The Magic of Medjugorje: The Place Between the Mountains

I never expected to be living in the vicinity of Medjugorje, where there is a Shrine of the Virgin Mary, located in the hills of the southern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina. On June 24, 1981, six young children were given the gift of witnessing an apparition of the Blessed Mother, Virgin Mary, one quiet evening in the little village of the former Yugoslavia.

Since then, Medjugorje has become one of the most visited Marian shrines in the world. When I read a book about the area many years ago, it seemed completely unlikely that I would ever be able to visit that charming city. However, during my career in the United States Foreign Service, I was sent to Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Medjugorje was located only three hours away from my home in Sarajevo. I was suddenly overwhelmed with a desire to see Medjugorje. I hadn’t thought about it in years and was delighted to be in such close proximity to a place that I had always been interested in seeing.

Before planning a trip to Medjugorje, I searched the Internet for books and found two that I thought would be interesting. After reading “Medjugorje, the Message” by Wane Weible, I couldn’t wait to see Medjugorje for myself.
Since Medjugorje was only a three-hour car trip from our home, my husband and I decided to go there. We could only stay one night, as we had to get back to Sarajevo to work. My husband, Guillermo, and I were both working for the United States Government at the time. We looked up a list of hotels online and picked one. It was called the Pax Hotel.

Medjugorje is a pretty, small town in western Bosnia and Herzegovina, close to the border of Croatia. The attractions in Medjugorje start with Apparition Hill, which was the site of the first vision that the children had of the Virgin Mary in 1981.

Guillermo and I dropped our bags at the hotel and immediately went to Apparition Hill. At the top of the hill is a statue of Mary, where one can pray and walk. The hill is very steep, consisting of rocks with no specific path, and it is not very easy to climb. When you finally arrive at the top, though, it’s well worth it. The peace and tranquility of Apparition Hill, which overlooks the lovely village of Medjugorje, is unmistakably special.

According to the book, “The Visions of the Children,” by Janice T. Connell, the visions were still going on in 2001, twenty years after the first one. The overall message from Mary is one of peace, faith, conversion, prayer, and fasting. The individual messages given to the children consist of ten secrets, which will be revealed in time. The principal messages of Medjugorje from Mary are the paths to eternal peace, fullness, and the belief that all things are possible through prayer, even the avoidance of war.

In “The Visions of the Children,” there are interviews with all of the visionaries. In her final question, the author asks Vicka, one of the six children, “What do you recommend that we do to make the future better?” Vicka responded, “There is a prayer that basically goes: Bloom where you are planted. If everybody is blooming where God plants them, the world will be a beautiful, holy place to live… Those who accept God’s will, will live in great peace and joy and love because they know God’s love. That is what the Blessed Mother wants for all her children.”

We thoroughly enjoyed our one-day trip to Medjugorje and knew that we wanted to return. That quaint little town was full of interesting things to see. We agreed that before we departed Bosnia and Herzegovina, we would make a second trip to the enigmatic Medjugorje.

The magic of Medjugorje, in my opinion, is not whether the six children did or did not have visions of the Blessed Mother, but that millions of people believe they did. They have made pilgrimages there, renewing their love of God and hoping to find that peace and love again that is so lost amongst us at this time. It is a very touching sight to behold the devotion of the people who go there and share in the outpouring of emotion.

I watched a lady from Japan touch the hand of the Virgin Mary in a chapel near the St. James church, which looms large and beautiful in the square at Medjugorje. Her touch was so loving and so devoted that I felt myself drawn into her love; it was magical indeed! When you are standing on Apparition Hill praying, you have the feeling that you are being heard, that you can empty your heart and soul, and that all will be well. Everyone you meet seems to be connected to you at that moment; you want to hug strangers and pray for their well-being. There are no separations, and the energy of love is strong. If that’s not magic, what is?