DIVINE
INTERVENTION
St. John
Gualberto shows us the way to bring
about the Triumph of Our Lady of
Fatima
by Coralie Graham, Editor
St. John Gualberto was born in
Florence, Italy of rich and noble parents and carefully instructed in the
Christian doctrine. His youthful heart, for a time, was attracted to the
vanities of the world but God, by means of a remarkable incident, opened his
eyes.
Hugo, his only brother, was murdered
by a relative and John was determined to revenge the crime by the death of the
murderer who seemed to be out of the reach of the law.
On a Good Friday, while riding to
Florence, he met his long-sought-after enemy in a narrow passageway, unarmed
and with no friends to help. It was impossible for him to escape. John drew his
sword, ready to kill him but the murderer fell upon his knees, put his arms up
in the form of a cross and pleaded for mercy by the passion of Jesus Christ,
Who suffered on that day, to spare his life.
The remembrance of Christ, Who prayed
for His own murderers on the cross, exceedingly affected the young nobleman.
Meekly assisting the murderer from
his knees, John said, "I can refuse nothing that is asked of me for the sake of
Jesus Christ. I not only give you your life, but also my friendship for ever.
Pray for me that God may pardon me my sins."
That same day, in the monastery of
St. Minias, he offered up his prayers before a great crucifix, begging with
many tears and extraordinary fervor that God would mercifully grant him the
pardon of his sins. While he continued his prayer, the crucifix miraculously
bowed its head to him, as it were, to give him a token of how acceptable the
sacrifice of his planned revenge and his sincere repentance were.
This Divine grace made such a deep
impression on his heart that, rising from his devotions, he cast himself at the
feet of the abbot, earnestly begging to be admitted to the religious order.
By fidelity and perseverance, St.
John obtained victory over himself, and became most eminent in meekness,
humility, silence, obedience, modesty and patience.
What a wonderful grace it would be
for all of us if we could strive to be that forgiving. How many of us exercise
this grace, or even think about the words we pray daily in the Lord’s
Prayer, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against
us".
When the abbot died, St. John was
asked to be the next abbot but he rather chose a more spiritual life still. He
paid a visit to the hermitage of Camaldoli and looking for greater solitude and
following the example of those fervent hermits, he settled down in Vallombrosa
(Shady Valley) and here he formed a community serving God according to his
adaption of the rule of St. Benedict. Pope Alexander II, in 1070, approved this
new Order and St. John was chosen to be the first abbot.
Alexander II testifies that the whole
country where St. John lived owed to his zeal the entire extinction of simony.
Simony is the buying or selling of sacred or spiritual things including sacred
positions and including the position of bishop.
St. John learned that the Bishop of
Florence had paid money for his appointment to this holy office. He gathered
proof and went to the Vatican with it. At that time in history, the Pope lived
at St. John Lateran church in Rome.
Being the founder of a Benedictine
monastery and being an abbot, St. John’s status in the Church was equal to
a bishop. This was a very high rank even in those days; yet, when he spoke to
the Pope and Vatican bureaucrats and officials, advising them that the
Archbishop of Florence was unworthy of his position, they would not listen.
Even St. Peter Damian, one of the
officials at that time who respected John and had little use for the
bureaucrats, was not convinced he had sufficient proof.
Disappointed but undaunted, St. John
returned to Vallombrosa and prayed. It was during this prayer that he received
a special inspiration from God as to what he was to do.
He gathered all the townspeople
together and told them what he knew about the Bishop of Florence and how his
visit to the Vatican to have him removed was unsuccessful.
"I went to the Holy Father’s
officials in Rome and they would not listen nor accept the proof I gave them. I
have done everything I can by the normal channels that God’s providence
gave me. Now, I will call God to witness the truth of what I say so that
finally the bishop will be removed. God has called you to testify to what you
are about to see."
St. John then had the people build a
huge bonfire with a small passage through the center. He said, "In a moment I
will light this fire and order Brother Peter to walk through that passageway
under holy obedience. He shall not succeed to come out the other end if I am
wrong. He will die. But if what I say about the Bishop of Florence is true, God
will take charge and see to it that he comes out the other end unharmed."
He lit the fire and when it was fully
burning he ordered Brother Peter, "You have the means to prove I am right. I
command you under holy obedience to walk through the fire."
Brother Peter obeyed and came out the
other end unharmed. Today he is Blessed Peter, surnamed "Igneus" because he
passed through fire unharmed. He became the Cardinal Bishop of Albano and his
Feast day is February 8 in the Roman Martyrology.
The next part of this story is not to
do with St. John Gualberto so much as the laypeople; people like you.
It is our duty to
preserve our true Catholic Faith for our children.
The Laypeople are
the Key
St. John went through the appropriate
Vatican channels and no one would listen. And so, by Divine inspiration he
called God Himself to witness to the faithful.
It was the faithful, the laypeople
themselves, who, armed with this proof, drove the bishop out of Florence that
very day. He literally fled for his life.
The laypeople understood that when
God worked a miracle to demonstrate something important for their salvation,
they did not need someone else to explain the matter to them.
It was the laypeople, working
together, who had the power to overthrow the corrupt official holding a
bishop’s office.
Now you have the parallel between
corruption in the episcopacy in the 11th Century and the
21st Century. Today, it is you that have the power to change
history, to bring about the fulfillment of Our Lady of Fatima’s urgent
message of warning and hope to the world.
In St. John Gualberto’s day, God
created a miracle of one man surviving fire, in front of a few townspeople so
they could know the truth.
At Fatima, in 1917, God created the
stupendous Miracle of the Sun, accompanied by many miracles and witnessed by
over 70,000 people ... so that His Holy Mother’s message would be believed
and obeyed.
Sister Lucy herself said: "we should
not wait for an appeal to the world to come from Rome on the part of the Holy
Father, to do penance. Nor should we wait for the call to penance to come from
our bishops in our dioceses, nor from the religious congregations. No! Our Lord
has already very often used these means and the world has not paid attention.
That is why now, it is necessary for each one of us to begin to reform himself
spiritually. Each person must not only save his own soul but also all the souls
that God has placed on our path.
"The devil does all in his power to
distract us and take away from us the love for prayer; we shall be saved
together or we shall be damned together."
It seems that God, repeating history,
is sending you a message. You have a choice.
You can choose to follow those
bishops, who are unworthy, into war, enslavement, and possibly hell or you can
choose as the laypeople of Florence did, to support the religious leaders who
tell the truth and do your part to participate in the ultimate triumph of Our
Lady of Fatima.
The Message of Fatima is
authenticated by the Vatican (See "The Pope Proclaims May 13 Feast of Our Lady
of Fatima" on page 5), endorsed by God Himself, and accompanied by many
miracles. Let God inspire you as He did the people of Florence to do all you
can to defend the true Fatima Message and to advance it. There are many ways
you can help. Petition for the release of the full Third Secret. Petition to
lift the veil of silence imposed on Sister Lucy. Petition the bishops and the
Holy Father to consecrate Russia and, ultimately, do your part for the
salvation of many souls and the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
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