So Much For Christus Vincit, Christus Regnat, Christus Imperat

by Thomas A. Droleskey

Continuing his relentless tearing apart of the Holy Faith, the revolutionary named Jorge Mario Bergoglio/Francis, who is ever so humble, you know (and if you don't, he will tell you), explained in of his impromptu sermonettes during the staging of the Protestant and Masonic Novus Ordo liturgical service on April 25, 2013, the Feast of Saint Mark, that the Gospel must be preached without a "spirit of conquest:"

The Pope presided over Mass this morning, the feast of the Evangelist St. Mark, at the Domus Sanctae Marthae. Among those present were members of the Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, accompanied by their secretary general, Archbishop Nikola Eterovic.

Francis, noting that today's Gospel narrates Jesus' Ascension, emphasized that, before he was taken up into heaven, the Lord sent his Apostles to proclaim the Gospel “to the ends of the earth, not just in Jerusalem or in Galilee. … The horizon is wide and, as you can see, this is the nature of the Church's missionary action. The Church goes forward with this proclaiming to all, to all the world. But she does not go forward alone: she goes with Jesus. … The Lord works with all those who preach the Gospel.”

The Bishop of Rome also referenced the First Letter of Peter, which defines the Christian style of preaching; “humility, service, charity, fraternal love. But—'Lord, we have to conquer the world!' That word, 'conquer', doesn't belong. We have to preach to the world. The Christian cannot be like the soldiers who, when they win the battle, make a clean sweep of everything. The Christian announces the Gospel by his witness more than by his words, and this goes two ways...: a great spirit is not frightened by great things, of going forward toward unending horizons, and the humility of being aware of the little things.” (Liturgical Travesty at Casa Santa Marta: Preaching the Gospel to the World Without Spirit of Conquest.)

Perhaps Emperor Constantine must have misread that sign in the sky on October 28, 312, before the Battle of Milvian Bridge against Emperor Maxentius. Yes, Emperor Constantine saw a Cross in the sky above the following words: In hoc signo vinces" ("In this sign you will conquer") as conquest has nothing to do with the apostate work of the counterfeit church of conciliarism.

Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, Whose very Holy Cross was found on this day by Sant Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine to whom that sign in the sky had been given, wants us to conquer the force of the world, the flesh and the devil in our souls on a daily basis. He wants us to help others to do so.

Yes, the battle for the sanctification and salvation of our immortal souls, redeemed as they were by the shedding of every single drop of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ's Most Precious Blood on the wood of the Holy Cross, is a daily conquest, one that we cannot achieve on our own power whatsoever. We must rely upon the ineffable graces He won for us on the wood of that Holy Cross and that flow into our hearts and souls through the loving hands of Our Lady, she who is the Mediatrix of All Graces.

The battle for Christendom was won both by shedding of the blood of the early martyrs, including the saints we commemorate today--Pope Saint Alexander and Saints Theodulus, Eventius and Juvenal. The blood of the martyrs is indeed the seed of Holy Mother Church.

Just as is the case with our immortal souls, however, the battle for Christendom is a constant conquest of the enemies of Christ the King and Holy Mother Church. It is a battle that will end only after the defeat of the forces of the devil, which will indeed be a conquest for Christ the King and His Holy Church:

And when the thousand years shall be finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go forth, and seduce the nations, which are over the four quarters of the earth, Gog, and Magog, and shall gather them together to battle, the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. [8] And they came upon the breadth of the earth, and encompassed the camp of the saints, and the beloved city. [9] And there came down fire from God out of heaven, and devoured them; and the devil, who seduced them, was cast into the pool of fire and brimstone, where both the beast [10] And the false prophet shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. (Apocalypse 20: 7-10.)

Saint John the Evangelist explained that it is the devil, the great seducer, who desires us to forget about conquest of self and the conquest of the enemies of Holy Mother Church and thus of our sanctification and salvation by walking in "fellowship" with unbelievers:

And this is charity, that we walk according to his commandments. For this is the commandment, that, as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in the same: [7] For many seducers are gone out into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh: this is a seducer and an antichrist. [8] Look to yourselves, that you lose not the things which you have wrought: but that you may receive a full reward. [9] Whosoever revolteth, and continueth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that continueth in the doctrine, the same hath both the Father and the Son. [10] If any man come to you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into the house nor say to him, God speed you.

[10] Nor say to him, God speed you: This admonition is in general, to forewarn the faithful of the dangers which may arise from a familiarity with those who have prevaricated and gone from the true faith, and with such as teach false doctrine. But this is not forbidding a charity for all men, by which we ought to wish and pray for the eternal salvation of every one, even of our enemies.

[11] For he that saith unto him, God speed you, communicateth with his wicked works. (2 John 1: 6-11.)

In other words, we cannot have any familiarity whatsoever with those who have "prevaricated from the truth" and this such as teach false doctrine." While it is our duty to pray fervently for the enemies of Christ the King and His Holy Church and, as Our King specifically commands us, to pray for those who hate us and malign us, we must understand that apostates who have abandoned the spirit of conquest for Christ the King wind up greeting such infidels as Buddhists with "Happy Vesakh" at around each time every year:

“On behalf of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, I would like to extend my heartfelt greetings and good wishes to all of you, as you celebrate the feast of Vesakh which offers us Christians an occasion to renew our friendly dialogue and close collaboration with the different traditions that you represent.”

“Pope Francis, at the very beginning of his ministry, has reaffirmed the necessity of dialogue of friendship among followers of different religions. He noted that: 'The Church is […] conscious of the responsibility which all of us have for our world, for the whole of creation, which we must love and protect. There is much that we can do to benefit the poor, the needy, and those who suffer, and to favour justice, promote reconciliation, and build peace' ('Audience with Representatives of the Churches and Ecclesial Communities and of the Different Religions', 20 March 2013). The Message of the World Day of Peace in 2013 entitled 'Blessed are the Peacemakers', notes that: 'The path to the attainment of the common good and to peace is above all that of respect for human life in all its many aspects, beginning with its conception, through its development and up to its natural end. True peacemakers, then, are those who love, defend, and promote human life in all its dimensions—personal, communitarian, and transcendent. Life in its fullness is the height of peace. Anyone who loves peace cannot tolerate attacks and crimes against life' ('Message for the World Day of Peace' in 2013, n. 4).”

“I wish to voice that the Catholic Church has sincere respect for your noble religious tradition. Frequently we note a consonance with values expressed also in your religious books: respect for life, contemplation, silence, simplicity (cf. 'Verbum Domini', no. 119). Our genuine fraternal dialogue needs to foster what we Buddhists and Christians have in common especially a shared profound reverence for life.”

“Dear Buddhist friends, your first precept teaches you to abstain from destroying the life of any sentient being and it thus prohibits killing oneself and others. The cornerstone of your ethics lies in loving kindness to all beings. We Christians believe that the core of Jesus’ moral teaching is twofold; love of God and love of neighbour. Jesus says: 'As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love'. And again: 'This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you' ('Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1823).The fifth Christian Commandment, 'You shall not kill' harmonizes so well with your first precept. 'Nostra Aetate' teaches that: 'the Catholic Church rejects nothing of what is true and holy in these religions' (NA 2). I think, therefore, that it is urgent for both Buddhists and Christians on the basis of the genuine patrimony of our religious traditions to create a climate of peace to love, defend, and promote human life.”

“As we all know, in spite of these noble teachings on the sanctity of human life, evil in different forms contributes to the dehumanization of the person by mitigating the sense of humanity in individuals and communities. This tragic situation calls upon us, Buddhists and Christians, to join hands to unmask the threats to human life and to awaken the ethical consciousness of our respective followers to generate a spiritual and moral rebirth of individuals and societies in order to be true peacemakers who love, defend and promote human life in all its dimensions.”

“Dear Buddhist friends, let us continue to collaborate with a renewed compassion and fraternity to alleviate the suffering of the human family by fostering the sacredness of human life. It is in this spirit that I wish you once again a peaceful and joyful feast of Vesakh.” (Occupy Vatican Message Message to Buddhists for Feast of Vesakh.)

It's kind of tough to have a "respect for life" while one is blaspheming its very Author with false worship. Indeed, it is absolutely impossible to create a "climate of peace to love, defend and promote life" by generating a "spiritual rebirth" unto the devil himself.

Yes, there can be spirit of "conquest" in dealing with adherents of false religions, who must be referred to as "believers" by the figures of Antichrist in the counterfeit church of conciliarism.

So much for the work of Saint Francis Xavier, who wrote the following about the hideous Hindus, fellow "partners" with the lords of conciliarism in the pursuit of "interreligious dialogue," on his efforts to conquer parts of India for Christ the King and His Holy Church:

As to the numbers who become Christians, you may understand them from this, that it often happens to me to be hardly able to use my hands from the fatigue of baptizing: often in a single day I have baptized whole villages. Sometimes I have lost my voice and strength altogether with repeating again and again the Credo and the other forms. The fruit that is reaped by the baptism of infants, as well as by the instruction of children and others, is quite incredible. These children, I trust heartily, by the grace of God, will be much better than their fathers. They show an ardent love for the Divine law, and an extraordinary zeal for learning our holy religion and imparting it to others. Their hatred for idolatry is marvellous. They get into feuds with the heathen about it, and whenever their own parents practise it, they reproach them and come off to tell me at once. Whenever I hear of any act of idolatrous worship, I go to the place with a large band of these children, who very soon load the devil with a greater amount of insult and abuse than he has lately received of honor and worship from their parents, relations, and acquaintances. The children run at the idols, upset them, dash them down, break them to pieces, spit on them, trample on them, kick them about, and in short heap on them every possible outrage. (St. Francis Xavier: Letter from India, to the Society of Jesus at Rome, 1543.)

We have in these parts a class of men among the pagans who are called Brahmins. They keep up the worship of the gods, the superstitious rites of religion, frequenting the temples and taking care of the idols. They are as perverse and wicked a set as can anywhere be found, and I always apply to them the words of holy David, "from an unholy race and a wicked and crafty man deliver me, O Lord." They are liars and cheats to the very backbone. Their whole study is, how to deceive most cunningly the simplicity and ignorance of the people. They give out publicly that the gods command certain offerings to be made to their temples, which offerings are simply the things that the Brahmins themselves wish for, for their own maintenance and that of their wives, children, and servants. Thus they make the poor folk believe that the images of their gods eat and drink, dine and sup like men, and some devout persons are found who really offer to the idol twice a day, before dinner and supper, a certain sum of money. The Brahmins eat sumptuous meals to the sound of drums, and make the ignorant believe that the gods are banqueting. When they are in need of any supplies, and even before, they give out to the people that the gods are angry because the things they have asked for have not been sent, and that if the people do not take care, the gods will punish them by slaughter, disease, and the assaults of the devils. And the poor ignorant creatures, with the fear of the gods before them, obey them implicitly. These Brahmins have barely a tincture of literature, but they make up for their poverty in learning by cunning and malice. Those who belong to these parts are very indignant with me for exposing their tricks. Whenever they talk to me with no one by to hear them they acknowledge that they have no other patrimony but the idols, by their lies about which they procure their support from the people. They say that I, poor creature as I am, know more than all of them put together.

They often send me a civil message and presents, and make a great complaint when I send them all back again. Their object is to bribe me to connive at their evil deeds. So they declare that they are convinced that there is only one God, and that they will pray to Him for me. And I, to return the favor, answer whatever occurs to me, and then lay bare, as far as I can, to the ignorant people whose blind superstitions have made them their slaves, their imposture and tricks, and this has induced many to leave the worship of the false gods, and eagerly become Christians. If it were not for the opposition of the Brahmins, we should have them all embracing the religion of Jesus Christ. (St. Francis Xavier: Letter from India, to the Society of Jesus at Rome, 1543.)

My own and only Father in the Heart of Christ, I think that the many letters from this place which have lately been sent to Rome will inform you how prosperously the affairs of religion go on in these parts, through your prayers and the good bounty of God. But there seem to be certain things which I ought myself to speak about to you; so I will just touch on a few points relating to these parts of the world which are so distant from Rome. In the first place, the whole race of the Indians, as far as I have been able to see, is very barbarous; and it does not like to listen to anything that is not agreeable to its own manners and customs, which, as I say, are barbarous. It troubles itself very little to learn anything about divine things and things which concern salvation. Most of the Indians are of vicious disposition, and are adverse to virtue. Their instability, levity, and inconstancy of mind are incredible; they have hardly any honesty, so inveterate are their habits of sin and cheating. We have hard work here, both in keeping the Christians up to the mark and in converting the heathen. And, as we are your children, it is fair that on this account you should take great care of us and help us continually by your prayers to God. You know very well what a hard business it is to teach people who neither have any knowledge of God nor follow reason, but think it a strange and intolerable thing to be told to give up their habits of sin, which have now gained all the force of nature by long possession. Saint Francis Xavier, Letter on the Missions, to St. Ignatius de Loyola, 1549.)

Contemporary Buddhists support abortion:

The current Dalai Lama of Tibetan Buddhism, Tenzin Gyatso, has referred to abortion as a sin against "non-violence to all sentient beings". However, he has also stated that abortion might be permissible in specific, limited circumstances, "Of course, abortion, from a Buddhist viewpoint, is an act of killing and is negative, generally speaking. But it depends on the circumstances. If the unborn child will be retarded or if the birth will create serious problems for the parent, these are cases where there can be an exception. I think abortion should be approved or disapproved according to each circumstance." (Dalai Lama and Abortion.)

Other sects are almost openly permissive of abortion. "Christians and Buddhists" have a profound respect for human life"? This is a lie from the liars in the counterfeit church of conciliarism.

Buddhists have a profound respect for human life?

Go tell that to the Catholic Martyrs of Thailand, who were killed by those "peace loving" friends of the environment, the Buddhists:

Our thrilling story begins in Songkhon, a Catholic village on the Thai side of the mighty Maekhong River as it flows along the North Eastern border. The people of Songkhon were all Catholics and since the beginning they have always been in the Archdiocese of Thare-Nongseng.

The year 1940 was a time of fear and uncertainty in many areas of the world. Nazism was on the march in Europe and in Asia, imperialism was spreading rapidly. In Thailand, people felt fearful and threatened and a foreign faith was an obvious scapegoat, although Catholicism had already been in Thailand over three hundred and fifty years. In this tense atmosphere the usually tolerant Thais forsook their normal friendliness and began a religious persecution.

So it happened that in the winter of 1940, the police moved into Songkhon. Their first hostile act was to banish and then deport the parish priest. With guns in their hands, they then went from door to door intimidating the good simple people of the village and ordering them to abandon their faith in Christ. Naturally the people were nervous and frightened by they remained quiet and steadfast.

Living in Songkhon were two Sisters of the Congregation of the Lovers of the Holy Cross: Sister Agnes and Sister Lucia. There was also an excellent catechist, Mr. Philip Siphong. Since their pastor had been deported, these three good people felt responsible for the Catholic community and were in charge of the village school.

Mr. Siphong gave both moral and physical support to the worried people by visiting each house, praying with each family and speaking words of encouragement and strengthening their faith. The police were naturally furious at this act of rebelliousness and decided to get rid of Mr. Philip Siphong.

So in early December 1940 the police sent a letter to Philip supposedly from the Sheriff of Mukdahan requesting him to go to Mukdahan to meet the Sheriff. The people were suspicious and they warned Philip about the false letter and not to trust the police. They also told Philip that the police had every intention of killing him. However this good man told the people that if that was the case, then he, Philip Siphong was prepared to die for his Faith. Eventually he set out with the police for Mukdahan. Actually when they got the poor man into the forest the police shot him dead. So on December the 16th 1940 Mr. Philip Siphong died for his Faith and became the first of the Seven Holy martyrs of Thailand.

When the two Sisters Agnes and Lucia heard the news of the death of their faithful catechist, they were both saddened and very frightened. Nevertheless they continued their care of the school and their guidance of the community. Each day the children of the village came to the convent to be taught and catechised.

The police on their part kept up their pressure on the Sister and the local community. They tried to frighten everyone by firing their rifles in the air and by shouting at the people. They kept reminding the villagers of the murder of Philip by warning the people. "We'll get rid of all of you."

The children like everyone else were terrified of the police but the Sisters encouraged the children and themselves by saying that if the police killed them, they would be martyrs for Jesus.

On the Christmas Day. Mr. Lue, the police officer in charge of Songkhon, came to the Sister' house. On arrival he discovered the Sisters were instructing the children in their Catholic Faith. The officer was furious and berated the Sisters: "I've told you many times not to speak about Jesus. You must not mention god in Thailand, otherwise I'll kill you all." Sister Agnes who was the elder Sister, conscious of her role, in turn became indignant. She confronted the police officer saying: "Mr. Policeman, do you mean to say that you will kill us all because we are Catholics and loyal to our Catholic Faith. Do you really mean that, Mr. Policeman?"

Mr. Lue replied: "Yes I do, I will kill all of you if you continue to talk about God like this."

Sister Agnes with rising indignation and raised her voice saying to the officer: "Be sure you have sufficient guns and bullets." "Oh yes, we have enough guns and bullets to kill all of you." Mr. Lue retorted.

"Then be sure you polish the barrels of your guns lest the bullets get stuck." Countered the brave Sister Agnes. "Yes, we will." concluded the policeman.

On the evening of that same Christmas Day, the Sister prepared some coconut oil and sent a small bottle of it to the police so that they could clean and polish their gun barrels. Then the brave Sisters began preparing themselves and their companions for their coming martyrdom, by prayers and hymns' singing throughout the night.

Late that same night, our inspired Sister Agnes sat down and wrote a letter to the police. It is a document of utter simplicity and of a lively faith.

"To the Chief Police in Songkhon

"Yesterday evening you received your order to wipe out, definitely, the Name of God, the Only Lord of our lives and minds. We adore Him only, Sir. A few days earlier, you had mentioned to us that you would not wipe out the Name of God and we were rather pleased with that in such a way that we put away our religious habits which showed that we were His handmaids. But it not so today. We do profess that the religion of Christ is the only true religion. Therefore, we would like to give our answer to your question, asked yesterday evening which we did not have a chance to respond because we were unprepared for it. Now we would like to give you our answer. We are asking you to carry out your order with us. Please do not delay any longer. Please carry out your order. Please open the door of heaven to us so that we can confirm that outside the Religion of Christ no none can go to heaven. Please do it. We are well prepared. When we will be gone we will remember you. Please take pity on our souls. We will be thankful to you and will be grateful to you for it. And on the last day we will see each other face to face.

"Do wait and see, please. We keep your commands, oh God, we wish to be witnesses to You, dear God. We are: Agnes, Lucia, Phuttha, Budsi, Buakhai, Suwan. We would like to bring little Phuma along with us because we love her so much. We have already made up our minds, dear Sir."

This letter is such a simple yet moving and powerful Gospel of faith that reminds us that the faith witnessed in the early church in roman times is still alive and potent in Thailand in our own time. The diocesan archives now have Sister Agnes's wonderful profession of faith statement.

The police reacted quickly. On the following afternoon of the 26th of December 1940 on the feast of St. Stephen the first martyr, they arrived at the convent and shouted: "Are you ready, Sisters? If you are, go straight to the bank of the Maekhong." But Sister Agnes objected, "No, that is not the place for us to die for Christ. We must go the cemetery, the holy place."

In line they walked to the cemetery singing hymns and calling to the people.

"Good-bye, we are going to Heaven, we are going to become martyrs for Christ." How these brave and noble women remind us once again of the martyrs of ancient Rome, joyfully entering the arena for the love of Jesus Christ.

Seeing the police marching the children and Sisters to the cemetery, the people of the village realized that the police were going to kill them there. They too followed the Sisters and their companions wishing to die with them. However the policed brushed the people aside with their rifles saying angrily: "We only intend to kill those in the line."

A young girl named Suwan was one of those in the line. She was willing to become one of Christ's Martyrs but her father upon hearing what was happening rushed to the scent to rescue his little daughter. Suwan on her part clung to Sister Agnes begging him: "Mother Agnes, help me please, I want to die with you and go to Heaven." "But you are too young to die" said her father and he snatched her away and carried her back home where he locked her in a room.

On arrival at the cemetery the brave women knelt down beside a fallen tree trunk. They continued praying and hymn-singing fervently in that crucial atmosphere.

Sister Agnes turned and addressed the police: "You may kill us but you cannot kill the Church and you cannot kill God. One day the Church will return to Thailand and will flourish more than ever. You will see with your own eyes that what I am now saying, will come true. So we thank you from our hearts for killing us and sending us to Heaven. From there we will pray for you." Once again her words echoed those of many great martyrs before her.

Then turning to her companions, Sister Agnes said, "My dear friends, we will soon be in Heaven."

On the cross, Jesus said to the thief, "This day you will e with me in Paradise," (Lk.23:43) When all were ready, Sister once more addressed the police saying: "Mr. Policeman, we are ready, please do your duty."

Immediately the police opened fire and left the cemetery shouting to the people, "Bury them like dogs, for they are bad people." The poor villagers who were watching the scene from behind nearby bushes, rushed forward and began to shake the bodies to see who was alive or dead. They found that both Sister Agnes and Phorn were still alive but badly wounded.

Looking around, Phorn asked: "Where is heaven?" She understood from the Sisters' teaching that if one died a martyr one went straight to Heaven, but looking around Phorn saw not Heaven but a crowd of villagers. Sister Agnes on her part enquired: "where are the police?" They've left already." someone spoke out. "Then you better call them back I'm not dead yet:' said the brave sister Agnes. So one of the villagers returned to the village to inform the police that Sister Agnes and Phorn although badly wounded were still alive.

In the meantime another girl called Sorn who hand knelt at the end of the line stood up and looking around exclaimed: "Where is heaven?" Seeing that her clothes were spattered with blood the people enquired if she was hurt. "I'm afraid not, I don't feel any pain," Sorn replied. She then examined herself more closely but found no bullet wounds. "You'd better run home," she was advised: "as the police will soon be back here." So the little girl ran home. (She is still alive, healthy and living in Songkhon. She is also an excellent catechist.) In a short time the police returned to the cemetery and killed the wounded Sister Agnes and Phorn.

In all, six good and holy women were dead and the villagers buried them hurriedly, placing two bodies in each grave for they had not the time to make coffins. Thus were these brave and noble women of Songkhon laid to rest.

Many eye witnesses including those who took part in the burial of our brave martyrs are still alive. They are proud and grateful to recall, the bravery, the loyalty to Christ and the wonderful faith displayed on that momentous day, the 26th December 1940 by the Holy martyrs of Songkhon (The Martyrs of Thailand)

The year 1940 was just seventy-one years ago. The Buddhists have changed in the past seventy years? Go tell that to the Catholics in parts of India and Sri Lanka today who are suffering at their hands .

Buddhists have a profound "respect" for human life? Go tell that to the Catholic Martyrs of Kyoto, Japan, among whom is counted a married woman, Tecla Hashimoto, who was martyred while carrying her preborn child:

The location, about three hundred meters from Hokoji Temple, was the busiest place in the city. The temple, affectionately called the “Big Kyoto Buddha,” was modeled after the “Big Buddha” temple in Nara. Years later, in 1798, the “Big Kyoto Buddha” was struck by lightning and completely destroyed. All that remains today is a huge temple bell, bearing silent witness to the events narrated below.

On the river bank was a plot of land 50 meters long and 25 meters wide where a huge pile of kindling, wood beams and trash taken from the condemned Christians’ homes, was piled high around 27 large cross-like stakes.

The official in charge, Katsushige Itakura, was the governor of Kyoto. As a young man, he had been a Buddhist priest. Itakura knew that in executions by fire, the kindling was set away from the victims, allowing the flames to prolong the suffering. This special torture could cause some to give up their faith and recant. But Itakura also realized that with these faithful Christians, there was little hope of recanting. For this reason he had pity on the victims, and ordered the kindling placed as close as possible to them, so their sufferings would be brief.

The victims were bound two to each cross, back-to-back. The leader of the martyrs was John Hashimoto, who, with his wife Tecla and their five children, drew sympathetic glances from the bystanders. Tecla was expecting her seventh child.

To celebrate her martyrdom, she wore a stately, white silk veil that reached to her feet. The sight of this young mother and her five children as they walked to their crosses brought tears to the eyes of many. She clutched her three-year-old daughter Luisa, as her 12-year-old son Toma was tied to her cross at her right side. Eight-year-old Francisco was tied to her left. Her six-year-old Pedro and 13-year-old Katarina were tied together to another cross close by.

When the fires were lit, the night sky shone brilliantly with flames leaping from the ghastly funeral pyre. All of the martyrs began praying and singing hymns. When Katarina cried that she could no longer see because of the smoke, her mother shouted, “Sing out the names of Jesus and Mary.”

The raging flames soon brought an early end, leaving onlookers stunned by the sublime sacrifice of the parents and the heroic bravery of the children. That evening, the Catholics secretly buried about 30 bodies found in the ashes. The location of this mass grave, somewhere in Kyoto, remains unknown to the present day.

The eldest child of the Hashimoto family, Miguel, was not home when the rest of the family was arrested. Later he appeared at the prison declaring his intention to join his family as a martyr too, but he was turned away, since his name was not on the list of the condemned. Instead, he was admonished by the prison officials to return home and think about carrying on the family name.

The pastor, Father Diego Ryosetsu Yuki, had been hearing confessions when the Christians were arrested. He and a foreign priest witnessed the martyrdoms, and provided what remains one of the most detailed accounts in the history of martyrdoms in Japan. Several years later, Father Yuki himself was martyred and is among the 188 beatified.

Those early Christians, all spiritual children of Saint Francis Xavier, died in the early years of the 17th century. They will join 42 canonized saints and 205 other “blesseds” who adorn the pages of Japan’s 400 years of Christian history. (The Great Kyoto Martyrdom. This article is written by a priest in the conciliar structures; thus the reference to "canonization" of these martyrs. There are, however, other excellent articles maintained on the site where this article was found. The site is Tecla Hashimoto.)

Ah, yes, those "peace loving," planet-caring Buddhists. Happy Vesakh? I don't think so. For to do wish a "Happy Vesakh" to those steeped in the false religion of Buddhism would be to violate the First Commandment.

The paradoxes of conciliarism are such that the Thai martyrs, whose story was recounted earlier in this article, who professed the true Faith and would give the idolatry of Buddhism no quarter whatsoever, were "beatified" by Karol Wojtyla/John Paul II in 1989 while the conciliar authorities in the Vatican continue to wish the devil-worshiping Buddhists a happy "feast of Vesakh" each and every year without fail. The Buddhists worship devils. Devils. How can any right-thinking Catholic express "best wishes" to devil worshiping pantheists on their diabolical "feasts"? The three phases of Buddha indeed. The three phases of Buddha's life were fat, fatter and fattest.

Pope Pius XI, writing in Ad Salutem, August 30, 1930, noted the views of the son of Saint Monica, whose feast we celebrate tomorrow, Saint Augustine of Hippo, on false religions:

Let us add a word further. Augustine set the mark, or more truly, the fiery brand of his condemnation on the moral infamy of Greek and Roman paganism. And yet yearning for such a religion has been seen to infatuate, even in our day, certain writers, shallow and even licentious, who extol such a cult for its beauty and fitness and attractiveness. Again, knowing thoroughly his contemporaries and their unhappy forgetfulness of God, with a pen at one time caustic, at another indignant, he scored in his pages all the compulsion and folly, all the outrages and lust, introduced into man's life by the demons through the worship of false gods. There can be no salvation in the ideal of the earthly City, as it sets before its eyes a vain picture- of completeness and perfection. For scarcely anyone will take such an ideal seriously or, if he does, the prize he wins will be only the satisfaction of empty and fleeting glory. (Pope Pius XI, Ad Salutem, August 30, 1930)

The internet provides Catholics with many pitfalls. It also provides us with a ready means to reference the great treasury of the teaching of our true popes and to contrast that with the apostate material that is posted online for our ready viewing. Conciliarism not Catholicism, which is why its leaders are interested in "dialogue," "mutual understanding" and "peaceful coexistence." A very astute reader of this site sent me a marvelous reflection providing profound insights into the false theology of conciliarism, focusing particularly on how Robert Zollitsch's denial of the very nature of the Redemptive Act of Our Lord on the wood of the Holy Cross, whose finding by Saint Helena we celebrate today, explained where the logical of this apostate's views might become in the not-too-distant future:

"At some point after The Beginning, God Who is Love, stopped playing His harp to look down upon the earth. He looked and saw that His once-glorious creation, man, was suffering and dying, as death is in the nature of the corruptible flesh that man willingly took on as a result of his own (ahem) sin; a sad and pitiable (if not completely undeserved) end for His creatures!

And God, in sympathetic solidarity and love, was very sorry for that, so, shaking His head, closing His eyes, and giving a 'tsk-tsk', He determined to send His Son, Jesus Christ, Who is Love personified, to minister and to preach the Word of solidarity to mankind in a place called Galilee. And it came to pass one day during His preaching ministry which nobody paid much attention to otherwise, that Jesus said: "I am sent by My Father to announce great news to you: if it will make you feel better about the dreadful fact you have to die, I'll die, too, for love of you. And you know what else?......I'll go it one better (because I'm nothing if not fair!): I'll die in unspeakable pain and abject disgrace (unlike most of you), though I've done nothing to deserve it (also unlike most of you......but never mind that.) Remember always: love is the word and solidarity is love".

The Word got around, and the people said: "yay!" And, seeing the people's response of joy and approval Jesus said further: "My love for you in doing this is so great, it will not only allow you to experience Me as warmer and more approachable; it will, if we try hard enough in our minds and hearts to make it so, remove the once-necessary inequality between Me and you; we will be fellow-travelers in every way which you will find delightfully freeing, I think".

"But here's the good part: since lack of love (never forget: love = solidarity) is the real sin, it follows that as I've brought that love to you, neither of us will have to deal anymore with the work connected with your overcoming the (eye roll) eternal consequences of sin; no wasting your time asking My forgiveness or doing penance, no wasting My time listening to your drama and forgiving you (that reminds Me, the apostles will have to scratch that command about "whose sins you shall....yada yada"); for verily, my friends, I tell you: I will have to leave you ere long, and when I do, I will be booked solid; for starters there's serious fishing where I'm going (you'd love it - the biggest ones you can imagine!); also canasta afternoons with the saints, bowling nights with the angels and who knows? - maybe even a couple rounds of golf with a president or two, or an important get-together with all the heads of the UN in a few millennia! Not to mention I'm sure you fine people are busy with your stuff down here, as well. And of course you'll join Me where I'm going when your time comes."

"Then Jesus and the people, happy with their solidarity, hugged a big group-hug and they all said "Live, laugh, LOVE"!

Postscript: shortly thereafter - and strangely inexplicably - the Galileans expunged from the Holy Gospel this salutary story of why God's Divine Son Jesus Christ, their beloved Master, died, and substituted a fake one which describes His death with all seriousness and gravity as some act of 'redemption' or 'atonement'. Go figure!

......And thus it remained for some 2000 years until Robert Zollitsch, having no agenda whatsoever for a revisionist claim, came along and discovered the real truth which has just been testified to!

Okay, time for the tall tales is over,"Bishop" Zollitsch: get this and get it good:

Almighty God in the 3 Persons of the Holy Trinity is/was not Zeus uncharacteristically stricken with remorse over his ill-treatment of humanity.

It is not "love" for one to die just because someone else does! (What IS this "solidarity" of which you speak, anyway? What exactly was the point of Jesus' death - to illustrate about it what we already know: that it's a bummer?!)

Last but not least: the "Innocent One" did not deserve death but we do as a consequence of our sin! That is exactly what made Him the Unblemished Lamb of Sacrifice Who opened Heaven's gate to us because we couldn't by our own nature do it ourselves.

As for all those out there in NOVO land: read and see that your leaders are fairy-tale spinners who've been working the shuttles for more than 50 years! Wake up! Rip van Winkle and Princess Aurora finally did.

I think that you will agree with me that this is a truly powerful summary of the essence the essence of the conciliar religion's penchant for the slogans "love" and "solidarity" that have nothing to do with of conquering souls and lands for Christ the King and His true Church.

We know, of course, that In hoc signo vinces ("In this sign you will conquer").

The Sign of the Holy Cross is indeed one of conquest, which is why the account provided by Dom Prosper Gueranger, O.S.B., for today's feast should move us with tears of gratitude and joy that it is upon the wood of the Holy Cross that the very Author of Life redeemed us by the shedding of every single drop of His Most Precious Blood:

It was most just that our divine King should show himself to us with the sceptre of his power, to the end that nothing might be wanting to the majesty of his empire. This sceptre is the Cross; and Paschal Time was to be the season for its being offered to him in glad homage. A few weeks back, and the Cross was shown to us to be the instrument of our Emmanuel's humiliation and as the bed of suffering whereon he died; but has he not since then conquered Death? and what is his cross now but a trophy of his victory? Let it then be brought forth to our gaze and let every knee bend before this sacred Wood, whereby our Jesus won the honour and praise we now give him!

On the day of his birth at Bethlehem we sang these words of the Prophet Isaias: A child is born unto us, and a son is given unto us, and his government is upon his shoulder. We have seen him carrying this Cross upon his shoulder; as Isaac carried the wood for his own immolation; but now it is no longer a heavy burden. It is shining with a brightness that ravishes the eyes of the angels; and after having received the veneration of man as long as the world lasts, it will suddenly appear in the clouds of heaven, near the Judge of the living and the dead--a consolation to them that have loved it, but a reproach to such as have treated it with contempt or forgetfulness.

Our Saviour did not think the time between his Resurrection and Ascension a fitting one for glorying the instrument of his victory. The Cross was not to be brought into notice until it had subjected the world to him whose glory it so eloquently proclaimed. Jesus was three days in the tomb; his Cross is to lie buried, unknown to men, for three centuries: but it is to have its resurrection, and the Church celebrates this resurrection to-day. Jesus would, in his own good time, add to the joy of Easter by miraculously revealing to us this sacred monument of his love for mankind. He entrusts it to our keeping--it is to be our consolation--as long as the world lasts: is it not just that we should love and venerate it?

Never had Satan's pride with such a humiliation as when he saw the instrument of our perdition made the instrument of our salvation. As the Church expresses it in her Preface for Passiontide: 'He that overcame mankind by a Tree, was overcome by a Tree." Thus foiled, he vented his fury upon this saving Wood, which so bitterly reminded him both of the irresistible power of his conqueror and of the dignity of man who had been redeemed at so great a price. He would fain have annihilated the Cross; but knowing that this was beyond his power, he endeavoured to profane it, and hide it from view. He therefore instigated the Jews to bury it. At the foot of Calvary, not far from the sepulchre, was a deep hole. Into this was the Cross thrown, together with those of the two thieves, the Nails, the Crown of Thorns, and the Inscription or Title written by Pilate. The hole was then filled up with rubbish and earth, and the Sanhedrin exulted in the thought its having effaced the memory of the Nazarene. who could not save himself from the ignominious death of the Cross.

Forty years after this, Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, the instruments of God's vengeance. The Holy Places were desecrated by idolaters. A small temple to Venus was erected on Calvary, and another to Jupiter over the Holy Sepulchre. By this, the pagans intended derision; whereas, they were perpetuating the knowledge of two spots of most sacred interest. When peace was restored under Constantine, the Christians had but to remove these pagan monuments, and their eyes behold the holy ground that had been bedewed with the Blood of Jesus, and the glorious Sepulchre. As to the Cross, it was not so easily found. The sceptre of our divine King was to be raised up from its tomb by a royal hand. The saintly Empress Helen, Constantine's mother, was chosen by heaven to pay to Jesus--and that, too, on the very spot where he had received his greatest humiliations--the honours which are due to him as the King of the world. Before laying the foundations of the Basilica of the Resurrection, this worthy follower of Magdalen and the other holy women of the sepulchre was anxious to discover the instrument of our salvation. The Jews had kept up the tradition of the site where it had been buried: the Empress had the excavations made accordingly. With what holy impatience she must have watched the works! and with what ecstasy of joy did she behold the redeeming Wood, which, though not at first distinguishable, was certainly one of the three Crosses that were found! She addressed a fervent prayer to the Saviour, who alone could reveal to her which was the trophy of his victory; the bishop, Macarinus, united his prayers with hers; and their faith was rewarded by a miracle that left them no doubt as to which was the true Cross.

This glorious work was accomplished and the Church was put in possession of the instrument of the world's Redemption. Both East and West were filled with joy at the news of this precious discovery, which heaven had set on foot, and which gave the last finish to the triumph of Christianity. Christ completed his victory over the pagan world by raising thus his standard--not a figurative one, but his own real standard--the Cross, which, up to that time, had been a stumbling-block to the Jews, and foolishness to the Gentiles; but before which every Christian is henceforth to bend his knee.

Helen placed the holy Cross in the Basilica which had been built by her orders, and which covered both the glorious Sepulchre and the hill of the Crucifixion. Another Church was erected on the site where the Cross had lain concealed for three hundred years, and the faithful are enabled, by the long flights of steps, to go down into the deep grotto which had been its tomb. Pilgrims came from every part of the world to visit the hallowed places where our Redemption had been wrought, and to venerate the sacred Wood of the Cross. But God's merciful providence willed not that the precious pledge of Jesus' lover for mankind should be confined to sanctuary only, however venerable, it might be. Immediately after the discovery, Helen had a very large piece cut from the Cross; and this fragment she destined for Rome, the new Jerusalem. The precious gift was enshrined in the Basilica built by her son Constantine in the Sessorian garden, which was afterwards called the Basilica of the Holy Cross-in-Jersualem (Basilica di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme).

By degrees, other places were honoured by the presence of the Wood of the Holy Cross. So far back as the fourth century, we have St. Cyril of Jerusalem attesting that many of the pilgrims used to obtain small pieces of it, and thus carried the precious treasure into their respective countries; and St. Paulinus of Nola, who lived in the same century, assures us that these many gifts lessened not the size of the original relic. In the sixth century, the holy Queen St. Radegonde obtained from Emperor Justin II a large piece of the fragment that was in the imperial treasury in Constantinople. It was for the reception of this piece of the True Cross into France that Venantius Fortunatus composed the Vexilla Regis--that beautiful hymn which the Church uses in her Liturgy as often as she celebrates the praise of the Holy Cross. After several times losing and regaining it, Jerusalem was at length for ever deprived of the precious relic. From Constantinople was a gainer by Jerusalem's loss. From Constantinople, especially during the Crusades, many churches of the West procured large pieces. These again supplied other places; until at length the Wood of the Cross was to be found in almost every town of any importance. There is scarcely to be found a Catholic, who, some time or other in his life,, has not had the happiness of seeing and venerating a portion of this sacred object. How many acts of love and gratitude have not been occasioned by this? And who could fail to recognize, in this successive profusion of our Jesus' Cross, a plan of divine providence for exciting us to appreciation of our Redemption, on which rests all our hopes of eternal happiness?

How dear, then, to us should this day be, which blends together the recollection of the Holy Cross and the joys of the Resurrection of that Jesus who by the Cross has won the throne to which we shall soon see him ascend! Let us thank our Heavenly Father for his having restored to mankind a treasure so immensely precious as is the Cross. Until the day comes for it to appear with himself in the clouds of heaven, Jesus has entrusted it to his Spouse, as a pledge of his second coming. On that day, he will collect together all the fragments by his divine power; and the tree of Life will then gladden the elect with its dazzling beauty, and invite them to eternal rest beneath its refreshing shade. (Dom Prosper Gueranger, O.S.B., The Liturgical Year: Paschal Time: Book II, pp. 414-418.)

We should make Dom Prosper's prayer for this great feast day today, which falls on the First Friday in the month of May and is thus so very appropriate as we adore the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus which beat for us with such fervor on the wood of the Holy Cross and which beats for us yet in tabernacles where Our Lord's Real Presence is to be found in this time of apostasy and betrayal:

Christ Crucified is the power and wisdom of God. Thus spoke thine Apostle,O Jesus! and we are witnesses of the truth of his words. The Synagogue thought do dishonour thee by nailing thee to a Cross, for it was written in the Law: Cursed is he that hangeth on a tree. But, lo! this gibbet, this tree of infamy, is become the trophy of thy grandest glory! Far from dimming the splendour of Thy Resurrection, the Cross enhances the brilliance of thy magnificent triumph. Thou was attached to the Wood--thou tookest on thyself the curse that was due to us; thou was crucified between two thieves; thou wast reputed as an impostor, and thine enemies insulted thee in thine agony on this bed of suffering. Hadst thou been but man, O Son of David! all this would have disgraced thy name and memory; the Cross would have been the ruin of thy past glory; but thou art the Son of God, and it is the Cross that proves it. The whole world venerates thy Cross. It was the Cross that brought the world to submission to thee. The honours that are now paid it more than make amends for the insults that we were once offered it. Men are not wont to venerate a cross; but if they do, it is the Cross on which their God died. Oh! blessed be he that hung upon the Tree! And do thou, dearest crucified Jesus! in return for the homage we pay to thy Cross, fulfil the promise thou madest us: And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things unto myself

That thou mightest the more effectually draw us, thou this day permittedst us to find the very Wood, whereon thou didst stretch forth thy divine arms to embrace us. Thou has deigned to give us this holy instrument of thy victory which is to shine near thee in the heavens on the day of judgement; thou hast mercifully confided it to our keeping, in order that we might thence derive a salutary fear of divine Justice, which demanded thy death on this Wood in atonement for our sins. Thou also gavest us this most precious relic, that it might excite us to a devoted love for thee, O divine Victim! who, that we might be blessed, didst take upon thyself the maledictions due to our sins. The whole world is offering thee to-day its fervent thanks for so inestimable a gift. Thy Cross, by being divided into countless fragments, is in all places, consecrating and protecting by its presence every country of the Christian world.

Oh! that we had St. Helen's spirit, dear Jesus, and knew, as she did, the breadth, the length, and height, and depth of the mystery of thy Cross. Her love of the mystery made her so earnest in her search for the Cross. And how sublime is the spectacle offered to us by this holy Empress! She adorns thy glorious Sepulchre; she raises the Cross from its grave; who was there, that ever proclaimed with such a solemnity as this, the Paschal Mystery? The Cross exclaims: 'I held him captive for a few passing hours: he is not here! He is resplendent in the glory of his Resurrection!' O Cross! O Sepulchre! how brief was the period of his humiliation, and how grand the kingdom he won by you! We will adore in you the place where his feet stood, making you the instrument of our Redemption, and thereby endearing you to our respectful love for ever. Glory, then, to be to thee, O Cross! dear object of this day's festival! Continue to protect this world where our Jesus has left thee. Be its shield against Satan. Help us to remember that union of sacrifice and triumph which will support us in all our crosses for it is by thee, O Cross! that Christ conquers, and reigns, and commands CHRISTUS VINCIT, CHRISTUS REGNANT, CHIRSTUS IMPERAT. ( (Dom Prosper Gueranger, O.S.B., The Liturgical Year: Paschal Time: Book II, pp. 428-430.)

May we cling to the Cross of Our Divine Redeemer, praying as many Rosaries each day in this month of May as our state-in-life permits. The sufferings of this present life will pass. Christ the King will triumph over His enemies in our world of naturalism and in the the counterfeit church of conciliarism. Every extra moment we spend in prayer before Our King in the Most Blessed Sacrament and every extra set of mysteries of Our Lady's Most Holy Rosary that we pray will help us to be more and more conformed to the likeness of Our Divine Redeemer, Who endured the Cross, heedless of Its shame, to redeem us and to make us members of His Catholic Church.

We must always remember that this is the time that God has appointed from all eternity for us to live and thus to sanctify and to save our immortal souls as members of the Catholic Church. The graces won for us by the shedding of every single drop of Our Lord's Most Precious Blood on the wood of the Holy Cross and that flows into our hearts and souls through the loving hands of Our Lady, the Mediatrix of All Graces, are sufficient for us to handle whatever crosses--personal, social and ecclesiastical--that we are asked to carry. Saint Louis de Montfort provided each of us with the following exhortation to become friends of the Holy Cross:

"Friends of the Cross, disciples of a crucified God, the mystery of the Cross is a mystery unknown to the Gentiles, repudiated by the Jews and spurned by both heretics and bad Catholics, yet it is the great mystery which you must learn to practice at the school of Jesus Christ and which you can learn only at His School. You wold look in vain for any philosopher who taught it in the Academies of ancient times; you would ask in vain either in the senses of reason to throw any light on it, for Jesus alone, through His triumphant grace, is able to teach you this mystery and make you relish it.

"Become proficient, therefore, in the super-eminent branch of learning under such a skillful Master. Having this knowledge, you will be possessed of other branches of learning, for it surpassingly comprises them all. The Cross is our natural as well as our supernatural philosophy. It is our divine and mysterious theology. It is our philosopher-stone which, by dint of patience, is able to transmute the grossest of metals into precious ones, the sharpest pain into delight, poverty into wealth and the deepest humiliation into glory. He amongst you who knows how to carry his cross, though he know not A from B, towers above all others in learning." (Saint Louis de Montfort, The Friends of The Cross, Montfort Publications, Montfort Missionaries, Bay Shore, New York, p. 15.)

We must give thanks to God at all times for each of our crosses as we seek to serve Him through Our Lady in this time of apostasy and betrayal, remember the words in the sky that were seen by the son of Saint Helena, the Emperor Constantine: In hoc signo vinces, in this sign, you shall conquer.

Yes, in the Sign of the Cross we shall conquer as the consecrated slaves of Christ the King through the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Queen of Heaven and of Earth.

Christus Vincit, Christus Regnat, Christus Imperat!

Isn't it time to pray a Rosary now?

Vivat Christus Rex! Viva Cristo Rey!

Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us.

Saint Joseph, pray for us.

Saints Peter and Paul, pray for us.

Saint John the Baptist, pray for us.

Saint John the Evangelist, pray for us.

Saint Michael the Archangel, pray for us.

Saint Gabriel the Archangel, pray for us.

Saint Raphael the Archangel, pray for us.

Saints Joachim and Anne, pray for us.

Saints Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, pray for us.

Saint Helena, pray for us.

Pope Saint Alexander, pray for us.

Saint Theodulus, pray for us.

Saint Eventius, pray for us.

Saint Juvenal, pray for us.


© Copyright 2013, Thomas A. Droleskey. All rights reserved.