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MARIE FALLERT RAETZ A Miraculous Recovery As excerpted from writings by her sister, Emma Fallert Broeren, and edited by Marita McDonough Aunt Emma, a very devout Catholic, was blessed by an Apparition followed by the Healing of her sister Marie, who was facing surgery. As an aside to this account, Aunt Marie had given her sister Elfrieda and her husband Ralph (my parents) a Telechron mantel clock as a wedding gift. It is an excellent clock, and 75 years later it is still keeping accurate time. The only time it ever failed was when Marie was stricken with this illness. As in the nursery rhyme, it stopped short, but unlike the tale, it DID go again - after Marie was cured. This is Aunt Emma's account of the event. - Ed The Appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary In September 1945, my sister Marie Raetz became critically ill; in fact, she was in complete shock when she left my home. The Doctor pronounced her case carcinoma of the stomach. She pleaded and wept so hard as all three sons were gone. She stated, "If I could only live until they return, then I would not mind dying." Two sons were in the war, and one was in Alaska. Her daughter Dorothy and I went in the night before the operation and asked the doctor what chance of surviving the operation might be. To this he stated, "Your guess is as good as mine, with the removal of one third of her stomach, and proteins down to 8." She had eleven blood transfusions previous to the operation. She had a bad heart, and you could see the jar of black blood we pumped from her stomach while at my house, and in the hospital no food passed through the stomach; it was constant vomiting for days. The whole night through I at no time slept more than 20 minutes, as I had the clock before me. I prayed constantly. At 6 o'clock I called to my sister Ada; I said, "Just two more hours and then the operation; it was like leading a lamb to slaughter." She answered, "Oh! It is terrible." I had just turned over in bed and started to pray again when suddenly the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to me, tall and beautiful. I first saw her in the center of the room, then she seemed, without moving her feet, to come beside my bed. At her feet was a light much as the light just as in the window to the right of the Altar, as it is over her left shoulder on a bright day. I was so startled when I later entered the Church and noticed the identical shade, and her dress beneath the mantle was the same as in the window. As she smiled, she said, "I will take care of her." I said, "Thank you." At this the Blessed Mother immediately disappeared. Needless to say I soon went off to sleep with every care gone. I did not mention this to my sisters. I was in no hurry to go to the hospital but at 11:00 a.m., we all went over with Mr. Raetz. I knew she would be all right. After we inquired at the desk as to her progress in the surgery, the nurse stated, "She is in her room; she did not need an operation." I knew why. It was just as she was partly out of the anesthetic, I said, "Marie, you were miraculously cured." She said, "I know it," but later gave the doctor the credit. I said nothing about the apparition. Later, her doctor came to the waiting room where we were seated with others. I said, "Dr., you deserve a gold medal." His answer was, "I don't know as I do. Come out here, I want to talk with you." All the while I was happy to know why she was cured. I said, "Well, Dr., what did you find?" He said, "She is a freak, I tell you." I said, "What convinced you of a carcinoma?" He answered, "Why, the X-Ray and you saw the blood from her stomach?" I said, "Yes, and two years ago she was rushed to the hospital with a cratered bleeding ulcer." At that he turned his head to the wall, and then back again. As he faced me, he yelled at me, "She is a freak! I tell you she is a freak." My thought was, as a Protestant, this was his only explanation. I knew, however, this was a miracle direct from Heaven. He also stated they did an exploratory of the stomach; they found no scars to indicate a former ulcer. I stated, "Then the operation was unnecessary." His reply was, "Oh! Yes, we did break up the adhesions in the liver." I worked with a surgeon too long to accept this excuse. In the first place, this had nothing whatever to do with her present condition. And, as Dr. Stearns often told me, breaking up adhesions only creates new adhesions. And Dr. Joyce was her former surgeon; he was too thorough to need his work done over. This ends Aunt Emma's account. She was very protective of her interior life, and it is my hope Dear Aunt Emma, from her place in Heaven, will not disapprove of our sharing this information with family members who will find comfort and inspiration in Emma's words. |
| Informação obtida com Marita McDonough. |