Perspectives of a Wanderer

A few days ago, I came upon the following article on Catholic Exchange that kind of echoes my opinion that today’s society may be: (probably is) on the verge of implosion:

How Much Time Does the U.S. Have?

Although the article mainly focuses on the United States, I see the assertions made in the article apply to not only the US, but to many parts of the world.

According to the article, the US reached its zenith at the end of World War II (1945) and has started on its decline shortly thereafter. It states various events of the past 60 years and how they mirror the fall of other societies that were studied. If they are right in their hypotheses, we are well on our way to societal collapse not only here in the US, but in many parts of the world.

Of course, there are those who are blind to the truth. Over on a well-known Catholic Forum, one person even called the article “bogus”. This is another sign that we are well on our way. Relativism blinds them to the decline since there is no concept of right or wrong for the Relativist.

Can we save society? It is possible, but we are, according to the article, we may well be in the third and final generation before the collapse. Yes there are signs that thing may be turning around, but it is going to take a concerted effort (i.e. the “Next Real Crusade) to reverse the major damage that has been done. If not, we are going to have to start all over.

Consider the title to the following news story:

Nebraska Safe-Haven Law Permits Parents to Abandon Teens

Is our society finally come to the point where anything or anyone can be discarded just because they are an inconvenience.

There have been stories recently of people just walking away from their homes due to the rising mortgage costs. Some I could understand except people bought way out of their means using questionable mortgages on the hope of making a fast buck.

Now we are seeing signs that the “throw away” society is now making our children disposable. Yes, abortion has been doing this for years, but now Nebraska allows for the abandonment of children up to the age of 19 without legal repercussions. Yes 19. Other laws here in the United States only allow for newborns to be placed in “safe havens”, but this is a first. How long will be before infanticide [yes I know about the Netherlands] and the murder older children become law.

**** sarcastic comment alert ****
And why stop there, lets make murder legal.
**** end of alert ****

Yes, it is an absurd comment, but that is where things are heading in this Relativistic Society. Something needs to be done before it is too late for Society and it implodes under it perversions.

I have recently posted a entries called the “Next Real Crusade”. Hopefully it will come in time. Until then, pray.

This is the third in my “Next Real Crusade” series and maybe the most important since it will determine the success of the Crusade. For me, there are two main goals

Conversion of the Person: This is probably the most important since all else is predicated on this. The main goal should be the conversion of as many souls as possible to the one true faith. These conversions must be not be forced but be made willingly by the ones we target. Catholic Christianity is not spread by the sword or coercion like Islam is.

Conversion of Society: Society is going downhill fast and will implode under the weight of today’s Relativistic Society. We need to get back to the fundamentals of God’s Natural Law. Returning society to a moral path is imperative to saving it from itself. We cannot rely on Government to do this since they are one of the primary causes of the slide. Abortion, Same-sex Marriage, and Euthanasia are just a few of them many wrongs imposed by today’s society by Governments (especially the Judicial System). Conversion of the person will go along way to righting these wrongs, but we must then continue until society as a whole is redeemed. Only the complete repeal of unjust governments and the unjust “Positive Laws” will be acceptable. Then Relativism will cease to be a driving factor of society.

These two goals will be the primary measures of our success and only total and compete victory in both instances will be acceptable.

This is a follow up on yesterday’s entry “When will the Next Real Crusade Start”.

Once people have been trained (and maybe even beforehand), we also have to consider where to target this crusade. Four general groups come to mind:

• Catholic dissenters (i.e. Progressives, Schismatic Traditionalists)
• Non-Catholic Christians (Protestants, Orthodox, and Fundamentalists)
• Non-Christian Religions (i.e. Muslims, Mormons, Hindu, Buddhists,….)
• Non-Religions (Secularists, Atheists, Agnostics,….)

Each of these groups have their own particular issues that will have to be addressed and the training will have to be geared towards each group separately. Dealing with Muslims is different from dealing with Mormons is different from dealing with Atheists. Cultural, philosophical. and theological differences will need to be taken into account when dealing with particular groups. This is especially true when dealing with groups that have a history of violence when confronted with view points different from their own.

Will we want to target multiple groups or only one in the beginning and which one(s). Do we start with the least resistant target(s) or the one(s) that are the greatest threat.

That will decide training and tactics. It will also determine the size and makeup of our army. The one(s) that are the greatest threat will need a larger and stronger army. The least resistant will probably need a smaller army in the beginning and will allow time to build our ranks.

Even within a particular group, we will need to determine how to we go about the evangelization process. Do we target various sub-groups and work through attrition, target the who group for a quick victory, or a combination of both.

In my opinion, these are just a few of the things to consider and is, by no means, an exhaustive list of issues.

There has been talk on web about starting various Crusades on the Internet in an attempt to convert people away from the perversions of the Secular and Relativistic world. However, I see, other than informational, these have limited influence and lifespan. I also see some as being limited due to agenda driven ideologies that have limited appeal.

A real crusade must be in the real world and must fight real battles. I am not necessarily talking about physical blood and guts battles (although it may, unfortunately, come to that at some point). I am talking taking people on one on one in the public square.

Also, for a real crusade to be successful, the soldiers must be properly trained in the combat that they will be doing. In the case of an Apologetics and Evangelization crusade, education is the first level of training. However, many are poorly catechized and even those with proper catechesis will probably be poorly equipped for such an endeavor.

No, what we need is adult education in Catechesis, Apologetics and Evangelization. There are some good programs available, but they are not where and when many can get to them. What we need is to train a core group of “commanders” and send them out to the parishes to instruct the laity. This would get the training to people in the most efficient manner.

A new crusade is hopefully coming. What form it will take is still to be determined.

From this Sunday’s first reading:

At Horeb the mount of God. And there he came to a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Eli’jah?” He said, “I have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thy altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” And he said, “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. And when Eli’jah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. (1 Kings 19: 9-13 RSV)

God almost always talks to us in subtle not loud ways and that means most of us will ignore Him since most of us (including myself) need to be hit with a sledge hammer to get our attention. In addition, many expect God to say Yes to us when often it is no. Being open to God means to be open to everything he says, not just what we want to hear and when we want to hear it.

This from my parish’s bulletin (edited to remove some of the more “colorful” parts) on June 22, 2008:

You got the news that our pro-babykilling Governor has again vetoed the ban on partial birth abortions in the State of Michigan. Partial birth abortion means babies being murdered as they emerge from the womb. Her infamy is crowned by the imposture of her claim as a believing Catholic. This is so outrageous and scandalous that something needs to be done. … I believe that it would fall to the bishop of Lansing, Bishop Earl Boyea, to issue a decree of excommunication. If granted, it might not correct her perverse inclinations, but it would at least be a public recognition that she has effectively cut herself off from the Church in which she continues to claim membership. (Her veto has already in fact excommunicated her from the Church; what’s needed now is a formal decree and a public censure.)

While these are strong words, I think it may be time that the Church does consider public and formal decrees of excommunication against those “Catholics” who publicly go against Church teaching in such cases as abortion, contraception, same-sex “marriage”, and euthanasia. These would include:

1. Politicians who vote for such “laws”.
2. Judges who uphold such “laws” or strike down “laws” against such bans.
3. Lobbyists and activists who advocate and promote such “laws”.
4. Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and others to actively and willing obey such “laws”.

This is only a partial list of those who would be candidates for excommunication. Maybe, with a few excommunication, we can stem the tide of dissenters on these issues and strike a blow against the perverse relativism and liberalism that makes them possible.