1st Apparition in a Greek Catholic Church in the Middle East

This second apparition of Our Lady to Ivan while in Lebanon took place in the Greek Catholic Shrine in Zahleh, Lebanon. The event was attended by five Greek Catholic bishops, more than 40 priests, and a total of more than 7,000 people. The church was full to capacity with thousands having to stay outside. Charbel Maroun, president of the Marian Movement for Lay People in Galilee said:

“Today is the first time that a Medjugorje apparition took place in the Greek Catholic Church in the Middle East. It means that She wants to bring Her voice to the Christians in the Middle East where almost all of them belong to this church…It is very important for us that Ivan is in the Greek Catholic Church with bishops from the same church being present for the apparitions. It means a lot for us that they gave us permission to enter their churches to speak about the message of Our Lady in Medjugorje to the faithful of these churches.”

Greek Catholic Archbishop Issam Darwish of Zahleh struck a friendly note in his homily when he said:

“We are here to listen to Medjugorje’s special message for us tonight. I warmly welcome Ivan in my name and in the name of all of you. Ivan who comes from the village of Mary. This village that the Church has proclaimed a center of Marian devotion. Ivan is my closest friend, many times he visited me in Australia, and I visited him in Medjugorje. I encourage everyone of you to visit Medjugorje. Medjugorje is the most important Marian shrine in the world.”

Our Lady’s message this night:

“My dear children, today I want to show you how much I love you. I am sorry I am not able to make each one of you understand my love towards you. This is why I call you to pray and to surrender completely to God because satan wants to lead you away through your daily acts. satan wants to take the first place in your life. Therefore, my dear children, pray continuously. Thank you for having responded to my call.”