Tag Archives: Religion

Hold Fast To God

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From the treatise on Flight from the World by Saint Ambrose, bishop

Hold fast to God, the one true good

Where a man’s heart is, there is his treasure also. God is not accustomed to refusing a good gift to those who ask for one. Since he is good, and especially to those who are faithful to him, let us hold fast to him with all our soul, our heart, our strength, and so enjoy his light and see his glory and possess the grace of supernatural joy. Let us reach out with our hearts to possess that good, let us exist in it and live in it, let us hold fast to it, that good which is beyond all we can know or see and is marked by perpetual peace and tranquillity, a peace which is beyond all we can know or understand.

This is the good that permeates creation. In it we all live, on it we all depend. It has nothing above it; it is divine. No one is good but God alone. What is good is therefore divine, what is divine is therefore good. Scripture says: When you open your hand all things will be filled with goodness. It is through God’s goodness that all that is truly good is given us, and in it there is no admixture of evil.

These good things are promised by Scripture to those who are faithful: The good things of the land will be your food.

We have died with Christ. We carry about in our bodies the sign of his death, so that the living Christ may also be revealed in us. The life we live is not now our ordinary life but the life of Christ: a life of sinlessness, of chastity, of simplicity and every other virtue. We have risen with Christ. Let us live in Christ, let us ascend in Christ, so that the serpent may not have the power here below to wound us in the heel.

Let us take refuge from this world. You can do this in spirit, even if you are kept here in the body. You can at the same time be here and present to the Lord. Your soul must hold fast to him, you must follow after him in your thoughts, you must tread his ways by faith, not in outward show. You must take refuge in him. He is your refuge and your strength. David addresses him in these words: I fled to you for refuge, and I was not disappointed.

Since God is our refuge, God who is in heaven and above the heavens, we must take refuge from this world in that place where there is peace, where there is rest from toil, where we can celebrate the great sabbath, as Moses said: The sabbaths of the land will provide you with food. To rest in the Lord and to see his joy is like a banquet, and full of gladness and tranquillity.

Let us take refuge like deer beside the fountain of waters. Let our soul thirst, as David thirsted, for the fountain. What is that fountain? Listen to David: With you is the fountain of life. Let my soul say to this fountain: When shall I come and see you face to face? For the fountain is God himself.

Priest Who Saw Heaven, Hell & Purgatory

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A priest who saw heaven, hell, and purgatory. The
death experience of Father Jose Maniyangat.
Fr. Jose Maniyangat is currently the pastor of St.
Mary’s Mother of Mercy Catholic Church in
Macclenny, Florida. Here is his personal testimony:
I was born on July 16, 1949 in Kerala, India to my
parents, Joseph and Theresa Maniyangat. I am the
eldest of seven children: Jose, Mary, Theresa,
Lissama, Zachariah, Valsa and Tom. At the age of
fourteen, I entered St. Mary’s Minor Seminary in
Thiruvalla to begin my studies for the priesthood.
Four years later, I went to St. Joseph’s Pontifical
Major Seminary in Alwaye, Kerala to continue my
priestly formation. After completing the seven years
of philosophy and theology, I was ordained a priest
on January 1, 1975 to serve as a missionary in the
Diocese of Thiruvalla. On Sunday April 14, 1985,
the Feast of the Divine Mercy, I was going to
celebrate Mass at a mission church in the north part
of Kerala, and I had a fatal accident. I was riding a motorcycle when I was hit head-on by a
jeep driven by a man who was intoxicated after a Hindu festival. I was rushed to a hospital
about 35 miles away. On the way, my soul came out from my body and I experienced death.
Immediately, I met my Guardian Angel. I saw my body and the people who were carrying me
to the hospital. I heard them crying and praying for me. At this time my angel told me: “I am
going to take you to Heaven, the Lord wants to meet you and talk with you.” He also said
that, on the way, he wanted to show me hell and purgatory. Hell First, the angel escorted me
to hell. It was an awful sight! I saw Satan and the devils, an unquenchable fire of about 2,000
degrees Fahrenheit, worms crawling, people screaming and fighting, others being tortured by
demons. The angel told me that all these sufferings were due to unrepented mortal sins. Then,
I understood that there are seven degrees of suffering or levels according to the number and
kinds of mortal sins committed in their earthly lives. The souls looked very ugly, cruel and
horrific. It was a fearful experience. I saw people whom I knew, but I am not allowed to
reveal their identities. The sins that convicted them were mainly abortion, homosexuality,
euthanasia, hatefulness, unforgiveness and sacrilege. The angel told me that if they had
repented, they would have avoided hell and gone instead to purgatory. I also understood that
some people who repent from these sins might be purified on earth through their sufferings.
This way they can avoid purgatory and go straight to heaven. I was surprised when I saw in
hell even priests and Bishops, some of whom I never expected to see. Many of them were
there because they had misled the people with false teaching and bad example. Purgatory
After the visit to hell, my Guardian Angel escorted me to purgatory. Here too, there are seven
degrees of suffering and unquenchable fire. But it is far less intense than hell and there was
neither quarreling nor fighting. The main suffering of these souls is their separation from God.
Some of those who are in purgatory committed numerous mortal sins, but they were
reconciled with God before their death. Even though these souls are suffering, they enjoy
peace and the knowledge that one day they will see God face to face. I had a chance to
communicate with the souls in purgatory. They asked me to pray for them and to tell the
people to pray for them as well, so they can go to heaven quickly. When we pray for these
souls, we will receive their gratitude through their prayers, and once they enter heaven, their
prayers become even more meritorious. It is difficult for me to describe how beautiful my
Guardian Angel is. He is radiant and bright. He is my constant companion and helps me in all

my ministries, especially my healing ministry. I experience his presence everywhere I go and
I am grateful for his protection in my daily life. Heaven Next, my angel escorted me to heaven
passing through a big dazzling white tunnel. I never experienced this much peace and joy in
my life. Then immediately heaven opened up and I heard the most delightful music, which I
never heard before. The angels were singing and praising God. I saw all the saints, especially
the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph, and many dedicated holy Bishops and priests who were
shining like stars. And when I appeared before the Lord, Jesus told me: “I want you to go
back to the world. In your second life, you will be an instrument of peace and healing to My
people.You will walk in a foreign land and you will speak in a foreign tongue. Everything is
possible for you with My grace.”After these words, the Blessed Mother told me: “Do
whatever He tells you. I will help you in your ministries.” Words can not express the beauty
of heaven. There we find so much peace and happiness, which exceed a million times our
imagination. Our Lord is far more beautiful than any image can convey. His face is radiant
and luminous and more beautiful than a thousand rising suns. The pictures we see in the world
are only a shadow of His magnificence. The Blessed Mother was next to Jesus; She was so
beautiful and radiant. None of the images we see in this world can compare with Her real
beauty. Heaven is our real home; we are all created to reach heaven and enjoy God forever.
Then, I came back to the world with my angel. While my body was at the hospital, the doctor
completed all examinations and I was pronounced dead. The cause of death was bleeding. My
family was notified, and since they were far away, the hospital staff decided to move my dead
body to the morgue. Because the hospital did not have air conditioners, they were concerned
that the body would decompose quickly. As they were moving my dead body to the morgue,
my soul came back to the body. I felt an excruciating pain because of so many wounds and
broken bones. I began to scream, and then the people became frightened and ran away
screaming. One of them approached the doctor and said: “The dead body is screaming.” The
doctor came to examine the body and found that I was alive. So he said: “Father is alive, it is
a miracle! Take him back to the hospital.” Now, back at the hospital, they gave me blood
transfusions and I was taken to surgery to repair the broken bones. They worked on my lower
jaw, ribs, pelvic bone, wrists, and right leg. After two months, I was released from the
hospital, but my orthopedic doctor said that I would never walk again. I then said to him:
“The Lord who gave me my life back and sent me back to the world will heal me.” Once at
home, we were all praying for a miracle. Still after a month, and with the casts removed, I was
not able to move. But one day while praying I felt an extraordinary pain in my pelvic area.
After a short while the pain disappeared completely and I heard a voice saying: “You are
healed. Get up and walk.” I felt the peace and healing power on my body. I immediately got
up and walked. I praised and thanked God for the miracle. I reached my doctor with the news
of my healing, and he was amazed. He said: “Your God is the true God. I must follow your
God.” The doctor was Hindu, and he asked me to teach him about our Church. After studying
the Faith, I baptized him and he became Catholic. Following the message from my Guardian
Angel, I came to the United States on November 10, 1986 as a missionary priest… Since June
1999, I have been pastor of St. Mary’s Mother of Mercy Catholic Church in Macclenny,
Florida. Fr. Jose Maniyangat

The Rosary- Video

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Oh so beautifully done:

Faith for Living

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Mother and Child

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Solemn Moment

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Heart to Heart

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Living Faith

St. Casimir

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From the Life of Saint Casimir written by a contemporary

By fulfilling the commands of the Most High he stored up treasure for himself

By the power of the Holy Spirit, Casimir burned with a sincere and unpretentious love for almighty God that was almost unbelievable in its strength. So rich was his love and so abundantly did it fill his heart, that it flowed out from his inner spirit toward his fellow men. As a result nothing was more pleasant, nothing more desirable for him, than to share his belongings, and even to dedicate and give his entire self to Christ’s poor, to strangers, to the sick, to those in captivity and to all who suffer. To widows, orphans and the afflicted, he was not only a guardian and patron but a father, son and brother. One would have to compose a long account to record here all his works of love and dedication for God and for mankind. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine or to express his passion for justice, his exercise of moderation, his gift of prudence, his fundamental spiritual courage and stability, especially in in a most permissive age, when men tended to be headstrong and by their very natures inclined to sin.

Daily he urged his father to practice justice throughout his kingdom and in the governance of his people; and whenever anything in the country had been overlooked because of human weakness or simple neglect, he never failed to point it out quietly to the king.

He actively took up the cause of the needy and unfortunate and embraced it as his own; for this reason the people called him the patron of the poor. Though the son of a king and descendant of a noble line, he was never unapproachable in his conversation or dealings with anyone, no matter how humble or obscure.

He always preferred to be counted among the meek and poor of spirit, among those who are promised the kingdom of heaven, rather than among the famous and powerful men of this world. He had no ambition for the power that lies in human rank and he would never accept it from his father. He was afraid the barbs of wealth, which our Lord Jesus Christ spoke of as thorns, would wound his soul, or that he would be contaminated by contact with worldly goods.

Many who acted as his personal servants or secretaries are still alive today; these men, of the highest integrity, who had personal knowledge of his private life, testify that he preserved his chastity to the very end of his life.

“The Time of Faith Has Come”

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From the treatise Against Heresies by Saint Irenaeus, bishop

Through foreshadowings of the future, Israel was learning reverence for God and perseverance in his service

From the beginning God created man out of his own generosity. He chose the patriarchs to give them salvation. He took his people in hand, teaching them, unteachable as they were, to follow him. He gave them prophets, accustoming man to bear his Spirit and to have communion with God on earth. He who stands in need of no one gave communion with himself to those who need him. Like an architect he outlined the plan of salvation to those who sought to please him. By his own hand he gave food in Egypt to those who did not see him. To those who were restless in the desert he gave a law perfectly suited to them. To those who entered the land of prosperity he gave a worthy inheritance. He killed the fatted calf for those who turned to him as Father, and clothed them with the finest garment. In so many ways he was training the human race to take part in the harmonious song of salvation.

For this reason John in the book of Revelation says: His voice was as the voice of many waters. The Spirit of God is indeed a multitude of waters, for the Father is rich and great. As the Word passed among all these people he provided help in generous measure for those who were obedient to him, by drawing up a law that was suitable and fitting for every circumstance. He established a law for the people governing the construction of the tabernacle and the building of the temple, the choice of Levites, the sacrifices, the offerings, the rites of purification and the rest of what belonged to worship.

He himself needs none of these things. He is always filled with all that is good. Even before Moses existed he had within himself every fragrance of all that is pleasing. Yet he sought to teach his people, always ready though they were to return to their idols. Through many acts of indulgence he tried to prepare them for perseverance in his service. He kept calling them to what was primary by means of what was secondary, that is, through foreshadowings to the reality, through things of time to the things of eternity, through things of the flesh to the things of the spirit, through earthly things to the heavenly things. As he said to Moses: You will fashion all things according to the pattern that you saw on the mountain.

For forty days Moses was engaged in remembering the words of God, the heavenly patterns, the spiritual images, the foreshadowings of what was to come. Saint Paul says: They drank from the rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. After speaking of the things that are in the law he continues: All these things happened to them as symbols: they were written to instruct us, on whom the end of the ages has come.

Through foreshadowings of the future they were learning reverence for God and perseverance in his service. The law was therefore a school of instruction for them, and a prophecy of what was to come.