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Exciting Update

Issue No. 4   December 2001

Miracle of the Doves

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

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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