Since June 24–25, 1981, the eve and feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, when six children in a small village in Bosnia-Herzegovina first reported seeing and receiving messages from the Blessed Virgin Mary, more than 40 million pilgrims from around the world have flocked to the small village named Medjugorje.
Pilgrims attend Masses at Medjugorje’s St. James Church during the day and the evening Mass is celebrated outdoors to accommodate huge crowds.
They climb rocky Podbrdo — Apparition Hill — bearing a statue of Our Lady, marking where she allegedly appeared. Pilgrims also climb up Mount Križevac, praying the Stations of the Cross, journeying to the huge cross nearly 40 feet tall built by villagers in the early 20th century.
They fill the lines at all the confessionals, as the Sacrament of Penance is offered daily.
Franciscan priests have administered to the needs of the souls of the Croatian people in the parish and region with its Mediterranean climate and fertile plains for farmers and vineyards since the 13th century.
They have been closely involved with the visionaries and pilgrims from the start of the apparitions.
The visionaries
The six visionaries are Marija Pavlovic-Lunetti, Ivan Dragicevic, Vicka Ivankovic-Mijatovic, Jakov Colo, Mirjana Dragicevic-Soldo, and Ivanka Ivankovic-Elez.
Always called “the visionaries,” they are now adults.
While Vicka, Ivan, and Marija still reportedly receive a daily apparition at the specific time of 6:40 p.m., the others do so now only on particular dates.
Mirjana allegedly receives apparitions once a month — plus once a year on March 18, her birthday — with Ivanka reporting once a year on June 25, the anniversary of the first apparition, and Jakov once a year on Christmas Day.
The message
Our Lady came to Medjugorje to show the faithful the way to peace and help convert lives so as to return to God, according to the visionaries, including to bring people to her son, Jesus.
Early in the apparitions, she reportedly identified herself as the “Queen of Peace.”
“Dear children, this is the reason for my presence among you for such a long time: to lead you on the path of Jesus. I want to save you and, through you, to save the whole world.
“Many people now live without faith; some don’t even want to hear about Jesus, but they still want peace and satisfaction!
“Children, here is the reason why I need your prayer: Prayer is the only way to save the human race” (July 30, 1987). Read more
- First published by the National Catholic News Agency
- Joseph Pronechen is a staff writer with the National Catholic Register; his articles have appeared in numerous publications