Gulf Pine Catholic • February 13, 2026 25 When we were finally given the ok for Marianne to fly home, God came to our rescue again with a skynurse to travel with us that was another angel. That male nurse, Adrian, who was from Romania, took over and I didn’t have to worry about anything except Marianne. We had about an hour drive by car to the airport. Adrian, the sky-nurse, did everything for us in the airports. Marianne had a catheter and had to remain in her seat the whole time. He took us to get tickets at ticket counters, arranged wheelchairs, took us to whatever gate we were to be, helped me change her diapers, and stayed with us all the way from the hospital in Turkey to Memorial Hospital in Gulfport. We were blessed! Oh, and did you know that shortly after we left the ground at the airport in Turkey (within minutes) to fly to Munich, Germany, there was an earthquake in Turkey right where we just were! … We were blessed! The long flight home was very trying for all of us! Marianne kept trying to unbuckle and get out of her seat. The sky-nurse kept her calm and comfortable. On that long flight from Munich to Dallas-Fort Worth we had the best meal we had had in over a month! We had to fly to New Orleans because there was not a connecting flight to Gulfport. So again, we had to have a car drive us from New Orleans airport to Gulfport. When we got home to Gulfport, around midnight, we went immediately to the rmergency room for her to be checked. Our children met us there! What a happy reunion that was! She was admitted. When the neurosurgeon in Gulfport examined her and he looked at the new CT scan, he said that the neurosurgeon in Turkey had saved her life! If he had not done the surgery when he did, she would not have survived! We were in the right place … at the right time … with the right people to take care of us …We were blessed! We continued to be blessed by people who provided meals for us until we got things coordinated again at home. During all this, a friend of mine told me that her son who had fallen away from the faith years ago, asked her, “WHY? … Why did God allow this to happen to someone like Deacon Karl and his wife?” And I told her that, “we may never know the reason this happened, while we are on earth, but I know that God spoke to me within all this. I know He was with us the whole way … not to stop it from happening but to help us through it.” I said, “Look at what came of it! People all over the world were praying for us, maybe people who had never prayed before or at least not prayed in a long time! People were making a relationship with God who may not have had one before. People sacrificed their own money to help us to cover our expenses … people acted as Jesus wants us to act as Christians and to serve Him and love Him by loving us in unconditional ways!” …We were truly blessed! God was always in control -- even when I thought things were out of control -- He was there, taking care of us! We felt blessed. Marianne has been told a number of times that she’s a “walking miracle!” Oh, yeah … and guess what the name of the ship was that we were on? -- It was called the Carnival MIRACLE! Marianne spent a number of weeks in the hospital and rehab before finally making it to our home. She then had home health care rehab for a few more weeks. More angels, more blessings! THANK YOU! Thank you to all of you who helped us in any way, with donations, with prayers, with food, thank you for your help in any way, big or small. You have blessed us! Remember, Jesus had nowhere to lay His head and He was often misunderstood and treated with suspicion. Yet He was the most peaceful and joyful man to ever walk the earth. Why? Because He treasured His Father’s presence and His commands above all else. Jesus had learned that those who entrust themselves to God will never be disappointed, and He invited His disciples to experience this blessing for themselves. He invites us all to become like Him: poor in spirit, meek, merciful, hungering after righteousness, and pure of heart. And, ever true to His promises, He has given us His Holy Spirit to teach us and empower us to follow this path. His life within us will always bring us true happiness. In the Beatitudes, when He described the rewards of such a life, Jesus used the future tense, because He wanted to extend our vision beyond our earthly life to the kingdom He had come to inaugurate. We will be comforted, we will be satisfied, we will obtain mercy, and we will see God! By faithfully answering God’s invitation to participate in His divine nature on earth, we are sure to receive untold blessings in the life to come. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.” The beatitudes require a change in us. The life God offers us may seem too costly at first. We may think we are too weak to accept it. We may not want to embrace a life that seems so demanding. With eyes of faith, however, we can trust in Jesus’ promises. Our life in Christ will bring blessings to ourselves as well as others here on earth, and even greater blessings in heaven. MAYYOU ALL BE BLESSED! Deacon Karl Koberger was ordained a permanent deacon for the Diocese of Biloxi on June 22, 2013 and serves as deacon at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Gulfport. He also serves the Diocese of Biloxi as Chancellor since May of 2021. Guest Columnist From page 24 Pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life in the Diocese of Biloxi by visiting www.invisiblemonastery.com Scripture is intended to speak to believers ʻin every age,՚ pope says BY JOSEPHINE PETERSON Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Leo XIV said Scripture is meant to speak directly to believers in today’s world, emphasizing that the Bible is the word of God expressed through human authors during his weekly general audience. “In every age, the Church is called to re-propose the Word of God in a language capable of being embodied in history and reaching hearts,” he said Feb. 4. He warned that when Scripture “loses touch with reality, with human hopes and sufferings,” or is proclaimed in language that is “incomprehensible, uncommunicative or anachronistic,” it becomes “ineffective.” Continuing his catechesis series on Vatican II, the pope said the Bible is not a relic of the past but a living dialogue meant to lead people to know and love God. God chose to communicate through His people, demonstrating His mercy and desire to be close to humanity, the pope said. Citing the Second Vatican Council’s document “Dei Verbum,” the pope said, “the words of God, expressed in human language, have been made like human discourse, just as the word of the eternal Father, when he took to himself the flesh of human weakness, was in every way made like men.” It is important to note, he said, that while God is the principal author of Scripture, human beings were also “true authors,” not simply passive “scribes” sharing God’s words, the pope said, “God never mortifies human beings and their potential!” He also warned against reading Scripture as though it had no divine origin and were only a relic of the past. “While Scripture is a text rooted in historical truth, it also contains a limitless spiritual depth that speaks to people of all times and places, communicating above all God’s love and his desire to save us,” the pope said. Pope Leo said that God, “in his goodness, ensures our lives do not lack the essential nourishment of his word, and let us pray that our words, and even more so our lives, do not obscure the love of God that is narrated in them.” In an appeal he made at the end of the audience, the pope said a prayer for the people of Ukraine, who have endured frequent bombing recently, further impacting their access to power. He also acknowledged that a new START treaty between the United States and Russia was expected to be signed Feb. 5, which would curb the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Sharing his hope that the treaty be renewed, Pope Leo said in Italian, “I call on you to not let this instrument collapse without trying to guarantee a concrete and effective follow-up. The current situation requires us to do everything possible to break free from a new race of arms that further threatens peace between nations.”
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