47
September 11, 1996

PRESS BULLETIN




MEDITATION

Today, we are flooded with books on all sides. They have varying contents. Its true to say that literature is fighting for a place amongst the other different means of communication, but it's holding out well.

Even so, for most of us Christians, only one book has a place above all others,i.e.the Sacred Scriptures. Our Lady tells us this in her message. She is the foundation on which this lies. Yoga, Zen, meditation and such things can never be such a foundation. Whoever doesn't put the Bible in first place won't know how to read other books either. The Bible is like a river on which we can tranquilly sail, whereas all others are only tributaries, of greater or lesser safety.

It is somehow typical of our times to be judged as a fundamentalist because of our stance on this. We are all the same they say, there's no need to separate us. Let's smile at all of this. Why should they have prerogative over us? And who gave them the right to make these and similar accusations? We have a right to our own opinion and to be different like every other human being. Only then will we know how to love others. Whoever wishes to make us all the same according to "new age" thinking, would only like to dominate our souls. But only Jesus Christ can lord over our soul whom we found in our meditations and in our books.

fr. Miljenko


N E W S

THE NUMBER OF COMMUNIONS AND CONCELEBRANTS

Throughout the month of August in the shrine of Our Lady, Queen of Peace, 141,000 holy communions were distributed, and at holy mass 2,873 from abroad and at home, which averages at 93 priests a day.

MISSIONARY JOURNEY OF FR. SLAVKO

In response to the invitation of the friends and pilgrims of Medjugorje, Fr. Slavko visited England from the 24th to the 30th of August 1996. On the first day, Fr. Slavko prayed the way of the cross on the estate of convert, Peter Huttley. He had put up the fourteen stations of the way of the cross, each created by a different artist, in a rich age-old forest which makes up part of his estate. The way of the cross was prayed under heavy rains. It was as if they were on Krizevac. After this the rosary was prayed, mass was celebrated and adoration followed with about 350 people present. It must be said that Mr. Huttley up until recently was an anglican, and due to an experience while on pilgrimmage to Medjugorje, he was drawn to the Catholic Church. In spring his wife Anna also converted to the Catholic faith.

On the 25th of August there was a day of prayer organised in the parish of Wimbledon near the famous stadium. Four hundred of the faithful participated in the event.

On the 26th , the pilgrimmage to Aylesford, which is the sixth in a row of annual pilgrimmages, and is by now almost traditional, to the Carmelite Marian shrine near London took place. About 7,000 of the faithful participated in the programme, which lasted the whole day and consisted of the rosary, mass and testimonies. At the festive mass, a total about 100 priests concelebrated. This is the biggest Catholic prayer encounter in the whole of England. The Carmelites themselves testify that, as regards spiritual intensity, it is the greatest of the pilgrimmages which take place their sanctuary. And every year there are more christians from other christian communities.

From the 27th to the 30th of August, Fr. Slavko led a three day retreat in the Calensantine community. Their base is in Vienna. The community was founded 110 years ago. At one stage it seemed that vocations were dying out, but of late the community has been strongly renewed. After express wish of their general provincial Liera to his council, they wished to come as close as possible to the spirit of Our Lady's messages.

After his appointments with the community, Fr. Slavko participated in a prayer programme in "Maria Gestade", in Vienna. There, a Medjugorje group is already eleven years in existence and every Thursday they have a prayer programme just like that of Medjugorje.

The visionary Ivan Dragicevic also participated in the events in England.

Thus Medjugorje is slowly but surely reaching individuals and communities and is increasingly seeking out those who are ready to bring the spirit of prayer to others.

SEMINARS ON PRAYER AND FASTING

In the house of prayer,"Domus Pacis" in Medjugorje, as a part of Christmas preparation, throughout Advent three prayer and fasting seminars will be held. The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II in his encyclical "Evangelium vitae" invites us ...." return to fasting and prayer in boldness and humility"....and many times in her messages Our Lady has invited us to prayer and fasting. Once she even said... "with prayer and fasting you can even stop wars"...So we invite all of you who wish to make a deeper preparation for the feast of Christs' birth, to participate in this programme because it is a deep experience,and a fitting oportunity for this. The organisor and guide of the seminar is Fr. Slavko Barbaric.


The seminars will be held
-02 - 07. 12. 1996
-08 - 12. 12. 1996
-16 - 23. 12. 1996
beginning at 16.00 and finishing at 12 midday.

Coming up to the feast day of the exaltation of the cross, in the same house a seminar will be held on prayer and fasting from the 9th to the 14th of September.

Booking must be done in the information office of the shrine or by telephone..387 88 651 988 or by fax 387 88 65 14 44. There will be a fee of 10DM per day.

A N N O U N C E M E N T S

PRAYER-INFORMATION SEMINAR

The prayer-information seminar for prayer group leaders, charity and pilgrim groups linked with Medjugorje will be held from the 24th to the 28th of February 1997.

Further information (place, the programme, booking etc.) will be given at a later date.



Published by : INFORMATIVNI CENTAR MIR - Svetiste Kraljice mira
(Information Center MIR - Shrine of the Queen of Peace),
88266 Medjugorje, BiH, fax number: 00387 88 651 444.
Director: fra Miljenko Stojic.
You can receive the latest issue of the Press Bulletin at any time on your own fax machine in the tone
mode by dialing the Robofax in our Information Center at +387-88-65-15-55.
Published every other Wednesday.


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Last Modified 09/11/96