November 12, 2013
Dear children of Medjugorje, praised be Jesus and
Mary!
1 - On November 2, Mirjana received her monthly apparition at the Blue Cross,
surrounded by a big crowd. After the apparition, Mirjana conveyed the following
message:
"Dear children! Anew, in a motherly way, I am calling you to love; to
continually pray for the gift of love; to love the Heavenly Father above
everything. When you love Him you will love yourself and your neighbor. This
cannot be separated. The Heavenly Father is in each person. He loves each
person and calls each person by his name. Therefore, my children, through
prayer hearken to the will of the Heavenly Father. Converse with Him! Have a
personal relationship with the Father, which will deepen even more your
relationship as a community of my children - of my apostles. As a mother I
desire that, through the love for the Heavenly Father, you may be raised above
earthly vanities and may help others to gradually come to know and come closer
to the Heavenly Father. My children, pray, pray, pray for the gift of love
because 'love' is my Son. Pray for your shepherds that they may always have love
for you as my Son had and showed by giving His life for your salvation. Thank
you!"
2. Fatherhood on Earth
Reflects the Image of Our Father in Heaven. In her message of November 2nd, Mary
tells us about the Heavenly Father, Marta Robin, a great French mystic who is
now accepted for beatification, also had a deep knowledge of the HeavenlyFather.
When speaking to fathers who are the head of the family, she would often relate
these two fatherhoods. (See PS1)
One such conversation comes to us
from a French pilgrim who came for All Saints Day, FatherYannik Bonnet, 80, from
the diocese of Le Puy, in France. A former chemical engineer,after he was
widowed he entered the seminary and was ordained a priest in 1999. His
testimonyrekindled hope to many hearts!
In April 1973, a year before
president Pompidou died (he had blocked the law authorizing abortion, before
Giscard d'Estaing ended up passing it), Yannik went to see Marta Robin. At the
time, Yannick was a family man, and he was worried about the future of his 7
children. (His 7th child had just been born.) He was able to speak with Marta
for 55 minutes.
Here are a few excerpts from the conversation
they had, which speaks more than ever to our time.
"Marta," he asked her, "do you think it useful for
Christians to become involved in politics?" (Pope John Paul II hadn't said it
clearly yet.)
Marta answered him, "Of course! But for you, not before
10 years! "
"Why? " Yannik asked,
"Because you just had a baby girl, and she needs her
father to structure her for 10 years. "
As an aside, Yannik then added, "Marta spoke to me a
great deal about raising children and a
father's role, since that was why I had come to her.
She was crystal clear about the importance of
the father's role, because he prepares the child to be
self-sufficient and ordered inside. A mother,
on the other hand, gives the child all the love he needs
to love life. Children who have not been
loved by their mothers often have strong suicidal
temptations."
"Young people today have no inner structure, they are
not standing strong. Among my buddies
at the Seminary in Rome, several have already left the
ministry, they couldn't take it. These are
very emotional people, but with no structure. In our
seminaries, there is a lack of fathers giving the essence of fatherhood. We have
good teachers, but fathers in the sense of fatherhood are lacking."
Here, Mary gives us this healing message:"My children, through prayer hearken to the will of the
Heavenly Father. Converse with Him! Have a personal relationship with
the Father, which will deepen even more your relationship as a community of my
children - of my apostles. As a mother I desire that, through the love for the
Heavenly Father, you may be raised above earthly vanities and may help others to
gradually come to know and come closer to the Heavenly Father."
Yannik also told us about Marta's prophesies for
France:
"Marta, the reason I came to see you today, I said, is
because 6 months ago I had my 7th child, and I am extremely worried about the
world in which I will have to raise my children. I see a coming fall, and am
filled with anguish at having to raise 7 children in that kind of
world! "
"Marta immediately said to me, with her tiny voice that
sounded like a bell: 'Oh but that is nothing compared to what it will be like!
You cannot imagine how low we will fall!'
"And indeed, I just couldn't imagine it. Then,
immediately she added, 'But you will see, the renewal will be extraordinary! It
will be like a ball that bounces back up!' Then she corrected herself: 'No!
It will bounce back up much higher and faster than a ball!' Then she told me
about this renewal, when there would be conversions, vocations. She described
our country, France, in the full swing of a spiritual revival. We went on to
talk about the world. What amazed me to no end is that she could talk about
geopolitics as if she were the President of the United States! Oh it was
extraordinary!"
"I am marveling at the advice she gave me, that was
useful to me as a layman, but even more so as a priest. I think she knew that
one day, I would become a priest. For instance, she said, 'Do not
overcomplicate life! Wherever you are, whenever you are called, just do what
you are able to do, don't complicate simple things! There are things for which
you are talented, and others for which you are not. Do the things for which you
are talented, that way you won't get it wrong.' She only gave me that kind of
advice, full of common sense. We had an extraordinary dialogue, as if we had
known each other for years, even though we had only just met."
Thank you father Yannik! May these words comfort us
all, not only French people, but everyone
in this time of crisis so distressing for the world!
May they encourage us to hasten by our prayers the day the ball bounces back,
when the destroyers of Christian values are either enlightened or made
harmless!
3. Father Kevin
Scallon,
Congregation of Priests of the Mission, who is often accompanied by Sr Briege
MacKenna, leads wonderful retreats for priests in Ireland and in the whole world
(See PS2). When he stayed with us in September, he told us this
sorrowful story: A former priest confided to him that at a time when he was
overloaded with work, he had had a personal crisis and as a result left the
priesthood. "I went to see the Provincial Superior", he said, "in order to
complain about my impossibly heavy workload, as I was burnt out. I told him
that I was thinking of leaving the priesthood. At that point, without any
attempt to speak to me, counsel me or even listen, my Superior said that he
would try to arrange my departure as quickly as possible. But if my Superior
had taken just a little time to speak to me and listen to my situation, I am
sure I would still be a priest today. I know I would!"
This story hurts! And it is not
rare! Oh Lord! Please give us good fathers of family, good priests and good
bishops, give us fathers who reflect the image of our dear Father in Heaven!
Dearest Gospa, thank you for having hired us to hasten and live the
renewal of the Church. In the midst of contradictions, trials and dangers, how
happy we are to hold on to your Mother's hand and walk with you in
security!
Sister Emmanuel +
(Translated from
French)
