Fr. Jozo's Talk at St. Elijah Church

Fr. Jozo's Talk at

St. Elijah Church, Tihaljina Parish

September 29, 1987




Our Lady has been appearing for 6 years, 3 months and 4 days.

Lord send us Your Spirit. Your Spirit is love. Heal our love. Heal our love that has been wounded. Our Lady, pray now with us that the Spirit would fill us. We wish to return home as a light, as a sign of Your Presence with your people. You are our strength. Mother and Queen of Peace, pray for us.

Mary's words can be only heard with the heart that loves. I beg you, listen with your hearts. You have heard her voice and have come here. What will happen because you came here? This is not an ordinary pilgrimage. It means a lot more just as Jesus' death was not just an ordinary death. His death brought about your transformation. Why are you here? What is Mary asking of you? It all depends upon you now. In May, 1987, Mary said that she has brought all the graces necessary for you. Not even one which is necessary for you is missing or not available. She would like to give them to you. In order to explain this to you I will share a meditation of a man who pondered about the rain falling as he sat at his desk. He saw how a drop fell onto the road and became mud; another fell into a river which mixed with other water and became the sea. A drop fell into a rose. The flower drank it up and it was transformed into life. A drop fell onto burning iron and evaporated immediately. A drop fell into an opened oyster. The oyster closed and the water was transformed into a pearl. Each drop that fell measured the same. Some gave life and good fruits. It depended upon where the drop fell. Many pilgrims transform their pilgrimages into grace. Many pilgrims have begun a new life full of life. It doesn't depend on Our Lady; it depends on you! You have to want to transform your graces into a pearl.

What has Mary been saying to us for 6 years, 3 months and 4 days? Be converted. I did not understand her well. I thought she was calling those who had left the Church and sinners to be converted. Don't think that father is calling you, She is calling you. She is calling families to prayer. Our Lady continued to ask for prayers. Many came to the church and we prayed the rosary. Mary appeared and told Jacov, "Pray that way every day; pray the rosary every day." From that day we prayed the complete rosary. People stayed the whole night praying. The next day I went into the factories and fields to talk with the people. They expressed their desire to do whatever Mary wanted them to do. Every day people came to pray. Mary told us, "Don't pray with your mouth but with your heart." I didn't understand. She explained, "Tonight everyone of you must forgive. Find the enemies in your heart that you do battle with. Give the pain in your heart to Jesus. Pray for great goodness." After I asked, "Are you ready to forgive one another?" They were not ready to say yes. I said, "Let us pray for forgiveness." After about 20 minutes a great miracle sign from our hearts was born -- a desire and a need to pray, a need to forgive everyone. We grabbed hands and asked for forgiveness.

Prayer gives us light. The Mass was beautiful and seemed to enclose the whole world. To be converted means to begin with the heart in prayer. No man is finished with his way to conversion. He is only beginning. Every day is another step. That night we all felt we had started on the road to conversion. After that night Our Lady said, "Fast, Satan is very present here." During the sermon I told the people that Our Lady searches and invites us to fast. Everyone answered, like a great waterfall, "Yes," that they would fast. We fasted Friday and Saturday. Everyone started to fast. No one ate. There was great enthusiasm. Everyone received great graces. Friday afternoon everyone went to confession. This was 2 weeks from when Our Lady first appeared. They came at first just to see and now in 2 weeks they had a desire to live their faith. 150 priests came to hear confessions. The people did not want to go home. All of the confessors felt that these were the most sincere confessions that they had ever heard. To be converted means to begin with sacrifice that comes with love and joy. Our Lady invites us to pray and fast. "I need your prayers," she says. "Every one of you are important and I need you. Can you believe these words?" She invites you -- you must understand how you are important.

Jesus felt true joy and complete peace. Everyone needed and desired Him. He destroyed Satan. All night Jesus prayed. If you don't pray you cannot do good. If nights pass without prayer you cannot stop Satan. Empty words cannot bring peace. Jesus had compassion on the hungry group that He had been speaking to. He told the apostles to give them food. The only food to be found was a small boy's lunch. The apostles told the boy, "Our Lord wants your lunch." The boy gave his lunch; he wanted to give it to Jesus as a gift. Peter viewed this lunch as nothing -- how could it feed such a vast crowd? Only Jesus saw it as enough, and blessed it and everyone received. Peter had not seen this little boy as important. When Our Lady says that you are important you must believe it. People see the rosary and say, "This is nothing;" but in Jesus' eyes this is not nothing. Mary wants to give your prayers to Jesus. Even the little boy benefitted from his gift. He did not go hungry. Your prayer is a great activity which benefits everyone including you. You are important! Your prayers are important! Everyday Our Lady repeats, "Pray." Your prayer could feed a man with peace.

In our prayers we need Jesus. The Church has to give testimony and you are the Church. The Church has empty hands -- it is like a lamp without oil... the light is out. It exists as a destroyed city. Mary searches for children who will pray with her. Offer your life to her. Mary began to cry very hard. It was terrible to see how she cried. It is terrible to see true love crying. Why did she cry? She cried when she spoke about priests, the Mass and the Bible. Her tears were no superficial game. They can dissolve our hearts. They can dissolve all past bad. They can put every pain far away. "You have forgotten your Bible; ...where are the foundation steps of prayer in the family?"

None pray or think as Jesus. We perceive as the apostles did with the little boy. We are all sons of God. We must read and not forget the Words of the Father. Reading the Bible means sitting at the feet of the Lord. Take the hand of the Lord and follow Him; become His mother, brothers and sisters. Hear His voice and put into practice His words. Mary searches for those who will pray -- for those who will open their bag of life and give everything. The Word of the Lord is life. Decide every day to read it -- to give your body life. Live the Mass. Jesus lived the Mass. He learned from Mary how to pray and live the Mass. He said, "Take this, this is my body." Do not be afraid to give your body -- to give all of you.

All of you are changed into new men who are children of God. At the end of the Mass you are commissioned to go -- you do not live but Jesus lives in you -- go live peace. You are to go live love. The Mass is finished inside the church but it begins life outside the church. Living means to know how to live the Mass. You are as a prophet who hears the Words of God and are called to be apostles. We live in who sends us. Mary desires to send you. You will get new life from prayer and sacrifice in your everyday life. You are important.

Mary desires to return with you. Your country waits for you. Don't be afraid. David had no fear; he went with the Lord and defeated the giant. You cannot forget your armament. Fast and live the Mass every day. Don't refuse the words of Our Lady. To refuse them means to refuse joy. Don't be afraid. Mary is with you standing under your cross. She wants to give you strength and courage to love your cross and to die on your cross. Whoever wants to separate you from your cross is a tempter. The apostles wanted Jesus to continue to live but they were thinking as men think, not as the Father thinks. (Speaking to a woman in our group from Washington D.C. Father Jozo said) Mary does not desire to free woman from her wheelchair or her humiliations she experiences. These humiliations give her spiritual nutrition to walk on the right road. We need sufferings. We are full of joy to see Jesus on the cross. It is our birth to embrace the cross with joy. Do not be afraid. Mary loves you. If you have the cross you should be joyful and enthusiastic to embrace it. The cross must not be missing.

Every morning we pray the rosary for the pilgrims who come here. Today you have entered into these prayers. Pray with us. Remember you are important and always pray.


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