Our Lady of Fatima's 100th Anniversary Together With the Canonization of Francisco and Jacinta Marto as New Saints of the Church

GMANews: ‘Misteryo ng Monasteryo,’ dokumentaryo ni Sandra Aguinaldo ngayong Sabado sa ‘I-Witness’

Source: GMAOnline

“MISTERYO SA MONASTERYO”

Dokumentaryo ni Sandra Aguinaldo

March 19, 2016

Noong 1948, isang dalaga ang tumakas para pumasok sa Carmelite Monastery. Siya ang bunso at paboritong anak ng gobernador ng Batangas. Maganda at may talento sa pagtugtog ng piano, tila wala na siyang hahanapin pa. Pero tinalikuran ni Teresing ang komportableng buhay na ito para sa isang payak na pamumuhay sa umiikot lang sa loob ng mga pader ng monasteryo.

Makalipas ang isang buwan, yayanigin niya ang mga na pader ito nang isiwalat niya na nagpapakita sa kanya ang Mahal na Birhen. Sumunod dito ang iba’t ibang misteryosong kaganapan--- ang pag-ulan ng mga talulot ng rosas at kalaunan, ang pagsayaw ng araw na masasaksihan ng maraming tao. Kikilalanin ito sa buong mundo bilang Aparisyon ng Mary Mediatrix of All Grace.

Pero noong 1951, idineklara ng mga opisyal ng simbahan na hindi totoo ang mga naganap sa Lipa at ipinagbawal ang debosyon sa Our Lady of Mediatrix. Pinaalis si Sister Teresing sa monasteryo. Lahat ng dokumento, mga talulap ng rosas at pati ang imahe ng Mediatrix ay iniutos na sunugin. Isinara ang pintuan ng monasteryo at nagkaroon ng “ban of silence” na tatagal ng apatnapung taon.

Noong 1990, binuksan muli ni Arsobispo Gaviola ang imbestigasyon patungkol dito. Sa pakiusap ng isang madreng nakaratay na, inilabas muli ang imahe ng Our Lady of Mediatrix na naitago nila at pinayagan itong makita muli ng publiko. Bumuo siya ng isang grupo para imbesitgahang muli ang kaso.

Taong 2015, ang kasalukuyang Arsobispo ng Lipa na si Ramon Arguelles, ay nagdeklara na ang mga naganap sa Lipa noong 1948 ay “worthy of belief”. Makalipas ang halos pitong dekada, ang kuwento ni Sister Teresing, tanggap na nga ba ng simbahan? Ano nga ba ang mga tunay na naganap sa loob ng Monasteryo ng mga Carmelite sa Lipa? Bakit nagkaroon ng “ban of silence” ? Babalikan ni Sandra Aguinaldo ang mga kaganapan ng 1948 at matutuklasan na ito ay balot pa rin ng misteryo. Abangan ang “Himala ng Lipa” ngayong Sabado, sa I-Witness, pagkatapos ng Magpakailanman.

English version:

In 1948, a young woman who was the youngest and who was the favorite daughter of the Batangas governor ran away to enter the Carmelite Monastery. Beautiful, talented, and privileged, Teresing turned her back on her comfortable life in exchange for the austere life confined within monastery walls.

A month later, these same walls shook with the revelation that the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to her in a series of apparitions. Other mysterious events soon followed — showers of rose petals and later on, a dancing sun witnessed by many. This phenomenon would be known around the world as the Apparition in Lipa by Mary Mediatrix of all Grace.

In 1951 however, local church officials declared these phenomena a hoax and banned all devotion to Mary Mediatrix. Sister Teresing was asked to leave the monastery. All documents including the nuns’ diaries, rose petals and the statue of the Mediatrix were ordered destroyed and the monastery doors closed. The “ban of silence” was imposed and lasted for forty years.

In 1990, Archbishop Gaviola re-investigated the case and at the request of a dying nun, allowed the statue of the Mediatrix, which was spared from destruction and hidden by the nuns, to be venerated in public again. He then created a new panel to re-investigate the case.

In 2015, current Archbishop of Lipa Ramon Arguelles, declared these mysterious events as “worthy of belief”. What really happened inside the Carmelite monastery in 1948? Why was the “ban of silence” imposed? Sandra Aguinaldo revisits the events of 1948 and discovers they continue to be as mysterious as they were 67 years ago. I-Witness presents “Himala ng Lipa”, this Saturday on GMA, after Magpakailanman.

India: Darjeeling’s ‘miracle’ draws thousands

By Julian S Das, Sonada
UCANews

Photo of the "bleeding crucifix" in Sonada

A bishop in eastern India says the “first miracle” in his diocese has strengthened his people’s faith and attracted people of other religions.

“Our people are overjoyed at the first public miracle,” Bishop Stephen Lepcha of Darjeeling told ucanews.com on Nov. 26. “This has strengthened the faith of the people,” he added.

The bishop said the “miracle” occurred Nov. 20 when a priest and two couples preached a retreat for some novices of Claritian congregation at Dirnberger Niketan, Sonada, in West Bengal state.

A crucifix began to bleed when a woman preacher, a recent convert from Islam, prayed in her room in the morning. “Soon other crucifixes, rosaries and a big statue of Mary in the house began to bleed,” the prelate narrated.

Bishop Lepcha said he visited the place the next day and saw the crucifix and the Marian statue. He also met Mary, the Muslim who became a Catholic on Aug. 7.

The prelate quoted the woman from Kerala, southern India, as saying the Blessed Virgin had separate messages for the bishop, priests and people.

Fatima and Mary Our Lady of the Light

Image of our Blessed Lady with her Holy Son Jesus

Today I received a very beautiful description about Fatima, the only daughter of Islam's prophet . While reading, I can only understand her virtues ascribed to the Holy Mother of Jesus Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary whose name was even given a special section book in Muslim's holy book called Qur'an. Here's the message:

Birth:

Bibi Fatimah Zehra [SA] the daughter of the Holy Prophet Mohammed [PBUH] of Islam, was born in Mecca on 20th jumada ‘th-thaniyah 18 B.H.

The good and noble lady Khadijah and the Apostle Of Allah bestowed all their natural love, care and devotion on their lovable and only child Fatimah, who in her turn was extremely fond of her parents.

Character:

The Princess of the House of the Prophet, was very intelligent, accomplished and cheerful. Her sermons, poems and sayings serve, as an index to her strength of character and nobility of mind. Her virtues gained her the title “Our Lady of Light”. She was tall,slender and endowed with great beauty, which caused her to be called "az-Zahra" (the Lady of Light). She was called az-Zahra’ also because her light used to shine among those in heaven.

Marriage:

After arriving in Medina , she was married to Hazrat Ali A.S, in the first year after Hijrah, She gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Her children, Hasan, Husayn, Zaynab and Umm Kulthum are well-known for their piety, goodness and generosity. Their strength of character and actions changed the course of history. The Holy Prophet [PBUH] said, “Fatimah AS is a piece of my heart”. He would go out to receive his daughter whenever she came from her husband’s house. Every morning on his way to the Mosque, he would pass by Fatimah’s house and say, “as-Salamu ‘alaykum ya ahli bayti ‘n-nubuwwah wa ma’dani ‘r-risalah” (peace be on you O the Household of Prophethood and the Source of Messengership).

The Best Woman:

Fatimah is famous and acknowledged as the “Sayyidatu nisa’i ‘l-’alamin” (Leader of all the women of the world for all times) because the Prophethood of Muhammad would not have been everlasting without her. The Prophet is the perfect example for men, but could not be so for women. For all the verses revealed in the Holy Qur’an for women, Fatimah is the perfect model, who translated every verse into action. In her lifetime, she was a complete woman, being Daughter, Wife and Mother at the same time.

As a daughter, she loved her parents so much, that she won their love and regard to such an extent that the Holy Prophet used to rise, whenever she came near him. As a wife, she was very devoted. She never asked Hazrat ‘Ali (A.S) for anything in her whole life.

As a mother, she cared for and brought up wonderful children; they have left their marks on the face of the world, which time will not be able to erase (sic).

In fact, according to Islam, Fatimah (or Fatima) alone was not the best of all women but she shares that title with Mary (Mariam) the Mother of Jesus (Issa) who perfectly been described both in the Bible and in the Qur'an as virtuous and upright woman for which she IS.

In the Bible, Mary was the new Ark of the Covenant for carrying in her womb the Logos. She's the true "Our Lady of the Light" for bearing in her womb the source of Light. She was the "Woman Clothe with the Sun" with seven stars as her crown and the moon under her feet(Revelations 12).

Mama Mary

Mary's own dignity above all women was revealed through her cousin Elizabeth's declaration filled with the Holy Spirit he proclaimed "...blessed are you among women..." (Luke 1:39-45) ) and the many apparitions occurred for the past 20th Century. Particularly Mary chose to appear to three village children whose work was to tend sheep. Now Mary is known as the "Our Lady of Fatima."

Indeed Mary, the Mother of the Jesus, was crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth for God chose her among all women.

We pray that through Our Lady of Fatima, Christians and Muslims would finally understand the faith we shared through the greatness of Mary as she appeared to many (including Muslims) in Cairo which is now known as the Our Lady of Zeitoun-- Cairo in April 2, 1969.

Among the many holy women of all religions, only Mary manifested herself in apparition witnessed by peoples of all walks of life and different faiths.

The greatness of Mary was not of her own declaration nor men's.  It was God's own choosing that the Angel Gabriel's declared unto her "Hail! Full of Grace" and to some translations "Hail! Highly favored daughter" that Mary would be the greatest of all women.  

Mary, how blessed she is indeed!

Cross Seen in the Sky in Russia

Science has it's own way of explaining this phenomenon. It could be Aurora Borealis but who are we to distort what God wants us to know in these days when many of so called "Christians" don't believe in the power of the Cross of Christ but believed in the power of their own founders and established protesting "churches"?

Fatima Apparition now in Film

New movie about Our Lady of Fatima to be screened in major U.S. cities

San Francisco, Calif., Oct 1, 2009 / 06:39 am (Thanks to CNA).- A new film about the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima, based on the memoirs of visionary Sister Lucia and the accounts of thousands of eyewitnesses, will be holding pre-release screenings in at least seven major U.S. cities.

“The 13th Day” is the first major motion picture by directors Ian and Dominic Higgins. According to the film’s U.S. distributor Ignatius Press, their film tells the story of the Virgin Mary’s appearances to Lucia Santos and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto.

Over a six month period in 1917, the Virgin Mary gave prophecies and warnings to children that included a harrowing vision of hell, the spread of communism and the attempted assassination of a Pope.

The film was shot on location in Portugal and in the United Kingdom. It has a cast of hundreds and three young Portuguese actors will play the roles of the young visionaries.

Anthony Ryan, Director of Marketing for Ignatius Press, described the film as an “antidote” for our times.
“It is a reminder that a thin veil exists between our world and the next. The Message of Fatima is a relevant wake-up call to a culture torn apart by abortion, war, and injustice. Every Catholic, perhaps every person, should see this film,” he said.

Screenings of “The 13th Day” are scheduled for October 13, the anniversary of the final apparition. They will be held in Atlanta, New York City, Denver, Chicago and Oakland. Other cities with screenings include Orlando, Florida and Austin and Fort Worth, Texas.

Interested Catholic leaders can sign up for a screening in their area at the site Catholic Screenings.

The movie’s website is at http://www.ignatius.com/the-13th-day/