Rome Watch January 2000

The following article as reproduced from the Daily Telegraph of Saturday 4th December 1999 confirms what we have always taught and what the Spirit of Prophecy reveals - that the European Union was the creation of Roman Catholic European politicians, that it is built on Roman Catholic principles and aims to create a Roman Catholic superstate from the Atlantic shores of Portugal to the borders of the former Soviet Union - a new Holy Roman Empire.

THE Roman Catholic Church has set the founding fathers of the European Community on the road to sainthood.

Roman Catholic bishops have started the canonisation process for Konrad Adenauer, Alcide de Gasperi and Robert Schuman, who are credited with devising the EC.

"The Vatican press office confirmed that the canonisation process is in its early stages," I am told by Margaret Hebblethwaite of the Tablet. "It's extraordinary for a politician to get canonised, but the Pope is rather churning out the saints at the moment. The reason given was that these men founded the EC on Roman Catholic principles." Chiara Lubich, a lay auditor at the Synod says: "The European Union is a design not only of human beings but of God."

The canonisation of the politicians, he said, would show that Europe was "built on a rock."

A spokesman for the Eurosceptic European Foundation in London was stunned by the news

"This is very silly. They shouldn't be embracing politics in such an obvious way. People are living in dreamland if they think that founding the European superstate is worthy of religious recognition."

The chief corner stone of our nation and Commonwealth, symbol of Kingship, is here seen in its setting, in the Coronation chair at Westminster. It reached Ireland (Ulster) in B.C. 582, in the vessel shipwrecked at Carrickfergus. The Irish called it "Lia Fail" (Stone wonderful). It was taken to Scotland in A.D. 503, by Feargus the Great. The Scots called it "Lea Gael". It was finally brought to Westminster in A.D, 1296, by King Edward I., who, 652 years ago, built the Chair in which it still stands today. It was undoubtedly this same stone that Jacob anointed, 3702 years ago, saying: "This stone is God's house".

The following report from the November 7th Edition of the Sunday Life newspaper should alert every Protestant to the current attempts to undo the Revolution Settlement of 1688/89 and to revoke the Protestant Coronation Oath. The article entitled

TONY Blair will introduce legislation to allow Catholics to sit on the throne in his government's second term. The Prime Minister last week sparked a religious storm, when he abandoned more immediate plans to scrap the Act Of Settlement which bars Catholics marrying heirs to the throne and becoming future kings or queens.

Scotland's Cardinal Winning said that it was a "continuing insult" to Catholics across the UK.

Scots Secretary, John Reed, was publicly barracked when he said the government had higher priorities

Opposition parties claimed that the on-going veto was a symbol of discrimination, sectarianism and bigotry.

But Whitehall sources signalled that the law change has only been delayed until after the general election because of the volume of legislation.

A Downing Street spokesman said: "It is absurd to suggest that the PM would ever support discrimination against Catholics. He is, after all, married to a Catholic and his children are Catholic."

The aide added: "He simply pointed out that there are no plans in the government's existing legislative programme to do so."

"Any such legislation would involve changing eight other pieces of legislation. The government has an enormous programme and must see it through."

Scottish Nationalist MP's have tabled a Commons motion, saying that: "the discrimination contained in the Act of Settlement has no place in a modern society."

Mr Blair, who describes himself as "an ardent monarchist", has a long-term plan to modernise the royal family.

Discrete talks with both the Queen and Prince Charles have touched on the question of ending the 300-year old bar on Catholics.

Recently, he suffered a tongue-lashing during BBC Question Time, when he tried to justify the government's tactics.

He said: "It is a question of priorities and the government sees its top priorities as covering education, health, the economy and jobs."

Insiders confirmed that he has reported back to the PM, to underline the sense of feeling on the issue.

You should read -

"OUR PROTESTANT THRONE AND CONSTITUTION"

J. A. KENSIT

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(RNS) An evangelical Navy chaplain says he resigned under pressure after he and his Catholic commander disagreed over whether his preaching was sufficiently pluralistic.

Lt. Cmdr. Philip Veitch said he was charged with five criminal offenses by the Naval Support Activity, a command in Naples, Italy. The charges were dropped when he agreed to resign.

Veitch told The Washington Times that he is working to rescind his resignation letter and has persuaded the Pentagon inspector general to investigate the matter.

Veitch said he has been forbidden by the Navy from conducting any religious activity and believes he is the victim of religious discrimination.

"We have a sense of repression here," Veitch said. "I am ordained by the Reformed Episcopal Church and I will not have a Roman Catholic priest tell me what I can and cannot say. It won't happen. I can't have the government telling me what my denomination can or cannot say."

The Navy described the situation as a case of an officer violating regulations. A Navy charging document said Veitch's e-mails to the command chaplain, asking him to explain why he could not preach on certain topics, "showed marked disdain, insolence and contempt." Veitch denies the formal charges which were showing disrespect to Capt. Ronald J. Buchmiller, the senior chaplain, and failing to go to appointed places of duty. After he refused to attend a disciplinary hearing, Veitch said he was given the options of quitting or facing trial.

But a Navy spokesman said Veitch chose the court-martial and later decided to resign instead. The Navy then dropped the five charges. "There was no ultimatum," said Lt. J.G. Fred Kuebler. "It wasn't you resign or you will be court-martialled. They can't do that, nor would they."

THE Pope's planned visit to Iraq in December has been postponed because of fears that Saddam Hussein will use it for propaganda.

Vatican sources yesterday cited "technical considerations". They said the Pope wanted the trip to go ahead but mid-January was now more likely.

America and Britain have argued against the visit. The Pope is well known for his strong opposition to sanctions in cases such as Iraq's, saying that they hurt the weak and bolster tyrants.

But a recent letter from Iraqi intellectuals, published with Saddam's sanction, calling on the Pope to denounce the West for the embargo as a condition of his visit is said to have angered the Vatican.

A visit by a prelate was called off and guarantees were demanded that the Pope's trip would not be used for political purposes.

THE Vatican has issued an updated manual on indulgences, offering new ways for winning forgiveness for Catholics who courageously manifest their faith.

Vatican officials also insisted that the new attention on indulgences - the forgiveness of sins through good works - should not harm improved relations with the Lutheran church, whose founder Martin Luther, rebelled against abuses in granting indulgences.

from the Miraculous Medal, the design of which was given to Saint Catherine Laboure

The above article entitled "WOULD YOU BELIEVE?" by Seamus P. Cahill was printed in the August 1999 edition of "IRELAND'S EYE". It comes from a R.C. source and confirms what we have claimed for many years.

AFTER MORE than three decades of dialogue, the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification will be signed Oct. 31 in Augsburg, Germany. Ishmael Noko (left), Lutheran World Federation general secretary, and Cardinal Edward Cassidy, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, announced the date in Geneva, Switzerland. "By acknowledging there is agreement on this crucial article of the Christian faith, our two churches have bridged a theological divide that has separated us for nearly 590 years," said H. George, Anderson, ELCA presiding bishop.

A PRIEST in Scotland was yesterday convicted of indecently assaulting a former topless model while she was working as his housekeeper. David Brown (48), who was priest at St Thomas's Catholic church in Riddrie, Glasgow, denied indecently assaulting his former housekeeper Maria McBride (31) and two other women aged 33 and 26. Pre-sentencing reports were requested on the priest.

It was claimed that Miss McBride was placed in a state of fear and alarm during overnight stays at the Riddrie Chapel House. It was alleged that in October 1997 while she was staying overnight, Brown put his arms around her and fondled her breasts after getting drunk on whisky while she and a friend were staying at the Chapel House.

Miss McBride told the court she saw the priest come out of a friend'sbedroom before coming into hers. "He lay on the bed and fondled me. It was like a nightmare. I pushed him away, he told me he loved me and that he was a virgin and that if he ever had sex that he would want to do it with me," she said. "He said he wanted to touch me. I really freaked out and shoved him away saying 'get out, get out'."

A spokesman for the Catholic Church in Scotland said they could not comment until Brown was sentenced at Glasgow sheriff court. He would not say what future the priest had with the Church but added: "Fr Brown has not been involved in active ministry for over a year since the start of the proceedings." The priest was remanded on bail until he was sentenced on September 16th 1999.

Complete with his photograph, signature and a blessing, they will earn him 65p for each £10 card sold - with up to four million expected to be bought each month. That will bring in an extra £30 million a year - money he will plough straight into charitable projects.

He has already written a book and recorded an album. But like all fledgling businessmen, he had to give the phonecard idea the hard sell before it took off. After hearing about a United States telephone company that makes phonecards carrying images of the Virgin Mary, he instructed aides to inquire if he could feature on one too.

"We were obviously very sceptical when the Vatican called us " said Steve May, chief executive of Siesta Telecom Inc. in Sarasota, Florida. But after talks, both sides shook on an exclusive deal. It was announced in Miami recently by Vatican representative, Claudio Grisanti. "The business venture is the first to get the Pope's authorisation," he said.

The phonecards will come only in a $15, 75-minute denomination and will be sold in shops and over the internet. At first they will be sold only in the United States - which has a Catholic community of 61 million - but elsewhere from next year.

"People of all ages are in love with that man," said John Schaper, senior vice president for Children's Heroes, which will distribute the cards primarily as a fund-raising tool for cash-strapped Catholic schools in the United States.

"We have projected sales of up to £320,000 between now and the end of the year alone."

The idea was born after Siesta Telecom began selling phonecards which depicted Mexico's Virgin of Guadalupe a couple of years ago. "I wanted to target Mexican migrant workers because they have such a hard time calling home," Mr May explained. He later added Cuba's Virgin Mary to the company's offering of phonecards, which also depict Mount Rushmore and the Statue of Liberty.

The market in prepaid telephone cards in the United States is highly lucrative. Last year sales topped £1.4 billion - a figure that is expected to rocket to £6 billion over the next five years.

Lauette Veres, boss of the trade magazine Intele-Card News said. "People who have never bought a phonecard will buy one because it is a fund-raiser and the Pope's on it."

There are 250,000 Italian Catholic charismatics (9/99 Charisma). Pentecostal leader Remo Cristallo brands the Catholic charismatic renewal in Italy a fake. "By imitating our songs and our style of worship, the Catholic charismatics fool people into believing you can make do without the gospel," he told Charisma. He stresses that the unity being offered by the Catholic Church is political: "Spiritually, nothing has changed." For him, fellowshipping with Catholics means compromising Biblical Christianity because he believes two churches will emerge in the future - "a political church and an underground church."

Pope John Paul II spoke about religious dialogue with Islam in his general audience on May 5th (6/7 Chr. News): "We Christians joyfully recognize the religious values we have in common with Islam. Today I would like to repeat what I said some years ago in Casablanca. We believe in the same God, the one God, the living God, the God who created the world and brings His creatures to their perfection. . ." Islam's god is not the God of the Bible. The Pope may believe in that god, but Christians believe in the Triune God of the Bible - the only God that exists.

(RNS) - One of the best known Roman Catholic priests in Vancouver, British Columbia, has been placed on stress leave after being caught shoplifting. Monsignor Pedro Lopez-Gallo, who writes a weekly column on marriage for The B.C. Catholic Newspaper, was writhing in back pain and aided by medication just before he was caught shoplifting said Vancouver Archbishop Adam Exner.

A parishioner who found the priest "in bad shape" just before he stole a pack of razor blades from a Vancouver supermarket tried to phone the archbishop to say there was something wrong. But Lopez-Gallo had "vehemently objected" to the call, Exner said. The parishioner's description of the monsignor's physical agony and emotional distress fits into what a Simon Fraser University criminal psychologist says is a classic portrait of the kind of people who uncharacteristically shoplift a trivial item.

"An atypical theft is often linked to physical or mental suffering or depression," psychologist Steve Hart said. Research shows, Hart said, that many prominent, well-off individuals who are caught shoplifting are "well-adjusted people. And, interestingly, they're often churchgoers. Stealing doesn't fit into their value system at all."

Lopez-Gallo, 70, is the judicial vicar of Vancouver's Roman Catholic marriage tribunal and has a weekly column, with his photo, in the B.C. Catholic Newspaper.