Dear Friends of the Kolbe Center,
Glory to Jesus Christ!
One of the wonderful things about the Kolbe family which, by the grace of God, exists all over the world, is that the members of the Kolbe family, especially you who regularly read this newsletter, continually discover new treasures which help to illuminate and reinforce the importance of the traditional Catholic doctrine of creation and the sacred history of Genesis. Recently, one of you sent me a translation of a history of the world by none other than St. John Bosco, the great teacher and founder of the Salesian Order.
In his “Sacred History,” we see that although St. John Bosco lived practically until the dawn of the twentieth century—he died in 1888—he understood the importance of—and faithfully upheld—the traditional chronology of the world derived from the sacred history of Genesis. Thus, he begins his “Sacred History” as follows:
Q. What is meant by Sacred History?
R. By Sacred History is meant that which is contained in the Bible, which means the book par excellence, which includes the narrative of what happened under the government of the patriarchs, leaders, judges, kings, and other principal leaders of the people of Israel from the creation of the world until the foundation of the Church of Jesus Christ. It is also called the Old and New Testaments, that is, the old and new law. The first relates the things that happened before the Savior's coming. The New Testament contains the Gospel History with the acts and writings of the Apostles.
Q. How is the time of Sacred History divided?
R. The time of Sacred History is usually divided into seven ages, each one identified by some luminous event concerning Sacred History that has taken place in it.
The first begins with the creation of the world and extends until the flood, the year of the world 1656.
The second from the flood to the vocation of Abraham, the year of the world 2083.
The third from the vocation of Abraham until the exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt, in the year 2513.
The fourth from the exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt to the foundation of the temple of Solomon, 2903.
The fifth from this foundation until the passage of the Jews into Babylon, in the year 3416.
The sixth from this passage until the birth of Christ, around the year 4000.
The seventh from the birth of Christ until the coming of the Holy Spirit, the year of the world 4033, of Christ 33.
From the coming of the Holy Spirit begins the Church of Jesus Christ.
Therefore the remainder of Sacred History is united with Ecclesiastical History.
Q. By whom was the Holy Bible written?
R. By the prophets, the apostles, and other personages, who, enlightened and assisted in a singular manner by the Holy Spirit, wrote without being able to insert the slightest error into it, either through malice or human weakness.
Q. Who were the Prophets?
R. The Prophets were men sent by God from time to time to declare his will to the Jewish people and to foretell things to come, especially those concerning the coming of the Messiah.
Q. How is it proved that the authors of Sacred Scripture spoke the truth?
R. In addition to the Divine inspiration, we have five special reasons: 1. because they relate things that happened in their time of which they knew the clear truth; 2. because if they had lied they would have been contradicted by a great number of men who had witnessed the events they relate, nor would their writings have been received as Divine; 3. because they were most trustworthy persons, to whom no crime can be ascribed, nor is there anything in their writings that may raise suspicions of lies, on the contrary, good faith and piety are seen everywhere; 4. because the facts reported are also for the most part attested by profane authors; such are the history of the Flood, that of the extermination of Sodom and Gomorrah, the crossing of the Red Sea and many other facts; 5. because the doctrine they teach is very much in conformity with the dictates of reason. Such is, for example, the obligation to believe that there is a God; that this God will punish the wicked and reward the good; that we have to be virtuous, just and treat our neighbor as we would like to be treated.
Q. How is it proved that the writers of the Bible were assisted and enlightened by God?
A. There are four reasons which show the Divine assistance in the sacred writers: 1. the miracles wrought especially by the prophets, who prove that God had sent them; 2. the prophecies concerning the coming of Jesus Christ ; and many other events that came to pass perfectly; 3. the sublimity and sanctity of the doctrine of the Holy Bible, which is so pure and so perfect, that God alone can be its author; 4. The admirable efficacy it has on the hearts of those who read it, for it sanctifies their hearts, fills them with contentment and peace. On the contrary, the wicked themselves, reading the Bible without a partisan spirit, cannot help but feel enthralled and say that it is that Divine work.
FIRST ERA.
From the creation of the world until the Flood, the year 1656. It encompasses 1656 years.
CHAPTER ONE.
God creates the world in six days. Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Their disobedience. Their punishment.
Q. By whom was the world created?
A. The world was created by God, who, although He could have created and adorned it in an instant by a simple act of His will, nevertheless wished to take six days. On the 1st day he created light; on the 2nd day the firmament, which he named heaven; on the 3rd he gathered the waters in one place, thus forming the sea and the continents; on the 4th the sun, the moon and the stars; on the 5th fish and birds; on the 6th the quadrupeds, the reptiles, and finally He created man, who is the most perfect of all visible creatures.
Here we see that 17 years after the publication of Lyell’s Principles of Geology, Don Bosco has not deviated one iota from the traditional reading of Genesis and a literal six-day creation. He acknowledges that God could have created all things in an instant but that He deliberately chose to create in six days. From the Roman Catechism he would have taught his boys that God chose to create the world in six days and to consecrate the seventh day to Himself to establish the rhythm that His human children must follow, so as to live a happy, healthy, holy life. He goes on to affirm the literal historical truth of the Genesis account of the creation of man:
Q. How was man created and where was he placed?
A. When all things contained in heaven and earth were created, said God: Let us make man in our image, and let him have dominion over the whole earth. Then he composed a human body out of damp earth, then blew a living and immortal soul into it. Thus the first man was created, and his name was Adam, which means made of earth.
At first he was placed in the Garden of Eden, a most delicious place and abundant in all sorts of fruits, which sprout up spontaneously without cultivation. God then caused all the animals to pass before Adam, that he might give each one a suitable name. But wishing to give him a companion, He put him to sleep, and having taken a rib out of him, He formed the first woman, who was called Eve, that is, mother of the living.
Q. What sin did Adam and Eve commit in the earthly paradise?
A. They committed a very serious disobedience. They were allowed to eat every fruit that was found in that garden, except that of one single tree. Eat, God told them, of all the fruits that are here, but do not touch the fruit of the Tree of knowledge of good and evil. Whenever you eat of it, you will die. The devil, who shortly before had been cast out of heaven and condemned to hell, envious of their fate, took the form of a serpent, and said to Eve:
Why do you not eat of the fruit of this tree? She answered: Because God forbade it under penalty of death. "No," added the cunning serpent, "you will not die; on the contrary, as soon as you have tasted of it, you will become like God, knowing good and evil as well as he does." The woman, seduced by these words, looks at the forbidden fruit, stretches out her hand, takes one off, eats it, and then gives it to her companion, who follows her example. At the same moment everything changes the appearance of our poor parents. They know that they are without clothing and, full of confusion, take fig leaves to cover themselves, then, frightened, hide among the trees of the garden.
From this excerpt we can see that St. John Bosco does not deviate a hair’s breadth from the traditional chronology derived from the sacred history of Genesis. In addition to the literal historical truth of the Mosaic account of the six days of creation, Don Bosco’s “Sacred History” upholds the constant teaching of the Fathers and Doctors on the universal extent of Noah’s Flood.
A. As long as the descendants of Seth remained among themselves, they remained faithful to God, but when they began to deal with the descendants of Cain, they also became wicked. Monstrous giants were born from them, who are so famous throughout antiquity for their greatness of stature as for their excessive insolence. These monsters filled the world with vices and wickedness; all flesh had corrupted its own way. Wherefore God outraged decreed that He would destroy the whole human race by the flood: "I will exterminate from the face of the earth the man whom I created, all the animals, the creeping things, and even the birds of the air, I will destroy everything."
Q. Who was preserved from this common extermination?
A. In the midst of universal depravity there were nonetheless certain righteous men who cultivated true religion and virtue, among whom was Noah, the son of Lamec, of the race of Seth. At the age of 300 he begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
This was the family that found grace in the eyes of God, who said to Noah, "Make an ark, that is a ship, divided into three stories, which is three hundred cubits long, fifty wide, and thirty high. You shall bring in a pair of all the animals with the necessary provisions."
God gave this command to Noah in the year one thousand five hundred and thirty-six, one hundred and twenty years before the flood, giving all that time to men to repent, ordering Noah to preach righteousness to them and call them to repentance; but it was all in vain. They listened to his threats and exhortations, and saw him build the ark without being moved by it; on the contrary, they indulged in eating, drinking, and pleasures. Wherefore God felt more and more outraged, and put his threats into effect by a universal flood. Year of the World 1656.
Q. What do you notice about this first epoch?
A. It is worthy to be observed that the age of those who lived before the Flood often exceeded nine hundred years; after that it was much shorter.
St. John Bosco is rightly revered as one of the greatest educators in the history of the Church, one who was successful in forming saints in the midst of the errors and negative influences of modern anti-Catholic governments and societies. Yet rarely do contemporary Catholic educators even acknowledge the importance that Don Bosco attached to chronology, especially for the proper orientation of youth. He understood that their sense of value in the sight of God depends on the divinely-revealed chronology contained in the sacred history of Genesis. Nor would he be surprised by the modern-day spectacle of Catholic youth whose familiar relationship with Our Lord is being destroyed by the “scientific” claim of most of their own Catholic teachers that man is an after-thought, whom the Creator did not see fit to create until after 13.8 billion years of cosmic evolution.
Through the prayers of Our Lady Help of Christians, of St. Joseph Terror of Demons, of St. John Bosco and all the Holy Angels and Saints, may the Holy Ghost deliver us from all evil and error and lead us into all the Truth!
In Domino,
Hugh Owen
P.S. Today is a First Saturday.
P.P.S. Please give generously to our Give, Send, Go fundraiser, so that we can continue to bear witness to the Catholic Faith, whole and entire, on the foundation of the true Catholic doctrine of creation, the only firm foundation for a culture of life. Those who give generously will be able to receive many amazing gifts, including Michael D. Warner’s wonderful new recording of Loved, Lost and Found as an audio book
