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The Apparition of Mary at La Laus, France (1664)
White Horse Inn ^ | February 4, 2014 | Timothy F. Kauffman

Posted on 06/27/2015 8:53:16 AM PDT by RnMomof7

Our Lady of LausStatues depicting the apparition of Mary to Benoite Rencurel at La Laus, France.

One of the most fervent forms of devotion in Roman Catholicism is to the visions of Mary, commonly called “apparitions.” For many centuries, in many locations around the world, Mary is alleged to have appeared to visionaries of the Roman Catholic Church. These visionaries typically report conversations with Mary, and the apparition of Mary has many times delivered messages that have been documented through the official channels of the Roman Catholic Church. There have been many hundreds of alleged apparitions throughout history, but only a few have been approved officially by the Roman Catholic Church. These few are considered to be actual bodily appearances of Mary,  and therefore “worthy of belief.” Among them are the Apparitions of Mary at Guadalupe, Mexico (1531); Paris, France (1830); La Salette, France (1846); Lourdes, France (1858); and Fatima, Portugal (1917).

The approval process for an alleged apparition can take many years, and it is rare for one to be elevated formally to the same level as those listed above. When that approval becomes official, it provides a tremendous amount of insight into the visions of Mary themselves because interviews with the visionaries are meticulously inspected, and the vision’s messages and teachings are rigorously documented through the approval process. It also provides tremendous insight into the Roman Catholic Church, because the teachings of approved apparitions are consistent with Roman Catholic teaching—otherwise they would not have been approved.

The recent approval of the Apparitions of Mary in La Laus, France is significant for this reason. The vision of Mary in La Laus appeared to Benoite Rencurel in 1664 and continued for 54 years. Early in her encounters, Benoite was resisted by the church hierarchy and was tempted to give up. The vision encouraged her to press on:

“No, My daughter, you must not run away. …  don’t be afraid. Tell the Vicar General that he can very well make God come down from Heaven by the power he received when he became a priest, but he has no commands to give the Mother of God.

There are many other teachings to evaluate from La Laus, but this one is highlighted because it shows Christ subjected as a prisoner and a servant to the Roman Catholic priest, but Mary free of any such encumbrances. When Benoite conveyed this message to the Vicar General, the meaning of the message was quite clear:

“Sire, although you command God each morning and make Him come down to the altar by the power you received when you became a priest, you have no commands to give His holy Mother, who does as She pleases here.”

That message was the turning point, and the Vicar General allowed Benoite to continue receiving visits from the apparition. On May 5, 2008, more than three hundred years after the visions began, the apparitions of Mary at La Laus were approved as worthy of devotion.

Not surprisingly, this depiction of Mary as equal, or superior, to Christ is consistent in approved apparitions. The Fatima apparition taught that Jesus wants Mary to be honored throughout the world:

“Jesus wishes to make use of you to have me acknowledged and loved. He wishes to establish in the world the devotion to My Immaculate Heart.”

The La Salette apparition of Mary taught that Jesus was angry because people were not setting aside the Sabbath day to honor Mary:

“I gave you six days for working. The seventh I have reserved for myself. But no one will give it to me. This is what causes the weight of my Son’s arm to be so crushing.”

Two things are abundantly clear from La Laus and other approved apparitions: 1)  the visions of Mary eagerly desire to be elevated to the level of Jesus Christ and higher, and 2) the Roman Catholic Church is formally comfortable with that elevation. Listen to Father Eymard explain how the three Persons of the Trinity waited to discover what Mary’s answer would be to the Angel Gabriel at the annunciation:

“The angel is the first to salute. He is, indeed, the less worthy of the two. Mary is sovereign here, and since the Three Divine Persons are awaiting an answer, she holds in her hands the fate of the world. Ah, how powerful is that lowly maiden!” (Eymard, Month of Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, trans. from the Sixth French Edition, 1903, p. 55).

Fr. Eymard is one of the most famous proponents of the La Laus apparitions, and it is clear that he swallowed their teachings whole. We will explore these and other apparitions of Mary later, but the formal approval of an apparition is worthy of special notice.

The Mary of the visions, of course, is not the Mary of the Bible. For more information on the history of the apparitions of Mary, and their unbiblical messages, you can see my book, Quite Contrary: A Biblical Reconsideration of the Apparitions of Mary here.



TOPICS: Apologetics; Catholic; Charismatic Christian; Evangelical Christian
KEYWORDS: apparitions; idolatry; mariolatry; mary
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To: metmom; ebb tide; MHGinTN
Ebb... remember how in the OT the High priest entered the Tabernacle and poured the blood of the lamb on the Mercy Seat and covered the Mercy Seat with blood for the forgiveness of the people of Israel ??

That was a foreshadow of Christ ..the perfect lamb covering the sin of the people given to Him by the Father..

The Gospel is so simple.. and yet so complex to the human mind ... Christ the perfect sinless lamb .. took the punishment each of us deserve ... He paid our penalty ...We have been justified by the blood of Christ ...justified freely by His grace.. (Romans 3:24) ... The cross was more than an "opportunity" to save ourselves.. It was a full promised Salvation.. to those that by Gods grace .. repent and turn from their sin.. and trust that Christ has paid it all ...

Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace

Think about it... read Metmoms post.. His yoke is easy... His burden light ... look to Christ

81 posted on 06/28/2015 10:48:55 AM PDT by RnMomof7
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To: RnMomof7; metmom

And on what street corner did you meet Jesus Christ when you walked away from the Tabernacle?


82 posted on 06/28/2015 10:54:13 AM PDT by ebb tide (We have a rogue curia in Rome.)
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To: ebb tide
And on what street corner did you meet Jesus Christ when you walked away from the Tabernacle?

Come to Christ ebb... Come to Christ.... ask Him for the grace to see.. to hear... to understand the gospel ... ask Him ebb

83 posted on 06/28/2015 10:56:44 AM PDT by RnMomof7
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To: ebb tide

Actually, at work.

But the building is no longer there.

You are aware, aren’t you, that the God of the universe is not bound by space or time, nor does He inhabit buildings made by man?

He is near to all who call on Him and it can be in the car, at work, the mall, in a hospital room, bedroom at home, where ever you need to meet Him.


84 posted on 06/28/2015 10:58:20 AM PDT by metmom (...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith...)
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To: ebb tide; RnMomof7
Acts 17:24-28 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,

If you have to go somewhere to meet your god, it is NOT the God of Scripture.

85 posted on 06/28/2015 11:01:32 AM PDT by metmom (...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith...)
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To: metmom
If you have to go somewhere to meet your god, it is NOT the God of Scripture.

Amen

86 posted on 06/28/2015 11:16:46 AM PDT by RnMomof7
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To: RnMomof7
Come to Christ ebb...

I'm already there. Why don't you come back to Him? Why did you leave HIm in the first place?

87 posted on 06/28/2015 11:22:53 AM PDT by ebb tide (We have a rogue curia in Rome.)
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To: ebb tide

You just equated the catholic institution with The God of the Universe. That is in disntict contradiction to what God told you in the Bible. Can you see it? Leaving the catholic institution does not equate with leaving God. That you can make such an erroneous assertion ought to give you and every catholic reading this thread pause to consider what they actually believe.


88 posted on 06/28/2015 11:28:00 AM PDT by MHGinTN (Is it really all relative, Mister Einstein?)
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To: metmom
Actually, at work.

How was He dressed? Did He show you His Five Wounds? Did He wink at you?

89 posted on 06/28/2015 11:30:09 AM PDT by ebb tide (We have a rogue curia in Rome.)
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To: ebb tide

Mock away.

I’ve heard that line of questioning many times by unbelievers who don’t really believe that God speaks to our hearts and meets with us where ever we need Him.

But if you want to go there.......

What’s He dressed like when you see Him at church? Does He wink at you? Show you His wounds?

Does He say *ouch* when you eat Him? How long does He stay?


90 posted on 06/28/2015 11:35:54 AM PDT by metmom (...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith...)
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To: ebb tide

Do not mock the work of Jesus Christ, The Holy Spirit, or God the Father Almighty. catholicism has not gotten that big, yet. But with the current leadership of that religion, that may be amended by them soon.


91 posted on 06/28/2015 11:37:35 AM PDT by MHGinTN (Is it really all relative, Mister Einstein?)
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To: ebb tide
I'm already there. Why don't you come back to Him? Why did you leave HIm in the first place?

...No ebb, Catholics are lost wandering souls looking for Christ in the wrong places

John 7:…33Therefore Jesus said, "For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me.John 7 34"You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come." 35The Jews then said to one another, "Where does this man intend to go that we will not find Him? He is not intending to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks, is He?…

…John 8 20These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come. 21Then He said again to them, "I go away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come."23And He was saying to them, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. 24"Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.

ebb... Jesus is not locked in a cracker...then locked in box.. that men knee before ..light candles to.. He lives ... He lives in those that are His.. 24/7 ...

ebb...God will not be mocked ...

92 posted on 06/28/2015 12:14:23 PM PDT by RnMomof7
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To: metmom
Does He say *ouch* when you eat Him?

As a former Catholic, you have done that. What did He say?

93 posted on 06/28/2015 12:43:18 PM PDT by ebb tide (We have a rogue curia in Rome.)
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To: MHGinTN
Leaving the catholic institution does not equate with leaving God.

Sure it does. There's only One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.

The door is always open, come on in.

94 posted on 06/28/2015 12:58:45 PM PDT by ebb tide
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To: RnMomof7
ebb...God will not be mocked ...

And who is mocking God?

Does He say *ouch* when you eat Him? How long does He stay?

95 posted on 06/28/2015 1:02:43 PM PDT by ebb tide
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To: MHGinTN
Do not mock the work of Jesus Christ, The Holy Spirit, or God the Father Almighty.

Why did you say "or"?

96 posted on 06/28/2015 1:07:10 PM PDT by ebb tide
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To: ebb tide

Deflection duly noted.

I asked you. Why don’t you answer?


97 posted on 06/28/2015 1:11:19 PM PDT by metmom (...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith...)
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To: ebb tide

I dunno, maybe because before the law was given, before the Noahide covenant, the Lord God Almighty was knowable by the Creation. God is One (Hear oh Israel, the Lord oUr God is One). In the beginning was The Word and the Word was with God in the beginning and was God. The Holy Spirit is so evident around us, growing more noticeable very day, as Science realizes how infinitely delicate is the balance between forces which allow this 4D spacetime to exist for our existence. The “or” may just be what it is, a conjunction.


98 posted on 06/28/2015 1:17:42 PM PDT by MHGinTN (Is it really all relative, Mister Einstein?)
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To: ebb tide
And who is mocking God?

Actually, the person who said this.....How was He dressed? Did He show you His Five Wounds? Did He wink at you?

A friend of mine when he was an unbeliever, used to mock Christians with comments about God calling his phone and asked if the phone glowed in the dark when God was calling.

Your comments sound strikingly similar.

Do you disbelieve that God still speaks to His people today on an individual level? Where ever they are, whenever they need Him?

Do you think He will not answer the person who cries out to Him in need, even if they are not in a church building? Even if they are at work, or at home, or in the mall, or on the road?

Is He not omnipresent after all? Or does He really live in a wheat wafer locked in a box in a Catholic church for His own protection, and people, if they really need God, will get up the motivation themselves to go to that church, otherwise they prove they're really not serious about God after all?

If my car is sliding off the road on ice, I want God's help NOW, not later when I manage to find the nearest local Catholic church.

Is God really bound and controlled by the Catholic church?

99 posted on 06/28/2015 1:18:31 PM PDT by metmom (...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith...)
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To: ebb tide; metmom
And who is mocking God?

Ebb Tide ...How was He dressed? Did He show you His Five Wounds? Did He wink at you?

100 posted on 06/28/2015 1:24:46 PM PDT by RnMomof7
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