In a dramatic move prior to the release of the final report on Medjugorje, The Papal Nuncio to the U.S. on behalf of the prefect of the CDF Archbishop Müller has issued instructions that no cleric or faithful may participate in any meetings, conferences, or public celebrations in which the authenticity of the apparitions are taken for granted.
November 6, 2013 at 3:13 pm
Glad to see this – I always have had reservations about these visions.
November 6, 2013 at 3:56 pm
Unfortunately, I have a good friend who is really tied up in Medjugorje. I've been cautioning her for a couple years to be cautious but the emotional enthusiasm keeps winning.
November 6, 2013 at 5:00 pm
Isn't that just a re-statement of what they (the Vatican) said years ago? They need to just come out and condemn it… But they can't do that till the 'apparitions' stop, can they?
November 6, 2013 at 10:49 pm
Hi, Lynne,
That's an interesting and key point: the Vatican does NOT need to wait until the "visions" stop before pronouncing, if the ultimate verdict is going to be negative (see Necedah and Bayside "apparition" condemnations, for evidence–Necedah was condemned about 30 years before the "visionary" died, and she claimed to receive "apparitions" during almost all that time); only if there are no problems (and if there is still hope of approval) "so far" would the Church continue to wait… or (and this is also key) if the Church is holding back for non-apparition-diagnosing reasons (e.g. fear of causing a schism/disruption, etc.). If evidence for condemnation ("constat de non supernaturalitate") comes forth, and if the powers-that-be get the moxie to do so, they could condemn the "apparitions" tomorrow, regardless of whether the "apparitions" kept happening in conference halls around the world, or not. 🙂
One other note: the fact that the CDF seems to be signalling a pending pronouncement AT ALL does not bode well for a "positive" verdict for Medjugorje (since the "apparitions" are still going on, full-steam).
November 8, 2013 at 5:14 am
The sad part for me is that I can't help but think that the Medjugorgie visionaries are going the way fo Father Corapi, Father Maciel and the Legion of Christ, and so many other rock stars for Catholics. Can't we just live our faith and trust in God? Do we have to have the side-shows?