To all our Catholic readers, and other Christian brothers in solidarity…

By now, many of you should be aware of the latest scandals in the Catholic Church. This post is a call to arms. Not to arms of military power or mob-rule, but to arms of prayer and fasting. We must reform, not revolt. In my day, identifying and combatting the enemy was easy. You could spot them a mile a way and do them in. They sacrificed publicly to false gods, and we answered. These days, in the Catholic Church and in society in general, our fight is with an invisible darkness seeking to scatter the sheep from within. This darkness doesn’t sleep, is very subtle and very strong. May the Lord rebuke it. However, it is simultaneously very weak and can be crushed by the heel of the humblest of us. For our Catholic readers, the answer isn’t revolt, but rather, like so many Saints and Martyrs who went before us, reform.

We start with ourselves, which is always a good principle of the interior life. Then, we work outward, fighting the principalities and powers within and without our ranks. Repent. Fast. Pray. Make reparation.

For every article you read on the scandal, skip a meal in reparation. You’re reading one now, so hop to it.

Say an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be whenever you hear about it in passing or on the news.

Do some sort of mortification during every meal for the salvation of souls and in atonement for outrages committed against the Most Blessed Trinity.

Pray and fast for the Holy Father, his brother Bishops and for all Priests (the good and the bad).

Pray and fast for those converting to the Catholic faith and who are currently second-guessing themselves in light of recent events.

Pray and fast for those injured sheep. The poor ones who were victims of unjust men.

Offer up your work when you are really tired or feeling lazy. Do it with perfection as an act of worship for the glory of God.

Start small, be consistent, and graduate upward with the help of your Spiritual Director or Confessor.

In the words of a recent sermon, God doesn’t change. He is still looking for the same thing he was looking for so long ago. Just men. Men of justice who will stay back his righteous hand of judgement. Men who he wants as victors in the great battle for all souls.

Reform, don’t revolt. Long live the Good Shepherd! Long live Christ the King!

Come then, stiffen the sinews of drooping hand, and flagging knee, and plant your footprints in a straight track, so that the man who goes lame may not stumble out of the path, but regain strength instead. Your aim must be peace with all men, and that holiness without which no one will ever see God. Hebrews 12:12-14 (Knox version)