The Visionaries of Medjugorje
On June 24, 1981, in the mountain village of Medjugorje, in what was once Yugoslavia, Our Lady appeared to six children. She identified herself as the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Peace, and at this time has continued to appear to 3 of the visionaries every day. Her Message is peace – peace with God and man. Mary’s own words to the children: “I have come to tell the world that God exists. He is the fullness of life, and to enjoy His fullness and obtain peace, you must return to God.”
During the apparitions, the visionaries don’t react at all to light, they don’t hear any sound, and they don’t react to being touched. They feel that they are outside time and space.
All the visionaries declare in substance: “We see the Blessed Virgin as we all see other people. We pray, we speak with Her and touch Her. Our Lady continues to invite us to prayer and fasting. She tells us, ‘You have forgotten that with prayer you can stop war from happening. You can suspend the natural laws.’ She continually invites us to reconciliation and conversion.”
Fr. Jozo Zovko
Pastor of Medjugorje Parish in 1981
Mother of God appeared in a small village and brought to us a gift of new graces. This is the power of containing divine strength. Medjugorje is a gift of divine grace to all people, which mankind has taken for granted and lost. To accept the message of Our Lady in Medjugorje means to accept the cleansing and be able to be inspired by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is a new creation to a new life.
Ivanka
Ivankovic-Elez
After all these years of Our Lady’s Apparitions in Medjugorje, I have nothing new to say, except that I feel as if it began yesterday. I do not feel that so many years have passed. Each meeting with Our Lady is something special, something wonderful. There are no words to truly describe that moment. It should only be experienced. I had daily apparitions of Our Lady until May 7, 1985 and since that day, Our Lady appears to me only once a year – on the Anniversary. Before Our Lady appears we see the flashing of light three times and then we know that she is coming. Each meeting with Our Lady is more and more beautiful. The mission that Our Lady entrusted to me is to pray for families, so that God can show them the right path. Our Lady does not talk about that we are good or bad, but she is encouraging us to open our hearts so that God enters into every heart, into every family. This is motherly love. To God we are all the same, He cares for all people, and through prayer He gives us strength so when we fall, we can stand up again. My mother died in April, 1981 and Our Lady began appearing in June. I was convinced that it was Our Lady and on that first meeting of June 25 th, when we came close to her, I asked her, “Where is my Mother?” AndOurLady answered that my mother was with Her. In 1982, Our Lady showed me my mother. She looked the same as when she lived on earth except that her face looked very peaceful and she radiated with something indescribable. She did not look as if she had suffered with illness. She had on a gray gown, but it was not the same as Our Lady’s gown. Through all these years I saw my mother five times. In 1990, she was smiling at me and said, “My child, I am so proud of you.” We live in Medjugorje as any other normal family.My three children, Kristina, Josip and Ivan, I try to bring up on a good foundation and in a healthy family so that they can face and overcome problems of this life.
My family is my prayer group.
Mirjana
Dragicevic Soldo
Each meeting seems as if it is a new one – as if I see Her for the first time, but always the same desire to remain with Her. I live in Bijakovici in the parish of Medjugorje with my husband Marko and my two daughters, Marija and Veronika, who help me with everything. It would be very hard without their help. Until Christmas of 1982, I saw Our Lady every single day. On that Christmas day I received the 10 th secret and Our Lady told me that I will have the visions of Her once a year on the 18 th of March. But since August of 1987, Our Lady comes to me every 2 nd of the month and we pray together for non-believers. She does not all them non-believers, but she says that they are those who did not experience the love of God yet. I think that all of Our Lady’s messages can be summarized in that one. If we would help people to recognize the love of God, the world would be a much better place. During the apparition, I feel as if I am flying, as if I am not in my body. Our Lady speaks in a very soothing, motherly way. In Her eyes I see so much care. I could not imagine life anymore without seeing Our Lady. To see Our Lady it means to me to be with Her in Heaven. That feeling gives me indescribable peace and blessing. To all of the pilgrims who come to Medjugorje, I would recommend to open their hearts and simply let Our Lady enter, because She says:
“I have invited you. Open your hearts and allow me to enter that you become my apostles.”
Ivan
Dragicevic
I like to remember the first days of the apparitions. What can I say after years of being in Our Lady’s school, to learn every day, to be an instrument in God’s hands to be in the mission of apostolate. An apostle can talk about the messages only if he lives them. When we, the visionaries travel to different countries to bring to people the Good News, we do that with great responsibility and so try to show the importance of the time in which we live. When people ask me what is the greatest sign of the apparitions, I tell them that it is the spiritual renewal in the world and among mankind. I know that I am not perfect, but with prayer I recognize my mistakes and try to correct them. I try to be a good student in Our Lady’s school every day. In the beginning, I was very afraid, I was shaking from fear. Today, I talk with Our Lady and feel unity and love. Every day I prepare myself for our Lady’s coming with prayer of the Rosary. When the pilgrims ask me why Our Lady comes for so long, I tell them that we have church and sacraments, but Our Lady is asking us do we live and put into practice all that we already have. I married an American girl – Loreen and we have three children. We live partly in Boston but Spring and Summer in Medjugorje.
We live in fullness of love and we try to live what Our Lady asks of us.
The visionaries Ivan and Marija were again tested during the apparition of Our Lady on the 24 th anniversary. The Vatican gave a green light to the team of French scientists to perform neurological tests on the visionaries with the most precise instruments. The team concluded that they see and experience something authentic but they were unable to confirm what they see…
Marija
Pavlovic Lunetti
I could not ever dream that Our Lady would appear to me. When it happened, I could not sleep all night, constantly asking why it happened and why to us? In the beginning we asked Our Lady every day if She is coming again tomorrow and She would usually say: tomorrow at the same time. Sometimes it was different and on occasion She would come at midnight or later. We always prepare with prayer for her coming. We speak with Our Lady as She wants and She decides how long She will stay with us. When Our Lady remains quiet then we know that She is allowing us to ask something or to recommend someone to her. If we travel somewhere, Our Lady still appears to us at the same time but we are spiritually connected with Medjugorje, and St. James Church. That was Our Lady’s desire from the beginning. A special time of grace for me is at the 25 th of each month when I give Our Lady’s message to the world. That day I pray and fast in special preparation for that meeting. After the apparition, I ask God for help to write correctly what Our Lady told me. When Our Lady speaks to me I feel the deepness and beauty of Her words, but when I put her words on paper, these words look so poor. In my family we think of Our Lady as a member of our family. My children pray the rosary with me when they can. Before bedtime, we pray spontaneous prayers. It is beautiful to be a visionary, but at the same time, it is hard in today’s world. Our Lady is asking us also to read the Holy Scriptures and to put God always in the first place in our life. Read the Holy Scriptures.
Vicka
Ivankovic-Mihatovic
Our Lady is still appearing to me every single day. She did not change at all through these years, but we did. She is always in a gray dress, white veil, crown of stars, blue eyes, black hair, rosy cheeks and she floats on a cloud, she never stands on the ground. On the holidays Our Lady wears a golden gown. On Christmas Day Our Lady comes with Baby Jesus. Once, a few years ago, I saw Our Lady on Good Friday with grown Jesus who was full of wounds and He had a Crown of Thorns. Then Our Lady said to me, “I came to show you how much Jesus suffered for all people.” Our Lady’s beauty is impossible to describe because there is nothing so beautiful here on earth. Once we asked her why is She so beautiful and She answered, “I am beautiful because I love. If you begin to love then you also will be beautiful because beauty comes from the depth of your soul and heart.” Our Lady says that this time is the time of great graces,and I think that for as long as Our Lady is with us it is an enormous grace. This grace is given to everyone, not only for you or me, but it is extended to everyone and it is up to us how we will respond and receive this grace. Our Lady says that She has so many more messages to give to us but She cannot do it because we did not accept those that She has already given us. Every message of Our Lady we have to place in our heart and live it and then we could accept it. Only when we begin to live Our Lady’s messages, we will see the importance of every word.
This is the time of great graces, not only for you or me, it is extended to everyone.
Jakov
Colo
Each anniversary that we celebrate is one more grace and confirmation how much Our Lady and God love all of us. With every year that passes I realize more and more how many graces we have. When the apparitions in Medjugorje began, I did not think about how long it will go on. I was sure that if God started all this, He will also bring it to a conclusion. All the pilgrims who come here to Medjugorje – they are in God’s plan. I always remember the words of my friend, the priest who says, “All of these meetings in Medjugorje were planned by God ages ago. Our Lady’s apparitions are here for so long because God wants it that way. We have to understand this as a grace, because God loves us so much.” At the beginning of the apparitions I was too young to understand all that was happening around me. By growing up many things became clear and every day I learn something new. From the time I first saw Our Lady I experienced joy and peace and then my life began. The older I get the more I give thanks to God for giving me the gift to see Our Lady and I thank Him even more that with Our Lady’s help I am getting to know Jesus. There were many conversions here and that is a most beautiful sign of Medjugorje. Many people responded to Our Lady’s call, but Our Lady continues to come; She is still calling. I have three children, two girls and one boy. They are still small and cannot understand what is happening, but they pray with me, attend apparitions and Holy Mass. On the 12 th of September 1998, Our Lady gave me the 10 th secret and promised that I will see Her every Christmas for as long as I live.
I now understand that it is not essential to see Our Lady with my eyes, but it is important to have her in my heart.