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FEATHERED
MANNA FROM HEAVEN
On Feb. 2, 2001, the feast of the Purification of the Blessed
Virgin, over a hundred brave souls gathered at the sacred grounds
in near freezing cold to offer their regular Rosaries to the Queen
of Heaven.
During the
blessing of Jesus and Mary about 9 p.m., the pilgrims were
suddenly taken aback with amazement and wonder when droves of
miraculous white doves came over the grounds in unprecedented
numbers and literally inundated the sky above the Vatican Pavilion
site. The event lasted about twenty minutes.
The dove,
as we know, is the symbol of the Holy Ghost, which is the Spirit
of Light, the Spirit of Truth. And the flight of doves is
indicative of the great spiritual light that emanates from these
holy grounds.
It is
interesting to note that the Miracle of the Doves occurred during
the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary and ended just at the end of
the fourth mystery, which is the Presentation of the Infant Jesus
in the Temple, where Our Lady offered two turtle doves in
accordance with the Mosaic law of purification. It’s as if Our
Lady is saying, “I offer you this gift today on this My feast
day.”
The Miracle
of the Doves is direct confirmation that Heaven continues with us
today on the sacred grounds in fulfillment of Jesus’ words: “We
have made Our home upon these grounds” (June
18, 1991). Certainly
Our Lady and Our Lord sanction the work of St Michael’s
World Apostolate and have been pleased to send among us the Holy
Ghost.
Our Lady
states, “My Son will perform from these sacred grounds a major
miracle that will bring all to the knowledge and reality that
there exists a God Who is the Creator and rules Heaven and earth”
(May 30, 1973).
The Miracle of the Doves is a splendid foretaste of what we have
to look forward to in the future. |
Awe-inspiring
Feb. 12, 2001
Dear Michael,
This is to testify
to the wonderful grace afforded us who were present on the Shrine grounds
on the night of Feb. 2. We were there in prayer to Our Lady of the Roses,
Mary Help of Mothers and we had paused to receive the blessing from Jesus
and Mary when we noticed white doves flying overhead. It had been raining
but the rain had stopped and the clouds cleared. However there was one
puffy cloud over Our Lady’s statue and it was out of this cloud that the
doves seem to come. They came out in waves. There must have been hundreds
in all. It was a great boost to my spirit.
Rita
Callender
St. Albans, N.Y.
Unforgettable
Feb. 14, 2001
Dear SMWA,
While we were
saying the Rosaries on the sacred grounds someone said, “Look, look, the
doves!” I looked up to the sky. The doves were all over the sky. It was
a beautiful miracle to see. I’ll never forget what I saw. I was happy I
went to the Shrine that night. For the first time in all the years I’ve
been going to the Shrine, I saw the doves in the sky.
Antoinette
Di Cesare
Yonkers, NY
A
sign
Feb. 25, 2001
Dear Michael,
I saw the doves
sent from Heaven fly over. I saw at least several hundred; they came in
flocks. It was the first vigil of the new millennium and we really needed
a shot in the arm from God our Father. It is a sign to all who supported
you and follow you that God’s favor rests on St Michael’s World
Apostolate.
Steven
J. Harden
Rockaway Park, NY
A
peace of Heaven
Feb. 9, 2001
Dear Michael and James,
When I attended the
Feb. 2 Vigil, I heard someone say, “Doves! Doves!” at the time of the
blessing of Jesus and Mary. As I looked up, I saw a flock of pure white
doves flying over the Sacred grounds. I also noticed flocks of doves
flying low and over the crowd. So low that I could see the white feathers
on their tails, feathers on their wings, and their little round bellies as
they flew flapping their wings over my head. The doves even had a little
luminous glow to them. They seemed to have come out of Heaven and went
back to Heaven in that manner. I would say there must have been about a
thousand of them. The site was truly spectacular, wonderful, and awesome.
Mary
Ann Zietkowski
Springfield, MA
A
great gift
Feb. 15, 2001
To SMWA,
I was at the Vigil
on Feb. 2. Flocks of miraculous luminous doves appeared. At least a
thousand or more. They came from all directions, and they circled the
Shrine over and over again. I’ve seen the doves before, but not so many
of them and not flying so low. You could see every detail on them. It was
a great gift and blessing from Heaven to see such a miraculous sight. It
really shows me that Heaven is very happy with the work done by the Shrine
and its workers.
Sallyann
Wlodarski
Farmington, CT
Tears
of joy
Feb. 5, 2001
At this evening
vigil we all witnessed a thick luminous white cloud way above us. Out of
it came hundreds of white doves flying above and encircling us. Everyone
was oohing and ahhing including me. I cried tears of joy being honored to
witness this. Wow! Amen!
Margerita
Horvath
Yonkers, N.Y.
Goose
bumps
Feb. 14, 2001
On Feb. 2, I could
not believe what I saw and all the other people saw. Over the statue of
Our Lady came hundreds and hundreds of miraculous doves. These
supernatural doves flew over for about 15 minutes. Our Lady gave everybody
a real treat that night. Every time I think about the miraculous doves, I
still get goose bumps. I have been going to the Shrine for 20 years and I
have never seen anything like this.
Norman
Pepin
Quincy, MA
Unprecedented
Feb. 14, 2001
Dear SMWA,
I saw hundreds and
hundreds of white doves. I’ve been going to the Shrine for 17 years and
I have never seen so many doves as I saw that night; it was a beautiful
experience and a sign of Heaven’s approval of this Mission!
Alexandrea
Soto
Bronx, N.Y.
Breathtaking
Feb. 6, 2001
Dear SMWA,
On the evening of
Feb. 2, I attended the Vigil. The night was cold. As we sat praying in the
open, a large number of doves—white and glowing—flooded the sky, time
after time, literally covering the sky. Some flew low, and I could see
distinctly their glowing underbellys and wing span—absolutely
breathtaking and a spectacular heavenly display of God’s loving care to
us.
Phyllis
Carbone
Springfield, MA
Divine
confirmation
March 8, 2001
Dear lay Order of St. Michael,
Shortly after the
blessing there appeared in the sky a multitude of miraculous snow white
doves. It was truly a spectacular, touching and remarkable event. These
supernatural signs and graces confirms that the Message given by Jesus and
Mary to Veronica of the Cross are authentic and to encourage the pilgrims
to persevere in the ongoing mission under the banner of St. Michael the
Archangel.
Elizabeth
Rooney
New York, NY
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A BIRD
EXPERT RESPONDS
Bill Dykes, Jr.,
lay order of St. Michael, consulted online with an ornithologist
on Feb. 16. He asked, “Do doves fly at night?”
Doves are active during the day and sleep at night. While other
birds may migrate at night, doves are basically non-migratory.
There are two important reasons why doves don’t fly at night.
First, they
feed mainly on seeds and grain, so they wouldn’t be able to feed
at night. From an energetics standpoint, it would not be efficient
to be active at night.
The second
reason is the risk of predation. Although they have a host of
predators in daylight, they have a better chance of escaping
because they can see them coming. At night, their vision is no
match for that of owls or other nocturnal predators like foxes and
cats. Doves are capable of flying at night, but it’s too risky
and rarely do so.
The scene
you describe is truly amazing. For a large flock of white doves
(which do not live in the wild in New York in pure flocks) to
appear at that particular time is unreal. Unless someone released
them, it certainly could be a divine miracle. I am certainly no
expert in that area however. Disappearing up into the clouds is
also something the doves would not normally do at night, so if
that was really the case, it was a good sign of something from
above.
David
at www.allexperts.com
David
has been a field ornithologist for over 15 years, studying bird
populations, habitat management, frugivory (fruit eating birds),
and landscaping for birds and other wildlife. |
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