THANKSGIVING DAY 1814
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA – A PROCLAMATION
The two Houses of the National Legislature having by a joint resolution expressed their desire that in the present time of public calamity and war a day may be recommended to be observed by the people of the United States as a day of public humiliation and fasting and of prayer to Almighty God for the safety and welfare of these States, His blessing on their arms, and a speedy restoration of peace, I have deemed it proper by this proclamation to recommend that Thursday, the 12th of January next, be set apart as a day on which all may have an opportunity of voluntarily offering at the same time in their respective religious assemblies their humble adoration to the Great Sovereign of the Universe, of confessing their sins and transgressions, and of strengthening their vows of repentance and amendment. They will be invited by the same solemn occasion to call to mind the distinguished favors conferred on the American people in the general health which has been enjoyed, in the abundant fruits of the season, in the progress of the arts instrumental to their comfort, their prosperity, and their security, and in the victories which have so powerfully contributed to the defense and protection of our country, a devout thankfulness for all which ought to be mingled with their supplications to the Beneficent Parent of the Human Race that He would be graciously pleased to pardon all their offenses against Him; to support and animate them in the discharge of their respective duties; to continue to them the precious advantages flowing from political institutions so auspicious to their safety against dangers from abroad, to their tranquillity at home, and to their liberties, civil and religious; and that He would in a special manner preside over the nation in its public councils and constituted authorities, giving wisdom to its measures and success to its arms in maintaining its rights and in overcoming all hostile designs and attempts against it; and, finally, that by inspiring the enemy with dispositions favorable to a just and reasonable peace its blessings may be speedily and happily restores.
Given at the city of Washington, the 16th day of November, 1814, and of the Independence of the United States the thirty-eighth.
JAMES MADISON
How different from modernist proclamations!  See President Obama’s right here.  (Read ‘em and weep.)

The ArchAngel Institute has been working on a project that we think Pope Benedict XVI would fully bless.  It will be rolled out during our December 8 banquet.

We base our opinion on the Pope’s likely blessing of our meager effort on the following article in red.  If you want to join Diskey Sign and electrician George Strack (GTech Electric, 609-9835) in aiding us in this noble quest then you are more that welcome to do just that!  This week we need sheets of clear or slightly defused acrylic panels of a size greater than 6′ x 3′.

By Daniel Flynn

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Pope Benedict met artists from around the world in the Sistine Chapel on Saturday and urged them to inject spirituality into their work, saying contemporary beauty was often “illusory and deceitful.”

The Pope told the gathering of hundreds of painters, sculptors, architects, poets and directors, held beneath the vaulted ceiling of the chapel painted by Michelangelo, that he wanted to “renew the Church’s friendship with the world of art.”

“Beauty … can become a path toward the transcendent, toward the ultimate Mystery, toward God,” Benedict said.

The Vatican said it invited some 500 artists to the event, regardless of religious, political or stylistic allegiances.

More than 250 accepted, mostly from Italy, including singer Andrea Bocelli and award-winning film composer Ennio Morricone.

Amongst the other guests were Iraqi-born British architect Zaha Hadid, whose Maxxi modern art museum has just opened in Rome, and F. Murray Abraham, the American actor who won an Oscar for his role as Salieri in the Mozart film, Amadeus, in 1985.

The Pope told them that in a world lacking in hope, with increasing signs of aggression and despair, there was an ever greater need for a return to spirituality in art.

“Too often … the beauty thrust upon us is illusory and deceitful … it imprisons man within himself and further enslaves him, depriving him of hope and joy,” he said.

Against the backdrop of Michelangelo’s vast fresco of the Last Judgment, which adorns the chapel’s altar wall, Benedict lamented that the once-close cooperation between the Church and the artistic community had weakened.

“Faith takes nothing away from your genius or art,” he said. “On the contrary, it exalts them and nourishes them.”

Saturday’s event marked both the 10th anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s ‘Letter to Artists’ in 1999 in which he spoke of the Church’s “need for art,” and the 45th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s original meeting with artists in 1964.

If you are an Indiana attorney or ever think you would like to become one then you should take the time to pray and reflect before signing the Manhattan Declaration, which you can go to by clicking here.

That fine work of Christian Resistance ends on this high (as in Higher Law) note:

As Christians, we take seriously the Biblical admonition to respect and obey those in authority. We believe in law and in the rule of law. We recognize the duty to comply with laws whether we happen to like them or not, unless the laws are gravely unjust or require those subject to them to do something unjust or otherwise immoral. The biblical purpose of law is to preserve order and serve justice and the common good; yet laws that are unjust—and especially laws that purport to compel citizens to do what is unjust—undermine the common good, rather than serve it.

Going back to the earliest days of the church, Christians have refused to compromise their proclamation of the gospel. In Acts 4, Peter and John were ordered to stop preaching. Their answer was, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” Through the centuries, Christianity has taught that civil disobedience is not only permitted, but sometimes required. There is no more eloquent defense of the rights and duties of religious conscience than the one offered by Martin Luther King, Jr., in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail. Writing from an explicitly Christian perspective, and citing Christian writers such as Augustine and Aquinas, King taught that just laws elevate and ennoble human beings because they are rooted in the moral law whose ultimate source is God Himself. Unjust laws degrade human beings. Inasmuch as they can claim no authority beyond sheer human will, they lack any power to bind in conscience. King’s willingness to go to jail, rather than comply with legal injustice, was exemplary and inspiring.

Because we honor justice and the common good, we will not comply with any edict that purports to compel our institutions to participate in abortions, embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide and euthanasia, or any other anti-life act; nor will we bend to any rule purporting to force us to bless immoral sexual partnerships, treat them as marriages or the equivalent, or refrain from proclaiming the truth, as we know it, about morality and immorality and marriage and the family.

We will fully and ungrudgingly render to Caesar what is Caesar’s. But under no circumstances will we render to Caesar what is God’s.

ONCE AGAIN, A WORD OF WARNING.  SIGNING THIS PLEDGE MAY GET A PERSON DISBARRED IN INDIANA. 

WANT PROOF?  STAY TUNED.   AND COME TO OUR DECEMBER 8 BANQUET.

The lengthy story in red that follows was in the Washington Times this morning … and then mysteriously removed.

This (click here, later) scaled down story replaced it.

Here is the one that went down the Orwellian memory hole, with bold highlights:

Religious leaders vow civil disobedience on anti-life issues

More than 150 leaders across a spectrum of conservative
Christianity on Friday released a 4,700-word document vowing
civil disobedience if they are forced to take part in
“anti-life acts” or bless gay marriages.

Called the “Manhattan Declaration,” the six-page,
single-spaced document was drafted by Prison Fellowship
founder Charles Colson, an evangelical, and Princeton
University professor Robert P. George, a Roman Catholic, and
included a bevy of Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox bishops,
archbishops and cardinals as signatories along with dozens
of clergy and laity.

Archbishop of Washington Donald W. Wuerl is one of the
signatories.

“Throughout the centuries, Christianity has taught that
civil disobedience is not only permitted, but sometimes
required,” says the document which cited civil rights icon
Martin Luther King and his willingness to go to jail for his
beliefs.

“Because we honor justice and the common good,” it states,
“we will not comply with any edict that purports to compel
our institutions to participate in abortions,
embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide or euthanasia
or any other anti-life act; nor will we bend to any rule
purporting to force us to bless immoral sexual partnerships,
treat them as marriages or the equivalent, or refrain from
proclaiming the truth, as we know it, about morality and
immorality and marriage and the family.”

When pressed to say what sorts of civil disobedience the
writers were proposing, its originators were vague on the
details at Friday’s news conference during which the
document was released.

“We certainly hope it doesn’t come to that,” said Mr.
George, who added that he has represented a West Virginia
resident who has refused to pay a portion of her state
income tax that funds abortions. “However, we see case after
case of challenges to religious liberty,” such as compelling
pharmacists to carry abortifacient drugs or health care
workers to assist in abortions, he added.

“When the limits of conscience are reached and you cannot
comply, it’s better to suffer a wrong than to do it,” he
said.

There are at least 224 million Christians in the United
States, according to the Web site Adherents.com.

The document, which was drafted over the summer, is being
released at a time of high stress for many of the groups
that signed it. The Archdiocese of Washington is under fire
for saying it will not comply with a pending D.C. law that
would force the Catholic Church to give health benefits or
adoption services to same-sex couples.

Archbishop Wuerl, who attended the news conference, said it
was a “joy” to welcome the religious leaders at the news
conference and emphasized that their task “is to change
human hearts. That is how society is changed.”

Philadelphia Cardinal Justin Rigali, one of the signers,
said people’s consciences must be formed first.

“The institution of marriage is at risk of being redefined
at its very essence,” he said. “Justice demands that we not
remain silent in face of these threats.”

However, he twice dodged a reporter’s question about whether
it would be a mortal sin for a politician to vote for a
national health care bill that obligates taxpayers to pay
for abortions.

Several speakers said the document was moral, not political,
in nature and that the bulk of it defines three core issues:
life, marriage and religious liberty.

“This is truly a matter of the heart,” said the Rev. Robert
Sirico, founder of the Michigan-based Acton Institute. “To
portray it as something other is to mischaracterize our
intentions.”

But the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of
Washington-based Americans United for Separation of Church
and State, said the document was very political.

“I am optimistic that the people in the pews will not heed
their leaders’ misguided call to action,” he said. “Polls
show that most churchgoers do not want to see their faith
politicized. But I am also well aware that religious leaders
have vast lobbying power that cannot be ignored.”

The document does portray a gloomy picture of the current
political situation, citing the “pro-abortion ideology
[that] prevails today in our government.“

It adds, “The present administration is led and staffed by
those who want to make abortions legal at any stage of fetal
development and who want to provide abortions at taxpayer
expense. Majorities in both houses [of Congress] hold
pro-abortion views.”

The first 148 signatures include Southern Baptists,
Anglicans, the Orthodox Church of America (OCA), members of
Reformed, evangelical, Hispanic Protestant, Church of God in
Christ, Antiochian Orthodox and Evangelical Free Church
traditions plus the executives of numerous parachurch
ministries.

There were only a handful of Presbyterians, United
Methodists and Pentecostals, and no apparent signatories
from Seventh-day Adventist, Messianic Jewish and Episcopal
churches.

Here at the ArchAngel Institute we have been foreshadowing this battle for more than two years now.  In fact, our Executive Director, Bryan J. Brown, is shoulder deep in this battle.  Come to our December 8 banquet to hear much about this.  Also check out our category “Refuse, resist or rebel” for more on this subject, including Church teaching.

Parents the world over have objected to teachings found in the local public schools.  Whether it be atheistic evolution, amoral sexuality or radical politics – most all objections fall upon deaf ears.

Few such cases are ever won.

NOT SO when a doctrine of secularization is brought to court!

Hitler ordered the crucifixes removed as well — see cite at end of this article.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruled Tuesday (11/3) that Italy’s display of crucifixes in public schools was in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights’ protection of the rights to education and freedom of religion.

The applicant, Ms. Soile Lautsi, petitioned the Court after Italy had rejected her requests to take down crucifixes that were prominently displayed in her children’s classrooms in accordance with Royal Decrees dating from the 1920’s. Responding to Italy’s argument that crucifixes had become a symbol of secular Italian history and culture, the Court relied on its former holding in Buscarini et al. v. Saint-Marin that the social and historical meaning of a text used in oath-taking did not deprive the text of its religious character. The Court noted that the crucifixes could easily be interpreted as religious signs and that children could feel that their school environment was Catholic; this point was further aggravated by the fact that Catholicism was the majority religion in Italy. As students could not avoid the classrooms without undue hardship, the Court found that the presence of the crucifixes thus interfered with the right of parents to educate their children in accordance with their convictions, and the right of children to believe or not to believe.

The Court awarded the applicant 5,000 euros for moral damage, considering that a mere declaratory judgment would not be sufficient as Italy had not expressed its readiness to review the relevant Royal Decrees.

SOURCE

A previous European Court ruled that those who refused to obey such “Royal Decrees” must be sentenced to death for “aiding and abetting the enemy in the betrayal of the fatherland and for plotting high treason.” Blessed Maria Restituta, inspire us in these dark hours.

ROSENBERG LIVES AGAIN IN EUROPE –  (sans the adoration of Mein Kampf.   That vacuum will likely soon be filled.)

WILL YOU OBEY SUCH A ROYAL DECREE, MODERN CHRISTIAN?

We read in Wednesday night’s late news out of DC that Senator Harry Reid want to ensure that every American pays for government abortions.  This will allow abortions to come out of the front alley slaughterhouses and into the hospitals, into the training programs at teaching universities, and into every person’s tax account.  We will all be asked to take part in the sacrifices of the New Age.

On the same day Catholics all over the globe heard this proclaimed at daily Mass:

Reading 1
2 Mc 6:18-31

Eleazar, one of the foremost scribes,
a man of advanced age and noble appearance,
was being forced to open his mouth to eat pork.
But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement,
he spat out the meat,
and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture,
as people ought to do who have the courage to reject the food
which it is unlawful to taste even for love of life.
Those in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took the man aside privately,
because of their long acquaintance with him,
and urged him to bring meat of his own providing,
such as he could legitimately eat,
and to pretend to be eating some of the meat of the sacrifice
prescribed by the king;
in this way he would escape the death penalty,
and be treated kindly because of their old friendship with him.
But Eleazar made up his mind in a noble manner,
worthy of his years, the dignity of his advanced age,
the merited distinction of his gray hair,
and of the admirable life he had lived from childhood;
and so he declared that above all
he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God.

He told them to send him at once
to the abode of the dead, explaining:
“At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense;
many young people would think the ninety-year-old Eleazar
had gone over to an alien religion.
Should I thus pretend for the sake of a brief moment of life,
they would be led astray by me,
while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old age.
Even if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men,
I shall never, whether alive or dead,
escape the hands of the Almighty.
Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now,
I will prove myself worthy of my old age,
and I will leave to the young a noble example
of how to die willingly and generously
for the revered and holy laws.”

Eleazar spoke thus,
and went immediately to the instrument of torture.
Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed,
now became hostile toward him because what he had said
seemed to them utter madness.
When he was about to die under the blows,
he groaned and said:
“The Lord in his holy knowledge knows full well that,
although I could have escaped death,
I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body from this scourging,
but also suffering it with joy in my soul
because of my devotion to him.”
This is how he died,
leaving in his death a model of courage
and an unforgettable example of virtue
not only for the young but for the whole nation.

Is your turn coming?  Could be, read this:

http://www.archangelinstitute.org/is-matyrdom-coming-to-america/

Above artwork: ‘Martyrdom of St Lawrence’ by Pellegrino Tibaldi 1592, Basilica, El Escorial

An interesting occurrence …  over the weekend the really big show around the entire globe was 2012, an end-of-the world thriller taking off from the Aztec calendar.  (So I read)

On the same weekend Catholics the world over heard this Scripture proclaimed in the celebration of the Mass:

Reading 1
Dn 12:1-3

In those days, I Daniel,
heard this word of the Lord:
“At that time there shall arise
Michael, the great prince,
guardian of your people;
it shall be a time unsurpassed in distress
since nations began until that time.
At that time your people shall escape,
everyone who is found written in the book.

“Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake;
some shall live forever,
others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace.

“But the wise shall shine brightly
like the splendor of the firmament,
and those who lead the many to justice
shall be like the stars forever.”

Gospel
Mk 13:24-32

Jesus said to his disciples:
“In those days after that tribulation
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.”

“And then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’
with great power and glory,
and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.”

“Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.
In the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that he is near, at the gates.
Amen, I say to you,
this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.”

“But of that day or hour, no one knows,
neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

Just what does the Catholic Church teach on the end of this present age?

Seems like a timely question ….

Try this link from the ArchAngel Institute:

http://www.archangelinstitute.org/looking-forward-to-the-second-advent/

Shylock, as portrayed by Arthur Bourchier, in The Merchant of Venice, 1905 Hulton Getty

We will soon begin a new series here at the Institute.  It will be a series on how state Supreme Courtz protects you, the consumer of legal services, from incompetent and/or unfit attorneys.

You will be surprised and amazed at the discipline meted out, of that we assure you.

And how much the situation parallels another institution that held much power in the 1100’s.  We will use Harold Berman’s Law and Revolution to demonstrate that parallel.

But first, consider some of our previous series for your edification.

The series on the Natural Law starts at the HG Wells poster below.  Just read down the page to become acquainted with that very important philosophy.

Advent is almost upon us.  Our first Advent at 827 Webster Street — the first Advent that said location was not hosting a child killing operation since 1978 — was 2007.  Here is that December 8 post that got our Advent started.  Read from that post to the links at the upper right to learn much about Advent and sacred art from the Renaissance period.

If you are new to the ArchAngel Institute then take our virtual tour — an open house — that starts right here. Click the blue hyperlinks on the upper right to travel through the story and building that is the ArchAngel Institute.

Christians have the obligation to resist godless governance.  It is hard to believe that such an all American concept is falling into disfavor, but believe you me, it really is!  Here is a primer on that fine doctrine. Again,  read from there to the links at the upper right to learn much about historic Christian teachings on how to balance individual freedom / responsibility and state coercion of conscience.

Last, but certainly not least, if you do not know what it means to be a Christian then please allow me to introduce you to the One whom we serve via this post right here.

There is much more in our archives to share, but that is enough for now.  Thanks for dropping by.  Please consider our December 8 banquet if you like what you read.  (See post above our new Bishop Kevin Rhoades just down this page.)

(But if you do insist on more, check out the catagory “an introduction.”)

Today’s Psalm seems especially motivational.  People just do not talk like this anymore, most being far too concerned about how they will sound to the elites leading us toward a Brave New World  …  but one does not have to go back too many generations to find such zeal for the Law of God.  (And pockets of resistance are yet among us!)

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 119:53, 61, 134, 150, 155, 158

R.  Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands.
Indignation seizes me because of the wicked
who forsake your law.
R.        Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands.
Though the snares of the wicked are twined about me,
your law I have not forgotten.
R.        Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands.
Redeem me from the oppression of men,
that I may keep your precepts.
R.        Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands.
I am attacked by malicious persecutors
who are far from your law.
R.        Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands.
Far from sinners is salvation,
because they seek not your statutes.
R.        Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands.
I beheld the apostates with loathing,
because they kept not to your promise.
R.        Give me life, O Lord, and I will do your commands.

Paul Schenck is a former Rescue leader, former Protestant pastor and old friend of ArchAngel Institute Executive Director, Bryan J. Brown.

It appears that he is — or rather was — a servant of our new Bishop in Fort Wayne-South Bend.

The following is from this website:

Bishop Rhoades and Notre Dame’s Defiance

The letter below was forwarded to me yesterday.
I have since been assured by Jean Scicchitano of the Harrisburg Diocese’s Pro-Life Office that it is legitimate and that permission has been given for it to be distributed beyond the original recipient.

Subject: FW: Bishops statement re Notre Dame

Dear Christina,

Thank you for your note of concern which you recently sent to the Bishop’s office regarding the University of Notre Dame.

Maria Wood, secretary to Bishop Rhoades, referred your email to me. Bishop Rhoades has discussed this issue with me, as it pertains specifically to my office.

As is clear from Bishop Rhoades’ most recent commentary entitled “Disturbing advances for the culture of death”, President Obama’s policies, and those of his administration, on abortion and embryonic stem cell research violate the moral law and Church teachings on the sanctity of human life and dignity of the person. Bishop Rhoades concurs with Bishop D’Arcy’s statement and position on the matter. (Bishop D’Arcy is the bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend, the diocese in which Notre Dame is located). Bishop Rhoades stands firmly with the US Catholic Bishops’ statement called “Catholics in Political Life” which unambiguously says –

The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.

Bishop Rhoades also supports those who exercise their freedom of conscience and speech to express their opposition to the university’s decision to have President Obama as commencement speaker and honoree. In fact, Bishop Rhoades has written to the president of the university to express his disagreement with the university’s action.

It is disheartening and distressing when an institution that is regarded as Catholic, such as Notre Dame, fails to follow the guidelines set forth by the Bishops of the Catholic Church, especially in these vital moral matters. It is not political nor partisan to stand for the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the human person. President Obama clearly does not stand for or advance the cause of the defenseless unborn and their mothers and families. This is the tragic reality we must come to terms with as Catholics living in an increasingly secular environment. It is heartening on the other hand, to see how many Notre Dame students, faculty and alumni have made their commitment to human life known and how many Catholics and others of good will have done the same.

It is Bishop Rhoades’ hope and prayer that all the institutions that bear the name “Catholic” will affirm the Church’s teachings, expose the culture of death and build up the Culture of Life. Thank you for your selfless commitment to the defense of innocent human life. Please be assured of our prayers.

On behalf of Bishop Rhoades and myself, I am

Sincerely,

Paul CB Schenck, MA (Theol.), LHD

Director Office of Respect Life Activities
Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg