Bulletin
194
Medjugorje,
January 26, 2004
“Dear children! Also
today I call you to pray. Pray, little children, in a special way for all
those who have not come to know God’s love. Pray that their hearts may open
and draw closer to my heart and the Heart of my Son Jesus, so that we can
transform them into people of peace and love. Thank
you for having responded to my call.”
January 25, 2004
HUMAN BEING AND TIME
A philosopher noted that the difference between human beings and other creatures
consists in their capacity to re-emerge from the river of time, which is passing.
Water carries away everything; only human beings are able to fill the time and
to give to it a meaning according to the plan of God. Having that in sight, we
ask the question: do we re-emerge from the torrent of time or the torrent
carries us away, and we do not even realise from where we come and where we go?
It is really easy for us to get lost in daily work, in the abundance of our
obligations, needs and worries, running from one appointment to another, from
one duty to another, losing orientation in time and in space - and what is worst
of all – moving away from God and losing the concept of His presence.
We begin a new year of our
life, but we still seem to live in what is old and over: our personal history,
unfinished work, unaccomplished promises, uncompleted projects, unpaid bills,
missed attempts... The world and the consumer society oppress us and impose
their own logic to us. In such an environment, it is difficult for us to
position ourselves, and - as Christians - we neglect our identity and our
spiritual orientation. In the "modern" world and in the conscience of
the "modern" man, God seems little by little to disappear from our
hearts and to lose in value.
A spiritual writer had
written: "The desert in the hearts causes chaos in the world" Thinking
of that, we should not be astonished that there are so many wars and so much
evil. Why divorce, immorality, abuse in family, drugs, crimes? We feel all that,
we seek answers, but at the same time we seem not to want to receive them from
Jesus. We know that Jesus is moderate and concrete, that He asks for a maximum
of love, forgiveness and sacrifice. With Him, there is no compromise. Jesus is
demanding.
In
such a world, in such a mentality, Medjugorje is a light in the night, a place
of opening up to God. Here, under the protection of Our Lady, the pilgrim
realizes that - without God - we are poor and lost in the world. Gospa feels
this very well, this is why she is here, and this is why she does not give up
her children. We, the Christians, have to work for a better world, a world where
there is more justice. We have to be another Christ and the voice of hope for
the others, we have to bear witness and shout where there is silence about God,
we have to bring the values of God to our time. We will not be able to do it
without the renewal of our personal sacramental life, because it is through the
sacraments that God gives us the means for salvation and the force for the road.
Let us make the decision to take this step, to fulfil the task that God has
given us in this world.
Fr. Mario Knezovic
NEWS
NUMBER
OF COMMUNIONS AND NUMBER OF CONCELEBRANTS
During
the month of December 2003, 69,000 communions
were distributed and 1,089 priests
from this country and abroad concelebrated Holy Mass in Medjugorje.
In
2003, 1,179,000 communions were
distributed and 27,498 priests concelebrated in Medjugorje.
In December, pilgrims were
here from France, the USA, Italy, Austria, England, Lithuania, Korea, Lebanon,
Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, Canada, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Austria, Poland, Croatia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
RADIO
“MIR” MEDJUGORJE TRANSMITS THROUGH SATELLITE
Beginning
with Christmas, December 25, 2003, Radio Mir Medjugorje begins to transmit its
program live trough a satellite. You can listen to our radio and to the voice
from Medjugorje in Europe, in the Near East and in North Africa. Radio “Mir”
Medjugorje offers a rich daily schedule, and we recommend to you especially the
direct transmission of the liturgical prayer program (Holy Mass, Rosary and
Adoration) from St. James’ church, at 5 pm.
How
to find us and how to listen to our Radio?
Name of the
satellite: HOT BIRD 6
Position: 13° E (degrees
east)
Transponder No. 90
Reception frequency:
12 520 MHz
Polarization: Y (vertical)
Symbol rate: 27 500
FEC (Forward Error
Correction): 3/4
Covering: Europe, Near East and North Africa
How
can you support us in this project?
As
this project requires important financial expenses, we feel free to ask all the
friends of the Queen of Peace – Medjugorje, all our listeners and all those
who want to spread Our Lady’s message and the voice from Medjugorje, to
support us with their donations. Only with your help will we be able to reach
you and your continent.
How
to send your donations?
For donations from abroad:
Informativni centar MiR
Medjugorje
Zagrebacka banka BH - D.D.
Mostar
Swift:
ZABA BA 22 / 7100-48-06-027746
For donations from Bosnia
and Herzegovina: Our account number at Zagrebacka banka: 3381202200130247
Thank you for your love
and the spreading of Our Lady’s messages!
Annual Meeting and Recollection for the
Scholarship Recipients of the Fund “Fra Slavko Barbariæ”
The Association “Fra
Slavko Barbaric” organised in Medjugorje on December 29, 2003, “The Students’
Day”.
Several conferences were
given: “The Bible speaks to us in images”, by Dr. Fr. Ivan Dugandzic,
“What the Croatians hold in their coffer” by Branka Separovic, and
“Sacrifice is in the foundations” by Prof. Dr. Zvonimir Separovic. There was
also an exhibition of paintings created during the Art Colony “Medjugorje
2003”. The program was accompanied by music, performed by scholarship
recipients of the Association. The participants assisted at the Evening Prayer
Programme at St. James’ Parish church. From December 29 to January 1st,
the Association also organised a seminar of spiritual recollection for students.
Those who wish to help in the realisation of the goals
of this Fund may contact the Fund on the following address: Fund “Fra Slavko
Barbaric” – Medjugorje / 88266 Medjugorje / BiH / PP 29 / Tel/Fax: +387 36
651 549 / e-mail:
studenti.talenti@tel.net.ba
New Year in Medjugorje
This year, several thousands pilgrims from numerous countries and from all the
continents gathered together for the New Year’s Vigil. The Vigil was presided
by Fr. Mario Knezovic and Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic. About one hundred priests
concelebrated Mass with them. Pilgrims and parishioners were accommodated also
in the New Hall and under the tent, where they could follow on a large screen
whatever was happening in the church. The vigil and Holy Mass lasted from 10 pm
to 1 am, and they were translated into several languages.
In our restless world,
where sometimes everything seems to be hopeless, this large crowd of the
faithful, especially of young people who represent the majority in Medjugorje
for the New Year, are a sign of hope for a better world.
On the
first day of the year, Marijana Zovko, a pilgrim from Germany, gave a concert of
spiritual music in the parish church.
The 4th
International Meeting for Married Couples
The 4th
International Meeting for Married Couples will take place in Medjugorje from
February 11 to 14, 2004. The theme is, “The fruit of peace is love and the
fruit of love is forgiveness.” (Message of January 25, 1996) Bring with
you: a small FM radio with headphones (for simultaneous translation) and a Bible.
All the meetings will take place in the New Hall behind
the church. Participation per couple: 30 €. You
may make reservations by e-mail: medjugorje-mir@medjugorje.hr,
or at the Information Office personally, or by phone/fax: +387-36-651-988 (for
Marija Dugandzic). The number of participants is limited because of the
available space in the Hall, se we ask you to send your registration as soon as
possible. All the participants are invited to individually provide their
accommodation in Medjugorje.
The
11th International Meeting for Leaders of Peace CENTERS and
Medjugorje Prayer, Pilgrim and Charity groups
The
11th International Meeting for Leaders of Peace Centers and
Medjugorje Prayer, Pilgrim and Charity groups will take place in the New Hall in
Medjugorje from February 22 – 26, 2004. The theme of this meting will be, “Penance
and Contemporary Men”.
The
number of places is limited, and the number of participants is increasing from
year to year. This is why we ask you kindly to make your registration as soon as
possible. You can send your registrations by Tel/fax + 387 36 651 988 (for
Marija Dugandzic) or by e-mail: medjugorje-mir@medjugorje.hr,
or personally in the Information Office.
Simultaneous translation
is available for all language groups. This is why we ask you kindly to take with
you a small FM radio with headphones.
The price of the seminar is 60 € per person. This
includes all the fees for the organization and running of the seminar (lecturers,
translations of texts, simultaneous translation and lunch the last day). When
you register and pay at the beginning of the seminar, you will receive a badge,
which will allow you to participate in the seminar. We ask you kindly to
organize personally your accommodation in Medjugorje. We believe that this is
not a problem for you, because you have come to Medjugorje for many years now
and have friends and acquaintances here.
We
are looking forward to your reservations and to welcoming you at this meeting!