June 6th, 1999.
Transcription of the video entitled Soufanieh: Appeal for Unity
[This is not a literary translation, but rather a literal translation from the original Arabic]
Setting: Father Elias Zahlaoui conversing with Myrna Nazzour - June 1997
Produced by Rassemblement A Son Image - Montréal, Québec, Canada
PEZ:
Soufanieh, is the name of a small Christian district of Damascus, capital of Syria. In that district, a spiritual and mystical phenomenon began on November 27th, 1982. A small icon of the Virgin Mary carrying Jesus Began to ooze oil. This exsudation provoked an extraordinary prayer movement, which continues to this day. Day after day, the various facets of this phenomenon unveiled themselves, while prayer was sustained night and day. There were five apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Myrna between December 15th, 1982 and March 24th , 1983. Myrna, was then, the young bride who owned this icon of the Virgin Mary. The first time that Myrna saw the Virgin Mary, she fled. On four other occasions, the Virgin Mary conveyed messages to her. A message transmitted in dialectal Arabic. All these messages are but a compact summary of the Holy Gospel that calls to the return to God, love, penance, prayer, the unity of hearts with God and the unity of the Church. The entire Church.
Since December 16th , 1982, healings have occurred in the house of the Virgin Mary in Soufanieh and elsewhere. Healings, amongst which one can find cases of cancer, of paraplegics and of a cerebral haemorrhage. All those that have been healed are in good health until now. All the medical reports are available.
As of October 28th, 1983, a new aspect of this spiritual and mystical phenomenon presented itself: Myrna will experiment what is known as ecstasy. It occurred to her 33 times between October 28th, 1983 and November 26th, 1990. The ecstasy varied in length, anywhere between 5 and 90 minutes. During those ecstasies, Myrna would see at times the Virgin Mary or Our Lord Jesus. The ecstasies during which she saw Jesus were preceded by an oozing of oil from her eyes. The Messages transmitted in Arabic during those ecstasies rejoin harmoniously the Holy Gospel teachings.
Thereafter, Myrna will receive the stigmata four times. The first time was on Friday November 25th 1983. The stigmata opened in the afternoon and were healed completely without leaving any trace whatsoever the same evening at 11 o'clock. The three other times were on Holy Thursdays in 1984, 1987 and 1990. Those were the years when Catholics and Orthodox celebrated Easter together. During those years the stigmata were followed by an ecstasy, during which a message was transmitted. On the eve of Easter, the icon would exude oil. These mystical phenomena stopped after the Holy Week of 1990, and after the ecstasy of November 26th, 1990. During that last ecstasy the Virgin Mary told Myrna literally:
Do not fear, My daughter, if I tell you that you are seeing Me for the last time until the feast (of Easter) is unified. Therefore, tell My children: Do they want or not to see and remember the wounds of My Son in you? If it does not pain them to see that you are suffering doubly, I Myself, am a Mother, and it pains Me to see My Son suffering repeatedly. Remain in peace, remain in peace, My daughter. Come, so that He may give you peace, so that you may spread it among the people. As for the oil, it will continue to manifest itself on your hands to glorify My Son Jesus, whenever He wishes and wherever you go. We are with you and with everyone who wishes the Feast (of Easter) to be One.
And since that time, Myrna, while answering the call of the Lord which was given to her on November 26th, 1987: Go and preach to the whole world and tell them without fear to work for unity, Myrna travels the world. She has been invited by prelates and bishops for journeys of prayers and testimonies. The first journeys were to the United States in 1988 and 1989. Then it was Belgium, Holland, Germany, France, later on back to the United States, Canada, Australia, and presently we are in Canada coming from the United States. Always and only for missions of prayers and testimonies. This is the summary of the Soufanieh phenomenon as we live it since November 27th, 1982. In 1982, you were an 18-year old young bride when the phenomenon overwhelmed you. Fifteen years have now gone by. Could you summarise these 15 years for us and tell us a little about Nicolas' initial position?
MN:
In the beginning, we were afraid. We didn't know what was going on. We were influenced by what people were saying. A lot of people said that I would have to leave Nicolas, others said that it was a diabolical event. We didn't believe them but we were embarrassed. We wanted to know what was happening to us. Of course, since then, we have a much clearer understanding that in everything we do, we have the conviction that it is the Lord who leads us. And my experience assures me that whoever trusts the Lord, the Lord will help him. It is true that we didn't perfectly understand everything, which happened to us, but we abandoned ourselves to God's will so that His will works through us. Six months after my marriage, when the phenomenon began, unconsciously, Nicolas and I were afraid. Maybe we were influenced by all the many people who came everyday in our home. Our bedroom, which Nicolas had arranged to become our nest, resembled a hospital constantly occupied by sick people. Nicolas and I had to sleep apart. Thus, we separated ourselves unconsciously. We didn't understand what we had to do, then a lot of people intervened in our life. Many said that I had to retire into a convent and that I should not remain married. And we believed them, even though we had married out of love, having challenged our families, since Nicolas is significantly older than I am. I was born in 1964 while Nicolas was born in 1940. But we loved each other and we got married in spite of everyone's opposition. However, we truly believed what people were saying, namely that it was necessary for us to split. We had reached that point. We were not annoyed of what was happening to us as we also realised that graces abounded in the house until the day where the Virgin Mary told me in a message: I have not come to separate. Your married life will remain as it is. At the time of this message, father Elias Zahlaoui was present and asked us: Why does the Virgin Mary speak like that? Tell me, how do you live together? Nicolas told him: ' We are afraid '. Father Elias replied: "No, you don't have the right to live like that. Had the Virgin Mary wanted to appear to you before your marriage, She would have done so. There is no shame. Marriage is a sacrament and it is very important in the eyes of Jesus and of the Church; and the family is very important."
So we resumed our normal life. Jesus and Mary insisted many times on this fact throughout their messages. Amongst them, Jesus told me: Continue your life as wife, mother and sister. Thank God, now we live harmoniously. We have two children, Myriam and John-Emmanuel, united by prayer and love. Thank God. Everybody knows that Nicolas loves children a lot, especially the ones of the family. He is said to have educated them... I suffered not having a child during the first three years of our marriage. I even wanted to consult a physician, but Nicolas refused. Thank God. He always refused that I consult a physician… his strong faith objected to it. He told me: It is not the time yet. Maybe the Lord wants you for a mission. If the Lord wanted to give us children, He would have done so. I forbid you to consult a physician. I believe that you must have a mission and let's leave it to the Lord. That is why I never consulted a physician. Until May 1st, 1985, when the Virgin Mary told me: I shall give you a gift for your hardships. I did not think that this gift would be a child, but the priests who were there, amongst them fathers Malouli and Zahlaoui said: This gift will probably be a child That rejoiced us, but I didn't say: it must be so. I always abandoned myself in the hands of the Lord, and in fact, some time after, I became pregnant, and this gift proved to be my daughter Myriam, which means that the child is a gift from Heaven.
PEZ:
When you hear, Myrna, that in some countries such as Canada, the United States and in Europe, abortion is legalised and that several hundreds of thousands of foetuses are killed annually, what do you think? Especially when you think of Mary's message: I shall give you a gift for your hardships?
MN:
Obviously, it saddens me tremendously. I don't have the right to judge. Who am I to judge? It is up to the Church to say her word. As for me, given the spiritual experience that I have lived with the Virgin Mary, I refuse abortion and I believe that it is a criminal act. And when I hear them say that abortions occur in the first 2-3 months… I believe that the soul palpitates in the mother's womb from the first moment. I refuse abortion, but I don't judge.
PEZ:
When the Lord told you: Go and preach to the whole world and tell them without fear to work for unity. What were your reactions at first, as well as Nicolas'?
MN:
Nicolas used to say: If I had known that all this would be happening to Myrna, I would not have married her! Because he knew that I am a simple girl. I don't want to speak about myself, but that is what he always says, that I am a simple girl, who enjoys life and simple matters. Since Nicolas initially was a total non-believer, when I received this message, he was surprised. He wondered: that could she say? Several priests also asked the same question. What could such a simple person do or say? I know the gospel a little, but I don't know how to explain anything. I don't understand it as the scholars do. Everyone as impressed by this message, except me. Honestly, I never thought I was capable to do or say anything. I told the Lord: Thy Will be done. Give me the strength to do what You want me to do. Effectively, since the first drop of oil in the house, I never worried about anything I would have to say, think, prepare or do.
PEZ:
Did you prepare yourself in advance for this interview?
MN:
Not at all. When I am in such a situation, immediately I think of the sentence that Jesus had told me: Do not choose your path, because I have laid it out for you. And I remind Him: You told me that. Help me therefore, to walk on the path that You have prepared for me.
PEZ:
Myrna, you saw the Virgin Mary and you touched Her. When you knew that you would no longer see Her, you cried and you asked yourself: What did I do to be deprived of Her sight? Since 1990, you no longer see the Virgin Mary nor Jesus, but you always pray. When you pray to the Virgin Mary, do you try to remember what you saw in the past? How do you imagine the Virgin Mary when you pray?
MN:
For me, without praying, the Virgin Mary is always before my eyes. Sometimes I would be speaking with people and they would realise that I am elsewhere, not sleepy, but elsewhere. Because I cannot forget this sight… and I must always live it. Since this happens even when I don't pray, you can imagine how much stronger it feels when I pray. …She is always before my eyes.
PEZ:
Does it make you sad?
MN:
Yes. Of course. When I see the Virgin Mary, it’s different. I feel Her nearer to me. But I don't have the feeling to be separated from Her. I know that the Virgin Mary and Jesus are with me. Jesus had told me that He would remain with me. Don't fear I am with you. And the Virgin Mary had told me: Don't fear, I am with you. I feel that they are always with me, I long to see Them.
PEZ:
While Bernadette was driving us across France in 1996, through some splendid regions, I had invited you to admire the landscape and you told me: I don't see anything, except what is in my heart. Now, during our journey to Canada, coming from the United States, do you still see what is in your heart and not the outside world?
MN:
Yes, thank God, nothing in this world interests me. And I don't stop saying: If you had seen what I have seen, the whole world would mean nothing to you. I thank the Lord for this. I hope to see Him again. When I am in state of ecstasy and I come back to the outside world, where do I come back? Where was I? Where am I coming back to? I don't know… But when I come back to the normal life, I remain affected. I should be happy to return to my children and my family, but when you see the Light of the Lord, one forgets his own children! And I really wished then not to come back to earth.
PEZ:
I want to ask you a shocking question: If someone told you: "Myrna, tomorrow you will die, and you will be with the Lord and the Virgin Mary. How would you feel?"
MN:
I could not wish better. This would not be death, but true life.
PEZ:
And the children?
MN:
But God is present! Many tell me that this response of mine is an escape from my responsibilities. No, it is not an escape, it is total love. Meeting God, this is the summit of love.
PEZ:
This reminds me of the three days when the divine light inhabited you in 1984.
MN:
Yes, I had wished not to come back to earth. Yet I had cried because I didn't know what was happening to me, but when I understood, I wished not to come back.
PEZ:
Does it ever happen to you in prayer to ask the Lord to take you to Him?
MN:
Yes, it is written in my diary, because I write my diary regularly. I frequently ponder: Lord, when will You take me?
PEZ:
In a particular circumstance or is it a deep wish?
MN:
It is as a result of my longing to see Him.
PEZ:
Do you have time to write your personal journal every day?
MN:
No, I only write when I have the desire to write. I like to write many blame me for not writing… time is lacking.
PEZ:
Time is lacking… Now we are dealing with a delicate matter that we had already agreed on earlier, namely that it is necessary to close the house for a few hours a day in order for you to be able to take care of yourself, your children and God. You will then have time to write during these moments. What do you think?
MN:
It would be very convenient for me, but not for the people. I know that they are supposed to come to see the Virgin Mary, but I cannot oblige them to understand that they must come solely for the Virgin Mary and not for me. They tell me: We know that the Virgin Mary is in our house, but we want to see the person that the Virgin Mary chose. Then I tell myself: if I can be helpful in any way to them, why not?
PEZ:
If we regulated the visiting hours, don't you believe that you will have more time to pray and to write, knowing that the people will respect this change?
MN:
I pray. I consider that my meeting with people is also a prayer. If I can be useful to them, then it is also a prayer. My life with my husband is a prayer, with my children is a prayer. As long as everything is left in the Lord's hands, all my work is a prayer.
PEZ:
Your call for the unity of the Church enabled you to meet a lot of priests and bishops from various communities, patriarchs as well as several apostolic nuncios. Can you tell us something about some of these meetings? Not all the meetings, because they were numerous, maybe some important moments?
MN:
As concerns the position of the Church regarding the phenomenon, there is no official position until now and this is normal. The Church is known to take its time in these matters. It is necessary for the Church to be very prudent before taking any position. On the personal level, there are a lot of priests, bishops and patriarchs who perhaps haven't expressed their opinion publicly, but I sense from them a lot of respect and approval for Soufanieh and for its gratuitousness. I met a lot of people. I cannot say that one of them is more important than the other. When I am with a priest, I keep my head down. I don't know what impression I leave him with after our meeting, but I am happy to have met with him, because they are the persons responsible in the Church and bear the main responsibility regarding the unity of the Church. My mission is to transmit the desire of the Lord and of the Virgin Mary to them, which is the unity of His Church; and to pray for them, so that they can also work for unity.
PEZ:
Were there any exceptional meetings with Patriarchs and Apostolic Nuncios? Can you tell us something about them?
MN:
Our meeting with His Beatitude, the Syrian orthodox patriarch Zakka Iwas 1st.
PEZ:
Your meetings rather… because there were numerous.
MN:
Indeed, I visited him several times, but during the first visit, when the oil appeared in His presence and in the presence of His Eminence Ishak Saka, this meeting marked me deeply. And he too, I believe, was touched. He prays a lot for us. I ask for his blessing because, really, he is an exceptional man. The Coptic Orthodox Pope Shenouda III also. I met him in Egypt and I was very happy to meet him. I am going to tell you a little about this patriarch. When I entered the Patriarchate of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt, the palpitations of my heart reached 300 strokes per second. My legs were trembling… I had heard so much about his personality.... not that I feared to see him, but because I didn't deserve to be with him. His vicar told us: The patriarch will grant you about 7 minutes. I said: Great. It is a grace. Thank God. It is amply sufficient. We entered an immense lounge. His Holiness was at the end of the lounge. When one enters there, one is truly impressed. I approached slowly, I kissed his hand and I sat down. He spoke of the Church, of the faith in the Church, of the people. He presented me with some books, and I told him: Excellency, allow me to tell you, that while entering the room, I was dreadfully fearful from you. But whoever listens to you, discovers your humility and feels very quickly at ease. He was happy, and we laughed. And I informed him about Soufanieh, because he had asked me about it. I offered him a large icon of Our Lady of Soufanieh and some books on the phenomenon and He promised to read them. Then he asked me: Please inform me of what is happening in Soufanieh. I obliged, and while I spoke about the ecstasies and the oozing of oil, oil covered my hands. He took out his handkerchief and wiped my hands. Then I told him: Excellency, ten minutes have gone by, I don't want to take our time... He told me: It's okay. Stay. Stay. We remained 20 minutes with him. I was very happy… we took several photos together. The present apostolic nuncio in Damascus, His Eminence, Monsignor Pier Giacomo di Niccolo, likes Soufanieh a lot. And he has gone deeply into studying the Soufanieh message, he invites his friends to visit Soufanieh. He even comes over from time to time. We sometimes pray the rosary together. The previous nuncio, His Eminence, Monsignor Luigi Accogli, also visited Soufanieh. He also respected it a lot. I had several encounters with apostolic nuncios. Thank God.
PEZ:
Myrna, during your journeys to Europe, the United States, Canada and Australia, did you feel that the Lord was transmitting something [to us] through you?
MN:
When I speak in a church, and when I see the people's tears…I realise their joy. But I cannot say that I have conveyed the message, that I have accomplished something… that I have sufficiently accomplished something. My personal satisfaction is not the important thing. Maybe the Lord is satisfied with what I do because He knows that I am very weak, that I cannot endure much, as for myself, I cannot satisfy myself with whatever I do. I feel that I always have something to do, and that I haven't accomplished anything. I wish that the people be not impressed momentarily and then forget the essential.
PEZ:
During our last journey to the United States, you had discovered that something had changed during your meetings with the people. For example: in New Jersey you must have been very happy to see that a beautiful new choir dedicated to Our Lady of Soufanieh had been created, a choir composed of several elements from different communities.
MN:
Believe me father, I don't see anything. Even when I go back to write in my journal, I say: I thank You Jesus to have enabled me to meet You today in such or such a church… to have met You through the people. I am often asked: What is the place which has touched you most or the most beautiful country or place you have visited etc…? Believe me, I don't see anything. Wherever I am, I see Jesus through the people. I even forget. We prayed in New Jersey… I remember also we prayed with the Greek community. What happened? Who spoke to me? Who did I see? I remember a bishop, a priest… I remember people, but the only things that I see are Jesus and the Virgin Mary. And I tell myself: I thank You Lord, because I met You today through these people.
PEZ:
This extraordinary Mass that we have lived with Archmandrite Eugene Pappas in Brooklyn, wasn’t this a different Mass?
MN:
The Mass was splendid, exceptional. Maybe the extraordinary aspect of this mass was due to the fact that I was for the first time in a Hellenic Orthodox Church. Maybe that is why I was happy. Yet, we had already prayed previously in various orthodox Churches… but for the first time in the Hellenic community. The priest's welcome, the intensity of their prayers surely moved us. Yes, it is true.
PEZ:
Can you tell us how the oil exuded from your hands at the end of the Mass?
MN:
At the end of the Mass - that day it was Pentecost – I was very happy because it was the feast of the Descent of the Holy Spirit. It is in this day that Jesus called everybody to unity. And it was the beginning of my testimony. At the end of the mass, father Eugene asked us to kneel and to pray to the Holy Spirit. He took me by the hand. We approached the icon and we knelt. Everybody knelt also. He prayed. Then he asked me to sing. I asked the choir to sing and they obliged. We all stood up. When the prayer was finished, father Eugene turned toward me while everyone was looking at me because they knew by now that the oozing of oil from my hands typically occurs at the end of the mass or at the end of my testimony. I noticed that a lot of people looked at me and I gestually indicated to them ' I don't know!' After standing up, father Eugene opened his arms and hugged me. And while he hugged me, oil exuded from my hands. I was deeply touched. What is the wisdom of the Lord? I don't know, but for me, the manifestation of oil had to express the ties of love.
PEZ:
When you told me this, it reminded me of the Visitation. The visit of the Virgin Mary to Elisabeth. The summit of love is when the Holy Spirit is poured down onto us. There is another interesting fact that you told me. Father George Chalhoub in Detroit, for example. Are you able to tell me how the oil appeared?
MN:
Father George Chalhoub contacted me at my cousin's home, Joseph Haddad in Detroit, and he wished that we could go to his church around 2:30pm, to pray together the Paraclisis with a small prayer group. I answered: Of course, with joy. I went there and I was astonished to see that the church was full of people. We began to pray, then he asked me if I wanted to say something. I told him, that I would prefer that father Zahlaoui says a few words. Father Elias spoke a little and later asked me to sing. I sang. Afterwards, I shook hands with the numerous sick persons who were present then. And as usual, people were looking at me to see if there was any oil. Father George told the people: Those who wish to shake Myrna's hands, please present yourselves from the center, shake her hand, and leave by the side of the church. I stood in the middle of the church and people came to shake my hands. Some asked me to pray for them while others commended their intentions to me. Many people presented themselves, greeted me and suddenly, a lady asked me: Myrna, I implore you, I need oil. I told her: When the Lord wants, He gives us the oil. Father George tells her: I have holy oil inside, I will give you some. He had hardly finished his sentence when oil covered my hands. It is as if the Lord is telling us.... oh yes, the timing of the Lord is not ours. It is as if He is telling us You cannot be more generous than I am! Ask and you will receive. I was very touched. And all those who had shaken my hand came back to be anointed with the oil. And father George was very happy. Thank God.
PEZ:
Often, during prayer, oil appears on your hands and you said that the people would be waiting for it to appear, and they would interrogate you with their eyes. When the oil appears, it is the sign that the Lord commanded its presence. It is He who created this oil. It is the certainty of the presence of the Lord with you. What feeling does this provoke in you?
MN:
I am very happy when the oil appears. Knowing that they are going to be touched and converted - because this oil transformed so many people and helped them regain their faith, more than the message I am transmitting to them. I am happy. But I never wished, nor asked for the oil to appear. Sometimes I ask for it - when I see the intensity of people’s faith - I ask for the oil but I say to myself: Thy Will be done. I never demanded the presence of the oil because it is His will and not mine. I never sense the oozing of oil. When the oil appears, I feel a chill in my body. I look at my hands, and I notice its presence; all in a fraction of a second.
PEZ:
You remember our stay in Khabab, Syria on February 25th, 1985, with the intent to spend a few days in prayer with you and Nicolas. Oil exuded from the picture of Our Lady of Soufanieh, near the office of His Eminence Boulos Borkhoche, from your hands, and from several pictures of Our Lady of Soufanieh. Especially when we went to pray with the sick people, Amongst them, the mother of father Mouaffak El-Id. On Sunday, His Eminence wanted to transfer the icon from the church to the archdiocese, whereas he had transferred it earlier from the archdiocese to the church. Can you tell us what happened then?
MN:
Yes, we held a large procession in the church and in the presence of many people from Khabab and its surroundings, and then the picture was brought back to the archdiocese. Later we left His Eminence and the priests and I went into the car to go home. As soon as I was in the car, I lost consciousness. Later on, I learned that oil had covered my face and hands. Nicolas brought me back to the archdiocese and I was laid down on the bed of one of sisters of the archdiocese the Sœurs du Bon Service. I don't know how much time I had gone into ecstasy. Around eight minutes. Once out of ecstasy, I described what I saw: I saw the Virgin Mary, Her arms wide open - as I see Her during Her Apparitions - and, there, was a priest making the motions of blessing, all dressed in black. I didn't know who he was. I told the bishop: I saw a thin and bearded priest. He asked me: Have you ever seen him before? I answered: no. I don't know what happened afterwards. I was presented with some photos of bishops. While looking at the photos, I recognised the priest and I pointed to the priest I had seen. It was Monsignor Nicolas Naaman, the predecessor of His Eminence Boulos Borkhoche in the diocese of Hauran, whereupon I wanted to know more about him. I was told that he was an extremely humble, helpful man, who loved his diocese, and who wanted to be buried among his people, in the Khabab cemetery. We also visited his grave.
PEZ:
He died on August 1982, a few months before the beginning of the phenomenon of Soufanieh.
MN:
It is thanks to the photo that I recognised him, since I did not know of him before.
PEZ:
One day, a theological symposium centred around the phenomenon of Our Lady of Soufanieh was organised by father Adel Khoury. It was held in Münster, Germany, from September 11th till the 14th , 1991. In 1991, father Adel Khoury - a German priest of Lebanese origin - had the idea to organise a theological symposium of three days, which included many French and German theologians and at their head father Adel Khoury amongst them the well-known theologian Herbert Vorgrimler. During the symposium, several events took place. In the beginning of the symposium, we prayed, then father Adel asked me to present the phenomenon in its entirety to all who were present and especially to those who were not conversant with it. Of course, father Adel already somewhat acquainted them with the phenomenon but when same is told through the lips of a direct witness, the phenomenon takes another span. Father was sitting at the head of the table, I was at his right and Myrna to his left. He had placed before him a small booklet containing the messages of Soufanieh. On the cover of the booklet, there was the picture of Our Lady of Soufanieh. I had hardly begun to present the phenomenon when suddenly father Adel leaned toward me and whispered something in my ear. Father Adel is a very gentle person, and his voice is very soft. I thought that he had asked me to present the picture to the attendance. So I took the small booklet and told them: The picture of Soufanieh is like this picture. At this moment, father Adel raised his voice and said: No, Father Elias, watch the photo on the cover. There is oil! At that moment I looked and I saw a very large drop of oil on the chest of the Virgin Mary and on Jesus' hand. Then I told the people: Excuse me, there is oil on the cover of the booklet! Everybody was surprised. Everyone rose. They approached and touched the oil. We prayed a little and everybody went back to their seat and continued to listen to my exposé. After 13 minutes precisely, as I began to speak about the oil that exuded from Myrna's hands, father Adel turned toward me, and told me: Father Elias, watch Myrna's hands! Myrna had sat down to the left of father Adel. I looked at Myrna's hands, they were oozing with oil. Then again I told them: Thank God, there is oil on Myrna's hands. Everybody rose. Amongst them, Xavier Jaccard, one of the two Jaccard brothers and priests, a stocky engineer in his sixties, approached me and stared at me in the eyes, his face becoming red, as I saw his emotion increase. Then he exploded in tears and hugged me while telling me: But the Virgin Mary is with us, father! I told him: But She is always with us, Xavier. Thank God! This is what had happened in the beginning of this symposium. During the three days of our stay, the sign of oil was practically always present. Either from pictures of the Icon or from Myrna's hands during the mass.
PEZ:
You know that thanks to friends of Soufanieh, the choir Chœur-Joie has toured Europe twice: in 1995 and in 1996. With Chœur-Joie, we carried the mission of Soufanieh during these two tours. What would you like to tell them?
MN:
Of course, the members of Chœur-Joie are like brothers and sisters to me. I like them a lot because I lived with them the phenomenon of Soufanieh. I ask them to always be united, to love each other and to always work for the Lord.
PEZ:
It would be appropriate to inform you that the icon of Soufanieh has been reproduced and distributed in the tens of thousands… and now I can tell you that there are millions that have been distributed in the world. Of different sizes and shapes. Some of these reproductions exuded oil in Christian and Moslem houses in Damascus, beyond Damascus and in all of Syria. We now know that throughout the world, several icons are exuding oil, the most famous of which being the one in Chicago in the Christian house of Mr. Daoud Hanna, a Syrian orthodox originating from Hassaké, Syria. Since July 14th, 1994, this icon, Which is an enlargement of the Icon of Our Lady of Soufanieh, exudes oil continually. And the house has become a new Soufanieh to where people come from all around to pray in absolute gratuitousness. And all the family participates joyfully in this spiritual endeavour. Myrna: This network of friendship that emanated from the small drop of oil in Soufanieh, the Arab world, Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia, and other places; do you feel that this network constitutes the core which can later constitute the unity of the Church that God wants?
MN:
Yes. Through this drop of oil and the message of the Virgin Mary… I can say that this small drop of oil, the source of which is a modest house in Damascus, has spread across the whole world, to announce to everyone that the Lord wants the unity of the Church. And Jesus' message that says: You are My Church and your heart belongs to Me …Tell My children that it is from them that I demand unity…This phrase incites people to work for unity. As for me, I want that people work in love, because unity feeds from love. Not to work only for unity, but to pray also. There is a message from Jesus that says: Do not say: what shall I do, because this is My work. You must fast and pray, because through prayer you face My truth and confront all enemies. What is important is not that I work myself for unity, because if I work without praying, I cannot express unity the way God wants it. Through prayer, I can however make them see unity through me. Because prayer is a dialogue with God and unity begins with oneself. I cannot preach unity unless I live it myself. I live it with myself, my family, my children, with people and my brothers. I must live it in order to relay it to others through prayer; because through prayer the Lord blesses us all and all our efforts. What I would like to tell them is to pray and to pray for unity.
PEZ:
If I asked you to summarise in a few words these 15 years that you have lived with the Lord and with people through the Lord, what could you tell us?
MN:
If I had to speak of my mission, I don't feel that 15 years have gone by. When I am with the Lord I don't know if what I will say to you will be useful, I speak of myself, an experience that I have lived with the Lord - when I am with Him, I am outside of time. I can say that these 15 years have passed by like a second. The Lord asks for the unity of hearts, love, conversion, prayer, forgiveness, unity with oneself, with God, with one’s brother, the unity of the world, of the family, because the family is a small Church – and then the unity of the Church. We should emphasise building souls. Unfortunately we build churches and we forget to build souls. And this is a sentence that the Virgin Mary has pronounced: Establish a Church. I did not say: "Build a Church". She doesn't want a church of stones. She wants a living Church.
PEZ:
Myrna, at the end of this meeting, what do you wish to say to all the friends you have made since 15 years through Soufanieh? The ones you remember from your journeys in France, Holland, Belgium, Germany, Canada, Australia, United States, Damascus, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon or Syria.
MN:
My deepest suffering is to see a group that works hard for the Church, for unity and for the mission of Soufanieh and among them there is no love. This is my deepest suffering. This is why I would like to tell you that you cannot speak of unity without living that unity among yourselves. You cannot speak of love if you don't love one another. That's what I can say. To work genuinely and be blessed by the Lord, it is necessary that you live unity among yourselves before speaking about it to others. Because it is your work that will confirm to people the truth of your mission. How can people believe someone who does not practise what he preaches? It is necessary for people to see in your life what you preach. I wish therefore that the Lord blesses your work, that He sows love in your hearts and that you become living models who attract people who gravitate around you or whom you will meet during your life. I ask you also to pray for me, because these words are not only for you, but they also concern my family and my parents. Pray for us, so that we remain faithful to our mission. And pray for this small place of prayer and pilgrimage that the Lord has chosen, so that it remains always open to prayer.
(Final prayer)
O Lord, help me remain faithful to my mission.
Help me [to] live with my family, as You have lived with Your apostles.
A life of love and piety.
Help me to always see Your mother as an example in front of me through obedience, patience and love;
to become like Her before my family and before every family.
Help me to pray for all the divided families, because the family is a small Church; especially for families who do not think of God's presence in their life.
Help them live a life of love and piety and unite them through the bonds of peace, love and unity.
Amen.