August 12, 2014
Letter of the Apostles
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles 15, 22 – 29:
Then the apostles and presbyters, in agreement with the whole church, decided to choose representatives and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers. This is the letter delivered by them: “The apostles and the presbyters, your brothers, to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia of Gentile origin: greetings. Since we have heard that some of our number who went out without any mandate from us have upset you with their teachings and disturbed your peace of mind, we have with one accord decided to choose representatives and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. So we are sending Judas and Silas who will also convey this same message by word of mouth. It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities, namely, to abstain from meats sacrificed to idols, from blood, from meats of strangled animals, and from unlawful marriage. If you keep free of these, you will be doing what is right. Farewell.”
I prayed over the phone for a man who had terminal cancer. He was in bed and he could not get up any more. After I prayed with him, the next day his wife phoned me and said that her husband got up after I had prayed with him and he took a shower all by himself. He felt much better. May the Lord be praised.
Below you will find the message of Our Lord and Savior given to Father Melvin. Jesus spoke to him these words,
“I know that you agree with the letter written by the Apostles and Presbyters My brother Melvin and all My brothers and sisters who have great faith in the Holy Spirit. You all have received the Holy Spirit and you know that He works among you and He enlightens all the leaders of the Church including the Pope to write the truth as I gave it to the Apostles when I was living on earth. Today we read in the Acts of the Apostles what was written by the Council of Jerusalem. They maintained that the Gentiles do not have to be circumcised but they should follow the teachings giving in this letter. They should not eat the meat sacrificed to idols and they should not eat blood or meat of strangled animals. The Apostles also told them not to get involve in unlawful marriages. After this letter the Pharisees had nothing else to say but to follow the teachings of the Apostles.
The Church has held Ecumenical Councils throughout its years and the last one was the Second Council of the Vatican in the 1960’s. That Council also taught you a good many things and all that it taught is true and all Catholics should follow it. Some however went beyond what the Council taught and this is not right. There is today a big problem of confession. Many Catholics do not go to confession today and this has to change. My Blessed Mother in an apparition said that Catholics should go to confession at least once a month. I call you all to start following what She said. I bless you all.”
Father Melvin
P.S. I had a mostly sunny day on Monday but there were some clouds especially in the late afternoon. The temperature was fine.