Soon after the stigmata appeared in 1926, she drank only a small cup of tea daily. That did not attract much attention. But one day in 1927 a vision again appeared before her saying that she no longer needed any earthly food or drink. From, 1927 till her death in 1962 she did not eat anything, she did not drink anything!
Professors and Doctors were flabbergasted. One Dr. Otto Buchinger arrived in Konnersreuth with his team to expose "the pure fable" with his scientific equipment. After a thorough German fashion investigation, the learned Doctor wrote a book "Wirkliches and Wirkendes" (The Real and the Workable), in which he declared without any hesitation that this was no fraud. Here was something which defied the modern science.
The phenomena and the miracles were inexplicable by any so called rational thinking. Some mysticism was at work here. How can a human being seemingly in mortal flesh stop eating and drinking? How can a simple woman actually physically suffer the same agony as Lord Jesus suffered on the Cross? And develop the same scene in her own person and body?
Even the church had sent three nurses to find out the truth or otherwise of the miracle of "inedia" (the ability to survive without food and drink). She was kept under the closest -watch, even when she was bathing, to ensure she is not gulping down any water! When she rinsed her mouth, the water taken in and thrown out was measured, to find whether any water was swallowed. There was no escape. Miracle went on happening.
(This checking by the Church was done from 14-7-1927 to 28-7-1927.)
The only thing Therese put on he tongue was the sacred Wafer, which the Church Priest offered during communion ( a kind of collective prayer). The Wafer just disappeared on her tongue! It was observed that at times the wafer would fly from the priest's hand and float through the air into her mouth. This is recorded in a Book: "Therese Neumann von Konnersreuth" by Fritz Gerlich (1929), and even photographed.
At times during her ecstasies, she would fall to her knees and stretch out her tongue, when a host wafer would suddenly materialise on it! (D. Scott Rego's "Miracles" Contemporary Books Inc Chicago - 1982, page 69)
Therese's miracles do not end here. There is one more - perhaps most amazing to those who think that science explains everything and that anything defying the laws discovered by science does not exist. It was observed that the blood that came out during stigmata defied gravity. The phenomenon was carefully witnessed on 8-7-1927 by a reporter from "Berlin Hefte' at Therese's home. He was present during the Passion on that day. He reported: -
"Soon a drop of blood which increased in size formed at one of the foot stigmata. It grew and grew in size until finally it dropped from the wound. Gravity would have commanded that the drop of blood flows downwards. But it didn’t. It flowed almost directly upward towards the toes, exactly as happened almost 2000 years ago on the Cross of the Christ". (D. Scott Rego - ibid page 69)
This is then the story of a great woman Saint of this century, who defied all the egoistic psyche of modern science and modem thinking. She proved that the Lord of your Love has His eyes on you. He can come to you in unpredictable ways. Only one condition should be satisfied. you should be, as Marcus says, "desperately, deeply, violently in love with Him."
May you, my Parsi reader, have the same Love and Attraction towards Asho Zarathushtra as Therese had for her Lord. Pray that your consciousness may awaken to the presence of your Paigambar Saheb within you. May His Lightening thunder on the dark clouds of confusion, and the Rain of His grace immerse you fully and completely.
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Dr. Otto Buchinger on Therese Neumann
" I must declare that despite all care and watchfulness, we were unable to arrive at any conclusion or explanation as to the fasting of Therese Neumann or as to the phenomenon of Stigmata. There is no indication that hysteria is here at work. What we can conclude but that in the truly devout stigmatist of Konnersrenth there is - whether we like it or not – something spiritual which causes these phenomena. All honour to our science and its methods but there is something at work which defies rational explanation."
("Wirkliches and Wirhendes." - quoted by Dr. Marcus Bach in "The Circle of Faith" Hawthom, 1956.)
(Parsi Pukar – JULY 1996 Vol. 2; No.1)
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