Garabandal - the last hurrah?
Garabandal has certainly had a controversial past. Those who are unfamiliar with the apparitions should check out www.garabandal.com or www.garabandal.org. Always intriguing about the predictions for the future were their specificity. For example, the Miracle was supposed to occur on a Thursday night at 8:30 local in March, April or May between the 8th and the 16th on a feast day of a Eucharistic martyr. Additionally it would coincide with a rare event in the Church. Nevertheless, there were plenty of problems including:
- the girls recanted their witness only later to reverse their position and state they had been pressured by Church authorities
- the commission convened by the local bishop could not confirm any supernatural origin
- Fr. Ramon Andreu, who was supposed to be found incorrupt, was disintered in the late 1970's and the body had corrupted
- The three popes prediction, which had seemed so credible, has need of reexamination after the death of John Paul II
What does this mean?
Well, the "end of time, not the end of the world" comment in the 3 popes prediction may work if 2006 is the year; after that it would be hard to accommodate this prophecy with the other claims. We'll all know soon, since for years the proponents of Garabandal have dismissed March and May as appropriate months. This year, 2006, the date of the Miracle would have to be April 13th. How do the predictions match up?
- unlike many previous years, the 13th is a feast day of a Eucharistic martyr, St Hermenegild. Additionally, that date corresponds to Holy Thursday and, coincidentally, Passover. Also, it is the 13th which is highlighted as an important monthly date for the period of the Fatima apparitions. Since the Miracle must be announced 8 days prior, we will know tomorrow (Apr 5th).
Why the Jewish connection? In the Catechism, para. 674 and Romans 11, we understand that Catholic eschatology requires an event prior to the second coming which will give the Jews a second chance to accept Jesus as the Messiah. An event on Passover, with a permanent sign that harkens back to the Old Testament, would be a powerful sign indeed.
Regardless, the Garabandal train has just about run its course. Joey Lomangino is getting up in years and Conchita herself is in her late 50's. Time will tell if it was all about nothing...
- the girls recanted their witness only later to reverse their position and state they had been pressured by Church authorities
- the commission convened by the local bishop could not confirm any supernatural origin
- Fr. Ramon Andreu, who was supposed to be found incorrupt, was disintered in the late 1970's and the body had corrupted
- The three popes prediction, which had seemed so credible, has need of reexamination after the death of John Paul II
What does this mean?
Well, the "end of time, not the end of the world" comment in the 3 popes prediction may work if 2006 is the year; after that it would be hard to accommodate this prophecy with the other claims. We'll all know soon, since for years the proponents of Garabandal have dismissed March and May as appropriate months. This year, 2006, the date of the Miracle would have to be April 13th. How do the predictions match up?
- unlike many previous years, the 13th is a feast day of a Eucharistic martyr, St Hermenegild. Additionally, that date corresponds to Holy Thursday and, coincidentally, Passover. Also, it is the 13th which is highlighted as an important monthly date for the period of the Fatima apparitions. Since the Miracle must be announced 8 days prior, we will know tomorrow (Apr 5th).
Why the Jewish connection? In the Catechism, para. 674 and Romans 11, we understand that Catholic eschatology requires an event prior to the second coming which will give the Jews a second chance to accept Jesus as the Messiah. An event on Passover, with a permanent sign that harkens back to the Old Testament, would be a powerful sign indeed.
Regardless, the Garabandal train has just about run its course. Joey Lomangino is getting up in years and Conchita herself is in her late 50's. Time will tell if it was all about nothing...
posted by flybynight | 12:34 PM
3 Comments:
Well, it's April 5th and no announcement! I don't see any way for the followers of this apparition to explain away the errors. Didn't one of the later locutions say that Pope John Paul would live to see the miracle?
I would like to hear more thoughts on this
The prediction was that "the Pope and Padre Pio" would witness the Miracle from "wherever they are". Seems a little wierd now that they've both moved on ahead of the rest of us, but not if it was meant as a clue that they would both die before the Miracle and witness it from Heaven. Personally, I've always "liked" this apparition, and hope that the Lord has some clever way of working it all out for us eventually. After all, Fr Andre can always be re-exhumed incorrupt at a later date. . . . I don't quite buy that "end of an era" explanation they came up with when JPII passed, though. It seems uncharacteric of the BVM to play at semantics over such an important matter; although I suppose Jesus Himself didn't mind playing word games at times. I suppose that if Joey dies, unhealed, that will really be the end of this one. Funny to think that Padre Pio could have been wrong about the authenticity of the Garabandal apparitions.
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