“Dear children! Also today—when God permits me to carry to you in my arms little Jesus, the King of Peace, that He may fill you with the ardor of love and peace, so that every heart may be similar to His Heart in this time of grace—be resolute and courageous defenders of the love of your God, that in this time of grace He may give you His peace. Thank you for having responded to my call.” -Our Lady of Medjugorje, in private revelation given to Marija Pavlovic-Lunetti, on December 25, 2025
An excerpt from “I Believe in Love” by Father Jean C. J. d’Elbée:
Do not ask only for the conversion of souls, but for the perfection of souls, because Jesus not only thirsts to see sinners convert, but perhaps He thirsts even more to see the souls which He has chosen rise higher and grow in love, and unite themselves more intimately with Him.
He needs truly loving souls, true hosts, truly transformed into Him by love. He needs such souls in order to save men.
Be assured that I have thought much about this during this retreat, while praying for you: “Jesus, make them grow, bring them even closer to You, that they may become united with You, a single flame with You, Who “came to bring fire on the earth” (cf. Luke 12:49)—the fire which You are Yourself.
You see, the world seems to run to its destruction; yet I am not a pessimist. Why? Because I think that today there are more souls than ever in cloisters and also in the world, entirely given to Jesus in complete confidence and total abandonment, without anything which distinguishes them from others, hidden like the Nazarene.
Evil displays itself; good remains unknown. Believe my experience on this point. These hidden souls console Him; they make reparation; they repay Him and oblige Him, I dare to say, to be merciful.
These souls are sometimes called lightning rods, but I do not like this image, for it is not thunder and lightning which Jesus lets fall from His Heart onto the world (cf. Luke 9:54-55), but torrents of graces. He needs hearts which will be channels for these rushing waters, to receive them and share them. That is the role of these faithful and generous souls. By their very existence they hold back or destroy the consequences of sin.
“Today, on this day of grace, in a special way I am calling you to complete surrender to Jesus. Little children, surrender to Him your wounds and pains, your past and future, and permit Jesus to begin to rule in your lives. My children, only with complete surrender, Jesus gives Himself in your life, and this is the greatest gift that you can receive. Pray that you may comprehend how precious you are for Jesus and how much He loves you. Thank you for having responded to my call.” -Our Lady of Medjugorje, in private revelation given to Jakov Colo, on December 25, 2025
An excerpt from “The Life of Christ Revealed: The Visions of Blessed Veronica of Milan”, translated by Father Robert Nixon:
Upon seeing the Holy Child, the old man genuflected in adoration three times, and then took the baby Jesus in his arms. Tears flowed freely from his weary eyes and his face beamed with radiant joy as he kissed the Savior with infinite love and devotion. Then, raising his eyes to heaven, he exclaimed: “Now, O Lord, You may dismiss Your servant in peace, for my eyes have seen Your salvation!” At this point, the angel spoke to [Blessed Veronica of Milan] and told her that this was Simeon, the prophet.
Simeon held the Christ-child in his arms for a long period of time, and it seemed to be very difficult for Simeon to be parted from Him when giving the Holy Infant back to His Mother. He looked upon the face of Jesus, and it seemed to [Blessed] Veronica that the small baby was imparting to him profound mysteries and heavenly truth, by means of the sounds and gestures He made. When he finally handed Jesus back to the Blessed Virgin, he said: “Alas, a sword of sorrow shall pass through your own heart because of this Child!”
A very old woman, whom [Blessed] Veronica recognized to be Anna, stood there in the temple as well. Suddenly, inspired by a spirit of prophecy, she gave praise and glory to God and predicted many wonderful and touching things concerning the baby Jesus.
But the words of Simeon, about the sword of sorrow that was destined to pass through her heart, evidently touched Mary very deeply, for her face was shaded with a look of deep melancholy. Jesus Himself, upon perceiving the sadness of His beloved Mother, suddenly appeared also to be saddened. And at that moment, His face was transformed—for though He was but an infant, His expression and countenance changed to that of a man of ancient years, like one who had existed for countless ages and perceived and understood human sorrow to its very depth. And whenever [Blessed] Veronica was to see the face of Jesus again, she realized that there was always a look of infinite compassion and profound gravity upon it, springing from His profound and complete awareness of the sufferings of others.
