Excuse the profanity in the images included with the following. It is necessary to know what what drives those behind the culture of death (hint: the Enemy of the soul).
From the Pro-Life Corner:
Rockford Abortion Mill Continues Vicious Attacks On Catholic Priests
As number of abortions decline in Rockford, the abortion mill seems to be (rightly) blaming the spiritual power of Priests.
Rockford IL, May 29, 2010 – In September of 2008 a group of Catholic Priests began praying every week at Rockford’s abortion mill special prayers of the Church that the abortion mill be cleansed from evil. Immediately, the pro-life women who sidewalk counsel at this abortion facility noticed a dramatic decline in the numbers of mothers coming for abortions and a tangible rise in the numbers of mothers who choose life at the abortion mill driveway.
An unofficial count of mothers entering the mill within a month of these devout Priests praying showed the abortion totals to be cut at least in half. This is also when signs started appearing in the mill windows attacking Catholic Priests. [OORAH!]
On Friday May 29th, the abortion mill sank to a new low even for them. As a Priest was quietly praying the prayers of the Church accompanied by a seminarian, [And here it comes…] someone inside the building that houses the Northern Illinois Women’s Center put a sign that clearly stated, "F…. Your Perverted Priests."
Catholic Priests have also had to endure personal insults from the abortion mill landlord and security guard. The car of one Priest has been egged by an abortion supporter at this mill. A Priest has also had a hand-written sign taped to his car while he was quietly praying on the sidewalk in front of the mill. The sign read, "I Rape Children." [Thanks a lot, you sick and wicked … brothers. Thanks for this gift that keeps on giving.]
One thing is certain. This abortion facility and its supporters know one of the major reasons their numbers of dead babies have gone down [along with profits] is because the committed, faith-filled, and courageous Catholic Priests are praying consistently that the evil that surrounds and drives the abortion industry is replaced with the grace of Jesus Christ. In Rockford these Priests and their prayers have saved countless lives and souls. That’s why this mill hates and attacks them in this vicious manner.
As one Rockford area pro-lifer said, "This group of Priests has prayed at this mill no matter the weather, intimidation, and mocking threats they have faced. In the spirit of Jesus Christ, they have responded to these attacks with prayer, humility, and love."
A Rockford man said of one of these Priests, "Last winter on a day with the wind chill well below zero, Father was in prayer on the sidewalk with his coat open. Everyone told him he needed to cover up better, but Father knew that people entering the mill needed to know a Priest was there.
One young Hispanic woman looked at Father, saw his collar, and saw him praying for her. She immediately left the mill and never returned."
It is the hope of the Rockford Christian community that Rockford city officials will look into the long and hate- filled history of the abortion mill and come to a decision that this kind of bigotry is not acceptable in our city.
As for these holy men who pray and work for life and for an end to the demonic inspired culture of death in Rockford, we owe them our support, prayers, and grateful thanks for leading us in this battle against sin, Satan, and death. [Do I hear an "Amen!"?]
In the person of Christ the Head . . .
1548 In the ecclesial service of the ordained minister, it is Christ Himself who is present to His Church as Head of His Body, Shepherd of His flock, High Priest of the redemptive sacrifice, Teacher of Truth. This is what the Church means by saying that the priest, by virtue of the sacrament of Holy Orders, acts in persona Christi Capitis:
It is the same Priest, Christ Jesus, whose sacred person His minister truly represents. Now the minister, by reason of the sacerdotal consecration which he has received, is truly made like to the High Priest and possesses the authority to act in the power and place of the Person of Christ Himself (virtute ac persona ipsius Christi).
Christ is the Source of all priesthood: the priest of the old law was a figure of Christ, and the priest of the new law acts in the Person of Christ.
1549 Through the ordained ministry, especially that of bishops and priests, the presence of Christ as Head of the Church is made visible in the midst of the community of believers. In the beautiful expression of St. Ignatius of Antioch, the bishop is typos tou Patros: he is like the living image of God the Father.
For a few more days this is still the Year of the Priest.
What the people in that clinic seem not to understand is that when they point hatred at priests in public, they are drawing attention to priests in public, priests whom all but the most dense or hardened will immediately understand are not the sort of priest who would harm children.
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Thank you Father for posting this, and for your own ministry. May God bless and strengthen you throughout all your days and bring you in the end into His peace.
This is terrific! God bless those courageous priests!
Thank so much for posting this. The pictures of the priests doing this in the snow and the wet really speak for themselves.
Fr. Eutenuer spoke about these priests in a talk I’ve heard. They have received permission from the bishop to recite the exorcism prayers there. Very cool indeed.
What a great story. I never quite understood the logic of the pro-aborts formulated thus: ‘child abuse = bad, whereas killing babies = good.’
Well, if ever exorcism prayers were needed someplace, I would say that is where.
Child abuse? What do you call destroying the evidence of a 40 year old man impregnating a 14 year old?
St. John Vianney, pray for these holy priests!
One wonders for whom the knackers working at that pediatric abattoir voted in 2008. Not.
These guys give me courage. I will pray for them, and for the grace to imitate their good example.
God bless these good, brave and holy priests. What power there is in just seeing them in prayer outside the death chamber. May God bless and protect them from all harm and attack.
St. Michael the Archangel defend them in battle and Blessed Mother Mary wrap her mantle around them.
Thank you for posting this powerful story, Father Z. I don’t know that we would ever hear of these events were it not for you.
St. John Vianney, pray for all priests.
Such incidents should motivate the priests to get other clergy who oppose abortion to join them, especially since abortion nis not a Catholic issue, per se. That act alone would defuse the attacks and embarass the attackers.
Such incidents also should be a profound reminder to all Catholics that, regardless of the morality of the Church’s views on any given subject, the Church will have no moral credibility unless it confronts its own sins and sinners first and foremost. Until Pope Benedict’s recent remarks and actions, that confrontation was sadly lacking when it came to the clerical sex-abuse crisis.
It is interesting that the response from within the clinic to the prayers of exorcism would be foul language, reference to sexual perversion, and a twisting of the truth. Typical demonic behavior. Indeed, some priests have committed heinous crimes, but were they the type of priest who prays in front of abortion clinics? I don’t think so. What punishment could be terrible enough for the evil one who incites priests to sins of lust, and then uses those same sins to attack the innocent priests who try to prevent murder? Truly he is the father of lies, and a murderer from the beginning. On a positive note, if more priests would do this sort of thing, I think we would see many souls saved and many Protestants convert to the Catholic Church. There are many people who truly love Jesus who would get a nudge in the direction of the Church if they saw a systematic approach to one of the greatest evils of our day. Has the devil ever been able to convince man to snuff out so many people, invisibly inside offices and sanctioned by law? Thankfully, while these insults received by the priests are vulgar and untrue, they are the equivalent of a schoolyard bully’s. We have not yet reached the point of red martyrdom, though I wonder if that is not on its’ way.
torch621,
St. John Vianney, pray for these holy priests!
dittos.
Pray for those poor deceived people working in the abortion mill, as well.
Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the malice and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.
These priests are truly heroic. God give them every grace and blessing!
This “hell-hole”, the “death mill” in Rockford used to be in the Medical Arts Center…a clinic adjacent to Rockford Memorial Hospital…a place my father, an MD, used to have his private practice…every time I went there (in the early ’70s, I prayed there)…they got “kicked out” and took over a former grade school (irony here?).
Their founder, Dr. Richard Ragsdale, was accused of commiting pedophilia with his own adopted daughter (even taking pictures)…a real creep.
It looks like they are in the “spirit of the founder” with this kind of filth.
Prayers and penance are required here.
Lots of it.
This is just hellish. In all kinds of ways.
It’s amazing the power a faithful Catholic priest possess; he graces wherever he goes with his presence. It’s also important to note that these men are clearly Catholic priests. I once ran into the pastor of my former parish (a man who would later be removed over allegations of sexual misconduct) in the supermarket and had to do a double-take before I recognized him. His black shirt, Roman collar and slacks didn’t exactly scream “I am a Catholic priest,” and he didn’t have much impact on those around him. Conversely, I recently ran into one of the priests from my current parish in a hospital lobby. He, as always, was wearing his cassock, and there was no mistaking him for anything but a Catholic priest. Everyone he passed noticed him, one way or another.
Priests, you are set apart; set yourselves apart by your appearance and behavior in public, and the world will stand in awe of your power. Take the holy priests shown above as your example. The faithful will follow.
God bless these good priests and their actions. May they continue to give witness to the Gospel of Life. May the numbers of babies dying at this facility continue to decrease. Praise and thanks be to our ever-merciful God!!
Thanks for sharing the inspiring works of these good holy priests.
I am proud of these brother-priests!
Will keep them and the unborn in my prayers.
I just got back from an ordination. I pray for the newly ordained priest and all priests, may there be many more.
Amazing. God is good and I am grateful to the witness of these brother priests. Let’s keep praying for priests! There are lots of encouraging signs:
http://salesianity.blogspot.com/2010/05/catholics-come-home-to-launch.html
What more needs to be said? Satan is clearly in control of the abortion industry. May God have mercy on those caught in the enemy’s snare.
We have asked and tried to encourage our priests to come to pray at the abortion mill with us but not one has yet. It is a big step–it was for each person who takes up their rosary and goes out there and places themselves as targets. I wish our priests would come. But I know they do not want to be controversial or rock the boat and etc.
At the beginning of this year of the priest we added Hail Marys throughout the day (with morning prayers, mealtimes, after the rosary etc) “for good and holy priests.” My one daughter was upset that we were only praying for the good and holy ones! LOL! Anyway, I’ve wondered if we should keep it up when the Year of the Priest ends. This inspires me to keep it up. I love watching this: http://www.nypriest.com/ordination_video/ordination_po.html It makes me cry.
“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven …” (Mt 5:44-45).
The Russians have a saying: “Wherever Christians build a church the Devil pitches his tent across the street.” Since we are in a war, it’s fitting that wherever evil manifests Christians should go, armed with faith and prayer, for direct confrontation.
God bless those Rockford priests, and all priests everywhere who live their vocation with authenticity and devotion. Only dare to lead us, and we shall follow.
Wow that’s great! I used to wonder whether it was wise for priests to be too prominent in the pro life movement because I thought women would resent them and see them as just men trying to control women but obviously that is not the case.
“Wherever Christians build a church the Devil pitches his tent across the street.”
That is the truth. Until very recently, there was an abortion mill right across the street from a parish in my diocese.
Every week my parish newsletter contains the name of five priests of the archdiocese for whom we are asked to offer prayers. I cut out and stick the current names near my computer and pray for them during the day. I have kept the names and intend, as Liz F suggested, to keep on praying for these priests when the Year For Priests concludes.
These priests are deserving of our prayers and admiration as they confront the essence of evil in the face. The vulgar signs posted by the employees only confirm the effect these brave priests are having.
One commenter above included the Prayer to St. Michael. Would it be permissible for priests to recite this prayer at the conclusion of Mass? I am sure that is priests told congregants that they would be reciting the prayer at the conclusion of Mass with the intention of being in solidarity with those trying to prevent abortions that people wouold react positively.
Sr. Anita:
“Until very recently, there was an abortion mill right across the street from a parish in my diocese.”
In my hometown — Omaha, Nebraska — Planned Parenthood stands right across the street from the Child Saving Institute.
Conversely, I recently ran into one of the priests from my current parish in a hospital lobby. He, as always, was wearing his cassock, and there was no mistaking him for anything but a Catholic priest. Everyone he passed noticed him, one way or another.
Priests, you are set apart; set yourselves apart by your appearance and behavior in public, and the world will stand in awe of your power. Take the holy priests shown above as your example. The faithful will follow.
Yes, I was recently walking through the hospital and walked slowly past one of our local Dominican priests who was there for an anointing most likely. I didn’t recognize him at first because he had on a long black coat and a hat (it was VERY cold outside in Alaska)…but he simply emanated holiness and spiritual beauty. I did a double-take because I recognized him but didn’t quite put it together right away. I then noticed his cassock under his coat and the prayer book under his arm. What a magnificent blessing to have him there!
God bless these holy priests.
Oops, sorry not to have italicized the second paragraph of my post…those are not my words but are quoted from above.
Thank you so much for sharing this excellent story and photos.
Blessings to these Priests in the Rockford diocese !!
Progress. “Brick by Brick”
Father Z: [Thanks a lot, you sick and wicked … brothers. Thanks for this gift that keeps on giving.]
I haven’t said this in any public forum yet … but, dear God forgive me for it, I’m angry too. Please pray for me.
As the Year of the Priest draws to a close, I intend to pray with an increased intensity for our priests and for priestly vocations.
This article is encouraging, motivating, and, most of all, true.
Wow, I must be totally out of the loop, but I don’t understand TonyLayne’s post and Fr. Z’s comment; I do not at all feel angry. In fact this invigorates me so much! Think about it: We know even more clearly now what are battles are, how powerful God is, and how much He definitively hears and answers our prayers in this battle.
Regarding this post, are these Extraordinary Form priests?
It is interesting that the response from within the clinic to the prayers of exorcism would be foul language, reference to sexual perversion, and a twisting of the truth. Typical demonic behavior.
That is exactly what I was thinking! Those signs were so vicious and over-the-top! Very violent and they read like the reactions of frightened demons. I’m not saying that all the folk inside of that building are demon posessed but they are deffinately influenced by demons!
What I don’t understand is how are those signs legal? Especially the one with the F-word?
TonyLane, there is so much division and suffering all around, so much death – to souls, to these little ones who have been betrayed by some corrupted clergy and many many more who have been killed before being given the chance to be born. We would not be human if we did not react in anger. May God bless you and bring you abundant healing and peace.
People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered; forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; be kind anyway. If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; be successful anyway. If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; be honest and frank anyway. What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; build anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, others may be jealous ; be happy anyway. The good you do today, people will forget tomorrow; do good anyway. Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; give your best anyway. For you see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway. (Hand written sign found on the wall of Mother Teresa’s room) Also, Mother Teresa was begging one day when she encountered a very wealthy non-christian man. He spit in her face. She said,” Okay, that was for me. What do you have for Jesus?” He was converted on the spot.
Geremia:
Father Z’s comment came in the context of the clinic worker who put the sign on the priest’s car. The comment linked to this past post, which is still worth reading two months past.
You’re right, the story of itself is marvelous and hopeful. But for a long time, our priests are going to have to suffer the taunts of the ignorant and hateful who will throw the predator-priest scandals in their faces at the slightest provocation. That’s “the gift that keeps giving”, and why I’m angry.
Were the posters created by pro-choice Catholic Democrats? Whether they like it or not, this is the group pro-choice Catholic Democrats are keeping company with.
I EXTEND DEEPEST THANKS PRIESTS! Warriors on the front lines – I honor you, too, this Memorial Day.
Love the cassocks – HUAH!
Geremia – I think you asked about whether I was talking about EF priests in my post. While EF priests may be more likely to wear cassocks, it wasn’t my intent to differentiate between EF or OF. My point was I think priests should look like priests, especially in public.
God bless these holy and brave priests. I used to protest at abortion mills and Planned Parenthood when I was in college. I remember once I was praying the rosary across the street from a Planned Parenthood with a bunch of seminarians, and the people living in the building behind us started hurling invective at us. You have to wonder why some people find praying so offensive.
“Wherever Christians build a church the Devil pitches his tent across the street.”
The reverse can also be true… wherever the devil pitches his tent, Christians can pitch another across the street. This is exactly what pro-lifers in Bettendorf, Iowa, did when they established the Women’s Choice Center (pro-life) across the street from a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic.
Thank you for posting this. It is truly inspiring and reminds me to continue in my prayers for our priests
What courageous priests these are! And to pray in the face of those sickening signs!
Another instance of the diabolical at work in Planned Parenthood….the signs, that is…
I wonder if these priests are from the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest? They have an Oratory in Rockford.
‘They who acknowledge Me on earth, My Father will acknowledge in heaven…’