Town of Medjugorje Site of Alleged Apparitions of the Virgin Mary
Church has not officially recognized visions; stills draw the faithful
Medjugorje or "Between the Hills" is a village in the southern part of Herzegovina in the present-day state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The area is famous due to a series of reported visions of the Virgin Mary that began in 1981 and continues today. Although the apparitions have not been validated by the Catholic Church, the Shrine of the Queen of Peace at Medjugorje attracts thousands of pilgrims and tourists each year.
The parish church of St. James was rebuilt and consecrated on January 19, 1969. After the apparitions began in 1981, the church and the surrounding area were gradually developed and expanded.
PrintLOS ANGELS, CA (Catholic Online) - The reported visions at Medjugorje began on June of 1981. Near the area now called Apparition Hill, six Croatian children saw a beautiful young woman with a child in her arms. She was silent, but gestured for them to come closer.
The following day, four of the same children and two different ones returned to the hill in hopes of seeing the lady again. There was a sudden flash of light, and the lady appeared again, this time without the child. The children kneeled and prayed the rosary, and the lady prayed with them -- except for the Hail Mary.
On the third day, the vision identified herself as the Blessed Virgin Mary. On the fifth day, a large crowd gathered for the vision, but only the children saw it. On the sixth day, a miraculous healing occurred. On the seventh day, the Virgin appeared to the children away from the original apparition site.
Each of the visionaries has also reported that the Virgin has disclosed either nine or 10 "secrets" to them. The three visionaries who have received all 10 secrets no longer receive daily visions, but annual visions on their birthday, anniversary of the visions, or Christmas, respectively.
Unlike most reported apparitions of the Virgin Mary, the children of Medugorje reported that she appeared to them regularly for more than a decade, no matter where they traveled. None of the visionaries has become a monk or nun. Several of them are married with children, and one lives part-time in Massachusetts.
The parish church of St. James was rebuilt and consecrated on January 19, 1969. After the apparitions began in 1981, the church and the surrounding area were gradually developed and expanded.
The St. James Parish Church of Medjugorje is the focus of worship and prayer for both the local parish and visiting pilgrims. A marble statue of the Queen of Peace, which became a symbol of the Medjugorje Shrine, was erected in 1987 at the square in front of the church.
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Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.
Keywords: Mary sightings, Medjugorje, child visionaries
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You know one thing we never thought of. The Catholic world is not obligated to these places or to any private revelation whatsoever but one common denominator I got from some of you is this:
We all can go there and be together as our Lord said, "Where there are two or more there I will be."
The Lord and His Mother can be anywhere on this planet at anytime. Even the devil will be there but forget about him its what our Lord matters about in all of this.
It could be Lourdes, Fatima, Knock and or one of the many places not sanctioned or sanctioned by the church but the Lord will be there. Im not endorsing anything only stating wherever you can be in any church or holy place in the world or just plane old turf He will be there now isnt that an awesome thing?
The main thing is that we all can come together anywhere in the world at any time and be there to give worship and love to our Lord Jesus Christ. To find His comfort and be reassured that He will be with us anywhere at any time til the end of time.
John Grimes: the next time you pray before the Blessed Sacrament, open your heart and ask the Lord to grant you the grace of knowing with certainty the truth of the apparitions of Medjugorje.
I have been to Medjugorje twice. In 1988 and 1990, the second time with my skeptical husband who became a complete believer through his experiences there. As for myself, I had been a heavy smoker for more than 30 years and found it impossible for me to quit no matter what I tried. I was hooked! During my 1990 trip while in confession I asked the priest to pray for me to kick the habit once and for all. From that moment on, I have never had the desire for a cigarette and have been "smokeless" ever since 1990. Also, all of my rosaries have changed to a brassy gold color. Each time I get a new pair the same thing happens. But most important is the atmosphere of prayer, peace, and true joy there.
We would like to inform you about the new book ''Medjugorje - 30 years of a Phenomenon''.
You can find all about it at:
http://webknjizara.hr/index.php?page=shop.product_details&product_id=109&flypage=flypage.tpl&pop=0&vmcchk=1&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=28
Anne, thank you for sharing your Medjugorje exoerience. I have a friend who has been there three times and his story is consistant with yours. You said exactly what he said. I can understand why the church takes a cautious approach to this event. Praying Rosaries, Giving devotion to God and Jesus Christ, Confessing sins, Praying the Stations of the Cross are hardly anything the church has to worry about. All Marxists are very upset with this because they are, after all, Anti-Christs and they know that this is defeat for them.
Excerpt from Bishop Ratko Peric's homily dated June 15, 2006:
"On the basis of Church investigations of the events of Medjugorje, it cannot be determined that these events involve supernatural apparitions or revelations. This means that till now the Church has not accepted, neither as supernatural nor as Marian, any of the apparitions.
"Priests who canonically administer this parish of Medjugorje or those who come as visitors, are not authorised to express their private views contrary to the official position of the Church on the so-called “apparitions” and “messages”, during celebrations of the sacraments, neither during other common acts of piety, nor in the Catholic media.
"The Catholic faithful are not only free from any obligation to believe in the authenticity of the “apparitions” but they must also know that church pilgrimages are not allowed, whether official or private, individual or group, or from other parishes, if they presuppose the authenticity of the “apparitions” or if by undertaking them attempt to certify these “apparitions”.
"As the local Bishop, I maintain that regarding the events of Medjugorje, on the basis of the investigations and experience gained thus far, throughout these last 25 years, the Church has not confirmed a single “apparition” as authentically being the Madonna. The fact that during these 25 years there has been talk of tens of thousands of “apparitions” does not contribute any authenticity to these events, which according to the words of our current Pope, who I encountered during an audience on 24 February this year, commented that at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith they always questioned how all these “apparitions” could be considered authentic for the Catholic faithful.
"Therefore I responsibly call upon those who claim themselves to be “seers”, as well as those persons behind the “messages”, to demonstrate ecclesiastical obedience and to cease with these public manifestations and messages in this parish. In this fashion they shall show their necessary adherence to the Church, by neither placing private “apparitions” nor private sayings before the official position of the Church."
http://www.cbismo.com/index.php?mod=vijest&vijest=71
I too have been to Medjugorje. I was there 4 years ago and have known about the reported appearances of Mary since the early 1980's. St. Paul, and thus the Church, instructs that we are to judge things by their fruits. Based upon my observations of the pilgrims and the visionaries, and the total focal point of the experience while there, one has to conclude that there is certainly something "spiritual" occurring. First, the shear number of people who attend liturgy in their native language during the day and then return to attend the multi-national rosary and liturgy at 6 pm followed by either adoration or other forms of Christ centered prayer, is amazing . The devotion and prayer that surrounds you is impressive. People go to confession in droves. The climb up the mountain to the cement cross which was erected by the villagers in 1933 is difficult today. I can only imagine how difficult it was for the people to carry on their backs all the materials needed to erect this cross in devotion to our Lord, long before the world even knew they existed. Every homily focused on repentance and returning to the Lord Jesus and the sacraments. The homilist, who were priests from all over the world, were very inspirational and most told their "stories" of faith and personal converstion. It was very uplifting. My observations of the visionaries was that they did NOT talk about themselves, nor saw themselves as special in any way. They only spoke about what Our Lady asks of us...to go to Mass; go to confession: live our Catholic/Christian life. They seem untroubled with the criticisms leveled at them. They seem to trust implicitly in the Lord and seem willing to accept the judgment of the Church. Now, as to none of them not becoming a religious or a priest. I find that insulting to the sacramentality of MARRIAGE. Lest anyone forget, MARRIAGE and PRIESTHOOD are the only 2 sacramental states in life. The world desperately needs to see holy people living the married state of life. We also need good priests, but don’t you think that, if we have free will, then we can choose the state in life that God calls us to. Who are we to say what state in life each one of these individuals were called to live? Finally, it is up to the Holy Mother Church to declare the validity or invalidity of the visionaries claims. She moves slowly and deliberately. She does not make her final declaration until the apparitions have concluded and as of this time, they have not ceased. The local Church has taken great care in having the pilgrims focus on Liturgy, Confession, Eucharist Adoration, Stations of the Cross and the Holy Rosary. That is what I as a pilgrim did as well as my fellow travelers. We were there to follow Jesus more closely, to deepen our devotion, and to heed the to call to conversion, which never ceases until we meet Our Lord on our judgment day. Amen
PS: I traveled to Medjugorje with many prayers from family and friends. Prayers which I offered to Our Lord after climbing the mountain to the Cross erected in 1933...Prayers, which I did not know the contents of, but upon my return those who requested the prayers reported they were answered...
Nebraska, No, I never heard of three days of darkness as it relates to Medjugorje. The message that was conveyed by the Visionaries in the 1980's was that we need to pray the Rosary daily for peace and conversion of sinners. This was very straight forward and consistant with messages of other visitations. The only unique request that I remember was that we pray seven Our Fathers, seven Hail Mary's, and seven Glory Be's when we first wake up in the morning and just before we go to bed for peace in our personal lives. As far as money and fame go, the Visionaries refused any money and continue to hide from the public spotlight. This is hardly the behavior of Fame and Fortune seekers. As far as Hotels, restaraunts, vendors go, it is what it is. If many people choose to go to a certain place, they will need food and lodging. It comes with territory. The focus should be on the Message from the Blessed Mother because that is what it is all about.
I love you Mary!
If the Catholic church and the priests and bishops of that area dont endorse the visions...why would any of us want anything to do with it?