Mary’s apparitions, are they all over the world?
Mary’s efforts to guide and save humanity are evident in her apparitions at Lourdes (1858), Belgium (1933), Akita (1973), Kibeho (1981), Fatima (1917), Knock (1879), and Guadalupe (1531), among others. Notably, the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima on October 13th, 1917—a sign meant to inspire conversion—was witnessed by thousands of people in Portugal.
Mary's messages stress that praying the Rosary is necessary for our daily lives. The frequency of apparitions has increased, probably because there are more souls on Earth than at any time in human history; Mary's efforts to save souls is incessant.
Book: The Apparitions and Miracles at Knock by John Macphilpin
Why do we need to visit those locations? Jesus said in March 2010,
I want My priests to go in pilgrimage to Knock. There My Mother waits for them. There abundant graces will be given them. There they will recover the joy of their youth and the purity and innocence that makes My Church shine in a world threatened by the darkness from below.
Book: In Sinu Jesu: When Heart Speaks to Heart - The Journal of a Priest at Prayer by A Benedictine Monk
During Mary’s apparition in Rwanda, when the crowd chanted, "Show us a miracle!" Jesus thundered back at them and said, "You are the miracle!" This moment illustrates that faith and confidence in God are not built by extraordinary signs alone, but by hearts that love Him and trust in His presence.
I have always felt the presence and love of Jesus, but my understanding of Mary was limited for a long time. Some people put up posters of admired figures—Arnold Schwarzenegger in the ’90s, action heroes, actors, or politicians. If I were to have a poster, it would be of the Mother of Jesus herself: the ultimate defender, tirelessly working for people’s salvation and protection. There has never existed another human person more deserving of human praise in history than the Virgin Mary for her ongoing suffering, resoluteness, obedience, and zero grievances. She is the strongest human ever created, after the humanity of Jesus, able to withstand the most difficult hardships. "Who never passed an hour on earth without tribulation and discomfort of heart" (S.Bridget 1360). We always fail in our weaknesses; she has conquered them all on her own strength (with God's grace) and managed to speed our redemption in the process. As I said, my whole admiration is for the Virgin Mary, and any time I see her image I say "Thank you!" (rolling tears too, as we can meditate on what she has accomplished for us). A few miracles related to her Rosary prayer are described in the "101 Stories of the Rosary" book. One such account tells of a Second World War bomber that was destroyed in combat, yet the sole survivor was praying the Rosary at the moment, closest to the explosion.
Mary's true image,
Book: Our Lady of Kibeho: Mary Speaks to the World from the Heart of Africa by Ilibagiza, Immaculee
Book: One Message One Truth: The Prophecies of the Blessed Virgin at Fatima, Lourdes, Akita and Other Approved Apparitions by Connolly, Daniel
Book: Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of the Civilization of Love by Carl Anderson
Book: 101 Inspirational Stories of the Rosary by William S. Skylstad
Book: The Flame of Love by Elizabeth Kindelmann
[Mary speaks] Say to that same friar, on my behalf, that because of his good will and my prayer, God in his goodness has already forgiven him all the sins that he ever committed in all the days of his life. Tell him also that because of my prayer the love that he has for God will always increase in him right up to his death and will in no way diminish. [S.Bridget,1360]
Elizabeth Kindelmann asked Mary in 1962, "Mother, why do you not work miracles as you did at Fatima, so people will believe in you?" Mary answered, "The more miracles I work, the fewer people who believe. I asked for the first Saturday and no one paid attention."
In Saint Bridget's revelations (1360), Jesus said:
Everyone who calls on your name [Mary] and has hope in you along with a purpose of amendment for his sins shall be given these three things [repentance, penance and atonement] as well as the kingdom of Heaven. Your words are so sweet to me that I cannot deny you anything you plead for, for you want nothing other than what I want. You are indeed like a shining and burning flame by which the extinguished lights are enkindled and the burning lights are strengthened, for by your love which arose in my heart and drew me to you, those who are dead in sin will come to life again and those who are tepid and black like smoke will become strong in my love.
Saint Bridget also beautifully describes, in the "Sermon of the Angel", why Mary is "the most perfect of all creatures" and the reason "God took more pleasure in her than in all other beings."
Book: The Prophecies and Revelations of Saint Bridget (Birgitta) of Sweden: Volume 1 by Saint Bridget
Sister Agnes in Akita teaches us "the necessity of offering all the suffering of our daily life in union with the Passion of Jesus Christ".
Book: Akita: The Tears and Message of Mary by Teiji Yasuda
The Immaculate Conception refers to the conception of the Virgin Mary preserved from original sin by a singular grace of God, in view of the merits of her Son, Jesus Christ. Saint Thomas Aquinas, writing in the mid-thirteenth century, explains that Mary is most pure, poor in spirit, prudent, devout, humble, obedient, patient, merciful, faithful, and sorrowful. In her perfect charity, the Blessed Virgin loves humanity with a maternal love that surpasses even that of our own mothers.
For any woman who conceives must needs suffer sorrows and bring forth her child with pain: except the Blessed Virgin, who "conceived without corruption, and bore without pain", because her conceiving was not according to the law of nature, transmitted from our first parents.
On August 13th, 2019, at 7:00 p.m., during my weekly Mass, the church was suddenly filled with the strongest and sweetest fragrance of roses—an experience unlike anything I had ever known. The following day, I was deeply struck when I recalled that August 13th is traditionally held to be the date of Mary’s death, with her bodily Assumption into heaven occurring three days later, on August 15th, from her tomb in Jerusalem. This detail is recorded in 'The Mystical City of God' by Mary of Agreda, which states that Mary died on August 13th at 3:00 p.m. Thank you, Mary of Agreda, for your remarkable work. And thank you, Blessed Mother, for enlightening us and once again offering reassurance through your presence. I would consider myself the happiest man alive if I could hold the edge of her mantle for even a few seconds.
Book: The Love of Mary by D. Roberto, Hermit of Monte Corona
You can always join the Legion of Mary at your local church:
Book: The Official Handbook Of The Legion Of Mary by Concilium Legionis Mariae
Let saint Mechtilde of the Blessed Sacrament (1614-1698) instruct us,
The sincere devotion to the very pure and very immaculate Mother of God is the door to salvation and to interior life... even though it seems that the soul has affectionately attached to the Blessed Virgin more than to God, if the soul is faithful, she will be well instructed in the ways of grace, and this tenderness, if it is holy as it should be, will never fail to bring the soul to an intimate union with Our Lord Jesus Christ, and I dare say singularly, because the Most Holy Mother of God, having no point of view in herself, cannot hold back any creature for her... You have to start with the Mother, then herself will lead you to her divine Son, she has the most power to do so, and the know-how to produce it in us... the one who conceived Jesus by the operation of the Holy Spirit... One should not be afraid to give too much nor to exceed the duties that are given to her, since nothing remains in her and everything returns to Jesus and in Jesus... if I could express the benefits of this devotion: it opens the mind and makes people understand ineffable things about the sacred Mysteries, about the ways of grace, teaches us to pray and mortifications, supports us and consoles us in sorrows, preserves us from falling into temptations, drives out our enemies visible and invisible, and defends us against their malicious designs.
Book: The Mystery of Incomprehensible Love: The Eucharistic Message of Mother Mectilde of the Blessed Sacrament by Mother Mectilde de Bar
Marian Apparition Locations
I visited Lourdes, France, in 2022 and Fátima, Portugal, in 2025, where I walked the paths on which the Angel, and later the Blessed Virgin Mary, appeared to the children. Having previously visited Nazareth, Israel, in 2018, I was struck by the similarity of the landscape—particularly the rocky hills, which closely resemble parts of Israel. Nazareth and Fátima are also situated at approximately the same distance from the open sea with similar weather.
