The Real St. Frances Xavier Cabrini

Last Tuesday, I was excited to see the new movie Cabrini. The executive producer Eustace Wolfington said it would not be another fairytale movie on a saint. Unfortunately, we got something worse.

Cabrini does have some good moments. For instance, we hear a New York Times journalist narrate two great pieces he wrote for the paper promoting the mission of the saint.

The acting was good, the music was good, and the cinematography was good. However, the portrayal of the saint was terrible. The actress did a great job doing her part, but the depiction was not of a saint but rather of an irreverent, ambitious, and somewhat bitter woman who is easily offended.

The writers and directors haven’t a clue how a saint is and must be, especially St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. They captured her compassion, work ethic, and obedience, but missed how she was enormously prayerful, joyful, full of humility, and very reverent. She was also a miracle worker, all of which was not depicted in the movie.

In one of the lines in the film (from memory), Cabrini says to her sisters “we must trust only in ourselves.” This is not what a saint or any good Catholic says under adverse conditions. We don’t trust in ourselves but in Christ.

In another scene, John Lithgow’s character as mayor of NY says to Cabrini, “It’s a shame you’re a woman, you’d be a great man.” She replies after guzzling down a whiskey, “No, men could never do what we do.” This is close to blasphemy against the wonderful saint.

In other scenes, she talks about name-calling and tells some bigwigs how racial slurs which she names “cut to the heart.” Again, no saint is worried about what someone calls them.

We see a woman walk into church without a head-covering, which is something you would not see in the late 1800’s.

Pope Leo XIII is portrayed as one in the way of Cabrini until she makes a scene with cardinals and bishops around saying “is it because I’m a woman?” 

She does not kiss his ring during her second audience, nor does she show the great reverence the real saint had for this great pope throughout.

I would like to post part of a beautiful letter (all her letters are beautiful) she wrote in 1898 to her sisters, which shows something of how she truly was towards the pope, the Church, and Christ. It alone demonstrates her love, humility, and devotion that are completely missing in the film about her:

“I was comforted by the blessing of the Holy Father, who at the end of July gave me an audience and encouraged me, with benignity, to go all over the world and carry the Most Holy Name of Jesus everywhere, thus to draw souls into the bosom of the Church, where alone there is salvation. With fatherly goodness he inquired about my programme, and noticing my poor health, he asked how I could undertake so much work. ‘I, who am so strong, could not do it,” he said. ‘It is true I am old, but I am much stronger than you.” The affability with which he deigned to speak to me, encouraged me to remark that, as I was his spiritual daughter, I possessed his moral strength which enabled me to go round the world, and I was sure I should not lose my strength by serving that dear Jesus Who chose me to be a Missionary of His Sacred Heart. Then, putting his two hands on my head, he showered blessings upon me, telling me to pray, for him, as his heart was overwhelmed with sorrow on account of the revolutions prevalent in many countries.”

“Then the Supreme Pastor, that Father of souls, not wishing to leave his little Missionary unconsoled, gave me a generous offering for my voyage, together with presents for those who helped the Missions most. He said many other nice things, but I must leave these to the Mother Superior of the House in Rome, who was with me on the occasion of that memorable audience. All I can say is, that with the blessing of the Holy Father I can go all over the world and no fear shall overcome me, no matter how difficult the way, and no matter how many the obstacles which may come before me, whether from spiritual or temporal enemies. The Pope has spoken, God has spoken through him. I shall go everywhere without fear. Oh! how powerful is the blessing of the Pope! He is the visible head of the Church on earth, he is God’s representative, the oracle of the Most Holy Trinity, the instrument of the Holy Ghost, the trumpet of the Redeemer, the mouthpiece and word of Our Lord Himself. The Pope is the shining lighthouse of Divine Wisdom, and so his words and his blessings are that true column of fire that guides me in every danger and every difficulty. Do pray, daughters, pray for the Holy Father, pray for the Ruler of Church’s destiny, pray for him in these difficult times. We must do so, as we are under obligations of filial gratitude to Leo XIIL, who loves and favours our beloved Institute as if it were his own beloved family. Speak, children, to everybody concerning the Pope. Make them unite themselves with him, for he who is united closely with the Pope, however far he may have strayed from the right path, returns to God’s ways in the end.”

“The Holy Father wishes our Institute to be prolific of Saints, as he said to the Sisters whom I presented to him after my audience. We are under an obligation to comply with the desires of this holy old man. I imagine I hear, however, someone asking how they can become Saints? Oh, daughters, do not fear difficulties; it will suffice if we follow our holy vocation faithfully. That sweet and most loving Jesus, Who has called us to follow Him, gathering us to His Divine Heart, helps us every day on our journey. It is He Himself, the good Jesus, Who has called us to follow closely in His footsteps, through the observance of the Evangelical Counsels, so that we may be holy and perfect, like unto Him.” [1]

It’s apparent that modernists and worldly people put this movie together. They should have hired the writers of the movie Nefarious, which is a far, far better movie. The one positive thing that may result from this film is hopefully people look up and find out about the real St. Frances Xavier Cabrini and become holy and faithful Catholics as she was.

Lastly, notice her true Catholic position towards the papacy. Now, imagine if she lived today.

 

Footnote

[1] Travels of Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini : foundress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus : Frances Xavier Cabrini : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

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Imagine if the Vatican 2 Religion Was a Work of Fiction of the 16th Century

This past week, I re-watched “The Count of Monte Cristo” based on the literary classic by the same name. I was curious how well it followed the book, which I began reading. It is so well-written that after reading 80 out of the 1064 pages, I wanted to find out more about the author, Alexander Dumas. To my surprise, I found internet sources claiming that the book was on the Index of Forbidden Books with reasons that it tells of an illegitimate birth, extra-marital affairs, and revenge. However, Fr. Francis S. Betten S.J. writes in his 1909 book, “The Roman Index of Forbidden Books – Briefly Explained for Catholic Booklovers and Students” that all of Dumas’ books were on the Index except “The Count of Monte Cristo.” [1]

With all this in mind, a thought had occurred to me. What if everything we’ve seen for the past 60 years from Vatican 2 and its popes were written as a work of fiction in the 1800’s? No doubt, the author would be condemned as an anti-Catholic and his work would be placed on the Index.

For example, imagine a work of fiction published in 1845 (the same year as “The Count of Monte Cristo) about a group of people that used an acronym to be identified in which all the letters meant some type of sexual deviancy and a Catholic priest notorious for helping them in their deviancy with a pope praising that priest in his work? How about a work of fiction about a series of popes who place notorious and open 33^rd degree Freemasons in offices, asking a group of Protestants to help concoct a new mass, giving away the Papal Tiara to be auctioned off, and the Shepherd’s Crook and Fisherman’s Ring to be given to the head of the UN only to be sold to a Jewish businessman, abolishing the rite of Tonsure, all four Minor Orders, and the rank of Subdeaconate, giving the Standard of Lepanto back to the Muslims, removing many saints from the calendar claiming them to be dubiously existing, receiving blessings from shamans from all over the world, going into Lutheran churches to praise Luther and the “Reformation” and Mosques to pray with Muslims towards Mecca, invites all the religious leaders around the world to pray for world peace, one of those leaders being a Voodoo warlock who invites a goddess to possess him and Buddha being placed on an altar in front of a tabernacle, abolishing the death penalty as intrinsically evil, and declaring that God wills the diversity of religion and sex?

If such books of fiction were written in the 16^th century, forget about the Index, you might be burned at the stake for sheer sacrilege and blasphemy.

The Vatican 2 religion is beyond what would be allowed to be read as a work of fiction in the past and rightly so. It would place evil ideas in the minds of Catholics. Yet, those evil ideas were actualized and put into practice and acknowledged as the Catholic Church today. It’s unbelievable! The Vatican 2 religion can’t possibly be the Catholic Church for this very reason. It’s the antithesis of Catholicism leading billions of souls to hell.

Movies are now the thing and many are based on famous books such as The Count of Monte Cristo. At one time, the Legion of Decency and the voice of Catholics kept the movie industry in check. The standard of morality was kept up by the Church.

What can be said of the Vatican 2 religion? They have become the main part of the problem today. Novus Ordo bishops and priests support immoral films and plays. Good examples include the Italian bishops defending the pedophile Netflix show “Cuties,” Rev. John Zuhlsdorf recommending several movies and videos with nudity, profanity and/or lewdness, and Novus Ordo deacon and movie reviewer Stephen Greydanus defending his review of a movie glorifying Sodomy. Where are the condemnations from all the other bishops? How about the Vatican? They’re all too busy worrying about saving the earth and getting along (as in tolerating evil as not that evil).

Not only do Novus Ordo so-called Catholics produce and support immoral movies but they support super immoral politicians and laws for their countries. It’s funny how the more conservative Novus Ordo and pseudo-traditionalist “Catholics” like to use the universal acceptance argument to prove that the Vatican 2 popes are true, but reject the same standard concerning everything else. Not only are they hypocrites of the highest order, but they even claim that the Catholic religion can be erroneous against the Faith in its non-dogmatic teachings and disciplines while denouncing as false other denominations for doing the same. It’s total and complete insanity!

Fr. Betten writes in chapter six of his important study about the duties of the Catholic Church and Catholics. It’s titled “Duties Imposed by Law and by Nature.” Unfortunately, the world and many of those who claim to be Catholic are too far gone, but we must listen and put into practice the following powerful words of Fr. Betten not only in books, but all other forms of media.

Fr. Betten: Suppose a person were so well grounded in faith and virtue, so thoroughly versed in theology, philosophy, and the natural sciences, that the reading of books e. g. on Christian Science, or the works of Voltaire, would not harm him. The Index prohibits these books; would he whom they could not harm be allowed to read them? As we put the case, he would, by reading them, not commit the sin of seriously endangering his soul. Yet he would sin by disregarding a positive law of the Church. These laws are like the precautionary measures taken by the civil authorities in times of epidemic; if they are to have the desired effect, they must be observed by all. When the community is under quarantine, those who declare themselves free from the disease must observe the regulations as well as the rest.

Let those who think they have a good reason for reading a forbidden book, and who are not mistaken in supposing that there is no danger for them, humbly ask for permission, as did the Saints. By doing so they declare that the standpoint of the Church is theirs, and that they willingly submit to a power which was entrusted with the care of “teaching to observe whatsoever I have commanded you.” “We have to develop a loving habit of loyalty and obedience to the Church as to Christ, our Savior.”

Suppose, on the other hand, there were no Church laws prohibiting pernicious reading. In that case should we be allowed to read any book we pleased? By no means. We should then, it is true, by reading, e. g., Zola’s novels, not commit an act of disobedience to the Church. But, as already hinted, there is another duty imposed on us by God Himself—the grave duty to guard our soul from serious danger. This duty does not depend on any positive law or decree of authority, and it equally binds the Christian and the non-Christian. It is expressed in the fifth commandment: “Thou shalt not kill.” This duty corresponds on our part to what we ask of God in the sixth petition of the Our Father: “Lead us not into temptation.” We should undoubtedly violate it by reading Zola’s filthy works. The prohibition of these works by the Church merely adds another obligation to that imposed by the natural law, thereby considerably strengthening our will and enabling us to resist every enticement to read what can be read only at a serious risk to our soul.

This grave duty, therefore, is not imposed by the Church and cannot be taken away by the Church. It is a natural duty and as such remains in force even after we are granted a formal permission, which is neither intended nor able to suppress temptations that may arise from the perusal of bad books. If we have a good reason to apply for permission—curiosity is not a good reason—then and then only can we expect a special protection from Divine Providence. Of course, this protection does not dispense us from the necessity of using all the means of self-protection, both natural and supernatural.

I know of a priest who was in every way a model man. He fell suddenly away from the Church, married, and is now a foremost champion in the ranks of the enemy. His apostasy is, not without reason, attributed to the reading of infidel books, though no doubt he had the necessary dispensation.

There was another priest, who has meanwhile died the death of the just, a celebrated author and art critic. In writing a work on Voltaire he had to study the books of that arch-agnostic. He obtained the requisite permission, but, while perusing Voltaire’s writings, he was on his knees, to implore, as it were, by this humble posture the protection of God against the wicked influence to which he was exposed.

St. Francis of Sales, the great and learned Bishop of Geneva, had obtained permission to read the books of heretics in order to refute them, and he is careful to let his readers know the fact, at the same time thanking God in pathetic words that his soul had suffered no harm in so great a danger.

This grave natural duty in the choice of our reading matter extends much farther than the legislation of the Church. Parents and priests do not comply with their obligation of controlling the reading of their charges if they merely look up the Index to see whether a certain book is mentioned there. If an otherwise unobjectionable book contains an obscene passage of a page or so, no one will claim that it falls under the general law prohibiting obscene books. Nor is it likely to be put on the Index. Yet such a book is apt to work havoc in the innocent soul of your daughter or son, perhaps in your own. As long as that passage is in it, the book—even though it is not on the Index—cannot and must not, under pain of sin, be allowed in the hands of children.

Would that this twofold duty were always faithfully complied with, especially in our large cities, where books of every sort are within easy reach. Do not many, perhaps all, public libraries offer among other books such as are “derogatory to the Church, the hierarchy, the religious state,” and especially novels which “defend as lawful or tolerable, freemasonry, suicide, divorce”? How can we expect our young people to have Catholic views on courtship and marriage, on the priesthood, on the veneration of the saints, if we allow them to imbibe the ideas of such writers as Balzac or Dumas? It is deplorable enough that the modern novel is the catechism of millions outside of the Church. We must not allow it to displace the Catholic catechism or to unteach, totally or in part, the truths taught by it. [2]

Footnotes:

[1] The Roman Index of forbidden books (archive.org)

[2] Ibid. pp. 18-24

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A Good Catholic Movie – The Wizard of Heaven

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MY TOP TEN FAVORITE CATHOLIC MOVIES

MY TOP TEN FAVORITE CATHOLIC MOVIES

When I refer to Catholic movies, I mean movies that refer to specifically Catholic themes that non-Catholics such as Protestants and Jews would not claim as their own. Therefore, movies such as Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ or the famous 1956 The Ten Commandments will not be listed. However, out of the dozens of films about Christ, I only like three and highly recommend them: Jesus of Nazareth (1977), The Miracle Maker: the Story of Jesus (2000), The Passion of the Christ (2004). Another movie that can’t be listed is Ben Hur (1959). It is one of my all-time favorite movies.

The main quality I’m looking for is how much the movies give God glory and inspire its viewers the desire to live holy lives. They may not be the best quality in cinematography, sound, music, etc. To me, that’s secondary.

TOP TEN

1. The Reluctant Saint (1962)

This movie is about St. Joseph of Cupertino, a simple, clumsy, slow-minded saint who levitated for hours every day. Not shown in the film is the fact that he even flew around in front of thousands of witnesses, and once in front of the pope at that time.

I simply love this movie. Great cast, good acting, and the musical score is perfect.

2. Loyola, the Soldier Saint (1949)

The transformation of a noble fighting soldier to the saint that Ignatius became is remarkably exhibited in this film. The actor looks just like the saint we love in the end.

3.  The Miracle of Marcelino (1955)

A beautiful story about an infant left on the doorstep of a monastery to be raised by its humble monks. I’ve never watched this film without tearing up at the end. Musical score is as beautiful as the film.

4. The Song of Bernadette (1943)

This is the true story about St. Bernadette of Lourdes, France (1844-1879), played by Jennifer Jones, who won Best Actress for her role. Vincent Price is the not so scary villain in perhaps the best made film on the list. What is most striking about this film is not the apparition of Our Lady, or the miraculous spring that sprang up from the apparition site (still existing today), but the life that St. Bernadette lived, winning the hearts of nearly everyone, including her nun superior who despised her until the end.

5. A Man for All Seasons (1966)

This is the heroic true story of St. Thomas More and his dealings with Henry VIII and the Protestant revolution in England. Won best picture. It is masterful writing and acting!

6. The Priest and the Devil –The Life of the Cure of Ars (1949)  Also known in France as Le Sorcier du Ciel

I’m sure most people won’t appreciate this film as I do. It’s a low budget, poor quality film in comparison to the older The Song of Bernadette. However, the story line is thoroughly Catholic with the great St. John Vianney changing the awry town of Ars into a city of faith. I’ll gladly take this film over the better quality films in my honorable mention list below.

Watch the film here.

7. Francis of Assisi (1961)

This wonderful movie hammers home the ideals of Christ and the Gospels. After all, no one better reflected Christ and the Gospels than St. Francis.

8. The Miraculous Life of Teresa of Lisieux (1930)

Every film I’ve ever seen on St. Teresa is good. I could have placed any one of them in the top ten. This is a great spiritual film about who many believe is a spiritual giant among saints.

9. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

It’s the only silent film that I would ever watch twice.

10. St. Patrick: The Irish Legend (TV 2000)

Okay, it’s a TV movie, and even though this film is little low budget, it’s still enjoyable to watch. St. Patrick is my patron and this film uplifts my heart with the desire to be a saint like him. I watch this film every year with my kids and don’t get tired of it. Several films below could have filled this spot, but none of them inspires me to be a saint like this one, and that is what the best films must do for me…

I’m including below some honorable mentions that I’ve enjoyed watching over the years. A few could fit in my top ten somewhere.

The Mission (1986) – Has a great cast, musical score, with a thought provoking end.

The Sound of Music (1965) – Great all-time film, but doesn’t inspire to be a saint.

St. Francis [Francesco] (2002) – Could have easily placed in top ten.

Monsieur Vincent (1948) – Another good Catholic film.

Joan of Arc (1948) – My only objection is Ingrid Bergman’s overacting.

The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima (1952) – Great film.

Becket (1964) – Peter O’Toole is Brilliant!

The Prisoner (1955) – I love the Holy Mass scene in the beginning.

One Man’s Hero (1999) – Fascinating war movie.

Satan Never Sleeps (1962) – Fun movie with interesting twist at the end.

The Scarlet and the Black (1983) – My Grandfather drove a US Tank in this film.

The Assisi Underground (1985) – Cool historical flick.

Come to the Stable (1949) – Fun family movie.

The Detective (1954) – Good old fashion movie with a Catholic slant.

I Confess (1953) – Suspenseful!

Thérèse (1986) – More like a play than a movie, but very good.

Thérèse (2004) – Another good film about St. Teresa.

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