Testimonies related to Medjugorje

God Alone Suffi ces!

It was the 20th October 2005. I was with two friends and prayer companions when my Medjugorje voyage began on the day I joined the “Kraljice Mira” community. It all started in 1998, the year our Blessed Mother prepared me for two special encounters with her and her Son. The first was a pilgrimage to Spain, to the tombs of St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross, and to Garabandal where Our Lady appeared between 1960 and 1964, and only a few weeks later I went on pilgrimage again; this time to Medjugorje where I had not been before.

Soon after the apparitions of the Queen of Peace began at Medjugorje, it came to the attention of the public that the Diocesan and Franciscan priests of the Mostar diocese did not agree on all issues. This quarrel had in fact broken out over one hundred years beforehand, and sadly, still continues today. At a local level, this discrepancy would not have been intensified had Mostar not been an area of intersecting cultures, faiths and civilizations. At a world-wide level, it wouldn't have been so controversial had Our Lady not appeared in one of it's parishes! Undoubtedly this argument affects the stance of the local Church and the Church in the whole of Croatia as regards Our Lady's apparitions. It is important to mention here that in the initial months of the apparitions the local Bishop, Pavao Zanic believed in the authenticity of Our Lady's apparitions and due to reasons, known only to himself, he altered his stance. Wishing to protect Episcopal comradeship, the bishops of the Church of Croatia have refrained from making public statements. Many other Church dignitaries have followed their example. However there have also been some significant exceptions.

One of the guests at Vicka and Mario's wedding, Teresa from Sicily (62 years old) had this to share with us:

"I am the twelfth of 14 children. My father used to curse God and beat my mother and us children. We were often hungry and had to sleep 3 to a bed. When I was 9 years old, I received the call to become a nun, but my father would not allow it because he wanted me to work in order to help the family. Later I got married and became lukewarm in my faith. My husband didn’t believe much, but we went to Mass on Sundays."

On 25 August, Ivan visited Beauraing in Belgium where Mary appeared to 5 children for 33 times in 1932. Mass was celebrated by the Bishop of Namur, Msgr. Léonard. The following is from his eloquent homily.

"(...)Which are the churches that please the Lord? Crowded churches. He loves them, because a crowded church for the Lord is a prophecy of what will be at the end of time, when God’s Kingdom will be everything in everyone!

On Sunday, January 21, 2007, was commemorated the fifth anniversary of the death of Dr. Fr. Leonard Oreč, former parish priest of Medjugorje and founder of the religious-humanitarian organization “Medjugorje-Mir”. Holy Mass was celebrated for him in the parish church. It was presided by Fr. Ivan Landeka, another former parish priest of Medjugorje and actual president of the organization “Medjugorje-Mir”, and concelebrated by the present parish priest of Medjugorje, dr. Fr. Ivan Sesar.

...In the early years, Kathleen tells us, the church would be packed and the people - with great zeal - would always sing the "Ave" at the end of Mass. Marija said that very often Our Lady would reappear and she'd go above the people back and forth in the church, and she would be weeping. Marija once asked her why she wept. Our Lady said, "Because I didn't know so many people loved me!" (Kathleen's observation: She cried for joy because she didn't expect to be loved - which means she's not used to being loved by us

Some years ago when I was first a bishop in Louisiana, it must have been 1988, I was making my first "ad limina" visit to the Holy Father in Rome.

The other bishops of Louisiana were with me and, as what the custom of John Paul II, we were invited in to enjoy a lunch with him. There were eight of us at the table with him.

Soup was being served. Bishop Stanley Ott of Baton Rouge, La., who has since gone to God, asked the Holy Father: "Holy Father, what do you think of Medjugorje?"

"Thank you for responding to my call!" Mary always thanks. This had struck me, but only now do I comprehend!

Whatever the circumstances that bring us to Medjugorje, we are called. As a cloistered nun it was due to health problems that I was able to come (with due permission, of course). Providence saw that I found hospitality at the contemplative Community, Kraljice Mira (Queen of Peace, Wholly Thine...); and it is with immense gratitude that I ask myself why is this granted me, that the Mother of my Lord should call me.

Colette is French, her husband, British and they have two girls born in America:

"We currently live in Pennsylvania. Our family is, or should I say, was not the religious type. Both my husband and I had had disgruntling experiences with the Catholic Church and we were happy to stay as far from it as we possibly could. And yet, in March 2003, something really weird happened.

A song, warm and rhythmical, rises from their joyful hearts, as also their minds and bodies praise the King. In dozens of different languages and prayers, with hundreds of different colours and thousands of voices, there is something new and unique going on in Medjugorje. It cannot go unnoticed by anyone, but rather, the life it brings urges you to come and be part of this one body, which is the springtime of the Church, and the mystical body of Christ.

What touches young people most in Medjugorje? What attracts them?

Their longing for peace, their thirst for the truth. The world deceives us so often. The media emphasise mostly negative things. Young people are very much manipulated in the area of sexuality, and attacked in their souls. This can lead to severe consequences if their faith has not been strengthened beforehand. The message of Medjugorje awakens in them a longing for true peace, and probably for God and for the family... for intact families. Many people come from broken families nowadays. It is very rare that one finds a family, where the love of the neighbour is really lived, where there is prayer, where parents do not divorce after the first difficulty. But, in my opinion, what draws them mostly to Medjugorje is their longing for God, and the longing to find a meaning to their lives. Here you can meet Mary and Christ more intensely than at home. Another important factor is that young people meet other young people, whom they perceive to have found peace, and to have immersed more deeply in the spiritual life.

Dragan Soldo: You went on pilgrimage to many other great Marian shrines. Can you say something about the specificity of Medjugorje?

Mons. José Domingo Ulloa: The specificity of Medjugorje is the gift of peace received here. This is what humanity is longing for today, and this gift is received in Medjugorje through our Mother Mary. It is not only about inner peace, but also about discovering that we are all brothers, and that conflicts and violence are not a solution. This peace should be shared with others.

On other places of pilgrimage where Our Lady was appearing, some miracles have happened, and this is beautiful. But here, for such a long time, Our Lady is giving messages, is continuing to speak. I would say that, here, Our Lady continues to speak to the humanity. She is not doing it from a pulpit, but as a mother. Those who want to hear and to obey – they listen. Those who do not want – they don’t listen. Our Lady is continuing to speak here. I think that this is because the time, in which we live, is powerful and important as no time before. I our time, Our Lady is observing as a mother, seeing our reality and coming to help us to think again about our way of life and about the world in which we live.

Manuel Reato (23), a student of theology from Torino, has come several times to Medjugorje. Medjugorje has changed his life. Our Lady’s messages have deeply touched his heart and he believes that they are important for the whole world. Manuel is trying to live Our Lady’s message in his daily life. In Medjugorje, he has learned to seek God, here, he has learned how to pray. Although he is in a wheelchair since his early childhood, Manuel feels a call to become a priest.