Maronite Cardinal Beshara Boutros El-Rahi, Patriarch of Antioch and all the East in attendance for the apparition.
Say what you will about Medjugorje, I think it is rather significant that the Maronite Cardinal was in attendance with thousands of Lebanese followers.
“It is the first time that the Patriach of the East is present for a Medjugorje apparition. It is new for the Middle East churches. It is very important for Christians here” Charbel Maroun, the president of the Marian Movement for Lay People in Galilee tells Medjugorje Today. - Medjugorje TodayI need to be much more discreet and respectful in what I say and how I say things...
Cardinal Christoph Schönborn is also supportive of Medjugorje. I wouldn't say that lends any more credence to the phenomena there.
ReplyDeleteBishop Andrea Gemma at one time the Vatican's top exorcist, told a magazine in Italy:
"In Medjugorje everything happens in function of money: Pilgrimages, lodging houses, sale of trinkets.
"This whole sham is the work of the Devil. It is a scandal."
he calls the alleged visions of Our Lady in Medjugorje as the "work of the devil" and a "diabolical deceit".
RATKO PERIC, BISHOP OF MOSTAR-DUVNO, HERZEGOVNIA
"It is therefore forbidden to claim or to declare in churches and religious communities that Our Lady has appeared or will yet appear in Medjugorje." Seat of Wisdom, by Bishop Peric, 1995
I'm not convinced that Maronite Cardinal Beshara Boutros El-Rahi's presence in Medjugorje lends it any more credibility.
Servusmariaen ...
DeleteQuoting your post:
"Bishop Andrea Gemma at one time the Vatican's top exorcist, told a magazine calls the alleged visions of Our Lady in Medjugorje as the "work of the devil" and a "diabolical deceit".
RATKO PERIC, BISHOP OF MOSTAR-DUVNO, HERZEGOVNIA "It is therefore forbidden to claim or to declare in churches and religious communities that Our Lady has appeared or will yet appear in Medjugorje." Seat of Wisdom, by Bishop Peric, 1995
Cardinal Christoph Schönborn is also supportive of Medjugorje. I wouldn't say that lends any more credence to the phenomena there.
I'm not convinced that Maronite Cardinal Beshara Boutros El-Rahi's presence in Medjugorje lends it any more credibility"
It is dramatically obvious YOU don't believe in the Medjugorje apparitions and selectively choose what YOU believe as credible to support YOUR opinion. However, your opinion doesnt doesn't really matter in this regard now does it? The Vatican has a Commision studying the phenomenon and we all will abide by the Vaticans ultimate decision now won't we?
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DeleteIn the case of the Medjugorje phenomenon the lead has never come from priests but from the faithful. Check out the concept of “sensus fidelium”
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensus_fidelium
But sensus fidelium is more like pilgrims shouting "Santo Subito" at Blessed John Paul II's funeral. This other thing has gone on way too long.
DeleteCompare the lifestyles of the alleged visionaries to those of the shepherd children in Fatima and St. Bernadette in Lourdes. Two of the shepherd children died at a young age, the other became a religious sister and St. Bernadette also went to the convent. None of them sought financial gain or personal notoriety.
Some interesting live coverage at this link.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.noursat.tv/en/receive-us.php
I mean't the presence of Maronite Cardinal El Rahi's presence at an alleged apparition with Ivan Dragicevic in my opinion doesn't lend it any more credence.
ReplyDeleteI understand, but you also posted quotes from Andrea Gemma. Should we therefore be convinced by his personal comments because he is a bishop?
ReplyDeletewaiting for rome.
ReplyDeleteWaiting for Guffman.
Delete+JMJ+
DeleteWaiting for Godot.
They are all nuts
ReplyDelete@bg, it's the Bishop of Mostar you look to and two bishops of Mostar have told the alleged visionaries to shut the hell up and they haven't. Do you see the problem? Didn't think you would.
ReplyDeleteHi Nan ... Please quote your source. The Bishop has never even met with any of the visionaries. Furthermore, he doesn't believe in any Marian apparitions, Lourdes, Fatima, or otherwise, which is why he isn't on the current Commision studying the phenomenon. Why not just be honest and state you don't believe in it (which is fine, you don't have to) and stop trying to find reasons why you don't believe. None of the reasons anyone has come up with are valid which is why there is a Commision. We'll all need to comply with whatever the final decision is anyway.
DeleteTimothy, there's no requirement that anyone believe in private revelation such as Lourdes and Fatima, once they're approved. In the normal course of events, it is the Bishop who tells a visionary whether or not they may speak publicly; the Bishop has no obligation to meet with the visionaries, they, however, have an obligation to obey him.
DeleteThere's a commission due to the widespread disobedience; the alleged apparition has denounced the bishop, which is reason enough to believe it's of diabolical origin.
You say that we'll need to comply with the final decision; first, two bishops have spoken against these alleged apparitions, which should be the end of it. The alleged visionaries have not listened, nor have their devotees. Since they're disobedient to the Bishop why would they listen to the Commission if the Commission denounces the alleged apparitions? Second, this is private revelation. If on the offchance the apparitions are approved, nobody has any obligation to believe in them.
I had the opportunity to go to Medjugorje early on as I was in the neighborhood. I wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole and that was before the Bishop of Mostar determined it wasn't of heavenly origin.