Welcome to our "Frequently Asked Questions" page. With this FAQ, I have tried to answer some of the most commonly asked questions about Medjugorje. The answers are short, simple and to the point. I have attempted to organize these questions by topic, and hope that you find it useful. Please realize that this page is not meant to be a catechesis on the Catholic faith. There is lots of information available which explains our rich Catholic Faith. Rather, these questions focus more directly on Medjugorje.
I heard that one of the visionaries was dictated Our Lady's life. Is it available?
How many of the visionaries still see Our Lady?
What does Our Lady look like?
What are contained in the "secrets" that Our Lady has given the visionaries?
Why didn't any of the visionaries become priests or nuns?
What is fasting? How do you fast? What did Our Lady ask in Medjugorje?
What is the message or purpose of Medjugorje?
I heard about a special blessing Our Lady has given in Medjugorje.
Isn't praying the rosary just mindlessly repeating prayers over and over again?
Is Medjugorje just for Catholics?
How do we know the visionaries aren't making these apparitions up?
Why believe in Medjugorje if the Church hasn't approved it yet?
Jesus is our Savior, why give Our Lady all this attention?
Belief in apparitions is not required as part of our faith so why bother?
I already believe in God and am a good person. Why do I need Medjugorje.
I heard the Church has condemned Medjugorje. Is this true?
I heard the local bishop is against Medjugorje.
I heard the Pope is against Medjugorje.
One of the messages said that all faiths are equal. Isn't this against the Catholic Church's beliefs?
I heard that one of the visionaries was dictated Our Lady's life. Is it available?
In the late 1980's Our Lady dictated her life to the visionary Vicka. The work is contained in two hand written notebooks, and will be published when Our Lady tells Vicka it is time. This work will be available in many medias, including our web site, The Medjugorje Web. https://medjugorje.org
How many of the visionaries still see Our Lady?
At this time (Apr 2020), Ivan, Vicka, and Marija have each received 9 secrets and still receive daily apparitions from Our Lady. Ivanka, Mirjana and Jakov have received all 10 secrets and will see Our Lady once per year for the rest of their lives. Ivanka on the anniversary of the apparitions (June 25), Jakov on Christmas, and Mirjana on her birthday (March 18). Mirjana also received a special apparition from Our Lady on the 2nd of each month for the express purpose of praying for unbelievers from August 2, 1998 until March 2, 2020. Our Lady defines unbelievers as those who have not yet experienced God's love. Please also see our page: "Overview on Medjugorje"
What does Our Lady look like?
We offer an extensive description of Our Lady as given by the visionaries on our site. Click Here.
What are contained in the "secrets" that Our Lady has given the visionaries?
We know very little about the secrets of Medjugorje. First, Our has Lady allowed the third secret to be known, which is: There will a permanent, indestructable, supernatural sign left at the place of Our Lady's first apparition in Medjugorje on the hill Podbrdo at the conclusion of the apparitions. Second, we know that an evil that faced the world, which was contained in the 7th secret was eliminated due to prayer and fasting. And lastly, we know that the 9th and 10th secrets are chastisements for the sins of the world. They can not be eliminated as the 7th secret but can be lessened by our prayers and fasting. Please also see our page: "Overview on Medjugorje"
Why didn't any of the visionaries become priests or nuns?
Our Lady told the visionaries in the early days that she would like them to become priests and nuns but told them that they must pray and descern for themselves what vocation they felt called to. Our Lady asked that they be the best example they could be in whatever vocation they chose. Ivanka was the first to decide that her calling was married life, and asked for Our Lady's blessing. Our Lady joyfully gave Ivanka her blessing, and added that she had chosen the harder path for her life. I know Marija, Vicka, and Ivan all seriously considered a religious vocation, but after much prayer, they discerned that their vocation was married life. We should not consider the decision to be parents and to bring life into the world a less important or holy vocation than a religious vocation. A very interesting interview was given by Vicka on this subject: Vicka Interview
What is fasting? How do you fast? What did Our Lady ask in Medjugorje?
In the Old Testament and in the New Testament, there are many examples of fasting. Jesus fasted frequently. According to Tradition, fasting is encouraged especially in times of great temptation or severe trials. Certain devils, "can be cast out in no other way except by prayer and fasting", said Jesus. (Mark 9:29)
Fasting is essential in order to achieve spiritual freedom. Through fasting, one is better able to listen to God and man and to perceive them more clearly. If, through fasting, we achieve that freedom, we will be more aware of many things. Once we are aware that we can enjoy the necessities of life without struggle, then many fears and worries fade away. We become more open to our families and to the people with whom we live and work. Our Lady recommends fasting twice a week: "Fast strictly on Wednesdays and Fridays." (August 14, 1984)
"The best fast is on bread and water. Through fasting and prayer one can stop wars, one can suspend the natural laws of nature. Works of charity cannot replace fasting... Everyone except the sick, has to fast." (July 21, 1982)
Fasting takes personal discipline. Start slow, and work your way up to bread and water only. Fasting means that we give up something that we like and offer that sacrifice to God. One can give up sweets, coffee, cigarettes, alcohol, television, etc. But, Our Lady stresses that the best and most powerful fast is on bread and water for a 24 hour period from midnight to midnight. Great graces come from fasting and it can help with situations in your life that seem hopeless. Fr. Slavko always used to be asked how much bread and water one should eat and drink on fast days. His answer was very simple, "as much as you need". The amount and frequency are not really important, but rather our intention to fast out of love for God.
What is the message or purpose of Medjugorje?
The message of Medjugorje is a call to Conversion, conversion back to God. Our Lady gives us five Stones or weapons (prayer, fasting, confession, the bible, and the Eucharist), which we can use to overcome the power and influence of evil and sin in our lives. This is the "Message of Medjugorje". Our Lady's purpose for coming to earth is to guide each one of us back to her Son Jesus. She does this by leading us step by step toward a life of holiness through the hundreds of messages she has given to the world through the visionaries in Medjugorje. Please also see our pages: "The Message of Medjugorje" and "The Messages From Our Lady"
I heard about a special blessing Our Lady has given in Medjugorje?
The reported "special blessing", is a controversial subject. It stems from a reported apparition that Marija received while in the United States in 1989. I might catch some flack for this statement, but the group responsible for reporting this message has been known to sensationalize information. There is no official acknowlegement by the parish of Medjugorje that this message is true, and in fact their stance is that it is not true according to how it was reported.
We do know that Our Lady offers a special motherly blessing to anyone who travels to Medjugorje or is present for an apparition. The difficulty starts when people claim that this blessing can be passed on by them to other people. The concern is mainly from a theological standpoint, which is lay people should not be blessing other people as a priest blesses. To be prudent, I would suggest that anyone convinced that Our Lady gave this special blessing and wants it to be passed on, to do it in the following way: "I ask Our Lady to send you her special blessing in Medjugorje" rather than saying "I bless or I give you Our Lady's special blessing from Medjugorje".
Isn't praying the rosary just mindlessly repeating prayers over and over again?
The rosary is one of the most powerful weapons we have against satan, and Our Lady promises many graces to those who pray it. Praying the rosary is not repetitiously repeating prayers over and over again. There are now twenty "mysteries" of the rosary, which we meditate upon while reciting the prayers of the rosary. Eighteen of these mysteries are taken directly from the bible and constitute three periods of Jesus life (birth, ministry, death, and resurrection). The last two mysteries are dogmatic and are truths of our Catholic faith. There is no greater way to gain knowledge and be drawn into a deeper understanding of Jesus' life than praying the rosary, since it is scriptural. I can't say enough about the incredible graces that come as a result of praying the rosary. Our Lady asks that we pray all 20 decades every day, and asks that every family pray 5 decades of the rosary as a family together as well as reading a small passage of the bible every day. Please also see our page: "How to Pray the Rosary"
Is Medjugorje just for Catholics?
Absolutely Not! Medjugorje is not just for Catholics. God loves all His people. Many people who come on our trips are not Catholic and come from different faiths and religions throughout the world. What is most important is that we change our lives to put God in the first place. Although a good percentage of those of other faiths that visit Medjugorje do convert to Catholicism, it is only because of what they see in the Catholic faith. The Catholic Church is the original Church founded by Jesus. Through the Eucharist, and the rest of the Sacraments of the Church, the most is given to Catholics and the most is also required. If you have questions about the Catholic faith please do some research. There are many good books which will help you understand the incredible richness of the Catholic faith. We offer many of these books on our web site at: https://medjugorjeweb.com
How do we know the visionaries aren't making these apparitions up?
There have been three extensive scientific studies done on the visonaries since the apparitions began in Medjugorje on June 25, 1981 by the best scientists in the world. The most recent of which concluded in 2016. All drew the same conclusion, which are that the visionaries are healthy mentally and physically, they are not hallucinating, are not lying, and are definitely experiencing something that is beyond our scientific understanding that is unexplainable.
It is also interesting to note that during the experiments, one of the things being monitored was brain activity. Most of us are able to use around 10% of our brain during normal activities. It is facinating to note that at the moment when Our Lady appears, the visionaries brain activity jumps to 100% and stays at this level until Our Lady leaves.
As a personal testimony, having visited Medjugorje over 130 times over the last 20 years, and personally knowing most of the visionaries, I can say that in my opinion, and without any doubt, the apparitions are authentic. I also want to shift the focus to the "Fruits of Medjugorje". As scripture says: "You will know them by their fruits". There are thousands of documented physical healings and literally countless spiritual healings and conversions that have taken place in Medjugorje over the last 33+ years. Please refer to the following documents for the published results of the studies done on the visionaries. 1993 Study | 1998 Study
Why believe in Medjugorje if the Church hasn't approved it yet?
It is important to first understand that the Church typically does not approve an apparition that is ongoing. But, with that said, the Vatican has been closely monitoring Medjugorje since 1981, and has completed three investigations. the last being completed on January 19, 2014. We are waiting for Pope Francis to make an announcement on the findings. The last official statement by the commission of bishops set up to investigate Medjugorje, declared in 1993: "We bishops, after a three-year-long commission study accept Medjugorje as a holy place, as a shrine. This means that we have nothing against it if someone venerates the Mother of God in a manner also in agreement with the teaching and belief of the Church... Therefore, we are leaving that to further study. The Church does not hurry." (Glas Koncila, August 15, 1993).
We can also consider the words of Pope Urban VIII:
His Holiness, Pope Urban VIII stated: "In cases which concern private revelations, it is better to believe than not to believe, for, if you believe, and it is proven true, you will be happy that you have believed, because our Holy Mother asked it. If you believe, and it should be proven false, you will receive all blessings as if it had been true, because you believed it to be true."(Pope Urban VIII, 1623-44)
Our Lady has repeated over and over in Medjugorje that we are living in a time of great grace, and anyone who opens their hearts to Our Lady and Jesus in these times will receive special graces to resist and defeat the evils and temptations of our world. While it is true that believing in any Marian apparition is not required as part of our Catholic faith, and it is considered to be private revelation, passing up the incredible graces offered through these apparitions of the Mother of God is not something to be taken lightly. I have seen many Catholics who live a very faithful life, and who obey all the rules of the Church that have been completely changed as a result of visiting Medjugorje. Their lives are dramatically brought into a much deeper love of Jesus, Our Lady, and the Sacraments of the Church. The Holy Mass takes on a new meaning and intensity, and they have a greater desire to pray, attend Eucharistic Adoration, and go to Mass more than just on Sundays.
Remember that both Fatima and Lourdes were not approved by the Church until 30 years after the apparitions ceased. The apparitions in Medjugorje are still ongoing.
Please also refer to: Private Revelation and Apparitions, Visions and Revelations
Jesus is our Savior, why give Our Lady all this attention?
This is actually more of a Catholic Faith question than a Medjugorje questions but I will try to give a simple answer. This could be a very long discussion but I think sticking to the simplistic reality of Our Lady's role in the Church is enough.
Some other faiths contend that Catholics worship Mary, or at the very least, give too much attention to Mary. If one excludes Mary, the mother of God, from their faith, then they are making a great mistake. The Catholic Faith believes that Our Lady is mediatrix of all graces and her role has always been to lead people to her Son Jesus.
It is a fact that for the first 1500 years after the start of Christianity, Mary was very deeply revered and respected. The loss of this devotion among Christians has occurred primarily since the Reformation period (1500's), which is somewhat ironic since Martin Luther, himself, had a special devotion to Mary. In scripture we find that Mary prophesied herself, "All ages to come shall call me blessed." Mary is a special instrument in God's plan. While she is not to be worshipped, she is "blessed," and she deserves great respect for the role she played in our salvation by being the human tabernacle of Christ. She is a great model for all of us to follow. (This paragraph taken from http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~marco/medjugorje/ )
Our Lady's message in Medjugorje supports her role in the Church, and coincidentally is virtually the same message proclaimed by John the Baptist. Just as John's message, Our Lady points the way to her Son Jesus, and implores us to "repent", to change our lives to be lives with God as our focus and core. It is interesting that Our Lady's first appearance in Medjugorje was on June 24, 1981, the feast of John the Baptist.
Belief in apparitions is not required as part of our faith so why bother?
It is true that apparitions fall under a category called "private revelation", which is not required for us to believe as part of the Catholic Faith. So La Salette, Lourdes, Fatima, Medjugorje, etc. are all considered private revelation.
But, many incredible graces come to those who believe and follow these private revelations. We have all heard stories of dramatic healings of mind, body, and spirit in all of these major Marian apparition sites. Medjugorje is no exception, and I have personally witnessed many amazing miracles that have come about as a result of the special graces given in Medjugorje. Our Lady has said many times in Medjugorje that we are living in "A Time of Grace". Our Lady asks us to take advantage of this grace to change our lives back to lives that will lead us to heaven rather than eternal damnation. As much as modern theologians and preachers of many denominations try to white wash this reality, there are only two places we can ultimately go, heaven or hell. Satan has done a very good job at making people believe he does not exist. We must put on the "Full armor of God" as St. Paul says if we are to survive satans attacks.
It is amazing to imagine that Jesus loves us so much that He has sent His mother to earth as early as the 1300's to warn us, and implore us to change. Historically we have done a poor job of listening and responding.
I already believe in God and am a good person. Why do I need Medjugorje?
Most of the answer exists in the previous question, but I would have to ask anyone who has this attitude to truly look at their lives. I doubt anyone who is honest with themselves, including the greatest saints, would ever dare to say that they did not have room for improvement. All would agree that they could have lived their lives better and more perfectly. Our time on earth is a great opportunity to do good. It is a great opportunity to earn merit. Once we die, this opportunity is gone. The graces offered to everyone who asks with an open heart in Medjugorje, will change their life. The graces will strengthen you in your faith, and bring you to a closer relationship with Jesus and His Blessed Mother. There is no refuting this fact.
I heard the Church has condemned Medjugorje. Is this true?
A big NO!!! This is one of the most frequent questions/accusations I receive. It is simply not true. The Holy See has affirmed its position a number of times over the years. I think it is best if I start from the beginning and briefly give you a rundown of the facts.
Let me first say that the Holy See, former Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI, and now Pope Francis have kept, and are keeping, a close watch on the messages of Medjugorje over the last 33+ years. They have not found anything that contradicts scripture or the Church. If they had, Medjugorje would have been condemned years ago. Our Lady's message in Medjugorje calls us to: Daily prayer of the rosary, monthly Confession, daily reading of Scripture, fasting on Wednedays and Fridays on bread and water, and attending Holy Mass as often as possible. This is a simple message meant to help us in the lifelong process of conversion.
Bishop Pavao Žanic originally visited Medjugorje five times in the first two months of the apparitions in 1981 and performed a thorough investigation. Afterwards he came only to confer the sacrament of Confirmation to the faithful. In front of over 3000 people at Holy Mass, he declared:
"I am deeply convinced that no child who says that they have seen Our Lady, has been talked into doing so. If we were speaking about one child only, one might say he could be stubborn and that not even the police could make the child renounce what he said. But six innocent, simple children in the space of half an hour, would, if they were pushed, admit all. None of the priests, I guarantee, had any idea of putting the children up to something.... I am also convinced that the children are not lying. The children are only speaking out what's in their hearts... It is certain: the children are not lying". (From a sermon given on the feast of St. James, the patron saint of Medjugorje, on the 25th of July 1981)
In "Glas Koncila", the Croatian national catholic newspaper, 16th of August 1981, he stated; "It is definite that the children were not incited by anyone, and especially not by the church, to lie."
It is unclear why in the months to follow that Bishop Zanic changed his mind. Some say it was due to threats and pressure by the Communist government of torture and imprisonment of both Fr. Jozo and the Bishop if the apparitions did not cease. We all know that Fr. Jozo served 18 months of harsh inprisonment for refusing to denounce Medjugorje. Others say that a reported comment from Our Lady regarding a wrong judgement the Bishop had made with a Franciscan priest infuriated the Bishop. But regardless the ultimate outcome was that the Bishop turned against Medjugorje.
Then in 1984, a commission of 14 people was formed by Bishop Zanic that consisted mainly of members that had already declared to be against the alleged events. They made two statements which basicly said that they agreed with the Holy See that a decision should not be rushed. Then in 1987 Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger entrusted the investigation into the hands of the Yugoslavian bishops' conference. After three years of study the former Bishops' Conference of Yugoslavia on April 10, 1991 published their declaration in which among other things it states:
"On the basis of investigations up till now it cannot be established that one is dealing with supernatural apparitions and revelations."
This statement does not mean that it has been proven that no supernatural basis exists, but only that it is not yet established or proven. This means the matter is open to further investigation. This finding was really a compromise between the position of Bishop Zanic and the good fruits, which the events of Medjugorje were producing. The commission for pastoral life in the parish of Medjugorje decided to meet again on June 27, 1991. However, one day before, Serbia attacked Slovenia and the war broke out, which eventually dissolved the state of Yugoslavia. The Bishops Conference of Yugoslavia was also dissolved.
After the commission findings were made public in 1991, Pope John Paul II retired Bishop Zanic of his duties and handed over the responsibility to investigate and render a final decision on Medjugorje to a hand picked commission of Bishops. The last statement that they rendered in 1993 states:
"We bishops, after a three-year-long commission study accept Medjugorje as a holy place, as a shrine. This means that we have nothing against it if someone venerates the Mother of God in a manner also in agreement with the teaching and belief of the Church. . . Therefore, we are leaving that to further study. The Church does not hurry." (Glas Koncila, August 15, 1993).
The replacement for Bishop Zanic was Bishop Ratko Peric. Bishop Ratko worked closely with Bishop Zanic for years, and it was no surprise that he held, and still holds, the same negative opinion of Medjugorje. Bishop Ratko is reported to have never investigated Medjugorje, never spoken with or interviewed the visionaries, and visits Medjugorje only rarely for Confirmations and official functions. The important issue is that Bishop Ratko Peric does not have authority over the final decision on Medjugorje. This responsibility still rests with the Vatican. The local Bishop's negative comments about Medjugorje were addressed directly in 1998 by the Holy See in a letter to his Excellency Mons. Gilbert Aubry, Bishop of Saint-Denis de la Reunion. The letter states that Bishop Peric's position on Medjugorje is his personal opinion, which he is entitled to as local Bishop, but remains his personal opinion. The URL for this letter is Newletter.htm
Lastly is Pope John Paul II himself. Our beloved former Pope was very much a supporter of Medjugorje (although unofficially, which he had to be until Medjugorje was approved). Please take a look at our document Pope John Paul II's Comments, which list numerous quotes as reported by priests, bishops and cardinals over the years. Most recently, in August 2002, Pope John Paul II wrote a personal note to Fr. Jozo Zovko thanking him for his ministry, and giving him his blessing. Fr. Jozo Letter.
The Holy See has also stated and confirmed on numerous occasions over the years that traveling to Medjugorje is permitted. The only restriction is a pilgrimage can not be organized by the Church (which would indicate full approval by the Church). It is perfectly ok for priests, bishops, and cardinals to travel to Medjugorje alone or with groups. And to date almost 750,000 priests, bishops, and cardinals have visited Medjugorje.
Please also refer to our page "All About Medjugorje" for a tremendous amount of information and documents specifically about "Medjugorje and the Church".
I heard the local bishop is against Medjugorje.
True! It is important to first state that the priests serving in Medjugorje are appointed by the bishop and that they are all under obedience. With that said, the replacement for Bishop Zanic, who was in power at the time the apparitions began, was Bishop Ratko Peric. Bishop Ratko worked closely with Bishop Zanic for years, and it was no surprise that he held, and still holds, the same negative opinion of Medjugorje. In a conversation that Fr. John Chisholm had with Bishop Ratko Peric, Fr. John asked the bishop if he believed in Lourdes. The bishop slammed his fist on the table and yelled "NO". Fr. John asked the bishop if he believed in Fatima, and received the same answer. With this information, it would seem unlikely that the bishop would believe in Our Lady's apparitions in his own diocese. The Bishop is reported to have never investigated Medjugorje, never spoken with or interviewed the visionaries, and visits Medjugorje only rarely for Confirmations and official functions. But with this said, the important issue is that Bishop Ratko Peric does not have authority over the Churchs decision on Medjugorje. In a recent interview the bishop acknowledged this fact when he said: "while recognizing the Holy Father's right to give a final decision on the validity of the reported apparitions..." This responsibility still rests with the commission of Bishops. The local Bishop's negative comments about Medjugorje were addressed directly in 1998 by the Holy See in a letter to his Excellency Mons. Gilbert Aubry, Bishop of Saint-Denis de la Reunion. The letter states that Bishop Peric's position on Medjugorje is his personal opinion, which he is entitled to as local Bishop, but remains his personal opinion. The URL for this letter is Newletter.htm
I heard the Pope is against Medjugorje.
False! Pope John Paul II was very much a supporter of Medjugorje (although unofficially, which he had to be because Medjugorje was not yet approved). Please take a look at our document Pope John Paul II's Comments, which list numerous quotes as reported by priests, bishops and cardinals over the years. Most recently, in August 2002, Pope John Paul II wrote a personal note to Fr. Jozo Zovko thanking him for his ministry, and giving him his blessing. Fr. Jozo Letter. Pope Benedict has also been a silent supporter. He visited Medjugorje incognito on at least one occasion, and literally saved Medjugorje from the flawed commission organized by bishop Zanic in the early years. Pope Francis ia also a silent supporter. The visionary Ivan spent the evening with Pope Francis on the evening before he traveled to the conclave to be elected Pope.
One of the messages said that all faiths are equal. Isn't this against the Catholic Church's beliefs?
There was a question asked of Our Lady in October 1981 which was: Are all religions the same? Our Lady answered: "Members of all faiths are equal before God. God rules over each faith just like a sovereign over his kingdom. In the world, all religions are not the same because all people have not complied with the commandments of God. They reject and disparage them."
The difficulty that some Catholics have had with this answer is based on the belief that the only salvation is within the Catholic Church itself. But the Catholic Church does not teach this. In fact, Vatican II in its Dogmatic Constitution on the Church "Lumen Genitum" says this: "Those also can attain to salvation who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, yet sincerely seek God, and moved by grace strive by their deeds to do His will as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience. Nor does Divine Providence deny the helps necessary for salvation to those who, without blame on their part, have not yet arrived at an explicit knowledge of God and with His grace strive to live a good life."
It is a great privilage to be Catholic and I love my faith. Who am I to judge who will be saved. As Matthew 7 says "Judge not, that you may not be judged".
