in a certain sense be called the advance guard and forerunners of Catholic Action. Here We wish to cite the striking observation of the author of the letter to Diognetus, which even today has a message for us: "Christians dwell in their native countries as though aliens; . . . every foreign land is their home and the land of their birth is foreign soil."

During the barbarian invasions of the Middle Ages, we see men and women of royal rank and even workmen and valiant Christian women of the common people using every endeavor to convert their fellow citizens to the religion of Jesus Christ and to fashion their morals according to its pattern, so as to safeguard both religion and the state from approaching danger. Tradition tells us that when our immortal Predecessor, Leo the Great, courageously opposed Attila, when he invaded Italy, two Roman consuls stood by his side. When formidable hordes of Huns were besieging Paris, the holy virgin Genevieve, who was given to a life of continuous prayer and austere penance, cared for the souls and bodies of her fellow citizens with wondrous charity. Theodolinda, Queen of the Lombards, zealously summoned her people to embrace the Christian religion. King Reccaredus of Spain endeavored to rescue his people from the Arian heresy and to lead them back to the true Faith. In France, there were not only bishops, such as Remigius of Rheims, Caesarius of Arles, Gregory of Tours, Eligius of Noyon and many others, who were eminent for virtue and apostolic zeal, but queens also can be found during that period who taught the truths of Christianity to the untutored masses and who gave food and shelter and renewed strength to the sick, the hungry and the victims of every human misfortune. For example, Clotilda so influenced Clovis in favor of the Catholic religion that she had the great joy of bringing him into the true Church. Radegunda and Bathilda cared for the sick with supreme charity and even restored lepers to health. In England, Queen Bertha welcomed St. Augustine when he came to evangelize that nation and earnestly exhorted her husband Ethelbert to accept the teachings of the Gospel. No sooner had the Anglo-Saxons, of both high and low degree, men and women, young and old, embraced the Christian faith, than they were led as though by divine inspiration to unite themselves to this Apostolic See by the closest bonds of piety, fidelity and devotion.

In Germany, we witness the admirable spectacle of St. Boniface and his companions traversing those regions in their apostolic journeys and making them fruitful by their generous labors. The sons and daughters of that valiant and noble land felt inspired to offer their efficient collaboration to monks, priests and Bishops in order that the light of the Gospel might be daily more widely diffused throughout those vast regions and that Christian doctrine and Christian virtue might ever make greater advances and reap a rich harvest of souls.

Thus in every age, thanks to the tireless labors of the clergy and also to the cooperation of the laity, the Catholic Church has not only advanced its spiritual kingdom, but has also led nations to increased social prosperity. Everybody knows the social reforms of St. Elizabeth in Hungary, of St. Ferdinand in Castile and of St. Louis IX in France. By their holy lives and zealous labors they brought about salutary improvement in the different classes of society by instituting reforms, by spreading the true faith everywhere, by valiantly defending the Church and above all by their personal example. Nor are We unaware of the excellent merits of the guilds during the Middle Ages. In these guilds artisans and skilled workers of both sexes were enrolled, who, notwithstanding the fact that they lived in the world, kept their eyes fixed upon the sublime ideal of evangelical perfection. Not only did they eagerly pursue this ideal, but together with the clergy they exerted every effort to bring all others to do the same. (Pope Pius XII, Evangelii Praecones, June 2, 1951.)  

In contradistinction, consider, for one brief example, the words uttered by the late Karol Wojtyla/John Paul II at the Notre Dame Pontifical Institute in Jerusalem on March 23, 2000:

The Catholic Church wishes to pursue a sincere and fruitful interreligious dialogue with the members of the Jewish faith and the followers of Islam. Such a dialogue is not an attempt to impose our views upon others. What it demands of all of us is that, holding to what we believe, we listen respectfully to one another, seek to discern all that is good and holy in each other’s teachings, and cooperate in supporting everything that favours mutual understanding and peace. (Karol Wojtyla/John Paul II, Interreligious meeting in Jerusalem, March 23, 2000.)

"Such a dialogue is not an attempt to "impose" our "views" upon others."

Views?

Views?

The Catholic Church does hold "views." She teaches everything that has been entrusted to her by her Divine Founder and Invisible Head, Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

What about the necessity of saving the souls of those who are held captive to the devil by means of Original Sin and are thus in urgent need of being invited into the true Church?

How is the proclamation of the Sacred Divinity of the God-Man and the absolute necessity of belonging to the Catholic Church seeking to impose anything upon anyone?

How can this be reduced to but the level of a "view"?

Is not the proclamation of the Catholic Faith simply an act of fidelity to the mission Our Lord entrusted to the Eleven before He Ascended to the Father's right hand in glory on Ascension Thursday?

This blithe acceptance of the "good hope" of the possibility of the salvation of those whose souls are steeped in Mortal Sin is contradicted by the solemn decree of the Council of Lyons, which met under Pope Gregory X in 1274:

The souls of those who die in mortal sin or with original sin only, however, immediately descend to hell, yet to be punished with different punishments.

Consider also the following two propositions from Pope Pius XI's Syllabus of Errors: 

15. Every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true. -- Allocution "Maxima quidem," June 9, 1862; Damnatio "Multiplices inter," June 10, 1851.

16. Man may, in the observance of any religion whatever, find the way of eternal salvation, and arrive at eternal salvation. -- Encyclical "Qui pluribus," Nov. 9, 1846.

17. Good hope at least is to be entertained of the eternal salvation of all those who are not at all in the true Church of Christ. -- Encyclical "Quanto conficiamur," Aug. 10, 1863, etc. (Pope Pius IX, The Syllabus of Errors, December 8, 1864.)

Was Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ wrong to have proclaimed Himself to be the Messiah when he preached to the Jews? Should he have engaged them in a "sincere and fruitful interreligious dialogue with members of the Jewish faith" so as to avoid "imposing" Himself on them?

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him: “If you continue in my word, you shall be my disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” 

They answered Him: “We are the seed of Abraham: and we have never been slaves to any man.  How sayest thou: ‘You shall be free’?”

Jesus answered them: “Amen, amen, I say unto you that whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.  Now the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the son abideth for ever.  If therefore the son shall make you free, you are free indeed.  I know that you are the children of Abraham: but you seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.  I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and you do the things that you have seen with your father.”

They answered and said to Him: “Abraham is our father.”

Jesus saith to them: “If you be the children of Abraham, do the works of Abraham.  But now you seek to kill me, a man who has spoken the truth to you, which I have heard from God.  This Abraham did not.  You do the works of your father.”

They said therefore to Him: “We are not born of fornication: we have one Father, even God.”

Jesus therefore said to them: “If God were your Father, you would indeed love me.  For from God I proceeded and came.  For I came not of myself: but He sent me.  Why do you not know my speech?  Because you can not hear my word.  You are of your father the devil: and the desires of your father you will do.  He was a murderer from the beginning: and he stood not in the truth, because truth is not in him.  When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof.  But if I say the truth, you believe me not.  Which of you shall convict me of sin?  If I say the truth to you, why do you not believe me?  He that is of God heareth the words of God.  Therefore you hear them not, because you are not of God.”

The Jews therefore answered and said to Him: “Do not we say well that thou art a Samaritan and hast a devil?”

Jesus answered: “I have not a devil: but I honor my Father.  And you have dishonored me.  But I seek not my own glory: there is one that seeketh and judgeth.  Amen, amen, I say to you: If any man keep my word, he shall not see death for ever.”

The Jews therefore said: “Now we know that thou hast a devil.  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest: ‘If any man keep my word, he shall not taste death for ever.’  Art thou greater than our father Abraham who is dead?  And the prophets are dead.  Whom dost thou make thyself?”

Jesus answered: “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing.  It is my Father that glorifieth me, of whom you say that He is your God.  And you have not known Him: but I know Him.  And if I shall say that I know Him not, I shall be like you, a liar.  But I do know Him and do keep His word.  Abraham your father rejoiced that he might see my day: he saw it and was glad.”

The Jews therefore said to Him: “Thou art not yet fifty years old.  And hast thou seen Abraham?”

Jesus said to them: “Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham was made, I AM! (Jn. 8:32-59)

Ah, the conciliar "popes" have believed that it is just not "necessary" any longer to speak directly to non-Catholics as had the One Whose vicar they have pretended to be during their false "pontificates."

What applies to Jews and Mohammedans applies equally to Protestants. The failure of the conciliar "pontiffs" to invite Protestants into the true Church is the equivalent of saying that the "proselytizing" efforts of the great saints was wrong and did not respect the "multiplicity" of ways in which Christians can bear witness to the truths of the Gospel. Indeed, the Vatican Ecumenical Directory of 1993 specifically forbids proselytizing among Protestants and the Orthodox, which leaves one to wonder if the following statement is true--or if Protestant denominations have been gifted by God the Holy Ghost with true sacraments that can impart Sanctifying Grace upon souls in their heretical sects: 

Amen, Amen I say unto you: Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you shall have no life in you. (Jn. 6:54)

Do Protestants have true sacraments?

Do they have a valid, sacrificing priesthood?

Has the infallibly binding statement on the invalidity of Anglican orders made by Pope Leo XIII in Apostolicae Curae, 1896, been overturned (as though that were possible?).

Are Anglican "bishops" and "priests" not actually laymen who are dressed up in clerical garb?

Do Protestant ministers who dissent from various articles contained in the Deposit Faith lead their flocks home to Heaven outside of the Catholic Church?

Do not "papal" appearances with Protestant laymen (or laywomen) dressed upon in clerical garb give the appearance of ministerial legitimacy to lay heretics?

Once again, is there no immediate need to plead for the conversion of those outside of the one Church created by God Himself into her ranks?

The now-retired Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI rejected what he termed disparagingly as the "theology of the return" in dealing with non-Catholic Christians, letting people of different "faith traditions" retain their identity yet have communion with the putative Successor of Saint Peter, and Jorge Mario Bergoglio/Francis has been just as adamant in this regard as his predecessor, insisting Catholics are not seek the conversion of their neighbor! There is a little problem with this as it flies in the face of nearly two millennia of the defined teaching of the Catholic Church and consigns her solicitude for the conversion of Protestants to the Orwellian memory hole as "irrelevant" and "counterproductive" in our new and sophisticated era.

Pope Leo XIII understood the immutable doctrine that requires the Church to invite all those outside of her fold to convert to the Catholic Faith, being earnest about begging souls to return, yes, return, to Rome. Writing in Praeclara Gratulationis Publicae, June 29, 1894, Pope Leo exhorted Protestants as follows:

Therefore, it is, that having lost all hope of an agreement in their persuasions, they now proclaim and recommended a union of brotherly love. And rightly, too, no doubt, for we should all be united by the bond of mutual charity. Our Lord Jesus Christ enjoined it most emphatically, and wished that this love of one another should be the mark of His disciples. But how can hearts be united in perfect charity where minds do not agree in faith?\

It is on this account that many of those We allude to men of sound judgment and seeking after truth, have looked to the Catholic Church for the sure way of salvation; for they clearly understand that they could never be united to Jesus Christ as their head if they were not members of His body, which is the church; nor really acquire the true Christian faith if they rejected the legitimate teaching confided to Peter and his successors. Such men as these have recognized in the Church of Rome the form and image of the true Church, which is clearly made manifest by the marks that God, her Author, placed upon her: and not a few who were possessed with penetrating judgment and a special talent for historical research, have shown forth in their remarkable writings the uninterrupted succession of the Church of Rome from the apostles, the integrity of her doctrine, and the consistency of her rule and discipline.

With the example of such men before you, Our heart appeals to you even more than Our words: to you, Our Brethren, who for three centuries and more differ from Us on Christian faith; and to you all likewise, who in later times, for any reason whatsoever, have turned away from Us: Let us all meet in the unity of faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God. Suffer that We should invite you to the unity which has ever existed in the Catholic Church and can never fail; suffer that We should lovingly hold out Our hand to you. The Church, as the common mother of all, has long been calling you back to her; the Catholics of the world await you with brotherly love, that you may render holy worship to God together with us, united in perfect charity by the profession of one Gospel, one faith, and one hope. (Pope Leo XIII, Praeclara Gratulationis Publicae, June 29, 1894.)

This is not what the conciliar "pontiffs" have been saying to Protestants in our day. No authentic Roman Catholic would dare to promote the novelty of "inter-religious dialogue" that has been used by the devil to close the mouths of  the conciliar antipopes and their "cardinals" and "bishops" on this central truth: the Catholic Church is the sole Church of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Sadly, though, the conciliar antipopes have acted though the words of the true popes of the past contained messages for an epoch in history that has "passed" and cannot be recaptured,  teachings that were conditioned by the historical circumstances of the times in which they lived but are no longer relevant today as the "particulars" they contain have become obsolete. We must "move on" to embrace the spirit of our own days. The words of the past must not even be mentioned, no less followed as the dogmatic basis of Catholic pastoral practice. Once again, the triumph of the spirit of Hegelianism.

Pope Leo XIII anticipated the errors of contemporary ecumenism, many of which sprang up right here in the pluralistic United States of America, when he condemned the very approach being used by Jorge Mario Bergoglio/Francis and each of his predecessors in the conciliar church. Writing in Testem BenevolentiaeNostrae, January 22, 1899, Pope Leo noted: 

The principles on which the new opinions We have mentioned are based may be reduced to this: that, in order the more easily to bring over to Catholic doctrine those who dissent from it, the Church ought to adapt herself somewhat to our advanced civilization, and, relaxing her ancient rigor, show some indulgence to modern popular theories and methods. Many think that this is to be understood not only with regard to the rule of life, but also to the doctrines in which the deposit of faith is contained. For they contend that it is opportune, in order to work in a more attractive way upon the wills of those who are not in accord with us, to pass over certain heads of doctrines, as if of lesser moment, or to so soften them that they may not have the same meaning which the Church has invariably held. Now, Beloved Son, few words are needed to show how reprehensible is the plan that is thus conceived. If we but consider the character and origin of the doctrine which the Church hands down to us. On that point the Vatican Council says: "The doctrine of faith which God has revealed is not proposed like a theory of philosophy which is to be elaborated b the human understanding, but as a divine deposit delivered to the Spouse of Christ to be faithfully guarded and infallibly declared. . . . That sense of the sacred dogmas is to be faithfully kept which Holy Mother Church has once declared, and is not to be departed from under the specious pretext of a more profound understanding.

Nor is the suppression to be considered altogether free from blame, which designedly omits certain principles of Catholic doctrine and buries them, as it were, in oblivion. For there is the one and the same Author and Master of all the truths that Christian teaching comprises: the only-begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father. That they are adapted to all ages and nations is plainly deduced from the words which Christ addressed to His Apostles: Going therefore teach ye all nations: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days even to the consummation of the world. Wherefore the same Vatican Council says: "By the divine and Catholic faith those things are to be believed which are contained in the word of God either written or handed down, and are proposed by the Church whether in solemn decision or by the ordinary universal magisterium, to be believed as having been divinely revealed." Far be it, then, for any one to diminish or for any reason whatever to pass over anything of this divinely delivered doctrine; whosoever would do so, would rather wish to alienate Catholics from the Church than to bring over to the Church those who dissent from it. Let then return; indeed, nothing is nearer to Our heart; let all those who are wandering far from the sheepfold of Christ return; but let it not be by any other road than which Christ has pointed out. (Pope Leo XIII,Testem Benevolentiae Nostrae, January 22, 1899.)

In other words, no one, including a subsequent pope, has the right to depart from "that meaning of the sacred dogmas" that Holy Mother, the Church, has once declared" "under the pretense or pretext of a deeper comprehension of them." Ecumenism is an erroneous novelty that denies the binding nature of such things as contained in the Pope Pius IX's Syllabus of Errors, December 8, 1864: 

18. Protestantism is nothing more than another form of the same true Christian religion, in which form it is given to please God equally as in the Catholic Church. -- Encyclical "Noscitis," Dec. 8, 1849.

21. The Church has not the power of defining dogmatically that the religion of the Catholic Church is the only true religion. -- Damnatio "Multiplices inter," June 10, 1851. (Pope Pius IX, The Syllabus of Errors, December 8, 1864.)

Protestantism is false. It is from the devil. It is no basis of personal sanctity or of social order. The fact that there are elements of truth in this or that Protestant sect does not mitigate in the slightest the necessity of our praying and working for the full conversion of Protestants to the one true Church, outside of which there is no salvation. Pope Pius IX urged Catholics to do precisely this as an act of fundamental charity, seeing to it that those in error are not condemned for being in error through no fault of their own but are led unequivocally out of that error and into the true Church. Writing in Quanto Conficiamur Moerore in 1863, Pius IX noted:

Also well known is the Catholic teaching that no one can be saved outside the Catholic Church. Eternal salvation cannot be obtained by those who oppose the authority and statements of the same Church and are stubbornly separated from the unity of the Church and also from the successor of Peter, the Roman Pontiff, to whom "the custody of the vineyard has been committed by the Savior." The words of Christ are clear enough: "If he refuses to listen even to the Church, let him be to you a Gentile and a tax collector;""He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you, rejects me, and he who rejects me, rejects him who sent me;""He who does not believe will be condemned;""He who does not believe is already condemned;""He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters." The Apostle Paul says that such persons are "perverted and self-condemned;" the Prince of the Apostles calls them "false teachers . . . who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master. . . bringing upon themselves swift destruction."

God forbid that the children of the Catholic Church should even in any way be unfriendly to those who are not at all united to us by the same bonds of faith and love. On the contrary, let them be eager always to attend to their needs with all the kind services of Christian charity, whether they are poor or sick or suffering any other kind of visitation. First of all, let them rescue them from the darkness of the errors into which they have unhappily fallen and strive to guide them back to Catholic truth and to their most loving Mother who is ever holding out her maternal arms to receive them lovingly back into her fold. Thus, firmly founded in faith, hope, and charity and fruitful in every good work, they will gain eternal salvation. (Pope Pius IX, Quanto Conficiamur Moerore, August 10, 1863.)  

Pope Pius IX understood that there is always an immediate need to invite those outside of the Church into her bosom. Every human being on this planet is meant to be a member of the Catholic Church, bar none. Our Lord wants everyone to partake worthily of His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity in Holy Communion. He wants everyone to receive the absolution in the Sacrament of Penance of any and every mortal sin committed after Baptism. He wants all people in this world to honor in their own lives and in the lives of their own nations His Most Blessed Mother. There can be no room for any deviation on even one point of dogma, including the cult of Our Lady and of the rest of the saints.

Pope Pius XI stated the matter bluntly in Mortalium Animos, January 6, 1928, a document that has at no time been mentioned favorably in the writings of Karol Wojtyla/John Paul II, Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI or Jorge Mario Bergoglio/Francis:  

So, Venerable Brethren, it is clear why this Apostolic See has never allowed its subjects to take part in the assemblies of non-Catholics: for the union of Christians can only be promoted by promoting the return to the one true Church of Christ of those who are separated from it, for in the past they have unhappily left it. To the one true Church of Christ, we say, which is visible to all, and which is to remain, according to the will of its Author, exactly the same as He instituted it. During the lapse of centuries, the mystical Spouse of Christ has never been contaminated, nor can she ever in the future be contaminated, as Cyprian bears witness: "The Bride of Christ cannot be made false to her Spouse: she is incorrupt and modest. She knows but one dwelling, she guards the sanctity of the nuptial chamber chastely and modestly."The same holy Martyr with good reason marveled exceedingly that anyone could believe that "this unity in the Church which arises from a divine foundation, and which is knit together by heavenly sacraments, could be rent and torn asunder by the force of contrary wills." For since the mystical body of Christ, in the same manner as His physical body, is one, compacted and fitly joined together, it were foolish and out of place to say that the mystical body is made up of members which are disunited and scattered abroad: whosoever therefore is not united with the body is no member of it, neither is he in communion with Christ its head. (Pope Pius XI, Mortalium Animos, January 6, 1928.)

This particular paragraph is a rejoinder to the work of the likes of the late Abbe Paul Couturier, whose errors have been embraced by the soon-to-be-"canonized" "Pope John Paul the Great, Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI and Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the Church of Christ is not "made up of members which are disunited and scattered abroad."

Thus, as Pope Pius XI noted, "whosoever is not united with the body is no member of it, neither is he in communion with Christ its head."

Pope Pius XII explained himself explained the teaching very clearly in Mystici Corporis, June 29, 1943: 

Actually only those are to be included as members of the Church who have been baptized and profess the true faith, and who have not been so unfortunate as to separate themselves from the unity of the Body, or been excluded by legitimate authority for grave faults committed. "For in one spirit" says the Apostle, "were we all baptized into one Body, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether bond or free." As therefore in the true Christian community there is only one Body, one Spirit, one Lord, and one Baptism, so there can be only one faith. And therefore, if a man refuse to hear the Church, let him be considered - so the Lord commands - as a heathen and a publican. It follows that those who are divided in faith or government cannot be living in the unity of such a Body, nor can they be living the life of its one Divine Spirit. (Pope Pius XII, Mystici Corporis, June 29, 1943.)

That is, the words of the conciliar antipopes are absolutely incompatible with the doctrine, not simply the "pastoral practice," of the Catholic Church until 1958.

It is perhaps useful, especially since words are plentiful and memories tend to be short, to repeat a little something about who this Abbe Paul Couturier was: 

A third influence on Couturier was Teilhard de Chardin. Both men were scientists, and Teilhard's vision of the unity of creation and humanity expressed in the unity of Christ and the life of the Church appealed both scientifically and spiritually to Couturier. A reasoned consequence for him was that the unity of Christians was the sign for the unity of humanity, and that praying for the sanctification of Jews, Muslims and Hindus, among many others, could not fail but to lead to a new spiritual understanding of God where Christ could at last be recognised and understood. Couturier felt this keenly as he was partly Jewish and had been raised among Muslims in North Africa. It is worth noting that among Couturier's voluminous correspondents were Jews, Muslims, and Hindus, as well as every kind of Christian, all caught up in the Abbé's spirit of prayer, realising the significance and dimensions of prayer for the unity of Christians. Coincidentally, years later Mother Theresa spoke of the considerable number of Muslims who volunteered and worked at her house in Calcutta: 'If you are a Christian, I want to make you a better Christian - if you are a Muslim, I want to make you a better Muslim'. It cannot be denied that what those Muslims were seeing in Mother Theresa was Jesus Christ himself, just as the Abbe attracted so many to prayer across previously unbridgeable divides by his humility, penitence, and joyful charity in the peace of Christ. (The Abbé Paul Couturier and Spiritual Ecumenism.)

No, not exactly from the Acts of the Apostles. Not exactly from the life and saintly example of Saint Peter Claver. Not exactly from God. Yet, you see, Abbe Couturier, the disciple of Chardin, who believed that "God" and our understanding of Him evolves over time, was praised one hundred twenty-nine months ago by Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI in Cologne, Germany: 

The power of prayer, and its potential for overcoming separation and the wounds of centuries, lay at the heart of all groups of Christian believers, and so he came to see that, as people grow in sanctity in their different traditions, they grow closer to Christ. If Christians could then be aware of each others' history, spirituality, traditions of faith and worship, their hurts and their glories, they could thus grow closer to each other. The foundations, he realised, would need to be humility, reparation and no little suffering. But if Christians could imitate each other - not just go to each others' services, but embrace each others' spirituality and traditions for their own - the path to holiness in one Church could be adopted and enhance the path to holiness in the others too. This 'emulation' has been described as 'vying with one another' to advance on the path to holiness and to Christ - not mutual admiration, not unfriendly rivalry. but a 'race that is set before us' in which we spur each other on beyond our own small worlds to fresh understanding, to new awareness of Christ and his Church, to a closer bond with him and his people. In the last fifty years we have seen the Abbé's prayer that Christians could all pray the Lord's Prayer together realised. Catholics have adopted many great Protestant and Anglican hymns and chorales. Anglicans and other non-Roman Catholics have taken to heart the Retreat movement, and also embraced the importance for the Orthodox of Icons. The Orthodox have become increasingly influential members of the World Council of Churches, and all now share in a renewed common love of the Scriptures. These are fruits of spiritual emulation. (The Abbé Paul Couturier and Spiritual Ecumenism.)

In other words, the Catholic Church was wrong in the past about many things and has to adopt the errors of the heretics and the schismatics. We must "emulate" those who reject articles contained in the Deposit of Faith and participate in an organization, the World Council of Churches, that has been pro-Communist, pro-abortion and pro-contraception. This is not of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, ladies and gentlemen.

The missionary work of Saint Peter Claver thus stands as a complete condemnation of the diabolical work of figures of Antichrist such as Jorge Mario Bergoglio:

Christians, bad confessions set right, inveterate enmities extinguished, illicit connections broken or rectified by marriage, profanity and obscenity changed for songs of devotion, a general reformation of manners everywhere; such was the success with which God was pleased to recompense His servant. If any one, rebellious to his admonitions, was a scandal to others, he sometimes threatened him with the anger of Heaven, and the chastisement soon followed the threat. On one occasion he had in vain remonstrated with an obstinate Negro who needed neither his advice nor his threats. A few days afterward he was missed. And as a party of Negoes were searching for him they met an enormous crocodile while they killed, and found within, the head and some of the limbs of the unhappy slave—a conclusive proof of his punishment. This example produced such terror throughout the settlement that the most hardened began to dread the Divine Justice. One who had at first resisted, profited by these heavenly admonitions. The holy missionary saw him sowing corn in a field, and said to him, “You sow, but you will not reap.” He fell almost immediately; and although his youth, the strength of his constitution, and the trifling nature of his complaint gave him every hope of recovery, he elated all to the Father, prepared for his death, and died in most Christian sentiments.  (John R. Slattery, The Life of St. Peter Claver, S.J.: The Apostle of the Negroes, published originally by H. L. Kilner & Co., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1893, and republished by Forgotten Books in 2015, pp. 144-145.)

This just a slightly different pastoral approach than that taken by the likes of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Victor Manuel Fernandez, Walter Kasper, Rene Cupich, Godfried Danneels, Reinhard Marx, Ranier Woelki, Vincent Nichols, Oscar Andres Maradiaga Rodriguez, et al. and their false church that is but a counterfeit ape of the Catholic Church. 

Morevoer, Saint Peter Claver was tireless in exhorting hardened sinners to reform their lives, which is, of course, a contrast with Jorge Mario Bergoglio and his band of fellow apostates and fiends, each of whom seeks to reaffirm moral reprobates while more than a few of them are now speaking openly about throwing away all pretense by endorsing the sin of Sodom to assuage their own guilty consciences.

Contrast the work of Saint Peter Claver with that of the conciliar criminals:

Occupied as the holy missionary was in the conversion, sanctification, and consolation of the Negroes, yet the ardor of his zeal led him also amongst heretics, Mahomedans, and Catholics who were a disgrace to their religion. To succeed in his generous designs, he had many obstacles to surmount, persecutions to suffer, and even injuries and calumnies to endure. His charity and courage, however, were more powerful than the efforts of men and devils; and God, by the miraculous success with which He crowned his combats, knew how to indemnify him for all he undertook for the promotion of His glory.

There were two remarkable hospitals in Carthagena: --St. Sebastian's, served by the religious of St. John of God; and St. Lazarus', for lepers and such as suffered from the complaint called St. Anthony's fire. After his devotedness to his Negroes – the principal objects of his care – these were the two principal theatres of his charity.

The hospital of St. Sebastian, though without any fixed revenues, was crowded, especially in war time, with such a prodigious multitude of sick, that the religious had great difficulty in procurring necessary alms and remedies for their subsistence. Father Claver, delighted with their charity, undertook to assist them, and wherever he met them offered his services with a humility and zeal which they could not fail to admire. When not engaged in his missions in the country, he went thither at least once a meek, and on reaching the hospital, he visited all the sick in succession, presenting them with his crucifix, and exhorting them to prepare for the sacrament of penance. When any of them wished to confess, he always arranged the place conveniently for them, and the reverse for himself. He particularly devoted himself to the most miserable, for whom he performed the most painful and lowly offices with incredible ardor. In time of war, when the number was greatly augmented, he did not limit himself to an ordinary care of them, but spent the entire day in the hospital, said mass, and applied himself to all that his charity could suggest, without care, for a moment, for his own bodily needs. His prodigious abstemiousness, under such fatigues and in such excessive heats, so astonished the good religious of the hospital, that they publicly declared the life of this indefatigable workman could only be sustained by miracle. He was ready for everything, swept the rooms, made the beds, changed the clothes of the sick, served the broth, prepared the meat, washed the plates, and yet did nothing but by direction either of the prior or infirmarian. When thus occupied, if he was called to console or assist the sick, he humbly asked permission, and as soon as he had discharged his ministry he resumed his interrupted work. Never had such fervor, zeal, and courage been seen there, and it was fearlessly said that he alone was worth more than forty workmen. His absence from the hospital was a cause of general desolation; but on his return, the sick knew not how to manifest their joy.

After what we have seen him do for the Negroes, we shall not be surprises to find that here the most disgusting and repulsive offices constituted his greatest delight. A hundred times he renewed the heroic acts so familiar to him in the huts of the slaves. Amongst the sick there was one so disfigured, putrid, and infectious, that the others were unable to endure the sight or smell of him, and the religious had caused him to be removed to a separate lodging. Father Claver sought him out; and after saluting him with great tenderness, seated himself in such a position that his face nearly touched the sick man's arm, from which a virulent matter was oozing. When begged to change his place, he replied that he suffered no inconvenience, and after devoutly kissing the wounds he spent two hours with him, consoling him, and inspiring him with Christian sentiments. He continued visiting him, and inspiring him daily for a long time; and on taking leave he always begged the poor man to remember him when he should be with god. One day when the invalid thought himself dying, he offered some money to the father, to have a mass said for him. Father Claver, however, desired him to keep his money, and not be uneasy, for he himself would offer the holy sacrifice for his intention. After saying mass the next day, he returned, and said, as he entered, “Be composed, brother; God loves you, and I hope we shall again see you in full health in Carthagena. But never be unmindful of Him, from whom you receive this favor, and above all, sin no more. For the rest, He will have the goodness to withdraw from you the occasion of offending Him, because He loves you.” From that moment the man's health improved; but in proportion as his wounds healed his sight failed, and he ultimately became blind. Whenever the father met him afterward in the town, he begged he would pray for him when in Heaven, and from thence-forward the man's life was a holy as it had formerly been irregular.   

Such is the fruit of the calamities sent by God to His elect. In His hands, the loss of health, abused for criminal indulgence; of beauty, employed to ensnare modesty; of money, used as an instrument of guilt, are precious and profitable favors. A father truly loves his son when he deprives him of the sword with which he would commit self-destruction. It was with this solid reflection, that the holy man consoled his invalid; and, for his own consolation Almighty God seems often to have sent these trials to sinners under his care. In the same hospital, there was a blind man who suffered from a violent head-ache. Hearing Father Claver pass along the room, he eagerly called to him, and complained of his double infirmity. “Bear your blindness patiently,” answered the father, “as a grace to which your salvation is attached; and for the rest, confide in God.” At the same time he put his cloak over the man's head, and gave him the kiss of peace: his pain was instantly removed, but he always remained blind.  

His principal object amongst the poor and infirm was the cure of their souls, often much more in need of pity than their bodies; and he neglected no means whereby he might succeed. He sought out those whose shameful irregularities had obliged them to take dangerous and violent remedies. He began by procuring them a thousand little comforters, and by paying them particular attention, and when at length he found them disposes to listen to him, he powerfully depicted how wretched was the shameful satisfaction of a pleasure which was followed by such cruel evils. “If,” added he, “the remedies are so painful, what will be the chastisements prepared for such sins? The pleasure soon passes, but the pain of the body, and even of the soul, only finish with this life to commence far more terribly in eternity. It is true,” continued he, “it costs something to abstain from vices which gratify for the moment, but at least the difficulties attached to virtue are noble in the cause which produces them, sweet by the consolation which accompany them, precious by the recompenses which follow them; whereas the enjoyments of crime leave nothing but bitterness and shame.” His words animated with zeal and unction made so deep an impression, that many of these unfortunate sinners determined to embrace the religious state, and to suffer for the salvation of their souls, at least as much as they had suffered for the cure of their bodies. (John R. Slattery, The Life of St. Peter Claver, S.J.: The Apostle of the Negroes, published originally by H. L. Kilner & Co., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1893, and republished by Forgotten Books in 2015, pp. 98-102.)

Saint Peter Claver knew that it took stern measures and great bodily chastisements, including severe physical suffering, to root out one’s attachment to his sins. “Pope Francis” extols the great need reaching out to those in “irregular” situations in order to “understand” the supposed “complexity” of their lives. This is nothing other than moral relativism/situation ethics that is in direct violation to Supernatural Works of Mercy that must be rendered to habitual sinners.

Additionally, Saint Peter Claver warned hardened sinners that they would be condemned to hell for all eternity if they did not reform their lives, something that Jorge Mario Bergoglio does not believe is even possible:

The labors of Father Claver for the Spaniards met with the same success as those he undertook for the Negroes. It would seem as if God, for His own glory, had imparted to his words a powerful efficacy, and an irresistible charm; a word from him often sufficed to disconcert the most hardened libertine. Emmanuel Rodriguez declared that he had one evening placed himself behind a tree, with a criminal intention. The night was so dark that it was impossible to discern an object at a distance of two or three paces. Yet Father Claver returning from a sick-call, approached the tree, and exclaimed, “Beware, miserable man! For death is on the watch behind that tree.” These words fell like a thunderbolt on Rodriguez; he took to his heels, and entirely renounce his criminal project.

This ascendance over the human heart was so well known, that he was always called to the most desperate sinners when all other means had failed. Two or three instances will suffice. He was told that a man was dying in a state of despair; he would hearken neither to prayers or exhortations: if the crucifix was presented to him, he turned away his head in a rage: the most zealous priests had reaped no other fruit from their labors than the grief of seeing him become more obdurate and rebellious. Father Claver hastened to him, and, from the first, was much better received than any of the others. He spent the remainder of the day in prayer for him, and returned on the morrow full of confidence in God. After saying all that the ardor of his zeal inspired, he drew his crucifix from his bosom, and presented it to the sick man, with the desire that he should reverence it, and place the end upon his mouth. He did so. And at the same moment his heart became softened; he begged pardon of God with every sign of sincere repentance, and after receiving the last sacraments with exemplary piety, he died leaving in the minds of all an assured hope of his salvation. The holy man, full of joy, hastened to the house of a pious gentleman and begged he would join with him in thanking God for the mercy He had shown this poor sinner.

A Spanish woman who had led a profligate life was in danger of death. She seemed possessed by an impure spirit; for to all salutary admonitions her only replies were obscene expressions. Father Claver called to see her and read a gospel over her; but his kindness was acknowledged only by obscene language. The zeal of the chaste man was immediately enkindled, and with a countenance of holy indignation, and a voice which filled the soul of the miserable woman with terror, he presented his crucifix and exclaimed: “Go, since you will, to hell: go, by all means; and here behold your Judge, who condemns you! Silenced by these words, she dared not even raise her eyes. He like a good shepherd, who only strikes the stray sheep to made it re-enter the fold, immediately began in a mild tone to conjure her to hope in the mercy of a God who was crucified for her salvation. These powerful motives moved her heart; she made her confession, and her abundant tears left no room to doubt the sincerity of her conversion. But it was not the same with another libertine woman, whom the servant of God had long exhorted to lead a more regular life. In spite of all his endeavors she always persisted in deferring her conversion till some other time. “Well,” said he to her one day, “continue to close your ears to the voice of God who calls you; in a short time you will see the result of your obstinacy.” the chastisement soon followed the threat; in less than a fortnight she was suddenly attacked by a violent disorder and died in the presence of her accomplice without even time for reflection. (Father John R. Slattery, S.J., The Life of Saint Peter Claver, S.J.: The Apostle of the Negroes, published originally by H. L. Kilner & Co., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1893, and republished by Forgotten Books in 2015, pp, 150-151. See Appendix A below for the full context of  Saint Peter Claver's work with libertines.)

This one vignette in and of itself shows a complete contrast between the work of a true priest, a Jesuit missionary, and that of a false priest who is the antithesis of the spirit of the Society of Jesus, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who has said "no one can be condemned forever."

The zeal of saints such as Saint Peter Claver was not misplaced. There is no need to "purify our memories" of the Catholic past in order to "discover" the "diversity" to be found in non-Catholic Christian sects. We must imitate the zeal of the Apostles and those who followed them by working and praying for the conversion of all men and women in the world into the Catholic Church. Anyone, including a Successor of Saint Peter, who refuses to extend such an invitation whenever he has the opportunity to address non-Catholics is shirking his responsibility and reaffirming his hearers in false religions that have no means of their own to save anyone at any time in any place.

As always, we beg Our Lady, especially through her Most Holy Rosary, that we might be first concerned about our own conversion away from sin and our attachment to the things of this passing world. Thus assiduous in our efforts to root out sin and vice by cooperating with the graces won for us on Calvary by the shedding of every single drop of the Most Blood of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and that flows into our souls through the loving hands of Our Lady, the Mediatrix of All graces, we may be ever ready to bear a witness to the true Faith at a time when our shepherds have deceived themselves into believing that the perennial teaching of the Church may be ignored in favor of apostasies and sacrileges and blasphemies that come from the devil and are meant to reaffirm the souls for whom Our Lord laid down His life on the wood of the Holy Cross in paths that lead only to perdition.

We pray to Saint Peter Claver to help end the apostasy that reigns at present. May he, who was so tenderly devoted to Our Lady,  help the Church to realize an end to this current Babylonian Captivity so that we can have a true, valid pope who will consecrate Russia to Our Lady's Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart with all of the world's true bishops without delay. The errors of Russia include the errors of Photius, the errors of Orthodoxy, which made possible the errors of the Protestant Revolutionaries, the errors of Modernity in the world and Modernism in the Church.

Saint Peter Claver was deeply, tenderly and completely devoted to Our Lady, both by means of her Most Holy Rosary and by his devotion to the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel:

The great St. Peter Claver was another of God's heroes who used the Scapular to good advantage. Every month a shipment of 1000 slaves would arrive at Cartegna, Columbia, South America. St. Peter Claver used to insure the salvation of his converts. First, he organized catechists to give them instructions. Then, he saw to it that they were baptized and clothed with the Scapular. Some ecclesiastics accused the Saint of indiscreet zeal, but St. Peter Claver was confident that Mary would watch over each of his more than 300,000 converts! (Garment of Grace, page 13.)

Perhaps even Jorge Mario Bergoglio himself might criticize Saint Peter Claver for believing in sacramentals rather than going "to Jesus directly" as he sought the conversion of the slaves. Perhaps a few in the catacombs of the Catholic Church at this time, especially those who discourage "indiscriminate" distribution of Our Lady's Green Scapular even though it was her precise desire to have it given to souls who might not otherwise have a chance for salvation, might have called Saint Peter Claver "indiscreet" for giving out the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel to those who may not, at least in their own faulty human judgment, tinged perhaps with a bit of Jansenism, have had the "ability" to keep its pledges.

Saint Peter Claver simply trusted that Our Lady would help his converts.

Why do we lack his zeal in seeking the conversion of others to the true Faith?

May Saint Peter Claver help us to plant a few seeds by the offerings we make to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus through the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, especially by means of praying as many Rosaries each day as our states in life permit, so that a true pope can be restored to the Throne of Saint Peter and call for the return of all people in the world to the only means of salvation, the Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.

Saint Joseph, pray for us.

Saints Peter and Paul, pray for us.

Saint John the Baptist, pray for us.

Saint John the Beloved, pray for us.

Saint Michael the Archangel, pray for us.

Saint Gabriel the Archangel, pray for us.

Saint Raphael the Archangel, pray for us.

Saints Joachim and Anne, pray for us.

Saint Peter Claver, S.J., pray for us.

Saint Gorgonius, pray for us.