REPARATION PAGE
This page serves two purposes, that of reparation for the abuse of holy images sacred to the devout Catholic and to alert you to the growing cult known in Spanish as SANTA MUERTE or "SAINT DEATH".
The cult of Santa Muerte is fast growing in the United States and in Mexico, primarily, and in other parts of Central America, such as Guatemala and even as far as Argentina in lower South America. It is a belief system centering on the worship of death, typified by a female skeleton in a long robe usually carrying a scythe and a globe. The cult is derived from an unholy blend of pagan indigenous practices from Central America dating from before the time of Christopher Columbus, and some Catholic beliefs. In other words, a form of syncretism, both of which, the practice and adherence to Santa Muerte and the legitimacy of syncretism in religious beliefs, are condemned by Holy Mother Church. Nevertheless the corrupt practice is growing especially among the working Mexican classes in that country and in the lower parts of the United States [at present]. Many web sites feature prominent images of "saint Death". If it were simply the figure as described above, even though the cult is forbidden for those aspiring to salvation and devout Catholicism, we would not be doing this page in reparation. However, this is no longer the situation in its entirety. While doing research on another topic altogether Catholic Tradition discovered the proliferation of web sites that incorporate this deathly image which is grotesque, to say the least, into that of our holy Lady of Guadalupe image. This week alone I lost count of how many such images there are. Beyond grotesque --- vile. So much so, that I refuse to post a sample here for obvious reasons, so as not to dishonor Our Lady's image and indirectly promote this hideous distortion. If you think that you absolutely must do so, you can easily locate an image, whether as a disguised Our Lady of Guadalupe or otherwise by using a search in Google, simply type in Santa Muerte, click on images, and see what comes up. I hope I never lay eyes on another one. When I say that the cult of "Death" is growing, be advised that as of this year, there are at least 20 million adherents in Mexico and the United States. This is huge actually, when compared to all the polyglot sects and cults of various creeds that exist today. America, and increasingly our Hispanic neighbors to the south are immersed in a culture of death and nihilism which include the deliberate mutilation of the human body, the Temple of the Holy Spirit, by the freakish, vulgar practice of body piercings on the cheek, the navel, the eyelids, etc., and massive extensive tattoos on women as well as men and even some children now, often deliberately on display. How soon before the cult of "Death" is enshrined within the mainstream culture as a legitimate subset? Within our lifetime, almost certainly, given the trajectory of our socio-cultural meltdown powered by a decreased acceptance of objective truth, goodness, and beauty befitting the dignity of the human person created in the image and likeness of God.
The cult practices of Santa Muerte used to be privately held in homes as it was completely banned by authorities in Mexico, but now, while forbidden by the Church, the government has relaxed its authority under God and softened, so the cult is now out in the open and often its rites are public, truly a scandal drawing the weak into its fold. The central "holy day" is the syncretic Day of Dead and by this is not what is meant by All Souls Day or All Saints Day as we know it. The Day of the Dead is now quite public in some Hispanic sub-quarters of our culture.
Coupled with one of the Five Sins condemned by Our Lady of Fatima, that of Insulting the Virgin Mary Directly in her Sacred Images , but not connected to Santa Muerte, is a growing tendency to use graphic programs to delete the lamb in Good Shepherd images of Our Lord and replace it with a reptilian creature, usually a lizard-like image, which is obscene, another hideous distortion of a sacred image but also our Holy Catholic faith as is the Santa Muerte image imposed onto Our Lady of Guadalupe. This denigration of Jesus' image is not the only one such kind. Many times the Sacred Heart is featured holding a soda pop bottle or can. In addition, famous, well known paintings of the Madonna and Child are now being desecrated by the removal of Our Lady's face and the substitution of the photo of a young woman not congruent with the original painting. The Christ Child's image is usually left as is, the implication obvious.
Normally our pages of reparation contain prayers for reparation as one would expect. But because the cult of "Death" is so fast growing, we have decided to make this page one for praying for a happy and holy death to counteract the syncretic practices of Santa Muerte. You can preface your prayers with an intention to make reparation and to ask for the conversion of such wayward, misguided souls in the hands of Satan. Both of the prayers below are taken from the Raccolta:
PRAYERS
641
O most merciful Lord Jesus, by Thine agony and sweat of Blood, by Thy precious death, deliver us, we beseech Thee, from a sudden and unprovided death. O most kind Lord Jesus, by Thy most sharp and ignominious scourging and crowning with thorns, by Thy holy Cross and bitter Passion, by Thy loving-kindness, we humbly pray that Thou wouldst not suffer us to die unprovided with Thy holy Sacraments. O dearly beloved Lord Jesus, by all Thy labors and sorrows, by Thy Precious Blood and sacred Wounds, by those Thy last words on the Cross: "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?" and those others: "Father, into Thy hands I commend my spirit," we most earnestly beseech Thee to deliver us from a sudden death. Grant us, we pray, room for repentance; grant us a happy passing in Thy grace, that so we may be able to love Thee, praise Thee and bless Thee forever. Amen.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.
642
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee; O refuge of sinners, Mother of the dying, forsake us not at the hour of our death; obtain for us the grace of perfect sorrow, sincere contrition, the pardon and remission of our sins, a worthy receiving of the holy Viaticum, and the comfort of the Sacrament of Extreme Unction, in order that we may appear with greater security before the throne of the just but merciful Judge, our God and our Redeemer. Amen.
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