Town Reverses Decision to Ban Public Square Rosary Rally

It all started simply. Mike Casey wanted to pray. As part of the nationwide “America Needs Fatima” movement, Mike wanted to hold a public rosary in the small Massachusetts town of Upton. It would be one of 7,515 Public Square Rosaries held across the United States on October 15th.

Last year, he and a group of others prayed the rosary outside the rectory of a local church but this year Mike, the owner of a hardwood floor company, asked the township if he and a group of others could pray the rosary in the town common. “Part of the rosary is penance and praying in public is part of that,” explained Mike when I spoke with him last night.

The town denied his request. Mr. Casey did not take no for an answer and fought back.

The town has now said he can have his rally on the spot next year!

Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/blog/matthew-archbold/town-rejects-public-rosary-as-offensive-and-the-prayerful-man-who-changed-e#ixzz1cOPrlydN

“Unity Week” at St. Joseph’s University Puts Pro-Homosexual Agenda First

"Unity Week" only
provides disunity.
(Photo: perroazul)

Moral values are once again under assault at St. Joseph’s University.

Since 2001, the Jesuit university in Philadelphia has been sponsoring Unity Week, a pro-homosexual event first dubbed Rainbow Week.

This year Unity Week will sponsor speakers and events that are in direct conflict with the Catholic moral teaching and the mission statement of the university, which affirms:

“The Catholic character of Saint Joseph's University springs from its historical relationship with the Roman Catholic Church, and from its current embodiment of the great traditions of Catholic life and culture. For this University, Christ and the Church are sources of truth, guides and inspirations for life.”

However, according to the 2011 Unity Week schedule posted on the university’s web site, the following disturbing activities are planned from October 23—28:

• Photo Exhibit: “You Are Not Alone.” This exhibit features lewd images of same-sex couples posing in provocative, immoral attire.
• Film: Out of the Silence. This film is about a same-sex wedding that “will challenge you to rethink your values…”
• Pro-homosexual speaker: Will Sheridan, an open homosexual athlete, will tell students about his “coming out” story

In previous years, Unity Week has promoted:

• R rated movies such as Brokeback Mountain and MILK;
• “Transgender woman,” Isis King;
• Homosexual activist Darren Manzella, advocate of open homosexuality in the U.S. Military;
• A talk by Shawn Decker, a pro-homosexual activist who promotes “safe-sex” and contraception among college students;
• A presentation by the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus, titled “Brotherly Love;”
• A talk by Shiva Subbaraman, director of the LGBTQ Center at Georgetown University;
• The Log Cabin Republicans;
• “Rainbow Week Liturgy: A Eucharistic Celebration of Unity”

St. Joseph's University: Web site screen shot
advertising Unity Week.

Although university officials at St. Joseph’s might claim that Unity Week is only meant to facilitate “dialogue,” the evidence suggests otherwise.

For example, the student newspaper The Hawk features a pro-homosexual “Out on Campus” section. In one issue, graduate student Katie MacTurk said: “Once you see someone come to a Unity Week event, once you see someone with that Unity Week pin, once you see someone being friends with someone that’s gay and knowing that they’re gay and being supportive of that, it’s like ‘oh okay, that’s okay.’”

In 2004, Bishop Joseph P. McFadden, a St. Joseph’s alumnus, opposed Rainbow Week. “While the Church asks that we recognize the unique dignity of every human person, it does not mean supporting a lifestyle that is contrary to the natural law,” he said to The Catholic Standard & Times.

Unity Requires Truth

Why are the wolves
allowed in?
(Photo: S. Jurvestson)

“This event is a scandal. There’s no unity without truth,” said TFP Student Action director John Ritchie. “And Unity Week is more about disunity from Church teaching than it is an effort to favor true unity based on the principles of our faith. This event invites the wolves to confuse and scatter the flock -- Catholic college students -- and that’s unacceptable.”

“In our dark days, homosexual sin, ever abhorred by the Christian conscience, finds prominent apologists within Catholic universities,” Ritchie continued. “However, Sacred Scripture and the Magisterium have condemned few sins more consistently or severely.”

TFP Student Action invites its members and subscribers to contact the president of St. Joseph’s University and respectfully call for the cancelation of the pro-homosexual Unity Week. Your voice as a student, alumni, or concerned parent or individual is important in the peaceful struggle for moral values.

St. Joseph’s University
Fr. Timothy R. Lannon, S.J.
Office of the President
5600 City Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19131
Phone: 610-660-1200
Email: president@sju.edu
or tlannon@sju.edu

(Please be polite and respectful)
Archdiocese of Philadelphia
222 North 17th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-1299
Phone: 215-587-3600

A 13,000 Rose Bouquet for Our Lady at Fatima!

Those who participated in the Public Rosary Rallies were remembered in a special way at Fatima on October 13. On the huge plaza at the popular Marian shrine, over 13,000 red and white roses were displayed in honor of 7,515 rosary captains and 6,000 other rally supporters.

The 7,515 red roses corresponded to the same number of spiritual roses in the form of Public Square Rosary Rallies across the country. The rallies are a special project of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property and its America Needs Fatima campaign. A special delegation of campaign members went to Fatima on October 13, the 94^th anniversary of the miracle of the sun to deliver the roses.

Many pilgrims from different countries were there on this special day, and helped the five-member delegation deliver the roses to Our Lady.

Together with the red roses, the delegation unfurled a large banner with the names of the7,513 Rosary Rally Captains and over 6,000 rally supporters who helped support financially this year’s Public Square Rosary Rallies. This offering closed with prayers for all involved in making the 2011 Public Square Rosary Rallies a great success.

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Rosary Rallies "Occupy" Thousands of Public Squares and Go Unreported

As many as 200,000 Americans took to the streets on October 15 and “occupied” thousands of public squares nationwide to voice their concerns about the nation’s future. Such an outpouring of public sentiment should have been enough to attract the attention of any decent media.

However, that was not the case. These Americans were not the angry squatters at Zuccotti Park near Wall Street in New York City. Rather, they were Americans proudly praying in over 7,500 public squares all across America asking God’s assistance in resolving the nation’s grave moral problems.

The Public Square Rosary Rally campaign is coordinated by the America Needs Fatima campaign of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). It has been held every October for the last five years as an appeal for Divine assistance facing our anti-Christian culture.

Peaceful and Legal Rally
As a participant in the rosary rally on Fifth Avenue, I could not help being struck by the contrast between two

St. Patrick’s Cathedral, in Manhattan, in front of the Rosary Rally.

opposing camps — the Public Square Rosary Rallies and the Occupy Wall Street Movement. I was hardly shocked by the corresponding media coverage.

Our rally peacefully and legally “occupied” the sidewalk in front of Rockefeller Center across from St. Patrick’s Cathedral. There is probably no more conspicuous place in all America as tens of thousands daily walk down those busy sidewalks.

Our demonstration of faith was extremely edifying as those present were comforted by the fact that they were joined by so many other rallies all over the country. Actually, there were probably well over a hundred rallies within the New York metropolitan area. There were forty in the Bronx alone. One participant at our symbolic rally on Fifth Avenue told me that all her friends had gone to local rallies. The idea of local organization was so strong that one local rally captain insisted on holding a separate rally within earshot of our own.

Our Lady of Fatima carried by TFP volunteers in ceremonial habit during the Manhattan Rosary Rally.

Joy and Faith
Participants were from all walks of life: strong in their faith and determined to give public witness that human solutions are not enough. I was impressed by how they almost shouted out their Hail Marys over the din

Everything about the Rosary Rally reflected beauty, calm and order, attracting the blessings of God.

of the busy street and knelt on the sidewalk without human respect. A few passersby would pray a Hail Mary or two while others even joined the crowd for the entire event. The bagpipes echoed up and down the concrete canyon to the strains of “Hail Holy Queen Enthroned Above.” The effect was electrifying as one felt as if Our Lady was actually queen of the public square for at least a short time.

What impressed me most was the calm and joy of the participants who sensed the importance of what they were doing. They were publicly appealing to a higher authority asking our Blessed Mother to come to our aid. As a result, a palpable blessing came over the rally.

At times the wind would blow intensely making it difficult to hold the American flag and the four TFP standards. At other times, the wind calmed down and the sun would illuminate the crowd almost as if Our Lady was smiling upon our efforts.

Everything about the rally reflected beauty, calm and order. Everyone left with the impression that our prayers were heard. We felt new resolve to continue fighting in the public square against an anti-Christian culture.

Anti-Rosary Rally
On the other side of the city, Occupy Wall Street protesters raged. It could not be more contrary to our own rally. In fact, after the public square rosary, I went to Zuccotti Park to see what Occupy Wall Street was all about. I found an anti-rosary rally.

On the other side of town however, everything in the “Occupy Wall Street” camp reflected disorder, agitation, chaos, resentment and revolt. “Non in commotione Dominus,”1 God is not in agitation.

The climate was one of deliberate chaos and agitation. Tribal drums beat out their message as the protesters sat and stood around the perimeter of the small park with primitive cardboard signs championing every leftist, ecological or sexual cause imaginable and unimaginable. A Woodstock atmosphere pervaded amid the tarps and sleeping bags that littered the once clean sidewalks and well-kept lawns of the privately owned park.

The underlying revolt and hatred had earlier erupted in violent clashes with Police.

A Spirit of Revolt
What impressed me was not so much the uncleanliness of the place (although it was aggressive); it was not even the wildly contradictory messages that the different protesters presented. Rather it was the agitated spirit of revolt that permeated the whole area. This spirit would manifest itself in displays of resentment, bitterness or even a veiled politeness on the part of those there. It would erupt into outright hatred as in the case I saw of a street preacher upon whom the protesters heaped abuse and insults. Earlier it had erupted in violent clashes with the police.

I could not help but think how different these people — united in revolt — were from those who had just been united in prayer.

One could not help but reflect how different these people — united in revolt — were from those who had just been united in prayer.

Throughout it all, the media, that could not see 7,500 “invisible” public square rosary rallies, flocked to Zuccotti Park seemingly eager to turn this motley assembly into revolutionaries of a pseudo-class struggle using a script straight out of Marx’s Communist Manifesto.

Prayers Not in Vain
It was a relief to leave the park and head back home. I was comforted by thinking of all the rosary rallies that had taken place. Our peaceful and legal “occupation” of 7,500

“Finally, my Immaculate Heart will triumph!”

public squares dwarfed the efforts of these wannabe revolutionaries who have unsuccessfully tried to build enthusiasm by holding gatherings in places outside New York City.

Judging from media reports, I calculated that the nearly 200,000 Americans who turned to God in the public square probably outnumbered these poor partisans of the left by over three to one. The media did not take note of our efforts, but millions of American passersby did. Above all, God took note.

I was also comforted by the conviction that these prayers were not in vain. Our Lady at Fatima predicted her triumph over communism in all of its many forms. If we continue to pray, fight for our culture and oppose socialism, she will not fail to come to our aid.

What I Saw at Occupy Wall Street

Written by John Ritchie, TFP Student Action

Soon after entering the protest perimeter at Zuccotti Park a piece of communist propaganda was thrust into my hand. The flier starts: “It’s not just Wall Street… capitalism must be destroyed.”

Communist terrorist Che is celebrated at OWS

As I continued reading, other lines jumped off the page: “Only communism can live up to the aspirations the Occupy Wall Street movement has tapped into.” Then the tag line calls readers to “join the revolutionary communist Progressive Labor Party.”

I kept walking, tiptoeing around a maze of sleeping bags and clutter.

The next sight that caught my attention was a large, dirty flag stamped with the figure of communist terrorist Che Guevara held by a disheveled protester. I approached and saw “Smash the State” printed on it. “I don’t think this is going to remain peaceful,” said the fellow holding the communist Che flag. Meanwhile, a group of agitated anarchists dressed in dark, dirty clothes yelled, “What does democracy look like? This is what democracy looks like.”

Is a new tribal savage emerging?

Beside the Che flag was a gray-bearded man hawking buttons. “I’m an anarchist,” he offered. Pointing to his buttons, he explained: “These are anti-war, these are racial, these are gender [pro-homosexual], and these are anti-authoritarian.” Other crude signs were displayed amid the eclectic conglomeration of hundreds of disgruntled protesters. “Eat the rich,” said one. Others promoted socialism or environmental “rights.”

Then I stumbled into a discussion circle dedicated to “breaking the gender binary,” which is another way of saying they want to dismantle the differences between male and female. The very idea of manhood and womanhood was offensive to them.

How interesting. Seemingly separate movements all converged for a common revolt. Protesters shared a common contempt for authority, our military, morality, law, order, private property and inequality in general. By chance, I looked up and saw a man holding a megaphone emblazoned with the word “revolt.”

Class war: "I want you to steal from the rich."

Churchill put it well. “Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy. Its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.”

I continue strolling around.

The odor was aggressive, very unpleasant. Almost every conversation I overheard was heavily laden with profanity. I was even cursed out by a woman who did not like my video camera.

The protesters fancy that they represent 99% of America. But do they? Do people waving communist flags stamped with an image of Che Guevara, peddling anarchy and socialism really represent 99% of America? No. Not even 1%.

* * *
Protesters in Rome, acting in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, destroyed a statue of the Virgin Mary.

Watch the footage here

Denouncing Eco-Feminist Theology

From the ashes of Liberation Theology, a new, more profound and broader revolution has been born: eco-feminist theology. This new theology is the subject of a 200-page book titled, From Liberation Theology to the New Eco-feminist Theology. It is written by Juan Antonio Montes Varas and was just published by Chile’s Acción Familia organization.

This new theology joins together the Marxist concept of the “oppressed” with radical feminist demands and the so-called “deep ecology.” According to this doctrine, women should “raise their awareness” of the abuse they have suffered because of the subordination that Christianity imposed on them, and as a consequence, they should see abortion and homosexual relations as part and parcel of the “rights” they must advocate.

The eco-feminist theological current is not confined to a small group of visionary nuns; it is a powerful Church current that proposes a new way of understanding the universe, religion and even God himself. It is born from a long entrenched process in the Church which further radicalizes the Marxist egalitarian tenets of some currents of liberation theology.

Women lead the liturgy (left) while the priest assists from a pew (right) “... [W]hen we speak of gender we are not speaking merely of the vindication of women, but are questioning the roles and authority,” [illustrated here between priest and women] “in order to redefine authority in an egalitarian way....”1

The book shows how important Catholic congregations and universities support this pseudo theology in spite of its postulates opposed to morals, Church teaching and the Sacred Scriptures. This current has allies in various levels of the Church and the media and is bent on pursuing a mystical ideal to “deconstruct” and “re-read” the truths of the Faith, which makes it particularly effective and harmful.

Due in part to support given by some priests and religious and “Catholics for a Right to Decide” of Argentina, their Congress passed same-sex marriage.

By using the Catholic name it obtains results that otherwise would be completely unattainable.

Nevertheless, the action of this current is not limited to the religious sphere. Its adherents promote legislative changes to incorporate so called sexual rights and women’s liberation. Under the banner of “deep ecology,” these activists put in check any public or private initiative involving the environment. In order to do this they organize “awareness-raising” sessions and carry out agitation to prevent society from rightly exploiting natural resources and thus threatening all material progress.

According to Maryknoll Fr. Miguel D’Escoto, winner of the “Lenin for Peace” award and seen here embracing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the blame for the economic crisis is the “powerful who stole their wealth and services” and the solution is “egalitarian communal wealth.”

Their vision of the earth as a sacred being leads them to promote economic “decline” and a rejection of all human activity on earth. For this reason, they hold as sacred the tribal life of native peoples.

In view of all this, it is a duty of Catholics, particularly those who dedicate themselves to the defense of the family, to denounce this internal revolution in the Church, a revolution whose harmful influence is already being seriously felt in civil institutions.

The Spanish-language book is the result of research on the spread of the errors of eco-feminist doctrines in Catholic circles, and particularly in Chile.

For a Spanish PDF version of this book, please Click Here.

The fact that the movement has an extensive network of contacts outside Chile and especially inside the United States leads one to conclude that the work is of great interest to Americans as well.

Juan Antonio Montes Varas is co-author of two other books on the crisis in the family published in Chile, president of the Fundación de Estudios Culturales Roma and director of Acción Familia. For many years he was also a director of the Chilean Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property. He has written for several magazines around the world, including Radici Cristiane in Italy and Catolicismo in Brazil.

The book is available online in Spanish and can be downloaded by clicking here.

Pictures From St. Louis Rosary Rally - St. Frances de Sales

Below are some photos from the Public Square Rosary Rally near St. Francis de Sales Church in St. Louis.

Rosary Rallies Everywhere! More News

Here is a blog created for the Public Square Rosary Crusade in Monterey Park, CA. There were 19 attendees. See here:

http://ramzen-2011psrc.blogspot.com/

On one side is the Occupy Prescott (AZ) group, on another side the America Needs Fatima group.

http://www.prescottenews.com/news/current-news/item/18878-courthouse-square-place-for-diverse-demonstrators

Rosary Rally on State Street, right in front of the PA State Capitol building. About 125 people in attendance.

Processing from the Capitol building to St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Harrisburg, PA.

Incredibly stormy weather during a rosary rally in Topeka, Kansas…but, there also was a rainbow!

The rosary rally in Antioch, CA, at Shape on Lone Tree Way.

Rosary Rally in Clearwater, Florida.

Very cold weather at the Wakefield, MI--rosary rally – at the Intersection of US2/M-28.

Rosary Rally on Fifth Avenue

Here are some photos from the Rosary Rally on Fifth Avenue in front of Rockefeller Center. Other photos are starting to come in from all over America and the world from Saturday’s 7515 public square rosary rallies.

One of the 250 Public Square Rosary Rallies in New York City yesterday.

The Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima processed down 5th Ave, carried by TFP-America Needs Fatima members in the TFP ceremonial habit.

The banner to the left reads: “This is one of 7515 Public Square Square Rosary Rallies happening today in the United States and in 22 countries across the globe.”

People from all over the world walk down 5th Ave., and see the Manhattan Public Square Rosary Crusade.

The Seeming Impossible Happened :7,515 Public Square Rosary Rallies!

As the world situation becomes increasingly bleak, confused and hopeless, the idea of holding a Rosary in a public place has caught on: in 2007, where there were 2,107 rallies. In 2008, 3,500. In 2009, 4,337. In 2010, 5,963.

Today, thanks to the intercession of Our Lady, there were 7,515 Public Square Rosary Rallies held across the United States as well as in 22 other countries across the globe. This is what the map of the USA looks like with each rally location marked by a flag.

Be Realistic: Demand the Impossible!

At times, those who take action for God’s Cause must demand the impossible.

For example, in 1968, during the revolution of the Sorbonne in France, the agitators posted a slogan on campus that said, “Be realistic: Demand the impossible!”

If revolutionaries with an anti-religious agenda have that much audacity, how much more should the children of Mary have the right to expect the impossible. What appears impossible to the mediocre mind and to the faint-hearted is possible to those whose hearts are on fire.

It takes subtlety to understand this slogan: “Be realistic: demand the impossible!” At a first glance, to demand the impossible seems a contradiction. But if we dig deeper, we realize that there are a thousand things that are impossible to those with mediocre expectations, but are possible to those who dare.

History abounds with such examples. In Barcelona, Spain, there are replicas of the three ships in which Christopher Columbus sailed for the Americas. They are mere nutshells seemingly incapable of crossing a lake, much less and ocean. Yet an ocean they crossed, and when the faint-hearted on board were about to mutiny, there was the cry of “Land, Ho!” The “impossible” had become a reality because of the daring of a few.

This principle is even more rich and beautiful from the supernatural perspective. Those who look beyond purely natural expectations to supernatural solutions can at times expect the impossible. We know that when Divine Providence wills something, it realizes it against all hopes and natural appearances. Additionally, we know that Our Lady’s prayer is omnipotent with her Son, and that she obtains from Him everything she asks. Thus, trusting in Our Lady, we must at times demand the impossible from ourselves and from others.

But how do we know Our Lady will grant what we ask? The Book of Confidence of Fr. Saint Laurent begins with these magnificent words: “O voice of Christ, interior voice of grace that murmurs in the depth of our hearts words of sweetness and peace.” Truly, at times the wordless voice of Grace speaks to our hearts by means of a presentiment, an interior movement or a consolation.

We may not be able to put our finger on it, but we know we’ve been touched.

At such moments, thus backed by by Our Lady, we are encouraged to take the leap and to trust that we will obtain the impossible thing we are asking. At those moments we must believe the unbelievable, approach the unapproachable and surmount the insurmountable.

Still, how do we know that what we ask is God’s will? How can we be sure that we are not being motivated by some fantasy or exaggeration of our own making? The answer is simple. If the given thing, presentment or movement of soul leads us to be more united to Holy Mother Church, and does not flatter or promote our self-love or vanity, then this presentment is from God. What we ask may not come about in the way we expect but, ultimately, it will come true.

Thus we can expect mountains to move, and doors to open where there are none. Thus with our eyes on Our Lady we can be realistic in demanding the impossible.

Today, the seemingly impossible was accomplished in the 7515 rosary rallies carried out across America and the world.

May the Blessed Virgin Mary take our small actions and present them before the Throne of Her Divine Son in Heaven. May She use our rallies as leverage with Her Son, to end the predominance of sin in our world, and to usher in the reign of the Immaculate heart of Mary that was promised at Fatima in 1917, when Our Lady said:

“In the end, My Immaculate Heart will triumph!”

On that day, the impossible will become reality! May it happen soon, and may we all be there to see it.

Join a Public Square Rosary Rally on Saturday!

Where will you be on Saturday, October 15?

We invite you to pray for our nation in the public square this Saturday.

Here are the details.

Who? You, your family and friends.

What? Praying a rosary in the public square.

When? 12:00 p.m., Saturday, October 15, 2011.

Where? At 7,515 locations all across the country. Click here to find the rally closest to you.

How? Bring your rosary, banner and signs to the location near you.

Why? To pray for the ills that afflict our nation. Click here for more details.

Please consider joining the scores of thousands who will be attending this great event.

Where is the Nearest Rosary Rally in Missouri?

Please plan to attend the Rosary Rallies on Saturday. There are 7,513 rallies being planned to pray for our nation in this hour of need. Be a part of this historic moment.

Here is a partial listing of the rallies in Missouri. Click here.

Here is a partial listing of rallies in Illinois. Click here.

Here is an inspiring story for an organizer in Michigan. Click here.

See you there!

What Our Lady Said at Fatima on October 13, 1917

Written by Antonio A. Borelli

October 06, 2011

The Sixth and Last Apparition — October 13, 1917 As on the other occasions, the seers first saw a bright light, and then they saw Our Lady over the holm oak. Lucia: What does Your Grace wish of me? Our Lady: I wish to tell you that I want a chapel built here in my honor. I am the Lady of the Rosary. Continue to pray the Rosary everyday. The war is going to end, and the soldiers will soon return to their homes. Lucia: I have many things to ask you: if you would cure some sick persons, and if you would convert some sinners... Our Lady: Some yes, others no. They must amend their lives and ask forgiveness for their sins. “Becoming sadder, she added, 'Let them offend Our Lord no more, for He is already much offended.' Then, opening her hands, Our Lady shone the light issuing from them onto the sun, and as she rose, her own radiance continued to be cast onto the sun.” At that moment, Lucia cried, “Look at the sun!” Once Our Lady had disappeared in the expanse of the firmament, three scenes followed in succession, symbolizing first the joyful mysteries of the Rosary, then the sorrowful mysteries, and, finally, the glorious mysteries. Lucia alone saw the three scenes; Francisco and Jacinta saw only the first. The first scene: Saint Joseph appeared beside the sun with the Child Jesus and Our Lady of the Rosary. It was the Holy Family. The Virgin was dressed in white with a blue mantle. Saint Joseph was also dressed in white, and the Child Jesus in light red. Saint Joseph blessed the crowd, making the Sign of the Cross three times. The Child Jesus did the same. The second scene: This was followed by the vision of Our Lady of Sorrows, without the sword in her breast, and of Our Lord overwhelmed with sorrow on the way to Calvary. Our Lord made the Sign of the Cross to bless the people. Lucia could only see the upper part of Our Lord's body. The third scene: Finally, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, crowned queen of heaven and earth, appeared in a glorious vision with the Child Jesus in her bosom. While these scenes took place, the great throng of about seventy thousand spectators witnessed the miracle of the sun. It had rained all during the apparition. At the end of the conversation between Our Lady and Lucia – when the Blessed Virgin rose and Lucia shouted, “Look at the sun!” – the clouds opened up, revealing the sun as an immense silver disk. It shone with an intensity never before seen, but was not blinding. This lasted only an instant. Then the immense ball began to “dance”. The sun began to spin rapidly like a gigantic circle of fire. Then it stopped momentarily, only to begin spinning vertiginously again. Its rim became scarlet; whirling, it scattered red flames across the sky. Their light was reflected on the ground, on the trees, on the bushes, and on the very faces and clothing of the people, which took on brilliant hues and changing colors. After performing this bizarre pattern three times, the globe of fire seemed to tremble, shake, and then plunge in a zigzag toward the terrified crowd. All this lasted about ten minutes. Finally, the sun zigzagged back to its original place and once again became still and brilliant, shining with its everyday brightness. The cycle of the apparitions had ended. 'Miracle of the Sun' Video Many people noticed that their clothes, soaking wet from the rain, had suddenly dried. The miracle of the sun was also seen by numerous witnesses up to twenty-five miles away from the place of the apparition. * * * This account is based on the book Our Lady at Fatima: Prophecies of Tragedy or Hope for America and the World?

Our Socialist World: Children Banned from Blowing Up Balloons

Children in the United Kingdom are to be banned from taking part in traditional Christmas games, from blowing up balloons to blowing on party whistles, because of new European Union safety rules that have just entered into force. The EU toy safety directive, agreed and implemented by the U.K. Government, states that balloons must not be blown up by unsupervised children under the age of eight, in case they accidentally swallow them and choke. Despite having been popular favourites for generations of children, party games including whistles and magnetic fishing games are to be banned because their small parts or chemicals used in making...MORE BELOW

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/8816601/Children-to-be-banned-from-blowing-up-balloons-under-EU-safety-rules.html

And Now They Want a Cross in Tennesse Removed

The mayor of Whiteville, Tenn. said his community is under attack from a national atheist organization that is threatening to sue unless they remove a cross atop the town’s water tower. "They are terrorists as far as I’m concerned," said Mayor James Bellar about the Freedom From Religion Foundation. "They are alleging that some Whiteville resident feels very, very intimidated by this cross." The mayor told Fox News Radio that the cross was erected on the town’s water tower about eight years ago by a private group of citizens. They collected private donations to cover the costs. It’s just a...

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/10/07/atheists-demand-city-remove-cross-in-tennessee/?test=latestnews?test=latestnews

How Our Lady Granted Victory at Lepanto

The Battle of Lepanto, October 7, 1571.

In times of acute danger and hardship, we must always fly into the arms of the most powerful Mother of God and turn to the recitation of the Rosary. The Battle of Lepanto is a great lesson of confidence for us today.

When Saint Pius V ascended to Saint Peter’s throne, Christendom faced perils perhaps unequaled in its history of continual conflict, not the least of which came from the agitated and violent followers of Mohammed.

All the information and intelligence that Pope Pius V had been gathering indicated that the Ottoman juggernaut was about to roll across the Mediterranean and adjacent lands, spearheaded by the Turkish fleet, with Italy and Rome as one of its targets. No nation could stand up to the marauding infidels and the candidates for an alliance were few.

Northern Europe had risen up in armed rebellion against the Church with France deeply involved in the conflict, while much of Europe felt that neutrality was the best policy to follow after the Turks occupied a large chunk of its land in the Danube River Valley.

Only Spain and Venice had the resources to resist, and they hated each other along with deep mistrust. Yet Saint Pius — calling down divine grace as only a man of prayer could — forged an alliance with them as the core of an organized fleet of over 200 galleys. With his considerable tact and diplomatic skills, he not only kept them unified, but he convinced them to attack the enveloping menace.

Our Lady of Guadalupe.

The Archbishop of Mexico had an exact copy of the Holy Image of Guadalupe sent to King Philip II, who in turn gave it to Andrea Doria, one of the three principal admirals of the fleet, who placed it in his cabin. When the Armada went from file to line abreast and attacked on the morning of October 7, 1571 the blue standard of Our Lady of Guadalupe was also flying from the masthead of Don Juan’s flagship. But Our Lady’s presence that day was more acutely felt through the Holy Rosary.

Our Lady of the Rosary
Pope Pius V, a Dominican prelate before his elevation, did what Catholics have always done in times of acute danger: fly into the arms of the most powerful Mother of God. As a follower of Saint Dominic, he knew the most effective means of imploring her help was through the recitation of the Holy Rosary. He ordered all monasteries and convents in Rome to increase their prayers for the impending battle and organized rosary processions in which he, as sick as he was, participated.

As the Christian fleet sailed toward the great clash of cultures, Mass was celebrated and the rosary recited daily on each vessel. This heartfelt request for divine assistance resulted in a crushing defeat of the Ottomans at Lepanto that ended their dominance in the Mediterranean.

To celebrate Our Lady’s intercession, the Church has designated October 7 as the Feast of the Holy Rosary and Saint Pius V added Help of Christians (Auxilium Christianorum) to the Litany of Our Lady (Loreto). Similar acknowledgement to the Blessed Virgin’s intercession through the rosary were made when John Sobieski forced the Turks to lift the Siege of Vienna in 1683 and after the victory of Prince Eugene of Savoy at Temesvar in his successful campaign to remove the Ottomans from Europe in the next century.

While the din of battle gradually diminished at the bloody waters off Lepanto, Saint Pius V was going over accounts in the papal apartments with Bartolo Busotti, his treasurer. Suddenly, he arose with his face radiant with joy and announced, “Let us go and thank God, for this moment our fleet has defeated the Turks.” Human agency brought news to Rome two weeks later.

The message of Our Lady of Fatima is a call to conversion. But will the world listen?

“Finally my Immaculate Heart will triumph!”
Some may object to the historical paradigm, not that it is inappropriate, but that it happened a long time ago. Yet, the Blessed Virgin made another historical visit to earth just ninety years ago, bringing roughly the same message to a larger distressed population. As Our Lady of the Rosary, she appeared six times at Fatima in Portugal to three related children, two of whom have been beatified.

In essence, she warned that God was terribly offended by the sins of mankind and unless that sinfulness subsided the world as a consequence would face horrible chastisements.

Immediately following, we had a bloody conclusion to World War I, then six years of the most depraved slaughter of World War II and continual wars, atrocities and mutilations ever since instigated by two of the enemies of Western Civilization: Communism (as Our Lady predicted) and Islam. Sinfulness has not abated, but only increased, especially in the areas of family life, immoral fashions and lewd entertainment.

Our Lady will intervene once again in history, either to help her suffering children who have recourse to her or to bring down the wrath of God on those who refuse to pray, make sacrifices and stop offending Him. During the third apparition she announced the ultimate result, “Finally my Immaculate Heart will triumph!”

Join the Public Square Rosary Crusade

• Participate in one of the 7,504 Rosary rallies on Oct. 15, 2011.
• Find a rally location near you.

God Bless You! Now Allowed at School

by Jeremy Kryn

• VACAVILLE, California, October 4, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The principal of a California school about 45 miles from San Francisco has said that students will no longer be disciplined for saying “God, bless you” in class. The principal’s statement follows news that a health teacher at William C. Wood High School took grade points away from his students for saying “God, bless you” when someone sneezed.

“He realizes his mistake and that this wasn’t the best way to get the kids to behave,” Principal Cliff DeGraw told Sacramento’s FOX40.

When Taylor McGinley sneezed in her health class at William C. Wood High School a few weeks ago, a student replied with “God, bless you.” Health teacher Steven Cuckovich, however, reportedly responded by disciplining the students, telling them that “the blessing doesn’t really make sense anymore.”

“(Cuckovich) said, ‘Do you think that girl is evil, do you think the evil spirits are coming out of her?’ And the guy that said ‘bless you’ was like ‘No, I was just doing what I was supposed to do when somebody sneezes, not trying to be rude,’” McGinley said, according to News10.

McGinley said her teacher never spoke about the expression in class after that.

In Erica Fagan’s class, however, Cuckovich deducted 25 points from students’ grades if someone said “God, bless you.” Cuckovich reportedly told Fagan and the other students saying “God bless you” is a distraction.

“The first time (the student) did it (Cuckovich) took 25 points off of everybody in the class’s grade for one person saying it and then somebody did it the next day and he did it again,” Fagan said.

Fagan’s mother, Vickie, said she emailed administrators, but only heard back from them September 29.

“I can see where teenagers can be disruptive. It’s not something unknown,” Fagan’s mother said. “The specific saying ‘If you guys are being noisy and talking out of turn’ I can see, but when he says ‘When you say, God, bless you,’ and he’s using that specific terminology to say, ‘I’m docking you points,’ that concerns me.”

“It’s not… got anything to do with religion. It’s got to do with an interruption of class time,” Cuckovich told FOX40.

“If they came to me and made an effort to convince me that on religious grounds they felt that they were being prosecuted, I could probably adjust. I didn’t think it was a big deal,” he said, adding that he will find another way to punish perpetrators.

A New Ecologically Correct Elite?

Rosary Rally in 21 Countries Besides USA

Thanks to Our Lady, the 2012 Public Square Rosary Crusade, scheduled for October 15, has now reached 21 countries besides the United States of America.

To check out the international listings, please go here:

http://www.americaneedsfatima.org/component/option,com_chronoconnectivity/ST,INL/connectionname,psrc

Lobbying Group Wants Cross Removed From Swiss Flag

An immigrant group in Switzerland has called for the white cross to be removed from the Swiss national flag because as a Christian symbol it "no longer corresponds to today's multicultural Switzerland."

Ivica Petrusic, vice president of the lobbying group Seconds Plus, says it will launch a nationwide campaign in October to ask Swiss citizens to consider adopting a flag that is less offensive to Muslim immigrants.

In a September 18 interview with the Swiss newspaper Aargauer Zeitung, Petrusic said the cross has a Christian background and while the Christian roots of Switzerland should be respected, "it is necessary to separate church and state" because "Switzerland today has a great religious and cultural diversity. One has to ask if the State wants to continue building up a symbol in which many people no longer believe."

The Muslim population in Switzerland has more than quintupled since 1980, and now numbers about 400,000, or roughly 5% of the population.