Wednesday 24 April 2024

Vatican works on text on miracles and apparitions

Dicasterio para la Doctrina de la Fe – La Voz de los Obispos 

The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith apparently wants to present a new document on apparitions and supernatural events. 

As "The National Catholic Register" reported on Tuesday, Cardinal Victor Fernández is working on a text "with clear guidelines and norms for the distinction between apparitions and other phenomena". 

Fernández had a private audience with Pope Francis on Monday. Such an audience is often followed by the publication of a new document.

In April 2023, the Vatican set up a special monitoring centre for Marian apparitions

It is tasked with analysing and interpreting phenomena relating to possible apparitions of the Blessed Mother. 

Weeping Marian apparitions, inner inspirations, stigmata and other mystical phenomena are the responsibility of the committee. 

The experts are to collect information on these cases, carry out investigations according to scientific criteria and coordinate them worldwide.

Alleged apparitions and miracles repeatedly cause a stir among the public. An alleged miracle was recently investigated in the diocese of Dresden-Meißen: The "blood miracle" of Ostro turned out to be a natural phenomenon. 

The diocese announced that mites were behind the "blood sweat" of the Madonna and Child Jesus. 

In a field chapel, eyewitnesses had observed a red substance on the heads of a statue of the Virgin Mary, which seemed to run down from the two heads of the statue.