Novena for Christmas

Hello from Medjugorjy!
It is cold and it rains but that did not stop people from Medjugorje to come to early morning mass at 6 o,clock am /zornica - in croatian ; zora=dawn/.

It is our Croatian tradition to have these early -dawn mass celebrated troughout Advent time.
Here in Medjugorje it is a special 9 day - novena in preparation for Christmas. In the morning we have morning mass and then in the afternoon at 2 pm we pray the rosary at the apparition hill (as we do on every Sunday all year around)

So the first day of the Novena was yesterday December,16th 2005 and it will finish on Decembre 24th, 2005.

As Christmas is the family holy day we are making all plans for everybody to be present at the family prayer on Christmas eve and then lunch on Christmas day. So far so good. Only some of the Pensions will have to be open since we will have some pilgrims coming to Medjugorje for Christmas time.

There will be a huge number of pilgrims coming after Christmas to spend New Year with us. In Medjugorje we have a special program with the holy mass celebrated at midnight on 31/12 so the first hour of the new year a person spends in the chruch with GOd. We always loved the idea.

I came first time several years ago (khhmmm ) when my parents decided I am adult enugh to be with my friends for the new year's eve and that first experiance will stay with me forever. Father Slavko was taking care of us at that time. There was so many young people from all over and it was just great experiance. The prayer and holy mass, all that wonderful music and then celebration we had in Domus Pacis with father Slavko playing harmonica for us as we were dancing .. ahhhh

Anyway, this year too, there is an anouncment that Domus Pacis will be open for youth to come and spend a three day retreat for New Year. Of course not everyone will be able to come since there is just so many beds in the house. But I am sure that if you decide to come to Medjugorje for New Year it will be good decision.

As I hear from my friends there will be a group of young people coming form all over Europe.

Now this is all for today. I whish you all wonderful Advent time.
God bless you all

Anita

Message to Ivan, December 9, 2005

Dear children, again tonight with joy I invite you,
in special way during this time of grace, to renew
the family prayer.
Pray,dear children, in the family during this time,
pray before the mager.
Pray, dear children, that with prayer the joy returns into
your hearts. That the light of Christmas rekindles in your hearts.
Thank you for having responded to my call.

This message has been transmited by on eof the members of the Ivan's prayer group. Also I remind you that this is my transaltion from Croatian and not the official Parish Office work. We try the best, as my husbant and I speak 5 languages so we try to compare with other colegues and their translations. Sometimes is hard since they are not present, or could not hear the best.
I hope you are all getting ready for the Christmas. We just got one great recepie for the cake and I can't wait to try it.

God bless you all!
Anita and Emanuel

Apparition to Ivan's prayer group, December 9 2005

Hello from Medjugorje!

This wonderful sunny morning we have today is just what we needed. I am writing to let you know that Ivan , the visionary, came from US these days and last night, friday, he invited all of us in Medjugorje (locals and pilgrims) to come and join the prayer group at the Blue Cross at 10 pm. We came .. and Our Lady came too.

Here is what Ivan shared after the apparition:
Our Lady came joyously with angels. She prayed for all of us present and specially for the sick. Also she blessed all of us and our families, and all religious articals we had with us with her motherly blessing. Our Lady's message is to pray before christmas mager.

We were so happy to be present at the apparition even we walked on that cold cold night. But to meet Our Most Blessed Mother is always so wonderful and extraordenary that you forget all about cold or rain or whatever...
I whish you all a day full of joy and peace!
God bless you all!

Emanuel

St. Nicolas Day

Yesterdy we have celebrated St. Nicolas. Big day for all Croatian children as St. Nicolas is famouse to bring presents - PROVIDING- you were a good child all year round. Now if you were not then you get just a tree branch. :-)

As in every Croatian family, ours also has few Nikols so they were also celebrating their name-day. So you can imagine the feast one can have.

Medjugorje is mostly deserted since it rains for days now. We do have pilgrims in the village but it is not possible to climb the mountains or to walk around the village. Most of us is preparing for the December 8th when is the big feast day and also that is the day when we are to plan our wheet for the Cristmas candels (Croatian light 3 candels on a Cristmas day during Cristmas lunch).
Vicka is back in the village and was speaking to the pilgrims this morning. Father Jozo receives groups in Siroki Brijeg (today is english).

Emanuel and I are back in the store, we are making greeting cards and mass cards for our friends and some preciouse blood chaplets for the local "Preciose blood prayer group". Divine mercy chaplets are on Christmas sale untill Dec. 22 so if you are interested please write us an e-mail at emanuelmedjugorje@yahoo.com. Also we have some keychains and Medjugorje Stone rosaries and Peace chaplets on special OFFSEASON(winter) prices. Online payments with credit cards are possible.

SO this is it from me today! I suggest you read the artical on plenary indulgence and think about it for December 8th.

Love to you all. May Good God bless you !

Anita

Plenary indulgence for December 8

In a November 29 announcement, the Vatican said that Pope Benedict has declared the indulgence to mark the 40th anniversary of the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council. The announcement indicates that the Pope "when he renders public homage of praise to Mary Immaculate, has the heartfelt desire that the entire Church should join with him, so that all the faithful, united in the name of the common Mother, become ever stronger in the faith, adhere with greater devotion to Christ, and love their brothers with more fervent charity."

A plenary indulgence, as Pope Paul VI explained in Indulgentiarum Doctrina in 1967, is "a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilty has already been forgiven." Indulgences can be decreed by the Pope or, under certain restrictions, bishops. The faithful can obtain indulgences for themselves or for the souls in Purgatory.

The indulgence declared by Pope Benedict may be obtained by those who "participate in a sacred function in honor of the Virgin, or at least least offer open testimony of Marian devotion before an image of Mary Immaculate exposed for public veneration, adding the recitation of the Our Father and of the Creed, and some invocation to the Virgin."

The announcement indicates that those who are ill or otherwise unable to fufill the normal conditions "may obtain a plenary indulgence in their own homes, or wherever they may be, if, with the soul completely removed from any form of sin, and with the intention of observing the aforesaid conditions as soon as possible, they unite themselves in spirit and in desire to the Supreme Pontiff's intentions in prayer to Mary Immaculate, and recite the Our Father and the Creed."

The decree issued on November 29 by the Apostolic Penitentiary, announcing the indulgence, also lists the usual conditions: sacramental Confession, Eucharistic Communion, prayer for the intentions of the Pope, and the removal of attachment to sin. The decree is signed by Cardinal James Francis Stafford and Father Gianfranco Girotti, the penitentiary major and regent, respectively, of the Apostolic Penitentiary. The issue of indulgences, and some abuses of the Church's authority in that realm, became a topic of heated controversy during the Protestant Reformation. The Church's teaching was clarified by the Council of Trent in 1545 to avoid future abuses.

Originally indulgences were issued as a substitute for the often severe penances that were common in the early centuries of the Church. Although the Catholic Church has always claimed the authority to issue indulgences for special occasions or for certain prescribed pious acts, public interest in gaining indulgences has lapsed in recent years. Pope John Paul II made a conscious effort to revive interest in this power of the Church, as has Pope Benedict XVI.

Earlier this year, Pope Benedict granted a plenary indulgence to those young people who participated fervently in the World Youth Day celebrations in Cologne in August. Pope John Paul II had declared plenary indulgences for the Jubilee Year 2000 and again for the Year of the Eucharist, which ran from October 2004 to October 2005.

SOURCE
Pope declares plenary indulgence for December 8 (Catholic World News 29/11/05)

Message to Mirjana on December 2,2005

Here is the message as recorded by father Ljubo in Croatian.

" Draga djeco, dopustite da se u ovo sveto vrijeme ljubav i milost moga Sina spusti na vas.
Samo čista, molitvom ispunjena i milosrdna srca mogu osjetiti ljubav moga Sina.
Molite za one koji nemaju milost osjetiti ljubav moga Sina.
Djecom moja, pomozite mi!
Hvala vam!

So translation in English would be:

"Dear children, alow that in this holy time the love and grace of My Son fall upon you.
Only pure hearts; hearts filled with prayer and mercy can feel the love of My Son.
Pray for those who do not have the grace to feel the love of My Son.
My children, help me!
Thank you!

Apparition to Mirjana at Cenacolo community, Decembre 2, 2005

Praised be Jesus and Mary!
This morning we went to community Cenacolo ( campo della vita) to once again be present during apparition of Our Most Blessed Mother Mary, to the visionary Mirjana. ALthough there is just a few groups in Mejdugojre, we had to come quite early to be able to enter the green tent where the apparition usualy happens. Many have come!
We prayed holy rosary and than little after 9 o'clock the prayer stoped, everybody got to their knees. It was the time of Apparition. Our Lady was with us.
If you are wondering why we have never put any photos of the apparition, I must addmit that we do not have time for that. Meeting our Heavenly MOther is not just any meeting, you have to be prepared. And one can prepare only by prayer, then when the apparitoin starts taking photos is the last thing on our mind.
SO I am sorry. No photos! Maybe I could ask the local photographer to give me some and I will put it on. Let me think on that one:-)

As the message was a bit longer I am affraid I did not get it right, so I will have to check one more time with father Ljubo and my colegue to see it right for English language.

But as you wait I will give you what I do remember. Our Lady asked us to be open in this holy time to receive love and grace of her Son. Only pure heart, a hear full of mercy can feel this love and grace. She also asked from us to pray for all those who do not know that love. Help me, dear children ! Thank you - she said.

I will write the full and correct version as soon as I get it.
God bless you
Emanuel