... with plenty of Serious Bits in Between. A Blog by author EA Bucchianeri
Saturday, 14 October 2017
Fatima - A Botched Attempt at being a 'Real Pilgrim'!
Friday, 29 September 2017
The Feast Day of an Angelic Champion


Left: Cross of the Order of St. Michael of the Wing.
Right: Grand Cross of the Order
Notice the red wing in the emblems.
I wouldn't dare write this letter to anyone but you because no one else would believe it. Maybe even you will find it hard but I have got to tell somebody.
First off, I am in a hospital. Now don't worry, ya hear me, don't worry. I was wounded but I am okay you understand. Okay. The doctor says that I will be up and around in a month. But that is not what I want to tell you.
Remember when I joined the Marines last year; remember when I left, how you told me to say a prayer to St. Michael every day. You really didn't have to tell me that. Ever since I can remember you always told me to pray to St. Michael the Archangel. You even named me after him. Well I always have.
When I got to Korea, I prayed even harder. Remember the prayer that you taught me?
"Michael, Michael of the morning fresh crop of Heaven adorning," you know the rest of it.
Fresh chord of Heaven adorning,
Keep me safe today,
And in time of temptation
Drive the devil away. Amen.
Well, one day I was with an advance detail way up over the front lines. We were scouting for the Commies. I was plodding along in the bitter cold, my breath was like cigar smoke.
Anyway, there we were trudging along. The rest of the patrol spread out. Just to start a conversation I said, "Cold ain't it." And then I laughed. Here I was with a good chance of getting killed any minute and I am talking about the weather.
My companion seemed to understand. I heard him laugh softly. I looked at him,
I remember feeling strong arms about me, arms that laid me ever so gently on a pillow of snow. I opened my eyes, for one last look. I was dying. Maybe I was even dead, I remember thinking well, this is not so bad.
"How'd I do what?" I asked half angry despite my wound. "This marine named Michael and I were just . . ."
"Son, " said the sergeant kindly, "I picked this outfit myself and there just ain't another Michael in it. You are the only Mike in it."
He paused for a minute, "Just how did you do it kid? We heard shots. There hasn't been a shot fired from your rifle. And there isn't a bit of lead in them seven bodies over the hill there."
I didn't say anything, what could I say. I could only look open-mouthed with amazement. It was then the sergeant spoke again, "Kid," he said gently, "everyone of those seven Commies was killed by a sword stroke."
That is all I can tell you Mom. As I say, it may have been the sun in my eyes, it may have been the cold or the pain. But that is what happened.
Love, Michael”

Michael of the Army of the Lord,
Stiffen thou the hand upon the still sword, Michael,
Folded and shut upon the sheathed sword, Michael,
Under the fullness of the white robes falling,
Gird us with the secret of the sword.
Leaving out for all time a scar upon the sky,
Thou didst rise up against the Horror in the highest,
Dragging down the highest that looked down on the Most High:
Rending from the seventh heaven the hell of exaltation
Down the seven heavens till the dark seas burn:
Thou that in thunder threwest down the Dragon
Knowest in what silence the Serpent can return.
(Michael, Michael: Michael of the Morning!)
Far down the universe the deep calms calling
(Michael, Michael: Michael of the Sword!)
Bid us not forget in the baths of all forgetfulness,
In the sigh long drawn from the frenzy and the fretfulness
In the huge holy sempiternal silence
In the beginning was the Word.
Angels and devils who do all but die
Seeing Him fallen where thou couldst not follow,
Seeing Him mounted where thou couldst not fly,
Hand on the hilt, thou hast halted all thy legions
Waiting the Tetelestai and the acclaim,
Swords that salute Him dead and everlasting
God beyond God and greater than His Name.
(Michael, Michael: Michael of the battle-cry!)
Round us and under us the thronged world sleeping
(Michael, Michael: Michael of the Charge!)
Guard us the Word; the trysting and the trusting
Edge upon the honour and the blade unrusting
Fine as the hair and tauter than the harpstring
Ready as when it rang upon the targe.
He that giveth law unto us; not as the scribes:
Shall he be softened for the softening of the cities
Patient in usury; delicate in bribes?
They that come to quiet us, saying the sword is broken,
Break man with famine, fetter them with gold,
Sell them as sheep; and He shall know the selling
For He was more than murdered. He was sold.
Michael of the marching on the mountains of the Lord,
Marshal the world and purge of rot and riot
Rule through the world till all the world be quiet:
Only establish when the world is broken
What is unbroken is the Word.
Tuesday, 1 August 2017
Your "Mona Lisa" Quote - Author, Explain Yourself!



(Washington can't even believe it.)
Wednesday, 19 July 2017
The "Purple" Scapular of Benediction and Protection

Q: Where did this Scapular come from and is this approved by the Catholic Church?
Q: What's the story of the Scapular? Why did Heaven reveal this relatively new scapular to the world?
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Q: What are the exact words of the vision regarding this Scapular as revealed to Marie-Julie Jahenny?
A: From an ecstasy dated August 23, 1878:
The words of Marie-Julie Jahenny: “Here is what the Holy Virgin shows me on Her Immaculate Heart: it is a large scapular, larger than ordinary scapulars, a bit larger than the palm of a hand. It’s a beautiful purple, almost the colour of a violet. This is what is on it: in the middle, there are the three nails which crucified Our Lord on the Cross, they are all touching each other, not quite in the shape of the Cross and at the tip of each nail, there is a drop of vermilion blood. Above the nails heads, there is a sort of big sponge, with a bark that rises up, more or less like on oat husks. The three drops of blood come together, about to fall into a little chalice painted in red, and the chalice is surrounded by a crown of thorns, there are three little cross engraved on the front of this chalice. This is one side of the scapular, which the Blessed Virgin is wearing on her cloak.
“I notice that this scapular is held in place by two violet-coloured straps which go over each shoulder, there are three knots on the left shoulder and two on the right one.
“The other side (back) of the scapular portrays the Blessed Virgin Mary sitting down, holding her adorable Son in her arms, the mouth and head of Our Lord are laid against the heart of the Blessed Virgin. At the bottom of the scapular, and almost at Our Lord’s foot, there is an angel dressed in white, with curly hair, wearing a white crown on his head, and a red belt. He is holding in his hands a white cloth, with which he wipes Our Lord’s feet. Beside the angel, to the right of the scapular, there is a picture of a ladder. Behind Our Lord, to the left, there is the reed from the Passion painted in red, but there is no sponge. To the right, can be seen the tears of the Blessed Virgin which fall on Her breast, stopping at the Angel’s feet. There is a red border around the scapular and the straps are made of wool.
“Now my dear child,” says the Blessed Virgin
Mary to me, “let me give you the explanation of this scapular. I am
addressing you, my victim and my servant. My children of the Cross,
for a long time now, my Son and I have desired to make this scapular
of benediction known. This scapular, my children, is made to all
intents and purposes on my Heart, because my Heart is the emblem of
simplicity and humility – hence the colour is violet. The nails
that pierced the Feet and Hands of my Son are
venerated very little and they merit veneration – that is why my
Son, in His divine wisdom, has three nails painted on the front of
the scapular. The three drops of Blood and the chalice represent
generous hearts that collect the blood of my Divine Son. The red
sponge will represent my Divine Son drinking, in a way, His
children’s sins which, however, His adorable Mouth refuses. I
desire that the background of the scapular be of a violet colour, but
I would like the nails, the chalice, the sponge, and the crown to be
on a piece of dark red flannel. This first appearance of this
scapular will be a new protection for the time of chastisements,
calamities and famines. All those who wear it will be able to pass
through storms, tempests and darkness; they will have light as in
broad daylight. This is the power of this unknown scapular.’
“The Blessed Virgin Mary presents the scapular to Our Lord who says in His turn :
“I am addressing Myself to you, My victim, and also to My other victims and My servant, My children of the Cross. I want to reveal to you an idea, a profound thought – it is for this reason I have come now.
I wish to speak to you of the time when I was taken off the Cross and entrusted to My Mother – this descent, this matter for reflection, is a devotion, which is little known. By producing this scapular, I would like that these moments penetrate into the hearts of the children of the Cross, and that they would salute me by these three salutations:
“ I salute You, crucified Jesus, for granting me life.
I salute You with all the joy of the Angels and Saints during Your descent from the Cross.
I salute You with the sorrow of your Mother when You were placed on her Heart and on her Immaculate lap.”
“My children, very few souls think of wiping the adorable Wounds of My Feet when the blood flows. I would like this representation of Me to be made known. Similarly, there are few who think of the tears shed by my Mother during My Passion; those tears are at the feet of the Angel who wipes My sacred Feet. By means of this scapular, I would like you to think of this ladder, this reed and those nails of My Passion.
“My children, each soul, each person who possesses this scapular will see his family protected, his home will also be protected, first of all from fires which will never be able to penetrate inside. This scapular will strike down any ungrateful people who will blaspheme My Name in the house where it will be exposed. If an impious person enters the home, he will be struck with such strength that his conversion will not be long coming. All those who will wear it will be preserved from thunder, sudden death and accidents. During the chastisements they will be protected. Whoever will place it in the Holy Temple, (I.e. in a church), will ward off from there all the impious and any profanations.”
Our Lord adds again that by calling to mind this scapular to a stubborn soul at the hour of the death, it will awaken in the soul, faith and conviction. All those who will think of it and love it, will be spared affliction of the soul. All those who will wear it, will be safe from all danger, as if they were already in Heaven. Finally, this scapular will be a means of offsetting the blows of the just Divine Anger which thus, will not weigh down on souls.”
(Our Lord continues:)“Every priest can bless this scapular. When wearing this scapular, souls should pray 5 or 7 times the CRUX AVE and meditate from one to three minutes on My Holy Passion. I will grant great graces to those who would like to wear this holy habit.”
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RECAP: The REQUIRED MEDITATION AND PRAYERS:
*) MEDITATION each day on the Passion of Our Lord for 1 to 3 minutes. Meditations should include in particular, the nails, the reed on which the sponge was placed, the bitterness of the sins Our Lord had to atone for, (represented by the sponge), Our Lord's descent from the cross via the ladder, the tears of Our Lady, especially during the 6th Sorrow when Our Lord's body was placed in her arms. Also, the Precious Blood that flowed from His Feet.
The Prayer to be said as part of this daily meditation:
“ I salute You, crucified Jesus, for granting me life.
I salute You with all the joy of the Angels and Saints during Your descent from the Cross.
I salute You with the sorrow of your Mother when You were placed on her Heart and on her Immaculate lap.”
*) The CRUX AVE Prayer, must be said 5 or 7 times (daily)
Note: there were two 'Crux Ave' prayers revealed to Marie-Julie Jahenny during other ecstasies: it is not mentioned which one was intended to be said with the Scapular, so, it is best to say both:
1) “Crux Ave, spes Unica! Et Verbum caro factum est. Jesus, Vanquisher of death save us!”
“I hail thee, adorable cross of my Saviour. Guard us, keep us, save us! Jesus loved you so much. Following His example, I love you. By your holy image, calm our fears, that I feel only peace and confidence!”
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THE PROMISES and GRACES of this SCAPULAR (RECAP):
The Promises of Our Lady:
“This first appearance of this scapular will be a new protection for the time of chastisements, calamities and famines. All those who wear it will be able to pass through storms, tempests and darkness; they will have light as in broad daylight. This is the power of this unknown scapular.”
The Promises of Our Lord:
“My children, each soul, each person who possesses this scapular will see his family protected, his home will also be protected, first of all from fires which will never be able to penetrate inside. This scapular will strike down any ungrateful people who will blaspheme My Name in the house where it will be exposed. If an impious person enters the home, he will be struck with such strength that his conversion will not be long coming. All those who will wear it will be preserved from thunder, sudden death and accidents. During the chastisements they will be protected. Whoever will place it in the Holy Temple, (I.e. in a church), will ward off from there all the impious and any profanations.”
Our Lord adds again that by calling to mind this scapular to a stubborn soul at the hour of the death, it will awaken in the soul, faith and conviction. All those who will think of it and love it, will be spared affliction of the soul. All those who will wear it, will be safe from all danger, as if they were already in Heaven. Finally, this scapular will be a means of offsetting the blows of the just Divine Anger which thus, will not weigh down on souls. (...) I will grant great graces to those who would like to wear this holy habit.”
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Q. Do the Scapulars need to be blessed?
A. *) FOR NOW, the SCAPULAR NEEDS TO BE BLESSED: There is no revealed investiture ceremony for this scapular, therefore, as Our Lord says “every priest may bless it”, we must assume this scapular must be blessed by a priest in order to gain the promised graces.
Q: Is there a particular blessing that the priest needs to say over it?
A: As far as I am aware, no. There is no particular blessing that was revealed for it, and as it has not yet officially been made part of a religious order or confraternity, it would fall under the category of a 'private devotion' scapular, and so a special enrollment and blessing has not yet been formulated by the Church. We can safely assume priests may use the regular blessing for sacramentals at the present time until the Church formally decides otherwise.
Q: If I need a new one because my old one has worn out, does the new one need to be blessed again?
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Q: If I want to make my own, can I use just any material?
One must also adhere to the Church's ruling regarding the making of scapulars.
After searching online, I discovered there are French and Italian companies making woven wool ribbons / straps, and the weave looks very much like that on the Purple Scapulars sold in France, so it appears that the convent in France making them for the 'Marie Julie Association' and elsewhere have either found a company making wool ribbons, or, they have had them custom made. In all, the are making them according to the exact directions as given in the vision to Marie-Julie Jahenny regarding the wool detail similar to the Red Passion scapular.
Q: What if the images fade from wear and tear, especially the painted parts? What do I do?
A: If they are just faded a bit, like the tiny little crosses on the chalice tend to fade, and you can still make out the image, they are still okay. However, if you are having big trouble seeing what all the symbols are, or they are gone entirely, then it's definitely time to repair them or get a new scapular.As a judge of how 'faded' they have to be for this to ensure you still receive the Blessings, there doesn't seem to be a ' rule'- I suggest using the rule applied to most sacramentals and priest vestments: for instance, if a set of Rosary beads with a Papal Blessing is missing half its beads, then it's considered not fit for purpose and the blessing is no longer on the set. If a set of Mass vestments go threadbare and look really worn, then they must be replaced to be fit for the august service of the altar. So, if the images are really damaged or practically gone on your Purple Scapular, or, if the straps have really frayed to bits, I'd suggest repairing them, or getting a new one since the symbols and straps are important.
In fact, prevention is better than cure: cover the squares of your Scapular with clear plastic wrap of some kind if you can to prevent damage happening to the delicate details.
To repair the paint part in front with the Passion symbols: print off a picture of the Purple Scapular, carefully cut out the symbols with a razor blade and use the print as a stencil, or if you're artistically inclined, do your best to paint them in by hand with a very tiny brush.
For the back image of the Pieta: there is no stipulation saying this image has to be on cloth. You can use T-shirt transfers, etc.
If the images had to be repaired, or a new strap put on, etc., I'd suggest having your Scapular re-blessed as it is not part of a confraternity yet.
Q: Where Can I Buy the Scapulars?
(UPDATE - May 2025): - PLEASE STAY TUNED!!! - I will soon be making Purple Scapulars!
Sacramentals.org is based in the USA but will ship overseas. Also has the 'Cross of Pardon' and the medal of 'Our Lady of Bonne Garde' to protect faith and purity shown to Marie-Julie Jahenny.
They also have the medal of 'Our Lady of Bonne Garde' shown to Marie-Julie, click here for th medal. Also, the Cross of Pardon (Forgiveness), click here.
I believe this order is connected with Fr. Ripperger.
4) The Leaflet Missal - Catholic Company - https://www.leafletonline.com/benediction-protection-scapular
5) CatholiCity: (UPDATE August 19, 2021) -- https://www.catholicity.com/scapulars/purplescapular.html This site has just informed they were finally able to find 100% woven wool for their scapulars, which is the one problem they had, so their scapulars are NOW made according to the instructions.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/15Decades
(!!!) Word of Advice: this is sad to say, but I also do NOT recommend shopping on the online site run by the "Friends of Marie-Julie Jahenny Association" in France - their site has glitches, people have placed orders and paid for items and never received them. Also, the Association never seems to answer e-mails anymore, so it will be difficult if next to impossible to sort out the problem or get your money back should the order go wrong. Some people said they ordered and things were okay, but other people have told me they've lost money over their site - so I wouldn't recommend it. Shop on their site at your own risk.
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Our Lady appeared with no halo, or even a veil when revealing the Green Scapular, she appeared with her hair flowing, no halo. That hasn't stopped anyone from wearing it, and, the Church has approved the Green Scapular.
RE: about the argument that the Purple Scapular is a ruse to turn purple away from the Black Scapular of the Passion, saying that the color purple of the new scapular is meant to cancel out the black representing the death of Christ on the other. This is rubbish. If 'Our Lady's Resistence' had read up on the Purple Scapular they would have seen that the color violet purple was chosen by Heaven to represent the virtue of HUMILITY: the humility of Our Lady's Immaculate Heart and the humility of Christ. It in no way does it cancel out a completely different scapular. And, there's nothing stopping you from wearing both! So there is no issue of scapulars 'cancelling' each other out. In fact, the Church has a huge list of scapulars-the Brown, White, Red, the Black, St. Michaels, St. Joseph's, the Five Fold Sacpular, etc, you can wear as many as you like, or think your shoulders can hold!
Also, their comments on Our Lady's clothes sounds like an art critique, saying they are ugly because they are 'off color' and the cloak is 'ugly'. That is only their opinion on the art, and that is not a valid reason to discredit the Scapular.
I have tried to contact the 'Our Lady's Resistance' site to tell them that Marie-Julie Jahenny is approved and to please correct their information, but I have received no answer. I have a feeling the name of their site is apt - they are 'resisting' Our Lady.
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