Reflection on the Message of April 25, 2006

I INVITE YOU TO HAVE MORE TRUST

“Dear children! Also today I call you to have more trust in me and my Son. He has conquered by His death and resurrection and, through me, calls you to be a part of His joy. You do not see God, little children, but if you pray you will feel His nearness. I am with you and intercede before God for each of you. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of April 25, 2006

In this message the Queen of Peace invites us to have more trust in Her and Her Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. We know how important trust is in life. Life on earth is unimaginable without trusting other people. We can only imagine what it would be like if we went through life doubting everyone and everything. Lack of trust closes us off from other people. Without trust we are defensive towards everyone. Without faith life is endangered. The opposite of faith and trust is not faithlessness and atheism but fear. When fearful a man feels endangered, as if he is being attacked by everyone. When fearful he feels he must defend himself, attack and insult others to preserve his own life. In this way he endangers not only interpersonal relationships with others but also destroys himself.

Fear paralyses man, while faith sets him free and brings with it security, peace and freedom. A child cannot live without trusting its parents. A child has trust in its parents and therefore can count on them and so grow and remain living. Jesus sets before us a picture of a child saying: “Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18, 3). Many times Jesus said: “Your faith has saved you” (Mark 5, 34); “just believe, do not fear” (Luke 8, 50); “all things are possible to him that believeth” (Mark 9, 23).

It is our lack of childlike faith in God which gives rise to our tenseness, frustration, anxiety, nervousness. There are fewer and fewer moments in our lives in which we feel the true and intensive presence of God. We feel torn apart and tired, while God waits. Jesus through the intercession of his Mother calls us even today and throughout these 25 years of apparitions of the Virgin Mary.

And Mary as our Mother, in this her message, places Jesus before us, crucified and resurrected, Jesus the victor over all that destroys human life.

Jesus Christ is alive, he is not a deceased Jesus but alive. Even today through his mother He would like to tell us: “Believe my mother, love her as I have loved her, do all that she tells you so that you may be part of my Resurrected joy and victory.” A mother cannot be parted from her child. So too Mary cannot be separated from Jesus.

Mary tells us – “You do not see God but if you pray you will feel His closeness”. God is the Spirit and we have a spirit and spiritual capabilities with which we can feel, experience and come together. We have the capability to believe, love and hope. The path to an encounter with God is prayer. No other path or means exists. If anyone should tell you there is another way, do not believe them. God is waiting for us through Mary. He is waiting for us to finally trust and begin living.

Mary is our intercessor, mediator and defender before God. She is tireless with us and does not let us fall asleep. She does not count her apparitions, Her messages. She does not live in mathematics but in love. It is not numbers but us that are important to Her. True love does not know numbers but is infinite.

Let us begin believing and loving so that we may get to know and encounter God and in doing so get to know and encounter ourselves and each other.

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje 26.4.2006

Reflection on the Message of May 25, 2006

PEACE IS THE GIFT GOD GIVES TO YOU

“Dear children! Also today I call you to put into practice and to live my messages that I am giving you. Decide for holiness, little children, and think of heaven. Only in this way, will you have peace in your heart that no one will be able to destroy. Peace is a gift, which God gives you in prayer. Little children, seek and work with all your strength for peace to win in your hearts and in the world. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of May 25, 2006

In many messages the Blessed Virgin Mary cautions us of the importance of her words which she has imparted to us through years of apparitions. She has said: “Dear children! You are not conscious of every message which I am giving you” (15. 11 1984). “I call you to live and accept my messages!” (21.3.1985). “Live in humility all the messages which I am giving you.” (20.9.1985). “Renew the messages which I am giving you.”26.9.1985). “If you live the messages, you are living the seed of holiness” (10.10.1985). “Dear children! My invitation that you live the messages which I am giving you is a daily one, specially, little children, because I want to draw you closer to the Heart of Jesus.” (25.10.1988). “Therefore, little children, every day read the messages that I have given you and transform them into life.” (25.12.1989). “Live my messages and put into life every word that I am giving you.” (25.6.2002).

Our Lady’s messages are nothing less than the Gospel spoken in simpler words and with a mother’s heart. These words can be understood by all. It is certain that Mary is serious; she does not intend to play with our lives.

Holiness is what Mother Mary wants us to achieve and live daily in our lives. A mother always wants what’s best for her children. In her message on the 25.5.1987 she says: I want each one of you to be happy here on earth and to be with me in Heaven.” Certainly she has not come to take something from us or take away the joys of life. She knows well that only with God may we truly be happy here on earth. She is filled with mercy because she is filled with the Lord who she gives to us and to whom she leads us.

Saint Paul tells us: “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phl 3, 20). In this message our Heavenly Mother Mary wants to direct our hearts by telling us to think about paradise. It is today that we enter paradise and heaven, here on earth we decide to which side we will go. It is here that we decide whether we will trust in God and surrender all our troubles to Him or whether we will carry our burdens on our own.

Experience tells us that there is much that robs man of peace. There are many causes of anxiety. Worries, haste, intemperance, nonacceptance of ourselves and life situations are only some of the causes of anxiety. Mary knows our fears, anxieties and anxious worries well. It is because of this that she approaches us with this message as a mother.

“Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in Him; and He shall bring [it] to pass.” (Ps 37, 5).

This is the path to peace given to us by Jesus. He tells us: And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin… for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.” (Matthew 6). We must certainly do everything in our power and then filled with trust surrender to God. Mary has spoken about it so many times and the entire Christian tradition speaks of ways to achieve peace. They are prayer and fasting. They serve not for us to appear good before others. The purpose of prayer and fasting is to find a place inside where man can be alone with God. In this place anxious worries disappear. When I come to peace, to God in my own heart then I do not have to worry about whether I will fulfil the demands of others. People with their expectations and judgements do not have access to this place in which God resides in us. God is the true liberation of man’s worries. Let the words of Our Lady’s message even today lead us to experience peace and union with God.

Fra Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje 26.5.2006

Reflection on the Message of June 25, 2006

OUR LADY THANKS US

“Dear children! With great joy in my heart I thank you for all the prayers that, in these days, you offered for my intentions. Know, little children, that you will not regret it, neither you nor your children. God will reward you with great graces and you will merit eternal life. I am near you and thank all those who, through these years, have accepted my messages, have poured them into their life and decided for holiness and peace. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of June 25, 2006

It has been twenty-five years now since the apparitions of Our Lady began, and with it the closeness to and love of the Virgin Mary. It has been twenty-five years of grace and the open sky at this place. The cry of St. Elizabeth is spontaneously raised in our hearts: ” But why am I so favoured that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”

In her previous messages Our Lady says: “God has permitted me to be with you for so long.” “I will be with you as long as the Almighty permits me.” ” I have come to help you as you cannot on your own.” A mother wants to help her children. She does not only call upon us for conversion. She calls upon us so that she herself, the Mother, may bring us closer to Jesus, the source of redemption.

To love the Virgin Mary, to believe in Her means to return at the foot of the cross of Her Son. It means to reach the source of grace and redemption. It means to experience and live the truth of the words of Jesus: “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me! Let him drink who believes in me.” As Sacred Scripture says: “Streams of living water will flow from within him!” (John 7: 37-38). Here in Medjugorje streams of living water have flown from Jesus’ heart and washed many a penitent heart in the Sacrament of the Holy Confession and Eucharist. For all the graces we are to thank the Lord, and Mary who is coming to us.

On the twenty-fifth anniversary of her apparitions, the Blessed Virgin Mary is coming to us with a great joy in her heart. She is coming from her glory and the fullness of life to which she wants to lead us as a mother. The Mother is thankful for all the prayers to all the people who have believed in Her and accepted her as their Mother and a mediator on the path of life.

“You will never regret it.” – Mary speaks to us. She has never deceived anybody nor has anybody who has believed in her or has turned to her full of trust in time of need ever remained disillusioned. She has not come to deceive us nor to deprive us of the joys of life. Only with God can we truly experience the fullness and the joy of life. God has never remained beholden to anybody. He will reward us not only after our death, but today as well, here on Earth.

The Virgin Mary thanks to all the people that have accepted her messages. It means to all those who have listened to what she has been telling us. Unfortunately, we sometimes hear a word but fail to pour it into life. It is as if we have a seed but fail to sow it leaving it in our pocket. The same happens with the words of Jesus. We hear them, but we do not pour them into life. It is the reason why in many of her messages Mary tells us the following: “Live my messages; witness them with your life; put them into practice; pour them into life.” If this does not happen, then we are similar to the man Jesus is talking about in the Gospel. “Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the stream rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7: 26 – 27). The same is with the words of the Virgin Mary addressed to us here. And her messages are a gospel told in simple words from a motherly heart. Let us come closer to Mary with our faith and love, so that the house of our life is built on the rock.

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje 26/6/2006

Reflection on the Message of July 25, 2006

FIND TIME FOR YOUR SOUL

“Dear children! At this time, do not only think of rest for your body but, little children, seek time also for the soul. In silence may the Holy Spirit speak to you and permit Him to convert and change you. I am with you and before God I intercede for each of you. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of July 25, 2006

Our Lady is a Mother, and a mother walks with us who are her children, she thinks about us and takes care of us. At this time when many are thinking about or going on holidays Our Mother Mary invites us to true rest which is necessary for man. After returning from their missionary travels, Jesus said to his disciples: Go for a while in solitude, rest. Man requires rest. Life consists of work and rest. No work, even the hardest, tires a man. The thing that tires a man the most is life without order, various immoderateness and excesses.

Mary knows that man is not only a body but also soul. We deceive ourselves if we think that only the body is tired and that only the body needs rest. We require complete rest. This means it is not enough to just rest the body. Many come back from holidays tired so that they need to rest from their holiday. This happens because man’s soul did not rest and was not filled with God’s strength. Total rest of the soul, body and spirit is achieved by being in silence and peace. Real and true silence is not the lack of outside noise and sounds. True silence is peace from sin and blame, freedom from dirty and rude words; it is deserting dark thoughts and bad plans. Overall rest is achieved only when we decide to be generous and forgive everyone. When we repent for our sins and decide to live differently.

Jesus invites us: “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I shall rest you”. Rest is the prayer of the Holy Spirit to help the soul, that He comes down and consoles our heart, to covert us and change us. Rest occurs in those moments when we are united with God who plans and holds our life in his hands. Rest is actually an encounter with our own soul. That is why we need moments in which we can stop so that our soul can catch up with us and come together with us. Rest is not just not working. Rest is the work of the heart and soul. When resting we allow the spirit to strengthen and fill us. That’s why resting on holidays away from God and prayers and the Spirit of the God means returning from holidays even more tired and burdened.

Mother Mary invites us, her children, to find time for our souls and places of silence so that the Holy Spirit may rest in us all that is tired, heal that which is wounded, strengthen what is weak. If we truly love ourselves we will listen to the words and invitation of our Mother Mary who even today does not cease to speak and lovingly calls to us and suffers because of us and for us. Let the Holy Spirit with its light and strength enter our lives so that we may experience true rest and peace which is given to us by God.

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje 26/7/2006

Reflection on the Message of August 25, 2006

ONLY IN PRAYER WILL YOU BE CLOSE TO ME AND TO MY SON

“Dear children! Also today I call you to pray, pray, pray. Only in prayer will you be near to me and my Son and you will see how short this life is. In your heart a desire for Heaven will be born. Joy will begin to rule in your heart and prayer will begin to flow like a river. In your words there will only be thanksgiving to God for having created you and the desire for holiness will become a reality for you. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of August 25, 2006

The Virgin Mary has not given up, neither her love nor the words of her messages constantly conveyed to us have not changed. What she did for her Son is the same thing she is doing for his brothers and sisters, for everybody that has become her child. Her mantle is now so large that anybody searching a place under it can find it.

Mary wants us to become aware of the brevity of this life here and the eternity for which we have been created. There is only one excellent way in which we may uncover eternity in time, and that is prayer. Through prayer we speak directly to God knowing that the past and the future meet in Him united in an eternal NOW. Opening up to God is opening up towards eternity.

“Only in prayer” – Mary speaks to us. Not in a prayer uttered shallowly in a listless manner, a prayer in which nothing happens, but in a sincere, devoted prayer from the bottom of one’s heart. Do we really open up while praying? There is a way of praying which does not free us completely from our prison. It just makes it a little bit easier. As long as we limit our prayer by praying for something, we cannot rise to eternity. In order to achieve progress in prayer, we must pray for more important things. “So do not worry, saying, ? What shall we eat? ? or ? What shall we drink? ? or ? What shall we wear? ? for the pagans seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” (Mat 6: 31- 32).

If a prayer does not change us, then we must change our prayer and the way we pray. Only in prayer do we get close to Mary and Jesus, and only in prayer do we become aware of the things we shall never be able to do so anywhere else.

Most people feel tense and under stress. Sometimes we are not even aware of the strain we are under. Just like the people who are not aware of their own absent-mindedness. Only when they start praying do they become aware of their wandering thoughts. Such tension and anxiety are a result of the lack of openness and faith in God. Just as blood wants to flow freely through our veins, just as the air wants to be introduced into our lungs and bring oxygen to our whole body, so Godly life, which is in the depths of our souls, wants to permeate the whole of our body and animate our energy. Tension makes the acceptance of God’s love more difficult for us.

Prayer is not a simple exercise, it is life. Those who want to dedicate themselves to prayer must decide firmly to often raise their spirit during the day, and, above all, to turn their hearts towards God. If we fail to do so and if we let our thoughts and feelings wander, our experience will tell us that prayer is impossible. Prayer is about our heart and life. It is a fruit of love, and we are unable to limit love to a certain period of time.

Mary wants us to experience the joy nobody and nothing may bring to us. She wants us to become holy. Being holy simply means to become what we were cut out for. Not being holy is against nature. Being holy means to be a unique, healthy and normal person created in God’s image.

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje 26/8/2006

Reflection on the Message of September 25, 2006

I CALL YOU TO COMPLETE CONVERSION

“Dear children! Also today I am with you and call all of you to complete conversion. Decide for God, little children, and you will find in God the peace your heart seeks. Imitate the lives of saints and may they be an example for you; and I will inspire you as long as the Almighty permits me to be with you. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of September 25, 2006

In many of her previous messages the Virgin Mary spoke to us: “I am with you”, “I intercede for you”, “I remain with you on your way to conversion”, “I am with you and I want you to believe me that I love you”.

Even today she is with us, just as she has been with us for all of the 25 years of the apparitions. Our Lady appears not to be visibly present among us in the flesh, but to call us to conversion, to the way of holiness and a new life in Jesus. The seers once asked Our Lady: “Our Lady, why don’t you appear in front of everybody, why do you appear only before us?” Our Lady replied to that question: “Blessed are those who do not see but still believe.” It is not necessary to see something with our physical eyes. Important things that we need in order to live cannot be seen, but we can sense them with our spiritual powers that God bestowed on us. The same is with Our Lady’s presence among us. All those who have believed the Virgin Mary with their open and penitent hearts have experienced and lived up to feel the greatness of God’s mercy in their faith.

Heavenly Mother Mary knows that we tend to forget things easily and we easily get used to the good, to blessing and mercy. When this happens, man forgets all about the Giver, the God who gives life and blessing to everything. In spite of our forgetfulness, Mary has not forgotten to call us today. It is a call from the bottom of a heart which loves and feels pain for each and every one that is far from Her heart.

Even today she presents us with an ideal. Even today she is demanding because she wishes us well. She does not call us to partial or superficial conversion. It is a call to enter into the unity with God. Motherly love is demanding. Do not expect impossible from us, but seek what is in harmony with our nature and what we ardently desire in the depth of our hearts. What kind of mother it would be if she did not want the best for her children. She has not come here to tell us what we want to hear, what is easy or what we like at first sight. She speaks of what is for our good and for our true joy and peace. No mother does good to her children if she makes all their selfish wishes come true. A real mother is demanding when it comes to raising her children.

Mary knows where the source of peace that our hearts are looking for is. We cannot fool our heart with things, not even the most expensive ones. A heart knows who its Creator is and therefore cannot be filled with anything less than its Creator. This is what St. Augustine wrote in his confessions who, after much wandering, finally found God: “Our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee.”

On the path towards God, and towards conversion there are many who had been there before us – saints. It is why Mary is made an example for us. She is a role model and inspiration. They certainly cannot replace us nor live instead of us, but can intercede for us, give us advice, encourage us to persevere, not to give up and not to withdraw from everything that is good, holy and positive.

As a mother Mary does not give up. She is encouraging us even today. She intercedes for us, loves and suffers for us and often because of us. Let us not make her love, closeness and encouragement be in vain for us and for our lives.

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje 26/9/2006

Reflection on the Message of October 25, 2006

I LEAD YOU TO ETERNAL LIFE

“Dear children! Today the Lord permitted me to tell you again that you live in a time of grace. You are not conscious, little children, that God is giving you a great opportunity to convert and to live in peace and love. You are so blind and attached to earthly things and think of earthly life. God sent me to lead you toward eternal life. I, little children, am not tired, although I see that your hearts are heavy and tired for everything that is a grace and a gift. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of October 25, 2006

The Blessed Virgin Mary, given that she is a mother, knows well the heart and soul of man. She also knows the spiritual illnesses into which we can fall prey to: forgetfulness, hardness of heart, negligence, blindness towards and ungratefulness to God for all that we have received and are receiving from Him. That is why this message resounds in our ears and hearts as a reminder, admonition, warning and mother’s reprimand. She has come to awaken us, encourage us and lead us to God who we must choose to follow today and not after our death.

The Virgin Mary, who comes to us through the glory of our Heavenly Father, knows better than we do the perils into which our souls may fall. In times past in our parishes there were folk missions held and the motto of these missions was: “Save your soul”. It is only important to save the soul. The soul is the basis and bearer of everything that man is and by which he exists. To save your soul means to be connected to God, cleansing your soul before God in honest confession, fighting against all sins which could distance us from God and one another.

While we are healthy here on earth, while things are going more or less the way they should, we somehow easily forget about our soul and God. We are hurried, rushing around and fighting to achieve more, have more and to secure our life and existence here. We all know that we will one day have to leave all of this but we still continue to fight frantically and hold tightly to worldly things. These are only signs of how small our faith is, that is, how little faith we have in God. And the consequences of all this are visible indeed. We have increasingly less time for each other, there is increasingly less trust between people, neighbours and in families. There is increasingly more tension, nervousness, fear and anguish in the heart. Our Lady as our mother wants to open our eyes to another reality, God’s reality which we carry in ourselves, but one which is not buried under and suffocated with things and anguishing worries for this life and world. In this worldly life much is needed. We think that it is important to have everything in life. However when a man dies, when he comes face to face with God, then the only important thing is that we have saved our soul and that we fought to stay connected to God.

God has been sending us the Mother of his Son Jesus, and our Heavenly Mother among us for 25 years and four months now. Mary said to us: “I will stay with you for as long as the Almighty allows; I will encourage you for as long as the Almighty allows; There will come a time when I will no longer be with you.”

Our Lady’s presence among us in this manner, through the apparitions is a grace and gift. It is a grace and gift to the Church, to you and me if we accept her as our Mother and we pour Her words into our life. Let a mother’s calls not be in vain in our lives and families. Let us take Her seriously today so that tomorrow it will not be too late.

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje 26/10/2006

Reflection on the Message of Novewmber 25, 2006

WHEN YOU PRAY YOU ARE CLOSE TO GOD

“Dear children! Also today I call you to pray, pray, pray. Little children, when you pray you are close to God and He gives you the desire for eternity. This is a time when you can speak more about God and do more for God. Therefore, little children, do not resist but permit Him to lead you, to change you and to enter into your life. Do not forget that you are travellers on the way toward eternity. Therefore, little children, permit God to lead you as a shepherd leads his flock. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of November 25, 2006

In her recent message, just like in many of her previous messages, the Blessed Virgin Mary repeats and calls us three times in a row to: “pray, pray, pray”. She utters these words wanting to remind us and to emphasize the importance of prayer for our spiritual life. It is not about some pious exercise or an imposed law. It is not a call to follow a forgotten custom. Prayer is not some spiritual training. Prayer is life. Just as our body needs air, food and other conditions in order to live, our soul needs prayer. We become well aware when we neglect our body. When we become undisciplined with our diet, our body easily falls ill. The same happens when we neglect prayer. Then spiritual viruses and bacteria find an easy way to our soul and man easily becomes a slave to all sorts of sins. He becomes prey of evil, hatred, wickedness, bad habits, curses, harsh words, selfishness, laziness and other evils.

Being a Mother, Mary wants to tell us that there is no other way and no other means towards God but through prayer. “Little children, when you pray you are close to God” – she speaks to us. In prayer we hear the echo of eternity in our souls. Or as the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us: ” As “the seed of eternity that we bear in ourselves is irreducible to the merely material, man’s soul can have its origins only in God ” (CCC 33).

Only in prayer to which Our Lady calls us so tirelessly can we experience and feel that deep desire hidden in our hearts. Only in prayer can we experience the truthfulness of St. Paul’s words: “But our homeland is in heaven. And we eagerly await Our Saviour from there – the Lord Jesus Christ“ (Phil 3,20).

Eternity does not begin when we die. We are immersed in eternity. It has already begun. We are to commit ourselves to it and struggle for it every single day. To be devoted to the Holy Spirit is to find eternity in time. The experience we have about the reality before a prayer is an experience of a limited nature of this reality to begin with. We experience how everything passes and goes into its own direction. However, after a prayer we see that everything is becoming different, new and never-ending. We then become fulfilled with eternity and discover an eternal dimension in everything. Or as St. John of the Cross wrote: “Lord God, anything can change as long as you permit us to have our dwelling place in You. Once we find our dwelling place in God through prayer, we no longer live in changes. At the end of our lives events continue to take place. We, however, are no longer involved in them. We find ourselves in a deeper place, in God, who is the very stability.

Once we have accepted God and taken His side that is against sins, evil, darkness and hatred, we already are in eternity. It is here that we need to struggle and create God’s Kingdom. It is here that we need to be allowed and to allow God to guide us, change us and enter into our lives just as Mother Mary invites us to do.

With sincere and humble hearts we pray to Mary, the Mother of Jesus and our Mother, who has become great because she has let God perform His works in her and through her. Let Her teach us how to believe and how to surrender completely to God and to our fellow creatures in order to truly experience in us the eternity that we have been created for.

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medugorje, 26 November 2006

Reflection on the Message of January 25, 2008

JPRAY AND FAST

“Dear children! With the time of Lent, you are approaching a time of grace. Your heart is like ploughed soil and it is ready to receive the fruit which will grow into what is good. You, little dhildren, are free to choose good or evil. Therefore, I call you to pray and fast. Plant joy and the fruit of joy will grow in your hearts for your good, and others will see it and receive it through your life. Renounce sin and choose eternal life. I am with you and intercede for you before my Son. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of January 25, 2008

In her last message, Our Lady entices us to prepare our hearts in the incoming time of lent, which is a time of mercy. She invites us to fast, pray, and make acts of penance, which were always the main features of the lent. In the Old Testament, the penance was reduced mostly to external signs. Today it is mostly so, because during the Lent the faithful renounce food, drinks, sweets and cigarettes, and much less swearing, gossiping and other sins. Christian fast and prayer are the foundation of the collectiveness, because the whole Church is invited to fast, penance and prayer, especially in the time of Christmastide and Lent. Renouncing the material things is only one way of penance for the personal sins. It is the proof that we are ready to renounce something and share with the people living in poverty and squalor. In our preparation, we must not stop at the external signs. The prophets of the Old Testament saw it clearly and warned the people that the only true change is the change which happens in the heart of men. If we change the heart, we change the whole man. Only such change can lead us to the friendship with God and people. Only in such way, our heart will receive the fruit which will grow into goodness. God created us as free beings and everyday we make decisions. We can choose between the good and the evil. The Queen of Peace invites us to renounce the sin and to choose eternal life. This is the only right choice. Every time we choose the good side, we chose the side of God’s sons and daughters and our life is filled with joy. We live a full life. Life is sin is only survival and suffering, while the life in God brings joy and peace. Here on Earth we can already taste the true joy if we live according to God’s commands, and we will experience the full joy in eternity, when God will wipe the tears from every face. Then, “there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Rev 21, 4). Jesus is our first role model, example, and teacher of spiritual life. Before his first public appearance, Jesus retired into the desert for 40 days, where he fasted, prayed and prepared for his first public appearance. Moses has spent the same number of days on Sinai, and also Eliah on Horeb. In the quiet and solitude, a man can better hear God, because he is not burdened by any disturbances. To go into the desert, to retire, even for longer period of time if needed, should not be justification for escaping people, obligations or job. It should be a privileged time in which we will be renewed in the vicinity of God, so we can live among the people and witness the Joyful news to them. Jesus is the lord of our life and our hearts. He can do what we cannot, for what we do not have the strength.

Mary, “Mother of Church” and our mother, advocates us before her Son. Her advocating and mediating role she started during her life on Earth – at the wedding in Galilee Cana – and she continues with this role today, celebrated in the heaven. By coming here to Medjugorje, Our Lady wants to help us to unite more forcefully with our Savior and Redeemer. If we answer the call of the Queen of Peace and if we prepare with the fast and prayer for the meeting with Jesus, we will be able to participate in the celebration of Easter with clear heart and joyful soul.

Fra Danko Perutina
Medugorje January 26th 2008

Reflection on the Message of February 25, 2008

WITH PRAYER AND RENUNCIATION TOWARDS HOLINESS

“Dear children! In this time of grace, I call you anew to prayer and renunciation. May your day be interwoven with little ardent prayers for all those who have not come to know God’s love. Thank you for having responded to my call.” Message of February 25, 2008

Throughout almost 27 years of Our Lady’s apparitions, we have been the witnesses of her care for us, just as a true mother cares for her children. She finds each and everyone of us important. No one is excluded from her plan. She wants to bring all of us to her son Jesus Christ.

In her tonight’s message, Our Lady draws our attention to the dedication so characteristic of the time of Lent we are living right now. During Lent God gives us another chance to become better people, to start to change. We should be concrete as prayer is the encounter of a true and concrete man with the true and concrete God. We are asked to become better as people in all areas of our lives. Our Lady provides us with the means that will help us in our fight – by prayer and renunciation.

Jesus is our first teacher of prayer. When asked by his disciples to teach them how to pray, he taught them to pray Our Father. It is a prayer that must not turn into a mere pronunciation or repetition of words. It must be a true address to the Father for his kingdom to come. In the Father we have everything. The only thing we have to do is to listen attentively to what He says to us in prayer. Everything else will be just added to that. We should be persistent in our prayer, and open to God’s spirit which will provide us with strength when things happen in a different manner than we expect them to.

Together with Jesus, Our Lady is our first female teacher of prayer. Some wonder why Our Lady often mentions prayer and calls us to it. Those wondering about that are people who do not pray, those who want to turn everything, even prayer, into sensation. These are the people not yet embraced by the spirit of the Gospel. They still feed on mundane spirituality. Our Lady calls us to prayer as she too has prayed and is aware of the importance of prayer more than we are. She prayed in all the crucial moments of her life: before the embodiment of her son Jesus Christ, when Christ’s conception was announced, on the day of Pentecost when Church was born, the Body of Christ. At God’s offer from heaven she replies with her whole being and full of grace: «I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.» (Luke 1,38). That is why she stands before us as the example of deep faith and prayer.

Another important means of growth in our spiritual life is renunciation. Not for the sake of renunciation itself, but in order for us to create room in us where God can be at work. Every renunciation is a sign of spiritual growth. One should renounce first the thing other than God that one puts first in his life. This thing may be people, fame, power, money, human considerations, we ourselves or something else. God must be put first. Only then everything we have renounced is given its true sense.

Every day in this time of grace we are called to grow through our prayers by which we intercede for those who have not yet come to know God’s love. We are called to pray for the forsaken, lonely, unhappy, aborted, for the souls in Purgatory, for all those who are in need for prayer. May our Blessed Virgin Mary, the Queen of Peace, help us and bless our noble-minded effort.

Fr. Danko Perutina
Medugorje 26/2/2008