Saturday, November 20, 2010

All Glory is Fleeting

The Massachusetts priest that stalked Conan O'Brien is back in the news, accused of stalking local newsman he believed was working on a story about him to 'give him his side of the story'.

After receiving disturbing letters from Ajamian, the newscaster got a protection order which Ajemian promptly brought it to the police station saying he wanted to be arrested so he could be interviewed by the television personality.  He told police he'd spent the day in town eating and taking some walks around town in an effort to find him, got a room at a local hotel and went to the police station because his search was coming up empty.


After police told him to go home, Ajemian later called 911, saying he had found Everett’s house and was going to visit him at noon the next day. Police arrested Ajemian in Cohasset on Thursday.
At his arraignment yesterday in Quincy District Court, Ajemian pleaded not guilty to violating the order and was sent to the Solomon Carter Fuller Mental Health Center in Boston until his Dec. 8 court date.
During the court proceedings, a doctor said Ajemian was a Harvard-educated, “extremely bright” man who had a long history of mental illness and had been off his medications for two weeks.
God help him.

There's something chilling about the picture of Fr. Ajemian.  I wanted to blog about the story because on its face value (having nothing to do with the particular situation), the picture reminded me of the consequence of misguidance that has brought a generation to abandon repentance and the use of the Sacrament of Confession, prayers casting out demons,  sacramentals and the rite of exorcism.

Several readers and commenters have asked me to write thoughts about Mark Mallet's recent post So Little Time Left and I wanted to get this post up.

These are very interesting times for sure.   The confusion and confused whipping up the frenzies, the spiritual armies seems to me to be taking victims at greater speed and with greater force on both sides.

The darkness on the left and the light on the right is causing the people living in the gray to head towards their destinations with a little more bounce in their step.    The people firmly planted in the gray are making a lot of noise because their crowd is thinning out.  These are certainly the times and opportunities to influence people who have been led to the gray.   I see people teetering.  People falling.   People attacking truth with more vigor.  I also see more people speaking the truth with more purpose and zeal.

Something spiritual is taking place.

Strictly speaking in the world of Catholicism (because it's my only area of expertise), most of the people sucked into the guidance of rebellion against God are sucked in by priests and Bishops teaching free will is some kind of a spiritual force of its own (nonsense).

 The Jesuits in control of our teaching facilities have led millions (or more likely billions) to their spiritual deaths.  The Bernadin crowd, the Commonweal crowd, Vox Nova crowd, National Catholic Reporter crowd, America Magazine crowd have all been sucked into the vacuum. I think we need to be very aware of the spiritual battles around us because we are going to need every tool we have at our disposal.  I see apostolates that were formerly faithfully leading souls to salvation falling into the hands of those who are in error and the opposite is also true.

 There are forces behind the battle waging on each side to collect as many souls as possible.

Catholics are very open to understanding how prayer, worship and abandonment of our own wills to hear the guidance of angelic forces actually empower them and enable them to work in our lives and in the lives around us.  But there's been an avoidance of Catholic teaching on how the parallel work of demonic forces actually operate in the exact same ways.    The Bishops seem aware of what is going on too as for the first time in who knows how long, they are looking into beefing up exorcisms.

I think we should tune up on it, so here are my thoughts:

There is a commander of each spiritual and powerful army of spirits, God commands the angelic and the devil commands the demonic.    These forces are really powerless in our lives unless we empower them in some way.

God has given each of us control through free will.  Free will is a complicated subject but for the purposes of this post, I'll limit it to the license to control our own intellect and spirit to either surrender them to God and His army, knowing we are severely limited to understand what is best for us  - like Christ and Mary, or we choose the path of Adam and Eve - accepting the temptation to live our lives pursuing advice and counsel elsewhere because our intellects are limited to understand and know why what we want to do, or have the desire to do, is not good for us and the surrender to God just isn't good enough.


Under the command of God, angelic forces can be concentrated in a particular place.   A Sanctuary, holy ground, a particular place or city our country where many souls have been praying and empowering them.   They are limited to act when based upon how much we have surrendered our will to the Father, whether we are in a state of grace or immersed in weakness or sin.   When many are gathered who are in a state of grace, there is a concentration of angelic forces.

Catholics for the most part get that angelic forces don't 'possess' us.   We are in possession of our own spirits and intellects though there are moments of willfull surrender when they can have more influence over what we say and do.    Christ's Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity can be a guest in our souls if we are in a state of grace.

More or less of His Presence can reside in our immortal souls but that Presence offers us the ability to rest our spirit in Him so He can act with and through us but God retains the possession of His Divinity.    With Saints there is a mystical fusion.  The person does not become God or an Angel but the manifestations of the fusion are present.

Alternately, the hierarchy of demonic forces work mirror this empowerment.   There are people who worship and make sacrifices to the devil (which is actually the opposing force of the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass).  There are people in various identity crises who get roped into it through peers.  Most of them don't realize what they're doing because the occult has been neutralized and in some cases made cutesy in a Harry Potter kind of way.  (btw - Learning where Harry Potter has led its main actor,  a horses ass, selling the drunken hogwart occult and sex culture as a benign influence has lost all merit.)   Nevertheless, occult practices can empower forces that concentrate in a particular locus for a particular reason.  They can surround a person, be more concentrated in a home, school, diocese.  Sometimes, there is a fusion.  The person does not become the devil but manifestations of the fusion are present.

To people attune to the spiritual world, they hang in air like bad smell when they're in play in a situation or person or place.

Of particular interest to me have been interactions during the battle (and ultimately the stunning victory) over the USCCB have been the people who don't see things from the perspective of a battle for souls but rather a battle of dueling political philosophies.  The fatal wound to the political and cultural control they have had over the USCCB is causing them to lash out with such venom and with irrational arguments, they are impossible to believe if you are a lover of truth and justice.  Frankly, it is so outlandish, it seems to me to be more than something mortal going on.

Their messiah and cultural warrior has fallen and he can't get up.  They are so blinded, they put Nancy Pelosi right back as their fearless leader. No matter who wins or losses on the political level, the Bishops have just signaled that the battle for the soul of the Church has split of from their trajectory.

Two quotes come to mind - one from General Patton~

For over a thousand years, Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honor of a triumph - a tumultuous parade. In the procession came trumpeters and musicians and strange animals from the conquered territories, together with carts laden with treasure and captured armaments. The conqueror rode in a triumphal chariot, the dazed prisoners walking in chains before him. Sometimes his children, robed in white, stood with him in the chariot, or rode the trace horses. A slave stood behind the conqueror, holding a golden crown, and whispering in his ear a warning: that all glory is fleeting. 

The other from Pope John Paul II~


"Do not be afraid. 

Do not be satisfied with mediocrity. 
Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." 

Two different battles that can sometimes merge but if our hearts lose sight of the ultimate objective of our purpose here on earth, anything else we are doing was a battle for the glorification of our own egos.   



Keep the focus.   Choose well.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Excellent post!
God Bless YOU!

Anonymous said...

Carol,

Let me join in the thanks. It will be interesting to see the next few Mark Mallett posts as he explores his theme.


M

Anonymous said...

With all due respect, your first paragraph shows inaccuracies. If you based your statements from the article you linked to this post, it shows how people perception of events are quite different. The article also quotes the prosecutor making reference to the unstable clergyman. Did she really say that? I doubt it.

I also watched the footage from the TV station that reported his arraignment. I'm certain this snap shot was carefully selected. What I saw was a man listening carefully to what he was being accused of.

I also know Fr. Ajemian personally. He's not anything like what you are suggesting. The devil has its hand in the media. I've seen this over and over again. He is the great accuser!

Anyway, I feel you've wrongly judged this man. Maybe a trip to the confessional for you is in order. Pray about it.

TTC said...

I'm not quite sure what it is you believe I'm accusing him of, but let me clarify.

Stalking and sending communications to a journalist that are disturbing enough to obtain a restraining order from a judge is abnormal behavior. After receiving knowledge that you have scared somebody enough for them to go to a judge and get a protective order, that one would still, not only go into the town where he lives to look for him, get a hotel room there and then go to the police station with the order asking to be arrested, believing this will lead to an interview -- indicates something is going terribly awry in the thought process.

Making a judgment about that does not put on out of a state of grace and suggesting it does is manipulative and creepy.

The photograph is what it is and I clearly stated whatever look on this man's face that was captured on film is the look on his face that was captured on film. If he didn't make that face, we wouldn't be seeing the picture, even, if as you say, this was in his worst moment.

The photograph is quite jarring. I made clear that my gut reaction to the photo had nothing at all to do with making a diagnosis about the man but it did remind me of the abandonment of the dispelling evil spirits.

Again, there is nothing material there for the confessional.

I don't take a shine to spiritually manipulative posts so you will excuse my forthrightness in responding to it.

Anonymous said...

All Glory is Fleeting?

"During the court proceedings, a doctor said Ajemian was a Harvard-educated, “extremely bright” man who had a long history of mental illness and had been off his medications for two weeks."

This statement is true. He has bipolar disorder. Fr. Ajemain's behavior indicates to me that he is having a manic episode. I'm disappointed he stopped taking his meds, but I know he is not evil, nor is he violent. He is also in a grieving period as he recently loss in father.

I don't know exactly what the disturbing letters contained, but if anyone goes before a judge and says such and such is making me fearful, a judge will issue an order. Perhaps the previous incident with Conan compounded that. I don't know. We are hearing bits and pieces of a story, and in this country one is presumed innocent until proven guilty, or at least that's how it suppose to work.

I don't mean to come down on you. I just felt in my heart, you were acting in haste, and making assessments about this man, and whatever look about him that disturbs you.

I just don't think it's very charitable.

God Bless

TTC said...

It is ok to come down on me - please do - since even when we try our best to keep watch on our own souls, we sometimes miss a thing or two or the way I write something may actually imply something I didn't intend to convey.

In hindsight, I should have separated the two posts. One ends at "God Help Him" and nothing that comes after that has anything to do with him or the situation. I am always conscience of the consequences of infestation and demonic activity that is not attended to with the tools the Church gave us and this photograph was simply another reminder. In no way was it a diagnosis of the situation or did the thoughts that follow have anything at all to do with Fr. Ajamian personally.

If there is a way you think I can make it clearer in the post, I'm happy to make some edits.

Anonymous said...

I hope God helps him too, and heals him of this terrible illness that he never asked for, and one that has caused him much suffering, and frightened those who don't understand it. I also hope God heals him of the wounds inflicted by the lack of charity in this world. If you've read the many callous comments left by viewers and readers alike, you might understand where I'm coming from. Posting a photo of this man to remind others what infestation might look like is just another example. What if that were you in the picture?

TTC said...

I did not read the comments on the story. I seldom do because they are another example of not just a lack of charity, but the spiritual warfare that is being understimated and ignored.

Thank you for sharing your kindness and compassion. I want to share with you the reasons why I posted the story the way I did. There are many priests among my readers and there are Chancery officials also. I am raising their consciousness to what is going on around them.

Here in Boston, last I knew, when the exorcist retired several years ago, they did not replace him. The training in the seminary is laughable on demonology so consequently, priests are left to the wiles of the enemy and are completely unprepared and unaware the spiritual world around us. I know it sounds crazy, but it is true.

The administration in control now are lay people, but even before the archbishop was overthrown, they were incapable of assessment because they are not believers. Anyone who is a believer and tries to tell them are scoffed and rebuffed. They are living on the surface. People of the flesh.

My post did not imply Fr. A was an example of possession. I made clear I knew nothing of the situation other than the photo is chilling because it is.

You do realize that even Peter, one of the Apostles and in fact the Apostle Christ chose for His first Pope, the Devil was messing with...as in get behind me Satan. How would you feel if Christ said that to you in resonse to something you said!

It is one thing to read it in a book. Another to call our priests to attention in the real world in the hope they will begin to smell the smell.

Anonymous said...

I'm not ignorant to the presence of spiritual warfare. I've seen it happening in my own life, and in my family. It's not pretty so I totally understand where you are coming from.

I imagine exorcism is only for the brave and one would need a special calling?

Good luck trying to raise the consciousness of our priests and especially to those in the Chancery. No offense man in cloth, but I've seen you clueless all too often in small things, how are you going to manage the bigger ones?

Take care, Carol. I wish you the best!!

Michele

TTC said...

Michelle,

Yeah - The Rite of Exorcism is reserved for trained priests! But laity have Blessed water, salt, the Rosary and other prayers and sacramentals that are designed for lay people in spiritual warfare....

Anonymous said...

I know. God does not leave us empty handed. I have an abundance of both...lol!!!

I have a very strong devotion to Mary, and to her messages from Medjugorie. Still, it's not easy when the devil is on your back.

If Christ were to say, "Get behind me." I would listen to him as I really try to everyday. Right now, I'm trying to discern if I'm playing his advocate or not, so I'd appreciate your prayers with this intention I have.

Thanks!