The Catholic Defender: Five Reasons God Sends Mother Mary, Saints and Angels To Earth

On 11/14/2021 during the Deepertruth Radio Show, "Journey With Mary" John Carpenter was sharing our second show detailing the Story of Medjugorje. John the Virginian was concerned about the report of individuals whose sins darkened Our Lady's cloths. Sometimes if they were hardened sinners Mother Mary would disappear for a time. This was a sign for the importance to these individuals their need to repent. This caused them to going to Confession the next day. I decided to take a look at this event and if there was any biblical examples that can be shown for such a sign. There are many examples where Saints and Angels could identify sin so I am not challenged to hear this. I came away with basically five reasons God will send Mother Mary, Saints, and Angels:

To give a message from God
To Protect us
To serve the Church
To execute God's Judgement
To give praise and worship of God

There are a lot of basic passages in Scripture that speak to this, but my intent is to see if there can be anything that shows the miraculous. I will include some well known miracles as well.

John the Virginian's example: "2 Samuel 6:6-8, As they reached the threshing floor of Nodan, Uzzah stretched out his hand to the ark of God and steadied it, for the oxen were tipping it. Then the LORD became angry with Uzzah; God struck him on that spot, and he died there in God’s presence. David was angry because the LORD’s wrath had broken out against Uzzah. Therefore that place has been called Perez-uzzah even to this day." How could anyone touch Mary, the Arch of the New Covenant, and not die as did Ussah?

At Medjugorje, what is being investigated is the legitimacy of the reported visions. Are they of God? Are they coming from the Devil? Or are they the result of many people influencing a man made event? This is not my intent with this Blog. I am simply looking to see if what is being reported about the Virgin Mary and the result of some who have been "graced" to touch her.

To give a message from God

This one is basic from Medjugorje as with any other Marian Apparition. There have been nearly 3,000 events going back to 40 A.D. when Mother Mary appeared to St. James in Spain. The Old Testament is full of examples where Angels appeared to give messages to people.

In Genesis 18, God sent three messengers to Abraham and Sarah to tell them that she would bear a son. He sent an angel to Sarah’s servant Hagar in the desert as she fled in Genesis 16, to give hope that she was not forgotten. There are many such examples in the Bible and the history of the Church.

2. To Protect us

While in Iraq, my favorite Scripture that gave me hope was Psalms 91 which was in part:

"You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shade of the Almighty, Say to the LORD, “My refuge and fortress, my God in whom I trust.” He will rescue you from the fowler’s snare, from the destroying plague, He will shelter you with his pinions, and under his wings you may take refuge; his faithfulness is a protecting shield. You shall not fear the terror of the night nor the arrow that flies by day, Nor the pestilence that roams in darkness, nor the plague that ravages at noon. Though a thousand fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, near you it shall not come. You need simply watch; the punishment of the wicked you will see. Because you have the LORD for your refuge and have made the Most High your stronghold, No evil shall befall you, no affliction come near your tent. For he commands his angels with regard to you, to guard you wherever you go. With their hands they shall support you, lest you strike your foot against a stone. You can tread upon the asp and the viper, trample the lion and the dragon. Because he clings to me I will deliver him; because he knows my name I will set him on high. He will call upon me and I will answer; I will be with him in distress; I will deliver him and give him honor. With length of days I will satisfy him, and fill him with my saving power."

3. To serve the Church

Here are three examples where Angels were sent to serve:

1 Kings 19 tells the story when Elijah was running for his life after defeating the Pagans, he was visited by an Angel providing him with food and water for the journey. Jesus was aided by angels after spending 40 days in the wilderness being tempted by the Devil. Matthew 4:11 speaks how the angels ministered to Jesus. Also, Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane praying when an angel appeared from Heaven to strengthen Him.

To these three examples, Our Lady certainly can be seen in all of these in the general sense.

4. To execute God's Judgement

Sodom and Gomorrah is well known for being destroyed because of their sin that cried out to Heaven. Nineveh was warned that they too would be destroyed in 40 days is they did not repent. There are judgements that God has or will enact upon mankind for rebellion. This all began when Satan fell from God's Grace, "Then war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels battled against the dragon. The dragon and its angels fought back, but they did not prevail and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. The huge dragon, the ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, who deceived the whole world, was thrown down to earth, and its angels were thrown down with it. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have salvation and power come, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Anointed. For the accuser of our brothers is cast out, who accuses them before our God day and night. They conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; love for life did not deter them from death. Therefore, rejoice, you heavens, and you who dwell in them. But woe to you, earth and sea, for the Devil has come down to you in great fury, for he knows he has but a short time.” When the dragon saw that it had been thrown down to the earth, it pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle,* so that she could fly to her place in the desert, where, far from the serpent, she was taken care of for a year, two years, and a half-year. The serpent, however, spewed a torrent of water out of his mouth after the woman to sweep her away with the current. But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth and swallowed the flood that the dragon spewed out of its mouth. Then the dragon became angry with the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring, those who keep God’s commandments and bear witness to Jesus. It took its position* on the sand of the sea."

Our Lady has many times given us warning and unfortunately, rarely to we take heed.

5. To give praise and worship of God

Revelation 4 depicts the Heavenly Worship of all the Saints and Angels taking place, which is why the Mass is so important as it is tied to Heaven.

Revelation 4:8 states, "The four living creatures, each of them with six wings,* were covered with eyes inside and out. Day and night they do not stop exclaiming: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty, who was, and who is, and who is to come.”

Revelation 5:11-12 states, "I looked again and heard the voices of many angels who surrounded the throne and the living creatures and the elders. They were countless* in number, and they cried out in a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches, wisdom and strength, honor and glory and blessing.”

The following are examples that I will share that Heaven has revealed to very interesting events:

Numbers 12:10 states, "Now the cloud withdrew from the tent, and there was Miriam, stricken with a scaly infection, white as snow! When Aaron turned toward Miriam and saw her stricken with snow-white scales, vs 14-15, But the LORD answered Moses: Suppose her father had spit in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days? Let her be confined outside the camp for seven days; afterwards she may be brought back. So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not start out again until she was brought back."

Acts 19:11-12 states, "So extraordinary were the mighty deeds God accomplished at the hands of Paul that when face cloths or aprons that touched his skin were applied to the sick, their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them."

St. Eusebius and others state that was mortally ill and was instantly healed when shown the face on the Shroud of Turin. Four credible witnesses testified that in 544 when Edessa was threatened with a siege by the Persian army, the image was rushed to the top of the city wall and displayed to the enemy; the army retreated and abandoned the attack. Another story relates that when the shroud was in procession to Constantinople in 944, a man who had an evil spirit was delivered when he touched it.

In more recent years, in 1954, in Gloucestershire, England, 11-year-old girl, Josie Wollam, was in hospital dying of a severe bone disease, osteomyelitis, in both her hip and leg, she also had lung abscesses. The doctor told her mother that there was no hope for Josie, and she was given the last rites of the church. However, Josie had heard that a retired RAF Group Captain Leonard Cheshire was holding lectures on the Shroud of Turin quite close by, and she told her mum she felt sure that she would be able to walk again if she could just see the shroud. Josie urged her mother to help her achieve this, so her mother wrote to Captain Cheshire and he had a photograph of the shroud face sent to Josie. In just holding the photograph Josie had a partial remission of the bone disease, and two weeks later, Josie came home from the hospital. She was still unable to walk, but continued to say that if she could just see the shroud and be near it, she believed that she would be completely cured. Cheshire was so impressed by Josie’s strong faith that he took her to Portugal to see former King Umberto II, the shroud’s owner, to ask permission for her to see the shroud. Umberto agreed, and Cheshire and Josie went on to Turin where the shroud was kept. Once there, the rolled up shroud was placed across the arms of her wheelchair. Josie gently and respectfully placed her hand onto the shroud – and she was healed!

In 1978 at a public exhibition of the shroud, Josie, now aged 35, visited the cathedral at Turin, once again accompanied by Cheshire – but with no wheelchair. Little Josie who in 1954 had been given last rites in preparation for death had been totally healed by simply touching the shroud. Whilst in Turin she told Father Peter Rinaldi that after her healing she had lived a normal working life, was married and had a daughter of her own.

A man once went to St. Giovanni Rotondo to confess to Padre Pio. It was between 1954 and 1955. When he finished the accusation of his sins Padre Pio said: "Do you have anything else to confess?" and he said, "No Father!" He repeated the question: "Do you have anything else to confess?" "No Father!" For a third time Padre Pio asked him: "Do you have anything else to confess? At this third negative answer the hurricane exploded. With the voice of the Holy Spirit Padre Pio howled: "Go away! Go away! Because you are not reformed of your sins!"

The man was also petrified because of the shame that he felt in front of so many people. Then he tried to say something but Padre Pio said: "Keep silent, gossiper, you have spoken enough; I now want to speak. Is it true that you go to discos?” "Yes, Father." "Do you know that dancing is an invitation to the sin?"

The man was surprised and he didn't know what to say: he had the membership card of a disco in his wallet. The man promised not to commit any other sins and after a lot of effort he received absolution.

Can the Lord reveal to sinners their sin through His Blessed Mother, I have to say yes, He can. Regarding to these visions, sometimes when something could be difficult to understand, that's when faith and trust becomes central. It is not mandatory that anyone accept any "Private Revelation", but it is important to see the quality of the facts as well as all the surrounding evidence as well.

Grace is the very energy of the life of God himself. It is the supernatural energy that emanates from God’s being. This supernatural and divine energy or power quite literally fills and indwells the bodies and souls of every faithful Catholic. God's desire is that we cry out to Him that He might intensify and expand and increase and deepen the manifestation of this power through us in ever more demonstrative and tangible ways in our lives.

Consider this: The power that indwells every faithful Catholic is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and exalted him to the right hand of the Father. This very power that raised Jesus from the dead abides and dwells in you right now precisely so that you might transcend the limitations of your finite existence and perform supernatural deeds like those performed by Jesus?