I am heading to the Saarland for a holiday and particularly want to visit Marpingen. This village was the site of an alleged Marian vision in 1876. The phenomenon quickly got out of hand, even without benefit of the Internet, and for a while it was getting more pilgrims than Lourdes. I thought that it had been recognised as a fake at lea…
I am heading to the Saarland for a holiday and particularly want to visit Marpingen. This village was the site of an alleged Marian vision in 1876. The phenomenon quickly got out of hand, even without benefit of the Internet, and for a while it was getting more pilgrims than Lourdes. I thought that it had been recognised as a fake at least a hundred years ago. But then there was a return visit in 1999:
So in 2005 ecclesiastical authorities were still taking an interest:
"The most recent pronouncement by the Catholic Church on these events was made by the Bishop of Trier, Dr. Reinhard Marx. On December 13, 2005, he published the following decree:
"It cannot be confirmed that the events of Marpingen during the years 1876 and 1999 were of supernatural character. There are serious reasons which do not allow us to recognize the events as supernatural."
Trier, December 12, 2005
Dr. Reinhard Marx
Bishop of Trier"
At this rate the Medjugorje farce will run for centuries.
I can recommend David Blackbourn's book, which tells the enthralling 1876 story in huge detail and with several poignant anecdotes. The religious aspects were caught up with so many background events - the Franco-Prussian war, Bismarck's Culture War against the Catholic Church and the recent success of Lourdes.
I am heading to the Saarland for a holiday and particularly want to visit Marpingen. This village was the site of an alleged Marian vision in 1876. The phenomenon quickly got out of hand, even without benefit of the Internet, and for a while it was getting more pilgrims than Lourdes. I thought that it had been recognised as a fake at least a hundred years ago. But then there was a return visit in 1999:
https://www.dw.com/en/virgin-mary-gets-an-excused-absence-in-germany/a-1823196
So in 2005 ecclesiastical authorities were still taking an interest:
"The most recent pronouncement by the Catholic Church on these events was made by the Bishop of Trier, Dr. Reinhard Marx. On December 13, 2005, he published the following decree:
"It cannot be confirmed that the events of Marpingen during the years 1876 and 1999 were of supernatural character. There are serious reasons which do not allow us to recognize the events as supernatural."
Trier, December 12, 2005
Dr. Reinhard Marx
Bishop of Trier"
At this rate the Medjugorje farce will run for centuries.
I can recommend David Blackbourn's book, which tells the enthralling 1876 story in huge detail and with several poignant anecdotes. The religious aspects were caught up with so many background events - the Franco-Prussian war, Bismarck's Culture War against the Catholic Church and the recent success of Lourdes.
https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/916643