Rosa Mystica Pilgrim Statue Visitation: Dela Cruz Residence, 12/8/2024

My "Auntie Z" has a strong and tender devotion to the Virgin Mary.  She recently contacted me to ask for help in planning a special celebration to honor Our Lady for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception ... and since the Rosa Mystica is closely connected to this premier Marian Feast, through the "Hour of Grace", it was agreed upon that this ministry's Rosa Mystica pilgrim statue had to be included.

Praying the Rosary, the Litany of Loreto,

and the Divine Mercy Chaplet.

The end result was a most memorable afternoon, well-attended by family and several of my Auntie Z's co-members from the Sodality of Mary.

The gathering, itself, turned out to be a seamless blend of meaningful PRAYER, joyful FELLOWSHIP, and delicious FOOD as seen in the posted photos.

... and, at the end of the event, we were unexpectedly treated to an extraordinary grace - the appearance of escarchas! (I haven't seen them for a while).

The escarchas - in the form of fine, golden flakes - were manifested on my aunt's forehead and no where else ... and there was no mistaking it for ordinary craft glitter, either.  We watched in amazement as the first sparkles spotted began multiplying out of nowhere before our very eyes; spreading across our host's brow then onto her hair and even into her scalp! We interpreted the manifestation as a sign of Our Lady's spiritual presence with us, as well as, her gratitude to Auntie Z for having opened her home for the prayer meeting.

   

Some of the gold escarchas that appeared

on our host's forehead.

The escarchas immediately prompted questions from those who weren't familiar with them, which I then explained; attributing the grace to the intercession of our Heavenly Mother and as a spiritual grace often associated with the Church-approved Rosa Mystica apparitions, represented by the statue.  After all, the Virgin Mary did say to the seeress - Pierina Gilli - that wherever her Rosa Mystica statues are venerated she will be present with angels ... and today she kept her word, and affirmed our devotion to her.

Judging by how the people excitedly crowded around the statue, after, with reverence and affection, I do believe most went home very impressed by all that transpired.  In fact, another prayer gathering was asked for - for March 2025 - to honor Our Lady's Feast of the Annunciation ... and, of course, the Rosa Mystica statue is again invited.

O Mary, the Mystical Rose,

Immaculate Mother of the Church,

pray for us!

Marian Apparitions Presentation, 7/27/2024: St. Philomena Church, Honolulu

All thanks and praises be to God!  This morning's presentation at St. Philomena Church was, by all indications, a success with many faith-seeds being planted.

Approximately 100 parishioners came to hear this ministry's talk about Our Lady's approved apparitions and messages throughout the world - words of maternal love and concern, inviting all Humanity to return to God through Repentance, Conversion, Prayer, Reparation, and Peace.

This ministry's precious relics of the Blessed Virgin's veil and several Marian visionaries and Saints were also displayed for the veneration of the attendees ... to encourage their devotion: St. Bernadette of Lourdes; St. Catherine Laboure; the three Fatima Seers (Francisco, Jacinta, Sr. Lucia); St. Maximilian Kolbe; St. Padre Pio; and St. Simon Stock of the Brown Scapular.

Above & Below:

Attendees lined up to venerate the

relics prior to the presentation

The talk ended with relic veneration and a special anointing with holy myrrh from Hawaii's myrrh-streaming Theotokos of Iveron icon (a gift to my ministry from the icon's Orthodox Priest-Guardian).  The church was filled with the scent of roses! 

   

Prayers and anointing with fragrant myrrh

from Hawaii's Theotokos of Iveron icon

   

Fellowship with participants

... and, as seen above, a manifestation of Escarchas occurred - it was when the relics of the Holy Virgin and the Saints were unpacked and prepared for public viewing.  In addition, a friend unexpectedly captured on camera a luminous "mist" or "smoke" - resembling incense - descending from above during Fr. Paul's opening prayer and the anointing of the participants.  Significantly, it was only seen in photos taken while we were actively praying ... so we discerned it as a sign of the Holy Spirit's presence. All thanks and praises be to Him!  [NOTE: There are no skylights in the ceiling and no incense was used.]

"Let my prayer be directed as incense

in thy sight; the lifting up of my hands,

as evening sacrifice."

- Psalm 141:2

   

A smokey haze hovers, and descends upon,

those being prayed over and anointed

May the intercession of Our Lady and the Saints draw all who attended into a new and deeper faith-life in Jesus Christ!

Saturday, July 13th - Celebrating the Feast of Maria Rosa Mystica!

Maria Rosa Mystica,

Ora Pro Nobis!

At the heels of the Vatican's recent approval of the Rosa Mystica Marian Apparitions of Montichiari-Fontanelle ... our Holy Mother was celebrated this morning at St. John Vianney Church in Kailua.

The event was organized by members of the FIAT Prayer Group (with approval from the priest) to comply with Our Lady's request to the late visionary - Pierina Gilli - that July 13th be observed in honor of the "Mystical Rose".

    

Attendees venerating the statue &

a relic of the Blessed Virgin's veil.

In keeping with the theme, this ministry's 3-foot-tall Rosa Mystica pilgrim statue was displayed for public veneration, along with a genuine relic from Our Lady's veil.  After the Mass, the Rosary was prayed followed by the Litany of Loreto and the official Rosa Mystica Prayer.

A large golden flake of escarcha that I

saw appear above this woman's eye.

I have no doubt many graces were showered upon all who participated and these appear to be confirmed by tangible signs reported to this author: escarchas and the fragrance of roses, which I personally smelled in intermittent waves during the Rosary.  Most definitely, the Rosa Mystica was fulfilling her words to Pierina:

"I have an abundance of graces ready

for all those children who hear my voice

and take my wishes to heart."

~ Words of the Rosa Mystica,

December 8, 1947

More information about the Rosa Mystica apparitions can be found here.

Epiphany Escarchas

This morning, this author drove to St. John Vianney Church in Kailua for morning Mass.  That parish celebrates three Sacraments every First Saturday: Eucharist, Anointing of the Sick, and Reconciliation so talk about graces in abundance ... and yet, today, there was something extra - escarchas.

It’s been a long while since I last witnessed them manifesting so the escarchas went a long way towards making my observance of Epiphany Day special and meaningful.  Here's a brief recap of how it happened ...

I brought with me to the church a Marian icon (shown above) that I hand-burnt, stained, and painted on a wooden plaque in August 2023, and which I titled "Mary, Immaculate Spouse of the Holy Spirit".  I intended to get it blessed by the priest.  

After I sat down in my usual spot, I laid the icon beside me on the pew, and turned away for a bit.  When I looked back at it, there they were - fine flakes of golden escarchas, sprinkled all around the icon.  Here are photos and a short video I filmed that shows just some of the escarchas on the pew ...

I'm pretty certain they're not craft-glitter for the simple reason that they weren't there a few moments earlier.  Given how much there was, I would've noticed them right away.  So I do believe it's an actual appearance of escarchas.

As to the reason why it happened, that I'm not sure.  Perhaps it's a special blessing for the Solemnity of the Epiphany ... or maybe the Lord is kindly acknowledging the work that went into it (it took me about 9 hours to write this icon) ... or perhaps God and/or Mary are pleased with how Our Lady is depicted ... or they could also be affirming the beautiful Marian title - Spouse of the Holy Spirit.  Again, it's a mystery to me but I'm just very grateful to the Holy Spirit and our Blessed Mother for this blessing.

Whatever the reason for the escarchas, I pray Heaven will use this unique image to inspire and bless many souls, particularly to a deeper devotion to the Holy Spirit!

O Mary, Immaculate Spouse

of the Holy Spirit, pray for us!

Saints & Relics Presentation: St. Anthony of Padua Church RCIA Group, 5/14/2023

In today's Gospel reading can be found this phrase spoken by our Lord:

"... you are in me and I in you."

During this morning's presentation for the RCIA participants at St. Anthony of Padua Church, I used the above statement to characterize the cumulative lives of our Saints; that, in a nutshell, these special heroes of our Catholic Faith were exceptionally adept at expressing Jesus, whose fulness of spirit dwelt in them... so that people around them could easily see, hear, and experience God through their words and deeds.  It's that simple.

Relics on display from Left to Right:
Ven. Domenica Lazzeri (2nd Class), St.
Elizabeth Ann Seton (1st Class), Our Lady's
Veil, St. Bernadette of Lourdes (1st Class),
& Bl. Karl of Austria (2nd Class)

... and judging by their enthusiastic questions and comments, I think the audience got the message.  Plus, the manner in which they venerated the relics I displayed was another strong indication that the various Saints I featured had made a positive impression.

Participants lined up to personally

experience the relics of the Saints.

Lastly, while packing up the relics and my equipment, I was pleasantly surprised to discover escarchas appearing, which I hadn't seen for a while.  The fine flakes of gold and silver manifested primarily on my right hand and forearm... and I took it as confirmation that our dear Lord and his Saints were truly present with us, not just in spirit and through their holy relics... but I'd like to imagine that Heaven had actually opened a door above us through which they descended, allowing for some of its beautiful, celestial "dust" to land in our midst.  Thanks be to God!

Fine flakes of escarchas manifested

on this author's right hand.  Note the

bright, tiny sparkles.

Marian Apparitions & Saints Presentation: Medeiros Residence, 11-11-2022

Last night's presentation could not have gone any better - EVERYTHING fell into place, as only God could arrange it.

Relics of the Marian Visionaries discussed

at tonight's event: St. Bernadette of Lourdes,

the Fatima Seers, & St. Catherine Laboure.

About 40 people ‐ including a priest, young adults, and a few non-Catholics - came to the Medeiros home from within Kailua and other parts of Oahu... and many left inspired!  One lady even grabbed this author by the hand, as she was leaving, and told me she was going to start praying the rosary daily - praises be to God!

Guests arriving at the event.

And the escarchas!  It's been a while since I last saw them... but tonight fine flakes of gold were observed scattered on the floor to the joy and excitement of "Auntie Gloria" (our host), her family, and guests.

I can't help but feel that this particular story isn't over yet - Auntie Gloria had shared that she felt strongly and personally urged by the Blessed Virgin to host this event and I believe her.  God has a plan here and I sense a ripple effect of grace has just begun, which I can’t wait to see play out.

This author with some of the young

adults who attended.

So thanks be to God and to Our Lady for tonight's event... and for the blessings that are coming!  Amen, Amen!

Speaking Presentation & Holy Relics Pilgrim Visit, 2/29/2020: Sacred Heart Church

The Sacred Heart Church in Waianae held a “Day of Recollection” at their parish; a half-day spiritual retreat for the benefit of their parishioners. Approximately 75 individuals attended… and I had the privilege of faith-sharing with them along with another guest speaker.  Our topic was the Eucharist.

My portion of the program centered on devotion to the Blessed Sacrament as exemplified in the lives of our Saints… and heavenly confirmation of Christ’s True Presence in the Eucharist, via approved Eucharistic Miracles from around the world.

 

Parishioners of Sacred Heart Church paying

respect to the relics brought into their church.

With alarming statistics pointing to less and less belief in the Eucharist by members of our own Church, I was happy to be a part of this event… and I even enlisted the intercession of a small team of Saints and a Servant of God to be prayer warriors for the organizers and for the audience. This spiritual A-Team was comprised of the following holy persons, represented at the event by their respective relics brought by my ministry: St. Anthony of Padua; St. John Marie Vianney; Servant of God Louise Lateau; St. Juliana Falconieri; St. Padre Pio; and St. Teresa of Calcutta.  I highlighted their lives as worthy examples of Eucharistic Devotion.

If the enthusiasm and positive feedback expressed by the Sacred Heart parishioners were any indication, their Day of Recollection was a great success.  Faith-seeds were definitely sown today, which I hope will bear much good fruit in this wonderful parish.  God bless them.

Fine flakes of Escarchas that manifested on
my hands after getting home from this event.

A sign of grace and anointing for Waianae?

The First Saturday Rosary... and a Signal Grace from the Mediatrix of All Grace

It's been quite a while since I posted about it, but it's still going on.  I'm referring to the First Saturday Rosary for Peace at St. Anthony of Padua Church in Kailua where we're still holding it every month... and blessings continue to be poured out - sometimes visibly.  In fact, at today's meeting, we were surprised by a manifestation of a familiar signal grace - escarchas.  I haven't posted about escarchas for some time, too, but the phenomenon is still occurring, although intermittently.

A few of us regulars at today's First

Saturday Rosary Meeting.

So this afternoon our parishioners met again to pray the Holy Rosary - about 15 of us, despite cold rainy weather today.  Other than the profound sense of peace that descended into the Day Chapel during our prayer, there were no other tangible indications of a divine presence... but after we finished, things took a turn for the extraordinary.

Mary, the "Mediatrix of

All Grace" of Lipa

For this month's gathering, I had brought my recently acquired Marian statue to the meeting - a likeness of Mary, the Mediatrix of all Grace from Lipa, Philippines -  and a friend who was seeing the statue for the first time approached it to get a closer view. As I watched her admiring it, she nonchalantly said, "There's glitter on the Blessed Mother's face." Me and another remaining participant immediately went to look at the image, ourselves, and sure enough, the statue's left cheek was sparkling with tiny silver flakes. I knew right away they were escarchas because the statue isn't decorated with any type of glitter.

Furthermore, as we three looked on, the escarchas multiplied and spread to the right cheek... then to the forehead... down the neck... and onto the Holy Mother's gown. It goes without saying we were awestruck. If I didn't witness it with my own eyes, I think I would be skeptical... but I now know from personal experiences this particular sign really does occur... and it's beautiful! The escarchas were mostly very fine speckles so they were difficult to capture on film, but a few of the larger ones are visible in these two videos...

Some of the escarchas on the

statue's cheek can clearly be seen in

the videos above and below.

I left the Church extra grateful and excited tonight. I encountered Mary through the Rosary in the Day Chapel... then encountered Jesus through the Eucharist during the Mass in the main church.  It was more than a good day!

     

Still-photos capturing just a few of the many

escarchas on the image's cheeks and neck.

PRAY THE ROSARY!

October 13th & 14th: Mary, Saints, & Escarchas too...

October, the month of the Holy Rosary!  As I kinda anticipated, this ministry was gonna be very active... there was the First Saturday Rosary on the 6th; the official launch of the parish's FIAT prayer meetings on the 10th; a Rosary Rally yesterday; and a Saints and Relics Presentation earlier today... and it's not even mid-month yet!  For now I'd like to just share about the last two recent events.

+ America Needs Fatima Rosary Rally, 10/13/2018

Our Day Chapel was beautifully decorated

by the Vargas Family for the Rosary Rally.

It was that time again - Auntie Patty and her family held their annual Rosary Rally, which many look forward to every year.  This year, though, there was a change in the venue.  Rather than hosting the rally at their Kailua home, it was held in the Day Chapel of our parish church; a big departure from the norm for the family... but it all worked out for the best.

New and familiar faces gathered at the church where there was ample parking and several ceiling fans to keep us cool in the muggy Hawaiian weather.  Despite the change in location, the rosary was prayed with the same faith and fervor by all those who have been attending the Vargas Family Rosary Rally throughout the past years.  There was even an appearance of beautiful golden escarchas, which began manifesting on my program sheet when the Litany of the Blessed Virgin commenced; no doubt a blessing and a sign of Our Lady's spiritual presence in the chapel during our prayer time.

Above/Below: Videos showing escarchas

appearing and spreading during the Rosary

Rally (pay attention to the area around the

word "rejoice" at the bottom-center).  View

at full screen to see the sparkles better.

At the end of the rally, I spoke briefly about the importance of the Rosary Devotion and reminded the participants about how the Rosary is truly a powerful weapon against every form of evil, as our Blessed Mother has repeatedly said through her apparitions around the world... and as echoed by Saints such as Padre Pio, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, and Pope John Paul II.

Rally participants gathering for the

fellowship luncheon.

The fellowship meal that followed was also something I looked forward to.  As always, it was a pleasure catching up with fellow parishioners while feasting on delicious local food.  Much MAHALO to Auntie Patty and the Vargas Ohana!

+ Saints & Relics Presentation, 10/14/2018

Relics on display in the Honolulu

Cathedral's Kamiano Center.

The day following the Rosary Rally, I had the privilege of bringing the lives and relics of several Saints and Blesseds to the Faithful at the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Honolulu. I had been invited to speak by a friend, Easter, from the Adult Faith Formation Office of our diocese.  With the upcoming November stop of the St. Padre Pio 2018 American Relic Tour in our cathedral, she thought it would be a great way of helping the local Catholic community to brush up on the significance of Saints and Relics.

Through the presentation, I was able to acquaint a good number of attendees - youth and adults - with 9 authenticated 1st and 2nd Class Relics from  St. Bernadette of Lourdes, Bl. Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, St. Damien of Molokai, St. Gianna Beretta Molla, Bl. Pauline von Mallinckrodt, St. Peregrine Laziosi, St. Padre Pio, Bl. Rolando Rivi, and my ministry's veil-relic of the Blessed Virgin.

Parishioners waiting in line for their

turn to get a closer view of the relics.

I sensed that many of the attendees were impressed, if not very moved, by their "close encounter" with our faith heroes.  Most lined up after the talk to view the relics, to pray, and to touch prayer cards and pieces of cloth provided by myself and a fellow St. Anthony of Padua Church parishioner named Chuck, who also shared two cancelled checks in his possession, that were hand-signed by St. Padre Pio, himself, during his lifetime.  The back story was a great anecdote about the much-loved Saint!

I left the venue hopeful that many faith-seeds were planted this afternoon, as well as, happy to have made new friends among the participants.  Thank you, Lord, for every blessing granted to all of us this weekend... and for those yet to blossom!

First Saturday Parish Rosary at St. Anthony of Padua Church, 8/5/2017

Turn your lemons into lemonade through faith in God and prayerful cooperation with Divine Grace. This was the lesson I relayed to our participants at today's First Saturday Rosary for Peace. It was a message inspired by the life of the Saint of the Month I talked about - Bl. Maria Pilar Izquierdo Albero, an obscure Spanish Founder.

              

From Left to Right:  Bl. Maria Pilar

Izquierdo Albero, today's display altar,

and a bone relic of the beatified

Spanish foundress.

For readers not familiar with her, this Blessed's life reads as one seeming misfortune after another - early in her life she fell from a tram and broke her pelvis, which led to her being bedridden for 12 long years; along with the immobility came ulcers all over her body (bedsores?); complete blindness and partial deafness reportedly followed. The invalid was miraculously, and instantaneously, healed on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, 1939, and set about founding a charitable group of nuns.  

All went well for two years until misunderstanding, slander, and discord set in among her community members, which forced the founder out of her own fledgling congregation. Things then went from bad to worse - Bl. Maria Pilar soon broke a leg in another accident, and was also diagnosed with stomach cancer! She died from the disease at only 39-years-old. As already mentioned, her life, it seemed, was one episode of bad luck after another... but it was the manner in which she consistently responded to these setbacks that made her an inspiration... and eventually raised her to the glory of the altar.

You see, rather than wallowing in misery and/or self-pity, or falling into despondency, as most people may easily have been prone to do, Bl. Maria Pilar instead heroically resigned herself to the Lord's will; accepting her physical and moral suffering, as a way of attaining closer union with Christ, and as a sacrifice for the success of her mission. In essence, she transformed her pain into active prayer, and by doing so, effectively turned her life's "lemons" into lemonade.

Various photos of some of the escarchas that
appeared on both my hands and wrists.

Incidentally, the Blessed's efforts did not go unrewarded from God - she was eventually favored with many extraordinary gifts: Bilocation; Ecstasies and Visions of Jesus, Mary, and Saints; Prophecy; and the Stigmata. And in the end, her life's work also experienced a revival, as a completely new congregation - the Missionary Work of Jesus and Mary - that was carried on by a small group of the Blessed's loyal nuns. The congregation still flourishes in Spain and other parts of the world.

So today's lesson from our saintly bio was highly encouraging, I feel, and relevant to just about everyone. We all have lemons that sometimes sour our personal lives; some people have more than others (many participants chuckled when I mentioned the fact)... but it's all the more opportunities to make sweet spiritual lemonade, if we can just follow Bl. Maria Pilar's lead!

On a side note, escarchas made a return appearance today. They were manifested as beautiful sky-blue, green, pink, and gold flakes, as we prayed our Rosary. I sensed the Holy Spirit's powerful presence in the chapel and I'd like to think the escarchas were symbolic of divine "sugar" being sprinkled from above to encourage us to start transforming our own sourness into sweet "heavenly lemonade".  God is good.

Our next First Saturday Rosary will be prayed on September 2nd, beginning at 4:25pm in the Day Chapel of St. Anthony of Padua Church, Kailua.  All are welcome to participate.