Dear Teresa:

The Missionary Servants of Holy Love is one of several names this group has used over the years. The basis of the organization is to promote the alleged locutions of Maureen Sweeney from Cleveland, Ohio.

According to the Diocese, Maureen Sweeney and this group have not asked for direction or approval from the diocese. A copy of the letter from the Diocese is found here.

It is a little troubling that Sweeney is not asking for direction or approval from the Bishop. They rather disingenuously assert that an organization can exist without approval from the Bishop. That is true and there is nothing wrong with that, but this organization is about doing some apostolate, but about promoting a Private Revelation. That changes the game.

Private Revelations need to always be under the scrutiny of the Church. Anyone with private revelations needs to actively seek direction and approval from their bishops. Sweeney does not, and is highly critical of their bishop. This does not bone well for a legitimate visionary.

Bottomline: this visionary has no approval at any level of the Church and seems to be hostile whenever the Bishop offers a negative view.

Given all this, the suggestion would be that this visionary is not legit. Obedience and respect to the bishop is the first test of a true visionary.

In any event, this alleged visionary has no support of her bishop and does not appear to care. BEWARE.

I would not recommend involvement in this group nor in Sweeney.

In general, I recommend to people to stop looking for private revelations. There is always a danger in searching around for private revelations. We already have enough of them that are approved by the Church. Looking for more I think says something if lacking in faith of the searcher. Our faith already has all that it needs to build and grow in that faith through the Public Revelation, the Church, the Saints, and only as an aside, the few approved private revelations.

Besides, there is NO private revelation, including approved one, including Fatima, that are needed for our faith or required for belief. The principles taught by 99% of all the "messages" I have ever read from "visionaries" of any sort can be found in the Bible.

If people invested the time they spend reading this or that visionary into reading the Bible, they would be Bible scholars.

I know the Bible relatively well. That is why I can recognize Biblical notions found in alleged messages. Since I already know the Bible principles, there is no purpose or reason to read alleged messages from alleged visionaries. 

The only "message" that counts is the infallible message of Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition. And with those infallible messages we don't have to worry about a false visionary.

I propose that people start reading and studying the Bible -- GOD'S MESSAGE, and forget about all these alleged private revelations that have no approval from the Church (including Medjugorje) and start putting our nose in the message of the Bible, God's love letter to us.

The greatest pilgrimage of all is to your local parish to kneel in devotion to our Lord in the Sacred Sacrament reserved in the Tabernacle.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary