Papal envoy arrives in Međugorje.
Special envoy of Pope Francis for Međugorje, Polish Archbishop Henryk Hoser, held a mass on Saturday evening in Međugorje, where alleged apparitions of Virgin Mary have been taking place for more than 35 years, reports Večernji List on April 2, 2017.
He said that “the greatest miracle of Međugorje are confessions.” “Confessions are the sacrament of forgiveness and mercy. They are the sacrament of resurrection,” said the Polish archbishop and warned about the crisis of confessions in Western countries.
The Polish archbishop was appointed in early February as special Papal envoy to Međugorje, with the task of solving the pastoral care issues of a large number of pilgrims who each year come to the world-renowned place of worship and alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary. In Međugorje, she is called the Queen of Peace due to specific messages allegedly sent through visionaries.
“We call her, especially here, the Queen of Peace. She is everywhere and everywhere it is allowed to worship her. We thank her for her constant presence at each of us,” said Hoser.
The papal envoy called on the faithful and pilgrims from Međugorje to spread the peace throughout the entire world.
“I want to encourage and inspire you as a special papal envoy to spread peace through the whole world. There are numerous conflicts in families, societies and countries, and we need a heavenly intervention. And the presence of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of those interventions. That is God’s initiative,” he added.
Alleged apparitions of Virgin Mary have been taking place in Međugorje since 1981. The Vatican has not made the final decision about whether to recognize apparitions as real or not. Archbishop Hoser will not examine their authenticity, but will only investigate the pastoral care issues in Međugorje, which is located in southern Bosnia and Herzegovina, near the border with Croatia.
