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Official Commentary on the
monthly message of
December 25th 2006 & a Reflection
by 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.
Most
Holy Spirit, open my heart, soften it, and fill it with light and love so that I
may understand clearly what I read below and act on it for my own spiritual
benefit and for the delight of my Heavenly Mother, Your Beloved Spouse. May I
read each word under Your guidance so that, free of all worldly desires and
distractions, I may grow in wisdom and prudence enough to follow perfectly the
wishes of the Most Blessed Trinity. Amen
"Dear children! Also today I bring you the newborn Jesus in my arms. He who is the King of Heaven and earth, He is your peace. Little children, no one can give you peace as He who is the King of Peace. Therefore, adore Him in your hearts, choose Him and you will have joy in Him. He will bless you with His blessing of peace. Thank you for having responded to my call."
Monthly message
to the world, December 25, 2006
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.
O
Blessed Mother, help us hear your words to us. Teach us to listen ever
more carefully to the words of your Son. Pray that our hearts will be
transformed into the hearts he wants us to have, and that we will
always be open to His call. Amen.
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message commentary:- JESUS IS YOUR PEACE.
In the Christmas messages that the Virgin Mary has been giving us, she has spoken about peace and called us to it: "Dear children! Also today I bring you little Jesus, who is the King of Peace, in my arms to bless you with His peace. I call you to be my carriers of peace in this peaceless world. I am bringing Jesus, the King of Peace, to grant you His peace. Put the little Newborn Jesus in the first place in your life. In a special way I bless you, little children, with a blessing of little Jesus. Let Him fill you with His peace. "
Christmas is the utmost manifestation of the love of God. "But when the goodness of God our Saviour and His love to man appeared" (Tit 3, 4). It is dew fallen from the sky at Christmas, tenderness raining from above.
Evangelist Luke describes that a great heavenly army joined the angel and praised God: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests" (Lk 2, 14). With their song the angels express the meaning of what happened, saying that the glory of God is materialized through the birth of the Child bringing peace to people. In the biblical sense peace refers to a whole of all things, particularly to forgiveness of sins and the gift of God's Spirit. The
biblical expression for peace is close to the expression "grace". The peace granted by God stands for much more than a mere absence or elimination of wars and conflicts among men. It stands for a
re-established, peaceful relationship of a son towards God, that is, in one word, salvation. Justified by faith – an Apostle says – we are in peace with God. In this sense, peace is identified with the very person of Christ. "For He Himself is our only peace" (Eph 2, 14).
The Virgin Mary continues coming and bringing us Jesus just as she did when she came and appeared on Apparition Hill for the first time, with the Baby Jesus in her arms. Our Lady's words and presence are neither loud nor unusual or noneveryday (sic- translation!). Her presence with us here and among us is hidden in the commonness of the human word and simplicity. God is revealing Himself in the commonness and simplicity of a child. Jesus remains with us dressed and hidden in the simplicity of the Eucharist bread. And it is precisely this simplicity where the omnipotence of God's love and closeness resides. This greatness and omnipotence is capable of creating new life and transforming the hearts of men. The words of Our Lady are nothing new or unfamiliar. They are a reminder of the wisdom and truth of God's word.
The Virgin Mary is full of grace and full of God. She has emptied herself completely in order for God to reside in her fully. She is all turned to God. Therefore, she speaks to us: "Adore Him in your hearts, choose Him, no on can grant you peace as He can, and you will have joy in Him." Let this happen in our lives every day, not only at this Christmas.
Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic ~ Medjugorje, 26th
December, 2006 ~ Official
English Translation
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Apparition to Mirjana on
January 2, 2007 - "Dear
children. In this holy time full of God's graces, and His love which sends
me to you, I implore you not to be with a heart of stone. May fasting and
prayer be your weapon for drawing closer to and coming to know Jesus, my
Son. Follow me and my luminous example. I will help you. I am with you.
Thank you!" Mirjana
reported: "Our Lady's face during the entire time was one of pain
and sorrow. She spoke to me of things I cannot yet speak of. She blessed
both us and the religious articles. The expression on Her face was
especially serious when She was emphasizing 'the priestly blessing' and
was asking for prayer and fasting for them (priests)."
More
Mirjana Apparitions
Fr Jozo's
December Reflection:
Dear
brothers and sisters,
Today it is a full 25 years and six months since the Queen of Peace has
been appearing in Medjugorje. Also today we hear that gentle Mother's
voice, and see that most beloved image: her Son Jesus in her arms.
The Mother is with the Child, with the Newborn King, Who is our God. How
much we are helped by these simple Motherly words, which become a song
of Heaven and earth. It is a song of joy resounding throughout history.
The shepherds were the first to hear it, then the wise men and finally
all those chosen and redeemed.
That song from Bethlehem is the most beautiful ode to peace and to men
of good will loved by God. He is the King of Heaven and earth and there
is no other. This is His song of Peace. It is that merciful gift which
man has lost, as an irresistible desire for it remains in his heart. Man
has tried everything but has not found peace. It is the King of Heaven
and earth who visits us with peace. Christmas, which is the birth and
the coming of the Savior to man, is the discovery of the peace we have
lost. It is the finding of that peace, which we could not find or
replace with anything. This is the miracle of Christmas. The Son of God
is our peace.
We are in error when we serve men and their programs: when we serve
things and sacrifice much for the material goods in the hope of finding
peace. For this reason, the return to the Manger to seek the newborn
King, is our great need. The Manger becomes a place of our rest from a
strenuous journey. The Manger becomes the spring of consolation where we
lay down life's heavy burdens pressing on us. It becomes a sign, which
opens our eyes to see the Child and the Mother who are sought by the
weak and tired humanity: 'A Son has been given to us.' It is
particularly this gift that we seek and our hearts are restless until
they find Him and His Mother. The Manger is that wondrous divine bridge
spanning our shore and the shore of God. I am overjoyed because I can go
to God. I am grateful because God has come to me. For this reason, the
Manger is a place of worship. It is the truth before which I bend my
knees in prayer of thanksgiving and surrender my entire self as a gift
received by Him.
Angels teach me and Prophets inspire me that I must arise and find the
King of Heaven and earth. They teach me that I have something to give to
Him and something to receive from Him. And in turn, He directs me to
finally choose the 'new way' to return to my everyday life. The Wise Men
accepted this 'new way' and joyfully returned carrying with them the
message and the experience of meeting the Newborn King. Christmas is
ever a new and more profound experience of God's nearness to man. It is
the feast in which people find peace and joyfully bring it as a gift of
God to their families and communities. Christmas changes man and the
face of the world. Our 'new way' is our new interpersonal relationships.
Christmas is our new approach to God and to His call. Our adoration of
Jesus in the arms of the Mother is a logical fruit of a meeting in
faith. A heart that finds God is happy, full of peace and overflowing
with gratitude for all the graces and gifts.
The meeting with Jesus and the Mother in the mystery of Christmas is a
great gift and grace, which we retain as a most beloved memory from our
childhood. He is the gift, which the Father gives to His children and
therefore we are on our knees in prayer of gratitude to Him. The more we
prepare to meet Christmas, the more we feel the need to choose Jesus as
our greatest gift, which the Father has sent through the Mother.
This is our inexhaustible joy. This is the source of the most beautiful
prayers and songs, lullabies and teachings, greetings of thanksgiving
and joy, which will never become just a tradition because behind them
stands the joyful and rich experience of the meeting with
the God-Man and the Mother. Who would not desire to share this meeting
with others?
We choose the Manger and the King in it. We always find joy and peace in
Him and are grateful to the Queen of Peace who teaches us in a simple
Motherly way: "Chose Him and you will have joy in Him." Among
the numerous gifts, which we have received for Christmas, certainly
Jesus is the most valuable.
The Lord is the most necessary gift of our heart. Therefore, Christmas
is not an illusion after which, like a drunkard, we feel empty and
disappointed. To the contrary, we feel rich and happy. Our celebration
is not daydreaming or empty desires but a joyful meeting with Jesus
and the Mother enriching us. The first treasure mentioned by the Queen
of Peace in her message is the 'blessing of peace'. This cannot be
offered for sale, bought, or found accidentally. This preceding Advent
star, this light of hope ignited by the Lord as He calls us to wait
vigilantly and to prepare ourselves - is the way that we have passed
like the Wise Men from the East. This is why we know Whom we are seeking
and Who we are waiting for: our King who comes. He fills us with His
blessings of peace and Christmas joy. Most rich and
overflowing with graces is this feast and our celebration of it.
Sometimes politicians and even our priests criticize our celebrations
observing them from a material standpoint. The shop windows and tables
are full, but man feels the need to give because he has received a gift.
A person must sing when he is happy. A person must celebrate in
community because he is no longer alone. Christmas is celebrated, and
not a single dimension of celebration or joy can be taken from it. The
Queen of Peace tells us that also today she brings the Newborn baby
Jesus in her arms. Without Him everything is empty and a burden because
everything that we have to give lasts only a brief moment and has little
value. Therefore, this Christmas, we have decided to chose Him as the
greatest and lasting gift we have received.
My beloved, be happy. Bring and give the gift of Jesus to everyone, and
especially to those who have lost Him, forgotten Him or rejected Him.
This month we will pray for the following intentions:
1. For that peace that is born on earth through Jesus and given through
Him to all mankind to fill our hearts and to come to rule in our
families and among nations. For every war and conflict to stop among
nations.
2. For all politicians and those responsible for peace and armament in
the world. For the Newborn Jesus to illuminate them as the Wise Men, to
find the new way - the way of peace. That they may retain peace in their
nations.
3. For our prayer community, 'the Visitation', that this year we may
grow in members and graces, and fulfill our great assignment in the
world and in the Church by living the messages and witnessing for the
Queen of Peace. In this way, may all the poor, the pilgrims, the sick
and helpless find help and consolation and become a sign in this world
and time.
Dear brothers and sisters, I see you all in the arms of the Mother and I
feel all of you clothed in the blessing of peace and new enthusiasm
given to us by Jesus, the Newborn King of Peace. May the New Year be a
new inspiration and grace for you. I greet you all and pray for you.
Most sincerely your brother,
Fra Jozo Zovko o.f.m 28.12.2006
Siroki Brijeg
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updated 9th
January,
2007 - Praised be Jesus and Mary - His Peace to all! - ê¿ê
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