Some of the most frequently witnessed signs in the beginning involved those seen on Cross Mountain. Some of the signs witnessed by both the villagers and pilgrims have been the Cross spinning, changing into a column of light, or disappearing and a silhouette of Our Lady appearing. These signs lasted anywhere from a few minutes to half-an-hour. It was more intense and lasted for half-an-hour on October 21 and 22, 1981, during the trial of Father Jozo Zovko, the pastor of St. James Church in Medjugorje.1
Many people are able to experience profound graces by kneeling at the foot of the Cross on Cross Mountain and laying their hearts bare before Jesus and His Mother. Great graces of forgiveness, healing, and peace fill their hearts at the end of their journey up this mountain, when one places his burdens at the foot of the Cross.
Below you will find witnessed accounts of some of the different signs observed on Cross Mountain:
“At five o’clock on 22nd October, Fra Janko Bubalo was in the presbytery waiting for the time of Mass, when he heard a commotion outside. Looking out of the window, he saw the two nuns, who looked after the house and church, kneeling on the damp ground with their arms spread wide:
‘With them were about seventy men and women, all on their knees, forming a line that extended right to the church. No one seemed worried about the rain. No umbrellas. Everyone was praying…some were crying, some singing hymns. All eyes were turned to the Cross on Krizevac Hill. I too looked towards the Cross, but it had disappeared. In its place was a strange light, pale pink, unlike anything in real life. I was moved. Since I do not have good eyesight, I asked for a pair of binoculars…Then I saw, in place of the Cross, the silhouette of a woman with outstretched arms. Her head reached a bit above the vertical beam of the Cross. Her feet were hidden in a luminous cloud near the base of the Cross. I was filled with a great joy. There were four or five priests with me. We all saw the same thing. So did others in the village. Everyone looking just then at the Cross on Krizevac saw it.’” 2
Fr. Rudolf Kadleb of Zagreb testified:
“After Mass on 26th June, 1982, just after six in the morning as we came out of the sacristy door, all the pilgrims (about eighty of us) watched the uncommon manifestations occurring at the Cross. A shining white cloud descended on the Krizevac Hill. The Cross itself disappeared completely. In the cloud, the silhouette of a person in white in a long white garment could be seen. The person could be seen through the transparent shining cloud, but it could not be clearly seen who it was. Suddenly, a completely round white circle, like a large white host, with a small white Cross above it, appeared. A woman standing next to me who photographed the spectacle of the white cloud developed a good, sharp photo without the Cross. The spectacle was viewed by all the people present on the hill…as well as from, all the places in the area of the church, the roads and fields of Medjugorje, on 24th, 25th, 26th June from six-thirty in the morning until seven.” 3
The following is an interview by Fr. Janko Bubalo with the visionary Vicka:
Fr. Janko: “We know that on more than one occasion, a mysterious light shone at Krizevac.
Vicka: “It wasn’t a light, it was the Virgin…We sometimes saw Her quite clearly. Once, quite at the beginning of all this, She appeared to our entire neighborhood – somewhere close to eleven o’clock in the morning. Everyone came out to see it…They all said it was the Virgin. Not everyone saw Her in the same way, but everyone began to pray and beseech the Virgin.
Q: “And you, the Seers?
Vicka: “We saw Her clearly…as clearly as though She was next to us.
Q: “And how long did all of this last?
Vicka: “I don’t know for sure, but at least twenty minutes.
Q: “…do you recall other occasions?
Vicka: “Yes, I do. You also saw Her! You told me about it…
Q: “I did, Vicka, I saw Her clearly – with binoculars, on the 22nd of October, 1981, somewhere about five o’clock in the afternoon. I wasn’t the only one to see it. There were at least seventy of us kneeling and praying between the church and parish house in Medjugorje, at the time…As far as I know, you asked the Virgin the very next day as to whether or not that was Her sign at the Cross on Krizevac or…you said that She confirmed Her presence on that occasion.
Vicka: “Yes we did, we did! And She confirmed that it was. And some said that they again saw Her the next day, and the day after by the Cross…She once told us that She was often at the Cross on Krizevac, and that She begged Her Son to forgive the sins of the world.
Q: “In light of this, Krizevac is a favorite place to Her?
Vicka: “It is. She told us that often.” 4
Cross Mountain has been the scene of many dramatic signs and miracles. The Cross was erected by the villagers of Medjugorje in 1933 to commemorate the 1900 anniversary of Christ’s death. Since then, the Way of the Cross has been prayed by millions of people. When Our Lady was asked if She is really appearing at the foot of the Cross, She responded: “…Almost everyday I am at the foot of the cross…” December 31, 1981
Recommended Reading – In Front of the Crucifix with Our Lady
1. Spark From Heaven, Mary Craig, Ave Maria Press
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. A Thousand Encounters with the Blessed Virgin Mary in Medjugorje, Father Janko Bubalo
More Signs and Miracles
