"Miles Jesu's " Ms. Jessica Berends, age 23:

Noah ... and a Flood of Grace



Adapted from her story in "Miles Jesu" monthly magazine, December 2008.

Cautionary Note: these writers do not use the Capital Letter I Run Amok!

I guess maybe for the same reason they publish whatever they like that's favorable to the notion of repeated pilgrimages to Medjugorje!

Yet, Jessica's personal story rocks for this Christmas Holiday.

Big time!

So, here's an excerpt:

"I grew up going to a place every Sunday called the Unitarian - Universalist Church.

"In its beginnings, the Unitarian faith was about as Protestant as one could get -- it took the Reformation one step further and renounced belief in God as Trinity (hence Unitarian).

"Nowadays, the Unitarian -- Universalist Church is synonymous with moral and religious relativism.

"The church we went to every Sunday was, as i grew to understand, just a meeting place for people who espoused whatever belief system they liked.

"There were atheists, agnostics, pagans, Wiccans, Buddhists, fallen - away Jews, and many fallen - away Catholics, all sipping coffee together after the service."

One side effect of such disbelief in absolute truth is a lack of morality


"One side - effect of such disbelief in the existence of absolute truth is a lack of morality.

"Unitarians will say that they have seven principles which govern their lives, and that these form a type of morality.

"But these principles are never explained.

'Thus, while a plaque in the Unitarian foyer told me i needed to respect each person's human dignity, i had no idea what that meant, and was never held accountable if i broke it.

"If God was spoken of, it was always in the context of spirit or higher being.

"During the Christmas service, for example, the D.R.E. wouldn't let the youth choir sing any songs with Jesus or God in them."

My conversion came as much of a shock to me...


"My conversion came as much as a shock to me as it did to the people i knew.

"One day when i was 13, my dad was watching a news program on a major station when i happened to walk into the living room.

"The news lady was saying that some scientists found Noah's Ark on the top of a mountain.

"I didn't know many things about Judeo - Christian tradition, but i did know what Noah's Ark was.

"[W]hat came to my mind was, Oops, I guess it's all true. I better go read my Bible.

"[A]mazingly enough i had heard three things about the Catholic Church -- that Catholics thought their Pope was a trustworthy leader because he was the successor of Peter, that they believed the Communion they received in church was actually Jesus, and that Mary was somehow important."

If the Bible was inspired by God...


"If the Bible was inspired by God, then i would believe whatever i read in it and what whoever doctrine made the most sense.

"I had to wait many weeks until the end of John's Gospel to find out what Catholics really believed abut Mary.

"At that moment, i felt Mary become my mother.

"This coming Easter i will be five years old (spiritually).

"The Catholic Faith is the greatest gift that anyone could have.

"Often during the day, and especially at Mass, God brings to my mind everything He did in order to bring me to this point, and i think, i can't believe i'm here; i shouldn't be here.

"But thanks be to God that i am."

"Ed. note: Jessica, age 23, joined Miles Jesu in December 2006 and is a member of the ladies community in Chicago..."