MOVIMENTO IMPEGNO E TESTIMONIANZALetter sent by the Bishop Claudio Gatti on 7th October 1999 to Cardinals, Bishops and priests.
Dearest brother in Christ,
at this point has arrived the moment in which we all, who received the sacrament
of orders in its three degrees: episcopate, presbyterate and deaconship, must
decide on which side to place ourselves.
The statement of Christ: "He who is not with me is against me" (Mt.12,30) asks
us for a free, clear and final choice.
The great Pope Paul VI stated: "Satan's smoke entered God's temple".
In 1917 Our Lady announced in Fatima: "Satan will march in the first lines of
the Church".
Nowadays the Church is governed by many people who are affiliated with powerful
and secret associations, are supported by strong centres of power and are provided
with a huge quantity of money.
These hirelings, who "care nothing for the sheep" (Jn.10,13) get together in
secret meetings, open only to the initiates, to fulfil plans whose unique purpose
is: destroying the Church.
Isaiah's words should be as a warning for these people: "Woe to those who hide
deep from the Lord their counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who say:
"Who sees us? Who knows us?". You turn things upside down!". (Is.29,15-16)
I invite the careless, eager, selfish and immoral shepherds to read Ezekiel:
"Seeing that my flock became object of prey and that my sheeps, since they are
without shepherd, are thrown to wild beasts, seeing that my shepherds didn't
take care of my flock and that they cherished themselves without taking care
of it, for this reason, my shepherds, listen to the voice of Jahve. The Lord
says this: "As I live, says the Lord God, because my sheep have become a prey,
and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd;
and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have
fed themselves and have not fed my sheep; therefore, you shepherds, hear the
word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against the shepherds;
and I will require my sheep at their hand, and put a stop to their feeding the
sheep; no longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep
from their mouths, that they may not be food for them". (Ez.34,8-10)
To give a push to those who are uncertain about on which side to be, I want
to remember what Jesus said to the Pharisees, which is valid today too for those
people who are in the same spiritual situation: "You brood of vipers! Who warned
you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits that befit repentance. Even
now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does
not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire". (Lk.3,7-9)
"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you shut the Kingdom
of Heaven against men; for you neither enter yourselves, nor allow those who
would enter to go in". (Mt.23,13-14)
After the severe condemnation of the shepherds, which will be the destiny of
the abandoned and lost sheeps? The Lord reassures us and promises: "And I will
give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and
understanding". (Ger.3,15)
Jesus Christ is free of acting in his Church as He wants. He hasn't to respect
human rules. He isn't bound to the Canon Law, He never resigned his authority,
He never abdicated the role of founder, leader and master as the Holy Scripture
(Ef.5,23-24 / Col.1,18 / Mt.23,8) and the doctrine of the Church (Lumen Gentium)
teach.
Nowadays is very urgent the "Renovatio Ecclesiae in capite et in membris", as
was said before the Council of Trento.
As St. Paul writes, God "has a plan for the fulness of time, to unite all things
in him, things in heaven and things on earth" (Ef.1,10), which means that all
the creatures will have to be reunited under the authority of Christ, so that
regenerated by the grace, they are led back to the Father.
At the beginning of the third millennium this God's plan hasn't yet come true
because of the men of the Church, who in different ways and in successive times
worked for their own interest and not for God, so that John Paul II was compelled
to ask forgiveness for the many and heavy sins that they committed along Church's
history.
To carry out his plan God keeps on intervening in some extraordinary way in
the Church.
For twenty-two years the subscriber has remained under the moggio, without having
been consulted, was flung by God on the candelabrum. The Lord is witness for
me that I never wished honour or power, but faced with the firm God's will,
I bent my head and said: "Fiat voluntas tua", even knowing without doubt that
my episcopal ordination would have been received with sarcasm and would have
been object of slander. I would have the right of complaining, because I was
flung into a situation where I am alone, isolated, misunderstood, mocked and
condamned, until God will intervene and, as He promised, "He will smooth the
way for me".
On the contrary, you all should thank the Lord because, having given the episcopate
to me: "As to one untimely born" (Cor.15,7), He showed his power in my weakness
and He decided to make use of a little, fought against and scorned creature,
to let his Church be born again.
Since I am embarrassed keeping on speaking about myself, I invite you to read
with attention and respect the passages of the messages of Jesus Sweet Master,
of the Mother of the Eucharist, of St. Joseph and St. Peter which speak about
the episcopate given to me by God and they severely rebuke those people who
won't accept it.
Let us meet before Jesus the Eucharist, let's bathe in his light, let's be filled
with his love. Help me to carry on the important and difficult mission entrusted
to me by God at advantage of the Church. Remember: God will fulfil his plans
also without you and absolutely in spite of your opposition.
Let's accept the invitation of cardinal Meisner: "Produce less paper to give
more room to charisms...".
Let the Mother of the Eucharist take care of us, confort us and keep us united
with the Eucharist and the Pope.
+ Claudio Gatti
Ordained bishop by God
Rome, 7th October 1999
Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary