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New Age To Catholic

Why I left the New Age and occult and returned to my Catholic faith

The Movie "Fatima" (My Experience)

January 20, 2022


Our family watched the film "Fatima" recently and I, for one, was very impressed with it.  Maybe it was because of all the negative things I'd heard about the movie.  Or maybe it was something else.

It was true, as many have said, that the movie minimized that the gravity of the Blessed Mother's message,  the true nature of the miracle of the sun and the cruelties the children endured.  In my estimation, it is also true that this does weaken the film.  

But in most other ways, the story was very true to the actual events.  The acting, particularly on the part of the young visionaries, was wonderful.  The three visions were portrayed in a fairly accurate way.  And the representation of the Blessed Mother was handled well, in  my opinion.

I'm not sure why the producers decided to play down certain aspects of the apparitions but the end result was a movie that anyone (Catholic or non-Catholic) of any age could enjoy.  To me, this was no small thing. 

I was wary of choosing "Fatima" for our weekly family movie matinee because I was worried that it would be too religious for some.  But this was not the case.  Everyone liked it.  

The movie could have been more powerful, yes.  But it touched me anyway.  I cried at the end and after it was over, I resolved to learn more about Our Lady of Fatima.  

And I have been.

To me, this is a good result.  Good enough to make me think that it wasn't so much the film that moved me, as it was the Our Lady herself.

Either way, I'm going to share a bit about what I'm learning in future posts!

Here is the trailer:

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"Fatima" is free on Netflix and available for purchase on other video platforms.

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My Testimony Podcast, Part 1 (From New Age To Christian) EP 1

January 6, 2022

My Testimony: From New Age To Christian  

This is a podcast of the first half of my testimony.  It focuses on my experience in the New Age and occult and how and why I became a Christian. This testimony was recorded in 2017. 

For the full story, please check part two of my testimony which talks about how and why I came back to the Catholic Church (New Age To Catholic). 

You can also read the abridged version of testimony for free right here on this site at My Story or download it as a free PDF from my author site at barbaragraver.com/my-testimony. 

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To be notified when the full version of my testimony is finished, please sign up for my elist or follow Catholic Book And Card on Etsy!
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Epiphany House Blessing

Then Herod, privately calling the wise men learned diligently of them the time of the star which appeared to them...who having heard the king, went their way; and behold the star which they had seen in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the child was. And seeing the star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.  And entering into the house, they found the child with Mary his mother, and falling down they adored him; and opening their treasures, they offered him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  - Matthew 2:7,9-11

About Epiphany

Today January 6th is the feast of Epiphany.  This feast follows 12th Night (as in the 12 days of Christmas) and commemorates the visit of the magi or kings to the Baby Jesus.  

The word epiphany comes a Greek root that means to show, display or manifest to others.

The three kings came from the east (most likely pagan Persia) to honor the child Jesus.  This is considered a sign, i.e. manifestation, that Jesus was the king not only of the Jews but of the entire world.

The feast is celebrated on the Sunday after January 1st in the U.S.  So I did my Epiphany house blessing in Sunday but decided to repeat it today on the traditional date.

About the Blessing

The blessing may be done by a priest or the head of the household.  Taking a piece of blessed chalk the phrase 20 + C + M + B + 22 (for this year 2022) is written above or on the upper part of the main door.

The letters represent the traditional initials of the three kings (Caspar, Malchior, and Balthazar) as well as the Latin phrase, Christus mansionem benedicat or “May Christ bless the house.” 

The “+” signs represent the cross, and the “20” at the beginning and “22” represent the year. In other words the blessing is a request for Christ to bless our homes and be with us through the year.

You can do your house blessing following the info in the booklet pictured here, adding Christus mansionem benedicat if you wish, as I did.


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The images in this post are from the beautiful Epiphany house blessing kit our pastor provided us with on Sunday.

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Latin, Traditional Catholicism & My New Year's Resolution

January 1, 2022


About the Video

This video is about how I've been feeling drawn to certain aspects of Traditional Catholicism and my desire to learn how to say the Rosary in Latin - plus my New Year's resolution for 2022.  

Also mentioned in passing: the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) and the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (both of which are active in my immediate area!) - and Dr. Taylor Marshall's book Infiltration (affiliate link) which I started yesterday and could NOT put down.

I hope to have more to say about all of these topics in the weeks and months to come.

Exploring Modernism and Traditional Catholicism

I have been talking and writing the new and occult and how mainstream it's become for some time.  Recently, however, I've begun to see that there is something even more pervasive at work.

Labels can be confusing but one I've exploring recently is modernism.  My interest in modernism began when I was writing my testimony (or trying).  

As I worked on my testimony, I described some of the occult influences I'd been exposed to as a child growing up in the 1960s and 70s.  More importantly, perhaps, I began to see how much other related ideas - such as radical feminism and certain political agendas - had affected me too.

I started to take a hard look at the cultural norms I'd grown up with and realized that many fell under the general heading of modernism.  Listening to lectures on YouTube channels like Sensus Fidelium helped me understand a bit about what that actually meant.

I have a lot more to learn on this topic but I am interested in exploring it further.  As always, I will be sharing what I'm learning here in the blog.

I hope it will be of interest.

Wishing you and yours all God's blessings in the coming New Year!
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My name is Barbara Graver. I returned to Catholicism in early 2020 after becoming deeply involved in the New Age and occult. While in the occult I was a popular metaphysical blogger and professional card reader, relying heavily on spirits who were not what I believed them to be. I now blog and podcast on my experience. To get my media in a weekly digest please sign up for my email list below!
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