Marian Apparition

In Roman Catholicism, a ‘’’Marian apparition’’’ is a reported supernatural appearance, or series of appearances, of Mary. Numerous such appearances have been reported over the centuries, some of which have been officially approved by the Catholic Church, which has strict guidelines in place for assessment of such claims. Sites of Marian apparitions, especially those approved by the church, tend to become shrines and places of pilgrimage.

Image of Mary in the Basilica of Guadalupe, believed to have been given to Juan Diego during an apparition.

Typically, specific appearances are given titles, such as the case of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Our Lady of Fátima, two of the most famous reported apparitions. Apparitions of Mary tend to be private revelations (witnessed only by one person or a handful of people, called “seers”), though some cases have involved the witness of massive crowds. Commonly, seers describe receiving spoken revelation or demands from Mary, though some reported apparitions have remained entirely silent.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “private revelations” such as Marian apparitions “do not belong to the deposit of faith”, so it is widely accepted that Catholics are free to accept or deny the validity of the apparitions whilst still remaining in good standing with the church.[1]

## Contents

* 1 Process for Approval
* 2 Apparitions approved by the Catholic Church
* 2.1 Positive Judgement
* 2.2 Positive Judgement of Related Effects
* 3 Apparitions not approved by the Catholic Church
* 3.1 No Judgement
* 3.2 Neutral Judgement
* 3.3 Negative Judgement
* 4 Apparitions Approved by the Coptic Orthodox Church
* 5 References

## Process for Approval[edit]

Reports of Marian Apparitions are rigorously investigated by the Catholic Church before a decision of judgement is made on their authenticity. In each case, the local bishop appoints a committee to take testimony, investigate, study, and report back on their findings. According to the University of Dayton, apparitions are evaluated based on the following guidelines:[2]

1. The facts in the case are free of error.
2. The person(s) receiving the messages is/are psychologically balanced, honest, moral, sincere and respectful of church authority.
3. Doctrinal errors are not attributed to God, Our Lady or to a saint.
4. Theological and spiritual doctrines presented are free of error.
5. Moneymaking is not a motive involved in the events.
6. Healthy religious devotion and spiritual fruits result, with no evidence of collective hysteria.

## Apparitions approved by the Catholic Church[edit]

### Positive Judgement[edit]

The following reported apparitions have been approved with “positive judgement” from the Roman Catholic Church, meaning they have been declared “worthy of belief” by the bishop presiding over the area in which they occurred. Apparition titles in bold denote those that have been approved by the Holy See and endorsed for widespread veneration.

* Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico, 1531)
* Our Lady of the Good Event (Ecuador, 1594-1634)
* Our Lady of Laus (France, 1664-1718)
* Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (France, 1830)
* Our Lady of La Salette (France, 1846)
* Our Lady of Lourdes (France, 1858)
* Our Lady of Good Help (United States, 1859)
* Our Lady of Pontmain (France, 1871)
* Our Lady of Knock (Ireland, 1879)
* Our Lady of Fátima (Portugal, 1917)
* Our Lady of Beauraing (Belgium, 1932-1933)
* Our Lady of Banneux (Belgium, 1933)
* Our Lady of All Nations (Netherlands, 1945-1959)
* Our Lady of Akita (Japan, 1973)
* Our Lady of Cuapa (Nicaragua, 1980)
* Mary, Virgin and Mother, Reconciler of All Peoples and Nations (Venezuela, 1984)
* Our Lady of Kibeho (Rwanda, 1981-1983)
* Our Lady of the Rosary of San Nicolás (Argentina, 1983-1990)

### Positive Judgement of Related Effects[edit]

The following reported apparitions were not particularly granted positive judgement themselves, but other effects and aspects surrounding them were approved. This kind of distinction doesn’t necessarily mean the apparitions are considered to be false, but rather that they haven’t fully met the strict standards of scrutiny, or predated the Catholic Church’s system for approval of apparitions and can’t be investigated.

* Madonna of the Miracle (Italy, 1842) - Contemporaneous miracle approved after Jewish man converts to Catholicism after reportedly seeing an apparition of Mary.

* Our Lady of the Pillar (Spain, 40) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of Walsingham (England, 1061) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of Mount Carmel (England, 1251) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of the Watch (Italy, 1490) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of Good Health (India, 1570 and 1587) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of Šiluva (Lithuania. 1608) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of La Vang (Vietnam, 1798) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of Pellevoisin (France, 1876) - Approved for public veneration.
* Our Lady of Prayer (France, 1947) - Approved for public veneration.

* Our Lady of Medjugorje (Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1981-Present) - Approved for public pilgrimages, but not veneration.

## Apparitions not approved by the Catholic Church[edit]

### No Judgement[edit]

These reported apparitions have not received any judgement, positive or negative, by the Catholic Church. This list is incomplete, as dozens (or perhaps even hundreds) have fallen into this category.

* Our Lady of the Universe (United States, 1945)
* Our Lady of Soufanieh (Syria, 1982-1983)

### Neutral Judgement[edit]

The following reported apparitions have been evaluated, but were neither approved nor rejected.

* Our Lady of Mount Carmel of Garabandal (Spain, 1961-1965)
* Our Lady of America (United States, 1956-1959)

### Negative Judgement[edit]

The following reported apparitions have been officially rejected by the Catholic Church.

* Mary, Mediatrix of All Grace (Philippines, 1948)

## Apparitions Approved by the Coptic Orthodox Church[edit]

Egypt’s Coptic Church has similarly approved a small handful of Marian apparitions of their own, all of which are reported to have taken place in Egypt. So far, all cases in this category have been mass apparitions (viewed and reported by thousands) taking place in or around a church, and have been silent.

* Our Lady of Zeitoun (1968)
* Our Lady of Assiut (2000-2001)
* Our Lady of Warraq (2009)

## References[edit]

1. ↑ https://legatus.org/are-catholics-obliged-to-believe-in-marian-apparitions/
2. ↑ https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/a/apparitions-approval-process.php