Some day soon within the next few years will occur an event marking the beginning of difficulties. And one day, after that, within the lifetimes of some reading this, perhaps even most -- almost certainly, if one accepts a raft of prophecies, this century -- something will push the U.S. to the brink. Its infrastructure will break down; so will the infrastructure of the West. A great event -- perhaps different -- will change the face of Asia, while Africa goes back to wilderness. No one knows when.

It is one distillation of the prophetic pulse. What is being said at sites of reputed apparition?

While most of our recent articles have been on the problems surrounding the most famous such place, Medjugorje, in Bosnia-Hercegovina, which remains under Vatican study (and hotly debated) -- recent words and events at this alleged site are intriguing, even fascinating.

One of the seers there, Mirjana Dragicevic-Soldo -- who has indicated reception of secrets that involve very serious events for the world, and who now has only monthly (and an annual) apparitions -- was receiving what appeared to be an extremely somber message when thousands of pilgrims filling a hillside witnessed the "miracle of the sun." A video of Mirjana during this unusual spectacle can be viewed here. "A great cry burst forth from the thousands," said a headline.

Reported Medjugorje.com: "The pilgrims who gathered for Mirjana’s apparition knew nothing of what she saw as the apparition was going on, and Mirjana, while in ecstasy, knew nothing of what the pilgrims saw, but each confirmed the other. These types of special miracles were numerous in the early days of Medjugorje, in what birthed so many conversions. Mirjana revealed that she has never seen the sun in an apparition throughout these twenty-eight years of Our Lady appearing to her. And every time Our Lady mentioned the name of her 'Son' or 'Jesus' or in the message referred to Him, the sun in the apparition behind Our Lady shone out brightly, which is why Mirjana stated after the apparition that she believed that in the apparition the sun was Christ’s love illuminating all of us.

"Mirjana mentioned that it gave her a new outlook of the 'sun,' or the 'Son' — she didn’t clarify exactly what she meant. The pulsating sun was precisely what thousands of pilgrims saw while Mirjana, in ecstasy, saw this also."

Was there significance in the timing of this miracle?

The monthly message a week before was one of the shortest ever -- of more than three hundred. "Dear children!" it said. "May this time be a time of prayer for you. Thank you for having responded to my call."

Intriguingly, last April, when asked, "Why does Our Lady ask us to fast on Wednesday and Friday?" Mirjana responded: "When the things through Medjugorje are supposed to happen, then you will be able to understand why Wednesday and Friday – or why every second of the month [when she receives her monthly apparition] and every 18th of March [when she gets her annual one]. Every day and every date has a meaning."

Mirjana was the first to receive all ten secrets promised to the six visionaries and has a pair of John Paul II's shoes; she is the only seer who met with him (see bottom of this story). Rumors are, however, that at least one other seer has met with Pope Benedict, who reportedly visited the site twice as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Meanwhile, last June, seer Ivanka Ivankovic-Elez -- the quietest of all the visionaries -- said the Blessed Mother reviewed the tenth secret she was given years ago with her, and on August 1, Ivanka, who lives just outside of Medjugorje, gave a rare talk (translated concurrently from Croatian into six languages) during which she told pilgrims, among other things, that "from 1981 until 1985 I received the apparitions on a daily basis. During that period Our Lady dictated to me her biography. I wrote everything down. She also told me the future of the world and the future of our Church. When I have permission from Our Lady, this will be published."

Recently also: an interview from a year before with the most well-known of the seers, Vicka Ivankovic-Mijatovic, was published in a newsletter, an interview during which the seer added to the prophetic implications -- if not venturing the actual alleged secrets themselves. We present them as interesting tidbits.

"For me the message that the Madonna has given is very clear: this is the last time that she will be present here on earth in the way she has been present at Medjugorje for such a long period of time," said Vicka. "I heard her speak those words because I was the one who received them personally; the words of the other message I did not receive personally and maybe the other seers could add something more. Still today the Madonna is inviting us to conversion, because it is today that we are living this time of grace. We must not wait for tomorrow in order to convert, we must do so today because tomorrow could be too late."

Intriguing stuff, whatever one believes about Medjugorje.

Back to the sun miracle, a pilgrim was quoted as saying: "'I have been here to Medjugorje about forty times but I have never seen such a miracle as I saw at Mirjana’s apparition. After the apparition I looked up at the sun and it became like a ball and was spinning, very fast. People could look at the sun without any sun glasses or protection over their eyes, and there were many circular waves around the sun like ripples from a stone thrown into the water, which were changing colors from blue to gray. I saw that for about a minute, but some people for much longer. This experience probably was different for each person, I think.

"After the finishing of this miracle I looked at the cross on Cross Mountain and around it there was like clouds rising up and they were green and yellow and they looked like columns and then some of the people began to cry; many were praying. It was very beautiful. Inside of me was a very strong and powerful feeling of God’s love and peace. It was a great experience for my heart and for our fight.”

The message during this apparition:

“Dear children, I am coming, with my Motherly love, to point out the way by which you are to set out, in order that you may be all the more like my Son; and by that, closer to and more pleasing to God. Do not refuse my love. Do not renounce salvation and eternal life for the sake of transience and frivolity of this life. I am coming to lead you and, as a mother, to caution you. Come with me.”

Whatever we may think of that or any other apparition, there is no doubt that the Vatican is and has been taking Medjugorje seriously, its investigation continuing, with as yet no pronouncement on it. (Whichever way it rules, if it rules, we will fully report on it).

And whatever one may think of a specific place, there is no question that many others -- including average folks -- feel the same kind of "pulse" as that which throbs from alleged apparitions.

Much is going on in the societies of men and some day "soon," much will change. Not the end of the world. But cleansing; perhaps, yes, cataclysms. Those who love have no fear (and so the first thing we do is work on how much we love).

[resources: Tower of Light]

[Further note: Mirjana on meeting with the Pope, from Spirit of Medjugorje:

"I am the only one of 6 visionaries who was lucky enough, had the honor, to encounter Pope John Paul II. You can imagine how the other 5 are jealous of me. [laughter] Jakov always says, “Oh, yea, you have been with Pope.” 

 "I was in the Vatican, St. Peter’s Basilica, with an Italian priest. Holy Father was walking by and he was blessing us. When he approached me, he blessed me and he just continued to walk. However, this Italian priest loudly said to him, “Holy Father, this is Mirjana from Medjugorje.” He came back and blessed me again and he set out. And I said to the priest, “ He just thinks I need a double blessing.” But then after, he received a note, an invitation to Castle Gandolfo, close to Rome, in order to encounter the Pope. I couldn’t sleep all night because I really loved him and I respected him and I could really feel his love for Our Lady.

So the next day when he and I met alone, I was just crying. I couldn’t say a word out of excitement. He noticed that I was excited. I think he tried to talk to me in Polish because he thought in the Slavic languages there are things in common. I didn’t understand a word! But I finally had enough strength and courage, I asked him, “What are you trying to tell me?” Then we talked. Among other things he said to me, “I know everything about Medjugorje. I’ve been following Medjugorje. Ask  pilgrims to pray for my intentions, to keep, to take good care of Medjugorje, because Medjugorje is hope for the entire world. And if I were not Pope, I would have been in Medjugorje a long time ago.”

So recently on the Mount of Apparitions, I saw a pair of shoes of the Pope in front of me, and after the apparition, this gentleman who brought these shoes ( he didn’t introduce himself), he said, “It was the Pope’s desire for a long time to come to Medjugorje. I said, ‘If you do not go, I will take your shoes.’ And that is how I brought his shoes, so they may be present during the apparition.”

Now I have a pair of his shoes in my home. But what is funniest in this, a man who made the shoes for the Pope, an Italian from Rome, he heard that I have a pair of the Pope’s shoes, and imagine, he wouldn’t believe it. He made two pairs of Pope’s shoes for me. My number’s 38 [in the US, size 7]."

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