How I wish I could attend Sunday masses where Fr. Jozo Zovko turns invisible during the consecration, thus leaving the Holy Eucharist raised in his hands seemingly floating above the altar.
As simple as that: a priest turning invisible before the eyes of parishioners no longer shocked by the phenomenon yet their faith boosted each time.
But I don’t think I can make it to any of Fr. Jozo’s masses. He says his masses in Medjugorje where the Blessed Virgin Mary has continued to appear to the same visionaries since 1981.
Still, I share in the experiece of his parishioners to replenish my faith that at times undulates like an errant roller coaster cart.
Let me share with you the following item written by Tony Zuniga.
‘Fr. Jozo Zovko is considered by many to be a living saint. He went to prison to protect the six visionaries when the communists attempted to jail them. Maime [my wife] and I went to his Mass at St. Elijah’s church, about an hour from Medjugorje.
"And even though we were told that the Mass would be in Croatian, and that we would not understand it, we were asked to just simply look at Fr. Jozo and listen. God would do the rest. We did, and God did.
"At the moment of Consecration, when the bread and wine are changed into the Body and Blood of Christ during the Mass, Fr. Jozo repeated Jesus’s words, ‘This is My Body!’
"As he slowly raised the Sacred Host, I heard two loud thumps to my right. Startled, I turned my head in that direction.
"Two women who were standing nearby had just dropped hard on their knees, as if hit by a two by four. I found out later that one of them did not believe in Jesus, and the other one did not believe in Mary. Apparently their conversion took place in an instant.
"Then my own miracle happened. When I turned back toward the altar to see Fr. Jozo, he disappeared right in front of my eyes. The Sacred Host remained floating in mid air, but Fr. Jozo just wasn’t there. I rubbed my eyes.
I looked under and around the altar.
"All I could see was the Sacred Host, floating and vibrating, about three feet above the altar. My heart was pounding. So I turned to Maime to tell her to look, but could not reach her. The church was packed with people, and Maime had her head down in adoration.
" So I turned to the left, and saw another woman staring and looking towards the altar, shocked, just like I was.
"After Mass, I went directly to this woman. Before I could ask her anything, she asked me, ‘Are you going to tell me about the disappearing priest?’
"My heart leaped with joy. For a moment I thought I had imagined things, or I was the only one who had experienced this. But this woman challenged me, ‘What did this miracle mean to you?’"
