A Descent into Hell

When, in the Apostle's Creed, we say that Jesus descended into hell, we mean that He freed the souls of the just who died before Him, against whom the gates of heaven had been barred until the Sacrifice of Calvary. In this sense, "hell" means the underworld, the Limbo of the Fathers, where the just did not endure the sufferings of the damned, but nevertheless were deprived of the Beatific Vision.

But six decades ago, Jesus descended into hell in another sense. Read about it here.

Msgr. John Donoghue, R.I.P.

Msgr. John Donoghue, about whom you have read in this space, passed away on January 5th, the Feast of St. John Neumann, who was a hero of his. His vigil will be Sunday, January 11th at 7:30 p.m. at St. Mark's on Northview and Milwaukee in Boise, and his funeral will be Monday the 12th at 11:00 a.m., also at St. Mark's.

Prayer to St. John Neumann

O Saint John Neumann, your ardent desire of bringing all souls to Christ impelled you to leave home and country; teach us to live worthily in the spirit of our Baptism which makes us all children of the one Heavenly Father and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, the first-born of the family of God.

Obtain for us that complete dedication in the service of the needy, the weak, the afflicted and the abandoned which so characterized your life. Help us to walk perseveringly in the difficult and, at times, painful paths of duty, strengthened by the Body and Blood of our Redeemer and under the watchful protection of Mary our Mother.

May death still find us on the sure road to our Father's House with the light of living Faith in our hearts. Amen.

George M. Docherty, R.I.P.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

In a shocking breach of the sacred Berlin Wall of Separation Between Church and State, school children have been reciting the Pledge of Allegiance with the words "under God" for more than half a century.

It was the Knights of Columbus of New York City who first adopted the practice of adding the words "under God" to their recitation of pledge in 1951, citing to the Gettysburg Address, in which Abraham Lincoln spoke of this nation, under God, having a new birth of freedom. The following year, the Supreme Council of the Knights took up the banner and launched a campaign to lobby Congress to universalize the change.

Rev. George M. Docherty, a Presbyterian minister and recent Scots immigrant to the United States, also liked the idea of adding the words "under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance. It was the custom at that time for Presidents to attend New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., the same church Abraham Lincoln himself attended, on "Lincoln Sunday," the Sunday nearest Lincoln's birthday. Knowing that he would have President Eisenhower's ear on Lincoln Sunday, and that President Eisenhower had recently become a Presbyterian, Rev. Docherty preached a sermon on the subject of adding the words "under God" to the Pledge on February 7, 1954. On February 8th, President Eisenhower got his friends in Congress to introduce a bill to make the desired change. The bill was signed into law on Flag Day, June 14, 1954.

Rev. Docherty passed away at his home in Alexandria, Pennsylvania on Thanksgiving Day. He was 97. Requiescat in pace.

Jack Lucas, R.I.P.

On June 5, 2008 -- the day before the 64th anniversary of D-Day -- an 80-year-old veteran passed away at Forrest General Hospital in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. In the far-off days of his youth, when his country became enmeshed in the Second World War, he leapt into the fray, lying about his age so he could join the Marine Corps at the age of 14. Just days after his 17th birthday, he fought at Iwo Jima, where he performed a deed that very nearly cost him his life, and that would make him the youngest Marine ever to win the Congressional Medal of Honor.

The Congressional Medal of Honor is awarded only to one who has risked his life in a deed of personal bravery or self-sacrifice above and beyond the call of duty, so conspicuous as to clearly distinguish the recipient from his comrades. Of the millions of Americans who have worn their country's uniform since the Medal of Honor was created in 1862, fewer than 3,500 have been awarded this highest honor.

Here is the full text of Jack Lucas' Congressional Medal of Honor citation.

Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, 1st Battalion, 26th Marines, 5th Marine Division. Place and date: Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, 20 February 1945. Entered service at: Norfolk, Va. Born: 14 February 1928, Plymouth, N.C. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 1st Battalion, 26th Marines, 5th Marine Division, during action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, 20 February 1945. While creeping through a treacherous, twisting ravine which ran in close proximity to a fluid and uncertain frontline on D-plus-1 day, Pfc. Lucas and 3 other men were suddenly ambushed by a hostile patrol which savagely attacked with rifle fire and grenades. Quick to act when the lives of the small group were endangered by 2 grenades which landed directly in front of them, Pfc. Lucas unhesitatingly hurled himself over his comrades upon 1 grenade and pulled the other under him, absorbing the whole blasting forces of the explosions in his own body in order to shield his companions from the concussion and murderous flying fragments. By his inspiring action and valiant spirit of self-sacrifice, he not only protected his comrades from certain injury or possible death but also enabled them to rout the Japanese patrol and continue the advance. His exceptionally courageous initiative and loyalty reflect the highest credit upon Pfc. Lucas and the U.S. Naval Service.

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and may perpetual light shine upon him.

Charlton Heston, R.I.P.

Charlton Heston passed away last night at the age of 84. He is survived by Lydia, his wife of 64 years, his daughter Holly, and his son Fraser (who played the infant Moses in The Ten Commandments).

V. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.
R. And may perpetual light shine upon him.
V. May his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, rest in peace.
R. Amen.

Prayer to St. Genesius, Patron of Actors

Dear Genesius, according to a very ancient story, when you were still a pagan, you once ridiculed Christ while acting on the stage. But, like Saul on the road to Damascus, you were floored by Christ's powerful grace. You rose bearing witness to Jesus and died a great martyr's death. Intercede for your fellow actors before God that they may faithfully and honestly perform their roles and so help others to understand their role in life and thus enabling them to attain their end in heaven. Amen.

Marie Moore, R.I.P.

Please pray for the repose of the soul of Marie Moore, who passed away this morning. Marie was the mother of Katie Moore, OPL (of my chapter, but no relation).

Prayer to the Sorrowful Mother
by St. Alphonsus Ligouri

O my afflicted Mother! Queen of martyrs and of sorrows, thou didst so bitterly weep over thy Son, who died for my salvation; but what will thy tears avail me if I am lost? By the merit, then, of thy sorrows, obtain me true contrition for my sins, and a real amendment of life, together with constant and tender compassion for the sufferings of Jesus and thy dolours. And if Jesus and thou, being so innocent, have suffered so much for love of me, obtain that at least I, who am deserving of hell, may suffer something for your love. "O Lady," will I say with St. Bonaventure, "if I have offended thee, in justice wound my heart; if I have served thee, I now ask wounds for my reward. It is shameful to me to see my Lord Jesus wounded, and thee wounded with Him, and myself without a wound." In fine, O my Mother, by the grief thou didst experience in seeing thy Son bow down His head and expire on the cross in the midst of so many torments, I beseech thee to obtain me a good death. Ah, cease not, O advocate of sinners, to assist my afflicted soul in the midst of the combats in which it will have to engage on its great passage from time to eternity. And as it is probable that I may then have lost my speech, and strength to invoke thy name and that of Jesus, who are all my hope, I do so now; I invoke thy Son and thee to succour me in that last moment; and I say, Jesus and Mary, to you I commend my soul. Amen.

The Harrowing of Hell

Something strange is happening - there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear.

He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to everyone: “My Lord be with you all.” Christ answered him: “And with your spirit.” He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: “Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be separated.

For your sake I, your God, became your son; I, the Lord, took the form of a slave; I, whose home is above the heavens, descended to the earth and beneath the earth. For your sake, for the sake of man, I became like a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of you, who left a garden, I was betrayed to the Jews in a garden, and I was crucified in a garden. See on my face the spittle I received in order to restore to you the life I once breathed into you. See there the marks of the blows I received in order to refashion your warped nature in my image. On my back see the marks of the scourging I endured to remove the burden of sin that weighs upon your back. See my hands, nailed firmly to a tree, for you who once wickedly stretched out your hand to a tree. I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against you.

Rise, let us leave this place. The enemy led you out of the earthly paradise. I will not restore you to that paradise, but I will enthrone you in heaven. I forbade you the tree that was only a symbol of life, but see, I who am life itself am now one with you. I appointed cherubim to guard you as slaves are guarded, but now I make them worship you as God. The throne formed by cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.

Ancient homily for Holy Saturday; from today's Office of Readings

Why He Died

From St. John Bosco's vision of Hell in 1868, as recorded in Biographical Memoirs. "I" is Don Bosco; "he" is his guide in his journey to Hell. Don Bosco always had a guide during his visions, to give him courage and explain the meaning of what he saw and heard. He had several guides: sometimes it was the Blessed Mother; sometimes it was someone he had known personally in this life, such as St. Dominic Savio; often, however, he described the guide simply as "the stranger" and would not give clear answers when questioned on this point. Whatever the identity of the guide in this vision, it is worth pondering on this Good Friday, as a reminder of what Jesus died to save us from.

"Now that you have seen what others suffer, you too must experience a touch of Hell."

"No, no!" I cried in terror.

He insisted, but I kept refusing.

"Do not be afraid," he told me; "just try it. Touch this wall."

I could not muster enough courage and tried to get away, but he held me back. "Try it," he insisted. Gripping my arm firmly, he pulled me to the wall. "Only one touch," he commanded, "so that you may say you have both seen and touched the walls of eternal suffering and that you may understand what the last wall must be like if the first is so unendurable. Look at this wall!" I did intently. It seemed incredibly thick. "There are a thousand walls between this and the real fire of Hell," my guide continued. "A thousand walls encompass it, each a thousand measures thick and equally distant from the next one. Each measure is a thousand miles. This wall therefore is millions and millions of miles from Hell's real fire. It is just a remote rim of Hell itself."

When he said this, I instinctively pulled back, but he seized my hand, forced it open, and pressed it against the first of the thousand walls. The sensation was so utterly excruciating that I leaped back with a scream and found myself sitting up in bed. My hand was stinging and I kept rubbing it to ease the pain. When I got up this morning I noticed that it was swollen. Having my hand pressed against the wall, though only in a dream, felt so real that, later, the skin of my palm peeled off.

Read the entire account of the vision here.

NOTE: A reader has noted in the comment box that the site containing the text of the above vision is run by sedevacantists. Please note that this blog does not endorse sedevacantism. If anybody can find this vision at an orthodox site, please let me know.

R.I.P.: William F. Buckley, Jr.

There have been hints in his writings over the last two or three years: comments about the 2004 presidential election being the last he would live to see; hoping someone would do or say some particular thing in his memory in ten years; how he had given up skiing, and playing the piano; most alarmingly, how his pants had fallen down at some function, and nothing he could do would keep them up around his apparently fleshless waist. Then there was the letting go of his trusty sailboat. And the appearance on Rush Limbaugh's radio program on the release of his autobiography, Miles Gone By, when he couldn't seem to stop coughing. And the end of his public speaking engagements. And in April of last year, the death of Pat, his beloved wife of 57 years. The signs were unmistakable and inescapable, even when I wished him many more happy birthdays a year and a half ago. Though he continued to turn out his columns, the loss or the jettisoning of one after another of his loves and occupations pointed to an end not long to be delayed.

And now the end has come. Ill with diabetes and emphysema, he died at home this morning, apparently in harness, working in his study. May he rest in peace.

Whatever Remains, However Improbable, Must Be the Truth

Several times in this space -- August 1, 2006, August 24, 2007, and September 23, 2007 -- I declared the death of the hirsute tyrant whose idealized, hippie-manufactured portrait appears (appropriately enough) to the left, citing as evidence the fact that his Communist government insisted he was still alive, and even paraded a scrub-brush-faced old man in front of the cameras to prove it.

Now it has been announced that Castro will step down from his post as thug dictator President of the Glorious Cuban Revolutionary Island Paradise, thereby most likely leaving his little brother Raul in charge.

Whereas back in August of 2006, a groveling western media was grieving on behalf of the poor Cuban public, soon to be bereft of a leader they almost had a right to expect would live forever, this time, patronizing attention is turned to the Cuban exiles in Miami's Little Havana. While Castro's abdication apparently touched off some celebrating in the streets, AP reports that "the community's reaction to the news, long expected to spark vibrant celebration, was filled with caution." Of course it was filled with caution. The exiles are realistic enough to know that a new Maximum Leader doesn't necessarily entail a change of regime. What Cuba needs is an end to, and a repudiation of, the Glorious Revolution, and restoration of property rights and other basic human freedoms, pronto.

AP solemnly advises us that "Most exiles view Fidel Castro as a ruthless dictator who forced them, their parents or grandparents from their home after he seized power in a revolution in 1959," leaving us to conclude that this is a mere matter of their opinion which, given their obvious lack of disinterestedness, need not be taken seriously. "Police said they were 'keeping a sharp eye' on Little Havana, but no disruptions had been reported. The Coast Guard said it did not expect a mass migration or see a need to increase patrols off Florida." So I guess the drive-by media, which doesn't seem to see a need to protect our borders and shorelines from Al Qaeda, does see a need to safeguard America from dangerous hordes of Cuban exiles -- who had spent decades leading productive lives in this country -- seeking to go back to Cuba to reclaim what they had been despoiled of. And they're disappointed that the Coast Guard doesn't also see that need.

Now it's tough to know, really, whom or what to believe. How does the Principle of Communist Opposites apply in this case? A statement comes out that Castro is relinquishing power, which we are supposed to take to mean that he is now no longer in power. Planted in that statement is the assumption that Castro is still living. It seems the Commies are finally admitting Castro is no longer in power -- a state of affairs that has clearly been going on for about the last two and a half years -- but are not yet prepared to admit that he has assumed room temperature, much less when. In cases where a Communist statement appears to coincide with reality, it must always be remembered that such coincidences are nearly always self-serving. So it appears, then, pursuant to the Principle of Communist Opposites, that Castro is still in power, but dead. True, it sounds incredible; but remember what Sherlock Holmes said in The Sign of Four: when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

In (what purports to be Castro's) letter announcing his abdication, it is reported that Castro declares that he had hoped "to discharge my duties to my last breath. That's all I can offer." Well, no. Assuming you haven't been dead for two and a half years, Fidel, that is NOT all you have to offer. If you really want to offer something meaningful, cease and desist discharging the "duties" you have been discharging for the last half-century, and get your little brother and your band of thugs to do the same. Then you might just begin to make some small reparations for all the damage you have done.

Requiescat in Pace

Please pray for the repose of the soul of Jim Donoghue, the brother of Fr. John Donoghue of the Diocese of Boise, who succumbed yesterday after a battle with esophageal cancer.

V. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.

R. And may perpetual light shine upon him.

V. May his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, rest in peace.

R. Amen.