OUR LADY OF SOUFANIEH

Day 198: November 26

Our Lady of Soufanieh, Damascus, Syria

On November 22, 1982 , three women of different faiths – Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Islam – were praying around a bedside in the Soufanieh neighborhood of Damascus. Seeing light, then oil, coming from the hands of the Catholic woman, the Muslim woman urged her to put them on the sick man, who was immediately healed. Thus, began the spiritual career of Myrna, a member of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, then only 18 years old and recently married to Nicolas Nazzour, of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antiochus.

Five days later, oil began oozing from a small image of Our Lady of Kazan at Myrna and Nicolas' home — a revered icon of both Catholics and Orthodox Christians, known for miracles and healings. With a one-year hiatus in 1985-86, the oil came out of the picture until November 26, 1990.

On December 15, 1982, Myrna saw the Virgin Mary emerging from a globe of light on a eucalyptus tree. From then on, she repeatedly saw and received messages from both Mary and Jesus, until November 26, 1990, when she reported the Virgin Mary's departure: "... You are seeing me for the last time until the Easter holiday is unified."

Consistent with the visionary's interfaith environment, Soufanieh's messages call for Christian unity, including agreement among Christians on the date of Easter Day, which has historically differed between Western and Eastern churches. Myrna often heard the Virgin repeat Jesus' biblical words: "Love one another ... ... Bear one another's burdens and forgive ... Do not be afraid, I am with you."

In the first message from Mary, Myrna learned the statement: "God saves me, Jesus enlightens me, the Holy Spirit is my life, so I fear nothing." We were told then that the Virgin had promised Myrna that she would see her again only in the years when Catholics and Orthodox celebrate Easter together, which happens rarely, due to the difference in liturgical calendars.

Syria, especially in the 1980's, was a tightly controlled country; there were eyes and ears everywhere. Among other things, Islamic fundamentalists were preparing for the attempted coup that was crushed in Hama. On November 28, 1982, four intelligence officers arrived, In Syria, intelligence is a serious matter. A doctor was with them. Two agents mingled with the crowd, and two introduced themselves openly. They thought there were pipes; they dismantled the image, but the oil continued to leak. They respectfully replaced it and asked Myrna to wash her hands in front of them, since they had heard that Myrna had oil on her hands. This was done; she dried her hands with the towel, and then they gave her some paper tissues. She dried her hands in front of them, and then they asked her to start praying again. Instantly, both hands were covered in oil. They took her hands and rubbed their palms. One agent said to the doctor: 'So, hakiim (master)?' The doctor raised his hand and looked up at the sky, and replied 'Allah Akbar', God is great .

In reality, the "affair" didn't end there at all. The report – according to some diplomatic sources in Damascus – climbed all possible steps, up to the desk of the rais, President Hafez Al Assad of Syria. He is a member of the Alawite Islamic sect, an Islamic sect, different from the two great branches Sunni and Shiite, but attentive to relations with Christianity. When the president began to suffer from the illness that would lead him to the tomb, someone came to ask for an image of Our Lady of Soufanieh, and a cotton ball soaked in miraculous oil. Myrna wrote a few words on the back of a picture – no one knows what – added a piece of cotton, and everything was taken to the presidency. The faithful of the miraculous Virgin attributed to her the merit of having prolonged the existence of the rais.

Since 1983, Myrna has occasionally suffered intense stigmatic wounds during ecstasy, visible to others during the day, and completely disappeared by midnight. Many miracles have been attributed to the oil by his icon and his hands. The hierarchy's position on Soufanieh's devotions is unclear, supporters claiming blessings and approval of the church, and detractors claiming fraud and disapproval of the church. Priests and bishops, both Catholic and Orthodox, celebrated Masses in relation to devotions. The annual anniversary celebrations begin on November 26 with Mass in a church, followed by prayers and evening parties at the Nazzours' home, with Myrna, Nicolas, their two children, relatives, friends and followers.

St Justin Russolillo Writes...

"Glory to the Most Holy Trinity in you, O Mary! Glory to you, O Mary, in the Blessed Trinity! Queen of Bethlehem, Our Lady of the Holy Name, Queen of Nazareth, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Queen of Calvary, Our Lady of the Most Precious Blood, Queen of the Cenacle, Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, Queen of the Sacred Sciences, Our Lady of Good Studies."

(Ascension, trans. Louis Caputo, Vocationist Father, New Jersey, 1997, p. 408)