THE MEDJUGORJE WITNESS

“I’m here in Nuuk, Greenland, and the view of the partial eclipse is stunning. The moon has almost completely covered the sun, and you can see that gorgeous crescent shape through the clouds.”

 

Maryam Moshiri, Chief Presenter, BBC News

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Dear children! Also today I call you to be like the stars, which by their light give light and beauty to others so they may rejoice. Little children, also you be the radiance, beauty, joy and peace – and especially prayer – for all those who are far from my love and the love of my Son Jesus. Little children, witness your faith and prayer in joy, in the joy of faith that is in your hearts; and pray for peace, which is a precious gift from God. Thank you for having responded to my call. Medjugorje Message, September 25, 2014

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• The emblem of the European Union, a circle of 12 stars on a blue background was officially adopted in 1985 from the flag devised by the Council of Europe.

 

Sometimes referred to as the Flag of Europe the design was one of several submitted by Arsene Heitz, a German-French draughtsman who worked for the Council of Europe. He is considered a co-author of the Flag with Paul Lévy, a Belgian journalist and professor who also worked for the Council.

 

In 1955, Heitz (pictured) confirmed in a Lourdes magazine article that his inspiration had been the reference in the Book of Revelation to “a woman adorned with the sun […] and with the twelve stars on her head as a crown” Rev 12 : 1

 

It is said Heitz was a devout Catholic and a devotee of the Miraculous Medal, which may have influenced his views on the symbolism of the 12 stars.

 

Lévy, of Jewish origin, converted to Catholicism in 1940 and was responsible for sorting through the 101 designs submitted for the Council of Europe emblem. He is said to have finalised Heitz’s submission which was eventually adopted by the Council in 1955. Hence why both men are credited as collaborating on the design.

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So long as a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are undisturbed; but when someone stronger than he is attacks and defeats him, the stronger man takes away all the weapons he relied on and shares out its spoil.

 

Luke 11 : 21-22

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It should have been Barabbas
but Jesus took his place,
a guilty man set free again
by redeeming grace.

 

Who was Barabbas but ourselves
facing death ahead,
until the sacrifice was made,
the Lamb of God instead.

 

Bar-abbas – son and father,
together in a name.
In truth this was the Father’s Son
the soldier did proclaim.

 

BG

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Dear children, in this time of grace when you are called to conversion, I am encouraging you, little children: offer me your prayers, sufferings and tears for conversion of hearts that are far from the Heart of my Son Jesus. Pray with me, because, little children, without God you do not have a future or eternal life. I love you, but I cannot help you without you; therefore, say ‘yes’ to God. Thank you for having responded to my call.

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(with Ecclesiastical approval)

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The Annunciation station is usually the first stopping point for pilgrims as they begin to ascend Apparition Hill and pray the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary.

 

The large bronze plaque sculpted by Carmeilo Puzzolo shows the kneeling Archangel Gabriel greeting the Virgin Mary. The Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove, is also present in the scene.

 

Ever since the Virgin was sighted on the hill in the late afternoon of June 24, 1981, villagers and pilgrims have journeyed daily, praying the Rosary on their way to the site where Our Lady is said to have first presented herself to the two ‘highly-favoured’ teenage seers, Ivanka Ivankovic and Mirjana Dragicevic. 

 

• Hail Mary, full of grace; blessed art you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, Amen.

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• Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Annunciation was partly inspired by a Muslim inventor.  Go to this link for details.

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In this time of grace, may the cross be a sign-post of love and unity for you through which true peace comes. (Part medjugorje message, November 25, 1999)

 

Mary wants us to accept the cross as a sign, but the cross does not only point into one direction. When we look at the cross we see one vertical beam pointing toward Heaven, and one horizontal beam that reminds us of the world, its people and of ourselves. We should also see unity in this way, in that the vertical and the horizontal meet one another and it is that junction point which should then point us in our correct direction. 

 

Our human path must go toward both the vertical as well as the horizontal. Only when these two directions are in balance with one another can man really experience true love and unity. These beams, the vertical and the horizontal, must have their junction in our hearts. So if we have the love for God and the love for others and for ourselves in the centre of our hearts, true peace will have come.

 

Sin is in fact a destruction of this central point of this junction, and therefore by way of sin an imbalance is caused and one then looses true peace. It happens so easily that we forget the vertical axis within us and then concentrate ourselves too much on ourselves, close ourselves or get stuck on people or the material world, and that we then, by way of bad habits, simply get pulled away from our centres and then as men and as Christians soon begin to lose our dignity. 

 

Conversion means to try again that both the vertical as well as the horizontal meet one another in our hearts all the time, that we love God above all else, and then others as we do ourselves. 

 

Fr Slavko Barbarić, November 26, 1999

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Dear children! Today I invite you to decide for peace. Pray that God give you the true peace. Live peace in your hearts and you will understand, dear children, that peace is the gift of God. Dear children, without love you cannot live peace. The fruit of peace is love and the fruit of love is forgiveness. I am with you and I invite all of you, little children, that before all else forgive in the family and then you will be able to forgive others. Thank you for having responded to my call. Medjugorje message, January 25, 1996

 

Mark Twain: Forgiveness is the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.

 

Mahatma Gandhi: The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.

 

Lewis B. Smedes: To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.

 

George Herbert: He who cannot forgive breaks the bridge over which he himself must pass.

 

Paul Boese: Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future

 

Roberto Assagioli: Without forgiveness life is governed by an endless cycle of resentment and retaliation.

 

Josiah Bailey: They who forgive most shall be most forgiven.

 

Gilbert K. Chesterton: To love means loving the unlovable. To forgive means pardoning the unpardonable. Faith means believing the unbelievable. Hope means hoping when everything seems hopeless.

 

Alexander Pope: To err is human; to forgive, divine.

 

Voltaire: No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible.

 

Jesus: Then Peter went up to Jesus and said, “Lord how often must I forgive my brother if he wrongs me? As often as seven times?” Jesus answered, “Not seven, I tell you, but seventy-seven times.” Matthew 18 : 21-22

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