THE recent controversy involving the alleged apparition of the Our Lady Mary Mediatrix of All Grace in Lipa, Batangas in 1948 is not enough reason to reopen an investigation on the phenomenon, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) yesterday said.
In a statement released on Sunday, CBCP president Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said they do not see any cause to reopen an investigation that no less than the Vatican has resolved.
“Rome has spoken on the matter in 1951, and has reiterated its position in 2015, namely, that the alleged Lipa apparitions, on the basis of investigations done in 1949, had been judged to have ‘no sign of supernatural character or origin’,” said David.
“The 2015 decree has explicitly stated that ‘the matter of the phenomenon of Lipa is not subject to the authority of the local diocesan bishop’,” he added.
The controversy has recently landed media attention following the arrest of Fr. Winston Cabading last May 13 for alleged violation of Article 133 of the Revised Penal Code or Offending Religious Feelings charges filed by former elections chief Harriet Demetriou.
The charges filed by Demetriou alleged that Cabading offended her religious feelings when he stated during the 4th National Conference on the Ministry of Spiritual Liberation in 2019 that there was no Marian apparition that happened at the Carmelite Monastery in Lipa, Batangas as ruled by the Vatican.
