The article written by Patty Knap and bearing the above-mentioned title appeared in a National Catholic Register Issue of Feb 15 - 2017. Here is the link (copy & paste) for anyone who would like to read the entire article:
http://www.ncregister.com/blog/pattyknap/arizona-womans-blindness-miraculously-cured-through-st.-charbel
There was a subheading under the title: "Within 48 hours after visiting the relics of St. Charbel, her eyesight was completely restored to 20/20 vision. The remarkable and sudden healing was later confirmed by several physicians."
Several excerpts from the piece:
The joy of a Phoenix parish is spreading along with the news of 30-year-old parishioner Dafne's Gutierrez's complete cure of blindness.
The reported miracle of the wife and mother of three is bringing people from around the country to visit St. Joseph Maronite Catholic church in Phoenix, Arizona.
When she was just 13 years old in 1999, Dafne was officially diagnosed with the medical condition, idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH). One effect of this condition can be another condition called papilledema, where the pressure in the brain is greatly increased. This pressure affects the optic nerves, which in some cases such as Dafne's eventually results in complete blindness.
The various medications and treatments which were tried for Dafne all failed. In 2014 the eyesight in her left eye deteriorated dramatically. Her physicians tried two separate surgeries, installing different types of shunts in an attempt to drain and reduce the pressure in her brain, but these too failed, leading to complete blindness in her left eye. Meanwhile the sight in her right eye was also deteriorating, and she was declared legally blind. She was soon in total darkness, saying in 2015 that she could look directly at the sun and not see any light whatsoever. She also experienced "vise-like" headaches, seizures, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), vomiting, and dizziness. Her doctors declared her blindness to be "permanent and medically irreversible."
Dafne's blindness left her unable to care for her three young children, which completely broke the young mothers heart. On January 7, 2016, "so as to not be an additional burden on her family", she was approved for admittance to a nursing home, because "she could not take care of herself or her children, due to her blindness and seizures", and was scheduled o be admitted soon. "What hurt me the most was not being able to see my children again," she said.
. . . Dafne prayed on the way to the church. "Please God heal me — if not for me, then do it for my kids! I'm tiredI'm tired of going to You praying and asking You to heal me...I am giving in. If You don't want to do it for me, then do it for my kids. That is the way I went in [to the Church] I'm giving in to You. Do it for my kids"
Once at the Church she prayed to God, and then to St. Charbel: "I don't know who you are, but please help me."
After Mass celebrated by parish priest Fr. Wissam Akiki, and the veneration of St. Charbel's relics, her sister-in-law helped her to the confessional. Fr. Akiki was told about her blindness and blessed her with holy oil touched to the first-class relic of St. Charbel, praying specifically for her to be cured. "I put my hand on her head, then on both eyes, and I asked God to heal her through the intercession of St. Charbel.” Fr. Wissam told her that he would be praying for her and that he believed her vision would be restored. Dafne said she "felt very strongly that someone was standing next to me on my right side." Afterwards the priest said to Dafne's daughter: "Don't worry, your mom will see again."
. . . In a statement, Doctor Anne Borik, D.O. stated:
"Medically speaking, what is interesting — and what captured my interest in this [case] — is that you don't see resolution of vision in 48 hours from a long standing optic nerve problem such as Dafne had. My job as a medical physician is to try to find out how this happened medically. We discussed this case with a neuro-ophthalmologist, and also an outside consultant reviewed the entire case, and basically there is no [medical] explanation how Dafne Gutierrez's vision was one day completely blind, and then 48 hours later was restored to normal ... And so based on this information, we as a medical community in reviewing this case cannot explain this medically."
. . . Faith and confession" is what Dafne Gutierrez continues to repeat time and time again when asked about her healing. "I was desperate when I walked into St. Joseph Maronite Catholic Church. I felt like God never heard me before, but this time was different, just different. For me to be able to see and read the papers [medical reports] that say that I would never be able to see again... It is such a blessing!"
Thank you dear Lord for your gift of the Communion of Saints. We praise you for your unfathomable love for each of us, and for giving us St. Charbel as an intercessor.
http://www.ncregister.com/blog/pattyknap/arizona-womans-blindness-miraculously-cured-through-st.-charbel
There was a subheading under the title: "Within 48 hours after visiting the relics of St. Charbel, her eyesight was completely restored to 20/20 vision. The remarkable and sudden healing was later confirmed by several physicians."
Several excerpts from the piece:
The joy of a Phoenix parish is spreading along with the news of 30-year-old parishioner Dafne's Gutierrez's complete cure of blindness.
The reported miracle of the wife and mother of three is bringing people from around the country to visit St. Joseph Maronite Catholic church in Phoenix, Arizona.
When she was just 13 years old in 1999, Dafne was officially diagnosed with the medical condition, idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH). One effect of this condition can be another condition called papilledema, where the pressure in the brain is greatly increased. This pressure affects the optic nerves, which in some cases such as Dafne's eventually results in complete blindness.
The various medications and treatments which were tried for Dafne all failed. In 2014 the eyesight in her left eye deteriorated dramatically. Her physicians tried two separate surgeries, installing different types of shunts in an attempt to drain and reduce the pressure in her brain, but these too failed, leading to complete blindness in her left eye. Meanwhile the sight in her right eye was also deteriorating, and she was declared legally blind. She was soon in total darkness, saying in 2015 that she could look directly at the sun and not see any light whatsoever. She also experienced "vise-like" headaches, seizures, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), vomiting, and dizziness. Her doctors declared her blindness to be "permanent and medically irreversible."
Dafne's blindness left her unable to care for her three young children, which completely broke the young mothers heart. On January 7, 2016, "so as to not be an additional burden on her family", she was approved for admittance to a nursing home, because "she could not take care of herself or her children, due to her blindness and seizures", and was scheduled o be admitted soon. "What hurt me the most was not being able to see my children again," she said.
. . . Dafne prayed on the way to the church. "Please God heal me — if not for me, then do it for my kids! I'm tiredI'm tired of going to You praying and asking You to heal me...I am giving in. If You don't want to do it for me, then do it for my kids. That is the way I went in [to the Church] I'm giving in to You. Do it for my kids"
Once at the Church she prayed to God, and then to St. Charbel: "I don't know who you are, but please help me."
After Mass celebrated by parish priest Fr. Wissam Akiki, and the veneration of St. Charbel's relics, her sister-in-law helped her to the confessional. Fr. Akiki was told about her blindness and blessed her with holy oil touched to the first-class relic of St. Charbel, praying specifically for her to be cured. "I put my hand on her head, then on both eyes, and I asked God to heal her through the intercession of St. Charbel.” Fr. Wissam told her that he would be praying for her and that he believed her vision would be restored. Dafne said she "felt very strongly that someone was standing next to me on my right side." Afterwards the priest said to Dafne's daughter: "Don't worry, your mom will see again."
. . . In a statement, Doctor Anne Borik, D.O. stated:
"Medically speaking, what is interesting — and what captured my interest in this [case] — is that you don't see resolution of vision in 48 hours from a long standing optic nerve problem such as Dafne had. My job as a medical physician is to try to find out how this happened medically. We discussed this case with a neuro-ophthalmologist, and also an outside consultant reviewed the entire case, and basically there is no [medical] explanation how Dafne Gutierrez's vision was one day completely blind, and then 48 hours later was restored to normal ... And so based on this information, we as a medical community in reviewing this case cannot explain this medically."
. . . Faith and confession" is what Dafne Gutierrez continues to repeat time and time again when asked about her healing. "I was desperate when I walked into St. Joseph Maronite Catholic Church. I felt like God never heard me before, but this time was different, just different. For me to be able to see and read the papers [medical reports] that say that I would never be able to see again... It is such a blessing!"
Thank you dear Lord for your gift of the Communion of Saints. We praise you for your unfathomable love for each of us, and for giving us St. Charbel as an intercessor.