RIP Catholic French Canada....

A culture devoid of conscience, materialistic and ultimately morally bankrupt,..Canada,.my home and native land.  Today, I realized my Canadian'ness has been compromised, and Trudeau's vision of multiculturalism will ultimately lead to our demise.  Am I proud to be Canadian?  I guess so,..but compared to some of my American facebook friends, I guess I just don't feel myself patriotic at all.  Case in point; driving in New Jersey,.we always noticed American flags everywhere,..big ones, and bigger ones.   What distinguished us at one time?  Simply put our Catholicism.  Canada was founded by two solitudes, the french 'canadien' and the british.  Okay,..so now you figured out that I'm eastern Canadian.  Les Canadiens, became Canadiens-Francais and finally morphed into what are called Quebecois.  At least that is what popular media (separatists) call them.  Warning:  this type of post always comes up around 'la Saint Jean' as tomorrow is June 24th...ughhh...

Well, no longer do we celebrate 'La Saint Jean,.'  instead we have 'la fete National.'  St Jean was too Catholic and didn't have enough separatist undertones.   As we push forward becoming the muslim country which will pave the way for the States to later become a muslim country, several things cross my mind,..the empty Churches?  Check!  The lack of children and thus aging population?  Check!  The 'I don't care if I work,..I'll just live off the government,'  Check!  We can draw comparisons with the Roman Empire.  Yes, my friends, as sad as it may seem,,this generation is seeing the onset of the end of Western Civilization,...Oh Canadastan,..Allahu Akbar!  Thanks Baby boomers, you did a bang up job!

St Jean Batiste,....priez pour nous...

BlackSheepdog smells fishy,...

To set the record straight, I don't think that I'll be everyone's favorite poster boy after saying this and no I don't have all the facts,..but I think the official position of Optimusmastro is to disagree publically with what Fr John Corapi is doing.  Father or as of yesterday,..'Mr' Corapi has decided to not function publically anymore as a priest.  In a statement released, he stated that due to the unfounded allegations of accusations of sexual misconduct by a now former employee of Santa Cruz media, and after waiting three months for the Church to deliberate, he will publically resign the priesthood.  The thing is,..Father Corapi wasn't just a diocesan priest reporting to his Bishop,..he was/is a member of a religious order that has a certain charism,..one of them being obediance.  Herein lies the problem,.If Mr,.Fr,..whatever the hell he wants to call himself,..Corapi authentically discerned his vocation and where it was calling him, he would obey.  Does this mean I agree with the Bishop?  In the words of Stone Cold Steve Austin,..'oh Hell Noooo!!!!' 

The Church is infallible,..the people in it however are not.  The Church in so far as much as she is the Bride of Christ cannot err, yet at the same time the Church is not impeccable.  Errors in judgement have been made going back as far as the New Testament,..when St Paul called out St Peter regarding eating with gentiles.  More recently we have Fatima,..remember that it took the Church almost thirty years before it was declared worthy of belief,..and Sr Lucy much to her credit and humility swallowed her pill.  That being said, am I judging Father/Mister Corapi?  Not by a long shot.  I do believe that he is making a huge error in judgement in not allowing the Church to follow Her own Bishops' procedures,.flawed as they may be.  This whole incidence reeks of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and the SSPX.  They sincerely believe in the Pope, but claim they know better.  Corapi, to his credit recently released an audio whereby he defended the Bishops right to suspend him, then mentioned how he is being advised by both his canon lawyer and his civil lawyer as to what grounds to take.  He is also trying from what I understand,.to countersue. 

Father John,..(Not gonna call you Mr) I like you,.I really do.  I have a ton of respect and admiration for you, your work, and your zeal and passion for Holy Mother Church.  Had you been a diocesan priest, maybe I would look at this differently, but calling your accuser an alcoholic,.then challenging them to put up 100 grand for a piss test to proove your not on drugs sounds a little strange, especially coming from a priest,..let alone a religious one.  Why did you not accept the community's invitation to live in community,..and shouldn't you have been doing that anyway?  You lived by yourself with your hunting dogs in Montana.  Had you done that, you could have offered the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass everyday for the salvation and conversion of your accuser.  Talk about the ultimate weapon!  You've said it yourself!   We are on the Holy Spirit's time, not our own...I ain't gonna judge you Father, because to reiterate, I don't know all the facts, but I sincerely wish you would have waited longer than three months, and with the title of your autobiography being what it is,..I just don't know.  If I were a priest, how would I have handled this? (maybe one day,..? ;))  ...Well, Father, you and I are kindred souls, let''s just say that in the back of my wallet, I have a little card that when needed, I'll use,..it says, figuratively,.. 'Certified Asshole.'  

Father,..please prayerfully discern your every move.  This friday, I invite everyone to offer a small sacrifice, for Fr Corapi,..if he's right, the Holy Spirit will reveal it.  'By their fruits, you will know them.'

Mother Mary,..I ask that you place your mantle over all priests! 

Exorcism,..the Sequel...

A recent email caught my attention recently regarding my opinion on certain realities seldom discussed within the local Church while at the same time spoken about openly by the Pope and the Magisterium.  The context was an online discussion from an earlier blog post 'Catholic Kung Fu' and whether or not the demonic can oppress if not downright possess you.  The short answer is yes!

Today's recent fads have been compared to a pre flood old Testament era.  Where I live in Montreal, we have become so secularized that eventually we'll start questioning the truth of gravity because after all according to most psychologists and pseudo-theologians,..truth doesn't exist or is divisive..Sooooooooo, that being said let's call out the enemy,.satan, the devil.  Although defeated through the passion death and Ressurection of Jesus, satan seeks to ruin as many souls as possible, and the main avenue he uses is pretending he doesn't exist under the guise of modernism.  Most modern 'spirit of VII' priests would rather talk about the parish golf tournament organized by Sister Owlmoondance and sponsored by the Canadian Centre for Yoga Enlightenment...(Yeah,..and they wonder how the devil gets in!)  ADD kicking in again,..so let's build our primer as to who or what the devil is.

First off the devil is an angel.  A fallen angel.  He possesses angelic intellect and from all eternity has chosen against God.  The devil seeks to confuse you, cause doubt, lose your faith and ultimately lose your soul,..the same soul that was won for you on the Cross by Christ.  The danger lies not so much in the full on frontal assault, but in the whispers and temptations faced by everyday people. Three ways, the devil attacks...

Temptation:  An attack whereby a situation, action or event looks enticing, illiciting a 'good' but ultimate results in guilt or regret.  The less the guilt, the more trapped the individual becomes, until ultimately they accept the vice and thus harden themselves by convincing themselves that this behaviour is 'normal.'  (I just described myself!)

Oppression:  A different kind of attack,.a little more 'extraordinary' but ultimately the result of an open 'door.'  Usually this is a prequel to full blown possession.  How does this happen?  Welllllllll,...hmm,..let's see,.big deep breath,..and here we go!  New age, ouija boards, horoscopes, tarot cards, eastern religions, seances, pornography, fortune telling, voodoo, Oprah, (yes her philosophical crap,..) Tom Cruise,..(yes, his philosophical crap...) and any other avenue attempting to umlock future events, manipulate nature or control other people.

Possession:  The grand poobah of them all!!!  How does it happen?  Well,.easily said by looking above and nurturing the 'oppression' part and then marinating upon its effects.  The demonic can enter and take over a person's physical body, thoughts and actions.  The other action undertaken often in today's 'me' age, is the reality of pregnant women cursing their children in the womb.  (Too often people especially in the liberal crowd, forget that blessing is the opposite of cursing,.)  The will, however remains always free. 

How to avoid these three?  The formula is simple yet hard...Trust in God, partake of the Eucharist, frequent the Sacrament of Reconciliation and avoid the occult.  Yes, there have been instances whereby God has allowed a possession to take place in order to show humanity its ugly reality.  (Annelise Michel,.aka Emily Rose comes to mind)  Sometimes an unwilling relative or friend will bring back an amulet or buddha without realising its nasty effect and how having these things can act as portals or gateways.  Should oppression or possession occur, consult with your local priest, a prayer of deliverance may be said over you,..and allow your will to truly conform to God's will and plan for your life.  In the case of possession, a psychiatrist may be brought in to evaluate the person's lucidity as well as run another battery of tests.  After that, the local Bishop will make a decision and contact the exorcist priest in order to prepare.  It is important to note that every diocese has one exorcist priest,..(you hear that modernist social justice marxist heterodox crowd!!)  Screaming is one thing, but levitation and speaking in ancient aramaic?  Yeah,.. I would argue it would be time to call the parish office.

With our world, especially the west literally going to hell, we are now seeing a rise in occult activity.  People are going to witch doctors and consulting horoscopes instead of just praying to God.  Life is about redemptive suffering, meditate on the Cross.    The Church of Oprah headed by Bishop Eckert Tolle along with parker brothers producing their own version of the ouija board should sound off alarms in anyone who is of sane mind...that's all for now...

St. Michael the Archangel,.......Ora pro nobis

The aches and pains of 33,..

Age.  A reality, a concept, a state of being (potency) that we all must accept.  This week, this reality reared its ugly head and kicked me straight in the ass!  Well actually in the ribs.  Being a personal trainer has its high points and low points, this time it had its 'reality bites' points.  Two fridays ago,..I decided to spar(jiu jitsu) (not a problem) with a dude 50lbs of muscle bigger than me.  (Big problem)  I won,..but after coughing blood, took a trip to the emergency room and the x-rays showed two cracked ribs...6 weeks of recovery, in week 2...ughhhh...Btw,..did I mention that I did win,.tapped him with an ankle lock....just sayin'.....

St Jude (Patron Saint of hopeless causes)  Ora pro nobis...

Feminization.....

Speaking with youth, especially young guys, one can easily encounter different issues being batted about as to why traditional values have been thrown out the window.  Young men it seems, don't relate to the Church anymore, and this is one of the reasons first Communion and Confirmation classes are getting smaller and smaller.  Really?  C'mon, your telling me that 10-15year old young guys don't want to sing 'I've go the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart' and every other syrupy sugar coated happy clappy crap that birthed it self in the silly sixties?   So,..the last few weeks saw me getting accosted (strong word) by the leftover stoners from Woodstock, who strangely enough still have jobs in our chancerie offices and our parishes.

People, time to cut the bullshit.  You would think that Jesus is some Mr Rogers type character going around colouring banners especially the way that generation passes Him off as.  Am I being uncharitable?  No,..I'm being a guy who was once a boy who had to choose between hockey practice in the morning or catechism with Father Fruitloop.  At ten years old, I chose hockey practice, not because I rejected Jesus, I simply rejected the crappy assault on my nature perpetrated by an agenda laden generation intent on feminizing the culture.  Men are men and women are women.

Why the aggressivity you ask?,.Well,.because I had to sit through confirmations and witness an all out assault on the liturgy, (guess I should be disensitized by now...) and now we were told about our 'feelings'..Then we wonder why the west is in the shape its in.  Friends of mine who are secular or Catholic by culture wonder why I practice my Faith, knowing that I'm a sinner, yet still striving for holiness.  When I get asked questions regarding philosophy and objective truth, St Thomas,..the Cross,..etc...I answer about how cool the Mass is, then when the Church is full of these secular people, they(liturgy commitee..) break out their syrupy stupidity and lo and behold they wonder aloud why there are no vocations?   Grey haired freakos,..yes you,..the ones who don't have the balls to write an intelligent comment and who instead flood my hotmail under the name 'anonymous,'  you know who you are,...Here is your call to action:  The next time you find the Pope too insensitive or whatever, look up from your pew, see the exit sign, or fire escape for all I care and leave!  There is an anglican Church somewhere who I'm sure will tolerate you even worshipping Baal...Just stop trying to harm the Church, because you will ultimately lose.

Sacred Heart of Jesus,...Have mercy on us.

Coffee Shop Characters

One of the reasons besides an emotional outlet as to why 'Confessions' was started was because way too many cool things happen to me on a regular basis, and that sometimes they warrant my attention, while sometimes they don't.   Two days ago, it most definetly warranted my attention as I laughed my ass off with one of the weirdest scenerios ever presented.  As always, a little backround is necessary.  I am a member of the Knights of Columbus and to some outside people this causes much angst and worry.  To squash a few rumours, the Knights of Columbus are a fraternal organization founded by a Catholic priest for purposes of charity, fraternity, unity and patriotism,...they(we) are not Masons,.nor are we responsible for cover-ups, the assasination of JFK, Roswell, or any other cockamanie idea/brainfart cooked up by a 40something year 17th level Dungeon master still living in his mom's basement.  Okay, now that I got that out of my system, let's move on, because well there is more to the wackiness.

Now I realize that I've spoken about coffee shop characters before, so therefore consider this post a sequel to the first one from last year I believe.  The scenerio,.myself and another 'knight' speaking about issues concerning the Church, actually a pro-life discussion.  Out of the corner of my eye, a gentleman was listening to if not recording every drop of words we were saying, all the while mumbling to himself...Needless to say the mother of all rants rooted in paranoia, fear and way too much time on the internet manifested itself for all to see.   Yup.  Hope I made you smile, pray for the man, that he may find his way back to sanity.  In the meantime, I hope and pray everyone had a happy and Holy Easter,...Christos Anesti!

Catholic Kung Fu?

These are types of questions usually reserved for my once every few months Optimus mail bag,.but enough requests were put forth that I had to formulate a response regarding something very near and dear to my heart.  The Martial Arts have always been and played a huge role in my life from when I was very young.  I have experience in Judo, Greco-Roman Wrestling, Shaolin Kung Fu/Chinese Boxing, American Boxing and recently, the last little while, some Jiu-Jitsu.  Two concussions, several knee surgeries later, my 33year old body only seeks to maintain some basic skill and thus switch it up from traditional resistance and core based training programs.

The question remains whether or not Martial Arts are compatible with the Catholic Faith?  Well, in order to answer this question we must first divide Martial Arts into Traditional and non-traditional forms, or in laymen's speak, MMA versus Authentic.  First off, having experience in both let me assure you that qualifying MMA as a Martial Art is very much a misnomer.  In all actuality, it is really a sport.  The training consists of core related training/interval cardio conditioning similar to american boxing.  Authentic Martial Arts are a different story.  It originates within a philosophical mindset rooted by and large in 'Chan' or 'Zen' Buddhism.  This is where the issue comes in.  We know already that Buddhism and Christianity are not compatible simply put because their views on salvation are radically different.  Buddhism is silent about God, whereas Christianity is an Abrahamic Faith preaching faith in monotheism.

Traditional Martial Arts are rooted in Qi Gong or 'Ki.'  Qi is what is considered the 'life force' of an individual and learning how it circulates can lead to health benefits and an overall better quality of life.  Invoking false 'gods' however can lead to err,..problems,..BIG PROBLEMS!  (See different posts regarding exorcism.)  The million dollar question,..are Qi Gong and Catholicism compatible?  Well,.depending upon the angle and vantage point an individual can get lead away from the Faith and into complete darkness.  Looking at it from the vantage point of breathing,..yes, breathing,..(Qi-Gong is breathing,..BTW) there would be no harm in it.  As a whole, the philosophy of Qi Gong and Catholicism are not compatible.  The same is true for Yoga.  The exercises and breathing are fine, the invoking and chanting of mantras are not.  The dangers involve the Faith and mental stability of the person attempting to reconcile the two.  As a practicing Catholic, I know there is an empty tomb and trust in the Passion, Death and Ressurection of the Lord.  Any other philosophical outlook becomes mediocre or at times dangerous, especially when it focuses the attention away from our Faith and into a false belief system centering upon trust in ourselves as salvation and not God.

To conclude, the overall question of whether Martial Arts and Catholicism are compatible depends upon which set of lenses you look through.  It is fine to say that health, exercise and Catholicism are compatible but philosophical ideologies at odds with objective truth are not.  We must remember that as Catholics, we still name our days after pagan gods(yet don't sacrifice animals to 'saturn'), allow brides to wear white while not invoking virgins of spring time!  As both a Martial Artist and a Catholic, I have seen first hand the damage done to people getting too wrapped up in the philosophy and not paying attention to the exercises!  Stretching is 'Yoga' people!!!  You have to call it 'Vishnushivamantrawhatever' in order to get out a good stretch!

St Michael the Archangel,..Ora Pro Nobis!