Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, March 1998

Vassula and a new travel companion left Bangkok on the 5th March, in the afternoon and continued their journey. From Bangkok they flew to Cairns/Australia, spent one night in Cairns and then, on the next day, they set off for their next destination : Port Moresby / Papua New Guinea.

Papua New Guinea used to be an Australian colony and became independent in 1975. It was almost noon while they arrived in Port Moresby on 7th March, in a very, very simple and small airport. Though Vassula was planned to spend two days only in Port Moresby. Yet, her stay there was not less significant. One of the most important result obtained by Vassula’s meetings was the reconciliation of the members belonging to different charismatic prayer groups, but not without a spirit of competition toward each other.

In the airport of Port Moresby, Vassula and her companion were one more time welcomed very, very warm-heartedly by Guy Joris, the TLIG Association Correspondent in PNG, a Flemish expatriate, with his whole family and his New-Guinean friends, who are themselves animators of charismatic prayer groups : Philip, John, Francis.

A matter of fact, a lot of credit goes to Guy in matter of organisation and co-ordination. Unlike other British or Australian expatriates, Guy and his whole family, i.e. his wife and his four children, are perfectly integrated in the local culture. One would say that Guy has even the need to mix himself up with local people! So, without the support of the local people, Guy certainly may have been able to find two places for Vassula to speak in Port Moresby. However, one can really doubt if he alone could have been able to make 600 people coming to hear Vassula testimonies. Besides, Guy has several big projects. Two of them worth being mentioned here. The first one is to improve the equipment of his workshop (Chrisma Promotion Centre) so that he eventually can print himself the TLIG books at a much cheaper price. The second one is to build (mainly with wood logs) a big building, a kind of multifunctional hall very near his house so that he can organise different kinds of activities : prayer group, catechism, religious formation ,or even professional training… Meanwhile, he is the first TLIG correspondent who had the idea to make known the TLIG messages by producing T-shirts with « True Life In God » and the two Divine Hearts encircled with thorns on the front side, and on the back side, « ICXUS » written within a fish which stands for « Jesus Christ, Son of God and Saviour ».

Port Moresby, 7th March 1998

The first meeting of Vassula took place on 7th March, at 3 p.m. in a relatively small school hall which belongs to St. Joseph Parish Church in Boroko. By the way, it was also in the same Church that Vassula and her helpers attended the Sunday mass. Before Vassula arrived in time, the hall was already filled up by young people, so that almost 100 people had to stay outside the hall, with no protection against the scorching sunshine, under a temperature of at least 35° C! A Filipino priest, Fr. Jun, gave a introductory speech on V and her mission.

As soon as Vassula started testifying, all of a sudden, some unusual disturbances happened: a couple of children began to yell very loudly and the electricity supply was interrupted without any reason. Remaining very calm, Vassula spontaneously invited the audience to say with her a prayer to St. Michael the Archangel, then a « Hail-Mary », a « Glory be the Father », until all the electric equipment received the energy from a portable generator brought by the organisers. In a poor country like Papua New Guinea, it is not unusual that babies cry because of torrid heat. It is also not unusual that electricity supply breaks down now and then. Yet, it is a bit unusual that all this happened just at the moment when Vassula was about to speak about God and in His name. The audience was very receptive: people praised and thanked aloud the Lord every time if Vassula spoke about God’s infinite love for His children and the graces that He literally has been pouring upon so far, regardless of their origin or appearance.

Port Moresby, 8th March 1998

The second meeting took place in a district called Hohola, on the 8th March, in the afternoon, inside a chapel dedicated to the Sacred Heart. With the permission of the parish priest, Fr. Edward who was in Australia to attend a course and whom Guy and Philip had perfectly informed about everything, Vassula spoke to further different New-Guinean auditors. Before Vassula arrived in time, about 500 people were already in the chapel, praising the Lord with wonderful charismatic songs, and thus preparing the right atmosphere for Vassula to talk about the divine messages; among them, a couple of nuns, a lot of young adults, but also many, many small kids on the right and left hand side of Vassula, who used to give a speech more than one hour. And they just remained peacefully seated, barely made any movements or any noise.

This time, the meeting started and ended without a hitch, no interruption, do disturbance, but only intermittent applause and cheerful laughter : the New-Guinean audience could just hardly withhold its enthusiasm and amazement upon hearing Vassula’s conversion and how Jesus instructed her through practical lessons. As soon as she talked about more serious subjects like « Apostasy », « Unity among Christians and prayer groups », « Purification », « The action of the Holy Spirit in our times » etc., they became suddenly motionless, attentive and meditative.

After the meeting, Guy brought Vassula over to his house, to show her his workshop the site as well where a multifunctional building is under construction. One hour later, a group of 30 young charismatic people arrived, all wearing TLIG T-shirts, and would like to ask Vassula for advice on spiritual matters. Indeed, it was impressing to see how Vassula, who comes from a much more developed country, could adapt herself so quickly and easily to her New Guinean brothers and sisters in Christ, answering each question as satisfyingly as possible, without the slightest sign of tiredness or condescension. Some questions asked by them were indeed very important. For they came across not only the TLIG messages, but also false messages spread by hidden or unknown false prophets. This mini-meeting in the afternoon, which Vassula normally wouldn’t have given, could be considered to be inspired by God, so that His New-Guinean children should not be led astray or harmed by the Malign.

While Vassula was about to take leave from her listeners, a man came to her and told her that during the meeting, while Vassula was speaking, he could watch a halo over her head, like a rainbow. This was immediately confirmed by a woman who was there, too, standing close to Vassula. May the Lord be praised and blessed for this small sign! And it would not be wrong to interpret it as a blessing given by the Lord to those who work for unity and for reconciliation : prayer groups co-exist like the seven colours of a rainbow, without no competition, no rivalry, but only mutual support and complementarity, precisely thanks to their difference willed and blessed by the same Creator, Father of all.