October 12, 2011
Dear Family of Mary!
"In a special way I implore you not to judge your shepherds. My children, are you forgetting that God the Father called them? Pray! Thank you."
(October 2, 2011 Mirjana)
Our Lady asks us to pray for our shepherds, our priests and bishops. They are far more important and precious than we can imagine. God the Father has called them to be representatives of His Son on earth, those who transmit the graces of Christ's redemption to us all. And they are indeed called. Each priest has heard a call from God and responded. I have transcribed a short talk given by Fr. Scott Adams, of the Oklahoma City Diocese, given on top of Krizevac in 2003, in which he mentions his call from the Lord and how it happened. Here is an excerpt:
In the back of the Church there was a little flyer, in 1988, I read it and I really hadn't thought about apparitions. I just read the message [in the flyer] and began to pray the Rosary, which I had never done before. Then I began to fast on Wednesday and Friday on bread and water. Well the interesting thing, after I began to pray the Rosary, like Mary does, she always leads us to Jesus. It was about a week or so later, after I began to pray the rosary, I felt drawn to go to daily mass. And ever since then I have gone, even during the time I responded to the call to the priesthood. Blessed Mother brought me to the priesthood through the Medjugorje message that brought me to conversion. I had been out of the Church for 6 years, and I had just gotten back into the Church, and I was going on Sundays, and that is when I read that little message and began praying. I stayed up all night trying to learn how to pray the 15 decade rosary. I didn't know how to do it. I prayed it ever since, until about 3 years into my priesthood, and now I am inspired to pray it again....
I probably wouldn't be a priest, but Medjugorje formed a habit of prayer in me. Medjugorje [instills] this whole idea of making prayer the center of the day, prayer of the heart, as she said in this last message, to pray, pray, pray until it becomes a joy! The idea that prayer is a time with God which we make each day [led me] to take each day an hour before the Blessed Sacrament. The message here is all centered around the Mass, the Eucharist. So Mary always leads us to Jesus, she's not an obstacle to Our Lord Jesus. She always leads us into a deeper love for Jesus in the Eucharist. So I would say that is what she has done for me, she has brought be to the Mass.
Maybe I should share a little something: when I first got a Rosary I didn't really know how to pray it and I went to a Bible study and saw a book on the Rosary, so I asked to borrow it and my friend said I could have it. So that is when I read it one night and prayed the 15 decades of the Rosary. About the third time, I smelled a fragrance while I was praying this Rosary, and I thought the priest who gave it to me (the priest when I was a little boy) had given me a scented Rosary. Then I realized it was something else, a beautiful gift. It brought tears to my eyes, the very first time I had ever had such an experience, and I thought maybe Mary was not just way out there in heaven, she is right here with me, praying with me.
And a week later I went to daily Mass. And the first time I went to grab the chalice, that fragrance overwhelmed me again. It struck me! That is why I have been going to daily Mass ever since. This is the Blood of Christ, this is the Body of Christ. This is Jesus! Whereas before, as a boy growing up in Catholic school, I went to Communion, and if you had asked me, in terms of the catechism what it is, I would say the Body of Christ, but did I really believe it? That was my question, and I would have said no. If I really believed it why wasn't I falling on my knees? Someone said that someone from Islam, (I heard this story, and don't know if it is true) might say, "If what you believe is true as Catholics, I wouldn't only be on my knees, I'd be on my face." It was in that sense that it grabbed me. I knew it was Jesus. And that is why I was attracted to go each day. I became centered on the Eucharist. And that is how my life began to be transformed.
Blessed Mother always pondered these things in her heart. Her whole life is Jesus. Her whole love is wrapped up in the Trinity. She wants us to imitate her prayer. She pondered these things in her heart and that is why she wants us to pray the Rosary, so that we begin to ponder these things in our hearts, and as we do they begin to transform our lives. We begin to be loving people. It is a message of love that comes from here, a message of conversion, and it starts here. We don't point at others in self-righteousness. No it starts with me. I'm the sinner that needs to be converted. And I say that as a priest today. You know I am still the one who needs to be converted and to continually allow the Lord to transform my life. I'm still a sinner. I still go to confession, more than monthly!!
Listening to Vicka give her talk, I hope I will begin to pray the 15 decade Rosary again, because somewhere about my 3rd year of priesthood, I decided to read the Scripture more and I went to 5 mysteries. But I have to say I watch television, I do other things, so I don't really have an excuse. That will probably be one change. I always spend an hour before the Blessed Sacrament, I don't know that that will change, but I don't know what else will change besides my desire to surrender more to Our Lord. To allow his grace to transform me. As a priest we always need to do that, it is easy to get into ministry and be drawn in different directions, but to really have that sense of the heart and doing things that are really inspired. We are called to holiness and so every once in a while we have to come back and climb the mountain and spend some time with the Lord. This little trip has been like that for me. I am very happy, and I love Blessed Mother and Lord Jesus! (Fr. Scott Adams, Medjugorje youth Festival, 2003, filmed by Mary TV.)
"Blessed Mother brought me to the priesthood through the Medjugorje message that brought me to conversion." I find this amazing. Fr. Scott was converted just by reading one message from Our Lady of Medjugorje! One message communicated so much grace to him that he stayed up all night to learn to pray the Rosary, and ended up committing himself to daily Mass within a week. One message turned his life around. And God was able to reach into His life with signs that led to his call to the priesthood. How? He says, "I probably wouldn't be a priest, but Medjugorje formed a habit of prayer in me." Through prayer, Fr. Scott got in touch with Jesus, and was able to hear the call! Wow!
Father's beautiful testimony makes me love the priesthood even more. Such a precious call, such a fragile gift. Father Scott is amazing to me, so willing to be led by Our Lady into his new life! Let's pray for him, and all the incredible men who have given their lives for us.
In Jesus and Mary!
Cathy Nolan
View Fr. Scott Adams at www.marytv.tv !
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