Padawanbater2
Well-Known Member
That's not enough evidence, the best you can say is the guy may have existed.
just c&p my reply to Kaendar from the other thread.Where's mindphuk with the history of Jesus when you need him...
I hope you can find this as life changing as i did, unfortunately you most likely hadn't been able to visit there, but I hope you can realize what is happening in the world and how we can play a part.Since 1981, in a small village in Bosnia-Hercegovina named Medjugorje, the Blessed Virgin Mary has been appearing and giving messages to the world. She tells us that God has sent Her to our world, and these years she is spending with us are a time of Grace granted by God. In Her own words She tells us, "I have come to tell the world that God exists. He is the fullness of life, and to enjoy this fullness and peace, you must return to God".
Our Lady's mission is one of peace and love. She has come to earth to reeducate us and to help us convert and recenter our lives back to God. Our Lady's role has always been one of guiding people to Her Son, Jesus. What an amazing opportunity we have before us! Our Lady's call to conversion is urgent, and we should respond with all our hearts.
Our Lady continues to give messages to six people from the village of Medjugorje: Ivan, Jakov, Marija, Mirjana, Vicka, and Ivanka. These six people (referred to as "visionaries") have received apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary since June 24, 1981. In addition to Her public messages, Our Lady is to give each of the six visionaries a total of ten "secrets" or happenings that will occur on earth in the near future. Some of the secrets pertain to the whole world while others concern the visionaries themselves or the local village. Only one of the secrets has so far been revealed by the visionaries. In the third secret Our Lady has promised to leave a supernatural, indestructible, and visible sign on the mountain where she first appeared. Our Lady said: "This sign will be given for the atheists. You faithful already have signs and you have become the sign for the atheists. You faithful must not wait for the sign before you convert; convert soon. This time is a time of grace for you. You can never thank God enough for His grace. The time is for deepening your faith, and for your conversion. When the sign comes, it will be too late for many."
When each of the six visionaries has received all ten "secrets", Our Lady will stop appearing to them on a daily basis. Currently, Marija, Vicka, and Ivan have received nine secrets, and Our Lady still appears to them every day, wherever they are, at 5:40pm during daylight savings time, and 6:40pm the rest of the year. Mirjana, Jakov, and Ivanka have received all ten secrets, and Our Lady appears to them once per year, and will do so for the rest of their lives. For Ivanka who received her 10th secret on May 7, 1985 it is on the anniversary of the apparitions, June 25 each year. For Jakov who received his 10th secret on September 12, 1998, it is on Christmas day each year. And for Mirjana who received her 10th secret on Christmas 1982, it is on her birthday, March 18 each year. Our Lady has also been appearing to Mirjana on the 2nd of each month since August 2, 1987 for the purpose of praying for all unbelievers. Mirjana tells us that it is very important that all of us pray for the unbelievers in the world, who are described as those who have not yet experienced God's love. Sometimes these appearances on the 2nd of each month are apparitions, and sometimes locutions. No one knows when Our Lady will give the tenth secret to Marija, Ivan, and Vicka.
Once Our Lady has stopped appearing there will be three warnings given to the world. These warnings will be in the form of events on earth. They will occur within Mirjana's lifetime, and Mirjana will be a witness to them. Ten days before each of the warnings, she will advise the priest she chose for this task (Father Petar Ljubicic), who will then pray and fast with Mirjana for seven days. Then, three days before each warning is to take place, Fr. Petar will announce to the world what, where, and when the warning will take place. Fr. Petar has no choice, and must reveal each warning. After the first warning, the other two will follow in a rather short period of time. That interval will be a period of grace and conversion. After the permanent, visible, supernatural, and indestructible sign appears on the mountain where Our Lady first appeared in Medjugorje there will be little time for conversion. For that reason, the Blessed Virgin invites us to urgent conversion and reconciliation. The permanent sign will lead to many healings and conversions before the secrets become reality. According to Mirjana, the events predicted by the Blessed Virgin are near. By virtue of this experience, Mirjana proclaims to the world: 'Hurry, be converted; open your hearts to God.'
The ninth and tenth secrets are serious. They concern chastisement for the sins of the world. Punishment is inevitable, for we cannot expect the whole world to be converted. The punishment can be diminished by prayer and penance, but it cannot be eliminated. Mirjana says that one of the evils that threatened the world, the one contained in the seventh secret, has been averted, thanks to prayer and fasting. That is why the Blessed Virgin continues to encourage prayer and fasting: "You have forgotten that with prayer and fasting you can ward off wars, suspend natural laws."
In addition to this basic message, Mirjana related an apparition she had in 1982, which sheds some light on certain aspects of Church history. She spoke of an apparition in which satan appeared to her, and asked Mirjana to renounce Our Lady and to follow him. By doing so she could be happy in love and in life. He added that following Our Lady would only lead to suffering. Mrjana rejected him, and immediately Our Lady appeared and Satan disappeared. Then Our Lady gave Mirjana the following message in substance:
"Excuse me for this, but you must realize that Satan exists. One day he appeared before the throne of God and asked permission to submit the Church to a period of trial. God gave him permission to try the Church for one century. This century is under the power of the devil; but when the secrets confided to you come to pass, his power will be destroyed. Even now he is beginning to lose his power and has become aggressive. He is destroying marriages, creating divisions among priests and is responsible for obsessions and murder. You must protect yourselves against these things through fasting and prayer, especially community prayer. Carry blessed objects with you. Put them in your house, and restore the use of holy water."
According to certain Catholic experts who have studied these apparitions, this message of Mirjana may shed light on the vision Pope Leo XIII had. According to them, it was after having had an apocalyptic vision of the future of the Church that Leo XIII introduced the prayer to Saint Michael which priests used to recite after Mass up to the time of the Second Vatican Council. These experts say that the century of trials foreseen by Leo XIII is about to end.
Since the apparitions began in 1981, approximately 40 million people of all faiths, from all over the world, have visited Medjugorje and have left spiritually strengthened and renewed. Many bring back stories of miracles in the form of healings (of mind, body and spirit), supernatural visual signs, and deep conversions back to God. You owe it to yourself and your loved ones, to investigate with an open mind and heart the messages which are given to us by Our Lady of Medjugorje. I invite you to read these messages and decide for yourself how they will affect your life and that of your family.
Our Lady's messages are meant to be assembled like a mosaic. To understand the full meaning and depth of these messages, we need to study all of the messages She has given us over these almost 30 years. "By means of the messages, I wish to make a very beautiful mosaic in your hearts." (November 25, 1989). Our Lady has asked that we continually read, study, and meditate on the messages which she has given us. She said: "Little children, read every day the messages I gave you and transform them into life. I love you and this is why I call you to the way of salvation with God." (December 25, 1989).
The technique of teaching which Our Lady uses, reeducates us to be Christians. She accomplishes this by walking with us, and guiding us step by step, message by message. Today, many people think it is not important to be a Christian. Others want to live a superficial form of Christianity which is easier or more convenient than living a true Christian life. Our Lady wants to show us through Her messages the real face of Christianity. This is a long process because we as a society have strayed far from the truth and God and are slow to learn. This is true both in the Church and outside the Church. We have to accept being totally reeducated, little by little, by the Mother of God. The problem with mankind is not so much that people have bad intentions; there are plenty of good hearted people. The problem is that we sometimes don't see the truth; we are in darkness, and many of us are just blind. We do not realize that we have put ourselves into the hands of satan because we do not know how to tell the difference between right and wrong. Many of us become an image of satan without even knowing it.
I don't think that anyone could argue, regardless of religious orientation, that today's world is in a state of crisis. All one has to do is read the newspaper or watch television to be see how eroded the morals of our world have become. It is shocking to see and hear the examples of inhumanity, cruelty, violence, abuse, drugs, war, crime, etc., etc. Much of the world has strayed far from a life centered around God and family. The answers which we need to redirect our life can be found by reading and living Our Lady's messages and the Scriptures.
"You are ready to commit sin, and to put yourselves in the hands of satan without reflecting." (May 25, 1987)
"Do not allow satan to gain control of your hearts, so you would be an image of satan and not of me." (January 30, 1986)
"Children, darkness reigns over the whole world. People are attracted by many things and they forget about the more important."
"Light won't reign in the world until people accept Jesus, until they live His words, which is the Word of the Gospel."
"Dear children, this is the reason for my presence among you for such a long time: to lead you on the path of Jesus. I want to save you and, through you, to save the whole world. Many people now live without faith; some don't even want to hear about Jesus, but they still want peace and satisfaction! Children, here is the reason why I need your prayer: prayer is the only way to save the human race." (July 30, 1987)
We must realize that Satan is real. He uses us for his own end and purposes. His main purpose is destruction. Destruction of love, peace, faith, family, and life. Just as God gave David 5 stones with which to defeat Goliath, Our Lady is also giving us 5 Stones or Weapons we can use to defeat satan. They are:
Daily Prayer (Of the Rosary)
Fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays
Daily Reading of the Bible
Monthly Confession
Holy Communion
Click Here, for a detailed look at these 5 Stones or Weapons to conquer satan.
We must realize that Our Lady's plan is for the entire planet, that this war is a war of love against destruction, and that Our Lady's goal in this struggle is the reign of love, and the return of souls to God.
Our Lady tells us that our personal role is "Great". We cannot do enough to live the messages. We must be willing to abandon ourselves completely. When put in proper perspective, our homes, our money, and our businesses are not nearly as important as gaining eternal life in Heaven after this life.
Matthew 16:25-27 "Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. What profit would a man show if he were to gain the whole world and destroy himself in the process? What can a man offer in exchange for his very self?"
I've heard that story rehashed a few different times, some kid actually got a book published and milked it for all it was worth, made a killing (him and his parents) with the same story.Their was a special on ABC last night "Is their a heaven?" and people was talking about their near death experiences. It had this one 4 year old boy who died for a few minutes and saw all the people from the bible which could be explained if he was already taught that (hallucinations when the brain is deprived from oxygen) but then he said he saw his dead baby sister that had died in his mother's stomach which nobody ever told him about. When they revived him, he asked his parent's "mommy, you had a baby die inside you, didn't you?"
Not sure what to say about that but it gave me the chills a little bit.
They also said that some people could have what they call the god gene. Good watch if it's out on the web, could be on their website.
You make no sense, people don't believe that God is an assumption, no idea where you got that... people believe God because of visions and true things that happen to them. it's not assuming something is true and that it is logical, it is knowing something is true based on fact. Some people do not get these signs, but others do, and the more pure of heart you become the happier you will enjoy this world God created for us.Ah Guidance. Of course, I knew that. You've come to the right place. We are very familar with these stories. In fact, that is what we have been talking about... stories, only.
If I may, however, I wish to point out, the basic position on which you place your logic is but the poverb's, house upon the sand.
"Can logic explain the thousands of converts and visionaries that find themselves closer to God for no particular reason and give up everything in their lives to follow him?"
You are making an assumption. Then the logic is that the assumption proves the assumption that these folks are motivate by this assumption.
It is a false logic. It is weak logic to try to prove the unproveable, right? But this church logic is faulty. You first must have us assume God and the Devil. And of course, all the rest of it is only based within the assumption of Catholics.
The biggest problem with Abraham is that he convinced those around him that he had it all figure out. Yet, the Kingdom of Judea was over. This posion pill of smug, unique damnation if we don't believe these stories, is all the supersitious power that remains. Assumption after assumption.
Well health records would prove the miscarriage and a lie detector could prove the boy's and parent's claims. You do have a point tho and should be looked into.
And for those with no religion at all? who die for seconds, if not minutes, and then come alive and dedicate their entires lives to God? not knowing where their beliefs came from but only concluding that it was in fact God who shed light on their souls? this is what happened to the priest who lead our group in Medjugorje. Father Rick Wendell, if you can find him...I don't doubt them but if someone has a strong religion and dies for a brief second then they most likely will have a vision, the mind can play powerful trickery if you believe in something enough.
So, people with visions make assumptions that the visions are actually God. Or, they make assumptions about coincidence and logic about, surely this must be God. And there is the basic assumption that there must be God, the bible stories say so.You make no sense, people don't believe that God is an assumption, no idea where you got that... people believe God because of visions and true things that happen to them. it's not assuming something is true and that it is logical, it is knowing something is true based on fact. Some people do not get these signs, but others do, and the more pure of heart you become the happier you will enjoy this world God created for us.
Yeah, even non believers.And for those with no religion at all? who die for seconds, if not minutes, and then come alive and dedicate their entires lives to God? not knowing where their beliefs came from but only concluding that it was in fact God who shed light on their souls? this is what happened to the priest who lead our group in Medjugorje. Father Rick Wendell, if you can find him...
So, basically, you are telling me that when a person visions the Blessed Virgin Mary, receives messages from Mary about what is occurring in the world, is given a tongue to fully understand another language(yes this occurred to one of the visionaries, she gained the knowledge to speak Italian, when she previously knew very little of the language, but learned to speak it fluently), is brought to officials, beaten, and questioned ruthlessly about her existence but still prevails, when people all throughout a village clearly see the words 'pax' in the sky(meaning peace in Latin), when being threatened to have your family's entire land and house seized away at the age of 16 by the government police and still go against them, and many more occurrences of faith, that these are all somebody just doing this because 'God would be the logical answer to why this is happening' you are making up think my friend. If God is what these people believe is the logical answer, and you are telling me they are wrong, then what would you tell me it is?So, people with visions make assumptions that the visions are actually God. Or, they make assumptions about coincidence and logic about, surely this must be God. And there is the basic assumption that there must be God, the bible stories say so.
And many folks, including me, feel something. We have some experience. But, my take would be considered heresy, to be sure.
These all become, as we say, stories. Only Stories. No universal assumptions that there is this loving anthropomorphic God.. Many assume there is nothing. Nothing but stories. And if you were rasied like me, before you could talk and before you could eat you had to pray before the sustanenace of life could be had. Just stories. And fear. Refuse to pray for supper? How? You don't have volition, much less chioce. No free will at 3 years old.
So, I'm sorry, to me it's a con. It is the basic Italian mafia protection racket. Create something to fear and then offer salvation from it. You have to believe the wise guys will bust you up. And much as been lost to this Roman plot.