1. The Laws of the Universe are only one factor of reality!
Apparitions - is it valid to question reason as a complete answer?
We live in a world that prides itself on its ability to describe and understand the unknown and plan for the future through the use of reason. We
readily accept explanations that seem reasonable and discard reports of events that don't appear reasonable. As a result of this predisposition,
many have doubts about even entertaining the possibility of mystical appearances of Jesus and His mother in the late Twentieth Century.
Apparitions, and the phenomena surrounding some of them, fly in the face of everything we've been taught and observe in our day-to-day lives.
This unwillingness to accept the "unreasonable" is based, in part, on a description of reality that started to emerge in the sixteenth and 17th
century with the works of Newton, Kepler, Liebnitz and others. The experimental methodology and mathematics employed to more precisely
describe events radically Changed humanity's perception from the Ptolemaic model of the universe and our place in it that had come to dominate
Western thought. These developments were reinforced by the success such a paradigm had in describing easily perceived events. Even today,
it's a common conception that the "real world" operates on a Newtonian paradigm...a world of near-clockwork regularity and predictability when
all of the variables affecting it have been uncovered.
Believers in this worldview think modern science need only acquire more information to discover how everything operates and behaves. When
this is finally accomplished, humanity will truly become the "master" of the entire universe. This approach underlies a number of modern belief
systems including freemasonry, naturalism and secular humanism. In each of these, unusual events such as apparitions are thought to be
either delusions, wishful thinking, fanaticism or simply a part of reality that we haven't yet learned to master.
In order to put apparitions in context, it is essential to understand more about the current level of insight into the nature of physical reality.
Fortunately, much has been uncovered about the nature of physical reality using modern scientific methods, a methodology that has been
developed during the last three hundred years to order and explain the physical world in which we find ourselves. In addition, mathematics – the
language that researchers use to describe and theorize about their findings - has also made significant advances during this time period.
In the 1930's, in one of the seminal intellectual events of the last century, a brilliant Austrian mathematician, Kurt Godel, unequivocally
demonstrated that mathematics cannot discern the truth, it can only deal with the underlying nature of proof. Put briefly, Godel found that for
every consistent formalization of arithmetic, there exist arithmetic truths that are not provable within that formal system. Any system of
mathematical reasoning must be based upon assumptions which are ultimately unprovable. Thus, the leap from proof to truth needs to be based
ultimately on belief, it can never be satisfactorily demonstrated.
The Laws of the Universe are only one factor of reality!
(See philosophy arguments under “Stigmata and Miracles” later)

2. Major apparitions that have been the focus of intense study
Major apparitions of Jesus and Mary
A 600 year sample extract; only those fully approved by the Church; Europe/Americas/Japan
A long list dating from 40AD is available for study!

3. Are apparitions worthy of belief?
Some Approved Marian Apparitions
The Church does not require belief in any apparition or other private revelation. However, she does exercise her maternal judgment for the
protection of the faithful in declaring some apparitions to be inauthentic, others to be "worthy of belief." Investigations into alleged apparitions
are rigorous. The three which follow have been judged worthy of belief, and devotions related to them have been encouraged by the truth.
Each has miracles associated with it which are unexplainable by the best scientists in the world, as testimony to its authenticity.
Lourdes
Our Lady appeared 18 times at Lourdes, in the Pyrenees mountains in southern France, in 1858, to Bernadette Soubirous, a fourteen year old
peasant girl. A spring appeared there which feeds the baths at the shrine today. Many miraculous healings are reported from bathing in the
waters. The fact that there is no spread of infection, even though no sanitary precautions are taken when people with all sorts of diseases take
baths there, is a marvel in itself. Many miracles take place when the Blessed Sacrament passes in procession during the great pilgrimages. In
passing, we notice that this fact testifies to the Real Presence of Our Lord in the Eucharist there, a Presence which only the Catholic Church
has, and only the Catholic Church teaches. There is a medical bureau there, to which any qualified M. D. can come to check alleged cures.
Early in this century, Dr. Alexis Carrel came to scoff, but was converted instead. The Church's demands for checking and proof of alleged
miracles are so stringent that in the more than a century since 1858 only a few more than 60 miracles have been approved. Madame Bire in
1908 came there, blind because her optic nerve was withered; she regained her sight when the Blessed Sacrament passed. But when the
Doctors inspected her eyes, they found she was able to see even though the nerve was still withered--arranged, doubtless, to keep anyone
from saying it was a case of suggestion. The nerve did recover within a few weeks.
Guadalupe
On December 9, 1531 an Aztec Indian, Juan Diego, saw the Virgin Mary near Mexico City. She put her image on his cloak, a cloak still to be
seen in the great shrine of Guadalupe. The fiber of the cloak should have disintegrated in about 30 years, but is still sound. Scientific checks
find that the process of impressing the image is nothing known to science. And there are images in the eyes of the picture of several persons,
who probably were present when the image appeared. The images are threefold, just as they would be found in a living eye (following the
Purkinje Sanson Law).
Fatima
Momentous for our own times is the shrine of Fatima Portugal, where Our Lady appeared 6 times to three small children, each less than 10
years of age. She asked for penance, the Rosary, and Immaculate Heart devotion, saying that on these conditions, God would keep Russia
from spreading her errors throughout the world - this was said at a time when Russia was still greatly religious, under the Czar. The great
miracle of the sun dancing on Oct 13, 1917 was seen by thousands, including nonbelievers. The clothing of all had been drenched from heavy
rain, yet when the sun settled down again, all clothing was found to be dry. Hallucinations do not dry clothing.

4. The message from Our Lady at Fatima – prayer for the world is urgent
"Dangers threatening the faith and life of a Christian ... and therefore the world."
Since 1960 when, after reading the Third Secret, Pope John XXIII decided not to reveal the contents publicly, there has been growing speculation
concerning what it contains. While in the past, speculation often identified the Secret with all sorts of cataclysms and disasters, more recent
scholarship has indicated that it most likely concerns the widespread chaos, confusion and loss of faith that has gripped the Roman Catholic
Church over the last three and a half decades.
In an interview conducted in November 1984, Cardinal Ratzinger (of the Holy Office) confirmed that, with the Pope’s permission, he had read the
Secret and that it concerns, in his words, "a radical call to conversion, the absolute gravity of history, the dangers threatening the Faith and the life
of a Christian, and therefore the world. And also the importance of the last times." The Cardinal went on to explain that "if it is not published ... it is
to avoid confusing religious prophecy with sensationalism. But the things contained in the Third Secret correspond to what has been announced
in Scripture and are confirmed by many other Marian apparitions.“
While the precise wording of the Secret remains unknown to the public, the labors of such famous Fatima scholars as Father Joachin Alonso
(former official archivist of Fatima) and Frère Michel de la Sainte Trinité have nevertheless provided invaluable insights into its meaning and
contents. The latter’s monumental 850-page work, The Third Secret is particularly noteworthy in this regard.
"The devil has succeeded in bringing in evil (to the Church) under the guise of good and the blind are beginning to lead others.“
In his book, Frère Michel reports that, when questioned about the Secret, Sister Lucy said: "It’s in the Gospel and in the Apocalypse, read them!“
He notes that she then particularly indicated Chapters VIII through XIII of the Apocalypse (Chapter XIII specifically concerns the rise of the
Antichrist). In his study of the Third Secret, Frère Michel builds a powerful and compelling case that the Third Secret is a grave warning of
apostasy within the Catholic Faith and a serious indictment of those in the Church hierarchy who have promoted dissent and outright heresy.
Although Sister Lucy is not permitted to reveal the final Secret of Our Lady until the Holy Father himself deems the moment opportune, nothing
has prevented her from giving her opinion on the crisis in the Church as an individual person. In a series of letters written between 1969 and
1972, Sister Lucy reacted vigorously against modernists and others in the Church, in particular those who seek to minimize the importance of the
Rosary. "This disorientation is diabolical," she wrote, and "it is sad that so many people let themselves be dominated by the diabolical wave
sweeping over the world! And they are blinded to the point where they are incapable of seeing error! Their principal fault is that they have
abandoned prayer." The saddest part of all, according to Sister Lucy, is that so many priests, religious and bishops are swept away in the
confusion. "The devil has succeeded in bringing in evil (to the Church) under the guise of good and the blind are beginning to lead others, as
the Lord tells us in His Gospel.“
In the conclusion to his study of the Third Secret, Frère Michel sums up his findings as follows: "Having reached the end of our inquiry, we are
able to discern, with near certainty, the essential elements of Our Lady’s final secret: While ‘in Portugal, the dogma of the Faith will always be
preserved,’ in many nations, perhaps in almost the entire world, the Faith will be lost. The pastors of the Church will fail gravely in the duties of
their office. Through their fault, consecrated souls and the Faithful in great number will let themselves be seduced by pernicious errors spread
everywhere. This will be the time of the decisive battle between the Blessed Virgin and the devil. A wave of diabolical disorientation will be hurled
over the world. Satan will introduce himself even to the highest summit of the Church. He will blind the minds and harden the hearts of pastors.
And God will deliver them to themselves as a chastisement for their refusal to obey the requests of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This will be the
great apostasy predicted for the ‘last times’; ‘the False Lamb’ and ‘False Prophet’ will betray the Church to the profit of ‘the Beast,’ according to
the prophecy of the Apocalypse."

5. The Incorruptible Bodies - real, visible people
Specimens of preserved human bodies or "mummies" have been discovered throughout the centuries, some even from before the Egyptian Pharaoh times when the art of embalming originated. Many of these preserved bodies have survived decomposition for as many as 3000 years. Of all preserved bodies that have been discovered over the centuries, each fall into one of three categories:
1. Accidentally preserved - These type of preserved bodies were determined to be preserved due to accidental means such as having been buried in dry, hot sand, or lava, or having been placed in an area with high radioactivity. As long as air or moisture did not reach these bodies, they can many times be preserved from significant, but not total decay. However, when accidentally preserved bodies are discovered, they are typically discolored, wrinkled, distorted, are skeletal looking and have no elasticity. In addition they always have a bad odor and always decay rapidly once bandaging is removed for scientific examination. 2. Deliberately preserved - Deliberately preserved corpses are those that were purposely embalmed or otherwise treated before burial with the intention of trying to prevent decomposition. As long as air or moisture did not reach these bodies, they can many times be preserved from significant, but not total decay. In most older cases of deliberately preserved human bodies discovered, the body cavities were filled with specific materials like resin or resin-soaked sawdust, or the entire body was submerged in specific materials such as honey, rum, or sand. In more modern methods of attempting to prevent corpse decomposition, the body was typically submerged or filled with resin, tar, salt, alcohol, or a combination of these. Again, when deliberately preserved bodies are discovered, like accidentally preserved bodies, they are typically discolored, wrinkled, distorted, are skeletal looking and have no elasticity. In addition they always have a bad odor and always decay rapidly once bandaging is removed for scientific examination. 3. Incorruptibles - These type of preserved bodies started being discovered back in the early centuries after Christ, though surprisingly, they do not fall into either the accidental or deliberate preservation categories above. The causes for "incorruptibles" remaining free of decomposition have baffled scientists to this day. These bodies are discovered in many different environments, including environments that would typically cause an accidental or deliberately preserved corpse to decompose rapidly. They remain free of decay regardless of manner of burial, delay in burial, temperature, moisture, rough handling, frequent transference, having been covered in quicklime (a decaying agent), or proximity to other decaying corpses. They cannot be explained by science or reason. Some common characteristics of an incorrupt body:
Incorruptibles are typically found lifelike, moist, flexible, and contain a sweet scent that smells like roses or other flowers, for years after death. They are almost never embalmed or treated in any way due to the religious order's beliefs that the person came from. They remain free of decay, some for centuries, despite circumstances which normally cause decay such as being exposed to air, moisture, other decaying bodies, or other variables such as quicklime, which is typically applied to a corpse to accelerate decomposition. Many times they contain clear, flowing oils, perspiration, and flowing blood for years after death, where accidental or deliberately preserved bodies have never been recorded to have such characteristics. Other partial incorruptibles have been found throughout the centuries where certain parts of the body decay normally, while other parts such as the heart or tongue remain perfectly free of decomposition.
What is most astounding of all is the fact that for each incorrupt body discovered, after research has been done to determine who the person was, it has always been determined that the person was an extremely devout Catholic.
This inevitably leads to the question, How can the process of decay, which has no intelligence, choose which bodies to devour and not to devour, and why do they happen to be devout Catholics? This phenomena is simply miraculous. In addition, many unexplainable miracles have occurred throughout history when people have come in contact with these incorrupt remains, and despite regular medical examinations, scientists have not determined why. These incorrupt bodies are on display all over the world to this day (mainly in Europe), and nearly all bodies who have been identified and whose background has been researched thoroughly, have been canonized by the Catholic Church as Saints due to their publicly devout Catholic life. ?

6. The Incorruptibles – specific examples
Saint Bernadette Soubirous (pictured next page) - St. Bernadette was the original visionary at Lourdes, France and died in 1879 in Nevers, France. Her body was exhumed 30 years later in 1909 and was discovered completely incorrupt and free of odour. The body was again exhumed a second time ten years later in 1919 and was still incorrupt. Her body is still on display in the Chapel of St. Bernadette in Nevers, France to this day. 
Blessed Paula Frassinetti - Died in 1882 and her body was exhumed and found to be incorrupt in Her body is on display in the Chapel of the Convent of Santa Dorotea in Rome, Italy.
St. Catherine Laboure' - Died in 1876 and was exhumed and found incorrupt in Her body is on display under the side altar in the Chapel of Our Lady of the Sun in Paris.
St. Jean-Marie-Baptiste Vianney (Cure' of Ars) - Died in 1859 and was exhumed and found incorrupt in His body is on display above the main altar in the Basilica at Ars in France.  
St. Vincent Pallotti - Died in 1850 and was exhumed and found incorrupt in 1906 and His body is on display under the main altar in the Church of St. Salvatore in Onda, Italy.
St. Teresa Margaret - Died in 1770 and was exhumed and found incorrupt in Her body is on display in a glass case at the Monastery of St. Teresa in Florence, Italy.
St. Andrew Bobola - Died in 1657 and 40 years later his body was discovered and found incorrupt. His body is on display under the main altar in the Church of St. Andrew Bobola in Warsaw, Poland.
Bl. Osanna of Manua' - Died in Her body is on display under the altar in Our Lady of the Rosary in the Cathedral of Manua, Italy. In 1965 the relic of her body was examined in depth and still found to be well preserved (460 years old!)
St. Catherine of Bologna - Died in 1463 and has been incorrupt and on display in an upright position for over 500 years.  
St. Rita of Cascia - Died in Her body is on display in a glass case in the Basilica of St. Rita in Cascia, Italy. It is also publicly known that her body has been seen in different positions in the glass case, as well as her eyes have opened and closed unaided.
Bl. Margaret of Metola (Castello) - Died in 1320 and was found incorrupt in Her body is on display under the high altar of the Church of St. Domenico at Citta-di- Castello, Italy.
St. Zita - Died in 1278 and her body is on display in a glass reliquary in the Basilica of St. Frediano in Lucca, Italy.  
St. Sperandia - Died in 1276 her body is on display in the Benedictine convent church of Cingoli, Italy. Her body was exhumed eight different times, the last in It is still incorrupt to this day and exudes a sweet fragrance.
Saint Alphege - Was Archbishop of Canterbury and was captured, put in prison, and eventually murdered by his captors in Ten years later his perfectly incorrupt body was discovered.
Saint Withburga - Died in 743 and incorrupt body was discovered 55 years later. Her remains were on display for over 300 more years thereafter until destroyed during the Reformation.
Saint Agatha - Died in 251 and body was discovered incorrupt in the eleventh century. Parts of her incorrupt body are still in existence today.
Saint Cecilia - Died in 177 and body was discovered incorrupt in 1599, is known to be the first saint to be incorrupt.

7. Some of the more famous “incorruptibes” St Bernadette Soubirous
St Catherine Laboure
Died 1876
St Bernadette Soubirous
Died 1879
St Jean Vianney
Died 1859
She has been buried for over 122 years. Her body is still fresh, clean and smells beautiful. She hasn't shown any age of decay, everything is
still intact and looks life-like. In fact she still looks very beautiful. Though she lived a very poor life, her health was always dim. from the age of
six she showed symptoms of the respiratory ailment that later became a chronic affliction. It is not clear at this early stage whether she
suffered from asthma or tuberculosis, but we know that her mother was anxious about her health and made an effort to provide special food
for her. She received many messages from holy 'apparitions' of the Virgin Mary where God could communicate with her, telling her where
people should build things etc. On March 25, Lady Day, Bernadette started for the grotto at dawn. When the vision appeared to her, Bernadette
said: "Would you kindly tell me who you are?" When the girl had repeated the question twice more, the Lady replied: "I am the Immaculate
Conception. I want a chapel here." This answer, when reported by Bernadette, caused the local excitement to rise to a still higher pitch and the
feeling grew that Bernadette's visitor was the Blessed Virgin.
When she was exhumed she was buried in a damp place, while the rosary entwined was eaten by rust. On the forearms the veins stood visible,
she looks the same as she did probably 120+ years ago. On Sunday, February 21, a number of persons went with her to the grotto, including
citizens who had been highly skeptical. On this occasion, Bernadette reported later, the apparition said to her: "You will pray to God for sinners.“
On February 26, while she was in the trance-like state which lasted as long as she saw the vision, Bernadette crawled inside the grotto, and, at
the Lady's bidding, uncovered with her bare hands a little trickle of water from which she drank and with which she bathed her face, still at the
Lady's direction. This tiny spring continued to well up and by the next day was flowing steadily down into the river: to this day it has never ceased
to gush forth from the grotto. The people regarded its discovery by Bernadette as a miracle.