"Who Is Like unto God":
A Plea for Saint Michael the Archangel's Intercession
By Patricius Anthony
TRADITIO Traditional Roman Catholic Internet Site
E-mail: traditio@traditio.com, Web: http://www.traditio.com
Copyright 2003 P. Anthony. Reproduction prohibited without authorization.
Like most successful revolutions, the Conciliar Religion did not directly challenge or openly seek to refute the fundamental doctrines and beliefs of the Ancient Faith, but, for the most part, simply ignored the venerable Traditions and pushed its own sinister agenda upon the unsuspecting, heaping ridicule and scorn on those who courageously clung to the "Old Ways." By all accounts, the diabolically-inspired strategy succeeded beyond the wildest expectations of its masterminds, and within a scant forty years, New Order "Catholicism" cunningly had almost supplanted the Apostolic Faith.
Such a tactic was never more effective than in the New Church's drastic de-emphasis of the luminary figures of the Christian past and the mighty angelic entities that directly minister to, serve, and worship Almighty God. Not only have devotional practices by the faithful toward the Angels almost vanished, but a deluge of New Order "saints," many of questionable meritorious credentials, have been ushered in under "Politically Correct" standards.
Since the start of the current misbegotten papacy, close to 500 saints have been "selected," an amount which had previously taken nearly four centuries to attain. Thankfully, the designation of sainthood is not an "infallible" act and, hopefully, will be thoroughly reviewed along with a condemnation of all the other sacrileges, abuses, and novelties of the Novus Ordo when Almighty God permits a traditional pope to reign once again on St. Peter's throne.
As the New Church has done everything in its power to disassociate itself from the sacred, it is not surprising that its depiction of the Angels has mirrored that of the modern world. The heavenly spirits have been meekly redefined from powerful intercessory forces combating the most odious forms of evil into cuddly androgynous prepubescent nymphs, who, more often than not, are portrayed in the facilitation of human romance.
The angelic entity who has received the greatest neglect and who, arguably, next to the Blessed Trinity, is the most powerful force in all of creation, has been St. Michael the Archangel. It is certainly understandable why the New Order has deliberately shunted aside the Church's august defender, but it is unfortunate that traditional groups have not maintained a more fervid devotion to such a worthy spiritual aid, especially because the auto-destruction of the Church has dramatically escalated since the troubled Paul VI sadly admitted that Satanic fumes had entered God's Sanctuary.
With all due respect to the important role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the divine redemptive Plan, in light of Tradition and as a fitting closure to known history, it seems likely that the monumental task in the ultimate defeat of Satan and his minions belongs to St. Michael. As Sacred Scripture and a number of theologians, including St. Jerome, indicate, it is the Prince of the Heavenly Host who will "crush the serpent's head," for it was St. Michael who dauntlessly stood with Almighty God against the rebel angels and triumphantly cast them out of Paradise.
Unfortunately, the over-emphasis on "private" devotional practices and the sometimes erroneous adherence to a number of tenuous private apparitions has superseded what should always be, next to one's own salvation, a Catholic's first priority: the defense of the Apostolic Deposit of Faith. The literary gymnastics that writers employ to weave unscriptural, latter-day "prophecies," into their historical analysis, essays, and columns has, in part, made it easier for the New Order liturgical barbarians to substitute their own invalid sacraments on the faithful, the worst of which has been the creation of a sacrilegious worship service in place of the most sublime offering of adoration that mankind can make to its Creator: the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
If all the fascination with "visions" and "secrets" and the like had been poured into the restoration of the True Mass and Sacraments, it might have been possible that the rancid Novus Ordo would be in full retreat, or at least back on its heels.
It must be remembered that even the Most Holy Rosary is for the spiritual edification of individual souls. It cannot, nor was it ever intended to, take the place of the Traditional Latin Mass or, for that matter, the venerable public offering of the Church: the now largely forgotten Divine Office. One of the Church's glorious doctors, St. Alphonsus de Liguori, kept the two in proper perspective when he preached that all of the rosaries ever said could not match the supreme propitious offering of a single Holy Mass.
In its vast wisdom, the Roman Church has always taken a sober approach in regard to apparitions, remaining leery of popularizing devotions to them. Such a mindset, of course, stems from its Divine Founder who cautioned against His creatures seeking solace and truth in such things instead of grounding their Faith in the certainty of His moral teachings contained in Sacred Scripture and of the promise of eternal life guaranteed by the proper reception of His Sacraments.
Some of the numerous feats of St. Michael -- the elimination of Lucifer from heaven, the procurement of Moses' body from the Evil One, the defense of the Old Testament people, the guardianship of the Ark of the Covenant -- are, outside of his Master's Life, as compelling and inspirational as any known to man. In the present age of apostasy, however, Almighty God's Grand Marshall is most needed for his divinely-aided ability to battle the Satanic forces that have taken hold of the Church.
The importance of this role was never more realized than by Leo XIII, who was mystically forewarned of the diabolical onslaught upon the Church that was set to take place. In response to this threat, the wise Pontiff composed the very beautiful and resolute St. Michael prayer, which he prudently instructed to be recited after each Low Mass.
The New Order also recognized its powerful intercessory significance, and in one of the first of its many subsequent demented acts, shrewdly abolished it. Such treachery should have been a clear signal of the heinous novelties that were yet to come. Tragically, the prayer's eradication was left uncontested by an increasingly indifferent Catholic populace, who would soon find out that such complacency would result in the loss of the True Faith and its replacement by the abominable New Order sect.
The loss of St. Michael's intercessory powers publicly pleaded for after Holy Mass, no doubt has made the sinister takeover of the Church much easier to accomplish. The inability of Christians to take advantage of such a potent spiritual aid goes a long way toward explaining why not only the Church but also the world is suffering through a period of widespread moral collapse.
Until St. Michael is returned to his proper place as Supreme Guardian of Christ's Holy Church in the minds, hearts, and souls of the faithful, the likelihood of a full Catholic Restoration is nil.