THE TRIAL OF FR. JOZO

The locutionist’s father was summoned  by the secret police to appear alone for a private talk in the school house. Knowing the Communists, he was  very afraid. He prayed the Hail Mary and when he said “Mary”, just as he was about to enter a great joy suddenly came over him. His fear disappeared. 

The  “comrade” waiting for him said “Fr. Jozo is in prison. He is dangerous to the regime. You are to testify against him to prove his guilt. This will help the country and your village. “ 

“Thank you comrade, God gave me a brain. I know how to think” I answered.  He shouted “Get out of here, go home!  It was over  in 2 minutes. I was very happy when I left, not at all afraid.

I was summoned to appear at the trial in Mostar. During that time, many Communists in Citluk were putting a lot of pressure on us in the village.  On the way to the trial,  I was stopped by two policemen who were waiting for me near Meletina. Our Mayor was following me in a car a few feet behind.  They asked me where I was going so I showed them my summons and told them “To Mostar.”

They stopped me to inspect my car telling me my handbrake didn’t work and ordered me to take the license plate off my car and give it to them.

 “You can’t take it, I need it to work.” I looked at the Mayor who had seen everything and said nothing. I asked him to help me.  

He told them to let me go. Since it was rusted onto the car, I just wanted to leave the car there but they would not let me do that. After getting help to remove the plate, I drove off and was soon stopped by another  police car wanting to know where was  my license plates.  He gave me a ticket for driving without it.  At another police control point, I was stopped again for the same reason.  They wanted to make a fool of me and asked “How can you without your license plate?”. But the other policeman said “Go to Mostar. We’ll call ahead by radio and tell them to let you pass in time for the trial.” I knew then that the Gospa had intervened.

There were 15 witnesses gathered in court to testify. There were four testifying against him who were not from Medjugorje.  It was the first time I had ever been to court. The trail lasted two days.  The boy testifying ahead of me was crying saying he was told he must testify against Fr. Jozo in front of the judge.

When it was my turn I said that I had heard Fr. Jozo’s sermons at evening Masses. He said nothing against the Regime or the people. The judge said I listened but did not understand everything. I told him all the people in the parish think well of Fr. Jozo. He is innocent.

The judge showed me a newspaper article saying people from Medjugorje were testifying against Fr. Jozo. “I haven’t heard anything and I am in charge of my district in Medjugorje. The articles are lies.”  I knew the judge he was a better Catholic than I am. When we returned to the village, the secret police from Sarajevo summoned everyone who had served in the military.  We were assigned to 11 roadblock patrols and forced to work 8 hour shifts.  Every two to three days we were ordered from our homes to work 8 hour shifts at the roadblocks. Nobody could refuse. We were happy to go.

I remember one Communist from Citluk who said “Look at those people. 

They’re forced to volunteer and they are still singing all the way up to Cross Mountain. I don’t understand any of those people.”

At a local meeting, the representative from Citluk said: “They neglect their fields in Medjugorje because those who are against Medjugorje are there.” 

A local peasant from Meletina called Franje said “ I’m at Mass every evening in Medjugorje. Go see if there is one blade of grass out of place in my vineyard. Then I’ll go check the Communists to see if they’re any better than mine.”

I remember just before Fr. Jozo was to sent to prison on August 17^th, 1981, special police divisions arrived from Sarajevo with police dogs and machine guns.  I saw twenty in the woods opposite Ivan and Jakov’s house and another 5 further down the road.. When I passed by, I saw our women greet the policemen and give them some grapes to eat.  One of the policemen began to cry and said “When we left home today we intended to kill you. You’re kind and full of happiness. Why would I  shoot you?”

I didn’t  know what Fr. Jozo knew then – they had been ordered to kill everyone in Medjugorje. But I believe it is true because I heard a Communist bureaucrat say at the time: “For forty years we have taught that God does not exist, and here God has arrived in one minute. How can it be possible? Marx, Lenin, Engels and Tito told the truth!  Therefore, God doesn’t exist.  How is it possible that the Madonna has arrived here! No, the Madonna isn’t here!”

I have to tell you what I truly felt at the time: I didn’t feel those Communists were enemies. I felt a sincere compassion for them.-Poor things, they don’t understand anything” I thought to myself.

 The Families

The day Fr. Jozo was imprisoned.

Ivan said, “All the visionaries were with Fr. Tomislav praying in Caplinia. When we returned to the village, we were stopped at the bridge by the police who refused to let us pass. They asked for our identity cards. Who had an Identity card at 15!  A woman standing nearby knew us and only because of her could we pass through. I remember it was three o’clock in the afternoon.  The policemen had surrounded the church.  The doors of the church were covered with planks and nailed shut. 

 We went through the vineyards in back of the church which are no longer there and entered through a little door they didn’t know about.  We entered the little sacristy to await the Gospa.  I remembered at the time how frightened we were of the police. They didn’t want us saying we could see the Gospa. 

Before Fr. Jozo was sent to prison, they scared us by holding guns to our heads. They swore at my mother and Jacov’s mother of Jacov (who was still alive at that time). It really hurt us to hear our mothers spoken to in such a way.  That was the first time it had ever happened.

The Gospa told us  She  would be with Fr. Jozo.  The guards laughed at us “What are you going to do without Fr. Jozo now that he is in prison?”  I didn’t know then they had put him in prison. I learned about it later at  home. 

The next day the Gospa appeared to us and showed Fr. Jozo to us dressed as a friar as he was praying.  Poor Fr. Jozo. Later, when his mother died he was taken in handcuffs by two policeman to the funeral. 

When school classes began again, Mirjana returned to Sarajevo. There too, the police had reported her to the local Communist authorities.  They caused her a lot of trouble in her third year of high school.

The school Principal forced her to change schools to because he was afraid she would talk to her classmates about the Gospa.Her father told the new Principal they had to change apartments and had to register at another school so no one would know she was having her apparitions at home. It was very important to my father that I finish school since I only had two more years.

In Sarajevo, she only prayed with people she knew.  

The locutions of Mirjana and Jelena

In 1983 the Gospa began the spiritual direction of the prayer group of Jelena and Mirjana requesting a priest be present. Fr. Tomislav was chosen. Through questions to the Gospa through Jelena and Mirjana, he entered into the depths of prayer Fr. Tomislav Vlasic was not in Medjugorje at the beginning of the apparitions. He was assigned to another parish in Capilinia and sent to Medjugorje to substitute for Fr. Jozo when he was imprisoned.  He did not believe in the appartions either.  Like so many friars and priests, he said even if they had been true, he didn’t need them because his faith was enough for him.  But in Medjugorje, his whole life changed and he became a witness to the Wonders of God.