church approved apparitions

2

History of Marian Apparitions ........................................................................... 3

Vatican Approved Apparitions ........................................................................... 4

Our Lady of Guadalupe (1531) ........................................................................................4

Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (1830) ..................................................................... 12

Our Lady of Lourdes (1858) .......................................................................................... 17

Our Lady of Hope (1871) .............................................................................................. 20

Our Lady of Knock (1879) ............................................................................................ 22

Our Lady of Fatima (1917) ............................................................................................ 25

The Virgin with the Golden Heart (1932) ...................................................................... 33

Bishop Approved Apparitions ............................................................................36

Our Lady of Good Help (1859) ...................................................................................... 36

Our Lady of All Nations (1945) ..................................................................................... 39

Our Lady of Akita (1973) .............................................................................................. 42

Our Lady of Cuapa (1980) ............................................................................................. 48

Coptic Approved Apparitions ............................................................................51

Our Lady of Light (1968) .............................................................................................. 51

Our Lady of Assiut (2000) ............................................................................................. 53

Traditionally Approved Apparitions .................................................................54

Our Lady of La Vang (1798) ......................................................................................... 54

Our Lady of China (1900).............................................................................................. 58

Other Apparitions ...............................................................................................61

Our Lady of Soufanieh (1982) ....................................................................................... 61

Apparitions Awaiting Approvement ..................................................................62

Our Lady of Medjugorje (1981) ..................................................................................... 62

Stigmatist Katia Rivas ................................................................................................... 63

Additional Information.......................................................................................64

3

History of Marian Apparitions

Throughout history, there have been innumerable reports of the appearance of the Blessed Virgin

Mary. These apparitions have come in many forms and have been witnessed by a wide variety of

people: men and women, children and adults, Christian saints and atheists. People from all

corners of the globe have made claims to have experienced the presence of the Mother of God in

their midst.

The earliest known claim was from St. James the Greater who saw the Virgin Mary while he was

in preaching on the banks of the Ebro River in Saragossa, Spain in 40 A.D. Today, apparition

reports occur more frequently. Some scholars estimate the total number of apparition claims

throughout history to be approximately 2,500 (with about 500 of those coming in the 20th

century alone.) According to the Dictionary of Apparitions of the Virgin Mary, throughout

history 308 apparitions are attributed to Saints or Blesseds. They are generally unofficially

recognized by Church authorities (or or at least the orders and congregations that they have

founded or belonged to). Although not officially approved by the Roman Catholic Church,

visionaries in Medjugorje, Bosnia-Herzegovina and elsewhere currently distribute messages

attributed to the Blessed Virgin.

The most famous apparitions have been those reported in Guadalupe, Mexico (1531), Rue du

Bac, France (1830), Lourdes, France (1858), Fatima, Portugal (1917), and Medjugorje, Bosnia-

Herzegovina (1984).

The most recently Vatican approved apparitions are those from Le Laus, France (1664) which

were approved in 2008. The most recently occurring apparitions with full Vatican approval are

those from Kibeho, Rwanda which ended in 1989. The 1859 Robinsonville, WI, USA

apparitions which were declared authentic on December 8, 2010 are the most recently

episcopally approved apparitions. The United States had never had an episcopally approved

apparition previously.

The Catholic Church has been very cautious to approve purported miraculous events. In fact, in

the 20th Century, of the hundreds of public claims, there have been only 8 with episcopal

approval (4 of those with Vatican approval) and a handful of others that have not received

official approval but have been approved for faith expression at the site. A total of 15 apparitions

throughout history have been investigated and have received episcopal approval. Additionally,

there have been four Egyptian apparitions approved by the Coptic Orthodox Church in the last

50 years. The list of rejected claims continues to grow.

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Vatican Approved Apparitions

Our Lady of Guadalupe (1531)

Location: Guadalupe, Mexico

First Apparition: Dec 9, 1531

Last Apparition: Dec 12, 1531

Investigated: 1666, 1723

Approved: 1555 by Archbishop Alonso de Montúfar

Visionaries: St. Juan Diego (57), Juan Bernardino

Number of Apparitions: 5

Miracles & Signs: Tilma of Juan Diego with imprint of image of Virgin; conversion of millions

of Indians.

Summary: Mary proclaimed herself "the Mother of the true God who gives life" and left her

image permanently upon the tilma of Juan Diego, a recent convert to Christianity.

Timeline

1474 Quauhtlatoatzin (Juan Diego) is born in Cuautitlan.

1476 Juan de Zumarraga was born in Spain.

1492 Christopher Columbus lands on an island in the Americas and named it San

Salvador.

1514 The first Marian Shrine in the New World is established in the city of Higuey.

1519 Hernan Cortez lands in Mexico

1521 The capital city of the Aztecs falls under Cortez

1524 The first 12 Franciscans arrive in Mexico City

1525 Quauhtlatoatzin is baptized by a Franciscan priest and receives the Christian

name of Juan Diego

1528 Friar Juan de Zumarraga arrives in the New World

1529 Juan Diego’s wife, Maria, dies

Dec 9, 1531 The Virgin appears to Juan Diego on top of mount Tepeyacac speaking to him in

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Nahuatl, his native tongue. She called him “Xocoyte,” her little son. She requests

that he petition the bishop of Mexico that a “teocalli,” a sacred little house, be

built on the spot. Juan Diego, calling her her “Xocoyata,” his littlest daughter,

agrees to comply with her mandate and meets with the Bishop who listens to the

message but does not believe his words. On his return he encounters the Virgin

again who insists that he return to the Bishop with the same message the next

day.

Dec 10, 1531

Juan does not return to the bishop the next day because his uncle Juan

Bernardino takes ill and requests Juan Diego to find a priest for his final

confession.

Dec 11, 1531

Juan goes from his home to Tlatilolco to summon a priest and despite trying to

avoid her, encounters along the way the Virgin who promises that his uncle will

be cured. She urges him to climb to the top of the hilltop and gather the roses

growing there in December as the sign for the Bishop to believe. When the

Bishop finally received him, Juan unfurled his tilma and revealed the image of

the Virgin miraculously painted there.

Dec 12, 1531

Juan Diego shows the Bishop the location of the apparition on which the church

was to be built. He then returned to his uncle who was cured of his illness and

had an experienced a visitation from the Virgin himself.

Dec 24, 1531

Bishop Zumarraga writes a letter to Cortez stating: "I want to dedicate my

cathedral to the Immaculate Conception because it was during that feast that God

and his Blessed Mother deigned to shower the land you won with great favor."

1533

The first sanctuary is erected at the request of the Virgin. With the Bishop's

permission, Juan Diego lived the rest of his life as a hermit in a small hut near the

chapel where the miraculous image was placed for veneration. Here he cared for

the church and the first pilgrims who came to pray to the Virgin.

1541 Franciscan priest and early historian of New Spain “Motolinia” writes that some

nine million Aztecs had become Christians

1548 Bishop Juan de Zumarraga dies.

May 30, 1548 Juan Diego dies and is buried in the first chapel dedicated to the Virgin of

Guadalupe.

1548

The Codex 1548 is discovered in a private collection. It commemorates the death

of Juan Diego in 1548 and provides the earliest illustration of him and the earliest

reference to his birth name, Cuauhtlatoatzin. It is signed by Antonio Valeriano

and Bernardindo de Sahagun.

1555 In the Provincial Counsel, the second archbishop of Mexico, Alonso de

Montúfar, formulates canons that indirectly approved the apparitions.

1556 Archbishop Montúfar begins the erection of the second church

1561 The Valeriano Relation (the Nican Mopohua) is written by an Indian named

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Antonio Valeriano between 1551 and 1561.

1564 An image is carried on the first formal expedition to the Philippine Islands

1567 The new church ordered by Archbishop Montufar is completed.

1570 Archbishop Montufar sends an oil painted copy of the image of Guadalupe to

King Philip II of Spain

1571

Admiral Doria carries a copy of the image aboard ship during the battle of

Lepanto and attributes the victory over the Ottoman Empire to the Virgin of

Guadalupe

1573

The “Primitive Relation” is written by the historian Juan de Tovar, who

transcribed the story from a still earlier source, probably Juan Gonzalez,

Bishop’s Zumarraga’s translator.

1647 The image is covered with glass for the first time.

1648 The priest Miguel Sanchez publishes “Image of the Virgin Mary, Guadalupan

Mother of God” in Mexico City

1649 Luis Lasso de la Vega publishes the “Huey Tlanahuicoltica”, telling the story in

Nahuatl. It refers to earlier Nahuatl sources.

1666

A formal inquiry and investigation, named Informaciones Guadalupana, is

conducted by the Church from February 18 to March 22. Juan Diego was called a

"holy man".

1695 The first stone of the new sanctuary is laid..

1709 The new sanctuary is solemnly dedicated

1723 Another formal investigation is ordered by Archbishop Lanziego y Eguilaz

1737 The Most Holy Mary of Guadalupe is chosen as the patroness of the city of

Mexico

1746 The patronage of Our Lady of Guadalupe is accepted for all of New Spain

(California to El Salvador)

1746 The knight Boturini Benaducci promotes the solemn and official coronation of

the image

1754 Benedict XIV approves the patronage of New Spain and granted a Mass and

Office proper to the celebration of the feast on December 12

1756 Painter Miguel Cabrera publishes his extensive study of the Image in the book

“American Marvel”

1757 The Virgin of Guadalupe is declared patroness of the citizens of Ciudad Ponce in

Puerto Rico

1767 The religious of the Society of Jesus are expelled from the Spanish dominions,

and the image is carried to various parts of the world

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1895 The coronation of the image is performed, with pontifical authority and the a

great part of the episcopate of the Americas in attendance

1910 Pius X declares the Virgin of Guadalupe Patroness of Latin America

1911 A church is built on the site of Juan Bernardino’s home

1921 A bomb placed beneath the image explodes but the tilma survives

1924

A very important 16th century source documenting the miracle is found in

Tetlapalco, Peru in 1924 by anthropologist M.H. Saville. It is a pictorial calendar

known as the Codex Saville-Tetlapalco and shows the image of our Lady located

in the position representing the year 1531

1928 A coronation of the image was made in Santa Fe, Argentina

1929 First documented note of an apparent reflected image of a man’s head in the right

eye of the Virgin, by photographer Alfonso Marcue

1935 Pius XI extended the patronage of the Virgin of Guadalupe to the Philippines

1945

Pius XII states that the Virgin of Guadalupe was the “Queen of Mexico and

Empress of the Americas” and that she had been painted “by brushes that were

not of this world”

1946 Pope Pius XII declares her to be the Patroness of the Americas

1951 Carlos Salinas examines the tilma and observes the apparent reflection of a

man’s head in the right eye of the Virgin

1956 Dr. Torroela-Bueno, an ophthalmologist, examines the eyes of the Virgin on the

tilma

1958 Dr. Rafael Torija-Lavoignet publishes his study of the Purkinje-Sanson effect as

exhibited in the Guadalupan image

1961 Pope John XXIII prays to her as Mother of the Americas. He addresses her as

Mother and Teacher of the Faith to the peoples of the Americas

1962

Dr. Charles Wahlig, O.D. announces the discovery of two images apparently

reflected in the eyes of the Virgin when studying a photograph enlarged twenty

five times

1966 Pope Paul VI sends a Golden Rose to the Basilica

1975 Glass is removed so the image could be examined by another ophthalmologist,

Dr. Enrique Grave

1976 The New Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, located four miles from central

Mexico City, is dedicated

1979 Dr. Philip Callahan takes 40 frames of infra-red photographs of the image. Later

concluded that the original image is unexplainable as a human work

1979 Pope John Paul II called her the “Star of Evangelization”, knelt before her image,

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invoked her motherly assistance and called upon her as Mother of the Americas

1979

Dr. Jose Aste-Tonsmann announces the finding of at least four human figures

apparently reflected in both eyes of the Virgin. Dr. Tosmann used sophisticated

image processing techniques with digitized photographs of both eyes.

1987 The Congregation for the Causes of Saints declares Juan Diego venerable

1988 The liturgical celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12 is raised to

the status of a feast in all dioceses in the United States

May 6, 1990

Juan Diego is beatified on 6 May 1990 by Pope John Paul II in the Basilica of

Santa Maria de Guadalupe, Mexico City. The Pope declares Dec. 9 the feast of

Juan Diego and invokes him as “protector and advocate of the indigenous

peoples.”

1992 Pope John Paul II dedicates a chapel in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe in St.

Peter’s Basilica

1995

The Codex 1548 is discovered in a private collection. it commemorates the death

of Juan Diego in 1548 and provides the earliest illustration of him and the earliest

reference to his birth name, Cuauhtlatoatzin. It is signed by Antonio Valeriano

and Bernardindo de Sahagun.

1996

Controversy over the historical authenticity of Juan Diego is stirred in 1996 by

Father William Schulenburg, a longtime abbot of the Basilica of Our Lady of

Guadalupe, who calls Juan Diego a "mythical

character".

Oct. 28, 1998

The Vatican subsequently established a commission of 30 researchers from

various countries to investigate the question of the historical authenticity of Juan

Diego. The commission successfully proved that Juan Diego had indeed existed,

and the results of their research were presented to the Vatican Congregation for

the Causes of Saints. Among research documents submitted at that time were 27

Guadalupe Indian documents. One called the “Escalada,” co-authored by

Valeriano and Franciscan Friar Bernardino de Sahagun, contained a death

certificate of Juan Diego.

1999 Pope John Paul II, during his third visit to the sanctuary, declares the date of

December the 12th as a Liturgical Holy Day for the whole continent

July 31, 2002 Juan Diego is canonized by Pope John Paul II in Mexico City

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The tilma was made from cactus fibres and as such should have

turned into dust after approximately twenty years. Instead it has

survived and been on diplay to the faithful for nearly 500 years

despite being exposed to the smoke of candles throughout the

centuries. Infrared spectroscopy has confirmed the integrity of the

image.

The image on the tilma is composed of pigments that have not been

identified by chemical analysis as being the product of animal,

vegetable, or mineral dye. No undersketch has been identified below

the painting.

Symbolism

The 470-year-old image of Our Lady of Guadalupe is more than simply a picture. It contains

symbols -- in a sense, hieroglyphics, or a story in pictures -- that reveal part of the message the

Blessed Mother brought through Juan Diego to the Indians of Mexico and to all the people of the

Americas. But the symbols had a special meaning to the Indians, who because of their culture

could decipher the code in the Image.

1. Eyes

The eyes of the image are looking down, a postion of humility,

revealing that, as great as she is, she is not a god. Indian gods

never looked down; they looked straight ahead.

2. Face

The woman's face shows great compassion. The Indians felt

that the face was the window of the inner person, a means by

which one could read who a person was -- the way a person

would act. A good woman to the Indians was one whose

femininity showed in her face. The head of the woman in the

image shows her with dark skin and dark hair like that of the

Indians.

3. Hands Her hands are not poised in the traditional Western style of

prayer, but in an Indian manner of offering, indicating that

something is being offered, that something is to come from her.

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4. Maternity Band

The maternity band around the woman's waist was the sign of a

pregnant woman, a mother who is about to give birth, it was a

sign to the Indians that someone is yet to come.

5. Stars The stars on the mantle are a sign that a new civilization, or era,

is beginning. The Indian tradition recognized the end and the

beginning of different eras throughout the ages, and the

destruction of a particular civilization or era was always

accompanied by a comet, or a body of stars.

6. Sun Rays

The rays of sun in the image recalled for the Indians that the sun

played a key role in their civilization. But the woman in the

image is greater than even the sun. She hides the sun, and only

the rays come forth. She hides the sun but does not extinguish

it.

7. Mantle

The predominant color in the image's mantle is turquoise, the

blue-green color reserved for the great god Omecihuatl.

Although the Indians had many "intermediary gods."

Omecihuatl was considered the supreme god. It was a mother-

father god who sometimes was represented as a man and

sometimes as a woman. It was a source of unity for everything

that exists.

8. Moon The woman is standing on the moon, indicating that she is

greater than the god of night, the moon god.

9. Angel The angel at the bottom of the image was seen by the Indians as

an "intermediary god" carrying in a new era, the beginning of a

new civilization. One era was at an end -- had died -- and a new

one was beginning, was being born.

Visionary

St. Juan Diego was born in 1474 with the name "Cuauhtlatoatzin" ("the talking eagle") in

Cuautlitlán, today part of Mexico City, Mexico. He was a gifted member of the Chichimeca

people, one of the more culturally advanced groups living in the Anáhuac Valley.

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When he was 50 years old he was baptized by a Franciscan priest, Fr Peter da Gand, one of the

first Franciscan missionaries. On 9 December 1531, the Blessed Mother appeared to him on

Tepeyac Hill, the outskirts of what is now Mexico City.

With the Bishop's permission, Juan Diego lived the rest of his life as a hermit in a small hut near

the chapel where the miraculous image was placed for veneration. Here he cared for the church

and the first pilgrims who came to pray to the Mother of Jesus.

Church Approval

In 1555 In the Provincial Counsel, the second archbishop of Mexico, Alonso de Montúfar,

formulated canons that indirectly approved the apparitions. A formal inquiry and investigation

was conducted by the Church from February 18 to March 22, 1666 and again by Archbishop

Lanziegoy Eguilaz in 1723.

Juan Diego was canonized by Pope John Paul II on July 31, 2002.

The Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe is December 12th.

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Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (1830)

Location: Rue du Bac, Paris, France

First Apparition: July 18, 1830

Last Apparition: Nov 27, 1830

Investigated: 1836

Approved: 1836 by Archbishop de Quelen of

Paris

Visionaries: St. Catherine Laboure (24)


Miracles & Signs: Miraculous Medal; Prediction of Paris Revolution (1871); incorruptible body

of Catherine Laboure.

Summary: In the chapel of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, Mary showed

herself three times to novice Catherine Laboure. Laboure said she was commissioned by the

Virgin to have the medal of the Immaculate Conception or "Miraculous Medal" made in order to

spread devotion to Our Lady.

Timeline

May 2, 1806 Catherine Laboure is born at Fain-les-Moûtiers (near Dijon), Côte d'Or, France.

She was baptized Zoë Labouré, daughter of a yeoman farmer.

1815 Catherine's mother dies. Her elder sister, Louisa, joins the Sisters of Charity.

1824 Catherine attends finishing school in Paris despite feeling a call to the religious

life.

Jan 1830 Admitted to the Sisters of Charity at Châtillon-sur-Seine

April 1830

Sent to the Novitiate; After her postulancy, she went to a convent in the rue du

Bac, Paris. She arrived several days before the translation of relics of Saint

Vincent from Notre Dame to the Lazarist Church in rue de Sèvres. Starts to see

visions of St. Vincent de Paul and Jesus.

July 18, 1830

First Apparition of Mary. She was awakened about 11:30 p.m. on July 18 by a

"shining child," who led her to the chapel. Our Lady appeared and talked with

her for hours, telling her that she would have to undertake a difficult task.

Nov 30, 1830 Second Apparition of Mary. Mary appeared in the same chapel in the form of a

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picture, standing on a globe, with shafts of light streaming from her hands,

surrounded by the words "O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have

recourse to thee!" The picture turned around, and on the reverse side appeared a

capital M with a cross above it and two hearts, one thorn-crowned and one

pierced with a sword, beneath. Catherine heard a voice asking her to have a

medal struck, promising that all who wore the medal would receive great

graces.Thus the design for Miraculous Medal revealed

May 1831

Catherine confided in her confessor, Father Aladel, and he, convinced of her

sincerity, persuaded Archbishop de Quélen of Paris to give permission for a

medal to be struck.

1832

After her year of extraordinary grace, Catherine was sent to the convent Enghien-

Reuilly on the outskirts of Paris. There Catherine served as portress until her

death, engaging in menial tasks such as looking after the poultry and overseeing

the aged living in the Hospice d'Enghien.

June 1832 The first 1,500 of the millions of medals to be made-now known to Catholics as

the 'Miraculous Medal'-were struck.

1832 &1833 50 thousand medals given out

1836

The archbishop initiated an official canonical inquiry into the alleged visions.

Catherine refused to appear, wishing her identity to be kept a secret. Fr. Aladel

pleaded to be allowed to keep her name anonymous. The tribunal, basing its

opinion on the stability of her confessor and Catherine's character, decided to

favor the authenticity of the visions.

Approved as authentic by Archbishop de Quelen of Paris.

1842

The popularity of the medal grew, especially after the conversion of Alphonse

Ratisbonne in 1842. Alphonse was an Alsatian Jew who, having been persuaded

to wear the medal received a vision of Our Lady in the church of Sant'Andrea

delle Frate at Rome, became a priest, and founded the religious congregation

known as the Fathers and Sisters of Zion.

1876

Not until a few months before her death did she speak to anyone about the

visions except her confessor; Catherine reveals her identity as the visionary and

encourages construction of “Virgin of the Globe” statue. She confided in her

superior, Sister Dufé.

Dec 31, 1876 Catherine dies. Her incorrupt body remains in the convent chapel at the rue du

Bac, where miracles were reported at her tomb.

1933 Catherine is Beatified

1947 Catherine is Canonized

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Description of the Virgin

"The Virgin was standing. She was of medium height, and clothed in all white.

Her dress was of the whiteness of dawn, made in the style called a la Vierge, that

is, high neck and plain sleeves. A white veil covered her head and and fell on

either side of her feet. Under the veil her hair, in coils, was bound with a fillet

ornamented with lace, about three centimeters in height or of two fingers' breadth,

without pleats, and resting lightly on the hair. Her face was sufficiently exposed,

indeed exposed very well, and so beautiful that it seems to me impossible to

express her ravishing beauty."

Messages

FIRST APPARITION - July 18, 1830

"My child, the good God wishes to charge you with a mission. You will have much to suffer, but

you will rise above these sufferings by refelcting that what you do is for the glory of God. You

will know what the good God wants. You will be tormented until you have told him who is in

charge with directing you. You will be contradicted, but do not fear, you will have grace. Tell

with confidence all that passes within you. Tell it with simplicity. Have confidence. Do not be

afraid. "

"There will be bad times to come. Misfortunes will come crashing down on France. The throne

will be toppled. The whole world will be turned upside-down by misfortunes of all kinds [...] But

come to the foot of this altar. There, graces will be poured out on all those, small, or great, who

ask for them with confidence and fervour. Graces will be poured out especially [on those who

ask for them. Grave troubles are coming. There will be great danger, for this, the novitiate and

other communities. At one moment when the danger is acute, everyone will believe all to be lost;

you will recall my visit and [the novitiate] will have the protection of God. But it will not be the

same for other communities."

"There will be victims [...] There will be victims among the clergy of Paris; Monsignor the

Archbishop will die [...] My child, the Cross will be held in contempt. It will be thrown to the

ground and trampled. Blood will flow. Our Saviour's side will be opened anew. The streets will

run with blood. Monsignor the Archbishop will be stripped of his vestments ...My child, the

whole world will be plunged into gloom."

"My eyes will ever be upon you. I shall grant you graces. Special graces will be given to all who

ask them, but people must pray."

"The ball which you see represents the whole world, especially France, and each person in

particular. These rays symbolise the graces I shed upon those who ask for them. The gems from

which rays do not fall are the graces for which souls forget to ask."

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SECOND APPARITION- November 27, 1830

"Have a Medal struck after this model. All who wear it will receive great graces; they should

wear it around the neck. Graces will abound for persons who wear it with confidence."

Prophecies

By 1870, forty years after the first apparition, all the prophecies given at the time were fulfilled:

“There will be bad times to come. Misfortunes will come crashing down on France. The throne

will be overturned.”

The" throne” of King Charles X was “overturned” in the end of the year 1830;

"The Cross will be treated with contempt, they will hurl it to the ground and trample it. Blood

will flow. The streets will run with blood."

Riots broke out all over Paris and Churches were desecrated.

“There will be victims among the clergy of Paris; Monsignor the Archbishop will die.”

The Archbishop Msgr. Darboy (1871) and two subsequent of Paris were murdered during this

period.

“Monseigneur the Archbishop will be stripped of his garments.”

The Archbishop was beaten and stripped of his clothes.

“There will be great danger, for this, the [novitiate] and other communities. At one moment

when the danger is acute, everyone will believe all to be lost ; you will recall my visit and the

[novitiate] will have the protection of God. But it will not be the same for other communities.”

Some of the buildings housing religious communities were burned down; although threatened by

angry crowds, the building housing the Sisters of Charity at the Rue du Bac went unharmed.

Miracles

Her incorrupt body remains in the convent chapel at the rue du Bac, where miracles were

reported at her tomb.

16

Church Approval

In 1836, the Archbishop de Quelen of Paris initiated an official canonical inquiry into the alleged

visions. Catherine refused to appear, wishing her identity to be kept a secret. Fr. Aladel pleaded

to be allowed to keep her name anonymous. The tribunal, basing its opinion on the stability of

her confessor and Catherine's character, decided to favor the authenticity of the visions.The

apparitions were approved as authentic by the Archbishop.

The Feast Day fo St. Catherine Laboure is celebrated on December 31.

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Our Lady of Lourdes (1858)

Location: Lourdes, France

First Apparition: Feb 11, 1858

Last Apparition: July 16, 1858

Investigated: 1858

Approved: Jan 18, 1862 by Bertrand Severe Laurence,

Bishop of Tarbes

Visionaries: St. Bernadette Soubirous (14)


Miracles & Signs: Healings, Conversions, Incorruptible

body of St. Bernadette.

Summary: At the Grotto of Massabielle, the Virgin

showed herself 18 times to Bernadette Soubirous. Under

the title "the Immaculate Conception," she called for penance and prayer for the conversion of

sinners.

Timeline

Jan 7, 1844

Bernadette Soubirous is born the first of four children in a financially ruined

family from a small town in the Pyrenees mountains in France. She was the

eldest of six children of Francis Soubirous and Louise Caserot.

Feb 11, 1858

Bernadette first encounters Our Lady in a golden cloud and prays a Rosary in

her presence at the grotto. Her sister Marie told their mother all about the

incident and her mother forbade Bernadette from returning to the grotto.

Feb 14, 1858

Bernadette and her sisters finally persuade her mother to let her return to the

grotto. She encounters the Virgin again but the commotion the other children

cause makes her mother inclined not to let her return

Feb 18, 1858

Two influential ladies, Madame Milhet and her seamstress, Antoinette Peyret,

request a visit to the grotto with Bernadette in order to obtain the name of the

appearing woman. Our Lady asked her to come another 15 times and

promised her happiness not in this world but the next.

Feb 19, 1858 Bernadette's mother accompanies her to the grotto.

Feb 20, 1858 The Lady teaches Bernadette a secret prayer which she recited the rest of her

life.

18

Feb 21, 1858

Bernadette is accompanied by large crowds and in particular, Dr. Pierre-

Romaine Dozous, the town's most eminent doctor. He evaluates her

conditions and announces that there is no indication of "nervous excitement".

Feb 22, 1858

Despite being told she was imagining everything by the imperial procurator

and being called a liar by the police who threatened to imprison her,

Bernadette shows up at the grotto but does not encounter Our Lady.

Feb 23, 1858 Our Lady appears to Bernadette and gives her "three wonderful secrets"

which have never been revealed.

Feb 24, 1858 Our Lady stresses "Penitence" at the next apperance.

Feb 25, 1858

Bernadette is commanded to bathe in and drink from the fountain. Since there

was no fountain there, Bernadette digs up some gravel and reveals a pond

which she then drinks from and washes her face. This stream instantly

becomes a source of healing for visitors to the grotto.

Feb 26, 1858 Bernadette is asked to "kiss the ground on behalf of sinners".

Feb 27, 1858 Bernadette is asked to tell the clergy that they should build a chapel at the

grotto.

Mar 1, 1858 Bernadette is told that the people should come in procession to the chapel.

Mar 4, 1858

Twenty-thousand people gather at the apparition site. No sign is performed

despite the request of the parish priest, Abbe Peyramale, to have a rosebush

bloom in winter.

Mar 25, 1858 On the Feast of the Annunciation, Our Lady identifies herself: "Que soy era

Immaculado Conceptiou" ("I am the Immaculate Conception")

Apr 7, 1858 Dr. Dozous observes Bernadette putting her hand through the flame of a

candle without feeling pain or getting burned during ecstacy.

Jul 16, 1858 Bernadette receives a final invitation to meet the Lady at the Grotto.

July 4, 1858 Bernadette sees the Lady for the final (18th) time.

1858 Bernadette goes to study at a hospice run by the Sisters of Nevers.

July 18, 1858 An investigative commission is established.

Jan 18, 1862 The Bishop of the Diocese of Tarbes declares the apparitions to be authentic.

July 4, 1866

Bernadette leaves Lourdes for the final time to join the Sisters of Nevers. She

is given the name of Sister Mary Bernard and worked there as sacristan and

avoided publicity as best she could. She referred to herself as "a broom which

Our Lady used, but now I have been put back in my corner."

1876 The Basilica at Lourdes was consecrated.

April 16, 1879 Bernadette dies at age 35 and is buried in St. Gildard Convent in Nevers.

1890 The liturgical feast of Our Lady of Lourdes was established for February 11

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approved by Pope Leo XIII and first granted to the Diocese of Tarbes in the

year

Nov 13, 1907 Pope St. Pius X proclaimed that it be observed throughout the universal

Church.

1925 Her body is exhumed and found to be incorrupt. She was beatified in 1925 by

Pope Pius X

Dec 8, 1933 Bernadette is canonized a saint by Pope Pius X on the Feast of the

Immaculate Conception.

Sept 12-15, 2008 Pope Benedict XVI makes a pilgrimage to the Lourdes for the 150th

Anniversary of the apparitions.


"She has the appearance of a young girl of sixteen or seventeen. She is dressed in a white robe,

girdled at the waist with a blue ribbon, which flows down all along her robe. She wears upon her

head a veil which is also white; this veil gives just a glimpse of her hair then falls down at the

back below her below her waist. Her feet are bare but covered by the last folds of her robe except

at the point where a yellow rose shines upon each of them. She holds on her right arm a Rosary

of white beads with a chain of gold shining like the two roses on her feet."

Miracles and Signs (Additional Information)

In 1859, Professor Vergez of the Faculty of Medicine at Montpellier was appointed to examine

the cures. Seven cures were recorded before 1862 promoting the argument for the recognition of

the Apparitions by Bishop Laurence. Over 5,000 cures have been documented at the waters of

Lourdes. The Church has vigorously investigated and validated 67 of them.

For additional information see “Lourdes Cures” in the “Documents” folder

Approval

After a 4 year investigation commission, the bishop of the Diocese of Tarbes declared on January

18, 1962: " We judge that Mary Immaculate, Mother of God, really appeared to Bernadette

Soubirous on February 11, 1858, and on subsequent days, eighteen times in all. The faithful are

justified in believing this to be certain."

http://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/approved_apparitions/lourdes/BXVI_homily_20080914.html

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Our Lady of Hope (1871)

Location: Pontmain, France

First Apparition: Jan 17, 1871

Last Apparition: Jan 17, 1871

Investigated: 1875

Approved: Feb 1875 Bishop Laval

Visionaries: Eugene Barbadette (12), Francoise

Richer (11), Jeanne-Marie Lebosse (9), Eugene

Friteau (6)


Miracles & Signs: Prussian army halts advances after

soldiers see Virgin in the sky.

Summary: During the devastation of the Franco-Prussian War, Mary appeared on a farm to

students at the nearby convent school. Mary's message was written on a banner that unfurled

from her feet: "But pray my children. God will hear you in a short time. My Son allows Himself

to be moved by compassion."

Timeline

Nov 7, 1871

Eugene Barbedette (12) encounters a beautiful lady suspended in air above a

neighboring house. The nearby adults could not see anything but when Francoise

Richer (11) , Jeanne-Marie Lebosse (9), Eugene Friteau (6) all claim to see the

woman, a nun in the crowd, Sister Marie Edouard, leads everyone in prayer.

Nov 7, 1871 The Prussians halt their advance across France when the Prussian commander

encounters an "invisible Madonna barring the way"

Nov 18, 1871 A peace treaty is signed between France and Prussia.

Feb 2, 1872

Mgr Casimir Wicart, Bishop of Laval, declares: "We judge that the Immaculate

Mary, Mother of God, has truly appeared on January 17th, 1871, to Eugene

Barbedette, Joseph Barbedette, Francoise Richer, and Jeanne-Marie Lebosse, in

the hamlet of Pontmain."

Pope Pius XI later confirmed the decision of the Episcopal court and granted a

Mass and Office proper to our Lady of Hope of Pontmain.

21

July 16, 1932

Cardinal Pacelli, who later became Pope Pius XII, passes a decree from the

Chapter of St. Peter's Basilica that the statue of the Mother of Hope be solemnly

honored with a crown of gold.

July 24, 1934 The statue of Our Lady is crowned in the presence of archbishop, bishops, priests

and the laity by Cardinal Verdier, Archbishop of Paris

Miracles and Signs (Additional Information

At 5:30 on the night of the apparition to the children, the Prussian army halted their advance

through France when the Prussian commander claimed to have seen an image of the Lady in the

sky. General Schmidt reported: "We cannot go any further. Yonder, in the direction of Brittany,

there is an invisible Madonna barring the way." A peace treaty between France and Prussia was

signed eleven days later. All the soldiers from Pontmain returned unharmed.

Approval of the Church

Mgr Casimir Wicart, Bishop of Laval, immediately requested a detailed inquiry after the events

occurred and came personally to Pontmain to question people. Other investigations and

questioning took place subsequently, but on February 2nd 1872, by means of a very definite

canonical act, the Bishop gave his decision. He recognised the authenticity of the apparition,

approved the cult of our Lady of Hope of Pontmain and called for the building of a sanctuary.

IHe declared: "We judge that the Immaculate Mary, Mother of God, has truly appeared on

January 17th, 1871, to Eugene Barbedette, Joseph Barbedette, Francoise Richer, and Jeanne-

Marie Lebosse, in the hamlet of Pontmain."

Pope Pius XI gave a final decision regarding the mass and office in honor of Our Lady of Hope

of Pont-Main.

22

Our Lady of Knock (1879)

Location: Knock, Ireland

First Apparition: August 21, 1879

Last Apparition: August 21, 1879


Approved: In 1936 Archbishop of Tuam, Dr.

Gilmartin's investigative commission returns a

positive verdict.

Visionaries: 18


Miracles & Signs: 300+ miraculous cures

Summary: During a pouring rain, the figures of Mary, Joseph, John the Apostle and a lamb on a

plain altar appeared over the gable of the village chapel, enveloped in a bright light. None of

them spoke. At least 15 people, between the ages of 5 and 75, saw the apparition.

Timeline

Aug 21, 1879 18 witnesses experienced the silent apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St.

Joseph, and St. John the Evangelist.

1879 Archbishop of Tuam, Dr. John MacHale, appoints an investigative commission to

study the phenomenon. No findings were published.

1936 Archbishop of Tuam, Dr. Gilmartin, institutes a new investigative commission

which returned with a positive verdict.

Sept 30,

1979

Pope John Paul II visits the shrine for the 100th anniversary of the apparitions.

Over 450,000 people came to Knock on that day.


According to visionary Mary Beirne:

"The Virgin stood erect, with eyes raised to heaven , her hands elevated to the shoulders or a

little higher. the palms inclined slightly toward her shoulders or bosom; she wore a large cloak of

a white color, hanging in full folds and somewhat loosely around her shoulders and fastened to

23

the neck; she wore a crown on the head- a rather large crown- and it appeared to be somewhat

yellower than the dress or robes worn by Our Blessed Lady."

Visionaries

There were 15 official eye- witnesses (three men, six women, two teenage boys and a girl, and

two children) to the heavenly display, including:

Patrick Hill, 11

Mary McLoughlin, 45- Archbishop Cavanagh's housekeeper

Mary Byrne, 29 - daughter of Margaret Byrne

Patrick Walsh, 65

Patrick Byrne, 16

Mrs. Margaret Byrne, 68 - widow, friend of Mary McLoughlin

Dominick Byrne, Junior, 19 - son of Margaret Byrne

Mrs. Hugh Flatley, 44

Bridget Trench, 75

Catherine Murray, 8 - niece of Margaret Byrne

John Curry, 5

Judith Campbell, 22

Margaret Byrne, 21

Dominick Byrne, Senior, 36 - husband of Margaret Byrne

John Durkan, 24

Miracles and Signs

The place of the apparitions in Knock became a center for pilgrimage, now receiving a million

visitors per year. Over three hundred miraculous cures have been reported there, including the

cure of two blind men shortly after the apparition.

Church Approval

Two commissions of enquiry (1879 and 1936) were established. A Commission was set up

within six weeks of the Apparition by Most Rev. Dr. John MacHale, Archbishop. Fifteen

witnesses were examined and the Commission reported that their evidence was 'trustworthy and

satisfactory'. The Report was published in the newspapers and immediately pilgrims began to

flock from all parts of the country and overseas. The sick and disabled were taken along in great

numbers and hundreds of cures were reported in the public press of that time.

In 1936 All three surviving witnesses confirmed their original statements of 1879. They

confirmed the evidence they had given in 1879. One of the witnesses was Mary O'Connell (nee

Mary Byrne). She confirmed her evidence, on her death-bed, under oath and added, 'I am

perfectly clear about everything I have said and I make this statement knowing I am about to go

before my God'. She died six weeks later. The verdict of the Commission determined that the

"testimony of each of the fifteen official witnesses to the apparition was trustworthy and

satisfactory"

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OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM PATRICK HILL- VISIONARY FROM KNOCK

Patrick Hill was the first of the fifteen witnesses to give his deposition before the official

Commission which was set up by the Archbishop of Tuam six weeks after the Apparition.

"I remember the 21st August last - 1879- on that day I was drawing home turf from the bog, on

an ass. While at my aunt's at eight o'clock in the evening, Dominic Beirne came into the house

and cried beautiful vision that are to be seen there! I followed him; another man by name of

Dominic Beirne (senior) and John Durcan and a small boy John Curry, came with me.

We ran over towards the chapel and when the gable came into view, we immediately saw the

lights; a clear white light covering most of the gable, from the ground to the window and higher.

It was a kind of changing bright light, going sometimes up high and again not so high. We saw

figures - the Blessed Virgin, St Joseph and St John and an altar with a lamb on the altar, and a

cross behind the lamb. I went up closer; I saw everything distinctly.

The figures were full and round as if they had a body and life; they said nothing, but as we

approached they seemed to go back a little towards the gable. I distinctly beheld the Blessed

Virgin Mary, life size, standing about two feet above the ground, clothed in white robes which

were fastened at the neck, her hands were raised to the height of the shoulders, as if in prayer,

with the palms facing one another, but slanting inwards towards the face.

Her eyes were turned towards heaven. She wore a brilliant crown on her head, and over the

forehead where the crown fitted the brow. A beautiful rose. I saw her move, but she did not

speak. One old woman went up and embraced the Virgin's feet, and she found nothing in her

arms or hands, they receded, she said, from her. I saw St Joseph to the Blessed Virgin's right

hand; his head was bent, from the shoulder forward, he appeared to be paying his respects. I

noticed his whiskers, they appeared slightly grey. His hands were joined like a person in prayer.

The third figure that stood before me was that of St John the Evangelist. He stood erect at the

Gospel side of the altar, and at an angle with the Blesses Virgin so that his back was not turned

to the altar, nor to the Mother of God.|

St John was dressed like a bishop preaching; he wore a small mitre on his head, and held a Mass

book or Book of Gospels in his left hand: the right hand was raised to the elevation of the head,

as if he were preaching, but I heard no voice. I came so near that I looked into the book, I saw

the lines and the letters. St John wore no sandals, his left hand was turned toward the altar that

was behind him.

On the altar stood a lamb, the size of a lamb eight weeks old, the face of the lamb was fronting

the west, and looking in the direction of the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph; behind the land a

large cross was placed erect or perpendicular on the altar. Around the lamb I saw angels

hovering during the whole time, for the space of one hour and a half, or more; I saw their wings

fluttering but I did not perceive their heads or faces which were not turned to me.

For the space of an hour and a half we were under the pouring rain; at this time I was very wet. I

noticed that the rain did not wet the figures".

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Our Lady of Fatima (1917)

Location: Fatima, Portugal

First Apparition: May 13, 1917

Last Apparition: October 13, 1917

Investigated: 1919

Approved: October 13, 1930

Visionaries: Lucia dos Santos (9), Jacinta Marto

(8), Francisco Marto (7)


Miracles & Signs: Miracle of the sun witnessed

by 70,000 people, Healings, Conversion of Russia,

Incorruptible body of Jacinta.

Summary: While tending sheep, Lucia de Santos

and her two cousins, Francisco and Jacinta Marto,

reported six apparitions of Mary, who identified

herself as "Our Lady of the Rosary." Mary urged

prayer of the rosary, penance for the conversion of

sinners and consecration of Russia to her

Immaculate Heart.

Timeline

March 22,

1907 Lucia dos Santos was born on to Antonio and Maria Rosa dos Santos.

1908 Portugal's monarchy is overthrown

June 11, 1908 Francisco Marto was born on to Manuel and Olimpia de Jesus Marto. He was the

older brother of Jacinta and the first cousin of Lucia dos Santos.

March 11,

1910 Jacinta Marto was born.

1911-1916 1,700 priests, nuns, and monks were killed by anti-Christian groups and public

religious ceremonies were forbidden.

May 5, 1917 Pope Benedict XV sends out pastoral letter to the world asking the faithful to

petition Mary "that her most tender and benign solitude may be moved and the

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peace we ask for be obtained for our agitated world"

May 13, 1917 Date of Eugenio Pacelli's (Pope Pius XII) Episcopal consecration.

May 13, 1917

Three shepherd children, Lucia, Jacinta, & Francisco, see a ball of light near an

oak tree and when they approach make out the light to be a beautiful lady. She

says she is from Heaven and that she wishes the children to come to the Cova on

the 13th of the month for 6 months.

June 13, 1917 Our Lady appears for the second time to the children who came despite their

parents' wishes for them to attend the St. Anthony Festival.

July 13, 1917

The parish priest and Lucia's mother think the apparitions are diabolical but she

decides to join the others at the Cova with 3,000 onlookers. They are told that a

devotion to her Immaculate Heart would bring more souls to salvation. They are

given three secrets: a vision of Hell, the consecration of Russia, and a papal

assassination.

Aug 13, 1917 The fourth apparition does not occur as planned due to the kidnapping of the

children by an anti-Church civil administrator

Aug 19, 1917 The children see Our Lady for the fourth time and she speaks of the need for

penance for one's sins and those of the world.

Sept 13, 1917

A crowd of thirty thousand witnesses the sun dim at noon and then a globe of

light descending on the oak tree. White roses are seen falling from the sky and

the visionaries are reminded of the importance of praying the rosary to end the

war. They are told that St. Joseph and the child Jesus will accompany her at the

October apparition.

Oct 13, 1917

Our Lady appears to the children for the sixth time. She identified herself as

"Our Lady of the Rosary" and the famous dance of the sun took place, witnessed

by a crowd of 70,000 people.

Oct 1918 Francisco and Jacinta became seriously ill with the Spanish flu. Our Lady

appeared to them and said she would to take them to heaven soon.

April 4, 1919 Bed-ridden, Francisco requested his first Communion. The following day,

Francisco died, April 14, 1919.

1919

Dom Jose Alves Correia da Silva, the Bishop of the Diocese of Leiria-Fatima,

appointed a commission to study the case and began the official canonical

inquiry.

Feb 20, 1920

Jacinta Marto dies after suffering a long illness. She had been transferred to a

Lisbon hospital and operated for an abscess in her chest, but her health did not

improve.

1925 At age 18 Lucia became a postulant at the convent of the Dorothean Sisters at

Pontevedra, Spain.

Dec 10, 1925 At Pontevedra, Our Lady gave the young postulant nun the promise of the Five

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First Saturdays.

Oct 3, 1928 Lucia pronounces her first vows.

Oct 13, 1928 The foundation stone for the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary was laid.

June 13, 1929

At Tuy, where, in the presence of the Holy Trinity, Mary further revealed to

Lucia the spirit of this great devotion of reparation. "The moment has come in

which God asks the Holy Father to make, in union with all the bishops of the

world, the consecration of Russia to My Immaculate Heart, promising to save it

by this means."

Oct 1, 1930

The Sacred Penitentiary under Pius XI granted a partial indulgence to those who

individually visited the Shrine and prayed for the intentions of the Holy Father,

and a plenary indulgence once a month to those who went there in a group.

Oct 13, 1930

Announcement of Dom Jose Alves Correia da Silva, Bishop of the Diocese of

Leiria-Fatima on the results of the Investigative Commission, declaring the

apparitions "worthy of belief".

May 13, 1931 The Portuguese bishops consecrated their nation to the Immaculate Heart

Aug 1931

Sister Lucia was staying with a friend at Rianjo, Spain to rest and recover while

ill. In the chapel there, Our Lord complained to Sister Lucy of the tardiness of

the Consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Feb 6, 1938

Seven months before the declaration of war, Sister Lucy wrote to her bishop,

Msgr. da Silva to tell him that war was imminent, but then spoke of a miraculous

promise: "in this horrible war, Portugal would be spared because of the national

consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary made by the bishops."

May 13, 1938

The Portuguese bishops had vowed in 1936 that if Our Lady protected Portugal

from the Communists, they would express their gratitude by renewing the

National Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. True to their word, they

renewed the Consecration of Portugal to the Immaculate Heart in thanksgiving

for Our Lady’s protection. Cardinal Cerejeira acknowledged publicly: "one

cannot fail to recognize that the invisible hand of God has protected Portugal,

sparing it the scourge of war and the leprosy of atheistic communism."

1940

Pope Pius XII spoke of Fatima for the first time in an official Papal text, his

encyclical Saeculo exeunte, which was written to encourage the Church in

Portugal to further its foreign missionary activity. In the text he stated: "Let the

faithful not forget, especially when they recite the Rosary, so recommended by

the Blessed Virgin Mary of Fatima, to ask the Virgin Mother of God to obtain

missionary vocations, with abundant fruits for the greatest possible number of

souls. ..."

1940 The Holy Father granted the new diocese of Nampula, in Mozambique, Our

Lady of Fatima as its Patroness.

Aug 31, 1941 Lucia reveals first two secrets in her writings in the “Third Memoir” for the

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Bishop of Leira-Fatima.

Oct 31, 1942 In honor of the 25th Anniversary of the apparitions, Pope Pius XII (1939-1958)

solemnly consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

1943

Sister Lucia explained that the Lord told her that He would accept this Act of

Consecration to help speed the end of the World War II, but that it will not

obtain worldwide peace. As predicted, this act obtained the end of the war, but

did not usher in the reign of peace Our Lady promised, as it was not a

consecration of specifically Russia, and the world’s bishops did not participate in

it.

1946 Lucia entered the convent of the Carmelite Sisters of Coimbra under the name of

Sister Maria Lucia of the Immaculate Heart.

May 13, 1946

Cardinal Masella, Papal Legate, crowned the statue of Our Lady of Fatima on

the 300th Anniversary of the consecration of the nation of Portugal to Mary

Immaculate.

Sept 1944 Bishop da Silva suggested that Sister Lucy write down the text of the Third

Secret and issues a formal order the following month at her request.

Jan 2, 1944

Sr. Lucia finally writes down the Third Secret after previosuly having claimed to

have physically been unable to obey the command due to paralysis of a

preternatural cause.

Jan 9, 1944 Sr Lucia wrote to Bishop da Silva to tell him that the Third Secret had been

written down and placed in a sealed envelope.

May 4, 1944 The Holy See instituted the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

June 17, 1944

The envelope was delivered to Bishop da Silva, by Sr Lucia's bishop confessor in

Tuy. (The five month delay had resulted from Sister Lucia's unwillingness to

entrust the envelope to anyone but a bishop.)

May 13, 1946

Cardinal Masella, Papal Legate, crowned Our Lady of Fatima "Queen of the

World" on the 300th Anniversary of the consecration of the nation of Portugal to

Mary Immaculate. The entire Portuguese episcopate and over 600,000 pilgrims

gathered at Fatima for the event.

Oct 13, 1951

Pope’s Legate, Cardinal Tedeschini, was sent to Fatima for the closing of the

Holy Year. He told the crowd that Pope Pius XII had himself seen, repeated in

Rome, the Miracle of the Sun that had occurred at the last Fatima apparition. The

Holy Father had, in fact, been graced to see the Miracle of the Sun on four

separate occasions the previous year: October 30 and 31, November 1 , and

November 8 .

July 7,1952

Pope Pius XII consecrated Russia and her people to the Immaculate Heart. But

he did the Consecration in a private ceremony, without inviting the world’s

bishops to join him, as Our Lady requested.

Oct 6, 1953 The Basilica was solemnly consecrated by Cardinal Cerejeira, the Patriarch of

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Lisbon.

Oct 11, 1954 Pope Pius XII issued an encyclical on the Queenship of Mary, and in it he

referred to Her miraculous appearance at Fatima.

1956 The church on the apparition site was elevated to the rank of Basilica.

1964

At the closing ceremonies at the end of the third session of the Second Vatican

Council, before all the Catholic bishops of the world, Pope Paul VI renewed Pius

XII’s consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He also

announced that a special envoy was to be sent to Fatima. In the Pope’s name the

Papal Legate would carry, as a symbolic gift, a Golden Rose to the Fatima

Shrine. The inscription on it would say that Pope Paul was entrusting the entire

Church to the care of Our Lady of Fatima.

May 13, 1965 Pope Paul through his Papal Legate presented the Golden Rose at Fatima,

commending the whole Church to Our Lady of Fatima’s care.

May 13, 1967

50th Anniversary of the apparitions, on May 13, 1967, Pope Paul VI went to

Fatima on a pilgrimage of prayer and peace. On that occasion, he published an

Apostolic Exhortation, Signum Magnum, in which he invited "all members of the

Church to consecrate themselves to Mary Immaculate and to put this pious act

into concrete action in their daily lives."

May 13, 1981

A young Turk, Mehmet Alì Agca, shoots the Pope John Paul II in the abdomen

and hand while he circles St. Peter's Square. The pope later attributes being

saved from the point blank assasination attempt to the intercession of Our Lady

of Fatima: "It was a motherly hand that guided the bullet's path."

May 13, 1982

Pope John Paul II offered Mass in Fatima to give thanks for Mary's intercession

in saving his life a year earlier. He reminded the faithful that "the message of

Fatima is a call to conversion and repentance, the nucleus of the message of the

Gospel." He re-consecrated the world to Mary's Immaculate Heart and called all

to prayer, especially the Rosary.

May 13, 2000

Pope John Paul II beatified the two deceased seers, Jacinta and Francisco. He has

also made the Feast day of Our Lady of Fatima universal by ordering it to be

included in the Roman Missal. Francisco, 11, and Jacinta, 10, are the youngest

non-martyrs to be beatified in the history of the Church.

June 26, 2000 The third secret of Fatima is revealed by Pope John Paul II with Sr. Lucia in

attendance.

Nov. 17, 2001

Sr. Lucia makes a statement to the secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine

of the Faith, Archbishop Tarcisio Bertone that the Fatima secret has been totally

revealed by the Vatican, and Russia has already been consecrated as Mary

requested.

Feb 21, 2005 Lucia dos Santos dies at age 97.

2008 Pope Benedict XVI lifted the normal five-year waiting period to begin her

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canonization process.


"It was a lady dressed all in white, more brilliant than the sun, shedding rays of light clearer and

stronger than a crystal glass filled with the most sparkling water and pierced by the burning rays

of the sun."

Church Approval

On October 13, 1930, Dom Jose Alves Correia da Silva, Bishop of the Diocese of Leiria-Fatima

announced the results of the Investigative Commission, declaring the apparitions "worthy of

belief". Every Pope since the apparitions has expressed approval of the supernatural character

and stressed the importance of the messages of Fatima.

On May 13, 2000, Pope John Paul II beatified the two deceased seers, Jacinta and Francisco. He

has also made the Feast day of Our Lady of Fatima universal by ordering it to be included in the

Roman Missal. In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI lifted the normal five-year waiting period to begin

the canonization process of Sr. Lucia dos Santos.

Secrets of Fatima

The first secret was a vision of Hell:

“Our Lady showed us a great sea of fire which seemed to be under the earth. Plunged in this fire

were demons and souls in human form, like transparent burning embers, all blackened or

burnished bronze, floating about in the conflagration, now raised into the air by the flames that

issued from within themselves together with great clouds of smoke, now falling back on every

side like sparks in a huge fire, without weight or equilibrium, and amid shrieks and groans of

pain and despair, which horrified us and made us tremble with fear. The demons could be

distinguished by their terrifying and repulsive likeness to frightful and unknown animals, all

black and transparent. This vision lasted but an instant. How can we ever be grateful enough to

our kind heavenly Mother, who had already prepared us by promising, in the first Apparition, to

take us to heaven. Otherwise, I think we would have died of fear and terror.”

The second secret was a statement that World War I would end and goes on to predict another

war, World War II during the reign of Pope Pius XI, should men continue offending God and

should Russia not convert. The second half requests that Russia be consecrated to the

Immaculate Heart:

“You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in

the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If what I say to you is done, many souls will be

saved and there will be peace. The war is going to end: but if people do not cease offending God,

a worse one will break out during the Pontificate of Pope Pius XI. When you see a night

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illumined by an unknown light*, know that this is the great sign given you by God that he is

about to punish the world for its crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions of the

Church and of the Holy Father. To prevent this, I shall come to ask for the Consecration of

Russia to my Immaculate Heart, and the Communion of reparation on the First Saturdays. If my

requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her

errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be

martyred; the Holy Father will have much to suffer; various nations will be annihilated. In the

end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she

shall be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world.”

The third part of the secret was written down "by order of His Excellency the Bishop of Leiria

and the Most Holy Mother" on 3 January 1944. In 1943, Lúcia fell ill with influenza and

pleurisy, which had killed her cousins. For several months, she was sure she was going to die.

Bishop Silva, visiting her on 15 September 1943 while she was bed-ridden, first suggested that

she write the third secret down to ensure that it would be recorded in the event of her death.

Lucia was hesitant to do so, however. She was under strict obedience according to her Carmelite

vows, but when she received the secret, she had heard Mary say not to reveal it. Because

Carmelite obedience requires that orders from superiors be regarded as coming directly from

God, she was in a quandary as to whose orders took precedence. Finally, in mid-October, Bishop

Silva sent her a letter containing a direct order to record the secret, and Lúcia obeyed. In June

1944, the sealed envelope containing the third secret was delivered to Silva, where it stayed until

1957, when it was finally delivered to Rome.

It was announced by Cardinal Sodano on 13 May 2000, 83 years after the first apparition of the

Lady to the children in the Cova da Iria, that the Third Secret would finally be released. In his

announcement, Cardinal Sodano implied that the secret was about the persecution of Christians

in the 20th century that culminated in the failed assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II on 13

May 1981.

The third part of the secret revealed at the Cova da Iria-Fátima, on 13 May 1917. The text of the

Third Secret was published on 26 June 2000:

“I write in obedience to you, my God, who command me to do so through his Excellency the

Bishop of Leiria and through your Most Holy Mother and mine.

After the two parts which I have already explained, at the left of Our Lady and a little above, we

saw an Angel with a flaming sword in his left hand; flashing, it gave out flames that looked as

though they would set the world on fire; but they died out in contact with the splendour that Our

Lady radiated towards him from her right hand: pointing to the earth with his right hand, the

Angel cried out in a loud voice: 'Penance, Penance, Penance!'. And we saw in an immense light

that is God: 'something similar to how people appear in a mirror when they pass in front of it' a

Bishop dressed in White 'we had the impression that it was the Holy Father'. Other Bishops,

Priests, men and women Religious going up a steep mountain, at the top of which there was a big

Cross of rough-hewn trunks as of a cork-tree with the bark; before reaching there the Holy Father

passed through a big city half in ruins and half trembling with halting step, afflicted with pain

and sorrow, he prayed for the souls of the corpses he met on his way; having reached the top of

32

the mountain, on his knees at the foot of the big Cross he was killed by a group of soldiers who

fired bullets and arrows at him, and in the same way there died one after another the other

Bishops, Priests, men and women Religious, and various lay people of different ranks and

positions. Beneath the two arms of the Cross there were two Angels each with a crystal

aspersorium in his hand, in which they gathered up the blood of the Martyrs and with it sprinkled

the souls that were making their way to God.”

Messages

For the complete text of the messages, see: “Messages – Our Lady of Fatima” in the

“documents” folder.

33

The Virgin with the Golden Heart (1932)

Location: Beauraing, Belgium

First Apparition: Nov 29, 1932

Last Apparition: Jan 3, 1933

Investigated: 1949

Approved: July 2, 1949 by the Bishop of Namur

Visionaries: Fernande Voisin (15), Andree

Degeimbre (14), Gilberte Voisin (11), Gilberte

Degeimbre (9)


Miracles & Signs: Miraculous cures, fireball.

Summary: From November 29, 1932 to January 3, 1933, Mary appeared 33 times to the

playground of a convent school to five children. The children belonged to two families: the

Voisins (Fernande, 15 years; Berthe, 13 years; and Albert 11 years) and the Degeimbres (Andre,

14 years, and Gilberte, 9 years old). Identifying herself as "the Immaculate Virgin", "Mother of

God” and Queen of Heaven," she called for prayer for the conversion of sinners.

Timeline

June 21, 1917 Fernande Voisin was born.

April 19, 1918

Andree Degeimbre was born. She married Georges van den Steen from

Flanders in 1941. Andree had 3 children: Christian, Yvan and Marie-

Ange. She died on June 11, 1978, the first of the five to die.

June 20, 1919 Gilberte Voisin was born

September 3, 1921 Albert Voisin was born.

August 13, 1923 Gilberte Degeimbre was born.

Nov 29, 1932

Albert and Fernande Voisin and Andree and Gilberte Degeimbre

approached the convent door to call for Gilberte Voisin as they did every

night. Albert ran ahead of the girls and rang the door to the convent. As

he waited for a sister to come to the door, he turned around and looked

toward the street and railroad bridge “Look! The Virgin, dressed in

white, is walking above the bridge!” he cried out. The girls did not

believe him but when they turned around they saw the figure of a

34

beautiful Lady in white walking above the bridge and the grotto by the

convent with clouds covering her feet. The sister who came to the door

could not see the Blessed Virgin Mary, but Gilberte Voisin did.

Dec 17, 1932 The Virgin Mary asks for a chapel to be built

Dec 21, 1932 The Virgin clearly states, "I am the Immaculate Virgin."

Dec 23, 1932 Our Lady states that she desires people to come on pilgrimage.

Dec 29, 1932

The Virgin opened Her arms in Her usual gesture of farewell. This time

Fernande saw a Heart of Gold, surrounded by glittering rays. All the

children witnessed this in the remaining apparitions.

Jan 3, 1933 The Virgin Mary appears for the final time at Beauraing.

1934 Similar apparition claims multiplied throughout Belgium (Onkerzele,

Lokere, Naasteveld, Tubize, Olsene, Etikhove)

1935 The Holy Office turned the examination of the matter over to the

Primate of Belgium, Cardinal Van Roy.

1941 Andree Degeimbre married Georges van den Steen from Flanders in

1941. Andree had 3 children: Christian, Yvan and Marie-Ange.

1941

Fernande Voisin married Albert Despas, who worked at the local tax

office. Fernande was a nurse who made home visits. In 1954 they moved

to Namur. She had five children: Rose-Marie, Michel, Emmanuel, Noel

and Marie-Francoise.

Feb 2, 1943 After long investigations and especially-difficult negotiations with

Rome, the cult of Our Lady of Beauraing was recognized.

1945

Gilberte Voisin married Amedee Pierret in 1945, a police officer from

Sainte-Marie. He was killed while on active duty in 1953, leaving two

children: Michel and Bernadette. Gilberte returned to Beauraing.

July 2, 1949 The Bishop released a document to Clergy in the Diocese declaring that

the Queen of Heaven did appear to the children.

Aug 22, 1946 The statue of Our Lady of Beauraing was blessed the Feast of the

Immaculate Heart.

1947

Gilberte Degeimbre married Andre Philippe. For a long time she lived in

Italy with her husband and their two children. She has since returned to

live in Beauraing with her husband.

1948

Albert Voisin married Yvonne Embrechts from Liege . That same year,

they left for the Belgian Congo, first to Lubumbashi followed by Kowezi

where their 3 children were born: Claude, Francine and Bridget.

Previously, he spent his military duty in Ireland and Germany and was a

teacher in Ottignies for 2 years.The family returned to Beauraing in 1961

where Albert taught at the "Institut Notre Dame."

35

Aug 21, 1954 The Chapel was consecrated.

June 11, 1978 Andree Degeimbre was the first of the five to die.

May 9, 1979 Fernande Voisin died from kidney cancer.

January 3, 2003

Gilberte Voisin died in an accident on January 3, 2003, the 70th

anniversary of the last apparition at the exact hour that the Blessed

Virgin said: "I will convert sinners"

December 23rd, 2003 Albert Voisin died.


The Virgin Mary appeared as a beautiful lady in white walking above the bridge and the grotto

by the convent with clouds covering her feet. The Virgin, with hands joined and turned toward

the sky, carried a rosary hanging from her right arm. During the five last apparitions, she showed

a heart of gold, surrounded by rays, on her chest.

Messages

The Virgin Mary urged the children to pray and sacrifice. She asked, "that people pray much,"

"that a chapel be built" (December 17, 1932), "that people come here in pilgrimage" (December

23). She promised the conversion of sinners. All these points are common with Lourdes. During

the five last apparitions, she showed a heart of gold, surrounded by rays, on her chest. During the

fourth apparition (December 4) and the seventh (December 21), she declared herself to be "the

Immaculate Virgin" (analogous to Lourdes). During the last apparition (January 3, 1933), she

added: "I will convert sinners. I am the Mother of God, the Queen of heaven." Twenty thousand

persons were present that day.

Miracles and Signs (Additional Information)

After the fourth apparition, there were sick people in the crowd. The visionaries prayed Our

Lady to heal them. But it was only after the last apparition that healings took place. Here,

however, the matter begins to deteriorate. A certain Come Tilman, fifty-eight years old, became

a visionary in his turn, and at the first vision, he was healed of spondylitis. However, a medical

and psychic examination of the visionary, made on June 1934, was negative. Meanwhile, similar

apparitions multiplied in Belgium. It was thus that in 1935, the Holy Office turned the

examination of the matter over to the Primate of Belgium, Cardinal Van Roy.

During the apparition of December 8th, Dr. Maistriaux, Dr. Lurquin and other doctors were there

to pinch, slap, prick and shine flashlights in the children eyes. There was no response from the

children during the Lady's visit.

Dr. Lurquin took a lighted match to Gilberte Voisin's left hand; still there was no response. After

the apparition Dr. Lurquin looked to see what damage the match had done. There was no sign of

injury.

36

Bishop Approved Apparitions

Our Lady of Good Help (1859)

Location: Robinsonville, WI, USA

First Apparition: October 8, 1859


Investigated: 2009

Approved: Dec 8, 2010 by Bishop David L. Ricken

Visionaries: Adele Brise


Summary: Our Lady appeared 3 times to a 28 year old Belgium farm woman and asked to pray

for the conversion of sinners and encouraged her to evangelize and catechize the local people.

Miracles & Signs: On October 8, 1871 -- exactly 12 years to the date since her first appearance -

- a tremendous catastrophe struck by way of a raging fire that destroyed massive swaths of

northeastern Wisconsin and Upper Michigan -- indeed, the worst recorded forest fire in

American history. By the time it was over, 1.2 million acres -- 1,850 square miles (the size of

Rhode Island) -- had been consumed, and one to two thousand were dead. It was described in

some parts as "a wall of flame, a mile high, five miles wide, traveling 90 to 100 miles an hour,

hotter than a crematorium, turning sand into glass."

October 8, 1871 -- date of the Wisconsin catastrophe -- was also the day of the Great Chicago

Fire.

Over the years there have been hundreds of stories of people coming to the shrine and being

healed. Old crutches and canes were left behind.

Timeline

January 30,

1831 Marie Adele Joseph Brise was born

August 7, 1855 Lambert and Marie Brise purchased 240 acres of land in the town of Red

River, Wisconsin.

Oct 8, 1859 First apparition of the Virgin Mary to Adele Brice (Brise). Adele could see the

37

beautiful lady, clothed in dazzling white, with a yellow sash around her waist.

Her dress fell to her feet in graceful folds. She had a crown of stars around her

head, and her long golden wavy hair fell loosely over her shoulders. Such a

heavenly light shone around her that Adele could hardly look at her sweet

face. Overcome by this heavenly light and the beauty of her amiable visitor,

Adele fell on her knees.

Oct 15, 1859

When Adele told her parents, they wondered if it was a poor soul who needed

prayers. On the following Sunday the young woman had to pass there again on

her way to Mass at Bay Settlement, which was the nearest place, when she

saw the Virgin again.

When she asked what the apparition wanted, Mary responded:

"I am the Queen of Heaven who prays for the conversion of sinners, and I

wish you to do the same. You received Holy Communion this morning and

that is good. But you must do more. Make a general confession and offer

Communion for the conversion of sinners. If they do not convert and do

penance, my Son will be obliged to punish them."

1859 A small oratory was built of logs.

1861 A second chapel was built as a frame structure.

1865-1868 Between these dates a frame convent and school was built near the Chapel.

1869 A school known as St. Mary's Academy was formally announced.

October 8, 1871 The "Great Fires of Northern Wisconsin," popularly known as the "Peshtigo

Fire" raged.

October 8, 1871 The Great Chicago Fire

1880 A third chapel was built as a brick structure.

July 5, 1896 Sister Adele Brise dies at the Chapel.

Dec 8, 1941 The Most Reverend Paul P. Rhode, Bishop of Green Bay, laid the cornerstone

for the fourth Chapel.

July 12, 1942 The new Chapel was dedicated by Bishop Rhode under the title of "Our Lady

of Good Help."

January 2009 Bishop David Ricken of Green Bay opened an investigation into the

authenticity of the apparitions

Dec 8, 2010 Bishop David Ricken of Green Bay declared the apparitions to be authentic,

making them the first approved apparitions in the United States.

38


"... there appeared between two trees, one a maple and the other a hemlock, which stood for

years after, a blinding white light which paralyzed the poor girl with fear. She cowered before it

and prayed rapidly and breathlessly as the light took definite form, and between the trees stood a

marvelously beautiful lady, clothed entirely in dazzling white garments, with no touch of color

save a wide yellow sash or girdle. Her hair was auburn; her eyes deep and dark and she bore a

radiant and kindly smile. Adele trembled with fear. The vision faded gradually away." (Green

Bay Gazette, August 13, 1925)

Approval

Bishop Stanislaus V. Bona of Green Bay placed his imprimatur on a booklet describing the

events and containing the messages.

On December 8th, 2010, Bishop David Ricken of Green Bay declared the apparitions to be

authentic, making them the first approved apparitions in the United States.

39

Our Lady of All Nations (1945)

Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

First Apparition: March 25, 1945

Last Apparition: May 31, 1959


Approved: May 31, 2002 by Bishop Jozef Marianus

Punt of Haarlem.

Visionaries: Ida Peederman


Summary: During a series of 56 apparitions, lasting 14

years, prophecies were given to Ida Peederman along

with an image of the Blessed Mother and a prayer. The

revelations emphasize the importance of the Eucharist

and portray in detail the events will bring about the

Triumph of the Immaculate Heart, most importantly the

declaration of the final Marian dogma of Mary as The

Lady of All Nations: Coredemptrix, Mediatrix, and

Advocate.

Notes: It should be mentioned that the apparitions of Our Lady of

Akita (1973) (see picture on the left) took place on an image of Our

Lady of All Nations. In addition, the apparitions of Akita are considered

a continuation of Fatima (see “Our Lady of Akita).Therefore it is

reasonable to conclude that all three apparitions are connected!

Messages

For the complete text of the messages, see: “Messages – Our Lady of

All Nations” in the “documents” folder.

See “Our Lady of All Nations” in the “Videos” folder.

Online Petition for 5th

Marian Dogma

http://fifthmariandogma.com/index.php?option=com_breezingforms&view=form&Itemid=

602

http://fifthmariandogma.com/index.php?option=com_breezingforms&view=form&Itemid=602


40

Prophecies

The Virgin said that she would give no signs other than her words to validate her appearance:

"You are as yet unable to appreciate my words. My signs are inherent in my words" (May 31,

1955). "Now I will give a reply to those who have asked for a sign. To all of them I say: my

signs are contained in my words. O you of little faith! You are like children who insist on

fireworks, whereas they have no eyes for the true light and for the true fire" (May 31, 1957).

The messages of Our Lady of all Nations contains many prophecies including the convening of

the Second Vatican Council II, the preparations of bacteriological weapons (prophecy dated Dec

26, 1947), "another great catastrophe for the world" against the West and coming from the East

(June 9, 1946), war in the Balkans (May 7, 1949, Oct 1,1949, May 27,1950, Aug 15, 1950, Aug

27, 1977), a "terrible pain coming over India" (Feb 14, 1950), a "struggle in Rome against the

Pope" (June 9, 1946), the Chernobyl nuclear plant meltdown (Dec 10, 1950), the dissent

regarding celibacy (May 31, 1956 and May 31,1957), the 1949 Communist takeover of China

(Oct 7, 1945), the division of Korea into North and South (Aug 15, 1950 and December 10,

1950), the changing of the fasting requirement to receive the Holy Eucharist (Jan 25, 1951), the

construction of the Berlin Wall (Feb 14,1950, Aug 15, 1950, Dec 10, 1950), the turmoil and

battles within Jerusalem. (Dec 26, 1947, March 28, 1948), the eventual victory of Israel as a

nation (April 21, 1945), troubled times for Taiwan. (Aug 15, 1950, Dec 10, 1950).

Other revelations predicted the deaths of three popes. Prophecies dated: February 19, 1958 - the

death of Pope Pius XII in October of the same year; June 11, 1978 - the death of Pope Paul VI,

less than two months later; September 28, 1978 - the death of Pope John Paul I, the following

day. In addition to these revelations, Ida also was also made aware of the identity of two future

Popes on two separate occassions, namely: Pope Paul VI "Montini" on May 31, 1963; and Pope

John Paul II on October 15, 1978!

Timeline

March 25, 1345 The date of the great Eucharistic Miracle of Amsterdam.

Aug 13, 1905 On August 13, 1905, Isje ("Ida") Johanna Peerdeman is born in Alkmaar,

Holland, as the youngest of five children.

March 25, 1945

Ida was drawn to an adjoining room by a mysterious force. There she saw a

brilliant light out of which a Lady stepped towards her and spoke to her. 'Are

you Mary?' Ida asked. The Lady replied, 'They will call me 'Lady, Mother.'"

May 31, 1959 The Virgin appears for the last time to Ida.

May 7, 1956 Bishop of Haarlem finds no evidence of the supernatural nature of the

apparitions, and prohibits public veneration.

March 2, 1957 Bishop of Haarlem confirms this decision with consent of the Holy Office

(March 13,1957).

May 24, 1972 Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, responding to a letter of March 29

from the Bishop, re-affirms its decision.

41

June 27, 1974

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith affirms its earlier decision, after a

deeper investigation, inviting the faithful to discontinue all forms propaganda

with regard to these alleged apparitions and revelations.

May 31, 1996

The Bishop of Haarlem, Henry Bomers, published a Notification clarifying the

distinction between the title, image and prayer, on one hand, and the messages

on the other. The title, image and prayer had been approved for private

veneration since the 1950s (according to this decree), and he was now

granting the privilege of public veneration, as well. The belief in the messages

had been prohibited, but now was permitted according to one's own

conscience, the Church being unable to rule definitively "at the moment". As

the decree notes, he consulted with "official authorities", without specifying

who those authorities were.

June 17, 1996 Ida Peerdeman, at the age of 90, dies after the approval of the devotion

according to the promise of The Lady.

Dec 3, 1997 The Bishop writes Letter (HB-97-403) commending the "Action of The Lady

of All Nations" and the work of Fr. Paul Maria Sigl.

May 31, 2002

Bishop Jozef Marianus Punt of Haarlem, having concluded a period of

investigation, declared the apparitions accorded Ida Peerdeman of Amsterdam,

Holland, in which the Blessed Virgin Mary asked to be known as Our Lady of

All Nations, to be "of a supernatural origin".

August 8, 2005

The Vatican's Congregation for the Docrtrine of the Faith objected to the

phrase, "who once was Mary" in the prayer propogated from Ida Peederman.

The controversy began when the Secretary of the CDF, Archbishop A. Amato,

wrote to bishops in the Philippines regarding this “one particular aspect” of

the devotion and asking that it be eliminated.

Amato, the Titular Archbishop of Sila, Italy added: "In fact, this Dicastery, in

a letter to His Excellency, The Most Rev. Francois Bacque, Apostolic Nuncio

to the Netherlands, has indicated that Marian devotion must be nourished and

developed in accordance with the indications given by the Holy Father

in"Redemptoris Mater" and "Rosarium Virginis Mariae" and not according to

private apparitions nor according to a 'new' name of Mary, such as "Lady of

All Nations who was once Mary".

2006

After the local bishop, Mgr Joseph Marianus Punt, consulted with the

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2006 in regard to the prayer, the

Congregation approved the text of the prayer but with the directive to change

the original phrase "who was once Mary" to "the Blessed Virgin Mary" due to

possible misunderstanding.

Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Father, send now Your Spirit over the earth. Let the Holy

Spirit live in the hearts of all nations that they may be preserved from degeneration,

disaster and war. May the Lady of All Nations, the Blessed Virgin Mary, be our advocate.

Amen.

42

Our Lady of Akita (1973)

Location: Akita, Japan

First Apparition: July 6, 1973


Investigated: 1973

Approved: Dec April 22, 1984 approved by Bishop

John Shoojiroo Ito of Niigata. In 1988, Joseph Cardinal

Ratzinger allowed Ito's pastoral letter and its

dissemination to the faithful.

Visionaries: Sr. Agnes Sasagawa (43)


Miracles & Signs: Bleeding and Weeping Statue (101

times), Stigmata.

Timeline

1930 Agnes Sasagawa is born.

May 12, 1973 Agnes enters the convent of the Institute of the Handmaids of the Eucharist in

Akita, Japan.

June 12, 1973

Sr. Agnes encounters on several occasions a bright light emanating from the

tabernacle in the chapel and "spiritual beings" worshipping the Eucharist. She

reports these experiences to Bishop John Ito.

June 1973 Sr. Agnes begins to experience the stigmata. On Thursdays she feels initial pain

and on Fridays and Saturdays finds a cross of blood on her left hand.

July 6, 1973

Sr. Agnes encounters her guardian angel and subsequently a three-foot high

wooden statue of the Virgin ablaze with light. The statue spoke to Agnes and

asked her to pray for the reparation of the sins of humanity and to follow her

superior. After the apparition, Agnes and the other nuns discover a bleeding

wound in the hand of the statue.

July 26, 1973 The angel appears again and promises that the pain in her wound would subside.

Aug 3, 1973 The statue speaks again and warns of a great chastisement.

Sep 29, 1973 The statue stops bleeding but tears start flowing down its cheeks.

Oct 13, 1973 Sr. Agnes receives her last message from the Virgin. She was told that the

43

Father would inflict a terrible punishment on humanity, that fire would fall from

the sky and wipe out part of the population, and that the devil would infiltrate

the Church. This message is received on the anniversary of the “miracle of the

sun” of Our Lady of Fatima (1917).

May 1974 The angel tells Agnes that her hearing will be temporarily restored and then

permanently cured later.

Oct 13, 1974 Agnes temporarily regains her hearing.

Jan 1975 The tears, sweat and blood from the statue were sent for laboratory analysis.

Dec 1975 The angel appears again.

Sep 15, 1981 The statue weeps for the 101-st and last time

Sep 28, 1981

Her guardian angel shows her a vision of the Bible and asks her to read Genesis

3:15: "I will place enmity between thee (Satan) and the woman (Mary), between

thy seed and hers. She will crush thy head and thou shalt lie in wait for her

heel."

Aug 4, 1981 Theresa Chun is cured of a brain tumor after praying to our Lady of Akita.

May 30, 1982 Agnes' hearing is restored permanently in accord with the promise of the angel.

April 22, 1984 Approved by Bishop John Shoojiroo Ito of Niigata

June 1988

In 1988, Bishop Ito brought his letter to Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger -- now Pope

Benedict XVI -- who allowed the pastoral letter and its dissemination to the

faithful.

Miracles, Cures, and Signs

The statue wept 101 times. Her guardian angel explained it with the following: "There is a

meaning to the figure 101 (the number of times the statue wept). This signifies that sin came into

the world by a woman and it is also by a woman that salvation came into the world. The zero

between the two signifies the Eternal God who is from all eternity until eternity. The first one

represents Eve, and the last, the Virgin Mary."

The actual weeping of the statue was not only witnessed by the local bishop but was shown on

national Japanese TV.

Theresa Chun, a Korean woman diagnosed with a brain tumor, placed an image of Our Lady of

Akita under her pillow and prayed to her for a miraculous healing. On August 4, 1981, the tumor

was found to have disappeared. This healing was well documented by Fr. Joseph Oh of Seoul, S.

Korea.

In May 1982, her angel told Agnes that her hearing would be permanently restored that month,

and on May 30 the deafness was cured. (Tests performed on Agnes at the Akita Muncipal

Hospital in 1975 had confirmed that she was deaf and that her deafness was incurable.)

44


In the events of Akita, there was no "apparition" of

the Virgin. Agnes reported the appearance of her

guardian angel but the messages attributed to Mary

were said to emanate from a bleeding 3-foot high

wooden statue. The wooden statue in the convent at

Akita was carved by a Buddhist woodcarver from an

identical image of The Lady of All Nations (1945).

Approval

The first tests on the samples of blood, tears, and

sweat from the statue were performed by Professor

Eiji Okuhara, a Catholic physician in the Akita

University Department of Biochemistry and a former

Rockefeller Foundation fellow. Professor Okuhara,

who had witnessed the weeping statue himself, also

passed the samples on to a non-Christian forensic

specialist, Dr. Kaoru Sagisaka. The scientists

confirmed that the samples were of human origin- the

blood was found to be type B and the sweat and tears

were type AB.

Initially the nun's claims were rejected by an archbishop, then accepted by the bishop of her

actual diocese, Most Reverend John Shojiro Ito of Niigata, who on April 22, 1984, after years of

extensive investigation, declared the tears to be of supernatural origin and authorized veneration

of the Holy Mother of Akita.

"After the inquiries conducted up to the present day, one cannot deny the supernatural character

of a series of unexplainable events relative to the statue of the Virgin honored at Akita (Diocese

of Niigata). Consequently I authorize that all of the diocese entrusted to me venerate the Holy

Mother of Akita."

Bishop John Shoojiroo Ito of Niigata (April 22, 1984)

MESSAGES OF AKITA

JULY 6, 1973

Her Guardian Angel:

"Be not afraid. Pray with fervor not only because of your sins, but in reparation for those of all

people. The world today wounds the most Sacred Heart of Our Lord by its ingratitude’s and

45

injuries. The wounds of Mary are much deeper and more sorrowful than yours. Let us go to pray

together in the chapel."

The Virgin Mary:

"My daughter, my novice, you have obeyed me well in abandoning all to follow me. Is the

infirmity of your ears painful? Your deafness will be healed, be sure. Does the wound of your

hand cause you to suffer? Pray in reparation for the sins of men. Each person in this community

is my irreplaceable daughter. Do you say well the prayer of the Handmaids of the Eucharist?

Then, let us pray it together."

"Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, truly present in Holy Eucharist, I consecrate my body and soul to

be entirely one with Your Heart, being sacrificed at every instant on all the altars of the world

and giving praise to the Father pleading for the coming of His Kingdom."

"Please receive this humble offering of myself. Use me as You will for the glory of the Father

and the salvation of souls."

"Most holy Mother of God, never let me be separated from Your Divine Son. Please defend and

protect me as Your Special Child. Amen."

"Pray very much for the Pope, Bishops, and Priests. Since your Baptism you have always prayed

faithfully for them. Continue to pray very much...very much. Tell your superior all that passed

today and obey him in everything that he wil tell you. He has asked that you pray with fervor."

JULY 26, 1973

Her Guardian Angel:

"Your sufferings will end today. Carefully engrave in the depth of your heart the thought of the

blood of Mary. The blood shed by Mary has a profound meaning. This precious blood was shed

to ask your conversion, to ask for peace, in reparation for the ingratitude and outrages against the

Lord. As with devotion to the Sacred Heart, apply yourself to devotion to the Most Precious

Blood. Pray in reparation for all men. Say to your superior that the blood is shed today for the

last time. Your pain also ends today. Tell them what happened today. He will understand all

immediately. And you, observe his directions."

AUGUST 3, 1973

"My daughter, my novice, do you love the Lord? If you love the Lord, listen to what I have to

say to you."

46

"It is very important...You will convey it to your superior."

"Many men in this world afflict the Lord. I desire souls to console Him to soften the anger of the

Heavenly Father. I wish, with my Son, for souls who will repair by their suffering and their

poverty for the sinners and ingrates."

"In order that the world might know His anger, the Heavenly Father is preparing to inflict a

great chastisement on all mankind. WIth my Son I have intervened so many times to appease the

wrath of the Father. I have prevented the coming of calamities by offering Him the sufferings of

the Son on the Cross, His Precious Blood, and beloved souls who console Him forming a cohort

of victim souls. Prayer, penance and courageous sacrifices can soften the Father's anger. I desire

this also from your community...that it love poverty, that it sanctify itself and pray in reparation

for the ingratitude and outrages of so many men.

Recite the prayer of the Handmaids of the Eucharist with awareness of its meaning; put it into

practice; offer in reparation (whatever God may send) for sins. Let each one endeavor, according

to capacity and position, to offer herself entirely to the Lord."

"Even in a secular institute prayer is necessary. Already souls who wish to pray are on the way

to being gathered together. Without attaching to much attention to the form, be faithful and

fervent in prayer to console the Master."

"Is what you think in your heart true? Are you truly decided to become the rejected stone? My

novice, you who wish to belong without reserve to the Lord, to become the spouse worthy of the

Spouse, make your vows knowing that you must be fastened to the Cross with three nails. These

three nails are poverty, chastity, and obedience. Of the three, obedience is the foundation. In total

abandon, let yourself be led by your superior. He will know how to understand you and to direct

you."

OCTOBER 13, 1973

"My dear daughter, listen well to what I have to say to you. You will inform your superior."

"As I told you, if men do not repent and better themselves, the Father will inflict a terrible

punishment on all humanity. It will be a punishment greater than the deluge, such as one will

never seen before. Fire will fall from the sky and will wipe out a great part of humanity, the good

as well as the bad, sparing neither priests nor faithful. The survivors will find themselves so

desolate that they will envy the dead. The only arms which will remain for you will be the

Rosary and the Sign left by My Son. Each day recite the prayers of the Rosary. With the Rosary,

pray for the Pope, the bishops and priests."

"The work of the devil will infiltrate even into the Church in such a way that one will see

cardinals opposing cardinals, bishops against bishops. The priests who venerate me will be

scorned and opposed by their confreres...churches and altars sacked; the Church will be full of

47

those who accept compromises and the demon will press many priests and consecrated souls to

leave the service of the Lord.

"The demon will be especially implacable against souls consecrated to God. The thought of the

loss of so many souls is the cause of my sadness. If sins increase in number and gravity, there

will be no longer pardon for them"

"With courage, speak to your superior. He will know how to encourage each one of you to pray

and to accomplish works of reparation."

"It is Bishop Ito, who directs your community."

"You have still something to ask? Today is the last time that I will speak to you in living voice.

From now on you will obey the one sent to you and your superior."

"Pray very much the prayers of the Rosary. I alone am able still to save you from the calamites

which approach. Those who place their confidence in me will be saved."

DECEMBER 1975

Her Guardian Angel:

"Do not be surprised to see the Blessed Virgin weeping. She weeps because she wishes the

conversion of the greatest number. She desires that souls be consecrated to Jesus

SEPTEMBER 28, 1981

Her Guardian Angel:

"There is a meaning to the figure 101 (the number of times the statue wept). This signifies that

sin came into the world by a woman and it is also by a woman that salvation came into the

world. The zero between the two signifies the Eternal God who is from all eternity until eternity.

The first one represents Eve, and the last, the Virgin Mary."

48

Our Lady of Cuapa (1980)

Location: Cuapa, Nicaragua

First Apparition: April 15, 1980

Last Apparition: Oct 13, 1980

Investigated: 1981

Approved: Nov 13, 1982 by Bishop Pablo Antonio Vega

Visionaries: Bernardo Martinez

Number of Apparitions: 4+

Notes: After the initial 4 apparitions, the Virgin reportedly subsequently appeared in later years

with messages of the destruction of atheistic communism and the whole world. She also

requested the propagation of the devotion to the shoulder wounds of Christ.

Summary: Church sacristan Bernardo Martinez entered an old chapel and observed a

supernatural light illuminating from a statue of the Blessed Virgin. On another day, the Virgin

appeared clothed in white (similar to the statue in the church) and asked for the daily Rosary

with Biblical citations and have the First Saturday Devotions renewed. She also warned of future

sufferings for Nicaragua if the people didn't change. Not wanting further problems, he ignored

the Virgin's request to spread the message, and when he avoided the location of the apparition,

the Virgin appeared to him a few days later in a pasture promising him help.

Timeline

1880 Fr. Andres Rongier, SJ, a Jesuit missionary from Mexico, prophesied that Cuapa

would be a famous future site of a Marian apparition.

Aug 20, 1931 Bernardo Martinez is born.

April 15,

1980

Bernardo discovered that the statue in the chapel was supernaturally lighting up

on its own.

May 8, 1980

The Virgin appeared clothed in white (similar to the statue in the church) and

asked for the daily Rosary with Biblical citations and have the First Saturday

Devotions renewed. She also warned of future sufferings for Nicaragua if the

people didn't change. Not wanting further problems, he ignored the Virgin's

request to spread the message.

May 16,

1980

Not wanting further problems, he ignored the Virgin's request to spread the

message, and when he avoided the location of the apparition, the Virgin appeared

49

to him in a pasture promising him help. The next morning, an inner peace filled

his soul which allowed him to tell what happened with no fear of ridicule.

June 8 , 1980

The Virgin gave him a nighttime vision (a 'movie in the sky') which moved from

the early church to men in white (likely Dominicans) praying the Rosary, then

Franciscans, and finally ordinary people with Rosaries whose example he was

told to follow.

July 8, 1980

An Angel appeared and told him and foretold several events which shortly took

place (including the death of a cousin which could have been prevented had he

listened to Bernardo's warnings).

Sept 8, 1980

The Virgin appeared as a child and told him to not raise funds for a new Church:

"The Lord does not want material churches. He wants living temples which are

yourselves."

Oct 13, 1980

The Virgin Mary appeared in a big luminous circle forming over the ground and

allowed everyone (50) there to witnessed. When her form appeared he pleaded

with her to allow herself to be seen by the others for they didn't believe. Her face

turned pale and her garments grey as she became visibly saddened by their

hardness of heart. As Bernardo apologized profusely, she instructed him to pray

the Rosary, turn from violence, pray for the world, and make peace. She tells him

that he will no longer see her in that place and vanishes.

1982

Bishop Bosco M. Vivas Robelo, Auxiliary Bishop and Vicar General of the

Archdiocese of Managua, authorizes "the publication of the narration of the

apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Cuapa."

Nov 13, 1982

Bishop Pablo Antonio Vega M., Prelate Bishop of Juigalpa (the diocese of the

apparitions) declares that he has "an obligation to assure the authenticity of the

events in order to be able to assist in discerning the true value of the alluded to

message."

Bernardo Martinez is ordained a priest.


"Suddenly I saw a lightning flash. I thought and said to myself, 'It is going to rain.' But I became

filled with wonder because I did not see from where the lightning had come. I stopped but I

could see nothing - no signs of rain. Afterward I went over near a place place where there are

some rocks. I walked about six or seven steps. That was when I saw another lightning flash, but

that was to open my vision, ans she presented herself.

"I was then wondering whether this could be something bad, whether it was the same statue as in

the chapel. But I saw that she blinked and that she was beautiful. She remained above the pile of

rocks as if on a cloud. And there was a little treeon top of the rocks and over that tree was the

cloud. The cloud was extremely white. It radiated in all directions the ray of sun light. On the

cloud were the feet of a very beautiful lady. Her feet were bare. The dress was long and white

50

with a celestial cord around the waist, and it had long sleeves. Covering her was a veil, a pale

cream color, with gold embroidery along the edge. Her hands were held together over her breast.

It looked like the statue of the Virgin of Fatima."

- Bernardo Martinez

Messages

The Virgin asked for the daily Rosary with Biblical citations and have the First Saturday

Devotions renewed. She also warned of future sufferings for Nicaragua if the people didn't

change.

After the initial 4 apparitions, the Virgin reportedly subsequently appeared in later years with

messages of the destruction of atheistic communism and the whole world. She also requested the

propagation of the devotion to the shoulder wounds of Christ.

For the complete text of the messages, see: “Messages – Our Lady of Cuapa” in the

“documents” folder.

Approval

In 1982, both Bishop Bosco M. Vivas Robelo, Auxiliary Bishop and Vicar General of the

Archdiocese of Managua and Bishop Pablo Antonio Vega M., Prelate Bishop of Juigalpa (the

diocese where the apparitions took place) released statements positively affirming the

apparitions.

51

Coptic Approved Apparitions

Our Lady of Light (1968)

Location: Zeitun, Egypt

First Apparition: April 2, 1968

Last Apparition: 1971

Investigated: 1968

Approved: May 4, 1968 by Pope of Coptic

Orthodox Church and Local Catholic Bishop.

Visionaries: Millions

Number of Apparitions: Many

Miracles & Signs: Accompanying objects (Doves, Stars and Glowing Balls of Light, Cross,

Incense, Clouds), Healings, Conversions.

Summary: Our Lady reportedly appeared in Zeitoun, Egypt hovering above Saint Mark's Coptic

Church for a span of three years. She appeared on many occasions especially at night, and

sometimes she was accompanied by white doves. The apparitions attracted large crowds up to

250,000 people including Christians, Jews, and Moslems. The apparitions were photographed,

filmed and broadcast on Egyptian TV. An estimated 40 million people witnessed the events.

Timeline

April 2, 1968

Mary first appeared on the roof of the Church in a kneeling position, surrounded

by light. The first man who saw her, Muslim, Farouk Mohammed Atwa, was

undergoing operations for a case of gangrene. The following day when he went

to hospital for his scheduled operation, he was certified completely healed.

May 1968 Roman Catholic Cardinal Stephanos performs an investigation and submits his

findings to Pope Paul VI.

May 5, 1968 Coptic Orthodox Pope Kyrillos VI approves the apparition.

1971 Mary appears for the final time.


She was wearing a long robe extending to below Her feet. Sometimes She was surrounded by

52

bright stars, and at other times She had a shawl about Her head, and Her hands were extended

forward. The Virgin would walk over the church, especially over the middle dome, and to bow in

front of the cross that shone, then, with a bright light. She sometimes made Her apparition with a

child in Her arms.

Messages

No messages were given at these apparitions.

Miracles, Cures, and Signs

The glowing image of our Lady was accompanied by doves and orbs of light, said to make

formations in the shape of a cross. Additionally, people made reports of the presence of incense

smelling smoke.

Approval

Anba Kyrillos VI, Pope of Alexandria, delegated a commision of priests to research and

investigate the phenomenon. They stayed there for several nights enquiring and investigating

until they saw with their own eyes the blessed Virgin's apparition in the full form moving on the

domes and blessing the multitudes in front of the church.

Kyrillos VI's official statement was:

"The Blessed Virgin mary has appeared several times on the Coptic Orthodox Church named

after her at Zeitun in Cairo."

The apparitions were also confirmed by the Jesuit Father Dr. Henry Ayrout. Nuns of the Society

of the Sacred Heart also witnessed the phenomenon and sent a detailed report to the Vatican,

resulting in the arrival of an envoy on April 28 who also saw the apparitions and sent a report to

Pope Paul VI.

53

Our Lady of Assiut (2000)

Location: Assiut, Egypt

First Apparition: Aug 17, 2000

Last Apparition: January 2001

Investigated: 2000

Approved: Approved by H.H. Pope

Shenouda III, Pope of Coptic Orthodox

Church.

Visionaries: Millions


Summary: Apparition of Mary on top of St. Mark's Church accompanied by lights and doves.

Notes: See “Our Lady of Assiut” in the “Videos” Folder!

54

Traditionally Approved Apparitions

Our Lady of La Vang (1798)

Location: La Vang, Vietnam

First Apparition: 1798


Approved: Traditional approval only. Pope John Paul II

celebrated the 200th anniversary of the apparitions.

Visionaries: 100,000


Summary:

Many Christians took refuge in the jungle near Quang Tri, a village in central Vietnam, where

they prepared themselves for martyrdom. Many people died from the bitter cold weather, lurking

wild beasts, jungle sickness and starvation. At night, they often gathered in small groups to pray

the rosary. Unexpectedly, one night they were visited by an apparition of Our Blessed Mother in

a long cape, holding a child in her arms, with two angels at her sides. She comforted them and

told them to boil the leaves from the surrounding trees to use as medicine. She also told them

that from that day on, all those who came to this place to pray, would get their prayers heard and

answered. All those who were present witnessed this miracle.

Timeline

1552

The Le Dynasty is usurped by the family's chief Regent, Mac Dang Dung. Two

political elite families, Trinh and Nguyen, regained power and split Vietnam

into a northern (Trinh) and southern region (Nguyen and Le). The Nguyen

capital was established at Dinh Cat.

1593

Catholicism was introduced into Vietnam by Father Diego Aduarte, a

Dominican, who came onboard a Spanish merchant ship and established a

mission in Dinh Cat.

Jesuit priest Francisco Buzoni maintained his predecessor's mission through

good relations with the Nguyen family. With the arrival of Father Francisco de

Pina, an Italian Jesuit who was fluent in Vietnamese language, many people

55

converted to Catholicism, including the king’s aunt. Thirty-seven parishes were

established around Dinh Cat.

1624

Father Alexander de Rhodes, a French Jesuit, arrived and initiated the

Vietnamese alphabets that are being used today. For more than forty years,

Catholicism was marginally tolerated due to the opened relations with European

powers, such as Spain, France and Portugal.

1788 The Nguyen dynasty expanded their territory southward and re-united the north

and south regions into what is now Vietnam.

1789 The official capital of Vietnam was moved once again, sixty kilometers

southward, to Hue.

1798

The Nguyen Dynasty decreed Catholicism as a foreign religious sect leading a

working class revolt against the dynasty. A few months later, direct attacks for

extermination were aimed at all thirty-seven parishes in Dinh Cat. More than

100.000 Vietnamese Catholics died as martyrs.

1798

Many Christians took refuge in the jungle near Quang Tri, a village in central

Vietnam, where they prepared themselves for martyrdom. Many people died

from the bitter cold weather, lurking wild beasts, jungle sickness and starvation.

At night, they often gathered in small groups to pray the rosary. Unexpectedly,

one night they were visited by an apparition of Our Blessed Mother in a long

cape, holding a child in her arms, with two angels at her sides. She comforted

them and told them to boil the leaves from the surrounding trees to use as

medicine. She also told them that from that day on, all those who came to this

place to pray, would get their prayers heard and answered. All those who were

present witnessed this miracle.

1876

From the time the Lady of La Vang first appeared, the refugees erected a small

chapel in her honour. During the following years, her name was spread among

the people in the region to other places. Despite its isolated location in the high

mountains, groups of people continued to find ways to penetrate the deep and

dangerous jungle to pray to the Lady of La Vang. Gradually, the pilgrims that

came with axes, spears, canes and drums to scare away wild animals were

replaced by those holding flying flags, flowers and rosaries. New pilgrimages

went on every year despite the continuous persecution campaign.

1886

The persecution ended. The original chapel, made of straw, soon became too

small. From 1885, several chapels were built one after another: the last, with its

three small huts, was blessed in 1928 by Bishop Eugene Maria Giuseppe Allys

(Ly, in Vietnamese), who was then Vicar Apostolic of Hue.

During the period 1886-1928, the locality of La Vang was dependent on the

parish of Co-Vuu, in the Province of Quang Tri. In 1928, in order to respond to

the needs of the growing number of pilgrims, Bishop Allys erected La Vang as

an independent parish.

Aug 6, 1901 After the persecution had officially ended, Bishop Gaspar ordered a church to be

56

built in honour of the Lady of La Vang. Because of its precarious location and

limited funding, it took 15 years for the completion of the church of La Vang. It

was inaugurated by Bishop Gaspar in a solemn ceremony that participated by

over 12,000 people. The bishop proclaimed the Lady of La Vang as the

Protectorate of the Catholics.

1924 A larger church was built to accommodate the increasing number of pilgrims.

April 13, 1961

The Bishops of South Viet Nam (then divided from North Viet Nam by the 18th

parallel), assembled in Hue, made a vow to the Immaculate Heart of Mary to

consecrate a temple to the Blessed Virgin when circumstances permitted, asking

Our Lady for freedom for the Church and peace for both parts of Viet Nam.

Aug 8, 1961 In their joint letter of the same year, La Vang was recognized as a national

Marian Centre.

Aug 22, 1961 Pope John XXIII elevated the church of La Vang to the Basilica of La Vang. (In

1959 it had been raised to minor basilica status)

1972 This church was destroyed in the summer of 1972 during the Vietnam War

April 30, 1975

After the country's reunification when South Vietnam fell under the control of

the communists, the Lavang complex had enlarged to include a retreat center, a

hospitality center, an outdoor amphitheatre and a beautiful statue of Mary

commemorating her apparitions.

May 1, 1980

All the Bishops of Viet Nam, gathered in Ha Noi solemnly renewed the

recognition of La Vang as a national Marian centre, singing the Salve Regina on

their knees and in unison with great faith and devotion.

June 19, 1988

Pope John Paul II in the canonizing ceremony of the 117 Vietnamese martyrs,

publicly and repeatedly recognized the importance and significance of the Lady

of La Vang and expressed a desire for the rebuilding of the La Vang Basilica.

Nov 25, 1992

in his General Audience , the presence of Archbishop Etienne Nguyen Nhu The,

the current Archbishop of Hue, gave the Holy Father the opportunity of

referring to the La Vang Shrine and emphasizing the Vietnamese Catholics'

filial attachment to Christ and to his representative on earth;

Aug 15, 1993

During the World Youth Day in Denver, His Holiness spent one hour with the

Vietnamese who were present and entrusted the whole Vietnamese Catholic

community to the Blessed Virgin's protection, with the wish that the celebrations

for the bicentenary of La Vang might help to reinforce unity and mutual

understanding between the Catholics and their fellow countrymen;

Oct 26, 1994

In his General Audience, the Holy Father asked the priests and religious

gathered in Rome to study the pastoral needs of the Vietnamese diaspora, to

deepen their faith and to cherish the teaching of the Church with a view to

preparing the celebration of the bicentenary of La Vang;

Dec 16, 1997 Pope John Paul II issues a letter to Cardinal Paul Joseph Pham Dinh Tung of Ha

57

Noi to mark the 200th anniversary of the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin in La

Vang.

Aug 1998 200th anniversary of the first apparition of the Lady of La Vang presided by

Phan Dinh Tung, archbishop of Hanoi.

April 15, 2008

The local government of Quang Tri province said that it would return nearly all

of the land surrounding the basilica of Our Lady of La Vang, which had been

seized after the Communist takeover of 1975.


One evening, according to tradition, a lady of great beauty appeared to the refugees in the jungle,

clad in white and surrounded by light, holding the infant Jesus in her arms, with two charming

boys holding torches at her side. The lady walked back and forth several times in front of the

Christians, her feet touching the ground. Even the non-Christians who were there witnessed the

vision.

Church Approval

Unfortunately, there is no written documentation of these apparitions: such documents were

perhaps kept in the Hue church archives, which were destroyed during two local wars: in 1833,

under King Minh Mang, and in 1861 in the reign of King Tuduc.

No formal approval has been given to the apparition of the Our Lady of Lavang- the Vietnamese

hierarchy has not offiicially pronounced on the historicity of Mary's apparition at La Vang. The

elevation of the church to Basilica status and the visit of Pope John Paul II gives implicit

approval to the apparition claim.

58

Our Lady of China (1900)

Location: Dong Lu, China



Approved: In 1932, Pope Pius XI approved it as an

official Marian Shrine.

Visionaries: Thousands


Miracles and Signs: When the Boxer Rebellion

broke out, nearly 10,000 hostile soldiers attacked the

small impoverished village of Dong Lu, home of

approximately 1,000 Christians. The Virgin Mary

appeared as a beautiful lady in the sky surrounded by

light. A fiery horsemen - perhaps St. Michael (the

Archangel) - chased the attackers out of the village.

Summary: The Virgin Mary appeared as a beautiful lady in the skies when Catholics implored

her to save them from their enemies and their city from destruction during the Boxer Rebellion.

In thanksgiving for Our Lady’s protection over the city of Dong Lu (Tong Lu), a beautiful

church was built in her honor. It was meant to serve as a constant reminder to the people of

Mary’s loving and motherly protection.

Timeline

April 1900

When the Boxer Rebellion broke out, nearly 10,000 hostile soldiers attacked the

small impoverished mission village of Dong Lu (near Peiping), home of 700 -

1,000 Christians and founded by Vicentian fathers. The Virgin Mary appeared as

a beautiful lady in white in the sky surrounded by light. The soldiers, in senseless

rage, started to shoot into the sky. Then suddenly they fled, frightened, and never

came back again when a fiery horsemen - perhaps St. Michael - chased the

attackers out of the village. The Chinese pastor of the village, Father Wu, had

prayed for Our Lady's intercession.

In thanksgiving for Our Lady’s protection, a beautiful church was built in her

honor. It was meant to serve as a constant reminder to the people of Mary’s

loving and motherly protection.

59

The pastor secured a painting of the Dowager Empress Ci Xi, the long time ruler

of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, dressed in imperial robes.He commissioned an

artist to use it as the background for the image of Our Lady holding the Christ

Child. The picture was hung above the altar in the Church of Dong Lu, which

eventually became a famous place of pilgrimage starting in 1924.

1924

Shanghai Synod of Bishops in China, the first national conference of bishops in

the country, chose this image to be denoted as "Our Lady of China" or "Our Lady

Queen of China". People began coming to the shrine.

1924

Following the event, Archbishop Celso Costantini, Apostolic Delegate in China,

along with all the bishops of China, declared the Chinese people dedicated to Our

Lady of China, using the official image.

1928 An officially-sanctioned image of Our Lady of China was blessed, granted and

promulgated by Pope Pius XI.

1929 First official pilgrimage to Dong Lu.

1932 Pope Pius XI approved it as an official Marian Shrine.

1941 Pope Pius XII designated the feast day as an official feast of the Catholic

liturgical calendar.

1941 Shrine is destroyed during the Second World War when it caught fire due to

Japanese artillery bombardment

1973

Following the Second Vatican Council, the Chinese Bishops conference, upon

approval from the Holy See, placed the feast day on the vigil (day preceding) of

Mothers Day (the second Sunday of May).

1992 Shrine rebuilt as the largest church building in north China.

May 23,

1995

Over 30,000 Catholics from the unofficial Church had gathered for Mass at the

Donglu shrine on the vigil of the Feast of Our Lady, Mary Help of Christians.

There were four bishops of the unofficial Church concelebrating the Mass and

nearly 100 unofficial priests standing in the open field. Suddenly, during the

opening prayer and again during the consecration, the people observed the sun

spinning from right to left. Light rays of various shades emanated from the sky.

Participants saw Our Lady fo China and the Child Jesus in the sky and also the

Holy Family, the Heavenly Father, and the Holy Spirit. The phenomenon lasted

approximately twenty minutes.

May 24,

1995

The Public Security barred all pilgrims from joining anyone on the hill. The

police forced people back into buses and trains without offering any explanation.

Still, as many as 100,000 successfully reached the area by finding alternative

ways to get there to celebrate the Feast of Mary Help of Christians.

April 1996

An official government announcement forbade anyone from going to the Dong lu

shrine. The Chinese government mobilized 5000 troops, supported by dozens of

armored cars and helicopters, destroyed and leveled that Marian shrine,

60

confiscated the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary and arrested many priests.

The picture of Our Lady of China remains intact because only a copy of the

picture was used in the church. The original was hidden in the wall behind the

copy, and this was recovered and found intact. It is now in possession of Chinese

priests who carry out their activities in disguise.


The Virgin Mary appeared as a beautiful lady in white in the sky surrounded by light. The

resulting painting using a painting of Empress Dowager CiXi as a backdrop, features the image

of the Blessed Virgin in the royal robes of the pagan Empress, with the Christ Child on her

knees, is vivid expression of Chinese tradition. It is a shrine of the Mother and her Son. Though

her robes be pagan, she belongs to every age, to all people and to every race.

Church Approval

The Church has not issued an official judgment of the apparition at Dong Lu. Pope Pius XI's

establishment of the church as an official Marian Shrine constitutes implicit approval. In 1941,

Pope Pius XII designated the feast day as an official feast of the Catholic liturgical calendar.

Following the Second Vatican Council, the Chinese Bishops conference, upon approval from the

Holy See, placed the feast day on the vigil (day preceding) of Mothers Day (the second Sunday

of May).

61

Other Apparitions

Our Lady of Soufanieh (1982)

Location: Soufanieh, Damascus, Syria.

First Apparition: December 15, 1982

Last Apparition: The apparitions are ongoing.

Approval:

The messages focus on unity between the

churches, therefore approval and recognition is

needed from a number of churches:

Catholic – Nhil Obstat (nothing stands in the way)

http://www.soufanieh.com/nihil.obstat.html

Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch – Approved by

the patriarch.

Melkite Greek Catholic Church – Approved by the

patriarch.

Visionaries: Myrna Nazzour.


Miracles and Signs: Healings, Stigmata, Large quantities of 100% olive oil flow from the

hands, face & neck of the visionary and from an image of the Virgin with Jesus.

For more information:

See “Our Lady of Soufanieh” in the “Videos” folder.

See “Light from the East – Our Lady of Soufanieh” in “Documents” folder.

http://www.soufanieh.com/menuenglish.htm

http://www.catholicdigitalstudio.com/miracleofdamascus.htm

http://www.soufanieh.com/nihil.obstat.html



62

Apparitions Awaiting Approvement

Our Lady of Medjugorje (1981)

Location: Medjugorje, Bosnia and Herzegovina

First Apparition: June 24, 1981

Last Apparition: The apparitions are ongoing.

Status: Undecided. The Holy See announced in

March 2010 that it had established a commission

under the auspices of the Congregation for the

Doctrine of the Faith to evaluate the apparitions,

headed by Cardinal Camillo Ruini.

Notes: It should be noted that (in most cases) no

reported claim of a supernatural apparition can

receive approved status until the alleged phenomena

have ceased.

Visionaries: 6.


Miracles and Signs: Healings, Conversions, Rosaries turned into gold. According to the

visionaries, once the apparitions are over, the Virgin Mary has promised to leave a “supernatural,

indestructible, and visible sign on the mountain where she first appeared”.


http://www.medjugorje.org/overview.htm

http://www.medjugorje.org/overview.htm

63

Stigmatist Katia Rivas

Location: Cochabamba, Bolivia


Last Apparition: The apparitions are

ongoing.

Status: As is the case with most stigmatas,

no formal judgment has been given by the

church.


See “Katya Rivas” in the “Documents” folder.

See “Katya Rivas” in the “Videos” folder.

http://youshallbelieve.com

http://youshallbelieve.com/

64

Additional Information

http://fifthmariandogma.com/index.php?option=com_breezingforms&view=form&Itemid=

602

http://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/approved_apparitions/index.html

http://www.ladyofallnations.org

http://www.ourladysmantle.org/index_files/Page1149.htm

http://www.circleofprayer.com/theladyofallnations-marian-dogma.html



http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/



http://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/approved_apparitions/index.html

http://www.ladyofallnations.org/

http://www.ourladysmantle.org/index_files/Page1149.htm

http://www.circleofprayer.com/theladyofallnations-marian-dogma.html



http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/

church approved apparitions

Documents

rue du bac

bitter cold weather

bernardindo de sahagun

alonso de montfar

invisible madonna barring

lurking wild beasts

saturday devotions renewed

cardinal van roy