People are becoming increasingly worried about the threats hanging over the world today — whether it's military conflicts that could escalate into a Third World War, the rising cost of living with ever-increasing housing and grocery prices, or the insecurity of jobs with the arrival of artificial intelligence (AI). This technology not only threatens employment (see page 7), but also our individual freedoms, since there is a real risk that AI could be placed at the service of an all-powerful state seeking to control everything we say, do, and buy — through a digital identity and digital currency. In such a system, paper money would be completely eliminated, and the bank accounts of citizens who do not "comply" with the system in place could be frozen.
For centuries, that has been the dream of every dictator — to control people in such a total way. And with today's technology, this total control is becoming possible. Faced with all these challenges, we may be tempted to lose heart, to believe there's nothing we can do to stop this global plan of control, and that the Financiers are too powerful for anything to change.
Hold on — all is not lost. First, we must remember that the Financiers'power lies in people's ignorance — in not knowing how commercial banks create money as debt when they grant a loan, thereby creating unpayable debts for nations. Louis Even pulled thousands of people out of their ignorance of the banking system with one of his first writings, The Money Myth Exploded (see page 42). He also explained one of the flaws of the current financial system — that it limits the only source of income to employment (see page 4).
Even though the Financiers may seem very powerful, we must not forget that God has given us a special weapon in these times: the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary (see page 36), which is particularly powerful against demons. Sister Lucy of Fatima (one of the three children to whom the Blessed Virgin appeared in 1917 in Portugal) told Father Augustin Fuentes in 1957:
"The Most Holy Virgin, in these last times in which we live, has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary. In such a way that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is — temporal or above all spiritual — that cannot be solved by the prayer of the Holy Rosary. With the Holy Rosary, we will save ourselves, we will sanctify ourselves, we will console Our Lord and obtain the salvation of many souls."
Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus once said:
"Through the Rosary, one can obtain everything. According to a beautiful comparison, it is a long chain linking Heaven to earth — one end is in our hands, and the other is in the hands of the Blessed Virgin. As long as the Rosary is recited, God cannot abandon the world, for this prayer has power over His Heart. It is like the leaven that can renew the earth. The gentle Queen of Heaven cannot forget her children who constantly repeat her praises. The Rosary rises like incense to the throne of the Almighty, and Mary sends it back as a refreshing dew that renews hearts. There is no prayer more pleasing to God than the Rosary."
And of course, let us not forget Saint Michael the Archangel — the mighty warrior and defender of God's cause (see pages 39 to 41), and patron of our movement, the Pilgrims of Saint Michael.
Let us therefore be convinced that with the help of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and Saint Michael the Archangel, we can accomplish anything — victory is guaranteed. As Pope Leo XIII reminded politicians, we must have the courage to defend the truth, and the courage to suffer for the name of Jesus (see page 38). So, let us not be afraid — let us move forward, as the Pope said at the canonization of Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati: "Let us not waste our lives, but make them a masterpiece." (see page 10)
Let us be courageous witnesses of Christ and of the truth of Economic Democracy — a true message of hope that brings good news to the poor and that will free peoples from the dictatorship of money. Let us keep hope, continue educating people about the urgent and necessary monetary reform to be accomplished; for with God all things are possible!
Alain Pilote, Editor