I wish incidents such as these were not so prevalent in the news, but due to the nature of spiritual warfare, they are all too common.     See also here. " And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world- -he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. (Rv 12:9)  Whoever today still doubts the real existence of demonic powers has widely misunderstood the metaphysical background to this war. Behind the concrete, behind material perceptions, behind all factual, logical considerations stands the irrational i.e. the baffle against the demon . Read, but don't weep- for Our Lord has overcome the world!

In Chapter three of my book, I outline the evidence of the oversexualization of our culture. As I go to press, it seems I wrote too early to include this recent growing phenomenon...  See also my post of September 19th.

One hears often that the “liberation” of the human libido began in earnest in the United States in the “sexual revolution” of the 1960s. Americans, troubled over repressive attitudes toward human sexuality, hoped for a revolution that would free them from outdated moral and social constraints. It resulted not in liberation but in license and a host of societal sexual crises. Since the onset of the sexual revolution, we have had to face an ever-increasing array of sexual problems. One has only to think of the tremendous increase in the number of post-1960s illegitimate births and abortions, sexually transmitted diseases, opposition to censorship of pornography (especially on the Internet), and the resulting sexual addiction (in some extreme instances resulting in murder). Consider too the tremendous blows to marriage and the family done by adultery, the battle over the homosexual lifestyle in the United States, Canada and Europe (now to the point of the redefinition of marriage un...

Pope Benedict's has noted of late that many Catholics misunderstood or ignored the Second Vatican council's teachings under the influence of secular culture and "embraced uncritically the dominant mentality, placing in doubt the very foundations of the deposit of faith, which they sadly no longer felt able to accept as truths." he said He went on to add in a homily: "Recent decades have seen the advance of a spiritual 'desertification.'"   Fifty years ago, history offered glimpses of a "life or a world without God," he said. "Now we see it every day around us. This void has spread." Yet, the pope said, a "thirst for God, for the ultimate meaning of life" is still evident in "innumerable signs," including the growing popularity of religious pilgrimages. "How come so many people today feel the need to make these journeys?" he said. "Is it not because they find there, or at least intuit, the ...

I began   The Smoke of Satan in the Temple of God   by taking note that many Catholics after Vatican II were told by pastors, curates, religious, or theologians that the sacred council had changed certain aspects of Catholic theology or practice, and consequently had never read the documents of Vatican II for themselves. As we approach the Year of Faith, it's not too late to get started!!! To get motivated, perhaps this will help: m any Catholics misunderstood or ignored the council's teachings under the influence of secular culture and, as the Holy Father recently stated, "embraced uncritically the dominant mentality, placing in doubt the very foundations of the deposit of faith, which they sadly no longer felt able to accept as truths. Recent decades have seen the advance of a spiritual 'desertification.'" He also remarked that fifty years ago, history offered glimpses of a "life or a world without God. Now we see it every day around us. This void...

My final chapter discusses the need for personal conversion as integral to Vatican II's call to holiness issued to all faithful Catholics. Thus it was with AMAZEMENT that I read Curtis Martin's reflections at the Bishops' synod...

In the Conclusion to my book, The Smoke of Satan in the Temple of God,  (for which the copy editing has been completed) I posit that conversion sprouting from the sun of the new Evangelization is the cure for the crisis of faith outlined in the book. Cardinal Wuerl concurs, citing the  call for the Catholic Church to roll back the “tsunami of secularism” that has swept over modern society in recent decades. Read More...

Last October Pope Benedict announced a Year of Faith to begin this Oct. 11. He described it as “a summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the one Savior of the world.”  The reason for calling for a Year of Faith is simple.  Faith, at least in Europe and some parts of America, is dying. In the past, faith in God, the contents of the Gospel and the values inspired by it were part of the cultural matrix that families could rely on to help them transmit the faith to their children. Not anymore. “This presupposition” the pope said, “can no longer be taken for granted, but is often openly denied.” Read more...

Chapter 3 of my book recounts  the story of how the “liberation” of the human libido began in earnest in the United States in the “sexual revolution” of the 1960s. Americans, troubled over repressive attitudes toward human sexuality, hoped for a revolution that would free them from outdated moral and social constraints. It resulted not in liberation but in license and a host of societal sexual crises. Since the onset of the sexual revolution, we have had to face an ever-increasing array of sexual problems. One has only to think of the tremendous increase in the number of post-1960s illegitimate births and abortions, sexually transmitted diseases, opposition to censorship of pornography (especially on the Internet), and the resulting sexual addiction (in some extreme instances resulting in murder). Consider too the tremendous blows to marriage and the family done by adultery, the battle over the homosexual lifestyle in the United States, Canada and Europe (now to the point of the...

Prescient piece by Carl Olson of Ignatius Insight: Demons, Sin, Death, and Damnation A Scriptural Reflection on the Readings for September 30, 2012 | Carl E. Olson Readings: • Num 11:25-29 • Ps 19:8, 10, 12-13, 14 • Jas 5:1-6 • Mk 9:38-43, 45, 47-48 What do demons, sin, death, and damnation have in common? An obvious (and correct) answer is that all of them are, put bluntly, bad. They have a certain, even close, relationship to one another. Another answer is that each is a topic usually avoided in conversations around the water cooler and over morning coffee. In fact, they are sometimes given short shrift in homilies and sermons. But today’s Gospel prominently mentions all four. Needless to say, it is a challenging and difficult reading. Yet it is the sort of passage too often ignored or downplayed, resulting in a skewed understanding of both the mission and message of Christ. Jesus and his disciples took the existence of demons for granted; they also took th...

In Chapter 3 I recount the disastrous effects of the advent of contraception in the United States, among them an increase in abortion. Here is another interesting fruit born of this phenomenon...