ARTICLE: FWD INTERVIEW WITH FR. ZLATKO SUDAC

[Pdesousa3@cs.com]

Dear Family and Friends, 
 
This Craotian Priest has all of the gifts of Saint Padre Pio. He blessed me during a healing service at the Pentagon several years ago.  The interview with him is very insughtful of what God expects of us. 

.................
 
 
You will be glad you read this one. 
 
Dick

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http://catholic-legate.com/apostolate/links.html

Interview with Fr. Zlatko Sudac

INTRO

Fr. Zlatko Sudac (pronounced "Sue-dots") was born on January 24, 1971.  He 
is from the town of Vrbnik, on Krk island, in Croatia.  He began studying 
for the priesthood in 1993, after completing his mandatory military service 
in the Yugoslav army.  He was ordained a priest on June 29, 1998 and is a 
diocesan priest for the diocese of Krk, Croatia.  Both of his parents are 
still alive.  He has one sister, who is married and has three children.



Fr. Sudac received the cross on his forehead in May 1999, on the Friday 
after the beatification of Padre Pio.  After he received the cross, he was 
sent to the Gemelli Clinic in Rome to be investigated.  The exhaustive 
investigation concluded that Fr. Sudac's cross was not of human origin, i.e. 
that it was formed in a way that medical science could not explain.  Fr. 
Sudac received the stigmata on his wrists, feet and side on October 4, 2000, 
the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, who was the first person in the 
history of the Church to receive the stigmata.



Fr. Sudac currently works at the Bethany Retreat Center, which is located in 
the tiny village called Cunski (pronounced "Choon-skee"), on the island of 
Mali Losinj (pronounced "Molly Lawsheen").  This island is located in the 
northern Adriatic, just south of the port city of Rijeka, Croatia.  This 
island was once part of the island Cres.  In Roman times the two islands 
were separated at the isthmus city of Osor when a canal was dug.  North and 
east of Losinj and Cres is the island of Krk, which gives its name to the 
local diocese.  Mali Losinj has a population of about 6500.  It dates back 
to at least the 12th century when about a dozen Croatian families went there 
from Hungary, taking refuge from the attacking Mongols.  Today, Losinj is a 
very popular tourist site due to its beautiful island scenery, the pristine 
Adriatic sea, and its beautiful beaches.



Fr. Sudac's primary messages are very simple ones: that love has to be the 
foundation of everything that we do, and if we live in love, then we live in 
God; that we must be open to the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the work of 
the Holy Spirit in our lives so that we can live the fullness of what God 
wants to give us; that we must die to ourselves completely so that God can 
fill us with Himself; that we must be completely normal people, who have our 
feet firmly planted on the ground, but ever aware that while we live in this 
world, we are not of it.  This is just some of what Fr. Sudac's primary 
messages are.  Fr. Sudac twice visited St. Jerome Parish (October 1999; 
January and February, 2001)  What follows is his message in his own words.



Q:        Why did you decide to become a priest?

For many years I thought about the way in which to actualize myself to the 
fullest as a person. I finished high school for mechanical engineering. Then 
I started to study philosophy and psychology. I decided to switch to the 
theological seminary to become a candidate for the priesthood for my 
diocese. To speak about my life's call means to dive a little deeper into my 
being, into my heart. Every person asks himself which is the way to most 
fully actualize himself. In the same way I thought about how I could 
surrender myself completely. Spirituality always excited me. I always read 
spiritual books. Then I simply decided and it was the final step towards 
trust in God. I saw that work with people, with the sick, with the 
marginalized makes me happy, and that if I live in that way, I would never 
be alone. The one who lives for people receives a great deal from people. 
These are the things of value which are eternal. One of the main reasons for 
our existence on earth is to be people who love and who live for other 
people. Today, this is very necessary. I am young. In front of me is life 
and my future, and I pray to God for the grace to have a heart for every 
human being, especially for those who are far away - far away from other 
people, from God, and from themselves.

Q:        Did you grow up with Catholic parents? Were they allowed to 
practice their faith and did the communist idea of no God affect you? How 
did you come to know God under communism?

My family is a traditional Catholic family. And precisely that tradition is 
for many people a barrier to the experience of living. I would come to 
church comforting myself that I knew and loved God. Then I understood that 
that was not love but a habit. Then I asked myself if I would want to be a 
person who was loved (by others) out of habit. How does God feel when we 
love Him out of habit? Then I understood that love for God is something that 
is alive and original, something so deeply rooted in the depths of our 
being, something which changes our life, and which gives us the power to 
bear witness to other people. To love God in the present moment. To be alive 
now, not tomorrow or in the past. To live every step with God. It means to 
be God's messenger. That is something which has always awakened within me a 
certain adventure for God. God is the Father of all people who wish to 
proclaim Jesus Christ. One needs to have a great depth of spirit to live for 
everyone, because God died for everyone.

Q:        How old were you when you went to the priesthood?

22 years old.

Q:        How old were he when you were ordained?

27 years old. That was a year ago on June 29, 1998, on the feast of St. 
Peter and Paul .

Q:        Are you part of the Charismatic Movement?

At the Second Vatican Council, our Church defined the Church as being 
institutional and charismatic. The problem is that many charismatics live 
outside the institutional church. We live in a time when our union with our 
bishops and the pope will be the only guarantee of true and correct actions 
of both priests and the laity. If God gave me a specific mission, then I 
don't have to be concerned about that mission. If God desires it, then He 
will do it through the Church and the Church's leaders - He will make it 
possible that I live my charism for the good of the Church and all peoples. 
I am just one piece in the mosaic. And it would be better for me not to have 
been born if I were to draw attention to myself and not to Jesus Christ. 
Truly this is the only true way to serve God in the next millenium.

Q:        You were in the seminary for 4 or 5 years?

Six years

Q:        How many brothers and sisters do you have?

I have one sister. She is married and has 2 children.





The Stigmata

Q:        What kind of prayer meeting were you leading when God gave you the 
Stigmata?

That is how the newspapers wrote it. But in fact it wasn't a prayer meeting. 
It was a friendly get-together in one family's home. When I speak about all 
of those events which took place then, I speak with a tremendous fear of the 
Lord because I myself experienced how it all surpasses my very self. Many 
people have asked me what I think of all of this, and I tell them that they 
want to know something which I myself do not know. Jesus Christ said that by 
their fruits you will recognize them. If people come to my Masses and 
seminars and experience God there and change their lives, if many sick 
people are healed, if those in conflict with one another reconcile, if 
people throw out all of their filth before God and seek peace with God, if 
those in sorrow find hope returning, then that is the fruit to which we have 
to turn our attention, and not myself (i.e. do not turn your attention to 
me). I constantly announce at the seminars that if you have come there 
because of me, then you have made a mistake, but if you came because of 
Jesus Christ then stay. We must look at the giver, not the gift. I 
experience myself as sandals which God puts on and which he will tread upon 
so that through them (the sandals) He may come to those people whom He 
intends to reach. May God give me the strength so that with my life I may 
faithfully serve Him, to His honor.

Q:        Do you have pain in your forehead?

It doesn't hurt me, except when I am in prayer, and then I feel it pulsing. 
On first Fridays and at certain times, it's known to bleed and leak as 
though it is crying.

Q:        Are you an Order priest?

No, I belong to the diocese of Krk, in Croatia.



The Blessed Mother

Q:        Are you close to the Blessed Mother?

Very much. She is my beloved mother. All evil forces fall before her. One 
can pray to her only with a pure heart, and I will be grateful for her 
protection until the end of my life. Personally I have consecrated myself to 
the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The mother is truly the gentler side of our 
spirituality. In this technical and rough society, we are missing the mother 
of gentleness.

Q:        Did you dedicate yourself to Mary as a child?

A year ago.

Q:        Were you close to Mary as a little boy?

There is an interesting story about my mother. When she was a young girl, 
she wanted to be a nun with the Missionaries of Charity. But at that time, 
it was required that the family give a certain amount of money so that the 
girl could join the convent. My grandmother, that is, the mother of my 
mother, was very poor, and she was not able to do it. That is when my mother 
vowed to Mary, our heavenly Mother, that if she was not able to do it (i.e. 
become a nun), if God gave her a son, she would consecrate him to God. My 
mother acknowledged this to me only at the point when I told her that I 
wanted to be a priest. I never knew anything about this vow of hers. At that 
time, through tears, she told me about this vow she made. Through this I can 
see that the intercession of the Mother of God protected me.

Q:        Is your father alive and where do they live?

Yes, they live on the island, Krk, the same place from which the archbishop 
of Zagreb comes. My mother went to school with the archbishop of Zagreb. In 
my diocese there are about 70 priests. It is one of the smallest dioceses in 
all of Croatia.

Q:        Have you been to Medjugorje?

Three times. Those were unforgettable experiences. It is a holy place of 
prayer, silence and conversion of heart.

Q:        Were you a priest when you first went to Medjugorje?

I was very young, a young boy the first time.

Q:        Have you been there since you became a priest?

Yes.

Q:        What is the most important thing you found in Medjugorje?

Honesty. To be a lover of truth. Today truth provokes. It seeks the whole 
person. And Mary cannot but to ask for my entire self. Giving myself to Mary 
and to God, I do not lose myself, but I find myself. That is what I carry 
from Medjugorje. The message I received - especially have trust in God.



2,000 people attended Fr. Sudac's Retreat in Tinley Park, Illinois, February 
2001.



Gifts From God

Q:        Have Jesus or Mary ever spoken to you?

No, I have never had a vision or an apparition, but I have a conversation of 
the heart. It is a gift of being able to diagnose or read people's hearts. 
That gift is manifested with me when I am in spiritual conversations or 
hearing confessions. It is always given as a help to the person so that he 
can express himself and fall in love with God.

Q:  Did that gift of reading souls come after the stigmata?

Before the phenomenon of stigmatization, I had gifts like the gift of 
tongues, the gift of healing, the gift of counsel, and slowly the gift of 
knowledge came also. After the stigmatization, I received many other gifts. 
Some of these gifts overwhelmed me very much. And so I needed some time to 
get accustomed to what was happening. By this I refer specifically to the 
gifts of levitation, bilocation, illumination, and the knowledge of upcoming 
events - the knowledge about the near future, especially about future 
dangers.

Q:  Are you allowed to speak of those?

I would like to wait until a certain time passes. I am in cooperation with 
some experts - the top experts in the world. I would like the whole thing, 
from their side to be well observed. And until the official Church makes an 
announcement regarding these certain phenomenon, in my heart I am not sure 
whether it is good to speak about these things. I want to draw attention to 
Jesus Christ, and I am afraid that with these things, I may be drawing 
attention to myself. I am a sinful man. Since the stigmatization, I have a 
tremendous need for the Sacrament of Confession. For me it is the same as 
for everyone else to walk this earth, to be little and in that way I will 
belong to God.

Q:    You spoke of the gift of languages, is it a gift of tongues or is 
it a gift of multiple languages?

No, the gift of tongues have two or three groupings. One is that a person 
has never studied a known language but is able to speak that language. The 
second is that a person can speak old forgotten Hebrew, Aramaic or other old 
Semitic languages. And the third gift is the so-called babbling - when a 
person through the grace of God can speak the so-called angelic language. 
This gift is mentioned in Holy Scripture. We have to be very careful with 
this gift because evil spirits can also use this gift of tongues. Once there 
was a séance where people were praying in tongues, and these gifts of 
tongues were tape-recorded. A person who had the gift of understanding 
tongues, understood that those were all cursing, blasphemies and profane 
language against God. At Pentecost when the apostles spoke in various 
tongues, then one spoke and everyone understood. With us at our prayer 
meetings, it so often happens that everyone speaks (in tongues) and no one 
understands. My experience is this - the one who has the gift of tongues and 
feels purity in their heart and the need to praise God with this (gift), he 
should begin to pray out loud. But if in that moment, a person with the gift 
of understanding tongues does not come forward, then that gift, in that 
moment is not given for the building up of the community, but for the 
individual building up of that person. Then I recommend that that person 
pray quietly to himself. Every gift which we have is not given for the 
individual person but for others, for the community. I am at the service of 
the will of God.

Q:        Can you tell us about your bilocation?

It's a very interesting gift, which is manifested only at the point when 
other people bear witness to it. The person (with this gift) up until the 
last moment is not certain what is happening with him. You have the feeling 
that you are at one place, but your heart and imagination wants to be 
somewhere else. This happens when the person is forbidden from being with 
God, with prayer, with the Blessed Sacrament. After a similar prohibition 
which I experienced, the bilocation manifested itself.

Q:        They would not let you close to God so when you bilocated you went 
close to God?

I was with God at one place and the other, but the other place I experienced 
more in my heart and imagination than in my body. It's interesting that I 
knew everything that was happening there. I would have ascribed this all to 
my imagination had some people not come forward and confirmed it all - six 
people who saw me physically there. With one of these people I even shook 
hands.

Q:        This was at home in your diocese?

At the same time I was with some young people praying and meditating. (Fr. 
Jozo's additional commentary) "and they knew he was there - he was praying 
with them. At the second place it was a church and some people saw him in 
front of the church and they shook his hand so they knew he was there."

Q:        Father Sudac, you said at the beginning of the interview that this 
has given you (tremendous) fear of the Lord.

I still feel it very much. God is something which surpasses any and all 
thoughts about Him. He surpasses our feelings, and even the state of our 
souls. It is impossible to speak about Him. The only way to communicate with 
God is to love God. We have to sink into God so that I no longer exist but 
God does. When I do this I don't lose myself, but find myself in God. This 
can be understood only by those people who love God with all their heart, 
all their soul, and all their strength. If anyone sins, the only cause for 
all sins is the lack of love towards God and the lack of love for mankind 
and ourselves, that is the cause of all evils. If this wounded humanity 
would discover the formula of love, unconditional love, this life would be 
heaven on earth.