BLESSED ANNA EMMERICK
AND CHARLES HAPSBURG
Beatified - October 3, 2004
Very special in my road to the
Catholic Church are two saints who I have been praying to for many years, even
though the Church had not yet recognized their saintliness formally. Emmerich taught me the hidden mysteries of
the bible and from her I saw that all the bible was about the Mass. From her I learned the "mysteries"
of the Rosary and the Cross. I not only
read the eight volumes of her works done in English but I have read them over
and over and even used them to meditate on the Mysteries of the Rosary for the
Five First Saturdays.
Charles Von Hapsburg was of no real interest to me and in fact I did not know him. But what I was doing was studying prophesy about a future GREAT MONARCH, who was supposed to bring the Church into its final glory and a period of peace throughout the world.
I wanted to find
out who this Great Monarch was but it seemed hopeless since the many different
prophesies about him seemed to contradict each other - one said that the Great
Monarch would be of the blood line of this family and another this family and
another this family. In time I just
gave up on it.
After a year of doing nothing the facts of the prophesies kept haunting me, because so much had already come true so to me this last fact must also be true. So I spent another year studying the blood lines of all the kings of Europe and in time I found that one family had the blood line of all these prophesies.
That was Otto Von Hapsburg,
living in exile in Germany from his homeland of Austria. It was his son, Karl, who interested me as
maybe being the Great Monarch, but never did I even think about his
grandfather, Charles Von Hapsburg.
After I was convinced that the Great
Monarch would come from the blood of the Habsburgs, I read an article in the
Wanderer about the saintliness of Charles Von Hapsburg and his wife, Zeda. It only seemed fitting to me that the blood
line would come from two saints, and that he died on April 1, 1922, April Fools
Day.
From the French Revolution to the end
of the First World War, the secret societies had one goal, to rid the world of
all Catholic Kings. When Charles died
on April 1, 1922, they felt as if they had won, because he was the last of the
Catholic Kings.
But I have always felt that it is not
over yet. God will not be mocked and it
is not just an accident that he died on April Fools Day, because someday God
will say, "April Fools!"
For this reason I wrote The Constitution
of a Catholic Nation http://www.unitypublishing.com/Government/CatholicNation.htm
And What is the Triumph of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary
http://www.unitypublishing.com/Government/index-Government.htm
I could give you my research on the
two saints but what Rome wrote for their Beatification is very well done.
Anna Katharina
Emmerick, Mystic of the Passion
She Bore the Wounds of Christ
The biography issued by the Holy See of Anna Katharina Emmerick, (1774-1824),
who was beatified today.
Anna Katharina Emmerick was born on September 8, 1774, in the farming community
of Flamsche near Coesfeld. She grew up amidst a host of nine brothers and
sisters. She had to help out in the house and with the farm work at an early
age. Her school attendance was brief, which made it all the more remarkable
that she was well instructed in religious matters. Her parents and all those
who knew Anna Katharina noticed early on that she felt drawn to prayer and to
the religious life in a special way.
Anna Katharina labored for three years on a large farm in the vicinity. Then
she learned to sew and stayed in Coesfeld for her further training. She loved
to visit the old churches in Coesfeld and to join in the celebration of Mass.
She often walked the path of Coesfeld's long Way of the Cross alone, praying
the stations by herself.
Anna Katharina wanted to enter the convent, but since her wish could not be
fulfilled at that time, she returned to her parental home. She worked as a
seamstress and, while doing so, visited many homes.
Anna Katharina asked for admission to different convents, but she was rejected
because she could not bring a significant dowry with her. The Poor Clares in
Münster finally agreed to accept her if she would learn to play the organ. She
received her parents' permission to be trained in Coesfeld by the organist
Söntgen. But she never got around to learning how to play the organ. The misery
and poverty in the Söntgen household prompted her to work in the house and help
out in the family. She even sacrificed her small savings for their sake.
Together with her friend Klara Söntgen Anna Katharina was finally able to enter
the convent of Agnetenberg in Dülmen in 1802. The following year she took her
religious vows. She participated enthusiastically in the life of the convent.
She was always willing to take on hard work and loathsome tasks. Because of her
impoverished background she was at first given little respect in the convent.
Some of the Sisters took offence at her strict observance of the order's rule
and considered her a hypocrite. Anna Katharina bore this pain in silence and
quiet submission.
From 1802 to 1811 Anna Katharina was ill quite often and had to endure great
pain.
As a result of secularization the convent of Agnetenberg was suppressed in
1811, and Anna Katharina had to leave the convent along with the others. She
was taken in as a housekeeper at the home of Abbé Lambert, a priest who had
fled France and lived in Dülmen. But she soon became ill. She was unable to
leave the house and was confined to bed. In agreement with Curate Lambert she
had her younger sister Gertrud come to take over the housekeeping under her
direction.
During this period Anna Katharina received the stigmata. She had already
endured the pain of the stigmata for a long time. The fact that she bore the
wounds of Christ could not remain hidden. Dr. Franz Wesener, a young doctor,
went to see her, and he was so impressed by her that he became a faithful,
selfless and helping friend during the following eleven years. He kept a diary
about his contacts with Anna Katharina Emmerick in which he recorded a wealth
of details.
A striking characteristic of the life of Anna Katharina was her love for
people. Wherever she saw need she tried to help. Even in her sickbed she sewed
clothes for poor children and was pleased when she could help them in this way.
Although she could have found her many visitors annoying, she received all of
them kindly. She embraced their concerns in her prayers and gave them
encouragement and words of comfort.
Many prominent people who were important in the renewal movement of the Church
at the beginning of the 19th century sought an opportunity to meet Anna
Katharina, among them Clemens August Droste zu Vischering, Bernhard Overberg,
Friedrich Leopold von Stolberg, Johann Michael Sailer, Christian and Clemens
Brentano, Luise Hensel, Melchior and Apollonia Diepenbrock.
The encounter with Clemens Brentano was particularly significant. His first
visit led him to stay in Dülmen for five years. He visited Anna Katharina daily
to record her visions which he later published.
Anna Katharina grew ever weaker during the summer of 1823. As always she joined
her suffering to the suffering of Jesus and offered it up for the salvation of
all. She died on February 9, 1824.
Anna Katharina Emmerick was buried in the cemetery in Dülmen. A large number of
people attended the funeral. Because of a rumor that her corpse had been stolen
the grave was reopened twice in the weeks following the burial. The coffin and
the corpse were found to be intact.
Clemens Brentano wrote the following about Anna Katharina Emmerick: "She
stands like a cross by the wayside." Anna Katharina Emmerick shows us the
center of our Christian faith, the mystery of the cross.
The life of Anna Katharina Emmerick is marked by her profound closeness to
Christ. She loved to pray before the famous Coesfeld Cross, and she walked the
path of the long Way of the Cross frequently. So great was her personal
participation in the sufferings of our Lord that it is not an exaggeration to
say that she lived, suffered and died with Christ. An external sign of this,
which is at the same time, however, more than just a sign, are the wounds of
Christ which she bore.
Anna Katharina Emmerick was a great admirer of Mary. The feast of the Nativity
of Mary was also Anna Katharina's birthday. A verse from a prayer to Mary
highlights a further aspect of Anna Katharina's life for us. The prayer states,
"O God, let us serve the work of salvation following the example of the
faith and the love of Mary." To serve the work of salvation -- that is
what Anna Katharina wanted to do.
In Colossians the apostle Paul speaks of two ways to serve the gospel, to serve
salvation. One consists in the active proclamation in word and deed. But what
if that is no longer possible? Paul, who obviously finds himself in such a
situation, writes: "Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in
my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his
body, that is, the church" (Colossians 1:24).
Anna Katharina Emmerick served salvation in both ways. Her words, which have
reached innumerable people in many languages from her modest room in Dülmen
through the writings of Clemens Brentano, are an outstanding proclamation of
the gospel in service to salvation right up to the present day. At the same
time, however, Anna Katharina Emmerick understood her suffering as a service to
salvation. Dr. Wesener, her doctor, recounts her petition in his diary: "I
have always requested for myself as a special gift from God that I suffer for
those who are on the wrong path due to error or weakness, and that, if
possible, I make reparation for them." It has been reported that Anna
Katharina Emmerick gave many of her visitors religious assistance and consolation.
Her words had this power because she brought her life and suffering into the
service of salvation.
In serving the work of salvation through faith and love, Anna Katharina
Emmerick can be a model for us.
Dr. Wesener passed on this remark of Anna Katharina Emmerick: "I have
always considered service to my neighbor to be the greatest virtue. In my
earliest childhood I already requested of God that he give me the strength to
serve my fellow human beings and to be useful. And now I know that he has
granted my request." How could she who was confined to her sickroom and
her bed for years serve her neighbor?
In a letter to Count Stolberg, Clemens August Droste zu Vischering, the Vicar
General at that time, called Anna Katharina Emmerick a special friend of God.
In the words of Hans Urs von Balthasar we can say, "She brought her
friendship with God to bear in solidarity with human beings."
To bring friendship with God to bear in solidarity with human beings -- does
this not shed light on an important concern in the life of the Church today?
The Christian faith no longer includes everyone. In our world the Christian
community represents people before God. We must bring our friendship with God
to bear, let it be the decisive factor in solidarity with human beings.
Anna Katharina Emmerick is united to us in the community of believers. This
community does not come to an end with death. We believe in the lasting
communion with all whom God has led to perfection. We are united with them
beyond death and they participate in our lives. We can invoke them and ask for
their intercession. We ask Anna Katharina Emmerick, the newly named Blessed, to
bring her friendship with God to bear in solidarity with us and with all human
beings.
Charles I of
Austria: a Eucharistic Soul
Peace Was a Top Commitment
The Vatican press office issued this biography of
Charles I of Austria (1887-1922).
Charles of Austria was born August 17, 1887, in the Castle of Persenbeug in the
region of Lower Austria. His parents were the Archduke Otto and Princess Maria
Josephine of Saxony, daughter of the last King of Saxony. Emperor Francis
Joseph I was Charles' Great Uncle.
Charles was given an expressly Catholic education and the prayers of a group of
persons accompanied him from childhood, since a stigmatic nun prophesied that
he would undergo great suffering and attacks would be made against him. That is
how the "League of prayer of the Emperor Charles for the peace of the
peoples" originated after his death. In 1963 it became a prayer community
ecclesiastically recognized.
A deep devotion to the Holy Eucharist and to the Sacred Heart of Jesus began to
grow in Charles. He turned to prayer before making any important decisions.
On October 21, 1911, he married Princess Zita of Bourbon and Parma. The couple
was blessed with eight children during the ten years of their happy and
exemplary married life. Charles still declared to Zita on his deathbed:
"I'll love you forever."
Charles became heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire on June 28,
1914, following the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand.
World War I was under way and with the death of the Emperor Francis Joseph, on
November 21, 1916, Charles became Emperor of Austria. On December 30th he was
crowned apostolic King of Hungary.
Charles envisaged this office also as a way to follow Christ: in the love and
care of the peoples entrusted to him, and in dedicating his life to them.
He placed the most sacred duty of a king -- a commitment to peace -- at the
center of his preoccupations during the course of the terrible war. He was the
only one among political leaders to support Benedict XV's peace efforts.
As far as domestic politics are concerned, despite the extremely difficult
times he initiated wide and exemplary social legislation, inspired by social
Christian teaching.
Thanks to his conduct, the transition to a new order at the end of the conflict
was made possible without a civil war. He was, however, banished from his
country.
The Pope feared the rise of Communist power in central Europe, and expressed
the wish that Charles reestablish the authority of his government in Hungary.
But two attempts failed, since above all Charles wished to avoid the outbreak
of a civil war.
Charles was exiled to the island of Madeira. Since he considered his duty as a
mandate from God, he could not abdicate his office.
Reduced to poverty, he lived with his family in a very humid house. He then
fell fatally ill and accepted this as a sacrifice for the peace and unity of
his peoples.
Charles endured his suffering without complaining. He forgave all those who
conspired against him and died on April 1, 1922 with his eyes turned toward the
Holy Sacrament. On his deathbed he repeated the motto of his life:
"I
strive always in all things to understand as clearly as possible and follow the
will of God, and this in the most perfect way."