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And as he was yet speaking, behold a bright cloud overshadowed them. And lo, a voice out of the cloud, saying: This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: hear ye him. (Matt 17:5)
God the Father shows the glory of His Son Jesus and commands us to listen to Him. Not only that, but the human witnesses, Moses and Elijah, by their presence give testimony to Jesus.
How can we listen to Jesus today? Of course, we can read the Bible and meditate on it. But our pride and selfish desires can distort the Word and we can make It serve our own purposes. The parable of the sower warns us about this (Mark 4:3-9). We need the Church, the community of believers who faithfully transmit the Word of God with the true interpretation. But what if the Church, for whatever reason, no longer interests the common people? Then God raises up extraordinary witnesses to wake us up.
Throughout history, and in our days especially, the extraordinary witness is no less than the Mother of God Herself, in Her numerous apparitions throughout the world, for example La Salette, Lourdes, Fatima, Akita, Quito … etc. The official line of the Church for the apparitions that she accepts as genuine (there are many that are rejected, see here for a comprehensive list of Marian apparitions for the 20th century) is that the faithful may believe, but they do not have to. I think that this is a wise position, one that appears to be cool and that avoids too much fanaticism, because sadly, there appear to many more false claims of visions than genuine ones. However, because of the magnitude of the claim, that it is the Mother of God Herself Who is talking, the veracity of these claims should be a top priority for the Church. If a group of people started blaspheming and lying about Jesus or Mary, surely we would be bound to rectify the situation. In the same way, if someone claims that Mary said this, or said that etc., it is surely a kind of blasphemy if it is untrue, and a source of confusion or scandal to the faithful. At the sharp edge of this problem are the local bishops, whose responsibility it is to investigate all these claims, but in reality it is the responsibility of the whole Church to support their bishops with constant prayer so that these matters can be resolved speedily.
A case in point are the apparitions of Medjugorje. Our Lady is said to have been appearing there constantly since June 24, 1981 – and there are claims on both sides as to the truth or not of this case. I cannot say personally which is correct for sure, and the Church is still investigating. But the point is, how is it possible for a Church that SHOULD believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ, that SHOULD hold His Holy Mother in a position of the GREATEST respect and honour, how is it possible that a claim like Medjugorje does not weigh massively on our consciences? Either the MOTHER OF GOD is talking to us, or some people are telling lies about Her – Can we really sit by calmly and let this happen? Should we not pray that this matter, and all of those similar, are resolved speedily, as anything else is a grave dishonour to Our Lady.
Dear Jesus, please help us to pray fervently for the clear transmission of Your Word. May the day come, when Your ministers can clearly identify Your genuine witnesses and say in Your Name: this is My messenger, listen to him / her; this IS My Mother, listen to Her.
ROSARY and LECTIO DIVINA, Michael127 