In an apparition, the perceptions and statements of particular people are central. Those involved recount whom they saw, what words they heard, and what instructions they received. Their statements, early records, accompanying events, and spiritual fruits form the starting point of the ecclesiastical investigation.
The investigation questions witnesses, compares documents, and assesses the content of the messages in the light of the Catholic faith. It also examines possible natural explanations. Personal experience, independent observation, and the ecclesiastical decision are brought into relation.
Revelation, Perception, and Description
In the Catholic understanding, God's public Revelation is complete in Christ. Later private revelations can encourage people to live the handed-down faith more decisively; they neither supplement nor correct it. Even private revelations recognized by the Church do not belong to the deposit of faith.[1]
A vision, however, cannot simply be treated like an ordinary object in space. In the theological commentary on Fatima, Joseph Ratzinger distinguishes external perception, interior imaginative vision, and intellectual vision. In this explanation, an interior vision is not automatically a product of imagination. Its presentation is, however, also shaped by the person's language, memories, and imaginative faculties. Experience, later description, and interpretation must therefore be distinguished.[2]
From the First Account to Assessable Documentation
First, a chronology is established: time and place, people present, the first written record, later versions, and publications. An original close to the event carries different weight from a memory recounted decades later. Surviving letters, diaries, audio recordings, and uncut videos are examined for provenance, dating, and editing. Translations must be checked against the original text. A subsequently polished collected edition must not unnoticed replace the original statement.
The canonical rules for witness testimony generally require separate questioning. The witness's relationship to the event, the source of knowledge, and the time of perception must be recorded. Questions should be understandable, relevant, and non-leading. Personal observation, hearsay, and individual interpretation are distinguished; agreement is weighed together with further evidence. The statement is recorded and submitted to the witness for checking. These rules prevent a jointly rehearsed account from appearing as several independent testimonies.[3]
In practice, this means that someone who stood beside the person concerned during an apparition can testify to that person's behavior. It does not yet follow that this witness saw or heard the same content. Nor may a large crowd of onlookers simply be counted as an equally large number of direct witnesses to the apparition.
Person, Message, and Context
The 1978 norms already named truthfulness, psychological equilibrium, moral conduct, theological consistency, and enduring spiritual fruits. They listed proven factual errors, doctrinal errors, financial gain closely linked to the event, and serious misconduct as negative indicators. Psychological disorders were relevant particularly when their influence on the reported event had been established. The criteria were to be weighed together; none was intended as a mechanical standalone test.[4]
A medical or psychological examination must therefore answer a specific question: for example, whether perceptual disturbances, medication, sleep states, or substantial external pressure can explain the account. An unusual experience alone is not a diagnosis. Conversely, unremarkable psychological findings do not prove a supernatural cause. Investigation, treatment, and public presentation must respect the person concerned. The canonical protection of reputation and privacy applies here too.[5]
The message is read in context: with its time of origin, versions, and claimed authority. A call to prayer is assessed differently from an allegedly divine command to follow an individual unconditionally. Religious language does not exempt statements from examination. Merely expressing opposition to deception is not enough either; financial flows, dependencies, and possible influence must be documented specifically. The Church's pastors also have the task of reviewing publications on faith and morals and rejecting harmful teachings.[6]
Authority and the Six Decisions Since 2024
The norms published on 17 May 2024 have applied since 19 May 2024 and replace the 1978 norms. The diocesan bishop investigates the case and submits his opinion to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith for approval. An investigative commission combines theological, canonical, and relevant specialist expertise. A declaration of supernatural character is not normally envisaged; the Pope may exceptionally permit such a procedure.[7]
These judgments answer different questions. In particular, the absence of a positive determination is not the same as proven fraud.[7]
| Judgment | Meaning in Plain Language |
|---|---|
| Nihil obstat | Positive spiritual effects; promotion is possible. No certainty about supernatural authenticity. |
| Prae oculis habeatur | Positive elements, but matters requiring clarification or risks; attentive guidance is needed. |
| Curatur | Significant problems alongside already widespread, fruitful devotion. Do not promote; redirect pastorally. |
| Sub mandato | Those surrounding a phenomenon assessed positively in itself are exploiting it. Place pastoral care under special leadership. |
| Prohibetur et obstruatur | Serious risks: adherence to the phenomenon is publicly prohibited. |
| Declaratio de non supernaturalitate | Specific, proven facts provide the basis for determining a non-supernatural origin. |
Putting Fruits and Earlier Recognitions in Context
Prayer, conversion, and charity must be taken seriously. They do not, however, allow a simple inference about the cause of every individual apparition. People may receive good through the sacraments and Christian guidance while questions about the original accounts remain open. The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith explicitly explains this distinction in a 2024 note: a positive pastoral judgment neither confirms all alleged messages as supernatural nor judges the moral perfection of the people involved. It imposes no obligation to believe in the reported apparitions.[8]
Older judgments must be presented with their own dates and content. In Lourdes, Bishop Laurence recognized the apparitions to Bernadette as authentic on 18 January 1862. In Fatima, Bishop José Alves Correia da Silva declared the children's visions from May to October 1917 worthy of belief and permitted veneration on 13 October 1930. Both decisions are more precise than a blanket “recognized” label. They are not retrospectively renamed as a Nihil obstat granted in 2024. Likewise, a historical decree does not automatically confirm every later story about the same place.[9][10]
Sources and procedural documents
- [1] Catechism of the Catholic Church
Foundation: the completion of public Revelation and the place of private revelations.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [2] The Message of Fatima – Theological Commentary
Distinguishes external perception, interior imaginative vision, and intellectual vision; explains the participation of the perceiving person.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [3] Codex Iuris Canonici – Witnesses and Testimony
General rules for separate, non-leading questioning, recording, and weighing witness testimony.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [4] Norms regarding the manner of proceeding in the discernment of presumed apparitions or revelations
Historical norms, replaced in 2024. Identified in the text as the background to the criteria, not as an unchanged current procedure.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [5] Codex Iuris Canonici – Reputation and Privacy
Protects reputation and privacy; not guidance for medical diagnosis.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [6] Codex Iuris Canonici – Examination of Writings
Ecclesiastical oversight of publications concerning faith and morals.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [7] Norms for Proceeding in the Discernment of Alleged Supernatural Phenomena
In force since 19 May 2024. Responsibilities, investigative commission, and six possible decisions; Nihil obstat is not a declaration of supernatural certainty.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [8] The Queen of Peace – Note About the Spiritual Experience Connected with Medjugorje
Specific official explanation of the limits of a positive pastoral judgment and the assessment of spiritual fruits.
Open source · vatican.va ↗ - [9] The Decree – Recognition of the Apparitions of Lourdes
The official shrine reproduces the essential decision of the historical decree.
Open source · lourdes-france.org ↗ - [10] Pastoral sobre o Culto de Nossa Senhora de Fátima
Contemporary printing of the pastoral letter, in the archive of the Shrine of Fatima.
Open source · fatima.pt ↗