What Happened on August 18, 2003: Caritas Silver Jubilee

What Happened on August 18, 2003: Caritas Silver Jubilee


Monday, August 18, 2003
Apparition in the Bedroom

We gathered at 6:00 P.M. in the Bedroom once again. The apparition was longer than usual today, lasting 3 minutes and 25 seconds. As every day, we ended the apparition with the prayer the Magnificat, and one Glory Be. But on this day, we were in such peace, Marija stayed in the Bedroom and answered many questions for the community. There was so much we learned from these short conversations about Marija’s experiences with Our Lady. Of the apparition Marija said:
 

Marija: “Our Lady pray over us and She blessed us…and She pray long time, over us. Apparition long time today?”

Founder: “Longer time than normal.”

Marija is never sure how long the apparition is for those who are with her. She knows when it is longer for her, but that experience doesn’t always coincide with our time. Medjugorje visionary Mirjana said that during the apparition of March 18, 1996, she kept thinking of all the poor people present who were having to kneel for hours during her apparition because, to her, the apparition was going on for hours. However, the length of the apparition for those who were present was only six minutes.

After Marija stated the apparition was a long time, she continued:

Marija: “All time She pray over us. We become more better (laughter).

Founder: “So when She came She immediately raised Her arms and began praying?”

Marija: “No. I recommend all our intentions.”

Founder: “Then She prayed?” Marija nodded “yes.” “So, did you see Her lips move?”

Marija: “Yes. She pray over us.”

Founder: “But you don’t hear anything?” Marija again nods in agreement with his statement. “She prayed a long time.”

Marija: “Yes, also for me it was long time.”

Founder: “How long did it feel to you?”

Marija: “Was many minutes.”

Our founder laughed and said, “You win special grace.”

Marija: “Probably Our Lady see all these girls so beautiful.”

All the little girls came dressed up in their “spinning” southern-style dresses. Marija’s comment made everybody laugh.

Speaking to one of the young community girls, Marija says: Annie you don’t have more these beautiful dress?” (More laughter)

Founder: “Do you have any indication when Our Lady prays over people what She’s doing or what She’s saying?”

Marija: “Yes. She’s like praying healing to God for the person. She’s prayed out loud with voice.”

Founder: “So you’ve heard Her praying out loud before?”

Marija: “Yes.”

Founder: “And She says prayers for the plan for them?”

Marija: “No, She said like thanksgiving for this person.”

Founder: “For their life?”

Marija: “For life, for like God’s creation.”—God’s creating them.

Annette: “Did She smile any?”


Marija: “Today? No.”


Founder: “Today She moved Her lips, but you couldn’t hear anything?”

Marija: “Yes”.

Founder: “Does She always say “Praised be Jesus and Mary?”

Marija: “Always, always, always.”

Founder: “She says “Praised be Mary,” too?”


Marija: “No, Jesus, and we answer, Jesus and Mary.” Marija then said the entire exchange in Croatian.

Annette: “Does She say this when She comes or when She leaves.”

Marija: “When She comes.”


Our founder says we have become more responsible today with this long prayer of Our Lady.

Joan: “And when you see Her go away, do you see something open in Heaven?”

Marija: “No, She slowly go.”

Joan: “And you don’t see the ceiling and the walls?”

Marija: “No, we don’t see nothing. It’s like big space.”

Anthony: “Do you see into Heaven? See into it?”

Marija: “No. It’s like when you see airplane, you see distance.” (Big space)

Anthony: “But you don’t see into Heaven.”

Marija: “No.”

Annette: “Do you know when She’s about to go?”

Marija: “She says always, ‘Go in peace.’”

Annette: “Always?”

Marija: “Always.”

Annette: “So when She says that, don’t you say, ‘Wait a minute, wait a minute!”?” (laughter)

Marija: “Not is possible.”

Annette: “Don’t you say, “Let me say one more thing?”

Marija: “But normally in beginning I immediately say I recommend all our intentions, all what we have in our hearts. So I think Our Lady sees.”


Annette: “When She says, ‘Go in peace,’ does She immediately go faster?”

Marija: “No, slowly. She’s like Queen. She no move like us.” (laughter)

Founder: “Like us making pesto? With dignity, no?” Marija spent the day making pesto with our founder and his wife, and they had to work very fast, move very quickly. Our founder used the word “no” meaning “yes” as the Italians say and Marija confirmed his “yes” that Our Lady does not move like us, in a dignified way.

Marija: “Yes.”

Annette: “Does She go backward or does She turn around?”

Marija: “Also, many times before each apparition I think I have hundred of questions, like (our founder), and when its moment of apparition, it’s nothing so important. You know the presence of Our Lady is so beautiful, so important, like everything is like…you open your mouth and you no have no words.”

Annette: “When She goes does She go backwards, or does She turn around and you see Her back? Or you see Her front?”

Marija: “Yes. (Her front) She always leaves this way.”

Annette: “She’s always looking at you until She disappears?”

Marija: “Yes. She has this little cloud. Always cloud She is on.”

Founder: “Are the clouds always the same look?”

Marija: “Yes, always the same. Like also dress of Our Lady. When She have dress, not possible to see feet.”

Ruth: “Her dress is flowing or just stays still?”

Marija: “Stay.”

Tony: “Are the wrinkles always the same?”


Marija: “What word mean?”

Annette: “Folds, does dress go ‘swish?’”

Marija: “No always the same. Always everything is perfect.”

Founder: “So you never see Her from the side?”

Marija: “Yes, when She moves. Example, when She pray over us. She moves. She come and after that She pray.”

Founder: “Does She ever go like when a big crowd comes, does She go like this with crowd?” He imitates when Our Lady is praying over a crowd and moves Her arms to bless everyone.

Marija: “Yes.”

Founder: “You see Her sideways?”


Marija: “Yes.”

Founder: “And you never see Her hair like Mirjana once saw?”

Marija: “We see hair. This part.” Marija points to the area of her forehead.

Founder: “One serious question. Shut the door so we get good answer on this.”

Annette: “Is Her hair longer this year?” (laughter)

Marija: “I don’t know how long.”

Founder: “Mirjana saw Her hair at Her waist.”

Marija: “We know it is long. How long, we don’t know.”

Founder: “When Our Lady leaves, for years, I’ve watched you after you say the word, ‘Ode.’” (This word means “She’s gone” in Croatian, and is faintly whispered.) “And then there is that few 2 to 3 seconds when it looks like you are out of ecstasy, just after She leaves, but when Our Lady leaves and you no longer see Her, that first 2 to 3 seconds you look, not in pain, but you look, like in the transition…” He was going to say as if something almost dies in her but before he says so, Marija interjects:

Marija: “Sad.”

Founder: “Very sad.”

Marija: “This is normal. Always it’s like you leave paradise and after you cut this beautiful experience.”

Founder: “Do you feel, not like hurt, but pain…”

Marija: “No.”

Founder: “…but like…”

Marija, “No, like separation.”


Annette: “You feel like you could cry sometimes?”


Marija: “No…”

Founder: “No, but you look like this…”

Marija: “…but until moment when Our Lady disappears…like for example for Mirjana this moment she cry all the time. She says it’s so hard, so hard this experience….”

Founder: “Mirjana said once ‘Our Lady just leaves me.’”


Marija: “…only one time, this moment, like Jacov and Ivanka same thing.” Meaning, they only see Our Lady one time only each year.

Founder: “I see grief, but then you have consolation, don’t you, because She will be back tomorrow?”

Marija: “Yes.”

Founder: “So that gives you strength.”

Marija: “Yes. For us its big grace, but when we think its tomorrow (that we will no longer see Her)—but it’s possible tomorrow Our Lady come and say its last day, like with Jacov.” She would be like Jacov who cried continuously for months after Our Lady stopped appearing to him. He now sees Our Lady only once a year on December 25th.

Founder: “That transition (of watching your face after the apparition is over) is incredible if you can see—it’s not grief, but (is your daily apparition ending like) what Mirjana once said, “Our Lady, I wish she would just take me with Her because I don’t like this ending.”

Marija: “Yes.”

Founder: “So you feel a little bit like this for that moment?”

Marija: “True.”

Founder: “Knowing you have to come back to life today and make pesto?” (smiling)

Marija: “We are finished with pesto…It’s good but it’s not perfect.” (smiling)

Founder: “Any more questions?”

Mary: “Does Our Lady come with a Rosary in Her hand?”

Marija: “No.”

Mary: “Even when She comes to talk about praying the Rosary?”

Marija: “No, for example in beginning when we pray 7 Our Father’s, when we pray Hail Mary, She always no speak.”

Jenny: “Does She only say “Dear children” on the 25th message, to kind of set it apart?”

Marija: “Yes, some occasion.”

Jenny: “But like here, in the Bedroom, with short message, She never says “Dear children?”

Marija: “Sometimes.”

Erin: “Does She ever give you a specific message that you don’t tell anybody?”

Marija: “Sometimes.”

Erin: “When you come out, you don’t say to anyone, Our Lady gave me a personal message for myself?”

Marija: “No. Like in beginning Our Lady give some message to some person.

Erin: “She still speaks to you directly of personal things?”

Marija: “Sometimes.

Erin: “You said you just can’t ask her (certain questions). (For instance), when this priest was lost, you said you can’t ask Her questions like that.”

Marija: “Yes, but I pray, and I recommend to Her.”

Erin: “But you can’t say, where is he?”

Marija: “Yes.”

Erin: “Why.”

Founder: “Many people would come to her for this.”

Marija: “From Second World War, someone would come and ask where person is? Someone from Russia, etc..”

Mary: “Has She ever come with a saint?”

Marija: “No. Only with angels (3 to 5) and Jesus as baby.”

Founder: “When you heard that message at the beach, how did you understand that?” The message: “I want to give you graces. Ask for them.”

Marija: “I think we need ask more. I think we need to be more near to God, more near to Our Lady. Many times we are tired, we are like routine, also with Jesus and Our Lady and become daily life but we are like….tired, or become habit.”

Annette: “Angels today?”

Marija: “No.”

Annette: “Ask Her tomorrow?”


Marija: “All right.”


This beautiful session with Marija fresh from the apparition always gives beautiful insights. With a 25 year relationship with Marija, countless conversations with Marija, and experiences with Our Lady have given our founder insights into Our Lady’s apparitions that few have been in a position to share as why and what been instituted into a way of life of the community and transformed into writing.

 

kids walking

In the midst of the supernatural, having Our Lady with us every day in the apparitions, life everyday routines are still in place. Our girls—barefoot, walking down a dirt path, picking flowers to bring to the Field to place at Our Lady’s statue is an everyday experience, part of the fabric of our lives in community. As Our Lady told Ivan on June 24, 2011,

“…May my messages become life. Build them into your lives…”

kids playing on silage bales

At the same time, the boys are playing rough and tumble on large round hay bales, placed on the edge of the Field. Climbing, jumping from one bale to the other, playfully pushing each other off and then offering a hand to lift them up again, lounging on top of one under the leafy trees and talking, or pretending they are on a big ship or on large tractor—so many possibilities. All the while, their parents can be seen praying the Rosary with all the community under the Tree in the Field a short distance away. This is security in our children’s world. This is what makes them understand that they have nothing to fear. The Bedroom of Apparitions, the Field, the Tree, the Rosary, Our Lady, the community all together praying….peace.

kids carying flowers

Though second to the Bedroom in what Our Lady has done here, this piece of ground that we call “the Field” has always been beloved in the life of these children. It is sacred ground for us because of Our Lady’s apparitions that have taken place here and because of the way of life She gave birth to for the community through Her messages. So many memories are tied to this land, so much laughter, so much prayer, so many conversations. It seems as though it was just yesterday that these little girls were carried to the Field in their mother’s arms. In the midst of all these memories, Our Lady is there in the center of it all, birthing all from the Bedroom of Apparitions where She has appeared 128 times as of March, 2011. And in the Field of Apparitions, Our Lady has appeared 31 times, repeatedly calling us back to the Bedroom where She wishes for Her words to be fulfilled:

May 1, 1986

“…I wish that the fruits in the family be seen one day…”

The girls make their way through the grassy Field as if in a procession bearing a gift of flowers to adorn Our Lady’s statue…

boys running

…while the boys, at the sound of the bell signifying the time that the children come to Our Lady’s statue for their time of prayer, leave the hay bales and go running full blast to make it before the bells stop ringing.

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