BOOK 3 Chapter 6:
Reprinted
with kind permission from St. Joseph Publications
from the book She Went in Haste to the Mountain
(Book 1)
NOTE: All excerpts from Conchita's
Diary will
be in extra-bold type
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* * *
1962 was a year crammed with events in the process of Garabandal. There
were innumerable apparitions by the Virgin, numerous Mystical Communions,
certain
exceptional episodes like the nights of the «gritos»
or
screams, the Miracle of the Host on July 18th, and futhermore the
increasing predictions of a great Miracle.
It was the Miracle that was beginning
to appear as the finale of the whole process. On the one hand, it would
come to put a definite seal of authenticity
on the origin of so
many and such extraordinary phenomena; on the other hand, it would come
to give the last opportunity for salvation before the great catastrophe.
With the Miracle in sight, one
could begin looking for a final outcome, since certainly no one could think
that these phenomena would continue like this indefinitely.
And so the Miracle was being discussed
more and more in the statements of the girls and was increasing in importance
in the hopes of the pilgrims.
More News More Expectation
The winter of 1963 began on the
heights of Garabandal without an interruption in the normal march
of the apparitions. The three girls who remained —Jacinta, Loli, and Conchita
— were accustomed to have their ecstasies individually. But at times the
three joined together, and the ecstatic march that resulted was singularly
beautiful. In Fr. Valentin's notes of December 3rd, 1962, there is this
excerpt:
«Today our attention was
attracted by their way of walking. A total synchronization of movements
was observed. The three held their step perfectly, in the manner of a military
march. They only lost the rhythm when they had to avoid some difficult
obstacle, or on the rare occasions when they stumbled; but immediately
they regained the cadence. Loli attracted the most attention because she
has a natural tendency to walk with shorter steps than the other two, probably
because she is much smaller.
On this day, Conchita came out
of ecstasy before the other two; [In Garabandal during
these December days was a man from Barcelona named Francisco Clapes Maymó,
who was kind enough to send me a copy of his notes from this period. In
the notes pertaining to the night between December 2nd and 3rd, I see Fr.
Valentin's statements confirmed: «Conchita ended the ecstasy first,
and she continued holding the arms of Jacinta and Maria Dolores (Loli).
Maria Dolores haoan expression of sorrow. Ceferino, who was listening
beside Maria Dolores in ecstasy, said that from what he had heard this
was diabolical, and they were discussing this . . . Conchita said the meeting
that they had in ecstasy in a room of her house was not diabolical, but
from the Virgin.»
This meeting took
place on the previous afternoon, December 2, and we know of it from the
testimony of this same Mr. Clapes Maymó: «At 6:20 in the
afternoon Conchita fell into ecstasy while playing, and on seeing her,
Maria Dolores and Jacinta had an ecstasy too. They didn't say the rosary.
They made tours through the village, coming to the church several times.
At the beginning of the ecstasy the three entered Conchita's house, went
up to her room, making signs so that no one would follow them. They were
upstairs for a while. We don't know what they did or said.» (It
might be asked whether this private audience might not have been for the
Virgin to reveal the date of the Miracle.)] and it was
observed that, while the other two continued in their rhythmic step, perfectly
synchronized, Conchita began to walk in her normal way. There was also
another unusual thing on this day. We had always seen that when the three
girls marched in ecstasy, Conchita infallibly occupied the center position.
Today it was not this way; she constantly occupied a position on the side.
Jacinta went in the center, Loli at the left, and Conchita at the right.»
----------------
December 6th was a Tuesday, the
day before the vigil of the Immaculate Conception. Long before dusk had
settled, toward 5:30, Conchita had an ecstasy that lasted 90 minutes. When
it was over, the girl made two important announcements concerning the Miracle:
1) One day, a little before
the Miracle will be performed, something will happen that will cause many
people to stop believing in the apparitions of Garabandal. The doubts and
desertions will not be due to an excessive delay of the Miracle.
2) On the day of the Miracle,
the note that she signed in Santander (stating the apparitions were not
authentic) would disappear.[This refers to the paper
that she signed — on pressure from Dr. Piñal— when she was taken
to the capital at Santander at the end of July, 1961. (See chapter VI of
Part One.) The information about December 6th was taken from the notes
of Fr, Valentin. Mr. Clapes Maymó gives his version as an eyewitness:
«Conchita had an ecstasy that went from 5:35 to 6:40 in the morning
. . . When she was normal again, she said that the paper the doctor in
Santander had made her sign — stating that the apparitions were false and
that she was insane — would disappear by the Virgin's command. She said
too that just before the Miracle almost no one would believe in Garabandal
...»]
* * *
Two days later came the feast
of the Immaculate Conception, the most solemn Marian feast and the one
best observed in Spain. Furthermore, it was Conchita's nameday. Almost
at the beginning of the day, at 3 o'clock in the morning, the girl was
favored with an ecstasy. Part of what she said in conversation with the
apparition was recorded on a tape recorder. Some of her phrases had an
astounding childishness, if it is taken into account that she was approaching
her 14th birthday. For example, with regard to the Infant whom the Virgin
brought this time:
«Today
they brought
an infant to me that doesn't seem like the one that you bring . . ,
[A young woman from Madrid, Paloma Fernandez-Pacheco,
was present on that day in Garabandal with her husband Mr. de Larrauri.
She wrote me several observations: «The infant about whom Conchita
talked in ecstasy was the Infant Jesus of the Nativity that I brought.
I myself took the reel of tape that recorded the conversation to the NO-DO
laboratories. It was rather long, and at times the Virgin's voice seemed
to be heard. At NO-DO they told me that the tape had two voices on it.
But that they were not at the same volume, as they were very different
in tone and pitch. (I don't remember well the technical words they used.)
They were amazed ...»] And how long since
you've come with the Infant! He hasn't grown at all! Look, He's the same
as He was . . .
Where has He been? Where has He been? . . .
Oh! When the Infant doesn't come, where does He stay? In heaven! In
a cradle? . . . Oh! But you can't be here and there!»
-----------------
Interspersed with these childlike
remarks and other unintelligible expressions, there also were heard words
obviously related to the Miracle. But they did not spell out anything new,
leaving up in the air any explanation that might have been given by the
mysterious conversationalist.
The same kind of thing occurred
in the ecstasy that Jacinta had almost immediately afterward. There were
similar childish questions as:
«Do you sometimes shiver
there when snow comes like this? . . . But the snow comes from there
up above.»
-----------------
Together with these remarks,
there were other points ol interest that could not be completely understood:
«I want that day to
come, to be part of it... You know why I want that day to come? My father
doesn't believe . . . Oh! After the Miracle comes, will the people believe?
. . . A week is enough? . . . When will the people see you?»
----------------
The topic of the Miracle filled
the air in Garabandal in those final weeks of 1962. Fr. Valentin's notes,
which end during these days, give as almost the last piece of information:
«On this day of December
15th, Conchita told Mercedes Salisachs that a totally paralyzed man would
be cured on the day of the Miracle, wherever he was.»[Clapes
Maymó also confirms this information. On the morning of December
10: «Conchita had an ecstasy between 5:27 and 5:37. (ten minutes}
Accompanying her were Mrs. (Mercedes) Salisachs, a lady friend,
Felix (An ex-seminarian from Bilbao), a young child from Colunga
(Asturias)
and Mrs. Salisachs' chauffeur . . . She said that a paralyzed
child — known by this woman — for whom she had asked Conchita to pray,
would be cured wherever he was.» (on the day of the Miracle)]
In an atmosphere like this, what
produced the tremedous crisis that abruptly dashed the hopes and annihilated
most of the enthusiasm?
