Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us..

There is a painting of Our Lady of Sorrows in the church in Pakil (Laguna province) which has been our go-to Marian pilgrimage destination for many years. It is the most striking image; heart breaking; a dagger through the heart, eyes flooded with tears and her eyes still lifted up, presumably gazing upon her Son on the cross. 

I have prayed for miracles there and seen the power of Our Lady’s intercession and whilst I always understood her standing as the only perfect creature, uniquely related to the Trinity as handmaid, mother and spouse; I recently heard a very interesting talk with wonderful insights related to different events in her life and what they signify. 

As she stood at the foot of the cross in perfect virtue; having carried that moment in her heart since Simeon revealed it to her at the Presentation, was her moment of greatest Glory. Aside from Jesus’s Death and Resurrection, that was the most glorious moment in history. 

The second event was the Assumption which was her Triumph after a life without a single fall into sin and finally her crowning as Queen of heaven where her excellence is Honoured by God before the company of heaven. Hence God will refuse her nothing. What a gift to us who need her prayers ! 

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,

our life, our sweetness and our hope.

To thee do we cry, 

poor banished children of Eve.

To thee do we send up our sighs,

mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.

Turn then, most gracious advocate,

thine eyes of mercy toward us,

and after this our exile

show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

O clement, O loving,

O sweet Virgin Mary.

Our Lady’s Message from Medjugorje (March 25, 2026 )

Dear children, 

The poison of selfishness and hatred rules human hearts and that is why you do not have peace. I am calling you, little children: be love and my extended hands to all those whom you meet. In humility, pray for peace and work on reconciliation among people, so that it may be good for every person on earth.

 Thank you for having responded to my call.

(With ecclesiastical approval)

‘The Five Generals’

There was a fascinating podcast released a few days ago where Fr. Ripperger, an American exorcist, was interviewed by Shawn Ryan, a recent revert to Christianity and former Navy Seal. It was a 4 hour deep dive behind the veil of the spiritual world and the work of the exorcist where he shares decades of experiential knowledge.

Amongst the many insights he shared was one related to the hierarchy of demons under Satan and what their functions were as they worked their plan for our destruction. He called them the Five Generals.

The first is a demon of impurity which ushers in the moral collapse in societies, a first wave of attack we might say. The next is a demon of homosexuality in men, then two demons of homosexuality in women, one for the more feminine or passive and the other, the more aggressive type that adopt a ‘masculine’ persona. So they bring in the perversion and distortion that we see growing in influence. The last of the five is a demon of child sacrifice, which in our day, is abortion. 

Taken together they have certainly influenced the moral collapse in the western world and the communist nations. We have seen since the 1960’s certainly each wave of assault on society, in tandem with government legislation to support them. Both homosexuality and abortion, once unthinkable by any society, have been decriminalised and ‘legitimised’ by most western governments and some in the east. They are embedded now in culture and in law; hence rather difficult to dislodge. 

It’s certainly an eye-opener to see and understand that these changes in society are not random or simply the ‘enlightened age’ they are marketed as, but as their nature suggests, demonic manipulation of peoples and nations who, without God at the centre of their lives, become willing co-operators and simultaneously helpless victims of these tormentors. 

There is a great deal more in the podcast to reflect on; it’s an important resource for situation awareness and the need to not be complacent in our prayer life; there is a lot going on behind the veil and we too, need to engage for our protection and to advance the kingdom of light !

 

Our Lady's Role in Spiritual Warfare

 

The March 18, 2026 Message from Medjugorje through Mirjana Soldo:

“Dear children, never forget how great is the love of God. 

Through that love I am with you. Do not forget how great is His mercy. Through that mercy I am showing you the way to true happiness and perfect peace. That is the way to my Son.

Therefore, my children, with complete trust, abandon yourselves to my Son and do not be afraid. Do not be afraid of the future because it belongs entirely to the will of my Son.

Therefore, my children, renounce everything that distances you from my Son: false happiness, false hope, false splendor. Trust my Son. Tell Him about your pains, sufferings, desires and hopes. You will feel His love and His blessing.

Thank you! 

(With Ecclesiastical approval)

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart – Psalm 37:4

 

One of the fundamental elements of our faith is having the correct understanding of who God is as He is often misrepresented and badly learned. 

Jesus called Him Father. Often we can think of Him as a judge, a policeman, a jailer perhaps, an unknown who seems a bit scary. Even with the gift of conversion and sacramental absolution there may be a lingering notion that we are just on probation and our every move is being scrutinised…! These are roadblocks to the open relational style we see in the way Jesus speaks of Him. Only time, intimate prayer and a right interpretation of our experiences in our walk with God can bring His true nature into focus. 

Last week though, my wife and I had a rather beautiful glimpse at the Father as He took us on a journey to show us a few of the wonders in His creation. We had a week off and I planned a trip to a new destination, the last island in a chain we had been exploring over a few years. The logistics had a lot of ‘moving parts,’ it would take 8 different modes of transport over a 24 hour period to get us there and some of the timing was tighter than I would like. 

But I have learned to trust God to give us the best, because that’s what a father does. He knows the needs and hearts desires of His children and always acts in their best interests. We prayed on the ferry that it would arrive an hour earlier than scheduled and slept soundly, handing over our vessel (and the rest of the Universe) to His care. We arrived an hour early, had time for the Morning Mass and breakfast before taking a fast van to the other end of the island to catch the last out-rigger to our destination. 

An hour later I gazed on the most beautiful coastline I have ever seen: blue sky, turquoise clear water, white sand and light that an artist would die for. We rested with a view of the ocean and the sound of incoming waves as a remedy for the busy months behind us. 

Our Father had another unexpected surprise arranged for us the other side of the Island. We spent one night at an observatory with the Philippines’ largest telescope. As we checked in, we discovered that the night we had chosen was a special event, a lunar eclipse or blood moon. And it was truly astonishing to see! 

Nearby was another magnificent coastline on the edge of coral reef where we spent a couple of days mostly underwater and were shown a mystical garden beneath the waves with a variety of unusual creatures from sea snakes to clown fish playing amongst the corals. Absolutely mesmerising! We were in awe at all that He has made and could sense His joy in sharing it with us. 

Such days are an Oasis on the journey of life, much of which is desert and challenge. But it illustrated for me a part of God’s nature we often miss. He is a Father, He made the world and all that is in it for us, His gift to us. And I believe He loves to share it with us, to show us the beauty He has made if we have eyes to see it. Whilst we will not see Eden in this life, we can still share now that same intimacy and communion with God in some measure, ‘for now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to face’ (1 Cor 13:12) 

Arriving home we discovered that our parish had just received a relic of St Charbel from the Lebanon, which arrived on the last flight from Beirut before the airspace closed. We didn’t even know a new war had just started !

February 25, 2026 – Our Lady’s Message from Medjugorje.

Dear children,

In this time of grace, anew, I am calling you to offer your lives to God that He may lead you towards the resurrection through your personal conversion. Little children, God is near to you and heeds your prayers, but you are lulled to sleep, and that is why He sent me to you to awaken you, and that you may shine holiness like a spring flower.

Thank you for having responded to my call.

(With ecclesiastical approval)