- Our Lady of Kibeho
-
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La Salette • Lourdes • Pontmain • Laus • Banneux • Beauraing • Fátima • AkitaOur Lady of Kibeho is a title of Marian apparitions which appeared to several adolescents, in the 1980s in Kibeho, in south-western Rwanda. The apparitions communicated various messages to the schoolchildren, including an apocalyptic vision of Rwanda descending into violence and hatred, foretelling the 1994 Rwandan Genocide.[1]
In 2001, the Catholic Church officially recognized the visions of three schoolchildren as authentic.[2]
Contents
Visions
On August 19, 1982, an exceptionally long vision lasting eight hours, was the most dramatic. The teenagers, six girls and one boy, who saw the visions reported gruesome sights such as rivers of blood and people killing each other. The visions were accompanied by intense reactions: crying, tremors, and comas. The teenagers stated, in 1982 the Virgin Mary asked everyone to pray to prevent a terrible war.[3]
Approved sightings
The apparitions began in November 1981, in Kibeho College, but only the visions of the first three (Alphonsine, Nathalie, and Marie Claire aged 17, 20 and 21) received local Bishop Augustin Misago's solemn approval. There were reservations about the others and the supposed visions of Jesus in July 1982, so the bishop did not confirm their authenticity.[4]
The Virgin Mary appeared to the group with the name "Nyina wa Jambo" ("Mother of the Word") synonymous with "Umubyeyi W'Imana" ("Mother of God").[4]
The longest series of visions were attributed to Alphonsine Mumureke who received the first vision on November 28, 1981 and the last on November 28, 1989. Nathalie Mukamazimpaka's visions began in January 1982 and ended on Dec. 3, 1983. Marie Claire Mukangango had visions for six months, lasting from March 2, 1982 until September 15, 1982. She was later killed in the massacre at the same location in 1995.
Non-approved visionaries
The other visionaries were Stephanie Mukamurenzi, Agnes Kamagaju, Vestine Salima and the boy, Emmanuel Segastashya. who was previously a pagan and became an evangelist. Emmanuel's visions included meeting Jesus in a beanfield.[5]
Interpretation
Some today regard the visions as an ominous foreshadowing of the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, and particularly in that specific location in 1995, where some of those who had seen the vision died.[citation needed]
The school where the visions occurred became a place of slaughter during the genocide as dozens of children were hacked to death by Hutu terrorists.[6] Some of the visionaries among the victims.
Approval
Catholic Bishop Augustin Misago of Gikongoro, Rwanda approved public devotion linked to the apparitions on 1988-08-15 and declared their authenticity on 2001-06-29.[7] He was accused in 1999 and acquitted on June 24, 2000 of involvement in the Rwandan genocide.[6]
Shrine
The Marian sanctuary at Kibeho was named "Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows" in 1992, an anticipatory name in the light of the genocide that followed two years later in 1994.[7] The first stone was laid on 28 November 1992.
Notes
- ^ Immaculée Ilibagiza, Steve Erwin. Our Lady of Kibeho: Mary Speaks to the World from the Heart of Africa. 2008, page xvii
- ^ Curran, Bridget. The Miracles of Mary: Everyday Encounters of Beauty and Grace. 2010, page 128
- ^ Tardif, Thérèse. "To avoid a horrible war conversion, prayer, penance, fasting. Messages of Our Lady of Sorrows in Kibeho, Rwanda". Pilgrims of St. Michael. http://www.michaeljournal.org/kibeho.htm. Retrieved 2009-04-04.
- ^ a b "Marian Apparitions:Kibeho, Rwanda". The Miracle Hunter. http://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/approved_apparitions/kibeho_rwanda/index.html.
- ^ g2qDlOb72yM Marian Apparitions in Kibeho, Rwanda on YouTube
- ^ a b Simpson, Chris (2000-06-24). "A bishop tried over genocide". The Tablet. http://www.thetablet.co.uk/article/6834.
- ^ a b Bishop Augustin Misago of Gikongoro (2001-07-31). "Judgment on the apparitions of Kibeho". EWTN. http://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/OLKIBEHO.HTM. Retrieved 2009-04-04.
See also
- Marian apparitions
- Our Lady of Sorrows
- Kibeho Massacre
External links
Categories:- Marian shrines
- Marian apparitions
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