In Zeitoun the Virgin Mary appeared to Christians and Muslims alike (II)

Cardinal Stephanos I Sidarous, patriarch of the Coptic Catholic Church (united with Rome), personally endorsed the official recognition of the Zeitoun apparitions in Egypt (1):

"There is no doubt about the reality of these apparitions, which have been confirmed by many faithful and trustworthy Catholic Copts, known for their integrity. These people witnessed the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary and gave me a complete description of them. Sister Paula de Mofalo, a Roman Catholic nun well known for her uprightness and common sense, assured me of the authenticity of the Zeitoun apparitions. She was still visibly moved when she told me that she was not the only one to have seen her, but that thousand others had seen Our Lady at the same time as she." By decision of Coptic Pope Cyril VI in 1969, the Coptic Orthodox Church added to its liturgical calendar a feast of the Transfiguration of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun, celebrated annually on 24 barmahat (April 2).

A new church has been built in Zeitoun, which has a weekly attendance (every Friday and Saturday) of 4,000 faithful. Countless people claim to have been healed during or after the apparitions. A medical committee set up by the Coptic Orthodox Church and chaired by Professor Shafi Abd-el-Malek of the Faculty of Medicine at Cairo University is responsible for recording and verifying them.

Among the most spectacular cases are: 40 year-old Sami Abd-el-Malek who was cured of terminal bladder cancer; Fathma Zahi Reda, a devout Muslim, healed of an incurable condition of the thyroid gland; another Muslim, Madiha Mohammed Saïd, 20, cured of nervous disorders that led to blindness and aphasia; William Nashed Zaki, a renowned Shoubra doctor, cured of a 3-year hernia; and Mahmoud Shoukry Ibrahim, 45, cured of his paraplegia.

1) Read part I in A Moment with Mary of April 2, 2020

The Marie de Nazareth team