Vatican dismisses English woman's claims of Marian apparitions

Published: 2007-09-24

LONDON (CNS) -- The Vatican has dismissed the claims of a woman in England who says Mary has visited her outside her home for more than 20 years. Ruling that her claims are "highly questionable," the Vatican also has refused to approve the statutes of the community she founded. Patricia De Menezes said the apparition has been appearing to her beneath a pine tree at her home in Surbiton, a London suburb, since 1984. She claimed she has received a divine message that the Catholic Church must proclaim aborted babies to be martyrs. She also founded the Community of Divine Innocence, which has about 3,000 members in 43 countries, many coming from the pro-life movement. Community members "strive for holiness and innocence within God's own family," according to the community's Web site. Archbishop Angelo Amato, secretary of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, announced the decision in a letter to Archbishop Kevin McDonald of Southwark, the archdiocese in which De Menezes lives. The letter from Archbishop Amato was dated July 16; it was released by the Southwark Archdiocese Sept. 21.

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