Beginnings...

The Village Sees The Light is the title of a story which "Reader's Digest" published in February 1986. It was the first major news on a mass scale that told of Mary visiting the tiny village of Medjugorje, Bosnia-Hercegovina, population 400 families.

It was June24, 1981, the Feast of John the Baptist, the proclaimer of the coming Messiah. In the evening the Virgin Mary appeared to two young people, Mirjana Dragicevic and Ivanka Ivankovic. The next day, four more young people, Marija Pavlovic, Jakov Colo, Vicka Ivankovic, and Ivan Dragicevic saw the Virgin Mary, bringing the total to six visionaries. These visionaries are not related to one another. As of June 2003, there were well over 10,567 apparitions. The supernatural event has survived all efforts of the Communists to put a stop to it, many scientific studies, and even the condemnation by the local bishop; yet, the apparitions have survived, giving strong evidence that this is from God because nothing and no one has been able to stop it.