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Official Commentary on the 26th anniversary monthly message of June 25th 2007. Also a commentary from Fr. Jozo OFM Below is the official English translation of this month's commentary on Our Lady's message to the world through the visionary Marija, provided by The Medjugorje Information Centre ~ Acknowledgements information and links COME,
Holy Spirit, come by means of the powerful intercession of the Immaculate Heart
of Mary, your well beloved spouse. "Dear
children! Also today, with great joy in my heart, I call you to
conversion. Little children, do not forget that you are all important in
this great plan, which God leads through Medjugorje. God desires to
convert the entire world and to call it to salvation and to the way
towards Himself, who is the beginning and the end of every being. In a
special way, little children, from the depth of my heart, I call you all
to open yourselves to this great grace that God gives you through my
presence here. I desire to thank each of you for the sacrifices and
prayers. I am with you and I bless you all. Thank you for having
responded to my call." TIP
Our
Lady has regularly said the messages are for each one of us individually so try reading them as if your own name was
there; "Dear .........." - it can
make them so much more personal, challenging and effective. Official message commentary:- OPEN YOURSELF TO THIS GREAT MERCY Today, too, echoes the voice of the heavenly Mother. Today, too, she does not give up on us, even when we give up on ourselves and when we give up on her. We can hear her motherly words and her call for conversion. Our Lady knows that the conversion is a process and a way to the Promised Land in which peace, freedom and joy abide that only God can give. Like Israelites, we need to abandon slavery and to cross the desert to the freedom of the Promised Land into which the God wants to lead us through the Mother of his Son. Mary crossed the desert of earthly life. With Her, we will certainly come to God. God's love does not exclude anybody. God created man in His own image and therefore he cannot give up on man. "God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them"(Gen, 1, 27) Queen of Peace says to us: "Don't forget, all of you are important in this great plan which God carries through Medjugorje." Mother Mary said to us: "Dear children, this is a time of mercy, this is a holy place." The appearances of Our Lady are God's bending toward man, toward you and me. The appearances of Our Lady are God's service to man. How is it possible not to see, not to recognize God's immense love which is manifested through the presence of Our Lady in Medjugorje? Because she is a mother, Our Lady does not give up and does not tire, despite all our resistances. She knows that not everyone will believe and accept her messages and God's love which is manifested today through her presence. Despite that, she talks, she appears to us, she invites us and she loves us, her children. We, too, are in danger that God's words, which He gave us through the prophet Isaiah, will manifest on us: "Go and tell this people: Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving. Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed." The
words of Our Lady are full of hope and joy. She knows that man can
accept and fulfill what the God asks of him. Mother wants us to
experience the truth that God is the deepest foundation of our
existence. In the words of Our Lady we find that the God accepts us
exactly as we are. We all know that we do not always walk the straight
way in our lives. There are many turns; many wrong decisions which,
through our lives, have lead us to our present situation. Still, God
loves us and accepts us as we are. God knows you and me by our names:
"Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of My hands" (Is
49, 16); God never looks at His hands without seeing yours name and
mine. Such God's love and mercy manifested to us throughout the past 26
years of appearances of Our Lady. Let us open to the God's mercy through
the presence of Our Lady, here in Medjugorje.
Download printable page in .rtf format - click and open or right click and 'save as' Use the link at the foot of this page to e-mail the page URL Anniversary
message given to Ivanka:-
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. Ivanka had the
apparition at home in the presence of her family, her husband and her
three children. After the apparition, the visionary Ivanka said:
"Our Lady remained with me for 17 minutes. She was joyful and spoke
to me about her life. <:))))<>< Apparition to Mirjana on July 2nd, 2007 "Dear children! In the great love of God, I come to you today to lead you on the way of humility and meekness. The first station on that way, my children, is confession. Reject your arrogance and kneel down before my Son. Comprehend, my children, that you have nothing and you can do nothing. The only thing that is yours and what you possess is sin. Be cleansed and accept meekness and humility. My Son could have won with strength, but He chose meekness, humility and love. Follow my Son and give me your hands so that, together, we may climb the mountain and win. Thank you." Again Our Lady spoke about the importance of priests and their blessing. According to guide Miki Musa, Our Lady was referring to the spiritual climb when she spoke of "climbing the mountain. More Mirjana Apparitions Fr Jozo's
June Reflection: My dear
Brothers and Sisters, Today
this world does not have apostles and missionaries, instead it has
technology by which it enslaves and manipulates hearts and human lives.
The Fathers love can be transmitted, proclaimed and witnessed only with
ones’ life. Christ is not an object of science or of theories but the
content of our lives and the goal of our salvation. Today we have
forgotten what the Church is, the Church which is established by Jesus
to continue His work of Salvation. For this reason He told us that we
are the leaven in the dough which can not be seen but is felt, the salt
that gives flavour and the light that illuminates. The
Incarnation of Jesus Christ is the greatest event in human history and
the greatest intervention of God in the world after creation. It is the
central event which must not be forgotten or set aside in a secondary
plan. As we observe the world, we see how many have abandoned Jesus and
His Church. There are so many that have placed themselves and their
programs in the first place, living for them and ignoring Jesus.
Catholic countries have never had so few priests and missionaries.
Ireland, France, Italy and Spain are countries that have entertained
themselves with their own godlessness, and that is why their Seminaries
are empty. The world
is in a crisis, not because it lacks money or medicine, experts or
schools, but because it lacks saints in the Church. This creates a
crisis in the world and in the universe causing destruction of families
and causing man to feel insecure and alone. It destroys and breaks apart
the Parish family whereby a believer becomes abandoned and isolated. The
Church falls into ruin when man destroys the principles on which it is
founded. A week
ago, the Holy Father, Pope Benedict, visited Assisi and the place where
the crucified Jesus said to St. Francis: "My Church is falling
apart. Help me to rebuild my Church". St. Francis was overjoyed at
what he heard and discerned with certainty, "God need me such as I
am. Christ is calling me to help Him." He converted completely and
became transformed to resemble Him, becoming a complete and living image
of the Lord. In this message, the Queen of Peace accentuates:
"Little Children, do not forget that you are all important in this
plan which God leads through Medjugorje. God desires to convert the
entire world and to call it to salvation". This confirms that the
apparitions of Medjugorje are not a private opinion but, in them, from
the very beginning, Gods’ final goal and plan can be detected. Namely,
this is the plan of our conversion, the conversion of the entire Church
and through the Church, the conversion of the entire world. God
become man, similar to us in every way but sin. He chose man for His
work and project of redemption. Unfortunately, He did not succeed in
finding those who were literate in the temple among the priests, because
they rejected Him. Instead, He was content with the fisherman who
responded to the call. They confirmed and witnessed with their blood.
Like Christ, Our Lady needs the visionaries who responded at the
beginning. She spoke the same words to them that She again pronounces to
you and to us; "You are all important in this great plan". The
children, the visionaries, were persecuted. The journalists and those in
power rejected and ridiculed them. However, a multitude inspired by
grace believed them, accepted the messages and living them bore wondrous
fruit. We could not have believed that this small movement in the
beginning was a plan for the entire world. I remember the reaction of
the regime of the time that continued to accentuate out of fear:
"You are destroying order. By your declaration that you see Our
Lady you are destroying the system". Who could
have believed that in 10 years that cruel, iron system of Communism
would disappear before our eyes like the snow of a winter past. Who
could have imagined that of the 26th Anniversary of the Apparitions, the
Church of Siroki Brijeg would be full of Russians? Who could of have
imagined that all these people from the East, the West, the North and
the South would ask as the Wise Men of Jerusalem, "Where is the
King? Where is the Mother and what does She want of us? Tell us. Teach
us." Each time, I feel these meetings to be as the meeting of
Pentecost between Peter and the Jews in Jerusalem. It is never setup or
organized. It is always filled with grace with a final question:
"What can we do and what do we need to do " Medjugorje
has been chosen and, in this way, became the centre of Gods’ great
plan. Medjugorje is chosen and has become as Pentecost with, everyone
understanding each other and answering the fundamental questions of
their Church which is speaking to millions as Peter did. Medjugorje is a
place and a time of prayer with the Mother. Medjugorje is like Nazareth
where Jesus remained obedient to the Mother, growing in grace and wisdom
before God and man for 30 years. In Medjugorje, the Church has been
growing with the Mother for 26 years and we feel that there is only a
little still lacking in the fullness of that time. God desires to
convert the entire world because it has been redeemed by the Most
Precious Blood of the Lamb. Our Lady
needs you in that process and plan. She needs our prayer family which
bears exceptional fruit, like a well cared for garden. I feel that
nearly everything has been revealed to us in this message - our dignity
and our call. She calls us to open ourselves to this great grace which
God gives to us through Her Motherly presence. How blessed are those who
can comprehend and, like the Apostles or St. Francis, leave everything
because everything else is less important than this plan - the plan to
convert the entire world. There is nothing more exalted or grace filled
than this. This is why Our Lady thanks us for each of our prayers and
sacrifices. From so
many countries in the world, as well as from our own, there is
opposition, rejection, despisal and deformation. We must suffer for Medjugorje.
Only the one who bears the marks on his body, his heart, his faith and
his life is an authentic witness. Dear
brothers and sisters, I feel so joyful and certain because the Queen of
Peace, in this message, tells us everything that is important to us. Medjugorje
is much more than what is preached and what we have seen and heard. Only
Our Lady knows how to express what it is and has finally done so. Medjugorje
is Gods’ plan for Salvation and conversion of the world which She
carries out through those who respond to the call to conversion. I feel
a fullness of our call, which Our Lady has defined and expressed in this
message. Now we know who we are. Just like
when at Caesarea Philippi Peter answered in the name all: "You are
the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). To this,
Jesus replied: " Simon, son of Jonah you are a blessed man! Because
it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in
heaven". (Matthew 16:17). I am grateful to you, dear Queen of
Peace, for the simple explanation and the answer to us as to who we are
and what Medjugorje is in Gods’plan. It is no longer important to us
what others say about Medjugorje but only what you say to us. The errors
and human conjectures do not disturb us because they are only human
answers. We rejoice and are grateful for your true and complete answer.
We need this message in the mosaic of our certainty and your Motherly
messages. Thank you for this clear and most profound message which
defines the truth about Medjugorje, and about us, our call and our
mission. We desire to surrender completely to you and to serve to the
very end. We desire to sacrifice ourselves for Gods’ plan of salvation
and conversion of the world. This
month we will pray for the following intentions: 1. We will pray
for all the pilgrims and especially those who were in Medjugorje for the
first time for this Anniversary - that they may accept and live the
messages without fear for the conversion of the world. 2. We will
pray for all those called and responsible for the immeasurably important
plan of God which can be recognized by it fruits. That those who have
been bound by jealously, envy and hatred may accept that plan. 3.
We pray for the visionaries and all those who have responded to the call
of Our Lady that they may persevere in living Her messages in prayer and
sacrifice. My dear
brothers and sisters, be joyful and in all humility, give thanks to the
Lord for these days of the 26th Anniversary. We were witnesses of
hundreds of priests and tens of thousands of faithful gathered together
by the Mother. Most touching were the pilgrims who traveled bare-foot
tens of kilometers, in prayer, giving their great contribution to the
plan of conversion in such a peaceful and gentle way. Thank you for
having prayed the Novena as a prayer of thanksgiving for the graces and
gifts received. These are days of praise and gratitude for all we have
received in this past time of grace. Yours
most sincerely. Fr Jozo Zovko O.F.M. 28.06.2007 Siroki Brijeg updated 21st July, 2007 - Praised be Jesus and Mary - His Peace to all! - ê¿ê
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