Why Medjugorje?

“Why Medugorje” is a new film by Croatian director Josip Loncar. It documents his own personal experience when he visited Medugorje for the first time in 1987. This film very much captures the Spirit of Medugorje from a pilgrim's perspective. As an added bonus narration is by renowned scripture scholar Tony Hickey. After watching this film, you will have many good reasons why you should consider visiting Medugorje.

You can contact Tony Hickey via his website: manchestermedjugorjecentre.org

Living the Gospel message...

In a recent talk given by the visionary Ivan to pilgrims at Medjugorje, he had these words to say:

We must lead our families spiritually and base our lives on holy things of the Gospel.  We must practice what the Gospel teaches.  This is the message all these 30 years.  It is nothing new; we know it from the Church.  But we are not living it.  Our Lady invites us to be responsible.

We should not forget that Our Lady brings NOTHING new to the table in regards to the Word of God. NOTHING.

The world changes. Governments change. Fashion change. Opinions change. People change. Habits change. Hearts change. But the Word of God never changes. The Truth can never change. Our Lady bears the Word of God. Nothing new.

Dear children! Also today I call you to be carriers of the Gospel in your families. Do not forget, little children, to read Sacred Scripture. Put it in a visible place and witness with your life that you believe and live the Word of God. I am close to you with my love and intercede before my Son for each of you. Thank you for having responded to my call. Medjugorje message, January 25, 2006

Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles

But you, who do you say I am? Matthew 16 : 15

Dear children! Also today I desire to call you all to be strong in prayer and in the moments when trials attack you. Live your Christian vocation in joy and humility and witness to everyone. I am with you and I carry you all before my Son Jesus, and he will be your strength and support. Thank you for having responded to my call.  Medjugorje message, March 25, 2010

Tests and trials...

• This post was written about four years ago but I have turned it up again in light of today’s Gospel reading: Matthew 8 : 23-27, The Calming of the Storm.

Dear children! Today I wish to tell you that God wants to send you trials which you can overcome by prayer. God is testing you through daily chores. Now pray to peacefully withstand every trial. From everything through which God tests you come out more open to God and approach Him with love. Thank you for having responded to my call. August 22, 1985

As many of us grow older we become familiar with the routine medical tests we have to undergo to maintain our health; blood tests, blood pressure, eyesight, hearing, cholesterol, scans and smear tests are all part of the service offered by our GP’s these days – and usually we take these in our stride knowing that they are designed to help us keep a check on our health needs. We appreciate they are in place for our benefit and we co-operate.

However, most of us are less than willing to be tested on other fronts, particularly in a spiritual sense. We often view these as trials we can do without and pray hard that they will not come our way for ourselves and our family.

Recently, I was invited to hospital as an outpatient to undergo an exercise test on a treadmill, designed to check the condition of my heart. It didn’t happen, not because of any reluctance on my part but simply because an initial ECG reading caused the doctor enough concern to tell me I wasn’t going home and would be admitted to the CCU immediately. Now I must admit that that news did send my blood pressure through the roof and I began to wonder what might be the outcome.

It was then the morning’s Gospel reading at Mass came to mind (Mark 8 : 23-27), when Jesus was in the boat and calmed the storm. I held on to that scenario for most of the next nine days that I spent in hospital. It prompted me to take a closer look at Mark’s Gospel during the long hours of waiting and lying in bed and I quickly came to realise that this hospital journey was in fact a spiritual test and not just a medical one. While doctors and others became concerned for the condition of my heart and all roads that lead to it, I began to understand that it was actually my spiritual heart that was really being tested, especially my faith and attitude to others.

Later, when my wife Sandra brought our bible on a visit to see me, I began to take a serious look at Mark’s Gospel. What struck me very early on was how after Jesus was baptised he was driven by the Spirit out into the wilderness, remaining there for 40 days and being tempted by satan. He was among the wild beasts and the angels looked after him. I began to look on my stay in hospital as a long period in the wilderness where I had to struggle with my own temptations and face demons within me. Thank God for the kindness of the nurses that took care of me.

Another passage in St Mark’s gospel that jumped out at me was the time when Jesus stood in the boat and spoke the parable of the Sower to the large crowd on the shoreline. There were four outcomes in this teaching (seed scattered to four corners of the world?) which Jesus later explained to his disciples:
1. Seed that fell on the edge of the path and was carried away.
2. Seed that fell on rocks and took no root.
3. Seed that fell on thorns and choked
4. Seed that fell on good soil and produced fruit.

Little did the disciples realise that they were soon to be tested on this teaching and questioned as to which seed was sown in their hearts. If they were to be true followers of Jesus then their faith could not just remain in the teaching but also had to be lived and put into practise. The test got underway when Jesus spoke these words: “Let us cross over to the other side.”

Soon the winds struck up and the waves began breaking into the boat so that it was almost swamped. Through this crisis, Jesus slept until eventually he was woken up by the panicking and fearful disciples. After calming the storm, Jesus challenged them: “Why are you so frightened? How is it that you have no faith?” It seems that the disciples were those who had received the seed on patches of rock who, when they first heard the word, welcomed it at once with joy, but when some trial or persecution came their way, they fell away at once.
But the test didn’t end there.

A little later in Mark’s Gospel (after the first miracle of the loaves) Jesus repeats the boat trial, making his disciples cross the lake to Bethsaida. This time he didn’t go with them. Instead, he went off to the hills to pray. When evening came and the boat was far out, Jesus watched from the shoreline and could see the boat struggling against the winds and the disciples worn out with rowing. There is no mention that they cried out for help. Perhaps this time their faith was stronger. Nevertheless, Jesus could see that all was not well. This time he came to the disciples, walking across the water before getting into the boat.

We should never forget that Jesus is in the boat with us – and all will be well; and when at times we may miss his presence and he doesn’t seem to respond to our prayers, he is in fact keeping a close watch on us from the shoreline, ready to reward our faith in often the most surprising way – sometimes doing what seems impossible, like walking on water.

A senior consultant said that I would probably need a couple of by-passes or even three. The following day I was given an angiagram to see where the blocks in my arteries were. (I already had two stents fitted 10 years ago and these seemed to be the likely problem spots as they don’t last forever). Halfway through the procedure I heard the probing consultant say: “It doesn’t look as bad as we first thought.” The following day I was told there was only a slight narrowing of the arteries (not unexpected for someone of my age). Two further tests, radioactive scans which involved measuring the blood flow to and from my heart, were carried out over the next few days. There was no clear outcome on this to signify any blocks. On the ninth day the senior consultant said I could go home. My blood pressure had been normalised and I was told to take things easy for a while.

I consider my stay in hospital a blessed period. At first I looked forward to the next day hoping it would be the day I would come ashore and return home, but then I began to realise that the course, the journey, had been set by God and that there may just be another headland, another test, to get around before I was home and dry.

My heart and my spirit have both been tested and I truly feel better for the experience. A few days after I left the hospital my blood pressure registered the perfect score: 120/80! As to my spiritual health check, I accept that this is ongoing because, as Our Lady explains in her message below, we are tested because God loves us – and I wouldn’t want him to stop loving me!

Dear children! Thank you for dedicating all your hard work to God even now when he is testing you through the grapes you are picking. Be assured, dear children, that he loves you and, therefore, he tests you. You just always offer up all your burdens to God and do not be anxious. Thank you for having responded to my call. October 11, 1984

Good attendance for Fr Ljubicic U.K. visit

Medjugorje.uk.org reports that for the Queen of Peace day of celebration at Aylesford Friary on 25th June, the 30th anniversary of the Medjugorje apparitions, some 1500 people listened to a clear and vigorous talk by Fr Petar Ljubicic ofm. 

Fr Petar spent several years serving in the parish of St James in Medjugorje and is the priest selected by the visionary Mirjana as the one to whom she will relate the first of the secret messages given to her by Our Lady when the time comes.

Increase in priestly presence at Medjugorje

According to official figures published by the Medjugorje information office website, 282 priests concelebrated at the International Mass held in Medjugorje last Saturday on the day assigned to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Medjugorje phenomenon (an increase on last’s year’s figure of 200). The Mass was presided by Fr Zvjezdan Linic from Samobor and nations from all continents were represented in the congregation.

Eucharistic Woman

Dear friends, let us call upon the Virgin Mary, whom my predecessor, Blessed John Paul II defined as a “Eucharistic woman” (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 53-58). In her school our life too becomes fully “Eucharistic,” open to God and to others, able to transform evil into good by the power of love, which fosters unity, communion, fraternity. Pope Benedict XVI, June 26, 2011

Dear children! Also today I call you to prayer. Little children, believe that by simple prayer miracles can be worked. Through your prayer you open your heart to God and He works miracles in your life. By looking at the fruits, your heart fills with joy and gratitude to God for everything He does in your life and, through you, also to others. Pray and believe little children, God gives you graces and you do not see them. Pray and you will see them. May your day be filled with prayer and thanksgiving for everything that God gives you. Thank you for having responded to my call.  Medjugorje message, October 25, 2002

The Moment of Peace

The Moment of Peace from tunin tunin on Vimeo.

I love this time-lapse video produced by Mate Vasilj of Medjugorje. You can view more of Mate’s work at tunin tunin and on his website medjugorje.net

• Ann kindly sent me this caption after watching the video: Stat crux dum volvitur orbis, "The Cross stands still while the world spins" ~ motto of the Carthusians

Fantasy figures?

Thousands gather at Medjugorje for the anniversary Mass.
photo source: medjugorje.hr

There are some sections of the media reporting record-breaking attendances at this year’s 30th anniversary of the claimed apparitions at Medjugorje. I don’t doubt that Medjugorje welcomed its biggest influx of pilgrims for a long time, but how the quoted figures of 100,000 and even 150,000 stack up, I just do not know.

As I understand, the village accommodates around 35,000 beds, Then there is the overspill accommodation in outlying towns and villages. Many pilgrims will be day-visitors coming in from other towns and villages and even neighbouring countries and not require accommodation. But somehow I just can’t see anywhere near 100,000 people coming into Medjugorje for the day, or even the weekend. Is there room in Medjugorje for parking up 1,000 to 2,000 buses?

A good indicator will be when the parish releases figures on the number of communion hosts distributed for June, as it does for each month. It will be a basis for a more sober and accurate assessment than the excessive numbers being quoted these past couple of days.

The Body and Blood of Christ

How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
John 6 : 52
I am leading you to eternal life. Eternal life is my Son. Receive him and you have received love. part Medjugorje message, March 18, 1995

Visionary injured at anniversary

Medjugorje visionaries: Jakov, Mirjana, Marija, Ivanka and Ivan. photo © EMZED

The Medjugorje visionary Vicka Ivankovic was injured this weekend when giving one of her talks from the steps of her grandmother’s house. According to local guide Miki Musa the accident happened when an enthusiastic pilgrim pulled at Vicka’s hand causing the seer to suffer unbearable pain in her arm. This is not the first time that Vicka has been injured in this way. She only recently returned (at Christmas) to resume giving testimony after a year’s absence recovering from a back injury sustained in similar circumstances. It is not known when Vicka will be able to return to her favourite spot to speak with pilgrims again.

Pictured above are five of the Medjugorje visionaries at yesterday’s celebration with Vicka the notable absentee. 

• The pictures below show how Vicka is often pulled downwards over a railing or wall when she meets with pilgrims. Over 30 years, this constant pulling has taken its toll, causing considerable damage to Vicka’s back and necessitating surgery and long periods of physiotherapy. But Vicka NEVER complains and accepts her suffering as a great grace. photos © bernard gallagher

“Let the poor and the people eat you up... Let the people ‘bite’ your smile, your time. You sometimes might prefer not to even look at someone when you had some misunderstanding. Then, not only look but give a smile... Learn by heart you must let the people eat you up.” Mother Teresa

• Mother Teresa quote kindly supplied by Ann.

A record attendance for Mass at St James...?

Huge crowds, greater than any previous, were present in Medjugorje today to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Our Lady’s apparitions. These pictures via Croatian newspaper Vecernji list give some idea of the vast numbers which gathered around the outside altar to celebrate Mass this evening.

• photos by ZORAN GRIZELJ

30th anniversary message of Our Lady to Marija

Dear children! Give thanks with me to the Most High for my presence with you. My heart is joyful watching the love and joy in the living of my messages. Many of you have responded, but I wait for, and seek, all the hearts that have fallen asleep to awaken from the sleep of unbelief. Little children, draw even closer to my Immaculate Heart so that I can lead all of you toward eternity. Thank you for having responded to my call.  
Medjugorje message, June 25, 2011

Today’s annual apparition to Ivanka

The visionary Ivanka Ivankovic-Elez had her regular annual apparition today on June 25th 2011.

At her last daily apparition on May 7, 1985, Our Lady confided to Ivanka the 10th secret and told her that she would have an apparition once a year on the anniversary of the apparitions. It was that way also this year.

The apparition, which lasted eight minutes, took place at Ivanka’s family home. Only Ivanka’s family was present at the apparition. After the apparition, Ivanka said: “Our Lady spoke to me about the first secret and, at the end, said: ‘Dear children, receive my motherly blessing.’”

Commissioned by God

I am reminded by all the recent chatter concerning the Vatican Commission set up to investigate Medjugorje that, in fact, it was God who commissioned Our Lady to come to us.

She is Our Lady of the Visitation. She carries the Word of God, the message of Eternal Life. She is Our Lady Full of Grace. She brings Peace. She is the Queen of Peace. She is the Mother of the Church who will not abandon her children in their hour of need. In unity with the Holy Spirit, she will fulfill her mission.

Dear children! I wish to keep on giving messages and therefore today I call you to live and accept my messages! Dear children, I love you and in a special way I have chosen this parish, one more dear to me than the others, in which I have gladly remained when the Almighty sent me. Therefore I call on you - accept me, dear children, that it might go well with you. Listen to my messages! Thank you for having responded to my call. Medjugorje message, March 21, 1985

All ages will call me blessed...

How fitting the responsorial psalm for today’s Mass (12th week in Oridnary time, Year 1, Saturday), as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Our Lady’s apparitions at Medjugorje.

What is Medjugorje but an outpouring of God’s Mercy and Peace brought to us by the Blessed Virgin Mary, through whom the Almighty works marvels for each of us and fills the starving with good things. Rest assured, Medjugorje IS protected!

Response: The Lord remembered his mercy

My soul glorifies the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour.

He looks on his servant in her nothingness;
henceforth all ages will call me blessed.
The Almighty works marvels for me.
Holy is his name!

His mercy is from age to age,
on those who fear him.
He fills the starving with good things,
sends the rich away empty.

He protects Israel, his servant,
remembering his mercy,
the mercy promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his sons for ever.

MARY IS THE MOTHER OF MISSIONARIES, SAYS POPE

Reflects on Mystery of Visitation at Prayer Vigil
Vatican City, June 1, 2010 (Zenit.org).

Christians are asked to go beyond their comfort zone to bring Christ to others, and it is Mary who is their companion and “solicitous mother” in their missionary endeavors, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope said this Monday evening in the Vatican Gardens at a traditional Marian celebration to conclude the month of May. After a procession and recitation of the rosary, pilgrims gathered at the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes to hear the Holy Father's meditation on the mystery of the Visitation.

“In the Virgin Mary who goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth, we recognize the most limpid example and the truest meaning of our journey of believers and the journey of the Church herself,” the Pontiff said. "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,” the Holy Father continued. “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, Benedict XVI said, 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."

Service and evangelization

The Pope noted how Mary had gone to visit Elizabeth, and stayed with her for three months. Elizabeth, he said, is “the symbol of all elderly and sick persons, more than that, of all persons in need of help and love.”

“And Mary – who described herself as "the handmaid of the Lord" – makes herself the handmaid of men," he added. “More precisely, she serves the Lord whom she finds in brothers.”

The Holy Father explained that Mary’s charity did not stop with service, but rather "reaches its culmination in giving Jesus himself."

When the unborn child in Elizabeth's womb jumped upon hearing Mary’s voice, “we are, thus, at the heart and culmination of the evangelizing mission,” the Pope said. “We are in the truest meaning and the most genuine objective of all missionary endeavor: to give men the living and personal Gospel, which is the Lord Jesus himself.”

“Jesus is the true and only treasure that we have to give to humanity,” the Pontiff continued. “It is of him that the men and women of our time have profound nostalgia, even when they seem to ignore or reject him. It is of him that the society in which we live, Europe, the whole world, is in great need.

“To us has been entrusted this extraordinary responsibility. Let us live it with joy and commitment, so that ours will truly be a civilization in which truth, justice, liberty and love reign, fundamental and irreplaceable pillars of a true orderly and peaceful coexistence.”

Anniversary gift

I can’t think of a better gift to present to our Blessed Mother on this very special anniversary today, other than our heartfelt prayers.

Dear children, pray with the heart to know how to forgive and how to be forgiven. I thank you for your prayers and the love you give to me. Annual message to Ivanka, June 25, 1997

Big crowds in Medjugorje for anniversary

According to medjugorje.net, over 200 priests concelebrated Mass at St James church this evening before an estimated 30,000 people gathered around the outside altar. The village is heaving with big crowds and the hot weather is a real tester, even for locals. Marija gave a talk this afternoon and Ivan was receiving his daily visitation from Our Lady on Apparition Hill tonight at 11.00pm. The annual Peace Walk from Humac to Medjugorje also took place this morning. Some lovely old and new Medjugorje images can be viewed at Mate’s excellent website www.medjugorje.net

Medjugorje “secrets” priest in England for 30th anniversary of apparitions

Fr Petar Ljubicic ofm will be the guest speaker at a special event to be held at Aylesford Priory tomorrow in honour of Our Lady Queen of Peace. Fr Petar is the Franciscan priest chosen by the Medjugorje visionary Mirjana Dragicevic-Soldo to reveal the 10 “secrets” given to her by Our Lady to the world.

Aylesford Priory is the Carmelite Shrine of Our Lady and St Simon Stock near Maidstone in England.

The event, described as a Day of Prayer and Reflection with the theme: Humility, Holiness, Conversion of Hearts, Silence and Reconciliation, will include Confessions, Rosary, Holy Mass, the talk by Fr Ljubicic, Exposition, Prayer, Benediction, Thanksgiving and Song.

Mirjana recently shared the following about Fr Petar and the secrets:

“Daily apparitions I had up until Christmas of 1982. That is when I received the tenth secret and Our Lady asked me to choose a priest in whom I will tell the secrets. I chose Father Petar Ljubicic. I am suppose to tell him ten days in advance what will happen and where, seven days we are suppose to spend in prayer and fasting, and three days ahead of time he is suppose to reveal it to the world. He doesn’t have the right to choose whether to say or not to say. He accepted this mission and he has to fulfill that according to God’s will. But Our Lady always repeats; do not talk about the secrets. You better pray. Because the one who feels Our Lady as a Mother and God as a Father, that person has no fear of anything. Our Lady says that only those who have not yet felt the love of God, they have fear. But we as people, we always talk about the future – what, when, where will things happen. But I always repeat the same thing, who among us present here, can say with certainty that we will be alive tomorrow. Therefore, Our Lady has been teaching us that we must be ready at this very moment to come before God. What will be in the future is God’s will and our task is to be ready for that.”

Three years ago, Fr Ljubicic had this to say about his assignment and the secrets:

“Mirjana received from Our Lady ten secrets. She has also received a parchment that is not from this world, but something Our Lady gave her and on it are the ten secrets. They are written right there. When the time comes for the secrets to be released, rather the first secret, ten days before, she will give me this parchment. I will then be able to read the first secret and then, along with her, I will fast for seven days and pray. Then I would be able to reveal to the world what will take place: where, how, and how long. That is before every secret.

“The first two secrets are warnings; especially they are for the people of Medjugorje because Our Lady first appeared there. When that takes place, the first two secrets, then it will be clear to everyone that Our Lady was truly there. The third secret will be an indestructible sign that will take place on the Mountain of Apparitions, in the place where Our Lady first appeared. That sign will be a great joy for all those who have believed that she is there all along. And it will be a last call to those who have not converted, and did not hear her messages. But it is not wise to wait for that sign.

“This is a moment of conversion. This is a time for prayer. This is the time for our spiritual cleansing. This is the time to decide to live for God, for Jesus Christ. Therefore, we call this time, a time of grace. That is what I can say about the secrets. Therefore we need to take advantage of this time in order to be ready to meet Our Lady with her secrets. That is my duty to tell people, that they should not be surprised over anything.

“I will first tell my closest and intimate friends. They would be ready and pray. And, of course, through the internet, television, and radio now-a-days and satellite. I believe that that would be the easiest duty. For me, it is most important that people would be ready. This is the desire of Our Lady and of her Divine Son... What you should ask yourself is, ‘Am I ready?’ And that is what is important. When he will come, will he find us worthy and ready? We will be called blessed then. If we are not ready right now, we have little time to do it. But we should not permit that we would be caught by surprise. And then on that given moment, we would not know what to do...

“I am not really having any weight on me as far as that goes. I know that there is a whole army of people that are praying for me. I just can’t wait until that will take place. And my point is because of that, many people as possible will be converted. I am always ready for any sacrifice that the Lord would send my way.

“I do have a sense and a feeling that this may come very, very soon, but I really don’t want to speculate or tell dates about it. You can look at the world today and you will see how urgent it is for us to convert and turn to God…”

Medjugorje live on Irish TV tonight

RTE’s Nationwide programme will be reporting live from Medjugorje this evening (Friday) at 19.00 (gmt). You can also watch the screening via the internet at this link: http://www.rte.ie/live/

• UPDATE:  If you missed the programme aired live, then you can catch it again at this link for the next three weeks until July 15: http://www.rte.ie/player/#v=1102210

Visionary Mirjana was interviewed (and spoke excellent English), so was Fr Svet and Irish pilgrims. The programme also focused on the charity work undertaken in and around Medjugorje by Irish pilgrims. David Parkes spoke about his miraculous cure at Medjugorje through the intercession of Fr Peter Mary Rookey.

click here for TODAY’S ANNIVERSARY MESSAGE

Medjugorje chosen as a link for Global Rosary Relay for Priests

Medjugorje is one of the many “shrines” participating in the Annual Global Rosary Relay for Priests. Forty-eight Rosaries will be prayed at 48 “shrines” in 24 hours on July 1, 2011.

Coincidently, today, exactly 30 years since Our Lady first appeared in Medjugorje, it was announced by the Relay organisers that Pope Benedict XVI has composed a special prayer that can be prayed anytime, but especially during the rally as each country passes on the mystery of the Rosary to the next location. The connecting link will be the Holy Father’s prayer.

The Relay begins at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, Los Angeles and finishes at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in Wisconsin.

Medjugorje is the 17th stage on the relay. The Rosary will be timed at 10.00am local time and 8.00am GMT.

This is the prayer composed by the Holy Father for the Global Rosary Relay for Priests:

Lord Jesus Christ, eternal High Priest, you offered yourself to the Father on the altar of the Cross and through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit gave your priestly people a share in your redeeming sacrifice.

Hear our prayer for the sanctification of our priests. Grant that all who are ordained to the ministerial priesthood may be ever more conformed to you, the divine Master. May they preach the Gospel with pure heart and clear conscience.

Let them be shepherds according to your own Heart, single-minded in service to you and to the Church and shining examples of a holy, simply and joyful life.

Through the prayers of the blessed Virgin Mary, your Mother and ours, draw all priests and the flocks entrusted to their care to the fullness of eternal life where you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

• Further information at: worldpriestday.com

Beautiful Monstrance gifted to Medjugorje

Here’s a picture of the new Monstrance presented to the Medjugorje parish by Polish pilgrims to mark the 30th anniversary of the Medjugorje phenomenon. It’s beautiful.

June 24, 1981

If you meet the Virgin on the road, invite her into your house. She bears the Word of God.
St John of the Cross

I think this is particularly relevant when we take into account Our Lady’s messages from Medjugorje. Isn’t this what happened to Ivanka and Mirjana on the first day of the apparitions – they met the Virgin while on the road? And ever since, many millions have invited Our Lady and the Word of God in to their home, their heart!

Dear children, I call you to accompany me in my mission of God with an open heart and complete trust. The way on which I lead you, through God, is difficult but persevering and in the end we will all rejoice through God. Therefore, my children, do not stop praying for the gift of faith. Only through faith will the Word of God be light in this darkness which desires to envelope us. Do not be afraid, I am with you. Thank you.  
Special message given to Mirjana, October 2, 2007

Accept me as a mother and a messenger of God’s love and of his desire for your salvation. part message to Mirjana, June 2, 2010

The Benedictus

His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited his people, he has come to their rescue
and he has raised up for us a power for salvation
in the House of his servant David,
even as he proclaimed,
by the mouth of his holy prophets from ancient times,
that he would save us from our enemies
and from the hands of all who hate us.
Thus he shows his mercy to our ancestors,
this he remembers his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our father Abraham
that he would grant us, free from fear.
to be delivered from the hands of our enemies,
to serve him in holiness and virtue
in his presence, all our days.
And you, little child,
you shall be called Prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord
to prepare the way for him.
To give his people knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins;
this by the tender mercy of our God
who from on high will bring the rising Sun to visit us,
to give light to those who live
in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet in the way of peace.

30 years ago today...

Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? Luke 1 : 43

It was on the Feast of the Nativity of John the Baptist, June 24, 1981, that Our Lady first appeared at Medjugorje. The first of the visionaries to see “Gospa” was Ivanka Ivankovic, who was 16 at the time. Alongside her that day was Mirjana Dragicevic. She was the second person to witness Our Lady’s appearance. Ivanka describes what happened in this way:

“This is what happened that day on June 24, 1981 when I saw Our Lady for the first time.

“On that day, like every day, I was outside the village with Mirjana and we were waiting for other friends to come. I do not how long we were waiting but we got tired of that and then we started walking towards the houses.

“While we were walking towards the village I was really forced by something to look towards the hill and then I saw Our Lady. I said to Mirjana, ‘Mirjana, I see Our Lady on the hill’ but Mirjana said, ‘Don’t tell me these foolish things.’

“I followed Mirjana who was walking back to the village and then we met Milka, the sister of the visionary Marija. Milka saw that something was wrong with me and she asked me what happened, and I told the girls to come back with me, that I had seen Our Lady. We went back and then all three of us saw Our Lady. Vicka also came to us and then two boys, the two Ivans. The apparition kept calling us but none of us dared to climb the hill.

“Our Lady was four or five hundred metres away from us. She kept calling us and emotions we felt in our heart were huge. We felt all kinds of emotions in our heart and none of us dared to get closer to her.

“Whoever we told that we saw Our Lady that evening, they did not believe us. They told us not to tell such things. That night was the longest night in my life. I was only 15 and I questioned myself the entire night whether what I saw was true or not.”

Mirjana recalls what happened in a similar way.

“That day, June 24, 1981, I went out for a walk with Ivanka. It was the Feast of St. John the Baptist, and so that day no one was working. The two of us went for a walk below the hill that is now called the Hill of Apparitions, and we talked about ordinary things, the kinds of things young girls talk about. And in one moment Ivanka said to me, ‘I think Our Lady is on the hill.’ She said that very matter-of-factly. I said, ‘Well, she has nothing better to do than come to the two of us.’ Because I thought that was [an] impossible thing. And I returned home and left Ivanka there. And when I came to the first houses of the village, I felt a need to return to the place. I needed to see what she was doing. And when I returned, I saw Ivanka in the same place. And she said to me, ‘Look, please, I am begging you.’ And I looked and I saw a woman with a long grey dress and she was holding a child in her arms. It was very strange because on that hill nobody ever went up there, especially with a child in their arms. The two of us just stared because all of our emotions were all confused within us.

“And in that moment, Ivan, one of the other visionaries, came also because that was the way he would normally walk to get to his home. I remember it like it was today. He was carrying apples in his arms and when he saw what the two of us were looking at, like every brave man, he dropped everything and ran. And then I said to Ivanka, ‘Who knows what this is; maybe it is better we leave also.’

“We returned home right away, and we told everyone that we have seen Our Lady but nobody believed us. My grandmother said, ‘Take a rosary and pray and leave Our Lady alone.’ I had the desire within me to be alone to pray. And so that entire night we spent in prayer, so that God could help us understand what was happening to us.”

Meet with Mother, meet with Jesus

I invite any reflections, thoughts, meditations prompted by this image, where Jesus meets his Mother on the way to Calvary. Four of the Medjugorje visionaries will meet with Mother Mary in a very special way on Saturday. Email to COMMENT.

Schedule change for ABC special on BVM

The ABC PrimeTime special about the Blessed Virgin, in which Medjugorje will feature, has been rescheduled for Wednesday July 6, 10pm EST and PST, and 9pm CST and MST.

As the Pope says...

May the Virgin Mary help us to rediscover the beauty and the profundity of Christian prayer.

• Pope Benedict XVI in his Angelus address of Sunday, 25 July, 2010

Visionaries before the Commission

Am I the only one who senses that some opponents of Medjugorje are becoming a little apprehensive about the possible outcome of the Vatican Commission studying Medjugorje?

The news that the Medjugorje visionaries are being invited to Rome this month shows at least the Commission is prepared to listen to the witness of the visionaries and not dismiss them out of hand as so many opponents of Medjugorje tend to.

The news that some members of the Commission have made visits to Medjugorje is also encouraging. Generally, opponents of Medjugorje have not visited the site but nevertheless are content to denounce all that is happening there. It’s good to see that the Commission does not believe it can come to a conclusion without visiting Medjugorje.

This past week, there have been three blog articles published by opponents of the Medjugorje phenomenon, all timed with the news of the visionaries being invited to the Vatican. Of course, these opponents are free to speak of their opposition and their non-belief in the phenomenon, but I can’t help thinking that the huff and puff coming from their direction show signs of concern that just maybe the Holy See is observing Medjugorje in a more positive light and understanding than opponents would want it to.

Over the years there have been some very vicious attacks made on the character and integrity of the Medjugorje visionaries, even by professional journalists and some clergy. Yet the Vatican has extended an invitation for the visionaries to come to Rome and give witness and answer questions. This is not difficult for the visionaries. They have witnessed in temples and private houses for almost 30 years, and their proclamation of the Good News of Christ Jesus has never been interrupted.

It has also been recently intimated by Cardinal Ruini, who is heading the enquiry, that the Commission is still far from being able to publish an official judgement. So, in the meantime, pilgrims will continue making their way to Medjugorje, the visionaries will still give witness to Our Lady’s apparitions and messages and, I daresay, opponents will continue to huff an puff to try and blow down the house that has produced countless graces and conversions during these past 30 years.

Medjugorje anniversary stamps

The B+H Post Office has issued a set of four postage stamps to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Medjugorje phenomenon. These are available in packs of two sorts, as a set on its own (pictured above), and as a set that also includes a first-day-cover stamped envelope (below).

Medjugorje stamp sets have been issued in previous years by the Bosnia & Herzegovina Post Office, some of which are shown below.

The one whom Jesus loves...

I like T-shirt slogans – and there are many to be seen at Medjugorje, but this one I spotted recently is my latest choice.

JESUS LOVES YOU...
BUT I’M HIS FAVOURITE!

Big-screen information

The big-screen information service has been up for some time now, ever since last year’s Youth Festival, and certainly grabs the attention of the pilgrims with details of church-related events and happenings in the village. It can be viewed from both sides and is particularly beneficial for the pilgrims who gather for the evening programme around the outside altar.

Fr Jozo’s books

Fr Jozo’s books, which used to be sold only at Siroki Brjeg, are now available from two outlets in Medjugorje. The Gallery, directly opposite St James church and where the road bends, is one outlet. The other, still to be named is situated on the right-hand side of the road out to Krizevac, before you reach the floodlit sports facility.

• Another new book shop is called the Medjugorje Book Center, managed by Anton, and is situated almost opposite the Catholic Book Shop.

Where is Vicka’s house?

I can only guess that this latest sign seen at Medjugorje is a response to the repeated question from hundreds of daily visitors who make their way to Bijakovici and ask local shop workers at the base of Apparition Hill: “Where is Vicka’s house?”

Father’s Day

Jesus said to Nicodemus: “God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life.” John 3 : 16

Yellow Hall renamed to honour Blessed JPII

The ‘Yellow Hall’ in Medjugorje was recently renamed to honour Blessed John Paul II and is now known as the Blessed John Paul II parish centre. There are a number of signs erected around the church directing pilgrims to the centre.

Another building under construction is the new home for the ‘Mir’ Information Centre currently housed next to the Adoration Chapel. The new building (pictured below) is immediately behind the Risen Saviour sculpture, close to the cemetery, and a car park is also being built alongside. The retaining wall of the cemetery is also undergoing reconstruction. The gates have been taken down but will be replaced when the construction work is completed.

Another slight change in appearance is alongside the Adoration Chapel. The hedgerow has been removed, making it more convenient for pilgrims to sit and meet during services held outside. Extra benches have also been added in the grass area alongside the path that circles the outside seating section.

New “stations” erected at Medjugorje

Gone are the 14 wooden crosses that marked the Way of the Cross encircling the Risen Saviour sculpture at Medjugorje. They have been replaced with more permanent structures – stoned-faced towers, windowed with tiled images of Christ’s Crucifixion journey.

I miss the simple wooden crosses. I once read that only the wooden cross was necessary to signify a station and the icon or image was not a required feature. Perhaps a simple wooden cross will be attached to the tiled towers at a later date.

Lunar eclipse observed at Medjugorje

Leaving the Adoration service held on the outside altar at Medjugorje on Wednesday night, someone asked me, “Did you see the moon turn red tonight?”

Okay, it was a shade reddish-brown, but I sensed that the question was asked with the prophecy from Revelation in mind, about the full moon turning blood red (6 : 12-14).

Of course, there was a perfectly logical explanation – a lunar eclipse, apparently the longest for more than a decade and observed in many parts of the world.

But, dare I say, that a scientific explanation will not be acceptable to everyone who observed the phenomenon in Medjugorje that night.

photo: AFP

State “secrets” revealed in new Medjugorje book

A new book about Medjugorje is published this week to coincide with the upcoming 30th anniversary of the phenomenon. Mystery of Medjugorje is published by the Croatian media group Vecernji list and reveals secret documentation showing how the Yugoslav State Security Service (SDB) attempted to suppress the phenomenon in an operation known as “choking Medjugorje” (codename black soil), and compromise some of the protaganists including the parish priest Fr Jozo Zovko (codename Lujo), as well as Fr Tomislav Vlasic (codename Otto) and even the diocesan bishop of the time, Msgr Pavao Zanic (codename Pius).

Mystery of Medjugorje also examines why the phenomenon still survives after 30 years of ecclesiastical suspicion and denial, fierce assaults by a communist regime, critical examination by foreign and domestic media, and much scientific and medical tests.

The book also contains an exclusive interview with the Vienna cardinal, Christoph Schönborn, who speaks about the work of the Vatican Commission currently investigating the Medjugorje phenomenon.

The weary and overburdened...

Very visible outside most of the souvenir shops in Medjugorje are the stimulants many of the young sales girls fall back on to work the long hours demanded of them: caffeine, nicotine and sacharine... Most of the shops are open before 9.00am and remain so until late at night, some up until midnight.

Dear children! I call you again to prayer with the heart. Let prayer, dear children, be your every day food in a special way when your work in the fields is so wearing you out that you cannot pray with the heart. Pray, and then you shall overcome even every weariness. Prayer will be your joy and your rest. Thank you for having responded to my call. Medjugorje message, May 30, 1985

Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will; give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light. Matthew 11 : 25-27

Providence at the Blue Cross

That is why I am telling you not to worry about your life and what you are to eat, nor about your body and how you are to clothe it. Surely life means more than food, and the body more than clothing! Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth more than they are? Matthew 6 : 25-27

“Each Thursday, read again the passage of Matthew 6:24-34, before the Most Blessed Sacrament, or if it is not possible to come to church, read it with your family...”
Message to the Medjugorje locutionist, Jelena, March 1984

Marija back in Medjugorje

The visionary Marija Pavlovic returned to Medjugorje this week, and yesterday gave her testimony from the steps of the outside altar at the rear of St James’ church. The blistering hot afternoon did not deter several thousand pilgrims from attending the talk. Marija spoke in Italian which was translated by an interpreter into Croatian and then transmitted via FM radio into other languages for the visitors present from many other nations.

How does it happen that each of us hears them in his own native language? Acts 2 : 8

Medjugorje... a perpetual Pentecost!

Back from Medjugorje

Arrived back from Medjugorje this morning... will start posting again later today.

Medjugorje calls...

Visionaries soon to meet with Vatican Commission

A Croatian news source is claiming that the Medjugorje visionaries will meet this month (June) with the Vatican Commission investigating the Medjugorje phenomenon.

Vecernji List, quoting unnamed sources, said members of the investigating commission established last year are already in communication with Church representatives at Medjugorje and the individual visionaries to prepare for their arrival in Rome and receive their testimony.

Apparently the Commission has already held two sessions at which, among others, local bishop of Mostar Ratko Peric was questioned, and also Fr Ivan Sesar, Provincial of the Franciscan Herzegovina province.
 
The news report stated that it was not known if the Medjugorje seers would undergo any further scientific tests outside those conducted in earlier years, and it was not expected that any decision regarding the phenomenon would be reached soon.

• The visionary Mirjana Soldo is in Italy this week, due to give her testimony at the Stadio Liberati in Terni on June 8. Another visionary, Ivan Dragicevic, currently in Medjugorje, will also be heading north in a few days time. He is booked to give his witness in Munich on June 12. A third visionary, Marija Pavlovic-Lunetti and her family, live in Italy. She is due to give her testimony at Casale Monferrato on June 7.

• Last week, a two-hour documentary on Medjugorje was screened on one of the Italian national tv channels. It was watched by almost three million viewers, about 12% of the national audience.

• A television crew from the American tv network ABC is expected in Medjugorje this week to film for a documentary on the Blessed Virgin Mary and scheduled to be screened on June 29.

The Risen Saviour at Medjugorje

The name of God...

Dear children! On this message, which I give you today through my servant, I desire for you to reflect a long time. My children, great is the love of God. Do not close your eyes, do not close your ears, while I repeat to you: Great is his love! Hear my call and my supplication, which I direct to you. Consecrate your heart and make in it the home of the Lord. May he dwell in it forever. My eyes and my heart will be here, even when I will no longer appear. Act in everything as I ask you and lead you to the Lord. Do not reject from yourself the name of God, that you may not be rejected. Accept my messages that you may be accepted. Decide, my children, it is the time of decision. Be of just and innocent heart that I may lead you to your Father, for this that I am here, is his great love. Thank you for being here!

Medjugorje message, March 18, 1996

• Continuing with the reflection on this message of Our Lady given to the visionary Mirjana in 1996, and her words: Do not reject from yourself the name of God, that you may not be rejected.

Then Moses said to God, “I am to go, then, to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you’. But if they ask me what his name is, what am I to tell them?”

And God said to Moses, “I Am who I Am. This is what you must say to the sons of Israel: ‘I Am has sent me to you’.”

And God also said to Moses, “You are to say to the sons of Israel: ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’. This is my name for all time; by this name I shall be invoked for all generations to come.”

Exodus 3 : 13-15 (The divine name revealed)

• The home of the Lord...
• Hear my call...

Pilgrims escape bus crash unharmed

Dozens of Austrian pilgrims had a narrow escape as their coach crashed on a motorway in Croatia.

Local police announced today (Thursday) no one was injured when the vehicle ploughed into a fence erected alongside a motorway near Sestanovac yesterday.

Officials told the Croatian Times online newspaper that the group – consisting of 47 Austrians – were travelling to Medjugorje in Bosnia and Herzegovia.

The group are understood to have continued their journey in a replacement coach.

• In July 2002, nineteen Polish pilgrims died and 32 were injured in a bus crash on their way to Medjugorje. The accident happened near Budapest in Hungary.

• In July 2007, another Polish pilgrim was killed in a bus crash that was taking pilgrims home from Medjugorje. The accident also happened in Hungary.

• A month earlier, in June, 34 American pilgrims were injured when their bus travelling to Medjugorje from Sarajevo crashed and plunged off a wet road. Twenty people were hospitalized.

Our Lady’s June message to Mirjana

THE CRUCIFIED AND RISEN SAVIOUR

Dear children! As I call you to prayer for those who have not come to know the love of God, if you were to look into your hearts you would comprehend that I am speaking about many of you. With an open heart, sincerely ask yourselves if you want the living God or do you want to eliminate him and live as you want. Look around you, my children, and see where the world is going, the world that thinks of doing everything without the Father, and which wanders in the darkness of temptation. I am offering to you the light of the Truth and the Holy Spirit. According to God’s plan I am with you to help you to have my Son, his cross and resurrection triumph, in your hearts. As a mother, I desire and pray for your unity with my Son and his works. I am with you; you decide. Thank you.
June 2, 2011

• Fr Neil Buchlein’s message comment

Hear my call...

Dear children! On this message, which I give you today through my servant, I desire for you to reflect a long time. My children, great is the love of God. Do not close your eyes, do not close your ears, while I repeat to you: Great is his love! Hear my call and my supplication, which I direct to you. Consecrate your heart and make in it the home of the Lord. May he dwell in it forever. My eyes and my heart will be here, even when I will no longer appear. Act in everything as I ask you and lead you to the Lord. Do not reject from yourself the name of God, that you may not be rejected. Accept my messages that you may be accepted. Decide, my children, it is the time of decision. Be of just and innocent heart that I may lead you to your Father, for this that I am here, is his great love. Thank you for being here!
Medjugorje message, March 18, 1996

I’m using this message given to the visionary Mirjana some years ago as a meditation for a novena in preparation for Penetcost. So between now and then I would like to share some of my thoughts.

• What is the noise that stops me from hearing Our Lady’s call and supplication directed to each of us? What is preventing me from listening? What are the distracting voices and other calls in my life that fill my ears so that I am unable to hear and take into my heart her words: “Great is the Love of God!” – the words she used in the Magnificat: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.”

Yesterday was the feast of the Visitation. Mary stayed with her cousin Elizabeth for three months, a long time but, in comparison, only a brief moment to the thirty years she has been visiting Medjugorje, another small town in the hill country.

Did Mary stay with her cousin Elizabeth until the birth of John who went on to become a witness to the coming of Christ? Luke’s gospel doesn’t say. But in Medjugorje she has remained and watched over the rebirth of countless souls, resurrected in faith and love and, like John, who have gone on to proclaim the coming of Christ in their lives, Jesus incarnated.

I’m sure I am not alone when I can put my hand on my heart and say I was blessed at Medjugorje and I returned home proclaiming the greatness of the Lord in my soul and how the Almighty had done great things for me, that he shown the power of his arm, had routed the pride in my heart and filled my hungry heart with great things, that he came to my aid, mindful of his promised mercy, the promise he made to Abraham and his descendants for ever.

However, it’s not difficult to take incoming calls from many other sources, but it can be difficult to “switch off”. The danger for me is when I switch off from listening to the voice and messages of Our Lady and the voice of her Son speaking through Scripture.

Our Lady wants me to receive the call, not keep her on hold or switch off. “Hear my call...” she says, “accept my messages... this is the time of decision.” I wonder what would ever have happened if Our Lady had decided not to accept the message given to her by the angel Gabriel? Her cousin’s husband, Zechariah,  doubted what he was hearing when Gabriel also made a visit to him earlier. For that he was struck dumb.

So maybe there’s a lesson for me in that. Listen to my Mother, listen and accept her messages. If I decide differently then maybe I will not be able to give voice to all that God would want me to. My tongue will become tied and my soul silent and unable to proclaim the greatness of my Lord.

THE HOME OF THE LORD...