Bonus Episode
Merry
Christmas!
Welcome
to a special BONUS episode of Saturday Cappuccino with the Saints. This year on the Sunday after Christmas I was
greatly honored when the priest at my church, Father Steve, asked me to give
the Sermon at the 8 O'clock Mass. And so,
I thought I would share it with you all here.
Merry Christmas!
This
week we are having a very special Bonus Episode of Saturday Cappuccino with the
Saints as we wrap up our series on the Angels and the Unseen Realm. It has been quite a fascinating and wild
ride.
And
it is always good to end where we began, with one of my favorite quotes of all
time from Arthur Stanley Eddington.
“Not
only is the Universe stranger than we imagine.
It is stranger than we CAN imagine.”
I
think, at the very least, what we have talked about over the last couple of
months has proved Stanley’s point. And
then some!
We
have covered some wild topics in this series: starting with Saint Michael the
Archangel, the Divine Council, the Three Falls, The Nine Orders of Angels, Seraphim,
Cherubim, Thrones, God’s Army, Babylon, The Angel of the Lord, Satan, the Sins
of the Watchers, the Nephilim and even demonic possession! It has been quite the rollercoaster ride.
And
this week we end our journey through the Unseen Realm with its ultimate glorious
conclusion: the Triumph of Christ over the Dark Powers and His ushering of
mankind to its new status in the New Humanity.
It is an exciting conclusion to a fascinating Odyssey. You won’t want to miss it!
Welcome to
the third week of Advent! And this week
we take a short pause from the penitential time of purple to light the pink
candle on the advent wreath – the Shepherd Candle. Rejoice!
Christmas is coming… soon!
We
also have a very important Saint to discuss this week, one of the most
important, and one that is perfectly suited to our highly skeptical age of
doubt – Saint Thomas. Known throughout
history as “Doubting Thomas” this moniker is a bit harsh and unfair. Having questions is no sin and Christianity
is not a faith that requires blind belief but one that opens honest inquiry. The example of Thomas proves this point.
After
Jesus showed Thomas his wounds Thomas believed, immediately declaring Jesus as
Lord and God! He had had questions. He had had doubts and the Lord answered those
questions and doubts. Honest skepticism
is no match for Jesus.
So,
what happened to Thomas after this story?
Well…, he went from being full of doubts and questions to being the
Apostle that traveled the furthest of them all, all the way to India to share
his faith, ultimately dying for his belief in Mylapore India in 72 AD.
Today,
the Saint Thomas Christians in India can claim to be one of the oldest
continuing Christian communities in the world tracing their origins back to the
Evangelical mission of Saint Thomas two thousand years ago, who should be
remembered as Thomas the Brave instead of Doubting Thomas.
This
week will be a fascinating episode as we explore the amazing journey of Saint
Thomas from a skeptical doubter in that upper room in Jerusalem to the Apostle
that Evangelized the East! It is an
incredible tale and you certainly won’t want to miss it.
Christmas Bonus Episode!
Part 2
Merry Christmas!
Every year during this festive holiday season there is always talk about a “War on Christmas” on TV. Normally, that chatter is about the increasing secular nature of our Culture and how old Christmas traditions we may have loved as a kid are slowly fading away or disappearing from public life. Or, in some cases, instances where traditional Christmas Carols or Decorations are made Politically Incorrect and are canceled by overzealous administrators or government officials. This is a problem of course, but contrary to what you may think, this is not the MAIN war on Christmas.
The PRIMARY front in the War on Christmas is the general onslaught of nonsense that is being taught in many colleges, shown in countless documentaries and flooding innumerable internet chat rooms about the origins of Christianity in general, and about Christmas in particular. It is a complete deluge of lies and falsehoods and it gets deeper every year.
And at this time of year especially a barrage of myth, foolishness and downright error about Christmas and its origins swamp all media. Such as:
Were images of Mary and Jesus just stolen from images of the Goddess Isis and her son Horus?
Was the Virgin Mary REALLY a Virgin? Or was Jesus’s real father a Roman soldier named Panthera?
Is Christmas just warmed over paganism, stolen from the Roman festival of Saturnalia?
Was Jesus’s birthday chosen to coincide with the celebration of Sol Invictus or the birth of the Persia god Mithras?
These charges about the origins of Christmas flood the airways and college campuses of our Country and for many believing Christians they do not know how to respond to these false attacks. Attacks that are not new and have been refuted hundreds or thousands of years ago.
And because these myths about Christmas go largely unchallenged by believers, these completely fallacious charges about the origin of our faith get set in stone in the minds of many of our young people. So today, as we are right at the beginning of the Christmas Season, it is a good time to start to fight back against some of this insanity! So, get your battle gear on. Man your posts and let the fight back against the War on Christmas start this morning! You will NOT want to miss this very special Holiday Bonus episode.
Episode #20 Bonus
This week’s bonus episode of Saturday Cappuccino with the Saints may be the craziest one yet! I know it will definitely be one of the most disturbing.
Because this week we will explore the dark and sinister secrets of the some of the most mysterious characters in the whole Bible – the Rephaim. They are mentioned all over the text, and they show up repeatedly throughout scripture, but who are they? This week you will discover the secrets behind demonic nature and how they still plague man today.
And all sorts of topics will be covered, from the shadowy King Og, the ultimate bad guy from the Old Testament and the last of the Rephaim - to the mysterious origins of Unclean Spirits - the source of demonic possessions. We also will cover the sinister Bulls of Bashan that Jesus spoke about at his crucifixion and how it is related to King Og and the Rephaim. It is all related!
And finally, we will study King Og’s bed, the most infamous piece of furniture in history. The true story behind this fabled object will blow your mind. It will be a wild ride this Saturday, so I hope you can join us. It promises to be a fascinating episode.
Episode #20
Welcome to the second week of Advent! Christmas is definitely coming and on Saturday we will remember the traditions associated with the second week of this holy season as we light the Bethlehem candle.
We also will pose a very important question to ponder this week. The question is this, can a single image imprinted on a raggedy piece of cloth 500 years ago change the course of history? The answer you will discover is YES.
Because this week we will celebrate the anniversary of one of the most amazing supernatural events in History – the Apparition of our Lady of Guadalupe and the miraculous image of her captured on a native American cloak.
Few events have had more of an explosive impact on Christian evangelization than the appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Juan Diego in Mexico in December 1521 and the miraculous image she gifted to the world that was imprinted on Diego’s Tilma.
Mexico at that time was completely under the sway of Dark Spiritual Forces. The bloodthirsty Aztec religion, based on an insatiable cult of torture, human sacrifice and cannibalism had the country by the throat. This was truly a land firmly in the grip of Satan.
And yet, within just a few years of this miracle, millions of Mexicans were led to the faith. The formerly pagan Aztec people embraced the true God – Jesus Christ and became especially devoted to his Mother. And how that all happened is an amazing tale.
The apparition, the Tilma (Juan Diego’s cloak) which captured the image (which still survives to this day), as well as various scientific studies that have been conducted on the cloth will be discussed in depth. We also will explore the incredible impact this object has had on world history. It is astonishing and it should prove to be a fascinating discussion on Saturday. I hope to see you there.
Episode #19
This Week on Saturday Cappuccino with the Saints we are happy to welcome everyone to the first week of Advent! There is no denying it now, Christmas is coming and this week we enter one of the most beautiful and thoughtful seasons of the Liturgical year – Advent, the season of waiting.
After discussing the meaning of Advent and how it is meant to prepare us for the coming of the Lord, we will discuss, as we always do, the Saint of the Week. And this week, we have a doozy. Probably one of the most famous Saints of all – Saint Nicholas (December 6th).
Saint Nicholas is far more than the red-clad, fat little elf bringing toys to children as he is depicted in popular culture. He was a vigorous and staunch defender of Orthodoxy against a sea of Heretics. Far more interesting and robust than he is commonly portrayed after this week’s episode you will have a new appreciation for this truly great and holy man.
Venerated throughout the world Saint Nicholas lived an incredible life and the legendary examples of his generosity left a big footprint on Christianity and Christian Culture in general. His legacy looms large everywhere, from the reverence he is held in by the Churches of the East to his role as gift giver to Children in our popular culture. The REAL Saint Nicholas, however, is far more fascinating than the mythical image that has been built up around him. This week promises to be quite an fascinating tale about a fascinating Saint. I hope to see you there.
Episode #19 Bonus
This Week on Saturday Cappuccino with the Saints we have a special bonus episode where we continue our journey through the Unseen Realm. This week we tackle one of the most controversial, fascinating and mysterious subjects of all – The Mystery of Nephilim.
Who are these mysterious half man, half angel creatures? They show up all over the Bible causing trouble from Genesis 6 through the battles of conquest led by Moses and Joshua to David battling with the most famous Nephilim of all – Goliath. They even show up in the story of Esther! And yet, who are these shadowy characters? What do we know about them? It can all be very vague and confusing sometimes.
The word Nephilim means Giant, so how do we as modern people understand this? Are they fifty feet tall? Are they just fierce tyrannical kings from the surrounding enemy nations? Is it all just Bronze age myth or ancient hyperbole? Or… is there something more going on here? Something far darker and more sinister than you can possibly imagine!
The war against the Giants (the Nephilim) is a major theme in the Old Testament, and they show up continuously. They even make an oblique appearance in the New Testament and yet, most modern people and the majority of Churches today rarely discuss them. This is an error.
The silence of most Christians on the topic has left the field wide open to much wild, reckless speculation. And this has caused this subject to become rich fodder for tin foil behatted conspiracy theorists, cranks and crazies to be the only ones discussing the subject. And of course, shows like Ancient Aliens are always up for producing a show about the Nephilim. It is one of their favorite topics.
And yet, if we really want to take the Bible Seriously, which all Christians should, then we need to tackle this difficult subject head on with our eyes wide open. On this week’s fascinating episode, we will do just that!
Be sure to tune in to an amazing conversation about the one of the darkest topics in the Bible – The Nephilim. I hope to see you there. It will be an incredible journey!
Watch on YouTube Episode #2 8 Welcome to another episode of Saturday Cappuccino with the Saints, and this week, I am afraid to say, ...
