1 - On July 2, 2010. Mirjana received her monthly apparition at the Blue Cross. About 10,000 people were covering Podbrdo, on top of the hill! After the apparition, Mirjana gave us the following message:
”Dear children!My motherly call, which I direct to you today, is a call of truth and life. My Son, who is Life, loves you and knows you in truth. To come to know and to love yourself, you must come to know my Son; to come to know and to love others, you must see my Son in them. Therefore my children, pray! Pray, that you may comprehend and surrender with a spirit that is free, be completely transformed and, in this way, may you have the Kingdom of Heaven in your heart, on earth. Thank you!”
2 - On June 25, Ivanka had her apparition at her home, for 6 minutes. Our Lady talked to her about the 5th secret. Then she said to her, “Receive my maternal blessing.”
On the evening of the 25th, Our Lady invited all of us on the top of Podbrdo Hill to pray the rosary with Ivan and the prayer group. She came at 11 pm very, very joyful, “more than ever”, Ivan insisted; she was wearing the golden garment worn on feast days, and in her message she insisted that it is important for us to: “be her signs in this weary world.” “Live my messages,” she said. “Be the carriers of my messages! Know that your Mother prays with you and recommends you to her Son Jesus.”
3 – Crowds of Italian pilgrims are flocking to Medjugorje! There are so many Italians that, for their morning Mass in Italian, they often fill up the great space of the Rotunda! (It is a great time for those of other languages to take advantage of the busy Italians to pray in silence on the mountains!)
What is happening in Italy? It only took the Gospa to touch the heart of one famous man, a well known journalist, a man of showbiz and a TV star!The conversion of Paolo Brozio shook Italy. The man who “lived merrily in sin” had a remarkable mother who relentlessly begged God to grant her the conversion of her son. A year and a half ago, when God was Paolo’s last concern, he came to Medjugorje.There, an interior event shook him so deeply that he fell madly in love with the Blessed Mother and her Son. Since then, he has been using his personal gifts and the media to talk about God with great conviction and explainhis conversion to thousands. Since then, many testimonies about Medjugorje are being aired and broadcast in Italy. Other media followed the path.
Look at the impact of one single heart that opens up to grace! How many unbelievers have found the way back to God thanks to that conversion? We will find out only in Heaven!
In the meantime, let’s ask ourselves: “Could I be the person that Mary is looking for to lead my entire country to the heart of God?” The important thing is not being a star before men. Little Theresaof Lisieux (Little Flower) remained hidden, yet she used her short life to bring millions of souls back to God. The important thing is to decide for God, and then He will have his way of spreading the graces. It is His job! In order to change the heart of Paolo Brozio, how many hidden sacrifices has He gathered from the faithful, how many secret entreaties has He listened to? The Gospa needs us, she expects our unconditional YES.
When I see the crowds of Italians streaming to Medjugorje, my heart aches with pain for my dear homeland, France, who has received so much from God and who gives Him back so little today! When will we see in traffic jams Medjugorje caused by French buses? Which one of us will accept to be the instrument of God to give France her soul back?
One day, Sr Faustina of Poland had a very interesting dialogue with Jesus. She begged Him to give a great saint to Poland. To her great surprise, she received this answer, “You will be that saint!”She did become a great saint and in a few decades a series of great saints sprang forth from Poland:St. Maximilian Kolbe, Blessed Fr. Michel Sopocko, Blessed Fr. Popieluzsko, Venerable Pope John Paul II, and many others.It is what Mary is insisting from us, “Dear Children, may today be the day you decide for holiness.” “May today be the day you start loving!”
4 –“Young people are in a very difficult situation,” the Gospa often says.Again this year, the Youth Festival will take place at the beginning of August (see PS3). Do you want to help the Gospa? Invite a youth among your friends to be a part of it! Or invite a parish priest, who is “unemployed” in his confessional, who will be able to listen to these youth and hear their confessions!Last year, around 500 priests, from all countries, came to hear Confessions.It was splendid!
5 - Choose life! Since we made a small human size manger in the forest behind our house, we meet many mothers who come to pray there. Some have lost a child, and they find great comfort in putting this child in the hands of the Mother of God. Many tell us they had one or X abortions and how devastated they are for having done so. Caught in the culture of death that surrounds us, they had been convinced that's how they would find their freedom. They tell us that the fruit is quite the contrary and they carry their suffering in great loneliness. Contemplating the Blessed Mother in the manger and thinking of their child cuddled in her arms, helps them regain their identity as a mother, and then they can find a priest to Confess that sin with serenity.
The Gospa never gave a public message concerning abortion. But in the 80's she educated the youth of the prayer group on this matter. Here is what I gathered from it:
The Blessed Mother recommended to all not to judge these mothers, but to pray so that such mothers would no longer exist. She asked these young to do whatever is in their power to help these mothers to reconcile with God through Confession, and act towards them with much love and discretion. She also told Mirjana, “Abortion is a great sin, for it is killing a human being. God who is good forgives all the sins, but for this sin in particular He asks a great penance from the father and the mother of the child.”
It is significant to see how much the Blessed Mother includes the child’s father in this delicate matter. A priest was telling me the other day that many women come to confess an abortion, but that he had never seen a man confess that he had urged a woman to abort. Yet, responsibility is shared.Many abortions are due to the father’s refusal to allow the child to be born, sometimes under the threat: “it is he (the baby) or me.”Mothers should then know that a couple’s unity cannot be secure when a child has lost his/her life at their cost! This is a delusion leading to a great disappointment. On the opposite side, resisting such threats can only draw God’s blessing on the mother who chooses life. She will never be sorry for it. It is important to tell this to the young people, who are swamped with so many lies by the media and are entitled to know the truth! By explaining to them gently and clearly the truth, they may avoid not only losing the state of grace and the possibility of receiving Holy Communion, but also bearing the heavy consequences of an abortion, like depression, death, or obsessions.
The blessed Mother said to Vicka about these unborn children, “They are with me.”No more, no less. It’s good that the child receive a name, because he is a human being and part of the family. The parents may call upon him in prayer! They will meet him again one day! Some mothers write him a letter where they pour out their hearts. In the case of an abortion, they ask them for forgiveness and express their love to them. This letter is offered to the Gospa during an apparition. In this way, Mary’s motherly care beautifully accompanies the role of the priest - and that of Christ - in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Yes, the Mother of God works very hard here, you are invited to come and drink from this source of grace!
Dearest Gospa, Mother of Mercy, draw to you and to your Son all the shipwrecked of love, and help the pastors heal their wounds!
---------------Sister Emmanuel+
PS 1 - A glimpse of the manger dedicated to life:
PS 2 – GET THE CD: The Story of a Wounded Womb: Through moving testimonies gathered in Medjugorje, Sr. Emmanuel reveals incredible aspects of God's mercy and of Our Lady's tenderness toward the most wounded of her children. After hearing such a wonderful message, all fears about the future of the world will vanish. Healings of the heart are in store for you!
PS 3 - You can view the celebrations of Medjugorje live on the site of the parish
PS4 - The youth festival in Mejugorje will be held on August 1-6, ending with the mass of the Transfiguraionn at 5am on the Krizevac. Information Parish: tel.:+387 36651 988-
