Join us for an enlightening discussion on the challenges facing Christians worldwide and the role of faith in overcoming adversity. Father Andre, founder and president of the Mission of Hope and Mercy, shares his profound insights into the ongoing persecution of Christians and how religious institutions can provide support and sanctuary. Discover how maintaining spiritual integrity and advocating for religious freedoms can change lives and promote peace across nations.
At age 10, Father Andre escaped Christian massacres by living in caves in Mount Lebanon with his family. Today, Father Andre works tirelessly to encourage American leaders to keep God in the public square, defending religious freedom at home and abroad, so that all might live in peace for the glory of God. Founder and president of the Mission of Hope and Mercy, Father Andre has learned the secret to safety, joy, and peace. Love God and one another. Now, let us spend 33 minutes on the Lord’s Day, retuning ourselves to the truth of love in the hands of God.
SPEAKER 04 :
Last two questions. One of them, there is a lot of talks about nuclear war. And again, I know you and General Michael and your other brother, who is actually active military and in charge of our eastern seas. I believe somewhere in the eastern seas in Somewhere in China, I’m not sure if I should say that or not, but you pray for your brothers for their safety all the time. And God gave them the talent and the charisma and the professional expertise to be wonderful citizens and to play a specific role for the national security of our country. The talks about nuclear wars are on the back again now. The situation with NATO, President Trump, we do not know or not know he’s going to send weapons to Ukraine, the context of this Ukraine and the Russia war. Where are we with this nuclear war? What is the real battle? What is the real battle that we want to pray that it will never happen?
SPEAKER 02 :
yeah charlie my brother charlie the uh the one under me he’s retired now father i just want you to know and he was in charge of the pacific theater uh in hawaii and he’s a four star and he just retired uh just this past year so we’re very proud of him and very grateful for his service and he’s still he’s still fighting he’s still very very much fighting uh he’s an expert at the Pacific and also Africa theater, okay, and what’s going on. And China is a huge threat. And the nuclear… Let’s see, Biden was in and I believe it was only Italy that had one kind of glimmer of a good leader that was elected. So you got to remember now, biblically, we are in a time where all the nations have very, they’re all corrupt leaders. I mean… except now Trump got in and I think the woman in Italy is a pretty decent person I’m watching. So if you think about all the nations being corrupted leaders, you’re talking about those people having Iran having nuclear weapons? No, no, no, no, no, no, no. We can’t have these people with nuclear weapons. This is very dangerous. Ukraine is a very corrupt country. Putin’s fighting, you know, his own battles and so forth. And so, no, we can’t have any of these corrupt nations who are corrupting the people. The people aren’t corrupt, but the leaders are. And what their capabilities with nuclear bombs and weapons is very serious. It’s very serious. And we can’t have that. We need peace. We need peace. We need peace. And it’s coming. It’s just, you know, we need to stay steadfast. Like Trump is a leader who is negotiating because it’s all about money. You know, they want this money. Power is, you know, this money power thing. China and many of these nations like China. Their people are actually starving. I mean, Iran is ready. Those people know freedom. They felt freedom at one time. So they’re just waiting to, you know, come or come around. I mean, they’re looking to our country.
SPEAKER 04 :
for this you know for this you know strength and courage and that’s why we need god back in this country because that’s where our strength and courage come from is god and when americans started this is how you started uh we are fighting for god this was the first question i asked you what is this battle about and then you said we have to bring back god to the center of our life to the center of our nation and to the center of this world. And it’s amazing how you respond to this. The last question before we conclude with the prayer. And again, I want to thank you for your generous time, generous information. And the kind way you addressed very difficult and complex topics. And you addressed them with objective reality. and most likely objective truth. And I know there is a difference when describing objective reality with the intent that we have to discover the objective truth. And this is the result of a long, long journey of investigations and human complex reports and relationships. But you said why we want to do that. We want to have peace. This is what President Trump, what you’re saying. And I always said that the reason why I personally when I prayed with President Trump, I knew he personally wanted peace. And this is a major thing for us as Americans to understand that we have a president who humbly is asking for peace in the world through the complex system of people and economic and human and corrupt relationships and military relationships that we have in the world. The last question, before the last question, do you have a dog? Do you have a pet at home?
SPEAKER 02 :
I did. We had two dogs and we had cats. And yes, we don’t have anybody right now. We don’t have any dogs now. I’m traveling too much. I can’t pay attention to them. They need care, right?
SPEAKER 04 :
Father Altman said that animals will make it to heaven.
SPEAKER 02 :
I saw that. Okay.
SPEAKER 03 :
What do you say?
SPEAKER 02 :
I’d say animals were created by God. God has a place for every creature, everybody.
SPEAKER 03 :
Oh, my God. You’re a good politician and you’re a good homilist. You could be a good pastor. No kidding.
SPEAKER 02 :
Hey, life is life. Life is life, right? He’s created all life.
SPEAKER 04 :
So the last question was, it will be great for our listeners and the people are watching us on the podcast. to give your personal input about the church today and the world, relationship between the mystical body of Christ, the crisis of the vision. And also, I want a personal message. You have to come to know me a little bit, whether through Lara and through probably the stories that you heard and me personally. The work of our mission of hope and mercy in the Middle East and Lebanon and the world. You know, I have been threatened many times. You know, in 2016, devilish voice called my rectory line and they said, we’re going to kill you. I did not know they’re going to pursue this creation of something that ended up, of course, causing the death of my father, causing my mom cancer, causing me severe persecution. But I never spoke in public about my situation. But I decided to continue doing the good work through the mission of hope and mercy to continue to save, aid, and educate about the persecuted Christians in the world. I recall visits to the Middle East in which Major Cardinal, who is supposedly the head of my own church, would tell me, don’t speak about the persecuted Christians. Today in Suwaida, in Syria, Christians are being killed. Iraq Christians, about 4 million Christians left. There is about 230,000 Christians left in Iraq. Syria had about 20% Christians in it. Today, we do not even know if Christians feel safe in any particular place inside Syria with the change of the regime. The Democratic Republic of Congo, because of their internal problems, conspiracies, and the fight between the tribes, the two government system, between the legal system, which was founded 500 years ago, and the democratic system which they continue to fight. A country of 90% Christians, where majority of these Christians are Catholics as a matter of fact. 110 million, 110 million almost, I believe, Congolese people that we have in this republic with mineral resources underground. Islamic, unfortunately, fanatic groups are coming to the eastern side of the Congo and they are killing the Christians inside Congo. So the context of the persecution, your experience with me and the mission of Hope and Mercy and discussing the importance of the body of Christ to promote peace, that’s what you started the show speaking about, we have to witness. to our Christian values because we know how to live and how to do acts of peace and concrete acts of charity. What is your message to us all and to our listeners? and to those who are watching the show, to support missions like Mission of Open Mercy, to work for the protection of Christians worldwide, and to call their congressmen and senators in the United States and tell them, you must promote supporting Christian institutions or supporting the people who are working for religious freedom in the world. What is your message to us?
SPEAKER 02 :
That’s really where we should be fighting our battles. I mean, that’s what this country should have been doing is we should have been protecting Christians around the world, and we weren’t. And so the persecution of Christians, this, this, you know, sick ideologies, these, because that’s what really, that’s what, that’s what they want to do the radical, the, the CCP, they really want to destroy Catholics, mostly Catholics are most persecuted around the world. And then, you know, of course, any Christian that uh, believes in Jesus Christ. And so, um, I, I believe that that is, that is what the blessed mother told us, uh, in one of her apparitions was, uh, that we need to pray for peace, pray for peace. And I’ve been praying for peace for a long time as a little girl to the blessed mother, because that’s what she told me to do and us to do. And, and I will be obedient to that, uh, ask, and that’s a big ask. And that’s what we need to do. Um, The one thing that I will say is that people need to, Christians, Catholics need to understand that the Sharia law, Islam is the biggest threat I see today here. They want to devastate the whole world and their belief, political. It is not a religion, is not a religion. It is an ideology that is a very evil ideology. And the wool’s been pulled over our head again that this is a religion. It is not. This is a total destruction of Catholics and Christians all over the world. And that’s what you’re seeing in the Congo. And you see all of this. going on and it’s here in this country. And, um, you know, we need to, when we’re praying, we need to say our prayers and pray to the Lord for peace and for, and for, for forgiveness, uh, for our offenses and, and then, and then pray that we have peace and that we do his work. I say, when I wake up every morning, I asked the Lord, what can I do for you today, Lord? Because you’ve done everything for me. Everything he’s done to this day in my life. And so I ask him, what can I do for you? So, you know, I just know that the persecution is something very important that we need to pay attention to. And you’re an organization. Okay. I always surround myself with people that know what this persecution feels like, and you do, Father. So you’re in an organization, and as a person who is a finance compliance, and I’ve dealt over 40 years in the nonprofit organization business, you know, this kind of stuff. This is very important. What you do is you follow and you continue your mission. People lose sight of what their mission is in these organizations, and that’s why they become corrupt. You cannot lose sight of what your mission is and you must know your mission because when you are accepting money from donors and people giving you money, you owe them. That’s your responsibility to them to make sure that you are following exactly what you told them you are doing with their money. And so you’re a guy that has been persecuted. You know what that feels like. And those are the best kind of people to rely on and put your time, talent, and treasures into. That’s what I tell people when I’m asked about evaluating an organization. You are somebody who knows what that feels like firsthand. witnesses that’s why we have the things that we have happen in our lives because we we become good witnesses and we and when you become a good witness you become a good witness for the Lord that’s even better I mean that’s what he wants us to do he doesn’t want us to turn bitter and cold and angry and mad and he wants us to take our experiences because we have a free will We make choices and use it for the better. And so, you know, when we’ve been persecuted and we feel that, those are the best kind of things to put your investment in, in an organization like yourself, because you know that you are doing the right thing and you are going to help these persecutions.
SPEAKER 04 :
people these persecuted people you know what that feels like that’s the best kind of investment people can do is is make that investment in you in that organization father that’s what we know we see we see the outcome of persecution I you know every Saturday I have a meeting with my officers like sometimes they look at me and they say like father Andre like what is this or father Andre what is that thing here I said well these are marks of the war in Lebanon like um you know my bishop told me one time stop talking that when you were a child you lived in a cave i looked at him i go like but i told president trump you know when he invited me to the yeah i do not want to get honestly emotional but uh but we’re gonna die and you know when i asked father altman i said did anybody ever uh tell you that there isn’t information that somebody was gonna kill you or is about to kill you and i think you know the story yeah And thanks to somebody that we cherish and who’s, I do not want to say who it was, told them, well, there are actual information that somebody in Rome is trying actually to kill you both physically and by name spiritually.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah. And I told him I can never get over the machete when the man go and storms my rectory and is trying to kill me. Yeah. Yeah. in my rectory and the phone calls and the threats you’re right talking about honestly persecution it’s not only scary but when it comes to hit you to hit your heart of your name to put you to shame to make you a monster to make you a monster to put on you garbage and an investment that they actually Applies to them. You know, it’s called the transfer of guilt or I don’t know, but probably I do not know what they call it in psychology. But I looked to the bishop one time when I was in my few meetings with him. I said, why are you persecuting me?
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah.
SPEAKER 04 :
That’s honestly the question to which he looked at me with the dry eyes. But I know, I know, bishops can weaponize canon law. And you are a finance… Oh, yes, they can. You know… They can.
SPEAKER 02 :
They used it… I’ll tell you when they used it. Very, very good example of when the priests that were caught with the kids… they used the can they said oh we’ll take care of it uh under our canon law so they weren’t perfect they weren’t put in jail they should have been criminally charged in the outside the canon law they should have been because it’s a crime because that’s right that’s right and it’s a crime committed in this country you know in the state in the local community instead they got away with using the canon law oh we’ll take care of it we’ll we’ll we’ll
SPEAKER 04 :
you hold our own canon law and we’ll take care of those priests and they never did they never did they moved him around and they used it against the other priests so i think i think they used it against yeah so mary it takes it takes the power of a bishop to weaponize canon law but also it takes a lot of money and you are a compliance finance compliance officer or auditor what is the message to our listeners who go to the pew who gives money in these churches They know that their money is being weaponized in such a way to promote injuries, to promote, perpetuate, protecting the real evil people who are not really the church but they have become somehow. It’s being used against clergy, against good priests, against good volunteers, good laity who gave their heart. and their life to support the church and they created a book of stories that is not true yeah good people the use of money uh for as a practical recommendation to people are listening to us and still give an abuse yeah yeah well um many priests
SPEAKER 02 :
And I’ve come, you know, when I was when I was working in the Catholic Church as a finance director, they see the priests. They’re not they’re not. It’s very rare that you find a priest that could that had an accounting degree, for example. OK, so priests are supposed to be, you know, the spiritual leaders. you know, leaders, right? So they really need to, they should never be involved in the operation. They really shouldn’t. The laity should be the people that are running an operation because the laity has, they’re the ones that give the money, okay? And there are professional people, they rely on the lady to run the church, but yet you have clergy who have no idea about even a budget, what a financial looks like. You know, have no clue as to administration and what administering in an operation. It’s a business. And so it’s very hard for them to do that kind of work, and they shouldn’t be. And that’s where the Catholic Church went wrong. They should never have had them involved in parish operations, like running a business. I mean, you can’t have your hands in money and not know how to deal with money. So as far as we all know, we all know that the Lord does not want us to give money to sin, right? We don’t want to waste our wages that we work hard for and give our money to things that we know are not being used properly. And we know because of testimony that Catholic Charities has been in the spotlight, okay? So I think what we need to do in the parishes is we need the parish councils, which are the people and the finance councils, which they should be, they should be very involved with the people. They need to understand that they need to open their mouths up and they need to hold their money. They need to know where their money is and where their money is going and be more involved in what the money is and what is going on with the money. Okay. They really do. And, They need to say to the priest or whoever’s in charge, clergy, they need to understand that it’s okay. Don’t punish people if they don’t want, because people get punished. If they don’t give to Catholic charities, they get punished. I know this. They were punishing parishes if they didn’t make the goal. If they didn’t make their goal that was set by the bishops, they would be punished. It happened. It happened in a couple of churches that I did the money for. So that’s the kind of stuff that needs to stop, okay? People don’t have to be told they have to do something or you’re going to get punished, okay? It’s not right. That’s just wrong.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, there has to be then some sort of an education and a stewardship, not only on the side of how to make money for the parish through time, talent and treasure. Right. So to educate the parishioners in return, how to hold the parish to the highest level accountable to how the time and treasure. fruit basket was being utilized, whether in seen ways or in unseen ways, as a matter of fact. I really appreciate what you have contributed, Mary, in defending your family, defending your name. defending your city and your parish and your diocese and on a bigger scale what you have done as felicia blessed you mightily by almighty god to defend our future our freedom and our country not only our church I want to pray with you Psalm 53 and closing of this podcast in two or three episodes, which we did. We have, you know, I want to thank you because the generous time that you have given, we thought we were finished in 45 minutes. But we are in two, three episodes, honestly, for the interest of our people and our friends. Sure. I want to thank you for your support, and I want to thank you for liking what our guests and our, I want to call them our members of our spiritual family, your spiritual family, are sharing with you, are sharing with us, not as political statement, but they speak in terms of political the atmosphere of politics. not as people who have an opinion that is opinionated opinion but now from their own personal experience they’re telling you that how their opinion could help your decision making that when you come to vote when you come to contribute in a church, when you come to address the most difficult situations that we say that touches your own personal life, your own personal family, your own personal dignity, your own personal future, and your existence, whether as a private citizen or a citizen of this nation or a citizen of the kingdom of God, please, our beautiful guests such as Mary Flynn today, They inform you the way they overcome their own difficulties. They kept focusing to see the light, to follow the path of the truth, remaining kind while being very aggressive in the way they fought against evil. While being righteous, they were merciful in the way they reached out even to their enemies to try to understand how they can stop this fight that is a nonsense. It’s only a persecution, a mere persecution that aims to annihilate the light, to annihilate what is good. And without good, without light, who from us can benefit from this beautiful existence that God gave us? So Psalm 53 says, the fool says in his heart, there is no God. They are corrupt. and their ways are vile. There is no one who does good. God looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there is any who understand and who seek God. Everyone has turned away. All have become corrupt. There is no one who does good, not even one. Do all these evil doers know nothing? They devour my people as though eaten bread. They never call on God. But there they are, overwhelmed with dread. Where there was nothing to dread, God scattered the bones of those who attacked you. You put them to shame, for God despised them. This is what God will do to the evildoers and to those who do not repent, my friends. So have courage. We will live in the peace of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And all of humanity is irrevocable, unbroken, because we are in the image and likeness of God. We are the mystical body of Christ and we are the free children of the kingdom of our Father and we are the righteous heirs of the divine kingdom which was prepared for us since the foundation of this world. Please do not forget to show your support to the mission of hope and mercy and to entities like the mission of hope and mercy. And please pray for Mary Flynn. Pray for her brothers. Pray for her family. Pray for many families in the United States, including your neighbors, your neighbors, the ones who live next door to you, who you may not know, you may not have spoken to. Have this courage. Talk to them. Share with them the word of God. Share with them even the bread. break the bread with them once in a lifetime break a good cappuccino cup you know with them or a good american coffee or a good tea or a good pancake invite them over break the walls that made us isolated cells remind yourself you are not an american citizen only by the virtue of your birthright or the immigration system or paying your taxes on time or later on in your life. You are an American citizen, as Mary Flynn said, because God, since the foundation of our nation, instituted this nation in a biblical way to be a nation that will serve his will for us, for the church, for all the nations of the world and for humanity. And may Almighty God bless us all, protect us from all evil, forgive us our sins, bring us to peace, victory, and forgiveness of sins, and to the joy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And may God bring us all to everlasting life. Amen.
SPEAKER 02 :
Amen, Father.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thank you, Mary.
SPEAKER 01 :
Thank you for listening to 33 Minutes on the Lord’s Day. To hear previous programs, visit the show page at missionofhopeandmercy.org. Listen to Father Andre every Sunday morning at 7.30 on KLZ as he speaks on the unity of Christians, religious freedom, and the biblical foundation of Judeo-Christian values and traditions. Join him in bringing hope and freedom to people across the globe while also strengthening your own faith, family, and community right here in Colorado. Reawaken the spiritual strength of America. Go to missionofhopeandmercy.org.
