DISSACRATIONS in MEDJUGORJE. Arrested the Man who Set Fire to the Outdoor Altar (VIDEO). Holy Lady Statues Vandalized but quickly Cleaned
by Gospa News Editorial Staff
The Bishop of Mostar: “Pain for the Desecration. Let us not allow evil to contaminate us.”
«I learned with deep sorrow the news of the desecration of the holy places of Medjugorje. Let us not allow evil to contaminate us with its logic. Saint Paul reminds us: ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good”» (Rom 12:21).
It is with this warning that the Bishop of Mostar, Monsignor Petar Palić, responds to the vandalism committed last night at the Marian shrine in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is home to half of the millions of pilgrims who come to see Our Lady’s apparitions and her monthly messages, which recently received ecclesiastical approval from the Catholic Church.
“Regardless of the differing opinions that exist on individual issues related to Medjugorje, which the Church prudently judges in its own way, nothing can justify hatred, violence, or the desecration of a place of prayer,“ the high prelate added in a message published on the official website of the Diocese of Mostar, of which Medjugorje is a part.
“Where a person goes to sincerely seek God, others are called to respect their conscience and their right to pray. Therefore, I urge all believers to respond not with bitterness or condemnation, but with what has always been the Church’s most powerful weapon: prayer, fasting, forgiveness, trust in God’s providence, and our personal conversion of life.”
MORE DETAILS IN THE POST BELOW
VIDEO OF THE FIRE AND IMMEDIATE RESTORATION OF THE STATUE OF THE QUEEN OF PEACE
A serious act of vandalism has occurred in Medjugorje, in the famous Sanctuary of Bosnia and Herzegovina which has become a destination for millions of pilgrims for the Apparitions of Our Lady, Queen of Peace,
A man set fire to the outdoor altar located behind the Church of St. James. The flames were quickly extinguished and did not spread to the church, but they did cause material damage to the recently renovated altar. A surveillance camera captured the desecration.
In record time, the statues that had been destroyed in the middle of the night in Medjugorje were restored by the locals, starting with that of the Queen of Peace on Podbrdo, the apparition hill.
These acts of vandalism didn’t stop several pilgrims from arriving to Apparition Hill and praying there regardless.
In a statement, the Medjugorje Parish Office announced that it has immediately begun cleaning and repairs to make all areas suitable for prayer again.
The sanctuary therefore remains open to all pilgrims, and the faithful are invited to respond to this sad event with prayer, fasting, and forgiveness: “Let us pray for the conversion of the hearts of those who committed this act, that the Lord may touch them with His grace and guide them on the path of goodness.”
THE VIDEO OF THE ARREST AND THE STATUE RETURNED TO SHINE AS BEFORE
Police in Bosnia and Herzegovina have arrested a man in the Ljubuški area suspected of being behind the serious vandalism that struck Medjugorje, one of the world’s major Marian pilgrimage sites, overnight. Investigators are trying to determine the motive and determine whether he acted alone or with accomplices.
The first video shows the arrest of the alleged vandal, while the others show the swift restoration of the Statue of the Queen of Peace on Apparition Hill, which has returned to its former glory in all its sparkling whiteness.
