Extended messages... is there a reason?

I have discovered of late that Our Lady’s messages to Mirjana on the second of each month have been gradually increasing in length these past five years.

The nine messages given to Mirjana in 2009 averaged at 85 words, and since then the average length of the messages has steadily increased, year on year. Mirjana has received five monthly messages since the start of 2013 and the average number of words for each message over the period is 208. That’s an increase of 144% on 2009.

2013... 5 messages averaging 208 words
2012... 11 messages averaging 162 words
2011... 12 messages averaging 144 words
2010... 11 messages averaging 90 words
2009... 9 messages averaging 85 words

So what can be the reason for this development? Does Our Lady have a specific motive for wanting us to take in more of what she is saying and teaching? Does she consider our hearts are opening in a way so as to be able to receive more?

And should we be surprised, anyway? After all, Our Lady has been speaking through the Medjugorje visionaries continually for 32 years and we have grown accustomed to receiving and being nourished by her many messages.

The pattern is peculiar to the messages received by Mirjana and not Marija, the visionary designated by Our Lady to transmit her message to the world on the 25th of each month. The messages given to Mirjana are generally addressed to those who do not know the love of God in their hearts and do not seek God – and I suppose that can apply to all hearts at times. Since April 2007 there has been an added postscript to the messages given to Mirjana, a reference to our “shepherds”, our priests. So does that indicate the messages are targeted more towards the so-called “non-believers” within the Church?

For sure, the messages are a blessed treasure for the Church. Every word, every increasing message is a precious gift and encourage countless hearts to reconcile and return to the Sacraments.

There is always a sense of urgency about the messages to Mirjana, urging us to action; to confess, to pray, to fast, to convert, to love, to allow God’s peace into our lives and so the world. Perhaps the extended messages can be viewed as an expression of this urgency, Our Lady’s desire to bring as many people to Jesus before the time she will begin – through Mirjana – to reveal her “secrets” to the world. Increased activity, exhortations and appeals can be seen as signs of preparation for what is to come, and perhaps this may explain the reason for Our Lady extending her messages to Mirjana these past five years.

We also know for sure that one day the messages will come to a halt, just as the daily apparitions did for the Mirjana, Ivanka and Jakov. Our Lady has made this very clear in earlier messages. On Christmas Day, 1989, she said: “Little children, I ask you to accept and live the messages with all seriousness, so that your soul will not be sad when I will no longer be with you...” On another occasion Our Lady said a time would soon come when we will lament for the messages. She also spoke about a time when she would no longer leads us “like insecure children in their first steps.”

But until that time does come we can be thankful for the extended messages and also view this as added nourishment for our conversion and “growing in holiness”. Pope Francis spoke on this theme earlier this month.

“A mother helps her children grow up and wants them to grow strong... A mother then thinks of the health of her children, teaching them also to face the difficulties of life... A good mother also helps them to make definitive decisions with freedom... The mother teaches us how to be fruitful, to be open to life and to always bear good fruit, joyful fruit, hopeful fruit, and never to lose hope, to give life to others, physical and spiritual life...”

Each of us has expectations of our Blessed Mother. Likewise she has expectations of us, especially when it comes to accepting and living her messages. While the world would want us to consume and find room in our hearts for all the “new” delights it has to offer, Our Lady would prefer that we open our hearts instead to the grace she desires to present to us; her Son Jesus.

She says: Dear children! God gives me this time as a gift to you, so that I may instruct and lead you on the path of salvation. Dear children, now you do not comprehend this grace, but soon a time will come when you will lament for these messages. That is why, little children, live all of the words which I have given you through this time of grace and renew prayer, until prayer becomes a joy for you. (part message, August 25, 1997)

Parting company with a loved one can be a time when much is said: last minute instructions, reminders, words of endearment, promises and maybe expressions of hope and even sorrowful regret.

Jesus also spoke at length to his disciples before his passion and death, gracing them with teaching and understanding, preparing them for the time he would return to be with his Father in heaven. But he also promised he would not leave them orphans, a promise that is clearly fulfilled at Medjugorje, with so many apparent signs and good fruits.

When the visionaries Mirjana, Ivanka and Jakov received their last daily apparition, Our Lady spoke at length, reassuring them as a mother would, but Mirjana described the parting as “pain beyond description” and Jakov wept for a very long time. However, Our Lady indicated they would not be abandoned, promising to appear to them once a year for the rest of their lives.

THE LAST DAILY APPARITIONS...

• Three of the Medjugorje visionaries no longer receive daily apparitions... Mirjana Dragicevic, the first to receive all 10 secrets, had her final daily meeting with Our Lady on Christmas Day, 1982... For Ivanka Ivankovic, the first of the visionaries to see Our Lady, the daily apparitions ceased on 7 May 1985... Jakov Colo, the youngest of the seers, was in America when he received his final daily apparition on 12 September 1998.

MIRJANA
The first month was really difficult for me. Our Lady warned me about that, too. I fell into a deep depression. I avoided everything...

• My last daily apparition with Our Lady, was on Christmas Day, December 25, 1982. On that occasion Our Lady stayed with me for 45 minutes. For a month she had been preparing me for that meeting, explaining everything in a motherly way. Our Lady told me that I had fulfiled what she had needed me for. She said that I was sensible enough and had to understand that it was now time for me to return to a normal daily life, like other girls of my age. I must now continue to live without her motherly advice and the conversations with her that were so necessary for me. She promised that she would always be with me and that she would help me in the most difficult moments in my life. As long as I live with God, she will help me. She told me that this would be the last of our daily meetings, but she left me a gift: I will see her on my birthday as long as I live. The last meeting with Our Lady was very difficult for me. I cannot describe with words the pain I felt in my soul. It is the realisation of having lost the most beautiful thing in your life. Our Lady knew of my suffering and pain, and to cheer me up she prayed with me and encouraged me to sing and praise God. I prayed the prayer that I always prayed when I was alone with her: Hail Holy Queen. I will always remember the words of Our Lady: “Mirjana, I chose you and I have told you everything that is necessary. I also entrusted many terrible things to you, which you must now carry with dignity. Think of me and of how many tears I also shed because of these. You must always be brave. You quickly understood my messages and therefore, you also must understand that now I must leave. Be brave!” The other things Our Lady told me were for me, personally. The first month was really difficult for me. Our Lady warned me about that, too. I fell into a deep depression. I avoided everything. I closed myself up in my room where I used to wait for Our Lady. I cried and called out to her to come. I felt her help and waited for my birthday. Since August 2, I hear the voice of Our Lady within me on every second day of the month. Sometimes I see her as well – and I pray with her for the unbelievers.

IVANKA
There were two angels with her. They, too, were dressed like Our Lady. Our Lady and the angels were so beautiful that I cannot describe it in words. One simply has to experience this oneself...

• Never before had I seen the Blessed Virgin Mary more beautiful than this evening. She was so gentle and so beautiful! Today she wore the most beautiful dress that I have ever seen in my life. This dress was shining in silver and gold, as were her veil and crown. There were two angels with her. They, too, were dressed like Our Lady. Our Lady and the angels were so beautiful that I cannot describe it in words. One simply has to experience this oneself. Our Lady asked me if I had any particular wish. I asked her if I could see my earthly mother. Our Lady smiled and she nodded. Then suddenly my mother appeared. She was smiling. Our Lady told me to stand up. I stood up. My mother embraced and kissed me, and said: My daughter, I am so proud of you! My mother kissed me once more and disappeared. After this the Blessed Virgin Mary said: My dear child, today is our last meeting. Do not be sad, since I will come to you on every anniversary – except this one. My dear child, do not think that you have done something wrong, and that is why I no longer appear to you. No, this is not so! With your whole heart, you have accepted and fulfiled the plans that my Son and I had. Be happy because I am your Mother, who loves you with all her heart. Ivanka, thank you for having responded to the call of my Son, for having persevered and for always having remained with Him for as long as He wished it. My child, tell your friends that my Son and I shall always be with them when they search for us and call for us. What I have told you during these years and the secrets which I entrusted to you, you will not speak to anyone about until I tell you to. Ivanka, until now, no one on this earth has received the graces which you and your brothers have received! After these words I asked Our Lady if I could embrace her. She simply nodded and I embraced her. I also asked for her blessing. She blessed me, smiled and said: “Go in God’s peace.” She left slowly and with her the two angels left also. The Blessed Virgin Mary was very happy. She remained with me for one hour.


JAKOV
While she was confiding the tenth secret to me, she was sad. Then with a gentle smile, she said to me: “Dear child, I am your mother and I love you unconditionally. From today I will not be appearing to you every day, but only on Christmas, the birthday of my Son...”

• On Saturday September 12, 1998, the youngest of the visionaries in Medjugorje, Jakov Colo, sent the parish office the following text while he was on a trip to the United States:

• On Friday September 11th, during the regular apparition, Our Lady told me to prepare myself, especially by prayer, for tomorrow’s apparition, because she would confide the tenth secret to me. On Saturday September 12, Our Lady came at 11:15am (local time). When she came she greeted me as always with Praised be Jesus. While she was confiding the tenth secret to me, she was sad. Then with a gentle smile, she said to me: “Dear child, I am your mother and I love you unconditionally. From today I will not be appearing to you every day, but only on Christmas, the birthday of my Son. Do not be sad because as a mother I will always be with you and, like every true mother, I will never leave you. And you continue further to follow the way of my Son, the way of peace and love, and try to persevere in the mission that I have confided to you. Be an example of a man who has known God and God’s love. Let people always see you as an example of how God acts in people and how God acts through them. I bless you with my motherly blessing and I thank you for having responded to my call.”

The apparition ended at 11:45am. Later, in a short conversation with Fr Slavko Barbaric, Jakov said that he wept for a long time and that he is very sad.

Salt of the earth...

Dear children! Today I invite you to open yourselves to God the Creator, so that he changes you. Little children, you are dear to me. I love you all and I call you to be closer to me and that your love towards my Immaculate Heart be more fervent. I wish to renew you and lead you with my heart to the heart of Jesus, which still today suffers for you and calls you to conversion and renewal. Through you, I wish to renew the world. Comprehend, little children, that you are today the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Little children, I invite you and I love you and in a special way implore: Convert! Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, October 25, 1996

That Christians might spread the spiritual salt of faith, hope and charity: this was Pope Francis’ exhortation at Mass Thursday morning in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae residence in the Vatican. The Pope warned against the risk of becoming insipid, “museum-piece Christians.”

In his homily, Pope Francis focused on the savour that Christians are called to give to their own lives and to others. The Holy Father said that salt the Lord gives us is the salt of faith, hope and charity. But, he warned, we must be careful that this salt, which is given to us by the certainty that Jesus died and rose again to save us, “does not lose its flavour, does not lose its strength.” This salt, he continued, “is not for keeping, because if the salt is preserved in a bottle it does not do anything: it is good for nothing”

• More at Radio Vatican

Obtaining the impossible...

Dear children! I am calling you to the love of neighbour and love toward the one from whom evil comes to you. In that way with love you will be able to discern the intentions of hearts. Pray and love, dear children! By love you are able to do even that which you think is impossible. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, February 28, 1985

• This is part of the homily given by Pope Francis this morning, the Feast of St Rita, sourced from Vatican Radio.

The Lord has created us in His image and likeness, and has given us this commandment in the depths of our heart: do good and do not do evil.

The Lord has redeemed all of us, all of us, with the Blood of Christ: all of us, not just Catholics. Everyone! “Father, the atheists?” Even the atheists. Everyone! And this Blood makes us children of God of the first class! We are created children in the likeness of God and the Blood of Christ has redeemed us all! And we all have a duty to do good. And this commandment for everyone to do good, I think, is a beautiful path towards peace. If we, each doing our own part, if we do good to others, if we meet there, doing good, and we go slowly, gently, little by little, we will make that culture of encounter: we need that so much. We must meet one another doing good. “But I don’t believe, Father, I am an atheist!” But do good: we will meet one another there.

Doing good is not a matter of faith, it is a duty, it is an identity card that our Father has given to all of us, because He has made us in His image and likeness. And He does good, always.”

Today is the feast of Saint Rita, patron saint of impossible things – but this seems impossible: let us ask of her this grace, this grace that all, all, all people would do good and that we would encounter one another in this work, which is a work of creation, like the creation of the Father. A work of the family, because we are all children of God, all of us, all of us! And God loves us, all of us! May Saint Rita grant us this grace, which seems almost impossible. Amen.

A gift to bring joy to each other...

In the goodness and the love of God the Creator,
I also am with you as a gift.
part Medjugorje message, October 25, 1995

Yesterday, Pope Francis visited the missionaries, volunteers and residents in the Gift of Mary Hospitality House located within Vatican City, just outside St Peter’s Square.

In his brief speech he focused on three words: house, gift and Mary. Speaking of Mary as a gift Pope Francis said:

“There is one more feature of this house: it is qualified as a gift ‘of Mary’... Mary is an example and an inspiration for those who live in this house, and for all of us, to live charity towards our neighbour, not out of a type of social duty, but starting from God’s love, from God’s charity... Mary is the one who leads us to Jesus and who teaches us how to go out from Jesus... For us Christians, love for one's neighbour is born from the love of God and is the clearest expression of it. Here you seek to love your neighbour, but also to let yourselves be loved by them. These two attitudes go hand in hand. There cannot be one without the other.”

Do not forget that your life does not belong to you, but is a gift with which you must bring joy to others and lead them to eternal life. May the tenderness of the little Jesus always accompany you. Thank you for having responded to my call.
part Medjugorje message, December 25, 1992

A servant of all...

If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all. Mark 9 : 35

Real power is service. As He did, He who came not to be served but to serve, and His service was the service of the Cross. He humbled Himself unto death, even death on a cross for us, to serve us, to save us. And there is no other way in the Church to move forward. For the Christian, getting ahead, progress, means humbling oneself. If we do not learn this Christian rule, we will never, ever be able to understand Jesus’ true message on power.
• Pope Francis, May 21, 2013

Dear children; I am with you for so much time and already for so long I have been pointing you to God’s presence and his infinite love, which I desire for all of you to come to know. And you, my children? You continue to be deaf and blind as you look at the world around you and do not want to see where it is going without my Son. You are renouncing him – and he is the source of all graces. You listen to me while I am speaking to you, but your hearts are closed and you are not hearing me. You are not praying to the Holy Spirit to illuminate you. My children, pride has come to rule. I am pointing out humility to you. My children, remember that only a humble soul shines with purity and beauty because it has come to know the love of God. Only a humble soul becomes Heaven, because my Son is in it. Thank you. Again I implore you to pray for those whom my Son has chosen – those are your shepherds. Medjugorje message, February 2, 2012

Panorama of Apparition Hill

Medjugorje - Podbrdo apparition Hill in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Lord never tires of forgiving... never!

Pope Francis spoke about an experience he had as confessor in the homily he gave during the mass he celebrated in the Vatican parish of Saint Anna on the first Sunday after his election to the papacy (17 March).

He described the conversation he had with a man he was confessing. When the man heard Bergoglio talk about the mercy of God, he said to him: “Oh father, if you knew what my life was like you wouldn’t speak to me like that! I have really messed things up in the past!”

And Bergoglio replied: “All the better! Go to Jesus: he’ll be happy to hear about these things! he forgives and forgets; he has a special gift for doing so. He forgets, he gives you a kiss and a hug and simply tells you: ‘I do not condemn you. Go, and from now steer clear of sin.’ That’s the only piece of advice he will give you. A month later we find ourselves in the same situation… We turn to the Lord again. The Lord never tires of forgiving, never! We are the ones who tire of asking forgiveness.”

• sourced from Vatican Insider

Dear children, do not be of a hard heart towards the mercy of God, which has been pouring out upon you for so much of your time. In this special time of prayer, permit me to transform your hearts that you may help me to have my Son resurrect in all hearts, and that my heart may triumph. Thank you.
Medjugorje message, April 2, 2007

Courageous, humble prayer can work miracles

For years Our Lady has been reminding her children through her messages to the Medjugorje seers that prayer can achieve miracles. Today, in his morning homily, Pope Francis also stressed the importance of prayer in achieving miracles.

Strong prayer is needed, humble and strong prayer that enables Jesus to carry out the miracle.
Pope Francis, May 20, 2013

Even the rosary alone can work miracles in the world and in your lives. Medjugorje, January 25, 1991

Today I invite you to open yourselves to God by means of prayer so the Holy Spirit may begin to work miracles in you and through you. Medjugorje, May 25, 1993

Only when you open your hearts and pray will miracles happen. Medjugorje, September 25, 1993

Dear children! Also today, I call you to prayer. Little children, prayer works miracles. Medjugorje, April 25, 2001

Pray, pray, pray, because prayer works miracles in human hearts and in the world. Medjugorje, October 25, 2001

Little children, believe that by simple prayer miracles can be worked. Medjugorje, October 25, 2002

The Pope was commenting on today’s Gospel passage which recounts the disciples failure to heal a child; Jesus himself must intervene and laments the disbelief of those present. Responding to the child’s father’s pleas for help He says “everything is possible to one who has faith”. Pope Francis noted that often those who love Jesus don't risk much on believing in him nor entrust themselves completely to Him:

“But why this disbelief? I believe that it is when the heart will not open, when the heart is closed, when the heart wants to have everything under control”.

It is a heart, then, which “does not open” and does not “give control of things to Jesus” – said the Pope – and when the disciples ask him why they could not drive the spirit out of the boy, the Lord replies that the “this kind can only come out through prayer. ”

“All of us carry a little bit of a disbelief, within. Strong prayer is needed, humble and strong prayer that enables Jesus to carry out the miracle”.

“Prayer to ask for a miracle, to ask for an extraordinary action must be an involved prayer, a prayer that unites us all”.

To further underline his point, the Holy Father told the story of a young child in Argentina who at only seven years of age fell ill and was given only a few hours to live by doctors. Her father, an electrician, a “man of faith,” started “acting like madmen” said the Pope, and in that state of madness “took a bus to the Marian Shrine of Lujan, 70 km away”.

“He finally arrived after 9pm, when everything was closed. And he began to pray to Our Lady, with his hands gripping the iron fence. And he prayed, and prayed, and wept, and prayed... and that’s the way he remained all night long. But this man was struggling: he was struggling with God, he struggled with God Himself to heal his daughter. Then, at six in the morning, he went to the bus station, took the bus and arrived home, in the hospital at 9am, more or less. And he found his wife weeping. And he thought the worst. ‘What’s happened? I do not understand, I do not understand! What has happened?’”

“Well, the doctors came and they told the man that the fever had gone, that his daughter was breathing well, that there was nothing wrong! But still the man did not understand what happened! This still happens, eh? Miracles do happen”.

“But we need to pray with our hearts” concluded the Pope, “a courageous prayer, that struggles to achieve a miracle, not prayers of courtesy, ‘Ah, I will pray for you.’ I say an Our Father, a Hail Mary and then I forget. No: a courageous prayer, like that of Abraham, who struggled with the Lord to save the city, like that of Moses who held his hands high and tired himself out, praying to the Lord, like that of many people, so many people who have faith and pray with faith. Prayer works wonders, but we have to believe!”

• Adapted from Emer McCarthy’s report for Vatican Radio.

Dear children! Today I invite you to open yourselves to God by means of prayer so the Holy Spirit may begin to work miracles in you and through you. I am with you and I intercede before God for each one of you because, dear children, each one of you is important in my plan of salvation. I invite you to be carriers of good and peace. God can give you peace only if you convert and pray. Therefore, my dear little children, pray, pray, pray and do that which the Holy Spirit inspires you. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, May 25, 1993

Vicka’s absence continues

Sr Emmanuel is reporting in her latest newsletter that the Medjugorje visionary Vicka is unlikely to be meeting with pilgrims for quite a while yet because of an injury sustained after being pushed by a pilgrim last month.

She was taken to Rome for an examination of her spine and then treated in Zagreb. Sr Emmanuel explains, “for the moment the doctors do not plan on another operation, but Vicka must undergo some very delicate back therapy that might last some time. She will not be able to continue her marvellous welcoming of pilgrims in Medjugorje during the coming months, and we do not know how long her absence will last.”

Pilgrims returning from Medjugorje recently are confirming that the visionary Mirjana is also in much pain with a back problem. This was noticeable during a video of one of her meetings with Our Lady at the Blue Cross a couple of months ago, and the discomfort is still with her.

• You can subscribe to Sr Emmanuel’s newsletter at her website at childrenofmedjugorje.com

A lamp who lights the way...

On arrival in Rome, Paul was allowed to stay in lodgings of his own with the soldier who guarded him. He spent the whole of the two years in his own rented lodging. He welcomed all who came to visit him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching the truth about the Lord Jesus Christ with complete freedom and without hinderance from anyone.
Acts 28 : 16, 30-31

Dear children! In your life you have all experienced light and darkness. God grants to every person to recognise good and evil. I am calling you to the light which you should carry to all the people who are in darkness. People who are in darkness daily come into your homes. Dear children, give them the light! Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, March 14, 1985

Permit him to transform you...

Dear children! I call you also today to conversion. Open your heart to God, little children, through Holy Confession and prepare your soul so that little Jesus can be born anew in your heart. Permit him to transform you and lead you on the way of peace and joy. Little children, decide for prayer. Especially now, in this time of grace, may your heart yearn for prayer. I am close to you and intercede before God for all of you. Thank you for having responded to my call.
November 25, 2007

• This report is on Pope Francis’ homily of today is provided by Vatican Radio

The problem is not that we are sinners, but that we do not allow ourselves to be transformed by the encounter with Christ in love:

This was the main focus of Pope Francis’ remarks at Mass on Friday morning in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae residence in the Vatican.

At the centre of the homily was the day’s Gospel reading, in which the Risen Jesus thrice asks Peter if Peter loves Him. “It is,” said Pope Francis, “a dialogue of love between the Lord and his disciple,” one that retraces the whole history of Peter’s meetings with Jesus; from Peter’s first calling and invitation to follow the Lord, to his receiving the name of Cephas – the Rock – and with the name, his peculiar mission, “which,” said Pope Francis, “was there, even if Peter understood nothing of it [at the time].” Then, when Peter recognised Jesus as the Christ and went on to reject the way of the Cross, and Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan!” and “Peter accepted this humiliation.”

Peter often “believed himself to be a good fellow,” was “fiery” in the Garden of Gethsemane, and “took the sword” to defend Jesus, but then denied him three times – and when Jesus looked on him with that look, “so beautiful [it was],” said the Pope, that Peter weeps. “Jesus in these meetings is maturing Peter’s soul, Peter’s heart,” helping Peter to grow in love. So Peter, when he heard Jesus three times ask him, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me?’ was ashamed, because he remembered the time when, three times, he said he did not know the Lord.

“Peter was saddened that, for a third time, Jesus asked him, ‘Do you love me?’ This pain, this shame – a great man, this Peter – [and] a sinner, a sinner. The Lord makes him feel that he is a sinner – makes us all feel that we are sinners. The problem is not that we are sinners: the problem is not repenting of sin, not being ashamed of what we have done. That’s the problem. And Peter has this shame, this humility, no? The sin, the sin of Peter, is a fact that, with a heart as great as the heart Peter had, brings him to a new encounter with Jesus: to the joy of forgiveness.”

“The Lord did not abandon his promise, when said, ‘You are rock.’ In the episode recounted in Friday’s Gospel, we saw Jesus saying, ‘Feed my sheep,’ and the Lord ‘[gave] over His flock to a sinner.’”

“Peter was a sinner, but not corrupt, eh? Sinners, yes, everyone: corrupt, no. I once knew of a priest, a good parish pastor who worked well. He was appointed bishop, and he was ashamed because he did not feel worthy. He had a spiritual torment and he went to the confessor. The confessor heard him and said, ‘But do not worry. If after the [mess Peter made of things], they made him Pope, then you go ahead!’ The point is that this is how the Lord is. That’s the way He is. The Lord makes us mature with many meetings with Him, even with our weaknesses, when we recognise [them], with our sins.”

Pope Francis went on to say that Peter let himself be shaped by his many encounters with Jesus, and that this, he said, “is something we all need to do as well, for we are on the same road.” The Holy Father stressed that Peter is great, not because he is good, but because he has a nobility of heart, which brings him to tears, leads him to this pain, this shame – and also to take up his work of shepherding the flock”

“Let us ask the Lord, today, that this example of the life of a man who continually meets with the Lord, and whom the Lord purifies, makes more mature through these meetings, might help us to us to move forward, seeking the Lord and meeting Him, allowing us [really] to encounter Him. More than this, it is important that we let ourselves encounter the Lord: He always seeks us, He is always near us. Many times, though, we look the other way because we do not want to talk with the Lord or allow ourselves to encounter the Lord. Meeting the Lord [is important], but more importantly, let us be met by the Lord: this is a grace. This is the grace that Peter teaches us. We ask this grace today. So be it.”

Dear children, In this joyful time of expectation of my Son, I desire that all the days of your earthly life may be a joyful expectation of my Son. I am calling you to holiness. I call you to be my apostles of holiness so that, through you, the Good News may illuminate all those whom you will meet. Fast and pray, and I will be with you. Thank you!
Medjugorje message, December 2, 2006

Challenging Christian comfort zones

St Paul is a nuisance: he is a man who, with his preaching, his work, his attitude irritates others, because testifying to Jesus Christ and the proclamation of Jesus Christ makes us uncomfortable, it threatens our comfort zones – even Christian comfort zones, right? It irritates us. The Lord always wants us to move forward, forward, forward... not to take refuge in a quiet life or in cozy structures, no?... And Paul, in preaching of the Lord, was a nuisance. But he had deep within him that most Christian of attitudes: Apostolic zeal. He had its apostolic zeal. He was not a man of compromise. No! The truth: forward! The proclamation of Jesus Christ, forward!
Pope Francis, May 16, 2013

Dear children! Today as never before I invite you to live my messages and to put them into practice in your life. I have come to you to help you and, therefore, I invite you to change your life because you have taken a path of misery, a path of ruin. When I told you: convert, pray, fast, be reconciled, you took these messages superficially. You started to live them and then you stopped, because it was difficult for you. No, dear children, when something is good, you have to persevere in the good and not think: ‘God does not see me, he is not listening, he is not helping’. And so you have gone away from God and from me because of your miserable interest. I wanted to create of you an oasis of peace, love and goodness. God wanted you, with your love and with his help, to do miracles and, thus, give an example. Therefore, here is what I say to you: satan is playing with you and with your souls and I cannot help you because you are far away from my heart. Therefore, pray, live my messages and then you will see the miracles of God’s love in your everyday life. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, March 25, 1988

Pray for bishops and priests

Commenting on today’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles (20 : 28-38), Pope Francis said: “Read this fine passage, and while reading it, pray, pray for us bishops and priests. We have such need in order to stay faithful, to be men who watch over the flock and also over ourselves, who make the vigil their own, that their heart be always turned to [the Lord’s] flock. [Pray] also that the Lord might defend us from temptation, because if we go on the road to riches, if we go on the road to vanity, we become wolves and not shepherds. Pray for this, read this and pray. So be it.”
• Pope Francis May 15, 2013

Holy Father, keep those you have given to me true to your name, so that they may be one like us. John 17 : 11

BORN OF A MOTHER...A priest is not born of an angel but of a mother. He is chosen from amongst the people, is annointed with the Sacrament of Priesthood and returned back to the people, to the Church – into their care, their prayer and their love. The priest is a sign of the omnipotence of our God. Pray for priests. Love them. Support them. Help them to be holy. We are weak and fragile. If your knees are not bent in prayer for us, we stumble and fall. We need your prayer. Fr Jozo Zovko OFM

Dear children! Today I call you to look into your hearts sincerely and for a long time. What will you see in them? Where is my Son in them and where is the desire to follow me to him? My children, may this time of renunciation be a time when you will ask yourself: “What does my God desire of me personally? What am I to do?” Pray, fast and have a heart full of mercy. Do not forget your shepherds. Pray that they may not get lost, that they may remain in my Son so as to be good shepherds to their flock.
Medjugorje message, March 18,2009

Living life as a gift to others...

Dear children, the Father has not left you to yourselves. Immeasurable is his love, the love that is bringing me to you, to help you to come to know him, so that, through my Son, all of you can call him ‘Father’ with the fullness of heart; that you can be one people in God’s family. However, my children, do not forget that you are not in this world only for yourselves, and that I am not calling you here only for your sake. Those who follow my Son think of the brother in Christ as of their very selves and they do not know selfishness. That is why I desire that you be the light of my Son. That to all those who have not come to know the Father – to all those who wander in the darkness of sin, despair, pain and loneliness – you may illuminate the way and that, with your life, you may show them the love of God. I am with you. If you open your hearts, I will lead you. Again I am calling you: pray for your shepherds. Thank you.
Medjugorje message, November 2, 2011

• This report is provided by Vatican Radio

We need a “big heart” that is wide open and capable of loving. We must also avoid behaving selfishly at all costs because, selfish people, like Judas, do not understand what giving and love are; they become traitors, isolated and alone. This was Pope Francis’ message Tuesday morning (May 14) during Mass at Casa Santa Marta. Emer McCarthy reports:

Focusing on the Gospel of the day and the contrast between the path of love and that of selfishness, Pope Francis said if we really want to follow Jesus, we must “live life as a gift” to give to others, “not as a treasure to be kept to ourselves”. The Pope quoted the words of Christ: “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” But Tuesday’s liturgy, he noted, also presents us with another person: Judas, “who had the exact opposite attitude.” And this, he explained, was because Judas “never understood what gift really mean”.

“Let us think of that moment with the Magdalene, when she washed the feet of Jesus with nard, which was so expensive: it is a religious moment, a moment of gratitude, a moment of love. And he [Judas] stands apart and criticises her bitterly: ‘But ... this could be used for the poor!’ This is the first reference that I personally found in the Gospel of poverty as an ideology. The ideologue does not know what love is, because they do not know how to gift themselves.”

Pope Francis continued: Judas stood apart “in his solitude” and this attitude of selfishness grew to the point of his “betrayal of Jesus.” He said those who love “give their lives as a gift”, the selfish instead “safeguards his life, grows in this selfishness and becomes a traitor, but is always alone.” However, those who “give their life for love, are never alone: they are always in the community, part of the family.” The Pope warned that those who “isolate their conscience in selfishness,” in the end “lose”. This is how Judas ended up, the Pope said, he “was an idolater, attached to money.”

“And this idolatry has led him to isolate himself from the community of others: this is the drama of the isolated conscience. When a Christian begins to isolate themselves, he or she also insulates his or her conscience from the sense of community, the sense of the Church, from that love that Jesus gives us. Instead, the Christian who gifts his or her life, who loses it, as Jesus says, finds it again, finds it in its fullness. And those who, like Judas, want to keep it for themselves, lose it in the end. John tells us that 'at that moment Satan entered into Judas’ heart. And, we must say: With Satan the payback is rotten. He always rips us off, always!”

Instead Jesus always loves and always gives. And this gift of love, the Pope said, impels us to love “to bear fruit. And the fruit remains.” Pope Francis concluded his homily with an invocation to the Holy Spirit:

“In these days of waiting for the feast of the Holy Spirit, we ask: Come, Holy Spirit, come and give me this big heart, this heart capable of loving with humility, with meekness, an open heart that is capable of loving. And let’s ask this grace, of the Holy Spirit. And may He free us always from the other path, the path of selfishness, which eventually ends badly. Let us ask for this grace.”

Ivan and Fr Svet!

The Medjugorje visionary Ivan Dragicevic was accompanied by the Franciscan priest Fr Svetozar Kraljevic when he visited Cookham and Maidenhead in the UK last weekend.

Fr Svet celebrated Holy Mass and also translated for Ivan when the visionary gave his witness to Our Lady’s apparitions and messages in the small church of St Elizabeth in the village of Cookham.

After receiving the apparition of the Blessed Mother, Ivan relayed that Our Lady had come joyful, extended her hands and prayed for some time in Aramaic. She asked the people to pray for the realisation of her plans through her Son and then blessed everyone present and all religious articles.

Through Mary to Jesus...

My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God.
Fatima message, June 13, 1917

Dear children! Also today, with hope in the heart, I am praying for you and am thanking the Most High for every one of you who lives my messages with the heart. Give thanks to God’s love that I can love and lead each of you through my Immaculate Heart also toward conversion. Open your hearts and decide for holiness, and hope will give birth to joy in your hearts. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, August 25, 2012

Friends of Jesus...

Dear children! I call you anew to consecrate yourselves to my heart and the heart of my Son Jesus. I desire, little children, to lead you all on the way of conversion and holiness. Only in this way, through you, we can lead all the more souls on the way of salvation. Do not delay, little children, but say with all your heart: ‘I want to help Jesus and Mary that all the more brothers and sisters may come to know the way of holiness.’ In this way, you will feel the contentment of being friends of Jesus. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, October 25, 2003

Fatima clue for Benedict support on Medjugorje?

The THREE children of Fatima

When Benedict XVI made his apostolic journey to the shrine of Fatima in May 2010 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the beatification of Jacinta and Francisco, the former Pontiff spoke in a homily of the “little seers” and how the Teacher who had “come from heaven” introduced them to a deep knowledge of the love of the Blessed Trinity and “led them to savour God himself as the most beautiful reality of human existence.”

He added: “We would be mistaken to think that Fatima’s prophetic mission is complete. [...] At a time when the human family was ready to sacrifice all that was most sacred on the altar of the petty and selfish interests of nations, races, ideologies, groups and individuals, our Blessed Mother came from heaven, offering to implant in the hearts of all those who trust in her the Love of God burning in her own heart. At that time it was ONLY to three children, yet the example of their lives spread and multiplied, especially as a result of the travels of the Pilgrim Virgin, in countless groups throughout the world dedicated to the cause of fraternal solidarity.”

The SIX children of Medjugorje

“At that time it was ONLY to three children...” Was Benedict XVI alluding to the SIX children of the present time associated with the Medjugorje phenomenon, the SIX seers who also claim they are taught by Our Lady, and whose consistent witness for more than 30 years has resulted in “countless groups throughout the world” striving to live the messages of peace given by Our Lady?

Dear children, you know that for your sake I have remained a long time so I might teach you how to make progress on the way to holiness. Therefore, dear children, pray without ceasing and live the messages which I am giving to you for I am doing it with great love toward God and toward you.” (Medjugorje message, January 1, 1987)

And in a message given to the Medjugorje seer Marija Pavlovic on August 25, 1991, Our Lady made reference to the fulfilment of Fatima:

Dear Children! Today also I invite you to prayer, now as never before when my plan has begun to be realised. Satan is strong and wants to sweep away my plans of peace and joy and make you think that my Son is not strong in His decisions. Therefore, I call all of you, dear children, to pray and fast still more firmly. I invite you to self-renunciation for nine days so that, with your help, everything that I desire to realise through the secrets I began in Fatima, may be fulfilled. I call you, dear children, to now grasp the importance of my coming and the seriousness of the situation. I want to save all souls and present them to God. Therefore, let us pray that everything I have begun be fully realised. Thank you for having responded to my call.

Benedict XI concluded his homily with these words: “May the seven years which separate us from the centenary of the apparitions hasten the fulfilment of the prophecy of the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to the glory of the Most Holy Trinity.”

Interestingly, two months prior to his visit to Fatima in May 2010, Benedict gave notice on March 17 that he had commissioned a fresh investigation into the Medjugorje phenomenon. Three years on, it is generally accepted the work of the commission is completed.

But will any forthcoming announcement from the Vatican hasten the completion of the Fatima prophecy for which Benedict prayed for at Fatima?

Visionary Ivan made visit to England

Medjugorje visionary Ivan Dragicevic gave two talks in England this weekend.

On Saturday evening he spoke at St Elizabeth Church in Cookham, and on Sunday morning at St Edmund Campion school and church, Maidenhead.

Ivan’s visit was not widely publicised because of limited seating capacity, and attendees had been asked to register for places.

Ivan was accompanied by the Franciscan priest Fr Svetozar Kraljevic who translated for the visionary.

The Ascension

‘Secrets’ priest booked for the UK

Booked for the UK next month is Fr Petar Ljubicic, the Franciscan priest chosen by the Medjugorje seer Mirjana to reveal the 10 secrets given to her by Our Lady.

He will speak at three venues in the London area. The dates are June 30, July 1 and July 2.

Fr Petar is expected to arrive in London on June 30 following a speaking engagement in Sestola, Italy, on June 29. His busy schedule continues when he leaves for Zurich on July 3 for a conference in Switzerland.

Venues and times for his talks in the UK are:

June 30, 2013
Church of the Sacred Heart
101 Horseferry Road, London SW1P 2EF
from 3:00pm to 6:00pm

July 1, 2013
Church of St Teresa
Newbury Park, Ilford, Essex 1G2 7JA
from 5:00pm to 8:00pm

July 2 2013
Church of Christ the Prince of Peace
Portmore Way, Weybridge KT13
from 5:00pm to 8:00pm

• photo © Daniel Miot

Preparing for Scotland in Medjugorje

The Croatia national football team will spend time in Medjugorje preparing for its forthcoming World Cup European Qualifying match with Scotland. The squad is due to arrive in Medjugorje on May 27 and will remain there until June 2 before travelling to Zageb to complete its programme. The fixture will be played in Zagreb on June 7. The return fixture is scheduled for Glasgow on October 15.

While in Medjugorje the Croatian team will stay at the Villa Regina hotel and train at the local Sports Centar.

The Croatia team coach Igor Stimac (pictured) is a regular pilgrim to Medjugorje.

• photo by PIXSELL

Medjugorje Mass for goalkeeper Ivan Turina

A Mass was celebrated in St James Church today for Ivan Turina, goalkeeper of the Swedish soccer club AIK, who died unexpectedly in his sleep on May 1.

The 32-year-old father of one-year-old twins was known to have a congential heart disease. His wife is expecting their third child.

The Croatian born goalkeeper, a regular pilgrim to Medjugorje, had played 89 competitive matches for AIK since signing for the AIK in 2010. He began is career with Dinamo Zagreb and had brief spells with Lech Poznan (Poland) and Xanthi (Greece) before moving to Sweden.

A Christian is a person of joy...

Joy is a grace that we ask of the Lord. These days in a special way, because the Church is invited, the Church invites us to ask for the joy and also desire: that which propels the Christian's life forward is desire. The greater your desire, the greater your joy will be. The Christian is a man, is a woman of desire: always desire more on the path of life. We ask the Lord for this grace, this gift of the Spirit: Christian joy. Far from sorrow, far from simple fun... it is something else. It is a grace we must seek.
Pope Francis, from his homily of today: May 10, 2013

Dear children! Today i rejoice with the little Jesus and I desire that Jesus’ joy may enter into every heart. Little children, with the message I give you a blessing with my son Jesus, so that in every heart peace may reign. I love you, little children, and I invite all of your to come closer to me by means of prayer. You talk and talk but do not pray. Therefore, little children, decide for prayer. Only in this way will you be happy and God will give your what you seek from Him. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, December 25, 1993

Dear children! At this time of grace, I call you to prayer. Little children, you work much but without God's blessing. Bless and seek the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to lead you at this time so that you may comprehend and live in the grace of this time. Convert, little children, and kneel in the silence of your hearts. Put God in the center of your being so that, in that way, you can witness in joy the beauty that God continually gives in your life. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, May 25, 2001

The Holy Spirit bears witness to Jesus...

The Holy Spirit was the subject of Pope Francis’ homily during morning Mass at the Casa Santa Martha today. The Holy Father also stressed that it was important for Christians to examine their conscience on a daily basis.

This report is provided by Vatican Radio.

Pope Francis said that the Holy Spirit whom Jesus called the “Paraclete” was the Person of God who is always there to protect us and support us.

The Holy Father underlined the importance of the Holy Spirit in our lives by saying that without this presence, our Christian lives cannot be understood.

Pope Francis went on to describe the sort of life one would have without the Holy Spirit. It would be a religious life, he said, a compassionate life of someone who believes in God but without the vitality that Jesus wants for his disciples.

The Spirit the Pope continued, “bears witness” to Jesus, so that we can give it to others.

Turning his attention to the first reading, the Holy Father recalled the beautiful story of a woman called Lydia whose heart was opened so as to pay attention to the words of St Paul. The Pope explained that it is the Holy Spirit that opens our hearts to know Jesus. The Spirit prepares us for our encounter with Jesus, he leads us down the path of Jesus and works in us throughout the day and throughout our lives.

The Pope then invited people to examine their conscience at the end of the day because it is in this way, he added that we can see how Jesus worked in our hearts.

Concluding his Homily, Pope Francis “asked that people be granted the grace to become accustomed to the presence of the Holy Spirit, this witness of Jesus who tells us where Jesus is, how to find Jesus, what Jesus tells us.” The Pope continued by saying, we should get into the habit of asking ourselves, before the end of the day: “What did Holy Spirit do in me? What witness did he give me?” Because, the Holy Father said, he is a divine presence that helps us moving forward in our lives as Christians.

Dear children! I rejoice with you and in this time of grace I call you to spiritual renewal. Pray, little children, that the Holy Spirit may come to dwell in you in fullness, so that you may be able to witness in joy to all those who are far from faith. Especially, little children, pray for the gifts of the Holy Spirit so that in the spirit of love, every day and in each situation, you may be closer to your fellow-man; and that in wisdom and love you may overcome every difficulty. I am with you and I intercede for each of you before Jesus. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, May 25, 2000

Mary’s pilgrim journey...

Yesterday, at the end of Sunday Mass, Pope Francis recited the Regina Caeli prayer with the tens of thousands of pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter’s Square for the celebration.

In his remarks prior to the Regina Caeli, the Holy Father spoke about the “spiritual presence of the Virgin Mary, alive in our midst.” On a day dedicated to Confraternities and Popular Piety, he noted that love for Mary is one of the characteristics of popular piety that “must be strengthened and well-ordered.” He invited those present to reflect on “Mary the pilgrim, who follows Jesus the Son, and goes before all of us in the journey of faith.”
source: Vatican Radio

The Pope’s predecessor, Benedict XVI, has also spoken on the theme of Mary accompanying the Church on its pilgrimage journey of faith and evangelisation.

• In the Virgin Mary who goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth, we recognise the most limpid example and the truest meaning of our journey of believers and the journey of the Church herself. The Church is missionary by nature; she is called to proclaim the Gospel everywhere and always, to transmit the faith to every man and woman, and to every culture.”

Mary's is an authentic missionary journey. It is a journey that takes her far from home, drives her to the world, to places that are foreign to her daily customs, makes her reach, in a certain sense, the limits of what she could reach.

Herein lies, also for us, the secret of our lives as individuals and as Christians. [...] We are asked to come out of ourselves, of the places of our security, to go to others, to different places and realms. It is the Lord who asks this of us.

And it is the Lord, who gives us Mary as a traveling companion and solicitous mother. She gives us security, because she reminds us that her Son Jesus is always with us.

Benedict XVI, June 1, 2010

The Joyful Journey Mysteries

1. Angel Gabriel journeys to Mary with a message of Good News.
2. Mary journeys to her cousin Elizabeth.
3. Mary and Joseph journey to Bethlehem; shepherds and wise men journey to the place where Jesus is born.
4. Mary and Joseph journey to present Jesus in the Temple.
5. Joseph and Mary make a return journey to Jerusalem in search of Jesus.

She teaches us to be free...

With my love I will teach you simplicity of life and richness of mercy and I will lead you to my Son.
Medjugorje part message, May 2, 2008

• Yesterday Pope Francis visited the basilica of Saint Mary Major where he led the recitation of the Rosary. This translation of his reflection is provided by Vatican Radio.

Dear brothers and sisters! This evening we are here before Mary. We have prayed to her, to maternally take us more and more in union with her Son Jesus; we have brought her our joys and our sorrows, our hopes and our difficulties; we have invoked her with the lovely name “Salus Populi Romani” (protectress of the Roman people) asking for all of us, for Rome, for the world, that she keep us in good health. Yes, because Mary gives us health, she is our saving grace.

With his passion, death and resurrection, Jesus Christ brings us salvation, the grace and the joy of being God’s children and the possibility of calling him with the name of the Father. Mary is a mother, a mother who takes care of, above all, the health of her children and knows how to heal them with her great and tender love. The Madonna is the custodian of our health. What does this mean? My thoughts go, above all, to three aspects: she helps us in our growth, she helps us to face life, she teaches us to be free.

1. A mother helps her children to grow and it is her wish that they grow well; this is why she teaches them to not yield to laziness – which is something that derives also from certain wellbeing; she teaches them not to adapt themselves to a life of ease that desires nothing beyond material possessions. A mother takes care that her children’s growth is not stunted, that they grow strong and capable of taking responsibilities upon themselves, that they take on commitments in life and lean towards great ideals. The Gospel of Luke says that in the family of Nazareth Jesus “grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him”(Luke 2 : 40). This is exactly what the Madonna does with us, she helps us to grow humanely and in faith, to be strong and not to yield to the temptation of being men and Christians in a superficial way, but to live with responsibility, reaching upwards all the time.

2. And then, a mother thinks of the health of her children, teaching them to face the difficulties of life. One does not educate, one does not look after someone’s health avoiding problems, as if life was a highway without obstacles. A mother helps her children to look to the problems in life with realism, not to lose oneself in them but to tackle them with courage; not to be weak, to know how to overcome them, in a healthy balance that a mother can “feel” is to be found in between the areas of safety and of risk. A life without challenges does not exist and a boy or a girl who does not know how to face challenges and put himself or herself on the line, has no backbone!

Let us remember the parable of the Good Samaritan: Jesus does not commend the behaviour of the priest or of the Levite, who avoid assisting the traveller who had been beaten, robbed and left half dead along the road, but that of the Samaritan who saw the situation of the man and tackled it in a concrete manner. Mary lived many difficult times in her life, from the birth of Jesus, when “there was no room for him in the inn” (Luke 2 : 7), up until the Calvary: (John 19: 25). And like a good mother she is close to us so that we never lose courage before the adversities of life, before our own weaknesses, before our sins: she gives us strength, she points to the path of her Son. From the cross, indicating John, Jesus tells Mary: “Woman, here is your son,” and to John: “Here is your mother!” (John 19: 26-27). We are all represented by that disciple: the Lord entrusts us to the loving hands and to the tenderness of the Mother, so that we can rely on her support when we face and overcome the difficulties of our human and Christian journey.

3. One last aspect: a good mother not only accompanies her children during their growth, not avoiding the problems and the challenges of life; a good mother also helps to take important decisions with freedom. But what does freedom mean? Certainly not doing all that one wants, letting oneself be dominated by passions, passing from one experience to the next without discernment, following the trends of the moment; freedom does not mean, so to say, throwing all that one does not like from the window. Freedom is given to us so that we make good choices in life! As a good mother, Mary teaches us to be, like she is, capable of making important decisions with the same full freedom with which she answered “yes” to God’s plan for her life (Luke 1: 38).

Dear brothers and sisters, how difficult it is in our time to take important decisions! The ephemeral seduces us. We are victims of a tendency that pushes us towards the ephemeral… as if we wished to remain adolescents throughout our lives! We must not be afraid of definitive commitments, of commitments that involve and have an effect on our whole lives. In this way our lives will be fruitful!

The whole existence of Mary is a hymn to life, a hymn to love and to life: she generated Jesus the man and she accompanied the birth of the Church on Mount Calvary and in the Cenacle. The “Salus Populi Romani” is the mother that looks after our growth, she helps us face and overcome problems, she gives us freedom when we make important decisions; she is the mother who teaches us to be fruitful of good, joy, hope, to give life to others, both physical and spiritual life. This is what we are asking of you this evening, Oh Mary, Salus Populi Romani, for the people of Rome, for all of us: give us the grace that only you can give, so that we may always be signs and tools of life.

Dear children, with much love and patience I strive to make your hearts like unto mine. I strive, by my example, to teach you humility, wisdom and love because I need you; I cannot do without you my children. According to God’s will I am choosing you, by his strength I am strengthening you. Therefore, my children, do not be afraid to open your hearts to me. I will give them to my Son and in return, he will give you the gift of divine peace. You will carry it to all those whom you meet, you will witness God’s love with your life and you will give the gift of my Son through yourselves. Through reconciliation, fasting and prayer, I will lead you. Immeasurable is my love. Do not be afraid. My children, pray for the shepherds. May your lips be shut to every judgment, because do not forget that my Son has chosen them and only he has the right to judge. Thank you.
Medjugorje message, January 2, 2013

Don’t dialogue with the devil...

There can be no dialogue with the prince of this world: let this be clear!
Pope Francis, Saturday, May 4, 2013

Dear children! I invite you to pray with the heart in order that your prayer may be a conversation with God.
Medjugorje message, September 25, 1990

Today, Pope Francis warns us again of the deceitful nature of satan and how the prince of the world will always seek to compromise the truth, the Word of God, and entice sheep to stray from the Shepherd.

This has always been so, ever since the serpent, “the most subtle of wild beasts”, struck up a conversation with Eve and asked the woman, “Did God really say you were not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?” Here we witness the first instance of the prince of the world attempting to sow the seed of doubt in the Word of God.

Eve responded with words spoken by God: “We may eat the fruit of the trees in the garden. But of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the Garden God said: ‘You must not eat it, nor touch it, under pain of death.’”

The serpent makes another attempt to entice Eve. This time he contradicts the spoken word of God and says to the woman. “No, you will not die!”

And with that statement the serpent fathers the first lie in the world – that there are no consequences to not living in accordance with the will of God.

This is why Pope Francis warns in his homily today: “There can be no dialogue with the prince of this world.” He added that dialogue amongst humans is necessary, necessary for peace and to understand each other, and should be maintained; but with the prince of the world it is impossible to dialogue because dialogue stems from charity, from love.

Francis reminds us that our only defence, our weapon against the enticements the prince of the world offers each of us is that used by Jesus, the Word of God.

When satan came to dialogue in the desert his mission was to get Jesus to doubt his own divinity; his first two tempting questions begin with the words “If you are the Son of God...” Jesus responds with the Word of God.

The devil then reveals his real intention and offers Jesus all the kingdoms on earth if he will switch allegiance from his Father in Heaven and worship the prince of the world instead. This wasn’t a once-in-a-lifetime offer made only to Jesus – it’s a temptation placed repeatedly before all of God’s children. Again, Jesus responds with the Word of God. After that the tempter leaves him.

We can also learn from this exchange that the tempter does not back off at the first rebuttal, even when confronted with the Word of God; he persists both with Eve and with Jesus, and does so with every soul since.

Pope Francis says that the sheep who are meek and humble, who remain in the fold and close to the Shepherd, will always have the Word of God, the Truth, at their side to defend them and not be led astray by proposals the prince and the spirit of this world has on offer.

Dear children! You know that I promised you an oasis of peace, but you don’t know that beside an oasis stands the desert, where satan is lurking and wanting to tempt each one of you. Dear children, only by prayer are you able to overcome every influence of satan in your place. I am with you, but I cannot take away your freedom. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Medjugorje message, August 7, 1986

May message to Mirjana

• An estimated crowd of 20,000 pilgrims gathered on and around Apparition Hill yesterday morning for the promised visitation of Our Lady to the visionary Mirjana Dragicevic-Soldo. The road through Bijakovici was jammed from the early hours. Many had arrived through the night and waited on the hillside for the apparition at the Blue Cross timed at 9:00am and which lasted 10 minutes.

Dear children! Anew, I am calling you to love and not to judge.

My Son, according to the will of the Heavenly Father, was among you to show you the way of salvation, to save you and not to judge you.

If you desire to follow my Son, you will not judge but love like your Heavenly Father loves you.

And when it is the most difficult for you, when you are falling under the weight of the cross do not despair, do not judge, instead remember that you are loved and praise the Heavenly Father because of his love.

My children, do not deviate from the way on which I am leading you.

Do not recklessly walk into perdition.

May prayer and fasting strengthen you so that you can live as the Heavenly Father would desire; that you may be my apostles of faith and love; that your life may bless those whom you meet; that you may be one with the Heavenly Father and my Son.

My children, that is the only truth, the truth that leads to your conversion, and then to the conversion of all those whom you meet – those who have not come to know my Son – all those who do not know what it means to love.

My children, my Son gave you a gift of the shepherds.

Take good care of them.

Pray for them.

Thank you.

Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge and you will not be judged yourselves; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourselves; grant pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap; because the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given back.
Luke 6 : 36-38

What’s so special about the Blue Cross?

This is the statue at the lower Blue Cross which Mirjana kneels in front of
while she prays and waits for the apparition of Our Lady.

Tomorrow, Thursday, we look forward to Our Lady’s apparition to Mirjana – and any message – which usually takes place on the second day of each month at the Blue Cross located at the base of the mount known as Podbrdo or Apparition Hill. There are in fact two blue crosses – an upper and lower. The upper blue cross is the original location; the lower blue cross was erected not too many years ago to accommodate Ivan’s prayer group. It is at the lower blue cross where Our Lady appears to Mirjana.

Pilgrims vouch for the power of prayer and peaceful atmosphere to be found at the Blue Cross. Countless apparitions and healings have taken place there over the long history of the Medjugorje phenomenon. My own conversion happened there during my first visit to Medjugorje.

There are varied accounts as to the origins of the Blue Cross and why it has become such a powerful place of prayer, but this explanation by an unnamed member of Ivan’s prayer group is probably the most reliable

• Many pilgrims may not have the correct information concerning the Blue Cross. Many think that the Blue Cross was the site of the first apparition of Our Lady in Medjugorje. Many also think that the visionaries had apparitions at Blue Cross after they had been prohibited from having apparitions on the first place of the Apparition Hill. The correct information is as follows: The first apparition at the site of the Blue Cross occurred on 27 July 1982.

A prayer group was regularly meeting at the first place of the apparitions, but soon the police discovered this. On the evening of July 2, we were walking to the site of the first place of apparitions when suddenly Ivan the visionary knelt down. This place where Ivan knelt became the site of today's Blue Cross. That same evening, Our Lady told Ivan not to proceed to the first place of the apparitions, as the ‘blue angels’ (the communist police) were waiting for them. Our Lady, on several occasions, stopped the prayer group at the Blue Cross, as they were on their way to the first way of apparitions. We travelled the back way to the first place of apparitions because we thought that only we knew that way – not even the police knew of that back way.

In 1982, a member of the prayer group was building his house 200 metres below the Blue Cross. Today, this house is the closest to the Cenacolo Community. He wanted to mark the meeting place of the prayer group with a simple cross. From the framework of the house he was building, he and Ivan built a 3ft high cross. In order to protect this cross from the elements, Ivan found some paint that he had at home. He only had blue paint, that is why the Cross is blue!

After a while, pilgrims started to gather there. They lit candles, and one day, the cross caught fire. One Italian pilgrim asked Marija the visionary if he could take home this wooden cross and replace it with an identical metal cross. This request was approved. He took a sample of the paint from the wooden cross, and in a laboratory, the contents of the blue paint was discovered and duplicated to paint the new metallic Blue Cross that is there to this day. This Italian pilgrim landscaped the Blue Cross area with the rock formations that you see today. He kept the original Blue Cross at his house in Italy, so that people could pray there. One day, I met this Italian pilgrim, and I jokingly asked him what happened to my Blue Cross. He was taken by surprise, thinking that we wanted it back. Of course, I had no intention of taking it back. Let the people pray!

There have been many, many apparitions at the Blue Cross. It is the most suitable outdoor place in Medjugorje for pilgrims who are sick, old or not physically able to climb Cross Mountain or Apparition Hill, because of its close proximity to the road and it is easily climbed. It is an ideal meeting place for the prayer group when there are not so many pilgrims, especially in winter. Even today, apparitions occur at Blue Cross when Ivan returns from America. For years now, however, the prayer group have met in a location in the vicinity of Blue Cross, as pilgrims overflow the area hours before any apparitions begin. (where the second blue cross is erected)

The Blue Cross was a secret meeting place for the prayer group for only a short time. People soon discovered its meeting location because at night, our joyful singing could be heard from far and wide. The communist police tried many times to capture the group of ‘fanatics that walk on the mountains’, but they never succeeded, because Our Lady always protected us. She was always suddenly stopping us to warn us of the police. This also happened twice when we went to Cross Mountain. Today the prayer group meets at a secret place, where we do not sing. Even if somebody hears us, they do not disturb us.

• Up until 2008 Mirjana would receive her apparitions at the Cencolo Community close to her home in Bijakovici, but following instructions from Mostar bishop Ratko Peric, this location became off-limits for “private apparitions”. From then until now Mirjana has generally received her apparitions at the Blue Cross, except when she is travelling or heavy rain makes it dangerous for pilgrims to be on Podbrdo.

At the time of the bishop’s instruction, opponents of Medjugorje began surmising that the bishop was at last “clamping down” on the Medjugorje phenomenon and that it would not be long before other restrictions were enforced by the bishop. However, what the bishop had not revealed at the time was that the Cenacolo Community was about to receive a new decree of recognition as an International Association of the Faithful of Pontifical Right, and as an officially recognised community of the Church it would not be prudent to “host” private apparitions attended by the public.

How God works in mysterious ways. Since the switch to the Blue Cross five years ago ALL pilgrims now have access to the hill and many thousands attend the apparition each month, far more than ever able to access the facility at the Cenacolo Community!

Seeing the light...

On the afternoon of the seventh day of the Medjugorje apparitions... five of the group of six visionaries, Vicka, Ivanka, Mirjana, Marija and Jakov accepted an invitation from two women, Mirjana and Ljubica, social workers employed by the communist authorities, to join them for an excursion in their car. Why should they do this? One of the women, Mirjana, was known to the visionaries, a neighbour and resident of Bijakovici, and presumably the children and their parents trusted her.

They were taken to Capljina. Later that afternoon it began to dawn on the visionaries that they would not be back in Medjugorje in time for the scheduled visitation of Our Lady on Apparition Hill, and they realised that this had been the real intention of the two women, to keep them away from Podbrdo.

Around 6:30pm the children asked one of the social workers to stop the car there and then. The woman pretended she didn’t hear them, but was given little choice but to pull up at the roadside when a bright and almost blinding light appeared before her. The visionaries jumped out of the car, walked away from the road and then knelt and faced Podbrdo (Apparition Hill) which could be seen in the distance, flooded by intense light.

The light moved towards the children and with it Our Lady appeared. They went down on their knees praying as the apparition appeared before them. Later, after returning to Medjugorje, the two social workers reported all they had seen and heard to the parish priest Fr Jozo Zovko.

The place where this apparition took place is at Cerno, between Medjugorje and Ljubuski. Pilgrims travel past the spot every day, most of them not realising the importance of the location. All that is clearly visible among the rocky terrain is the Church of St Leopold Mandic, erected some years ago to commemorate this unique happening in the early days of the Medjugorje phenomenon.

And if you stand at the roadside, it is not difficult to imagine how the social workers felt at seeing the intense light make its way towards them from the distant Apparition Hill and being the only witnesses to the children receiving this apparition. Whatever questions they had been asking the children that afternoon, the sight of Our Lady’s light coming to them in this way could only have confirmed in their hearts the truth of the answers they had received from the visionaries.

The church of St Leopold Mandic at Cerno.  photos © bernard gallagher