Emma de Guzman Visits Emmitsburg

First Saturday October 7, 2006

The very last thing I am interested in is going to see or hear anyone else who is supposedly a visionary or receives messages from heaven. I am not saying I don’t believe it could really be happening to them, I am only saying that except for Fr. Gobbi, Medjugorje and Emmitsburg, I don’t feel it is for me. If it were not for the sequence of events I have described over the past 8 years I would not be interested in them either.

I was very surprised when I first learned a few weeks ago that a visionary by the name of Emma de Guzman would be speaking at the Grotto of Lourdes. I found it almost unbelievable that this would be allowed considering the events currently taking place here in Emmitsburg.

I gave absolutely no thought at all of going to the Grotto for this event. I simply had no desire whatsoever and it remained this way up until just a few hours before it was scheduled to begin. I did go and I certainly was not expecting anything like what happened. This is how it went.

Normally we have 1st Saturday mass at St. Mary’s before our Lay Missionary of Charity meeting but because Fr. Mike Messaro is out of town we attended mass at St. Joseph’s. S.C.C. and I arrived at St. Joseph’s and I glanced at my watch as we walked in the church and the time was 8:33.

Fr. Paul Murphy C.M. was the priest. He has been here several months to help out while Fr. O’Mally continues to recover from his near fatal illness. Fr. Murphy is very attentive to positive information about the apparitions of Our Lady here in Emmitsburg. Mass ended and we drove back to St. Mary’s for our LMC meeting and just as we pulled in the parking lot the CD flashed 133.

We had our meeting and discussed some of the problems caused by the fact that LMC members must leave the LMC’s before joining the MC Fathers “I Thirst Movement” next year. This is a problem for both the LMC members and the MC Fathers. I hope it can be resolved. Anyway the meeting ended and I drove over to Allen Harris’s house to help him with a computer problem.

I finished at Allen’s and I rode to St. Peter’s Book Store to get a cup of coffee and relax for a few minutes. I arrived at St. Peter’s and for some reason just as I arrived the feeling of peace hit me. I glanced at my watch and it said XX:XX:13.

I had coffee and while I was sitting there several people asked if I was going to the Grotto of Lourdes tonight to attend a healing mass and talk by a visionary by the name of Emma de Guzman. I said I was not going. A little while later Mary Blanchard asked me if I was going and again I said no. Mary then said “I think you should reconsider and go”. It was at that instant I felt the peace hit me and I glanced at my watch and it said XX:XX:13.

It was at this point I started to actually think about going and a few minutes later I decided that I would go. About this time the store got busy so I left and stopped by St. Joseph’s to pray my rosary. I arrived and the car that was pulling in at the same time I was had the license plate of 133. I glanced at my watch as I walked in the church and the time was 2:33.

I completed the entire rosary by praying the Joyful, Sorrowful and Luminous mysteries. We had already prayed the Glorious mysteries at the LMC meeting this morning. During this time I thanked God for my talk with Gianna Sullivan going so well yesterday. I am at complete peace with it. I finished the rosary and looked at my watch as I walked out of the door and the time was 3:30. I got caught behind a slow walking handicapped couple and the sidewalk was to narrow to pass them. Because of this I arrived at my car to leave and the time on the dash was 3:33.

I arrived home and S.C.C. said she did not want to go to the Grotto to hear Emma de Guzman talk and there was still something inside me that did not want to go but for some reason I felt that I should. I drove to the Grotto and was surprised to see such a large number of people there to hear Emma de Guzman. I had to park in the overflow parking lot. Mass began and as it did I glanced at my watch and it said XX:XX:13.

Fr. Jack Lombardi was the priest. The glass chapel was packed with people who had come from all over to hear Emma de Guzman speak. Many had come from very long distances. Mass ended and Fr. Jack introduced Emma and it was easy to tell something had just gone drastically wrong. I glanced at my watch and the time was 7:13:33.

At this point everything changed and Emma was not allowed to give the talk that so many people had come to hear. There were some people there who were very upset because this had been advertised for weeks and was cancelled after everyone arrived.

Phil C invited me and about 30 others over to his house because Emma was going to give a short version of her talk there after she, Fr. Jack and Deacon Peter Z finished praying over people who wished this. I left to go over to Phil’s house and I stopped at St. Joseph’s on the way and when I arrived the time was 8:13.

I sat out in the car and prayed for a few minutes. I was unsure about all of the confusion at the Grotto tonight however I still felt like there was a reason for all of this and I realized the night had not yet finished unfolding. I drove to Phil’s house which is very close to mine and when I arrived and shut the car off the CD flashed 333. I walked in the front door and the time was 8:33.

There was already a good number of people there when I arrived. Emma de Guzman had not arrived yet. While we were waiting Deacon Peter Z suggested that we pray the rosary. We did and finished it at 10:13. A few minutes later Emma arrived and when she did I looked at my watch and the time was 10:33:33.

Emma gave a very nice talk and told us about how her experiences began. She told us about how she gets the stigmata during Holy Week. She then showed a picture of her receiving the stigmata in the form of the number 333.

R_____ C___

Oct. 27, 2006

11:13 Pm