The following comes from an April 13 Angelus article by Jennifer Wing Atencio:
By 4 a.m., thousands were lined up at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for what may soon be called the beginning of a new wave of spiritual renewal and reconciliation of the Body of Christ in the United States.
Protestant pastor Lou Engle of “The Call” led Azuza Now, a revival marking the 110th anniversary of the Pentecostal Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles.
Throughout the day, an estimated 90,000 Christians and church leaders from across the nation joined in praise, which began at 7 a.m. and ended at 10:30 p.m. April 9.
Shalom World Media was there to broadcast the event to the Catholic world, along with God TV and other Christian media channels. “It was the first time ever that a [mostly] Protestant-Christian event would be broadcasted on Catholic television,” remarked Mark McElrath of Orange County Catholics at Work, who emceed the broadcast along with Kevin Kast of the Office of Life, Justice and Peace of the L.A. Archdiocese.
Keith Major, founder of Major Change in Steubenville, Ohio, worked in tandem with McElrath to invite Southern California Catholic leaders to the anniversary revival, which included Auxiliary Bishop David G. O’Connell, auxiliary bishop of the San Gabriel Region.
Major worked with Engle’s ministry, The Call, after serving for a decade on the mission field in Russia, Poland and Middle East, establishing communities in other countries with Vineyard. The Majors reverted to Catholic-Christianity in 2010 and Keith worked for the Franciscan University of Steubenville.
Now, they hope to mobilize Catholics in collaborative efforts for ministry with Protestant-Evangelicals, Pentecostals and Charismatics. In December 2015, MajorChange joined Onething 2015 conference, organized by Mike Bickle, founder of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, Missouri and presented the first ever Catholic Ecumenical Track during their annual Onething Conference.
Standing on stage at noon with Father Ed Benioff of the archdiocesan Office of Evangelization and Father Alexei Smith, director of the archdiocesan Office of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, this Charismatic-Evangelical-Catholic was given a most astounding view of the thousands in attendance and the behind-the-scenes, cross-denominational comradery.
The highlight of my day was when Father Ed grabbed Father Alexei to turn him around fast, 180 degrees, and raised his hands for him in blessing to the south (toward the Coliseum front gate) during a prayer for the nation, and then turned him right back around again 180 degrees, grabbing his shoulders to force him to sway and sing like a good charismatic.
Father Alexei, who is my former professor, a surfer, and an Eastern-rite, Russian Catholic pastor, turned to me and laughed whole-heartedly declaring “I like it, but it’s just not my usual style!” And this was just their warm-up.
The music quieted while the constantly boisterous crowd fell to a noticeable hush as the “men-in-black,” collared Catholic priests and their friends, who were incidentally wearing black, took center-stage. Standing with my right foot about one inch from the stage drop, I looked out on the crowd to see trepidation on faces and looks of curiosity, and even a noticeable pause of breath.
Matteo Calisi, former president of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, was introduced and began to address the crowd in Italian with Dr. Bruno Ierullo translating:
“We are a delegation, a Catholic delegation. … I come from Italy. And, I bring you a salute from 150 million Charismatic Catholics.” As the crowd cheered, Calisi then spoke to the crowd about the influence of the Asuza Street Revival on the Catholic Charismatic Renewal.
Following these remarks, he ceremoniously laid prostrate on the stage and kissed Lou Engle’s feet in an act of reconciliatory love. “We are just in a holy moment right here,” Engle emotionally cried out. Then he continued to call out the other church elders onto the stage while he fell to his knees reciprocally kissing Matteo’s feet.
“Jesus, I thank you!” cried out Calisi while Engle kneeled before his feet, “because you are breaking the spirit of division! You are preparing a great revival in the event of this call, like you did 100 years ago. Do it again! Do it again! Holy Spirit let your Spirit come again for a billion Catholics.”
Following his prayer, Engle introduced Father Ed Benioff:
“We have a brother here who is over the effort of evangelization in this archdiocese. I want you to stretch out your hands and pray for the evangelization — the mighty evangelization of the peoples of Los Angeles.”
Father Benioff came to center stage and kneeled while praying:
“Heavenly Father, you taught us through the words of St. Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians that the eye cannot say to the hand ‘I do not need you.’ Nor can the head say to the foot ‘I do not need you,’ but the truth is, we all need each other,” he said.
“And Lord, we know that you want to bring revival in our world and in our nation, but we will not have revival until we have reconciliation … and as Elijah prepared Elisha and Israel for revival, first, they had to be reconciled, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the sons and hearts of the sons to the fathers. So, Heavenly Father, it is my prayer that going forward from this historic day, we can all forgive each other. We have to forgive each other … so I say this to every person here with absolute sincerity and authenticity — I need you.”
Then Father Benioff paraphrased the words of Jesus in John 17:21, “Father, Abba, Daddy, let them be one as you and I are one.” He continued, “So let us pray and work for unity, so the witness of Christ will be most powerful in our troubled world.”
In the conclusion of his prayer he said, “Let us make a covenant to work together as a united family in Christ, so we can have love and reconciliation in our own, Christian family. Amen.”
How pathetically sad, well done spirit of Vatican 2
Why is this sad?
Because the differences between Catholics and heretical Protestants are real and are dimninished by these kinds of festivals.
Extra ecclesiam nulla salus – outside the Church there is no salvation.
Differences are real but not diminished. Fr. Ed prayed with the intention that all Christians eventually unite in the one, true Church. Ora et Labora. We as Catholics must do more than just pray for unity or hope for it, we must engage non-Catholics in an event like this and demonstrate to them through our actions. It’s possible seeds may have been planted at this event and some of the Protestant Christians may be inspired by the Holy Spirit to fully enter the Church. Another thing, Fr. Ed and Fr. Alexi, through their presence, brought Sacramental graces to the rally through their Holy Orders that otherwise would not have been there. This is not sad at all but a reason for rejoicing. We’ll see.
Catholics interested in interfaith services are often dissatisfied with the Church and use these services as stepping stones to leave her altogether. It’s just as likely that seeds are being planted in these attendees to leave the One True Church.
If interfaith services do not inspire heretical Protestants to return to Rome, then they are a failure, peroid.
Father Ed, Father Alexi ? is just one example of the difference. Modern Catholics naming Priests by there first name. Why not call him Ed, Alexi ? Then there’s the hand raising, nice or should I say Church of Nice ?
45 years ago this would have been unthinkable, Roman Catholics running around with heretics speaking in tongues and acting like fools, but as Canisus stated above how pathetically sad and yes a result of Vatican II.
St. Matthew Chapter 7:
[16] By their fruits you shall know them. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? [17] Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, and the evil tree bringeth forth evil fruit. [18] A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can an evil tree bring forth good fruit. [19] Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit, shall be cut down, and shall be cast into the fire. [20] Wherefore by their fruits you shall know them.
Which side of the fence are you on? Loss of once Roman Catholic souls to Protestantism (heresy) is the fruit of Vatican II. Is this fruit good or evil?
Perhaps the Holy Spirit is moving the various Christian denominations in a new direction!
Before Cardinal Manning, Los Angeles had Mary’s Hour every year, and thousands of Catholics came to this noteworthy event. Several attempts were made to revive Mary’s Hour, but nothing really ever happened. The headlines for this article should be “Huge Protestant Revival Draws Neo-CATHOLICS, and Catholics in Name Only.” This just shows the Catholic Church is offering her faithful stones, while the Protestants are giving away artificial bread. This is tragic and catastrophic.
Wow! Maybe 2000 people would have attended if these two priests would have celebrated the traditional Latin Mass!
The Traditional Latin Mass has been around 2000 years and will outlast these Pelagian Fundamentalsts. We are the remnant that will pull the Church though. Amazingly, it is here in California that the True Faith will be maintained – as in Ireland during the dark ages.
Oh how good and pleasant it is, for brothers to dwell together in UNITY!
The truth can never exist with error, and Protestants are in error. The horrible thing is this. If you go to a store like Sears, and ask for a product, and they tell you they do not have it, but to go to Walmart instead, it is kind of bad for Sears knowing that store cannot help you. Now, substitute Sears for the Catholic Church, and use Protestantism instead of Walmart, and you see how tragic it is. When Christ’s true Church tells her members to go elsewhere this is diabolical disorientation.
Before Vatican II, Catholics were forbidden under pain of sin to attend a Protestant service. When Billy Graham had his crusades, we were told to ignore them and keep away from these gatherings. Well, the Protestants have not changed their beliefs, and they profess whatever is in vogue at the moment: eg divorce, birth control, abortion, homosexuality. And now Catholics are encouraged to attend these heretical gatherings. This is pretty bad, and things will only get worse as we abandon traditional Catholic principles, morality, and practices.
Since the Joy of Sex exhortation by Pope Jesuit we too accept into our sacraments irregular unions meaning divorced, co-habitation, and homosexual couplings. No need to repent at confession, just do what you feel is right. Not much different from a Protestant, no? Coming next year to a parish near you: married priests. Then Gay bishops an on and on. Pope Francis is just putting Vatican II into effect and Christian Civilization be damned. This Pope is perfectly matched with Barak Hussein Obama, and now also Bernie Sanders who is lecturing from the Vatican now. We live in interesting times.
Pilar you are correct to have attended heretic Protestant services years ago would put our very souls in danger and it STILL stands!! The Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church is the true Church and the TLM is the true Mass of Calvary. No more of Vatican II and its disaster hoisted upon upon us, empty seminaries, empty convents, closed churches.
Too many Catholics today believe that there is little or no difference between Catholicism and Protestants. So unfortunately they feel right at home at these rallies and prayer services. It is a shame that Catholicism has been watered down. There is now hardly any distinction between what has been essential Catholic teaching, and the heretical beliefs of Protestants.
You are correct, “Father Karl”: However, it is the men within the Catholic Church that are “watered down” but not the Faith, which is immutable. Unfortunately, these same men mask the True Faith, and teach wrong things about the Faith. We are better off without them, along with the homosexualists, and the Zombie-Liberals. Sadly, Pope Francis adores these men, as he recently seemed to find something to “common” in the experiences of “poor Judas,” a man who only wished to repent but, being rejected by the Jewish leadership, went and hanged himself. Yet, these men are in power. Time to revolt.
When Rome and yes the Pope continue to say we worship the same god well then what do you expect from the faithful? At least the Muslims say they have the TRUE faith, the Roman Catholic Church prior to Vatican II said this as well.
Jesus was never asked “are you a Catholic or a Protestant”! The truth is both Catholics and Protestants are Christians! Both fundamentalist Catholics and Protestants believe their respective Churches are the one true Church. The fact is God is bigger than any Church.
The fact is that the Catholic Church is the Church founded by Jesus Christ ALL Protestant sects were founded by men…
As a convert, Canisius, I agree, but we do have to talk to our fellow Christians and give them good Catholic reading material and so forth if they are to ever understand the truth. I do realize it is a touchy situation as I myself have given up Protestant friends at times when I realized that they really did not want to know the truth, sometimes because of a sin to which they were attached. Pray for all, please.
By encouraging and promoting religious liberty and ecumenism, the heretics are evidently on the tippy top, and most mice are to blind to see the pied pipers leading them into the sewer, all in the name of obedience! Obedience to who? God or man?
Religious indifference again rears its ugly head. Now, I guess it doesn’t matter if your are Catholic or not. Sadly, I have heard that from far too many priests. Since the 2nd Vatican Council, the Church has become so protestanized, it barely has any resemblance to what our fore bearers experienced in years gone past.
I was at a pro prop 8 rally with Lou Engle and other non Catholic Christians several years ago. He asked the Catholics for forgiveness for non Catholic Christian sins against Catholics. Everyone prayed together for marriage. This is a healthy form of ecumenism following the Lund principle: do together what we can do together, and do separately what we cannot do together (Holy Communion, e.g.). Indeed non evangelized Catholics could be drawn away from the church, but that is up to us clergy, Pope, bishops, priests to preach the full doctrine and avoid non salvation issues like socialism, climate change, etc which pervade the hierarchy today, and get back to Jesus which these rallies often do. That is what attracts a believer, a God who…
saves from sin to eternal life, not socialism, a $15 minimum wage, climate issues, and so forth.
Well said, Fr. Perozich.
Amen wise Fr. There is but one Spirit that is Truth, let us wield that Truth.
Protestants are heretics by definition; they cannot be saved by obstinately remaining outside the one Church founded by Christ. They need to be exhorted to conversion, not have their feet kissed. Did these priests try to convert anyone at this rally? It’s totally shameful that any lay Catholic would attend one of these hyper-emotional warm-fuzzy Protestant mega-rally, much less a priest.
For those so eager for “unity” between Catholics and Protestants: how should we both be interpreting the meaning of John chapter 6?
The only interpretation is the Catholic interpretation: consecrated by a validly ordained priest (male) it is the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus, necessary for eternal life.
I can remember, when I was a sophomore in college, that a Priest told me I could not attend the funeral of a non-catholic best friend who had been killed in an auto accident. That was the first time that I questioned anything I had been taught by that Priest. Protestants believe in Christ, the triune God, worship Him and follow his teachings, as the interpret them. I can’t believe they will not go to heaven if the are good people. Even the Church no longer teaches that you can only go to heaven if you are Catholic. My Priest was a law-and-order guy and not a pastor. I couldn’t have cared less about the agony I was experiencing at the loss of a good friend.