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In the evening in the Cairo suburb of Zeitoun, on the roof of a Christian church, people saw a luminous translucent figure of a woman. She was surrounded by a bright halo, like the Mother of God on the icons. The fiery woman moved through the air as if she were swimming. Before the eyes of the amazed people, she bowed to the cross on the dome of the temple.
The news instantly spread throughout Cairo. People fled to the temple, flooding the streets. And everyone froze in delight, seeing with their own eyes an unprecedented miracle. And thousands of mouths in all languages repeated one name:
Many Christians immediately fell to their knees and began to offer prayers to the Mother of God. The woman, created from a beautiful bright white light, as if having heard them, turned to the people and blessed with her hand.
Thousands of people below saw the fiery figure on the roof of the temple nod its head at them. And in front of everyone turned into a cloud of light...
This first apparition of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun, which happened on April 2, 1968, marked the beginning of a great and beautiful necklace of miracles of the Mother of God that are still happening in Egypt today.
And this is not a legend, not a hoax - a reality recorded by the church and the police with documentary accuracy.
"The phenomenon was observed many times at night and is still observed in various forms: sometimes in full growth, sometimes in half; always surrounded by a white radiant halo, appears either from the window of the dome, or in the space between the domes. The Blessed Virgin moves, walks, bows before cross on the roof of the temple - and then he begins to glow with a majestic radiance, turns to those who watch and blesses with his hands and the inclination of His Most Pure Head.In other cases, Her Most Pure Body appeared in the form of a cloud or in the form of radiance, which was preceded by the appearance of certain spiritual beings, similar to doves flying at high speed."
(From the "Statement of the Patriarchal Residence in Cairo", made on May 4, 1968 by decree of the Head of the Coptic Church, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill VI).
Testimony of Bishop Athanasius, Cathedral Bishop of Beni Sufeif:
“I saw the Blessed Virgin myself, many, many thousands saw her with me. The phenomenon was preceded by the flight of two doves from the church. the aerial outlines of the Most Pure Body of the Virgin Mary. They appeared instantly, as if in one flash. This phenomenon remained visible until five o'clock in the morning. When She moved sideways in relation to us, we saw Her profile as a line of light. Then She turned to face us. She was is clearly visible in this phenomenon, that is, for 2 hours and 15 minutes, so that people almost lose their minds. If we ever asked a film director to reproduce this phenomenon, he could not. This is a highly spiritual phenomenon, full of grace, and it is impossible to copy it!"
Testimony of lawyer Zaki Shenouda, leader of the Afro-Asian Congress:
“At first, I thought that these were just reflected lights from the powerful lanterns of the garage located opposite the church. At 5 pm on Saturday, April 27, I again came to the temple. The number of people around was measured in tens of thousands. They climbed fences, trees, lampposts "Everyone looked at the domes of the temple with excitement and prayer. Chants were heard from all sides. I continued to watch until half past three in the morning. At this time, people from the side street adjoining the church shouted that the Blessed Virgin had appeared above the rear dome. Everyone rushed there and I with them. I clearly saw the Virgin Mary, surrounded by a halo around Her Most Pure Body and above her head, in the form of a queen who stood with a crown on her head. She shone like bright sun in the midst of darkness. And so she stretched out her hands to the people, greeting and blessing. The Virgin Mary continued to stand like this for about an hour and a half. People exclaimed: "Peace be with you, Mother of Light, Mother of the Savior!" In the face of this vision, incomparable in its grace, beauty, amazingness, I say with absolute certainty - this is the Blessed Virgin Mary!
Healing
People who observed the miracle recorded extraordinary cases of healing. Aziz Pham, a professor of medicine, is shocked that his patient Salig Abd-el-Malek's cancerous tumor disappeared without surgery.
The 20-year-old blind and dumb girl Madiha Mohammed Said was brought by the brothers to the church, over which the Mother of God appeared. In the presence of many people, she gained her sight and cried out: "Virgo, Virgo!"
The paralyzed woman Mahmud Shukri Ibrahim was seated in front of the temple on a chair, and she prayed for healing. Seeing the Virgin Mary, she left on her feet. Professor Shafik Abd-el-Malik claims that her paralysis was incurable and medical remedies were powerless in her case.
Doctor William Nashed Zaki, who witnessed the apparition of the Virgin, got rid of a hernia that he had suffered for 12 years.
In addition to these cases, hundreds of facts of miraculous recovery have been documented in people who observed the Mother of God. Here are the lines from the official protocol signed by Bishop Gregory:
"Malignant tumors various types, severe thyroid disease, rheumatoid arthritis, blindness, chronic speech disorder, severe hypertension and hemiplegia, paralysis of the arm, case of incurable hernia, complete rupture of the biceps muscle, acute subconjunctival hemorrhage of the left eye, chronic nephritis, chronic asthma in severe form, severe infection amputation and other ailments, too many to list here, were instantly cured, as confirmed by medical research."
The first observers of the apparition of the Mother of God were workers from the garage opposite the temple. All of them are Muslims. The government report gives the testimony of each of them, and they are recognized as reliable: "Any possibility of fabricated neon images or other deception is recognized as impossible and excluded."
It is documented that in Zeytun the Mother of God appeared at different times in several forms - in full growth, kneeling, with an olive branch, with a baby in her left hand. Witnesses describe that the metal cross on the church began to glow, although it is made of opaque material and is not visible at night. The Mother of God blessed the people in all four directions of the world, on the Blessed Virgin they saw a blue veil over a light blue robe.
In addition, witnesses describe dove-like birds that emitted a bright light, which "suddenly appeared and disappeared in the same way, without leaving the boundaries of visible space."
People also saw fiery stars that fell on the temple at great speed from heaven and immediately disappeared with brilliance and radiance, without harming people.
Often they saw a fiery cross above the dome, which shone brighter than the image of the Virgin. On some nights, clouds of fragrant incense rose from the dome, as from thousands of censers.
All witnesses note the luminous clouds that precede the appearance of the Virgin Mary.
The apparitions of the Mother of God in Zeytun lasted for three years (1968-1971). The day they begin, April 2, is included in the liturgical calendar of the Coptic Church.
In 1982, similar phenomena were repeated in another temple of the Virgin in Cairo, on el-Gamhuriya street. On March 25, 1986, the Mother of God appeared in Shubra, one of the Christian quarters of Cairo, above the temple of the holy martyr Deminiana and 40 virgins, they continued there until 1991. It is noteworthy that witnesses there (including members of the papal commission from the Vatican!) clearly saw the image of the Infant Jesus in the arms of the Virgin Mary - it appeared during the Divine Liturgy. The vision also appeared in the temple, near the altar wall. From August to September 1997, the apparitions of the Virgin over the temple in the village of Shentan in the province of Menufia continued - they were also recorded by the bishops of the Coptic Church and the secretary of the Pope. And in August 2000, the apparitions of the Virgin began in Asyut, a city 290 kilometers south of Cairo. There the Mother of God was seen over the church of St. Mark. In 2002, the Mother of God appeared in a church in Giza, not far from the pyramids. The Virgin Mary, woven of light, extended her arms to the people. The police and military sent powerful searchlights in the direction of the phenomenon, but could not outshine the light flooding the entire district ...
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“When I arrive at Perm-36, I have a feeling of memory that needs to be kept ... As soon as the last of us forgets how it really was, everything will immediately start again. Therefore, it is necessary to remember,” Andrei Makarevich said at the Pilorama International Civil Forum, which was held for the sixth time on the territory of the Perm-36 Camp Museum, the only memorial complex in Russia for the history of political repressions.
The power of man is evident today. By pressing just a few buttons, he is able to destroy all life on Earth. However, this power is limited. So far, we cannot prevent either a drought, or a catastrophic flood, or a volcanic eruption, an earthquake, a tsunami ... But their consequences are always the same: in addition to the death of many people, large tracts of land become unsuitable for further habitation, and this entails the migration of peoples . And it is very possible that they will come to another country not with a hand outstretched for help, but with weapons!
The Tuscan Margraves Matilda was born in the 11th century and died already in the 12th. At that time, she was a unique personality: imperious and tough, she not only participated in political intrigues, but also conducted full-fledged military operations. She went down in history as an ardent supporter of Pope Gregory VII.
The sky, as you know, is not too favorable to women. In the 30s of the last century, pilots, with rare exceptions, were men. It was they who set world records for speed, altitude, flight range. But unexpectedly, a young, ambitious American woman burst into this male profession, who managed to break many male records. No wonder in her homeland she was called nothing more than the “queen of speed”.
On March 23, 1989, Captain Joseph Hazelwood walked into a bar in the port city of Valdez, Alaska. It was 4 pm and he had several hours of free time while the oil terminal was pumping 200 million liters of crude oil into a tanker. Hazelwood played darts with his assistants and drank vodka. A warm company rested in the bar all evening.
Swastika (Skt.) - a cross with ends bent at a right angle (less often - an arc). Perhaps an ancient symbol of fertility, the sun, crossed lightning, Thor's hammer and the like. As an ornamental motif, it is found in the art of ancient cultures, as well as in ancient, European medieval and folk art. In fascist Germany, it was used as a state emblem, a distinctive sign of the Nazi party, and became a symbol of barbarism and violence. Big Encyclopedia Cyril and Methodius. 2000
When firewood was being piled up in Rome for the fire of Giordano Bruno, in Naples the inquisitors threw another rebellious monk into prison. It was Tommaso Campanella. Like Bruno, he was considered not only a philosopher, but also an astrologer and a magician.
The Virgin Mary is one of the most revered personalities and the greatest of Christian saints. Perhaps there is not a single person in the world (with the exception of babies, perhaps) who would not have heard of her. Mary, the Mother of Jesus Christ, is known to Catholics, Orthodox Christians, Muslims, and atheists.
The veneration of the Virgin Mary is based on the truth of Her Motherhood, and it is to this truth that the first day of the new year was dedicated in the Roman Catholic Church. On January 1, Catholics around the world celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Theotokos - a holiday that completes the Christmas octave.
Well, on this day we will remember the most famous appearances of the Virgin Mary to the people. True, we will make a reservation that not all of these phenomena are officially recognized by the Catholic Church. Some are still waiting in the wings and are being carefully studied. In addition, the appearances of the Blessed Virgin are many times more than seven.
The first phenomenon. Baptized Latin America.
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The inhabitants of Latin America sacredly honor the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Guadalupe, who is considered the patroness of both Americas and is respectfully called "Our Lady of Guadalupe." And the cult of veneration of the Virgin of Guadalupe began with the modest Indian Juan Diego, who lived near Mexico City. On December 9, 1531, as a newly converted Catholic, he hurried past the Tepeyac hill to the morning mass in the church, but suddenly he heard beautiful singing. Deciding to inquire where this voice (or voices) came from, he climbed to the top of the hill and saw a shining cloud. In that cloud, Juan Diego saw a beautiful young woman who looked more like the girls of his tribe than a white-skinned Spaniard.
The lady called herself the Virgin Mary and asked to build a temple on the site of her appearance so that everyone could honor her Son - Jesus Christ. But here's the problem! The priests did not believe Juan, deciding that the Mother of God could not appear to some Indian without a soul (previously, the Spaniards believed that the indigenous population of Latin America did not have a soul, which means that Indians could be killed without a twinge of conscience).
But the Mother of God did not retreat. One day, when Juan Diego went to get a priest for his sick uncle, the Virgin Mary once again appeared to the unfortunate Indian and ordered him to collect all the flowers that he could find on the hill. The young man obeyed, although nothing grew on the hill. But suddenly he saw a rose bush growing on a rock. “Here is My sign,” said the Virgin Mary. “Take these roses, wrap them in your cloak, and take them to the bishop.” This time he will believe you."
Having come to the bishop, Juan Diego unfolded his cape, where there were roses, and everyone saw on the fabric the Virgin, standing on a young month, surrounded by stars and the Sun. After that, the priests repented of their unbelief, and Juan Diego's uncle, who was dying, was miraculously healed.
All this convinced the indigenous people of Mexico, who continued to worship their gods, that Christianity was the true faith. And after the appearance of the Virgin Mary of Guadalupe, almost 6 million Indians independently converted to Catholicism. This is how the baptism of Latin America took place.
The second phenomenon. The Virgin and the Shepherdess.
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In 1858, the Virgin Mary appeared to a simple village girl from french town Lourdes. 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous, who did not shine with her mind, actually became the messenger of the dogma of the Catholic Church about Immaculate Conception Holy Mother of God. On February 11, 1858, the parents sent Bernadette along with other children to fetch branches for kindling. To get to the grove, where it was possible to collect these same branches, the children had to cross a small stream. Bernadette's friends quickly coped with this task, and the girl remained undecided whether to cross the stream or not.
Without waiting for her decision, the children left Bernadette alone. When at last the girl decided to cross the cold stream, she suddenly saw a golden cloud that floated out of a cave on the other side of the stream. A woman of unearthly beauty stood on a cloud ...
The first time Bernadette did not dare to follow the beautiful lady, however, all the other 18 appearances, the shepherdess not only followed the stranger, but also talked to her. At first, the girl thought that this was the soul of one of the villagers who had died a year earlier, but later she realized that the Virgin Mary herself was talking to her.
Bernadette, passionately wanting to know the name of her interlocutor, once voiced her question at one of the meetings, and then the Mother of God answered: “I am the Immaculate Conception.” The girl conveyed these words to her confessor, who remembered that literally 4 years before that, the church had adopted the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Holy Theotokos. Of course, the uneducated Bernadette could not have known about this. So the fact that the young shepherdess from Lourdes communicates with the Virgin Mary was believed by all the inhabitants of nearby villages and villages.
Bernadette later became a nun, but did not live long. She died at the age of 35 from overwork, the envy of other nuns and the feelings associated with the great attention of pilgrims to a modest girl. In 1933, Bernadette Soubirous was canonized in the Catholic Church.
The third phenomenon. Fatima secrets.
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It is believed that the Virgin Mary appeared to three children from the Portuguese town of Fatima in 1917, but some researchers claim that these phenomena continued from 1915 until the end of 1917.
The Mother of God left three children - two sisters Lucia and Jacinta and their brother Francisco - three predictions that were not immediately discovered. Firstly, at first they did not believe the children. When Jacinta told her parents about her encounters with the beautiful Virgo, she was ridiculed, and Lucia was even beaten. The headman, interrogating the children together and separately, could not get a confession that all these meetings and predictions were an invention of the children themselves.
After 13 years, after a thorough investigation, the appearance of the Virgin Mary in Fatima was recognized by the Roman Catholic Church as a genuine miracle. However, skeptics are still sure that there is nothing supernatural in the Fatima phenomena. Some scientists believe that the “dance of the sun”, which was observed by 70 thousand pilgrims who came to Fatima on October 13, 1917, along with children, is easily explained by the laws of physics, while others are sure that UFOs are to blame for everything.
Nevertheless, three predictions, three secrets that the Mother of God revealed to three children came true. The first concerned the beginning of the Second World War, the second - the fate of Russia, and the third - the fate of the Pope.
About Russia, the Virgin Mary said this: “... Another war will begin ... (we are talking, most likely, about the October Revolution and civil war- approx. author) To prevent this, I will ask for the consecration of Russia to My Immaculate Heart ... If my requests are answered, Russia will turn and peace will come, if not, then it will spread its delusions around the world, sowing wars and persecutions against the Church; the righteous will become martyrs... many nations will be destroyed. But in the end, My Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to Me, which will convert, and peace will be granted for a while.”
By the way, in 1952, Pope Pius XII dedicated the peoples of Russia to the Most Pure Heart of Mary in a special apostolic letter. A similar ceremony took place 12 years later, when the next Pope, Paul VI, dedicated the people of Russia and other countries of the "socialist bloc" to the Heart of Mary for the second time.
The third prediction of the Virgin was revealed relatively recently. It concerned an assassination attempt on the Pope. Indeed, in 1981, a Turkish terrorist shot at Pope John Paul II. However, the hierarch of the Catholic Church remained alive, and a year later visited Fatima, placing the bullet removed from his body on the altar of the church built in honor of the appearance of the Virgin Mary.
The fourth phenomenon. Virgin Mary in Japan.
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The Most Pure Mother of God appeared to people not only in Europe. In the early 70s of the last century, the Virgin Mary appeared in Japan, in the small town of Akita. The Mother of God was seen by the deaf nun Agnes Sasagawa Katsuko.
At the age of 19, after an unsuccessful operation, she lost her hearing and was bedridden for 16 years. The doctors just shrugged. They were powerless to help the girl.
A deaf patient was transferred from the hospital. And in one of the hospitals, she met a Catholic nurse, who told the unfortunate woman about the Christian faith. Thanks to the nurse, Agnes's condition improved, and in 1969 she decided to enter a monastery and devote herself to God. True, 4 months after the tonsure, the woman's condition worsened again, and only holy water from a spring in Lourdes helped the nun to her feet.
The first time Agnes saw the Virgin Mary was on June 12, 1973, during a prayer. Brilliant mysterious rays came out of the Pyramid. Agnes saw these rays for several days, and then a stigmata in the form of a cross formed on her left palm.
The pain was unbearable, but the nun held firm, answering the sisters who comforted her that the wound on the hand of the Blessed Virgin Mary was much deeper. The astonished sisters decided to go to the chapel and found the same wound on the statue of the Virgin Mary ... But the miracles in Akita did not end there.
On the same evening, Agnes, praying to the image of the Virgin, heard the first message. The Virgin Mary told the nun that she would soon be healed, and called on all the sisters to pray for the people in order to atone for their sins and stop the wrath of the Heavenly Father.
The Mother of God appeared to Agnes several times, calling her to patience and perseverance. She predicted to the nun not only her future fate, where persecution and ridicule were present, but also the fate of the Japanese people, in particular the deadly tsunami in March 2011.
10 years after the appearance of the Virgin Mary, Agnes returned to hearing, and she finally recovered. After humiliating inspections of the sisters who witnessed the miraculous phenomenon, the Roman Catholic Church nevertheless recognized this fact as genuine, although before the investigation, more than 500 people, including both Christians and Buddhists, saw the statue of the Virgin Mary in the Akita monastery shed blood, sweat and tears.
The fifth phenomenon. The Most Pure in Zeytun.
Sometimes the appearance of the Mother of God can stretch for years. So, in Egypt, the Virgin Mary was seen starting from April 2, 1968 and ending in August 1969. The Zeytun phenomenon is notable for the fact that not only Christians saw the Mother of God, and photographs of this phenomenon remained.
The first to see the Virgin Mary in the Cairo suburb of Zeytun were ... Muslims. Three mechanics saw a woman dressed in white clothes and standing on top of the church. Faces, unfortunately, the men did not make out because of the dazzling light emanating from the figure. But someone suggested that it was the Mother of God, and immediately the figure in white confirmed this assumption with an affirmative tilt of the head.
The people, who observed the appearance of the Virgin Mary, immediately rushed to the priest who lived nearby, demanding that he explain this vision. The priest decided to look at the phenomenon, opened the window - and a wonderful Light poured into his room. He saw the Most Pure Virgin in a halo of radiance, however, the vision did not last long. The figure rose into the night sky and disappeared into the darkness.
The number of people wishing to see the Blessed Virgin grew exponentially. Crowds of 250,000 people gathered at the church where the first apparition took place. And Christians, and Jews, and Muslims, and atheists chanted: “We believe in You, Holy Mary! We testify of You, Holy Mary!” And the Virgin Mary appeared to a crowd of thousands ...
At first, these phenomena happened two or three times a week, but over time, the Mother of God appeared before the eyes of people less and less. But each time, Mary appeared in different guises - either as the Queen of Peace, or as a Virgin grieving for all nations, or with the Infant Jesus in her arms, or kneeling before the Cross.
There are known cases of miraculous healing during these phenomena. Once photographer Vagih Rizk Matta, trying to shoot the Virgin Mary on film, having slightly opened the shutter of the camera, found that a sore hand that had been bothering him for a long time was suddenly healed.
The appearance of the Virgin Mary in Zeytun became a kind of bridge between East and West. For the first time in the history of mankind, people of different faiths prayed together, without any division into nationalities and races.
The sixth phenomenon. Savior of Budyonnovsk.
On June 14, 1995, at noon, a gang of Shamil Basayev broke into the city of Budennovsk in the Stavropol Territory. The militants destroyed everything in their path, taking hostage the staff and patients of the central hospital. According to Basayev himself, he did not plan to stop at Budennovsk at all, his goal was the airport in mineral waters ah where he and his men wanted to hijack a plane to go to Moscow. But the militants did not have enough money to get to Mineralnye Vody - everyone went to bribe police patrols. Realizing that the funds were sorely lacking, Basayev decided to carry out a terrorist act in Budennovsk.
As a result, more than 1,500 people were held hostage by the bandits. For six days, the medical staff, the elderly, children and pregnant women, ready to give birth, lived in anticipation of a miracle. And the miracle happened. The Virgin Mary hastened to help the hostages.
Residents of Budyonnovsk, as well as militants, repeatedly saw a mourning woman in dark clothes, who stood near a cross made of clouds. Moreover, the Mother of God was seen not only on the night before the seizure of the hospital, but also on the night before the terrorists left the city. There is an opinion among local (and not only local) residents that it was the appearance of Mary that became decisive in Basayev's desire to leave Budennovsk, since some of the terrorists were shocked and demoralized by the appearance of the Mother of God. By the fortieth day of commemoration of the victims of this tragedy, at the behest of Metropolitan Gideon of Stavropol, the Holy Cross Icon of the Mother of God was painted. It depicts Mary near the cross on a blue background. The saint's hands are folded in prayer. True, the Mother of God, contrary to the descriptions of witnesses, is depicted in crimson robes, not dark ones. The red color has become a symbol of the blood of the innocent victims in 1995 in Budyonnovsk.
Holy Mother of God in Tskhinval.
Photo: marshruty.ru
With the onset of the 21st century, the Virgin Mary did not leave the inhabitants of the Earth, continuing to be the one who most needed protection. In 2008, residents of burning Tskhinval saw the Mother of God walking along the streets of the city torn apart by shells. When Georgian troops attacked South Ossetia on August 8 of that year, some residents could watch how the beautiful Virgin descended from the dome of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and marched towards the Russian soldiers, despite the firefight and explosions.
Bishop George of Alan at first did not believe the witnesses of this miracle, believing that some residents of Tskhinvali saw the Virgin Mary out of fear, but then he himself saw the Mother of Jesus Christ leaving the church, and all doubts were dispelled like smoke. The Mother of God was seen precisely in those places where the most bloody battles took place.
Unbelievable, but true: the bombs destroyed many churches, but spared the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, from where Mary descended. Shells fell into the courtyard of the cathedral, but they did not cause any damage to the building.
By the way, the paper icons of the Mother of God and the Savior, which were handed out to the soldiers of the Russian Army by a local resident, helped ensign Alexander Shashin to stay alive. He put the icons in his breast pockets, and the sniper's bullet, flying straight into the chest, suddenly turned sideways and hit flat, falling to Alexander's knees. After this incident, the ensign supplied the icons that he took in reserve to all his colleagues. No one died from Shashin's unit...
Mysterious apparitions of the Virgin in Zeytun took place from April 2, 1968 to May 29, 1971 in the city Zeytun, a suburb of Cairo, the capital of Egypt. The Mother of God periodically appeared in the form of a luminous image above the domes of the church.
Millions of Egyptians and foreigners of all creeds observed phenomena lasting from a few minutes to several hours. Some even managed to photograph this phenomenon.
The official statement of the Patriarchal residence in Cairo stated:
“From the night of April 2, 1968, the appearance of the Lady Virgin, Mother of Light was observed in the Coptic Orthodox Church of Her Name on Tumanbai Street in the Zeytun district of our city. This phenomenon was observed later on many times at night and is still observed in various forms - sometimes full-length, sometimes half-length, always surrounded by a radiant halo, appears from the window of the dome or in the space between the domes.
The Blessed Virgin moves, walks, bows before the cross on the roof of the temple - and then begins to glow with a majestic radiance. She turns to the observers and blesses them with her hands and the inclination of her pure head. In other cases, her most pure body appeared in the form of a cloud or in the form of a radiance, which was preceded by the appearance of certain spiritual beings, similar to doves, flying at great speed.
This phenomenon was observed by thousands of citizens of our country and foreigners belonging to various religions and beliefs... Numerous observers convey the same details in describing the form of the Vision, the time and place of its manifestations. In the presentation of the facts, there is complete agreement in their testimonies.
The Al-Ahram newspaper, May 5, 1968: “Patriarch Kirill announces: “The appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary is true!”
The same newspaper on May 7 of the same year: “In the 24 hours that have passed since the Patriarch’s statement, the crowd around the church in Zeytun has turned into a raging sea.”
Newspaper "Progress Dimansh" dated May 5, 1968: "Numerous apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary over the Coptic Church of Her Name in Zeytun were confirmed yesterday by Patriarch Kirill VI."
eyewitness testimony
Says Maamoun Afifi, driver instructor public transport:
— I was in the garage opposite the church at night. At three-thirty after midnight on Tuesday, April 2, 1968, I heard the garage attendant, who was standing at the gate, shout in a loud voice: "Light over the dome!" I quickly went out and saw with my own eyes a woman moving above the dome and emitting an unusual light that dispelled the darkness around the dome. I continued to stare at her, and suddenly it became clear to me that this was the Virgin Mary. I saw her walking along the smooth dome. Her body was a torch of light. She walked slowly...
Ab-el-Aziz, the caretaker of the garage of the Public Transport Organization, recalls:
- As soon as I saw the Virgin Mary in the form of a luminous body above the dome, I shouted: “Light above the dome!” I called the garage mechanic, Hussein Awwad, who came running right away. Behind him rushed to my cry and other workers. They also saw the Virgin Mary moving over the dome.
Hussein Awwad, a mechanic at the same garage, says:
— I saw the Virgin Mary above the dome. Her body glowed and illuminated the area like the sun. She began to move, and the light took the form of a circle, inside of which was the Virgin Mary. I have never seen anything like this vision before!
Yakut Ali, garage worker:
Her luminous body hovered above the dome. As soon as her feet touched the surface of the dome, they began to move slowly. She was surrounded by a halo...
A few days later, a commission formed by His Holiness Cyril VI arrived in Zeitoun to verify the authenticity of the apparition of the Blessed Virgin.
Here is an excerpt from a report signed by committee members Girgas Matta, John Abd-el-Massiv and Benjamin Kamil:
“We wanted to see for ourselves and we made sure. In the middle of the night we observed the Blessed Virgin. First, a heavenly light appeared in the form of a sphere, inside which we saw the Blessed Virgin. Then she appeared in full growth and began to move over the dome, leaning towards the cross and blessing the joyful crowd, which had gathered near the church and exclaimed enthusiastically, worshiping the Blessed Virgin. On another night, we saw a glowing dove that flew out of the dome into the sky.”
Bishop Athanasius stated:
“I saw the Blessed Virgin myself. Many, many thousands of people saw her with me. The apparition was preceded by the flight of two doves from the church. Then a faint light appeared. Then we saw something like a cloud, which immediately lit up like a luminescent light source. In the cloud, the airy outlines of the Most Pure Body of the Virgin Mary appeared - they appeared instantly, as if in one flash. This phenomenon remained visible until five o'clock in the morning. The Blessed Virgin moved to the right and to the left, bowing her head, stretched out her hands to the people, as if greeting and blessing them. Everyone saw her. This miracle has been going on for more than a month and is shaking the skies of the whole world!
Among those who saw the “luminous lady” above the dome of the church was Zaki Shenouda, a prominent scientist and public figure, one of the leaders of the Afro-Asian Solidarity Organization. Here is his story:
On the evening of Saturday, April 27, 1968, I again went to the temple and noticed that the crowd had increased significantly in comparison with the previous one, so that the number of people was now measured in tens of thousands. People filled the streets surrounding the church to the limit. They climbed fences, trees, lampposts. Suddenly, friendly shouts were heard, then the Blessed Virgin appeared over the rear dome of the church. Everyone rushed there, and I, along with everyone else. There I saw a vision that I will never forget. I clearly, distinctly saw the Virgin Mary, surrounded by a halo of light, in the form of a queen with a crown on her head. She shone like a bright sun in the darkness...
Here is an extract from the report of the Director of the General Department of Information of Egypt, Minister of Tourism Hafez Ghanem:
“The results of the official investigations carried out are such that the undoubted facts should be recognized - the Virgin Mary in the form of a bright luminous body appeared to the eyes of all who were in front of the temple, both Christians and Muslims. Any possibility of fabricated neon images or other type of deception is recognized as impossible and completely excluded.
And this is the story of a famous Cairo surgeon:
“My patient, whom I operated on for cancer two years ago, came into my office three weeks ago for a checkup. During the examination, I found that the man had another tumor. I actually felt the tumor during the internal examination and took a piece of tissue for a biopsy.
When the test showed that the tumor was malignant, I recommended immediate surgery, but the man refused, saying that he did not have enough money, and left.
Two weeks later he returned and asked for a re-examination. To my surprise, I couldn't find any swelling, but only white scar tissue. The man told me that he was in Zeytun and prayed to the Mother of God for help. I don’t believe in such miracles, but I can’t explain the disappearance of the tumor and it drives me crazy.”
The interpretation of this phenomenon varies among various representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church. So, for example, professor of the Moscow Theological Academy A.I. Osipov is inclined to consider these phenomena as manifestations of a demon in the form of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Attempts at scientific explanation
Cynthia Nelson, an American professor of anthropology, visited the church several times in April-June 1968. She saw only a few "periodic flashes of light." She and others believe that the reports of the miraculous vision are due to the fact that Egypt was going through a period of crisis at this time.
Sociologists Robert Bartolomeu and Erich Good consider reports of a miraculous vision to be a case of mass delusion: "It appears that Mary's observers were predisposed, due to their religiosity and society's expectations, to interpret the flashes of light as associated with the Virgin Mary."
Canadian neurophysiologist Michael Persinger and American geologist John Derr associate the phenomenon with seismic activity. According to their analysis, seismic activity in the region during the period from 1958 to 1979 coincides with the appearance of light phenomena.
There are not many cases known to history when the Blessed Virgin appeared to ordinary people. Appearances of the Mother of God also occurred in the 20th century. Some of them even managed to capture on film or video camera. We have selected three of the most impressive stories that will not leave anyone indifferent.
The history of the Light-painted image on Athos
September 3 in the Orthodox calendar is marked by the feast of an unusual image of the Mother of God, called Light-Painted. On it, the Blessed Virgin is depicted with a loaf of bread in her hands. The name “Light-written” is not accidental: “light-writing” is a literal translation from the Greek word “photography”. And it is with photography that his story is connected.
The events that we will tell about took place in 1903 on Mount Athos and are considered, perhaps, one of the most famous appearances of the Mother of God of our time. The monks of the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery then had a tradition - every week they distributed alms to nomadic monks on Athos, called Siromahi, and to other needy. The necessary provisions for these purposes were brought to them from the Russian farmsteads of the monastery.
However, this year the Holy Kinot - the main governing body on Athos - decided to stop the distribution of alms, since it corrupts those who ask. It was on this day, September 3, 1903, that the monks decided to distribute the last alms, and then read the decree of Kinot.
At the time of the distribution of alms, a certain monk named Gabriel took a photograph with the beggars, who received alms in the form of bread cakes - chereks. However, no one expected that during the development of the negative, the image of the Most Holy Theotokos would appear in the photograph, standing with the beggars and receiving alms. It is clear that after this, charity in the Russian monastery on Athos, pleasing to God and His Most Pure Mother, continued.
On the site of the described event in 2011, a chapel was built and a spring was brought to it, and a temple was erected in honor of the Light-painted image. For a long time, the original negative of the photo itself was lost due to many events that befell the monastery. And only last year it was again found in the archives of the monastery.
The longest apparition of the Mother of God in Zeytun
Unfortunately, very little is known about this phenomenon. The reason for this is that it happened in Soviet times, when atheistic propaganda tried to hush up such news. At the same time, the phenomenon in Zeytun is the longest and most documented miracle, which, in addition, was witnessed by the maximum number of people.
The first phenomenon occurred on April 2, 1968 in the city of Zeitoun, which is considered a suburb of the Egyptian capital Cairo. On the evening of that day, two employees of the fleet noticed a translucent luminous figure of a Woman on the dome of a temple belonging to the Coptic Orthodox Church.
At first, one of the workers thought that she had decided to end her life and started screaming, persuading Her not to do it. Soon they called the priest of this church and realized that this was not an ordinary woman, but Holy Mother of God. She prayed in front of the cross on the dome, which also glowed at the same time.
The phenomenon in Zeytun was repeated a week later, and then occurred at different intervals until May 29, 1971. It lasted different periods of time: from several minutes to two hours. During this time, thousands of crowds of people of different faiths and even non-believers gathered to look at the miracle. Many of them later converted to Christianity.
Also, this appearance of the Mother of God was marked by various miracles and healings. The first of these happened to the same fleet worker who first noticed the Virgin. The next day, his finger was to be amputated, but the doctor stated that this was no longer necessary, since the finger was healthy.
How the Blessed Virgin looked and behaved was filmed on many video and photo cameras. She was wearing a long robe with a head covering. A halo shone around the head, behind which it was impossible to distinguish facial features. She was sometimes seen holding the baby Jesus in her arms. Sometimes She held an olive branch in Her hands.
Luminous doves often appeared around the Most Holy Theotokos, it happened that they formed a cross, and then gathered together and seemed to melt in the air. Often the Mother of God, turning around, would bless people. Moreover, no projectors or lighting devices that could simulate this miracle were found.
However, one must understand that this miracle could also be a phenomenon of a different, opposite nature, as Professor A.I. Osipov treats it with caution, for example.
The Blessed Virgin resurrected a Muslim in Damascus
The next story is very different from the two previous ones, as well as from everything you can imagine. Its plot would be the envy of any novelist or screenwriter. But the most surprising thing about the story, perhaps, is that all this actually happened. And although there was one person who witnessed the appearance of the Mother of God, he himself was a participant in the events, but the incredible consequences of the miracle were confirmed by many, including medical staff.
This incident is best known as the "miracle in Syria". Some Syrian media trumpeted about him, Saudi Arabia and Palestine in 2004, first on television, then on radio, through newspapers and magazines. its member and main character events - a certain sheikh from Saudi Arabia. Sometimes the sources mention his name: Shahid D.
Shortly before the events described, he successfully married. The marriage of a young wealthy family was overshadowed by only one thing: they had no children. Parents even advised their son to marry another woman, since polygamy is permissible in Islam, and to give birth to an heir from her. Instead, Shahid went with his wife on a trip to Syrian Damascus in order to dispel his grief.
There they hired a limousine with a driver-guide who took them to all the sights of the city. The guide sensed their sad mood and soon learned of its cause. Then the guide advised to visit the Seydnaya Orthodox Monastery, famous for its miraculous icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. There was an interesting tradition there: believers ate part of the wick from the lamp standing in front of the image of the Most Pure One, before which they prayed, and after that their useful petitions were fulfilled.
The sheikh and his wife, inspired by what they heard, immediately wanted to visit this place. At the same time, they promised that in the event of a favorable resolution of their problem, they would generously reward the driver with an amount of twenty thousand dollars and donate four times more to the monastery itself.
And a miracle happened! Shortly after returning from the monastery, the sheikh's wife became pregnant, and nine months later they had a son. But this was only the beginning of the blessings that the Most Holy Theotokos rendered to the Gentile. Shahid did not forget his promise and warned the driver that he would soon arrive in Damascus to thank him and make a donation to the monastery.
However, the guide decided to rob the generous Muslim and take all the money from him. To do this, he persuaded two more partners to meet the sheikh at the airport with him. On the way, Shahid tried to persuade the criminals, promised to pay each of them ten thousand, but, blinded by greed and anger, they took him to a wasteland and killed him, taking all the money and jewelry.
But the stupefaction of the intruders did not end there either: they dismembered the corpse, cutting off the head, legs and arms. However, for some reason, they did not leave the body here, but put it in the trunk, intending to bury it in another deserted place. But then God's Providence suddenly intervened. On the way to the highway, the criminals' car broke down.
One passing driver offered to help them, to which the attackers rudely refused. The driver was alarmed by their behavior. In addition, he accidentally noticed traces of blood pouring from the trunk. Therefore, soon the police were already at this place. After much objection, the criminals had to open the trunk...
But what was the surprise of everyone when a living sheikh came out of the trunk with the words: “The Most Holy Theotokos has just put the last seam on me here!” He pointed to the neck. The three intruders immediately lost their minds, which they themselves admitted that they had killed this man. They were placed in a prison for the insane.
Doctors confirmed an extraordinary occurrence: the stitches were completely fresh. Moreover, even the thinnest and most delicate vessels were connected, which was impossible to carry out by conventional medical means. The returned to life sheikh, in gratitude for this, donated ten times more to the monastery than he had promised before.
He himself said that he saw everything that happened to him, the appearance of the Mother of God and his healing, as if from the outside. After this incident, the Muslim sheikh and his entire family converted to Orthodoxy. The believer tries to talk about the miracle that happened to him in Syria as often as possible, although the Arab media try to hush up about this, fearing the conversion of even more Muslims to Christianity.
You will learn more about one of the described miracles from the video:
