EDITOR: JUNE KLINS PHONE: (814)

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1 THE SPIRIT OF MEDJUGORJE P.O. BOX 6614 ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA SUBSCRIPTION RATE - FREE WILL OFFERING - PLEASE SEE PAGE 8 If this is the first time you have received this newsletter, and you would like a Beginner s Guide, please contact us for one. EDITOR: JUNE KLINS PHONE: (814) jklins1981@verizon.net EDITOR EMERITUS: JOAN WIESZCZYK SPIRITUAL ADVISOR FR. WILLIAM KIEL VOL. 31, NO. 7 PUBLISHED MONTHLY JULY 2018 CURRENT MONTHLY MESSAGE OF JUNE 25, 2018 ON THE 25TH DAY OF EACH MONTH, THE BLESSED VIRGIN GIVES A MESSAGE TO THE VISIONARY, MARIJA, THAT IS TO BE GIVEN TO THE WORLD. Many years ago we requested pictures of statues of Our Lady of Medjugorje from places other than Medjugorje, to show how the devotion has been spread throughout the world. Recently, subscriber Anna Karczemska from Poland sent us a couple of pictures. This one is from Kolacinek, which is close to Lodz. The timing was perfect, since the news that Archbishop Henryk Hoser from Poland has been assigned to Medjugorje indefinitely! (See page 3.) To see this beautiful picture in color go to our website, Dear children! This is the day that the Lord gave me to give Him thanks for each of you, for those who have converted and have accepted my messages and have set out on the way of conversion and holiness. Rejoice, little children, because God is merciful and loves you all with His immeasurable love and leads you to the way of salvation through my coming here. I love you all and give you my Son that He may give you peace. Thank you for having responded to my call.

2 By Your Life Show Them the Truth By Fr. Bill Kiel One of the dismissal prayers at the ending of the Mass is Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life. What a command to give God glory and live His love! Be a disciple, evangelize!!! you who know how to love and forgive, you who do not judge, you whom I encourage, you be an example to all those Fr. Bill Kiel who are not going on the way of light and love or have diverted from it. By your life show them the truth. Show them love because love overcomes all difficulties, and all of my children thirst for love. Your unity in love is a gift to my Son and me. (6/2/18) How many of us know how to love, forgive, not judge and be an example of Jesus? If we receive the Eucharist with the intention of asking Jesus to give us the grace to be like Him in ways we have not yet practiced, our life will change; we will become more Christ-like. It will be easier for us to love and forgive others; we will be less likely to judge others. How often do we think of how our words and actions impact those around us, those individuals within ear-shot, within the distance to observe our actions? Our words and our behavior can have a deep impact on others and we may not know what impression we had on others Fr. Bill in Tihaljina (near Medjugorje) Message to Mirjana on June 2, 2018 Dear children, I am calling you to accept my words which I am speaking to you as a mother, with a simplicity of heart, so that you may set out on the way of complete light and purity, of the singular love of my Son, man and God. A joy a light indescribable in human words will penetrate your soul and the peace and love of my Son will take hold of you. I desire this for all of my children. Therefore, you, apostles of my love, you who know how to love and forgive, you who do not judge, you whom I encourage, you be an example to all those who are not going on the way of light and love or who have diverted from it. By your life show them the truth. Show them love because love overcomes all difficulties, and all of my children thirst for love. Your unity in love is a gift to my Son and me. But, my children, remember that to love also means to desire the good for your neighbor and to desire conversion of your neighbor s soul. As I am looking at you gathered around me, my heart is sad, because I see so little brotherly love, merciful love. My children, the Eucharist my Son alive among you His words will help you comprehend, because His word is life, His word makes the soul breathe, His word brings about cognition of love. Dear children, anew, I am imploring you as a mother who desires the good for her children: love your shepherds, pray for them. Thank you. Our thanks to Joanne Warren, Peggy Chludzinski, Mary Jo Jaglowski, Julie Hansen, Chris Falk, Marge Spase, Kathy Wayman, Chris Opron, Vickie DeCoursey, Joan Peterson, Dianne Yochim, Georgia Chludzinski, Darleen Wilkinson, Barb Cesare, Irene and Dan Zuba, Cindy Bielanin, Elaine and John Brady, Louise Lotze, Sue Taccone, and those who want to remain anonymous for their help with the June mailing. We thank Susannah Klins, Louise Lotze, Chris Falk, Anna Karczemska, and Josip Elez for their photos in this issue. We also thank our proofreader, Pat Berrier, our webmaster, Jason Klins, and our prayer group administrator, Patti Millar. until days, weeks, months or years later. We need to live the love of Jesus in our everyday life; we need to be forgiving. Do we all not have the thirst for desiring to be loved by others? Small acts of kindness can be ways of turning difficult moments into moments of love, peace and joy for ourselves, and especially for others. Just as the Eucharist changes us, hopefully, as we are examples of Jesus to those not practicing their faith or not receiving the sacraments of Reconciliation or Eucharist, they will be receptive to God s love and forgiveness. We need to remember all things are possible with God, even change within those we may think will never change! These words will help us in our daily living: the Eucharist my Son alive among you His words will help you comprehend, because His word is life, His word makes the soul breathe, His word brings about cognition of love. (6/2/18) Would not the world be much, much better if we all lived the love and forgiveness of Jesus? Receive God s love and forgiveness more often in the sacraments of Reconciliation and Holy Eucharist Reconciliation at least once a month and the Holy Eucharist as often as possible. Graces are freely given; we need to be open to receive the graces. Then share the graces with all people starting with love, forgiveness and not judging them. Mary Queen of Peace, pray for us. Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life. We give thanks to God always for all of you, remembering you in our prayers (1Thes 1:2) Thank you to all of you who have renewed your subscriptions so far this year. We have never charged in 31 years of publishing, but it is because of your generosity that we are able to continue to print and mail the newsletters as well as keep up with our website. So thank you for having responded to the call. And please know we have NEVER and WILL NEVER share our mailing list with any other organizations. Prayer Intention of Pope Francis for July Priests and their Pastoral Ministry: That priests, who experience fatigue and loneliness in their pastoral work, may find help and comfort in their intimacy with the Lord and in their friendship with their brother priests THE SPIRIT OF MEDJUGORJE JULY 2018

3 Exceptional Vatican Press Release about Medjugorje I m sure by now you ve heard the good news, but I wanted to share it in a special way with you today, too! On May 31, the feast of the Visitation, Our Lady gave us a wonderful gift! The Vatican press room issued a statement regarding Medjugorje which made us rejoice: Pope Francis has appointed a special Apostolic Visitor for the parish of Medjugorje. To our great joy, this appointee is Archbishop Henryk Hoser, who was appointed with a short term mission in Medjugorje in February At that time he was asked to acquire a deeper knowledge of the pastoral situation, and to assess the needs of the faithful in Medjugorje. This mission proved to be very positive; Mgr. Hoser had stated that he was sent by the Pope to comfort us. In Medjugorje, there are many spiritual fruits, he said at the end of that mission. Let us continue to pray for this new assignment given to Mgr. Hoser, with the renewed hope that this Vatican statement has given us! And most importantly, let us continue to respond to the calls of the Queen of Peace, because it is by living her messages that Medjugorje will bear all the spiritual fruits that Heaven expects. Make further progress as said St. Paul to the Thessalonians (4:1). Here is the official text that Father Marinko (the parish priest of Medjugorje) read to us that day after the evening Are the annual apparitions in any way different from the daily apparitions? The annual apparitions are the same as the daily apparitions that I had until May 7,1985. The Gospa visits me in the same manner. She is equally beautiful and joyful. She greets me with Praised be Jesus Christ and gives me a message. Before the Gospa appears, I see a bright flash of light that repeats itself three times. Then we pray together and She gives Her motherly blessing. When She appears on the anniversary, She is always dressed exactly as I have described her during my last regular apparition: Her dress and especially Her crown glimmer in silver and gold. By Sr. Emmanuel Mass. Needless to say it was greeted with much excitement and was widely applauded by the large numbers of faithful who had gathered for the feast of the Visitation and that of the Blessed Sacrament (Corpus Christi): On this day, the 31st of May, 2018, the Holy See has appointed Henryk Hoser, SAC, the retired Archbishop of Warsaw-Prague (Poland) as Apostolic Visitor with a special role for the parish of Medjugorje for an indefinite time, and ad nutum Sanctae Sedis [with the approval of the Holy See]. At the specific request of the Holy See, his appointment is for pastoral ministry, a continuation of the mission of the special envoy of the Holy See for the parish of Medjugorje, entrusted to Mgr. Hoser on February 11, 2017, and in which he completed in the previous months. The purpose of the mission of the Apostolic Visitor is to provide a firm and permanent accompaniment of the parish community in Medjugorje and the faithful who come on pilgrimage here, whose needs require a special attention. Dearest Mother, we thank you so much for the gift of Mgr. Henryk Hoser! Guide him and lead him in his work, and help him to provide the spiritual nourishment the parish community and pilgrims need. May this step forward from the Vatican draw even more people closer to your Son Jesus. Children of Medjugorje, Conversation with Ivanka Ivankovic-Elez The following was excerpted from the book, A Conversation with the Visionaries, by Kresimir Sego. Ivanka and her husband, Rajko, with Josip, Marija and their children How do you prepare for the annual apparitions? The preparations last the whole year, beginning with the 25th of June. I prepare myself through daily prayer and daily activities. About two weeks before the apparition takes place, I prepare by fasting and praying. The closer the apparition comes, the stronger becomes my yearning to see the Gospa. Then every single moment seems to last a year, the days seem to pass very slowly. Do you know when and how you will reveal the ten secrets? Mirjana will do this through Fr. Petar Ljubicic and she also described how she would prepare for this. I do not know anything about this; therefore, I cannot say anything about it. It will be as the Blessed Virgin wishes it to be. Editor s note: We offer congratulations to Ivanka on the birth of her second grandchild, Jakov, born on October 31, 2017 to Josip and Marija Elez. Message to Ivanka on June 25, 2018 The apparition, which lasted 3 minutes, took place at Ivanka s family home. Only Ivanka s family was present at the apparition. After the apparition, Ivanka said that Our Lady gave the following message: Little children, pray, pray, pray. Subscriber Mary McCafferty met up with Josip Elez on her April pilgrimage to Medjugorje. When I asked her about her visit, she wrote, I can tell you one beautiful thing Josip Elez said to our small group when asked what we, as pilgrims, can do for the people who live in Medjugorje. It was apparent to a first-time pilgrim that the parish grounds have been transformed to make it both spiritual and welcoming for the world. This young woman wanted to know what we can give back in return. How can we say thank you? Josip s simple response was, Smile. He further stated that a smile is the best thank you we can give. JULY THE SPIRIT OF MEDJUGORJE

4 I Have Nothing, But I Have More Than I Ever Had By June Klins On my June 2016 pilgrimage to Medjugorje, we visited the Community Cenacolo, where drug addicts and disillusioned men receive hope to find peace and joy in their lives. We listened to the inspirational and sometimes humorous testimony of a young man named Billy who was originally from Minnesota. He radiated with joy from the heart as he spoke to us. Billy said his parents first came to Medjugorje in Billy s father was not Catholic and his mother was a lukewarm Catholic who just went to Mass when she wanted to and only prayed once in a while. But they felt there was something missing in their relationship and in their lives, so they went to Medjugorje. They were really touched there. As Billy s father was sitting, arms crossed, in the back at a prayer service, he noticed old grandmas on their knees on the rocks praying. He thought to himself, Maybe I should do that. As he knelt there, he felt a sense of peace. Billy s mother also felt the peace, and when they went home, she was on fire for the faith and wanted to change the world. They began praying and putting the messages of Our Lady into practice. Not long after, Billy s father became Catholic. At the time when Billy s parents went to Medjugorje, they had two children, Billy and his brother, and had no plans for any more. His mother, who was a career woman, really did not want any children to begin with. But after her pilgrimage, she became open to God s plans for her, and a year later gave birth to a girl they named Maria (after Mary). Billy said his sister is a miracle from Medjugorje. A year and a half after that, she gave birth to another girl, and in time, three more children were born. So the woman who did not want any children now had seven, thanks to Our Lady of Medjugorje! Billy said he went to Catholic schools, was an altar boy, and played sports. He said on the outside it looked like everything was pretty normal. I was always searching for something more, Billy said. He described himself as one of the kids in the middle in school who falls through the cracks. He was not in the group with the smart kids, nor was he a trouble-maker. He said this caused him to stay in his own little comfort zone. I didn t want to step outside this world if I try something new I might make a mistake I went through my little comfort zone with my Facebook friends, my sports schedule, and my homework none of these things were bad, just things that trapped me in I didn t want to experience failure. I didn t want to experience life I just kept saying, Everything s fine, but really it wasn t. There was always searching for something more and I tried to fill up the void. Billy thought when he got a new phone, then he would be happy, so he would get a new phone and after a few days, the happiness wore off. He would think if he got a new car, then he would be happy, so he would get a new car, and his happiness would last a week or two. He tried to excel at sports and lifting weights, thinking that would help him feel good about himself. New clothes, a girlfriend, a new job, college, etc. none of these things filled the void. I never really accepted myself for who I was I was always looking Billy for something more. Billy began to turn to alcohol and drugs. He thought this was the answer. He felt good and he felt confident. But then he began to notice he was drifting away from his family. He was calling home less often from college, and was skipping classes. He started lying and cheating things he had never done before. He stopped listening to his conscience. When Billy realized how lost he had become, he tried different rehab centers and clinics, where he was given antidepressant and anti-anxiety medications. But in the end, these pills from doctors messed me up more than the drugs I was taking. He tried different universities and different jobs, searching for something more, and in the end he was homeless, living in the streets. His parents told him, We can t help you anymore. One day Billy decided to pray. I just said, God, help me. It was fairly simple. I grew up in a Catholic school, I was an altar boy, but I never prayed spoke with God. I said Hail Marys and stuff, but never from the heart. I never had any relationship with God. At this moment I just asked God for help and I realized He was waiting for me He couldn t force His grace upon me. I just had to crack that door open to Him. Billy then added, I think that s why places like Medjugorje are so powerful people come here and they re touched. They re really open and that s all it takes just having that openness and God can work miracles from that. Billy s grandmother told him about the Community Cenacolo in Florida a year before he entered. He told her, No way. But she was persistent and went to Florida herself to check it out. A year later, she gave Billy a plane ticket to Florida and told him, Get going. Billy said he is now thankful to his grandmother and his parents who stuck by him. Billy admitted it was not easy when he first entered. They put you with this guardian angel and you have to stay with this guy 24 hours a day for a month. Billy talked about how hard it is to wake up at 6 AM and have this guardian angel smiling at you saying, Good morning! Billy said it was a lot to handle, having this guy with him in the chapel, at meals, at work. It s not easy because he s telling you the truth. Billy said of course there are no drugs or alcohol there, but something else that was different was that before he entered the Community, if he got in an argument with someone, he could ignore his phone calls or delete the person on Facebook. If he was having a bad day, he could go for a ride in his car, turn up his music, go lift weights, watch TV, eat some ice cream, or call in sick from work. You can t do that here in Community, he said. He continued that it is different from other rehab centers where they just give you pills to get off the drugs and make you as comfortable as possible. It just made me like a zombie and it didn t help me to start living and confront these issues. It just shoved all these emotions down, all these pills I was taking to get off the drugs. When I got here, the medication they gave me was a rosary and a wheelbarrow! Billy continued, Before Community [Cenacolo], I would THE SPIRIT OF MEDJUGORJE JULY 2018

5 fall asleep with the TV on, the phone would be ringing, there was all this noise and now I didn t have that. Billy said when he first entered Community and went to the chapel, he would almost have a panic attack. He didn t have these other outlets and had to focus on himself and what he had done. He said that by going to the chapel every day, everything came out and it saved his life. It wasn t easy. I started to talk to this guy my guardian angel. I started to talk to him and open up. I saw these guys had nothing they didn t have cell phones or cars or girlfriends or money, I-pads, I-pods if there s an I in it, they didn t have it. I saw that they have EVERYTHING because they have a smile. They were genuinely happy with nothing. I ve got to tell you that today I have nothing, but I have more than I ever had I m happy today. Billy had to stop speaking at this point because of the applause. He continued, It went against what I thought. I thought you had to have everything to be happy. After a while, Billy was transferred to Italy. He was shocked when they gave him the job of welcoming, since he did not know Italian. He was supposed to greet the visitors and explain about the Community and show them around. I could only say one thing sì (yes). I d say, si, and smile. Italian people talk a lot, so it worked. It worked until one day when a man came to the door and Billy thought he wanted to bring them wood for the winter. The man came back the next day with a huge truck, and Billy noticed it was empty. Then the man drove to their woodyard and began taking their wood. One of the guys asked Billy, Did you know what that guy was saying to you? and Billy replied, No, not really. Billy was later transferred to Medjugorje and was given the job once again of welcoming. They told him he had to give his testimony at the Youth Festival in front of thousands of people. At first he thought, No way, but he did it and said it was a cool experience. He talked about how it is not always easy, especially getting in front of people telling his story. It s not always easy, but through a lot of love and sacrifice, life s difficulties really become a joy. That s why Mary didn t choose to appear on a beach to people praying Rosaries and drinking pina coladas in a hammock. She appears up in these mountains where sometimes it s difficult to climb up there. It s hot; you start sweating. But a lot of times, getting on our knees, by getting uncomfortable, in the end comes real joy. You get to the top that s where real peace comes from. That s what I learned in Community. One person asked Billy what a typical day was like. Billy said they get up at 6 AM and pray a Rosary (the first of three Rosaries they pray a day) and then they read the Gospel reading of the day and meditate on how it applies to their lives. Then they go to breakfast, and if it is a fast day, they have bread. After that, they go to work. Everyone has their assigned job. Billy s job is to welcome and coordinate the groups who come to visit. They eat lunch at noon and then pray. Then they go back to work. He said that on the day before our visit, they quit earlier than usual because there Statue at Community Cenacolo in Medjugorje was a soccer game and Croatia was playing. After they eat supper, they pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet. He said that they wash their clothes by hand. They also play soccer a couple of times a week and watch a movie about once every two weeks. Sometimes they help carry disabled people up Apparition Hill. Someone asked Billy if there is counseling. Billy replied that they talk to themselves and with the other guys, and that they have the Eucharist there and they go and pray and talk to God. If you open up the Bible to the Acts of the Apostles we live like that. Once Billy s mother came to have an experience with the Community when he was transferred to Medjugorje. She stayed there and Billy got to be her guardian angel. He enjoyed telling his mother to make her bed neater and to eat all her vegetables. They prayed together and became closer than ever. He told about a visit his mother made when he was in Florida. She remarked that Billy looked so different, so good. But then she looked at his knees and asked what happened to them, because they were full of calluses. He told her it was from praying so much. She was so touched that she went back home and started praying more and going to Mass more. It was a blessing that I was a drug addict and that I m here in Community, because coming here 20 years ago to Medjugorje, she was really on fire with the faith for a lot of years. She said that for years the family got off track. They always went to Mass on Sundays, but then they were always too concerned with sports tournaments and going here and there the busy life that they kind of forgot about the more important things. And then me by taking this bad road it kind of brought the family back on the right path, through a weird way. But God takes these situations and turns them into something good. Before his entrance to Community, Billy s mother always dreaded doing Billy s laundry for fear of what she would find in his pockets cigarettes, drugs, pills. Then one time Billy went home for a one-month visit and when his mother reached into his pocket as she was doing his laundry, out came a rosary! She cried tears of joy. Billy ended his talk by saying that at the rehab centers they took away stuff, but he did not know what to replace it with money, a cell phone, a car He would try to fill the void, and it was never enough. Now I realize that God was the answer. Editor s note: Billy gave me permission in 2016 to record and publish his story, but I was not prompted to use it Since my heart was embittered and my soul deeply wounded, I was stupid and could not understand. Yet I am always with you; you take hold of my right hand. With your counsel you guide me, and at the end receive me with honor... None beside you delights me on earth (Psalm 73: 21, 23-25). until now. You can read more about the Community Cenacolo at Also, if you know someone who is addicted, you could pray for the intercession of our late spiritual advisor, Msgr. James Peterson, who founded a community similar to Cenacolo, called Maria House Project. If you would like a prayer card of Msgr. Peterson which was touched to one of his hairs (our diocese is collecting information for possible canonization), send us a self-addressed stamped envelope to P.O. Box 6346, Erie, PA and mark on the envelope Fr. Pete (his preferred name) THE SPIRIT OF MEDJUGORJE JULY 2018

6 Seminar with Father Zlatko Sudac Part 1 Editor s note: In 2002, I wrote a 3-part series about a seminar I attended with Fr. Zlatko Sudac. At the time, many people told me they made copies and handed them out. Recently, Our Lady and Her Son made it very clear to me that the series needed to be reprinted. Parts 2 and 3 will follow in the next issues. With a smile that went from ear to ear, holding a little girl in his arms who was about to sing God Bless America, the 30 yearold Croatian priest looked just the way I have always pictured Jesus. Love of God, love of children, love of people, and love of life exuded from him. I wanted some of what he has. I have to confess, though, that what drew me to this seminar on November 9 and 10 (2001) in Chicago was the fact that Father Zlatko Sudac has an unusual stigmata as well as many other special charisms, including the gift of healing. I was curious. Once the retreat started, however, I forgot about all those things. This was good, because Father has said that if you come to see him, you have made a mistake. It would be better for me not to have been born if I were to draw attention to myself and not to Jesus Christ, he said in an interview with Medjugorje Magazine. If you have come (to the seminar) because of Jesus Christ, then you can stay, the holy priest said. So I stayed. A former soldier in the Yugoslavian military, Father Sudac was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Krk, Croatia on June 29, 1998 at the age of 27. Less than a year later, in May of 1999, he received the stigmata of a cross on his forehead. It began at a friend s home on the Friday following the beatification of Padre Pio, who also bore the stigmata. In an interview with a Croatian newspaper, Father Sudac beseeched people not to compare him to Padre Pio though. Croatian Relief Services reported about Father s charisms in Father s own words: The cross on my forehead is painful especially when I pray. On certain days such as First Fridays of the month it begins to bleed. Before the phenomenon of stigmatization, I had gifts like the gift of languages (tongues), the gift of healing, the gift of counsel and slowly the gift of language came also. After the stigmatization, I received many other gifts. Some of these gifts overwhelmed me very much...by this, I refer especially to the gift of levitation, bilocation, illumination and the knowledge of upcoming events the knowledge about the near future and especially about future dangers. In addition to these charisms, Father has been gifted with remarkable abilities in artwork, particularly stained glass, and also with an extraordinary voice when he is singing in Hebrew. Like the visionaries of Medjugorje, Father Sudac has been subjected to rigorous testing by physicians, first in his homeland of Croatia and then by physicians in Rome. Doctors sutured his stigmata closed at one point, but when they took off By June Klins Fr. Sudac in Medjugorje in 2011 the bandages, they found that another stigmata of a cross appeared on top of the scar. Then, on October 4, 2000, the feast of St. Francis (the first known stigmatist), Father Sudac received the stigmata on his wrists and feet while studying at a convent in Italy. As is the case with many priests, Father Sudac s vocation was fostered by his mother. As a young girl, Mrs. Sudac had a strong desire to enter the religious life, but because of family problems, was prevented from doing so. Consequently, she vowed to Mary that if she ever gave birth to a son she would consecrate him to God. Not only did she keep her vow, but she also took young Zlatko on a pilgrimage to Medjugorje during the early years of the apparitions. After his ordination, but before the onset of his forehead stigmata, Father Sudac went to Medjugorje two more times. Of his time in Medjugorje, Father voiced, Those were unforgettable experiences. It is a holy place of prayer, silence and conversion of heart. When posed with the question of what was the most important thing he found in Medjugorje, he answered, Honesty, to be a lover of truth. Today truth provokes. It seeks the whole person. And Mary cannot but ask for my entire self. Giving myself to Man and to God, I do not lose myself, but I find myself. That is what I carry from Medjugorje. The message I received especially to have trust in God. He requests that people who make his retreats in Croatia make a pilgrimage to Medjugorje first. Although Father Sudac never mentioned it at the seminar, nor have I read it in any of the articles about his life, my heart tells me that Our Lady of Medjugorje played a big role in Father s vocation and continues to play a big role in his ministry. As I listened to Father s talks at the seminar I could not help but see a parallel to Our Lady s messages in Medjugorje. My premise (and I emphasize that this is just my own feeling) is that Father became like a sponge during his three pilgrimages to Medjugorje and soaked up all of the messages of Our Lady so that he could sprinkle them upon us during this period of trial for the world. When he mentioned that he came to the United States three days before the September 11 th tragedy, it occurred to me that this would have been September 8, which is the day that the Church celebrates Our Lady s birthday. How appropriate! Father Sudac s bishop in Croatia, who has given his blessing to Father s ministry, requests that no photographs be taken and no audio or video taping be done during his seminars. Knowing I would never be able to remember everything, I took notes during the talks. As I looked back over my notes, they seemed to confirm what I had suspected that the many common threads weaving through the various talks echoed Our Lady s messages. The themes of peace, joy and love were woven into all of the talks. I lost count of how many times he implored us to pray and fast, and to NOT be afraid. He called for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the world and also talked about prayer of the heart. JULY THE SPIRIT OF MEDJUGORJE

7 None of these directives should be unfamiliar, as not only are these Our Lady s messages, but they are the messages of the Gospels as well. Father Sudac started and ended each of his talks with a song. He feels that singing is praying twice. Music is a great medium of prayer, he exclaimed. He had us up out of our seats, clapping and doing gestures to the songs, like children. He even had a Jesus doll that he waved around as we sang. We had fun, but I think he had even more fun than we did! At one point, he began to tell us a joke, but was laughing so hard that he could hardly get the words out. He has the innocence of a child, that Jesus said we must have, to enter the kingdom of Heaven (Mt 18:3), reminiscent of the salutation Our Lady of Medjugorje always uses, Dear children. People are very tired of theory and need a simple approach, Father said. Jesus is very simple. He never complicated life. He asserted that there cannot be a spiritual person who is not happy, and that a person who is not joyful is not a believer. Even in difficult moments we should be able to laugh, he contended. Humor shows that a person is with God. Many people have remarked that Father Sudac s eyes bring to mind Jesus. A prayer written by Father Slavko says, Since the feast day of our patron saint this year, St. Charbel (sometimes spelled St. Sharbel) Makhluf, is on July 24, I thought it might be a good time to share his story. Our Lady has requested that we read and learn about the saints to help us to grow in holiness as we strive to imitate their virtues. St. Charbel, whose birth name was Youssef, was born to a poor Lebanese family in As a young boy, he was responsible for caring for the family s sheep. He would take the flock to a grotto nearby, where he had installed an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and spend the day in prayer. At age twenty-three, he left home and traveled on foot to the Monastery of Our Lady of Mayfouk, where he took the name Charbel, after a 2 nd century martyr. He was ordained in St. Charbel embraced a life of prayer, fasting, and penance, but he desired greater solitude. With the permission of his superior, he moved to a hermitage, where he slept Jesus, with Your eyes You warned, expressed sympathy and called to love. Love and peace, mercy and righteousness glowed in Your eyes. So too with Father Sudac. When speaking of Jesus teachings he became very passionate. He was on fire with the Holy Spirit. He warned, as Jesus did in His woe statements, yet expressed sympathy when speaking of the tragedies of September 11 th. In all that he said though, the love of, and for, Jesus emanated from him. Sister Marie Michael Miller of Elmira, New York, described Father Sudac, as Christ like a person as I ever met. In an interview with a Croatian newspaper in September of 2000, Father Sudac said, I wish to speak about God. I wish to pray with people. I wish to live my priesthood, to be a normal person, joyful and relaxed. I wish to make other people happy. That is exactly what he did at the seminar in Chicago. People filing out of the arena were glowing. Just as Jesus had given the apostles an assignment before He left them (Mk 16:15), Father Sudac gave us an assignment before he left us, too. The homework he gave us was very simple to make someone happy in the following week. His intention, he said, was to swell the 5000 happy people in attendance to a whopping 10,000 happy people. Be the boomerang of God s love, Father exclaimed. And hit the people you meet in the head! Happy Feast Day to our Patron Saint, St. Charbel By June Klins Christians and Shiite Muslims alike gathered for his funeral. From the first night after his burial, mysterious rays of light emanated from his grave. When his body was exhumed in 1950, it was found to be incorrupt it was just as supple as if he were still alive, and blood and water were sweating from his body. Through his intercession 3,800 miracles took place during the three months while his body was exposed for public veneration. He was canonized on April 9, 1977 by Pope Paul VI. The stream of miracles that began at that time continues to this day. According to the Poland-based magazine, Love One Another! (issue #40), the total number of cures attributed to St. Charbel s intercession has exceeded 26,000! Through signs and miracles St. Charbel in his great humility directs us toward the Risen Lord, who is present in the sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist. He calls us also to repentance, and to radical separation from all sin, which is the source of all human unhappiness. He makes us aware that the essential condition for healing is total trust in Divine Mercy, on a mattress stuffed with leaves. constant daily prayer, immediate severance His whole day centered around the Picture of St. Charbel in a shop in from every sin through the sacrament of Eucharist: preparing for it, saying it, Medjugorje Penance, and the most frequent possible and adoring the Lord in thanksgiving acceptance of Jesus in Holy Communion. afterward. His contemporaries described him as being St. Charbel certainly lived the messages of Our Lady, a drunk on God. As his reputation for holiness grew, the century before She began appearing in Medjugorje. We sick and the poor began seeking his blessing and advice. thank him for choosing to be our patron saint this year, and After twenty-three years in solitude, St. Charbel suffered a we ask for his intercession as we continue to try our best to stroke while celebrating Mass. He died on December 24, live and spread Her messages. As of June 25, 2018, the number of Masses reported for Our Lady s intentions was 23,789. JULY THE SPIRIT OF MEDJUGORJE

8 The Spirit of Medjugorje Information Center P.O. Box 6614 Erie, PA U.S.A. RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE PAID ERIE, PA PERMIT NO. 685 DATED MATERIAL On June 24, 1981 in Medjugorje, Our Lady appeared to six children. She identified Herself as the Blessed Virgin, Queen of Peace, and has continued to appear daily. Her message is PEACE, peace with God and man. Her words to the visionaries, I have come to tell the world that God exists. He is the fullness of life, and to enjoy this fullness and obtain peace, you must return to God. Today, all but three of the visionaries have daily apparitions of the Blessed Mother. During the apparitions, the visionaries do not react to light, don t hear any sound or react to being touched. They feel that they are outside of time and space. All the visionaries declare to see the Blessed Virgin as they see other people - in three dimension. They pray and speak with Her. The Blessed Mother is confiding ten secrets to each visionary (some are chastisements for the world) and promises to leave a visible sign at the place of the apparitions in Medjugorje for all humanity. This time, this period of grace, is for CONVERSION Permission is given to spread the text of any original works and may be used with the following conditions: 1) No words are changed; 2) Spirit of Medjugorje is cited. For articles by other sources, permission must be obtained from the original source. If you want to receive The Spirit of Medjugorje monthly newsletter, please fill out the form below and return to: P.O. Box 6614, Erie, PA If you are able to send a donation to help spread Mary s messages, it would be greatly appreciated. We request that you renew your subscription annually to remain on our mailing list. May God bless you. Please check one: New Renew Distribute Adoration Newsletters Issue #1 or Issue #2 (please circle) (# of newsletters) Name Street Address MARY IS CALLING YOU and a DEEPENING OF FAITH. After the visible sign, those still living will have little time for conversion. Father Jozo Zovko, who was the pastor of St. James when the apparitions began, has spoken about what he calls the weapons or the the five stones of Our Lady. They are: prayer with the heart, especially the Rosary; Eucharist; Holy Bible; monthly Confession; and fasting. The publisher recognizes and accepts that the final authority regarding the apparitions at Medjugorje rest with the Holy See in Rome. To borrow an original prayer cloth from Medjugorje for a week, send a self-addressed stamped envelope to the address below. You must include your phone number. If you want a prayer cloth we made to keep, send a self-addressed stamped business size (4 1 / 8 x 9 1 / 2 ) envelope with $.71 postage on it. Sponsor a subscription for someone in a foreign country (suggested donation: $13 to cover postage) Distribute Beginner s Guides (# of guides) (Please, no foreign checks or money orders, except postal money orders. U.S. FUNDS ONLY) City, State and Zip Code VOL. 31, NO. 7