TESTIMONY OF FATHER UMBERTO LONCAR

Our Lady of Medjugorje

Medugorje, which means a village between two hills, Krizevac and Podbrdo, became known to the world when six young visionaries reported supernatural appearances of the Virgin Mary. These apparitions began on 24 June 1981 and Medjugorje has since become a place of pilgrimage, hope, and conversion for the faithful. These apparitions continue to this day. Millions of pilgrims visit Medjugorje every year and today Medjugorje has become the third most important pilgrimage site in Europe. In this article, I would like to share the testimony of Father Umberto Loncar because he is a trustworthy and credible witness who actually saw Our Lady with his own eyes.

The Testimony of Father Umberto Loncar

On 2 & 3 August, 1981, during Our Lady's apparition to the visionaries at around 6.20 to 6.40 p.m., many pilgrims in Medjugorje saw the sun getting dimmer, surrounded by an orange-red glowing ring, casting its rays on the parish church. This was followed by bright circles of various colors rotating around the sun. News of this supernatural phenomenon spread far and wide and soon became the talk of the village.

On 2 August 1981, which was a Sunday, I did not notice anything unusual as it has never occurred to me that the miracle of the sun could happen here. I must admit that I did not even take a brief or hurried look at the sun or the sky that day.

On Monday, 3 August 18981, after being informed about what happened on Sunday, I made it a point to look at the sun and the sky, and this time, I witnessed the miracle of the sun right in front of my eyes. The sky to the north of the church was traversed by an arc of dark globes, moving from east to west. I tried to dismiss this unusual phenomenon assuming that it was caused by weather and / or temperature anomalies. Or could it be that I was seeing things that weren't really there? In other words, I said to myself, there was nothing supernatural about this phenomenon..

However, on 4 August 1981, which as a Tuesady, I had what I should say a "special vision." That day, I purposely stayed at home and did not go to Medjugorje. When I left the house at 6:oo p.m., I covered my face with my hand and looked at the sun with its fading light between my fingers. A light wind was blowing in that pleasant summer evening. After looking at the sun, I quickly looked away towards the direction of Medjugorje, because I did not want to damage my eyes from staring at the sun. I did not see any "dark globes" but at exactly 6:20 p.m., I saw a huge red and violet cloud over Cerno. The cloud, which was exceptionally large, was moving in my direction at tremendous speed. It then hovered over Mount Krizevac for one or two minutes, moved eastward, and seemed to have sunk into the earth. As the hills and trees were blocking my view, I could not see what happened. I ran to the upper floor of the rectory so that I could have a better view. After the cloud has disappeared from my sight, I descended to the terrace between the rectory and the church. Exactly at 6:40 p.m., I saw a red and violet figure of a beautful woman rising from the hill of Crnica. The red and violet figure faded in intensity as she was ascending into the sky and then disappeared. The last thing I saw was a brilliant white veil dangling from her feet and swinging in the air.

My vision of the lady ascending into the sky lasted for about 30 seconds. I had no doubt that this was indeed a supernatural phenomenon. It has clearly proven that the events in Medjugorje originated from God. After much thought, I came to the following conclusions:

1. On Tuesday evening, the sky was clear and cloudless. There was not a single cloud in the sky - it was like the cloud suddenly appeared over Cerno.

2. I could see distinctly, plainly, and unmistakably that the Mary-like figure that appeared in the sky was a very beautiful woman and I had no doubt She was Our Lady.

3. The veil that was dangling under her feet was whiter than the whitest snow.

4. It was obvious that the figure was that of a high-born woman.

5. What I saw was not merely a coincidence or an illusion. At the time I saw what I described above, Our Lady was actually appearing to the visionaries in a garden in Bijakovici.

I therefore conclude that I have witnessed a miraculous sign from God - Our Heavenly Mother whom the visionaries could see and talk with.

Father Umberto Loncar: A Short Biography

Fr. Umberto Loncar is a well-respected Franciscan priest in the Province of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was born in Posusje on 6 June 1922, where he attended primary school. In 1940, he joined the Franciscans after having completed his theological studies in Zagreb. He was ordained a priest on 6 June 1949, on his 27th birthday. Following that, he served in the military for one year, after which he was assigned to Mostar and then to Konjic as associate pastor. He served as a pastor in Cerin, in the municipality of Citluk, from 1959 to 1964. In 1964, he was assigned to Humac, in the municipality of Ljubuski, where he became the guardian of the monastery from 1967 until he was assigned to Posuski Gradac in 1970. In 1978, he was assigned to Gradnici, in the municipality of Citluk. He returned to Cerin in 1988 and has remained there until now. 

You may also like to read SUPERNATURAL EVENTS IN MEDJUGORJE, THE APPARITIONS OF OUR LADY AT MEDJUGORJE and TESTIMONY OF FATHER LUKA SUSAC. To view the content page of this blog, please click here.

Reference:

The Apparitions of Our Lady at Medjugorje by Father Svetozar Kraljevic.