UPDATED 10 June 2015
Pope Francis gave a hint Tuesday about his take on the reported apparitions of the Virgin Mary at the Medjugorje shrine in southern Bosnia, dismissing a reliance on regular visions of the Madonna as mere “novelty-seeking” for the faithful.
Francis spoke during his morning homily, three days after making a day trip to Sarajevo. En route home, Francis told reporters the Vatican would soon decide whether to formally recognize the Medjugorje phenomenon as authentic.
In his homily, Francis dismissed those “who always need novelty in their Christian identity” and say: “But where are the visionaries who tell us today about ‘The letter that the Madonna will send tomorrow at 4 p.m.?'”
“This isn’t Christian identity,” he said. “God’s last word is called Jesus and nothing more.”
The Medjugorje apparition has been disputed since 1981, when six youths said they had regularly seen visions of the Virgin there. Unlike Fatima in Portugal or Lourdes in France, the Vatican has been cautious about calling the sightings authentic. Neither Rome nor the local diocese has approved Medjugorje as an official shrine site and the Vatican has told dioceses not to organize official pilgrimages there.
That hasn’t stopped the remote village 70 miles (110 kilometers) southwest of Sarajevo from thriving from the financial boost brought by more than 30 million faithful who have visited since 1981.
The local church itself has cast doubt on the sightings, in part because one of the visionaries says the apparitions have continued regularly for over a quarter century.
In 2010, then-Pope Benedict XVI formed an international commission to study the Medjugorje phenomenon. On Saturday, Francis said commission’s report had been taken up by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, although the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said it hadn’t yet been discussed.
Lombardi acknowledged that Francis was probably referring to Medjugorje in his homily but he stressed that his brief mention was not the Vatican’s final word. Francis’ off-the-cuff comments “are not an official pronouncement that gives a wide-ranging and articulated doctrinal or pastor indications,” he said.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED 22 April 2013
It all begun in March 1965 when the Vatican ruled that half of the parishes of Erzegovina, up to then administered by a Franciscan order of friars, would fall under the Bishop of Monstar-Duvno. The Friars took it badly and refused to comply basing on traditions dating back five centuries.
In 1967 Rome rejected their claims and again ordered to carry on with the handover. By 1975 pope Paul VI issued a decree known as ‘Romanis Pontificibus’ dated 6 June 1975 published by the Propaganda Fide, but one year later the dispute was still dragging on. Because of the death of Paul VI, and then the short papacy of John Paul I in Rome they put aside the problem but with the death of Tito (4th of May, 1980) the teological row too also political colours. It was then that the boys started to see Mary, who incredibly took side with the rebellious Franciscans, against their Bishop.
A friend of mine was in Medjugorje a few weeks ago on a humanitarian mission. She saw what a circus it has become, but she came back with mixed feelings about the alleged sanctity of that place. Later, on one of the pictures shot there by her sister there was a strange red dot and looking at the clouds a rough figure of Mary could be noticed. In normal conditions the red dot could be dismissed as a planet or a reflex caused by the lens and as far as the clouds are concerned, all clouds if watched long enough could take
any shape our fantasy dictates. After seeing that picture I could remember a lady living near my home in Italy. In 1983 she went to Majugorje and came back shocked. She became a then a very religious person, because she said she has seen Satan. A scary sight indeed, scary enough to push her to get back to Church! Her trip was made on a bus with other pilgrims guided by a catholic priest who claimed to be an exorcist. Checking on Google I had found several similar pictures posted by people who had been there and then claim to have seen strange lights, rosary beads taking the color of gold, strange lights and the sun dancing, as it did at Fatima (an event accepted by the Catholic Church and witnessed by 50.000 people). The Catholic Church seems divided on this subject but the current position is that what is happening in Medjugorje, Herzegovina, is a fraud.
Some even think that it might be the work of the Devil, this at least is the opinion of the bishop of Isernia, Andrea Gemma, an 82 years old chief exorcist, a man who do not mince words. He says: “In Medjugorje everything happens in function of money: pilgrimages, lodging houses, sale of thickets. The whole sham is the work of the Devil. It is a scandal!” John Paul II never visited the place nor ever expressed any wish to get there.
Jesus said that we should judge a tree by the fruits it bears. In Medjugorje all begun on 25 June 1981 when six children told a priest they were seeing Our Lady. Since then this has happened ten of thousand of times but not a single miracle made by that ‘spiritual entity’ was ever confirmed. Predictions were made, some quite catastrophic, like the destruction of Germany and the USA (prophecy of September 1981) and the Pope seeking refuge in Turkey! but luckily nothing of such sort had ever happened.
The six children were caught lying several times on tape, and team of scientists who wanted to investigate the strange phenomenon happening there were always, with different excuses, turned away. Some catholic commentators seem to agree on the fact that the main message coming our of Mejugorjes is one of disobedience to the Church of Rome, in fact the six seers since the beginning refused to follow instructions set by Church’s authorities and bishops. One of the seers is by now married to a former Miss USA and all of them are rich, owning hotels, living in large mansions provided with swimming pools. The local bishop was kidnapped on April 2, 1994 and he was released only thank to the intervention of UN Troops.
Another constant message coming out from there is that of the relativity of all religions. But, as it was pointed out since the Middle Age, if you think that all religions are good, then you don’t believe in any of them. Medjugorje could be simply dismissed as a fraud on epic scale which is provoking phenomena of mass hysteria.
continued regularly for over a quarter century.
In 2010, then-Pope Benedict XVI formed an international commission to study the Medjugorje phenomenon. On Saturday, Francis said commission’s report had been taken up by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, although the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said it hadn’t yet been discussed.
Lombardi acknowledged that Francis was probably referring to Medjugorje in his homily but he stressed that his brief mention was not the Vatican’s final word. Francis’ off-the-cuff comments “are not an official pronouncement that gives a wide-ranging and articulated doctrinal or pastor indications,” he said.