Medals, miracles and Mary
Introduction
Mary, Mother of Jesus, is a central feature of the devotional life of many Christians and in particular Catholics. Throughout the past 2000 years, Christians have created shrines, prayers, works of art and religious rituals to remember Mary and acknowledge her place in the wider Christian story. There have been hundreds of reports particularly in the twentieth century of Mary appearing and speaking personally to ordinary people. While people have claimed that Jesus and a number of saints have appeared to them, the reported appearances of Mary far outnumber those of any other.
Marian Apparitions
When people in the Church claim to experience supernatural visions and then attract groups of followers because of these claims, the Church is always cautious and subjects such claims to rigorous investigations. The Church follows certain set procedures to ensure the veracity of all claims for the good of God's people. Under Vatican guidelines, a specially appointed local committee comprising theologians and other experts may be called to investigate the facts of a reported apparition. This committee seeks to answer the following questions:
Do the reports lead people to prayer, devotion and good acts?
Are those involved honest, sincere, well balanced and sane?
Is there any evidence that those involved are seeking financial or material rewards?
In the past two centuries only seven Marian apparitions have ever been given approval by Catholic Church authorities. They are listed below:
1830Catherine Laboure in Paris, France
1846Melanie Mathieu and Maximin Giraud at LaSalette, France
1858Bernadette Soubirous at Lourdes, France
1871Eugene Barbedette at Pontmain, France
1917Lucia, Fancisco and Jacinta at Fatima, Portugal
1932-33Gilberte Voisin at Beauraing, Belgium
1933Mariette Beco at Banneux, Belgium
When Catholic Church authorities grant approval for Catholics to recognise Marian apparitions, it is not an admission that the apparition is true or that it actually occurred in the way it was reported. Official approval seeks to affirm that there is nothing in the report that contradicts official Church teaching. Belief in Marian apparitions has always been viewed by the Church as something of “an optional extra”; that is, an expression of personal faith and prayer. It is interesting to note that no Church approvals have been granted for over sixty years even though there have been numerous investigations during that time. As Pope Paul VI stated, “Certain practices of piety that not long ago seemed suitable for expressing the religious sentiment of individuals and of Christian communities seem today inadequate or unsuitable because they are linked with social and cultural patterns of the past” (1974).
Some excellent, easily accessible material about Marian apparitions for students can be located in the following student text.
Ryan, M. (1998). Mary: A Religion Series for Catholic Secondary Schools. Social Science Press: Katoomba, NSW.
The writer gratefully acknowledges Maurice Ryan for some of the material used in this teacher background.
Marian devotions: past and present
Mary has been an important figure of devotion among Australian Catholics. As each successive wave of European immigrants came to Australia after World War II they brought with them a renewed devotion to Mary and varied ways of expressing it. For many generations of Catholics, sodalities and other pious societies based around Mary were a focal part of their childhood. For several generations of Australian Catholic girls, membership of the Children of Mary sodality was extremely popular. The Legion of Mary is an example of a Marian sodality that continues to operate today.
Christian understandings of Mary’s role in the Church have developed since the intense period of interest and devotion of the 1950s. Modern litanies such as the Litany of Mary of Nazareth have been created which reflect the concerns of contemporary believers. Devotion to Mary within the Marist tradition has changed as well. Images of Mary depicted in art and other forms of the media tend to reflect more contemporary understandings of womanhood and motherhood.