“The final battle between the Lord and the reign of Satan will be about marriage and the family. Don’t be afraid … because anyone who operates for the sanctity of marriage and the family will always be contended and opposed in every way, because this is the decisive issue … however, Our Lady has already crushed its head” (Sister Lucia, one of the seers of Fatima)

With the Supreme Court decision on marriage pending any day now (I’ve been calling this our “Genesis 19 Moment“), along with many other events happening in the world and on the horizon, many wonder what kind of evil has been unleashed upon the world. Many of these events correspond to approved prophecies, most of which have been given in the past two centuries. Up until recent years, I was completely unaware of this prophecy attributed to Our Lady of Good Success, but many years prior to that, I had been saying the “something happened … something erupted in the 1960s …

“Thus I make it known to you that from the end of the 19th century and shortly after the middle of the 20th century…the passions will erupt and there will be a total corruption of morals… As for the Sacrament of Matrimony, which symbolizes the union of Christ with His Church, it will be attacked and deeply profaned. Freemasonry, which will then be in power, will enact iniquitous laws with the aim of doing away with this Sacrament, making it easy for everyone to live in sin and encouraging procreation of illegitimate children born without the blessing of the Church… In this supreme moment of need for the Church, the one who should speak will fall silent.” -Our Lady of Good Success

Kinda hit the nail on the head there. “Shortly after the middle of the 20th century? Why … that points to the infamous anti-authority, pro-hedonism 1960s, that ushered in unparalleled self-indulgence (the essence of the demonic) into our world. In the midst of this, our Church has not only suffered unprecedented losses in the shear number of souls, but we are witnessing an epidemic of liturgical abuse and rampant sacrilege. Most of those who are “tuned in” (informed) admit we very well could be in the throes of what is termed, “The Great Apostasy.”

God is a perfect parent. In His mercy, He will do all He can to teach, lead and guide. Just as parents do, He will affirm positive behavior with blessings and, if need be, when we misbehave, He will “get our attention” by some form of disciplinary action. I don’t know about you, but I believe we are living in an unrivaled time of “misbehavior.”

At the same time, in His mercy, He seems to be giving us warning after warning to prepare for this “disciplinary action.” And, a major way has been by way of these prophecies … a kind of “fair warning” to those who choose to stay close to Him and, therefore, are more “tuned in.”

If one were to believe the prophecies, it seems we are either in or heading toward a “Minor Tribulation” (Our Father in Heaven’s disciplinary action) before entering an era of peace. If one were to believe the prophecies, this will culminate in “Three Days of Darkness.”

 

WHAT ARE THE THREE DAYS OF DARKNESS?

(From EWTN) The prophecy of three days of darkness is not in the Book of Revelation but in the revelations of the end times provided by Catholic prophets St. Caspar del Bufulo, Blessed Anna Maria Taigi, Blessed Elizabeth Canori-Mora and Blessed Mary of Jesus Crucified. These holy Catholics of the 19th century, the last two of whom Pope John Paul II beatified, speak of a Minor Tribulation of the world (minor compared to the Great Tribulation of the Antichrist at the end of the world), as a time of purification leading into an age of peace. This “era of peace” is presumably that prophesized to the children of Fatima, and which St. John Eudes, St. Louis de Monfort, and others, have spoken of variously as a Marian age, or an Eucharistic age, or a Social Reign of Jesus Christ. It is not, in Catholic prophecy, a physical reign of Jesus on the earth, such as the Protestants expect, since that is the heresy of millenarianism. Rather, it is a time in which the Church will flourish, the Gospel will be spread to the far corners of the earth, but which will eventually devolve into the time of the Antichrist, whom Christ will slay with the breath of His Coming. THAT will be the end.

 

As for the three days of darkness, when it is said all light will be extinguished and hell loosed upon the earth, it is said to be the culminating event of the Minor Tribulation, and follows upon what man has reaped by his own self-will: war, violence, natural calamities and disease. Is it to be taken literally or figuratively? I don’t know.

 

Regarding the Third Secret of Fatima the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith wrote that the prophecies of authentic private revelation, like those of Scripture, are symbolic. So, perhaps it refers to the times in which we live, in which hell does seem to be loosed. But symbolic prophecies can have exact historical fulfillments, as the shooting of the Pope did in connection with the Fatima secret. So, perhaps it will have some more literal fulfillment in an event of evident divine punishment. Even the Third Secret threatens that, in the angel’s sword poised to strike the earth unless man repents.

 

Finally, since prophecy is intended to change our behavior to conform to the will of God, it could be that these prophecies, from reliable and holy sources, could or have been mitigated (lessened in intensity, or even changed to a different event).

 

Like the prophecies fortelling the coming of Christ, it is entirely possible that only after the events will Catholics be able to look back and identify their exact fulfillment.

 

For a thorough summary of the biblical, patristic and Catholic prophetic tradition regarding the end times, read Desmond Birch’s Trial, Tribulation and Triumph (Santa Barbara, CA., Queenship Publishing).

Beyond these prophecies, some point to “signs in the sky,” which God has a long history of using to “get our attention.” I find it more than interesting, for example, that within 20 days of the 100th anniversary of the “sign in the sky” at Fatima (October 13, 1917), the Revelations 12 “sign in the Sky” will appear (Sept. 23, 2017 … google it).

 

WHAT SHOULD WE DO?

Listen, odds are this is not as immanent as the prophecies, signs and world events seem to indicate. But, I’d rather play it safe, and give some strong consideration to the fact that God may be trying to “warn the devout.” I found this detailed list someone put together online (HERE). But, I believe the most essential thing we need to do (and it’s in that list too) is, “WE MUST GET AND REMAIN IN THE STATE OF GRACE NOW!” The time is now for us to do the “Nineveh Thing.”

Since 9 days prior to the Birthday of St. John the Baptist (the great defender of marriage), over 3,300 people have gathered (through social media) to do what we are calling “Special Forces Training.” Borrowing a term from the military, we want to do all we can to be in, and help others be in, the “special force” of God’s supernatural grace. The sackcloth and ashes of the Ninevites represents their desire to no longer be conformed to their former passions, but resolved to be God’s obedient children (1 Peter 1:14-15). We are training to discover what “real obedience” looks like as a child of God.

Beyond this, you may want to have your “Bug Out Bag” (or, “Bug In,” since we must stay inside) ready for any kind of emergency (the picture above is my “Bug In Bag”).

“When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out” (Jonah 3:10).

You are invited to join our “Special Forces Training” Facebook group HERE