Catholic Info

Traditional Catholic Faith => Crisis in the Church => Topic started by: Carissima on October 05, 2018, 10:36:00 PM

Title: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Carissima on October 05, 2018, 10:36:00 PM
What is the truth about this organization? Does anyone here have firsthand knowledge of them, as they stand, in The Church currently?

Established first as the TFP (Tradition Family Property), then going in a different direction after the passing of their founder Mr. Plinio Correa de Oliveira, who are they now?

I cannot find good info online, Wiki has only the basics. 
One thing I found on wiki is that the Southern Poverty Law Center lists the organization as a “virulently anti-LGBT group.”[33] (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Society_for_the_Defense_of_Tradition,_Family_and_Property#cite_note-33)

Also they are on wiki as being “Ardently anti-Communist, the group's interpretation of Catholic teaching led it to voice its opposition to the Vatican's policy of rapprochement with Communism.[10] (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Society_for_the_Defense_of_Tradition,_Family_and_Property#cite_note-10)”

I receive emails from them almost daily and their militant activism against blasphemy of Our Lord, Mary, and The Church are unmatched, at least as far as I have encountered. 

I don’t want to join their group, or donate funds, only sign their petitions, participate in Rosary Marches, and possibly purchase a rose to be placed, with my intentions, at the feet of a statue of Mary, in Fatima, for the anniversary of The Miracle of the Sun on the 13th of October. 
https://americaneedsfatima.org/forms/WEBWR18.html (https://americaneedsfatima.org/forms/WEBWR18.html)


Thoughts on America Needs Fatima?
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Nadir on October 06, 2018, 01:29:35 AM
The Australian version:
http://www.fatima.org.au/

and Oceania: 
http://www.fatima.org.au/oceania/
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Nadir on October 06, 2018, 01:55:07 AM
This https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradition,_Family_and_Property
seems to be a different page on Wiki than the one you speak of, Carissima.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Neil Obstat on October 06, 2018, 07:32:14 AM
The Australian version:
http://www.fatima.org.au/

and Oceania:
http://www.fatima.org.au/oceania/
.
The Fatima Center has nothing to do with America Needs Fatima, but it looks like ANF has managed to use the "fatima.org" domain for Australia and Oceania, since it entails the extension -.au (for Australia). In America, fatima.org (https://fatima.org/) belongs to the Fatima Center, founded by Fr. Nicholas Gruner (RIP). Fr. Gruner was in no way associated with the ANF branch of TF&P. He was, however, loosely associated with TIA. One joint project, We Resist You to the Face, was co-authored by Guimaraes and Marian T. Horvat, PhD., along with 2 of Fr. Gruner's regulars, John Vennari (of Catholic Family News) and Michael J. Matt (of The Remnant). 
.
The founder of TIA, Atila Sinke Guimaraes, has an associate, Marian T. Horvat, and together they edit materials in English and Portuguese very well. TIA has a selection of books they've published including the many-volume Eli, Eli, Lama Sabachthani.
.
Marian Horvat's brother, John Horvat II, is vice president and member of the board of directors of ANF. But as far as I know these 2 siblings have very little association with each other's office. They might write letters to each other but they don't have any joint projects, from what I've heard.
.
The ANF group is basically Novus Ordo, and most of their membership is in Newchurch.
.
TIA is absolutely TLM, and diligently seeks to promote the Latin Mass, recommending against everything Novus Ordo.
I guess you would call them Recognize & Resist.
But they have been a longstanding advocate of the fake Sister Lucia theory, long before Peter Chojnowski took it up.
I've had the impression that ANF would have nothing to do with the fake Sr. Lucy concept.
It seems to me they'd be terrified of alienating most of their followers that way, which might be the case in fact.
.
I know Trads who are very appreciative of the ANF projects, since they take the Rosary to the streets without compromise.
Their demonstrations and public Rosaries eagerly invite the participation of all comers, and Protestants join in to pray the Rosary.
I have no idea how they explain the concept of "getting together to pray, but not praying together" like JPII at Assisi I & II did.
.
A friend recently told me about a local Novus Ordo parish that had announced a public Rosary at the Church, in Simi Valley.
She was anticipating having it outside, on the sidewalk, where everyone can see it.
That's the way ANF does these Rosaries, often at public parks with soccer games going on all around, and the like.
But when the day arrived, everyone was inside the church, so my friend sought out an explanation from the parish office.
They explained to her that the Knights of Columbus had stepped in to run the Rosary, and they wanted to keep it indoors.
My friend was quite disappointed, because, she said, how can you expect to spread the Faith when you hide out of sight?
For this reason, she is an outspoken advocate of ANF, and thinks they are doing a lot of good.
.
I was involved about 20 years ago with organizing a home Pilgrim Virgin of Fatima visit from the ANF group.
They set up the date, and tell you how to invite friends and neighbors for the ceremony.
They show up with their Virgin Mary of Fatima statue, and get all set up with decorations and literature in your home.
There is a prayer sequence they lead, which includes a Rosary and then a short speech by the ANF representative.
At the end he encourages everyone to drop some *money* into the conspicuously perched box with a small opening in the top.
When everyone is finished, the rep picks up all his stuff, beginning with the BOX, and carries the statue etc. out to his minivan.
They obviously are well-rehearsed and use the same format wherever they go, I would suppose.
.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: drew on October 06, 2018, 02:57:24 PM
.
The Fatima Center has nothing to do with America Needs Fatima, but it looks like ANF has managed to use the "fatima.org" domain for Australia and Oceania, since it entails the extension -.au (for Australia). In America, fatima.org (https://fatima.org/) belongs to the Fatima Center, founded by Fr. Nicholas Gruner (RIP). Fr. Gruner was in no way associated with the ANF branch of TF&P. He was, however, loosely associated with TIA. One joint project, We Resist You to the Face, was co-authored by Guimaraes and Marian T. Horvat, PhD., along with 2 of Fr. Gruner's regulars, John Vennari (of Catholic Family News) and Michael J. Matt (of The Remnant).
.
The founder of TIA, Atila Sinke Guimaraes, has an associate, Marian T. Horvat, and together they edit materials in English and Portuguese very well. TIA has a selection of books they've published including the many-volume Eli, Eli, Lama Sabachthani.
.
Marian Horvat's brother, John Horvat II, is vice president and member of the board of directors of ANF. But as far as I know these 2 siblings have very little association with each other's office. They might write letters to each other but they don't have any joint projects, from what I've heard.
.
The ANF group is basically Novus Ordo, and most of their membership is in Newchurch.
.
TIA is absolutely TLM, and diligently seeks to promote the Latin Mass, recommending against everything Novus Ordo.
I guess you would call them Recognize & Resist.
But they have been a longstanding advocate of the fake Sister Lucia theory, long before Peter Chojnowski took it up.
I've had the impression that ANF would have nothing to do with the fake Sr. Lucy concept.
It seems to me they'd be terrified of alienating most of their followers that way, which might be the case in fact.
.
I know Trads who are very appreciative of the ANF projects, since they take the Rosary to the streets without compromise.
Their demonstrations and public Rosaries eagerly invite the participation of all comers, and Protestants join in to pray the Rosary.
I have no idea how they explain the concept of "getting together to pray, but not praying together" like JPII at Assisi I & II did.
.
A friend recently told me about a local Novus Ordo parish that had announced a public Rosary at the Church, in Simi Valley.
She was anticipating having it outside, on the sidewalk, where everyone can see it.
That's the way ANF does these Rosaries, often at public parks with soccer games going on all around, and the like.
But when the day arrived, everyone was inside the church, so my friend sought out an explanation from the parish office.
They explained to her that the Knights of Columbus had stepped in to run the Rosary, and they wanted to keep it indoors.
My friend was quite disappointed, because, she said, how can you expect to spread the Faith when you hide out of sight?
For this reason, she is an outspoken advocate of ANF, and thinks they are doing a lot of good.
.
I was involved about 20 years ago with organizing a home Pilgrim Virgin of Fatima visit from the ANF group.
They set up the date, and tell you how to invite friends and neighbors for the ceremony.
They show up with their Virgin Mary of Fatima statue, and get all set up with decorations and literature in your home.
There is a prayer sequence they lead, which includes a Rosary and then a short speech by the ANF representative.
At the end he encourages everyone to drop some *money* into the conspicuously perched box with a small opening in the top.
When everyone is finished, the rep picks up all his stuff, beginning with the BOX, and carries the statue etc. out to his minivan.
They obviously are well-rehearsed and use the same format wherever they go, I would suppose.
.


There is a standing joke around here that when "America Needs Fatima (ANF), the TFP needs money."

When the TFP began the ANF campaign with the first publication of Crusade magazine they claimed to be revealing the third secret. What they published was an early 1960s claim to be the third secret that was discredited long ago, almost directly after having been published.  

I got to know them well after they purchased the old Glatfelter estate in Spring Grove, PA about five miles from my home.  I called the TFP and ask to meet with them.  I had a nice meeting with their directors at their headquarters which I explained to them the errors in their first edition and brought them a lot of material from Fr. Gruner including the three volume work by Frere Michel de la Sainte Trinite, The Whole Truth About Fatima.  I spoke to them for about 45 minutes in which they listened very attentively and did not say a word in reply. They thanked me an took my material which I know they read very carefully because their next issue of the Crusade did a complete about face on the Fatima story. They plagiarized all of Fr. Grunner's material as if it were their own and never, not once ever, gave any credit to Fr. Gruner.  And since they have a policy of never criticizing any of the Church hierarchy, they never offered any defense of Fr. Gruner when he was publicly persecuted in his work to make the message of Fatima known.

I had a similar experience with the TFP when discussing the social kingship of Christ the King.  Sitting at a table with at least a dozen members of TFP, we were in complete agreement and I could not criticize anything that was said except this: not one of them ever heard of Fr. Denis Fahey or Cardinal Louis-Édouard-François-Desiré Pie. They attributed the entire Catholic theological teaching on the social kingship of Christ to Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira.  

ANF is used primarily to generate income for the TFP.  They had a real crisis when Rome claimed to have revealed the entirety of the third secret. They did not believe that the entire secret had been revealed but since they will not publicly contradict any Roman policy, they did not know what to do. They then sent a questionnaire and canvassed their supporters to get a feel if Fatima was worth continuing since it was now a historical interest only.  The reason Atila Guimaraes of Tradition In Action left the TFP is because they were opposed to the publication of "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACTHANI."  Although TIA has a lot of good and useful information, Atila still promotes the geopolitical view of the TFP.  He may end up being the last guy in the world to admit the that 9-11 was an inside job.  He still to this day defends the conquest of Iraq including the bombing of inner city civilian population in Bagdad.

If you want evidence that the TFP is a cult try to get one of their directors to say the name of "Atila Guimaraes" in front of witnesses.  Just ask them how it should be properly pronounced. The TFP makes a solemn oath to God never to repeat the name of anyone expelled from the organization.  

Drew

 
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on October 06, 2018, 03:08:01 PM
One thing I found on wiki is that the Southern Poverty Law Center lists the organization as a “virulently anti-LGBT group.”

Anyone so condemned by the SPLC cannot be all that bad.

I know a lot of TFP members, and they seem to be good, devout, Traditionally-minded Catholics (albeit mostly of the Motu, ICK, FSSP variety).
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on October 06, 2018, 03:11:31 PM
Although TIA has a lot of good and useful information, Atila still promotes the geopolitical view of the TFP.  He may end up being the last guy in the world to admit the that 9-11 was an inside job.  He still to this day defends the conquest of Iraq including the bombing of inner city civilian population in Bagdad. 

Yes, they're extremely anti-Muslim but deathly afraid of saying anything negative about the Jєωs.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Neil Obstat on October 15, 2018, 09:28:52 PM

There is a standing joke around here that when "America Needs Fatima (ANF), the TFP needs money."

When the TFP began the ANF campaign with the first publication of Crusade magazine they claimed to be revealing the third secret. What they published was an early 1960s claim to be the third secret that was discredited long ago, almost directly after having been published.  

I got to know them well after they purchased the old Glatfelter estate in Spring Grove, PA about five miles from my home.  I called the TFP and ask to meet with them.  I had a nice meeting with their directors at their headquarters which I explained to them the errors in their first edition and brought them a lot of material from Fr. Gruner including the three volume work by Frere Michel de la Sainte Trinite, The Whole Truth About Fatima.  I spoke to them for about 45 minutes in which they listened very attentively and did not say a word in reply. They thanked me an took my material which I know they read very carefully because their next issue of the Crusade did a complete about face on the Fatima story. They plagiarized all of Fr. Grunner's material as if it were their own and never, not once ever, gave any credit to Fr. Gruner.  And since they have a policy of never criticizing any of the Church hierarchy, they never offered any defense of Fr. Gruner when he was publicly persecuted in his work to make the message of Fatima known.

I had a similar experience with the TFP when discussing the social kingship of Christ the King.  Sitting at a table with at least a dozen members of TFP, we were in complete agreement and I could not criticize anything that was said except this: not one of them ever heard of Fr. Denis Fahey or Cardinal Louis-Édouard-François-Desiré Pie. They attributed the entire Catholic theological teaching on the social kingship of Christ to Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira.  

ANF is used primarily to generate income for the TFP.  They had a real crisis when Rome claimed to have revealed the entirety of the third secret. They did not believe that the entire secret had been revealed but since they will not publicly contradict any Roman policy, they did not know what to do. They then sent a questionnaire and canvassed their supporters to get a feel if Fatima was worth continuing since it was now a historical interest only.  The reason Atila Guimaraes of Tradition In Action left the TFP is because they were opposed to the publication of "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACTHANI."  Although TIA has a lot of good and useful information, Atila still promotes the geopolitical view of the TFP.  He may end up being the last guy in the world to admit the that 9-11 was an inside job.  He still to this day defends the conquest of Iraq including the bombing of inner city civilian population in Baghdad.

If you want evidence that the TFP is a cult try to get one of their directors to say the name of "Atila Guimaraes" in front of witnesses.  Just ask them how it should be properly pronounced. The TFP makes a solemn oath to God never to repeat the name of anyone expelled from the organization.  

Drew
.
That's interesting stuff, Drew; thank you! 
.
I recall being a bit puzzled when I heard Atila confidently say the Iraq bombing campaign was "a JUST war." 
It wasn't even declared, so how could it have been a "war" let alone "just?" I guess to the people getting blown up, it was a "war."
I recall wanting to sit down and talk to him about 9-11, but could see he had absolutely no room for discussion on the matter.
To this day I don't know what his explanation is for Building 7, or the nano thermite globules in all the samples of asbestos dust.
Or how Larry Silverstein took out an enormous insurance policy that went into effect just days before 9-11, and he collected on it.
.
I've had lingering questions about TFP / ANF over the years, and your words go to serious lengths to fill in some gaps. Your version of your meetings with them are poignant. It's not easy to get Guimaraes or Marian Horvat to say much about them; now your telling us that the TFP makes a solemn oath to God never to repeat the name of anyone expelled" totally sheds new light on the situation. I knew that Atila was resentful of not getting help with the publishing of his multi-volume masterpiece but I didn't know that was why he parted ways and whatnot. 
.
When I wrote this:
A friend recently told me about a local Novus Ordo parish that had announced a public Rosary at the Church, in Simi Valley.
She was anticipating having it outside, on the sidewalk, where everyone can see it.
That's the way ANF does these Rosaries, often at public parks with soccer games going on all around, and the like.
But when the day arrived, everyone was inside the church, so my friend sought out an explanation from the parish office.
They explained to her that the Knights of Columbus had stepped in to run the Rosary, and they wanted to keep it indoors.
My friend was quite disappointed, because, she said, how can you expect to spread the Faith when you hide out of sight?
For this reason, she is an outspoken advocate of ANF, and thinks they are doing a lot of good.
.
...I was referring to the nationwide Rosary rally ANF organized which occurred this past Saturday, Oct. 13th, on the 101st anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun. I had friends asking me if I managed to go anywhere to join in a public Rosary. The ones who told me about the planned event in Simi Valley, above, reported that they went and found that it was just as they had predicted, that the Knights of Columbus had taken over the operation at that parish and wanted to keep all the people praying the Rosary inside the church. ANF likes to do their Rosaries out in the open where passers-by can see them. 
.
There was a group of Catholics who broke rank and went outside anyway, praying their Rosary while walking on the sidewalks, but they say the ANF representatives remained in the church, out of obedience to the pastor who had given charge of the leadership to the KofC. So it would seem that ANF is reluctant to stand up and proceed as planned when a pastor and his goons pretend to have authority over them. This fits in quite well with your description, above, Drew. FYI.

Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Student of Qi on October 16, 2018, 01:05:56 PM

There is a standing joke around here that when "America Needs Fatima (ANF), the TFP needs money."

When the TFP began the ANF campaign with the first publication of Crusade magazine they claimed to be revealing the third secret. What they published was an early 1960s claim to be the third secret that was discredited long ago, almost directly after having been published.  

I got to know them well after they purchased the old Glatfelter estate in Spring Grove, PA about five miles from my home.  I called the TFP and ask to meet with them.  I had a nice meeting with their directors at their headquarters which I explained to them the errors in their first edition and brought them a lot of material from Fr. Gruner including the three volume work by Frere Michel de la Sainte Trinite, The Whole Truth About Fatima.  I spoke to them for about 45 minutes in which they listened very attentively and did not say a word in reply. They thanked me an took my material which I know they read very carefully because their next issue of the Crusade did a complete about face on the Fatima story. They plagiarized all of Fr. Grunner's material as if it were their own and never, not once ever, gave any credit to Fr. Gruner.  And since they have a policy of never criticizing any of the Church hierarchy, they never offered any defense of Fr. Gruner when he was publicly persecuted in his work to make the message of Fatima known.

I had a similar experience with the TFP when discussing the social kingship of Christ the King.  Sitting at a table with at least a dozen members of TFP, we were in complete agreement and I could not criticize anything that was said except this: not one of them ever heard of Fr. Denis Fahey or Cardinal Louis-Édouard-François-Desiré Pie. They attributed the entire Catholic theological teaching on the social kingship of Christ to Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira.  

ANF is used primarily to generate income for the TFP.  They had a real crisis when Rome claimed to have revealed the entirety of the third secret. They did not believe that the entire secret had been revealed but since they will not publicly contradict any Roman policy, they did not know what to do. They then sent a questionnaire and canvassed their supporters to get a feel if Fatima was worth continuing since it was now a historical interest only.  The reason Atila Guimaraes of Tradition In Action left the TFP is because they were opposed to the publication of "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACTHANI."  Although TIA has a lot of good and useful information, Atila still promotes the geopolitical view of the TFP.  He may end up being the last guy in the world to admit the that 9-11 was an inside job.  He still to this day defends the conquest of Iraq including the bombing of inner city civilian population in Bagdad.

If you want evidence that the TFP is a cult try to get one of their directors to say the name of "Atila Guimaraes" in front of witnesses.  Just ask them how it should be properly pronounced. The TFP makes a solemn oath to God never to repeat the name of anyone expelled from the organization.  

Drew

 
I looked these people up in the past, too. They are indeed a cult, though there are plenty of well meaning people in their group. If you look up the name of their leadrer/founder, Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, it's all as plain as day.
I may post the article if I find it this evening or later in the week.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Alan on November 02, 2018, 10:28:02 PM
I looked these people up in the past, too. They are indeed a cult, though there are plenty of well meaning people in their group. If you look up the name of their leadrer/founder, Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, it's all as plain as day.
I may post the article if I find it this evening or later in the week.


I learned to pray the Rosary from these people, I also learned the 4 last things from them, etc.
If not for them, I won't be a practising Catholic today. They've helped many lost Catholics go back to the Church. 

So the devil definitely wants people to avoid the TFP like a plague. Thus so many calumnies.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: josefamenendez on November 03, 2018, 09:25:09 AM
Well, they do promote SOME of the very important aspects of the Fatima message- 5 first Saturdays and the Rosary, but they avoid the Consecration of Russia portion like the plague. If "America needs Fatima", ( which it of course DOES) the question is why? If they do not promote the Consecration of Russia by the (a ) Holy Father, all of the promises of avoiding the annihilation of nations, giving us Our Lady's promised period of peace and the reign of the Immaculate Heart is for naught.
I think their position is that it is "too late' for the Consecration ( despite Jesus saying it is never too late to recourse to Jesus and Mary-Tuey 1929) and they would never challenge the consiliar false narrative of the Bertoni Fatima reveal in 2000.
I find them to be neo-con Conservative Catholics, politically anyway.They are gung-ho in the "John McCain" style.
Be that as it may, they pray the Rosary in the public square-a great thing that I have participated in.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 03, 2018, 10:37:08 AM
I looked these people up in the past, too. They are indeed a cult, though there are plenty of well meaning people in their group. If you look up the name of their leadrer/founder, Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, it's all as plain as day.
I may post the article if I find it this evening or later in the week.

No thanks on the article.  Anyone is capable of using Google.  You may have "looked these people up", but do you actually know them personally?  I do.  They're not a cult.  They're no more a cult than people might say of the SSPX, SSPV, or some other Traditonal Catholic group.  Some of their members, e.g. the Heralds, did go off the deep end, but the mainstream TFP, what little is left of it, is not a cult.  In the United States in particular, the TFP members are little more than Traditionally-minded Catholics trying to find somewhere they belong ... just like everyone else out there struggling with the crisis.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 03, 2018, 10:42:38 AM
I learned to pray the Rosary from these people, I also learned the 4 last things from them, etc.
If not for them, I won't be a practising Catholic today. They've helped many lost Catholics go back to the Church.

So the devil definitely wants people to avoid the TFP like a plague. Thus so many calumnies.

I've had respect for every TFP member I've met so far (and I've met well over a dozen).  Again, those are all members of the American TFP.  They're very much devoted to Our Lady, and I've seen no trace of the alleged "Plinio-worship" that people are trying to pin on them.  That one notorious poem/hymn about Plinio's Mom was obviously a satirical joke rolled out by a couple of their students.  In fact, the students who wrote it later admitted that that's exactly what it was.  They were making fun of Dr. Plinio and his Mom ... not promoting their worship.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Cera on November 03, 2018, 02:40:48 PM
Bishop Castro de Meyer, in the following letter to a Catholic mother who lost her son to the TFP, spells out why he first believed them to be Catholic and then later realized they are a “heretical sect”. He addresses their “visceral anticlericalism” in which the TFP laity are put above priests. The bishop points out that “although they do not say or write it, TFP lives and behaves in accord with a principle which fundamentally undermines the truth of Christianity, that is, of the Catholic Church.”
    This letter was published in the Campos daily, La Folha de Manhà in 1991. The original text is dated 1984, two years after Bishop de Castro Mayer's break with TFP. It appeared in Le Sel de la Terre, [no. 28, Spring 1999], in an article entitled, "Docuмents sur la T.F.P".
                                   
Dear XXXXX,
I owe a response to your grieving letter of September 24, which, as the postmark indicates, you sent me on September 25,1991.
    In this case, I can only offer the sole advice: pray, pray much, above all the Rosary or at least the five decades of the Rosary, asking the Virgin Mother, Mediatrix of all graces, to enlighten your son and make him see that TFP is an heretical sect because, in fact, although they do not say or write it, TFP lives and behaves in accord with a principle which fundamentally undermines the truth of Christianity, that is, of the Catholic Church.
    In fact, it is de fide that Jesus Christ founded His Church------destined to maintain on earth the true worship of God and to lead souls toward eternal salvation---as an unequal society, composed of two classes: one which governs, teaches and sanctifies, composed of members of the clergy, and the other---the faithful---who receive the teaching, are governed and sanctified. This is a de fide dogma.
    St. Pius X wrote that the Church is, in its very nature, an unequal society, meaning that it comprises two orders of persons: shepherds and flocks, those who belong to the various ranks of the Hierarachy and the faithful multitude. These two orders are so completely distinct that the Hierarchy alone has the right and authority to guide and govern the members to the Church's ends, while the duty of the faithful is that of allowing themselves to be governed and to obediently follow the way given by the governing class (The Encyclical, "Vehementer", February 11, 1906) [7].
    And the entire history of the Church. . .  attests to this truth as a fundamental dogma of the Church's constitution. It was to the Apostles only that Jesus said: “Go and teach all nations”. Too, the Acts of the Apostles show us the life of the Church in the times following Jesus Christ.
    Because of this, it is an heretical subversion to habitually follow a lay person, ---therefore, not a member of the Hierarchy--- as the spokesman of orthodoxy. Thus, they do not look to what the Church says, what the Bishops say, rather what this or that one says.... Nor does it end there: this attitude------even if not openly avowed---actually positions the "leader" as the arbiter of orthodoxy, and is accompanied by a subtle but real mistrust of the hierarchy and of the clergy in general.
    There is a visceral anticlericalism in TFP: everything that comes from the clergy is prejudicially received. Basically, it holds that all priests are ignorant, not very zealous or interesting, and have other such qualities. Well, then, keeping in mind the divine Constitution of the Church which was instituted by Jesus Christ, TFP's habitual anti-clericalism, latent, makes it an heretical sect, and therefore, as I have said, is animated by a principle contrary to the dogma established by Jesus Christ in the constitution of His Church.
    Nevertheless, TFP had a healthy beginning. There was a certain evolution of the apostolate carried out by the bi-weekly newspaper of the Marian Congregation of St. Cecelia, titled, O Legionario. As a serious and well intentioned movement, it sought to strengthen the intellectual and religious formation of the members of that Congregation and, consequently, of the bi-weekly’s readers. It was influential throughout Brazil. That was the era of [its] obedience to Monsignors Duarte and Leme.
    I accompanied and approved its apostolate, also when it began to stray into an anticlerical spirit, which began by its consolidating its position and then reversing it by putting the clergy in tow behind a charismatic layman, with his monopoly on orthodoxy. Perhaps I gave it support beyond a licit point. I retracted it only when it became clear to me that my warnings were not being taken into consideration. They had become useless.
    I ask that you pray for me, Servant in Christ-Jesus,
Antonio de Castro Mayer, Bishop Emeritus of Campos
http://www.unitypublishing.com/NewReligiousMovements/FatimaCult.html
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Cera on November 03, 2018, 02:57:13 PM

(This concerns an offshoot of TFP)

This Secret Catholic Exorcist Cult in Brazil Is Making a Deal With the Devil

ROME—Plinio Correa de Oliveira is almost as peculiar in death as he was in life. Dr. Plinio . . . founded the ultra conservative Tradition, Family and Property Association.
    In death, Dr. Plinio is said to be in close contact with Satan, who supposedly can be channeled by Brazilian exorcists. He also apparently rules the so-called afterlife to such an extent that his followers are convinced he controls climate change and is working toward the death of Pope Francis, according to Andrea Tornielli, who writes the Vatican Insider blog, and has published a series of articles outlining this saga worthy of a Dan Brown bestseller.
    By getting rid of Pope Francis, some of the doctor’s followers believe, the way would be open for the Catholic Church to elect a more conservative leader in line with their more traditional practices.
    After Dr. Plinio died in 1995, the TFP broke into two groups. One retains the TFP name and supports the recent claims of dubia or doubts launched against Pope Francis, which are supported by American Cardinal Raymond Burke. The other group, known as the Heralds of the Gospel, was founded by Monsignor João Scognamiglio Clá Dias and allegedly takes part in cult worship.
    The extent of Plinio’s supernatural proclaimed by Dias (or at least the extent to which his followers exalt him for that perceived power) is the subject of a new inquiry by the Vatican’s Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life, according to Tornielli.
    Specifically, Dr. Plinio’s followers led by Dias are said to be using rogue exorcism practices in which they actually communicate with the devil possessing people rather than chasing him out, as the standard accepted practice in Catholic exorcisms dictates.
    According to Catholic sociologist Massimo Introvigne, who has studied Dr. Plinio’s life work, the Heralds of the Gospel form “a sort of secret and extravagant cult,” with its trinity composed of “Plinio Correa de Oliveira, his mother Donna Lucilia, and Monsignor Clá Días himself.”
    And that sort of devil worship is understandably a problem for the Catholic Church. On June 12, Clá Dias resigned as head and founder of the Herald of Gospels, although Tornielli says he will stay on in what appears to be a consultant-like role.
    "In leaving this assignment I cannot—as I do not wish—before God, to renounce my father's mission,” Dias wrote in his resignation letter, according to Tornielli. “And therefore I will continue to be available to each one, as God made me a living model and guardian of this charism given to me by the Holy Spirit.”
    Particularly damning for the cult-like group is a series of videos on the internet that show exorcisms using practices not authorized by the Catholic Church. They include purported  conversations between the exorcists and the devil, which is a no-no in standard exorcism procedures. (Yes, exorcism as such remains a staple of the faith and authorized practitioners are not only recognized but recommended by Pope Francis.)
    “Woe to the exorcist if he loses himself behind curious questions, which the ritual expressly forbids, or if he lets himself be led into a discussion with the devil as he is the master of lies,” Tornielli says, quoting the words of the Church’s most famous exorcist, Father Gabriele Amorth.
    In one passage from a video seen by The Daily Beast, Dias asks one of his minions to read from a transcript that was purportedly jotted down by an observer at one of the rogue exorcisms encompassing what appears to be dialogue between the exorcist and Satan.
    The conversation was stilted, as one might expect with the struggle for the possessed person’s soul, but the gist was that Plinio was randomly “breaking people's computers so that they can’t go on the internet” and that he is changing the climate and was “therefore the author of the climate change, and the increase of heat. It is Plinio who does everything,” according to the devil as channeled through the exorcist. Then, the devil predicts that a meteorite will crash into the Atlantic ocean. “North America will disappear,” he warns.
    The devil then turns to the fate of Pope Francis, which Tornielli was able to transcribe and translate from the somewhat distorted video. “The Vatican? It's mine, mine!” the devil says to the exorcist, according to Tornielli’s transcript. “The pope does whatever I want, he's stupid! He obeys me in everything. He is my glory, he is willing to do everything for me. He serves me.”
    Then the devil, again as channeled by the exorcist for the Heralds of the Gospel, predicts that the pope will perish, not during a voyage, but at the Vatican. “The pope will die falling,” the exorcist’s transcript says quite clearly.
    While much of the Heralds of the Gospel work seems, well, fanciful at best, the Vatican’s investigation is very serious. The Vatican could censure the group or strip it of the blessings of the Catholic Church, which would likely not actually stop them, but instead just push them farther underground. Or it could try to corral them back into the fold and hope they stop having sympathy for the devil.
 
https://www.thedailybeast.com/this-secret-catholic-exorcist-cult-in-brazil-is-making-a-deal-with-the-devil


Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Cera on November 03, 2018, 02:59:27 PM
 I found this commentary on the “Litany” to Plinio’s mother. . .
The most extraordinary claim here is also the most obscure, "Mother of the Axiological Principle": this means a principle requiring no previous principle, in other words God himself.

This hymn came into public domain when it was revealed by Prof. Orlando Fedeli, a member of TFP for over 30 years, who asked Mons. Antonio de Castro Mayer for his opinion on its orthodoxy. One can see where the roots of Introvigne's dislike for "apostates" lies. TFP did not deny the allegation; it simply shifted the blame on over-zealous young followers, and claimed the hymn to be perfectly orthodox ((Carlo Alberto Agnoli e Paolo Taufer, TFP: la maschera e il volto, Ed. Adveniat, S.Giustina di Rimini, s.d., p. 17 ss). - shifting the blame onto the boys is a time-honoured practice in certain kinds of organizations. It also claimed that use of the hymn had long been discontinued. The current official version of this issue is given by Roberto de Mattei in his hagiography of Doctor Plinio (Roberto de Mattei, Il crociato del secolo XX: Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, Piemme, Casale Monferrato, 1996, p. 249): 

"It is true that for a certain period some co-operators of the association used a litany with invocations to Lady Lucilia, composed by two adolescents late in 1977. This litany was forbidden by Prof. Corrêa de Oliveira as soon as he got word of it"

Oddly, this hymn by Brazilian adolescents seems to have spread across the ocean, since it was certainly used in France in the early '80s, and a former AC member recently told me that some TFP affiliates were still using it in Italy in the early '90s. When nothing else works, shocked TFP sympathizers who discover this hymn are told that "things are different in Latin America": this happened to be a favourite stratagem in my group, New Acropolis, which came from Latin America too.

If Plinio's mother is the Virgin Lucilia, her offspring of course must be quite special. Just how special appears from an extraordinary episode, which can hardly be blamed on over-zealous adolescents, since it is based on a statement made by Plinio, repeated in many works on him, and - as usual - proudly narrated in Cristianità. ("In memoriam: Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira", November-December 1995, p. 6):

"On February 1st, 1975, in view of the increasingly difficult situation of the Catholic Church, and hence of the Catholic world, during a meeting of the Brazilian TFP, he offered himself as an expiatory victim. Thirty-six hours later he was seriously wounded in a car accident, the consequences of which followed him until his death"

More than its political character, it was this highly suspect theological nature of the group which led to its condemnation by the Council of Brazilian bishop

"During its 23rd plenary assembly, the Council of Brazilian bishops approved a note concerning the 'Brazilian Society for the Defence of Tradition, Family and Property', advising Catholics not to join the above mentioned Society […]. Its esoteric character, its religious fanaticism, the personality cult of the founder and of his mother, the abuse of the name of the Virgin Mary […] can absolutely not be approved of by the Church" 
 
(Osservatore Romano, July 7, 1985, p. 12, n. 408, weekly Spanish edition quoted in Tradizione Famiglia Proprietà: Associazione cattolica o setta millenarista?, Rimini 1996, frontispiece)
 
The terms "cult" or "sect", with their double meaning of "deviant religious behaviour compared to an institutional religion" and a "closed totalist group", are certainly ambiguous. But this condemnation of TFP reveals why the organization was certainly considered by some to be a "cult" in the first sense of the word; and why therefore this organization took a special interest in the issue of "cults" in 1985, that is exactly when Introvigne too started involving himself in this matter.

Former TFP members have written that Plinio was well aware of this association. Referring to cult accusations, he used to tell them:

"This must not come as a surprise; since you belong to TFP, you will be treated as if you belonged to a cult, by your very parents and friends! It will be terrible, and it will be hard indeed to stay faithful."
 
(Tradizione Famiglia Proprietà: Associazione cattolica o setta millenarista?, Rimini 1996, p. 38)

https://mond.at/kelebek/cesnur/storia/gb14.htm (https://mond.at/kelebek/cesnur/storia/gb14.htm)
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Nadir on November 03, 2018, 03:46:45 PM
No thanks on the article.  Anyone is capable of using Google.  You may have "looked these people up", but do you actually know them personally?  I do.  They're not a cult.  They're no more a cult than people might say of the SSPX, SSPV, or some other Traditonal Catholic group.  Some of their members, e.g. the Heralds, did go off the deep end, but the mainstream TFP, what little is left of it, is not a cult.  In the United States in particular, the TFP members are little more than Traditionally-minded Catholics trying to find somewhere they belong ... just like everyone else out there struggling with the crisis.
This seems to be the method that Cera has used to research TFP. (Let it be known that I have no connection with them)  I cannot see any wisdom in quoting the likes of the Daily Beast and Miguel Martinez who writes "ideas expressed here are only mine" and claims to be have been strongly influenced by his involvement with the Blavatsky movement. The third quote is no longer available as that website is no longer exists.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 03, 2018, 04:15:56 PM
Everyting pasted in by Cera, who obviously has a personal ax to grind, actually speaks in favor of TFP.

Plinio condemned the "Litany".  Article just blows off the suggestion that it was composed by a couple of kids at their schools, but neglects to mention that the kids who wrote it came out later and admitted that it was a satirical parody of their school lessons.  I mean, come on, you have to be an idiot not to realize that the part of the Litany where they invoke Plinio as the "axiological principle" is a joke referring to something that was taught them in class.  It's something I might have written as a parody of crap I heard in Novus Ordo sermons.

Biggest issue was this accusation that TFP had become anti-clerical; it was the reason Bishop Castro de Mayer distanced himself from them.  This anti-clericalism was implicit in the notion of their being a lay movement, but part of that was just a practical recognition of the fact that they did not have any direct support from any organized clerical organizations.   I know TFP members and they have a high regard for Catholic priests.  But, for a time, they had become cynical about the state of the hierarchy ... and it's hard to blame them.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 03, 2018, 04:17:23 PM
I found this commentary on the “Litany” to Plinio’s mother. . .
The most extraordinary claim here is also the most obscure, "Mother of the Axiological Principle": this means a principle requiring no previous principle, in other words God himself.

:laugh1:

That was obviously a joke.  These kids were taught something about the "Axiological Principle" in class and were poking fun at the term.  That's why it's "obscure" ... because it's a straight-out joke.  Not to mention that "Axiological Principle" does not refer to a principle without previous principle, i.e. God.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Cera on November 05, 2018, 03:28:33 PM
John T. Armour
I WAS A MEMBER of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP) from July 1980 until January 1981. I affiliated with the group after meeting with a TFP sympathizer in my home state of California. As a member, I lived at "the TFP seat" in Mount Kisco, New York, where I received the training and indoctrination that all members are given. I consider myself very fortunate to have been convinced by some good friends to separate from this group.
   Looking back, I can now see that the TFP is a dangerous personality cult whose purpose is the glorification of its Brazilian founder, Dr. Plinio Corea de Olivera. Many highly idealistic and religiously motivated young men have been captivated by its persuasive program. The appeals to moral, dogmatic and liturgical tradition which are so refreshing in this age of turmoil are, in my opinion, simply a means to lure individuals into the cult.

During the period of training which I received, I was taught:

   *  Dr. Plinio will never die. When his mission on earth is fulfilled, he will walk into an earthly paradise and then ascend into heaven.

   *  Dr. Plinio's mission is to defeat "the revolution," the Communistic and/or demonic forces which are corrupting the human race. He is the "pilgrim of justice" sent by God for this purpose.

   *  Next to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Dr. Plinio is most loved by God. Hence, St. Michael the Archangel is his own personal guardian angel.

   *  Dr. Plinio has the power to read a man's soul in order to determine if he possesses "Tau," the vocation and quality to fight the revolution. He is even supposed to be able to make this determination from viewing a photograph. "Tau" can be found only in males.

   * Members of the TFP are required to pledge their allegiance to Dr. Plinio. They make a consecration of slavery to the Blessed Mother and to Dr. Plinio. So highly regarded is Dr. Plinio that we were encouraged to kiss one of his hats that had come into our possession. And we kept a special room set aside for him where we had a special bed raised on a platform above the floor.
   When I first arrived at TFP headquarters in New York, the leaders convinced me that the group was not a cult. They asked me what I had heard about the group and, after correcting minor mistaken notions I had, and after I had assured myself that I was not getting into something I would later regret being a part of, I became a member. Right away, a man was assigned to watch over me, answer my questions and keep me from knowing too much until they were sure of me. He even told me what to write in my letter to my parents. Those of us whose parents did not agree with the TFP soon found ourselves referring to our mothers and fathers as the "fountain of my revolution" (FMR). The inference was that each of us had a trace of the revolution in him, and it had been obtained as a result of the corruption and leniency of our parents. We were convinced to reject and ignore any advice from them, to see this corruption in all our family members, and to treat them accordingly. In time, I grew to despise my family. On one occasion when I was being encouraged in this attitude, I told the leaders that I had caused my mother to cry when I had talked with her by telephone. The leaders actually laughed. But, at the same time, we were urged to convince our parents that they should be proud of us because we were clean-cut gentlemen who were doing God's work.
   It may seem odd that a group such as the TFP could attract and hold anyone's confidence and loyalty. But the appeal of spirituality was very strong. We all knew that something was wrong both in the world and in the Church. Here was a dedicated group living an exemplary semi-monastic life, ostensibly formed to fight the decay we knew existed. And we were young and inexperienced. I was actually convinced that I was in the Blessed Mother's special army.
   The religious overtones were very heavy. We were encouraged to receive Holy Communion daily in the TFP Chapel. That it was distributed to us by a layman who was one of our own was done only out of supposed need. That need, of course, served to provide more evidence of the spread of the revolution. (A large number of hosts were consecrated three or four times a year by a visiting priest from Canada. He left them in our Chapel tabernacle.)
   The converted mansion where about sixty of us lived was full of holy pictures, statues and other religious articles. We were required to pray all fifteen decades of the Rosary daily, and meditation was encouraged. Each evening, after dinner, instruction from Dr. Plinio was given to all. Most often, this instruction came via recordings; sometimes it was a printed message that was read. All messages were in the Portuguese language which was translated into English by one of the leaders.
   We were led to believe that, if we left the TFP, Our Lady would chastise us because She did not want anyone to leave Her army. Many tales of terrible deaths suffered by those who left were recounted. We actually knew a Brazilian member who had been transferred to the United States, but who left the organization to get married. When he contracted a bone disease which killed him, many were pleased to learn that such justice had been delivered to a turncoat.
   The atmosphere cultivated within this group is one which holds that the entire world is corrupt and only the TFP has escaped the corruption. Even traditional Catholics, such as Archbishop Lefebvre and his followers, are scorned—though never publicly.
   Very few members ever attend Mass on Sundays, not because of any inability to locate a Tridentine Mass chapel, but because most do not want to go. A few do attend Mass at a nearby Byzantine Catholic Church. Members of the TFP derisively refer to faithful Catholics who do attend the Tridentine Mass as "trads." I was mocked one Sunday for reading the Mass to myself out of a missal. TFP leaders even joke about "trad" priests saying on one occasion that they would like to have one kept in the basement to be brought out when needed.
 
http://www.angelusonline.org/index.php?section=articles&subsection=show_article&article_id=773 (http://www.angelusonline.org/index.php?section=articles&subsection=show_article&article_id=773)
 
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Cera on November 05, 2018, 03:32:08 PM
This is from https://ephesians511blog.com/2013/09/28/america-needs-fatima-a-cult-using-the-fatima-name/

“America Needs Fatima”
A CULT USING THE FATIMA NAME

 



 
The America Needs Fatima campaign is wholly operated by an organization called The Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP), founded in Brazil by Professor Plinio Correa De Oliveira in 1960.
Dr. Plinio claimed to have a “private, prophetic charism” enabling him to look at a young man’s face or photo and discern that the young man had “tao” (sometimes “tau”). The “tao” is considered to be a mark on the boy’s soul put there by the Virgin Mary to select him as one of her “warrior monks” or “militants.” Boys and young men possessing “tao” are told that to refuse this “vocation” is tantamount to condemning their own soul to hell. They are required to make vows of celibacy and obedience to TFP, a “vocation” higher than the vocation to married life or to the priesthood. To make them afraid to leave the group, stories are circulated throughout TFP of the horribly-violent, sudden deaths of ex-TFPers. Those who leave are called “apostates”, even if they remain faithful Catholics. This entire recruitment procedure is in violation of Canon Law 219 prohibiting any coercion in choosing or remaining in any state of life.
Before his death on October 3, 1995, Dr. Plinio often prophesied that he would see the battle of Armageddon within his own lifetime. His followers were kept in a constant state of agitation, expecting this cataclysmic event at any moment. The warrior monks are supposed to be key participants in Armageddon and the subsequent “Reign of Mary”. This false prophet was treated a “living saint”; his followers would bow in his presence, revere his personal belongings and compose hymns honoring him and his mother. Some militants chant a litany to Donna Lucilla, Dr. Plinio’s deceased mother, or substitute the name of Donna Lucilla for Mary and the name of Plinio for Jesus while reciting the Hail Mary
Nevertheless, TFP seemed so dedicated to spreading the Catholic faith (in particular devotion to Our Lady of Fatima) and also to fighting communism that many of the finest and most devout Catholic families in Brazil fell for the outward appearance of orthodoxy and enrolled their sons in schools and training centers run by TFP in Brazil. The result was so disastrous that on April, 18 1985 the NCBB (National Council of Brazilian Bishops) condemned the group and ordered Catholics to have nothing to do with it. The response of the group has been to claim that its anti-Communist stance prompted the bishops’ opposition, and that the condemnation was just an “unsigned note.” On the contrary: the condemnation was written on the letterhead of the NCBB and published in several of Brazil’s largest newspapers. It is the misleading teachings of the group and the damage it has done to Catholic families that prompted the bishops’ warning, which characterized the group as a “cult of personality ” (meaning that they are giving excessive or worshipful devotion to their leader) and also accused the group of “abusing the name of Holy Mary.” The official nature of the notice was subsequently confirmed by the Under-Secretary General of the Brazilian Conference, Fr. Valentini Netto December 8, 1995.
Meanwhile this group has spread to 25 countries and the same damage to souls and vocations is now becoming apparent in the US. Many good Catholics in this country have been misled into supporting TFP through one of its front campaigns, such as America Needs Fatima, which is currently the chief fund-raiser for the group. All moneys collected from the “free-will” offerings at the “Pilgrim Virgin” meetings go to TFP.
TFP cleverly organizes events that draw faithful, even prominent, Catholics into innocent association with the group. Photographs or endorsement letters are then produced to persuade other Catholics to lend their support or to convince them that TFP is a faithful Catholic group. But Catholics who have merely lost time or money in unknowingly supporting this cult are the lucky ones. Some families have lost their sons. Boys and young men who are selected for membership in the group soon learn to have contempt for their parents while also plying them with requests for money to support the work of the group. By demanding celibacy of lay members, the group robs these parents of grandchildren and robs the Church of strong Catholic husbands and fathers and of the Catholic children they would have produced.
Sometimes TFP recruits married men. They are instructed that their “tao” or “vocation” is a higher calling than their family life. The group makes heavy demands on their time. Observers and former members report that it is not unusual for a married man to spend every weekend working full-time for TFP. If his wife objects, she will be told that she “does not have the grace” to understand the TFP mission.
The “spiritual formation” that TFP gives to children unwittingly placed in its care fosters anti-clericalism and contempt for their fellow Catholics. They are urged to receive daily communion, but have scant regard for the Mass. TFP families and militants frequently wait outside reciting their trademark, rapid-fire Rosaries and come into Mass just in time to receive communion. They call Catholics who faithfully assist at Mass “white heretics”.
TFP exists, not to build up the body of Christ, but to perpetuate itself and further the self-aggrandizement of its leaders. Catholic youths who join TFP with the noble vision of defending of tradition, family and property end up separated from Catholic tradition, do not start families of their own and after the finest years of their young manhood are used up, find they have acquired no substantial property of their own. When they finally leave, often despairing, they are without money, education or marketable job experience. There is no doubt that this group is a destructive and insidious cult.
Question: I met some of the young men with the America Needs Fatima campaign. They were wholesome and sincere. How can you accuse such nice Catholics of being members of a cult?
Answer: TFPers are drawn from the “cream of the crop” of young Catholic men, well-brought-up and serious about their faith. Their own good qualities make them targets of the group’s recruitment and their own sincere desire to serve God makes them vulnerable to the lure of the group. In no way am I saying that there is anything evil or flawed about the character of the TFP rank and file. But they are trapped, believing that to leave is an act of apostasy that will endanger their souls. If the activities and mission of the group had genuine appeal to spiritually-inclined youths, it would not be necessary to manipulate them into joining or coerce them to make them stay. There are other legitimate Catholic groups that see no contradiction between promoting devotion to Mary while supporting traditional vocations to the priesthood or family life.
Question: What could possibly be wrong with traveling with a statue of Mary and gathering people to pray the Rosary?
Answer: Nothing. It is not the statue, the Rosary, or devotion to the Blessed Virgin that is at issue. But gathering people to pray the Rosary as a fund-raiser for a cult that is robbing the Church of vocations and secretly promoting the idolatrous admiration of a false prophet is indefensible.
Question: If this group is bad, why do I see them at Catholic conferences and Right-to-Life marches?
Answer: Where do you expect to find a cult group that wants to prey upon the best Catholic youths? Wouldn’t you expect to find them at places and events where they can impress Catholic parents with how good they are? They are wolves in sheep’s clothing, presenting a squeaky-clean front while hiding their real beliefs and objectives. – Matthew 7: 15.
Question: I have given money to America Needs Fatima and I feel totally betrayed on finding out what is really behind it. What should I do about it?
Answer: You can request that your donations be returned, though it is unlikely they will be. If the amount is substantial, you might consider suing them for false representation. They may settle with some individuals to avoid bad publicity. You might wish to channel your righteous indignation into warning other Catholics about them. Remember, this damaging group is wholly supported by faithful Catholics. Drying up their funding should severely curtail their operations.
Question: Even if they are a cult, couldn’t Mary be using them for some good purpose?
Answer: Mary and Jesus do not “use” people. They invite our free and willing service. They are never behind false prophecy, lies, manipulation, and coercion. (For the scriptural view of a false prophet, see Deuteronomy 18: 20-22) Rather, this cult is using the Blessed Virgin and exploiting the devotion that other Catholics have toward her for their own ends. We will exhibit true devotion to Mary by putting an end to this group’s advance in this country.
 
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 05, 2018, 04:40:17 PM
Cera, we've had enough of your cut-and-paste-from-the-internet jobs.

You refuse to answer what ax you're grinding against the TFP.  Why are you so obsessed with them?  Do you have any personal experience or just Google?  I know many TFP members and can assure you that this stuff is nonsense.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Alan on November 05, 2018, 06:43:17 PM
John T. Armour
I WAS A MEMBER of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP) from July 1980 until January 1981. I affiliated with the group after meeting with a TFP sympathizer in my home state of California. As a member, I lived at "the TFP seat" in Mount Kisco, New York, where I received the training and indoctrination that all members are given. I consider myself very fortunate to have been convinced by some good friends to separate from this group.
   ...
  ...

During the period of training which I received, I was taught:

   *  Dr. Plinio will never die. When his mission on earth is fulfilled, he will walk into an earthly paradise and then ascend into heaven.

   *  Dr. Plinio's mission is to defeat "the revolution," the Communistic and/or demonic forces which are corrupting the human race. He is the "pilgrim of justice" sent by God for this purpose....

That's all rubbish.
There are many TFP sister organisations throughout the world, they have the same goals, principles and operate the same way.
If the TFP were that bad as your message suggested, there'd be many many more complaints against them throughout the world, why just one or two cases??

They are not greedy for money, either. Their do not set a high price tag for their publications, they even give out some materials for free. They do not gain much profits, if any, from their publications, they mainly rely on voluntary donations.

Cera, it's not fair just to publish one side of the story. You omitted posting the TFP's refutation of John Armour's accusations, which can be found here: http://www.tfp.org/1983-john-armour/
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 05, 2018, 07:00:06 PM
They are not greedy for money, either. Their do not set a high price tag for their publications, they even give out some materials for free. They do not gain much profits, if any, from their publications, they mainly rely on voluntary donations.

They operate a boarding school for boys in PA where they barely charge what the food costs.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Cera on November 06, 2018, 03:05:38 PM
No ax to grind. Facts are facts.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 06, 2018, 04:04:50 PM
No ax to grind. Facts are facts.

Wrong.  Facts are often subjected to distortion and spin.  And you clearly have some ax to grind against TFP.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Nadir on November 06, 2018, 07:06:12 PM
No ax to grind. Facts are facts.
Cera, did you read the docuмent Alan presented to you. Did you note the facts therein?

Did you notice the great charity displayed in it? Not one word against the accuser. That, in itself, speaks voumes.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Markus on November 07, 2018, 01:04:48 AM
By the way. The claim that the members of the TFP take an oath not to say the name "Atila Sinke Guimarães" is completely false. I spoke with the President of the American TFP recently and he himself used the name without me even asking him to. I mentioned the "oath" someone on here alluded to and he laughed it off as another lie about the TFP.

While I disagree with the expulsion of Atila from the TFP, on this point, the rumours are wrong.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 07, 2018, 07:40:33 AM
By the way. The claim that the members of the TFP take an oath not to say the name "Atila Sinke Guimarães" is completely false. I spoke with the President of the American TFP recently and he himself used the name without me even asking him to. I mentioned the "oath" someone on here alluded to and he laughed it off as another lie about the TFP.

While I disagree with the expulsion of Atila from the TFP, on this point, the rumours are wrong.

So, why did they expel Atila?
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Cera on November 07, 2018, 04:59:29 PM
So, why did they expel Atila?
You are making an assumption that the story Atila has told is true. (His story, of course, makes him appear to be a brave hero.) We do not know for a fact that Atila was "expelled." This is simply his claim.

p.s. Did you read the docuмent linked above? It is almost impossible to read on a laptop.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Neil Obstat on November 07, 2018, 05:02:38 PM
Cera, we've had enough of your cut-and-paste-from-the-internet jobs.

You refuse to answer what ax you're grinding against the TFP.  Why are you so obsessed with them?  Do you have any personal experience or just Google?  I know many TFP members and can assure you that this stuff is nonsense.
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One has to wonder when a group that does so much good is persistently attacked by people who ought to be on the same side with the group.
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Instead of spreading fictitious calumny about the TFP, why not notice some of their excellent projects?
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Do you know anyone else who is putting the spotlight on the conspicuous abuse of the word "saints" like the following?
(Overlooking for the moment the recent so-called canonization of Paul VI, if you don't mind......)
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There is a new book published in March of this year, "The Little Book of Feminist Saints" ...
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(https://images.penguinrandomhouse.com/cover/9780399592744)
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The author and illustrator teamed up to shower praises on perpetrators of brutal baby killing, trying to ignore the obvious slaughter and bƖσσdshɛd.
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How did the TFP deal with this scandal (http://www.tfp.org/act/petition/tell-penguin-random-house-publishing-margret-sanger-is-not-a-saint/?PKG=TFP181026)?

http://www.tfp.org/act/petition/tell-penguin-random-house-publishing-margret-sanger-is-not-a-saint/?PKG=TFP181026
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(http://www.tfp.org/images/stories/2017/The-Little-Book-of-Femenist-Saints_1.jpg)
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Margaret Sanger is anything but a Saint!
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The farthest thing from a saint is someone who publicly promotes abortion.
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A recent book published by Penguin Random House, The Little Book of Feminist Saints, depicts pro-abortion advocates and activists like Cecile Richards, her mother Ann Richards, Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger and Gloria Steinem as feminist “saints.”1
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The promotion of abortion is in direct contradiction with Catholic Doctrine.
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What are even worse, are the images that depict these abortion advocates as “saints.” Mocking the way the Church depicts real saints, images of women with halos behind their head and some of them giving a sign of blessing with their right hand.2
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Tell Penguin Random House to Pull this Mockery of Real Saints!
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This is nothing but a mockery of the Catholic Church and Her saints! How dare Penguin feature pro-abortionists as “saints”.
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Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parent has said:

This is not the behavior of a saint!
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It is inconceivable that Cecile Richards, who as CEO of Planned Parenthood oversaw 3.5 million abortions, could be portrayed as a saint under the guise of “women’s reproductive rights.”
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Please sign this petition to defend the meaning of sainthood and show your opposition to the portrayal of pro-abortion advocates as “role models”.
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1. https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/feminist-book-names-cecile-richards-matron-saint-of-mothers-and-daughters
2. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/558231/the-little-book-of-feminist-saints-by-julia-pierpont/9780399592744/

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This second link contains a short video where you can watch the two authors, who deserve capital punishment, explain their enthusiasm for murdering babies.
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Perhaps our prolific Cera can dig up some dirt somewhere by pro-abortionists who don't like what the TFP is doing! 

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Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 07, 2018, 05:14:05 PM
You are making an assumption that the story Atila has told is true. (His story, of course, makes him appear to be a brave hero.) We do not know for a fact that Atila was "expelled." This is simply his claim.

Where did I make any assumption?  I am simply asking the question of what happened.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Neil Obstat on November 07, 2018, 05:24:33 PM
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Regarding the ongoing smear that the TFP never has anything critical to say of the Newrome hierarchy...........
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Again,
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One has to wonder when a group that does so much good is persistently attacked by people who ought to be on the same side with the group.
.
Instead of spreading fictitious calumny about the TFP, why not notice some of their excellent projects?
.
(http://www.tfp.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Paradigm_Shift_A_Critical_Assessment_of_the_Francis_Pontificate.jpg)
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“Paradigm Shift”–A Critical Assessment 
of the Francis Pontificate
September 27, 2018 | Edwin Benson 
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Pope Francis’ “Paradigm Shift”: Continuity or Rupture in the Mission of the Church? 
An Assessment of His Pontificate’s First Five Years.
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Pope Francis places Catholics in a dilemma. Many have the very understandable, indeed holy, desire to obey the Successor of Saint Peter. At the same time, Pope Francis seems to be denying deeply held traditions of the faith.
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José Antonio Ureta’s Pope Francis’s “Paradigm Shift”: Continuity or Rupture in the Mission of the Church? An Assessment of His Pontificate’s First Five Years sums up that dilemma.
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The Chilean-born author is an influential pro-life and pro-family activist that has written many articles and commentaries on affairs inside the Church and society. He currently serves as a senior researcher for the French Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property.
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New Book: Pre-Order Your PRINT Copy Today! (http://store.tfp.org/pope-franciss-paradigm-shift-continuity-or-rupture-in-the-mission-of-the-church-an-assessment-of-his-pontificates-first-five-years/)
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The pontificate of Francis has received much attention from the world press. When he first became pope in 2013, he was hailed as a reformer. The popular press loves reformers, especially Catholic ones, and when Francis indicated an intention to relax the Church’s condemnation of divorce and ɧoɱosɛҳųαƖity, they could not contain their admiration for the Argentine Pope.
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Read more... (http://www.tfp.org/paradigm-shift-a-critical-assessment-of-the-francis-pontificate/)
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They even offer a free download of the online version, if you'd like that.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Ladislaus on November 07, 2018, 05:31:50 PM
I know for a fact that TFP cannot stand Francis, and they didn't like JP2 or B16 all that much better.
Title: Re: America Needs Fatima, Who?
Post by: Nadir on November 07, 2018, 08:14:13 PM
p.s. Did you read the docuмent linked above? It is almost impossible to read on a laptop.
Where there's a will there's a way! Maybe you just don't have the will to seek out the truth of the matter, but prefer to continue to calumniate. I had to magnify it in order to read it, but it is possible. If you want to have a balance to your distorted viewpoint go to your local library or a friends computer.