Please pray for the people of North Korea and China

Jordan Peterson: Tyranny, Slavery and Columbia U | Yeonmi Park

This is a real eye opener discussion with Yeonmi Park on North Korea. It is over two hours long and well worth listening to. People are literally starved; most people die before the age of 60; sex slaves and rape; there are three levels of prisons with the worse one being concentration camps where you never leave and your children are born there; if a family member does or says anything against the state, not only are they imprisoned, but their entire family will be punished; they have no electricity; no maps of the world; no internet; you cannot turn off your radio in your house as it continually plays communist propaganda; and lots more diabolical satanic realities. 

From the Economist:

There is a special place in Hell for what's his face with the bad haircut if he doesn't repent.

After listening to it I can see where the western world will end up if we don't stop being woke. Also worthwhile to note is the role China plays in North Korea's disgusting regime.

Justin Trudeau are you listening?

Even if you don't listen to the podcast please pray for the people of North Korea and China. I am now trying to pray a Divine Mercy Chaplet every day for them from now on.

The gifts we receive when we are present with the dying

Today I was blessed. I visited one of my regular residents at the long term care facility where my sister Maureen and I visit every week.

This woman I'd been visiting for about two years, is now bed ridden and I'm pretty sure she is close to death. Working in a nursing home you begin to know the signs.

In fact, there have been quite a few people pass away here these past two years. Most of the time there is no obituary. This makes me sad.

She was alone in her room. I prayed the Divine Mercy Chaplet with her. Even though she barely seemed to comprehend my presence, we had prayed together before so I knew she was okay with me praying while I sat with her.

I placed my warm hand on her cool arms--translucent with the blue veins and thin skin so common in the old and frail--and prayed. She was in a seemingly semi-conscious state so I wasn't sure if she could hear me or not.

Then when I finished the Chaplet I prayed some additional prayers and asked God to bless her. She said thank you. Ah, she had heard me. This surprised me as I know that she is pretty deaf. But she had heard me ask God to bless her. Good I thought.

I told her I would keep praying for her and then I said goodbye. I asked her to remember me and she said she would. I told her I loved her and kissed her on the forehead. I left her room and felt the tears come.

I wasn't going to go to her floor today. So glad I did. Yes I am blessed.

Suffering for the sake of souls

I just finished reading the Letters of Saint Faustina. It is a lovely book and I bought it while in Poland. (After searching for it here on the Internet, it doesn't seem to be very available here in Canada).

St. Faustina, along with other saints, always seem to welcome suffering for God. I always struggle over this concept, as I wonder, how can anyone welcome suffering? It seems so contrary to human nature.

The other night as I lay in bed before going to sleep, I asked to God to help me to understand this. To give me wisdom, knowledge and understanding of how our sufferings can help others. How our "offering it up" can be of benefit to God or to others.

When I woke up in the middle of the night, I started to say the Divine Mercy Chaplet and in fact was actually able to say it without losing track of it like I usually do, as I lay in bed awake, and my mind inevitably wanders off to something else. I finally seemed to comprehend its message which was right before me the entire time.

"Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of your Dearly Beloved Son Our Lord Jesus Christ in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world...for the sake of his sorrowful Passion have Mercy on us and on the whole world."

When we suffer (and we all do at some time or another, some more than others), and we unite our suffering with Jesus's suffering on the cross, we can truly help other sinners.

I had always sort of understood this, but for some reason, I kept questioning it. 

St. Faustina's Diary is full of entries about suffering for Souls, and of her "praying for Souls".

In this passage in one of her letters, this one to Sister Ludwina, she tells us how we can "purchase immortal souls, the souls of poor sinners" when we unite our suffering to Jesus's suffering.

Faustina simply offered up her own suffering for the sins of sinners. Precisely what Jesus did on the cross, when he died for our sins. He saved souls. Faustina saved souls. Those who suffer, and unite their suffering with Jesus--can also save souls. It really is as simple as that. In fact, it's almost so simple that it's easy to miss. Of course, the idea is simple--the suffering is not.

Faustina prayed constantly for the "sake of sinners'' and offered up all her sufferings to God.

I know many people who are near and very dear to me, who suffer immensely. Perhaps this passage may help ease their pain a teeny tiny bit.