The May, 2002 issue of the Brazilian magazine Catolicismo carried a lead article about the private revelations of Blessed Elizabeth Canori Mora. Since these practically unknown revelations tie in remarkably with those given at Fatima, the TFP website decided to reproduce key extracts from the article.
One hundred years before Fatima, Blessed Elizabeth Canori Mora received revelations reminiscent of those given by Our Lady to the three shepherd children in Portugal in 1917. Her prophetic revelations are both a cause for sober reflection and great hope in the coming of God’s triumph.
Blessed Elizabeth Canori Mora was born in 1774 and lived in Italy until her saintly death in 1825. On instructions from her confessor, she wrote down her revelations which fill hundreds of notebook pages. Today, the manuscripts are safely kept in the archives of the Trinitarian Fathers at San Carlino, Rome.
When a copy of these manuscripts fell into the hands of the staff of Catolicismo, due to their timeliness and importance, an article was inevitable. Here we see already at the beginning of the nineteenth century, God warning mankind about the coming of a great chastisement and the necessity for prayer and penance, as well as foretelling the final triumph of the Holy Church. This is exactly what Our Lady told the three little shepherd children at Fatima in 1917.
We now present these revelations in a spirit of prudent devotion, recalling the Church’s constant admonition not to indulge an unbalanced and excessive interest in apparitions and mystical phenomena. However, a humble and prudent consideration of the words of Blessed Elizabeth Canori Mora throws valuable light on our chaotic times and gives us great hope for a better future.
When Pope Blessed Pius IX authorized Elizabeth Canori Mora’s cause for canonization to proceed, for years, all her writings were scrupulously examined for doctrinal errors, to guard against the dangers of being misled by a false mystic. The ecclesiastical censor commissioned by the Holy See released his official judgment on November 5, 1900. It stated “there is nothing against faith and good customs, and no doctrinal innovation or deviation was found.”
Elizabeth Canori Mora was beatified in 1994.
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Crisis in the Church
On Christmas Eve 1813, Elizabeth was transported in ecstasy to a place refulgent with light. There she saw countless saints in adoration before a humble manger. The Infant Jesus signaled her sweetly to approach, but on drawing near she saw that He was soaking with His own Blood. “Just the thought of it fills me with horror” she wrote. “But at the same time I understood the reason for such shedding of blood was the bad habits of many priests and religious who do not behave according to their state in life and the bad education given to children by their fathers, mothers and others entrusted with this duty. They, who should increase the spirit of the Lord in the hearts of others by their good example, instead mortally persecute Him with their bad conduct and teachings.”
Blessed Elizabeth received many other revelations concerning the devastating chaos and decadence into which Catholics, both lay and clerical, would fall. She relates that on February 24, 1814, she “…saw many ministers of the Lord who rob each other and furiously tear off the sacred vestments. I saw the sacred altars despoiled by the very ministers of God.”
Likewise, on March, 22, 1814, while praying for the Holy Father she “…saw him surrounded by wolves who plotted to betray him…I saw the Sanhedrin of wolves which surrounded the Pope (Pius VII), and two angels weeping…when I asked them why they were sad and lamenting, looking upon Rome with eyes full of compassion they responded, ‘Wretched city, ungrateful people, the justice of God will chastise you.’”
On January 16, 1815, angels showed her “many ecclesiastics who persecute Jesus Crucified and His holy Gospel under the guise of doing good…Like furious wolves they scheme to pull the Church leader down from his throne.” Then she was allowed to see the terrible indignation these wolves aroused in God. “In terror I saw the blazing lightening bolts of Divine Justice fall about me. I saw buildings collapsing in ruins. Cities, regions and the whole world fell into chaos. One heard nothing but countless weak voices calling out for mercy. Countless people will be killed.”
What terrified her the most was God’s anger. She saw Him “extremely angry with those who persecute Him. His omnipotent hands were holding bolts of lightening, His face was resplendent with indignation and His gaze alone was enough to incinerate the whole world.” The vision lasted but an instant, whereupon she recalled, “had it continued for another moment I surely would have died.”
Concerning her vision of June 7, 1815 she wrote of, “fierce wolves in sheep’s clothing, relentless persecutors of Jesus Crucified and His spouse the Holy Church…I saw the whole world convulsed, especially the city of Rome. How can I possibly relate what I saw of the Holy College? Because of contrary doctrines, together with the secular clergy, they were scattered, persecuted and murdered by the impious…The regular clergy had not suffered a total dispersion, but were also decimated. Countless men of all conditions died in the massacre, but not all were condemned, for among them were those of decent customs and others of holy life.”
Mercy Ceases for the World
On Christmas, 1816 Blessed Elizabeth saw Our Lady, who appeared extremely sad. Upon inquiring why, Our Lady answered, “Behold, my daughter, such great ungodliness.” Blessed Elizabeth then saw “apostates brazenly trying to rip her most holy Son from her arms. Confronted with such an outrage, the Mother of God ceased to ask mercy for the world, and instead requested justice from the Eternal Father. Clothed in His inexorable Justice and full of indignation, he turned to the world.
“At that moment all nature went into convulsions, the world lost its normal order and was filled with the most terrible calamity imaginable. This will be something so deplorable and atrocious that it will reduce the world to the ultimate depths of desolation.”
On the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, June 29, 1820, she saw Saint Peter descending from heaven, robed in papal vestments and surrounded by a legion of angels. With his crosier he drew a great cross over the face of the earth, separating it into four quadrants. In each of these quadrants, he then brought forth a tree, sprouting with new life. Each tree was in the shape of a cross and enveloped in magnificent light. All the good laity and religious fled for protection underneath these trees and were spared from the tremendous chastisement. “Woe! Woe to those unobservant religious who despise their Holy Rules. They will all perish in the terrible chastisement together with all who give themselves to debauchery and follow the false maxims of their deplorable contemporary philosophy!
“The sky took on a morbid blue color which terrified everyone who looked at it. A dark wind blew everywhere. An impassioned and mournful shrieking filled the air, like the terrible roar of a fierce lion, and resounded all over the earth in blood curdling echoes.
“All men and animals brimmed with terror. The entire world convulsed and everyone pitilessly slaughtered one another…
“When this bloody fight will arrive, the vengeful hand of God will weigh upon these fated ones and with His omnipotence He will chastise the proud for their rashness and shameless insolence. God will use the powers of darkness to exterminate these sectarian, iniquitous and criminal men, who plot to eradicate the Catholic Church, our Holy Mother, by tearing Her up by Her deepest roots, and casting Her on the ground.
God Will Laugh at Them
“God will laugh at their malice, and with a mere wave of His almighty right Hand, He will punish the wicked. The powers of darkness will be allowed to leave Hell and enormous crowds of devils will invade the whole world. They will wreak great destruction and thus execute the orders of Divine Justice, to which they are also subjected. They will chastise man’s goods, families, towns, wretched cities, palaces, houses and everything else that exists on the face of the earth to the exact degree that God decrees…
“God will allow wicked men to be cruelly chastised by fierce demons, because they voluntarily subjected themselves to the devil and joined in his attack of the Holy Catholic Church…
“I saw the horrible prison, Hell. There I saw the devils that would be released on earth to carry their wicked destruction everywhere. They will decimate every place that idolatry was practiced to such an extent, that no trace of them will remain.”
The Great Restoration Begins
However, all will not end in this death and destruction. After these purifying punishments, she saw Saint Peter return on a majestic papal throne together with Saint Paul, who went through the world shackling the devils and bringing them before Saint Peter, who cast them back into the dark caverns from where they had come. “Then a beautiful splendor came over the earth, to announce the reconciliation of God with mankind.”
The small flock of faithful Catholics who had taken refuge under the trees will be brought before Saint Peter, who will “choose a new pope. All the Church will be reordered according to the true dictates of the holy Gospel. The religious orders will be reestablished and the homes of Christians will become homes imbued with religion.
“So great will be the fervor and zeal for the glory of God that everything will promote love of God and neighbor. The triumph, glory and honor of the Catholic Church will be established in an instant. She will be acclaimed, venerated and esteemed by all. All will resolve to follow Her, recognizing the Vicar of Christ as the Supreme Pontiff.”
Early in 1821 Our Lord said to her, “I will reform my people and my Church. I will send zealous priests to preach my Faith. I will form a new apostolate and send the Holy Ghost to renew the world. I will reform the religious orders by means of new holy and learned reformers. They will all have the spirit of my predilect son Ignatius of Loyola. I will provide my Church with a new pastor, who is learned, holy and full of My Spirit. With holy zeal he will reform My flock.”
“He told me many other things about this renovation. Many sovereigns will support the Catholic Church and be true Catholics, placing their scepters and crowns at the feet of the Holy Father and Vicar of Jesus Christ. Many kingdoms will abandon their errors and return to the bosom of the Catholic Faith. Entire peoples will convert, recognizing the Faith of Jesus Christ as the true religion.”
Blessed Elizabeth and Our Days
Although Elizabeth Canori Mora died on February 5, 1825, her revelations seem directed more to our days than her own. Nineteenth century man would have difficulty believing that humanity could have sunk as low as it now has, and thus may not have understood the severity of her predictions. Moreover, the revelations of Blessed Elizabeth form an interesting compliment to the Message of Fatima, since both speak of apostasy and sinfulness that provoke the wrath of God to bring chastisements and universal destruction and both promise the same conversion and restoration of the Church.
Together, these two sets of prophetic revelations, though separated by almost a century, serve to help us persevere with confidence through the chaotic and wicked times in which we live.