 Apparition Hill today, from below (c)MaryMatasso 2011, used with permission |
| July 20, 2011 Dear Family of Mary!
"I have come because there are many true believers here. I wish to be with you to convert and to reconcile the whole world." (June 25, 1981)
Now for the middle of Ivanka's talk! Ivanka was the very first person to see Our Lady. She was and still is the most reserved of the six visionaries. She was probably not someone who would make up stories. But Our Lady first caught her attention, and she has never lost Ivanka's attention! Ivanka once told Denis that she is on pins and needles for more than a month before her yearly apparition on June 25. She can think of nothing else. So this first apparition on June 24 must have had a deep effect on Ivanka. Here are her words: "Back in 1981 I was a 15 year old girl, coming from a Christian family where we always prayed to God. And I never knew or ever heard of the possibility that Our Lady could appear. On June 24th, it was a simple walk, and that walk changed my life. That afternoon, Mirjana and I were outside, at the edge of the village, waiting for the other children to come. We were talking about the kind of things that 15 year old girls would talk about. We got bored waiting and so we decided to go towards our home. Not even today do I know why in that moment, in that walk, I had the urge to look towards that hill, or how I said to Mirjana, 'Look there is Our Lady up there.' She didn't even want to look; she only turned to me and said, 'What foolish things are you saying? Don't say anything like that!' And so I remained silent. I didn't speak any longer, and we decided to go further on. When we got to the first houses we met Milka, Marija's sister, and she was going to gather the sheep. I am not sure what she saw on my face. She only asked me, 'Ivanka, what happened to you? Why are you looking like that?' As we were going back, I told her what I saw. And when we came to that certain spot the two of them were able to see the same thing that I saw.
"All the emotions were mixed at that moment! There was prayer, there were tears, there was laughter and there was joy! In the meantime, Vicka arrived and she was able to see that something strange was happening with us. So when we told her, 'Our Lady is here. Come with us,' she took off her shoes and she started running towards her home. And there she saw two Ivans, and told them what we were seeing, so the three of them came together to us. They were able to see the same thing that we saw. Our Lady stood some 400 to 600 meters away from us. She was calling and inviting us to come closer with her hands. Even though there were more of us, all our emotions were mixed and fear prevailed and we did not dare to go up.
"I do not know how long we stayed there. I just know that some of them went back home, and a couple of us entered the first house where they were celebrating the feast of St. John the Baptist. We were crying and afraid when we entered that house. We told them that we saw Our Lady, the Mother of God. I remember that there were apples on the table. People took apples and threw them at us! And they told us, 'Do not fool around with that. Run back to your homes and never say something like that again!'
"Then I came back home and I told my Granny, my brother and my sister, what I had seen. Whatever I said to my brother and sister, they kept ridiculing me. My Granny said, 'My child, that is not possible, it's probably somebody minding the sheep up there.' That was the longest night of my life. I kept questioning myself and asking myself what is happening to me? Did I really see what I saw? Am I going crazy, what is wrong with me? But the following day the news spread around and everyone heard what happened to us. Many people arrived that afternoon. And they came to the spot where we were, and they wanted to see if we would see what we saw the day before. I remember that my Granny was holding my hand, and she was saying, 'Whatever is up there, you are not going th  Image via Wikipedia ere. You are here with me.'
"Then we saw a light, three times, the six visionaries. We moved so fast that no one was able to catch up to us. How can I describe to you now the grace, the beauty, the joy, the happiness, when we came close to Our Lady? Not even up to now, have my eyes ever seen anything as beautiful as Our Lady. She looked like a young person, 19 or 20 years of age. She has a gray dress, a white veil and a crown of twelve stars. She has beautiful, warm blue eyes, long hair, and she is floating on a cloud. And the feeling of the love of the Mother, the blessing of God, and the peace, there are absolutely no words in this world to describe what we experienced. I knew in that moment it was the Mother of God." (Ivanka Elez speaking in Medjugorje at St. James Church for the 30th Anniversary)
All the visionaries describe that first night, June 24, after they saw Our Lady as a very difficult night. Each one was alone, under suspicion by their families, without a clue as to what an apparition is and if such things happen, and totally blown away by the beauty of Our Lady. They must have suffered a great deal. But they came back to the hill the next day, drawn by their hearts to see again the beautiful Lady from heaven. Now we are all drawn to that hill, Podbrdo, to be near her. She is our Mother and she is here to help us. In Jesus and Mary!Cathy Nolan ©Mary TV 2011 |
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