The 19 Martyrs of Algeria—including The Monks (Seven Trappists) of Tibhirine

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Murdered “in odium fidei”–“in hatred of the faith”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Larry Peterson

The   bloody Algerian Civil War erupted in 1993 and among the victims of this persecution were 19 monks and nuns. They were assassinated between 1994 and 1996. The “positio” (the report documenting all information about the cause for beatification) has been completed, and the elevation of these courageous, selfless, Catholics into the ranks the Beatified, could happen by the end of January, 2018.

Among the 19 murdered was a group of seven, known as the Monks of Tibhirine. These men were members of the Cistercian Order  (aka Trappists). On March 27, 1996, these holy men were kidnapped from their home at Tibhirine, taken away and executed. They died “in odium fidei” (in hatred of the faith) as did the other twelve martyrs. What follows is a short peek into the life of one of these people. His name was Christian de Cherge, and he was the priest representing the others in the fruitless negotiations with the terrorists.

Christian was born in Colmar, France, on January 17, 1937. Christian’s dad was a military man, and the boy spent part of his youth in French Algeria where his dad was the commander of the 67th Artillery Regiment of Africa. Upon the families return to France, they settled in Paris.

Christian was enrolled in a school run by the Society of Mary, better known as the Marists (these men were my teachers when I was in high school and, trust me, they were “all business”). Christian de Cherge did have a secret; by the time he was eight-years-old, he knew he was called to the religious life. He said nothing, but as time passed by, he would be undeterred from that calling.

One event had a profound impact on the life of Christian de Cherge. In 1959, during the Algerian War, a Muslim by the name of Mohamed, selflessly saved Christian’s life during an attack. Christian did not know how to thank the man so he told him he would pray for him. Mohammad responded telling Christian “not to bother because Christians do not know how to pray.”

The next day Mohammed was found brutally murdered. Christian never forgot how this Muslim man, knowing the consequences of saving a Christian, did so anyway. Later in his life Christian said, “: “In the blood of this friend, I knew that my calling to follow Christ meant to live, sooner or later, in the country where it was given to me the greatest gift of love.”

Christian de Cherge went on to study the Arab language and Arab culture at the Pontifical Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies in Rome. He finished studying there in  1974 and in 1984 became the Prior of the Abbey at Tibhirine.

Approximately 1 a.m on March 26, 1996, masked terrorists belonging to the AIG (Armed Islamic Group) surrounded the monastery at Tibhirine. Father Christian, knowing that his life and those of his compatriots were now perched on a tenuous rim, walked stoically out to the blood-thirsty, Jesus haters. He stood in front of the armed and masked gunmen and said, “This is a house of peace. No one has ever come in here carrying weapons. If  you want to come in and talk to us, you must leave your weapons here.”

It was a very brave move, but the frightened priest did his best to look calm and collected. The invaders demanded that the monastery support the rebels with money; that the Trappist doctor goes and tend to their wounded men; and that the monks should give them all the medicine they had.

Father Christian agreed to supply all that he could. Then he reminded the  terrorists that it was Christmas Eve and a very important Holy Day for Christians. Amazingly, the leader of the terrorist group, Emir Syat-Attya, apologized. They agreed to leave but said they would be back.

Father Christian went back inside and gathered together all the supplies and medications that he could. The monks knew that they would no longer need them. He handed them over to the terrorists. He went back inside and the seven had their “Last Supper” together.

On March 27, the AIG returned and took the seven monks hostage. They were all beheaded on May 22, 1996. Father Christian left these parting words in letter form:

“If I were one day to become a victim of terrorism, I would like my community, my church, and my family to remember that my life was given to God and Algeria.”

 This following link will connect to the 19Martys of Algeria . Each and every one of them was a true “lover” of Jesus Christ, so much so that they emptied their blood for Him.

We ask them all to pray for us so that we too, may have the courage to stand tall for our faith.

 

Our Lady of Walsingham—the site of England’s, Nazareth

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Our Lady of Walsingham
Aleteia.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Larry Peterson

The story begins in 1061, more than a thousand years after the birth of Our Lord. It was during the reign of Edward the Confessor that a woman of noble heritage, Richeldis de Faverches, had been praying for guidance to fulfill her need to honor the Blessed Mother. Her prayers were answered, and Our Lady appeared to Richeldis and promptly took her spirit on a trip to Nazareth.

When they arrived there, Our Lady showed Richeldis the house where not only the Annunciation took place, but also where the Holy Family lived. Our Blessed Mother told Richeldis that she wanted a replica of this house built in the village of Walsingham, England. Richeldis was promised that “Whoever seeks my help there will not go away empty-handed.”

Richeldis, who had been given the dimensions of the house, did not know where to put it. The ground was wet and unsuitable for building upon. She prayed for help, and the next morning discovered two areas of dry ground that were the exact dimensions needed for the house.

She picked a site near a well, but the workers could not get the walls to fit properly. Once again she prayed and the next morning awoke to find the house miraculously moved to the other site more than two hundred feet away.

Richeldis’ house quickly became a focal point for people from far and wide. They came to offer special devotion to our Blessed Mother. It became known as the “Holy House.” Not long after, the house was encased in stone to protect it from the elements. Devotion at the site continued to increase, and soon it was known as the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham.

Walsingham became the premier shrine in all of medieval Christendom. Many royal visitors came to this place including Henry III, in 1226, Edward the I, who came eleven different times, Edward II, in 1361, all the way to King Henry VIII in 1511 when he came to give thanks for the birth of his son, Prince Henry (Prince Henry died in infancy when he was only 52 days old).

Numerous miracles were reported at Walsingham, and it became so revered that a place called the “Slipper Chapel” was built in 1340. The chapel was exactly one mile from the Shrine and pilgrims would stop here to remove their shoes. Once they had removed their shoes, they would journey the last mile, called the “Holy Mile” to the Shrine barefoot.

The Slipper Chapel was dedicated to St. Catherine of Alexandria, patroness of pilgrims. The chapel was put in place so that on St. Catherine’s feast day of November 25th, the sun would rise directly behind the altar. There is also a chapel of St. Catherine located in Nazareth, and it is maintained by the Knight’s of St. Catherine.

During the height of the medieval pilgrimages, the Franciscans were given permission by the Pope and the King to build a friary at Walsingham. The year was now 1347, and the religious atmosphere of the city dominated the area.

King Henry VIII, at war with the church over not receiving the divorce he wanted, ordered the dissolution of monasteries in 1538. The priory at Walsingham was closed and the “Holy House” burned to the ground. The statue of Our Lady was taken to London to be destroyed. King Henry was determined to rid his country of all sense of Catholic devotion. Walsingham ceased to be a place of pilgrimage. Devotion was necessarily in secret until after Catholic Emancipation (1829) when public expressions of faith were once again allowed.

Interestingly, Richeldis de Faverches, who Our Lady escorted to Nazareth, was a very wealthy  widow. Almost 900 years later, on February 6, 1897, a wealthy single woman by the name of Charlotte Boyd, purchased the Slipper Chapel and began restoration. She had a new statue of the Mother and Child carved based on the design of the original which was found on the medieval seal of the Walsingham Priory. This seal is in the British Museum.

The first Mass since the Reformation was offered in the Slipper Chapel on 15th August 1934, and a few days later Cardinal Francis Bourne led a pilgrimage of 10,000 people to the Chapel and declared it to be the Catholic National Shrine of Our Lady.

The importance of Our Lady of Walsingham is shown through Pontifical approbation (recognition) which has been given to it by four popes: Pope Leo XIII, in 1897; Pope Pius XII, in 1954; Pope St. John Paul II, in 1982; and Pope Francis, in 2015.

Today, Walsingham is once again the official Shrine of Our Lady in England.

 

 

Make NO Mistake and Never Forget; Mothers are Women and Female is their Gender

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A Mom & Her Son–Bound Forever
by Author

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Larry Peterson

I found myself writing this for Mother’s Day because the legal definition of “gender” has become controversial. I begin with a quote from Cardinal Giovanni Ravasi; President of the Pontifical Council of Culture: “The love of man and woman, capable of generating life, is a sign that points to God.”

The following comes from personal experience. My youngest brother, Johnny, had just turned two when Mom died. The previous six months she had been, for the most part, in the hospital. Johnny grew up without ever knowing his mom and her hugs or her voice or her caress. His ‘shrink,’ told him his “problems” with relationships were due to the fact he had lost his Mom as a baby. Johnny took his own life three years ago.

Bobby was six years old when  Mom died. He always had an anger in him that could expose itself to perceived provocations. He passed away suddenly, eleven years ago. His killer was congestive heart failure. I still think his heart had been irreparably broken at age six and it just took another forty years to give out.

Danny was ten. He is still fine, and we are in frequent contact.  I was the oldest, and my sister was second. Dad died a few years after Mom, and we tried to be a mom and a dad to our three brothers. We did our best, but we were in water way over our heads. We did survive as a family but, as you can see, having no Mom had profound consequences (the dad part I will leave for another day).

I move ahead 16 years to the birth of my daughter. Times were changing, and when Mary came along, I was present, and all decked out in my scrubs and sterile gloves (Prior to that time, Dads were not allowed into the delivery room).

I was sitting at the end of the delivery room table with my right hand holding the top of my wife’s head. I was looking up into a mirror watching the birth take place. And then, Doctor Butler began to lift his arms and in his hands was a baby. Our baby—a girl.

It seemed that almost instantly the nurse was next to me handing me, my daughter. Her face was still gooey, and her eyes were wide open. She was not crying but rather, she kept staring at me. Her eyes were as blue as the sky and as big as saucers. That was my moment, etched within my mind forever. A more profound moment was on the way.

Within moments baby Mary was being lifted from my hands and taken to her waiting Mom. Still lying on the delivery table, Loretta reached out for her baby. That was the moment I understood the power and intrinsic importance of a mom. A mother and her child are forever bound by an unbreakable bond that can only be felt between them. I also believe that dynamic is similar to every child that a mom gives birth too.

There are many moms who have, because of whatever circumstance and oftentimes out of love and humility, given their child up for adoption. In my heart of hearts, I do not believe any woman “happily” gives away her own child. Interestingly, the adoptive parents will generally love that child as if she or he was their very own and the children would assuredly love them back.

But, at some point in time, the children have a need arise within themselves to ‘find” their Birth Mom and/or Birth Dad. That is because an unbreakable bond is always there. No one can remove it or take it away or replace it. It is what it is.

For some, Gender Neutrality may be the “feel good” movement for the present moment. But it is a premise built on quicksand and defies all of the Natural Law. Pope St. John Paul II summed it up best: “God has assigned a duty to every man, the dignity of every woman.” 

Within those words are the inspiration for both men and women to defend what God has created.

Wishing all Moms, both living and passed on, a HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY

And please say a prayer for all those folks who cannot remember what having a Mom was like.

 

 

 

 

 

 

St. Peter Nolasco; He founded The Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy; aka the Mercedarians. This year they celebrate 800 years of sacrifice and service to others.

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St. Peter Nolasco….en.wikipedia.org

By Larry Peterson

Peter Nolasco was known for having as his most pronounced virtue that of ‘love of neighbor.’ It was said that people already knew of this when he was only a baby. The story was that while in his cradle, a swarm of bees landed on him, and formed a honey-comb on his right hand. He was never harmed. This may be true or simply “urban-legend” but, no matter what, Peter Nolasco’s prime, interior virtue was obvious to people even when he was just a baby.

Peter Nolasco was born in Castelnaudary ( located in southern France) in 1189. His well to do parents died when he was very young. They left Peter a substantial inheritance, and since this was the time in history when the Albigensian heresy was exploding throughout France, Peter took his money and headed to Barcelona to be as far away from the Albigensians as possible.

He was a teenager when he arrived in Barcelona and joined the army that was fighting the Albigensians in the Iberian Peninsula. This area included most of Spain and Portugal. The army was led by Simon de Monfort.

When King Peter II of Aragon was defeated, in the Battle of Muret, his six-year-old son, James I, was captured and Peter was appointed the child’s tutor. This gave Peter standing, and after making a pilgrimage to Our Lady of Montserrat, he began to display his charitable virtue.

His concern for captive Christians began to build, and he decided to establish a religious order dedicated to helping these victims of the Moors who were capturing and enslaving Christians by the thousands. He was often heard saying that he would gladly offer himself as ransom if he could.

Peter Nolasco began ransoming Christian captives in 1203. In 1218,  Raymond of Penafort started a lay organization for the purpose of ransoming slaves. Peter, who was an advocate for this, decided to start an organization with rules and guidelines made up of religious members under the patronage of Mary.

In 1218 Peter also formed a congregation of religious men which today, 800 years later,  is known as The Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy. The title is summed up in one word, Mercedarians. Besides the standard vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience, the Mercedarians also take a fourth vow; they agree to exchange themselves to free captive Christians.  In the First Constitutions of the Order, the Amerian Constitutions (1272): “… all the brothers of the Order must always be gladly disposed to give up their lives, if it is necessary, as Jesus Christ gave up his for us…”

St. Peter Nolasco never lost sight of the fact that he would join with the Blessed Virgin to advance his ministry. He knew that saving the captives could never be accomplished without help from the Mother of Jesus. Mary is linked to the program of liberation. She is the model for all redemptive work. He knew that Our Lady was what reinforced and guaranteed all of the apostolic works that would be undertaken.

St. Peter Nolasco discovered that Mary was the foundation of freedom and mercy. She is the sustenance and point of the liberation movement. So much so that the order founded by him is called The Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy.

From that point forward all Friars, Sisters, and the Third Order always considered Mary as the Mother of Freedom. She is the one who sustains and encourages the order with her ever continued and ongoing presence. The Blessed Mother came to Peter Nolasco and helped him realize that the mystery of God’s redemption is visible in the captivity and heartache of those held against their will. To this very day, they will offer themselves by trading their very selves for your freedom.

From the Mercedarian website:  orderofmercy.org

“Today, friars of the Order of Mercy continue to rescue others from modern types of captivity, such as social, political, and psychological forms. They work in jails, marginal neighborhoods, among addicts, and in hospitals. In the United States, the Order of Mercy gives special emphasis to educational and parish work.”

Pope Gregory IX gave the church’s official seal of approval to the Mercedarian order in 1230.

Peter Nolasco died on May 6, 1256. He was canonized a saint in 1628 by Pope Urban VIII.

St. Peter Nolasco, please pray for us all

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Please see other articles on members of The Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy

St.Serapion     St. Peter Paschal   St. Mary de Cervellon  St. Raymond Nonnnatus

Peter Armengol

 

Choosing Government over God has a Difference; One is Death, and the other is Life

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AP photo

(I chose not to put any photos of Alfie in here.  His parents deserve some privacy)

 

“I do not hesitate to proclaim before you and before the world that all human life — from the moment of conception and through all subsequent stages — is sacred because human life is created in the image and likeness of God.”

Pope St. John Paul II

 

By Larry Peterson

The saga of Alfie Evans sickened me. Except for two overriding factors, his death was unnecessary. First, the feigned necessity of his death is embedded within the secular practicality of a 21st-century  judicial system. Secondly, among many medical practitioners who lean on their own omniscient ability, it was in Alfie’s “best interests” to die. You see, they had to help him because he refused to do it on his own. He had become a “burden” to secularism.

I write this because I have experienced circumstances similar to Alfie’s parents. My wife was on life-support, but unlike Tom and Kate Evans, I had the task of allowing the machines to be turned off.  It was not a judge or a doctor or the courts or anything like that. It was ME,  the woman’s husband. The end result was different.

My wife, Loretta, had been ill for a long time and on April 6, 2002, she fell into a coma. By that evening she was on life support. There was a Catholic living will on file for each of us, and I signed a DNR (do not resuscitate). A DNR gave me control over life ending processes. Even though her final breaths were expected, signing the DNR was, for me, akin to signing a death warrant.

Although my wife was a middle-aged adult and Alfie was a baby, the parallels in each case are quite similar. Alfie, at the age of seven months, developed seizures and they caused him to go into a “semi-vegetative state.” Alfie did have brain function, but most doctors agreed that his condition (which they were not sure of) was incurable. Most importantly, his parent’s rights to try to save him were stripped from them by the courts.

We tried for three days to wean Loretta off the ventilator. Each time her breathing stopped in less than a minute. Six doctors told us it was “no-use.” On the third day, my grown children took turns going to their mom’s bedside to say their “good-byes.” One at a time they came from that room sobbing like babies. I was last and sat by her side, looking at her, holding her hand and saying whatever it was I was saying. Those words I do not remember. I do remember one word; I was called a “murderer” by someone in Loretta’s family.

Unlike Alfie’s parents, I had control over the machine that was doing her breathing (she had been on life-support for three weeks).  Three of the doctors were there and the chief-of-staff. I asked them to pray with us, and they all did. The machine was switched off, and the intubation tubes were removed. A minute passed by and she kept breathing. Then two minutes passed by and then five and ten and then one hour. The cardiologist said, “Don’t be fooled, she won’t make it.”

Three days later she was up in a room, and three weeks later she came home. She had earned the title of “The Miracle Woman of Northside.” Her recovery was not only baffling; it was unexplainable. Ironically, cancer killed her exactly one year later. The “murderer” comment was never retracted.

In Alfie’s case, his parents had no choice. They were invoking God along with countless others around the world.  The Pope had secured citizenship for Alfie, and the Italians were ready to transport him to Italy to be cared for. Unfortunately, in the world of the “nones,” secularists, and atheists, God is not part of the equation. He was the common denominator in ours.

Virtually every court in the U.K. ruled against the parent’s rights. The government and their “experts” knew best; Alfie must DIE. I cannot imagine standing by as my child’s life was taken from him by court order. It is incomprehensible to me.

So the state took away the parent’s right to protect their child. They subjugated Natural law and vanquished the very nucleus of any successful civilization, the family.  They pulled Alfie’s tube.  He lived for five days breathing on his own. Was that a message from above that those in charge should have tried harder?

Unfortunately for Alfie, his “quality of life” was not deemed worthy to move forward. Loretta kept breathing and did use oxygen intermittently. If the doctors were in charge of the breathing apparatus, they might have simply left it off when her breathing failed on the first day.

Unlike the Evans, we were able to take three days before we agreed to leave it off.  On the third day, she kept on breathing on her own and came out of the coma. Doctors do NOT know everything. They are definitely not equal to the God who created each and every one of them.

I can end this with one irrefutable fact. Tom and Kate Evans will go home, and when they close the door behind them, they will realize that little Alfie is gone—permanently. Therein lays the lonely heartache they will forever live with. You cannot understand that unless you too, have lived it.

Please pray for them both that within each other they find the strength to move on. What happened to them and their son was a terrible thing.

copyright©Larry Peterson 2018