Birthday greetings Sunday were sung in Spanish, Italian, English, Greek, AND Polish

posted by Fr. Jeffrey Keyes, C.PP.S. on 5:02 PM link

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Fr. Bob Mathews


Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.
And let perpetual light shine upon him.

posted by Fr. Jeffrey Keyes, C.PP.S. on 3:28 PM link

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Maria's Spiritual Director



Venerable Giovanni Merlini was the Spiritual Director of St. Maria De Mattias for over 40 years

posted by Fr. Jeffrey Keyes, C.PP.S. on 2:28 PM link

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Maria's Miracle

A boy born at Biograd (Croatia) in 1972 was the recipient of the miracle that led to Maria's Canonization.


Krešimir and his mother in the Paul VI Audience Hall prior to the Community's audience with the Holy Father, Monday May 19

Taken from the Adorer's website:

On October 10, 1979 the child began to show a strange behavior, indicating a change in mood. He didn't want to play or be with his friends; he didn't want to study. Nine days later he slumped onto a chair because his legs wouldn't support him. His nurse-aunt took him to the doctor, and he was hospitalized October 20. The doctors said it was nothing serious, but they kept him in the hospital. In the following days the boy's condition deteriorated as neurological signs appeared, including hemiparesis (weakness) on the left. He went in and out of consciousness. The doctors decided to transfer him to a clinic for infectious diseases at the hospital in Zagreb, with a tentative diagnosis of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (a progressive and fatal brain disorder caused by infection).

During the trip the boy lost his power to speak, then consciousness; he entered into a coma. Many complications aggravated his condition. The coma became profound; in November 1979 there were symptoms of decerebration (spontaneous extension of limbs). In addition, widespread hypertonicity (abnormally increased muscle tone) of the limbs, generalized convulsion and widespread myoclonia (spasms of the soft palate, facial muscles and diaphragm). The paralysis of respiratory muscles required a tracheotomy and artificial respiration which continued uninterruptedly until January 1980, and then at intervals until June of that year, when spontaneous breathing resumed. Other problems included urinary infections, bed sores, inflammation in the ears, and chicken pox. In spite of everything, the doctors continued to try to help him.

In the meantime, the boy's father's aunt, Sister Nikolina, an Adorer of the Blood of Christ in Zagreb, along with other ASCs, began to pray unceasingly and with great confidence to Blessed Maria De Mattias. The parents and other relatives, even many in the hospital prayed. While on the one hand, the family began to prepare for his death and burial, Sister Nikolina continued to pray. She said: "I prayed to Blessed Maria De Mattias to intercede for little Krešimir, and so that she would obtain that one drop of the precious Blood fall on him and cure him. One day, I felt a voice in my heart saying: 'The time will come in which he will be cured.' "

On August 20, 1980, the anniversary of the death of Blessed Maria De Mattias, to everyone's amazement -- especially that of the medical personnel -- the boy awoke and asked for something to eat. For him, even though very much weakened by artificial nourishment for ten months, it was as though he awoke from a long sleep. His psyche was very healthy; he remembered the names of his parents and grandparents and was able to reason perfectly. Someone gave him a book turned upside down and asked him to read it. He said, "How? It's upside down!" He recovered from the weakness and the motor difficulty in an extremely short time, in comparison to normal recovery time. In January 1981 he returned to school, with good results. His growth continued normally. Today, he works as a truck-driver for a transportation company in Biograd, a happy, 30-year-old young man full of life.

The Medical Consultants of the Causes of Saints defined his illness as subacute encephalitis, deriving from a previous measles infection. He came out of the illness in a completely unexpected way, especially since his body had been reduced to no natural resources for healing.

posted by Fr. Jeffrey Keyes, C.PP.S. on 11:40 AM link

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More on Maria

The Adorers of the Blood of Christ (USA) have a website. There are problems with the site which is why I do not have normal link to it. It works only a fraction of the time.

On our last day in Rome we made a pilgrimage to Maria's tomb:

posted by Fr. Jeffrey Keyes, C.PP.S. on 11:33 AM link

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