Bulletin
197
Medjugorje, April 26, 2004
“Dear
children! Also today,
I call you to live my messages even more strongly in humility and love so that
the Holy Spirit may fill you with His grace and strength. Only in this way
will you be witnesses of peace and forgiveness. Thank you for having responded to my call.”
April 25, 2004
Why art thou cast down, O
my soul?
At the threshold of death,
a nine-year-old girl revived the wavering faith of her mother... This mom had
always prayed with her children, she took them for mass, she spoke to them about
Jesus and about eternity. And yet: when her daughter was seriously ill and at
the threshold of death, the mother was only able to groan, and she even doubt
about the eternity… At this point, the girl challenged her mother: “Mom, why
are you crying, since you know that we will be again joined together in eternity?
Didn't you tell me that, after death, we all go to heaven, to God, where one is
much better than here on earth?” By hearing these words, the mother remained
silent...
We have just celebrated
Easter, the day of victory and the beginning of eternity for those who believe.
Can we remain indifferent in front of such an event? Can we retain our emotions
and prevent ourselves from exclaiming: “Thank you, Lord and Savior! Live Jesus
the champion! You are our salvation! In you is the source of life, in your light
we see the light!”
As Christians, we should
not weaken when the burden of life weighs too heavily upon us, or when we are
undergoing a hard trial. Faith, which Jesus is asking from us, must be stronger
than passing adversities of this life. Jesus remains faithful to his Father
until the end, and Mary, his Mother, does not back off from the way of the cross
of her Son. The day of Resurrection is the luminous way, which always leads us
on our way. We should never doubt the joy that is promised to us in eternity, at
the end of the combat. We must live in our real life the victory of Jesus over
death, and we must give an authentic witness to it.
In our life, we will
undoubtedly know moments when we fall under the weight of the cross, without
force and determination to get up again; we perhaps already experienced them.
The sin makes us fall, and prevents us from getting up. If this is the case, let
us remember that Jesus died for us; let us remember that his resurrection can be
an inspiration for us. If we want to follow Jesus, a fall does not mean the end.
To stand up and to continue on the way: this is the task of those who believe
that - with Jesus - they can arrive to eternity. On this way, Mary walks with us.
Through her apparitions, she showes how much she cares that nobody becomes
discouraged, but that all live in the light of the victory of her Son. In
everything, it is faith that is most important. As the faith of that small girl,
who was not discouraged at the threshold of death.
Fr. Mario Knezovic
NEWS
NUMBER
OF COMMUNIONS AND NUMBER OF CONCELEBRANTS
During
the month of March 2004, 58000 communions
were distributed and 1185 priests
from this country and abroad concelebrated Holy Mass in Medjugorje.
In
March, pilgrims were here from the USA, Spain, Germany, Austria, Australia,
France, Belgium, Canada, Korea, Ireland, England, Mexico, La Reunion, Croatia
and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
EASTER
IN MEDJUGORJE
During
the entire Holy Week and for Easter, numerous groups of pilgrims arrived in
Medjugorje, desiring to prepare themselves for Easter and to celebrate the
greatest Christian feast here. For Easter itself, there were several thousand
pilgrims from all over the world, but the most numerous were Austrians and
Germans. Also very numerous were Croatian pilgrims, and those coming from
neighboring parishes, who wanted to make their Easter confession here. Every
evening, during the three-hour prayer program, there were about 30 priests
hearing confessions.
The
Holy Triduum was celebrated in deep recollection and prayer. The liturgical
celebrations of Holy Thursday and Good Friday (as well as the Way of the Cross
on Cross Mountain), and the Liturgy of the Word in view of the Easter Vigil,
were celebrated in 12 languages.
An Argentinean retired
bishop in Medjugorje
Mons. Bernardo Witte,
Oblate of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, retired bishop of Conception (Argentina),
spent the Holy Week in Medjugorje.
He came on pilgrimage with
a group from Germany, because he is a German himself. He was presiding the
morning Mass for German speaking pilgrims, he was praying and hearing
confessions. He said :
“In 1984, after
my stay in Rome, I went to Vienna to visit a friend of mine, a priest. He spoke
to me about Medjugorje and I believed at once. Since then, I have the desire to
come to Medjugorje. Now, as I am retired, I have more time then before, so I
came to spend the Holy Week in Medjugorje. I want to see, to know, to pray.
Fr. Mathuni, who
spoke to me about Medjugorje, was present during one apparition. He saw the
sincerity of the children and the intensity of prayer of those who were present.
Since then, I keep an eye on the events of Medjugorje, and in past 20 years, I
have been convinced that they are true. They convey a message of faith and a
message of hope, which the Church is conveying, while calling to prayer, to
fasting and to conversion.
This intensity is
rather surprising, but this is how I interpret it: morality and ethics in the
world are in great danger. In an extreme danger for the world, for the Church
and for souls, extreme measures are needed. I admire and I rejoice! Each
apparition is a new hope and a new challenge. Also to this question, I have the
same answer: in a great danger of the civilization of death, these apparitions
promote a civilization of life.
I have the
impression that everything is happening in a harmonious way: these apparitions,
the pontificate of John-Paul II who encourages the renewal of the pastoral life
in the Church, and many bishops who consciously give a Marian orientation to
their episcopate… To resume, I would repeat the words of Our Lady in Fatima:
“At the end, my Immaculate Heart shall triumph!” I think that both, the
apparitions of Fatima and of Medjugorje, signify a call to the renewal of
Europe. In Medjugorje, the communist East has begun to collapse. Medjugorje is a
carrier of joy, of hope and of trust.”
RADIO
“MIR” MEDJUGORJE IS BROADCASTING 24 HOURS A DAY
Since
March 25, 2004 – feast of the Annunciation - Radio “Mir” Medjugorje is
broadcasting its program 24 hours a day. Our radio, which can be heard in Bosnia-Herzegovina
and in a great part of Croatia, as well as (through satellite) in Europe, in the
Middle East and in the Northern Africa, broadcasted until now 12 hours a day.
The new 24-hours scheme in enriched with new and various contents, that are also
adapted to the needs of our listeners all over the world.
These days, we
are finishing the work on the improvement
of the listening to our Radio "Mir" Medjugorje through Internet. The
access to our Web site is also improved now, because we have increased the speed
of our link. As you are using different operating systems and programs for audio
and video reproduction, see the link http://www.medjugorje.hr/uputeaudiovideohr.htm,
which can help you to resolve eventual problems.
Seminars in “Domus Pacis”
In the house of prayer
“Domus Pacis”, there were four “Prayer and Fasting” seminars for
pilgrims from Ukraine, Austria, Italy and Germany. Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic led these
seminars.
There was a recollection
for the members of the Franciscan Youth Fraternity from Herzegovina.
Franciscan School Sisters
led a seminar for 33 young girls.
The
9th International Meeting for Priests
The 9th
International meeting for priests will take place in Medjugorje from July 5 to
10, 2004. The theme of the meeting is “The
Identity of the Priest”.
You
may make reservations by e-mail: seminar.marija@medjugorje.hr,
at the Information Office personally, or by phone: +387-36-651-988 (for Marija
Dugandzic), fax +387-36-651-999.
We
ask all priests who have arranged their own accommodation with a family in
Medjugorje to note in their application the name and the phone number of the
family where they will be staying. We will arrange accommodation for all the
priests who have no direct contacts and have not arranged their own
accommodation. (Please note in your application if you wish us to arrange
accommodation for you.)
Instead
of a monetary payment, we ask you to kindly celebrate five Mass intentions.
It
is necessary to bring with you: your celebret given by your superior, an alb and
stole, a Bible, a small FM radio with headphones (for simultaneous translation).
Many
priests who do not have access to Internet may not have been informed about the
existence of this international meeting in Medjugorje. Therefore, we kindly ask
all Organizers of pilgrimages, Prayer Groups and Centers for Peace to publish
this information as widely as possible by all means at their disposal, so that
as many priests as possible may participate. In as much as it is possible, we
also kindly ask you to financially assist the priests who would like to come but
do not have the necessary funds for such a journey. We thank you in advance and
pray for God’s blessing and the blessing of the Queen of Peace upon you and
your work.
The
5th International Meeting for Married Couples
The
5th International Meeting for Married Couples will take place in
Medjugorje in the New Hall from November 3 to 6, 2004. The theme of the
seminar is,
“How
to heal the marriage and the family?”
Wednesday, November 3, 2004
3
pm – Registration of the participants
4
pm – Introduction to the seminar
5
pm – Evening Prayer Program in the church (rosary, holy mass)
9
pm – Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
Thursday, November 4, 2004
9
am – Morning Prayer
9:30
am – Lecture, sharing (Community “MiR”)
12
am - Silent adoration
2
pm – Lecture, sharing (Community “MiR”)
5
pm – Evening Prayer Program in the church (Rosary, Holy Mass, Adoration)
Friday, November 5, 2004
6.30
am – Prayer on Cross Mountain
9:30
am – Lecture, sharing (Community “MiR”)
12
am - Silent adoration
2
pm – Lecture, sharing (Community “MiR”)
4
pm – Preparation for confession
5
pm – Evening Prayer Program in the church (Rosary, Holy Mass, Veneration of
the Cross)
Saturday, November 6, 2004
7
am – Prayer on Apparition Hill
9:30
am – Morning prayer
10
am – Lecture, sharing:
12
am – Holy Mass – end of the seminar
Bring
with you: a small FM radio with headphones (for simultaneous translation) and a
Bible. Participation
per couple: 30 €. You
may make reservations by e-mail: seminar.marija@medjugorje.hr,
or at the Information Office personally, by phone: +387-36-651-988 or by fax
+387-36-651-999. The number of participants is limited because of the available
space in the Hall, se we ask you to send your registration as soon as possible,
latest by the end of September. All the participants are invited to individually
provide their accommodation in Medjugorje.
Lecturers:
The
Community "Word and Prayer" (Community MiR)
is a catholic society of lay believers, whose founder is Ph.D. Tomislav Ivancic.
The teachings of the Council Vatican II, which
was held whereas he was a student in theology in Rome, are the source and the
support of his inspirations related to the apostolate of the laity. In the
Encyclical of the Pope Paul VI "Evangelii nuntiandi" (1975),
consecrated to the evangelization in the contemporary world, the Community
recognized its own nature. This is why the following period was marked by a
spirituality of evangelization, and expressed through prayer groups and seminars
of evangelization. In the 20-year-old practice, the evangelization activity
proved to be an particularly successful model of evangelization, not only in
Croatia, but also abroad. They showed that the experience of the presence of God
acts like a remedy in the healing of spiritual sufferings. Thus Dr. Ivancic
gradually developed an authentic model of proposal for a spiritual help, called
later the hagiotherapy, according to which one works in the Centers
for spiritual help, of which the first was founded in 1990, in Zagreb
(Croatia).
The activities of the
Community include several fields. The Community "is recognized by the
Croatian Bishop Conference for a special mission: to lead people to the
experience of the living God, through the seminars of evangelization, to work on
the spiritual renewal of the world and to offer spiritual help in Centers for
spiritual help (CDP). The first Center for Spiritual Help (in Croatian: CDP) was
founded in 1990 as a humanitarian organization, serving those who suffer
spiritually, persons plagued by fears, dejection, meaninglessness,
aggressiveness, guilt feeling, suicidal thoughts, sense of failure, inability to
accept oneself or others, marriage and family crises, problems with children,
loss of a beloved person etc.; persons with deviant moral attitudes (bitterness,
revengefulness, meanness, dependence of ideologies, sects, criminal deeds etc.);
drug-, alcohol-addicts, dependence of the occult, of people etc.; persons
searching for meaning, God, hope, understanding... Centers for Spiritual help
exist in Croatia, in Austria, in Germany, in Belgium, in Switzerland, in
Netherlands and in Italy.
The name of the Community, “Prayer and Word”,
designates its essence: in prayer, it receives the power of the Holy Spirit who
makes her able to give to people the living God through the Word.
Summer Schedule at the
Shrine
The
summer prayer program schedule at the Shrine of the Queen of Peace in Medjugorje
begins on May 1st.
Prayer
of the Rosary in the parish church will begin at 6pm. Holy Mass will be at 7pm,
followed by the blessings and the third part of the rosary. Eucharistic
adoration on Thursday will be after the evening Mass and on Wednesday and
Saturday from 10-11 pm. Veneration of the cross will be on Friday after the
evening Mass.
Rosary
on Apparition Hill and the Way of the Cross on Krizevac will begin at 4pm. You
can make your confession every evening during the evening prayer program.