News from the National Headquarters
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AUGUST 15, 2003
SOLEMNITY OF THE ASSUMPTION OF MARY INTO HEAVEN
Greetings in the Immaculate Heart of Mary!
My sincere apologies for the delay in updating my National Director’s corner. Due to our lack of 
website trained personnel, our primary means of communicating with our members has been by mail. Our last mailing included Fr. Gobbi’s letter for the year 2003, a copy of the Holy Father’s Apostolic Letter on the Rosary, “Rosarium Virginis Mariae”, and our own newsletter, “Brief #28”. Copies of these publications are still available for those of you who may not have received them.
MAILING LIST
We send out an average of two mailings each year. If you would like to receive an enrollment card, please write or send us an email providing us with your full name and mailing address.
INTERNATIONAL RETREAT 2003 – CLICK here to see photos
Again this year, our retreat was held in Collevallenza, Italy, June 29-July 5, at the Shrine of Merciful Love. Collevallenza is situated in the mountainous region of Assisi, approximately a hundred miles from Rome.
This year, we were especially honored by the presence of His Beatitude (Cardinal) Ignace Moussa I. Daoud, Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches at the Vatican. There were also in attendance eight Archbishops and Bishops from Peru, Lebanon, Brazil, Syria, and Argentina; and more than 230 priests representing forty countries.
We were also pleased to have among us the Reverend Giovanni D’Ercole, one of the undersecretaries at the Secretariat of State at the Vatican, who addressed the assembly on the favorable relationship that exists between the Marian Movement of Priests and the Church.
IMPRIMATUR FOR ARABIC EDITION AND ENGLISH TRANSLATION
Cardinal Daoud has granted his “Imprimatur” to the Arabic translation of the messages which has been published by the Headquarters in Lebanon to serve the needs of the Arabic world.
To our knowledge, he is the fourth cardinal who has granted his Imprimatur to Our Lady’s Blue Book. The other three cardinals are:
- The late Bernardino Cardinal Echeverria Ruiz, O.F.M., Ecuador.
- Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, Archbishop of Cebu, Philippines.
- Michai Cardinal Kitbunchu, Archbishop of Bangkok, Thailand.
An imprimatur is an assurance that there is nothing in the messages contrary to faith or morals, and all may read them. Those who claim that Our Lady’s messages contain theological, moral and scriptural errors will need to present their case to these Cardinals and the many other archbishops and bishops who have willingly granted their “Imprimatur.”
As in the past we were privileged to listen to wonderful talks given by Fr. Gobbi; Archbishop Miguel Cabrejos, O.F.M. of Peru; Fr. Michael Gaughran, S.S.C.; and Fr. Ivan Pojavnik, S.T.D.
Fr. Gobbi presented four talks on “The Year of the Rosary, The Apostolic Letter on the Rosary and the Year of the Cenacle.” They were excellent and, as usual, he was full of enthusiasm. Since Fr. Gobbi speaks extemporaneously, copies of his talks are not available. Click on the following link to read excerpts from retreat notes taken by Fr. Gilles LeBlanc.
Archbishop Cabrejos, a biblical scholar and a long time member of the M.M.P., gave us two enriching talks based on his continuing research to demonstrate the correlation of Our Lady’s messages with Holy Scripture, with the writings of the Church Fathers and with the Magisterial teachings of the Church. This year, he pointed out the compatibility of Our Lady’s messages with the Holy Father’s latest Apostolic Letter on the Rosary. It is reassuring to hear what these experts have to say on the congruity of Our Lady’s messages with the teachings of the Holy Father. No matter what some might say, these messages from Our Lady are biblically and doctrinally sound. So, do not let anyone mislead you on this matter.
Two other conferences were given by Fr. Ivan Pojavnik, a professor of Patristics at the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia. The topic was, “The Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Ark of the New Alliance Throughout the Ages.”
Fr. Michael Gaughran, S.S.C., England’s National Director, also gave us two conferences on: “The Priests Consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in the Heart of the Church… (1) in the Commitments made to Our Lady, and (2) in the Simplicity of Heart and Reparation.”
PRAYERS REQUESTED FOR FR. GAUGHRAN
Until recently, Fr. Michael has traveled extensively throughout the world, to conduct cenacles and to help establish the M.M.P. in various countries. He also has given several clergy retreats here in the United States where he was greatly appreciated by the priests in attendance.
Fr. Michael is presently in need of our prayers. The day after he gave his two talks, he became seriously ill and was rushed to the hospital by ambulance. He is now recuperating at his home in England. His illness does not seem to be life-threatening, but please pray for his quick recovery so that he can recommence his worldwide travels and continue the mission that Our Lady has entrusted to him.
FR. GOBBI’S 2003 VISIT CANCELED
During last year’s retreat in Collevalenza, Fr. Gobbi manifested his desire to travel to the United States, Canada and Mexico in the fall of 2003. In his circular letter dated January 1, 2003, he tentatively scheduled these countries in his itinerary. Since the political stability of our country and the world was hanging in the balance at the time of his final decision, and the SARS epidemic was of concern to many, his plans were put on hold. Since much time is needed to plan a cenacle tour, and an immediate decision could not be made, we thought it best that he reschedule for another time, perhaps next year.
The clergy retreat in Effingham, tentatively scheduled for November 2003, has also been canceled. Fr. Gaughran was to be the retreat master.
FR. GOBBI’S HEALTH
Many of you inquire about Fr. Gobbi’s health. Since his bypass surgery in October 1997, he has not had any serious recurrences of his heart problem. He is now 73 years old and still doing quite well. I have included a photo taken during this year’s retreat so that you may see for yourselves. Those of you who have seen him previously will notice that he has lost some weight, at the urging of his doctors. Although his travel is limited to a few countries, he continues to spread Our Lady’s messages and the cenacles. Fr. Gobbi asks that we continue to pray for him.
POPE JOHN PAUL II
Upon our return from our Spiritual Exercises in Collevallenza, some of us stayed in Rome for a few days. We are grateful to Cardinal Daoud who obtained front row seats for our group. We could see the Holy Father very well, and on that Wednesday – July 9, 2003 – he seemed to be in much pain and could walk only with great difficulty. His face was distorted with pain, and our hearts were grieved to see him in such a condition. We could see the suffering Christ on his way to Calvary carrying a heavy cross; and yet, he is determined to give his all in the awesome mission which was placed upon him at the moment of his papal election. When he was asked by the dean of cardinals if he accepted his election, he recalled his motto, “Totus Tuus” and gave his ‘yes’ – his ‘fiat.’ It has been a ‘yes’ that has cost him so much pain, but he has never backed down or given up. When the Lord calls him to Himself, the world will be able to say that he lived out his “Totus Tuus” to the very last moment of his life. Awesome faithfulness! The Lord will be able to say to him, “Come, O faithful servant, inherit the Kingdom I have prepared for you.”
TWENTY-FIFTH ANNIVERSARY OF POPE’S PONTIFICATE
On October 16, 2003, people throughout the world will be having Masses celebrated for the Holy Father and for his intentions. I invite you to do likewise. Also, let us pray for him on a daily basis, and in all your cenacles, that the Lord may give him the grace and the health to continue to witness and to preach to the whole world the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus, the true and only Savior of the world. He is Our Lady’s Pope! We thank him for his faithful and courageous ministry and want him to know that we love and support him. May the Lord bless and keep him, and may Our Lady protect him always!
FR. GOBBI ASSIGNS NEW DIRECTOR FOR FRENCH-SPEAKING CANADA
In September of 2002, Fr. Gilles LeBlanc, a native of New Brunswick, Canada, accepted my offer to join our staff as my assistant for the United States. Some of you may have met him during his travels to conduct cenacles in parts of Canada and the Northeast.
We are pleased to announce that, at the retreat in Collevalenza, Fr. Gobbi assigned him as the new director for French-speaking Canada. He replaces Fr. Reginald Tardif, C.SS.R, and Mr. Lionel Labbe. We extend our gratitude to them and their staff for their devoted service as national directors for French Canada. They worked diligently in multiplying cenacles across the French-speaking regions of Canada.
We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Fr. Gilles on the occasion of his new assignment. He has plans to move the French Canadian headquarters from Quebec to New Brunswick, but there is as yet no permanent address.
INTERNATIONAL ONLINE CENACLES
Several years ago, Mrs. Grace Mary Mizzi from Australia began an online cenacle ministry that now involves people from many nations. In addition to English, the cenacles are now conducted in Spanish and Korean. For more information and to register to participate, please go to: www.mmponline.org Grace’s email address is: webmaster@mmponline.org.
KEEP YOUR CENACLES GOING!
I urge you to continue being faithful to your cenacles of prayer. Your prayers are needed now, more than ever. The battle between the spirits of good and evil has become more intense, and we are daily reminded of the fragility of the state of the world. These cenacles are the spiritual force which, in the end, will release in Our Lady the power given her by Jesus to crush the head of Satan!
She tells us,
“Give your support to my invitation; multiply your cenacles of prayer and fraternity; consecrate yourselves to my Immaculate Heart; frequently recite the holy rosary! Then the powerful Red Dragon will be shackled by this chain, and his margin of action will become ever more restricted. In the end he will be left impotent and harmless” (275s)
PRAY THE ROSARY FOR PEACE
(This urgent call to pray the rosary appeared last year in my National Director’s corner, dated Aug. 22, 2002. I felt compelled to include it again in this, the Year of the Rosary, for those who will only now read it for the first time.)
With news of terrorism and wars being reported by the media each day, many of us are understandably fraught with fear and anxiety. In the Immaculate Heart of our Heavenly Mother, we need not be afraid! In message #264h (May 1, 1983), she tells us that the holy rosary is the weapon which is to be used by us in fighting and winning the bloody battle, and it is the lightning rod that will keep far from us and from those dear to us, the fire of the chastisement. Prayer, especially that of the rosary, is far more powerful than any atomic reaction! (cf. #275, October 7, 1983; Anniversary of the Victory of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Lepanto)
At Fatima, Our Lady said, “Pray the Rosary every day in order to obtain peace for the world, and the end of the war.” She has kept her promise and will keep it again! Time is urgent! Now it’s up to us to gather everyone together in praying the rosary.
HOW TO LIVE THE CONSECRATION
Recently in one of our cenacles held at the National Headquarters, we read message #494, “My Motherly Presence,” given to Fr. Gobbi on May 1, 1993, Feast of St. Joseph the Worker. Since I am often asked to explain how one is to live their consecration to Our Lady, I offer the following for your reflection. Therein, she explains what are the “flowers” which she wants her consecrated children to give her:
“Beloved children, today I invite you to live with particular diligence your consecration
to my Immaculate Heart. It is the best way of offering me this month of May, which has
been set aside by the Church for my particular veneration.
I am especially close to you during this month, and I want my motherly presence to be
felt by each one of you. You will succeed in feeling my presence as Mother close to you
if, as little children, you accustom yourselves to do everything together with me. Pray
with me; work with me; love with me; suffer with me; offer yourselves with me; keep
silence with me. Silence must become for you the sign of my motherly presence.
Let yours be an exterior silence, which protects you from the deafening roar of voices
and images, which continually fill the course of your days. Remove yourselves from the
easy seduction of the press and television, this terrible means made use of by my
Adversary to draw you away from me and my Son Jesus.
Let yours be an interior silence, which leads you to listen, with love and faith, to the
word of God alone. Penetrate into the deep mystery of truth and beauty, which is
revealed to you in the Gospel. Let the Gospel of Jesus be the only word of life which you
seek, welcome, love and live. Let yours be that interior silence which leads you to
contemplation and prayer. Let your prayer become more intense. Let it be a true prayer
of the heart, which you make with me and by means of me.
For this, let the cenacles of prayer which I have asked of you flourish everywhere, like
fragrant flowers which blossom in the desert of a great aridity and general dissipation.
Mortify your senses. Let the tongue be loosened only for words of wisdom and
goodness. Let your mouth be ever closed to judgments, criticisms, affronts, gossip,
calumnies, duplicity and insincerity. Let the eyes be opened to see the deep wounds of
the sick, the poor, the little ones, the abandoned, the stricken, the persecuted, the
oppressed and the slain. Turn your gaze away from impurity and malice, from evil
and wickedness, from seduction and impiety.
Open your hands to the aid of all. Go along the rough and blood-stained roads in search
of my poor wandering children. Offer me your hearts so that I may love in you and by
means of you, in such a way that all may receive the comfort of my motherly presence.
Beloved children, these are the flowers which I am asking you to give me, to make more
pleasing to me this month of May which you are beginning today.
Only in this way do I feel myself ever close to you. Only in this way do you spread about
you the charisma of my motherly presence. Only in this way do you reflect my light of
love and hope. Only in this way do you live the consecration which you have made to
me.
Then, by means of you, the heavenly Mother becomes more and more invoked, listened
to, followed and lived, and my Immaculate Heart attains its greatest triumph.”
BATTLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL – (Mel Gibson’s “The Passion”)
Mel Gibson’s upcoming film has been the target of much negative propaganda, the most recent from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) who argue that the movie is anti-Semitic.
God has everything under control, and this is all part of his plan. All of this opposition is being used by Him to draw attention to the film, and I am of the opinion that those who see “The Passion” will experience a powerful awakening. Satan is fighting a losing battle – he has no wisdom and is simply a pawn in God’s hands. Our Lady has been predicting this battle between the forces of good and evil, between darkness and light, and her prophetic messages are coming to pass. This is just one of the many signs that the battle is becoming more intense, but do not be discouraged. The victory is assured.
I encourage all of you to see the film. The Evil One would not be lashing out so vehemently were it not for the positive outpouring of grace that this production will create. Let us keep Mr. Gibson in our prayers so that he will have the strength to persevere in this awesome mission.
ORDER REQUESTS, LETTERS AND EMAILS
I again take the opportunity to remind you that it is impossible for us to answer all of the many letters and emails we receive. A few months ago, we experienced problems with our server and, as a result, for a few weeks we were unable to retrieve many of your orders and emails. We are very sorry, but the situation was beyond our control and could not be avoided. If you have placed an order online and have not heard from us, it is because we never received it. Please do not hesitate to notify us, and we will be glad to send you the items which you had requested. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we always strive to handle your requests in a prompt and efficient manner.
DONATIONS
I wish to reiterate my sincere thanks to all of you who financially and prayerfully support Our Lady’s Movement. Your kindness and thoughtfulness are sincerely appreciated since the M.M.P. operates solely on the fruits of your generosity, and without you, we cannot continue doing Our Lady’s work. Many English speaking countries around the world rely totally on us to provide them with copies of the book. Since for the most part we do not receive any donations in return, we supply books to the extent that our finances allow. In recent months, we have not been able to fulfill all requests, therefore your donations would be sincerely appreciated. Also, please contact us for more information if you would consider including the Marian Movement of Priests in your Last Will and Testament.
In conclusion, I wish to call upon you the blessing that God asked Aaron to bestow upon his people:
“Say to them, ‘The Lord bless you and keep you! The Lord let his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you! The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace!’ So shall they invoke my name upon the Israelites, and I will bless them.” (Num 6:22-27)
Sincerely yours in Jesus and Mary,
Rev. Albert G. Roux
National Director