Danger, Will Robinson! Today is the day—to read something you never expected to read—my speciality.
Laughing (and Punching Back) Harder
A web-ton of you missed my last message, which included "Jimmy Duffy Stories" plus an update on the Mary Foundation's worst setback in thirty-five years. A quick excerpt...
The booths in our grammar school were adorned with slim electrical outlets sleekly nestled at desk level, so I turned to Jimmy and asked, "Whaddaya think would happen if I stuck this paperclip into this outlet?" He sagely hypothesized that the paperclip "would glow..."
This Will Save—or Make—You Lots of Money
For new readers and old, it is time to remind you about my unique one-page Negotiating Course, which has saved (or made) money for countless readers since I first published it over twenty years ago.
Clever Gal
A quick shout-out to Marian A. for inserting our Three Angelus Cure cards into everything she mails: her bills, birthday cards, and so on.
Bible Sales Up 40%, "Woke" Students Down
Before the next section, I wanted you to know about some hopeful trends.
Civilization Has Already Collapsed
One of my sons and I recently listened to a fascinating yet depressing podcast featuring a respected demographic expert on the abject decline in birth rates everywhere in the world. It hit us hard.
I have been studying worldwide population decline since the early 1980s. This is why I recently attended a pronatalism conference promoting population growth.
"If birth rates continue to plummet, human civilization will end."
- Elon Musk
Here are salient facts from the podcast, without going into cultural causes:
• Birth rates are declining because a growing percentage of women are marrying later in life. This is a universal worldwide phenomenon.
• If a woman reaches the age of 30 without having a child, her chances of becoming a mother are, at best, 50%. Statistically, birth rates drop precipitously as the age of marriage increases.
Every young lady in America needs to know this fact.
• Even though the percentage of women who do not want to have children has increased steadily in recent decades, around 90% of women still want to become mothers.
• In fact, in America, the number of children per family has increased slightly in recent years, even as the birth rate (average number of births per woman) has plummeted significantly since the pandemic.
• A heartbreaking 80% of women past child-bearing age who wanted to have children did not have children. (Let that sink in.)
• The real problem of the dramatic population implosion is the massive decrease in births worldwide. In sum, there is an inexorable and dramatically-shrinking cohort of younger men and women able to conceive children.
• For example, the birth rate in South Korea, where the average age of marriage is over 31, is under one child per woman. To keep the population from declining, however, a birth rate of 2.1 children per woman is needed.
This means that in South Korea, there will be roughly half the number of children every decade. Thus, because half as many people will be able to have children, South Korea would then need a birth rate of over 4.2 children per woman to stem its already rapidly decreasing population. It becomes 8.4 ten years after that.
• The demographer on the podcast advised that pro-natalist policies must focus on doing everything possible to help men and women under the age of twenty-five form families.
• Although immigration might temporarily increase a country's population, it does not offset birth rate decline because it merely drains another country's population. Facing their own demographic implosions, numerous nations (such as Russia) have begun to stop out-migrations.
• Although some countries have changed policies to encourage increased birth rates, no country has ever successfully come close to returning to replacement rate or lowering the age of maternity. These policies typically have little impact or fail completely.
• There are numerous, well-funded transglobal organizations that still promote demonstrably false "population explosion" propaganda.
To the points on the podcast I would add that powerful, obscenely wealthy elite individuals—Musk is an encouraging exception—have openly called for a significant reduction in world population. The creepy and mysteriously demolished Georgia Stones advocated a limit of half a billion people.
Over multiple generations, the population implosion was planned, financed, welcomed, and based on blood sacrifice of the innocent—and thus was diabolical.
As for the U.S., the facts are dismal. The birthrate is at an all-time low of 1.6 (and even lower for native-born citizens) while the marriage ages have rocketed up to 30 for women and 32 for men.
Statistically, worldwide depopulation is decades past the point of no return. Our eternal enemy hates human life and has seemingly secured his victory.
Or has he?
No Mention of Abortion or Contraception
Due to their modern ethos, at no point do the podcast host or the demographer bring up abortion or contraception, although the legendary pro-life activist Father Marx (along with Steven Mosher at the Population Research Institute) proved decades ago that as soon as these scourges are legalized, rapid population decline begins and never reverses. At the natalism conference, where there were many Christians, I also heard nothing about ending abortion, contraception, vasectomies, or tubal ligations—all grave evils in the eyes of God.
Two Billions Souls Lost
Since the early 1960s, through the abortifacient effect of the contraceptive pill and surgical abortion, roughly two billion souls have been eliminated. After all these decades, those two billion would have formed families and brought billions more priceless souls into our dying civilization.
Lack of Supernatural Perspective
It is good that secular influencers who reach millions are recognizing that the pan-national postponement of family formation has effectively doomed the modern world. Huge disparities in population cohorts (such as the Baby Boomers) are already factoring negatively into the economic commentary I also follow closely. The despair is palpable.
All truth is good. Their new recognition is an opportunity for divine light to open their hearts to conversion—and then they will be able to perceive these horrors from a supernatural perspective. I am convinced this is one fruit of your reparations and prayers.
Pray for Chris Williamson
The podcast is called Modern Wisdom, and although its host, Chris Williamson, had a worldly upbringing and occasionally uses foul language, I find him open-minded and a sincere seeker of truth. On his next podcast, he was quite eloquent why depopulation is the greatest of all threats to humanity. He also occasionally interviews notable Christians. As always, listen to his podcast with a "Catholic ear."
Through hard work and talent, Williamson, 37, has earned his millions of listeners. Because it was strongly placed on my heart, several months ago I wrote to all the Poor Clares in the U.S. and asked them to pray for his conversion. He has spoken about his desire to marry and have children, so pray for Our Lord to help him meet and fall in love with the perfect Catholic woman! Write down his name. Remember him in your Rosaries and when you receive Holy Communion.
“The final battle between the Lord and the reign of Satan will be about marriage and the family."
- Sister Lucia of Fatima
Wholesale Conversion Needed
I made a new friend this year. Because he lives near one of my sons in Dayton, a few weeks ago I enjoyed dinner at his home. He and his lovely bride, Steubenville grads, have six children. After dinner, OG-grandpa style, I "rough-housed" on the living room floor with their little boys and girls. Squeals of laughter! They were perfectly normal, happy, and devout. Their faithful Catholic neighbors also had a huge family.
I saw in that one family that the Catholic faith is the only hope for the world. Although I have no professional standing for such a thing, I plan to ask to speak at that natalism conference and to be a guest on Williamson's podcast—please ask Saint Anthony to pave the way if this is God's will—because there is a solution.
The Solution
The only solution to the worldwide depopulation disaster is the rapid wholesale conversion of hundreds of millions of people to an authentic Catholic love that welcomes life—supercharged by the increased holiness of her members.
A Dark Stack
Irreversible (by human means) population decline—AAARRRGHH!
Add that to a dark "stack" of intractable problems—economic woes, political insanity, cultural pathologies, pornography, human trafficking, generations of Church corruption, food-vaccine-pharma issues, and intense spiritual warfare everywhere. I don't mean to harsh your vibe.
Yes, I study and ponder these deeply disturbing things, yet my goal is for God to show the actions required for victory.
Trust me, you are doing more "damage" than you know to the real source of these horrible things—the evil one and his demons.
Be not afraid. Be of good cheer. The dragon will fall. Never underestimate how important your faithfulness is to Jesus and His plan.
Let Us Pray for Deliverance
I have noted before that the Our Father contains two elements of exorcism. First, Satan and his minions have no place in the "kingdom" we implore to come. Second, it ends with a deliverance prayer (in the original Bible language, Jesus said, "deliver us from the evil one.")
It is a prayer for victory, so let us begin in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive
those who trespass against us.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
And amen. Hey now, you're an all star—
—get your game on, go play.
Smile when your heart is weary.
Look at the autumn trees,
While fearing nothing.
So put up your dukes,
cuz the Rosary is your weapon.
