VIDEO: [5:18] – In 1973, the Blessed Virgin Mary spoke to Sr. Agnes Sasagawa, a deaf convert from Buddhism, at her convent in Akita, Japan. As with all genuine Marian apparitions, Our Lady’s message was to make reparation for sin through prayer, penance and sacrifice. The statue was reported to have shed tears for 101 occasions which was witnessed by thousands of people. Sr. Agnes’ deafness was cured. She also received a stigmata in her hand and the same wound was later found in the hand of the wooden statue of our Lady in the convent.
VIDEO [1:18:32] – This May 2020 discussion is long, but very good and very well worth your time. He covers the material below, but goes into a lot of detail about how the Roman Catholic Church approaches investigations into events like this. If you’re not familiar with that process and wonder where Catholics get off believing Mary has appeared and given messages, I encourage you to listen.
After two investigations, Sr. Agnes’ bishop was still unsure if the events were miracles from God or natural/paranormal events. He was acquainted with Sr. Agnes and did not believe the events were due to mental illness or demonic influences. He said he needed to see some miracles before he could declare Our Lady of Akita worthy of veneration. Sr. Agnes’ total healing from deafness was one of these.
Teresa Chun Sun Ho was comatose and dying when she received a vision of Our Lady of Akita. Then, she woke up, completely cured. Even untrained eyes can see the astonishing difference in her brain x-rays.
In 1984, Bishop John Shojiro Ito of Niigata, Japan, in consultation with the Holy See, wrote a pastoral letter in which he recognized as being authentically of the Mother of God.
In 1988, the Vatican’s Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith approved the Akita events as “reliable and worthy of belief.” This man was then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger who became Pope Benedict XVI in 2005.
Sr. Agnes received three messages from Our Lady. The first, on June 6, 1973, was a call for prayer and sacrifice for the glory of the Father and salvation of souls. The second, on August 3, 1973, was for prayer, penance and courageous sacrifices to soften the Father’s anger.
The third message on October 13, 1973, the 100th anniversary of the final vision and Miracle of the Sun at Fatima was as follows:
“As I told you, if men do not repent and better themselves, the Father will inflict a terrible punishment on all humanity. It will be a punishment greater than the deluge, such as one will never have seen before. Fire will fall from the sky and will wipe out a great part of humanity, the good as well as the bad, sparing neither priests nor faithful. The survivors will find themselves so desolate that they will envy the dead.
“The only arms which will remain for you will be the Rosary and the Sign left by my Son. Each day, recite the prayers of the Rosary. With the Rosary, pray for the Pope, the bishops and the priests.
“The work of the devil will infiltrate even into the Church in such a way that one will see cardinals opposing cardinals, and bishops against other bishops. The priests who venerate me will be scorned and opposed by their Confreres. The Church and altars will be vandalized. The Church will be full of those who accept compromises and the demon will press many priests and consecrated souls to leave the service of the Lord.
“The demon will rage especially against souls consecrated to God. The thought of the loss of so many souls is the cause of my sadness. If sins increase in number and gravity, there will no longer be pardon for them.”
In the Jimmy Akin video, he makes a case for his belief that the events of the third message (and Fatima) occurred in the second half of the 20th century and that the “terrible punishment” (nuclear war?) was averted by our prayers.
