Part 1---The Apostasy: Its Roots and Freemasonry

 

God the Father, Our Lord Jesus Christ,

Our Lady of Emmitsburg,

the Doctors and Fathers of the Church,

the Saints, Mystics and Stigmatists,

the Popes and Theologians,

and

Mother Church

through

Sacred Scripture and Her Catechism

Speak about:

 

The Apostasy

 

(Compiled by Michael T. Sullivan, MD)

 

"But when the Son of Man comes,

will He find faith on earth?" 

(Lk 18: 7-8)

 

 

The Catholic Dictionary defines "apostasy" the total rejection by a baptized person of the Christian faith he/she once professed.

 

In a talk given just after Sen. Barack Obama was elected President of the United States, but before he assumed power, in November, 2008 at Chicago Heights, Illinois, Fr. Clement Machado, S.O.L.T., a well-known and experienced charismatic priest/exorcist, now specializing in the area of Spiritual Warfare, spoke about the "apostasy" :

 

"…If you look at the signs of the apostasy, you see that most people have apostatized from the faith. That is the sign of the Antichrist.  That is the sign of the end times. 

 

"Major apostasy on a worldwide global scale is unprecedented.  And what does "apostasy" mean?  Apostasy doesn't mean people that never believed who don't believe.  It's people who were believers who drop away from the faith.  And that is what is happening! 

 

"If you look at the way people have left the practice of faith, the practice of religion, let alone the practice and belief in Christianity and Catholicism, let alone belief in God, it is unprecedented!  You can imagine when people leave, when Catholics fall away from the faith, do their children become Catholics?  No!  The children become nothing.  They are not even Catholics or Christians anymore.  They are not even baptized anymore; and therefore, somebody who is not baptized cannot apostatize.  Somebody apostatizes when they have already been part of the faith. 

 

"See how 80% of people basically have apostatized from the faith, don't practice anymore; and that is a conservative estimate.  In many countries, it is even worse.  If you go to Europe, the same thing--how very few people at all practice, maybe 5%, if that.  95% apostasy, heresy!  This is the stuff of the evil one.  This isn't something that will happen in 100 or 200 or 300 years, dear friends.  It's already happening…."  (Homily, Fr. Clement Machado, SOLT, Nov. 2008)

 

Part 1:  Apostasy:  Its Roots and Freemasonry

Part 2:  Apostasy:  Its Forewarning through Mother Church

Part 3:  Apostasy:  Its Forewarning through Private Revelation

                                A.  13th through 19th Centuries

                                B.   20th Century to Present Day

Part 4   Apostasy:  Its Defeat

 

 

As early as 1989, in His Lessons to the world through Gianna Talone Sullivan, Our Lord Himself speaks of the lack of faith, its effects and the role of the evil one.  He even addresses his people as, "O' you people of little faith":

 

"Do you think I came into the world to be crucified for pleasure?  I came to save you!  I died for you so that your souls would be with My Father.  They do not listen.  I tell My people to have faith in Me and gain My power of Love.  They question the Truth.  They question because they do not see.  They have little faith.  They think I do not notice them.  They think I do not hear their prayers and listen, and they continue to suffer.  Such little, little faith!….It is I Who suffer much pain when you live with such little faith….If you think I was crucified once, you are mistaken!  I die continuously for you because you continuously crucify Me!"   (JOM, Vol 1, #62, June 21, 1989) 

 

It was in August, 1995, that Our Lady of Emmitsburg first spoke to the world about the "apostasy":

 

"There are currently subtle evil forces in your midst which can only be recognized and fought victoriously through constant prayer, love and faith in God.  The apostasy of the Church is at hand, little children; and it is necessary that you return to God in faith, love and unity without delay; for days ahead will become increasingly difficult.  Only those who are steadfast in faith will be able to patiently endure the many hardships in the Peace of God's Love."   (Public OLOE, Aug. 24, 1995)   

 

The reasons behind the loss of faith in the world are most certainly multi-factorial and related directly to the innate weaknesses in our human nature; but in modern times, Freemasonry has contributed greatly to its demise.

 

The Catholic Dictionary defines "Freemasonry" as the "teachings and practices of a secret international organization whose modern origins date from the first quarter of the 18th century.  It defines itself as the activity of closely united men who, employing symbolic forms borrowed principally from the mason's trade and from architecture, work for the welfare of mankind, striving morally to ennoble themselves and others and thereby to bring about a universal league of mankind."  Freemasonry began as a fraternity of Deists in Europe, and its basic orientation has been naturalistic, i.e., anti-supernatural, ever since.  The hostility of Masonic lodges to the Catholic Church has evoked numerous declarations of the Holy See, notably of Popes Clement XII (1738), Benedict XIV (1751), Pius IX in several documents, especially the Syllabus of Errors (1864), and Leo XIII in the encyclical Humanum Genus (1884).  The Code of Canon Law of 1918 decreed that no Catholic may join "Masonic sects or any other similar associations which plot against the Church."{Canon 2335}.  (Modern Catholic Dictionary, Fr. John Hardon, S.J.)

 

In a Declaration on Masonic Associations dated Nov. 26, 1983, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, then Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in conjunction with Pope John Paul II, stated:

 

"The Church's negative judgment in regard to Masonic associations remains unchanged since their principles have always been considered irreconcilable with the doctrine of the Church and, therefore, membership in them remains forbidden.  The faithful, who enroll in Masonic associations are in a state of grave sin and may not receive Holy Communion." (Declaration on Masonic Associations, Ratzinger, Nov. 26, 1983)

 

Pope Leo XIII  (1810-1903, Italian) served in the Papacy from 1878-1903.  In an effort to bring the Roman Catholic Church into harmony with the modern world, he supported democratic and social reforms and the opening of the Vatican archives to outside scholars.  He also offered strong opposition to both socialism and communism in their various guises; and notably in his encyclical Humanum Genus, concerning Freemasonry, he voiced its  condemnation by the Catholic Church:

 

"…That which is their ultimate purpose forces itself into view--namely, the utter overthrow of that whole religious and political order of the world which Christian teaching has produced, and the substitution of a new state of things in accordance with their ideas, of which foundations and laws shall be drawn from mere naturalism;…Now, the fundamental doctrine of the Naturalists, which they sufficiently make known by their very name, is that human nature and human reason ought in all things to be mistress and guide.  Laying this down, they care little for duties to God, or perfect them by erroneous and vague opinions.  For they deny that anything has been taught by God; they allow no dogma or religion or truth which cannot be understood by the human intelligence, nor any teacher who ought to be believed by reason of his authority.  And since it is the special and exclusive duty of the Catholic Church fully to set forth in words truths Divinely received; to teach, besides other divine helps to salvation, the authority of its office; and to defend the same with perfect purity, it is against the Church that the rage and attack of the enemies are principally directed.  Catholicism and Freemasonry are therefore essentially opposed….For Catholicism is essentially a revealed religion; it is essentially supernatural, both in its destiny and in its resources.  Beyond all natural fulfillment, it tends toward an eternity of ineffable union with God in Himself; and beyond all natural resources, it begins that union here and now in the sacramental life of the Church.  Masonry, on the other hand, is essentially a religion of 'reason.'  With an insistence and a consistency matching Catholicism's self-definition, Freemasonry promises perfection in the natural order as its only destiny--as indeed the highest destiny there is;  and it provides for this perfectibility with its resources:  the accumulated sum of purely human values, subsumed under the logo of 'reason.'" (Humanum Genus, Pope Leo XIII April 20, 1884)

 

In a summary article on its relationship between the Catholic "Church vs. Freemasonry," Jesuit theologian Rev. Robert I. Bradley, S. J. further clarifies the Church's position:

 

"Since the Church's claim to be the One True Church is ultimately founded and validated on the reality of the One True God, opposing Masonic claim must ultimately derive from a perception of God that diametrically opposes the Church's faith.  And so it does….The Masonic "god" is an idol.  What the Masons really worship is man--or the spirit who has deceived man from the beginning:  the masked spirit of evil.  This is the primal reason why the Catholic Church has condemned, and will always condemn Freemasonry….We can, however, give a second reason:  its violation of the Second commandment by its gravely evil misuse of oaths.  The infamous oaths that run through the entire ritual of Masonic initiation are more than mere promises based on personal honor.  They formally invoke the Deity, and have for their object a man's total commitment to a cause under dire sanctions.  The Catholic Church sees in such oaths an inescapable grave evil."  (Catholic Church vs. Freemasonry, Fr. Robert Bradley, S.J.)

 

In another encyclical Custodi Di Quella Fede, Pope Leo XIII further defines the tactics and deceptions in Freemasonry:

 

So many souls redeemed by His Blood are now lost, the choicest portion of His flock, a people faithful to Him for nineteen centuries.  How can we bear to look upon His chosen people exposed to a constant and ever-present danger of apostasy, pushed toward error and vice, material miseries, and moral degradation?…The satanic intent of the persecutors has been to substitute naturalism for Christianity, the worship of reason for the worship of faith, so-called independent morality for Catholic morality, and material progress for spiritual progress.  To the holy maxims and laws of the Gospel, they have opposed (set against them) laws and maxims which can be called the code of revolution.  They have also opposed an atheistic doctrine and a vile realism to school, science, and the Christian arts….If the administration of the sacraments could not be impeded, they sought nonetheless to introduce and promote civil marriages and funerals.  If they have not yet succeeded in seizing control of education and the direction of charitable institutions, they always aim with perseverance to laicize everything, which is to remove the mark of Christianity from it.  If they could not silence the voice of the Catholic press, they made every effort to discredit and revile it….They encourage schisms, apostasies and revolts against legitimate superiors in the Church…Though often executed by other hands, this persecution is inspired and promoted by Masonry, and immediate or mediate, direct or indirect manner, by flattery or threats, seduction or revolution.

 

"It likewise yearns to give us and all those who, heeding our words, remain faithful to Jesus Christ, the calumnious title of "enemies of the state"….The facts say that Masonic patriotism is no less than sectarian egotism which yearns to dominate everything, particularly the modern states which unite and concentrate everything in their hands.  The facts say that in the plans of Masonry, the names of political independence, equality, civilization, and progress aimed to facilitate the independence of man from God….From them, license of error and vice and union of faction at the expense of other citizens have grown….A people redeemed by Divine Blood have thus returned to divisions, corruptions and the shames of paganism…..After 19 centuries of Christian civilization, this sect tries to overthrow the Catholic Church and to cut off its Divine sources.  It absolutely denies the supernatural, repudiating every revelation and all the means of salvation which revelation shows us.  Through its plans and works, it bases itself solely and entirely on such a weak and corrupt nature as ours.  Such a sect cannot be anything other than the height of pride, greed and sensuality….They take on boundless dimensions and become the oppression, plundering and source of corruption of an entire people…..This sect, having nothing to fear, today shows it s face to the light of day.  You….Catholics should also make open profession of your faith and follow the example of your glorious ancestors who confessed their faith bravely before tyrants, torture and death…."  (Encyclical on Freemasonry, Pope Leo XIII, Dec. 15, 1892)

 

 

 

"The people….and the priests….have not separated themselves

from the peoples of the land with their abominations….

Furthermore, the leaders and rulers

have taken a leading part in this apostasy!" 

(Ezra 9: 1-2)

 

In modern times, the place where this role of Freemasonry is best exposed in great detail is in the private revelations which constitute the life's work of Fr. Stephano Gobbi, a priest member of the Company of St. Paul, holding a doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical University of the Lateran in Rome.  Through a series of over 600 private locutions from the Blessed Virgin Mary dating from July 7, 1973, through December 31, 1997 (over 24 years) and worldwide prayer cenacles, Fr. Gobbi has formed the Marian Movement of Priests.  In over 100 of those 600 inner locutions, Our Lady spoke of the apostasy:  its effects, the role of her priest sons, and the benefits that would follow the apostasy.  Fr. Gobbi's book of locutions, entitled "To the Priests, Our Lady's Beloved Sons," received the Imprimatur in 1998 from both Donald W. Montrose, D.D., Bishop of Stockton, & Bernardino Cardinal Echeverria Ruiz, OFM, Archbishop Emeritus of Guiaquil (Equador).  Although there is some repetition in these excerpts which span 24 years, that repetition supports the emphasis that Our Lady is placing on this message to her priest sons in the Marian Movement of Priests and those religious and lay faithful who pay heed to Her warnings.  Through Fr. Gobbi, Our Lady shares:

 

1973:  "There will soon come a time when only those who are with the Pope will succeed in keeping the faith of my Son and being preserved from the great apostasy that will spread everywhere. (25 m) 1977:  Those who have remained faithful are generally the most persecuted, the most ignored, and sometimes intentionally ostracized.  Thus, the darkness spreads, and the smoke of Satan seeks to cover everything; each day the apostasy grows greater.  (122 fg) 

 

1983:  How many pastors there are today who no longer defend the flock which has been entrusted to them by Jesus!  Some remain silent when they should speak courageously to defend the truth and to condemn error and sin.  They tolerate to avoid risk; they descend to compromise simply to maintain their privileges.  Thus, error is spread under the form of ambiguous formulas, and reparation is no longer made for sin, in a progressive apostasy from Jesus and from His Gospel. (251 f)   1985:  The cause of such a vast diffusion of errors and of this great apostasy rests with unfaithful pastors….They do not intervene when they should be unmasking the rapacious wolves who, hidden beneath the clothing of lambs, have insinuated themselves into the flock of Christ.  They are mute dots who allow their flocks to be torn to pieces. (313 f)   

 

 1983:  The apostasy has now been spread into every part of the Church, betrayed even by some of her Bishops, abandoned by many of her priests, deserted by so very many of her children, and violated by my Adversary.  (270 j)    1985:  There has now come for the Church the time of its greatest division, of the apostasy which has entered its interior which will lead it to live through the moment of its gravest crisis, of its bloody and terrible persecution.  (309 h) 

 

1986:  The Church of Jesus is wounded with the pernicious plague of infidelity and apostasy.  In appearance, everything remains calm and it seems that all is going well.  In reality, it is being pervaded with an ever widening lack of faith which is spreading the great apostasy everywhere.  Many bishops, priests, religious and faithful no longer believe and have already lost the true faith in Jesus and in His Gospel.  For this reason, the Church must be purified with persecution and with blood.   (332  g)

 

The first wound (of three wounds described: apostasy, disunity and infidelity) is caused by the apostasy, which is spreading because of the errors that are being taught and promoted more and more even in Catholic schools, and which are leading an immense number of my poor children to separate themselves from the true faith.  (340 e) 

 

1987:    I am weeping because the Church is continuing along the road of division, of loss of the true faith, of apostasy and of errors which are being spread more and more without anyone offering opposition to them.  Even now, that which I predicted at Fatima and that which I have revealed here (Akita) in the third message confided to a little daughter of mine (Sr. Agnes Sasagawa) is in the process of being accomplished.  And so, even for the Church the moment of its great trial has come, because the man of iniquity will establish himself within it and the abomination of desolation will enter the holy temple of God.  (362 h)

 

1988:  The hour of the great apostasy has come.  What has been foretold in Holy Scripture, in the Second Letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians, is now on the point of coming to pass.  Satan, my Adversary, with snares and by means of his subtle seduction, has succeeded in spreading errors everywhere, under the form of new and more updated interpretations of the truth; and he has led many to choose with full knowledge to live in sin, in the deceiving conviction that this is no longer an evil, and even that it is a value and a good….The apostasy is spreading more and more, even through the interior of the Catholic Church.  Errors are being taught and spread about, while the fundamental truths of the faith, which the authentic Magisterium of the Church has always taught and energetically defended against any heretical deviation whatsoever, are being denied with impunity. …Victims of the great apostasy are those children of mine who, often unknowingly, allow themselves to be carried along by this wave of errors and of evil.  Victims of the great apostasy are many bishops, priests, religious and faithful.  (384 bcegh)

 

1989:  Jesus is the Truth because it is He--the living Word--Who is the font and seal of all Divine revelation.  And so ecclesiastical Masonry works to obscure his Divine Word, by means of natural and rational interpretations; and, in the attempt to make it more understandable and acceptable, empties it of all its supernatural content.  Thus, errors are spread in every part of the Catholic Church itself.  Because of the spread of these errors, many are moving away today from the true faith, bringing to fulfillment the prophecy which was given to you by me at Fatima:  "The times will come when many will lose the true faith." The loss of the faith is apostasy.  Ecclesiastical Masonry works in a subtle and diabolical way, to lead all into apostasy.  (406 l) 

 

The dominion of my Adversary is becoming daily greater and greater, and his power is expanding in hearts and in souls.  A dense darkness has now descended upon the world.  It is the darkness of the obstinate rejection of God.  It is the darkness of sin, committed, justified and no longer confessed.  It is the darkness of lust and of impurity.  It is the darkness of unbridled egoism and of hatred, of division and of war.  It is the darkness of the loss of faith and of apostasy.  (411 b) 

 

1992:  Even in the Church, the darkness will descend more densely yet and will succeed in enveloping everything.  Errors will spread much more, and many will wander away from the true faith.  Apostasy will spread like an epidemic, and pastors will be stricken by it along with the flocks entrusted to them.  In every part of the earth, the Church, this poor agonizing and crucified Daughter of mine, will have much to suffer.  (464 e)

 

How many are those today who participate in His priesthood, who share in His inheritance and who, in so many ways, betray Him!  They betray Him because they no longer believe in his Divine Word; the lack of faith is spreading; apostasy is diffused more and more within the Church.  They betray Him because they prefer the thirty pieces of silver to Him, the silver coins of convenience and pleasure, of impurity and pride, of the search for comfort and of self-affirmation.  How many are the Judases who today betray the Son of Man!  How numerous are those from among his own who deny Him, repeating the words of human weakness of Peter:  'I do not know this man.'  (Mt 26:72)  They deny Him out of fear of not being thought well of and esteemed by the world in which they live, out of fear of being considered backward and old-fashioned, out of fear of being criticized and rejected. (469 ijklm)

 

Bishops and priests, beloved sons of mine, why do you repeat today, in such great numbers, by the way you live, the cruel gesture of Judas' betrayal and Peter's denial?  The new Passion being repeated by Jesus in this Pasch of 1992 is that of infidelity on the part of many of his priests.  (468 jklmn)

 

1993:  My Church will be shaken by the violent wind of apostasy and unbelief, as he who sets himself against Christ will enter into its interior, thus bringing to fulfillment the horrible abomination which has been prophesied to you in Holy Scripture. (489 e)  Satan has succeeded in entering into the Church, the new Israel of God.  He has entered there with the smoke of error and sin, of the loss of faith and apostasy, of compromise with the world and the search for pleasure.  During these years, he has succeeded in leading astray bishops and priests, religious and faithful.  The forces of Masonry have entered into the Church, in a subtle and hidden way, and have set up their stronghold in the very place where the Vicar of my Son Jesus lives and works.  (495 ef)  The apostasy and the great schism in the Church is on the point of taking place, and the great chastisement, about which I foretold you in this place (Fatima), is now at the very doors.  Fire will come down from heaven, and a great part of humanity will be destroyed.  Those who will survive will envy the dead, because everywhere there will be desolation, death and ruin. (501 h) 1994:  This most beloved Daughter (the Church) of mine must live the hours of her agony and of her sorrowful passion.  She will be abandoned by many of her children.  The impetuous wind of persecution will blow against her, and much blood will be shed, even by my beloved sons.   (529 jk)

 

1995: In the Church, the great apostasy, which will spread throughout the whole world, will be brought to its completion; the schism will take place through a general alienation from the Gospel and from the true faith.  There will enter into the Church the man of iniquity who opposes himself to Christ, and who will bring into her interior the abomination of desolation, thus bringing to fulfillment the horrible sacrilege, of which the prophet Daniel has spoken.  (Mt. 24:15)  (539 ij)

 

1996:  My motherly plan is to give comfort to you in your sorrows; to pour balm on each of your wounds, and to give confidence and great hope to you in your discouragement.  How difficult are the days in which you are living!  This is the conclusive period of the purification and the great tribulation.   In fact, all humanity is possessed by the spirits of evil, and my Church is shaken by the impetuous wind of errors, of division, of unbelief and of apostasy.  (575 f)  With immense hope, the Church looks to me as she lives out the purifying hour of her greatest crisis.  She is being permeated with the smoke of Satan, lacerated in her unity, darkened in her holiness, threatened with the loss of faith and with a great apostasy."  (584 j)

 

In her messages to the world, Our Lady of Emmitsburg summarizes the factors that have been neglected and that may have led many in the clergy, religious and laity to abandon their God and His Divine Will:

 

"The apostasy of the Church is at hand because of the many who have neglected the Holy mysteries and Sacraments.  There are many priests who have not been reverent and pious in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  Many have lost their dedication to God due to their love of honor and pleasures.  Many people are neglecting prayer because they have placed their interests above God's interests in order of priority.  People are not willing to risk all for God because they are afraid about the things they cannot see.  This reluctance to surrender is an element of control due to lack of faith and trust in God.  There are many now who even question whether God exists.  The forces of evil have entered into the minds of many people because they have neglected prayer.  Through lack of prayer and merciless actions, mankind is asking God to abandon it to itself."    (Public OLOE, Aug. 31, 1995)

 

The gift of human free will represents a gift to which even Our Lord bows in obedience.  In His Lessons He expresses how it may or may not be used, and the consequences thereof: 

 

"What you choose to acknowledge by faith is what you are!….All who desire darkness will be granted it.  But all who remain with Me cannot be possessed and need not be afraid.  All who do not desire Me nor invite My protection are prey!…All who desire Me, come forward!…Invite Me into your heart before it is too late and you have been bitten by the evil one!  Divine protection rests in Me."  (JOM, Vol II, #43, Feb. 6, 1990)

 

"Let no one deceive you in any way. 

For unless the apostasy comes first and the lawless one is revealed,  

the one doomed to perdition, who opposes

and exalts himself above every so-called god and object of worship,

so as to seat himself in the temple of God,

claiming that he is a god----

do you not recall that while I was with you I told you these things?" 

(2 Thes 2:3-5)

 

 

End of Apostasy, Part 1