Tea at Trianon: One Star Away

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, November 19, 2020

One Star Away

And he that shall overcome and keep my works unto the end, I will give him power over the nations. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and as the vessel of a potter they shall be broken: As I also have received of my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches. —Apocalypse 3: 26-29

On May 13, 1917, on the ancient feast of Our Lady Queen of Martyrs, the Blessed Virgin Mary first appeared at Fatima in Portugal to three shepherd children, at the beginning of the century when more Catholics would be killed for their beliefs than ever before. Our Lady appeared six times in all to the children, giving a message love and hope while urging prayer and repentance, along with a plea to pray for the conversion of Russia. The Lady told them on July 13, 1917:

If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace. If not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to suffer, various nations will be annihilated. In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph.

Within a month of the final apparition in Fatima on October 13, 1917, the Communists took control of Russia. The Tsar and his family were murdered on July 17, 1918, becoming among the first of millions of families who would suffer and perish at the hands of the Marxists. Marxism wished to rebuild a society without God. Indeed, the Communist State was to become a god, and we know that every false god is a demon. And so the demons were let loose upon the world. Standing in their way was the Christian family. Families formed the foundation of Christendom, especially in nations such as Poland. This novel tells the true story of one small girl who was devoured by the Communist State and yet survived against all odds. Thus the triumph of the Immaculate Heart begins in miniscule, inscrutable, and indomitable ways.

Poland was at the heart of the battle for the soul of Europe during the twentieth century, and bearing the brunt of both the Fascist and Communist totalitarian forms of government. While abandoned to tyranny by the free world, Poland was repeatedly chosen by Heaven through the miracles of Częstochowa, the Divine Mercy revelations granted to St. Faustina, and the papacy of St. John Paul the Great. And yet many people, even many historians, are completely ignorant of the personal holocaust of the Polish people during the years of the Second World War, at the hands of both the Nazis and the Soviets. While historians continue to uncover more information about the Jewish Holocaust, likewise more and more information is surfacing about the enormous tragedy which overtook the Polish people, Catholics and Jews alike. The surface has hardly been scratched, especially outside of Polish circles.

Over twenty years ago, when I first began living in Central Pennsylvania, at daily Mass there was a slender, petite lady, dressed with elegant simplicity, whose graceful walk convinced me she must be a European countess. Over the years I befriended both of her daughters, who assured me that their mother was not a countess, and yet it was clear to me she was a remarkable person. I came to discover that hers was a dignity of integrity, deeds, and heroism, more than what any worldly title can bestow. I often ran into Mrs. Salva, as I called her, while running my household errands, and at the bank or the grocery store I would confide to her my worries. She would respond with the most clear and incisive insights which would calm my heart. But I had no idea until I read the manuscript of her daughter Imogene’s book what Mrs. Salva had gone through and what she had survived. Her story could fill twenty books; there is much of what she and her family endured that the world will never know. But what is told here is a jewel; Imogene Salva honors her mother and her ancestors by a heart-rending yet uplifting account of their trials in which she shows she inherited her mother’s perceptiveness and creativity. I hope this book opens the door to more research on the part of Americans to life under the Soviet Socialist dictatorships, so as to better appreciate the freedoms we currently enjoy.

From Amazon:

When Soviet soldiers force their way into the Nowicki home at 3:00am, Ziuta has no idea why her family is being arrested, where they are going or when they will return. From the safety of home in Poland to the slave labor camps of Soviet Russia, Ziuta's family suffers starvation, arctic temperatures, and separation. At their most desperate hour, only a miracle would keep each family member alive. Could a kind-hearted Maharaja from faraway India be the one to rescue Ziuta and hundreds of other distressed Polish children? Imogene Salva reconstructs her mother's wartime experiences to expose us to a part of World War II history not familiar to most Westerners. This thought-provoking true-life story is sure to inspire you, while reminding us that human compassion can be found in the most remote corners of the world.