By Jong-Chang Woo, Wulkan Chosun (June 1998)

(The following is a translation of an article in the June 1998 issue of the Wulkan Chosun, a well-respected monthly magazine in Korea with readership in excess of a million. The magazine covers a wide range of issues on politics, economy, and social problems. Jong-Chang Woo, the writer of this article, is a senior reporter at Wulkan Chosun. He was not a Catholic at the time he wrote this article.)

"I clearly saw and firmly believe."  Bishop Daniel Hak-Soon Chi of the Wonju Diocese in Korea after witnessing tears of blood on the Blessed Virgin's statue in Naju

 "It was during the Mass on May 16, 1991, in the Naju Parish Church. I saw capillaries forming from the edge of the Sacred Host in Julia's mouth and the Sacred Host gradually turning into flesh and blood. Fr. Jerry Orbos from Manila, Philippines

  On November 24, 1994, when Archbishop Giovanni Bulaitis, the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio in Korea, was visiting Naju, a Sacred Host suddenly descended from the ceiling above the Blessed Virgin's statue. The Host had images of "A" and "Ω" on it and was already broken into two. The Apostolic Pro-Nuncio reported this occurrence to the Vatican.

 "Julia opened her mouth and showed Pope John Paul II the Sacred Host in her mouth that had already changed into visible flesh and blood. The Holy Father observed it." Il Segno, a weekly Catholic magazine in Italy .

 "The Declaration by the Kwangju Archdiocesan office was a mistake. It was a mistake in the first place to select those priests, who considered the events in Naju superstitious, as leading members of the Investigating Committee." Several priests who were members of the Naju Investigating Committee

The Blessed Virgin's statue in Naju shed tears, tears of blood and fragrant oil. There were Eucharistic miracles also. About a half million Koreans and more than ten thousand foreigners have visited the Chapel (also called the Blessed Mother's House), where the statue is. On January 1 of this year, the Kwangju Archdiocesan office declared that the events in Naju were not supernatural miracles but some preternatural phenomena caused by extrasensory capabilities. The Declaration banned public prayer meetings and promotional publications.

In Naju City in the Jeonnam Province, "miracles" have been happening. The Blessed Virgin's statue with a height of about 50 cm (=20 in.), made of plastic and plaster, shed tears, followed by tears of blood and fragrant oil. From the Crucifix in the Chapel, the Eucharist (a white wafer made of wheat bread, which Catholics believe is the living Body of Christ) suddenly descended. When Julia Kim received the Eucharist, it turned into visible flesh and blood in her mouth. Miracles began on June 30, 1985, and have been continuing.

On November 24, 1994, when Archbishop Giovanni Bulaitis, the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio in Korea, was visiting Naju, a Eucharist with images of "A" and "Ω" on it came down. It was basically the same as the miracle in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917, when St. Michael the Archangel brought the Eucharist to three children. Archbishop Bulaitis broke the Eucharist into smaller pieces and gave Communion to about 70 people who were present in the Chapel. Archbishop Bulaitis reported this event to the Holy See. In May of 1995, the Vatican sent Monsignor Vincent Thu, a private secretary for the Pope, to Naju. Msgr. Thu brought the Pope's words that he loves and respects the Blessed Mother of Naju.

The news spread widely in many countries. Even though Naju had not been officially approved by the Church yet, more than a half million people including many priests and religious have visited Naju. More than 10,000 pilgrims came from Japan, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Saipan, the United States, England, Germany, France, Belgium, Spain, Canada, Mexico, Switzerland, Ireland, Scotland, Poland, Egypt, and other countries.

In order to find out about the facts in Naju, this reporter went down to Naju on April 24 of this year. The Chapel, known as the site for several of the Eucharistic miracles, was located at 107 Kyo-dong in Naju. It is called "The Blessed Mother's House." Behind the Chapel was Mt. Keumsung and in the front was the Naju Creek. It was next to Hyangkyo-Dong office. Near the gate was a large sign in Korean and English, welcoming pilgrims to Naju.

There was a large statue of the Blessed Virgin in the middle of the front yard. Above the front porch of the Chapel building was a statue of Jesus Christ. The Blessed Virgin's statue that had shed tears, tears of blood and fragrant oil was located inside the Chapel. It is called "a chapel," because there is no resident priest there yet. Inside the Chapel were a priest and Sisters visiting from the United States. There were several other pilgrims praying quietly.

The miraculous statue was about 50 cm tall and made of plastic (and plaster inside). It looked like a statue that can be easily found in Catholic churches. The only thing that was unique about it was that its eyes, ears, nose and mouth looked real and the Lady seemed to be smiling. The statue was behind a glass door which normally remains locked. Above the statue was the Crucifix of Jesus. I looked at the statue carefully, but could not find any traces of tears or tears of blood.

Then, my attention was drawn to a large wooden box (with an open bottom) placed on the front part of the floor in the Chapel. There was a notice in Korean and English on the box: "The Sacred Host landed on this spot at about noon on August 27, 1997."

When I opened the door on the top of the wooden box, a powerful fragrance surprised me. It was a very strong, deep fragrance. I calmed myself and smelled the fragrance again. It was sweet like a fragrance of some fruits. I have heard about the fragrance of roses from the Blessed Virgin. But this fragrance was not like the fragrance of roses. It was different from the fragrance of the roses which were in the Chapel.

Then, I sniffed at the carpet around the wooden box. It was an unpleasant odor of sweaty feet and dust, as many people must have been stepping on the carpet. The smell from the inside of the box and the odor outside the box were clearly different. Rufino Park, the Chapel administrator, said that the carpet, on which the wooden box is placed, is frequently dusted and dried, but the fragrance does not weaken. I said that someone might have regularly sprayed perfume on the spot. Mr. Park said, "It is unthinkable that anyone could do that for almost a year without being caught. If such a thing ever happened, all the miracles in the Chapel must have been rejected a long time ago."

Testimony by Bishop Daniel Hak-Soon Chi

The place where the Chapel now stands used to be a garbage disposal site. Julia Kim (her original name: Hong-Sun Youn) bought about 15,000 square feet of this land to build a chapel for the Blessed Mother.

Julia was born in 1947 and was a Presbyterian before converting to the Catholic Church in 1981. She lost her father during the Korean War. She and her mother lived at a relative's house and suffered all kinds of hardship. She only finished grade school, and then worked at a beauty salon. She married Julio Kim in 1972. They have four children. In her late 20's, she developed cancer. After several surgeries, her doctors sent her home. While waiting for her death, her husband took her to a Catholic church.

Three days after their visit to a Catholic priest, Julia heard the voice of Jesus at 3 a.m. when she was praying. Jesus said, "Approach the Bible." When Julia opened the Bible, she found the story about the miraculous healing of a woman who had been suffering from a  hemorrhage for twelve years. Julia believed that the words in the Bible were also meant for her. At that moment, she was completely healed. Julia and her family were baptized into the Catholic Church on Easter Sunday in 1981. Afterwards, other people also experienced healing through Julia's prayers. Still, Julia was just an ordinary housewife and an owner of a beauty salon.

One day in 1982, Rufino Park, who had bronchitis, heard about Julia and came. Julia began praying for him. Three days later, he was completely healed. Rufino wanted to make a donation in gratitude, but Julia would not accept it. So, he went to a church bookstore and bought a statue of the Blessed Virgin for Julia. She placed the statue in her room at her beauty salon. About three years later, on June 30, 1985, the statue began shedding tears. It was the beginning of the miracle of Naju.

On October 19, 1986, the Blessed Virgin's statue began shedding tears of blood. As the word spread, many people came to see the weeping statue. Julia moved the statue to the Naju Parish Church on November 5 of the same year. The statue was returned to Julia's home three months later. Afterwards, she bought the land at the garbage disposal site and built the Chapel. The statue was placed in the Chapel. The Chapel was consecrated on December 8, 1987.

The phenomena of the Blessed Virgin's statue weeping tears and tears of blood ended on January 14, 1992. The total number of priests, religious and lay people who personally witnessed the tears and tears of blood over the seven-year period between 1985 and 1992 was over 130,000, including about 1,500 from abroad.

Bishop Daniel Hak-Soon Chi of the Wonju Diocese in Korea witnessed the tears of blood on the Blessed Virgin's statue on January 20, 1990, after praying in the Chapel for one week. Before leaving Naju, Bishop Chi wrote,  "I clearly saw and firmly believe."

Sister Kim, who had been assisting Bishop Chi for four years, accompanied the Bishop to Naju and wrote, "I came to the Chapel together with the Bishop at about 10 a.m. The Blessed Mother was weeping a lot. Whatever others may say, I clearly saw it."

The book, The River of Grace (in Korean), is a collection of testimonies by many priests, Sisters, and lay people.

Tears, tears of blood and, then, fragrant oil

Jin-Tae Lee, a student at Kwangju Catholic University (a major seminary), left his testimony, "I am writing down exactly as I saw. The Blessed Mother had tears in her left eye. They were flowing down on her left cheek. The left side of her nose was wet. Tears were also flowing down from her right eye. The right ide of her nose was wet, too."

Fr. Lazarus Chun-Soo Lee, Pastor of the Naju Parish Church, wrote, "It was July 5, 1989, the feast of St. Andrew Kim. I was informed by phone that the Blessed Mother was shedding tears of blood. It was 3:40 p.m. when I arrived at the Chapel. I knelt and prayed for a while. Then, I got closer to the statue and looked carefully. Bloody tears were flowing down from her right eye, making her chest, lower part of her dress, and even feet wet with blood. From her left eye, clear tears were flowing down. I prayed for about 10 minutes and, then, posed for photos to leave evidence."

The phenomena of tears and tears of blood lasted intermittently for seven years. While these phenomena were continuing, a "Eucharistic miracle" happened in the Naju Parish Church on May 16, 1991. "A Eucharistic miracle" refers to a change in the external appearance of the Host in the Eucharist into visible flesh and blood. This Host is made of wheat flour, but the Catholic Church teaches that it changes into real Jesus, when the priest celebrating the Mass consecrates it by repeating the words that Jesus said during the Last Supper. The external appearances of bread and wine normally remain unchanged despite the substantive change, but, in the exceptional cases of "Eucharistic miracles," the external appearances also change from bread and wine into visible flesh and blood.

Such a Eucharistic miracle occurred in St. Francis Church in Lanciano, Italy, in approximately 700 A.D. The Eucharist that changed miraculously has been preserved in that Church and was tested scientifically in the 1970s. The test results showed that it was human heart muscle. The blood type was found to be AB.

What happened in the Naju Parish Chuch on May 16, 1991, was the first Eucharistic miracle in Naju. The celebrant of the Mass was Fr. Jerry Orbos from the Philippines. Fr. Orbos wrote his testimony as follows:

I was celebrating Mass in the Naju Parish Church on May 16, 1991. I gave Communion to Julia and others. 'A Eucharistic miracle' was witnessed by myself and 30 other pilgrims from the Philippines. I saw capillaries forming from the edge of the Sacred Host in Julia's mouth and the Sacred Host gradually turning into flesh and blood.

Since then, a total of 19 Eucharistic miracles, including the most recent one on August 27, 1997, occurred. Five of these miracles occurred while Julia was traveling abroad. For example, on June 2, 1992, while Julia and her companions were attending Mass celebrated by Fr. Jerry Orbos in St. Francis Church in Lanciano, Italy, the Sacred Host she received turned into visible flesh and blood on her tongue. Another miracle occurred in St. Anthony's Church in Kailua, Hawaii, on November 2, 1994. The Mass in Hawaii was celebrated by Fr. Martin Lucia, who is widely known for his efforts to promote the adoration of the Eucharist.

While Eucharistic miracles were repeatedly occurring, the Blessed Virgin's statue in Naju began exuding fragrant oil on November 24, 1992. This phenomenon lasted for almost two years until October 23, 1994.

A report to the Vatican by the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio in Korea

The events in Naju began receiving worldwide attention from the end of November 1994, when the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio in Korea sent a report to the Vatican. Before that time, the total number of foreign pilgrims visiting Naju was about 1,000 per year. The number increased to 3,068 in 1995 and 4,314 in 1996.

The Kwangju Archdiocese, which covers the Naju Parish, also began showing a serious interest in Naju at about the same time. On December 30, 1994, the Kwangju Archdiocese formed the Investigating Committee for the events and messages occurring in connection with Julia and her statue of the Blessed Virgin or, more briefly, the Naju Investigating Committee. Ten years after the miracles had begun, the investigation finally started.

Miracles continued happening even after the Committee began its work. On the night of June 30, 1995, which was the 10th anniversary of the Blessed Virgin's first shedding tears, over 1,000 Korean and foreign pilgrims were praying in the Chapel. At about 3:40 a.m. (on July 1), seven small hosts suddenly came down from the Crucifix above the Blessed Virgin's statue and landed on the altar before the statue. Julia later testified that Jesus on the Crucifix was bleeding from His seven wounds on his head, chest, two hands, two feet and side. Then, the blood changed into the Eucharist and fell on the altar before the Blessed Virgin's statue. Many people in the Chapel testified that they saw the descent of the Eucharist.

When the Kwangju Archbishop heard about this, he ordered people in Naju to consume the hosts as soon as possible instead of preserving them. Accordingly, Fr. Francis Su from Malaysia, Fr. Pete Marcial from Guam, Julio Kim, Rufino Park, Lawrence Choi, Andrew Park, and, lastly, Julia received the hosts. At first, Julia showed some hesitation, because she thought that the hosts were to be preserved, but, suppressing her tears, received the host in her mouth in the spirit of obedience. Soon after she received the host, it changed into visible flesh and blood. Fr. Su dipped his finger in the blood on Julia's tongue and showed the blood to people in the Chapel. Then, he wiped the blood off his finger with white cloth. These scenes were recorded in videos and photos.

On September 22 of the same year, Bishop Roman Danylak of Toronto, Canada, and Fr. Joseph Finn, a Ph.D. and a priest at St. Peter's Church in London, Ontario, Canada, came to Naju and concelebrated Mass on a mountain near Naju. It was the mountain where two water springs began when Julia dug the ground with her hands after being instructed by the Blessed Virgin. During that Mass, the Eucharist Julia received changed into flesh and blood in the shape of a small heart. The heart looked alive and was moving. According to the witnesses, the change in the white host into dark red flesh began from the edge and soon the white disappeared completely and was replaced by flesh and blood. These scenes were also recorded in a video and photos.

Bishop Roman Danylak returned to Canada and sent a letter to Naju:

We are in a difficult time when the secular spirit and rationalism have penetrated deeply into the Church. I am convinced that God is using Julia as His instrument under His Providence to lead us to the road of repentance. The Gospel tells us that we must examine the fruits and conducts for discernment. Julia's life and efforts are bearing abundant fruits. These fruits are repentance, returning to Jesus and the Blessed Mother, deepening of the faith, peace and joy, and the love that the Blessed Mother is giving us.

On the mountain with the springs, there is a large water tank from which pilgrims can draw water. Outside the Chapel in Naju also, there is a tank. Many people were taking water from it.

On June 30, 1996, there was an overnight prayer meeting in the Chapel celebrating the 11th anniversary of the Blessed Virgin's first weeping. Suddenly a powerful light radiated from the Crucifix and Julia fell on the floor, screaming loudly. When others came closer to her, they saw bleeding occurring on her both hands. Later, Julia put on white gloves to cover the wounds, but the gloves became wet with blood. The next day, Julia visited two hospitals in Kwangju as Fr. Spies instructed. Dr. Dong-Hee Yang at a hospital in Kwangju examined Julia and wrote:

In the middle of her both hands were congealed blood in the size of 1 inch by 1 inch. When blood was removed with hydrogen peroxide and alcohol, there were 5-8 pinhole-like wounds in the middle of each her palms. The diameter of each hole was less than 1 mm. The depth of the hole also seemed to be about 1 mm. The holes on her right hand roughly formed the shape of a cross and those on her left hand formed an oval. When such wounds are man-made, there occurs some inflammation. But I could not find any inflammation. So, I do not think that these wounds were man-made. Also, the quantity of bleeding is unlikely from such tiny wounds. Therefore, I do not think that this bleeding was caused intentionally.

Dr. Ha-Sang Lee at a different hospital in Kwangju also examined Julia and concluded that he could not find any medical explanation for her wounds and bleeding.

Meeting with Pope John Paul II

In February, 1997, Il Segno, a weekly Catholic magazine in Italy, carried a series of three special articles on Naju. The title of the first article was, "A Eucharistic miracle occurs during a Mass celebrated by Pope John Paul II From Naju to the Vatican." The writer of the article was Fr. Rene Laurentin, a well-known Marian theologian in France. The following is a summary of his article:

In October 1995, Julia made a pilgrimage to Rome. She was invited to the 7:30 a.m. Mass on October 31, celebrated by the Pope in his private chapel on the third floor of his residence. When Julia received Communion from the Pope, an amazing phenomenon of the Eucharist bleeding on her tongue occurred. Julia later said that as soon as she received Communion, she began tasting blood. She approached Msgr. Nam-Ik Paik, who was the secretary general of the Korean Bishops' Conference and came to Rome with Julia and her other companions. Julia opened her mouth and showed the bleeding Host to Msgr. Paik and others.

At that moment, the Polish monsignor, who is a private secretary to the Pope, guided Julia to the back of the chapel so that the Pope might not be disturbed in his deep meditation. After the Mass ended, the Pope greeted all the people who attended the Mass, one by one, and gave everyone a rosary. He gave two rosaries to Julia.

Julia still had the Eucharist in her mouth and, when the Pope came to her, opened her mouth and showed him the Sacred Host already turned into flesh and blood. The Pope looked and raised his hands as seen in a photograph. The Pope did not stay long with Julia and moved on to greet other people.

However, it is certain that the Pope knew about the events in Naju. A photo album from Naju with photos of the Blessed Virgin's statue weeping Tears and Tears of Blood, had been presented to the Pope. He looked at these photos very carefully. In August, 1995, Msgr. Thu, another private secretary for the Pope, came to Naju with the information that the Pope was seriously interested in what was happening in Naju. On March 21, 1996, the Pope mentioned about Naju to the Korean Bishops, who were visiting the Vatican. Details of his comments on Naju to the Korean Bishops have not been reported.

Theological Interpretation

In the above-mentioned article, Fr. Rene Laurentin added his interpretation of the Eucharistic miracles in Naju:

I have been deeply moved by the spiritual journey perfected by Julia, her conversion, tears flowing from the Blessed Mother's statue owned by her, and her mission as a victim soul as exemplified by her Stigmata. Despite all those, these Eucharistic miracles give me some astonishment and confusion. It is not easy to adequately explain these phenomena in theological terms. Blood flowed from the Eucharist. Where did this physical blood come from? The Eucharist changed into visible flesh.

This is truly amazing. This is likely to be attacked by the rationalists who view the Eucharist as cannibalism. Many people will consider it a superstition and close their minds. However, through Julia and many others before her, the so-called Eucharistic miracles have occurred. It seems that God is ridiculing the wisdom of the scholars through these miraculous manifestations, that he is externally revealing his Love, which is the synthesis of the graces that he personally gives us, and that he is not hesitating to give us such shocking signs.

In this age when there are numerous theologians and others who are trying so hard to reduce the Eucharist to a simple symbolic ritual, in defiance to the Catholic Faith, these signs are giving courage and guidance to numerous people to find blessing and grace.

Christ did not say, "This is a symbol of my body," or "My body is in this bread." He only said, "This is my body." He wanted his disciples to receive his physical flesh, even though he did not effect any external change in the bread.

Christ broke the bread to give himself to us as a gift. It is no longer bread but his flesh according to his words. Of course, it is important to complement faith with knowledge, to determine the boundaries of mystery, to clearly discern if an event is a miracle or not, and to eliminate the explanations that are mythical and inappropriate. However, the essence of this question lies in God's transcendence and his act of expressing his love, which is beyond the limits of human knowledge.

The Pope's Message to the Korean Bishops

Il Segno magazine reported in its second special article that Pope John Paul II was aware of the events in Naju. The article said,

At the beginning of 1995, photographs of the Blessed Mother's weeping statue in Naju were presented to the Pope. The Pope joined his hands lightly together as priests do when they celebrate Mass and looked at the photographs very intently for more than 40 minutes. On March 21, 1996, the Korean bishops were making their ad limina visit to the Vatican. During dinner with the Korean bishops, the Pope said that he had a sympathy with the Blessed Mother of Naju and a deep respect for her.

In the third special article on Naju, the magazine carried testimonies of a bishop and a priest. The bishop was Most Rev. Dominic Su of the Sibu Diocese in Malaysia and the priest was Fr. Francis Su of St. Anthony's Church in Sibu. They witnessed a Eucharistic miracle with Julia during a Mass in the cathedral in Sibu on September 17, 1996. The cathedral was packed with more than 3,000 people.

Fr. Francis Su wrote, At that moment, I turned to Julia and prayed for her. I saw the Eucharist moving and changing into flesh in the shape of a heart on her tongue. Several people took photographs. I believe that this phenomenon is a sign and gift from Jesus and the Blessed Mother for all the people who were attending the Mass. This sign is a confirmation of Bishop Su's sermon which was based on the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist through transubstantiation.

Bishop Su testified,

I was concelebrating Mass with Msgr. William Bos, Fr. Tong Conos, Fr. Francis Su, Fr. Jacob Ong, and Fr. Paul Chee. During Holy Communion, Julia received the Sacred Host from Fr. Francis Su. A short while later, the Eucharist changed into visible flesh and blood, forming the shape of a heart on Julia's tongue. Many people were gathering around her to see the miracle, but I asked them to stay where they were, because I did not want disorder during Holy Communion. Several minutes later, Julia swallowed the lump of flesh. Our Lord performed this miracle to convince us that he is physically present in the Blessed Sacrament.

The Blessed Virgin's Messages of Love

  The reports in Il Segno magazine had much impact. They encouraged many people of distinction from all over the world to visit Naju. On March 20, 1997, about a month after the reports in Il Segno, the First Lady of Honduras, who was accompanying her husband on his official visit to Korea, and the wife of the foreign minister of Honduras visited the Blessed Mother's House in Naju.

On April 11, 1997, Mr. Rudolf Albano, Mr. Victorigo Chavez, and others who were members of the Parliament in the Philippines and were attending the International Parliamentary Union meeting in Seoul came to Naju together with the Filipino Embassy officials. The group also included Mr. Francisco Chavez, the former attorney general, and Mr. Victorino El Chavez, the chairman of the committee on the financial institutions in the Filipino Parliament.

Mrs. Aquino, President of the Philippines, invited Julia to her Presidential Palace in May of 1992 and heard the Blessed Virgin's messages through Julia. Cardinal Jaime Sin has not visited Naju, but is known to have a special love for Naju.

Inside the Blessed Mother's House, many evidences in connection with the events in Naju are on display: photographs of the Blessed Virgin's statue weeping tears and tears of blood, video tapes, a pillow that absorbed the tears and tears of blood, a disposable syringe used for collecting the fragrant oil, and photographs of the Eucharistic miracles. There also is a book of testimonies by priests, Sisters and lay people who have witnessed the events in Naju.

On June 12, 1997, Bishop Chang-Yeol Kim of the Cheju Diocese and Fr. Anthony Kim, an elderly priest in the Kwangju Archdiocese, visited the Blessed Mother's House in Naju. While they were conversing with Rufino Park and Julia about the previous Eucharistic miracles in front of the Blessed Virgin's statue, a Eucharist suddenly descended making a loud sound. This Eucharist had an image of a heart and, above it, flames of love and a small cross. This Eucharist was placed in a pyx and taken by the Naju Investigating Committee for preservation in the Kwangju Archdiocesan office.

On August 27, 1997, another Eucharist with the same images descended from the Crucifix in the Chapel and landed on the carpet just before Fr. Raymond Spies and Julia who were praying the rosary with others. This Eucharist is also being preserved in the Kwangju Archdiocesan office. There has been no more Eucharistic miracle since then. However, the phenomenon of a fragrance from the spot on the carpet where the Eucharist landed has been continuing since August 27, 1997, until now.

While tears, tears of blood, fragrant oil, and Eucharistic miracles have been happening, what Julia has been emphasizing most has been propagation of the messages of love from the Blessed Virgin of Naju. She has received messages since July 18, 1985. They are called "The Messages of Love," because the main theme of the messages is love. One of the messages that people who love the Blessed Virgin of Naju frequently recite is related to the Last Supper:

What is the Last Supper? It is a banquet of love and sharing. In order to give the totality of my love, which is so high, deep and wide, to my beloved Pope, Cardinals, bishops, priests, religious and all my children in the world together with my Son Jesus, I am squeezing all of myself and giving you fragrance and oil. The fragrance and oil that I give for the sake of all are gifts from God. They are also my presence, love and friendship.

The messages that Julia has received have been translated into English, Japanese, French, German, Vietnamese, Italian, Russian, Arabic, Hungarian, and other languages and are being spread all over the world. Priests in many countries are translating the messages into their own languages based on the English edition. Videos about the Eucharistic miracles are also being distributed all over the world.

The Decision by the Kwangju Archdiocese

On January 1, 1998, the Kwangju Archdiocese announced a declaration in the name of Archbishop Victorinus Kong-Hee Youn. The Declaration said that the evidence was insufficient to prove that the events in Naju were genuine, supernatural phenomena conforming to the Faith and that they could perhaps be phenomena caused by some preternatural power. In other words, it considered the events in Naju a superstition.

The Kwangju Archdiocese pointed out that the so-called phenomena of the Eucharist changing into lumps of flesh and blood in Julia's mouth were in conflict with the Church teaching that says that the external appearances of bread and wine must remain unchanged even after their transubstantiation into Christ's Body and Blood. It also said that there were no clear grounds to believe that the messages Julia received were private revelations and also that some of the contents of the messages appear to be imitations, plagiarism, and quotations from other existing books.>

The Kwangju Archdiocese prohibited publishing and spreading of the printed matters, books, audio tapes, and video tapes about the events in Naju and urged the faithful to refrain from reading or seeing the promotional materials. It advised the faithful to obey its teaching authority. At the same time, it prohibited prayer meetings in the Blessed Mother's House in Naju, which is the center of the events of Naju.

The Kwangju Archdiocese effectively disabled the Blessed Mother's House on January 1 of this year, which was a great feast day for the Catholic Church (the Feast of the Divine Motherhood of Mary) and World Peace Day, on which forgiveness and reconciliation were the theme of the day. Complying with the directives in the Declaration, public prayer services have been discontinued in the Blessed Mother's House. On the door of the Chapel is a bulletin that says, "According to the Declaration by Archbishop Kong-Hee Youn, there are no Holy Hour prayer meetings on Thursdays, First Saturday prayer meetings or other public meetings."

Since then, the number of domestic and foreign pilgrims has decreased drastically. Julia does not meet visitors in the spirit of obedience to the Archbishop's Declaration.

The Teaching Authority and the Conscience >

Those who love the Blessed Mother's House are speaking against the decision by the Kwangju Archdiocese. They say that the Declaration involves a misrepresentation of the Catholic doctrines and also that the investigation was based on prejudice and was inadequate. In its February 1998 issue, the Catholic Digest carried a special article, "Thought on the Question of Naju." It began as follows:

If the Blessed Mother's statue in my home weeps tears and exudes fragrant oil, how should I accept such phenomena? What should I do, if the Eucharist I received changes into visible Flesh and Blood and I hear the quiet voice of the Blessed Mother? Should I keep these secret and keep them from leaking to the outside world? Or should I let the world know about them and about what they mean? I cannot help asking these questions, while reading the Declaration on Naju issued by the Kwangju Archdiocesan office.

The article continued,

Should the faithful obey the teaching authority unconditionally, even when they have questions? Or can they express what is hidden inside their conscience? Many people who have personally witnessed miraculous signs in connection with the Blessed Mother's statue in Naju cannot understand Archbishop Kong-Hee Youn's Declaration that says that these phenomena were not supernatural but perhaps caused by some preternatural power and are confused.

Two months later, the same magazine carried another article titled, "True unity is possible only under faithful exercise of the teaching authority." The article criticized the decision by the Kwangju Archdiocese on the ground that the Declaration did not contain any results of the investigation by the Naju Investigating Committee. This article was written by Mr. Hak Yoon, who is a commentator for the Christian Broadcasting Service and a lawyer.

Criticism of the decision by the Kwangju Archdiocese also appeared on the Internet. They pointed out that the Kwangju Archdiocese is not seeking truth but demanding silence by the faithful.

On April 25 of this year, I went down to Kwangju, hoping to interview the members of the Naju Investigating Committee. What I was primarily interested in was not the authenticity of the miracles but the quality of the investigation. The priest, who is the chairman of the Committee, refused to be interviewed, saying that his position was already clarified in the Declaration. Other priests who played key roles in preparing the Declaration also refused interviews.

Testimonies of some Korean priests

Several other priests who were members of the Naju Investigating Committee agreed to be interviewed on the condition of anonymity. They said that they believed in the events in Naju being true, supernatural miracles. As the grounds for their belief, they mentioned the testimonies of several well-respected bishops including Bishop Hak-Soon Chi and testimonies by many other witnesses that seem genuine.

They said that it was a mistake in the first place to select as leading members of the Committee those priests who were prejudiced against Naju and believed the events there were superstitious. They insisted that the Declaration was a mistake. They indicated that, in other countries, when there are reports of Eucharistic miracles, thousands or tens of thousands of witnesses are investigated over a long period of time, sometimes even several decades, before making the conclusion and that, in the case of Naju, the key members of the Investigating Committee had been already biased against Naju before the formation of the Committee. That is why a conclusion was made in such a hurry without a serious investigation.

These priests also pointed out that the events in Naju were so significant that the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio made a report to the Vatican, but Archbishop Kong-Hee Youn has not visited the Blessed Mother's House even once or accepted Julia's requests for an audience. The members of the Investigating Committee questioned Julia only once and interviewed 14 witnesses once. They asked how a Declaration could be announced without sincere efforts to find out about the facts. They said that it was an abuse of the bishop's authority and a violation of the basic spiritual rights of the faithful to tell the faithful not to see, hear or talk, in the name of the teaching authority in the Church.

I approached Bishop Chang-Yeol Kim in Cheju for an interview, but he expressed his wish that a priest in his diocese may be interviewed in his place. So, I met Fr. Moon-Chul Lim of Sukwipo City in the Cheju Diocese.

Reporter: Have you visited the Blessed Mother's House in Naju?

Fr. Lim : Yes, several times.

Reporter: Do you believe in the events there as supernatural phenomena?

Fr. Lim : At first, only saw photographs and was not sure. But in early 1990s, I felt like visiting that place. I was anxious to see God's work. When I visited the place, I felt the Blessed Mother's presence. Later, I visited Naju again with other parishioners. We also invited Julia to Cheju-Do.

Reporter : Have you personally witnessed Tears, Tears of Blood, Fragrant Oil, and Eucharistic miracles?

Fr. Lim : I confirmed with my own eyes the Fragrant Oil exuding from the statue. It continued for about two years. The Fragrance continued for several days even after I came back. I have not personally witnessed other miracles.

Reporter: What about the miracle involving a descent of the Eucharist in the presence of Bishop Chang-Yeol Kim?

Fr. Lim : I saw it on a video and am convinced that it was not a fraud. No one was on the ceiling dropping the Host. There was no hole on the ceiling, either. The Eucharist is very thin and light. It must have been by a miracle that it fell so forcefully straight down in front of the Bishop.

Reporter : How is Bishop Kim accepting it?

Fr. Lim : He is accepting it as true. I feel sorry for those who do not accept it.

It is also up to the scientists

I asked a missionary organization to arrange an interview with Cardinal Jaime Sin in the Philippines, who has been known to be favorable toward Naju. Cardinal Sin sent a message through a monsignor, who is his secretary, that it was not appropriate for the bishops in the Philippines to express their opinions on Naju through a public channel. I was hoping to interview Archbishop Giovanni Bulaitis, who had witnessed Eucharistic miracles in Naju as the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio in Korea. But he had been transferred to Albania in May 1997.

The Stella Maris, a Catholic weekly magazine published in France and has a worldwide reputation, carried an article on Naju in its recent issue. The writer of the article was M. Andre Castella, the chief editor of the magazine.

The article titled, "A comment on the Declaration on the events in Naju and on Julia" pointed out that it was a mistake that the Committee did not seek the opinions of the Holy Father and four other bishops who personally witnessed the Eucharistic miracles.

It also criticized the Declaration being a hard-line wielding of the bishop's authority, lacking parental love for the faithful. Regarding the phenomena of the Eucharist descending from above, it indirectly acknowledged their authenticity by asking why the miracle in Fatima, in which St. Michael the Archangel brought the Eucharist to three children, could not happen in Naju, too?

About the change of the Eucharist into visible flesh and blood, the article pointed out that, if Archbishop Youn's reasoning is generalized, one would have to say that all of the Eucharistic miracles (such as those in Lanciano, Sienna, Paverne, and so on), already recognized by the Church, are in conflict with the Church teaching and those who believe in their authenticity are in error.

This weekly magazine continued, "Whether the phenomena of tears, tears of blood, and fragrant oil from the Blessed Mother's statue and the sufferings and Stigmata for Julia were by a preternatural power or not is up to the scientists to determine, not the bishop."

The question of authenticity of the events in Naju is beyond the capacity of this reporter. I only wanted to find out if the investigation by the Kwangju Archdiocese was objective, scientific and just. In the course of studying the facts about Naju, I found it hard to understand the measure by the Kwangju Archdiocesan office to disable the Blessed Mother's House. Whether out of faith or curiosity, it shouldn't be a matter of concern to the Catholic Church when many people come close to her.