Lipa, Philippines

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20091119-237232/New-probe-into-Virgin-Marys-
apparition-in-Lipa-set

New probe into Virgin Mary’s apparition in Lipa set

By Dona Pazzibugan
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 21:07:00 11/19/2009

Filed Under: Churches (organisations), Religion & Belief

MANILA, Philippines -- Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles has formed a new commission to revisit the
series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary at the Carmel monastery in Lipa, Batangas, in 1948.

The commission was created in a decree that Arguelles issued on Nov. 12, the same day the archbishop
issued another decree, formally lifting the 1951 Church ban against the public veneration of the image of
the Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace, in Lipa.

Nov. 12 this year was the 61st anniversary of the last of the series of apparitions that occurred from
September to November 1948 in Lipa.

In 1948, the Virgin Mary reportedly appeared 19 times to Teresita Castillo, a novice in the Carmelite
convent. Rose petals with holy images reportedly fell from the sky. In her last apparition to Castillo, the
Blessed Virgin identified herself, saying, “I am the Mediatrix of All Grace.”

Although the veneration of Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace was allowed by the then Bishop Alfred
Verzosa, the Church hierarchy declared in 1951 that “there was no supernatural intervention in the
reported extraordinary happenings including the shower of rose petals in Lipa.”

Verzosa’s successor, Rufino Santos, ordered that “no petals be given to anyone by the Lipa Carmelite
community and the statue of Our Lady of Mediatrix be withdrawn from public view.”

The ban was lifted 40 years later by Arguelles’ predecessor Archbishop Mariano Gaviola in 1991.

Arguelles said his decree lifting the ban was merely a “reiteration” of Gaviola’s 1991 order and that he
was doing it because “there was nothing wrong in praising apparitions” and was aware of “the love of the
people for the Blessed Mother.”

“The Blessed Mother has [protected] the country from calamities,” he said.

Despite the ban, Arguelles said the faithful have unceasingly gone on pilgrimages to the Carmel
monastery in Lipa to pray and ask for favors from the Blessed Mother.

There has been an increasing number of pilgrims to the monastery, “making penitential processions and
praying almost every day but most of all on first Saturdays and every twelfth day of the month,” he said.
A repeat of the shower of rose petals is said to have occurred some years ago but the Carmelite nuns have
kept a low profile. Some people still have petals in their possession.

Teresita Castillo
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Teresita Castillo was a Roman Catholic nun who reported Marian apparitions in Lipa City, Philippines for
several years since 1949.

The Carmelite Convent in Lipa, the site of the reported apparitions, is now the subject of major
pilgrimages in the Philippines, some attended by the president of Philippines.[1]

These reported apparitions have been the subject of controversy. An initial investigation report in 1951
was signed by 6 Roman Catholic bishops and declared the Lipa apparitions as "non-supernatural".
However, one bishops later recanted on his deathbed, and a new investigation was reported in 1991. The
apparitions in Lipa have yet not received approval from the local bishop, or the Holy See and are still
under investigation. [2]
Contents
[hide]

* 1 Life
* 2 Apparitions of Mary, Mediatrix of All Grace in Lipa Carmel
* 3 References
* 4 External links

[edit] Life

Teresing Castillo was born on July 4 in the Philippines. She came from an educated and religious family
that may influenced her interest in religious works. She is the youngest of seven children of former
Batangas Governor Modesto Castillo. At the time of the apparitions, Teresita's father was Judge of the
Court of Industrial Relations.The Castillos were very influential in Batangas province, Philippines.
Teresita Castillo celebrated her 21st birthday on July 4 1948 by "escaping" early in the morning at five
from her father's house to enter the Carmelite Monastery of Lipa. Teresita's entrance into the monastery
was not well received initially by the family, who tried all means to get her back. Teresita steadfastly
refused to return home, preferring to follow God's call.
[edit] Apparitions of Mary, Mediatrix of All Grace in Lipa Carmel

The trials of Teresing did not escape the devil's interest. On the 31st of July, at 8:15 p.m., Teresita was
startled by knocking at her door. A male voice introduced himself as Satan, emitting a foul odor in her
cell. The postulant would be subjected to infernal visits several times the following weeks.

At around 5:00 p.m. of the 12th of September 1948, the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, postulant
Teresing Castillo saw the vine in the garden shake though there was no wind at all. A woman's voice was
heard to say: "Fear not my child. Kiss the ground. Whatever I tell you to do, you must do. For fifteen
consecutive days, come to visit me here in this spot. Eat some grass, my child." The next day, September
13, Monday, again at five in the afternoon, the postulant returned to the place, knelt down and intended to
say the Hail Mary. She head only reached the phrase "full of grace" when again the vine moved. A
beautiful Lady appeared, a golden Rosary hanging on her right hand. The Lady's dress was simple and
pure white , held in the waist by a narrow cloth belt. Her feet were bare and resting on clouds about two
feet above ground. Her face, indescribably beautiful, was radiant.

On September 14, Tuesday, the first shower of rose petals took place. Some nuns found fresh rose-petals
of exceptional sweetness, strewn around their rooms or outside their doors. Meantime, Mother Priores
decided to consult the Most Reverand Alfredo Obviar, auxiliary bishop of Lipa and spiritual director of
Carmel. The bishop instructed her to tell postulant Teresing to ask from the Blessed Virgin some proof
that the apparition was from heaven. Days, after the first shower of petals, total blindess afflicted the
postulant. Mother Prioress heard a voice telling her that the only way Teresing's blindess would be healed
was for her to kiss the eyes of the postulant. So, one day in the presence of Bishop Obviar, Mother
Prioress lifted the veil of Teresing and imparted a kiss on her eyes. Instantly, Teresing's eyes recovered
her sight. Her blindess was cured. Bishop Obviar doubted no more that the apparitions were heavenly.
[edit] References

1. ^ Arroyo to join Marian pilgrimage in Lipa [1]

2. ^ Peter Heintz, 1995, A Guide to Apparitions of Our Blessed Virgin Mary Gabriel Press, ISBN
0964550601

[edit] External links

* Lipa apparitions website [2]

http://www.christusrex.org/www1/apparitions/pr00013.htm
Lipa, Philippines " Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace "New!
1948 Our Blessed Mother appeared 19 times to a novice in the Carmelite order in Lipa City, Philippines.
Our Lady first appeared to the novice, Teresita Castillo, in August, when she was in her cell.

While Teresita was praying in the convent garden on September 12, suddenly a vine began to shake. Our
Lady appeared to the seer and requested that she kiss the earth and return to the same spot for fifteen
consecutive days. When Our Lady appeared, She was on a cloud, dressed in white, hands clasped, and a
golden Rosary hanging from Her right hand. Her dress was very white, very simple, and had a narrow belt
tied around Her. She was radiant with beauty.

Our Lady requested the vine to be blessed, and also requested that a statue was to be placed at the site of
the apparition. These were all accomplished.

During the apparitions in 1948, Our Lady stressed humility, penance, prayers for the clergy and the Pope,
and to pray the Rosary. Teresita reported that there was one secret for herself, one for the Carmel convent
in Lipa City, one for China, and also one for the entire world.

Our Lady requested that a Mass be held on the 12th day of every month. Before She departed for the last
time, the Blessed Virgin identified Herself as:

" I am the Mediatrix of All Grace"

There are acconts of a blue bird appearing at the vine where Our Lady appeared. There are also accounts
of the spinning sun, heavy fragrance of roses, and showers of rose petals that had miraculous images of
Christ, Mary, and other Holy Scenes on them. The rose petals (one is pictured on the top of this page, and
another is pictured on the bottom) are reported to have remarkable curing powers.
It is also reported that Teresita received a Host for Holy Communion on her tongue from an angel on an
occasion when she was unable to attend Mass because she was sick in bed. Teresita had other mystical
experiences including visions of the Sacred Heart, a multitude of angels, St. Cecilia, St. Theresa of
Lisieux, and many other saints. The seer was also seen to go into a state of unconsciousness, and then,
while lying on the floor, enact the agony of Christ on the Cross. This phenomenon was witnessed by the
prioress, Bishop Obviar, and members of the Carmel community at Lipa.

There was much commotion, and the Bishop and Mother Prioress were released of their jobs. The nuns
were ordered to destroy all materials connected with the apparitions. They burned Teresita's diary, as well
as the Mother Prioress'. The statue was also ordered to be destroyed, but the nuns kept it away, and saved
it from destruction.

Our Lady warned that there would be persecutions; the convent was sealed, and the nuns could talk to no
one outside of the convent.

In February 1990, a strange new phenomenon was reported in the Granja District of Lipa City. A white
luminous outline of a female in prayer began to appear on one of the leaves of a tall coconut tree. It was
visible only in the evenings. On May 21, 1990, Sr. Aphonse pleaded on her deathbed that the Mediatrix
statue be again exposed in the chapel at the Carmelite convent. Her request was granted the very next day.
It would be the first time the statue would be displayed for 40 years!

On January 24, 1991, rose petals began to fall straight from the sky again at the Carmelite convent in Lipa
City. A few days later, six children playing in the garden at the convent saw the statue come to life.

Very negative media articles together with sham " Holy Rose Petals " dealers, caused Teresita to leave the
convent in the 1950's. This, together with the Church's negative report, kept these apparitions hidden for
some 40 years.

As a consequence, the Church has now set up a new commitee to investigate the apparitions.

For more information, please contact:

Sr. Celine Gutierrez, ocd Shrine of Our Lady, Mary, Mediatrix of All Grace Torres St., Antipolo Lipa
City, Batangas, Philippines

http://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/approved_apparitions/lipa/index.html

Vindicated, novice of Lipa apparitions keeps low profile

By Marrah Erika Lesaba, June Keithley

Contributor
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Posted date: November 22, 2009

MANILA, Philippines--Teresita Castillo, to whom the Virgin Mary reportedly appeared in 1948 when
Castillo was a young Carmelite novice, has been declining interview requests following the lifting of the
Church ban against the public veneration of the image of Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace, a devotion
that stemmed from the apparitions.

“She [Castillo] has decided to maintain a low profile. We have to respect her [wishes],” said Fr. Richard
Hernandez, the chair of the new commission created by the Church to reopen the investigation into the
apparitions in Lipa.

Hernandez said he was able to interview Castillo, or Teresing as he refers to her, last Thursday.

He said Castillo was so happy and excited when told about the lifting of the ban that he had to calm her
down.

Though she underwent so many hardships during the series of investigations into the veracity of the
apparitions, Castillo has remained humble, he said.

“She never complained or even asked why she was being questioned,” Hernandez said.

He said Castillo, who is now 82 years old, cannot recall the dates when the Virgin Mary appeared to her
but she can clearly state the message that the Blessed Mother wanted her to give the world.

In 1948, the Virgin Mary reportedly appeared 19 times to Castillo, who was a postulant at the Carmelite
convent in Lipa, Batangas. Rose petals with holy images reportedly fell from the sky. In the last of her
appearances to Castillo, the Blessed Virgin is said to have identified herself, saying “I am the Mediatrix
of All Grace.”

The bishop of Lipa at the time, Alfred Verzosa, believed in the apparitions and allowed the veneration of
the image of Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace.

No miracle

In 1951, however, the Church hierarchy declared that “there was no supernatural intervention in the
reported extraordinary happenings, including the shower of rose petals in Lipa.”

Verzosa’s successor, Rufino Santos, ordered that “no petals be given to anyone by the Lipa Carmelite
community and the statue of Our Lady of Mediatrix be withdrawn from public view.”

The ban was lifted 40 years later by Archbishop Mariano Gaviola in 1991.

On Nov. 12, Gaviola’s successor, Archbishop Ramon Arguelles issued a formal decree lifting the 1951
ban. Arguelles also created the commission, headed by Hernandez, to conduct a new investigation into
the apparitions.

Arguelles said he was merely reiterating Gaviola’s 1991 order and was doing so because he saw “nothing
wrong in praising the image of the Blessed Mother” and that he knew the “love of the people for her.”

He noted that despite the ban, the faithful have continued to go on pilgrimages to the Carmel monastery in
Lipa to pray and ask for favors from the Blessed Mother.

He said the commission will evaluate the documents still available on the events of 1948 to advise the
Church leadership on “the proper pastoral approach” to the continuing pilgrimage of people to the site of
the apparitions.
International interest

The news that Arguelles had ordered a new investigation and lifted the ban on the public veneration of the
Mediatrix has created interest not just in the local community of devotees but internationally as well.

The Spiritdaily.com website carried links to two articles published in Inquirer.net as well as its own well-
researched articles from its archives.

Little wonder as the events of 1948 were headlined in national newspapers and reported internationally.
Lipa was referred to as “the Lourdes of Asia” and Philippine Airlines flew special flights to fly pilgrims
to Lipa.

A special pilgrim image of the miraculous Mediatrix was made and brought to New York and Madrid.
More than 3,000 took part in the procession that was later held on New York’s Second Avenue.

Those were heady days indeed. Even former President Elpidio Quirino attended a Mass in Lipa in 1949
and joined the vast crowds in hopes of witnessing a petal shower. Thousands would line up for the water
in which the petals had been immersed and miraculous healings and conversions were reported and
documented.

The original statue of Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace, was commissioned from the sculptor Cristobal,
in accordance with the instructions that Castillo had received from the Virgin Mary: “I want a statue of
myself to be made so that my little ones can see me. Describe me to your chaplain because I want my
statue to look as you see me, and to be as large as that of Our Lady of Lourdes which stands inside the
cloister.”

“I ask this from Carmel, I wish that my image be placed here. This place must be cleaned so that it may
become a shrine for prayer.”

When the image was finished and revealed for public veneration, many unusual occurrences and
miraculous events were attributed to it. The fragrance of the amazing shower of petals that occurred from
time to time on the grounds outside the convent would fill the air for blocks and draw thousands of
devotees and curiosity seekers.

Harrowing events

A message that the Virgin Mary had given in 1948 seems to foretell the harrowing events that were to
come: “Do not block or debase my sacred place nor despise my words. ”

Along with the ban it issued in 1951, the Church hierarchy instructed the Carmelites to destroy
everything. The nuns obeyed and burned the diaries, petals and prayer cards, but could not bear to smash
the image of the Mediatrix, so they bundled it up in rags and jute and hid it among the debris in a bodega.

It would be hidden for the next 40 years until Gaviola gave permission for the statue to be temporarily
displayed in 1991. The archbishop soon issued the decree that the image be restored to public veneration
and installed in the side chapel of the convent church where it remains to this day.

Blighted lives
Apart from the many miraculous healings and conversions that were ignored and the cruel rumors that the
apparitions were a hoax foisted on the public by the nuns to raise money to build a church, there are the
heroic actions and blighted lives of the main protagonists that are intrinsic to the apparitions.

Auxiliary Bishop Alfredo Obviar, the spiritual director of Carmel Lipa, was unceremoniously removed
and remained in limbo until he was demoted and re-appointed to the diocese of Lucena.

Obviar founded the congregation of the Missionary Catechists of St. Therese and in acknowledgment of
his great virtue, he has been lifted up to the Causes of the Saints and has officially passed the first step in
the process toward sainthood.

His tomb and museum in Lucena is the site of many pilgrimages and a number of miracles have been
attributed to his intercession.

Verzosa, who allowed the apparitions to be publicized and for the Mediatrix to be venerated, was stripped
of all his administrative duties, remaining a bishop in name only.

Though he had used his family’s wealth to rebuild the churches and schools of war-torn Lipa, he was
falsely accused of mishandling the war reparations and finances of the diocese. He lived in exile at his
Vigan home, reduced to rolling tobacco leaves to augment the family income.

The prioress of Carmel, Mother Cecilia Zialcita, was transferred to another convent and treated like a
scullery maid. She is said to have prophesied that at her death, the events of the Lipa apparitions would
again be reopened and devotion to the Mediatrix restored.

Castillo has survived all the denunciations and humiliations to which she was subjected. The stress from
the investigation resulted in her long illness, requiring her to live at the University of Santo Tomas
hospital for long periods of time. She eventually had to voluntarily leave the convent as she failed to
complete the required length of stay for a novice.

Discreet silence

She worked at the Redemptorist Church in Baclaran and assisted Fr. Leo English with the publication of
the now widely used Tagalog/English dictionaries. The now grown baby girl she adopted often
accompanies her mother on healing missions.

She has since received a few other messages and experienced showers of petals in her home and at the
side chapel of Carmel Lipa, but has maintained a discreet silence about it.

Gaviola and Arguelles have allowed Castillo to speak publicly about the apparitions and there are also a
number of accounts detailing the healing of some people that she has prayed over. However, now that the
new commission has convened, she has thought it prudent to refrain from speaking or being too publicly
visible.

In her 80s, Castillo has been given the grace of living to see the malicious tongues silenced and a
resurgence of devotion to her “beautiful lady.”