Claude Newman and the Miraculous Medal

Claude Newman was a twenty-year-old African-American who, in 1943, awaited execution in a prison in Mississippi. His crime was that of ambushing and shooting a man named Sid Cook, his beloved grandmother’s abusive second husband. One day, noticing a medal hanging around the neck of a fellow prisoner, Claude asked the young man what it was. The latter responded by casting the medal to the ground with a curse saying, “Take it.”

The medal was a Miraculous Medal of Our Lady of Graces, and though knowing nothing about it or who it represented, Claude picked up the oval trinket and hung it around his neck.


The Miraculous Medal of Our Lady of Graces:

During the night, Claude was awakened by a touch on his wrist to behold a glowing vision whom he later described as “the most beautiful woman that God ever created.”

The lady calmed the frightened man and said, “If you would like me to be your mother, and you my child, send for a Priest of the Catholic Church.” And she disappeared.

“A ghost, a ghost!” screamed Claude, at the same time clamoring for a Catholic Priest.

The next morning Father Robert O’Leary, SVD, (who later wrote the story) was summoned. After listening to the extraordinary account, he found that Claude was illiterate, and knew nearly nothing about religion. So he proceeded to carefully catechize not only him but four other inmates who were deeply impressed by Claude’s account.

Occasionally, two sisters from Father O’Leary’s church joined the catechetical team. Several weeks later, when Father introduced the sacrament of confession, Claude volunteered, “Oh, I know about that! The Lady told me that when we go to confession we are kneeling down not before a priest, but before the cross of her Son. And that when we are truly sorry for our sins, and we confess our sins, the Blood He shed flows down over us and washes us free from all sins.”

The priest and nuns were stunned at this new revelation.

Seeing their surprise, Claude heartily apologized, “O, don’t be angry, don’t be angry. I didn’t mean to blurt it out!”

“The Lady told me that when we go to confession we are kneeling down not before a priest, but before the cross of her Son.”

But assuring him that he was far from angry, Father O’Leary asked Claude if he had seen the Lady again. Taking the priest aside, the young man said, “She told me that if you doubted me or showed hesitancy, I was to remind you that lying in a ditch in Holland in 1940, you made a vow to her which she’s still waiting for you to keep.”

This revelation convinced Father of Claude’s claim. In fact, during the war, O’Leary had promised to build a church in honor of the Immaculate Conception, a promise he fulfilled in 1947. This church stands to this day in Clarksdale, Mississippi. As Father and Claude returned to the class on confession, Claude told his classmates, “You should not be afraid of confession.

You’re really telling God your sins, not the priest. You know, the Lady said that confession is something like a telephone. We talk through the priest to God, and God talks back to us through the priest.”

When about a week later Father O’Leary and the sisters were preparing to teach on the Blessed Sacrament, Claude asked if he could share what the Lady had told him about the Eucharist. The catechist joyfully acquiesced, and Claude related, “The Lady told me that in

Communion, I will only see what looks like a piece of bread. But she told me that It is really and truly her Son, and that He will be with me just as He was with her Father O’Leary testified: “I’ve never seen anyone go to his death as joyfully and as happily.”

Before He was born in Bethlehem. She told me that I should spend my time like she did during her lifetime with Him, in loving Him, adoring Him, thanking Him, praising Him, and asking Him for blessings. I shouldn’t be distracted or bothered by anybody else or anything else, but I should spend those few minutes in my thoughts alone with Him.” Finally, the catechumens were received into the Church. The baptismal records of St. Mary’s parish (Vicksburg) record Claude’s baptismal day as January 16, 1944. He was scheduled for execution on January 20th.

As Sheriff Williamson asked Claude if he had a last request, he couldn’t believe the answer:

“Well, all my friends are all shook up. The jailer is all shook up. But you don’t understand. I’m not going to die; only this body is. I’m going to be with Her. So, then, I would like to have a party.”

And so, he had his party with cake and ice cream and his fellow inmates were allowed to attend. On the morning of execution, Claude was full of joy.

As he prepared with Father O’Leary, Sheriff Williamson rushed in shouting that the governor had granted a two-week reprieve. To his amazement, Claude broke down in sobs with inconsolable crying: “But you don’t understand! If you ever saw her face, and looked into her eyes, you wouldn’t want to live another day! What have I done wrong these past weeks that God would refuse me my going home? Why, Father? Why must I still remain here for two weeks?”

Then Father O’Leary had an inspiration. There was a prisoner, James Hughs, who, despite having been raised Catholic, had led a horribly immoral life, and was also on death row for murder. James had a particular hatred for Claude, and all priests as well. Father O’Leary then proposed that Claude offer his disappointment on not being executed that day for Hughs conversion, which Claude did, generously offering his prayers and last two weeks for the salvation of his fellow inmate. Finally, Claude was executed on February 4 1944.

Padre Pio diverts a bombing Mission

 

"Pictured, Father Pio and North American Protestant pilots who converted to Catholicism after seeing the Saint fly alongside his planes."

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“When the planes were near the target, they saw a monk in the sky with his hands raised, diverting the planes. When the bombs dropped, they fell into the woods, far from the village.

Without any explanation, the planes had changed their course.”. Everyone wondered who was that monk the planes obeyed. Someone told the general that in San Giovanni Rotondo there was a monk who performed miracles. Then he decided, as soon as the war ended, to verify who was the monk they had seen in Heaven. After the war, the General went to the Capuchin Convent with some pilots. Upon entering the monastery , he met several monks and among them he immediately recognized that the monk who had stopped his planes was Father Pio.

The priest approached and when he approached, he said, "So were you the one who wanted to kill us all?" "Enlightened by the eyes and the words of the Father, the General knelt before him." Everyone was in awe, and the General and his fellow pilots converted to Catholicism"

Ready for Change ?

I knelt in the bathroom this morning; not in prayer exactly, I was scrubbing the floor and had cause to reflect on the condition of my kingdom (small ‘k’). 

I have seen many changes in life; as a young man I sought to build my own ‘kingdom’. I worked very hard, studied simultaneously. I was ambitious, focused, hungry for success and driven. I achieved moderate success, and for a while enjoyed its benefits. I was also godless, arrogant, ruthless and fearful: - it was in many ways an appalling way to live. 

Many years have passed during which time God has taken me on a journey; which has led to diminishment in status, loss of career, reduction in finance, life-threatening conditions, betrayals, humiliations and battles. Whatever I built needed to be demolished and rebuilt on a new foundation of sonship rather than as an orphan-spirited man scrambling in my own power. The gift of faith or conversion brings with it a new dignity, regardless of an outward appearance of failure in the world’s eyes and that is the true core of our being and a true success.

It is hard to comprehend what is in store if we permit transformation of the heart, mind and character. If we ‘go deep’ there will be fruit. It will be a long and painful process. If we stay superficial, that too will be revealed in time. 

The instruction given to Adam in the garden was to Rule or in modern language ‘call the shots.’ A good king rules his kingdom, in marriage for example, out of the anointing as husband and head, he takes care of those in his domain. With bad kings it is seen in their inaction. Some are passive or disengaged from their role and responsibility, worse still some abdicate entirely and hand over the reins to their wives and chaos ensues: - exhausted women, insecure children, every poor decision and lifestyle choice feeding into the next crisis…it grieves the heart to watch it replayed again and again. 

As I stood back and inspected the bathroom floor, I was content with it and proceeded to walk the ramparts of our small condo castle, checked its gates and secured its borders or boundaries... It is a small kingdom now, fitted to the season and soul’s capacity. And those who live in it do so in harmony with each other, in peace and security and a unity of purpose...worth fighting for. 

Ready for change ?  Start here :-  https://wildatheart.org/events/wild-at-heart-boot-camp

Forgive our Enemies

I wondered what those who knew me in my youth would find more unlikely, that I would ever write about forgiving enemies or that Hannibal Lector would pen a vegetarian cookbook... definitely the former. 

 And yet here we are. I want to share the deepest insight I have heard on the subject so far. It was described by Fr. Blount, a charismatic American exorcist whose testimonies keep you on the edge of your seat. (His numerous videos on YouTube are well worth a look.) He described what he received from God on the topic of forgiving enemies. The process at first seemed familiar, the decision or act of one’s will regardless of feeling forgiving. 

The next step he described was to ask God to bless your enemy, not grudgingly but lavishly and sincerely with joy in life; and then added that we should pray that they become saints; and also that they are given a higher degree of glory than us in heaven. How God accomplishes this is to be left up to Him. 

The next step though was a much deeper cut. To thank God for whatever happened to you. In his own family story, Fr. Blount had one sister who had been raped, an uncle and cousin shot and murdered and more than a few hard experiences in his own life. And yet this step is essential, without exception. 

The reason given was that whatever wounds we have taken in life from the evil one, or his allies or those around us have been permitted by God; His permissive will. That is not to say that he approves of any evil thing as that would be impossible as He is entirely good and holy. More than that as he described it, the angels of God protect us from the arrows of evil (more than we know) but sometimes He instructs them to let one through, to allow us to be wounded, sometimes severely. This is not to give the enemy of our soul’s victory in his objective, by no means, but whatever wound we take will flatten us, humble us, cause to cry out, bring about change in line with His purposes eventually. And so if a particular wound leads to our sanctification or salvation, would that not be reason to rejoice over it and thank God for transforming what was intended to destroy us, into a gain? It is the hard things in life that produce the most growth. 

 Often our sufferings, at the hands of others, can be misinterpreted as God’s seemingly lack of intervention. He risks the fact that we can be angry, resentful and even hate Him for allowing such things, or doubt His goodness as a consequence, in order to complete His work in us in the longer run; He has the big picture, our eternal good in mind. 

 And if you can make it this far, only one thing remains: to surrender it all to God and receive His healing of our wounded heart.

War in Heaven

Good Friday .. Video 5480

I AM ..... (Chapter 6) Passion of Christ from maxtmh on GodTube.

Plan 75 .. a few thoughts on Euthanasia

 

There was a TV series years ago called Logan’s Run set in a dystopian society where the people lived until 30 and then had to ‘make room’ for the next generation and were forcibly Euthanized:- of course in those days Euthanasia, Doctor assisted dying or assisted suicide were still quite unthinkable; preposterous. 

There was an interview recently given by a Canadian doctor who had herself dispatched 300 people so far under the Doctor assisted dying program in Canada, which has the most liberal laws in the world with respect to Euthanasia. No serial killer or mass murderer can get near such a tally without being apprehended. But she found her work to be quite satisfying- the state bestowing its compassion on the vulnerable sectors of the population. 

Others in Canada, particularly the old, disabled and infirm are finding the policies lacking. One chap, who was a veteran and in need of a ramp to leave his house in his wheelchair was offered Euthanasia as an alternative. Others too who had run up large medical bills or were taking up bed-space in hospitals are also frequently nudged in that direction. So a combination of withholding the assistance needed for a good quality of life or the pressure to not become a financial burden has sent many to an early grave under the veil of ‘state compassion’. 

Last year there was a movie by a Japanese film-maker that really nailed the subject as he took a peek into the near ‘possible’ future. It was called ‘Plan 75’ – a government initiative to deal with the problem of an ageing population and low birth rate. In it the elderly, who were often neglected and struggling to survive, often alone, were offered a euthanasia package (by good looking, youthful sales reps and call center agents) whereby they can receive a government grant of $1000 to spend as they wish (could be for a party or inheritance to their descendants) in exchange for being euthanized. A further benefit could be obtained – a free cremation and burial if they agreed to a mass cremation/burial as it was more efficient. This may sound familiar as was the method of their death, by being gassed. 

Often as people age or are afflicted with illness or disability their external identity diminishes. This is due to loss of jobs, finances, or apparent usefulness. Their roles shrink as their families grow-up and leave and they retire, perhaps alone when spouses die. And a God-less society is not capable of seeing true worth or dignity anymore. But the reality is so far from this as we know as believers. Because despite the losses we take in life, despite deterioration of body and mind we are and will always be children of God, sons and daughters, co-heirs of the kingdom of God, We have immortal souls with a dignity far greater than we can possibly imagine; destined to an eternity of joy and bliss should we choose it. Our old age is often a time of the greatest growth as human beings, and our sufferings are that final purification to ready us to meet a Holy God. 

We are not garbage to be thrown out, nor meat to be butchered. To truly die with dignity is to do so in the manner and time that God provides for, regardless of how it looks to anyone else.