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 A
Century Before Fatima, Providence Announced a Chastisement
 The
May, 2002 issue of the Brazilian magazine Catolicismo
carried a lead article about the private revelations of Blessed
Elizabeth Canori Mora. Since these practically unknown revelations
tie in remarkably with those given at Fatima, the TFP website
decided to reproduce key extracts from the article.
One hundred years before Fatima, Blessed
Elizabeth Canori Mora received revelations reminiscent of
those given by Our Lady to the three shepherd children in
Portugal in 1917. Her prophetic revelations are both a cause
for sober reflection and great hope in the coming of God’s
triumph.
Blessed Elizabeth Canori Mora was born in
1774 and lived in Italy until her saintly death in 1825. On
instructions from her confessor, she wrote down her revelations
which fill hundreds of notebook pages. Today, the manuscripts
are safely kept in the archives of the Trinitarian Fathers
at San Carlino, Rome.
When a copy of these manuscripts fell into
the hands of the staff of Catolicismo, due to their
timeliness and importance, an article was inevitable. Here
we see already at the beginning of the nineteenth century,
God warning mankind about the coming of a great chastisement
and the necessity for prayer and penance, as well as foretelling
the final triumph of the Holy Church. This is exactly what
Our Lady told the three little shepherd children at Fatima
in 1917.
We now present these revelations in a spirit
of prudent devotion, recalling the Church’s constant
admonition not to indulge an unbalanced and excessive interest
in apparitions and mystical phenomena. However, a humble and
prudent consideration of the words of Blessed Elizabeth Canori
Mora throws valuable light on our chaotic times and gives
us great hope for a better future.
When Pope Blessed Pius IX authorized Elizabeth
Canori Mora’s cause for canonization to proceed, for
years, all her writings were scrupulously examined for doctrinal
errors, to guard against the dangers of being misled by a
false mystic. The ecclesiastical censor commissioned by the
Holy See released his official judgment on November 5, 1900.
It stated “there is nothing against faith and good customs,
and no doctrinal innovation or deviation was found.”
Elizabeth Canori Mora was beatified in 1994.
Crisis in the Church
On Christmas Eve 1813, Elizabeth was transported
in ecstasy to a place refulgent with light. There she saw
countless saints in adoration before a humble manger. The
Infant Jesus signaled her sweetly to approach, but on drawing
near she saw that He was soaking with His own Blood. “Just
the thought of it fills me with horror” she wrote. “But
at the same time I understood the reason for such shedding
of blood was the bad habits of many priests and religious
who do not behave according to their state in life and the
bad education given to children by their fathers, mothers
and others entrusted with this duty. They, who should increase
the spirit of the Lord in the hearts of others by their good
example, instead mortally persecute Him with their bad conduct
and teachings.”
Blessed Elizabeth received many other revelations
concerning the devastating chaos and decadence into which
Catholics, both lay and clerical, would fall. She relates
that on February 24, 1814, she “…saw many ministers
of the Lord who rob each other and furiously tear off the
sacred vestments. I saw the sacred altars despoiled by the
very ministers of God.”
Likewise, on March, 22, 1814, while praying
for the Holy Father she “…saw him surrounded by
wolves who plotted to betray him…I saw the Sanhedrin
of wolves which surrounded the Pope (Pius VII), and two angels
weeping…when I asked them why they were sad and lamenting,
looking upon Rome with eyes full of compassion they responded,
‘Wretched city, ungrateful people, the justice of God
will chastise you.’”
On January 16, 1815, angels showed her “many
ecclesiastics who persecute Jesus Crucified and His holy Gospel
under the guise of doing good…Like furious wolves they
scheme to pull the Church leader down from his throne.”
Then she was allowed to see the terrible indignation these
wolves aroused in God. “In terror I saw the blazing lightening
bolts of Divine Justice fall about me. I saw buildings collapsing
in ruins. Cities, regions and the whole world fell into chaos.
One heard nothing but countless weak voices calling out for
mercy. Countless people will be killed.”
What terrified her the most was God’s
anger. She saw Him “extremely angry with those who persecute
Him. His omnipotent hands were holding bolts of lightening,
His face was resplendent with indignation and His gaze alone
was enough to incinerate the whole world.” The vision
lasted but an instant, whereupon she recalled, “had it
continued for another moment I surely would have died.”
Concerning her vision of June 7, 1815 she
wrote of, “fierce wolves in sheep’s clothing, relentless
persecutors of Jesus Crucified and His spouse the Holy Church…I
saw the whole world convulsed, especially the city of Rome.
How can I possibly relate what I saw of the Holy College?
Because of contrary doctrines, together with the secular clergy,
they were scattered, persecuted and murdered by the impious…The
regular clergy had not suffered a total dispersion, but were
also decimated. Countless men of all conditions died in the
massacre, but not all were condemned, for among them were
those of decent customs and others of holy life.”
Mercy Ceases for the World
On Christmas, 1816 Blessed Elizabeth saw
Our Lady, who appeared extremely sad. Upon inquiring why,
Our Lady answered, “Behold, my daughter, such great ungodliness.”
Blessed Elizabeth then saw “apostates brazenly trying
to rip her most holy Son from her arms. Confronted with such
an outrage, the Mother of God ceased to ask mercy for the
world, and instead requested justice from the Eternal Father.
Clothed in His inexorable Justice and full of indignation,
he turned to the world.
“At that moment all nature went into
convulsions, the world lost its normal order and was filled
with the most terrible calamity imaginable. This will be something
so deplorable and atrocious that it will reduce the world
to the ultimate depths of desolation.”
On the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, June
29, 1820, she saw St. Peter descending from heaven, robed
in papal vestments and surrounded by a legion of angels. With
his crosier he drew great cross over the face of the earth,
separating it into four quadrants. In each of these quadrants,
he then brought forth a tree, sprouting with new life. Each
tree was in the shape of a cross and enveloped in magnificent
light. All the good laity and religious fled for protection
underneath these trees and were spared from the tremendous
chastisement. “Woe! Woe to those inobservant religious
who despise their Holy Rules. They will all perish in the
terrible chastisement together with all who give themselves
to debauchery and follow the false maxims of their deplorable
contemporary philosophy!
“The sky took on a morbid blue color
which terrified everyone who looked at it. A dark wind blew
everywhere. An impassioned and mournful shrieking filled the
air, like the terrible roar of a fierce lion, and resounded
all over the earth in blood curdling echoes.
“All men and animals brimmed with terror.
The entire world convulsed and everyone pitilessly slaughtered
one another…
“When this bloody fight will arrive,
the vengeful hand of God will weigh upon these fated ones
and with His omnipotence He will chastise the proud for their
rashness and shameless insolence. God will use the powers
of darkness to exterminate these sectarian, iniquitous and
criminal men, who plot to eradicate the Catholic Church, our
Holy Mother, by tearing Her up by Her deepest roots, and casting
Her on the ground.
God Will Laugh at Them
“God will laugh at their malice, and
with a mere wave of His almighty right Hand, He will punish
the wicked. The powers of darkness will be allowed to leave
Hell and enormous crowds of devils will invade the whole world.
They will wreak great destruction and thus execute the orders
of Divine Justice, to which they are also subjected. They
will chastise man’s goods, families, towns, wretched
cities, palaces, houses and everything else that exists on
the face of the earth to the exact degree that God decrees…
“God will allow wicked men to be cruelly
chastised by fierce demons, because they voluntarily subjected
themselves to the devil and joined in his attack of the Holy
Catholic Church…
“I saw the horrible prison, Hell. There
I saw the devils that would be released on earth to carry
their wicked destruction everywhere. They will decimate every
place that idolatry was practiced to such an extent, that
no trace of them will remain.”
The Great Restoration Begins
However, all will not end in this death and
destruction. After these purifying punishments, she saw St.
Peter return on a majestic papal throne together with St.
Paul, who went through the world shackling the devils and
bringing them before St. Peter, who cast them back into the
dark caverns from where they had come. “Then a beautiful
splendor came over the earth, to announce the reconciliation
of God with mankind.”
The small flock of faithful Catholics who
had taken refuge under the trees will be brought before St.
Peter, who will “choose a new pope. All the Church will
be reordered according to the true dictates of the holy Gospel.
The religious orders will be reestablished and the homes of
Christians will become homes imbued with religion.
“So great will be the fervor and zeal
for the glory of God that everything will promote love of
God and neighbor. The triumph, glory and honor of the Catholic
Church will be established in an instant. She will be acclaimed,
venerated and esteemed by all. All will resolve to follow
Her, recognizing the Vicar of Christ as the Supreme Pontiff.”
Early in 1821 Our Lord said to her, “I
will reform my people and my Church. I will send zealous priests
to preach my Faith. I will form a new apostolate and send
the Holy Ghost to renew the world. I will reform the religious
orders by means of new holy and learned reformers. They will
all have the spirit of my predilect son Ignatius of Loyola.
I will provide my Church with a new pastor, who is learned,
holy and full of My Spirit. With holy zeal he will reform
My flock.”
“He told me many other things about
this renovation. Many sovereigns will support the Catholic
Church and be true Catholics, placing their scepters and crowns
at the feet of the Holy Father and Vicar of Jesus Christ.
Many kingdoms will abandon their errors and return to the
bosom of the Catholic Faith. Entire peoples will convert,
recognizing the Faith of Jesus Christ as the true religion.”
Blessed Elizabeth and Our Days
Although Elizabeth Canori Mora died on February
5, 1825, her revelations seem directed more to our days than
her own. Nineteenth century man would have difficulty believing
that humanity could have sunk as low as it now has, and thus
may not have understood the severity of her predictions. Moreover,
the revelations of Blessed Elizabeth form an interesting compliment
to the Message of Fatima, since both speak of apostasy and
sinfulness that provoke the wrath of God to bring chastisements
and universal destruction and both promise the same conversion
and restoration of the Church.
Together, these two sets of prophetic
revelations, though separated by almost a century, serve to
help us persevere with confidence through the chaotic and
wicked times in which we live.
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