The Great Battle Has Begun (part three)

This is the third and final installment with author Kelly Bowring for his book The Great Battle Has Begun.

(NOTE FROM CHERYL: I've disabled the ability for comments on this article but do suggest that the lively conversation be taken to Dr. Bowring's site www.twoheartspress.com where Dr. Bowring will be able to more directly answer questions etc. Thanks! Blessings, Cheryl)

part one is here
part two is here


(After Dr. Bowring answered all my questions—and more—I asked him to address a particular comment made by Jimmy Aiken who said that to “adhere to her [MDM] prophecies can result in the grave sin and canonical crime of schism.” Dr. Bowring’s answer follows.)

Jimmy Akin's overstatement is simply false, and it is very misleading (and even potentially harmful). Look at this scenario: The critics condemn MDM claiming that her messages are divisive, though they are not, while they themselves make false and misleading statements that are in fact very divisive.

 Akin actually accuses Catholics who follow the messages of MDM of being "grave sinners" and "criminals of schism"... this is untrue, and very harmful talk. Some of the critics overstate their conclusive opinions of condemnation ahead of the Church, almost as if they are above the Church.

As far as reported (neither approved nor condemned) private revelation like MDM, caution is recommended, while devotion is permitted. The determination of authenticity is the role of the Church, and the verdict on MDM is still out. The critics really need to be more responsible (and charitable) when they state their own opinions.

The truth is that meditating on and spreading the messages of MDM is permitted. This is the simple fact, contrary to all other opposing opinions... and I am a theologian in good standing while doing so. And Catholics benefit from hearing and spreading these messages.

If God is speaking to us through private revelation, even if the Church teaches that we are not required to listen, it is still helpful to do so. And it pleases God to listen, to respond, to help avert the times at hand, to help save souls, and to spread His reported messages. It pleases God. It does us (and others through us) much good.

And even if in the end it should be determined that a particular reported heavenly message is deemed inauthentic by the legitimate Church authority (with jurisdiction to do so), then...in words of Pope Urban VIII: “In cases which concern private revelations, it is better to believe than not to believe, for, if you believe, and it is proven true, you will be happy that you have believed, because our Holy Mother asked it. If you believe, and it should be proven false, you will receive all blessings as if it had been true, because you believed it to be true.” Read the messages and put into practice what they are requesting; you will be glad indeed, and God will be pleased.

The Great Battle Has Begun (part one)

The folloiwng is the first of a three part series on the Kelly Bowring book The Great Battle Has Begun.

(NOTE FROM CHERYL: I've disabled the ability for comments on this article but do suggest that the lively conversation be taken to Dr. Bowring's site www.twoheartspress.com where Dr. Bowring will be able to more directly answer questions etc. Thanks! Blessings, Cheryl)

When I was a teenager in the 1970s I worked for a home security company. The workers who installed the systems were always in and out of the office for a variety of reasons. One worker in particular scared the daylights out of me.

He was a Christian (denomination not important) and he was always talking about Jesus coming back. Although I was a baptized Catholic, mostly I was immersed in the Jewish faith and hadn’t yet made the connection about Jesus being a Jew and knowing that him coming back was a good thing.

So, this big, boisterous guy would come into the office and my stomach would rumble and my heart would jump all over inside my chest. After a minute of two of him talking I would lose my appetite for the day and sit motionless waiting for the skies to open up and my life to be over. I simply didn’t know what to make of all of his proclamations about Jesus and repentance and judgment and heaven and eternal damnation.

It all scared the hell out of me.

That was then.

This is now…and now I get it.

Every day I look to the skies with eager anticipation of Christ’s return. To some, I might be as crazy as that guy. Thirty years later I get his excitement about the prospect of the second coming. I don’t think I’m crazy but, then again, to others I may very well seem that way.

So it was no surprise that the latest title of Kelly Bowring caught my attention. The Great Battle Has Begun says it all: the great battle is underway. Put on your armor, grab your gear, get your life in order. Buckle up because it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Bowring’s book relies heavily on the private revelations of Maria Divine Mercy which are excerpted throughout. I admit that prior to reading Bowring’s book, I had never heard of this person (I believe she is a woman although she remains anonymous). In fact, I haven’t been much of a private revelation enthusiast until about a year ago when I was doing some research for a book I was writing. My interest was Fatima. In retrospect, that research laid the groundwork for me to begin to understand private revelation and Church teachings on it.

This past year I’ve also read up on Catholic prophecies as part of that research. I’ve read the prophecies of Brother Louis Rocco and Marie de la Faudai—both from the 19^th century. Another set of prophecies that I’ve read include those of Jeanne le Royer who was born in the early 1700s.

As I read Bowing’s book, I couldn’t help but see the connection between what was in it and the words of those Catholic prophets that had been part of my research. With my interest piqued I started to investigate Maria Divine Mercy. No matter where I looked, no matter whose columns and editorials I came across, I found that her revelations were being vehemently dismissed—along with the Catholics who may have been giving them credibility. The private revelations of Maria Divine Mercy have been ridiculed, dismissed, and discounted by countless Catholic personalities from Jimmy Aiken to Mark Miravalle.

This caused me to contact the author Kelly Bowring immediately and ask him dozens of different questions. While I continued to read the book, I needed to understand why Bowring would be so intent on sharing the words of a woman whose role in private revelation was being swiftly and thoroughly attacked throughout the Catholic world.

The Great Battle Has Begunputs us squarely in the beginning of The Great Tribulation. It approaches end-times in a way that many people desire to understand. It offers insights into false prophets, the anti-Christ, the seven seals and our role in our personal salvation as well as our obligation to others through our prayers and fasting. Bowring has weaved into the private revelations of Maria Divine Mercy excerpts from the Book of Revelation as well as various Scripture excerpts.

Every Advent we prepare for Christ’s second coming; The Great Battle Has Begun affirms the need for that preparation. Like right now. It makes it real and not just a warm and fuzzy season we celebrate as Catholics.

The controversy surrounding Maria Divine Mercy adds an unexpected dimension to the book and is why I think it is important to share Bowring’s responses to my questions which will be posted tomorrow as part two of the series.

part two is here
part three is here

Cheryl Dickow
wwwBezalelBooks.com