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I went to Naju with a group of 33 pilgrims from Los
Angeles on October 16, 1998, to celebrate the 12th anniversary of Our Lady’s
first weeping tears of blood in Naju.
After the weeklong pilgrimage to Naju I was going to
continue my journey to Burma to visit my family. So I bought a replica
statue of Our Lady of Naju for my brother, who is a Catholic priest. On
the last night of the pilgrimage in the hotel at Kwangju, my friends, Sun
and Edna from Los Angeles, helped me repack my luggage. As we opened the
package that contained the statue, a strong fragrance of roses came out of
the box.
On October 25, I arrived in Lashio, my hometown, which
is the capital city of the Northern Shan State in Burma. I gave the
replica statue to my brother, Father Norman Joseph Wu, who was on vacation
and visiting the family. A couple of days later I visited my friend’s
family and showed them all the miraculous photographs of Our Lady of Naju.
I gave to my friend’s daughter, Di Di, a medal with the picture of Our
Lady of Naju. The next day after my visit, Di Di related the story of Naju
to her friend, rubbing the medal with her fingers without any intention.
Just then they smelled the fragrance of roses around them and from her
fingers with which she was rubbing the medal.
A few days later, I was invited to the Catholic Parents’
Association to give a talk on Our Lady of Naju during one of their monthly
retreats in the parish hall. I took the replica statue and the fifty
photographs there on October 31. I displayed the miraculous photographs
that I brought from Naju on four large cardboard sheets. I explained to
them (about 50 people) about the pictures and shared some of the messages
which the Blessed Mother gave to Julia Kim. Some people in the crowd,
including some priests, were so touched that tears were rolling down on
their cheeks.
From then on, the news about Our Lady of Naju spread
all over. Priests, nuns, lay Catholics, and non-Catholics kept coming to
my house asking for more information, pictures, rosaries, medals and the
water from the miraculous spring in Naju. I was very sad for not being
able to provide all of them with what they asked for. All I could was to
order more copies of the photographs of the Blessed Mother. No matter how
many copies I ordered, it was never enough. I was giving away about one
thousand photos and this I gave to only those who asked. One picture for
one family only. It was overwhelming to see how much the people there
trusted and loved Our Lady of Naju.
On a Sunday, the photographs from Naju were displayed
outside the church for the first time. After the Mass, a school teacher
named Caroline Ba Tin was praying in front of the photographs with her
daughter, Pauline. Pauline was suffering pains from TB glands around her
neck. The glands that she had had for years were so obvious, like big
lumps all around her neck. Caroline kept touching the pictures of the
Blessed Mother weeping tears of blood and the appearance of the Eucharist
turned into those of flesh and blood and then touched her daughter’s
neck while praying with tears for the cure of her daughter. The very next
day the glands and the pains were gone. They went and had the doctor
examine Pauline and the doctor was amazed to see that Pauline was cured
with no explanation.
People gathered in different houses day after day and
invited me to talk about Our Lady of Naju. Sometimes they gathered in a
church. Every time I took with me the replica statue and the photographs
and I left them in the house overnight. One wonderful thing was, every
house that kept the statue overnight would have the whole night vigil.
During my three months’ stay in Lashio, I was out every evening with a
prayer group sharing the messages of Our Lady of Naju.
On the night of November 15, 1998, the replica statue
started to give a sweet fragrance up to date. Sometimes the fragrance was
very strong and other times very mild. Some of the religious articles
became fragrant just from touching the replica statue of Our Lady of Naju.
Almost every house that had the statue overnight
experienced some supernatural encounters, like the flowers on the Buddhist
altar were shaking with no reason; some houses would become filled with
the fragrance of roses or lilies or incense; the altar shook vigorously at
one house when the statue was placed on the altar; and a woman who was a
Protestant saw the Blessed Mother coming out of the statue three times and
the pains on her knees which she had for years were gone. Some saw radiant
light coming out of the statue; one woman and her granddaughter were woken
up by a strong fragrance of roses and heard a soft feminine voice asking
them to get up and pray the rosary at dawn; the same family smelled the
fragrance of roses becoming stronger when they prayed for priests.
There were also conversions and healings. One man who
did not believe at first admitted later that his heart was filled with
love and tenderness like never before when the statue of the Blessed
Mother bent her head down and looked at him and gave a strong fragrance of
roses at the same time.
One woman who was an alcoholic invited the prayer group
with the replica statue to her house to pray the rosary for half an hour.
That very evening she vomited when she took some alcohol and could not
take it any more since.
A young Protestant girl, who was always attacking
Catholics, was converted after hearing about the events in Naju. She is
taking instructions to become a Catholic.
A young Protestant boy, who is studying catechism and
aim to become a priest got the fragrance of roses every time he looked at
the picture of Our Lady of Naju while praying the rosary.
A retired nurse who was also a Protestant had lost her
sight due to diabetes. Her daughters brought her to my house and prayed to
Our Lady. The next day I heard that she could see some figures moving
around and a few weeks later when she went for medical checkup, to
everybody’s surprise, no diabetes were found.
A five month-old baby, whose health was very poor since
birth, could not control his bowels. Because he coughed and cried day and
night, the mother and the grandmother had to take turns at night to take
care of the baby. The mother took the baby to clinic many times but it
didn’t make any difference. Even though they were Protestants, they went
to the house where they had the all night vigil and prayed to Our Lady of
Naju. The next day, amazingly the baby boy was like a normal baby, no
coughing, no cries, and no diarrhea. Now he is a cheerful little healthy
baby thanks to the Blessed Mother.
One family donated a solid golden crown to the Blessed
Mother. On January 16, 1999, I invited a priest, several nuns, and members
of our prayer group to celebrate the coronation of Our Lady of Naju.
Rose Lee in Los Angeles gave me a rosary which she
received from Julia in Naju. I gave the rosary to my brother, Fr. Norman,
who loves the Blessed Mother very dearly. Fr. Norman returned to his
diocese leaving the statue at my house with my family for a while, because
he saw people were so devoted to Our Lady of Naju. But the fragrance of
roses followed him. On the day Fr. Norman left our hometown by bus, the
whole bus became filled with the fragrance of roses when he took out the
rosary and prayed. One of the priests, Fr. Paul, told me that every house
where Fr. Norman visited and prayed was soon filled with the fragrance of
roses. And whatever religious articles that he touched with his rosary
from Naju received the fragrance.
Our Lady had given us so many miracles that we ought to
take heed of her messages and warning. Let’s spread the messages of the
Blessed Mother hurriedly and courageously in whatever ways we can. Let’s
offer our whole lives to the Blessed Mother and let her use us as she
wishes to bring back mankind to the true God. Let’s console our holy
Mother who is weeping tears of blood for us by practicing her messages
with love.
Lily Wu
Van Nuys, California
March 11, 1999
—from Mary’s Touch, May 1999 Newsletter |