1 www.catholictradition.org/Angels/angels1.htm
 | You Are Healed |
It is only fitting that I begin with the heartwarming story which gave me the idea for this book. I met Toni DiBernardo when she contacted me with a story for my book Visits from Heaven, which was released in December 2009. The story, ironically entitled My Brother Joey, the Angel, tells of an afterlife communication or visit from heaven her mother experienced when Toni's deceased brother Joey appeared at her deathbed.
She writes, “The week that my mother died, I had experiences that were just unbelievable as she was communicating with my father and brother Joey who had already passed. One day my mother looked at me and told me that my brother Joey was in the room with us. She said, ‘Oh, I wish that you could see this beautiful male angel all dressed in white. I'm afraid if you turn your head too fast, he will leave; he is so beautiful.’”
She went on as if she were having a conversation with this angel. “Did you hear what he just told me?” she asked. Then without waiting for an answer she continued, “I told him to please put me down because I was going to make him fall and he told me, ‘Mom, I won't let you fall. You are as light as these feathers on my back.’” I couldn't believe what I was hearing. She then looked at me and said, “Toni, it's Joey; I always knew he was an angel.”
Years later Toni experienced her own divine visit. Only this time, it was not her brother or anyone else in her family. This time she says she was visited by Jesus himself. I will never forget the day when Toni called to tell me that she had just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She was understandably very upset and wasn't sure if she wanted to even go through with the recommended surgery to remove the tumor along with part of her pancreas and spleen.
At that time, she wondered if she should even bother having the surgery. Pancreatic cancer has one of the lowest survival rates with less than 5 percent of those diagnosed reaching the five-year mark. Part of the problem is the fact that this cancer is very rarely diagnosed early enough because there are typically no symptoms early on. During the later stages of the disease, symptoms include jaundice and abdominal pain.
Toni Di Bernardo
That day as we spoke on the phone I could totally understand why Toni had her doubts about having the surgery. However, I encouraged her to go through with the surgery. In my mind, it was better to at least fight the cancer, and her family felt so as well.
Luckily, Toni opted to have the surgery, and I told her that she would, of course, be in my prayers. I went over to the local Target and purchased a figurine of a cross and sent it to her in support. Prior to mailing it to her, I said a prayer asking God to please help her. Unbeknownst to me, Toni would later take this cross to the hospital with her.
During this time prior to the surgery, Toni's friend Ruthie, who is very religious, put a prayer shawl on Toni and recited what is known as simply the Jewish Prayer. The following is the prayer in both Hebrew and English:
Baruch Ata Adonai
Blessed Art thou Our Lord
Malki Ot Haolam
King of the Universe
Shama Adonai Elohay
Hear me oh Lord my God
Shiva atiele Cha va Tiypaenee
I cried to thee and thou hast healed me.
Ahalela Shem Elohim
I will praise thy name, O God
Kooma Adonai
Arise, O Lord
Hoshieynee Elohay
Save me, O my God
In Yeshua Shem Kodesh
Jesus Holy Name, Amen.
After reciting the above prayer, Ruthie used some holy oil imported from Jerusalem to make the sign of the cross on Toni's forehead. Immediately afterward, Toni began to feel hot and told her friend how she was feeling. To this Ruthie excitedly replied, “That usually doesn't happen, Toni. You are healed.”
A week later, Toni went in for the surgery and spent a long time recuperating. After two months, she had an appointment with her oncologist to be rechecked to see where she stood with the cancer. The tests would determine, for instance, if removal of the tumor had in fact removed the caner or if the disease was still progressing. While they were waiting for the results, she told the doctor that she wanted to thank the people who had helped her in the hospital and asked for the name of one particular doctor. Here's what happened:
Toni's picture of Jesus in her home
She was in her hospital room recovering and remembers being woken up. She then opened her eyes and remembers thinking: I must be dead and closed her eyes again. She was awoken a second time and again reasoned she was dead and closed her eyes. The third time she felt a warm tap on her shoulder and woke up. Before her, she said, was a man who looked like he was wearing a white doctor's coat. She looked at him and said she immediately thought he resembled Jesus in a picture she has hanging in her home. At this point, for some reason, she asked him what nationality he was. His response was, “I am Israeli Jew.” To this, Toni replied, “You have the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen.”
The man then bent down and kissed her twice on the forehead saying, “You are healed.” This is all that she can remember.
So this day at the oncologist's office, she wanted the name of the man with the beautiful eyes so that she could thank him. Totally unprepared for the response, Toni was told that there was no such doctor. There was no “Israeli Jew” that fit her description. Toni was absolutely stunned. What's more? The tests results came back, and Toni was told that there was no sign of cancer. Her astonished doctor remarked, “Go home and pretend you never had cancer.”
When Toni called me to tell me what had happened, I was ecstatic and shocked all at the same time. I felt almost like I had experienced it myself in some way as happy tears filled my eyes. A week later I was scheduled to speak during a conference in Virginia Beach at the Association for Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.). I asked Toni if she would mind if I shared her beautiful story with the audience.
My point in telling Toni's story was for the audience to understand the definite power of prayer. As I relayed the story, I noticed a woman who seemed to be listening to me intently. When my speech concluded, people lined up to have me sign copies of my books. It was then that I noticed the attentive woman purposely standing in the back. When the line died down, she slowly walked up to me. She started to say something, but her eyes soon welled up with tears. I immediately walked from behind the table and gave her a hug asking her to tell me what was wrong.
“Josie,” she told me, “You know that story you told before about the woman with cancer?” I nodded that I did indeed remember. “I feel like that was a sign for me,” she explained, “I was just diagnosed with