True Life in God in North America

November 8 - 17, 1996

In November 1996, Father Michael and Vassula completed the first phase of a tour of America which was completed in early 1997. They spoke in New York City, Florida, South Carolina, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Indianapolis, Minneapolis and St Louis.

Many come to hear Vassula for the first time

In November those who attended the conferences included many who had not previously heard much about The True Life in God messages. Many expressed deep gratitude to have learned from the presentations how our Blessed Lord is reaching out in these difficult times to call us back to Him, to remind us that we are "heirs and heiresses of His Kingdom" and that He is pouring out His Holy Spirit on all mankind and offering tremendous graces.
Many felt they had been made more keenly aware of the warmth and tenderness of God the Father, the infinite intensity of Jesus' Love and a heartfelt understanding of the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts of Jesus and Mary in God's plan of salvation. People experienced the messages calling them to have a "special and intimate relationship with God", to have an ongoing heart-to-heart conversation with a real Person who knows and cares about us as individuals and whose heart can be touched, rather than a vague abstraction or a mindless 'force' in the universe.
Vassula pointed out that in a few beautiful words, Jesus describes Our heavenly Father so poignantly: "My Father is a King yet so motherly; a Judge, yet so tender and loving; He is the Alpha and the Omega, yet so meek".

Many are touched by God

All kinds of people were touched, perhaps in a new way for them. A leader of a True Life in God study and prayer group told us how he brought three Ph.D scientists to the presentation in New York. On the way there they were highly sceptical, but on the way back, they were convinced of the authenticity of the messages. They said that what attracted them was the simplicity of the messages and of Vassula.
In Minneapolis, Vassula spoke on the feast day of St Gertrude the Great and noted how Jesus had spoken to St Gertrude and to St Margaret Mary Alacoque about the treasures of His Sacred Heart. A recent message from Our Blessed Mother spoke of a "world that has grown cold to love", echoing the words of St John the Evangelist when he appeared to St Gertrude in the 13th Century. When Gertrude asked St John why he had not spoken of this "Treasure", he answered that "to tell of the pulsations of the Heart of Jesus has been reserved for modern times, so that in hearing these things, the world already old and growing cold in the love of God, may be rekindled and grow warm again". So on St Gertrude's feast day, November 16, Vassula read from the message given for the United States in April 1995 (excerpted here):

"As tenderly as a father treats his children, I have treated you and have revealed to your heart this Inexhaustible Treasure that had been hidden for generations and was kept for your Times. These Times when Knowledge and Faith would be despised because of the coldness of the world. My Treasure was reserved for the end of times you are now living in, when people would be preferring their own pleasure to God, rendering themselves to every evil than to good.
I am pouring out on you My Inexhaustible Treasure from My Sacred Heart ... I have for the past years, offered you all that Heaven has to offer. So tell Me, what could I have done more to save you that I have not done?
... My Law to this day is not kept because you do not live in the love of God ... I tell you, if your love goes no deeper than what it is now and does not grow, you will never be able to get into My Kingdom.
My Father and I have journeyed all the way from Heaven to remind each one of you to open your hearts to receive Us before My visible passage on this earth. Pray that this Hour will not find you unaware with a heart of stone. Pray so that this Hour will not find your spirit void. Come to your King with an open heart and you too will share His Royal Table which is: LOVE.

Father Michael remembers his own experience of the Sacred Heart

Father O'Carroll said in his remarks when he introduced Vassula in Atlanta-as he does wherever she speaks-that some years ago he had a special experience which reassured him that he would live to see this devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus-inspired through the earlier Catholic mystics but weakened in this secularized age of rationalism-eventually being restored. "But", he said, "I could never have dreamed this revival would come through a Greek Orthodox with no training in even basic catechetics!"

Most Blessed Trinity comes alive

In an interview for the New York television station WPIX Channel 11, Father was asked what he thought was the most important aspect of the True Life in God messages. Without hesitation he said that it is the way they have made the Most Blessed Trinity come alive for hundreds of thousands of souls for whom Our Heavenly Father, The Holy Spirit-and even The Second Person of the Trinity, Our Saviour Jesus Christ-were only distant abstractions.
This particular TV programme was broadcast the following weekend and featured an excellent segment on Vassula, Father O'Carroll and the True Life in God messages which might have been seen by as many as hundreds of thousands of viewers.
What became perhaps clearer for many of us during the tour, was that there has been a kind of Sacred Heart trilogy given to us from heaven over the centuries. In the revelations of St Gertrude, the inexhaustible mercy of the Divine Heart of Jesus was emphasized. Then to St Margaret Mary Alacoque, Jesus revealed that He identified Himself with His Sacred Heart and gave us that most welcome devotion to It. Now in the True Life in God messages to Vassula, Jesus is completing this profound teaching by drawing each of us into a personal, intimate relationship with His Sacred Heart; to invite the Sacred Heart of Jesus into every aspect of our daily lives.

Many testimonials.

After each presentation there were many testimonials offered regarding special blessings and graces received. As is so often reported, many saw Vassula's face replaced by the face of Jesus. A young mother in Minneapolis told us of her long journey under difficult conditions to attend the talk there. She saw Jesus' face at the podium and in fact could see nothing else but Him. At the same time she understood that her persistence in getting to the talk despite the obstacles was richly rewarded with this special grace.
One young woman in New York told of being reluctant, even somewhat frightened, to come to hear Vassula speak. During much of the talk she remained sceptical and unmoved. When suddenly she saw Jesus' face instead of Vassula's she still refused to believe her eyes. Then Jesus' face was replaced by the face of Our Lady'and the young woman's heart finally softened. After the talk, when people were invited to come forward for Vassula to pray for them individually, the young woman "rested in the Spirit" and received what is termed the "gifts of tears". After a period of deep sobbing, the woman left "just radiant"-according to her friend -"full of joy and peace, even though she couldn't grasp what had happened to her".
(Vassula had offered this period of personal prayer for individuals for the first time at a large public meeting when she spoke at the Steel City Medjugorje Conference in Pittsburgh October 4, 1996. Since then she has done this after each talk. She does not claim a gift of healing but it seems that the Lord is gracing many with spiritual healing and, according to many testimonies received so far, even physical hearings).

Physician is healed

A retired physician in Atlanta-whose wife and he hosted Vassula there-had been suffering from chronic leukaemia for many years and recent tests indicated a worsening of his condition. The day after he was prayed for by Vassula, he went for his periodic blood test and the results were completely normal for the first time in ten years.
We were also told of a man in New York who had been away from the Sacraments all his adult life. He made his first confession in 30 years the week after hearing Vassula speak for the first time.
In Minneapolis, 86-year-old Maria Petropolous, a devout Greek Orthodox from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, told us through her daughter's interpretation that she saw Jesus and many white-robed figures on the stage behind Vassula. Maria said that at home she had been wondering to herself: "Why should I go all the way to Minneapolis (a four hour drive) to hear Vassula when I don't understand a word of English?". Then she inwardly heard Jesus say to her: "You are not going for Vassula; you are going for Me".

Jesus appears above Vassula

During the talk, Maria looked up at the podium and thought she saw something suspended above Vassula. Maria looked more carefully and recognised Jesus above Vassula in a white robe with red cloak, His arms extended. Behind Vassula, along the length of the stage, Maria saw a straight line of what she took to be angels or saints in dazzling white robes, "standing like soldiers".
It was also noteworthy that Maria had an earlier vision of Jesus on Good Friday in which He appeared to her, pointing to His exposed Sacred Heart, with light streaming from it. She noted that the Greek Orthodox do not have a devotion or the terminology of "The Sacred Heart". What she described, of course, also sounds like the image Jesus showed to Blessed Sister Faustina of the Divine Mercy.
Besides speaking in each of the eight cities, Vassula and Father also talked informally to a small group of Greek Orthodox priests at a church on Long Island, New York and to another small group of Cistercian monks in Georgia. They also filmed an hour-long interview with a Catholic priest for a programme to be broadcast on a New York-area television programme called Tele-Care.
The schedule was extremely demanding. Father O'Carroll, now 85 years old, remarked that the Lord has certainly graced him with better health "than I had 40 years ago!" (In a message in 1995, Jesus told Vassula that He had indeed given Father Michael strong health to "work for Me"). Vassula also showed not only exceptional stamina but a tireless dedication to her mission and an increasing urgency to spreading these messages.
In New York, just before her tirst talk Jesus gave Vassula this message:

My Lord?
"I Am, every minute of your life I am with you. My Hand is with you, so rejoice and be glad and blessed. Before you begin, tell my children that I bless each one of them and that My Peace I give to them. Tell them also that the Father and I rejoice in them every time they invoke Our Name with love. So now declare to the world all that you have learnt from us. God-is-with-you.

In Tampa, Florida Jesus said:

"...I Am, I shall never fail you, never! My Love for them is beyond understanding and today I descend from above to be in a very special way with them. Come and grow in My Love so that your union with Me may be perfected. When the first-fruits are made holy, so is the whole batch.You are My first-fruits and I want you holy So Come! Confess your sins often so that the devil will not be given a foot-hold. I bless each one of you. be one! IC"

Vassula experiences Mystical Crucifixion.

In Washington, DC, after her talk and praying over all those who came forward, Vassula herself received a blessing from one of the priests present. Thereupon, she rested in the spirit and experienced what she describes as Jesus' presence taking over her body to an extent that she feels like she is merely His Shadow, observing His actions and feeling His feelings. With her in that special state, all who remained were given a special blessing from Jesus and He used Vassula's hand to make the Sign of the Cross. Next, as she experienced the Crucifixion mystically, she was allowed to feel Jesus' "tremendous sadness" for a few moments and her body was racked with extreme sorrow. Then Jesus gave this message:
"I am losing so many souls. I am losing so many souls. I need sacrifices, generosity and prayer. I bless each one of you. Each one I bless, and their families."

In Charleston, South Carolina on 9th November 1996, this message was received:
"Peace be with you. In times of crisis I intervened. I am known for My Mercy. Today I am offering you again My Sacred Heart and I tell you: anyone of you who turns to Me with the sole desire to please Me, with all My Heart, yes, with all My Heart I will grant them My favours. I will reveal the Treasures of My Heart to them so that they end their journey with Me. Love is with you ic.

Finally, just before leaving for the airport in St Louis to return home, Vassula received another message during which she felt Jesus "quiver with such emotion" as she had rarely witnessed before. The message said in part:
"...enjoy the Inexhaustible riches that I had reserved for your times now and show them to the world, this world that has grown cold and is dead to love. Show My Inexhaustible Treasure to every nation and tell them that greater gift than My Sacred Heart they could not receive. And you My remnant, bless My children for Me (those who participated in the visit)"... My Heart is touched to tears, I love you; I love you with all My Heart. IC"

Bob Carroll, USA Co-ordinator,
True Life in God Association