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Recently media sources are reporting a negative article by a man who is well known for his hatred against Medjugorje. This man is not alone but among others who have made it their life’s mission to hurt the Medjugorje apparitions in any possible way, even if they need lie or twist the truth. In some cases at least one of these men has made millions through books, videos and lectures. Medjugorje USA is responding to this recent article about a defrocked priest written by this Medjugorje hater (who's name I will not mention) because we have been receiving hate email because we have a Medjugorje website. 

Personally I cry for the people who have contacted me with their condemnations against our website "Medjugorje USA". It is difficult for me to understand how or why people would read a single article written by a known Medjugorje hater and believe what that person writes is all truth. Regardless of the sins a person has committed, we having been created in the image of God and are told in Scripture it is good we act God like. God like, means we should act with kindness, mercy, compassion and forgiveness which are the ways of God. Anger, hatred, condemnation are not the ways of God but the ways of evil who seeks destruction.

In Scripture a woman was about to be stoned by the crowd as she was found to be an adulteress. Jesus stepped in the mist of the crowd and held up a stone and said, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” No one took the stone and Jesus told the woman,  “if they do not condemn you, neither will I,” and he told her to go and sin no more.  Jesus did not give stones to the crowd to throw at the woman. Instead Jesus showed kindness, compassion, mercy and forgiveness, as should we all. If we show mercy, we obtain mercy and if we give compassion, we are given compassion and if we learn to forgive, so also are we forgiven. We choose what will become of us by how we act toward others. Luke 6:37-38 says, "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give and it will be given to you.”  In short with the measure you measure, a same measure will be measured you." God gives an equal measure for equal worth.

So it is important we remember that “With what measure each person measures, an equal measure will be given.” So, if a person measures hatred toward a man who has fallen, (such as this priest in the article) God may measure hate to the person who hated the person who has fallen. If a person measures condemnation, God many also condemn. Again, God gives and equal measure for equal worth. In Matthew 7:5 we read, ""You hypocrite, first take the log (beam, sin) out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye." This is a similar Scripture as is the story above of the adulteress. The message in both stories are the same,  we should not cast stones at others when we ourselves are sinful. There is nothing good in writing articles against a person that fell into sin or in that same article to claim that because that person sinned and believe in Medjugorje, therefore all who believe in Medjugorje should also be condemned. Those who write such articles and those who gossip could be in danger of an equal measure.

St. Paul was writing about the godlessness and wickedness wicked men who suppress the truth.  In Romans Chapter One St. Paul goes on to say, “They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, and ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.”  Simply put, false witness and gossip are not the ways of God.

Even if an official decision regarding a priest who acted inappropriately has been handed down by the Vatican, this does not mean all priests are also inappropriate.  If you have a hangnail, do you cut off the finger? No, you simply remove the hangnail. If there is a bad apple in a basket of many apples, do you throw away all the apples? Certainly not as this is waste. You remove the bad apple so it will not affect the others. Why do people seek the destruction of the whole of Medjugorje because of the actions of a single person?  Seeking destruction of the whole is unjust and is bearing false witness. Proverbs Chapter 19 tells us “A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will not escape.”  Exodus 20:16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”  Revelations 21:8 tell us what become of those who bear false witness and gossip, “But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

There are many facts about this priest (who was never officially part of the Parish of St. James in Medjugorje) who has acted inappropriately that the Medjugorje hater has just so happened to leave out of his article. The writer does not write to tell the whole truth and nothing but. The writer in fact adds a dose of truth to much untruth as he seeks to stir up the hearts, minds and souls, of those who love sensationalism and gossip. I will not address every lie and or misconception in the Medjugorje haters article about a defrocked priest but I will discuss at least one bold face lie that was written as an example. 

In the article the author writes, “Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict issued a ban on pilgrimages to the site but this has been widely ignored.”

This is a shameful attempt to reach faithful Catholic’s who are obedient to the Church and the Pontiff. The author is attempting to tell the faithful if they believe in Medjugorje or go on pilgrimage to Medjugorje they are disobedient to the rule of Pope Benedict. The writer of the article in question is using wicked lies and manipulation to lead astray if possible even the faithful.

In my book and in my possession are actual U.S. State Department documents which were declassified for me to write my book, “Medjugorje Investigated.” One Vatican document clearly tells us that Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict) in fact wrote a letter to the Yugoslavia Conference of Bishops, instructing them to tell the Mostar Bishop (Zanic) to stop his negative campaign against Medjugorje as it was disruptive and not allowing a proper “SECOND” investigation of the apparitions. It was through an extensive investigation of United States Ambassador to Yugoslavia David Anderson (in the early 1980’s) that the Vatican discovered the FIRST Medjugorje Commission appointed by Bishop Zanic of the diocese of Mostar, was purposely tainted with unbelievers. The reason Bishop Zanic was against the apparitions is another story not related to the current discussion at this time. The point is, Cardinal Ratzinger NEVER banned pilgrimages to Medjugorje as the Medjugorje hater claims in the article he wrote about a defrocked priest. There are Church laws that govern the investigation of apparitions that would not allow the Pope to even make such a comment as it is not his duty to do so.

We need to come to our senses and think about all this for a second to see how ridiculous this article by the Medjugorje hater really is. Should we honestly believe that the Pope would tell everyone not to go to Medjugorje (as the Medjugorje hater say’s he did,) when it is the Pope himself who has allowed the Vatican to do a new "THIRD" investigation of Medjugorje? It is officially documented that Pope Benedict’s has asked a new Medjugorje Commission be formed in July 2006. The Commission began investigation in September of 2006.  There is no way on one hand the Pope is going to condemn Medjugorje by saying no one can go there but at the same time appoint a commission to investigate the apparitions. To tell people not to go there but authorize a commission for investigation would be like putting the cart before the horse.

It is also fact that under Church rule, we the faithful have a right to offer prayer where we will as prayer is good anywhere. Under Church law and guidelines we have a right to go to Medjugorje or any apparition site as long as we are obedient to the final decision handed down by the completed Commission.

Ending I have to simply add that the man who wrote the article about a defrocked priest has twisted a little truth into a whopper of a lie, all in the attempt to lead the faithful away. He uses a priest who believes in Medjugorje and for a very short time was in Medjugorje and the author of the article uses this to say the whole of the Medjugorje apparitions therefore must be evil because one man acted inappropriately. Again, do we throw the whole barrel of apples away because of one bad one? This Medjugorje hater who has written this deceitful article is not a judge, jury or hangman. He has no right to stand in judgment of anyone, less he also be judged, as Scripture tells us. The Medjugorje hater really seeks the destruction of all Catholic faithful and the Church as a whole. He does this by taking a small truth and twisting lies around it. In the process he hopes we will lose our faith which turns us away from God. All those who read such articles and believe without question, are being lead astray.  When reading anything online from one who displays hate, keep in mind always this Scripture, "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. "Matthew 7:15.