This is super cool, it essentially sounds like a family reunion that you've made into a mini conference of sorts? What a treat to have Voris come speak, and how nice of him to take the time to come do that too.
Next year's theme sounds super interesting too, I'm sure there's so much that so many could speak about. I'm not sure if you've heard of Kennedy Hall but something in my gut says he might have some interesting thoughts to share since he's French-Canadian; he's a traditional Catholic, fluent in French (I believe). I could be wrong. I bet Timothy Flanders would too.
My condolences on the passing of your mother, that's so tragic and hard, especially when it's unexpected like that. I'll say a prayer for her and you and your family.
Thank you for the condolences, but my mother’s death was actually miraculous. It was not unexpected, as she had a bone marrow disorders that progressed to leukemia that in the final months of her life, she was 82. When she did not respond to chemotherapy, my mother and my family decided to stop treatment and go into hospice. She was living on blood transfusions, as her bone marrow was non-functional
We stopped the transfusions and entered hospice. They brought a hospice bed into my parents’ apartment in the retirement community where they were living, and took steps to make her comfortable. The first week she was awake and at peace. She had been visited by priests and received the anointing of the sick multiple times up to this point and during her hospice stay. My sister was worried about my mother’s body and sickness, but I told my sister that I was more concerned with her soul.
That is where the miracle occurred. Some without faith might say, some sacrament you got there that anointing, she received it multiple times and it did nothing. She did not get better and died just like the foolish people that believe in faith healers. Scoffers may think like that, but physical healing is not the only purpose of the sacrament.
It is meant to prepare the soul for death. I have to say that as a result, I have not seen a soul better prepared for death than my mother.
It seemed that during the first week of hospice, my mother received over one hundred visitors. Her enemies came to see her. Decades long feuds were ended, and they humbly asked each other for forgiveness. Stone hearts were changed to hearts of flesh, and family wounds were healed. It was such a phenomena that the non-catholic part of my family said that they had never seen anything like this. It is a miracle.
My brother and sister could not attend due to my mother’s passing, but the event had been planned months in advance. We had about 60-70 people, my cousins, friends from work, and members of my parish and in attendance. Michael Voris was very gracious, and if you want to see his talk, it is on today’s episode of the Vortex on ChurchMilitant.Com
My mother’s funeral was yesterday, and it was a beautiful ceremony. She was my mother in all respects. I was born Catholic, but drifted from the faith and had even become anti-Catholic. The folks in One Bread One Body in 2003 were the initial instruments in my return to the faith. God bless them and you all, but I had a lot of growing to do.
I did not submit to the full authority of the Church until 2019. I was a Cafeteria Catholic, so much so, that I could not receive communion. I believe that through the prayers of my parents and maybe deceased relatives, I was shown my error and I fully submitted and was restored to the Church. My mother was a Eucharistic minister, and she said that the happiest time was when she was able to give me communion.
I have to testify to God’s grace. His grace flows through the sacraments when we are properly disposed to receive it. It was when I fully submitted to the Catholic magisterium, and I received the sacrament of Penance and then the Eucharist, that the sin that so easily beset me was gone. I was not able to arrogantly wrestle it away previously, though I had tried for years.
God tells the truth when He says He desires obedience rather than sacrifice, and a broken and contrite spirit He will not turn away.
The grace of God flows through the sacraments Ex Opere Operato. It does not depend on the righteousness of the priest, but the act performed. The promises of the world, pleasure, fame and power are useless. True joy comes in submitting to the will of God.
We don’t know how blessed we are to have holy mother Church. Fight for her, as every day we are here is spiritual combat. My mother is now at peace. Her fight is over, ours is only beginning. Put on the armor of God, it’s going to get rough.
