Saint Thérèse of Lisieux by Stephen B. Whatley



Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
By artist Stephen B. Whatley


Saint Thérèse of Lisieux by Stephen B Whatley - Flickr Photo Sharing!

By Stephen B. Whatley

"I have never given the good God anything but love; He will return that love. After my death I will let fall a shower of roses," so spoke Marie Francois Thérèse Martin (1873-1897) just before her tragic death.

The discovery of Saint Thérèse (canonised in 1925) has taken my breath away. She experienced an urgent calling to serve God; while suffering great mental as well as physical anguish - openly admitting to experiencing darknesses of the soul that she feared might crush her faith entirely.

As an artist, I have fought depressions all my life; and no less so than when, on the last day of August, I felt 'divinely pushed' to begin this tribute. Fighting through exhaustion and darkness; and therefore ever dependent on prayer, I felt the promise of roses...pink roses...graces...I felt her like 'the little flower' that expressed her tender humility.

There are times when perhaps to those distant from any spiritual belief (even agnostic) can find God and I feel that such relatively contemporary Saints such as St Therese (whose presence in this life is recorded in photographs; that inspired this painting) can make the path to God more accessible.

Turn to her, in the must humble and simple of prayers....St Thérèse is known as a Saint, through whom miracles can occur. I pray that there will be miracles of healing, prosperity and waves of peace for all those who mourn. Remembering all those who lost their lives and their families and friends who grieve in New York City on September 11.

Stephen B. Whatley, September 11, 2011

Saint Thérèse de Lisieux (2011)
Oil on canvas
24 x 18in / 61 x 46cm
Private collection, Georgia, USA

Dr. David Levy: Praying with Patients

Dr. David Levy: Praying with Patients - CBN TV - Video

The following excerpt is from CBN.com:

Neurosurgeon Dr. David Levy wanted to bring his faith into his practice because he believed that he needed to use all the means God can use for healing – even prayer. Since he has addressed his patients’ spirituality and made prayer a part of his regular interactions with his patients, he has seen positive results. He says his patients’ lives have reached levels in their spiritual, physical, and emotional health that they never had before.

Read more: Praying with Patients

Our Lady of Medjugorje's Monthy Message to Marija Pavlovic-Lunetti

Photograph by Loci B. Lenar

The Medjugorje Web - Apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Medjugorje

September 25, 2011 Monthy Message to Marija Pavlovic-Lunetti

Our Lady of Medjugorje: "Dear children! I call you, for this time to be for all of you, a time of witnessing. You, who live in the love of God and have experienced His gifts, witness them with your words and life that they may be for the joy and encouragement to others in faith. I am with you and incessantly intercede before God for all of you that your faith may always be alive and joyful, and in the love of God. Thank you for having responded to my call."

Boy who nearly drowned makes miracle recovery

Boy who nearly drowned makes miracle recovery - KAYU

The following excerpt is from myfoxspokane.com:

By Amy Moreno

SPANAWAY, WA - About six weeks after 12-year-old Dale Ostrander nearly drowned, he returned to his Spanaway, home, Tuesday.

In August, he was caught in a riptide off the Long Beach peninsula and pulled out into deep water. He spent nearly 20 minutes submerged. When rescuers pulled his lifeless body out of the water, his chances of survival were small.

Ostrander surprised everyone when he opened his eyes and spoke a few days after he had no pulse. From that point his recovery has been nothing short of a miracle.

The Ostrander family is grateful for the support and prayers that poured in from around the world. Pictures snapped at the scene showed church friends on their knees. The family believes prayer is the reason he beat the odds.

“It’s a story not only of hope, but a story that God still works miracles,” said Chad Ostrander, Dale’s father.

Read more: Miracle Recovery

Sheen Intercession Cited in Boy's Alleged Miraculous Healing

Photograph from The Catholic Post

The Catholic Post : Featured Article - Sheen intercession cited in area boy's alleged miraculous healing

The following excerpt is from the Catholic Post:

By Jennifer Willems

That James Fulton Engstrom is celebrating his first birthday on Friday is amazing. In fact, some would call his life a miracle.

Considered stillborn on Sept. 16, 2010 after a healthy pregnancy and “a beautiful, short labor,” James was without a pulse for the first 61 minutes of his life. It was only when doctors at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria were ready to call the time of death that his little heart started beating.

His parents, Travis and Bonnie Engstrom, believe James is alive due to the intercession of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, Servant of God.

On Sept. 7, a tribunal of inquiry was sworn in to investigate the Goodfield tot’s alleged miraculous healing. Joining James and his family at the ceremony in Our Lady of Perpetual Help Chapel in the Spalding Renewal Center in Peoria were Bishop Daniel R. Jenky, CSC; Dr. Andrea Ambrosi, postulator for Archbishop Sheen’s cause for beatification and canonization; and members of the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation board, some of whom are relatives of the late archbishop.

Read more: Miraculous Healing

Miracles in Medjugorje

Miracles in Medjugorje

The following excerpt is from Kypost.com:

By Suzanne Murray

They go to church, they walk the steps and they pray the rosary. For centuries the faithful throughout the world have been praying to Mary, asking her to intercede. All hoping that Mary will answer their petition.

Over the years thousands have gathered to see the blessed mother. Many say she has been revealing herself, more this century than ever before.

But why?

People travel the globe in hope of a spiritual experience, but here, we have been lucky. Believers say the blessed mother has revealed herself to the Tri-State's faithful many times. They say she has appeared in Falmouth, a church in Norwood, and Cold Spring was infused with followers in 1992.

Some say these visions are the most important thing going on right now in the world and they are bringing hope to those who believe.

It happened to Wayne Weibel, a journalist in South Carolina, and now he travels the world telling about it.

"If somebody had told me the story I wouldn't have believed it. But it was happening to me so I couldn't deny it. I've been doing it ever since. She just spoke to me. I said she spoke to me, she spoke to my heart," explained Wayne Weibel.

Tucked in the mountains in Bosnia-Herzegovina there's a little village called Medjugorje. And for millions around the world the most important event of our time is happening there.

Believers say the blessed mother revealed herself to six children on a hillside in 1981. She told them that she will appear every day until she shares ten secrets with each of them. They say the secrets are events that will happen on earth in the near future and when she has revealed all the secrets she will stop appearing daily.

Jackie Janson has 14 children, 40 grandchildren and lives in Burlington. She's traveled to Medjugorje three times.

"When the blessed mother appeared to the kids in the church the whole outside lit up too," said Jackie.

Jackie was one of hundreds of people from the Tri-State that came to listen to Wayne, a convert, with a message of hope.

"These are the children and they need guidance and her role is to bring the children back to the son, and this is why there is a Medjugorge, Lourdes and Guatelope's," said Wayne.

Mary's main message- prayer, and it is for everyone, not just Catholics.

Read more: Miracles in Medjugorje