Thailand and New Zealand
22 February 1999 10:27
Vassula has just returned to Rome from her trip to Thailand and New Zealand. Here are some brief reports from the trip.
First of all a couple of brief notes about the Thailand visit..
Edgar Dante writes:
Vassula arrived as scheduled! I was not able to inform you right away because, together with some TLIG friends, we went with her to the mountain (Mt. Tabor). We came back to Bangkok yesterday night but Vassula and Katerina are staying until after breakfast today (Sunday). The first meeting was quite successful. Bishop Manat was very eager to give Vassula and of all us a very warm hospitality at his retreat center. He also did the Thai translation when Vassula spoke to a little over 100 Thai people. Not so many but at least they are all Thai people — something that is difficult for us to gather in Bangkok.
Athol Bloomer writes:
We just had the most wonderful time with Vassula here in Thailand. She is very powerfully annointed by the Holy Spirit and this is the second time she has visited us in Thailand. I am a Hebrew Catholic from Australia working in Thailand and I just wish everyone’s Bishop could be as supportive as our Bishop here who hosted Vassula at Tabor Prayer Centre. We miss Vassula and her lovely Greek friend Caterina, they really blessed us all. Shalom Athol.
The following items relate to Vassula’s New Zealand trip which immediately followed her visit to Thailand.
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Hamilton, 19/2/99
Greetings to all. Our faces are all smiles here as last night’s meeting went so well.
Violet Brown and I collected Vassula and Katerina from Auckland Airport and drove them down to Hamilton, stopping for a light, outdoor lunch on the way. We went straight to the venue at Te Rapa Racecourse where two more of our team, Leo Dove and Leo Moriarty, were waiting for us (we had telephoned ahead with our mobile phone). We went through the meeting details with Vassula, then I dropped them at their motel.
>From 6.45pm we had a really lovely music group performing, and people were arriving in good numbers even at that time. By 7.30pm we estimate there were between 250 and 300 people. This was a great relief as our efforts at publicity had not been that successful: we were allowed posters and flyers in all the Catholic churches in Hamilton save one, as well as many in outlying areas. People came from as far away as Taranaki and Whakatane (3 hours drive approx).
With regard to our Bishop, we had informed him of Vassula’s visit, but had not sought his approval as instructed. We had received a very encouraging reply. To quote: «I am grateful for the fact that you have informed me of her (Vassula’s) coming visit and I pray that the grace of God will work through her on those who come to hear her. God Bless you.»
Unfortunately the day of the meeting I received a note from the Bishop’s office to the effect that all parishes had been sent a copy of the Notification, and I heard a rumour that priests had been asked not to attend (still unconfirmed). We will be providing the Bishop with more information about the Notification etc; all in all it looks like it was a blessing the Notification was sent to parishes so late that it didn’t prevent parishioners from coming…we’ll see where it leads. ( 3 priests attended)
We tried to get newspaper articles accepted, but could only manage tiny free notices. In the end we paid for a two column ad over the 3 days prior to the meeting in a major daily paper. Radio wasn’t much better, with only one interview eventuating on Community Radio; I was given only 2 minutes notice before the interview began so I wasn’t able to find my notes and the interview only lasted about 5 minutes. Our most effective advertising was via the Medjugorje Newsletters and Magazine we have in New Zealand. Most of the telephone enquiries I fielded came through these sources.
We also managed to get posters and fliers into other christian churches and I know some Protestants were at the meeting and liked what they heard. We started the meeting with our National Anthem, which is a prayer, and then prayed one decade of the rosary. As for Vassula’s adress, it seemed to me the audience hung on her every word and loved what she had to say. She spoke for 1 1/2 hours.
Next Vassula asked for people to remain if they wished for prayers of healing, where she would pray over them with the crucifix that contains a relic of the True Cross. Most people did remain, and a good proportion were slain in the Spirit, including myself (first time!) I heard that my Aunt, at the time of being touched with the cross saw the face of Jesus exactly as the picture on the front of True Life in God books, then she was slain in the Spirit too. I hope to get her testimony and any others if there are any. We did ask for people to give us written testimonies of extraordinary phenomena, so we hope to receive these in the next few weeks.
The organising team feel its been a great blessing for us to have worked together on such a project, and to be eyewitnesses to the wonderful fruits of the True Life in God movement. May there be many more! In Their Two Hearts, Clare
Hastings, NZ Meeting 18.02.99
We are very happy. Last night’s meeting went well, with just over 200 people present. Those present were listening intently to Vassula and afterwards had a wonderful peaceful prayer time. All finished at 10.30pm — 11pm. People came from as far as Picton, south, through to Gisborne, north. So a wide area was covered.
This morning Vassula and Katerina left on plane at 10am — all is well. We recognise that this is only the beginning and that the messages will spread at a fast rate now, and we are happy to try and do our best to spread the Message.
When picking up our things from the Theatre this morning, the Stage Manager who was present at the Meeting last night said he was very impressed with what happened last night — his heart was open to hear more, and keenly accepted a Volume 1 book. Thanks be to God. Vassula has donated a set of all the Volumes plus a few other books for the Mangaroa Prison.
We hope and pray that Hamilton’s and Auckland’s Meetings have many blessings. Gwen
