The Solemnity of the Annunciation - Mary, Did You Know?

Mary did you know, that your baby boy
Is Lord of all creation?

Mary did you know, that your baby boy
Will one day rule the nations? 

Did you know, that your baby boy
Was Heaven's perfect Lamb?

And this sleeping Child you're holding
Is the Great I AM

From the song Mary, Did You Know?  lyrics by Mark Lowry

Jimmy Akin writes,

"I know a lot of people like this song . . . and I am NOT trying to get anyone all twisted up about it, but I have to get something off my chest . . . .
Every time I hear this song, I want to stand up and holler "YES, Mary knew! If ANYONE knew, she did!!"

Jimmy Akin also says this,

"In my mind, the song conjures up an image of Mary as a nonplussed and naive young girl, caught up in events she can't comprehend or control. This is not surprising, since the song was written by a Protestant Evangelical and this is the prevailing view of Mary among Protestants."

I guess I am pretty good at weaving the truth into my interpretation of songs. (Case in point: "I Come to the Garden Alone."  I rationalize that we all "come to Jesus alone" -- the fact that we are one body in Christ is perfectly understood and simpatico with my interpretation of the song LOL). But back to the topic at hand . . .  I love Jimmy Akin's 2005 post about this!


As Jimmy Aikin suggests - look at the first chapter of Luke's gospel:

And Mary said:
   "My soul glorifies the Lord
    and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful
      of the humble state of his servant.
   From now on all generations will call me blessed,
    for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
      holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
      from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
      he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
      but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
      but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
      remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
      even as he said to our fathers."

I interpret the song lyrics to be my awe in Mary's decision. I picture myself humbly asking her,  "Did you know," and in the same breath (although this is not in the lyrics) I continue and answer. 

"Of course you knew. Thank you for saying, 'Yes,' sweet Mother of God. Thank you."

The song really does express what my thoughts have often been -- granted, I was raised with a Methodist and Catholic upbringing (but that's another story).

Why do I picture myself asking her that - as the song is leading me to do?  

I believe it is because the song reflects my great reverance -- my very honest inquiry -- because I do know that I sin and in those many sins I am NOT saying yes to God.

It makes me question my own actions as I identify with Our Holy Mother. I remember that we are so incredibly blessed to have her as Our Mother.

I like how Jimmy Akin continues in his 2005 post:

He says, "Now, even if I didn't believe that Mary was born without sin, after reading her Magnificat, I would begin to suspect that this was no ordinary little Jewish girl. She was perhaps 16 (give or take a year or two) at the time.

How many sixteen-year-olds do you know who would put together a psalm of praise like that?

Mary's Magnificat demonstrates that she not only knew who Jesus was, but what he meant to the nation of Israel and to the world. 

Consider what the angel told her, also from Luke 1:

'He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.'

But Mary had not just been told who Jesus was, she had direct experience of who he was, having been overshadowed by the Holy Spirit at his conception. She knew! Boy, did she know!

Now, I am not saying this is a bad song, or that Catholics shouldn't listen to it. I do, however, want to invite those who hear it to consider that Mary DID know precisely who Jesus was. The next time you hear, Mary, Did You Know?, go and read the first chapter of Luke, and give thanks for all that God has done for us through our Blessed Mother.

Oh, and pray a Rosary!"

Sources: http://www.jimmyakin.org/2005/12/mary_did_you_kn.html

Oprah: Televangelist Of The New Age Deception

Oprah Winfrey arguably has more influence on the culture than any university president, politician, or religious leader, except perhaps the Pope. (Vanity Fair 1994)


Even if you don't watch her TV talk show or listen to her radio show or read her magazine, you or someone you love will be affected by what she's passing off as "spirituality" these days.

Now that Oprah has become a New Age propagandist, we have a duty to expose her and her "guru" guests so that we can rescue Catholics and other Christians from this dangerous ideology. . . .

Keep watch. Be vigilant. The New Age ideas being pushed by Oprah cannot be easily dismissed. They're building steam and gaining ground-even among our fellow Catholics.

Sharon Lee Giganti is a great source of  information on this subject. She is a former New Age teacher, now a Certified Catholic Catechist. I have linked to her website (click on her name). She has shared how she went through a dramatic realization that the ideas and principles of the New Age Movement are actually dangerous and can have deadly consequences in people's lives. Link to Sharon's CD set.

 _____________________________________________

 Here is Jimmy Akin's review and endorsement of Sharon Lee Giganti's CD/story. I have reformatted and edited slightly.

Dear Friend of Catholic Answers,

Karl Keating asked me to write you this letter to alert you to a serious spiritual threat.

My name is Jimmy Akin, and I'm the director of apologetics and evangelization for Catholic Answers.

If you know my personal story, you know that I am a convert to the Catholic faith from Evangelicalism.

What you may not know is that before I was an Evangelical, I was a New Ager. That's right. When I was young and impressionable, before my religious convictions matured, I was a follower of the New Age Movement and its bizarre beliefs regarding reincarnation, astrology, clairvoyance, psychic healing, Atlantis, "Earth changes," automatic writing, " Christ consciousness," and all that stuff.

But I grew out of it.

By God's grace, I was led to embrace the Christian faith . . .  and then the fullness of the Christian faith in the Catholic Church.

Unfortunately, many people are still trapped in the New Age Movement, and now it is more dangerous than ever.
New Age gurus . . . .  

• Deny reality   
• Reject logic and reason   
• Promote delusional thinking   
• Encourage self-centeredness   
• Push people over the edge   
• Dismiss sin and evil   
• Pretend to be God   
• And much more

It's hard to believe that one of the most well-known, most popular, and most influential women in the world is also one of the most dangerous because of what she's teaching to millions of unsuspecting people every single day.

She's Oprah Winfrey. You know her as a wildly successful TV talk show host; you've seen her equally successful woman's magazine, "O," at the checkout stand in the supermarket; you may have heard her popular radio program.

But if you are like many people, you've assumed that she's just been pumping out the same kind of confessional TV talk show pablum, pop psychology, and feel-good self-affirmation that you find on so many other programs.

If that's what you think, you haven't seen her show in years.

Oprah has totally transformed herself and her media empire. Believe it or not, she has become . . . . a spiritual icon.

In its article, "The Church of O," Christianity Today reports:

"Oprah Winfrey has become one of the most influential spiritual leaders in America . . . . To her audience of more than 22 million mostly female viewers, she has become a postmodern priestess -- an icon of church-free spirituality."

Because of her, New Age teachings are being pitched to millions of our fellow Catholics-many of whom are being taken in by the mega-popular Oprah Winfrey and her promotion of three key books in the New Age Movement: 

1. A Course in Miracles 
2. The Secret 
3. A New Earth 

A quick look at each book:

1. A COURSE IN MIRACLES: Again, if you haven't heard of these books, you probably don't subject yourself to watching the Oprah Winfrey Show. But the teachings contained in them -particularly A Course in Miracles- are very dangerous.

Here is the background on A Course in Miracles. It's a foundational book of today's New Age Movement - and it's one that Oprah Winfrey is promoting so religiously on her show.

It's a 1,249-page, 3-volume set that was written in the 1970's by a woman named Helen Schucman -a psychologist from Columbia University.

She claimed that she "heard a Voice" that she identified as Jesus. He spoke to her and dictated this entire book. She merely "scribed" everything he said, and she later dictated that to another writer.

It took her seven years to write A Course in Miracles (Jesus speaks slowly, I suppose)-but even when she was finished with it, she curiously wanted to "re-write" the whole thing!

The bizarre (and dangerous) claim behind this book is that it is "divine revelation." In fact, its proponents claim that it's a "Third Testament" that should be included with the Bible.

The set has been popular for decades. When I was a New Ager, I saw it all the time on the shelves of the (then small, now huge) New Age section in the bookstores. But now the course has been carried to new heights of popularity.

Oprah Winfrey, who already had a long history of promoting New Age ideas via the guests she featured on her show, has locked onto A Course in Miracles and chosen to do a 365-day, non-stop "lesson a day" program that would present it to her millions of fans.

What does A Course in Miracles teach? "Revelations" from "Jesus" such as . . . .

--There is no such thing as sin.

--Evil, pain, suffering, sickness are all illusions.

--Since man never sinned, he has no need of salvation.

--A slain Christ "has no meaning" and so we should not cling "to the old, rugged cross."

--The name of Jesus Christ is a symbol "of all the gods to which you pray."

--To recognize God is to recognize yourself.

 _____________________________________________

2. THE SECRET: Many were duped by Oprah Winfrey into purchasing the runaway bestseller The Secret by Rhonda Byrne-which, by the way, contained absolutely no secrets.

Instead, it's chock full of the 19th century hogwash known as "The Law of Attraction"-which gratuitously claims that you can change your life merely through positive thoughts, which will then cause unexplained "vibrations" that "travel throughout the universe" and magically result in good things happening to you, any time you want. The universe is at your command!

For instance, The Secret teaches that if you're feeling physically ill, just ignore it! Don't give your illness any attention. Don't even talk about it to anyone-presumably, not even a doctor! And if anyone tells you about his illness, change the subject immediately and think happy-happy thoughts so it will all go away.

I know you must be shaking your head in disbelief. But I'm not making this up. Back when I was a New Ager, we were taught to "visualize" whatever we wanted to happen-and if we visualized hard enough then it magically would!

It's sad, but people are now believing that this is how you're supposed to "relate" to God. "God" is actually you. You control the universe through your thoughts.

_____________________________________________

3. A NEW EARTH:   Oprah also promotes another New Age guru . . . .

His name is Eckhart Tolle, author of the best-selling book A New Earth. He, too, denies fundamental tenets of Christianity-even though he quotes Jesus more than any other "teacher" in his books. He says,

"Never personalize Christ. Don't make Christ into a form identity. Avatars, divine mothers, enlightened masters, the very few that are real, are not special as persons."

Tolle also pushes the New Age nonsense that you are God.

"The Truth is inseparable from who you are. Yes, you are the Truth. If you look for it elsewhere, you will be deceived every time. The very Being that you are is Truth.

There can be no subject-object relationship here, no duality, no you-and-God."

_____________________________________________

What did Oprah say to all this?

She calls her work with him perhaps the most important and exciting thing she has ever done.

How big is Oprah's influence?  
This past spring she hosted 10 Monday-night "Web seminars" with him (over the Internet). As many as one million people watched these "webinars" live, and 27 million more downloaded them afterward. It was described as one of the largest single events in Internet history.

So, what does all of this have to do with you? It's very simple. The bottom line (and the reason I'm writing to you about this subject) is this ...

Oprah Winfrey and Her "New Age Gurus" Are Deceiving Tens of Millions of People And Leading Them Away from Christ.

Alarmingly, the ideas behind the New Age Movement are (and have been for some time) creeping into Catholic parishes all across the country. They're disguised in various forms-often as "meditation" or "self-awareness" workshops.

People everywhere can be seen tossing aside their Christian beliefs and acting like they are God because of Oprah Winfrey's non-stop promotion of the anti-Christian ideas contained in these books I've mentioned above.

She's become the high priestess of the New Age.

I could go on for several more pages about the unbelievable nonsense that's passing itself off as true "spirituality" thanks to the New Age Movement.

But instead, I'll let Sharon Lee Giganti give you the scoop when you listen to her eye-opening and riveting story, which gives the crucial background on all these movements 
... who their key players are 
... what they believe in 
... what their fallacies are 
... and, most importantly, how these dangerous ideas affect people's lives in disastrous ways.

 

Ideas have consequences. The worse the idea, the worse the consequences.

Believing that "you are God" is perhaps the worst idea ever sold to the masses!

Keep watch. Be vigilant. The New Age ideas being pushed by Oprah cannot be easily dismissed. They're building steam and gaining ground-even among our fellow Catholics.

I feel strongly about this because I myself was once trapped by the lies of the New Age Movement. Millions of people still are, and it is up to us to help them.

Sharon Lee Giganti's new 3-CD set is an ideal tool to help educate and inform people about the dangers of the New Age.

Sincerely in the real Christ,

Jimmy Akin, Director of Apologetics and Evangelization

 " . . . . . In my years as an apologist, I've heard many compelling stories, but I was amazed at Sharon Lee Giganti's" --Jimmy Akin, Director of Apologetics and Evangelization, Catholic Answers

 

_____________________________________________

Resources!!
Oprah's Gospel - Christian Examiner 
The Church of O - Christian Examiner
Debate with Bill Keller - You Tube 
Note - she needed to read the CCC or the Navarre Bible commentary on "jealous God." Exodus 20:4,5 
Bill Keller (Protestant) misses the point, too.
Jealous: the zealous for the exclusiveness and purity of our love and devotion. God wants what is His: the exclusive devotion of His people. It is only right and good that He should. (Not envy)
Church of Oprah Exposed - You Tube

America's 1st Approved Apparition - Wisconsin

Our Lady of Good Help
H/T: Jimmy Akin!

The apparition took place in 1859 in what is now the Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin. For the last two years a diocesan commission has been evaluating its authenticity, and on Wednesday (Dec. 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception), Bishop David Ricken announced its approval.

Apparently, he was surprised to learn that this was the first such approval of an apparition in the United States. He also reportedly was surprised to learn that it hadn’t already been approved since his predecessor bishops had supported it (albeit without giving it formal approval—note well that this is something that can happen; just because a bishop says something nice about an apparition does not mean it has been formally approved).

As this is the first American approval of an apparition, it is instructive to see the kind of language that Bishop Ricken used (most other such approvals were done pre-Internet and/or in other languages and thus have not been seen by most).

 THE COMPLETE TEXT OF HIS DECREE CAN BE READ HERE (.pdf)

After the bishop briefly reviews the history of the apparition and the investigation of it, he arrives at the money part:

It remains to me now, the Twelfth Bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay and the lowliest of the servants of Mary, to declare with moral certainty and in accord with the norms of the Church: 

that the events, apparitions and locutions given to Adele Brise in October, 1859 do exhibit the substance of supernatural character, and I do hereby approve these apparitions as worthy of belief (although not obligatory) by the Christian faithful.

These Marian apparitions are now commemorated under the title “Our Lady of Good Help,” and there is a corresponding shrine in Champion, Wisconsin.

So what happened in 1859?

A young woman named Adele Brise—28-year old Belgian immigrant to what was then the American frontier—was taking wheat to a local mill when she saw a lady in white standing between two trees (and, yes, she did report the lady as having golden hair in the vision, which would most likely be based on Adele’s ethnic background). The lady then vanished. She saw the same thing the next day.

At first Adele thought the lady might be a soul in purgatory who needed prayers, and she was frightened. She communicated this to several people, one of whom, a local priest, told her that if it were a heavenly messenger, she would see it again, and it would not harm her, but to ask in God’s name who it was and what it desired of her.

Note that these are a paraphrase of the two classic, basic questions, “Who are you?” and “What do you want?” 

I once recommended the same questions to a child who called in to Catholic Answers Live reporting that he heard a voice from an unknown source—if the voice came back. Unfortunately, I never heard whether it did or what the voice answered. But I’m glad to see the advice I gave in modern times echoed in this case. They seem to me the best questions to ask of an unknown, possibly supernatural agency.

Meanwhile, back in 1859, what happened next?

After that, Adele had more courage. She started home with her two companions, and a man who was clearing land for the Holy Cross Fathers at Bay Settlement accompanied them.

As they approached the hallowed spot, Adele could see the beautiful lady, clothed in dazzling white, with a yellow sash around her waist. Her dress fell to her feet in graceful folds. She had a crown of stars around her head, and her long, golden, wavy hair fell loosely around her shoulders. Such a heavenly light shone around her that Adele could hardly look back at her sweet face. Overcome by this heavenly light and the beauty of her amiable visitor, Adele fell on her knees.

"In God’s name, who are you and what do you want of me?"  asked Adele, as she had been directed. 

"I am the Queen of Heaven, who prays for the conversion of sinners, and I wish you to do the same. You received Holy Communion this morning, and that is well. But you must do more. Make a general confession, and offer Communion for the conversion of sinners. If they do not convert and do penance, my Son will be obliged to punish them."

"Adele, who is it?’’ said one of the women. "O why can’t we see her as you do?" said another weeping.

"Kneel," said Adele, "the Lady says she is the Queen of Heaven."

Our Blessed Lady turned, looked kindly at them, and said, "Blessed are they that believe without seeing. What are you doing here in idleness . . . . while your companions are working in the vineyard of my Son?"

"What more can I do, dear Lady?"  said Adele, weeping. 

“Gather the children in this wild country and teach them what they should know for salvation."
 
“But how shall I teach them who know so little myself?" replied Adele. 

“Teach them,’ replied her radiant visitor, ‘their catechism, how to sign themselves with the sign of the Cross, and how to approach the sacraments; that is what I wish you to do. Go and fear nothing. I will help you.”

The manifestation of Our Lady then lifted her hands, as though beseeching a blessing for those at her feet, and slowly vanished, leaving Adele overwhelmed and prostrate on the ground.  [SOURCE]

And that was all, in terms of the apparitions. They were short and straightforward.

Following this, Adele devoted herself wholeheartedly and despite obstacles to her mission of educating children. She became a Third Order Franciscan Sister.
Many people began to hold pilgrimages to the site, where a shrine was built. Healings were reported, and twelve years later the site of the shrine was spared from a tremendous wildfire that scorched large swaths of forest around it.



And so, given the convergence of
(1) the (obvious) compatibility of the message with the Christian faith
(2) the revolution in the life of St. Adele, and
(3) the apparent fruit—including apparent answered prayer—that followed the apparition in the lives of others, Bishop Ricken approved the apparition, concluding with “moral certainty” (not absolute certainty) that it was of divine origin and could be recommended to the faithful as such, though this recommendation does not carry an obligation of belief. One is free to discount the idea that the apparition is of supernatural origin, and in doing so one does not sin.

While apparitions differ from one to another, it may be noted that this case corresponds fairly closely to the core paradigm for approved Marian apparitions, which may be phrased along these lines:
On a limited number of occasions . . .
~~> the Virgin Mary appears to a young, uneducated person—usually female—and imparts a message of that proclaims no new doctrine
~~> but instead conveys both warning and consolation focusing on the salvation of souls and suggesting a way to promote this;
~~> the life of the visionary is revolutionized, and
~~> the visionary pursues some form of religious vocation (if not already undertaken);
~~> the visionary seeks the guidance of competent authorities in the evaluation of the manifestations and is obedient to ecclesiastical authority;
~~> some form of further evidence of answered prayer or the miraculous is forthcoming.

So.
America gets its first approved apparition. Kewl beans.
And, its a straightforward and uncomplicated one that should be uncontroversial and thus serve to highlight it as a useful spiritual signpost. Kewler still.

OFFICIAL SITE OF THE SHRINE

BIO OF THE VISIONARY, ADELE BRISE

ACCOUNT OF THE APPARITIONS

REGISTER COVERAGE

SOURCES: 
Jimmy Akin 
4 Marks  
YouTube Relevent Radio 

Lagniappe:
http://catholicland.blogspot.com/2010/12/our-ladys-new-title.html
http://www.gbdioc.org/newsevents/news/857-worthy-of-belief.html

FINDING THE SHRINE:

Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help
4047 Chapel Drive
New Franken, WI 54229
Phone: (920) 866-2571
E-mail: chapel000@centurytel.net
Web site This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

More information

• Decree approving the Authenticity of the Apparitions of 1859 at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in Champion
• Decree approving the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in Champion as a Diocesan Shrine in the Diocese of Green Bay
• Basic information on apparitions at Champion
• Brief history of the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in Champion
• Web site for the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in Champion