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mysticism surrounding many Catholic festivals in the
Philippines reflects a strong belief in
miracles. From a young age, Filipino children hear stories
about apparitions of the Virgin Mary and religious icons
that weep or bleed. While for believers, these supernatural
phenomena from the basis of “miracle faith,” skeptics
call it superstition.
In 1948 Teresita Castillo, a Carmelite novice in Lipa
city in Batangas province, was reported to have seen an
apparition of the Virgin Mary standing on a cloud, dressed
in white, a golden rosary in her hand. According to Teresita,
she received the vision 19 times and the apparition asked
for penance and prayer to be offered for the clergy.
There were also accounts of hundreds of rose petals
falling from the sky, each bearing a different holy image,
such as the Virgin Mary holding a crucifix, the Last Supper,
the Holy Family, and the crucified Jesus with three women at
the foot of the cross. In 1991 there were reports of crosses
of light appearing on frosted glass panels. Reports of
crosses of light were first heard in 1988 in California and
later in Seattle, Canada, and Washington, DC., before
showing up in the Philippines.
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