Miracle healing has been getting commonplace in this modern day and age, even with the advancement of science.  Why? There has always been a search as there have always been doubts about Jesus’ miracles that we read in the bible. There have been questions in some people’s minds as for the reason for our existence in this world. If they are sick, a miracle to make them well will work wonders for their failing faith that’s going down with their health...if their faith is not that strong to start with, they look for some light or guidance to know the spiritual directions to follow in the remaining years of their lives.

      Unger's Bible Dictionary defines miracles as: "supernatural manifestations of divine power in the external world, in themselves special revelations of the presence and power of God;”

    There are thirty-five separate miracles that were performed by Jesus as recorded in the Gospels. Matthew records twenty; Mark mentions eighteen; Luke mentions twenty; and the book of John tells us about seven. As an example,  "Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them."  (Matthew 15:30).

    There have been some miracle workers or healers who have trooped down to Chicago before, some of whom we met personally and had a chance to interview on VT/CPRTV, like Fr. Sonny Ramirez and Fr. Cacao. There is this very popular faith-healing priest, Fr. Fernando Suarez, whom we didn’t have a chance to meet but it always makes me feel good wearing a rosary bracelet that was given by a friend that was blessed by him. Amazing testimonials about Fr. Suarez’s healing onsite powers are blasting all over the world ... we watch him at times performing mass/healing services at ABS-CBN studios on Sundays, going around, touching and healing the sick towards the end of the mass

    Last July 9th, Emma de Guzman from New Jersey, and who used to be an OFW living in Canada, came to visit us here in Chicago through the personal invitation of some locals like the Sagun family and Dr. Tito Leyba of La pieta International Prayer Group.   

    There have been reports that Ely Sagun (husband of former Chicago Commissioner of Sewers), who was very, very ill and in a comatose state for many weeks at Northwestern Hospital miraculously experienced Emma’s healing powers through her pray-over the phone. He suddenly woke up one day, moved and talked, as if he just arose from a deep sleep, surrounded by his praying and crying family and friends.  

    Miracle, there was, believe it or not. These days, Ely is up and about, very strong and healthy, as if nothing happened to him, as if he was resurrected. As a matter of fact, I personally saw him working hard, assisting and organizing inside the fully-packed Felician Sisters chapel where Emma was performing her blessings on her second day in Chicago, and where I was able to catch up to witness and to experience Emma’s miracles.

     Emma de Guzman, apparently, is a visionary mystic and reader of souls, gifted with stigmata for nine years, and has received several apparitions from our Blessed Mother. According to reports on her first day of visit in Chicago,  tiny glitters like gold dusts appeared all over her face and all around her.  

    What follows is a feeling of overpowering supernatural manifestations through a gift of healing. There are many prayerful people who have witnessed Emma’s miracles or supernatural manifestations.  Stigmata is spontaneous manifestation of bloody wounds on a person’s hands, feet, forehead or back - similar to the wounds of the crucified Jesus.

    You may google her name and read some write-ups and see videos of her on your computer screen. DVD’s showing about La Pieta International  Prayer Group leaders talking about her, some testimonials from people who have felt, witnessed and believed the virgin’s apparitions through the glitters and saw a ball of light that happened in a forest in Batangas are also available.

    Emma and Sol Gaviola founded the La Pieta Prayer Group in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. She is endorsed by at least two Bishops, including Bishop Francisco Garmendai of Bronx, NY and Bishop Danylak of Canada.    

     Although  still not acknowledged by the Vatican, Emma’s supernatural gifts, which have been manifested to thousands of people, “including healing, bilocation, levitation, reading of hearts and souls, communion without deglutition (which is the process of using the throat muscles to swallow); and the appearance of bleeding hosts on her tongue--one after another. She also receives pure white hosts miraculously. Emma has also been given the gift of prophecy and the odor of sanctity. (To date she has received five beautiful perfumed fragrances.) People have witnessed roses emerge from the center of her chest and rose petals and roses fall around her. On many occasions, witnesses have seen fragrant oil appear on her face, hands, feet and even ooze from her eyes. Statues of Jesus, Mary and other saints have oiled and bled while she was present. On multiple occasions Emma's body has been covered with multi-colored glitter. All of the above happenings have been witnessed by many, many people, including priests, nuns and lay people from various walks of life.”

    “Although her public ministry of healing and prayer is rapidly growing, Emma remains deeply spiritual, humble, obedient, and always thanks Jesus and Mary for the blessings she has received from God.  Emma continues to be a hard-working servant of Jesus and Mary, and a true beacon of light in a world of spiritual darkness.”   

     Too bad for me and for many who came on that day at the Felician chapel, there was no supernatural manifestation even through the gold dusts (there was some kind of gold dust manifestation during her first-day blessing at the Immaculate Conception Church on Talcott Ave, as reported). We were even driven out of the chapel by the sisters as the group was overextending our stay (I was with the last group who waited too long outside). This forced Emma to finish her blessings outside the chapel.

    Out of curiosity and as a reporter, I tried to gather some information from some people who were there, who were expecting to get a glimpse of Emma’s gold dusts or glimmers, to the extent of experiencing some kind of miracle to happen like me.  I asked them if they believed it or not.

    It was a mixed reaction that I received from the attendees...a friend who carries a gold dust stuck on a tape in his pocket says that his arthritic pain disappears with the touch of the gold dust on the painful part of his body...another friend is saying that he felt an overpowering spiritual sensation with Emma’s blessing. Many have said...”Nothing, I didn’t feel anything at all. A waste of my time” What did they expect, really?

    What about me, they asked. To tell the truth, although I look at miracles with childlike innocence like children believing in Santa Claus, and miracles have happened many times in my life, I didn’t feel any overpowering spiritual feeling on that day when I waited to be touched and blessed by Emma.  Like the others, I guess I wanted to experience some kind of miracles, right then and there. But miracles don’t happen that way, I understand.

    Could it be because there was no supernatural manifestation like the glitters that manifested on the first day at the Immaculate Conception Church?  

    Could it be because of the commercialization aspect, like the selling of t-shirts and tapes and repeated announcements for financial donations, put a tarnish in my heart that wanted to believe in miracles?  

    Could it be because of her cordon sanitaire that has made her to be out of reach to many (I wonder, were the 12 Apostles acted as Jesus’ cordon sanitaire or guards?)  

    Could it be because of the group’s adherence to very strict press coverage, like Emma’s refusal to be interviewed and the demand to confiscate and edit the footage that CPRTV was able to capture on the tv camera the first day of her visit...which makes a member of the Fourth Estate to think likewise...is there something to hide? Makes me wonder if the group is aware of the First Amendment which we could have invoked, but we had to respect Emma’s order as a Chicago visitor.

    Nonetheless, miracles still happen today, “when they fit into God's plan for the lives of those affected. God is love. Miraculously, He loves us all no matter what we have done! Each of us are "miracles" in His eyes, because he created us in his image.”

    Through Emma de Guzman, many graces and blessings continue to be given by Jesus amd Mary, and let’s all share these love and mercy from high up there, whether we believe in miracles or not.   

    Believe in miracles, like keep on dreaming everyday, as it gives us hope and strengthens our faith in God and mankind.

Right and Bottom photos show Visionary Emma de Guzman giving blessing, healing, and pray-over to some people who attended her prayer mission at Felician Sisters Chapel in Chicago. Lower photo shows Veronica receiving blessing from Emma, assisted by former Chicago Commissioner of Sewers, Teresita Sagun, whose husband, Ely, experienced a miraculous healing from a grave illness recently.