Reverend Opapo Soana’i Oeti says he plans to to take action in defamation after accusation made against him and his family in a FaceBook blog.
The blog was also published in the Samoa Observer.
Opapo is the father of Toaipuapuaga (Toa), the woman who is said to have received stigmata.
He told the online news source Talamua that up until this point he has been unwilling to take legal action because of his respect for the church.
Bu now he says the challenge by the “faceless person” behind a message “has gone beyond the extreme”.
He wants that the author to prove in court the accusations he made in his blog.
This week Toa will be returning to Samoa after six months in Rome.
While in Rome she gave birth to a baby.
Nothing is known this stage about the Roman authorities reaction to her claim to have received stigmata.
There have been many reported claims of stigmata throughout the years, and though the Church does recognise stigmata as miraculous, there are certain conditions that must first be recognised in order for the Church to declare a true stigmatic.
One commentator, Dr. Nicola Silvestri, says the following conditions must be fulfilled:
The wounds must all appear at the same time; they must cause considerable modification of the tissues; they must remain unaltered despite medical treatment; they must cause hemorrhages; and they must not result in infections or suppuration, or in instant and perfect healing.
80 stigmata have been validly documented. Although the Catholic Church recognises the phenomenon, it does not oblige theCatholics to believe in it as a dogmatic or doctrinal fact.
Sources
- talamua.com
- zenit.org
- Image: niufm.com
