Coptic Orthodox Bishopric of Giza Approves Current Virgin Mary Apparitions (Warraq el-Hadar, Egypt) - The Coptic Orthodox Bishopric of Giza on December 11, 2009, issued this statement approving the apparitions occurring in Warraq el-Hadar, a small island in greater Cairo's Nile river: The Bishopric of Giza announces that the Holy Virgin has appeared in a transfiguration at the Church named after her in Warraq al-Hadar, Giza, in the early hours of Friday 11 December 2009 at 1:00am. The Holy Virgin appeared in her full height in luminous robes, above the middle dome of the church, in pure white dress and a royal blue belt. She had a crown on her head, above which appeared the cross on top of the dome. The crosses on top of the church’s domes and towers glowed brightly with light. The Holy Virgin moved between the domes and on to the top of the church gate between its two twin towers. The local residents all saw her. Click here to read the entire statement >> Anniversary Year of Devotion to Our Lady of Good Success DEC 28, 2009 (Quito, Ecuador) The Monastery of the Immaculate Conception announced the 400th Anniversary Year of Devotion to Our Lady of Good Success (Nuestra Senora del Buen Suceso) from February 2, 2010 through February 2, 2011. The Conceptionist Sisters have invited the public to venerate the miraculous statue which resides in the Monastery of the Immaculate Conception. For more info call the The Apostolate of Our Lady of Good Success at 262-567-0920, email them at ladyofgoodsuccess@sbcglobal.net or visit their website, ourladyofgoodsuccess.com New Virgin Mary Apparitions in Egypt? DEC 17, 2009 (SpiritDaily.com) Videos on YouTube indicate that unusual lights are again appearing on a Coptic Orthodox church in the Cairo metropolitan area, this time in a neighborhood known as Warraq. There are no details as yet as to when the phenomena began, but according to blog reports crowds began forming on December 9 -- a day after the Immaculate Conception feast -- and thousands are now gathering each night, chanting, singing Arabic-style Christian songs, and loudly exclaiming as forms or flashes of light materialize. The forms of light are vague as taken with what appear to be cell phones and presented on internet videos but like apparitions that occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s at other Orthodox churches in Cairo seem to show a bright light in the form of Mary moving amid the domes or over an entrance near an illuminated Cross as a frenzied crowd and beeping taxi horns form an audio backdrop. Read the entire Spirit Daily article here >> 6.1 Million Pilgrims Visit Guadalupe Shrine Set New Attendance Record for Feast Day Celebrations MEXICO CITY, DEC. 14, 2009 (Zenit.org).- More than 6.1 million pilgrims visited the Basilica of Guadalupe on Friday and Saturday to mark the 478th anniversary of the apparitions of the Virgin to Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac, according to the official figures made public Saturday night. The figure breaks the historic attendance record set in 2008 when just over 6 million pilgrims visited the shrine last year on the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, considered the most important day in the religious calendar for Mexicans. A recent surveyed showed that one out of every four Mexicans say they have received a favor or miracle through the intercession of the Virgin, who is patron of the Americas. Read the entire Zenit article here >> Program Readied for Papal Fatima Trip Benedict XVI Heads to Portugal in May LISBON, Portugal, DEC. 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The program for Benedict XVI's May 11-14 trip to Portugal has been confirmed, with visits to Lisbon, Porto, and Fatima, the site of the famous 1917 apparitions of the Virgin Mary to shepherd children. The program of the visit was announced on Monday in Lisbon by Bishop Carlos Azevedo, coordinator-general of the papal visit. According to the program, on May 11, the Holy Father will arrive in Lisbon. At 12:45 p.m. there will be a welcome ceremony in the Portuguese capital, followed by a courtesy visit to the president. Each of the stops will center around a diverse theme. In Lisbon: "Sanctity and Evangelization"; in Fatima: "To Share with Joy"; and in Porto: "Church and Mission." Read the entire Zenit article here >> Hundreds left disappointed as Knock apparition is 'no-show' Knock, Ireland Dec 7, 2009 (Independent.ie) - THE small crowd that travelled to Knock over the weekend hoping for an apparition of the Virgin Mary was left disappointed. Instead the 600 or so people had to make do with something of a circus as self-proclaimed visionaries Joe Coleman and Keith Henderson were hotly pursued by television crews, photographers and reporters over the weekend. The pair had claimed that the Virgin Mary would appear in the Knock Basilica at 3pm on Saturday -- the third such apparition they have predicted this year -- and earlier that morning Mr Coleman had said she was bringing an extremely important message that would rock the Church -- but which he was not prepared to tell the media. The 'visionaries' entered the basilica at 2.45pm, ahead of the predicted appearance time, followed by a frenzy of media and large crowds. Read the entire Independent article here >> Movie about Fatima released on DVD San Francisco, Calif., Dec 1, 2009 (CNA).- “The 13th Day,” a movie based on the memoirs of Sister Maria Lucia de Jesus, is being released today on DVD by Ignatius Press. The movie is a “dramatic and artistic presentation with a powerful message about what Our Lady requested at Fatima," said Fr. Andrew Apostoli, CFR, a Fatima expert. The film, which is the first major motion picture from directors Ian and Dominic Higgins, recounts the appearances of the Blessed Mother to three shepherd children at Fatima, Portugal during the year 1917. Read the entire Catholic News Agency article here >> Metuchen, N.J. Diocese to open Beatification Cause of Maria Esperanza METUCHEN, NJ, NOV. 25, 2009 (SpiritDaily).- Bishop Paul Bootkoski, Ordinary of the Diocese of Metuchen, New Jersey, has decided that there are sufficient grounds to open the cause for beatification and canonization of Mrs. Maria Esperanza de Bianchini, a Venezuelan mother of numerous children and alleged mystic, who lived between the years of 1928 and 2004. Bishop Bootkoski will give a truly religious sense to this juridical act by conducting the opening of the cause in the context of a Mass to be celebrated at St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral in Metuchen, on Sunday, January 31, 2010 at 3:00 pm. The Betania Choir of Venezuela, composed of the family members and spiritual followers of the servant of God, Maria Esperanza, will provide the music for this liturgical celebration. On March 25, 1984, the Blessed Virgin appeared to Maria Esperanza and 150 of her associates at a tropical farm named Betania, 50 miles south of Caracas. Our Lady manifested herself in Betania under the title: “Mary, Virgin and Mother, Reconciler of all Peoples and Nations.” These apparitions were approved in 1987 by the local Bishop, Monsignor Pio Bello, in consultation with then Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Read the entire SpiritDaily report here >> Cardinal Puljic on Medjugorje: God Blesses Prayer ROME, NOV. 23, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The president of the Bosnian episcopal conference has been in Rome, but not to discuss the controversy surrounding Medjugorje, as some reports have contended. Instead, Cardinal Vinko Puljic participated last week in the plenary assembly of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, which focused on St. Paul and the "new areopagi." The cardinal did talk to ZENIT about Medjugorje, affirming that the reports of apparitions there and the consequent popularity of the site for pilgrimages is a matter dealt with by the bishop of Mostar, Ratko Peric, and the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. "As an episcopal conference, we await suggestions and proposals on how to proceed, and I believe the Holy See wants to carry on in this way," he added. Read the entire ZENIT story here >> Visionary nun takes step toward sainthood (Google News) Nov 22, 2009 NAZARETH, Israel — A Palestinian nun who co-founded a charity dedicated to educating Arab girls on Sunday took an important step toward sainthood. Thousands of worshippers gathered in the biblical town of Nazareth to attend the beatification of the late Sister Maria Alfonsina Danil Ghattas. Ghattas helped found the Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of Jerusalem in the 1880s. The order, highly regarded in Palestinian communities, continues to run schools for Palestinian girls in Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. She also claimed to have experienced several apparitions of the Virgin Mary. Read the entire Google News story here >> Vindicated, novice of Lipa apparitions keeps low profile (Phillipine Daily Inquirer) November 23, 2009 MANILA, Philippines--Teresita Castillo, to whom the Virgin Mary reportedly appeared in 1948 when Castillo was a young Carmelite novice, has been declining interview requests following the lifting of the Church ban against the public veneration of the image of Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace, a devotion that stemmed from the apparitions. “She [Castillo] has decided to maintain a low profile. We have to respect her [wishes],” said Fr. Richard Hernandez, the chair of the new commission created by the Church to reopen the investigation into the apparitions in Lipa. Read the entire Inquirer.net article here >> New probe into Virgin Mary’s apparition in Lipa set (Phillipine Daily Inquirer) November 21, 2009 MANILA, Philippines -- Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles has formed a new commission to revisit the series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary at the Carmel monastery in Lipa, Batangas, in 1948. The commission was created in a decree that Arguelles issued on Nov. 12, the same day the archbishop issued another decree, formally lifting the 1951 Church ban against the public veneration of the image of the Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace, in Lipa. Nov. 12 this year was the 61st anniversary of the last of the series of apparitions that occurred from September to November 1948 in Lipa. In 1948, the Virgin Mary reportedly appeared 19 times to Teresita Castillo, a novice in the Carmelite convent. Rose petals with holy images reportedly fell from the sky. In her last apparition to Castillo, the Blessed Virgin identified herself, saying, “I am the Mediatrix of All Grace.” Read the entire Inquirer.net article here >> Bishop Lifts Ban on Veneration at Phillipines Apparition Site (Phillipine Daily Inquirer) November 20, 2009 BATANGAS CITY — Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles confirmed that he had lifted the 1951 ban on the public veneration of Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace. In a phone interview Tuesday night, Arguelles said he lifted the ban on Nov. 12 as “there was nothing wrong in praising apparitions” as he was well-aware of “the love of the people for the Blessed Mother.” “The Blessed Mother has [protected] the country from calamities,” he said. In 1948, the Virgin Mary allegedly appeared 19 times to Teresita Castillo, a novice in the Carmelite Order in Lipa City. Rose petals with holy images reportedly fell from the sky. In her last apparition to Castillo, the Blessed Virgin identified herself: “I am the Mediatrix of All Grace.” Read the entire Inquirer.net article here >> Cleveland Bishop Issues statement against 'Holy Love' movement (Morning Journal) November 14, 2009 —Bishop Richard Lennon, head of the Cleveland Catholic Diocese, has issued a decree to clergy and laity of the diocese that Holy Love Ministries of Lorain County is officially off limits. The 83-acre site of Maranatha Spring and Shrine, is the home of Holy Love Ministries, 37137 Butternut Ridge Road, between Durkee Road and SR 83, Eaton Township. It has attracted a number of people since the early 1990s who are drawn by reports of alleged apparitions of Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary reportedly witnessed there since 1985 by shrine founder Maureen Sweeney-Kyle. Click here to read the entire Morning Journal story. Knock 'apparition' criticized by bishop (RTE) October 26, 2009 —Archbishop of Tuam Dr Michael Neary has criticised those involved in encouraging people to believe there was to be an apparition at the Knock shrine. In a statement issued today, he claimed that the apparition in Knock in 1879 was neither sought nor expected by humble, honest people who were its astonished witnesses. He said that unfortunately, recent events at the shrine risk misleading God's people and undermining faith. For this reason such events are to be regretted rather than be encouraged. He said the shrine would be best served by maintaining its authentic identity. Click here to read the entire RTE News story. Thousands wait for Knock "apparition" (Irish Times) October 11, 2009 —Thousands gathered at Knock Shrine, Co Mayo, yesterday hoping to see an apparition of Our Lady. There were ripples of applause from a crowd estimated at more than 5,000 as some people believed they could see the sun shimmering, changing colour and dancing in the sky. Some people were rapturous afterwards. Others were highly sceptical. “It’s an optical illusion, pure and simple,” one sceptic, who did not wish to be named, said. “Anybody looking at the bright sun long enough would begin to imagine things.” But other pilgrims were adamant that something supernatural, possibly life changing, had occurred. Earlier in the week Dublin-based clairvoyant Joe Coleman predicted Our Lady would appear in front of 50,000 people at the old parish church – scene of the 1879 apparition – at 3pm. Click here to read the entire Irish Times story. Vatican ruling on disputed Medjugorje shrine expected soon (Reuters) October 7, 2009 — After observing events of Medjugorje sceptically for many years, the Vatican may soon issue firmer guidance for Catholics on the claim that the mother of Jesus has been visiting the Balkans, Cardinal Vinko Puljic, head of the bishops’ conference in Bosnia, told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday. That guidance, if it clearly expresses the scepticism the official Church has long shown towards the Medjugorje phenomenon, could deal a serious blow to a site some Catholics see as a “new Lourdes.” “We are now awaiting a new directive on this issue,” said Puljic, the Sarajevo archbishop who survived the city’s long wartime siege in the 1990s. “I don’t think we must wait for a long time, I think it will be this year, but that is not clear… I am going to Rome in November and we must discuss this.” Click here to read the entire Reuters story. Pope Benedict XVI to visit Fatima LISBON, Portugal (Google News) — Pope Benedict XVI will visit the Fatima shrine in Portugal next year, the Portuguese president's office announced Thursday. The pope will preside at the shrine's annual May 13 ceremonies, a brief statement said. Three shepherd children claimed to have seen the Virgin Mary during apparitions in Fatima in 1917, the first time on May 13 of that year. Fatima, a small town 70 miles (110 kilometers) north of the capital Lisbon, attracts an estimated 6 million visitors each year. Pope Benedict's visit will be the fifth by a pontiff. Paul VI was the first, in 1967. Click here to read the entire Google News story. Mystic’s followers apply to sanction Girgenti shrine GIRGENTI, Malta (Malta Today) —Followers of religious mystic Guza Mifsud have applied to “sanction the use” of the shrine in Girgenti, Malta, where Mifsud is believed to have been visited by the Virgin Mary. The Moviment Madonna Tal-Konsagrazzjoni wants to formalise their shrine as a meeting place for prayers and worship, and to sanction “additions” made in the past years and to erect bronze statue of Jesus Christ. It is unclear whether the shrine itself was an illegal construction, given that no enforcement notice was ever issued by MEPA. The shrine attracts pilgrims who come to pray to the statue of the Virgin Mary, erected by Mifsud in 1986. When Mifsud had been asked whether she had a permit from the civil and ecclesiastical authorities to erect this statue, she replied that she had the permission of Our Lady. Click here to read the entire Malta Today article. Over 1,000 pilgrims to read Bible for 130 hours in Lourdes MOSCOW, September 20 (RIA Novosti) - A total of 1,400 believers will read the Bible for 130 hours at Europe's most popular Christian pilgrimage site dedicated to the Mother of God in the French city of Lourdes, Polish Catholic news agency KAI reported Sunday. The event, entitled "Lourdes: The Bible, Day and Night," will start September 26 and last until October 1. It will be held in the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, where Mary the Mother of God is reported to have miraculously appeared on numerous occasions. The previous such "marathon" that lasted 140 hours took place in Rome, in the Basilica of the Holy Cross, in October 2008, with 1,200 readers, including Pope Benedict XVI, Vatican Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone and the Russian Orthodox Church's Hilarion, then Bishop of Vienna and Austria, involved in the effort. Up to 5 million pilgrims visit Lourdes annually. The Roman Catholic Church has officially recognized 67 miraculous healings from the shrine, out of over 7,000 cases reported by Lourdes doctors since 1860. Marian visionary Maria Alfonsina Danil Ghattas to be Beatified November 22 VATICAN CITY, 8 SEP 2009 (VIS) - The Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff today announced that the following rites of beatification, approved by the Holy Father, will take place over the coming months: - Servant of God Eustachio Kugler (ne Joseph), German professed religious of the Hospitaller Order of St. John of God: at 2 p.m. on Sunday 4 October in the cathedral of Regensburg, Germany. - Servant of God Ciriaco Maria Sancha y Hervas, Spanish cardinal and archbishop, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of Cardinal Sancha, at 10 a.m. on Sunday 18 October in the cathedral of Toledo, Spain. - Servant of God Carlo Gnocchi, Italian diocesan priest and founder of the "Pro Juventute" Foundation: at 10 a.m. on Sunday 25 October in the Piazza del Duomo in Milan, Italy. - Servant of God Zoltan Lajos Meszlenyi, Hungarian bishop and martyr: at 10.30 a.m. on Saturday 31 October in the cathedral of Esztergom, Hungary. - Servant of God Maria Alfonsina Danil Ghattas (nee Soultaneh Maria), co- foundress of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of Jerusalem: at 10.30 a.m. on Sunday 22 November, Solemnity of Christ the King, in the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, Israel. OCL/BEATIFICATIONS/...VIS 090908 (220) Millions attend Vailankanni Marian feast Vailankanni, Tamil Nadu, India , Sept 10, 2009 (Indian Catholic).- Despite swine flu threats, a record number of some 2.3 million people attended the nine-day festivities of the popular Shrine in honor of Our Lady of Vailankanni, an official said. “This year we had more people. Nothing could stop people. May be it (swine flue) was a problem elsewhere,” said Father Michael, rector of Our Lady of Vailankanni in Vailankanni, Tamil Nadu. Traditionally a nine-day prayer or novena leads to the culmination of the feast of Nativity of the Blessed Mother celebrated on Sept. 8. The shrine located on the shores of the Bay of Bengal in Nagapattinam district attracts crowds of people from all religions seeking favors from the Blessed Mother. The shrine’s tradition goes back to 15th century Portuguese sailors and missioners. The popularity of Vailankanni Matha (mother of Vailankanni) has led to Indian Catholics establishing Vailankanni shrines in several parts of India and abroad. Read the entire Indian Catholic article here. New Guadalupe book makes national bestseller lists New York City, N.Y., Aug 22, 2009 / 06:07 pm (CNA).- A new book on Our Lady of Guadalupe intended to explore her history and her message of love has debuted on major U.S. bestseller lists. “Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of a Civilization of Love” debuted at number six on the August 14, 2009 release of the New York Times bestseller list. It has also appeared on the bestseller list of the Wall Street Journal and Publisher’s Weekly. The book is authored by Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, and Guadalupe expert Msgr. Eduardo Chávez. It traces her history as a religious and cultural symbol from the sixteenth century to the present. Read the entire Catholic News Agency article here. ALS Victim Healed at Lourdes Turin, Italy, Aug 25, 2009 / 12:03 am (CNA).- A woman who suffered from a severe nerve disease now no longer uses her wheelchair and has even gone for a run, after she visited to Lourdes earlier in August. The woman credits the baths at Lourdes for the ‘gift’ of her improved health. Antonia Raco, 50, had been in a wheelchair for four years because of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. She made a trip to the shrine at Lourdes on August 5. ''Ever since I came back I have been walking, doing everything normally, and I've even run,'' Raco told ANSA. Raco, who is from a village near the southern Italian city of Potenza, said she would rather talk about the change as “a gift, an act of mercy, rather than a miracle.” The miracle has not been officially recognized yet by the Lourdes Medical Comission. Read the entire Catholic News Agency article here. Controversial Screenplay Writer Chosen for New Guadalupe Film NEW YORK (Reuters) He may have sanded his jagged edge, but Joe Eszterhas still, apparently, has the basic instinct. The polarizing scribe, who hasn't had a film released theatrically in the U.S. in more than a decade, has signed on to a project about the mystical sighting of a virgin in 16th century Mexico. Eszterhas will write the screenplay about the virgin of Guadalupe, a vision that appeared to the Aztec peasant Juan Diego in 1531. While some scholars question Diego's existence, the event is credited with helping to spread Catholicism at a time of economic and social turmoil in the country. Earlier this decade, Diego was canonized as a saint by the Roman Catholic church. Eszterhas, sounding like someone other than the man who gave the world hard-R potboilers like "Basic Instinct" and "Showgirls," noted that the Guadalupe project was a "labor of love" and that he had been "hoping for some time to write a film that is both entertaining and inspiring." Read the entire Reuters article here. Guadalupe Shrine in La Crosse, WI Celebrates First Anniversary LA CROSSE, WI (La Crosse Tribune ) Archbishop Raymond Burke will celebrate the first anniversary of the dedication of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe church Friday with the blessing of a new sculpture of Our Lady of Guadalupe at the Memorial to the Unborn. The former head of the La Crosse Catholic Diocese now leads the Vatican’s supreme court. He had been archbishop in St. Louis for more than four years until his Vatican appointment. An estimated 60,000 pilgrims from throughout the country and abroad visited the shrine on La Crosse’s South Side last year. Shrine staff expect to exceed that number in 2009. In addition, the shrine will host a conference Sunday with the son of a Catholic saint. Pierluigi Molla will talk about the decision his mother, St. Gianna Molla, made in 1961 to continue her pregnancy despite the advice of doctors. She died a week after giving birth to her fourth child and in 2004 was canonized by Pope John Paul II. Read the entire La Crosse Tribune article here. Pope Benedict laicizes priest connected to alleged Medjugorje apparitions Vatican City, Jul 27, 2009 (CNA) Pope Benedict XVI has approved the laicization of Fr. Tomislav Vlasic, a priest leading the claims that the Virgin Mary has been appearing in the Bosnian town of Medjugorje. The priest has reportedly decided to leave the priesthood and his religious order. Read the entire Catholic News Agency Article here. MiracleHunter.com Featured on Relevant Radio - Thursday, July 23rd GREEN BAY, WI (Relevant Radio) Michael O'Neill, the creator of MiracleHunter.com, was interviewed by guest host Mark Armstrong on Relevant Radio on July 23rd, 2009. Click here to download an MP3 of the interview. (40 MB) Betania Apparition Site Now Official Sanctuary VENEZUELA (SpiritDaily) - The bishop of Los Teques in Venezuela has declared the apparition site of Betania to be an official sanctuary. The move was announced at the site on Sunday, July 5, 2009 although it was written last May 26 by Bishop Freddy J. Fuenmayor. The proclamation is an added measure of approval. The apparitions are already fully acknowledged by the 1987 declaration by Bishop Ricardo. Betania -- largely associated with now-deceased mystic Maria Esperanza de Bianchini -- was approved as an authentic apparition by one of Bishop Fuenmayor's predecessors, Bishop Pio Bello Ricardo, in 1987. Apparitions began there in 1976 and included messages about the world and future events. Read the entire SpiritDaily article. Religious flame burns in Knock IRELAND (BBC News) Despite Ireland's economic downturn, the village of Knock in County Mayo remains popular with pilgrims who visit the site where Mary, Joseph and St John are said to have appeared 130 years ago. Read the entire BBC News Story here. No worship on Burundi's 'Virgin Mary' hill BUJUMBURA (BBC News) Worship has been banned on a small rural hill in Burundi, where a woman claims to see the Virgin Mary on the same day of every month. The 23-year-old's claims of an apparition have become so widely known that thousands of people gather on the hill at the same time to pray. But the governor of the northern province says the worshippers are troublemakers and they should stop. The Catholic church in the area is also investigating the claims of a "vision". Read the entire BBC News Story here. Book on Rwandan Marian apparitions to be released on anniversary WASHINGTON (CNS) Nov-21-2008 - Like many stories from Africa, the story of Mary appearing to three young girls in Rwanda "wasn't told" beyond the continent, said Immaculee Ilibagiza, writer of the book Left to Tell, her best-seller detailing a first hand look at the Rwandan holocaust. So Ilibagiza wrote the first English-language book about Mary's apparitions in the 1980s at an all-girls Catholic high school in the remote Rwandan village of Kibeho, the only Vatican-recognized Marian apparitions in Africa. "Our Lady of Kibeho" was to be released Nov. 28, the anniversary of the first apparition in 1981. Read the entire Catholic News Story here. Philadelphia's Miraculous Medal Shrine Celebrates 81st Novena PHILADELPHIA Nov 11, 2008 - Over 10,000 people are expected to pray for peace, families, religious, service people and other groups at Germantown's Miraculous Medal Shrine during its 81st nine-day Solemn Novena starting Monday. Each day, six to nine prayer services will focus on different themes. The novena will end Nov. 25 followed by Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Feast Day Mass celebrated by Bishop Daniel Thomas of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia Nov. 26. Read the complete story from the Bulletin. New Book on 19th Century Knock Apparitions Dáire Keogh of the Irish Times reviews Knock: The Virgin's Apparition in Nineteenth-Century Ireland By Eugene Hynes, Cork University Press, 368 pp. ON A wet night in August 1879, 15 locals witnessed an apparition against the gable wall of their parish church in Knock, Co Mayo. A subsequent clerical investigation identified the supernatural visitors as the Virgin, St Joseph and John the Evangelist. Today, Knock is numbered among the world's pre-eminent Marian sanctuaries, attracting 1½ million pilgrims annually. Few of the devotees, however, are aware of the turbulent setting in which the apparition occurred or the sense in which it challenged so much of what is accepted as traditional Irish Catholicism. Read the complete review at Irishtimes.com Archbishop of Maryland Issues New Advisory Against Alleged Apparitions BALTIMORE, MD Oct 8, 2008 - Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien issued a new pastoral advisory reiterating statements of his predecessors that the alleged apparitions promoted by Gianna Talone-Sullivan had been thoroughly investigated with no proof of any supernatural character. His latest statement was issued in order to "protect the faith and good morals of the Christian faithful." He ordered that Talone-Sullivan refrain from any further activity within the Archdiocese and and strongly cautioned any of her followers from publishing the messages or promoting the alleged apparition in any any way. Read the complete pastoral advisory. Hundreds of thousands of Argentineans honor the Virgin of San Nicolás Buenos Aires, Sep 28, 2008 / 10:45 pm (CNA).- Some 200,000 people participated in the Eucharistic celebration near the Sanctuary of Mary of the Rosary of San Nicolás, for the 25th Anniversary of the appearances of Our Lady in Argentina. The Eucharistic celebration was presided over by the Bishop of San Nicolás de los Arroyos, Héctor Cardelli who in his homily stressed that "when Mary calls us together, the family is reinforced, because the Mother is bringing her children together." "How much she told us and how little we recall! How opportune was the intervention of Mary, who reminds us to listen to Christ the Teacher…an encounter with Him ensures the presence of the Kingdom here, among us," he continued. The bishop went on to emphasize that it has already been 25 years since “her maternal accompaniment has come to us and spoken of her love and fidelity to follow Christ, who is our Way, Truth and Life. Christ is the point of reunion, because from Him, our steps have a course, our motivations have direction and our lives make sense." "Considering this brief history, if only 25 years, we see nothing more than grace after grace, where our faith has grown based on acts and the Word being translated into reconciliation, peace, prayer and mission," he concluded. 400th Anniversary of Siluva Apparitions SILUVA, LITHUANIA Sept. 15, 2008 - The Catholic Church in Lithuania celebrated on Sept. 13-14th the 400th anniversary of the apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Siluva. Mary appeared in Siluva in 1608 to non-Catholics. Little shepherds saw what they described as a beautiful woman, dressed in white and blue, with a baby in her arms, enveloped in gentle splendor. The Lady wept bitterly and suddenly disappeared. Subsequently, the Virgin, again weeping, appeared to a crowd that had formed at the site where the children indicated. The town's Calvinist pastor was among the group. An icon of the Virgin that had belonged to the village's former Catholic church was found in the place of the apparitions. The icon had remained hidden for almost 100 years. In the wake of those events, and after several miraculous cures, this apparition brought Lithuania to return to the faith after 80 years of Calvinism. The event was recognized by a papal decree published by Pius VI on Aug. 17, 1775. Siluva is now Lithuania's most important Marian shrine. The Pope was in France during the festivities, marking another anniversary of Marian apparitions: the 150th anniversary of the Virgin's appearances at Lourdes. He named the archbishop of Cologne, Germany, Cardinal Joachim Meisner, to be his special envoy for the celebrations. Report: Vatican to Issue New Guidelines on Assessing Apparitions TImes Online - Sept. 12, 2008 - The London Times has reported that the Pope has asked Monsignor Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer, a Spanish Jesuit and secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith - which Benedict himself headed as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger - to draw up new guidelines for bishops around the world on the recognition of reported apparitions by the Virgin Mary. The Vatican official said the Pope wanted to avoid "excesses and abuses". He believes bishops should resist being swayed by the emotional reaction of believers and be guided instead by strictly applied "scientific, psychological and theological criteria". Vittorio Messori, an Italian Catholic writer who is close to the Pope, said the then Cardinal Ratzinger had told him in 1985 that "patrience and caution" were the key to validating Marian visions. "No apparition is indispensable to the faith" the future Pope told Messori. "The Revelation ended with Jesus Christ". He said Benedict's approach to Mariology was a mixture of "the mystical and the intellectual". Guidelines for the approval of apparitions and revelations were last issued in 1978. They lay down that a diocesan bishop can "either on his own initiative or at the request of the faithful" choose to investigate an alleged apparition. He then submits a report to the Vatican for approval. Read the entire Times Online article 60th Anniversary of Alleged Philippines Apparitions LIPA CITY, Batangas -- INQUIRER.net - September 12, 2008 - Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, delivered the homily during a concelebrated mass Friday at the Our Lady of Mediatrix of All Grace, to mark the 60th anniversary of a Marian apparition to Carmelite nun Teresita Castillo. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was in the audience, together with Batangas Governor Vilma Santos-Recto. Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales and Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal were among those who celebrated the mass. At the end of the mass, Santos-Recto led the prayer for the consecration of Jesus through Mary, while Arroyo led the prayer for consecration of the country. Kneeling before a statue of the Virgin Mary on the altar, Arroyo prayed: "We consecrate to you all that we have, all that we do, all that we are, we consecrate to you our homes our loved ones." She also prayed that the nation would "promote respect for the value of human life." Read the entire Inquirer article. Congress in Lourdes to Focus on Doctrinal Pillars of Marian Apparitions Rome, Sep 4, 2008 / 08:48 pm (CNA) .- Vicenzo Battaglia, president of the International Pontifical Marian Academy, explained this week that the 23rd Congress the academy will host in Lourdes for the 150th anniversary of the apparitions of Mary to St. Bernadette Soubirous will focus on the doctrinal foundations that explain these kinds of events. In an article entitled published by the L’Osservatore Romano, Battaglia said the congress will take place in Lourdes September 4-8 and will be led by Cardinal Paul Poupard, Pope Benedict XVI’s special envoy. “The importance and relevance of the theme that will be discussed, approved as is customary by the Pope, lies in the great interest of scholars and public opinion in a phenomenon which raises many questions because of the notable number of true or presumed ‘apparitions’ that have occurred in the past and that continue to occur even today,” Battaglia said. He said that 22 experts have participated in organizing the Congress, which aims to provide “doctrinal foundations” to assist in properly interpreting and discerning Marian apparitions. The conclusions of the congress will be made available to bishops, priests and all those who are “called to educate and guide the people of God, so that the faithful will know how to distinguish, in light of the sources of the faith, between true and false Marian apparitions.” Read the entire Catholic News Agency article Keep God, religion in society, Pope tells French in visit to Lourdes PARIS (Reuters) - Pope Benedict began a four-day visit to Lourdes, France on Friday with a plea to the French to keep God in their lives and let religion help create a better world. Meeting with President Nicolas Sarkozy at the Elysee Palace in central Paris, the German-born pontiff praised France both for the deep Christian roots of its culture and the "serene and positive dialogue" between faith and power. Sarkozy, who has broken a political taboo by speaking openly and positively about the role of religion in society, said it would be "a folly" for France to ignore its long history of Christian thought about God, man and nature. Church bells rang out across Paris to greet the pope as he arrived at the Palace after his arrival from Rome for his first trip to France as pontiff. Read the entire Reuters article Tags: Lourdes Vatican Discipline for Priest Involved with Medjugorje Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina Aug 31, 2008 (Catholic Culture) -- Father Tomislav Vlasic, a Franciscan priest who was prominent in the first efforts to publicize the alleged apparitions at Medjugorje, has been placed under interdict by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith because of his flagrant disregard for ecclesiastical discipline. Father Vlasic-- who eventually broke with the Medjugorje seers and founded his own quasi-religious community, was cited for "suspicion of heresy and schism, as well as scandalous acts contra sextum, aggravated by mystical motivations." Read the Statement by Bishop Ratko Peric of Mostar Tags: Medjugorje Bishop Peric Questions Alleged Formation of Medjugorje Commission Mostar, Jun 27, 2008 -- Bishop of Mostar-Duvno Ratko Peric issued a press release questioning the veracity of the claims of a Croatian daily newspaper “Ve?ernji list” which featured headlines “The Vatican. The highest circles of the Catholic Church have decided to follow the phenomenon of Medjugorje – A new Commission for Medjugorje” and “A Commission of the Holy See is being established”. The article quotes Cardinal Archbishop of Sarajevo Vinko Pulji? as acknowledging plans for a Vatican established commission to investigate the controversial ongoing apparition claims. Peric's statement lists the contradictions of the article and emphatically denies any knowledge of the formation of the alleged Commission: "The only thing that is certain in all of these media announcements, journalistic fabrications and Radio-Medjugorje guesses is that the local bishop of Mostar knows nothing about it at all!" Bishop Peric, is as opposed to the claims as his predecessor and in 2004, he upheld the suspension of Fr Jozo Zovko, the "spiritual adviser" to the visionaries. Tags: Medjugorje 'Apparitions' of Guazapa not approved by Church in El Salvador San Salvador, Jun 11, 2008 (CNA) -- Archbishop Fernando Saenz Lacalle of San Salvador has said the Catholic Church has not approved the alleged apparitions of Mary at the hill of Guazapa, despite claims made by the supposed visionary to a local newspaper. During a press conference, the archbishop lamented “the abuse by a group of people in Guazapa who sent false documents to the press, making them believe the apparitions had been approved by the Archdiocese.” The newspaper El Mundo recently published a series of reports on the events in Guazapa, which is located several miles north of San Salvador. The alleged seer, identified as Bessy Rodriguez, gave false documents to the newspaper supposedly showing the apparitions had been approved. Archbishop Saenz pointed out that “no official of the archdiocese has signed, sealed or sent documents to anyone.” “There has been a lot of, shall we say, commercialization of these legends, but the visions of Guazapa have never been approved,” he said. Tags: Guazapa 75th Anniversary of Banneux Apparitions MAY 24, 2008 (VaticanRadio) -- On May 31 2008 the Church in Belgium will mark the 75 anniversary of the apparitions of the “Virgin of the Poor” at the Marian Shrine in Banneux. Today the Vatican released Pope Benedict XVI’s message appointing Cardinal Godfried Daneels, Archbishop of Malines-Brussels, as his special representative at the celebrations. In his letter, the pope emphasized that the Chair of Peter always rejoices in promoting proper devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary among the faithful. The pope wrote that the anniversary of the apparitions gives the Church in Belgium the chance to ponder anew the teaching of the Second Vatican Council’s Dogmatic Constitution on the Church which speaks of the of Mary as “she who stands out among the poor and humble of the Lord, who confidently hope for and receive salvation from Him.” The pope remarked that the happy coincidence of the anniversary of the apparitions of the Virgin of the Poor with the annual Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an opportunity to help the faithful with the example and prayers of Our Lady to continue on the path of spiritual renewal and to appreciate that the “precept of charity” spurs us on in a diligent service to others in daily life. Pope Benedict XVI concluded the letter by entrusting Cardinal Daneels with the charge to impart his apostolic blessing upon the faithful who gather at the shrine for the celebrations. Tags: Banneux Church Approves Laus Apparitions (1664) LAUS, France, MAY 15, 2008 (Zenit) -- As pilgrims celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Marian shrine at Lourdes, the Church has officially recognized a new pilgrimage site in France. On May 4th, Bishop Jean-Michel di Falco of the Diocese of Gap, officially recognized the apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Benoite Rencurel at the sanctuary of Laus in the area of Hautes-Alpes, France. The pronouncement was made during a Mass in the Basilica of Notre Dame in Laus. Among those present were the apostolic nuncio to France, Bishop Fortunato Baldelli, and 30 cardinals and bishops from around the world. Rencurel, a poor shepherdess, was born in 1647. The Virgin Mary started appearing to her in 1664 and continued visiting her throughout the rest of her life. Rencurel died in 1718. > Read the entire Zenit article. Tags: Laus French Newspaper Says Pope is Planning September Trip to France ROME (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI is planning a September trip to France, traveling to Paris and the Sanctuaries of Our Lady of Lourdes, a French newspaper reported. The pope's Sept. 12-15 trip will begin in Paris, according to the newspaper Le Figaro. He will meet with French President Nicolas Sarkozy shortly after his arrival, it said. On Sept. 13, the pope is expected to celebrate Mass in Paris in the morning and have an evening encounter with cultural leaders. He will fly to Lourdes later in the day. In Lourdes, the pope will take part in jubilee year celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of the Marian apparitions there. The commemorative year ends Dec. 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception. The pope is expected to celebrate an open-air Mass Sept. 14 at the Marian shrine and later meet with French bishops, the newspaper said. The Vatican had no immediate comment on the report, but Vatican trip planners were said to be traveling to France in mid-March to prepare the details of the visit. Tags: Lourdes, Benedict XVI Confessions Increase at Fatima Shrine FATIMA, Portugal MARCH 5, 2008 (Zenit.org).- The shrine of Fatima is becoming more and more a place to find the mercy of God, says the chaplain of the Marian pilgrimage site. Father Clemente Dotti said this to the Portuguese news agency Ecclesia on Monday when reporting that in 2007, almost 10,000 more confessions were heard compared to the previous year. The chaplain explained that the pastoral program of the shrine focused on the merciful love of God in 2007, and with that "we had the opportunity to show how the Mother knew to guide her children to find the mercy of God in the sacrament of reconciliation." According to the shrine, 199,333 people confessed there in 2007 -- 9,016 more than in 2006. Of these, 34,653 confessed in a language other than Portuguese - 1,049 more than the previous year. Father Dotti said 190 priests heard confessions at the shrine in 2007. Tags: Fatima Time Magazine Writes about Sr. Lucia FEBRUARY 29, 2008 (Time Magazine)- "It is a Vatican rule: candidates for sainthood wait five years beyond their deaths before the Catholic Church begins its investigation of their "heroic virtue," the first step toward canonization. Only two figures in recent history have received a fast-track exemption: Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II, both of them superstars in the Catholic and wider popular firmament. So, when the Vatican recently added Sister Lucia dos Santos, who died in 2005 at age 97, to this list, many wondered why she had been put in that esteemed company. " Read entire Time Magazine article Tags: Fatima, Sr. Lucia dos Santos Padre Pio Exhumed after 40 Years ROME, March 3, 2008 (Reuters) - The body of the mystic monk Padre Pio, one of the Roman Catholic world's most revered saints who died 40 years ago, has been exhumed to be prepared for display to his many devotees. The body of the Capuchin friar, who was said to have had the stigmata -- the wounds of Christ's crucifixion -- on his hands and feet -- is to be conserved and put in a part-glass coffin for at least several months from April 24. Read entire Reuters article Tags: Padre Pio, Incorruptibles Vatican Accused of Tampering with Pio's Body ROME, MARCH 4, 2008 (Telegraph UK) The Vatican has been accused of "tampering with the dead" after the body of Italy's favourite saint was exhumed from its tomb. Padre Pio, who exhibited stigmata on his hands and feet throughout his life, died in 1968 and was laid to rest in the Santa Maria delle Grazie church in Puglia. The Vatican said the charismatic monk's corpse was taken from the church crypt on Sunday to conserve it "for generations of future worshippers" as it was under threat from humidity. However, the Pro Padre Pio Association has accused the Vatican of digging up the saint's body in order to put it in a larger church that could more easily handle its annual seven million visitors. It said putting the corpse on show and moving it to the new church would "offend the sentiments of many believers". A court appeal will begin on Thursday. After a series of holy readings, eight monks lifted the casket, made from three layers of metal, wood and zinc, out of the crypt just before midnight. "Right from the start we could see his beard," said Domenico D'Ambrosio, the archbishop of Manfredonia. "You could see his knees very well, his hands, his fingernails. If Padre Pio will allow me, I would say it was like he had been manicured." He added, however, that it was not possible to see Padre Pio's stigmata, which were said to have disappeared just before he died without leaving any scars. Tags: Padre Pio, Incorruptibles Korean archbishop declares alleged Marian visionary excommunicated SEOUL, South Korea (CNS) -- A South Korean archbishop said an alleged Marian visionary and her followers have been excommunicated automatically. Archbishop Andreas Choi Chang-mou of Kwangju issued the decree Jan. 21, saying "for Christians' healthy faith life and the unity and communion of the church, I declare as such, though my heart grieves." The decree was released to all dioceses and media Jan. 23, reported the Asian church news agency UCA News. Click here to read entire article Tags: Naju