Church officials in Rwanda responded to recent claims of a Marian apparition to two schoolchildren in Musanze, saying that there is no evidence as of yet that the events are supernatural or that there was any actual apparition.
On January 16, locals in the area began spreading word that the Virgin Mary and Jesus had appeared on a utility pole and then in a tree to two 10-year-old children near the G.S. Rwinzovu School.
The following day, some 1,000 to 1,500 people came to visit the area, a number that swelled to 2,000 on Sunday, said Fr. Jean Bosco Nambaje, the parish priest of Busogo, Rwanda, to local media. Busongo is located in the district of Musanze, located in northern Rwanda.
Fr. Nambaje said the event was "contradictory," and that while some people said they saw the Virgin Mary, "others insisted they saw nothing at all."
Rwandan officials later removed the utility pole where the children claimed to have seen Mary and Jesus.
The alleged apparition has been submitted to the Diocese of Ruhengeri, Rwanda, for additional study. In the meantime, Fr. Nambaje encouraged his flock to refrain from spreading rumors and to wait for additional guidance on the matter, said Rwandan media.
Rwanda home to approved apparition
The events and purported apparitions in Musanze drew comparisons to Rwanda's only approved Marian apparition, Our Lady of Kibeho.
Beginning in 1981 and continuing until 1989, the Virgin Mary appeared to three Rwandan girls, introducing herself as “Mother of the Word” and calling for conversion and repentance.
During the apparitions, the Virgin Mary warned against divisions among the Rwandan people and emphasized the role of suffering united to Christ as a way to holiness. Some interpreted the Virgin Mary's words as a warning of the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
The Catholic Church approved the Kibeho apparitions in 2001. It is the only approved Marian apparition in Africa.
Since then, Kibeho has become a place of pilgrimage, where thousands of people visit each year.
