SOURCE: Josephine Darang Philippine Daily Inquirer
Cardinal Ricardo J. Vidal, archbishop emeritus of Cebu, has written to the Philippine bishops that on Oct. 17, 1949, Mary Mediatrix of All Grace Teresia Castillo, “Pray hard for China’s dream is to invade the whole world. The Philippines is one of its favorites. Money is the evil force that will lead the people of the world to destruction.”
Castillo was a young Carmelite nun then in Lipa City. And the incident was known as the Lipa Apparitions.
Before becoming Cebu patriarch, Vidal was Lipa archbishop.
Vidal said the last part of the message “gives us a reason to be hopeful.” It read: “Prayers. Sacrifices, self-denials and the daily recitation of the Holy Rosary will soften the heart of my Son as I said before.”
“It is thus to the Queen of Prophets under her title of Mediatrix of All Grace to whom we will have recourse in order to avert the buildup of tension and to check the territorial ambitions of this Asian superpower. It is by following this path of prayer and penance sounded out in Fatima and reiterated at Lipa that our beloved Philippines will be spared the scourge of war and the domination of a communist giant.
The Philippines cannot by any stretch of the imagination equal or overtake China in economic growth or prevail in a military confrontation. China can bring to bear its huge financial, material and human resources, as well as its advanced military capability in any struggle with a smaller and poorer country like the Philippines with its ill-equipped armed forces. The first and only line of defense the Philippines has is the mantle of protection provided by the Blessed Virgin Mary. Only She can help us! To whom then shall we go?
Prayer
Most Blessed Virgin Mary, amid the crisis brought about by the territorial claims of China, we come to your presence seeking your queenly protection and motherly help. We pray for peace and the safety of the Philippines, as we keep in mind the spiritual welfare of those who advance their territorial claims to the detriment of the security of our country.
May the love of your Maternal Heart attract the Chinese people to your Son, Jesus. May your Immaculate Heart be the center from which the rays of the light and love for the Sacred Heart will radiate forth throughout China, becoming for them the unquenchable fountain from which the living water of the Divine Mercy will flow. Through your intercession, may the Lord grace the Chinese people with faith, hope and love, that by your maternal mediation of grace, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit will be worshipped and glorified in that vast expanse of land. (Adapted from a message of Jesus to Sister Lucy of Fatima as documented in a letter of the Seer to the Bishop of Gurza, May 27, 1943)
Remember O most gracious Virgin that the Philippines is your beloved “Pueblo Amante de Maria” and that we belong to you absolutely, totally, always and forever. We are all yours and all that we have is yours, O most loving Jesus through Mary, Mediatrix of All-Grace. (Imprimatur: Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, June 19)
