considerations of medjugorje
There are plenty of reasons to dispute claims that the Virgin Mary has appeared regularly in supernatural extensions of reality for 38 years to several individuals at Medjugorje.
As a thought experiment I wish to propose reasons to believe the apparitions may be real.
1. I have heard first person testimony from a priest, ie directly to me, that people at Medjugorje avail of the sacrament of confession in a quite distinctive way. "I have never heard confessons like these," he told me. "Really incredible. People baring their souls. Crying their eyes out. And such joy." This claim is often made about Medjugorje but the instance I am citing is of interest to me because I have a passing acquaintanceship with the priest and I consider him somewhat credible.
2. I visited Medjugorje in 2013 and I quite liked it.
3. The Bosnian War which swept the region between 1992 and 1995 is said to have killed more than 90,000 people. Cities and infrastructure were bombed. Some say that two million people were displaced. There is a claim that Medjugorje was never bombed during this conflict.
4. The purported six visionaries Mirjana, Ivan, Vicka, Ivanka, Marija and Jacov, have never retracted their initial claims of seeing the Virgin Mary. They seem nice.
5. People who visit Medjugorje sometimes claim to have become penitent in regards to their errors of life.
6. A substantial amount of prayer takes place at Medjugorje among visitors and locals.
7. The tradition of fasting has been somewhat to the fore at Medjugorje. This is a tremendously respected tradition within the ancient church.
8. There appears to have been some genuine and durable reconciliation among neighbours at Medjugorje. This sort of claim impresses me because I recognise the deep seated conflicts that can permeate a small town. What I've heard about such conflicts at Medjugorje rings true. The spiritual challenge to renounce unforgiveness even at small town level seems powerfully relevant.
9. Medjugorje has inspired works of contemporary art which adorn the town at various locations. Some of them are not bad.
10. Much of the theology emerging from Medjugorje's purported visions is sound enough particularly in its call for respect for people of all faiths and cultures. Some of the critiques of this theology are in my assessment based on legalistic, vexatious or frivolous wordplay.
As a thought experiment I wish to propose reasons to believe the apparitions may be real.
1. I have heard first person testimony from a priest, ie directly to me, that people at Medjugorje avail of the sacrament of confession in a quite distinctive way. "I have never heard confessons like these," he told me. "Really incredible. People baring their souls. Crying their eyes out. And such joy." This claim is often made about Medjugorje but the instance I am citing is of interest to me because I have a passing acquaintanceship with the priest and I consider him somewhat credible.
2. I visited Medjugorje in 2013 and I quite liked it.
3. The Bosnian War which swept the region between 1992 and 1995 is said to have killed more than 90,000 people. Cities and infrastructure were bombed. Some say that two million people were displaced. There is a claim that Medjugorje was never bombed during this conflict.
4. The purported six visionaries Mirjana, Ivan, Vicka, Ivanka, Marija and Jacov, have never retracted their initial claims of seeing the Virgin Mary. They seem nice.
5. People who visit Medjugorje sometimes claim to have become penitent in regards to their errors of life.
6. A substantial amount of prayer takes place at Medjugorje among visitors and locals.
7. The tradition of fasting has been somewhat to the fore at Medjugorje. This is a tremendously respected tradition within the ancient church.
8. There appears to have been some genuine and durable reconciliation among neighbours at Medjugorje. This sort of claim impresses me because I recognise the deep seated conflicts that can permeate a small town. What I've heard about such conflicts at Medjugorje rings true. The spiritual challenge to renounce unforgiveness even at small town level seems powerfully relevant.
9. Medjugorje has inspired works of contemporary art which adorn the town at various locations. Some of them are not bad.
10. Much of the theology emerging from Medjugorje's purported visions is sound enough particularly in its call for respect for people of all faiths and cultures. Some of the critiques of this theology are in my assessment based on legalistic, vexatious or frivolous wordplay.
posted by heelers | 9:15 PM
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