Beauraing: Apparitions, History, Message, Sanctuary
The apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Beauraing, Belgium, took place from November 29, 1932, to January 3, 1933. Five children saw the Virgin 33 times in the garden of the convent of the Sisters of the Sacred Heart. The apparitions of Our Lady of Beauraing were recognized by the Catholic Church in 1949. In this place, Our Lady appeared as the Virgin with the Golden Heart.
On January 15, 1933, the apparitions of Banneux began, also in Belgium, to the little girl Mariette Béco.
The Apparitions of Our Lady in Beauraing, Belgium
The village of Beauraing is located in Wallonia, Belgium, a few kilometers from the French border. From November 29, 1932, to January 3, 1933, the Holy Virgin appeared 33 times to five children. These children belonged to two families: Fernande, Gilberte, and Albert Voisin, aged 15, 13, and 11, and Andrée and Gilberte Degeimbre, aged 14 and 9.
History of the Apparitions
On November 29, as every day, the four older children went to pick up little Gilberte from her study at the Sisters of the Christian Doctrine of Nancy. Albert had just rung the doorbell when he turned around and exclaimed: “Look, the Virgin walking above the bridge.” The three girls also saw the Virgin Mary. When the nun opened the door, the children pointed to the Holy Virgin, but she saw nothing and did not believe these “nonsense.” As soon as she arrived, little Gilberte also saw the Holy Virgin walking in the air above the bridge. On November 30, the Virgin appeared to them in the same place. The next day, Our Lady appeared under a hawthorn branch, near the entrance gate of the Sisters' garden, where all subsequent apparitions would take place. The following day, the parents accompanied their children to shed light on these “tales.” Mrs. Degeimbre searched the bushes with a stick, but the adults saw nothing except their children, who suddenly fell to their knees, all looking in the same direction, toward the hawthorn. The village priest, although he did not really believe in the apparitions, reassured the parents. The Mother Superior, on the other hand, wanted to put an end to this “comedy”; she had the gates closed and the dogs released into the garden. On December 2, the children returned and, unable to enter the garden, stayed on the sidewalk. When the Virgin appeared, the furious dogs stopped barking and lay down on the ground. The Virgin turned to the children, and Albert asked her if she was the Immaculate Conception; she nodded yes. “What do you want?” asked the little boy on behalf of all, “to be very good,” replied Our Lady. Later, she asked him, “Is it true that you will always be good?” The apparitions continued every day.
Faced with the influx of the crowd, the Sisters lifted the ban on entering the garden. The notary began to question the children, whom many accused of being liars, starting with Mrs. Degeimbre, who severely punished her daughters.
The parish priest reported the matter to the Bishop of Namur, and many doctors came to perform tests on the children during their ecstasies. The children were insensitive, and their bodies showed no trace of what was done to them.
On December 17, the Virgin asked for “a chapel.” On December 21, when the children asked her, “Who are you?” she replied: “I am the Immaculate Virgin.” On the 23rd, the children asked again: “Why do you come here?” “So that people come here on pilgrimage!” On December 29, Mary warned that she would soon stop appearing to them. On December 30, she asked: “Pray, pray a lot.” and on January 1, she added: “Always pray.” On January 2, Mary announced to the children that she would give each of them a secret the next day. On January 3, Mary entrusted each of the three youngest with a personal message that was never revealed. Then she declared: “I am the Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven; always pray, goodbye.” Then she promised again: “I will convert sinners.” Finally, the Queen of Heaven added these last words: “Do you love my Son? Do you love me? Then, sacrifice yourselves for me. Goodbye.”
Description of the Virgin Mary
Here is how the five children described the Holy Virgin: she was dressed in a long white robe and wore a long white veil that fell over her shoulders. Her head was surrounded by fine rays of light, forming a crown. She usually held her hands together and smiled. From December 29, the children discovered that she wore a rosary on her right arm, and at the end, between her open arms in a gesture of farewell, they saw her heart illuminated, like a golden heart. Hence the name Our Lady with the Golden Heart.
Recognition by the Church
After the 33 apparitions, many theological and medical studies were undertaken. At their conclusion, Bishop Heylen of Namur declared the recognition of the cult. On May 16, 1943, his successor, Bishop Charue, obtained a decree from Rome authorizing the cult of Our Lady of Beauraing. Two miraculous healings were recognized, and on July 2, 1949, the authenticity of the apparitions was recognized by Bishop Charue.
The Sanctuary of Beauraing, a Place of Pilgrimage
A statue of the Virgin with the Golden Heart was made according to the children's descriptions and placed at the exact spot where the Virgin Mary appeared. The hawthorn bush on which Mary stood is still alive despite a fire and a tornado. The chapel requested by the Virgin was built from 1947 to 1954. The Sanctuary of Beauraing is today one of the most visited in Belgium. In 2022, it welcomed 200,000 visitors for the 90th anniversary of the apparitions.
What Happened to the Visionaries of Beauraing?
The five children married and started families. All five kept etched in their memory what they saw that winter and remained faithful to it all their lives. Andrée Degeimbre, the first of the witnesses to pass away in 1978, came every day for over 44 years to the hawthorn bush for the recitation of the rosary at 6:30 PM. Gilberte Degeimbre, the last witness of the apparitions, died at the age of 92 in 2015. She never ceased throughout her life to testify to what she saw that winter of 1933.
Pray and Live the Messages of the Virgin Mary with Hozana!
In Beauraing, the Virgin asks us to pray a lot. The rosary is a privileged way to respond to the requests of our Mother in Heaven.
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