People bow to Pachamama during pagan rite in Vatican Gardens prior to opening of Amazon Synod, Oct. 4, 2019.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider, LifeSiteNews, Nov 20, 2019
+ Athanasius Schneider, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Saint Mary in Astana
Guest commentary by Bishop Athanasius Schneider
November 20, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – On October 4, 2019, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, in the presence of Pope Francis and other high ecclesiastical dignitaries, there was held a ceremony in the Vatican Gardens that was clearly religious in character, as stated in the Vatican press release of October 4, 2019: “During the prayer ceremony, concluding the ‘Season of Creation’ initiative promoted recently by Pope Francis, a tree from Assisi was planted as a symbol of integral ecology, to consecrate the Synod on Amazonia to Saint Francis, shortly before the fortieth anniversary of the papal proclamation of the Poverello of Assisi at the patron of ecologists. At the end of the celebration the Holy Father recited the Lord’s Prayer. The ceremony was attended by representatives of indigenous populations from Amazonia, Franciscan brothers and various members of the Church“
What this statement has concealed is the fact that during this prayer ceremony, religious rites from the pagan religions of the Native Americans took place. There were gestures and words that expressed a religious worship of mythological figures of the aboriginal religion, above all, acts of prostration were performed in front of two naked pregnant female figures, which should represent fertility. There was also a religious dance performed around these figures, in which a woman dressed as a shaman used rattles that symbolized pagan fertility gods. The use of the “maracas” or rattles by the shaman means in the indigenous cults of Amazonia the voice of the spirits and they are used to claim the help of the power of the animals and the spirits. The “Maracas” are one of the most powerful magic instruments for these peoples. The head of the “Maraca” is a pumpkin, with the head of the rattle with the shaft represents the fertilization union of the male world (shaft) with the female world (head). Exactly such “maracas” were used at the “Prayer Ceremony” on October 4th. ….
