Disclaimer

NOTICE: I am a practicing Catholic, active and in good-standing with my local diocese, who professes faith and loyalty to the Church. This ministry - my "little work" - is strictly a personal expression of that faith and loyalty, and not an officially recognized ministry in the Diocese of Honolulu.

~ Peter, Ministry Administrator


Saturday, December 29, 2012

Holy Relic Visitation: Our Lady of Fatima Prayer Group, 12/29/2012


At the Gruber Residence with (from left to
right) Anna, Eloise, & Dre', our host.

WOW - what a day this turned out to be!  From the extraordinary blessings received this morning to the blessings received tonight - it was quite overwhelming, but in a good sort of way.  I already had a sense that tonight's prayer meeting at the Gruber's was going to be extra-special and the Lord and our Blessed Mother did not disappoint.  Even before the opening prayer was said, there were a couple of gleaming Escarchas that were already manifested in our midst... and as the meeting progressed, the unseen presence of Christ and Our Lady became so tangible that almost all of us were deeply moved, even to tears. Furthermore, the atmosphere in the home was simply electrifying as God's love and peace overshadowed us.
 
Our Saint this month was Bl. Charles de
Foucauld - whose idea of being a "universal
brother" to all the needy and to those seeking
God's love, filled us with inspiration.
 
After the prayers were over, we shared our customary potluck meal and fellowshipped with lighthearted conversation over dessert and a few sips of wine.  On the way home, the group that rode in my car discussed the highlights of tonight's meeting, which included the mysterious sense of having the Lord and our Holy Mother invisibly with us... plus the faith-sharing of our Saint of the Month - Bl. Charles de Foucauld - whose "Prayer of Abandonment" (see below) left us all feeling very inspired; the warmth of his saintly presence was also felt during our prayers.
 
 
Dinner time after the prayers... and
the Colotario Family catching up with
our host, Dre'. 
 
In conclusion, the prayer meeting was a great way to close out yet another year of benediction and spiritual growth... and our little group is looking forward to 2013 and all the new graces Jesus and Mary have in store for us.  Ad Jesum per Mariam!
 
The Prayer of Abandonment
(by Bl. Charles de Foucauld)
 
Father,
I abandon myself into your
hands; do with me what you will.
Whatever you may do, I thank you:
I am ready for all, I accept all.
Let only your will be done in me,
and in all your creatures.  I wish
no more than this, O Lord.

Into your hands I commend
my soul; I offer it to you with all
the love of my heart, for I love
you, Lord, and so need to give
myself, to surrender myself into
your hands, without reserve,
and with boundless confidence,
for you are my Father.
Amen.
 

A morning filled with God's blessings...

 
Every day is a blessing from God... but today started off with exceptional blessings through the generosity of our dear Lord, Jesus Christ.  First, and foremost, I attended Mass this morning at St. John Vianney Church in neighboring Enchanted Lakes (left photo) and received Jesus through the Holy Eucharist.  It was wonderful.
 
Secondly, I ran into a dear friend of mine in the church after the Mass - a Sister-in-Christ named Eloise from my old, weekly prayer meetings - who I rarely see now.  We sat in a pew and spent some time catching-up and faith-sharing about what we've been up to for the past several months.  The time we spent together was also a joy and a blessing from God as we both recognized in each other the continued presence and love of the Lord in our lives and in our families.
 
Lastly, as Eloise and I sat talking about spiritual matters, I happened to glance out the large glass windows of the church and noticed an odd, but remarkable, light/shadow formation taking shape on a wall across a narrow stream that bordered the parish property - to my surprise, the formation began to resemble an image of the Holy Face of Christ Crucified.


I briefly interrupted our conversation and rushed to take a couple of cellphone photos of the wall and the image before pointing out the face to my friend; she immediately recognized it, too.  So we both joyfully gave thanks to God for this additional grace, and discussed the relevant appearance of the blessed image since the topic of our discussion at that same instance happened to be about... letting go of any darkness from the past so as to live in God's light
 
I'm not trying to persuade anyone that the uncanny image was truly a little sign from Jesus... but I can definitely testify that the Lord's timing is always impeccable!  God is good.
 
"The Lord bless thee, and keep thee.
The Lord show His Face to thee, and
have mercy on thee.  The Lord turn
His Countenance to thee, and
give thee peace."

Numbers 6:24-26
 

Friday, December 7, 2012

Vigil of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, 12/7/2012



The beautiful interior of St. Anthony of
Padua Church in Kailua, Hawaii

This evening, my Pilgrim Statue of the Blessed Mother was invited to be a part of the Vigil Mass for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It’s always special to see an image of Our Lady, up front and center, when we celebrate a Marian Feast in our parish church because one feels as though the Virgin’s presence is much more tangible when a statue or painting representing her is displayed during the service. At least, that’s how I feel about it. Plus, it was especially meaningful to me knowing that it was my ministry’s statue that was being utilized to help people make a connection with our sweet Heavenly Mother.

At tonight’s festivities, our priest allowed us to pray the Holy Rosary before the Mass started as a way of further honoring Our Lady. Many parishioners showed up early to participate, which was really great. The service was beautiful, as usual, and Fr. Clarence did a great job in extolling the many virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary during his homily before  we sang several Marian hymns. For some special reason, people were really involved with the service tonight and it was truly inspiring; even Father commented after about how he was almost moved to tears by the congregation’s participation. 

  
Parishioners gathered around Our
Lady's pilgrim statue and Sacred Relic
after the Vigil Mass ended.

After Mass several parishioners approached the statue to venerate Our Lady and her veil-relic, as well as to take photos with their smartphones.  It never fails that people always seem attracted to the pilgrim statue whenever it’s publicly displayed... and I could sense the sincere love and devotion that was being expressed as prayers were offered before the image of our Heavenly Mother.  I have no doubt that Our Lady’s spirit was with us this evening, blessing us abundantly... and for that, I was also very grateful.
 
* *  The Hour of Grace  * *

Lastly, since tomorrow is December 8th, the actual Feast of the Immaculate Conception, I’d like to take this opportunity to remind or inform readers about the “Hour of Grace” that Our Lady spoke about in her Rosa Mystica revelations made to the Italian seeress, Pierina Gilli, in 1947.  Our Lady referred to it at least twice during two separate apparitions to the visionary:

+ November 22, 1947:
 
“On the 8th December, at noon,
I shall appear again here in the Basilica.
It will be the Hour of Grace.  This Hour
of Grace will produce great and numerous
conversions.  Hardened and cold hearts
resembling this marble (the church floor)
will be touched by Divine Grace, and
they will become faithful to our
Lord in loyal love.”
 
+ December 8, 1947:
 
“I am the Immaculate Conception...
It is my wish that every year, on 8th
December, at Noon, the Hour of Grace
for the world be celebrated.  Many divine
and bodily graces will be received through
this devotion.  Our Lord, my Divine Son
Jesus, will send His overflowing mercy if
good people will pray continuously
for their sinful brother.
 
One should very soon notify the
Holy Father of the Church, Pope Pius
XII, that it is my wish that the Hour of
Grace for the world be made known and
spread throughout the world.  If anyone
is unable to visit his church, yet will
pray at noon at home, he will also
receive graces through me.”

Please consider observing the Hour of Grace at Noon tomorrow.  The recommended prayers to be prayed during the hour are the Holy Rosary and the Miserere (Psalm 51), as well as prayers for the conversion of sinners.  God bless you and may the Rosa Mystica - the Immaculate Conception - intercede for you.

Click here for more information about the Rosa Mystica devotion.

Monday, December 3, 2012

Hawaii's New Shrine to St. Anthony of Padua


The votive Shrine of St. Anthony of Padua
in the Church of St. Anthony in Kailua, Oahu.
The case to the right of the statue encloses a
certified 1st Class (bone) Relic of the Saint.

Today, our Kailua parish had the joy of dedicating our newly redesigned reliquary to St. Anthony of Padua - the only shrine in Hawaii, as far as I'm aware, that has a rare bodily relic of the illustrious Saint of Miracles!  The shrine was formerly situated at the other end of the church, under the main crucifix... but our priest - Fr. Clarence Zamora - felt that it belonged in a much worthier and accessible setting (and rightfully so).

       
Fr. Clarence blessing our parish's new
shrine to our patron, St. Anthony of Padua.
The students from the parochial school
assisted in the ceremony by bringing up
lit candles for the recently donated
votive candle stand.

So with the generous help of a few parishioners, Fr. Clarence ordered a votive candle stand for the devotional use of our faith community and set about making arrangements to move the relic to its current resting place.  The redesigned shrine utilized a niche and a marble statue of the Saint that was already in place within the church... and once the candle stand arrived, plans moved quickly and smoothly, culminating in a simple devotional space that fits in well with our unique church interior - it's beautiful!

I am now looking forward to seeing rows of lit candles offered by our parishioners and guests in observance of a time-honored and highly symbolic Christian tradition.  My sincere prayer is that from this hallowed place, St. Anthony will shed his blessings on all who have recourse to his powerful and effective intercession.

The original sketch I did for our priest of
the redesigned shrine to St. Anthony of Padua
and the first location of the reliquary when
it was under the church's familiar crucifix.

If you happen to live on the island of Oahu (Hawaii), or just visiting our islands, feel free to stop by our Kailua church.  All are welcomed to seek St. Anthony's intercession before his Sacred Relic and to light a candle as an expression of our faith in him... and in Jesus Christ, the Light of the World!

* * *  UPDATE:  A GREAT TESTIMONY FOUND IN GOOGLE REVIEWS * * *


For directions to St. Anthony of Padua Church in Kailua, click here.

Saturday, December 1, 2012

First Saturday Parish Rosary at St. Anthony's Church, 12/1/2012

 
Mary, the Mystical Rose, awaits the
prayers of her children in our chapel.
 
'nothing really new to report about this month's First Saturday Rosary other than the fact that we happily welcomed three newbies to the prayer meeting... and welcomed back a semi-regular participant who recently had heart surgery; it was a comfort to learn that he is recovering well.
 
Holy Relics of the True Cross of Jesus (left),
Our Lady (center), & Bl. Eugenia Ravasco.
 
As with past meetings, it was simply very special... and it was just today that it dawned on me that the bond among the regular participants has deeply grown over this past year; we've become a spiritual family under the Blessed Mother's maternal care and it's a genuine blessing.  For the thirty minutes that we're all praying the Holy Rosary together in the Day Chapel, it feels like time stops and all of our cares and worries are set aside as we're engulfed in a "bubble" of peace and a sense of the Divine.  Even a lady who joined us for the first time, today, testified that she appreciated the calm that came over her while she prayed the rosary, especially since she's been going through some difficult times recently.  She left looking much lighter than when she first walked in.
 
 
A new participant seeking Our Lady's
blessings and venerating the Holy Relics
on the display altar, including a 1st Class
Relic of Bl. Eugenia Ravasco (right) 
 
Our featured holy person was Bl. Eugenia Ravasco (d. 1900), the Italian founder of the Sisters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary... and it is always encouraging for me to see the expression on the participants' faces whenever I share about a little-known Saint or Blessed with them - I can clearly tell that most of the audience are genuinely interested and/or inspired in some way when they learn about the heroes of our Catholic Faith.  So tonight we had Bl. Eugenia's relic present on the display altar along with Our Lady's veil-relic... plus my relic of the True Cross, which was especially requested by one of the regular participants.
 
The next First Saturday Rosary for Peace will be prayed "next year" on January 5th.  All are invited to join us in welcoming 2013 with prayers for PEACE, for ourselves, our families... and for our troubled world.  Until then...
 
Merry, Blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year!
 

Saint of the Month - December 2012: Saint Charbel Makhlouf


St. Charbel Makhlouf
Man of Silence & Virtue
Feast: December 24th

Youssef ("Joseph") Makhlouf was born on May 8, 1828, to a poor Lebanese family.  Being a pious boy, he entertained thoughts of one day becoming a religious but his family opposed his plans and put obstacles along his vocational path.

At age 23, Youssef secretly left his home and entered the Monastery of St. Maron at Annaya, where he became a monk and a hermit for the rest of his long life.  He chose for his religious name, “Charbel”, after an early Christian Martyr who lived and died in the area.  As a testimony to his resolve to follow God, when his family discovered his whereabouts, his mother went to the monastery in an attempt to convince him to return home; he flatly refused and had his superiors send her away.

At Annaya, Charbel distinguished himself through his fervent practice of the faith, his habitual silence, and his immense devotion to the Holy Eucharist.  His reputation for holiness spread beyond the walls of the monastery and many sought him out for guidance and blessings.  His clients were hardly disappointed, as many came away from his presence comforted or physically and/or spiritually healed of their ailments… or a recipient of some other favor Charbel had performed on their behalf.

In his final years, the holy monk obtained permission to live as a solitary hermit and continued to practice strict self-discipline and mortifications - i.e. fasting, wearing a hair shirt, sleeping on the ground with a log for a pillow, etc. - until his death from a stroke in December 1898.

After his burial, the other monks and the townspeople witnessed a brilliant light which emanated for several days above his grave.  The excitement caused by the luminous display, along with the reported healings that were happening at the tomb, prompted the monks to exhume Charbel’s body to transfer it to a worthier tomb – to their amazement, the body was found completely incorrupt and as flexible as a living person.  The body also began "sweating" a mysterious liquid (manna) that occasioned healings for those who invoked the dead monk’s intercession.

Charbel was elevated to the ranks of the Saints in October, 1977, and his monastery at Annaya continues to attract pilgrims from all over the world, Christians and non-Christians alike.  

Although his body is no longer preserved, and the manna has since ceased to flow, miracles are still reported at St. Charbel's tomb.  In fact, it's one of the most visited religious sites in Lebanon.  May he pray for our personal needs and the needs of the entire Church.

A Reflection
Saints are the special friends of God... and when we befriend the Saints, we also befriend God.

A Short Prayer
Dear St. Charbel, help us to practice holy silence that we may listen more clearly to the words and inspirations of God.  Amen.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Holy Relic Visitation: Our Lady of Fatima Prayer Group, 11/24/2012


Tonight's prayer meeting at the Gruber home felt like Christmas!  When we arrived, our host and prayer-leader - Dre' - surprised us by generously gifting each of us with a Rosary of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin (bottom-left).  It was beautiful, yet sad at the same time, with all it lovely pictures depicting Our Lady's sorrows!
 
... so to change things up a bit, instead of praying the traditional Rosary this month, Dre' lead us in praying our new rosaries to console the Immaculate Heart of Mary, which had been pierced so painfully by seven sorrowful events that were reflective of the cruelty of mankind towards her Divine Son.  A couple of us were moved to tears during the prayer.  Even the statue of the Rosa Mystica on the home shrine appeared to take on a deeply saddened expression while the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows was in progress.  It only resumed it's normal expression - with its faint smile - once all our prayers were over.  As confirmation, another person also reported seeing the same changes in the statue's features.
 
What others also found very touching tonight was the life of the Spanish founder, Bl. Maria Carmen of the Child Jesus, who was this month's featured Saint (and relic) at the meeting.  She was a valiant woman who, through the grace of God, patiently endured an abusive husband for twenty years before he was converted through her devout example.  After his death, Maria Carmen founded the congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart to care for orphans and the poor in her community; she died in 1899 with a solid reputation for sanctity and was beatified in May 2007.  We prayed for the Blessed's intercession for all our prayer intentions and asked the Lord for her speedy Canonization.
 
We again closed the evening with a delicous meal and a bottle of wine shared among us... and topped things off with lively conversation and some heartfelt faith-sharing about our personal experiences of God.  I left the Gruber home filled with a deep sense of the Lord's peace and also very grateful  to Him and our dear Blessed Mother for another great night spent with the both of them... with Bl. Maria Carmen... and with my wonderful spiritual family in Christ.
 
A couple of prayer group members smiling
brightly after a night of intense prayer and
a wonderful meal of soup and salad.
 

Monday, November 12, 2012

Dear Blessed Mother, why do you weep? (UPDATED 01/2023)


"The thought of the loss
of so many souls is the cause
of my sadness."

~ Words of Our Lady at Akita,
Japan (1973)

An acquaintance from Canada once emailed me with a question: Why does Mary cry tears?  Why does she cry tears of blood? [referring to weeping Marian statues]  At first thought the answer seemed simple enough - Mary is very sad and the statues are being used by God as instruments to reflect the Blessed Mother's sorrowful sentiments.  But as I pondered more about it, I realized that there's much more to the phenomenon than meets the eye - there are actually layers of prophetic messages that are related to specific circumstances surrounding a weeping image; the type of tears the image sheds (regular tears, blood, or oil); or even the type of statue that's weeping.

To cite an excellent example... a credible report of a weeping statue occurred in 1972, with the world-famous International Pilgrim Virgin of Fatima in America (left) that was witnessed by large crowds to weep human tears in Louisiana.  A few years later in 1978, the same statue again cried... but in the second occurrence, it did so in Las Vegas, Nevada.  How significant that this statue - a tangible representative of the Fatima Message of Conversion, Prayer, and Sacrifice - has traveled the entire United States only to weep so copiously in two areas in our country that are well-known for unrestrained hedonism: New Orleans with its notorious Mardi Gras is in Louisiana, and we all know that Las Vegas capitalizes on the fact that it's popularly nicknamed the "Sin City".  The locations in these two separate incidents were definitely prophetic factors as to why Our Lady shed tears.

In regards to the type of tears, the sight of a statue weeping normal, watery tears must be impressive enough and effectively conveys a sense of sadness, and perhaps even profound frustration... but to see bright red liquid streaming from a statue's eyes must be downright upsetting and probably a little frightening.  Surely, bloody tears bear a much greater weight compared to normal tears... and I believe they express something much more serious - a terrible pain in Our Lady's Immaculate Heart due mainly to the fact that she knows what self-imposed chastisements are headed our way, but hardly anyone is paying her messages - or more importantly, her Divine Son - any serious attention.  This brings to mind what was shared with me years ago by an elderly lady-friend from the island of Maui (now deceased) who was a reputed mystic/visionary.  Her name was "Christina" and we became quite close friends, and I personally believed she was the real deal.

I visited with Christina in her home four times, and during my last visit with her in 1998, she confided to me and my friends that the Blessed Mother had recently appeared to her in a manner that was personally distressing to the seer.  Our Lady was weeping quietly, which up to that time my visionary-friend had never seen her do... so she asked her the reason behind the tears and Mary responded: "Christina, you need to pray... and tell others to pray more."

Immediately, Christina was given a vision of a great disaster that would one day hit the United States and, which would also impact the Hawaiian islands.  At that same moment, the Holy Mother's tears became blood, that dripped down her pale cheeks and fell upon her pure white dress causing dark red stains.  The seer admitted that when she saw the Virgin's regular tears, her heart was filled with sorrow and compassion... but when she saw them transformed into blood, she was terrified; Christina knew it was a dire warning that Our Lady was communicating and emphasizing to her, and she was deeply troubled by the experience.

A drawing based on one of Christina's
apparitions of the Blessed Virgin.

To this day I have never forgotten the somber expression that was reflected on Christina's face as she mentally relived her vision while relaying it to our small group; the look of anguish was evident... but there was also a glimmer of hope as she encouraged us to keep praying the Holy Rosary.  Clearly, the Virgin's tears of blood mean something much, much more serious.  I drew the image of the weeping Madonna that's seen above, based on my personal recollection of Christina's description of Our Lady's sorrowful appearance to her.  I find my own drawing somewhat disturbing so I can just imagine what Christina felt when she saw the apparition in person.

In contrast, while tears of water and blood express sorrow and pain, effusions of fragrant oil (in this writer's humble opinion) are a blessed gift from God especially meant for the healing and spiritual encouragement of the Faithful.  In Sacred Scriptures, the use of blessed oil was a method of consecrating something for a holy purpose, as well as being used as a healing agent:

"Is anyone among you sick?  Let him
call for the elders of the church, and
let them pray over him, anointing him
with oil in the name of the Lord."

~ James 5:14

There are dozens of statues, icons, and other images in the world today that are exuding oil with healing properties.  Three credible examples are the many weeping images associated with the late-mystic - Audrey Marie Santo (aka "Little Audrey") and the ongoing, Orthodox-approved weeping icon of Our Lady of Soufeniah in Syria, owned by the visionary, Myrna Nazour.  Incidentally, both women were Stigmatized with the marks of Christ's wounds.

The oil-weeping icon of Our Lady
of Soufanieh in Syria. Countless cures
have been attributed to the oil from
this Church-approved miracle.

And closer to home for this author is the "Hawaiian Myrrh-Streaming Theotokos of Iveron".  It's a contemporary icon of the Madonna and Child housed in a small Russian Orthodox Church in Kailua (Oahu), that's been regularly oozing a fragrant oil-like substance since October 2007.  Officially declared a miracle by the Russian Orthodox Church, the Iveron Icon tours regularly and its myrrh has effected many cures.... and being that it's local, I've seen this icon many times - in-person and up close - so can also personally testify to its unexplainable weeping, as well as, the humble character of the priest who owns and serves as its custodian.  Seeing it and smelling its incredible aroma of roses never gets old for me.  Lucky I live Hawaii! 

The oil-dripping Theotokos of Iveron
Icon, filmed during one of my many visits
to it (note the large streaks on the icon
and glass covering caused by the myrrh).

Moving right along... even the type of image is highly significant when it comes to the weeping statue phenomenon; again, I cite Fatima.  Our Lady's appearances in Fatima are arguably the most important of all approved Marian Apparitions, given the global scope of the messages; the miracle of the "dancing sun" witnessed by thousands; and the prophecies that have since been accurately fulfilled.

During my early years of research, many of the statues that have wept were representations of Our Lady of Fatima.  Undoubtedly, the Lord and his Holy Mother are making an important statement: heed the messages that were given at Fatima! ... but in the past 30 years, there has been another type of Marian statue that has been gaining ground in the area of inexplicable tears and mystical phenomena - the Rosa Mystica!

      

Statues of Our Lady of Fatima
that have wept in different parts of the
world.  The one filmed below recently
occurred in Fiji in early 2019.


The sheer number of Rosa Mystica statues reportedly weeping around the globe cannot be ignored.  To date, in my estimation, there have been 140+ such images that have wept or are currently shedding tears of water and/or blood (plus manifesting Escarchas!) in churches and in private homes around the world.  Truly, the Lord is also trying to draw peoples' hearts to the messages that his holy mother delivered at Montichiari/Fontanelle - important messages that expanded on the Fatima theme and lamented fallen away clergy and religious, while also calling for prayers for holy vocations.  Only now are we realizing the full prophetic impact of Our Lady's words in the Rosa Mystica revelations - the Church and the world are in urgent need of worthy priests and nuns... and vocations to the consecrated life have drastically decreased in the last few decades.

   

Weeping Rosa Mystica statues
from around the globe.  They are
the most prolific weeping images
reported in the world today.

      

In conclusion, when dealing with alleged mystical phenomena, I cannot emphasize enough the need for much prayer and discernment.  As seen in the many photos in this blog, the phenomenon of weeping images is real and it has increased in recent years... but this blog isn't intended to endorse all purported weeping images as genuine, as obviously, there have been hoaxes perpetrated in this regard.  The Church is always the best guide in weeding out true miracles from false ones...  and there have actually been a handful of weeping statues in modern times that were granted full approval by local Bishops after careful discernment and investigation.

The few Catholic cases that were officially recognized as authentic miracles are enough to merit our attention to Our Lady's unceasing call for Conversion, Prayer, and Penance... and also Peace and Reconcilation among all peoples.  For us to disregard these obvious signs would simply be irresponsible, as well as ungrateful towards God and our Blessed Mother for their extraordinary expression of concern for us.

We are now living in precarious times and the manner in which we respond will be critical to our future.  So please, please carefully reflect on what you've seen and read in this blog - Heaven is clearly trying to get our attention.  Pray about it then act accordingly.

      
Three Church-approved miracles
(left to right): Our Lady of Civitavecchia
(Italy, 1995), Our Lady of Akita (Japan,
1973), and Our Lady of Syracuse
(Italy, 1953).

 * * * * * * * * * * * *

"I tell you," he replied,"if
they [his followers] keep quiet,
the stones will cry out."

~ Words of Our Lord,
Luke 19:40