(LifeSiteNews) — Archbishop Guy de Kerimel of Toulouse, France, consecrated the city and archdiocese to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in October in response to the satanic figures and imagery of the “La Porte des Ténèbres”(“Gate of Darkness”) urban opera performed in the streets.
Kerimel decided a consecration was necessary to combat the evil on display in the “Gate of Darkness” on October 25-27. The show featured giant demonic mobile statues bearing the sign of the beast and the satanic cross processing through the streets of Toulouse. In the archbishop’s sermon at the Mass, he emphasized that individuals must overcome sin and devote themselves to Our Lord’s Sacred Heart to combat the darkness in our world.
The archbishop expressed concerns over the overt use of satanic imagery in the “Gate of Darkness” performance and explained in his consecration announcement that he believed it was necessary to do a spiritual act to counter this evil. Kerimel chose to perform the consecration on October 16, the feast of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, who received visions from Our Lord and encouraged devotion to His Sacred Heart.
“(T)he Heart of Jesus tells us God’s infinitely fruitful love for humanity; it also tells us, through the experience of St. Thomas, the victory of Christ over evil and death. It is a sure sign of hope in the victory of the Light over darkness,” Kerimel wrote in the announcement.
The “Gate of Darkness” featured multiple giant mobile demonic statues, including a giant spider, a minotaur of Greek mythology, and most notably, one of Lilith, a child-eating figure in Hebrew and Greco-Roman legend.
Posters advertising the performance showed the occultic figures next to burning churches. Recently, numerous Catholic churches have been burned, including several notable churches in France. The event was also notably on full display in the streets of Toulouse for all citizens to see, including families with young children.
The urban opera was a production of the La Machine company, whose art director, François Delarozière, denied intending to blaspheme and called critics of the performance “Puritans” in an interview with a French news outlet, according to Catholic News Agency (CNA).
This was not the first urban opera performance the La Machine company put on in Toulouse. In 2018, the “Guardian of the Temple” was performed in the city and featured the same minotaur and giant spider statues from the “Gate of Darkness.” The La Machine Company also had a show in Reims, France, in 2018 to celebrate the 800th anniversary of the historic Notre Dame Saint Jacques Cathedral, which featured a spider mobile statue climbing up the side of the historic Church.
In Kerimel’s sermon for the consecration Mass, he highlighted the darkness throughout the world and how people need to open their hearts to Christ and His Sacred Heart to overcome it.
“In our world, where the darkness of war, corruption, various forms of slavery and abuse reigns, the darkness of lies, hatred, despair, wherever darkness reigns, love is not dead: hearts of men and women open, let themselves be hurt by the suffering of their contemporaries and act for evil. In the smoldering ruins of the destruction of bombs, men and women open their hearts to search for the survivors and free them from the rubble,” Kerimel said.
The archbishop then emphasized that in order for Our Lord’s Sacred Heart to reign over the city and archdiocese of Toulouse, the citizens must overcome sin and seek grace.
“If we want to overcome with Christ, if we want the Heart of Jesus to reign over the city and the diocese of Toulouse, we must fight the roots of evil and sin in our own heart, seek, with the grace of God, humility, flee indifference, renounce violence, work for justice, be artisans of peace, seek purity of heart, be a servant of the mission,” Kerimel said.
The Archdiocese of Toulouse has not responded to LifeSiteNews’ request for comment as of publication time.