Apparitions True and False
By Father Peter Joseph
From
http://www.speroforum.com/site/article.asp?id=2318
Very few people are aware of the devil’s full
powers, and his ability to deceive
Many Catholics think that as soon as any prodigy
occurs, it must be the work of God
As a prelude, I
should state my own interest in Private Revelations. I have visited
Paray-le-Monial (where Jesus showed His Sacred Heart to St Margaret Mary in the
17th century). I have visited Rue de Bac (where the Miraculous Medal was given
to St Catherine Labouré in 1830). I have visited Lourdes, Knock, and Fatima;
also the two Belgian towns where Our Lady appeared: Beauraing (1932-33) and
Banneux (1933). I wear the Brown Scapular and the Miraculous Medal. I have
conducted Holy Hours to celebrate the Feast of Divine Mercy since 1993.
I think, from all this, you can see that I am not opposed to private
revelations. But I am opposed to false revelations; I am opposed to dubious
revelations; I am opposed to disapproved revelations; I am opposed to obsession
with private revelations. I am opposed to all these things precisely because I
do believe in genuine private revelations and their role in the life of the
Church.
The abundance of alleged messages and revelations in the past forty years makes
ever more necessary the traditional caution and discernment of spirits. Amid
today’s confusion and spiritual wasteland, many Catholics are seeking contact
with the supernatural via new private revelations, regardless of whether or not
they have been approved, or even whether or not they are in accordance with the
Faith.
Private revelations occur
God may, and sometimes does, grant revelations to private individuals. Those
who receive them, and are perfectly certain that they come from God, should
believe them. But the Church never imposes on Catholics the obligation of
believing anyone’s private revelations, even those of the great saints. The
Church gives her approval to them only when she is satisfied after rigorous
examination of their spiritual utility and of the evidence on which they
depend.
The Catechism
The Catechism at #67 says: "Throughout the ages, there have been so-called
‘private’ revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of
the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith. It is not
their role to ‘improve’ or ‘complete’ Christ’s definitive Revelation, but to
help live more fully by it in a certain period of history. … Christian faith
cannot accept ‘revelations’ that claim to surpass or correct the Revelation of
which Christ is the fulfillment, as is the case in certain non-Christian
religions and also in certain recent sects which base themselves on such
‘revelations’." (See St Thomas, Summa II-II, q.174, art.6, ad 3).
Whom does the Catechism have in mind? Among others, Moslems and Mormons.
Mohammed claimed that the Gospels misrepresent Christ, and Mormons believe
there is a Third Testament.
Sources of revelations
There are three sources, ultimately, of revelations, visions, prodigies, and
suchlike things: God, man, or the devil.
Under the heading of God, I include God’s holy creatures, such as Our Lady or
another Saint or an angel.
Under man, I mean any human knowledge or skill or trickery or imagination or
any human activity or machine or device causing anything to happen.
Under the devil, I include the devil himself or any one of the other demons.
The power of the devil
Very few people are aware of the devil’s full powers, and his ability to
deceive. Many Catholics think that as soon as any prodigy occurs, it must be
the work of God. But, as I said, messages and prodigies can issue from three
sources ultimately: God, man, or the devil. It is the work of discernment to
identify who is at work in a given case.
It is knowledge of diabolical trickery which makes the Church cautious here. My
next part on the power of the demons is taken from Father Jordan Aumann, a
Dominican priest, who taught for many years at the Angelicum University in
Rome.
What the devils can and cannot do
The devils cannot do the following:
(1) Produce any kind of truly supernatural phenomenon; (2) Create a substance,
since only God can create; (3) Bring a dead person back to life, although they
could produce the illusion of doing so; (4) Make truly prophetic predictions,
since only God knows the future absolutely, and those to whom He chooses to
reveal a portion of it. However, the devil’s intelligent conjecture about the
future might appear to mere mortals a prophecy; (5) Know the secrets of a
person’s mind and heart. However, their shrewd intelligence and observation may
enable them to deduce many things about a person.
But the devils can do the following:
(1) Produce corporeal or imaginative visions; (2) Falsify ecstasy; (3)
Instantaneously cure sicknesses that have been caused by diabolical influence;
(4) Produce the stigmata; (5) Simulate miracles and the phenomena of levitation
and bilocation;(6) Make people or objects seem to disappear by interfering with
a person’s sight or line of vision; (7) Cause a person to hear sounds or voices;
(8) Cause a person to speak in tongues; (9) Declare a fact which is hidden or
distant.
Whatever nature or science can cause, the devils too are able to cause,
according to what God may permit. See the Book of Exodus where the magicians
and sorcerers of Pharaoh were able to accomplish some of the prodigies wrought
by Moses and Aaron (Ex 7:11-12; 7:22; 8:7; 8:18-19; 9:11). Close to 200 A.D.,
Tertullian writes, "first of all, they [the demons] make you ill; then to
get a miracle out of it, they prescribe remedies either completely novel, or
contrary to those in use, and thereupon withdrawing hurtful influence, they are
supposed to have wrought a cure." (Apology of the Christian religion, 22).
In the face of the fallen angels’ power to deceive, it is no wonder that the
Church is always very slow to declare a miracle or message authentic.
The devil has superhuman intelligence and is very clever, and to pretend that
you can definitively judge in favour of something’s authenticity, without help,
is presumptuous.
To know if something is false, it suffices to know that it says something
contrary to the teaching of the Church. Hence, it is easier to pronounce
against visionaries than in their favour. But the mere absence of doctrinal
error is not enough. There have to be other positive indications.
The following quotations are from the final chapter of the rock-solid book
Spiritual Theology (Sheed & Ward 1980) by Dominican Father Jordan Aumann.
Signs of the divine spirit
"The following characteristics are general signs of the divine spirit:
1. Truth. God is truth and cannot inspire anything but truth in a soul. If a
person believed to be inspired by God, therefore, maintains opinions that are
manifestly against revealed truth, the infallible teaching of the Church, or
proven theology or philosophy or science, it must be concluded that the
individual is deluded by the devil or is the victim of excessive imagination or
faulty reasoning.
2. Gravity. God is never the cause of things that are useless, futile, frivolous,
or impertinent. When his spirit moves a soul it is always for something serious
and beneficial.
3. Enlightenment. Although one may not always understand the meaning of an
inspiration from God, the effect of any divine movement or impulse is always
enlightenment and certitude rather than darkness and confusion. This is true
both for the effects on the individual who receives the inspiration and its
effects on others.
4. Docility. Souls that are moved by the spirit of God accept cheerfully the advice
and counsel of their directors or others who have authority over them. This
spirit of obedience, docility, and submission is one of the clearest signs that
a particular inspiration or movement is from God. This is especially true in
the case of the educated, who have a greater tendency to be attached to their
own opinions.
5. Discretion. The spirit of God makes the soul discreet, prudent, and
thoughtful in all its actions. There is nothing of precipitation, lightness,
exaggeration, or impetuosity; all is well balanced, edifying, serious, and
full of calmness and peace.
6. Humility. The Holy Spirit always fills the soul with sentiments of humility
and self-effacement. The loftier the communications from on high, the more
profoundly the soul inclines to the abyss of its own nothingness. Mary said, ‘I
am the servant of the Lord. Let it be done to me as you say’ (Lk 1:38).
7. Peace. St. Paul speaks frequently of the peace that comes from God (Rom
15:33, Phil 4:9), and Jesus mentions peace as one of the manifestations of his
spirit (Jn 14:27). This is a quality that always accompanies communications
from God; the soul experiences a profound and stable serenity in the depths of
its spirit." (pp. 402-3)
Fr Aumann mentions other signs also: Confidence in God, Flexibility of will,
Purity of intention, Patience in suffering, Self-abnegation, Simplicity,
Liberty of spirit.
Signs of the diabolical spirit
"…[S]ince the devil may disguise himself as a good spirit and even cause
what appears to be authentic mystical phenomena, it is helpful to mention
briefly the various signs of the diabolical spirit.
1. Spirit of falsity. The devil is the father of lies, but he cleverly conceals
his deceit by half-truths and pseudo-mystical phenomena.
2. Morbid curiosity. This is characteristic of those who eagerly seek out the
esoteric aspects of mystical phenomena or have a fascination for the occult or
preternatural.
3. Confusion, anxiety, and deep depression.
4. Obstinacy. One of the surest signs of a diabolical spirit.
5. Constant indiscretion and a restless spirit. Those who constantly go to
extremes, as in penitential exercises or apostolic activity, or neglect their
primary obligations to do some personally chosen work.
6. Spirit of pride and vanity. Very anxious to publicize their gifts of grace
and mystical experiences.
7. False humility. This is the disguise for their pride and self-love.
8. Despair, lack of confidence, and discouragement. A chronic characteristic
that alternates with presumption, vain security, and unfounded optimism."
(p. 412)
Fr Aumann mentions other signs also: Impatience in suffering and stubborn
resentment; Uncontrolled passions and strong inclination to sensuality, usually
under the guise of mystical union; Hypocrisy, simulation, and duplicity;
Excessive attachment to sensible consolations, particularly in their practice
of prayer; Lack of deep devotion to Jesus and Mary; Scrupulous adherence to the
letter of the law and fanatical zeal in promoting a cause.
Signs of the human spirit
"The human spirit is always inclined to its own satisfactions; it is a
friend of pleasure and an enemy of suffering of any kind. It readily inclines
to anything that is compatible with its own temperament, its personal tastes
and caprices, or the satisfaction of self-love. It will not hear of
humiliations, penance, renunciation, or mortification. If any director or
confessor goes against its inclinations, he is immediately branded as inept and
incompetent. It seeks success, honors, applause, and pastimes. It is always a
great promoter of anything that will arouse admiration or notoriety. In a word,
the human spirit neither understands nor cares for anything except its own
egoism.
"It is sometimes difficult in practice to judge whether given manifestations
proceed from the devil or from a purely human and egoistic spirit, but it is
always relatively easy to distinguish between these two and the spirit of God.
It will be possible in most cases, therefore, to determine that a given spirit
could not possibly be from God and that it must be combatted, even if one is
not sure whether it is in fact from the devil or the human ego." (p. 413) .
Very few people are
aware of the devil’s full powers, and his ability to deceive - many Catholics
think that as soon as any prodigy occurs, it must be the work of God
Some norms for
discernment
"The following
norms are offered as guides for the spiritual director in the discernment of
spirits so far as they pertain to revelations and prophecies:
1. Any revelation contrary to dogma or morals must be rejected as false. God
does not contradict himself,
2. Any revelation
contrary to the common teaching of theologians or purporting to settle an
argument among the schools of theology is gravely suspect.
3. If some detail or other in a revelation is false, it is not necessary to
reject the entire revelation; the remainder may be authentic.
4. The fact that a prophecy is fulfilled is not of itself a conclusive proof
that the revelation was from God; it could have been the mere unfolding of
natural causes or the result of a superior natural knowledge on the part of the
seer.
5. Revelations concerning merely curious or useless matters should be rejected
as not divine. The same is to be said of those that are detailed, lengthy, and
filled with a superfluity of proofs and reasons. Divine revelations are
generally brief, clear, and precise.
6. The person who receives the revelation should be examined carefully,
especially as to temperament and character. If the person is humble, well
balanced, discreet, evidently advanced in virtue, and enjoys good mental and
physical health, there is good reason to proceed further and to examine the
revelation itself. But if the individual is exhausted with excessive
mortifications, suffers nervous affliction, is subject to periods of great
exhaustion or great depression, or is eager to divulge the revelation, there is
cause for serious doubt." (p. 430)
Curiosity
Is the information
useful for the salvation of souls? If it is merely to satisfy curiosity it is
unlikely to be of divine origin. Some seeming seers act like mediums, give
information on births, marriages, legal processes, diseases, political events,
etc. God does not run an Inquiry Office. Some are very clever at observing, or
very intuitive, and can work with little things. At séances, furniture is often
pushed about, or a spirit moves a person’s hand to write messages, etc. God has
never done these things in any approved revelation.
Curiosity sticks out in people who claim to tell you what was the ultimate fate
of Princess Diana, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, etc. We’d all love to know
who’s in Heaven and who isn’t! A lady I heard of claims to know where every
deceased person is: funnily enough everyone’s either in Purgatory or Heaven! I
suppose it would do harm to business and popularity to tell people that certain
relatives are in Hell! Actually, anyone who pronounces on famous people is
immediately to be disbelieved.
Also suspect are revelations that merely give truisms and platitudes.
Why does the devil do it?
Catholics ought be very cautious in giving credence to visions and messages
before they have received approbation from the Church. The devil has raised up
many false mystics in recent years. People ask: "Why would the devil be
behind a revelation which encourages people to pray and fast and do penance?
That would be Satan divided against himself."
Fair question. Why would he do it?
Answer: For a number of reasons: to distract people from the genuine private
revelations; to lead them into exercises not blessed as such by God; to bring
private revelations into complete disrepute; to cause disenchantment and even a
crisis of faith when a seer is later plainly seen to be false; and, worst of all,
subtly to lead some people out of the Church altogether. The devil is
willing to lose a lot, if he can gain in the long run.
The devil rejoices when Catholics reject the tried and true means of spiritual
growth to chase after the extraordinary and the unapproved. The Church is
extremely careful before approving a private revelation, for she knows how
"even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light" (2 Cor 11:14).
She must avoid both credulity and unfounded scepticism. "Do not quench the
Spirit, do not despise prophesying, but test everything," directs St Paul
(1 Thess 5:19-21). And St John warns, "Beloved, do not believe every
spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are of God" (1 Jn 4:1).
Some spirits are quite easy to discern; others very difficult. Priests in
particular must be examples of prudence and obedience in this area.
Examples of visionaries judged to be false
Some individuals
have been pronounced against by name, e.g., Vassula Ryden, and the Little
Pebble, William Kamm. Vassula has been condemned twice by the Holy Office
(the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith), on the grounds that her
revelations do not come from God, and because they contain errors against the
Faith. You hear people say: "But her writings are so spiritual and so
beautiful!" I agree; possibly 99% of Vassula’s messages are in conformity
with the Catholic Faith—but that is just how the devil operates to deceive
pious Catholics. It is the 1% that does harm. A poison apple is mostly good
apple—but will harm you nevertheless. The devil knows he cannot mislead devout
Catholics with outright heresy, but he can appeal to their piety and then
subtly plant errors within.
In any case, there has been no approved revelation in the history of the Church
where God took someone’s hand and gave messages by writing with their pen. But
you do find handwriting messages given at séances—and séances are condemned by
the Church as a practice of the occult against the law of God.
I have seen one pious magazine defending Vassula by saying that Cardinal
Ratzinger never signed the statement against her printed in L’Osservatore
Romano. A man I know sent them the official statement from Acta Apostolicae
Sedis, the official Vatican gazette, which has the Cardinal’s signature at
the bottom, along with the Bishop Secretary of the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith. Unfortunately, the editor of the magazine had neither
the humility nor the honesty to print a correction in the next issue.
Another example: the alleged apparitions in Garabandal in northern
Spain, in which four young girls alleged that the Virgin Mary appeared to them
from 1961-1965. The response of successive bishops of the diocese of Santander
has been uniformly negative, and the present Bishop Vilaplaua has concurred
with this verdict. Despite this, there are a number of active associations
supporting Garabandal. A simple case of disobedience to lawful authority.
This is only one of a countless number. There’s Montichiari in Italy
(1947), Necedah in the United States (1949), Palmar de Troya in Spain
(1968), Bayside in the U.S. (1970), Dozule in France (1972), and
hundreds of others - to say nothing of all the alleged visionaries and
locutionists past and present, such as the Irish lady, Christina Gallagher, and
many another poor deluded souls. Mrs Gallagher’s messages, in part, read
like a frantic worried woman lamenting the state of the world. There are plenty
of frantic worried people, lamenting the state of the world, who are good
Catholics - but the Blessed Virgin from Heaven does not talk like them, in such
a human, earthly, fretful fashion. To attribute such talk to Our Lady is an
insult.
"Have visions; will travel" - such publicity seekers are not to be
believed. Genuine visionaries fly from publicity. They do not go around with
photographers and camera crews. They submit to investigation by Church
authorities; but they do not have publicity agents.
The authority to judge and the duty to obey
No private
individual has the authority to judge definitively and officially which private
revelations are true and which are not.
The authority to rule on the genuineness of a private revelation rests first
with the local Bishop.
The apparitions of Lourdes, Knock, Fatima, Beauraing, Banneux - to name only a
few - were approved by the local Bishops. The Popes of the time never
issued any judgement on them. The current canonical practice is that the local
Bishop must appoint a committee to investigate and rule on any private
revelation (if he thinks it worthy of investigation), but the Holy See may
intervene if necessary or if the Bishops ask it to. Alternatively, he may ask
the Episcopal Conference of his country to assist in the investigation and
judgement.
It is forbidden, as well as sinful, to propagate private
revelations which have received a negative judgement from the local Bishop, the
conference of Bishops, or the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the
Faith. Some people say, "I’m going to follow it until the Pope says it’s
false." This is a useless guide for action in this matter - very rarely
does the Pope make a pronouncement for or against a revelation.
As for statements attributed to the Pope (e.g., "I heard that the Pope
told Mrs Smith after Mass in his private chapel that he believes in Garabandal
and Bayside;" "The Pope told Jack that he could go ahead and print
that condemned book") - no one is entitled to act on such gossip. The
Church is governed by publicly promulgated statements - not by hearsay and
personal communications.
The Popes may choose to show their approval of certain revelations, after the
decision of a local Bishop or conference of Bishops, by speaking of them, or by
placing a new feast in the liturgical calendar, or by visiting the places
intrinsically connected with them (e.g., Guadalupe, Paray-le-Monial, Rue de
Bac, Lourdes, Knock, Fatima, Beauraing, Banneux).
Even should the local Bishop mistakenly disapprove of a genuine revelation,
obedience to the Church remains paramount. It is a sin to propagate a private
revelation disobediently, but it can never be a sin not to propagate one.
This applies both to claimed seers and to followers. In fact, if an alleged
visionary disobeys a legitimate order from the Bishop, and claims God’s backing
for the action, this is a sure sign that the message is not from God. Even if a
genuine private revelation has been given, not even God Himself would want
or command a seer to spread it against a lawful decree of a Bishop to desist.
In fact, there are occasions in the life of St Teresa of Jesus of Avila (died
1582) and St Margaret Mary (died 1690) and Sr Josefa Menendez (died 1923) where
Our Lord gave them a directive, but then their superior forbade it. What did
they do? They obeyed their human superior on earth. What did Our Lord then tell
them? -‘You were right to obey my representative.’
On one occasion,
the Sacred Heart of Jesus told St Margaret Mary to do something, but her
Superior did not approve. When He came again, she asked Him about this, and He
replied: "…not only do I desire that you should do what your
Superior commands, but also that you should do nothing of all that I order
without their consent. I love obedience, and without it no one can please me"
[Autobiography of St Margaret Mary].
Spiritual writers have an axiom: A Superior may or may not be inspired by God
in his command, but you are always inspired in obeying. (Of course, we’re not
talking about where a Superior commands a sin; and, as I said above, it is not
a sin to drop a private revelation).
Satan may really promote good things for a while, provided that he gains in the
long run. The revelations of Necedah, Wisconsin, seemed to have good fruits,
yet were false. Rosaries were said to change to gold. Similarly for Bayside.
But disobedience showed them false. St Margaret Mary was told by Our Lord: "Listen,
My daughter, and do not lightly believe and trust every spirit, for Satan is
angry and will try to deceive you. So do nothing without the approval of those
who guide you. Being thus under the authority of obedience, his efforts against
you will be in vain, for he has no power over the obedient"
[Autobiography].
After error itself, the mark of a false mystic is wilfulness and disobedience.
I love this quote from Saint Faustina Kowalska: "Satan can even
clothe himself in a cloak of humility, but he does not know how to wear the
cloak of obedience." (Diary, par. 939). Genuine mystics, like
Saint Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio), are models of obedience. They never
pretend to set up Christ against His Church.
Everyone is free to have an opinion, but all have to submit to the judgement of
the Church with practical obedience. What I mean is: you are still free to
disagree (the Bishop is not infallible in this matter), but you owe him practical
obedience, that is, you may not act against the decree; you may not
propagate a revelation that the Bishop has judged negatively, or continue to
say publicly that you regard it as genuine. Remember, a Church commission may
give a negative verdict for reasons which it cannot state publicly, e.g., it
may have found out things against the character of the seer, but will not say
so publicly, even though this would justify the decision and help people to
accept it.
If a so-called message is judged not authentic for doctrinal reasons,
then you are not free to defend such messages, because then you will be
defending error. Vassula Ryden is an example of this: the judgement
against her was for false doctrine in her writings. How and why pious
Catholics defended her after the negative judgement by the Holy See’s
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is beyond me. Her whole case is
black-and-white. Apart from unorthodoxy, her alleged messages, which are meant
to be handwritten by Our Lord Himself, contain mistakes in English spelling and
grammar!
Can you say publicly that an approved revelation is not genuine? Yes, if you
want to. The Church never orders you to accept any private revelation. But any
such disagreement should be voiced respectfully.
Caution never does harm
The simple fact is
that most claimed revelations are false. It is extremely foolish, therefore, to
devote oneself to propagating a disapproved or dubious message, which might
actually come from the Father of Lies. If one day you see its falsity for
yourself, you will regret it enormously, and be unable to undo the harm done to
others. On the other hand, there are more than enough approved messages to
spread, if you want to spread them. It is better to keep to what is
countenanced by the Church, than to go it alone and risk being a dupe of the
devil.