 (c)Mary TV 2011 Fr. Svet comforts a pilgrim in Medjugorje! |
| May 9, 2012
Dear Family of Mary!
"My children, you cannot be without the shepherds. May they be in your prayers every day. Thank you." (May 2, 2012)
Our priests are our link with God. They give up a normal family life in order to be set apart for the work of serving us. They busy themselves with how to help us draw close to God, through prayer, teachings, the sacraments, and being present at the most important and pivotal events of our lives, Birth, Baptism, First Communion, Confirmation, Marriage, Confession, Anointing of the Sick, Death and especially the Mass. The priest is there, connecting us to Jesus literally by his own body, soul, and spirit. He is like a bridge to heaven for us.
Dionna wrote me yesterday with her own experience of the life-saving presence of the priests in her life:
Cathy,
I can't tell you how grateful I am that you shared this and your personal experience. I just had a very tragic event - a terrible accident that took place this past Sunday as I was driving my mother-in-law and myself to the Tridentine Mass at Holy Trinity in Gainesville, VA. We were hit by an SUV when turning left at the intersection of the church.
My mother-in-law was in the front passenger seat and she did not survive. As horrible as this was - God was with us the whole way especially through several priests. Father Vander Woude, our pastor, came over to anoint her but the ambulance was leaving to take her to an airfield so she could be air lifted to the hospital. He drove to the airfield!
When she arrived [at the hospital] they were running multiple tests and once in ICU, Fr. Charles Merkle came to give her last rites and then again, after she died he also gave her prayers for the dead, which was beautiful.
Also-on our own-we prayed the Divine Mercy Chaplet with a group of friends and family gathered together around her in the room. She was conscious enough to hear and acknowledge us.
I can't express fully enough how much this meant to me. Also - I am struggling with the fact that I was driving and Father Charles took some time with me to talk about that and share a personal experience that truly helped me.
Indeed-we could not survive without these Sacred Servants! Let us pray deep from our hearts for them all! God Bless, Dionna
Thank you, Dionna, for sharing this very recent experience of loss and the ministry of the priests in your life. We will pray for your Mother-in-law, for you and the whole family.
Here is another testimony of the gift of the priest in our lives from Elena:
Hi Cathy,
I agree 100%. The same experience happened to me in May 2010 when I was admitted to ICU with severe anemia and severe pneumonia. "I gotta find a priest for her" went through my friends mind over and over. Immediate answered prayer! Fr. Joe anointed me and with that came the unexplainable peace that you mentioned. I KNEW I was going to be healed. I received Jesus too. I CHERISH our priests. Yes...we must be Prayer Warriors for them for without them, there is no life, no Sacraments. God bless you always! Elena
Thank you, Elena! Yes, we all cherish our priests. And we do want to pray for them as Our Lady urges us each month through Mirjana. I would welcome more accounts of the life-saving, life-changing effect of the priests and bishops in our lives. These stories help us to grow in our love for our priests and bishops, which in turn empowers our prayer for them. Love is what makes prayer powerful!
Mother, help us to love our priests and our bishops, so that we can pray from the heart for them!
In Jesus, Mary and Joseph! Cathy Nolan ©Mary TV 2012 |
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